I’ve lived in a rental pretty much my whole life. My living space always has a feel of impermanence to it, which makes me hesitant to paint walls or put up artwork that requires serious hardware. Because I know I’ll eventually be responsible for patching up any nail holes and repainting the walls before I move out.
So of course I was excited to hear about Spacekit, which promises easy-to-install quality modular wall art (with no hammer or nails required).
There are several pieces in my closet that I keep going back to over and over again — one of those item is my leather moto jacket. As a matter of fact it’s that piece I wear to its death, just to buy a similar one when its predecessor falls apart. The leather moto jacket such a versatile piece that spans multiple seasons. Not to mention that it pairs with pretty much everything. It’s that piece that can an add an edge to a girly dress and feels at home paired with a grungy casual look.
But leather jackets can be quite pricey. A genuine pair can run you from $300 upwards to $2,000 or more. So how can you get it for a lower price point? Go for a vegan leather moto jacket. Besides it being a more eco-friendly choice, going for the faux version will lower the price tag by quite a bit. Bonus pro-tip: I size up my jacket so I can pair it with bulky sweaters. This way I can wear my jacket into the colder winter months as well. Yes ma’am, I fully intend on getting the full bang for my buck!
Read on for more on my love for the vegan leather motto jacket and some of my favorite picks (all priced under $100).
In past holiday photos, we’ve definitely prioritized comfort with our pajama and ugly sweater themes. This year I toyed with the idea of each family member wearing different color suits. But to the relief of my husband, we scrapped that idea. We had a full day plan of photoshoot, brunch and playdates. And seriously, who wants to go through all of that in suits? Probably not my husband and daughter.
So this year cozy won again. We’re decked out in *almost* head to toe H&M, who is releasing a sustainable Holiday collection this year. The collection is made from more sustainable materials such as recycled polyester, recycled nylon, recycled wool and organic cotton.
The sweater is one of my favorite piece from the collection because it is so incredible soft. All of the sustainability and quality comes at an affordable price point that you come to expect from H&M. Read on to see more of our family photos and get more details on where you can shop our outfits.
When it comes to gifting, clothing is not an easy thing to shop for. Especially if that person on your holiday list is the kind who’s always doing the most. Because let’s keep it real, you can’t get them just any ol’ thing thats available at the mall. Looking for that one of a kind gift that will fit right in a trendsetter’s closet? Read on because I’ve got the five best places for you to shop from. Bonus: you’ll also be supporting small businesses while you do it.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday Deals is finally upon us. Are you looking to get ahead on your holiday shopping? Got a particular item you need to get that you’re waiting a deal to buy? Or maybe 2020 just got you right where it hurts and you need a little retail therapy to make it all better?
Either way I got all the best places for you to get your shopping on. Read on to find out where the best deal is to be had for BLACK FRIDAY and CYBER MONDAY.
I remember going to this PR event about two years ago where I saw these beautifully soft cashmere cardigans. I was so excited about them, until seeing price tag made me want to fall on the floor. Why the shock? Let’s just say there were four digits next to that dollar sign. So although they we’re undeniably gorgeous, they we’re just NOT going to happen.
When I’m shopping for clothing, I always have my eye on value. How many times will I wear this piece? How much reuse and how long will I own it? And then the obvious: how much does it cost?
This rhinestone-button cardigan is definitely a high value item. It looks great paired with casual jeans or tucked into dressy slacks. I can wear it pretty much all year long: it will keep me warm from the chilly breeze in the Fall and the nippy office A/C in the Summertime. The cardigan is also so soft that wearing it will make you feel like being hugged by a cloud. Oh and did I mention it’s also priced under $30? This is for sure the softest affordable cardigan that you’ll own.
Read on to see more of this rhinestone-button cardigan and my favorite cardigan picks, all buttery soft and priced affordably at under $50.
I heard a saying that you should enjoy the time you can dress up your kids, especially in mommy and me matching outfit. Because it won’t be long before they develop a strong opinion of their own and think it’s uncool to dress up like mom. I hope Maxine never gets tired of matching me. But just in case, I’m going to get all the matchy-matchy that I can get now.
Whether you’re looking to get your matching outfit on for holiday photos or to just look cute, I’ve got some styling tips to help you pull it off successfully.
Here’s a party and costume ideas for MarioKart fans: what if you play MarioKart while wearing your favorite character’s costume. Sounds fun, right? But of course since it’s 2020, this is going to be a virtual party.
Halloween is definitely one of my favorite time of the year (naturally because I love to dress up). Just as with everything else in 2020, Halloween is going to look a little different this year. I don’t have any plans on going to any crowded parties or going bar hopping on Oct 31. But that doesn’t mean that Halloween is cancelled this year, no ma’am. Whether you’re doing your Halloween party virtually or socially distanced outdoors, I’ve got tons of costume ideas coming your way!
The first of 2020’s Halloween costume series is a throwback to 90’s gaming nostalgia. If you’re a MarioKart fans, especially the old school the Nintendo64 version, this Halloween costume idea is for you. These costume are fairly easy to do and can be done last minute since all the materials are available via Amazon Prime (huzzah for 2-day shipping). This is also a great costume idea for both family and groups of friends.
Read on to see the details on how to put the costumes together.
Even before all of this craziness, exercising has always been my go-to activity for de-stressing and staying sane. My favorite kinds of workouts were the group classes. Your home girl is competitive and working out with others always pushes me more. Obviously that has changed since going to the gym is cancelled — or the time being anyways. So how do you exercise (and stay sane) while you’re in quarantine?
I thought about going running, but honestly that gives me more anxiety than it’s worth. NYC is a densely pack city and even though I live mere blocks away from the East River promenade, just the thought of having to dodge people to stay 6-ft apart while I’m out really stresses me out. If you live in a place where you can easily go out while avoiding people, then most definitely do that. But if you’re looking for ways to workout while staying inside, I got you.
What if you had to rebuild your closet from scratch? If it was me, I would get some staple pieces that I can easily mix-and-match into many different outfit. And the best place to get the staple pieces you need in your life is at Everlane.
Ok lets get one point out of the way: Everlane is by no means cheap. It’s not cheap for me anyway. You’ll be able to find much affordable options if you go to a retailer like H&M or SheIn. But you can really feel the difference in the quality — like literally. Their stitching is done better, you can tell that the fabric quality is higher, and I’m obsessed with how butter soft some of their fabric are (like their luxe cotton jumpsuit).
But the thing I love the most about Everlane is their concept of radical transparency. How rare is it for a retailer to share with you the factory where the products are made, not to mention the cost breakdown of how much it takes to produce their items. It’s pretty radical indeed. That’s why I’m all about adding more Everlane pieces to my collection.
Read on for more of my look and some of my favorite staples from Everlane. Some of which I already have in my closet, and some that I need to add ASAP!
Okay full admission: I meant to write this ugly sweater blog about a month ago. But the other work deadlines (and just life in general) got in the way. But they are just too cute for me not to blog about. I also rounded up some other favorite ugly sweaters that are so good you’ll want to wear them all year long. Or at least during the colder sweater weather anyway.
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Philips SatinShave Advanced. All opinions are 100% mine.
In my opinion, the best time to go on a tropical vacation is in late January. The first reason being that Jan. 22 is my birthday. What better way to celebrate than to go on a fab vacation, am I right? The second reason for the timing is because that’s usually when I’m starting to get really sick of the season. The winter blues always hits hard in late January, making me desperate for a warm escape. I’m not exactly sure where I’ll end up going, but no matter where I go, I know it will be somewhere warm and beachy. I will most definitely be baring my legs. And I’ll be getting vacation ready with Philips SatinShave Advanced.
Huzzah, I finally convinced hubby to get a made-to-measure suit! To say this is an accomplishment would be an understatement, since (no exaggeration) it took me years to do this. A couple of not-so-cheap failed attempts at getting off the rack suits, paired with an upcoming wedding we’re going to, was just the thing to convince him to try the custom, made-to-measure route.
I always joke around that when Chris married me, he also got a personal shopper as part of the deal. But he’s notoriously hard to shop for. Although I can say I’m pretty good at women’s fashion, I can’t exactly say I’m an expert at men’s. And forget about suits — that’s some next level ish I’m not even going to try to tackle. To top it off, the upcoming wedding we’re going to is not the typical formal reception. The bride and groom are total sneakerheads and the invite states “strong sneaker game encouraged”. Ooookay then… time to get a little help because I’m not sure how to shop for a suit that’s going to work with sneakers.
A very dandy blogger friend of mine, Diego Leon, suggested I check out InStitchu. I’m so happy that he did because these guys not only sold me on it, but they got Chris on team custom suit as well. He, no joke, said that he can’t ever go back to buying them off the rack ever again.
Read on for more on our experience with InStitchu and why you should make the plunge to get a custom made suit from them as well.
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Crate & Barrel. All opinions are 100% mine.
Guess who just signed their apartment lease renewal and will be sharing their bedroom with the baby for another year?
While it would’ve been nice to get more space by moving to a two-bedroom, hubby and I honestly don’t mind sharing our room with Maxine for another year. Staying put means we don’t need to deal with possibly finding a new day care, movers, and the nasty beast that is the New York rental market.
Mostly, what really cemented our decision to stay in our current apartment is that we’ve finally mastered our apartment configuration. Every inch of our living space feels like it’s being put to its best use. This includes the shared bedroom.
If you’re looking to room share, whether it’s from necessity or you’re just into small-space living, I’ve got you! Read on for my hacks and practical decorating tips on sharing room with baby. And get a peep on all the new Crate & Barrel exclusive goodies I got.
Some times it’s good to be bad. And what’s a better time to be despicably bad than on Halloween. I’m rounding up for you some of my favorite villain baddies halloween costume ideas. And I promise they’re (almost) all relatively easy and inexpensive to do.
If I had it my way, every day would be halloween. I just love dressing up! It’s fair to say I don’t wait around for October to come up with the costume ideas. This year I decided to go all out put those ideas into reality, with the help of fellow bloggers Megan of TF Diaries, Jackie of Living After Midnite, Diego of Dandy in The Bronx, and our trusty photographer Natalie. If you’re scratching your head looking for that perfect costume ideas, look no further. I’ve got a list of the top five pop-culture halloween group costume ideas.
Get your bags packed because a trip to Woodloch Resort, an all-inclusive resort in the Poconos, is the next vacation you’re going to want to have.
I had been hunting for the perfect family vacation spot. I was looking for something easygoing, where the all the activities happen in close proximity to our hotel room. This way we can easily take breaks in the middle of the day for Maxine’s nap. Anyone who has a 15-month old knows you’re beholden to that almighty nap-time. They can really put a cramp on your vacation if you don’t plan properly.
So the first thing that came to mind is a all-inclusive beach vacation or maybe even a cruise. But our problem is we really only have a long weekend to spare, so we didn’t want to travel far. And definitely nowhere far enough that required air travel. Since our travel radius was limited to a 3 hour driving distance, we originally thought that an all-inclusive type of place is surely out of the question. That is until I saw a blog on Woodloch Resort.
Huzzah, I found me an all-inclusive resort in the Poconos (that’s only 2.5 hour driving distance from New York City). And it’s an award winning one to boot! I was even more excited when they agreed to partner with me and let me write a blog on my experience in exchange for a weekend’s stay.
How to wear the short suit for Fall? It’s not as hard as you think. It will actually be your Fall BFF as it’s one of the most perfect transition weather outfit.
The short suit set, weather wise, is admittedly a tricky outfit to wear. They’re like the avocado of the fashion world. Depending on where you live, there can be such a short window on when you can wear them. One minute, it’s hot as the devil out and there is no way you’re going to suffer wearing a blazer. Next thing you know Fall is here, and it’s way too cold to wear shorts.
Don’t worry though, I’ve got the tips on how to wear the short suit for Fall. You can put those bad boys on now, and even wear them well into the chilly weather season.
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Aveo Vision. All opinions are 100% mine.
There’s nothing like having a child to put a spin on your life and routine. I feel like it took over a year for me to get something resembling a routine back into my morning. And boy, it definitely is a change from how things were before Maxine is around.
I’m sure this is no newsflash to many parents, but a big part of my routine happens before my daughter wakes up. Fun fact: statistically speaking, most kids Maxine’s age wakes up around 6:30 – 7:30am (yes this is a real stat — @ me if you want the source). And yup, this means that I wake up very very early.
Read on for more of my morning routine and how to nab a free month of contact lenses from Aveo Vision.
I have this email that I keep copying and pasting for friends and family who ask me for recommendations on what to do on a long weekend in New York City. And then I realized: duh, why don’t I copy and paste it into a travel guide blog.
I moved to New York City about seven years ago. Growing up, I was always in awe of the city and have always wanted to be a New Yorker. Even though quite some time has passed by since I first got here, I still get giddy just walking down the street to work. The honeymoon period hasn’t ended yet.
One big change since I’ve been here is that I get A LOT more visitors. Over the years I’ve perfected the recommendations that I give people based on the feedback I get.
Read on to see my long weekend in New York City must-do list (spoiler alert: Times Slime Square is not going to be in there).