*This post was made in partnership with Responsival. Thank you for supporting brands I feature*
Name a better gift for Mom than beautiful gold personalized necklaces! They can be made special in so many ways with initials, birthstones and zodiac signs. You can personalize them for your Mother's birthday or even with your/all her children's birthdays. AU-Rate has plenty of options to choose from! If you're not a birthstone or initial fan you can just choose any of their pieces and select your Mom's preferred color - gold, white or rose! It's impossible to not be able to find the perfect piece of jewelry.
Aurate also released a new collaboration with Kerry Washington last week called The Birth of Mother featuring beautiful organic pearls and seashell motifs. Order by May 5th for regular shipping and May 7th for overnight to get your gift in time (in stock items only, not made to order.)
If your Mom isn't a jewelry lover there are plenty of other options to make her smile! Mine will never say no to a beautiful candle, my favorite brand to splurge on the past number of years has been Voluspa, but I also discovered L’or de Seraphine last year! Both are a bit on the pricier side, but when it comes to gifting - go for the high end!
For the Mom with a sweet tooth you could bake her something yourself (check out my baking posts to see what I've made lately) or order her a fancy dessert she wouldn't buy for herself! Maybe some Ladurée macarons or Dō cookie dough! You could even find a local donut shop that makes over the top donuts! Around here we have Donut Crazy!
Side-note: How beautiful is this london blue topaz and diamond ring from Aurate? I had to buy it when I saw it matched one of my favorite necklaces that my Grandmother handed down to me.
Double V-Neck Cashmere Sweater: Calypso St. Barth 'Gylden' (Gilt)
Floral Jeans Target Flipside Denim
Sandals: Zigi Soho Velvet Floral Embroidered Open Toe Mules (TJ Maxx)
Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs 'Natural Selection Mini Messenger Bag' (Saks Fifth Avenue)
Sunglasses: Gucci Aviators (bought in Italy)
Blue Topaz & Diamond Necklace: hand-me-down from Grandma
Ring: Vintage Emerald Cut Ring with London Blue Topaz c/o Aurate
This month I had the pleasure of preparing for another sponsored post with Aurate (see the post next week!) I opted for something over my gifted amount and paid the difference. Boy was it worth it! I chose this topaz ring to match a vintage necklace my grandmother gave me years ago that I wear quite frequently. The shape is different but it has the same 3 diamond pattern on the sides, how weird is that? Meant to be!
In other news - we're getting our second dose of the vaccine this morning! YAY! So excited to finally be able to go back into the grocery store (Trader Joe's, here I come!!) and get a haircut, ha ha. Although I'm sure we'll still be taking advantage of all the curbside pickups other stores offer.
THE (modified) RULES
- Be mindful of purchases
- Quality over quantity
- Basics are best
MY PROGRESS
Clothes:
- mīere the label Women’s Cotton Knit Sweater in Terracotta ($68.87 including shipping)
Basics:
- FRAME Denim Le Skinny de Jeanne Crop in Sunnyside ($30 via Poshmark, retail $189, $18.67 after ad money)
Shoes:
- Splendid Harvest Mules in Tiger/Cheetah Print - also here ($25.80 via eBay, retail $118, used ad money)
Handbags:
- None yet
Accessories:
- None yet
Activewear:
- None yet
Gifted from Brands:
- Vintage Emerald Cut Ring - London Blue Topaz c/o Aurate ($50 after gifted amount)
Spent in March: $50
Time for more baking! Today I'm sharing quite the mix of things - chocolate, savory, lemon, pastry! Everything and anything. Have you baked anything exciting lately? Anything I should try myself?? Always looking for new things to try.
Say the words molten and chocolate and I'm all in! I thought this pie would be a great twist on my usual favorite - chocohotopots. I used a storebought crust and it got a little bit mushy at the bottom, but the filling was amazing! The perfect mix of gooey and a little bit of crispyness on top.
Disney World Cheshire Cat Tails
I have yet to have these at Disney World and was trying to wait to make them until I had them in the park but I just couldn't wait anymore and decided to make them in February! It was super easy and they're delicious! I made a chocolate crème pâtissière instead of vanilla the recipe called for and it was super tasty. I found that with american puff pastry (at least the brand I bought) it was better to make 3 tails instead of 6 because of the size of the puff pastry square.
We made this for Christian since I don't like mac & cheese and we figured having smaller portions would be perfect for him to make for lunches/snacks. He loved this recipe and said it was really good! Plus it looks adorable in my ramekins from Le Creuset.
Another recipe from Nadiya Bakes on Netflix! This one didn't come out quite as good because the basil we got from the grocery store was dying and I didn't have many leaf options. The perils of using grocery store pickup, you can't be too sure of the quality! But it's a super fun bake that I will definitely be trying again with basil from our own garden!
Christian loves lemon and I don't so I made this planning to let him eat all of it. I did take a taste and thought it was super delicious! I only had a couple thin slices but next time he'll be splitting the loaf with me. The creator likens this to the Starbucks loaf and I can certainly see the resemblance, but this is way better in my opinion! Much more lemon flavor.
Easy Chocolate Cinnamon Crunch Knots
These knots are so delicious and chocolatey! I never think to bake with chocolate and cinnamon even though I know they go well together (I add cinnamon to my hot chocolate!) I don't think I'll be forgetting the combo any time soon! I actually used less chocolate than the recipe called for in case I didn't like how they turned out and I didn't want to "waste" my mini chocolate chips. Next time I'll use more.
Worn on another cold Spring day. It was nice in the sun but pretty chilly otherwise! I wore this to have a quick visit with my (vaccinated) Grandparents on Easter! It was so nice to be able to see them in person! I'm sure my Grandma was getting tired of my emails - I would send her photos of things I had baked or Christian's garden updates, ha ha.
Cardigan: Cocogio (Marshalls), Sweater: French Connection c/o Marshalls, Snakeskin Texture Jeans: Jolt (Marshalls), Sandals: Mules: Kelly & Katie Amour sandal (DSW), Sunglasses: Gucci aviators, Earings c/o Aurate Pearl Studs, Necklace: Acanthus Jewelry
It may be Spring, but that doesn't mean temperatures have warmed up! Wore this for Easter and chose these floral pants to add some color/Easter feeling since I was not about to wear a dress. For some reason I always seem to wear the same pieces with these pants. I've worn this sweater, belt and bag with them in previous outfits. I guess if it's not broke, don't fix it.
In non-outfit news, we're getting our first dose of the vaccine tomorrow!! I'm terrified, yet excited. I'm not a big fan of doctors, shots or needles so this is going to be very stressful for me. BUT I would rather get a shot and potential side effects than suffer through full blown coronavirus. For those of you in CT or NY struggling to find an appointment, this Facebook group may be able to help with tips! And if you are in dire need of assistance they have people that will help book for you. There are similar groups for other states. Will you be getting the vaccine when it's available to you? (no judgement if not - as long as you're still following safety rules the decision to get the vaccine is up to you!)
Sweater: FRAME Ribbed wool & cashmere-blend (Net-a-Porter), Cherry Blossom Print "Ryan" Pant c/o Banana Republic Factory (Clinton Crossing Premium Outlets), Sandals: Everlane The Double-Strap Block Heel Sandal in Strawberry, Sunglasses: Ray Ban 'Erika' c/o Shopbop, Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs 'Perfect Purse ostrich-effect PVC' (Net-a-Porter), Belt: Marshalls, Simple Pearl Necklace & Pearl Earrings c/o AUrate
Well, I did it. I didn't buy clothes all month! I obviously still have no need for anything new as I've barely had a chance to wear all the new things I bought last year. Can't wait for this Summer when we'll be able to get out a liiiiittle bit more.
Connecticut is opening up vaccine availability to all those over 16 tomorrow so Christian and I will be trying to get our appointments ASAP. Once we do, the first thing on the agenda (besides still wearing masks in public/around non-vaccinated folk) is haircuts! Christian hasn't gotten a cut since September 2020 and he is getting so annoyed with his long hair, ha ha. It's been since August 2019 for me, I got a cut right before our honeymoon. Normally get my haircut once a year because I'm lazy; I let it grow long and then chop it off and the cycle continues.
Then we'll plan to visit Christian's Mom. We haven't seen her since January 2019 - UGH!!! Not sure if we'll drive or brave a flight...but it's an 18 hour drive, yikes! Other than that we'll probably still keep to ourselves at home with occasional visits to Grandma's and my parents. Although I will probably venture in to Home Goods and Trader Joe's because I haven't been since last March....SHEESH! We do have a camping trip planned that we re-booked from last year, so hopefully that can go ahead as scheduled!
THE (modified) RULES
- Be mindful of purchases
- Quality over quantity
- Basics are best
MY PROGRESS
Clothes:
- mīere the label Women’s Cotton Knit Sweater in Terracotta ($68.87 including shipping)
Basics:
- FRAME Denim Le Skinny de Jeanne Crop in Sunnyside ($30 via Poshmark, retail $189, $18.67 after ad money)
Shoes:
- Splendid Harvest Mules in Tiger/Cheetah Print - also here ($25.80 via eBay, retail $118, used ad money)
Handbags:
- None yet
Accessories:
- None yet
Activewear:
- None yet
Gifted from Brands:
-
None yet
Spent in March: $0
Christian and I braved the freezing temperatures last Saturday to take these photos in between all our errands for the day. Everything was in the car except for photos so I basically froze just for the blog. We started our morning at Home Depot curbside pickup for soil, then headed to take photos on the way to the grocery store for some sale purchase. To reward us for completing our tasks we got lunch at Wendy's.
I wanted to put the focus on my super fun Splendid Harvest mules so I opted for a simple black sweater and cropped jeans to really show them off. Obviously it was a little cold for them outside but a perfect outfit for indoors.
Everyone knows I'm a sucker for leopard print, but what you may not know is Christian loves tiger print (and hates leopard...gasp!!) so when I saw these shoes had both of our favorite animal prints I had to get them. As I shared in my January wardrobe update, I missed out on them the first time around because I was waiting for a better sale price. After they sold out I followed a few pairs on eBay and waited until one went down to just over $25 to pounce (if you'll pardon the pun.)
Sweater: Everlane 'the cashmere crop v-neck', Jeans: Everlane high-rise skinny jean in mid-blue, Shoes: Splendid Harvest Mules in Tiger/Cheetah Print (eBay, boot version), Bag: 3.1 Phillip Lim Pashli Medium shoulder bag in Nile Shark Embossed Leather (Bag, Borrow or Steal) Sunglasses: Ray Ban 'Erika' c/o Shopbop, Rings: Sofia Zakia wedding rings and others c/o Aurate, Necklace: Shashi Princess Leia Necklace c/o Shopbop
