Hi friends! I am home from our incredible European vacation and back to work this week, which is always a bit of an adjustment after time off. In this season of my life I am feeling more grateful than ever which is always amplified when traveling. I will be putting a few blog posts together and sharing details of some favorite spots, but overall I came home feeling very inspired and excited. It can be so easy to get bogged down with stress and frustration in day to day life, so I find it very helpful to step away from that in some capacity to reset. It doesn’t have to be some elaborate vacation, but even taking a mid week day off to do things that fuel you or something you might not normally have time for. I am excited to be home for the official start to summer next week and savor this time of year filled with fresh peonies, more hours of sunlight, deliciously ripe produce and time spent outdoors. While I was on my trip I kept thinking of topics or little notes of information I wanted to share with you guys, so I am bringing back On My Mind periodically to break down my random interests at the moment. I hope you enjoy!

New To Me Brand

While in Paris I walked by a Claudie Pierlot store, which are all over the city. I have seen them before, but never paid much attention and I am trying to be better about observing different brands we don’t have in stores at home. I instantly stopped in my tracks to look at the sandals in the window and then discovered a ton of other items I wanted. The pieces look and feel very high end, but have a good price point and many are on sale right now at Farfetch – including the sandals.

What I’m Watching

I am not a big YouTube person, but occasionally I find myself falling down the rabbit hole of home tour videos and can’t get enough. Recently I have been enthralled and very inspired by the Schumacher House Tour series. Particularly the most charming Colonial Williamsburg home designed by Heather Chadduck Hillegas and Windsor Smith’s beautiful LA home. I am always fascinated to see designers in their own spaces and how they differ from projects. Ultimately a project is someone else’s space and designers understandably don’t always have input in every last detail. I find in their own homes you see the core of their aesthetic and their own personal collections that feel incredibly special.

Vacation Makeup

At home or on vacation I stick to a pretty limited collection of tried and true makeup favorites, but when traveling especially I need everything to be easy. Since I take a carry on I only bring one small makeup bag and therefore don’t want to bring a ton of brushes, etc. Luckily so many of my favorite makeup staples come in sticks and I find them so easy to blend with my fingers or one brush. I have talked about my love for Westman Atelier and now most of my daily make up is comprised of the brand. The foundation stick, the contour (this is SO good and creamy) and the blush. Also instead of bringing multiple lipsticks, I got this incredible buildable palette which is long lasting. For eyeshadow I love the Laura Mercier sticks especially in strapless and moonlight. It is so nice not having a jam packed make up bag, but still feeling like I have enough to get a few different looks. I also love these travel perfume tubes so you don’t have to bring the larger bottle. They are so easy to fill from your existing bottle and they spray evenly.

Summer Dresses

Summer always feels like the season of events – from weddings to baby showers and everything in between. I love buying dresses for events as I come across them simply because whenever I need something I can never EVER find what I am looking for. Truly happens every time! Of course I am obsessed with DÔEN’s latest drop and have been loving a lot of pink tones recently.

On My Bookshelf

When we were in Antwerp we went into the most incredible bookstore filled with so many books I had not seen before. I love perusing coffee table books in other countries and always discover new designers or places I want to visit. I instantly gravitated towards Ateliers of Europe and purchased right when I got home (too heavy to carry). This book gives incredible insight into workrooms across Europe and the insanely talented men and women who occupy them. I also got Cyclades and have Eden Garden Designs on my list.