Creative Finds: Random Eclectic Mood Setters ~

I had some fun preparing for this post while looking for images that appeal to my eclectic mood and hit my creative nerve. Whether it is the interior design of a kitchen, or pieces of jewelry displayed in vintage bowls - the playfulness along with the whimsicality of design and texture really defines the set-up of a space. My style is exactly that. I love to be risky; to be a bit different than the 'norm' and mix it up a little. I love vintage, antique, contemporary, traditional all at the same time and the best thing is to give it some contrast. I believe my personality also suits to the description above. I like to have fun, but along the way, you will find me serious, deep, sad, witty, goofy, romantic and happy. I think it is extremely important to make your living space according to your taste buds as it should nurture your soul and love you right back! 

Here's my creative finds!

This kitchen with the chandelier is to DIE for! So much class and sophistication!

 

Awww! 

Gotta like the wall stickers. I love how you can go nuts with adding bright furniture pieces!

I'd like to throw a party here...

Contemporary & Sweet:

Jewelry that doesn't go unnoticed...

I love everything about this; the closet, the picture-less frames. I would like to create something like this for Mehreen's room when she's a little older. :)

If I'd walk in this room, I'd be happy!

My ultimate DREAM room:

...and my ULTIMATE dream bathroom!

Roses so beautiful and behind them, the couch that is the perfect color blue!

I like the backdrop that defines the entire look of this bedroom set. The stark lines of the bedding and the matching colors match beautifully. Also, the nightstand lamps go perfect with the setting. Look closely, if you have the eye for detail, you will notice what I'm noticing...
{will reveal at the end of this post} 

Love it!

I also put shells that I've collected from the beach as a display on the book shelves.

It almost seems as if this chair has a story to tell...

I like this vintage cardigan:

Tights I'd wear with those shoes!

Love the stuffed owl and the stuffed octopus for kids to play with:

 TOTALLY my style:

My taste buds are in full effect now! I have a passion for all that I find beautiful, especially when there is so much creativity involved in the making of the product. Life sure seems to be beautiful! Design it the way YOU like it. :)

P.S: Did you see it? And...?

It's the NIGHT STANDS! I love how they've used two different night stands [the one on the left is actually a coffee table]. The forest green color of the table compliments the green plant on the right night stand! Like I said; take the risk, mix it up and live a little. ;)

xoxo,

Naila~

Pakistani Designer: Elan by Khadija Shah~

1. Tell us a little about yourself and your brand, Elan?

I acquired my love for designing from my mother who used to design for family and friends for as long as I can remember. My sister’s and I hardly ever went to designers to shop for clothes; Ela as we call our mother, would take us around get whatever materials and embellishments we liked and put together our outfits herself and they were always better than anything available at the boutiques. I think that’s how I got the design bug. After graduating from college in London I came back to Pakistan and initially started off by helping my mother with her work. My mother however only did it as a hobby as she was busy with a lot of other work and I wanted to do this on a much larger scale. I had a dream of bringing about a fashion revolution at least in Lahore (ha ha I though people dressed really badly here, but lahorites have come a long way since then) and so I parted ways with Ela and set up Élan as a formal part of the fashion industry.

2. What does Elan stand for, what’s your design philosophy?

Élan is a French word and is synonymous with style, confidence and elegance. My design philosophy can also be defined by these three words. An Élan outfit can be traditional or modern, heavily worked or lightly embellished but it will always be pleasing to the eye, a standard which I feel most local designers find very hard to achieve. I never design anything that I would not wear myself and I think that’s a large part of why my clothes are appreciated so much. Also, I research my designs quite thoroughly, in terms of colour, international trends, patterns and motifs. For example my prêt line showcases a lot of prints which is an influence from the international catwalks as most local designers hardly ever use the beautiful prints available.

3. What is the driving force behind your success and respected status?

 I think the fact that I am dependable. Apart from the very rare unavoidable instance, I always deliver on time and my clients always get exactly the same product as the sample. The outfit has to satisfy me before it is even presented to the client, so I pretty much go out of my way for each customer regardless of what the price constraints might be because I want all élan clothes to look and feel great.

Below are some AMAZING designs of Elan's runway collection:

Gorgeous, aren't they? 

xoxo,

Naila~

Celebrity Fashionista: Blake Lively

When I heard of Blake Lively and Leonardo DiCaprio as a couple, I thought; "Great! They seem to be made for each other". I had seen a short interview of Blake Lively on the Today Show promoting her newest gig with Ryan Reynold's for 'Green Lantern' while standing outside at Rockefeller Plaza being interviewed by Matt and Ann Courie. I couldn't help but notice how friendly her face looked. Her hair was given the messy back-combing look which suits her face in a very laid back free spirited way. Apart from her looks, I loved how she was interacting with the interviewers who are much and much older than her. I was impressed by how articulate and down-to-earth she was. I thoroughly enjoyed her answers and it felt refreshing to me that a girl like her who is on top of the world right now, still gives off a vibe of normalcy. See video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5V1cuHJYrk&feature=player_embedded


Her style has always suited her to perfection on Gossip Girl, but her red carpet appearances have made me give her a second glance as well.
I am an occasional watcher of Gossip Girl and many a times have I tuned into Gossip Girl just to see their immaculate and gorgeous dresses, hair and make-up. Blake Lively definitely stands out in the crowd as her very own unique fashionista-self. She seems to be very comfortable in her skin. For a 23 year old Californian girl, I find that quite remarkable.

Blake Lively's photo shoot for Glamour magazine. Here she is passionately talking about fashion...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uFiRNmVGKs&NR=1
"I love decorating myself. I love fashion so much."

The beautiful Chanel Couture dress Blake wore on the premiere of Green Lantern looked absolutely stunning on her. 

 BLAKE LIVELY has been chosen as the new face of Chanel's Mademoiselle handbag line. California-born Lively said she grew up admiring Chanel and what it represents to her: “It is timeless, chic, graceful, intelligent, iconic and ever relevant.”
Lively has quickly catapulted to fame, and the leggy blonde is a front-row favorite at New York fashion shows.

 Here's Blake at the Green Lantern Premiere walking with her nephews as her cute little accessories. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVEMdl5q6Qc&feature=player_embedded

She's apparently got her fashion sense from her mom who is a former model and has always  taken pride in dressing her up.

"How did Cinderella feel when she slipped on the glass slipper? How did Snow White feel when she met her Prince Charming?" Lively says. "A dream come true is an understatement. I can say that I feel like the happiest, luckiest girl around."

You see, with a positive & pleasant attitude like hers, no wonder she's got Leo [mr. dream guy!] whirlwind romancing in Europe! :) The girl can bake, cook (she completed a cooking course with Le Cordon Bleu in Paris) and she can speak French!

xoxo,

Naila~

Beauty Insider: "Exercise"

I've been looking forward to writing this Blog post - my only drawback was 'time' which I happen to seem have much of, but in actuality I don't. All my time is dedicated to my happy and jolly baby girl Mehreen who is an active crawler and always demands my attention. I love her to bits. Just her smile alone makes my heart overflow with love. :)


Lately my exercise regimen consists of going to the YMCA, four to five times a week and per my brother Nabeel's suggestion, I am using the Stairmaster at the gym. I must say, I am seeing results and I'm quite happy with my progress. I just need to be more regular to achieve my goal and for that, I've given myself a deadline till Mehreen's birthday - October 22nd. Translation of Naila's goal setting strategy : "Mehreen turns 1 ---> Mommy must look hot!"

The glorified Stairmaster that I've fallen in love with:

This segment is a continuation and a part of the series ' Beauty Inside and Out'. I have divided beauty pursuits into four categories: skin care, food, oral health and exercise. In order to maintain yourself and to stay fit & ever beautiful, one needs to master all these categories and live a full and happy life. Nourishing your body by taking care of its skin, its nutrition, its digestive system and all bodily functions - only shows that we as humans are grateful for what we've been blessed with. Deliberate laziness only adds to the fact that we don't care and have taken life for granted. 

While the Stairmaster takes care of my 25 minute workout of the day, I am also thinking on starting yoga at home. I have everything to my convenience; a laptop, netflix subscription, a stay-at-home lifestyle, an active baby who loves to climb on mommy and now since I'm seeing results and feeling good about myself, I have also gained the spirit to actually do it! I am so happy to be focusing on all the good things in life. It's easy to fall into the trap of self-pity and complain, but it's much harder [at first!] to courage up the motivation and have a result driven attitude. I love seeing results. Whether it's the very basic day-to-day house chores or a plain day of being 'mommy' - it's all good. As long as the result of my efforts pays off and I know I've done a good job at the end of the day.


So yes, beautiful people who are skinny biatches, lol...happen to stay skinny & fit because it's their motivation/lifestyle/need to feel and look desirable. And yes, DESIRABLE is definitely what a woman wants to feel, especially after having a baby. Do not lose your zest for life, ladies. You can do anything and nothing is impossible. Even when the day seems to be such a drag and everything moves in slow-motion around you [believe me, today I felt like a sleep deprived zombie], I'll tell you; it's okay to indulge. 

Today, I didn't do anything. I just didn't feel like it. I put Mehreen in her car seat and made my way to the Mall where I felt like spending a little on highly discounted [60-70% off] baby sale items. I did however walk throughout the entire Mall and considered today's mall visit my workout. Note to self: I should refrain from getting mouthwatering coffee drinks and just stick to my bottle of water. Oops.


Perfect bodies ain't happenin', but the pursuit of looking our best and FEELING fantastic even at gloomy days like today as the weather clearly screamed for a Mc Donalds Mocha Frappe while the rain was generously pouring on Houston, making the air feel like a soft blanket. You just wanna shop, eat and sleep. 

How can something look THIS good and be SOOO bad? Argh.

I managed to accomplish the first two mindless and lazy tasks on my nothing-to-do-list, but as a mom of an 8 month old [Mehreen turned 8 months yesterday - woohoo!], I am in constant battle in wanting to sleep and trying to stay productive all at the same time. I have noticed the correlation of sleep deprivation vs. mindless munching on snacks -- oh yes, it's definitely there! Today, I reached for cookies in the farthest end corner of my kitchen pantry and ate half a bag of baked pita chips with hummus. Also, a tall order of Mocha Frappe seemed such a delight since the timing was so PERFECT; raindrops started falling out of the sky as I listened to my sinful-icious craving and eventually gave in. "It's OKAY", I said.


I may be fat today, but tomorrow I'll be a skinny biatch. 


Let. me. live.

xoxo,

Naila~