Random Weekend Post

Love this pic! I know it's really weird but we had a lot of fun that night. Vagabond - February 2009.

Keeping Up with Khloe After Dark

Here’s another Kardashian update: Khloe is starting her own radio show on Miami’s Y-100 FM today! It’s called Khloe After Dark and it will air every Friday night from midnight to 3:00 am for a 5-week test run. She will be talking about music and entertainment news, and will also be interviewing celebrities.

It looks like the title name of the new show, Khloe and Kourtney Take Miami, really is becoming true. From opening a Miami business, to hosting a Miami radio show, and now becoming a cooperating Miami traffic civilian?! Seems like she’s “Taking Miami” for all it’s got! Don’t be surprised if you see her new ride on I-95!

Friday Faves

The first step to success is admitting you have a problem. Hi, my name is Melissa ("Hi Melissa!") and I am addicted to...chandeliers. There! I said it! I love how they sparkle, the way they glow, and how they transform any old boring room into something so much more luxe. Check out these photos of some of the most amazing chandeliers I've come across this week.

For some of these, I won't even tell you the prices--they're too out of control, but well deserved of course.
This one is made out of white wire! So modern, but still so classy!
This one is on display at the spa at Viceroy Hotel in Brickell. I'd set up an appointment for a facial JUST to see this one in real life.
This one is made out of glass chain links. It's available at Z Gallerie.
And I got my fix! Here is my baby chandelier from Ikea that I currently have in my room to match my chandelier pillow from Target.
If you need your fix too, try your luck at GreatChandeliers.com. They have a huge selection to choose from with prices starting at just $99!

Adventures in HOUSE-sitting

Every year my Hunny and I hold down the Trigo fort (my sis and bro-in-law’s home) while they take an anniversary vacation. It’s always a favor I’m happy to comply with because I finally get some peace and quiet and we get to ‘play house’! This time has been extra fun because they have re-decorated, giving the house a more HGTV feel. The warmer terracotta and reddish tones have been replaced by cooler light grays, lavenders, blues and white. From the paint on the walls, to the decorative vases and frames, mostly everything has changed! Check out the new look below, but please forgive me for my low-res iPhone images.

This is the living room area and fireplace. Here is the dining room, buffet, and awesome art stuck directly on the wall.

New colors in the kitchen.

Block shelves in the sitting room.

And, the black/white office.
We’ll be house-sitting till this Sunday, and Sister if you’re reading this: Thanks for the food! Don’t worry…We will re-stock your fridge by the time you’re back! :)

A New Outfit for Mind My Beeswax

Does it make me look fat? I kid! Those honeycombs were disrupting my view of my posts--I just had to do something about it, STAT! I read a few tutorials and maneuvered my way around Photoshop CS4 (thanks to my Hunny)! I think it looks pretty cool... Now that I'm getting the hang of PS, let's see how long this layout lasts. I might want to change it as often as I change my outfit! :)

Summer Guilty Pleasure: The LC Chronicles

For those of you who are fans of the The Hills with Heidi and her conniving husband, Audrina and her greasy-haired love interest, Stephanie and her non-existent fashion assistant job, and Lauren and her braids, you’re in for a treat! LC is creating another little drama series of her own. She has signed on a three-book deal with HarperCollins and the first novel debuts June 16th. Get ready to add this one to your summer reading list, girls!

L.A. Candy is a fictional story of a 19-year old girl named Jane Roberts who moves to Hollywood for an internship and stars in a reality series. Sound familiar? Although she has first-hand experience on the subject, she’s not totally basing this story on her current reality show. There will be no Heidi, Audrina, or Lo. "Some of the characters may symbolize people in my life," Conrad said, "but it is in no way calling anyone out."

Unfortunately, her Book Signing Tour won’t make it to Miami (but why is it set for Alpharetta, Georgia…WTF?!)

You can pre-order the book here or just ransack Barnes & Noble when it’s out. Anyone wanna start a book club?

P.S. LOVE this dress!!

Friday Faves

I stumble upon so many amazing things on a daily basis. I wish I can copy and paste it all for everyone, but I am coming up with a better plan. Let's make it a weekly routine! I'll hold on to all my faves and post them on Fridays. Think of it as my special little "go-have-yourself-a-great-weekend" treat! You ready?

I thought this was so incredibly adorable, and makes a great gift! I'd say it's 2 gifts in 1! Pets and new shelf eye candy!You wake up, it's been pouring rain since the night before. You get ready to leave your house and realize you need to jump over huge puddles to avoid ruining your new pumps. If you had these babies you'd be okay! I think it's worth getting a few stares!
Fell in love with these fat birds! I wonder if they have fat squirrels or fat bunnies...oh wait--they do! :)And last, but definitely not least, an amazing chandelier made entirely of coco beads. It's almost as tall as me, standing at 41" high. This picture does not do it justice. Please go check it out in person at the fitting room at Anthropologie at Merrick Park. It's the main focal point of the room, and deserves being gawked at.

Happy Birthday Susie!

This is me with my cousin Susie, a.k.a. Artie, about 23 years ago! Cute, I know! I clearly remember this event. We walked the catwalk at a little fashion show along with my sister. (Jenny, I'm pretty sure you were still in your diapers.) Ahh...Memories...

Today is Susie's birthday and I wanted to show some love. She has always been the creative type: photography, guitar lessons, art, cooking, baking, and I can go on and on. Now she has a little shop on Etsy selling her handmade polymer clay figurines and handmade jewelry. She can also custom make anything you'd like. She made a little owlette for me for Christmas (long story) and I loved it! Here are some photos of my favorite items.

Artie, I want to wish you the bestest birthday!! Enjoy! :)

Debt Snowball Effect

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I think about these 2 things every day, all day: Spending and Saving. No need to explain the 'spending' part, I'm sure. But in regards to 'saving', let's just say I have about 15 people who I seek financial advice from...as if I really have money in the first place! I watch Suze Orman religiously and take in all the 'Money 911' advice I can from The Today Show. I wouldn't say I have crazy amounts of debt but I do like my plastic!

I have paid down some CC's using the old "Pay-the-highest-APR" strategy. It has worked but it now leaves me with the CC's with the largest amounts. I came across the Debt Snowball Effect while reading Simply Stated and I decided I'm going to switch it up a bit.

Debt Snowball Effect: Paying off your debt one CC at a time starting with the one with the smallest balance and working your way up to the largest one no matter what the APR is. It's psychological. You feel a sense of accomplishment when you finish paying off a balance and it makes you want to keep it up with the others.

Steps:
1. Make a list of all your debt and organize from smallest to largest amounts. Plan to pay the smallest balance first.
2. Pay the minimum on all other balances.
3. Once the smallest balance is paid off, allocate the money you were putting towards it and add it on to the next smallest balance.

Hence, snowball effect. This takes time and patience but I think it will make me feel better about what I owe. So, who's with me?

I Want to Thank All the Little People...

...And my family, and friends, and the big guy upstairs!

I feel so incredibly honored! I came across a fun surprise this morning when I checked my Google Reader and saw that my dear friend Erika Wray presented me with a Blog Award!! I'm not really sure what it is exactly but I love it and it makes me feel special! (hee-hee)

So, I'd like to also honor some of my favorite bloggers, not only to share their greatness but also because I've become so obsessed with them lately and I think they deserve credit!

Je t'aime: This is my bestie Nicky Mauri--oops, I mean Negrin! She recently married my bud Andy and I was a bridesmaid! She created this blog to share her engagement, wedding, and honeymoon experiences. Yes, due to the horrible jetlag she was able to blog every day of her honeymoon! I was hooked and had to read it every day! Now she blogs about everyday fun stuff!

Nesting in NC: Erika is one of the funniest girls I've ever met! From her Saved by the Bell obsessions to her Golden Girl history, She. Cracks. Me. Up. We were co-workers at an After School Care (along with Nicky) and we shared many good times. She has moved to NC with her new hubby and has taught me everything I need to know about blogging. Her blogs are about her life in NC and exciting new stuff in between!

A Chic Palate: I admire a girl with guts! My friend Ashli has started her own catering business! This girl does it all. She cooks, plans events, and blogs all about it. She has the best taste and you can scroll through her pics for evidence. Great job Ash!!

The Rules:

1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link.
2) Pass the award on to other blogs that you have discovered.

Kar-DASH-ians in Miami!

I’ve been holding off writing about this topic until I had the most accurate information…I can’t hold it in anymore! The Kardashian sisters are opening up DASH in Miami!

If you watch Keeping Up with the Kardashians (KUWTK) every Sunday night like I do, you know that these famous socialites own a shop in Calabasas, CA full of the trendiest designer labels. I always wished I could go to DASH even if it was just to see if I could run into them, and my wish came true! They will be filming a spin-off of KUWTK. Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami on E! will be based on Kourtney and Khloe’s adventures of living in Miami for the Summer. They will show their attempts at finding the right employees for the shop, and how they try to balance work and the Miami nightlife. It is set to air this August.

I constantly follow Kim, Khloe, and Kourtney on Twitter anxiously waiting for them to tweet the official grand opening date and location. They revealed the details about parties at Liv and The Clevelander scheduled for tomorrow night, but no details about the store! The address unofficially came out today when the store made headlines. 815 Washington Ave., Miami Beach DASH’s storefront was vandalized today with gang-related graffiti and carvings on the glass. (Gives Miami such a bad rep!) Nothing was taken from the shop but police reports were still made. Kourtney wrote this on her blog: “We want to make it clear that no one was targeting the store or Kim, Khloe and myself, specifically. The location of the store has remained a secret since we started filming, so there’s no way whoever graffiti’d the store front knew it was Dash. They were just defacing buildings in the area.”

This won’t be putting a damper on their goal. DASH is still set to open and from what Kim tweeted to Jonathan Cheban, it's tomorrow!

New French Tweeter

You can now officially be Louis Vuitton's buddy! Yes, they've actually given in to the demand of 21st century's TECHNOLOGY and is now tweeting on Twitter! Follow them at louisvuitton_US.

As you might know, they are a little socially inept. They are picky about their advertiser sources (I should know--I work for this parent company!), and snooty about how its merchandise is sold. But times are changing and they are keeping up with demands. It has finally launched its e-commerce site: www.louisvuitton.com

Mr. ‘Sam’ Man, Bring Me a Dream!

It’s springtime in Miami! The flowers are in bloom, the sun is warm, and pedicured toes are in abundance. It’s also that time of year where I keep my eye out on the new Spring/Summer sandals of the year. Although I usually get the Steve Madden and Bernardo fever, there is another Shoe-Man who, in my opinion, blows all others away…SAM EDELMAN! They’re perfect for any outfit and come in the trendiest of colors, styles, and materials.

I had the honor of meeting Mr. Edelman for the launch of his new Spring line at Nordstrom of Merrick Park. I was a little ‘star struck’, but my sister had a full-on conversation with him about the new snakeskin flats. I was finally able to pull myself together when he asked me 100 questions (that’s what it felt like)! He signed shoes and postcards, and I picked up an autograph of my own!

I just wish I didn’t have to wait for them to go on sale… :(

Who says you can't go out wearing your bedsheets?

In the real world, that’s not very socially acceptable. But what if the same fabrics that you’re wearing are now sold as bed linens, cushions, pillows, curtains, etc.? Some well-known fashion designers caught on to the great theory that fashion design and interior design really do go hand-in-hand. A few fashion designers best known for their famous prints are now selling home items and even just their fabric in case you feel crafty!

Trina Turk, most commonly known for her punchy swimsuit designs, is now creating reworked vintage furniture and pillows, and has also just launched an indoor/outdoor fabric line.

Trina Turk by meperez2477 featuring Trina Turk Clothin

Plenty by Tracy Reese has fun handbags made for that pop of color your outfit always needs. A new bedding collection now features these bright, bold prints.
Do you think we'll ever see the day when we can just throw our favorite sweaters on the floor and it instantly serves as an area rug??

“Just throw me in my coffin now with these earrings on!”

One of my favorite lines from the craziest fashionista I know: The uber talented and psychotic Rachel Zoe! I got hooked on her reality show, The Rachel Zoe Project, on Bravo last season and thankfully there’s more where that came from. They have confirmed the second season to start in July 2009! The series follows Rachel Zoe and her two crazy assistants on styling jobs for celebrities like Jennifer Garner and Molly Sims at red carpet and fashion show appearances. My favorite parts are when she goes shopping for the celebrities and unintentionally ends up with thousands of fun stuff for herself, meanwhile describing her love and affection with crazy quotes. You gotta watch it to see what I mean…

It’s no wonder she’s made it so big—she has the BEST taste! And now she is starting her own accessories line and will be selling it on QVC! There are no details yet but all we know is that the line is supposed to launch this fall. She’s all about chunky, vintage-inspired baubles, chains and cuffs, so that’s what I’m hoping for. In her own words: "If you've got an appendage, adorn it."

She’s famous for a lot of things: styling, shopping, apparently selling drugs to Nicole Richie… But her crazy quotes really make her stand out. Here’s what someone predicts what she’d be ranting about on QVC—Cracks me up!

QVC: "Rachel, we have a caller from Kenosha who'd like to talk to you."

RACHEL ZOE: "Ohmigod hi, hi, Kenosha? Wow, that's bananas...wait, do you know how insanely fabulous you will be if you wear my jewelry in Wisconsin? Like, seriously, no seriously I'm not just saying this because like I want you to buy it but you will be SICK if you wear it. SICK. And in like, a good way."

'Miracle' on 24th Street!

Looks like the new Miracle Marketplace (a.k.a. Miracle Center) will soon be another reason why to shop and munch-a-bunch in Coral Gables. If you ever get tired of the same-'ol-same-'ol Village of Merrick Park and Miracle Mile shops (and that may be tough), then make your way to this new mall/shopping plaza ASAP. It looks like it might be a slightly better version of Dadeland Station.

There are already some tenants up and running, including Bed, Bath & Beyond and Bally's who has actually stuck around since 1989! Other tenants include: Marshall's (opening May 22nd), DSW, Ulta, PetSmart, Nike Factory Store, Sweet Tomatoes, and what I'm most excited for--NORDSTROM RACK! If you're not familiar with it, it's the real Nordstrom's cheaper little sister! However, it's too bad we might have to wait until next Spring for this one to open...

There will be 3 levels with vertical transportation and 950 parking spaces. There's even word that the old movie theater might make a comeback! So I guess 'miracles' DO happen! :)

Pinche Fiesta!

A few pics from our Cinco de Mayo celebration at Rancho Grande on Lincoln Road. They closed off the Pennsylvania Street intersection for a pretty big block party, and brought in a live DJ to spin some (thankfully) non-authentic Mexican beats.

After a few $4 Coronas, we looked like this.

They’re Bringing Spicy Back…Yeah!

Could it be true? Will Miami Spice now be featured every season throughout the year? They’re calling it Spring Miami Spice and it’s running from May 1^st to the 31^st! (Dammit! I’m 9 days late!) This is our chance to take advantage of awesome menus at some of the best restaurants in Miami. Participating restaurants offer a three-course meal for a special price per person: Lunch for $23 and dinner for $36. But make sure you look at each restaurant’s available days and times as they may vary.

Here are a few I’ve tried out throughout the years and my ratings for them:

China Grill: Amazing Crackling Calamari Salad (If it were up to me, I’d order it for each of the three courses!)

Smith & Wollensky: Steak and more steak; Nice views

Baleen: One of my fav’s! The food was good but the best part was the romantic setting!

Christy's: Awesome filet minon but you leave there smelling like beef!

Novecento Brickell: Awesome empanadas but really expensive cocktails

Red Fish Grill: Yummy fish but really long wait

If you have questions on any others, I can ask my sis; She's been to most on the list!

Anthropologie: The Study of High-End Casual Women’s Fashion and Crazy Window Displays

Anthropologie is by far my favorite shop ever. It’s so ME! I have actually spent hours and hours at this store just trying to make sure I saw everything for sale…and even things that are NOT for sale! The art displayed inside the shop is ridiculous! I literally wish I lived there. So as I was dilly-dallying on Lincoln Road on my lunch break yesterday, I decided to make a pit stop. I couldn’t believe the new window display they now have up—It’s a honeycomb setting with factoids on bees written on the glass! It was so appropriate for my blog, I just had to take a quick pic!

They’ve stocked up on new summer items, and just when I thought they had it all, I was proved wrong! Anthropologie is now carrying swimsuit lines from all over the country and beyond! They now have lots of vintage-inspired swimsuits, asymmetrical swimsuits and swimsuits with fun details like 3-D appliqués, ruffles, color-blocking and graphic prints. They started out by testing 8 styles on their online catalog and it was a success! DUH!

Anthro Swim by meperez2477 featuring Anthropologie swimwear

It gets even better! Anthropologie is coming soon to a mall near ME! I called Aventura Mall and it should be opening its doors within the next 2 weeks! This is going to be the best summer ever!

Early sketches of my Prima Donna

And a star was born...