living | Her Philly

March 6, 2014

Small City Living Spaces {Pinspiration 4.0}

With spring right around the corner, I am getting refreshed & renewed determination for fun apartment revamps. I am desperately in need of a closet clean out (speaking of which, how do you all feel about a blogger “closet” sale? Would you come? Send me your thoughts please, thx.) and I have several things on my wishlist: rug(s), a bar cart, and (yes) a TV. So, in my never-ending quest for inspiration, looking through how to organize your room tips online, here are some images I’ve been loving lately.

The perfectly organzied bookcase // Her Philly

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Nicolette Mason‘s entire apartment is amazing, but I especially love this bookshelf of ‘organized chaos.’

How to decorate a small bedroom // Her Philly

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This ‘bedroom’ is proof that with a little imagination & some inspiration, it’s easy to utilize all of your space to the fullest.

Organized DIY storage for small apartments // Her Philly

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These crates are perfect customizable storage units that take advantage of vertical space & work well for temporary living quarters (ie, rented city apartments). I love the color of those walls too! Wonder if they used peel and stick wallpaper for it? So do I. And look at how cozy that space is

Pretty pink organized girly bedroom // Her Philly

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Utilizing every inch of wall space is something essential for me in my small apartment. I also love the complementing colors of this room and the cute fairy lights. Lighting can make a big difference to a room, and this lighting adds a magical quality. Lighting from somewhere like www.neonfilter.com, on the other hand, is perfect for a modern living room you’re looking to brighten up with some jazzy colour.

How to organize a tiny bedroom // Her Philly

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A white comforter (thanks mom!) makes all the difference – it gives the room a free & clean feeling. Amazing use of those shelves, too.

If you’re looking for more small living space inspiration, check out my other apartment decorating posts. Then, go pray that Mother Nature gives us spring, like, now. xx

February 5, 2014

Philly Girl Guide to Getting Around

Before I moved to Philly as an “adult,” I lived in the burbs. I had literally never taken a train or bus or subway or taxi, besides on vacation, ever. What I knew about city transportation came from television & movies – specifically Sex & the City. Channeling my inner Carrie, I thought when I moved to Center City, my life would be filled with hailing cabs and never stepping foot on public transportation. But I’d say after about the, hm, 3rd cab ride, a few changes were in order.

After a few years of testing, these methods have become my tried & true for getting around in this city of ours, especially if you don’t own your own car!

November 18, 2013

Post-NYC Reflections

New York City is an amazing place. There is a unique hustle & bustle about the city that I personally have not been able to find anywhere else in the world. But each time I go, for a quick trip or for work or most recently for Lucky FABB, I appreciate my own city so much more.

The morning after I returned from three crazy days in NYC, I hopped in my car and drove over to Whole Foods, as I love to do early on Saturday mornings. This trip was more out of necessity, as I traveled an insane amount last month and needed fresh groceries desperately. I decided to get a few other errands out of the way on my trip, so after a stop at Starbucks for breakfast & a latte, I ran to Fine Wine & Good Spirits and the bank, three stops I completed entirely in about a half hour.

Once at the grocery store, I roamed the aisles peacefully, not bumping into anyone or even having to wait in a long line. I walked to the (free) provided parking lot, and got in my car. And just as I reached the bottom of the spiral ramp leading me back out into my city, I stopped. The side street was empty. It was calm. And it was so, so beautiful. I was instantly, once again, filled with joy about the city I live in. I know Philadelphia is mine, and I belong here. I am blessed (yes) to get the opportunity to travel and experience other places, but I am always so happy this is the place I get to come home to.

September 10, 2013

{Styled For Good} HopeCuts 2013

My hair has been boring for a long time. Once I started getting highlights in 5th grade (yes, 5th, thanks Momma!), I was hooked. But when college graduation struck and I was cut off a la Hannah Horvath, expensive highlights had to take a back seat to things like groceries and a couch. Until one week ago, I was growing in my natural color, and my locks had taken on a little bit of a jacked up ombre look as I let this loooong process happen.

The hair gods must have heard my pleas for a much needed new fall style when I was offered a complimentary cut & color at Northern Liberties’ Signatures Du Mei (112 West Girard Avenue) in honor of HopeCuts 2013. HopeCuts is one of the country’s largest beauty industry fundraisers and raises money for City of Hope, a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center that provides treatment and performs research for cancer, HIV/AIDS and diabetes.

I visited stylist & owner Mary M. Chan and her team at their NoLibs salon last week. For those of you unfamiliar with the area, it is only a few blocks from The Piazza and had lots of street parking available when I visited at 6:15 pm.

Signatures Du Mei has open in Philly for four years and has won “Best of Philadelphia for Hair Color” three years in a row. They have even been featured in Glamour Mag! I love a business that is flexible for women with busy schedules – Signatures Du Mei will take appointments as early as 6:30 am & as late as 7:30 pm. Amazing.

After thinking long & hard about how to update my hair, I decided on the best fall shade I could think of: RED. Before my appointment started, I sat down for a consultation with Mary. I had brought in a few photos of some ginger beauties to share with her, and Mary was awesome at talking me through what upkeep & maintenance of bright red locks would be. We decided on a coppery shade and Mary was off to mix my color.

The shampoo and conditioner line used at the salon is called Pureology, which smelled AMAZING. The products are great for color treated hair.

Signatures Du Mei offers complimentary wine while you’re visiting the salon. Between washes & the hair color application, I sipped on some white wine & yes, paged through what happened to be a bridal magazine. No one freak out now.

Han is the salon’s Junior Stylist and we had a great time chatting about local Philly spots while she applied my color and washed my hair. I definitely had an OMG moment when I checked out my color for the first time. After my hair was dry, Mary gave me an awesome layered cut that would be easy for me to maintain and style myself.

And here is the final product! Mary & Han did an amazing job. My hair feels healthier & shinier, and I was so pleased with all of the attention Signatures Du Mei placed on making what I wanted work best for me.

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Ready to hear more about #HopeCuts13? On Sunday, September 15th, Signatures Du Mei & over 100 salons in the Mid-Atlantic region will donate their time, services and 100% of their daily proceeds (hello!? Amazing!) to HopeCuts. Who doesn’t love getting their locks updated for a great cause? Philly has has eleven participating salons and each is offering their own service, so be sure to call & see what your salon of choice is offering that day.

Elegant Studio (North Broad Street)
Headhunters Hair Design (East Passyunk)
LA Hair Design (East Passyunk)
Luna Salon (Old City) Note: Event is September 16
Salon Royale Court (Center City)
Salon on 4^th (Old City)
Salon Tenshi (Northern Liberties)
Signatures Du Mei (Northern Liberties)
Toppers Spa/Salon (Rittenhouse)
Tundella & Co. (Old City)

In addition to doing haircuts from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm, Signatures Du Mei will be raffling off this amazing haircare basket. I got to take a peek inside and let me tell you – it’s a good one.

I hope you’ll check out Signatures Du Mei & the rest of the Philly HopeCuts salons for this year’s fundraiser. If you do, post your new look on the Her Philly Facebook page, I’d love to see it! xx

August 8, 2013

{First Impressions} Headhouse Salon

If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, you know I am always searching to find my new Philly “people.” Luckily, some have been falling into place (see my favorite Philadelphia dentist ever), but I am still on the hunt for others (namely, a salon) to occupy my appointment circuit. For the past two years, my hairdresser has been named “Groupon,” so when I was invited to explore a new salon with Philly Blog Love, I was thrilled. Headhouse Salon (141 League Street) is a chic and modern salon nestled on a residential street in Queen Village. The salon was started by three talented South Philly friends (how cool is that?), Jade Carroll, Meighan Olkowski and Melissa Moscinski. The owners and their entire stylist team were extremely welcoming & excited to show us around their fabulous space. Our evening was simple: check out the salon, meet the stylists, learn about the hot summer hairstyles (and even get to try one of them!), all while enjoying some summer cocktails and the most delicious cupcake truffles ever, courtesy of Ms Goody Cupcake (1838 E. Passyunk Avenue). We began with a presentation lead by Jessie Holeva, founder of PBL, featuring three of Headhouse’s hottest summer styles. We learned all about the Beach Bum Blowout, Fishtail Braid, and Summer Shades, aka bright colored extensions by Great Lengths. Picking the summer hairstyle I wanted to try was easy: bring on the color! As someone who has had an obsession with Lauren Conrad’s dip dyed hair forever, I opted for some gorgeous peach Great Lengths extensions. These colored extensions are temporary, but last 3-5 months and can be styled with your hot tools. Plus, they are totally office friendly. Chris and Rachel were fabulous to talk to and walked me through the entire process while putting in my fancy new extensions. Thanks guys! Next, I bounced over to chat with Jade & get my makeup done! She was fantastic, thorough, and I loved hearing all of her makeup tricks. PS: her hair color is completely natural – can you believe it? Headhouse Salon will apply a full face of makeup starting at $50. So awesome! Philly Blog Love hooked us up with a great goody bags. In addition to an awesome Headhouse Salon perk, I got to take home a cute tee from Organik Clothing, handy brush on sunblock from Susan Posnick, a summer fragrance from Demeter (I picked Sunshine!), some tanning & teeth whitening goodies from Luminosity, tinted hair chalk from Fine Featherheads (can’t WAIT to try this!), and nail wraps from Jamberry. Thanks to all of the fab sponsors!

My visit to Headhouse was great. The stylists were knowledgeable, genuine & talented. The space was not only roomy, but spacious (so essential in a city salon!). My hair & makeup both looked amazing (check out my Instagram selfie for proof), and I will definitely be back to play at Headhouse Salon again soon!

Have you ever been to Headhouse? What is your go-to salon in Philly? xx

August 4, 2013

Small City Living Spaces {Pinspiration 3.0}

I am on a serious home revamp kick lately. As I now enter my second full year in my amazing apartment, I am adding some things to my wishlist (cute pillows & artwork) and getting rid of a lot more (makeup, clothes, magazines, and other hoarder things I accumulate). Actually, I just spent my entire Saturday cleaning & decluttering my apartment. It’s necessary, and feels fantastic. Here are a few of my most recent pinspirational images for apartment bliss.

Decorating an office // Her Philly Small Apartment Space Decorating Ideas via Pinterest

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Another amazing use of upward space for a desk area. Plus, all decorations here are from the Dollar Store.

Decorating a bedroom Her Philly Small Apartment Space Decorating Ideas via Pinterest

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I am so jealous of this bedroom. This makes having lots of stuff look good.

DIY Jewelry Holder // Her Philly Small Apartment Space Decorating Ideas via Pinterest

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Perfect revamp of an old cabinet for chic and simple jewelry storage.

Office Inspiration // Her Philly Small Apartment Space Decorating Ideas via Pinterest

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This is an inexpensive & easy way to decorate your plain, white wall with everything that inspires you.

Shelving Organization // Her Philly Small Apartment Space Decorating Ideas via Pinterest

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I have a preoccupation with pretty shelving. These compartments and baskets simplify the amount of storage this offers.

Check out my last Pinspiration post for more small apartment decorating ideas. Tell me, what are your favorite parts of your small city apartment?

July 25, 2013

{Uniquely Philly} Mister 1801

Watch out Rocky, there’s a new statue in town! The next time you’re walking down 18th Street between Spruce & Pine, be a little nosy & take a peek in the big window.

You’ll probably notice a statue, and it will be decorated. Pretty basic, right? Well, walk by that statue again in a week or two. Different decorations. A few weeks later, same statue, different look. Are we sensing a trend here?

“Mister 1801” is a statue with some very creative owners. They dress him up in costumes corresponding to holidays, seasons, sports, important city events, & more. This statue stalking has now become part of my weekend routine. I am always the girl stopping on the street to take pictures of him, and thank goodness others are too! Mister 1801 has a fancy facebook page where his almost 200 fans share pictures of their favorite costumes & ask the owners questions about his origin.

In addition to the relevant national & local commentary via costume, if you’re fond of animals, you may catch a few felines making an appearance every once and a while. I didn’t snap any photos of them because frankly I’m not much of a cat person.

Have you ever passed Mister 1801? More importantly: what was he wearing?

July 20, 2013

No Thigh Gap? No Problem. {Summertime Solutions}

It’s the middle of July, it’s hot as hell, and I am constantly trying to wear the least amount of clothing possible. Many, many years ago, my summer dressing routine was quite different than what it is now. If I was going on a vacation, or knew I would be walking around for awhile, cool & flowy dresses were out of the question. My thighs, which, yes, are on the bigger side, rub together…a thought that makes spandex shorts sound amazing even on the most sweltering of summer days. If you have never experienced, yes I’m going to say it, “chub rub,” then this may be hard to understand. But if you have, you know my pain. Probably the last time I had a “thigh gap” was when I was an infant, and after trying a few “solutions” to no avail, I thought I was doomed to be the girl in shorts forever.

Until I stumbled upon this little gem:

Secret Shield is a product made by the Etsy shop Skindura. It is a 100% veggie derived natural balm with a twist up top. The application is super simple & leaves ah-mazing results for hours. I literally apply this before I go to work in the morning and, while I am not strolling around all day, it does the trick from 9-5. When I need to run some errands around the city, this is my go-to. If I know I’m going to be out all day – I just throw one in my bag and reapply in the bathroom. Even at the pool or beach (if you need swim inspo, check out my Aerie swim try on and my Amazon swim try on!), I throw one in my beach bag and apply just like sunscreen.

Now in 2021, there are plenty of other products on the market for chub rub (thank goodness!) and I have tried many of them. While MegaBabe’s Thigh Rescue comes in a second for me and I do use it, I will always come back to Secret Shield, 10 years later.

Secret Shield comes in two sizes, 1 oz. & 2 oz., for $12 & $20, respectively. I started with the smaller size in the summer of 2011, and have been using the product consistently EVER. SINCE. Each 2 oz. bar lasts you at least a whole season, and you really do get your money’s worth for the product.

If you are like me, dreading dressing for this heatwave & need some relief, I urge you to try this product. It’s the answer to my summertime prayers. While this post may not have been the most glamorous one I’ve ever written, if I can help even one of my curvy sistas shed the biker shorts & pull out her prettiest dresses this summer, I have done my job.

June 26, 2013

DIY Japanese Paper Washi Tape Table Top

I’m baaack! First, let me apologize for my absence this month. To sum it up, work has been crazy! But don’t you worry, I’m ready with lots of posts to satisfy your summer blog reading schedule. And today, I have a fun one 🙂

Because I am young & can’t afford to buy glam new furniture, I accept any & all hand-me-downs. This high-top table was in my parents’ kitchen growing up, however over the years, it has taken quite the beating. It needed an update. A cheap one.

While doing some of my normal browsing of BuzzFeed, I came across an article on adorable ways to decorate with washi tape. This post lead me to the blogs of Elise Blaha & Lady Croissant, both of whom made plain furniture look fabulous using a little thing called Japanese paper washi tape. I had to try it!

My extensive search for washi tape (Etsy, craft stores, etc.) led me to Cute Tape. This site has so. many. rolls. of. tape! After I decided what color scheme I was going for and a rough estimation of how much I would need for my table (I guessed, really), I landed on the six pack in Pretty Sunset. The tape, with shipping, cost $19.

Then, it was time to craft! I considered trying a chevron pattern, but without the patience to measure all of that out, I decided on simple stripes.

The first strip of tape was the hardest. I tried to use a ruler as I couldn’t find my trusty yard stick (not). I was not concerned with perfection, so I kind of winged it.

Once I had the first strip down & flat (make sure there are no air bubbles!), I put down one strip on each side, back and forth, back and forth. This process took about an hour.

I left about the same amount of tape on each end of the strip, and when I was finished all of them, I folded them under the top of the table.

And voilà! My brand new $19 table was complete. I am really, really happy with the result. I may get a piece of glass to put over the table to prevent damage, but for now, I just use a coaster and try not to spill. 🙂

So what did you think of my easy/inexpensive/cute DIY project? Would you like to see more? xx

March 31, 2013

No Dishwasher? No Problem!

One of the hardest things for me to deal with when I moved out of my parents’ place was the lack of dishwasher. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a problem with hand cleaning dishes, cutlery, and everything else that goes into the sink, but having access to a dishwasher just makes life so much easier right? Pop them in the dishwasher, set it to the relevant settings, and there you have it. You’re good to go! I remember this one time when our dishwasher had actually stopped working and we needed to get a new one. It felt like the longest time of my life, but I was just so grateful that the plumbing company that we hired, similar to Make It Drain Plumbing & Rooter were able to install our new one as quickly as possible. I could’ve screamed with delight when we had it back.

So, if you haven’t already established, I am a dishwasher girl through and through. And the thought of cleaning dishes makes me feel like a real-life Cinderella (and also, apparently, a snob). Additionally, cleaning dishes on the kitchen sink (or anywhere else) might pose a risk of a clogged drain with food items and soaps. In that situation, I may have to book an appointment with a plumbing company from their website (like cityplumbingandrooter.com/los-angeles) for cleaning my kitchen drainage system. I may have to take extra care while washing dishes in the sink instead of using a dishwasher.

I was not happy to find out that living in Philadelphia post-college, the dishwasher scene does not get much better. After awhile, I was over the dry hands and cracked dishes from things slipping out of my grip. So when I finally saw an article in a magazine about how bad dish-washing liquid is for your skin (I have since misplaced said magazine, of course), I knew I needed something to combat this. After an extensive Etsy search, I found HostessCouture.

HostessCouture is a sweet little Etsy shop based out of Princeton. Owner Madison Harley and her partner stock the shop with unique denim jackets, cute aprons, and, of course, fashionable dish gloves. I got the Glamorous pair in December, and I am happy to report that the outer decorations have stayed perfectly intact! Here are some of my other favorites from the shop:

The gloves are great because the are all “industrial strength” latex on the outside with a comfy cotton lining on the inside. I love that if I need my hands (dry) while I’m in the middle of washing, I can slip these off & it’s all good. The only thing I find troublesome is where to hang the gloves to dry when I’m finished using them. I usually just lay them across the faucet.

The gloves each run at $15/pair and ship FREE! Madison let me know a lot of her customers pick up the gloves for bridal showers, engagement parties, Mother’s Day, and even as a gift for gardeners.

What things do you use to make grown up chores more fun? And Happy Easter to anyone who celebrates! xx