I am loving the idea of easy throw on and go pieces this fall. Tights and boots/booties are such amazing accessories that they can be the key piece to an outfit. You don't have to put so much effort into the actual clothes because you'll look great with amazing accessories! On that note buy a great dress for fall that you can dress up and dress down. I love that dresses can go from day to night depending on the accessories that you put on. I personally just purchased a dress with pockets because I love being comfortable and for me, when I'm standing all day at work sometimes it is nice to have somewhere to rest my hands! I went for a dress with a paisley pattern and am looking forward to wearing it tomorrow to work for the 2nd Thursday on Park Lane in Kirkland! Take my advice and buy some easy to wear pieces and lots of great accessories this fall!

Gorgeous Booties!

Booties are a huge trend this fall/winter season, especially ones with a peep toe. That is why I have just purchased these lovely shoes from Joie at MuShoe. The bootie is called "She's Electric" and I have to tell you, when you put them on, you do feel pretty electric! The leather is very soft and I love the sexy zipper going up the side of the bootie. If you are someone who only buys one pair of shoes a year, make a bootie the shoe you buy in 2009. They truly are a huge trend this year and it's a great look that will transition easily from fall to winter and even into spring! Please feel free to ask me which ones I would recommend!

Girls Two Doors Down flip flops!

I bought a pair of Girls Two Doors Down flip flops last summer and I love them because they are still like new a year later. I realize that because I live in Seattle that it's not like I wear my flip flops often, but I wore them on all of my vacations and I did wear them a lot last summer and have been getting quite a bit of use out of them this year so far. One can't help but think about flip flops when the sun is shining, and today is such a beautiful day! Back to the flip flops. They are very popular with all of the celebrities and have been featured in quite a few magazines. They come in lots of different colors and all have sayings on them. Mine say "The only thing better than one, is two cabana boys." I bought my sister Erin a pair last year that are white and have big diamonds between the toe, to take with her to Vegas and wear the day of her wedding before getting into her dress. We sell these fabulous flip flops at MuShoe! I'm even considering getting myself a second pair because after all, can one ever have too many flip flops? (via fashionistadiva)

Mu.Shue adds children shoes

Mu.Shoe just started carrying children shoes and I have to say, they are so cute! I love the brand Camper and that is the company that we started carrying for kids. We got in three styles, and I know they are going to be a huge hit! Campers are really popular with our adult clientele. They are made in Spain and they are just so unique. I actually have a pair myself! Not of the kids shoes, of the adult shoes for those of you who wondering! My feet are small, but not that small! I can't wait for my niece to get a little older so I can get her a pair! One of the pairs we got in are from their "twins" line. The left and the right shoe are a little different as you can see in the picture.

Trunk Show Tonight in Edmonds!

This evening from 4:30-7:30pm, MuShoe will be hosting a trunk show. It is for a company called Brunate, which is an Italian company that has been around for several years. Their shoes are made with Italian leather, designed by Italian designers, and made in Italy. Is there anything better than a well made Italian shoe? They are very beautiful. We will be serving champagne, wine, and hors d'oeuvres, so please feel free to come by! We're looking for input on what we should carry for fall from Brunate. We get to choose the colors and materials and love client input! For directions please visit our website at www.mushoe.com. There is a link to our store's website, which contains pictures of Brunate shoes.

Kale Handbags

If you haven't heard of Kale handbags, it's about time you did! It's a brand we carry at MuShoe and I am absolutely obsessed with their bags. The designers are two girls based out of New York City, and if you ask me, they are geniuses! They use really good quality leather and they always do a fuchsia suede lining. The leather literally feels like butter (which is a very good thing). I also like the hardware they use on their bags. The bags aren't cheap, but with the hefty price comes a bag that will last you many, many years. We're hoping to do a trunk show in April with Kale, so I will definitely let everyone know when it happens! Do check out their website. It's http://www.kalehandbags.com/flashSite/. If anyone has any questions about which ones we carry at MuShoe, just let me know and I can get you the information.

Seattle Art Insitute Fashion Show

Last night I went to the Seattle Art Institute's fashion show. MuShoe had a booth set up for the event, so I was fortunate enough to go. It is very interesting to see a show of up and comings. Each designer chose a theme to send down the runway. The themes included bead work, ethnic, natural earth tones, contemporary street wear, and my favorite of the season, geometric shapes. It was by far my favorite runway show. It's fun to see the origami-like dresses and skirts this season. It is art work that you wear, and it is what I believe clothes should be. Clothes do represent who you are because it's the first impression you make on someone, so have fun with it and wear art! I will also say pieces that are sewn well and are fit to the model perfectly really do look flawless and beautiful going down the runway. It also made me realize just how much the choice of materials and colors matter because make the wrong choice and it can equal disaster! Even if it is sewn well, if the material doesn't work, it doesn't work. The opposite is true as well. One can have the perfect material and color choice, but if the sewing is shoddy, it doesn't work! For the most part I was very impressed, and there were two designers in particular that I would wear in a heart beat, so I really hope they find success in a very difficult field!

The Oscars

I watch the Academy Awards every single year, mostly for the fashion. I watch the two hour red carpet special religiously, not only for the Oscars, but for all of the award ceremonies leading up to last night. There were a lot of beautiful dresses last night, but there were in my opinion, some misses too! My least favorite dress of the night was worn by Jessica Biel. I usually love what she wears, but the white Prada dress she wore last night didn't fit well, draped all the way to the floor, was to heavy of a material for her figure, and I didn't like the ginormous bow that was going on at the top of the dress. Speaking of unflattering, Evan Rachel Wood wore a dress that I didn't love. It was a beautiful silhouette, but I thought the color was all wrong on her. It washed her out. For people that have ivory skin, be careful what color white you wear (and yes there is a variety of whites, off-whites, and creams).
As for the men, what was Peter Gabriel thinking? He was wearing an open jacket with no vest,no tie, and a stark white top that was massive and not tucked in. It's the Oscars for goodness sake! I will say that for as much as I like Zac Efron, and I loved his tuxedo, he needed a different hairdo. No one should ever do the slicked back look. It just looked greasy last night!
There were many beautiful gowns last night from Amy Adams in red to Anne Hathaway in an off white stunner, but here is a list of some of my favorites. I loved Sarah Jessica Parker's Dior Haute Couture (she really can do no wrong). It was stunning on her. It had a beautiful full skirt and the color was gorgeous. Another gorgeous colored gown was worn by Nathalie Portman. She looked amazing in the hot pink dress she wore. I loved the way the rouching pulled in at the waist. I also thought that for the first time this award season, Miley Cyrus actually got it right. She wore a heavily beaded gown that had an open back and was age appropriate. She's been dressing too old all season, so it was nice to see her in this dress. But, I can only have one favorite, and the winner is...Penelope Cruz! She looked amazing last night! She usually goes for a black gown, but for the Oscars, she came out wearing a cream sweetheart cut gown that had amazing brocade lace, chiffon, and rouching. She wore the perfect accessories and her hair was beautiful. She looked absolutely flawless. And for those of you who haven't seen Vicky Christina Barcelona, you definitely need to! Not only is the film fantastic, but they also film a portion in Oviedo where I lived for six months.
As far as the men go, I have to say that as an overall look, I preferred the ties to the bow ties last night. Having said that, Brad Pitt looked amazing in his tuxedo. I loved the large black buttons on his white shirt! I also thought that Josh Brolin looked incredible in his suit. I liked the thin black tie he was wearing. I have two men that were my favorites of the night. I can't choose between them, so I'll call it a tie. Sean Penn looked really good in his all black attire. His suit fit him well, and he really pulled off the entire look. My other favorite was Mickey Rourke. Jean Paul Gaultier designed the off-white tuxedo just for him. I don't think it's a look that just anyone could pull off, but he looked amazing.
All in all, it was a great night for fashion. I'm very excited to watch the Fashion Police tonight on the E! network. It will be interesting to see if they agree with me!

Fashion abroad

I just arrived home from England and was pleased with the fashion trends over there. I use their trends as foresight for the following year because we tend to be about a year behind European fashion. The eighties are still huge over there (lots of bright colors and stone-washed jeans), but the trend I want to discuss today is tights. Although I wasn't the biggest fan of the hot pink tights I saw on some of the teenagers, I do love the idea of tights with skirts and shorts. I know people are wearing tights here in America, but ALL females are wearing them in England. They are wearing them with boots, ankle boots, heels, flats, and I absolutely loved it. While I was shopping, I decided it was time I bought some tights, so I am now the proud owner of thick black cotton tights that I will definitely be wearing. I urge every woman to run out and buy some tights. Don't go for the tights you wore as a child, but go for something fun that has some personality!

Do The Math!

Right now is such a great time to buy a house. Please read the following information and use it to your advantage!!!

Do the math.

The time to buy a home is now. Never have sellers been more flexible or financial terms more favorable. The simple math below shows that the opportunity of your lifetime is now.


Lower mortgage rates
Right now 30-year fixed mortgages are lower than they’ve been in five years and as low as they’ve been at any time since 1973.1 On Wednesday, December 10, rates hit 4.875%. Just four months ago rates were at 6.29%. The difference to you? Now you can either buy the home you’ve wanted while paying less than you planned or buy a higher-valued home for the same payment you originally budgeted.

Example 1: Four months ago a $320,000 loan would result in monthly payments of $1978.63 (not including taxes and insurance).2 NOW that same loan amount would cost $1693.47, a savings to you of $285.16 a month.3

Example 2: Four months ago the $1978.63 payment would have bought you a $400,000 home (after a 20% downpayment). Now that same payment will buy you a $467,000 home.4

1Source: Freddie Mac. 2 Assumes a down payment of 20% and a 30-year fixed rate. 3 Source: Landover Mortgage. 4 Source: Landover Mortgage.

Lower home prices
In many areas of the Northwest home prices have been falling. In fact, the median price of homes in our area is now more affordable to the average family.

Example 1: The median price of homes listed for sale in Western and Southwest Washington is now $318,500, versus $344,000 a year ago.1

Example 2: At this time last year a median income family in Metro Portland could only afford 94% of the monthly mortgage payment of the median-price home in the area.2 Now that same family can afford 109% of the monthly mortgage payment.3

1Source: NWMLS Median Home Price as of 12/11/08. 2 Based on 20% downpayment and 30-year fixed rate. 3 Source: RMLS Market Action Report.

Financing bottlenecks ahead
The lending pipeline is suddenly very busy. In fact, the weekly refinance index recently jumped a whopping 203% in one week alone, according to Northwest based Landover Mortgage. And, as currently configured after closings, mergers and layoffs, the mortgage industry is not equipped the way it once was to handle this heavier volume of new loans and refinances. It will pay to get ahead of the line – and not stuck in it – by at the least getting prequalified for a mortgage now.

First-time home buyer tax credit
Are you a first- time home buyer? Thanks to this year's Housing and Economic Recovery Act, when you purchase a home you may qualify to receive a tax credit of up to $7500. But don't wait! The credit expires June 30, 2009. For more information, click here.

More buyers = lower inventories
As more buyers jump at today’s unbeatable mortgage rates and make offers on their choice of homes, the selection of properties on the market – especially those most priced to sell – will go down. Once again, those buyers who act sooner will benefit by locking in at low rates and moving more quickly throughout the transaction process. And those buyers who choose to remain on the sidelines? Quite simply, they’re just not doing the math.

For more information on your options, contact your CBBain or CBSeal Realtor.®
For the latest mortgage rates, contact Landover Mortgage.