Outfits: Valley {Forge} Girl

Outfit Details:

Coat: Target

Dress & Socks: UO

Hat, Bag, Shoes: Vintage, all thrifted 

Scarf: Taylor House, Etsy

Happy New Year darlings!

Welcome to my very first post of 2014 and another cold winter weekend to go along with it. Probably like many of your towns, mine has hit negative degrees...boo.  So not my thing, but nothing like hitting the road for some weekend trips to break up the long winter months.  

This day found the Mr. and I driving through our old stomping grounds at Valley Forge National Park, near the college we attended.  Gotta love taking a mosey down memory lane.  We used to watch the sunrise here and listen to Van Morrison and Jeff Buckley.  Feels like yesterday...but that was 11 years ago! 

So with another New Year my resolution...er, goal is to simply get myself and my little fam outside more.  For some reason, this past year found us inside a lot...could be that having a newborn on my hands found me more tired than usual...yes that is an understatement!  Not that it's a bad thing...reading books, building castles, and indoor play is fun but I recently read somewhere that many of the best childhood memories that people have are the ones that took place outdoors.  True or not, I really just love the idea of creating more memories with my 3 boys under the bright sunshine and wide open sky.  So bring on more days at the lake, more nature walks, more ball playing and yes maybe even some sledding.  

Cheers to one sweet and lovely 2014!

Love Bunches, 

It's a Wrap

Hi there and happy almost New Year's Eve darlings!

It's so hard to believe that this year is coming to an end.  Sheesh, does time fly when you are having a grand ol time!  2013 proved itself to be another exciting year as we welcomed our second little bundle into the world...truly the cherry on the sundae.  For me this meant getting pretty creative in the dressing department as I did not want to break the bank when it came to purchasing maternity clothing.  And guess what - I surely did not as only 3 pieces were purchased during the course of my pregnancy...and all on sale to boot!  I stayed true to myself stylistically as I donned plenty of vintage and loads of color - two things I adore dearly.  Here is a wee recap of my favorite outfits by season:

 

 

 

 

So there you go, my 2013 in review.  Very similar to last year, I thrifted a lot, purchased very little new, remixed my own closet again and again, and enjoyed many-a-lovely swaps from the Flock Together gals.  

Wishing you one loverly loverly New Year and a million cheers to all the beauty that lies ahead.

Love Bunches, 

Merry Christmas!

Outfits: American Picker

Outfit Details:

Dress: Miss Selfridge (2011)

Beret & Flannel Shirt: Vintage, thrifted

Purse: Vintage from grandmother

Tights & Shoes (sale): Modcloth

Gloves (Betsey Johnson) & Socks: Gift from mother

Just another splendiful afternoon spent antiquing through the hometown and sipping lattes...nothing too far out of the ordinary when I go home for a visit. Rummaging through old relics no matter where I am always makes me think of the show, American Pickers...which I will nerdishly admit that I am kind of obsessed with, however that's not why I entitled this post like that. The real reason is because living out of a suitcase has me puzzle-piecing together random articles of clothing..which kind of left me feeling like a bit of a rag picker, not that there's anything wrong with that.

Anyhow, I'm babbling.  I'll stop.  Today I am I baking up a batch up my grandmother's traditional Pfefferkuchen (think gingerbread covered in a rich chocolate gananche).  Holy moly it's so good and is the taste of Christmas Eve according to me.  So that's it.  I've got to split.  The sugar and spices are calling my name.  Wishing you a Merry Christmas Eve Eve darlings.

Love Bunches, 

Recipe Box: Bananas Foster Frosting w/ Pumpkin Carrot Cupcakes

Hello darlings!

Tis the season for baking, that's for sure.  About a year or so back, I posted my recipe for pumpkin carrot cupcakes...yum, right?  Anyhow, as all things pumpkin and delicious seem to be the go to flavor through the fall and winter seasons, this recipe has made it's way into my kitchen yet again and again.  This time around, I gave it an extra punch of flavory goodness by making Bananas Foster frosting...yes, that's right, I did say Bananas Foster!  And not to toot my own horn, but this frosting is pretty much so to die for with it's blend of bananas, brown sugar, cinnamon, and rum.  I altered the original recipe a bit and & added cream cheese, because let's be real, cream cheese just makes everything so much more yummy.  So without further ado...here is the glorious frosting recipe:  

// To see the recipe for the actual pumpkin carrot cupcakes, JUMP HERE. //

Bananas Foster Frosting

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup banana, mashed (about 1 large banana)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar 
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons dark rum (I actually used Brandy b/c that's what I had on hand.)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

Mash banana in a small bowl with the lemon juice.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter & cream cheese until smooth.
Add mashed banana and beat until well incorporated and smooth.
Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time (while slowly mixing).  
Add brown sugar, cinnamon, rum and vanilla.
Beat until all ingredients are well incorporated, and frosting is light and fluffy.

Original recipe adapted from here.

Now frost those sweet little cakes and enjoy!  For photo taking purposes, I frosted my cakes as soon as they came out of the oven and well - the frosting melted a bit just like Frosty the Snowman on a hot day.  Wait till your cakes are cooled down though and I promise your frosting will look much prettier than mine! 

Happiest Sunday Darlings!

Outfits: Cookies and Cream

Outfit Details:

Dress: Vintage // For sale here

Hat: UO

Tights: Modcloth

Bag: Vintage, belonged to Grandmother

Boots: Vintage

Well I'm certainly snowed in these days.  How about you?  It seems like hot cocoa is permanently attached to my chilled hands and that under the covers is really the only place I want to be.  Yes, I'm the biggest baby in the cold and it's so very often that I like to daydream about living in a warm climate...all year round.  One day, one day.

Anyhow, if anything, the snow certainly is good for Netflix show marathons and writing Christmas cards while indulging in plenty of piping hot sweet potato soup and topping the evening off with the copious amount of baked goods that were whipped up out of sheer boredom...bananas foster frosted cupcakes, cranberry orange cheese bread, shall I continue?  Better yet, today is the cookie bake at my son's preschool so looks like more confections are on the horizon.  Here's to a frosting & sprinkled covered day...speaking of which my tights totally remind me of cookies and cream, you see what I mean?

So I'll leave it at just that.  Wishing you one sweet day darlings, snow or not.  We are a week out from Christmas and that is definitely something to cheer about.

Love bunches, 

Happy Holidays! Win a Crosley Cruiser Turntable.

 

Hello and happiest Tuesday Darlings!

Today, I'm thrilled to be taking part in a totally rad holiday giveaway hosted by ChantillySongs and some other gorgeous blogger gals! We've all banded together to bring you an awesome prize for one lucky reader- a Crosley Cruiser Record Player!! 

The Cruiser is a three-speed portable turntable. Constructed of wood and bound in a leatherette material, the briefcase-styled record player is lightweight and easily transported. It also features built-in stereo speakers, so no need to connect it with a speaker system. Lastly, it comes in a myriad of bright, beautiful colors- blue, lime green, orange, pink, red, or turquoise. 

Please note: This giveaway will be open until January 1st, and will be open only in the US and the UK. Also, every single one of these ladies is worth getting to know. Take a moment to check out their links, find some new favorites, and enter away! 

The Gals:

 Chantilly of ChantillySongs // Marisa of The Shades of Monet Chronicles // Ariel of Auter Ariel // Lisa of Lala Faux Bois // Rebecca of Cella Jane // Kelsey of Ladies in Navy // Rachel of Rachel the Hat // Sara of Sincerely Sara

Fingers crossed and very best luck!  

Love Bunches,

The Rafflecopter Widget- a Rafflecopter giveaway

   

A festive spirit comes in many colors.  No matter what color you fancy to celebrate the season, AllyHoot Vintage has got you covered.

// Greens //

   The Holly and the Ivy Shirtwaist Dress // The Greensleeves Cocktail Dress // Pine Needles Pinafore

// Reds //

The Wassail Jumper // Candy Canes Aglow Dress // Coffee & Pumpkin Pie Dress

// Wintery Blues //

The Blue Christmas Swing Coat // Winter Wonderland Shift // The Little Drummer Girl Dress

// Black & Neutral //

Baby It's Cold Outside Dress // Chestnuts Roasting Dress // The Midnight Clear Dress

Get 25% off with the code "Happy Holidays".  All orders will ship out via Priority Mail just in time for the 24th if order is placed by 12/20.  

Wishing you one Merry and Bright Sunday!

xo, 

Outfits: Downtown Doll

Outfit Details: 

Dress: Miss Selfridge 

Coat: Target 

Blouse: Vintage, for sale here 

Hat & Bag: Vintage 

Tights: Modcloth 

Shoes: Michael Kors via Marshall's 

Hello there,

I'm back from a long weekend of Christmas tree chopping, antique mall shopping, and hopping along in the mounds of snow that got dump upon my hometown while we were there for a visit...but more on that another time.  

Anyhow, as Black Friday has come and gone - the Mr. and I spent that particular day in Philly and yanked ourselves out of bed early ... well early for us that is, and hit the city to catch a couple deals or two.  Of course, that meant making a little ol pitstop at Anthropologie - um, like my favorite one ever because it's four whole stories of Anthro gorgeousness!  Lucky for me, the whole store was 20% off including all sale items, so I snagged myself a mushroom top that I have been eyeing up for a while and some more plates to decorate my dining room wall with.  Exciting times fo sho because any other day, Anthro is way out of my tiny little clothing budget.  3 cheers to feeling like you made out like a bandit.  On a side note - I've been wearing these boots, that hat, and lugging around this purse on ye ol blog a lot lately - this is what comes from holiday travels and living out of a suitcase.  Hope you don't mind. ;-)

So that's just that.  Today is a lazy one that involves hanging ornaments and making more hot chocolate to keep my toes and noes warm in this snowy weather.  

Love Bunches,