Suit yourself ladies.

Summer is here and it is in full swing ladies! School is out and the weather is heating up... That means it is time for BATHING SUITS!

Well, we have been talking to a few friends about what we would like in a suit this year, and it seems that everything a lady wants... Her fella doesn't!

Chances are when your fella thinks about you in a bikini, he is thinking along these lines...

Ummm, yeah. Hey fellas, just because they make suits like that, doesn't mean we actually want to wear them all the time.

If fact, we may actually enjoy going for a swim in the ocean without our Ta-Tas falling out all over the place with each wave.

Oh, and you know those high waisted retro-style bathing suits your boyfriend hates? Guess what? It is called style and yes, you deserve to have your style even at the beach and by the pool!

SO these are some suits strictly for the ladies... Fellas be damed. You know they are gonna think you look great anyway, a cute little Vargas girl dripping with style!

Suit yourself ladies.

And why not start with this AMAZING J.Crew bikini?

We all have reasons to heart vintage inspired swimwear. Perhaps you are just a retro loving lady, maybe you love the way the high-waisted bottoms cover a little more tummy... Or maybe, just maybe...

You wanna cover that lovely "Tramp Stamp" you got back in the day.

(Wince and blush)

In this suit from Free People, you can spend your days pretending to be adorable surfer girl, Gidget.

We don't think your fella will mind playing Moon Doggie when he gets a look at you.

Looking for the perfect bathing suit to keep it covered and classy, and a little bit old fashioned?

We are super in love with this dreamy garden party bathing suit from Anthropologie.

We also really, really love this black bikini with chain detail from Anthro.

YUMMY.

Oh, Anthropologie... WE might as well hand over our wallets to you this summer.

Stay ship-shape with this fantastic striped sailor suit.

My girlfriends have been shooting me emails of suits that they like, and when I got this one I got really excited.

One suit that you can wear any number of ways!

Could your summer vacation packing get any easier?

Wrap, tuck, tie, for as much or as little coverage as you want. With this many options, it almost justifies the price tag!

Thank you, Heidi Merrick!

Geeky gals everywhere rejoice! Nerd lover Mr. Marc Jacobs has done it again with his delicious little one shoulder bathing suit.

Cuteness? CHECK

Coverage? CHECK

Sexy? CHECK

Horrible Tan Lines? DOUBLE CHECK... But maybe that will encourage you to sit in the shade like you are supposed to!

Que the Duran Duran music.... Now!

In this snow leopard print one piece from DVF you will be A View To Kill, and make the Wild Boys Hungry Like A Wolf, While you Dance On The Sand and everyone will want to take your picture and make you a Girl On Film.

This lavender suit from Urban also comes in black... And it is pretty much everything we have been looking for and it will break hearts, not break the bank.

Dear Sis, I found your perfect bathing suit!

For all the Giraffe lovers in your life go for this beautiful print bikini from Anthro.

We spend so much time trying to look good for our guys. This summer go for a suit that you love. Confidence looks good on everyone, and string bikinis sadly do not.

XOXO- Things-We-Heart

Yummies: We heart Labor Day BBQ Parties!

WOW! Where did the summer go!? It's almost Labor Day again???

Is it just us or is this super weird to be at the end of summer? How sad!

We still get those Back-to School pangs and odd nervousness around this time when we see those end of summer sales and our fav bikinis go back into the back of our undie drawers.

But there is a super shiny silver lining to the end of summer...waawaawaawaa...UGH...even saying that makes us cry!

OK, sorry...so the silver lining to the E.o.S. are all of the Labor Day parties!

How fun are those BBQs? The sun, the fun, the drinks, the fresh food, the friends, the amazing food, the pools, the super yummy BBQ food...did we mention how much we heart BBQs and food?

So we decided to help you out with your super cute L.D (Labor Day) BBQ by bringing you a fantasmic L.D. menu to make your planning a wee bit easier..you're welcome!

Let's get cracking! There is not much time!

First let us start with a super refreshing and satisfying salad...you may recognize this one from our Summer Salads post...but we only bring you what we heart and we def heart this salad.

The delish Tuscan Bread Salad.

Small box of cherry tomatoes- Quartered

Small container of Bocconcini (bite-size fresh mozzarella)- halved

4 Diced golden and green Heirloom tomatoes (the same size pieces as the cherry tomatoes)

1 avocado, diced

Roughly torn basil

Croûtons - Made from torn Sour Dough Bread toasted a bit in a 350* oven for 5-10 min.

Toss all of that with a little olive oil and Balsamic Vinegar.

Sea Salt and Pepper to taste

Put in your serving bowl, drizzle with a little balsamic vinegar and toss in some S & P... tada! Perf!

Now let's move on to the heart of the meal...the mains!

These 2 yummy sandwiches are sure to please. They are both uber easy to make but look really hard and extremely chic with out looking fussy...if that makes any sense ;)

When we came across this beauty on our new fav foodie blog we couldn't resist..even though we are mainly Vegetarians. But it passed our BF (Boy Friend) test...he was salivating...

The fish sandwich with scallion aoili...yumm!

Go here for the complete recipe and WOW your crowd!

For all of you veggies (and even your meat lurvers will rejoice) look at this TDF grilled eggplant sandwich...um..YUMMMM

• 1 large eggplant, (1 1/4-1 1/2 pounds), cut into 12 1/4-inch-thick rounds
• Canola or olive oil cooking spray
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
• 3 tablespoon(s) finely shredded Parmesan, or Asiago cheese
• 1/2 cup(s) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 4 focaccia, or rustic Italian bread
• 2 teaspoon(s) extra-virgin olive oil
• 5 ounce(s) baby spinach
• 1 cup(s) canned crushed tomatoes, preferably fire-roasted
• 3 tablespoon(s) chopped fresh basil, divided

Directions

1. Preheat grill to medium-high.
2. Place eggplant rounds on a baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. Coat both sides lightly with cooking spray. Combine Parmesan (or Asiago) and mozzarella in a small bowl. Brush both sides of focaccia (or bread) with oil.
3. Place spinach in a large microwave-safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and punch several holes in the wrap. Microwave on High until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Combine tomatoes and 2 tablespoons basil in a small microwave-safe bowl. Cover and microwave until bubbling, about 2 minutes.
4. Place all your ingredients on the baking sheet with the eggplant and take it to the grill. Grill the eggplant slices until brown and soft on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Grill the bread until toasted, about 1 minute per side. Return the eggplant and bread to the baking sheet. Reduce grill heat to medium.
5. Place 1 eggplant round on top of each slice of bread. Layer 1 tablespoon tomatoes, 1 tablespoon wilted spinach and 1 tablespoon cheese on each slice of eggplant. Repeat with the remaining eggplant, sauce, spinach and cheese. Sprinkle each stack with some of the remaining basil. Place the baking sheet on the grill, close the lid and grill until the sandwiches are hot and the cheese is melted, 5 to 7 minutes.

OK, now that your mains and starter are taken care of...we bring your our 2 most favoritest sides. Now most tend to do a potato salad..which BTW we super heart...but this is a special day so let's go all out and keep the shmance going.

Both are fresh grilled vegetables and both are amazing!

First we bring you our mouth watering, sweat inducing Indian Spicy grilled corn...you will crave this every summer!

Grill fresh corn until fully cooked and browned.

Mix sea salt and red chili powder in a small dish.

Rub lemon wedges all over corn to wet and then dip lemon wedge in the chili powder mixture and rub the spiced lemon wedge over the corn...YUM!

Don't forget the napkins to wipe your brow after biting into this spicy dish.

Now for a crowd pleaser...grilled asparagus with pink Himalayan Salt! Sounds fancy..but uber easy.

Coat fresh asparagus with Olive Oil and grill until cooked and a wee bit blackened. Sprinkle with Pink Salt and pepper.

Done and done and delish!

Now for our fav part of any BBQ...DESSERT!!!!

Let's keep this shmancy chic feeling going with these next 2 dessert dishes..why not!??! You and your friends deserve it!

Please be careful not to drool on your computers while reading these recipes....

Grilled Peaches with Ice Cream...um...I'm sorry...what did you say?

Uh huh...Grilled Peaches.....with ICE CREAM!!!!

Go here for Bobby Flay's unbelievable recipe and blow your guests away with how super official you are.

OK, now you super know how crazy we are about ice cream and ice cream sandwiches...well we found a new ICS and it is TDF!

Our friend made these the other day and put us to shame! So now it's our/your turn...

Lemon Ice Cream Sandwich with a Blueberry Swirl...sounds hard? Not at all! Chic and easy breezy.

Plus you can make these a few days ahead so you don't have to stress out.

So checklist time...

Salad- √

Entrees- √

Sides- √

Desserts- √

hmmmm, what's missing??? Oh yes...the thing that brings everyone together...

Last but for sure never least...drinks!

Here are 2 amazing recipies we searched high and low for that are soooo good your guests might ask you to make these at their BBQs...sorry!

The Watermelon Insandiary and Watermelon Mojito. Both are crazy refreshing and crazy yummers.

Watermelon Insandiary- Sooooooo good and surprising

Ingredients

Chili Salt

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
• 
  
• Cocktail

• 1 lime wedge
• Ice
• 2 ounces blanco tequila
• 2 ounces watermelon juice
• 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
• 1/4 ounce Simple Syrup

Directions

• Make the Chili Salt: In a small bowl, mix the kosher salt, sugar and ancho chile powder.
• Mix the Cocktail: Moisten the outer rim of a highball glass with the lime wedge and coat lightly with chile salt. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add all of the remaining ingredients and shake well. Fill the highball glass with ice and strain the drink into the glass.

These would be sooo cute if served in these vintage inspired glasses by CB2!

Super heart Mojitos but want to mix it up a bit? Try the Watermelon Mojito!

Go here for the delishus recipe.

Serve your Mojitos in this Chemistry inspired bev beaker...tres chic!

P.S. Don't forget all of the accessories! Napkins, Plates, Citronella Candles, Utensils, Sunscreen, Water, Ice....

P.P.S. Plllleeeeaaassseee wear white after labor day! It's sooo 2000 not to. (more on that later we bet)

xoxo t.w.h.

Fashion Friday: Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny....

So obviously we are now in the dog days of summer. But because we are lucky enough to live in Southern California we have quite a few warm months left... And we have been working really hard all summer to get in shape... For BIKINIS!! 

I know that word strikes fear into the hearts of million of women all over the world, and who can blame us? If you don't look like Phoebe Cates in Fast Times, showing 90% of your body to the whole beach is a scary thing. 

Right now you are asking yourself... "Self? How come the Things-We-Heart girls waited till almost the very end of summer to do a bathing suit post?" Well, the answer is one simple word.... 

SALE!! 

If we get our suits now, we can save money and look just as cute wen we pull them out next summer and relax on the beach as we watch everyone running to the store to pay full price. 

Because a good suit, a really good suit, can last you for years! Just make sure you treat it right.. Hand wash in cold and lay flat to dry. 

So now dear readers.. We will bring on the suits! These are some of our fave finds on sale now! (Please excuse the looks on some of these models faces... The only excuses I can make for them are either, A. They HATE to be photographed in bathing suits, or B. They are super bored.) 

First up, we have this adorable little swirly pastel print from Red Carter. 

The really light colors will make you look extra tan, 


and the gold details are just subtle enough. 

Super skinny strings but nice butt coverage, make this suit a winner. 

Get yours on Shop Bop. 

You know what is funny? Is that I used to have a one piece with this same patten when I was a little girl! I remember thinking that the white swirls of dots looked like stars in the night sky... And now here it is again in a much sexier grown up suit! I am super excited about this Jo de Mer bikini! 

A really pretty mixture of edgy and sweet. I love the cream colored border with the navy blue. 

Plus we are always looking for a good strapless top and this one looks like it has good support. Hurry and get one before they are gone! 

So maybe you are looking for a little more coverage, but you still want to be a sexy beach babe?? 

Well, Miss Diane von Furstenberg has you covered (haha) in this super stylish and sexy one piece. 

Hello Beautiful! 

With the rope detailing and the gold at those amazing gold accents at the straps, you my friend will be Ship Shape and ready to sail away. 

And with a back this sexy... Well lets just say, they will hate to see you leave, but love to watch you go. 

Wait, what is that you say? Your husband or boyfriend can't seem to get his nose out of the world of financial blogs? You keep finding receipts from rare coin shops?

Then this my friend is the suit for you! Their is just no way your man will not fall in love with this gold coin patterned suit! 

It will bring out the pirate loving Goonie in everyone! 

Another winner from Mr. Red Carter, This one is also at Shop Bop now! 

Ummmm.... Hello? Yes, I would like to order the brightly colored Ikat print suit you have on sale.... Oh, sure I will hold... But can I ask you a question first? Is the person on the other line interested in the same suit?..... Oh, she is? Well, I will give you $20 if you take my call first!...

Hello? Hello? HELLO?!! Huh... The sales girl hung up on me... 

Yes people, we would even stoop to bribery to try and get our paws on this hot little number. 

Tibi is responsible for this ray of sunshine and we extend our deepest thanks.  

Bright, fun, sexy and with just the right amount of coverage, this is everything a suit should be. I actually want to wear the bandeaux top year round under all of our loosey goosey tank tops. 

(Alexander Wang,  for another post, another love story) 

I shouldn't even tell you this, because you may wear my size... But you can get yours here.. 

Another really great option for when you are buying bikinis on sale is to do the mix and match... You know what big fans we are of mixing and matching over here at Things-We-Heart... 

So here are a few of our favorite tops and bottoms that would work in a endless combos. 

Rachel Pally makes great separates you can mix and match for loads of fun.. 

Right now we are feeling this bright abstract pattern.. 

LOVE the detail at the hip... This bottom is super flattering and comfy looking. 

Of course we died a little inside when we saw this genius creation from our boyfriend Marc Jacobs... (OK we realize we say that a lot, but to clarify, we have 3 fake boyfriends... Jonathan Adler, Marc Jacobs, and Edward Cullen.) 

But back to the bikini.. 

How about some full boy brief style faux denim bikini bottoms? 

Alright.. I will take them. 

Complete with side button detailing, these are about a cute and tomboy as you can get when you are talking bikini. 

Plus, look at the butt!! Did you see it? Look at that little tag! Oh my goodness! J'adorable! If this isn't worth doing a few hundred squats and lunges for, then I don't know what is. 

DO IT NOW.. GET YOURS HERE. 

Rachel Pally has this great bandeaux top. It has enough structure to actually hold you up and in place, and that is important. 

We are in America after all and you don't wanna end up going all Euro at the wrong time. So with this top you get enough support while still looking super sexy and stylish, Plus it is black and matches everything...and no tan lines! 

Winner!

 

Rachel Pally at Shop Bop

Oh we are soooo in LOVE with this one... 

Snake Skin print? Check 

Amazing bronzy color? Check

Supportive? Check

Sexy? Check Check Check! 

Tyler Rose makes this saucy little number. Pair it with black, brown or white bottoms and you will feel like a heavy metal beach goddess roaming the beach in this number. Snap it up now. 

Whatever you do remember that confidence is beauty and if you feel good you look good. So get out there slather on the SPF and bring a cute little hat and shades and enjoy the summer sun, enjoy the beauty of the beach and don't worry too much about how you look... We may not look like these bikini models.. But that is hopefully because we are smiling!! 

XOXO- Things-We-Heart