gen says...a valentine's package

from gen:

"Last week Oden and I made a sweet little Valentine's care package for my grandmother- and actually got it in the mail on time!

We are forever behind in sending my grandmother photos of Oden...so for Valentine's day we decided to put together a little care package.

Of course all of our projects start with a trip to Michael's. For V-day we stumbled upon a box of great foam hearts for $5- which kicked off our valentine inspiration. Next we purchased assorted cards in pink, red, and aqua...some with a sweet scalloped edge detail- and voila!, a color palette is born. We also found a simple wooden heart frame for $1.At home we took our finds and hunted in our craft room for additional stickers and ribbons that fit our color palette (the trophy cards are from my stash of Hicks Paper Goods invitations).

Oden placed a single foam heart on each card and then used a red marker to "customize" each Valentine. In an afternoon we were able to pull together a lovely care package for my grandmother and make Oden's class Valentine's Day cards.

...I just love a trip to Michael's!!!

Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day!

xoxo,
gg"

gen says...holiday wrap!

From Gen:

"I am so excited to finally be getting to my holiday wrapping and prettying up the house for upcoming Christmas festivities! Thought I would pass along some fun holiday finds in stores now.

I am in love with this mix of graphic holiday papers.... 

Modern Black Floral: Old Navy 

Drummer Boy: Martha Stewart for Kmart 

Graphic Green Tree: Old Navy 

Candy Cane: Target 

Gold Star: Martha Stewart for Kmart 

Fun Details... 

Dot and Stripe Napkins: Michael's dollar section 

Dot and Stripe Paper Table Cloth: Martha Stewart for Michael's 

Cupcake Holders: Martha Stewart for Michael's 

Drummer Boy Gift Tag: Martha Stewart for Kmart 

Glittery Letters: Martha Stewart for Michael's 

Butcher Paper Cookie Boxes: Martha Stewart for Michael's 

White Gift Labels: Martha Stewart for Michael's 

Dot Ribbons: Michael's 

Happy Decorating!!!  -Gen"

a last minute birthday

Gen tells us, "Oden's friend Bella came over to dinner on the night of her 4th birthday. I threw together a last minute 'cowgirl celebration' for after dinner." Love, it- of course!

gen says...(preparing for a red, white & blue party)

From Gen:

"Hooray for red, white, and blue!

This Summer, instead of taking one big vacation with the kids- we chose to break up our time into several great mini road trips. It was absolutely amazing to experience small town America...like going back in time to a simpler life. For me there is nothing better than hot dogs and milk shakes at an old soda fountain and roadside thrifting!

I know that our "American Summer" has had a lasting impression on me...it is far past 4th of July and I am still in love with red, white, and blue. I just can't seem to get enough of this patriotic color palette!

The theme hit me hard after our first weekend excursion and quickly inspired my husband, Benjamin's, Father's Day gifts.

As I prepare for Oden's 4th Birthday party next week- the red, white, and blue is in full force. We are looking forward to a birthday party that captures the feeling of small town america...of course with our own modern twist. Photos to come!"

(and remember, you can get Gen's super cute skirts right here).

gen says...favorite launch party

Where or where, has our dear Gen been? Busy at work it seems, getting ready to re-launch the favorite brand of skirts. (For those of you unfamiliar with the short-lived, but very loved store, favorite- click here).

I attended Gen's launch party at her uber-stylish home last week, and was so impressed. I parked myself in the kitchen next to the cupcakes and watched as a parade of stylish women came in, tried on, and left with bags of skirts. I must admit, since I couldn't partake in the fun buying process (a 6 1/2 months pregnant woman doesn't belong in these super cute skirts), I comforted myself with no less then 3 cupcakes. Hey! No judgment please...I hadn't had dinner and I couldn't drink the champagne, either. I can't wait to see what Gen has in store for the future. I'm so happy it is back! 

More from Gen herself...

"favorite returns!

So many of you have told me how much you loved our Nashville store, favorite (and especially our line of skirts), so I am excited to share the news that favorite skirts have returned. We celebrated our relaunch last week with our first ever 'favorite skirt party'.

I am thrilled to say it was a huge success...we sold nearly all the inventory at the very first party. favorite is composed of simple, easy-to-wear styles in an assortment of great patterns. In addition to skirts I will continue to expand the line to include dresses, sweaters, and totes for fall. 

In the meantime, I've set up an Etsy store with our remaining inventory (at $38 a pop, they are hard to resist!). I've also included the favorite brand cosmetic bags, which friends have gone ga-ga over, and will continue to update my Etsy store as new pieces arrive. If you want to stay updated on all the favorite goings-on, friend us on facebook!"

favorite style ... etsy shop

favorite facebook fan page ... join here for updates

to host a favorite party in your town...contact gen at genifer_goodman@email.com

gen says...(father's day)

From Gen:

"As I am preparing for Father's Day '09....thought I would pass along an easy and inexpensive gift idea from our celebration last year.

Pictured are sweet little ceramic vessels from Crate and Barrel- that Oden and I filled with herbs (purchased at Home Depot). This was a simple and fun project- very easy for the children to help with, solved frequent last minute trips to Whole Foods, and the finished project looks lovely sitting on the countertop.

We paired the potted herbs with cooking accessories- also from Crate and Barrel (I love their simple packaging) and a little treat from J. Crew (one of dad's favorite stores!). I love the simple masculine color palette of all the gifts piled up together.

Thought this might come in handy for those beginning their Father's Day treats!"

gen says...(a modern baby shower)

From Gen:

"I hosted a little baby shower for my dear friend Tarah last week. Tarah is about to have her second child- and she wants to keep the baby's gender a good ole' fashion surprise! So, without any dictated theme, I looked for inspiration that would pull my 'modern baby' shower concept together. I fell in love with one of Sara's invites- the dot stripe invitation had the simplicity, playfulness and upbeat color palette I was looking for. It also coordinated with some great make-up bags (I already had) that I wanted to give as party favors, so it felt meant to be.

Once the concept was determined, the rest seemed to fall into place...I just played off of the color palette of the invite and the idea of mixing assorted dots, stripes, and a few other favorite patterns to bring the party to life.

Of course not all things are planned...and in my last minute, day of the party rush, I decided to add a 'Hello' yellow bird card to the mix as a way of adding a little sweetness to the concept. Of course this unexpected addition, I think, is what pulls it all together, and gave a 'voice' to the party.

The food, I kept very simple and light, since I knew we would to save room for sweets! I made a lovely Canadian-Bacon Strata that was easy to prepare the night before. I paired it with a delicious spinach and lemon salad.

We finished the brunch with a little sugar...of course cupcakes, assorted donuts, and a sweet little mini cake topped with a candle and placed on my favorite green pedestal- which played perfectly off the dot theme! And yes, I couldn't resist matching the beverage choices to my color palette- I just adore the packaging of this Genesis beer.

It was a very sweet afternoon of relaxing with wonderful women...and a perfect way to celebrate such an amazing mom and friend!"

Thanks for sharing another wonderful occasion with us, Gen!

gen says...(a gift idea)

From Gen:

"Just wanted to pass along a children's birthday gift idea. I stocked up on these doctor's kits from Target at Christmas time- great because they are unisex and bonus: they don't need to be wrapped! It has been a major time saver to always have children's gifts on hand. Now, whenever Oden has a party, I'm ready! I just added a simple handmade card- it was a huge hit."

doctor's kits...from Target

card items...from Michaels (grosgrain ribbon, Martha Stewart multimedia pad and alphabet stickers)

gen says... (mother's day treat)

From Gen,

"Just thought I would pass along a few quick photos from Mother's Day.

First, I must tell you that I have been totally inspired by all my new Hicks items that I just picked up. My absolute OBSESSION is the trophy invitation. We used it for Lucy's gift to her mom- and she customized it with her own darling hand written note. 

This year, we kept things very simple for Mother's Day. I took a page from Sara's birthday, and told my husband exactly what I wanted this year- just a lovely bouquet of hand-picked peonies from our friend's yard.

Peonies are my absolute favorite- and even better when they are pink! Sara's strategy (don't make your husband guess what will really make you happy) worked out perfectly. This year I actually got exactly what I wanted and it didn't break the bank.

I put the peonies right next to the bed so that I can smell them while I drift off to sleep- and they look just perfect with the Mother's Day gift that I could not resist treating myself to - a lovely orange modern toile bedspread for the summer (picked up on major clearance at Pottery Barn).

In the morning, Benjamin whipped up a simple little breakfast with the kids, for me and Lucy's mom. What a lovely way to start the day!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! -Gen"