The season of giving is upon us, folks: all of your cousins and co-workers and friends from college have worked day and night planning their perfect summer wedding and now it's time for your part - being the perfect guest.  Attending these lovely affairs can get expensive - the gifts, the travel, the dressing up - but I got you covered. 

Buy one gorgeous vintage jaw dropper at Dorothea's Closet*.  It's a no-brainer.  Vintage is so inheritantly classy, you can rock it all summer.  If someone notices you wearing it again, explain to them in that "you poor dear" tone of voice that you decided to spend your money on a flattering line and quality fabric.

If you're nice to your clothes and wear them with care, they'll still have value when, at summer's end, you're wedding'd out and ready to move on - you can re-sell or consign them. Ta-da!

* Pssst:  There's also Dorothea's super-cool Etsy shop - Scarlet Bird.

Oh, PS.  Big silk flowers are huge for summer.

In honor of their annual music issue, NYLON mag is giving away 22 summer hits.  All you have to do is go to their site and click the iTunes link - easy.  Awesome bands like Santigold (my fav!), Phoenix (I think I may have already played this tune out), and Of Montreal.  I haven't even heard of the other 19, so I'm excited to upload them and get to discovering - also, makes me sound cool (?) when I name drop these bands in front of my 22-yr-old friends!

So...in my travels, I've happened upon some cool computer screen wallpapers, which, if like me, and you haven't touched the inside of a closet in months, will make you feel like you've checked off your first Spring cleaning project.  Good job, team!

The wallpaper way up above with the buttons was shot by Miss Shannon Gass (buy the actual print or many other really cool ones from her shop) and I snagged it on Kindred.com where you can also find other cool wallpapers by the likes of Am Ng, Lisa Golightly and Holly Becker - just to name a few.

My other favorite wallpaper collection comes from Frankie magazine.  It's an awesome Aussie publication to which I can't afford a subscription ($125 to the States), but I read the blog because I like to pretend I can.

PS.  I don't know about PCs, but "right" clicking on my Mac after you enlarge the images brings up a box that asks if you want to make these shots wallpapers.  I *heart* my Mac.  To add images as your wallpaper just go to a cool real wallpaper site like Secondhand Rose or photo site like Flickr, or a fabric site like Repro Depot Fabrics or Purl.  If you're in the mood, take your own photos and use them, instead.

If you're into it or playing along as a family project or just interested in how contestants fare state-to-state, Entertainment Weekly (EW for all the cool kids) and Predictfy have teamed up to not only let you cast your prediction about who's going home*, but to also see breakdowns of how other people voted. So far, Iowa thinks Jasmine Murray will take a hike, while most of the nation thinks Mike Sarver has worn out his welcome.  I wish I could vote for all the remaining guys (why do they always feel they have to lay it on so thick?), but I don't get to decide American Idol, now, do I?

While you're there, check out the Ultimate Past Contestant Playlist - my favorite part.

*As with most every site these days (why?), you have to sign up to vote.

The Long Thread - super cool blog - has an exhaustive list (so very kind to do all this work) of the Top 100 DIY Tutorials - everything from toys to clothes to decor.  Check it out - leave a comment of thanks and be glad yours truly reads her Storque every day (that's where I found this invaluable post - thanks!)

I love Sukie.  Chronicle Books has Sukie Iron-Ons AND if you love Sukie like I love Sukie and you buy three things, the third thing you buy is FREE!

*Chronicle Book is also having their Organization Sale until December 31st - enter YEAREND at checkout to save 30% + FREE SHIPPING on calendars, planners, journals and my favorites, Listography & Quotable Kids (a book where you save all the funny/smart/mind-blowing things your kids say).

I don't even know where to start or which cool piece to point out first, I'm all ajumble over drawflowers' crazy cool shop.  I love the necklaces, then I see the boxes, then the totes, then this tote:

Get over there quick before it's all gone!