{happy new year from paris!}

Cheers and wishing you a very happy new year!!!!  We rang in the new year last night with 4 other American friends who are visiting Paris right now at an amazing restaurant we just happened to stumble upon while searching for a place to eat dinner that wasn't completely overflowing with people.  

We found ourselves on the adorable nearby Rue Cler which is where we found L'Eclair Cocktail Bar & Restaurant.  Grabbing the very last table that was supposed to fit four, we squeezed 6 in and proceeded to order a bunch of small plates including an open-face croque monsieur and a delicious pan-fried steak tartare. While the food was truly great (as all the french food has been so far), the best part of the restaurant was their amazing cocktail menu which boasted a line up of 5 different group-sized punches of which we ordered two.  One was a delicious champagne punch they created especially for New Year's Eve with St. Germain, citrus and pear juice.  The other, titled The Harlem Shake, was made with bourbon, mulled wine, citrus & ginger ale.  Both were drained to the very last drop and sent us on our way to officially ring in the new year in front of the Eiffel Tower. 

{see video I took of the tower at midnight right here}

{new year's eve party dresses}

New Year's Eve might just my favorite holiday of the year- it's probably the only holiday where you can get away with being ridiculously overly dressed in something glitzy and glamourous plus champagne flows all night long!  So why not use this chance to wear a really fun frock.  

Here are some of my faves (especially #1!):

1. Nasty Gal Angel Cape Dress

2. Model Gabby Sequin Dress 

3. ASOS Cami Dress

4. BCBG Tulle Insert Dress

5. Cynthia Steffe Leather Look Dress

6. Nasty Gal Stained Glass Dress

7. ASOS Slit Gown

8. ASOS Neoprene Dress

9. Sparkle & Fade Jumpsuit

10. Jill Stuart Gold Sequin Strapless Dress

11. Red Valentino Peplum Dress

12. Three Floor Model Behavior Frock

{party inspiration: nye}

Right now most people are centered on gift shopping, holiday parties and traveling home for Christmas, but you can't forget about planning a little New Year's Eve party or it will sneak right up on you while you are still enjoying your new Christmas presents!  Using Target's new celebration glassware form Threshold as inspiration, I created this NYE party inspiration using a muted palette of classic white and gold mixed with dove grey and a dusty vintage peach/rose.  For NYE last year, we went crazy with the color scheme (see photos from that party here and the inspiration here) so this time around I wanted to try a complete 180!  Be sure to check back tomorrow as I have some very exciting news about where I will be spending this NYE! :)

Cheers! Hi Ball glasses  |  Cheers! Old Fashioned Glasses  |  Confetti Cocktail Shaker  |  Classic Champagne Flute

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Target via Glam Media. The

opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of 

the opinions or positions of Target.

{2012 balloons}

On a recent trip to the fabric district, I wandered into one of the many party supply stores that are also in that area and picked up some festive number balloons for New Year's Eve.  Since you can deflate and re-use mylar balloons, I thought it might be a fun tradition to take a photo every New Year's Eve (especially since I will only have to purchase one new number each year).  You can find these balloons here in a variety of colors or at any local party supply.