A lifestyle blog for young women dining, shopping, playing & living in the city of Philadelphia.
It’s time for another swimsuit haul! I loved hearing all your feedback about last week’s Amazon swimsuit try on. Swimsuits are some of my favorite things to shop for, and after initially feeling discouraged this season, I’m so glad I have found some really good options (especially for our trip to Mexico – we leave Monday!).
Today we’re trying on from Aerie, one of my favorite brands all-around. These swim options were cute, trendy, and excited to show you how they each worked.
I. cannot. wait. for. summer. I have been counting down the months, weeks, days until it is ~down the shore season~ again, and shopping for warm weather clothes has definitely been my therapy. I was struggling for a bit with swimsuits, a lot of mine are from about 20 lbs ago, so I wanted to grab a few new pieces that made me feel great for summer, but I couldn’t find any I loved. I decided to do a deep dive into some Amazon swimwear and see what I came up with. Spoiler alert: it was goooood.
I bought 8 swimsuits (bonus: two summer outfits!), each from Amazon. I was not sure what sizes to get for many of these, but the XL ended up working out for each one! For reference, I am 5’2, a size 14, and around a 38DDD or 40DD (when’s the last time I got a bra fitting?! Who the heck knows).
Happy almost December, you guys! We have been absolutely so busy right now with the move, but we are making progress, and that’s been very encouraging! I am really excited to celebrate the holidays in our new home. We rearranged the living room last night and decided where we’ll put our tree – I am ready for some festivity!
But on to the reason you’re all here! My Philly gift guides used to be some of my favorite posts to put together, so I am thrilled to resurrect the series this holiday season. There’s only a ladies guide this year – so hopefully I can work back up to both some time in the future. 🙂
I am really excited to share this list of 22 Philly-themed gift ideas. We all know, shopping local is so important right now, and many of these businesses sell through Etsy or their own online shop, as well as local shops and markets, so you can shop wherever your comfort level is. I am also proud to include many female and Black-owned businesses this year – we have so much talent in our area.
A lot of these businesses are running sales right now, but the prices I listed are all their full price (so you’ll be pleasantly surprised upon click through!). Enjoy your shopping this season, and I obviously won’t tell anyone if you pick up one (or a few) of these for yourself! 😉 And now, on to the gifts!
If you’re like me, Prime Day is a taaaad bit overwhelming. I love more digestable lists people have put together, but I never know if the products people are curating for me are actually tested by them, or just things that are high priced and deeply discounted.
I’ve been a Prime member for years, so I’ve tried my fair share of random Amazon products. I wasn’t going to post anything today, but when I started perusing and seeing that a ton of the things I used currently and really love were discounted, I knew I wanted to share my list of Prime Day deals.
I go through shifts in how I dress based on trends, comfort, and how I’m feeling about my body at the time. But these shifts can last for quite a bit, enough that I find myself gravitating towards certain styles and completely away from entire trends I used to love and have filled my closet with (jumpsuits, hello?!), until I’m wearing the same 5 things over and over and need some variety in my life.
And lately, we’re talking a year or so, I’ve been noticing this: I’m wearing less of my dress and skirt collection and piling. on. the. denim. So, I obviously needed a few new pairs.
Momma’s Day is one week away! Picking out a gift for Mother’s Day is always a fun one for me, because, in my opinion, you have the freedom to get mom something a little more creative than birthdays and Christmas. Of course, personalized gifts like custom name necklaces (collares personalizados) are always a thoughtful gift to give, and can be really beautiful statement pieces. Personally, I always find that an experience is the best thing to get because what could be better than spending more time with your mum doing something that you both enjoy? Even if it’s just going out for a meal, or maybe going to a spa? If you both have a wild side, why not go for a helicopter ride with a company like Jettly?
Making memories together is the best thing you can do, and you’ll cherish the time you spent together even more. Years later you will recollect these memories and that could bring a bunch of smiles and maybe a bit of happy tears on your cheeks. Moreover, if you have pictures of such memories taken you can as well make them into something like memory t-shirt quilts and that could make a heart-warming gift. As another option, if your mother has a pet that she loves from the core of her heart, you can take a picture of the pet and customize it into an item that you can give her. For instance, if you have a picture of your mother with her pet, you can think about getting her Personalized pet Photo gifts that she might adore.
If you’re a little pushed for time this year, however, don’t worry, you still have options. I’ve discovered that things I can pick up around the city or at craft fairs give my Mother’s Day gifts a really personal touch. Anything that you know your mum would love is perfect, so I was super excited when Philly boutique Occasionette invited me in to stop in and pick out my top Mother’s Day picks from their shop to share with you.
Like any other good millennial out there, my dependency on Amazon Prime is real. It’s easy to use, it’s flexible to you, I mean you can find out how to change country on Amazon prime so you never have to be without it! It will always be there for you. And us millennials are addicted to it, I mean, where would we be without it? There are actually so few things I need in life where a 2 day turnaround is not sufficient, so it’s become my real BFF over the past few years.
I’m a big believer in trying what’s out there on Amazon, and the internet in general. If I can get free shipping (and free returns, obviously), I’m always up for trying new brands, new sizes, new products, etc. I know it’s easy to get overwhelmed living this life, but I’ve found being up for trying something new is worth it (and the cash hold on your credit card) in the long run.
Happy Black Friday, ladies and gents! (Hi to all the guys/parents/friends who were sent this post for gifting ideas, welcome to the fam.). I hope you had a fabulous and filling Thanksgiving with people you love and have been working through your holiday gift lists. And in case you need a little more inspiration, I am here for you.
Just like our Philly guy gift list, my usual 10 gift ideas were doubled, so there’s plenty of gift ideas, no matter what your budget. This year, I went with a lot of things I would like to receive (obviously), but branched out into different types of gifts, because it’s really so amazing the variety of super cool things made right here in Philly. Etsy is our friend, folks. Now, onto the gifts!Continue Reading…
The holidays are here! It feels like just yesterday we were sweating in 80 degree weather (probably because it wasn’t actually that long ago), but I’ve been embracing the chill and pulling out my cutest layers and dark lip colors this fall.
I love love love putting together these gift guides. They’re definitely a lot of work – especially the guy version (thanks to all my guy pals out there who looked over my list this year to make sure I didn’t go too cray) – but it amazes me each time to see the cool things our city puts out. Every gift on this list is either made in Philly (with a few from the surrounding area) or speaks directly to Philadelphians’ souls. They’re all available to shop online (okay, the booze might not be that easy, but don’t tell me you’re not going to a liquor store…today even!) and some can even be picked up in local shops around the city. And this year’s guide is packed with *17* gift ideas, thanks to your overwhelming response on my instagram stories to include more gifts!
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As I’m sure you know by now, I have a thing for makeup. The moment I discovered YouTube hauls and tutorials in college (I can still remember the first DulceCandy87 videos I got sucked into), it was all. over. Whenever someone new comes to my house and uses the bathroom, they’re truly always in shock at the amount of “products” I own. It’s my thing, and I’ve accepted it.
Adding to this obsession, one of my goals last year was to get in both the Sephora and Ulta VIP loyalty programs. These programs are achieved by spending a certain amount in one calendar year, and are rewarded by promos the next year. Sephora offers a free Beauty Insider program (I sincerely hope you’re already getting that free birthday gift at this stage in your life, ladies), and the VIB level, achieved when you spend $350/year, offers the same perks, plus a free makeover.
