snowflake leggings in the boboli gardens

Red Dress Boutique leggings | Longchamp bag | Corso Como boots | H&M coat | Free People shirt | Chanel sunglasses | J. Crew bracelet (similar)

Living in Italy, it is a little difficult to shop online at my favorite US boutiques due to international shipping. Don't get me wrong, the shopping here is amazing (but can get pretty expensive), though sometimes I enjoy looking at the styles from the stores back home. I got these adorable Christmas leggings from The Red Dress Boutique and shipped them to my parents' house, and then my dad brought them with when he visited for Christmas. I can finally wear them! Yay! I love the variety of snowflake prints and the bright colors. Since they're not in the typical red and green Christmas colors, I will definitely be wearing these throughout the rest of the winter season!

xo-ally

christmas gifts

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I had a good day and celebrated here in Florence. My dad came out to Florence for the holidays and we have kept busy by seeing major Florence "to-dos," like going to the Ufizzi and Accademia museums and the Boboli gardens, Rome for a day, and of course, eating some delicious Italian food at my favorite restaurants.

A few of my Christmas gifts:

A new Longchamp to replace my old one. I had my old one for seven months and wore it almost every day. I often cleaned it, but then eventually, even cleaning it wasn't enough - it hit the point of no return. I got great use out of it, so it's nice to upgrade to a new one. The surface on this one has a beautiful gloss and the Longchamp pattern. It's black, too - hopefully it will disguise any dirt or marks!

 Europe also destroyed my riding boots, so I got a new pair of Italian leather ones from a shop in Florence. I love them! They're very comfortable and go with everything, and will be nice to wear especially now, before I take my riding boots into a cobbler.

Some new bracelets: the top one is from Stella & Dot and the other silver ones are from a Seattle boutique.

Happy holidays!

xo-ally

rugby stripes; at the vatican

Florence boutique sweater (similar) | Trouve leggings (similar) | Longchamp bag | Ray-Ban sunglasses | Tory Burch flats | Henri Bendel earrings

Merry Christmas EVE! I haven't posted an outfit in a while but I was out and about in Rome yesterday and decided to take a quick couple photos of this outfit. I wore my cozy new sweater and leggings, perfect for the train ride, complete with flats for walking around the huge city, in addition to sunglasses because of the sunny (!) weather. The Vatican is gorgeous, and while I've seen it before, it never disappoints. It is honestly the most elaborate, most gorgeous church I have ever been in. Photos of Rome to come soon!

Have a great day, can you believe it is almost Christmas?!

xo-ally

christmas sweater and leggings

Subdued sweater | Trouve leggings (similar) | H&M sneakers (non-high-top version here)

Super casual outfit today. Last week I stopped in at a boutique in Florence and got this adorable baggy winter sweater! It is perfect for the Christmas season with the reindeer and tree. The hearts are cute too :) the whole design is printed on the back as well! It's super cozy and nice to wear while running errands around the city.

xo-ally

cyber monday favorites: j. crew, vineyard vines, and red dress boutique!

Since I'm currently in Europe and can't do Black Friday shopping in person, I've been waiting for Cyber Monday to roll around. Pretty much every store/brand out there will be having amazing sales, so browse around online to make sure you're getting the best deal! I rounded up some items from three of my favorite stores - J. Crew, Vineyard Vines, and Red Dress Boutique - these would be perfect for any ladies in your life (or gifts to yourself)!

J. Crew: 30% off with code "MONDAY" and free shipping until Dec. 2!

jeweled stripe top, pattern mix scarf, monogram baseball cap, asymmetrical stone necklace, glitter etta pumps, minnie pants

Vineyard Vines: 20% off $200+ with code "CYBER13" until Dec. 2! (Excludes shep shirts and cashmere).

lobster crewneck sweater, neon whale hat, block print whale tee, tartan bow skirt, shep shirt

Red Dress Boutique: tons of great deals, including Christmas leggings for only $18, items marked down to $10-$15, and a free bib necklace with the first 100 orders!

leggings, sale items

Have any other sales you want to share? Comment below!

xo-ally

christmas plans

What we did tonight:

Family dinner

Played the board game Sequence (so fun)

Watched Home Alone 2 (still get emotional at the same parts every year!)

Tomorrow morning:

Open gifts

Christmas brunch

Going to the movie theater to see Les Miserables

Calling extended family to catch up and send Christmas wishes

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas Eve and enjoy the Christmas day!

xo-ally

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas...

....inside the house at least. (It's raining in Seattle. Snow is not in the forecast, as per usual. I've never had a "White Christmas," actually.) 

However, we've got gifts all nestled under the tree and decorations up too. :)

Are you getting excited for Christmas?

xo-ally

christmas playlist

Yesterday morning my roommates got together to make a pre-Christmas breakfast before we leave after finals! We made eggs, hashbrowns, and coffee cake while listening to my Christmas playlist from last year. While I like the Pandora Christmas station, I always go back to these faves of mine - some of which have been on my Christmas playlist for literally years and years.

You can't go wrong with The Beach Boys or Michael Buble! And I love Christmas Eve by Celine Dion - it reminds me of our family friends' house at Christmas time :)

The Greatest Time of Year has been a staple on this playlist since junior high, partially for the nostalgia and partially for the exciting holiday spirit I get into when I hear it.

Have you listened to Drummer Boy by Justin Bieber and Busta Rhymes? It's actually pretty cool. He puts a modern spin on the song by both singing and rapping. 

Watch this awesome hip hop dance to it. THEY ARE SO GOOD.

(I also prefer "Drummer Boy" over "Mistletoe." I can't take the line "Shawty will you, oh, oh, oh" 40+ times seriously in a Christmas song. Haha.)

Maybe This Christmas and Hey Guys! It's Christmas Time are two of my indie Christmas faves. Sufjan Stevens's whole Christmas album is great, but this one by him is so upbeat and exciting! 

Maybe This Christmas has been on every holiday episode of The OC so I've favorited that one over the years as well.

What is your favorite Christmas song?

xo-ally

PS - sorry for the lack of outfit posts lately! I've literally been wearing leggings and gym clothes all week. Because either I'm studying for finals or at the gym. Haha. Maybe I'll decide to put on a decent outfit soon :)

hints of holiday :)

I love the hints of holiday that are everywhere during the Christmas season. In high school my friend Liz and I would always get excited on the day Starbucks put up Christmas decorations and started using Christmas cups. At lunch I would get a slice of the gingerbread cake and Liz would get a cranberry bliss bar. I haven't had a gingerbread slice this year, but when I saw the adorable snowman cookies I just had to try one!

On a different Starbucks run after Thanksgiving, I was with my dad and he said, "If they had these snowman cookies when you were little you would've said daddy daddy can I please get one?" Aww. The cookie is really good though - I thought it was just a sugar cookie but it actually is a frosted graham cracker cookie.

My favorite store has holiday bags. I really like them! I like the colors and the design. It makes shopping even more special :)

What are your favorite hints of holiday this season? Have you been Instagramming pics of holiday happiness? (I wish I had Instagram...there's not an app for my phone yet....I know...totally out of the loop...I wish I could see thousands of the same pics of red Starbucks cups. Haha. But really.)

xo-ally

christmas eve

Tank, belt: Nordstrom Cardigan: Macy's Skinnies, bracelets: F21 Flats, handbag: Tory Burch Watch: Michael Kors Scarf: my mom's closet

Merry Christmas Eve! I went with my family to do last-minute Christmas shopping for a majority of the day and then out to dinner. There was a lot of Christmas music ranging from The Beach Boys and Michael Buble to Justin Bieber and The O.C. Chrismakkuh album.

I also got an adorable and funny-looking snowman cupcake. :)

xo

updated christmas list

I posted a Christmas list a few weeks ago, but then re-made a newer one with more options. I like giving my family plenty of ideas so I don't know what I'll get and am still surprised! 

Think one of these things would make for a perfect gift for someone? (Or want to snag it for yourself?!) The links to the items on the list are below!

Top Row:

L to R:

J. Crew checkered button-up in blue and white, $72 

Kate Spade clear bauble necklace and/or ModCloth green necklace, $148 and/or $24:

Middle Row:

L to R:

Ralph Lauren "Megan Solid Oxford Shirt" in white, $89

Black Nordstrom Leggings & Turquoise Free People long sleeve shirt from Nordstrom

Back quilted camera bag/handbag, $158

"Manhattan Cocktail Ring" in ruby red (Just like Blair's signature ring on Gossip Girl!), $78

"Fashion Fantasy Heel" from ModCloth, $34

Bottom Row:

L to R:

Lilly Pulitzer 2012 Calendar, $25

Puma Running Tights, $65

Ankle Weights, 5lbs, $10

White Nike socks, $15 for 3 pairs at Nordstrom

Nail Polish:

Top to Bottom:

Gold sparkle polish, Butter London, $14

"Chimney Sweep" polish, Butter London, $14

"Rainbow Connection" (Muppets Collection) polish, O.P.I., $8.50

Enjoy the Christmas weekend! I hope it is filled with lots of holiday cheer!

xo

And the holiday season begins!

Today officially "marks" the beginning of the holiday season. I celebrate Christmas, and am so excited to see the touches of the holiday everywhere.

One of my favorite catalogs of the season is the Neiman Marcus Christmas Book:

It's exciting to see all the winter clothes, accessories, and especially the GIFTS! There are plenty of ideas for anyone, and makes for good gift-giving inspiration even if it's a little out of your price range.

xo



Christmas List 2011

A few mornings ago my dad asked me to send him my Christmas list. It was very surprising news to me - I can't believe Christmas is just a little more than a month away! Seriously, where does time go?

With that being said, I thought about a few things I might want this year and decided to share them! What items are on your list?

Lilly Pulitzer Calendar -- I'm always organized!
Kate Spade Laptop Case -- My new laptop is super light so I take I've been taking it with me to so many places. A sleeve would ensure that it doesn't get scratched!
Sony Digital Camera -- I used to have a small digital camera, but it sadly got stolen this summer! I love love love my Nikon DSLR, but there are plenty of times where a smaller camera is more portable.
Brown Booties -- Well, just brown shoes in general. Other than my brown leather boots, I don't have any other brown fall/winter shoes. So basically any type of brown shoe is on my list!
How I Met Your Mother, Season 5 -- HIMYM is currently my all-time favorite show (next to Gossip Girl, of course). I have seasons 1-4 of the sitcom that I rewatch over and over again, so number 5 is on my list!

I'm also creating my very-first-ever Holiday Gift Guide! Keep checking back within the next few days for gift ideas!

xo

**EDIT** Oops! I wrote "Lily Pulitzer 2011 calendar" instead of "Lilly Pulitzer 2012 calendar" in the image above. Sorry about that!