Star's Inspirations: The Perfect Five Year Anniversary Gift

Last week my husband and I celebrated our five year wedding anniversary.  It was a wonderful day filled with love, memories, talks of the future, and gifts we will both treasure forever.  When we told people we were celebrating our five year anniversary, they congratulated us.  We appreciated the congratulations and agreed that being happily married for five years was definitely something to be proud of and celebrated!

In previous years we kept our anniversary gifts fairly simple but this year I knew I wanted to give my husband something special for this milestone.  Having just celebrated his birthday and Father's Day, I was feeling a bit stumped when it came to choosing his anniversary gift.  I wanted to get him something symbolic and sentimental - not necessarily expensive or luxurious though.  I knew there were symbolic gifts for every anniversary and thought that would be a good place to start (see infoplease.com for a complete list).  The gift for five years is "wood".  Kind of a tricky one in my opinion.  I was recently in Chicago and was fortunate enough to stumble upon Stitch - an amazing designer furnishings and accessories boutique in Bucktown.  There I found various cool "wood" options including clocks, bottle stoppers, and coasters; however, my favorites were their wooden boxes.  They come in a variety of sizes, wood types and finishes and to say they are gorgeous is an understatement!  Each box is unique, finished with a high gloss lacquer, suede lined and hand made in Italy.  They are stunning yet very masculine at the same time.  I ended up choosing a small and simple box with a dark finish.

My husband absolutely loves it!  He likes to empty his pockets as soon as he gets home from work and now he has a nice place to keep his things until morning.  I love that it is a beautiful piece of home decor that will always remind both of us of this milestone.  It was the perfect five year anniversary gift if I do say so myself!  If you are engaged and don't want to wait five years to give one of these beauties to your man, consider giving one as a wedding gift or even as a thank you gift to your groomsmen!

XOXO,

Star

Bold, Chic, and in Love: Picture Perfect

There is probably no other time in your life where you and your fiancee will have as many photos taken as you will during your engagement. Of course you will always look perfect, why not make sure your man does as well?

These two outfits would be great for doing your registry, attending parties together, dropping flowers off to your fiancee at work, attending your menu tasting, and every other event and dinner in between now and the big day. The first look is a little more dressy, while the second is a little more casual. Depending on if your lady is in a dress or jeans, you have an outfit to match.

Photos courtesy of Topman, The Tie Bar, J. Crew, and Nordstroms

{FIRST LOOK}
Blazer: Navy Herringbone Skinny Blazer from Topman
Shirt: BOSS Black Regular Fit Dress Shirt from Nordstroms
Tie: C2 Stripe Tie by Calibrate from Nordstroms
Watch: Timex Andros Watch from J. Crew

This look can be worn to almost any occasion. You can't go wrong with a blazer and crisp white button-up.


{SECOND LOOK}
Sweater: Wallace and Barnes Fircrest Cardigan from J. Crew
Shirt: Indian Cottor Shirt in Bamfield Plaid from J. Crew
Tie: Hartlin Check Tie from J. Crew
Tie bar: Smooth Slide Clasp from The Tie Bar
Tie: Grenafaux Midnight Navy Tie from The Tie Bar

I live in a bubble of belief that men should dress like this every single day. And maybe you can make that a reality! The sweater and plaid button-up can be seen as casual, however when you pair it with the navy tie and tie bar you instantly get a very well put together outfit. This look shows that you pay attention to detail and care about your style.

Many of these pieces are classics and interchangeable and you may not need to buy anything new! Unless you don't already have a white button-up, blazer, tie bar, or awesome collection of ties. If that is the case, start clicking! And always feel free to ask my advice, email me at jocelyn@sterlingengagements.com

This week on The Fashion One:

Brighten up this spring boys! Tips on how to rock bright pants. 

xO
Jocelyn