Feeling a Bit Festive.

November 12, 2013 Kelly Donohue

November 12, 2013

The Grove. Los Angeles, CA

I hope that you all enjoyed the long weekend.

I went on a nice long hike, caught up with some girlfriends I haven’t seen in a while, and even did a little pre-holiday browsing over at The Grove. For those of you who aren’t local to the area, The Grove is a beautiful outdoor shopping center with great restaurants, a local farmers market, and grounds that are groomed so well, they may actually be able to rival those at Disneyworld! Oh yea, and did I mention, it’s already decorated for Christmas? It is! It’s pretty magical over there and it’s basically walking distance from where I live so I try to pop over whenever I have free time.

Just so you know, I am not one of those over-eager holiday people -not that there is anything wrong with that- who already have the house decked out in Christmas lights- but I certainly do love the holidays. I’m more of an after-Thanksgiving decorating kind of gal and when it comes to shopping, I’d even call myself a procrastinator. Ok and not I’m not proud of it, but if I’m being totally honest, I’ve definitely spent a Christmas Eve or two scrounging around the mall for last minute finds- oops! But in an effort to be more on top of things this year, I’m getting a head start- finding my go-to holiday outfits and gifting ideas ahead of time. I’ll let you know how it goes, but so far, I have a good feeling.

I also got a new haircut. Sometimes a healthy chop can make you feel a thousand times lighter! (Oh and lightening your hair can also make you feel lighter). I decided to add some highlights, which are certainly subtle yet newsworthy since I’ve only died my hair one other time in my life. So I decided to live a little and go with some honey-blonde tones! Even though we’re heading into winter and most people tend to go darker this season, I think with my paler skin and darker clothing, I could use a little lift now more than ever. What do you guys think?

My outfit today has a touch of a holiday party feel to it, but I’ve been wearing this black and white number for the past couple of months. This adorable peplum off-white top from Forever 21 is so easy to throw on (it never wrinkles) yet it dresses up your jeans for a night out on the town with the girls. I added the beautiful white big pearl necklace that I just got over the weekend from Loopsway. This unique take on the classic pearl necklace adds that extra festive, holiday look to the outfit. I just discovered this boutique online and the jewelry is gorgeous yet remarkably affordable- my kind of place! If you haven’t already, you should go ahead and take a look at the adorable pieces they have to offer!

Necklace: C/OLoopsway

Peplum top: Forever21 (Similar)

Black Skinnies: H&M (Old)

Hope you’re feeling festive on this Tuesday morning! Although it may not quite be time to decorate just yet, it's certainly never too early to get in the holiday spirit.

Photos taken by: Jennifer Biswas

Jet-lagged

November 9, 2013 Kelly Donohue

November 9, 2013

LAX--->BOS & Back.

I had every intention of blogging on my six-hour redeye back to Boston last Wednesday night… But instead, I had a glass of wine and chatted the night/morning away with a very interesting Boston lady about life, love, and happiness.

While grateful to have added a couple more must-reads to the ever growing list of books I someday must find time to read, I accomplished very little (nothing) on the blog front. Oh, and I also didn't get a wink of sleep. To be honest though, this delusional, wired, up all night look is becoming my go to of sorts upon my arrival (I have a lucky boyfriend huh?). I hop off the plane, looking like I belong on an episode of The Walking Dead, and I usually crack a couple of strange jokes that only a delusional person running off no sleep would find amusing--it’s quite a scene. Then every time I land, I vow to never take the redeye again, but the next time I book a flight, the thought of wasting a day flying quickly erases any memories of my zombie-like behavior and so I repeat the cycle all over again. It’s quite comical really, but also counter productive.

Then the excitement of getting ready for Halloween took precedent as Eric and I whipped together a fun little couples costume- Johnny Cash and June Carter. I wanted to be able to wear this gorgeous vintage dress my friend gave to me and I figured this would be a great opportunity! We ventured around the streets of Boston, went out to dinner in costume, hit up a couple MIT parties, and I ate about nine Reese’s cups by the end of the night.

The weather this past weekend in Boston was simply outstanding! It was in the sixties, and for late October, I think that’s something to write about. It’s truly fall in New England, so that means the trees are all shades of reds, yellows, and oranges- which is something I’ve grown to appreciate now that I don’t get to see much of it anymore. Therefore, we took the long way on our walk to lunch through Harvard Square, enjoying every minute of it. It’s likely that next time I’m back, it’ll be blisteringly cold and color will be stripped from all the big beautiful trees that line the streets.

This look today is one of my go-to airport outfits. When transitioning between Boston and Los Angeles, it’s important to be able to wear clothing that will transition well between the warmer and cooler climates. Also, this outfit is comfortable enough to be able to survive a lengthy flight with ease and also stylish enough and be able to head to a lunch or dinner without having to change. Not to mention, this look is very affordable! I hit up Marshalls before my trip and found this scarf, shirt and purse- you really can’t go wrong when you’re spending twenty bucks on a purse that’s this cute can you?

Scarf: Marshalls $24.99

Shirt: Marshalls $29.99

Purse: Marshalls $19.99

Jeans: Forever21 (old)

Boots: Forever21 $20.00

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Oh yeah and I almost forgot… CONGRATS RED SOX!!!!

Orange is the New Black.

October 29, 2013 Kelly Donohue

October 29, 2013

Hauser Blvd. Los Angeles, CA

Last night I finally finished what has become one of my favorite shows (yes I realize that I’m late in the game but go with it), the fantastically bold and frighteningly dark Orange is the New Black, and I have to say I can’t wait for next season to sta- BOO!

Did I get ya? Are you guys scared? Were you afraid a ghost had momentarily taken over my keyboard for a second there?

Have no fear! It was only just little old me being silly. (You can come out from hiding behind your keyboards now;) And while I can make a kindergarten level Halloween joke, similar to the type I just pulled in the paragraph above, for days, I have to admit, that’s about as tough as I get. I have an incredibly low tolerance for fright. It’s almost comical. In fact, if they came across my bedroom in Monsters Inc., they would’ve bottled up enough of my scream to fuel the city for the rest of time! (If you don’t know that movie- you should watch it immediately).

That being said, things that jump out at me, scary movies, cars that startle me on the road, loud noises, couples that argue publically at restaurants, TV crime dramas, and bar fights, are just a few scenarios that cause my heart rate to skyrocket into panic mode.

Bottom line: I’m easily frightened and there’s nothing fun about it!

Therefore, while I truly think there aren’t many things on the planet that sound better than being able to spend an entire night dressed up as anyone or anything you want, while eating a pumpkin-head bucket full of free candy, I also know that Halloween is associated with haunted houses, fright nights, graveyards, bloody costumes, and everything scary. What a dilemma! Therefore, since my earliest years of trick-or-treating, I have tried to navigate Halloween by excluding the spooky parts and hanging on the costumes and the treats. To this day, I have never been on one of those haunted hayrides, I even risked my reputation in high school by staying home on a Friday night and refusing to go out to the local Haunted Mansion (no thanks!) Oh and I was always the only one that sat outside the puny little Haunted House at Canobie Lake Park (which I hear was more comical than scary) while my cousins went inside year after year. The funny thing is that I never outgrew it! I still avoided the scary house (with all the amazing decorations and characters that pop out at you) when I was probably too old to even be trick-or-treating anymore! Oh and my landlord has decorated my apartment building, with what I would like to call extreme Halloween decorations that still startle me on my way out the door in the morning. I have been avoiding the bat-filled elevator all month!

So there you have it. I have a love-hate relationship with Halloween.

Today, I literally threw this Halloween inspired outfit together in a hurry. I got this adorable orange dress off the clearance rack at Target last month and paired it with some classic black tights, my Forever21 boots, these beautiful handmade cat ears from Social Butterflies and suddenly my day is so much more exciting! My look today is certainly just a canvas. You could add some make-up and a belt to make this look really pop!

Just wanted to show how a few basic pieces can quickly help to get you into the Halloween spirit. It’s important to know that even if you don’t have the time or money to spend getting decked out in a costume this year, you can still spice up your day with pieces you probably already have in your closet. It will make your workday fly by and it will help you battle all those scary things in the world!