(BCBGeneration surf top and bikini bottom, DANNIJO choker (similar) and cuff, Quay sunglasses, The 2 Bandits arrow cuff (similar), Ax + Apple earrings)

There is seriously so much I love right now about the classic surf top. It’s a bit tomboy, but in this adorable floral print…it’s got a feminine, RETRO touch. With festival season, I’m trying to find as much time as possible by the pool. I’m still counting my bikinis, attempting to book a beach getaway for each pair. So far I’ve got Montauk on my list! This two-piece will surely look better with a surfboard and a tan. Here, I was shot in Palm Springs with all my galpals, at Coachella (where else?!) just before the festival madness. Nothing beats breakfast by the pool and the smell of chlorine on a sunny Saturday morning. 

NYC is finally warming up. Today felt like summer, and after my meetings, I sat in Central Park on the grass in nothing but a denim romper, and let the sun bronze my shoulders. I can officially smell HOT summer in the city. The sweat, the sunscreen. Time to get bikini ready my friends.

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You get this funny tingling feeling when you wake up on the Sunset Strip, to the perfect glowing sunrise. I put on my glasses, and headed towards the window. The tiny houses perched on the hills. The sun so hard in your face you have to squint. Hollywood is well, Hollywood. I know it all too well. I grew up in LA. Everyone wants to make it. The Sunset Strip is known for it’s glitz and glamour, studios, and movie sets. The parties, the rock n’ roll. I was just in LA for a shoot, and checked right in at the Sunset Tower Hotel. I was so jetlagged that I woke up at 5am tossing and turning, wishing it was my calltime already so that I could hop in the car and go to work. Instead, I waited till the sunrise, did some stretching, and started to unpack. 

I have a brand new travel bag. The GUCCI bamboo tote.

It’s seriously my life. And it’s GORGEOUS beyond belief. Your friends will just want to hold it and stoke it all day if you let them. 

Then, there are the heels. Carlos Pazolini platforms.

I’m very much a boots girl, but these are SO beautiful that I love them just set on my drawers to look at. 

Oh, and did I mention the bougainvillea. I stop and take a photo everytime I spot a beautiful lush corner off Melrose Boulevard. 

LA, I still love you.

//Bits & Bobs cuff//

  INSTAGRAM (natalieoffduty)

(VOGUE Germany Jan ’14// CHANEL Dallas runway looks// For Love & Lemons S/S ’14//The 2 Bandits lookbook)

Here’s a mas-hup of what’s been bottled up inside my head. The Chanel DALLAS runway show literally got me craving cactus, Texas, and a WHOOOLE lot of fringe. The artics are a’ coming to NYC this week and now I’ve got some seriously new ideas on how to stay warm….the native way! Oh, and nothing can beat a little glitter and shine. Talk about some seroiusly silver cheeckbones. But yes, I’m getting back into my heavy necklaces and fringed handbags, and oversize printed knits in reds, blacks, and whites. Maybe you’ll even see a feather sticking in my hat. That…or taking a trip to Guatemala. The latest S/S ’13 For Love & Lemons lookbook has me wishing of lightweight sexy dresses, metal arm bands, and a good tan. You know, just au natural…drifting away in a field of horses. Is it too early to wish for another city getaway?

(TOPSHOP x Nordstrom bomber jacket, fuzzy sweater, pleated skirt, buckle heel shoes (similar), and headband)

I had the best time hosting the TOPSHOP at NORDSTROM launch event at their Paramus, NJ Nordstrom store location. So many cotton candied colored coats, and perfectly cropped fuzzy knit sweaters. Everything I’ve only dreamt of for fall. What’s super amazing, is how TOPSHOP has made it’s way to the States bigger than ever…and in Nordstrom stores. Growing up, all I wanted was some real UK lovin’ and now we can get it just about anywhere here! Before the event, I went through the whole section (it’s huge!) and styled up the new collection on display. Mixing shine with loads of grunge. A metallic fit n’ flare dress with a slouchy black beanie. A perfect retro lace dress with a shearling moto jacket. And one of my favorites….a shiny black vinyl miniskirt, sparkly tank, and Russian fur hat (the next piece on my wish list.) For the night, I went with this amazing baby blue bomber jacket, the super soft lime yellow sweater, pleated skirt, and perfect buckled heels. It was Halloween weekend, so I had to throw on the little bunny eared velvet headband. It’s so so good. Thank you Nordstrom Grand State Plaza for having me for the evening. I grew up being a total mall rat…us Los Angeles girls have crawled mall sincwe birth! Dying to go back to the other Nordstrom stores and take a peek at the killer TOPSHOP selection. 

Shop TOPSHOP x NORDSTROM here!