Doggie Style

We adopted a dog in October. He looks super fierce but he is by far the most loving pound puppy ever! We love him and are so glad he's ours! However, one downside to Nelson, our shelter pup, is that he frightens people because he looks so tough. To counteract his tough exterior, I checked out Agatha and Louise for the perfect preppy dog collar and leash.

Photo Credit: Sarah Harper

Agatha and Louise

The Agatha and Louise website is jam-packed with preppy collars and leashes. I purchased the green and navy whale collar and leash pictured above. Total with shipping was $47.85. I was thrilled with the cost! Here are some other collar patterns that I think are just fab!

Ooo lala—so Lilly Pulitzer-ish. 

Lacoste style. 

Adorbs! 

I should mention we adopted our pup through Mid Atlantic Bully Buddies. If you are looking to adopt a dog, I highly recommend adopting a shelter pup and we were thrilled with the Mid Atlantic Bully Buddies agency. 

- Grace

Whale Love!

I came across these adorable little whale images yesterday through a friend and I am hooked! 

By artist Sophie Blackwell you can view more of them here. 

She's thinking of putting them on tea towels which would be awesome but I'd love them all together on a large sheet of paper to frame and hang in my hall. Help me peer pressure Sophie into doing it! 

- Grace

Back to Cool

Jonathan Adler has got your back to school covered! I don't know about you, but I am ready for Clementine's school to start. Maybe I'll pack a couple of these adorable over-sized erasers in her backpack. 

Each eraser is $10 and 3"x 3"
You can purchase them on the Jonathan Adler website and while you're there, check out his other inspiring goods.

- Grace

Daytripping in Kennebunkport

On our summer trip to Kennebunkport, Maine this year I happened across a new store called Daytrip Society Jr. that I became obsessed with. Here's their logo:

Loooove the graphic! I go nuts for a good graphic.

So here's the scenario. In the town of Kennebunkport, there is a Daytrip Society and a Daytrip Society Jr. The Jr. store is the one I shopped in that had kids' toys, books, and accessories. Here's a shot from their website of the inside of the store:

Awesome right? And behind the counter, they had vintage children's books for sale which I just love. I am extremely passionate about vintage children's books, so much so that I spent an inordinate amount of time in the Children's Rare Book Room at the Library of Congress—the security guard had to show me the way out.

Another cool thing about the Daytrip Society Jr. store was the ride-on-whale they had inside:

And of course, Clementine had to take a whirl on this baby.

So I recommend that if you're in Kennebunkport, you stop by this amazing inspirational store. And if you're not going to KBP anytime soon, at least head over to Daytrip Society Jr.'s website here.

- Grace

Whale Aesthetic

It happened when I was eight. We took a trip to Sea World in California and I came face to face with a killer whale. The schtick was you bought a paper tray of fish and could either feed it to the dolphins or the whale housed in a large tank. The dolphins were showing off, doing tricks, flipping around. Everyone gave their fish to the dolphins. A killer whale idled up against the edge of the tank and looked at me with one large eye. I was enamored with his humility and modesty—no fancy tricks from this guy. I ended up feeding all of my fish to the whale who let me pet him in return. This was a poignant moment for me. From then on whales were officially my favorite animals. I love whale “stuff”—clothes emblazoned with whales, knick knack whales—anything whale! Here are some of my favorite finds:

Love this little guy. Brass whale only 3.25” long, via here. 

Mid-century hand-carved whale, via here.

Whale birth announcement,via here.

The whale on my mom’s Hadley china service.

And finally my dear daughter in a whale print Lilly Pulitzer dress. I love this fabric so much I want to upholster a sofa in it. 

- Grace