Celebrity Style Obsession: Kerry Washington

Kerry Washington's alter ego Olivia Pope is known for her covetable style, but did you know that Washington's own wardrobe rivals that of her über stylish television character's?  Kerry is always impeccably dressed whether on the red carpet, running between appearances, hitting up the talk show circuit, or wherever else she may be heading.  Her style is a beautiful mix of girly and edgy.  She's never afraid to mix prints or rock bright colors, but she also knows what looks good on her and will go back to silhouettes that work best for her.  Kerry uses her hair and makeup to accentuate her natural beauty and they always compliment her outfits nicely.  She is definitely a style star to keep an eye on and serves as great fashion inspiration, it's no wonder she is always making best dressed lists!  Pictured here I have some of my favorite looks that the star has worn.  Now the only thing to decide is who's style do you like more Kerry's or Olivia's?!

Which of Kerry's looks is your favorite?

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with #HowIFall, Hello Monday, Let It Shine, Weekending, and MIMM.

Tuesday Ten: Hostess Gifts

With the holiday season in full swing you are sure to be invited to countless gatherings to celebrate.  As I'm sure your mothers' taught you, like mine taught me, when you head to a party bringing a gift to the hostess is a must.  Here I have for you ten hostess gifts that I know I, and I'm sure anyone else, would be ecstatic to receive.  I personally like to bring something a other than a bottle of wine for two reasons, first everyone brings a bottle of wine and I like to be different, and second if someone can't have wine then they're stuck with a bottle they can't enjoy.  Any hostess would be glad to get one of these luxe gifts and will be sure to bring you something great next time they come to visit you.  While I do love everything on the list I would have to say my favorites are the super fun Kate Spade Glitter Coasters and the yummy smelling Voluspa Visions of Sugar Plum Candle.  What is your favorite thing to give as a hostess gift?

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Welcome to Tutu Tuesdays a linkup with The Blush Blonde and The Fairy Princess Diaries!  This week in addition to our usual linkup Jordyn and I have a fun holiday project we've decided to incorporate into Tutu Tuesdays. Blogging is a wonderful social outlet that has allowed us to make so many new friends all over the world and we want to help bring a little holiday cheer to our blog friends with a Tutu Tuesdays Secret Santa Gift Exchange.

How it Works:

Each participant will fill out a sign-up form with some personal info to help ensure you get a gift you love.  Participants will then be randomly assigned a partner whose survey information will be sent to them directly via email. Each participant has roughly three weeks to shop for a gift for their partner and mail the surprise.

Fill out the GoogleDoc Survey as completely and accurately as possible. The more information you give to your Secret Santa, the more likely you are to love your gift! Please only sign-up if you will follow through and send a gift to your assigned partner, we want everyone who signs up to receive a gift. If you do sign up and need to drop out for any reason please let Jordyn or me know prior to November 27th.

Important Dates:

Official Sign up ends: Friday November 27th

Receive information about the budget and blogger you will be surprising: Monday, November 30th

Shop for your Secret Santa: Monday, November 30th - Friday, December 18th

Mail Secret Santa Gifts: On or before Friday, December 18th

There are just a few rules we ask you follow to join in on Tutu Tuesdays:

1. Please follow both Jordyn and me, your lovely hosts, on Instagram and/or Bloglovin.

Kristin: The Blush Blonde  |  Bloglovin'  |  Instagram

Jordyn: The Fairy Princess Diaries  |  Bloglovin'  |  Instagram

2. Link to your specific post, not your blog's main page.

3. Grab our super cute button or share a link to Tutu Tuesdays in the post you are linking up so everyone can know about the party!

4. Have fun and mingle with other bloggers that have linked up!  Like I said we want everyone to make new friends!

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Gift Guide 2015: Fashion

Last week I had a gift guide for the Beauty Guru in your life and this week I have one for the Fashionista on your list.  In my opinion Fashionistas are one of the easiest people to buy for because there are so many different options to choose from.  If your BFF, sister, cousin, Mom, or whoever else on your shopping list is a fashion girl this list has something for them.

Everything on the list is under $95.00, except for the gorgeous Tory Burch 53MM Retro Sunglasses, which ring in at $200, and are sure to get a lot of use.  The second most high priced item is the Rebecca Minkoff 'My Junk' Jody Pouch at $95.00, I love this cute little cheeky pouch, it's perfect to hold little items in one's purse and is a beautiful periwinkle color.  In my opinion these more luxe items are best saved for someone special like your sister or best friend.

One of the easiest things to gift a fashionista this time of year is cold weather accessories.  Right now pom poms hats are a huge trend and this one from Donna Salyers Fabulous-Furs with a faux fur topper is an adorable option.  Another big trend this season are capes and ponchos and this BP. Plaid Poncho is one size fits all, making it a perfect gift, and is very on point right now.  Scarves are always an easy gift to give and they come in a variety of different styles and price points, the one pictured here from Free People is super soft and comes in three different colors.  For me though the most important cold weather accessory is gloves because I hate when my hands get cold, this pair from Halogen come in eleven(!) different colors and are touch tech friendly, they may just be something that everyone on your list needs.  Last but not least, knit headwraps are an adorable options for keeping ears warm and this Betsey Johnson one is only $12.97, making it look like you spent way more than you actually did!

Jewelry is also always the perfect gift for a fashion girl.  My go to jewelry gift are the Kate Spade Square Stud Earrings, they come in so many different colors and go with just about everything making them the perfect present, I may or may not own four pairs myself.  Kendra Scott makes the most beautiful pieces, the Danielle Earrings, which come in many different colors, and the Calvin Drusy Ring, which comes in four different color combinations, are both great gift options.  Another good gift option are pretty bangles like this one from Gorjana, which is simple and comes in super on trend rose gold.  One last jewelry option is a necklace, I personally like delicate necklaces and have been loving letter necklaces lately; this BaubleBar necklace is a unique spin on the letter necklace.

Various accessories are also great gifts to keep on hand because you don't have to worry about sizing and just about any girl who likes fashion loves good accessories.  A cute phone case is always a must have and Kate Spade makes the most adorable ones, this gold 'Hello Sunshine' case is sure to make a big hit.  Another must have is a fun passport cover, if any of your friends are taking a trip this is something they will definitely need, I love this super girly sparkly one from Rebecca Minkoff.  Keeping in the sparkly category this glitter clutch is perfect for your friend who loves to go out!  If you want to get your fashionista more of an everyday bag, this one from Sole Society is so chic and comes in three on trend colors.

One last gift that I thought was super fun to include is How to Be Parisian Wherever You Are a book written by four French women that serves as a guide to all things Parisian.  Everything from shopping to dinner parties are included in here and give insight into the je ne sais quoi Parisian women have that American women want.  Every fashion girl loves Paris and I'm sure this book will have all the advice she'd ever want on the subject.

I hope that this guide will be able to help you with some of your shopping.  With all of the great deals coming up for Black Friday and Cyber Monday now is the time to get your gifting list all in order!  Do you do your shopping ahead of time or do you wait until the last minute to get it done?

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Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with #HowIFall, Hello Monday, Let It Shine, Weekending, and MIMM.

Friday Favorites

Favorite Bag Mansur Gavriel Large Lady Bag

Large neutral bags are an absolute favorite of mine.  They look chic, go with everything, and are sure to fit whatever you need.  I saw this beautiful Mansur Gavriel bag on Pinterest and fell in love with it.  It's absolutely gorgeous and I can only imagine how soft that leather is.  I'm definitely swooning!

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Favorite Award People's Sexiest Man Alive

This week People released their annual Sexiest Man Alive list and it was no surprise that the oh so sexy David Beckham won the top honors.  He is a total hottie and now he has an award to prove it in case anyone wanted to contest that.  Check out People's website for lots of very sexy pictures of David!

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Favorite Hairstyle Twisted Crown

I am loving this tutorial for a romantic twisted crown hairstyle.  I'm not the best at doing hair, but this looks pretty easy so I'm thinking even I could possibly pull it off.  This would look so pretty for Thanksgiving or any holiday events you have coming up.

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Favorite Holiday Cookie Gilded Reindeer Cookies

These cookies from Sweetapolita are too cute and are sure to make a huge hit at any Christmas party you bring them to.  I love the gold antlers and pink noses because they add a sweet girly touch to a traditional holiday figure.  They're a gingerbread cookie (my favorite for the holidays!) decorated with royal icing and I'm sure they taste as good as they look.

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Favorite Holiday Celebration Tutu Tuesdays Secret Santa Gift Exchange

This week Jordyn and I are excited to share a fun holiday project we've decided to incorporate into our weekly Tutu Tuesday Link Up. Blogging is a wonderful social outlet as it allows us to make so many new friends all over the world, we want to help bring a little holiday cheer to our blog friends with a Tutu Tuesdays Secret Santa Gift Exchange.

We want to give everyone plenty of time to sign-up as well as shop for their partner so you have one week from today to sign up to participate, then a few more weeks to purchase, wrap, package and mail your gift to another fabulous blogger friend!

What is Secret Santa?

Secret Santa is a gift exchange, in this case with other bloggers. Each participant will fill out a sign-up form listing their name, mailing address, ideal budget, likes and dislikes. Participants will be randomly assigned another partner whose survey information will be sent to them directly via email. Each participant has roughly three weeks to shop for a gift for their partner and mail the surprise. I'll be recapping my Secret Santa experience on here and on Instagram, you're welcome to share your gift too, but of course this is not a requirement.

Secret Santa Dates to Remember:

Official Sign up ends: Friday November 27th

Receive information about the budget and blogger you will be surprising: Monday, November 30th

Shop for your Secret Santa: Monday, November 30th - Friday, December 18th

Mail Secret Santa Gifts: On or before Friday, December 18th

Join in the Holiday Cheer!

Fill out the GoogleDoc Survey as completely and accurately as possible. The more information you give to your Secret Santa, the more likely you are to love your gift! Please only sign-up if you will follow through and send a gift to your assigned partner, we want everyone who signs up to receive a gift. If you do sign up and need to drop out for any reason please let Jordyn or me know prior to November 27th.

If you have any questions feel free to reach out to Jordyn or me! We can't wait for all of the girly-girl holiday fun to begin! Be on the lookout for an email with more details about the lucky blogger you match with November 30th. If you feel compelled to share this festive event on social media or by saving the post on Bloglovin' we would really appreciate your help getting the word out there!

What are your Friday Favorites this week?

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with Casual Friday, Friday Favorites, Oh Hey Friday!, Fab Favorites, The Pick, Five on Friday, Friday Favorites, and Friday Favorites.

Holiday Dresses

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With the holidays coming up that means lots of holiday parties are coming too!  Holiday parties are so much fun because you get to dress up and show off your sense of style.  For these events I love pretty girly dresses paired with heels or flats to look chic and ready for the holidays.  While black is a staple for this time of year I prefer winter white and rich jewel tones for something a bit unexpected.  As you can tell I'm also a huge fan of lace right now, it's so feminine and instantly makes your look more interesting.  Here I have six dresses that I am loving for parties from now through New Years.  Wear one of these for Thanksgiving, your office party, on Christmas Eve and more to be the most stylish lady in the room.  The best part about my picks is that all of the dresses are under $100, meaning you'll look great without breaking the bank!

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Do you have a lot of holiday events coming up?

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with Thursday Fashion Files, What I Wore to Work, and Throwback Thursday.

Recipe: Garlic Bread

Who doesn't love garlic bread?!  It's one of my favorite side dishes for an Italian meal or even for a delicious snack.  A few months back I decided it was time to come up with my own garlic bread recipe and I am so, so happy with how it turned out.  This recipe makes bread that is buttery with lots of garlic, fresh herbs, and just a hint of cheese, just how I like it.  When I made this my family nearly devoured it and there wasn't a slice left.  I was thinking in addition to making this for a typical meal this could be a fun dish to bring to a Thanksgiving or holiday meal, it's a little different from your typical holiday side dish, but something everyone will love.  The one thing I do suggest though is that you bring some mints or gum as a little after dinner treat since everyone will be loaded with garlic after eating this ;)!

Ingredients:

-1/2 loaf of long skinny Italian bread (if the loaf is short use the whole loaf)

-1/2 cup butter

-4 large cloves of garlic

-4 large fresh basil leaves

-1 tsp. fresh parsley leaves

-1/2 tsp. garlic powder

-2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

-1 tbsp. Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

-Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

-Cut the loaf of bread in half lengthwise, set aside.

-Melt butter.

-Crush garlic cloves and add to butter.

-Shred basil and parsley into small pieces and add to butter mixture.

-Add garlic powder, extra virgin olive oil, and Parmesan cheese to butter mixture, mix well.

-Place the top and bottom of the loaf of bread on a cookie sheet facing up.

-Generously cover the both pieces of bread with the butter mixture.

-Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes (make sure to keep an eye on it!).

-Allow to cool.

-Cut up and enjoy!

Are you a lover of all things garlicky and garlic bread?!

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!