I'm back with one more gift guide! As we approach Christmas in just under two weeks, I wanted to share gift ideas under $50 for any last-minute people on your list! I know for me, I have a few more people that I want to shop for, and $50 is usually a good price point for something thoughtful and fun!
Also, maybe you'll find some inspiration if your friends and family are asking what's on your own wishlist. Either way, I hope you find this helpful!
OMG, these sales. I'm so over it but somehow feel the need to share them anyway. First of all, I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving. I was at the beach in North Carolina with my mom and my brother and it was really, really lovely. I did do some online shopping on Friday and may continue to do a bit today, so I wanted to share everything I've ordered so far + a few more things I'm considering ordering.
I want to preface this by saying that I don't reeeally plan to keep everything I ordered; I got a little excited, had a couple of glasses of wine, and the sales got to me. Whatever!
image via j.crew: skirt here & shoes here
Hiii! Hope everyone had a great weekend. I was surprisingly busy, with a few celebratory dinners with friends & just bopping around the city, as usual. Yesterday I share another Gift Guide, for the girl who has everything, it's such a fun one. I also shared a VLOG!!! My first NYC vlog in almost exactly a year. Hope you enjoy it if you check it out!
Anyway, today is a busy day for me. I have to pop into the office for work a bit this morning, and then I leave tonight for Thanksgiving, and on top of that, so many of the Cyber Week/Black Friday sales have already begun that I want to share!
I am surprised by how many great sales there are this year, and the fact that they've already started! I decided to round up a few of my favorites here, and plan to update this post and update you, throughout the week.
Back again with another gift guide! I absolutely love doing the "Girl Who Has Everything" gift guide. I have been doing this one every single year for like 5 years now, and it's always just such a fun, girly, luxurious mix of pieces that are sure to spark joy for the girly-girl in your life who just... has it all!
Hope you enjoy!
When I did a question box on my IG asking for gift guide requests, the second most requested after "boyfriend gift guide," was a gift guide for the boyfriend's parents or in-laws! I published the Boyfriend gift guide last week, and I am excited to share the parents/in-laws one today. Joe and I worked on this together so it's been approved by a real boyfriend lol.
Hopefully, this gives you a little inspiration! Feel free to drop in the comments anything else you'd recommend or have gifted in the past.
Happy Monday! I can't believe Thanksgiving is already NEXT WEEK! I am very excited about Thanksgiving this year because I am heading down to Oak Island, North Carolina with my mom and brother. My mom lives in Raleigh now but rented a beach house for the Holiday and I am so looking forward to spending Thanksgiving on the beach in warmer fall weather.
If you're like me and kind of forgot about Thanksgiving until now, I rounded up quite a few pieces and ideas for Thanksgiving outfits for today's post. I feel like I've just been finding the cutest things lately and I am so excited to share these adorable looks for the late fall / early holiday season.
image via pinterest
Happy Friday from Dallas! I am here visiting Joe for the week and I'm so excited for today because we are taking the day off work to go get massages and tonight go to a wine bar he's been wanting to try!
1. This week I published quite a bit of content on the blog! In case you missed it, the gift guides have begun, and so far I've shared:
My personal wish list gift guide
Up next will be the in-laws/boyfriend's parents' gift guide! I will probably post it on Monday, followed by the Girl Who Has Everything gift guide, which is my annual favorite.
2. When I was in Kansas City a couple of months ago, I purchased this candle from a local boutique. It is the most incredible holiday scent, and the brand is equally wonderful; 5% of every purchase funds Anti-Trafficking efforts in the US. Would highly recommend the candle and supporting this small business!
You can also purchase the candle on Amazon here!
3. I finished reading The Paris Apartment this week and loved it!! Such a page-turner... it's a bit of a spooky thriller and I was so impressed with all of the twists & turns.
Up next I plan to read Nora Goes Off Script!
I am so excited about today's gift guide! Coming up with a gift idea for a boyfriend is not usually very easy, and this came highly requested, so I'm excited to share this today. I enlisted my boyfriend Joe's help to create this gift guide for all of you and I think there are so many great ideas included!
This is pretty much a fool-proof guide considering most items are things I think any boy would like. I took into account my boyfriend's interests and tastes obviously, but also my brother and some of guy friends to make sure this was well-rounded enough that you could find something for any type of guy.
Hope this helps! Let's get into it:
This gift guide includes a selection of some of my favorite gifts I've personally received as well as simply things I own, love, and think would make for great gifts.
Welcome to the first gift guide of 2022! Today we are kicking things off with a highly-requested gift guide: my personal wish list.
As I get older, I don't really ask for Christmas gifts anymore, but I'd be lying if I said there aren't a few things I'd love to receive. A few of these things are practical (desperately need a nice vacuum), a few are impractical (Chanel ballet flats are unlikely to appear under the tree), and a few would just be nice to have (my current AirPods are on the fringe).
Let's dive in, shall we?!
1. My favorite black boots are 30% off with code FRIENDS + an extra 20% off when you add to cart! Such a great deal; the sale ends on Sunday so snag them while you can!
2. Have you downloaded the November desktop and iPhone wallpapers yet? Find the mood boards & screensavers here!
3. ICYMI: yesterday I shared a big roundup of fabulous pieces for fall and Thanksgiving outfits, all under $100, in a blog post here.
I planned to share the first Gift Guide today, but I got so distracted while online shopping this morning that I'm back again with another fall finds post. I know this is my third one (first here and second here), but I couldn't believe how many fabulous things I was finding for under $100 (and most under $50!) so I had to share. Maybe we'll start the Gift Guides next week, I wasn't ready yet anyway, haha. (but thank you to everyone who shared Gift Guide requests & ideas on my IG story yesterday - SO helpful, so many great ideas that I'll definitely be using to create this year's assortment!)
October is always a favorite month for me. This October, I really tried to soak in a lot of my favorite fall things. I baked, had lots of pumpkin coffees, lit my fall candles, saw the Halloween decor, and even went out of the city this past weekend so I could wear cable knits and drive around listening to Folklore while enjoying the fall foliage. It was a really lovely month, mostly relaxing, with a bit of fun mixed in (I visited my besties in Chicago one weekend!). The weather was all over the place, but I always kind of love that. I'm looking forward to the Holidays coming up quickly, but before we get into all that, let's dive into my October favorites!
1. Happy Friday!! I am so excited for this weekend because I flew into Chicago last night and I'm spending the weekend here with my best friends. This morning I've already seen the changing trees, had a pumpkin spice latte, and admired the cute, seasonal front porches of Lincoln Park. I'm not sure if I'd ever live in Chicago, but I do love to visit (fun fact, I lived just outside of Chicago for the first 9 years of my life!).
2. The girls (my best friends Elizabeth and Coco) just moved into this apartment at the beginning of the month with another one of our friends from Milwaukee. It's absolutely adorable and they are doing a great job of decorating! I especially love these sconces Ej put in her bedroom- pic on my stories now if you want all the behind-the-scenes!
3. On Monday my high scchool bestie Caroline who also lives in NYC invited me as her plus one to the annual gala for The Knot! We had so much fun. I wore this gorgeous dress for the black-tie affair- under $200 and was so comfortable and flattering!
Last week my Dad and Joe both visited me in NYC!
My dad was in town Tuesday-Friday after spending a weekend in Hudson. My grandpa lives in Brazil half the year and Brooklyn the other half, so it worked out well that my dad could see me, my grandpa, and my aunts who live nearby all in one trip. He hadn't been in the city since last Labor Day when we were in the Hamptons and spent one night in the city with my grandpa. It was so fun to have him here, and then Joe arrived late on Wednesday night for a bit of overlap!
Let's bring back the monthly favorites post, shall we? Especially because I don't blog as often as I used to, I think this is a great way to make sure I'm still sharing the things I have truly been loving and consistently refreshing my new favorite things.
September was a really fun month. Two weddings (a friend from high school, and my cousin's), Joe visiting for a concert, Emily O in town for Fashion Week, the ballet... it was such a full month.
I have soo many things to share from September, so let's dive right in!
I've been in a major rut with my wardrobe and shopping lately, so I've taken some time over the past few days to round up a selection of pieces that I plan to order and incorporate into my fall wardrobe. In all honesty, I find shopping really hard. I have a difficult time imagining pieces outside of the way they look or are styled in photos, and it makes me unaware to things I could actually get a lot of wear out of or would fit well with pieces I already own. So, I did my best here, and if you struggle with the same thing, hopefully, this [quite large] assortment of pieces I would purchase for fall makes your shopping experience a little bit easier!
Shopbop's annual style event / fall sale began today and I took some time this afternoon to sift through a bit of it. Oh my gosh, I am absolutely blown away but how many pieces I love that are included in the sale! It's structured as a spend more, save more type of sale and I am slightly alarmed by the number of things I plan to order as a result. In college, I would usually post about the sale but couldn't really afford to shop it, but now... someone please hide my credit card!
Here are the details:
15% OFF orders of $200+
20% OFF orders of $500+
25% OFF orders of $800+
use code STYLE at checkout!
I found a ton of pieces that I've rounded up for you (as usual, most everything I picked is under $200!), so you don't have to go through the site yourself (which, trust me, takes a while). I've separated my finds into three categories: fall picks, date night, and wedding guest dresses/accessories because I feel like everything I picked falls into those three categories. Omg, just reading that those are the categories most relevant to my life really shows I'm in my twenties, haha.
I hope you find this post helpful- let me know what you order! This sale is such a good one.
1. Hellooo! What a week it's been! This week was quite a fun one because one of my favorite internet friends, Emily, was in NYC and we got to spend a fabulous 48 hours together. We had two events to attend on Tuesday and Wednesday, and then last night I also was lucky enough to be treated to dinner at Quality Bistro. Go check out the content if you missed it!
Earlier this afternoon I had a fun photoshoot for an upcoming campaign, and overall it's just been a whirlwind week in the micro-influencer world, lol!
2. I purchased this Ganni Top this week and I'm so glad I did - it is soo fab and going to be a new elevated basic in my wardrobe. See how I styled it on Tuesday here!
3. My favorite makeup product of the week is the Armani Fluid Sheer Glow Enhancer in shade 8; I apply my blush (this one in shade chilly - love this stuff) and then add the fluid sheer overtop to enhance the color and act as a highlighter. It's so magical, it makes me glow and makes my blush even prettier and more seamless with the rest of my face.
1. First things first, Rest in Peace to the Queen.
The past few weeks have been so busy for me and I feel like I have so much to catch up on here. I got back from Turkey two weeks ago, and last weekend I was in my hometown, Milwaukee, for one of my high school friend's weddings. This weekend Joe is in town in NYC for a concert, and then in two weeks I have my cousin's wedding!
2. Shoutout to my Delta Amex for getting me upgraded to first class last weekend! I've talked about this credit card before but I absolutely love it; the benefits have saved me hundreds of dollars on flights and luggage, and have made traveling so much easier and more comfortable (free flight changes, free first-class, and comfort+ upgrades...) I highly recommend it and wanted to share my link again because I got a few questions in my DM's about what credit card I use after I shared that I was sitting in first class. You can earn 40,000 bonus miles by using my link, which can be worth two domestic flights!!
3. I wore this dress to the wedding last weekend and absolutely loved it. It is now sold out but I love the mini version of it... probably one of the prettiest dresses I've ever worn, and the brand is so high quality.
Speaking of dresses - I bought this fun sequin dress yesterday (under $100); I have no occasion to wear it but I just love it. I got the black, and I will probably wear it around the holidays or on NYE, but I also love the white version for a bachelorette party if you're a bride-to-be!
Also under $100: this flattering printed satin mini (I love this style dress for dinners out or random events in the city) and this gorgeous midi dress that would be perfect for a wedding with the right accessories! + this ADORABLE tie-front top!
Some of my most frequent DM's are about my Goyard. I purchased my Goyard St. Louis GM tote almost exactly a year ago, and I use it almost every single day, but I've never reviewed it! This tote is the biggest designer purchase I've ever made, and since I get a lot of questions about the bag, so I want to share all of my thoughts in one spot.
1. I'm so excited for this weekend because Joe is here in NYC!!!!! He hasn't been to the city to visit since April because of his move down to Dallas, so I'm very happy that he's here again. We don't have too many plans but I am excited to try a few new restaurants and of course, just spend time together!
2. Speaking of new-to-me spots, I discovered Sauced in Williamsburg last weekend. It's a wine bar with no menu- you tell them what you're in the mood for and what wines you usually like, and they surprise you with a perfect glass for you! I went on Saturday and was presented with some incredible new-to-me wines, and enjoyed a fabulous cheese board as well. Would highly recommend this cozy, cute spot in downtown Williamsburg!
3. Yesterday on the blog I shared a giant round-up of my favorites from July, across clothing, beauty, skincare, books, workouts, and more. I've been swearing by my 5-step summer makeup routine for the past couple of weeks and included everything I use in the post, along with some of my favorite recent reads, and so much more!
image via pinterest
Happy Friday! Yet another month has flown by and, as always, I can't believe it! This weekend I'm looking forward to heading to the Yankees game tonight, brunch plans tomorrow, and then hopefully just reading and relaxing. I've gotten into a really good routine lately with my kindle (more on that below) and pilates classes, and I feel so at peace. Read on for 10 things I loved this week!
1. Ok, so the Kindle - I am so happy with it. I'll write a full blog post on it soon, but it solves my previous problems of (1) poor lighting while reading, (2) difficulty finding a position on my side that works with both sides of a book (like when I'm laying in bed), and (3) not having immediate access to the books I want to read. I could go on and on about it but I'll say if you're on the fence, you have to at least order and try one! I really didn't think I was going to love it, at least not as much as I do now, but I was completely converted after my first book!
2. Last week I read Every Summer After and Girls with Bright Futures, both of which I thoroughly enjoyed and gave 5/5 stars. Ok well actually, both of them I give 4.75 stars because I thought they should have been longer!!!
Every Summer After is a pretty similar concept to The Summer I Turned Pretty, but with adults; a classic beach-read romance!
Girls with Bright Futures is about three moms whose daughters all want to get into Stanford, and all of the college admissions dramas and scandals that go on during their senior year after it's discovered there's only one spot! I feel like I'm always either reading a romance or a thriller, so I love it when I enjoy a book about something else. I absolutely loved this! So entertaining.
2. I found this gorgeous dress this week and can not believe it's barely $100! It's so comfortable and the colors & pattern are beautiful. I wore it the other night to happy hour and dinner in the city (it's been so hot here!) and it was perfect; I can't wait to wear it in Turkey in August, too!
3. Speaking of dinner, I have recently tried two spots in the city that I absolutely loved: Daddies, and Sel Rrose.
image via emili sindlev- love this outfit
1. This week has flown by; I flew back from Dallas on Tuesday morning and I am thrilled that it's already the weekend. It feels like a minute ago and a lifetime ago at the same time that I was flying down to Dallas for the Fourth of July weekend and now we are already halfway through the month! I'll likely do a full Dallas recap in the next few days because I have a handful of new-to-me Dallas spots to share.
2. I am back in the city for the next five weeks, and I'm thrilled to finally just be home for a while. I started a 30-day pass at my favorite pilates studio on Wednesday, and I am so, so happy so far. Before with ClassPass it was great because I could go whenever I was in town and then also go to other studios in other cities, but now that I'm just going to be home for a while I'm thrilled to be able to go everyday if I choose!
I kicked off the 30 days with a little trip to Bandier and bought this sports bra and these leggings, both of which I have already worn and couldn't be more in love with. The sports bra is surprisingly more supportive than it looks, and I absolutely love how easy it is to take on and off. Nothing drives me crazier than the frustration of pulling a sweaty sports bra over my head! The leggings are easily the most flattering I've ever worn. They're also buttery soft, and did I mention, on sale?
3. On a similar note, I am quaking over this hot pink, backless workout dress under $100!
photo by ethan galley
1. Hello and happy July!!!!! To be honest, I completely forgot about the mood board this month; I will work on that ASAP and hopefully get it up on Tuesday after the holiday! In the meantime, I have quite a busy weekend ahead as it's Fourth of July weekend and I am heading to Dallas tonight to celebrate.
My best friends, Coco, Elizabeth, and Caroline are coming down as well and we are staying at my dad's house for the weekend! We are seeing Brother's Osborne tomorrow and I just can't wait for all of the yee-haw vibes. Plus, Joe lives in Dallas now, so that will only add to the fun! I've been fully planning my BBQ menu for our pool days on Sunday/Monday and I just can't wait to enjoy some time by the pool, a weekend with my besties, and warm weather.
2. Last night I stayed up until 1 AM finishing The Love Hypothesis, which was truly the most enjoyable book for me! At first, I thought it was going to be cheesy and dumb, but literally, after 5 pages, I was hooked. Unlike most books that require some ramp-up time, or feel slow in the middle, this romance/beach read was so enjoyable the whole way through; I was laughing out loud (like actually, haha) at so many points. It's about a grad student, Olive, who fake dates one of the faculty in another department... it's just really enjoyable, light, and easy to read. Although it's a bit predictable, there were quite a few twists and turns I didn't see coming. I give it 5 stars!!
3. On a similar note, if you're looking for some book recs to carry you through the rest of the summer/year, I rated and reviewed the 15 books I've read so far this year in this blog post earlier this week!
4. I also published a huge round-up of dresses under $200 in this blog post this week - so many good ones for anything you have coming up this summer or early fall!
When I really got into reading in the summer of 2018, I would write a blog post recapping my recent reads after every 3 or 4 books I finished. Last year I documented everything I read in 2021 at the end of the year, but given that this year alone I've already read 15 books, I want to share a mid-year recap! I've been mixing it up a lot more than usual this year and I have thoughts.
My reading goal for 2022 is 30 books, 5 of which I'm aiming to be non-fiction, whether it be biography, self-help, or anything else. So far I've read 15 books, 2 of which have been non-fiction, and I'm halfway done with my third in that category!
Categories are as follows, in no particular order: (1) Non-Fiction (biographies), (2) Fiction Novels (ranges from very serious to adorable beach read, but not romance), (3) Fantasy, (4) Thriller, and (5) Romance!
This post is completely unrelated, but I wanted to share that statement above before talking about something as silly as dresses during a time like this. I just feel it's still important to stay positive and share lighthearted content. I know many people don't look to me or my platform for political conversations, but I do feel that it is my responsibility as someone with a platform to share resources and contribute to the conversations and issues going on in our country and our world.
With that said- let's get into the post, but I highly encourage making a donation, however small, at the link above.
This weekend I exclusively wore dresses, and it made my life so much easier! Throwing on a dress is the easiest outfit for me, but up until recently, I really didn't have many casual dresses in my closet for weekend/weeknight wear. I wore specifically this dress and this dress, and it got me realizing how many cute, affordable dresses I've seen recently. I've rounded them all up here and hope you find something you love!
I've found the cutest things while online shopping lately, so I thought I'd round everything up for you below! As usual, almost everything is under $200, with just a few exceptions.
As always, you can find all of my recent shopping finds on the shop page here!
(scroll to the bottom of the post for the list of recs without the fluff)
Happy Friday! Before I dive into this post I want to share that earlier this morning I shared an entire post dedicated to ways to support gun violence in light of the shooting in Uvalde, Texas this week. If you have not yet read that post, you can find it here.
This past weekend was SO much fun. I flew out to Chicago to celebrate my best friend Elizabeth's birthday. In college, Elizabeth, myself, and two of our other best friends Celia and Coco all lived together. The four of us are so close but have not all been together since before I moved, so the weekend was extra special and exciting. We had such a great time, and I want to do a full recap of what we did, where we stayed, what we wore, and all of the things to answer any questions you might have, as well as for my own memory!
image via pinterest
1. I landed in Chicago last night and I am beyond excited for this weekend. I am working from my brother's apartment today and then meeting up with my three best friends/roommates from college to celebrate Elizabeth's birthday tonight & tomorrow here in Chicago! The four of us are so close but haven't all been together since before I moved to NYC, so I seriously could cry from excitement.
Before we dive into everything, in case you missed it, I shared two gift guides on the blog this week: a Mother's Day gift guide and a gift guide for the College Graduate!
2. This weekend, because all of the girls are so stylish, I really had to plan my outfits. I ended up doing RTR last minute because a lot of things weren't working, and I am SO glad I did. I am beyond obsessed with this plunging leather top which I'm going to wear tomorrow night - might end up buying it to keep. I also love this open-back crop top for maybe tomorrow afternoon, and then I also got this retro paisley dress that I plan to wear to a rehearsal dinner in a couple of weeks; it looks so much better on than you'd think!
3. Speaking of going out, how about an update on my drinks of choice?! My go-to drink drink is usually a dirty Hendrick's martini (I don't drink vodka) or white wine, and sometimes a negroni if I'm at the right spot.
1. This week has flown by! I hung out with a few friends and enjoyed the warmer, sunny weather, and all of a sudden it's Friday! On Thursday I am flying to Chicago to celebrate my best friend Elizabeth's birthday, and from there it will be five back-to-back busy travel weekends for me (Mother's Day, a wedding, and more...), so I'm looking forward to a lowkey weekend this weekend.
2. Tonight I am going to pilates and then making dinner / having a virtual date with Joe (enchiladas!) and reading my new book, and then tomorrow all I have planned are a few errands and tennis with a friend. I am looking forward to relaxing since this is my only "free" weekend until mid-June (OMG) and the past two weekends were busy too (with Joe visiting and then Easter)
3. Before we jump into the details of my shopping spree this week, I need to share that I finally upgraded from my Revlon blowdry brush to the T3 Airebrush duo (on sale for 25% here) this week. I was beyond blown away (pun intended ;) by the results...