MARC JACOBS WINNER!

This is the time! 

We've a winner to announce!

Surrender the envelope!

(Is the name hard to pronounce?)

We'll party! We'll dance!

We'll prance and we'll dally!

Is it Harry? Or Minnie? Or Parker? Or Sally?

Website random.org 

Has chosen from the list - 

And decided that bangles

Will grace this fine wrist...

It's Averill at Odi et Amo

Who wins the reward

"Many congrats on your win!"

We cheer in one accord!

Congrats Averill, and my thanks to everyone who participated and followed in the Marc Jacobs give-away from Designer Apparel! It was a lot of fun, and we'll do it again soon!
THANK YOU FOR PLAYING!!!

xoxo Sanity Fair
/Images/"Winner Is"/ blogohblog.com/ confetti/free-extras.com/ KS envelope/ travelsinheels.blogspot.com/ KS Christmas/ kimgray.co.za/ Miss Dior balloons/ stardustandsequins.wordpress.com/

STYLE STORY: CLUB MONACO

I'm a Ralph Lauren junkie. If he made a snuggie, I'd buy it (and it would be a such tasteful, classic snuggie too). But every season, while trolling his many lines - Lauren, Rugby, Black Label, Blue Label, RLX, Pink Pony, American Living, Chaps... etc., etc., etc., I always forget one: Club Monaco. 

There are a few hints of classic Americana and British aristocracy, but it's a younger, hipper style. On the street, you wouldn't peg it for a Lauren creation. But true to form, it's traditional in one sense: the color wheel. Season after season, CM offers a neutral palette of tailored pieces so simple that in the midst of all the fuss over trends and the "color of the season" CM is easy to overlook.

But drop into a Club Monaco store, and you'll walk out with a bag-full - I guarantee it. It's the best store out there for basics that aren't boring. 

Q. What goes with camel, cream, grey, or black? 

A. Absolutely everything.

P.S. Don't forget to enter the MARC JACOBS JEWELRY GIVE AWAY!!!!

TUESDAY is the LAST DAY to enter!

Good luck to the winner :)

xoxo Sanity Fair

/Images/clubmonaco.com/snopes.com camel/irishgiftideas.ie blanket/

MARC JACOBS GIVE-AWAY!

My life is full of tough decisions (is this the best moisturizing, loveliest smelling face cream on the entire planet? Is this steak cooked at optimal temperatures for both safety and taste? Will my tailor take out a hit on me if I have this pant cuff re-hemed one more time?). I've been told I'm picky, but I prefer to say "particular." As in, "this particular book won't do - can you get me a copy without a tiny, microscopic scratch on the back dust jacket?"

It's a hard life. So you can just imagine how terribly difficult it was for me to make the decision with Designer Apparel to offer a give-away for a gorgeous piece of Marc Jacobs jewelry - I'm a tough sell. It took me almost 20 solid seconds to say, "heck, yes!" (during those 20 seconds I was calculating if I could win it myself.)

These beautiful bangles could grace your wrist!

So I'm very excited to be offering this gorgeous bracelet for you to win. Isn't it charming? I mean literally. It has charms. It's the Marc by Marc Jacobs House of Cards bracelet stack.



Give-away host Designer Apparel is an exciting online search engine that carries hundreds of luxury brands. You can find wonderful labels from Ralph Lauren and Cole Haan, to Loro Piana and Tory Burch! It's a lovely way to do all your shopping on one website.

Playing By The Rules

1. The give-away will end on Tuesday, October 26, and will be decided via random selection courtesy of Random.org.

2. To enter the give-away, you must become a follower of Sanity Fair via Google Follower or via Facebook (links to both, RH sidebar. Twitter will not count for this contest).

3. You must leave me a comment with email or personal website link stating that you've become a follower on any blog post through next Tuesday.

4. If you're already a follower via one or both of those options, just leave me a comment with email or personal website link and let me know that you're already a fan for automatic entry.

5. For every way you follow (Google Follower or Facebook), you get one entry in the contest. Two follows = two entries. Just be sure to let me know you've followed twice! :)

6. With apologies to all my fabulous Aussie and Canadian friends, this contest is for U.S. residents ONLY. (But if you can score a friend in the continental 50 who is willing to let you use their shipping address, be my guest!). If winner is unreachable after seven days, s/he forfeits the prize to second place.

Good luck friends!!! I can't wait to see who wins!

/All images/ shopbop via designerapparel.com/

GIVE-AWAY WINNER!

Last week was Sanity Fair's first give-away ever! The prize was a vintage First Edition of Dorothy Rodger's classic book, The House In My Head.

And the envelope please (via Random.org)...

The winner is Sarah Klassen of beautiful blog Haute Design! Congratulations Sarah!!! Thanks so much to everyone who entered, and welcome to all the new visitors to and followers of Sanity Fair. I'm so delighted you're here. 

So that's a wrap! Congrats again to Sarah, and stay tuned this week for some fine new fun, including a special shopping guide, a visit to France, and a peek into the life of a fashion model.

All the best, 

THE SOCIALITE

Don't forget to join the Sanity Fair vintage book give-away for the First Edition of Dorothy Rodgers' book, The House in My Head. Today and tomorrow are your last chance! Our dear Mrs. Rodgers was a socialite, wife of Rodgers - as in, "Rodgers and Hammerstein," a serious patron of the arts, and a decor diva. Never one to do anything half way, she was famously dubbed "La Perfecta" by friends, who sometimes pranked her by moving ash trays at parties. She was so exacting as a hostess, that she noticed (and fretted over) the slightest change in any of her arrangements.

The House In My Head is her personal account of building her dream home, from the blueprints up. Even better? She includes the recipes for which she was famous too!

The give-away for the special First Edition ends tomorrow. You can read full details and more about the book HERE. RULES:  Just enter by leaving a comment below. If you've already commented, but would like to enter a second time, you may do so with an additional comment here, or by becoming a follower of Sanity Fair!

FRIDAY GIVE-AWAY! THE HOUSE THE SOUND OF MUSIC BUILT

UPDATE:  Today (Friday the 16th) is the last day to participate in the give-away! I'll announce the winner on Monday the 19th, so stay tunned.

It's a Sanity Fair first! A give-away, and being from me, it's a book! I've collected vintage design books for years, and I can attest to the fact that they're invaluable. And this give-away choice is a double for design:  it has a great cover and great content (sometimes, you CAN judge a book by its cover!). The book is Dorothy Rodgers' The House In My Head.

Socialite extraordinaire, wife of the "Rodgers" in "Rodgers and Hammerstein," entrepreneur, art collector, and fashion and decor diva, Dorothy Rodgers was a Manhattan chameleon. And she was so well known for her superb hostess skills (from conversation to recipes) that guests dubbed her "La Perfecta." Jackson Pollacks hung on her walls; Slim Hayward and Noel Coward hung out in her drawing room.

In 1964, Dorothy published a book called My Favorite Things. It was a whirlwind of advice  - everything from how to properly throw a dinner party and display your hobbies as decor, to tips on maximizing storage space in small closets. She knew from whence she spoke - entrepreneur Dorothy had founded her own design and renovation firm Repair, Inc. years before. And she practiced what she preached. Overwhelmed by the amount of care (even with servants) that her colonial Connecticut manse required, she set out to design a modern, efficient home from the ground up. That project became The House In My Head.

The House In My Head chronicles every step of her home's creation, from the "first pencil stroke to lighting the final lamp;" Dorothy thought about everything:  how she preferred to store things, the lighting she liked, the way she (and her family) inhabited a home. She was determined to create perfection. It's a design story we can all sympathize with:  triumph and frustration, excitement and planning - and a welcome reminder that even super wealthy socialites must suffer at the hands of contractors (though the recent success of your husband's musical, The Sound of Music, makes bill-paying painless). As Rodgers herself says in the book's conclusion: "if only we had known how much confusion, delay, uncertainty and expense we would have to accept.... however, to create one last 'if only'... if only we had built the house ten years ago." But the real plum in the pudding is her recipe collection in the back of the book, meticulously organized into select menus. My favorite? A special brunch menu for spring:  Spring Soup with scallions, Croissants, Chutney, Sliced Tomatoes with Basil and French Dressing, and Sour Cherry Tart. Break out the good china!

The Give-Away ends next Friday. The random generator will choose a winner from among comments I receive April 9 - 16. So leave a comment, and cross your fingers (and be sure to include your email)! BONUS:  "Follow" Sanity Fair in the LH sidebar, and you'll be entered twice - just be sure to mention in your comment that you did so!

Specs:  254 pages, First Edition, Color and Black and White photos by House Beautiful. Jacket review by Kitty Carlisle Hart. Published by Avenel. Rare vintage edition; excellent condition with only minor wear; one pen mark. A note to overseas readers:  all shipping is to U.S. addresses. Keep that in mind!
Read more about Dorothy here via the New York Times.

Image of Dorothy from divasthesite.com.