Oprah | Inspired by This Blog

I have been an Oprah fan for years… I respect her professionally for so many reasons and am bound and determined to one day sit on the couch across from her and have a lovely little chat. So as it is the kick off of Oprah’s 24th season, I thought I would take a week to shed a little bit of light about my love for the lady. Oprah always does a “favorite things” episode and below are some of her favorite that I myself am quite fond of also.

One of my favorite things Oprah has ever talked about on her show is the red velvet cake she scouted out at the old Doughboy’s Bakery. A few years back the popular Los Angeles bakery went out of business. What people don’t know is that Oprah’s favorite red velvet cake lives on! The owner of the property reopened the restaurant when the former Doughboy’s owner disappeared. The restaurant relaunched as The Corner and retained some of the same staff including the baker. So if you want to sample the red velvet cake that Gale and Oprah voted as best in the country you just need to head over to The Corner in Hollywood. If you don’t already, you should follow Oprah on twitter.

Oprah and Gale’s favorite red velvet cake

Piper Heidsieck Champagne

The Neiman Marcus Cookbook

Oprah loves the Miraval Spa in Arizona!

Sarah Jessica Parker’s Lovely

Hope in a Jar moisturizer by Philosophy

Grace gift basket by philosophy

Kitchen aid artisan stand Mixer

Breville Ikon Panini Press from Williams-Sonoma

May you be inspired,

Leila

Handwritten notes seem to be somewhat of a lost art form yet they are such a simple way to make someone feel special. The most beautifully crafted email can in no way compare to a letter sent via snail mail in the sender’s own imperfect printing. One of my favorite episodes of Oprah was her interviewing the widow of an American soldier, who wrote beautiful letters to their infant son. The letters instructed him on how to be a man and all of the other lessons he would unfortunately not live long enough to impart himself. I love that their son has hard copies of his father’s heartfelt words for him. It makes them tangible and everlasting. Check it out for yourself!

My love for letters doesn’t stop at sending and receiving them in the mail. I absolutely love when they are incorporated into the details of a wedding. Handwritten tags, a note from the groom to the bride delivered with her bouquet or any bit of hand penned scratch, only lends that much more intimate charm to the day. Those of you who have seen the Sex and The City movie, surely remember the portions where Big emails Carrie love letters he retyped from great men from the past. They later incorporated them into their wedding vows, which is also a great way to work old beautiful words into your special day.

If you love letters as much as I do, check out the book, 150 Love letters you were never meant to see and the 50 Greatest Love Letters of All Time.

Carrie and Big just after he uttered these words from Ludwig Van Beethoven, “Ever mine, ever thine, ever ours.”