this friday i thought i'd share a few of my favorites,  i also figured i'd start and stop at the top of my dresser.  :)  

i am currently reading Shannon Ables book, The Simply Luxurious Life. i have been following TSLL's blog, pinterest and instagram for quite awhile now, so it was only fitting for me to buy the book!  while i am only 80 pages in, i am thoroughly enjoying myself!! 

an important point that Shannon has made via blog, podcast and book, is the necessity of a sanctuary / oasis; someplace you can retreat to at the end of the day, to escape or just to re-energize. so in an attempt to create such an oasis, i decided to hold onto things that i absolutely loved, items that made me smile, and mementos that were simply meaningful to me.  

via instagram @ohsuzeq

my dresser (aside from it being the first piece of furniture we ever bought for our home, it's also italian, creamy white and carved wood with this venus-esque shell embellishment at the base of the mirror) all of which i love!! mercury glass (everywhere, and in all shapes and sizes) it really does make me smile. Tory Burch perfume (i have searched high and low for the right perfume), thank you Tory for bottling all of my california memories into this perfect scent!! flowers - as Claude Monet said “I must have flowers, always, and always.”  seashells (my formative years were spent in southern california on the beach and i will never grow tired of the feel, sights, sounds & smells, of the coast) along with those lovely little shells that i will forever collect. rosegold - i am just in love!! and finally, photographs, whether one of my own or just a memory, photographs will  a l w a y s  be near & dear to this photographer's heart!! 

  

This beautiful young woman has such a brilliant future, I can't wait to see what it brings!

The graduate Ava, class of 2015 couldn't be classier!! 

c o n g r a t u l a t i o n s ! ! !