massmusings: holidays

Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts

9:37 AM // By Kayte

CHRISTMAS RECAP!

Today, instead of doing a new SSS, I am going to give you all a little recap of Christmas at the Demont household in Maine. Every year after mass we spend Christmas Eve at my paternal grandmother's house and enjoy a meal and gift giving. On Christmas Day, we open gifts among the three of us (now four - Hi Drew!) Below are the pictures I took in attempts to capture the essence of my house at Christmas.

This is the main tree in our formal living room. It's the most traditional and probably my favorite. The tree skirt was made by my mom when I was a baby and she also created matching stockings to go along with it.

Seriously, my mother is a decorating superhero. She thinks of every detail!

The second of the trees featured on this post (in total there are 5). This is my mom's bird tree. My aunt also has a bird tree and I'll most likely continue the tradition when I get a house of my own.

Formal dining room table centerpiece.

Family china and silver that will someday be mine! Also, how cute are those wish ornaments that doubled as party favors?

This is arguably my favorite piece in our entire house. My parents purchased this chandelier in Venice, Italy. It's hand-blown Venetian glass and has to be installed piece by piece to ensure the proper weight balance.

The third tree is a bit more contemporary and has brighter colors and more abstract ornaments. It's located in the kitchen and has great light to accentuate the colors.

This ornament is the family favorite. Each year when I was younger, we would always have a contest to see who could unwrap the "jingle girl" first. Looking back on it, I don't think that there was any prize or good luck associated with finding the ornament but it was fun so who really cares?

As I mentioned earlier, my mom made stockings that match the tree skirt. This is my stocking (my family calls me Katie)!

Our beautiful tree angel!

The full fireplace shot.

By this point, dinner was ready and I clearly was already in line for the delicious food... not sorry about it.

Thanks for reading about the Demont family Christmas! I would love to hear any similar or unique traditions that you have with your families for the Holidays! Look out for a special Holiday Edition OOTD coming up soon on the blog!

10:01 AM // By Kayte

CHRISTMAS EVE!

via tumblr

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!!!! Happy Holidays to you and yours, spend today and tomorrow being thankful for all that you have been blessed with and for family board games that inevitably end up in laughter and maybe a little too much to drink. Love you all!

9:38 AM // By Kayte

GREAT GIFTS QUICK

Blankets make great gifts around the Holidays, especially if you are shopping last minute or simply can not think of an appropriate gift for someone on your list. Not only are blankets great gifts, but they are also a relatively inexpensive way to spruce up the decor of a room. Above I have shown some examples of great blankets and throws that will appeal to different styles. What do they have in common? They are all soft and cuddly - perfect for sitting by a winter fire or admiring your Christmas Tree.

If you are struggling to locate such blankets, I would start with Target or Home Goods. Both of these stores typically have quality products at lower prices. Also, as an added bonus, here is a hysterical video to get you in the spirit:

4:43 PM // By Kayte

HOLIDAY PARTIES GALORE!

This weekend was the busiest that I've had in a while. Friday night was my company's Holiday Party held at Island Creek Oyster Bar. For this event I chose a simple black dress with a leather bodice and jersey skirt. It was super comfortable, office party appropriate, and required minimal jewelry.

My second dress of the weekend was worn to Drew's cousin's Bar Mitzvah! Unfortunately I don't have a picture from that day but this is the dress when I wore it to my Winter Formal for Chi Omega senior year.

Lastly was my former roommate Nick's company Holiday Party! It was held at the Boston Public Library on Boylston Street and it was an absolute blast! Below is a snapshot of us hamming it up in the photobooth. Once I receive the rest of the pictures, I will post them.

Psssst! Want to know a secret? This polka dotted dress was my Junior Prom dress!

11:29 AM // By Kayte

HOLIDAY PEPLUM

To me, peplum is a flattering cut that is both classy and a little edgy at the same time. I love pairing peplum tops with jeans or tighter skirts to give the illusion of a smaller waist and a longer overall silhouette. For the holidays, I chose 5 peplum tops to inspire my outfits and hopefully do the same for you!

The TIBI top (inspired by Dariel's holiday party outfit) is my personal favorite. This red is rich and the cut is perfect. You could easily pair this with a cute pair of white jeans for the summer time as well, making it easy and versatile.

Numbers 2-4 are the runners up this season. I love the lace in the Lipsy V-Neck. I think it adds a little something extra to the standard black peplum (see number 1). When wearing peplum this holiday season, don't be afraid to get a little whimsical with your colors, patterns, and styles. Winter is a fantasy season with the snow and stories of Santa Claus, etc. so feel free to mix it up and try something more daring. I can't wait to see what you come up with!

1) TIBI Top - $345

2) Chalayan Stretch- jersey top- $300

3) Mossimo Sleeveless Scuba top- $23

4) Roksanda Ilincic Lisson top- $790

5) Lipsy Lace V-neck top- $31

10:03 AM // By Kayte

BOSTON BLOGGER EVENT - HOLIDAY PARTY

Last night I met up with Dariel for a quick Holiday Photo-shoot before heading over to Warehouse for the Boston Blogger Holiday Party! We had so much fun shooting and even more fun eating (obviously) and socializing with all of the fabulous bloggers in Boston.

OOTD: Shoes: Marshall's; Pants: American Eagle; Shirt: Nordstrom Rack; Vest: Forever 21; Necklace: South Moon Under; Watch: Anne Klein; Earrings: Mom's closet

I want to give a special thank you to Kate and Alison for hosting such a great event. After ruthlessly stalking many of them on Instagram, I was able to meet so many great bloggers in person.

Keep an eye out for more OOTD posts, recipes, 195 Webster posts, and Holiday inspired outfits and gifts! Happy Humpday!

3:56 PM // By Kayte

HOLIDAY GUEST GUIDE

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah are just days away and if you're anything like me, you're being indecisive about what to wear. You probably also forgot to get the host a gift (hint: this is necessary especially if you are going to a non-family members home for the holidays). Have no fear my friends! I am here with a quick tutorial on how to throw together a last minute outfit/gift combo.

When in doubt, grab a dress and tights. I chose a festive red plaid and some embellished tights to add a little sparkle. Throw on some classic pumps and simple gold jewelry and you're good to go. Bonus points for a sequined clutch that carries all of your essentials.

A gift for the host/hostess should be something simple and relatively small. If you are really in a pinch, opt for a nice arrangement of flowers from a local florist. Other ideas include a holiday themed ornament (make sure you check religious preferences before if you are going that route), well packaged bath soaps or unique candles, and of course any little nicknacks that speak to the personality or tastes of the host.

I hope this helps and enjoy a full and fun week of eating and festivities!

4:17 PM // By Kayte

WHAT DO I WEAR? (A GUEST POST)

Hi everyone! Today I did a guest post for A Daily Dose of Vitamin D! I was featured discussing versatile holiday attire for the upcoming weeks! Thanks to Dariel and I hope you enjoy it :) With the holidays quickly approaching I've gotten many questions regarding proper attire for such events. Have no fear, I'm here with outfits that you can use for multiple occasions!

I know that Thanksgiving is falling right around High School Reunion time. You want to look nice and presentable for your family, but of course you need to look like a million bucks for all of those people you haven't (or have...) seen in years. These two outfits examples are perfect for either occasion. Both ensembles include leather which immediately dresses up an outfit. I love the subtle edginess of leather but I also love that it can look ultra feminine when paired with softer fabrics. The Madewell peplum shit with those emerald pants are to die for! I chose to go with pants because I'm from Maine, and it's wicked cold up there. While you could most definitely decide to wear black tights and a festive skirt, I think pants are best as they are easy to transition from day tonight, and can be more easily dressed down after a family party.

While these outfits are just examples of what you could wear, I have created some guidelines for your holiday planning:

1) Leather is always a great choice.

2) Try to incorporate red and green in a non-cheesy way. It's easiest to do this by choosing a pattern or unique jewelry.

3) The shoes make it! Go for something flirty and heeled: heels are appropriate for both a family party and a get together of friends.

4)Timeless jewelry adds just the right amount of sparkle

5) Make sure you have a solid clutch or bag that's big enough to hold all of your essentials. Not fun getting caught in inclement weather without gloves and chap-stick!

I hope you have enjoyed my post and I would love to see your pictures on instagram of your holiday outfits! I'll be following the hashtag #massmusings all winter, so make sure you capture your creative brilliance! Thanks again Dariel and Happy Holidays!

11:37 AM // By Kayte

FESTIVE FASHION

J Crew long sleeve sweater / Topshop mini skirt / J Crew j crew tight / ALDO bootie boots / Alexander McQueen red purse / Tory burch earrings / Opal ring / Nars cosmetic / Yves Saint Laurent liquid eyeliner

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah are quickly approaching with Christmas and New Years not far behind. Naturally, I've been spending my time scouring websites and stores, and obsessing over holiday patterns. When I saw this skirt from Topshop, I immediately knew that I wanted to pair it with a chunky knit sweater. I think that this J.Crew turtleneck is the perfect contrast to the skirt and creates a cozy aesthetic. Pair them with dark tights, some solid booties, and a pop of color in your bag and you're good to go! (Try a winged eye and red lip for extra holiday pizazz.)

11:40 AM // By Kayte

HALLOWEEN: Last Minute Costume Ideas!

I am a HUGE fan of Halloween. I know a lot of people hate putting effort into costumes and dressing up, but I will be the first to admit that I love it. Maybe it stems from my family and how we used to put on a haunted house in our garage that attracted over 400 kids a year. It was pretty aggressive but man was it fun!

When I was younger, my mom also used to make my costumes using the good old sewing machine and fitting me every few hours as she plugged away on the tedious creation that we had agreed on. Now that I'm a functioning adult, I'm left to my own devices. I'll admit, I can't sew for the life of me but I refuse to buy a costume from a party store. Yes, it's easy and convenient but in my opinion, it takes all the fun out of it! I would much rather hunt around for obscure items and let the creative juices flow.

So, after three years of mixers and opportunities to dress up in college, I've become pretty savvy about the costumes I wear. For example, last year I was a cat for four separate parties. I invested in a leotard and amazing shiny spandex from American Apparel and also a gold leotard (used for a Call On Me girl costume). It cost me a little over $100 but I've been able to use all three pieces several times for various different events.

This year I didn't want to reuse the cat idea again (even though I did for a last minute Halloween bar crawl), but I decided that I would create my costume out of the things I already had. Naturally, the leotard and spandex came out to play, but instead of being accompanied by cat ears and feline makeup, I attached a feather boa, and painted a white stripe down my face: voila! A skunk. It was super easy and the best part was playing around with makeup and face paint.

If you are still struggling with what to be for Halloween, take a cue from the pictures below and dig through your closet before going out and spending an exorbitant amount of money on a one-time wear.