Mirror, mirror on the rubber wall

I just came back from taking my son to an indoor play area close by and was rather entertained while I was there.  There was a group of mothers who looked so out of place, actually they almost looked like they were living in a totally different world than the one I was in.  They were totally done up. Totally!  Hair was perfect, full make up, each of them in a dress and sky high wedges or heels.  I wont even get into the jewelry.  Meanwhile, I'm in my flared jeans and sneakers, with my hair tied back and zero make up.  Don't get me wrong, I am definitely all for mothers taking time to care for their looks and make sure they don't lose that side of themselves just because they have a baby.  That's partially what this is blog is about I think.  But come on, this is a play area!  It's 2pm!  At that time of day, I wouldn't even look like that if I was 25 and single!
I probably would have taken 2 or 3 more minutes getting ready to go had I known the wannabe footballers' wives would be there.  The funny thing was that they really looked like they were competing as to who looked the hottest, they barely noticed their own kids.  Maybe I'm being a little harsh.  Maybe not.


Image: Sarah Klassen via weheartit.com

What I fancy this week

1. Pencey Weekend Dress - My husband makes fun of me sometimes for how much I love anything animal print.  I think if done right, it can be very sexy or playful.  And for some reason, the animal print pieces that I do have, have lasted season after season, the look always seems to come back into trend.

2.  I've been going through another home decorating phase, so I've been on the look out for cool accessories online.   I guess I would describe our home as being contemporary with arabic and tribal touches and a very earthy feel. Anyway, I saw this semi-antique Kilim rug and think it would be perfect for our kitchen, where I hope to also have lots of old fashioned bottles and baskets around.

3. How cool is this rocking horse by Casa Midy?  Made from alder, mahogany and leather, this is one toy that I don't mind having in the living room. Look at the cute tail!

4. Liyah off-shoulder asymmetrical dress by Gypsy05 - If you ignore the tambourine, this dress is super cute and perfect for the summer.  

5. Cucina Fresca: Italian Food, Simply Prepared by Viana Laplace & Evan Kleiman - I was hunting around for new cookbooks (I'm obsessed with cookbooks) and came across this one.  From what I've read, this book seems to have tonnes of very simple, straight forward recipes, many of which are salads or other summer friendly dishes.  Yum!

6. Colorblock dress by Mara Hoffman - This is really calling out to me.  Love the colors, love the cut... slick.

Images: Shopbop.com, Kilim.com, casamidy.com, Gypsy05.com, harpercollins.com, marahoffman.com

Two months gone, two months to go.

I got back from Ibiza a few days ago.  Had an amazing time with the girls... we partied, we chilled on the beach, we drank Sangria, we did a little shopping and we ate.  We ate great food. I think most would agree that holidays are not a time to watch what you eat, it's a time to try local food, a time to indulge and a time to sit around a table for endless meals and have great conversation. So that's what we did.  Problem was that Ibiza is soooo not the place to do that, at least not without wanting to shoot yourself afterwards.  I don't think I have ever seen as many stunning women with the most fantastic bodies in one place.  These are women that can pull off wearing only white thongs on the beach and look flawless.  They ALL literally looked like they walked away from a Sports Illustrated swimsuit shoot. That's depressing.  


So now I am serious.  I want to lose weight and seriously tone up.  I've given myself a new deadline (to at least feel ok about getting into a bikini again) since the Ibiza one that I had set two months back came and went.  The new deadline is mid August - my best friend's wedding in Lebanon.   That's two months.  I need to do more Pilates, definitely need to up the Cardio and I need a proper diet.  I've never really dieted before so I need to do some research.  Any tips are welcome.  I'll probably need to take some prozac as well.  
Wish me luck.  

Hello Ibiza

I'm off to Ibiza with a few girl friends for a few days.  So excited!  Of course I will really miss my boys (the big one and small one) but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.  I did leave a 2 page "hand over" for my husband on what to do with Yousef, fingers crossed all goes well.  I'm also kinda worried that the little one wont remember me, especially if I come back looking all tanned and fabulous.  I'll keep you posted. Ta!

Another one for my girls to remember?

I love ladies' night.  I don't mean the typical ladies' nights that bars around every town offer which is just codename for 'meat market'.  A few of my girlfriends and I have been quite good at making it a point to spend one evening together around once a month, a tradition we have kept up for the last 6 or so years (I think deep down we would like to think we are our own version of the SATC girls).  Yes a few of us have moved in and out of Dubai recently, but we still kept up the tradition as best as we could.  

Again to clarify, our ladies' nights aren't a bunch of girls totally wasted dancing on bar tops.  We usually go someplace where we can have some great wine, sometimes accompanied by great food like cheese fondue, and we have great conversation.  Last night was ladies' night.  Last night was different.  I'm not sure if it's because summer is here that we decided to go to some vegetarian, organic restaurant for dinner.  It sounded good enough, quite unusual for a place like Dubai...and we didn't mind the change.  The conversation was lovely as always, the wine was admittedly delicious.  But the food was a DISASTER.  It's not that it didn't taste good, well some of it didn't taste of anything really, it's just that it wasn't a meal!  And that sucks when you are going with the intention to eat.  Let's see, we had a tasteless avocado - tomato salsa thing with literally the tiniest bread stick ever.  We had beetroot with a small cube of feta cheese to split between ourselves.  We had some scary looking purple potato carpaccio. These were the starters but you get the point.  We left the place slightly tipsy, not because we drank a lot but because of the lack of food in our tummies.  We left the place strangely bloated.  And we left still very hungry.  I don't know who in their right minds would think that was a good meal and go there again or recommend the place. The place should have a warning sign outside or call itself Coloninox or something.  Now on a brighter note, I have come to learn that Wendy's has finally opened in Dubai, at least I wont feel as guilty going there for lunch today.  

London calling

I've been away for the past 10 days, went to what in my humble opinion is the best city on earth - London. It's always been my favorite place, and living there for 2 years only made my attachment stronger.  But it was my first time to venture the fast paced side walks, public transport (remember I live in Dubai) and 7 hour flights with Yousef alone, so I was a little apprehensive to say the least. 


The flights were interesting.  Going there I took a day flight, and that was a disaster because all he wanted to do was crawl around the entire air craft and eat people's shoes.  And so by the last two hours all hell broke loose, and let's just say that when we finally landed, the flight attendant offered "to rush me out first".  Kill me now.  The flight coming back was a red eye, which was OK in the sense that he was sleeping or rather mellow most of the time, but then totally over exhausted and ready to kill me once we were back home.  You can't win.  And what made the flights even worse was that both ways, I happen to sit next to someone who has the calmest, most silent, well behaved baby - while mine was screaming, stealing the other's toys, playing drums on the table, being returned to me by random people who he went to visit etc. etc.


But I have to give the little dude some credit, when it came to my shopping sprees in London (which are quite intense and last all day), he was great.  He was either charming the sales people or clapping his hands and trying to sing or napping.  And I'll take well behaved while shopping rather than well behaved on a flight any day.




Image: weheartit

Met Costume Institute Gala

This was way more interesting than the Oscars in terms of who wore what.  There was a lot of nude, ivory and white as well as a lot of metallics. There was a lot of scary stuff too.  I'll begin with the looks I loved.

• Blake Lively in Marchesa - as much as she annoys me on Gossip Girl (have you seen how she pouts when she talks?), I have to admit the girl knows how to dress.  This turquoise dress is fun and sexy, and she wears it well, it's not wearing her.
• Kate Hudson in Stella McCartney - she looks glamorous and laid back which is hard to do.  
• SJP in Halston Heritage - love, love, love this.  The pleats, the shimmer, the flower in the hair... It just puts a smile on my face.

• Taylor Swift in Ralph Lauren Collection - there seems to be a lot of 20's flapper inspired looks happening, and she is working it perfectly. 
• Jessica Alba in Sophie Theallet for Gap - I love this color and surprise surprise it looks great with Jessica's skin tone.
• Emma Watson in Burberry - could it be that the girl from Harry Potter had one of the coolest looks of the night?  Apparently so.

• Sienna Miller in Emilio Pucci - This is very sexy. Love the color because maybe another color would have made her look like a show girl of some sort.  I also love the funky twist on how to wear lace.  Her accessories aren't all that bad either ;)
• Naomi Watts in Stella McCartney - I like this gown, it's strong and simple. 
• Rachel Zoe in Marc Jacobs - I'm not really into velvet but I love the color and style.  The necklace rocks too.

• Jessica Biel in Ralph Lauren Collection - She looks very elegant.  How small is this woman's waist? Ugh, as if having JT as her man isn't enough.  
• Nicole Richie in Marc Jacobs - Boho chic at its best.  The velvet belt is so cute.

• Camilla Belle in Jason Wu - I never figured out who she is, but I think she is stunning.  This is a gorgeous gown.  The one shoulder gives it a little modernity.
• Dree Hemingway in Calvin Klein Collection - Very sophisticated.  I think I am going to practice that pose.
• Maggie Gyllenhaal in Louis Vuitton - she has managed to pull off the gothic and romantic look at once.  Very cool. 

• Gwen Stefani in L.A.M.B. - This is an elegant version of the corpse bride (I mean that in a good way I think!)
• Iman in unknown - Who cares who she is wearing, she is stunning.
• Claire Danes in Burberry - I'm beginning to really like her style.  This is very elegant and still has attitude.

These are the looks that I didn't find so hot, not even a little bit.

• Eva Longoria in Marchesa - Ukh this is awful.  The length from the front, the long train and embroidery that make it look like a curtain.  She seems desperate for some attention. 
• Kristen Stewart in Chanel Haute Couture - What is that?  Really, is this a joke?  
• Renee Zellweger in Caroline Herrera - This is ugly, I don't have much else to say.

• Marion Cotillard in Dior - I'm not finding this very flattering.  I just think it's too much sparkle all at once. 
• Chloe Sevigny in Proenza Schouler - As a risk taker, she wins some and loses some.  In this case, she didn't just lose, she took a beating. 
• Diane Kruger in Calvin Klein Collection - She looks like a gymnast that's sponsored by Clorox.

• Kirsten Dunst in Rodarte for Gap - The dress is half the problem, what are those shoes? Did she borrow them from the Marie Antionette set?
• January Jones in Yves Saint Laurent - too many thoughts all at once! The gloves are the icing on the cake. January darling fire your make up artist quickly.
• Rosario Dawson in Giambattista Valli - Cotton Candy is never a good inspiration for fashion.  My eyes are starting to hurt.

• Anne Hathaway in Valentino - I actually think she wishes she was a princess, maybe she is one of a far far far away land?
• Elizabeth Banks in Gucci - This has to be one of the worst outfits ever!  Seriously, there is NO WAY she looked at herself in the mirror and said "yes I look hot".  

• Kate Perry in CuteCircuit - I'm totally speechless now (which doesn't happen often).  A frumpy, badly made dress... that lights up... in different colors!!  WTF?!  I'm very curious to know what you think of this?  I personally think she was she trying to outshine Lady Ga Ga in the nutty department.

Images: People, InStyle, Stylefrizz