Fabulous Finds... in {Kate} Spades!

I own a few Kate Spade items {including wedding china} but I've never been a die-hard fan of the brand overall. Occasionally I will find a piece or two I like but generally speaking I find things to be just shy of amazing. So, I tend to just look them right over. But, it appears as though Kate has remodeled her website, and the whole line of products along with it - and I have to admit, I'm loving it!

{This is my laptop case. Chic. Durable. Classic. Organized.

and BONUS: Available at the outlet!}

{I'll take one of these please! Reminds me of classic Chanel}

{This phone cover makes me want to go trade my phone in for an iPhone 4!}

{LOVE me some stripes}

{These colors are fabulous. And the idiom bangles are less than $30 each...score!}

{Anyone else have a Beastie Boys song stuck in their head after reading these bangles??}

And finally...I'm excited to see what Kate Spade comes up with for their upcoming expanded Home Collection. I'll definitely have to post and critique on that!

Have any of you lovelies checked it out for yourself? Got your eye on anything in particular??

Timeless or Trendy?

I've been preparing to start a couple of new regularly featured series here at City Southern. One of them on PATTERNS. I've done a few posts on patterns already (like this one on zebra), but there are just so many out there that can be used in design (both good and bad!).

Then, today in blogland, I read a post about stripes over at Three Men and A Lady. The question is - are you still loving stripes, or are you totally OVER the trend?

The post was talking about being over striped walls but still loving a nice wide stripe on this pair of wingback chairs. And, it got me thinking. Thinking about trends and patterns that some may think are old and tired and some are just discovering. You see this in all forms of design. Trends take a while to make their way to the masses and by the time they get there, the trend setters have moved on to something new! Fashion is old as soon as it comes off the runway. Wedding trends are tired before you are finished planning the event. If you want to be on the cutting-edge, it's only the 'edge' for so long. Plus, isn't the point of being on the edge is to do something no one else is doing yet?

So the question remains, how do you stay fresh and new when decorating your home but make it LAST long enough to enjoy it until you can afford to redo it?! You have to be able to mix the classic and enduring styles with the trends to get the best of both worlds. Use classic things in a new and unusal way. Or use trendy things to accessorize. And if you get bored easily like me and you are constantly changing things up, use trendy items in ways that can be changed out easily and inexpensively!

So, stay tuned for the new series. And enjoy these photos of STRIPES. You be the judge...are these stripes classic or trendy? Are you tired of seeing stripes? Is there another trend you're ready to say goodbye to?

all images are via decorpad