Despite the fact that I love bright colors, I do like to tone it down occasionally.  That’s where wallets like this Emilio Pucci Women’s Multicolor Continental Zip Wallet come in.  This suede wallet manages to look flirty and feminine without being too loud (although I will admit, it’s still a little loud).  I love that it has a great retro-70s feel without seeming outdated or old.  Props to the folks at Pucci!

Emilio Pucci Women’s Multicolor Continental Zip Wallet
Price: $199.99
Women’s wallet by Emilio Pucci is a stylish way to stay organized. Continental wallet boasts hues of lime, white, pink, black and yellow. Handy accessory features a wrap-around design with zip closure

I’ve been looking for a cute new wallet, and I absolutely love these uber-perky women’s zip wallets from XOXO. They’re only *$8.99*, too, so there is absolutely no guilt involved. You can get one in every color. Try that with a Coach wallet and you won’t have anything left to put in them.

As you might expect, I’m particularly fond of the lime green XOXO Tangerine Dream Women’s Wallet.

XOXO Tangerine Dream Women’s Wallet
Price: $8.99

I’m a huge fan of colorful cookware, and this lime green casserole dish from Lafont of France has me ready to grab a man off the street just so I can fill out a wedding registry.  Or wait, I could just use my debit card - but that would make too much sense.

Anyway, this Lafont of France Green Cast Iron Au Gratin Baker would look spectacular in a white, airy kitchen. The shape and color make it perfect for something as quaint as a tiny cottage or as chic as an urban loft.  I would almost feel bad cooking potatoes in such a cute casserole dish…until I remember how absolutely delicious potatoes can be.

Luckily, these guys make an entire set in this color, which I’ve included below.  How could anyone buy silver pots and pans with cookware this colorful in existence?

Lafont of France Green Cast Iron Au Gratin Baker
Price: $49.98
A lively apple green hue lends stylish appeal to this extraordinary cast iron au gratin pan from Lafont.

Lafont of France Apple Green Cast Iron Buffet
Price: $49.98
This Lafont buffet sits beautifully on your kitchen shelf until you use it again.

Lafont of France Green Cast Iron 2-Qt Saucepan
Price: $39.98
The apple green color of this quality saucepan from Lafont of France makes cooking even more of a pleasure.

Lafont of France Apple Green Cast Iron Casserole
Price: $59.99
The possibilities for wonderful dishes are limitless with this quality cast iron casserole from Lafont.

Sometimes, it’s hard to find the bag guys.  So many of them know exactly what to say and how to act to blend in with the good guys, forcing you to wait months or even years before you discover the truth (most likely when you’re sick and in bed and they decide to go out and sleep with your best friend instead of nursing your cold).

Other times, the jerks make it very easy to distinguish them from the crowd.  The Sex In Progress Lamp Light is one excellent way for them to do that.  If you find yourself in the apartment of a man with a Sex In Progress Lamp Light on his nightstand, run - don’t walk - to the nearest door, window, or laundry chute.  Thank him on the way out, though - he saved you a lot of time.

Sex In Progress Lamp Light
Price: $14.95

For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted my own espresso maker.  Sometime in the next few weeks, that dream is going to become a reality.  Although I’m not decided on a model just yet, this Breville Cafe Roma Espresso Maker is the front runner for now.  I’ve researched quite a few, and most are either really expensive, or they get really bad reviews.  This Breville model seems to be the best combination of quality and price that I’ve seen yet.

Once I get my new espresso maker, I’ll be able to make my own delicious gourmet espresso at all hours, and you know what that means?  More caffeine for me and more blog posts for all of you.  So yes, I definitely need to hurry up and make a decision on this espresso maker thing.  What do you guys think?  Should I go with the Breville Cafe Roma Espresso Maker, or do you have any better recommendations from personal experience?

Breville Cafe Roma Espresso Maker
Reproduce the exquisite taste of your favorite coffee shop drinks with this outstanding stainless steel espresso maker. It includes a 15-bar Italian Thermoblock pump that forces water through the coffee to create perfect espresso shots. The froth enhancer helps makes delicious froth to top off your drink. One year limited warranty. Model #ESP8XL.

EDIT: Updated for 2009!  I noticed I was getting a lot of traffic on this post, yet half the styles were discontinued since last year.  I needed to buy new ones for the lake this summer, so I updated my findings here, too.

I’m a big fan of tankinis, especially when you’re spending the whole day at the beach or lake. I’ve been shopping for new ones, so I figured I might as well list the best of the more modest tankinis here. The matching bottoms are available at the same sites as the tankini tops.

PLAID HALTER LONG TANKINI
Price: $35.50
Lined cups with removable padding. Ties at neck. Nylon/Spandex. By Alloy. Plaid. Imported.

Nautica Plaid Halter Tankini Top Women’s Swimsuit
Price: $64

An energetic plaid composed of stripes and houndstooth checks lends a cool vibe to the tankini top by Nautica.

Plaid Tankini
Price: $29.50
Built-in shelf bra. Nylon-spandex. Raspberry-multi, black-multi, white-multi. XS-XL. Imported. Catalog and web exclusive. See below in the “you might like these, too” section for matching bottom.

FLORAL HALTER LONG TANKINI

Price: $35.50

Lined cups with removable padding. Ties at neck. Nylon/Spandex. By Alloy. Blue Floral. Imported.

Kenneth Cole Halter Tankini with Removable Cups Women’s Swimsuit
Price: $0
A sweet tankini with just the right amount of coverage from Kenneth Cole.

 Maybe I’m alone in this, but I generally feel like I spend way too much time looking for the right credit card / discount card / identification when I’m standing in line at stores.  I reach for a platinum card and end up grabbing my insurance card.  I reach for my debit card and I end up pulling out the old college ID I still use to get discounts at the movies (yes, I’m a terrible person).

The  12-Card Auto Card Manager claims to have the solution to my problem.  Each card gets a spot, and you just press the appropriate button for the card(s) you need at the time.  It sounds really, really simple.  Although I’m not totally crazy about the hot pink shade, the ACM’s usefulness might win out over my silly color preferences.  Plus, I think they do make other colors for men, so I guess I could always buy one of those.

I keep strange hours most of the time, so I end up with puffy dark circles under my eyes more often than I care to think about.  If this were 1948, I’d probably just have to live with it.  Luckily, I’ve had my choice between dozens of products to help remove the under eye puffiness every morning.

Lately, I’ve come to rely on Orlane B21 Oligo Cooling Eye Balm.  It does the trick, plus  it makes your skin all cool and tingly when you put it on.  It also minimizes the appearance of any fine lines in your skin.  I usually have issues with new products because almost everything makes my skin break out, but this hasn’t given me any trouble at all.

Orlane B21 Oligo Cooling Eye Balm
Price: $43.0

Although I’m not a huge tea fan myself, I think Adagio Teas is just the cat’s pajamas.  Whenever I find myself in need of a gift for a friend who drinks tea at all, they’re the first company to spring to mind.  No matter how cheap your package, everything comes to you looking sophisticated and stylish.  It’s definitely not granny tea.

This Tea Flavors Sampler is perfect for casual gifts where you don’t want to look cheap and yet you don’t want to spend a lot.  For a mere $11, you get 6 flavors of tea.  Your lucky recipient will get 1 ounce each of apricot, blueberry, chocolate, cinnamon, passion fruit & tangerine in this Tea Flavors Sampler.

Last week, I decided I would update my bathroom to look a little brighter, and a little more calming.  I realize that sounds like something of a contradiction, but I decided to go with some warm, bright blues and accents of brighter colors, rather than the very bland colors currently in place.

As I was looking for a new set of shelves (something contemporary), I came across this very cute, very simple 3-tier glass shelf that would be perfect for holding extra washclothes or handtowels, along with a set of candles or a plant like they’ve done in the picture.  It’s completely neutral on its own, but the fact that it’s made of glass means it can kind of “absorb” the mood of its environment.  It also makes a small bathroom feel less cluttered from the extra piece of furniture.

If you want your own glass and brushed nickel shelf like this one, it’s called the Ellipse 3 Tier Shelf and you can get by clicking the link or picture below.

Ellipse 3 Tier Shelf
Price: $59.99