Color Crush: Ultra Violet

Have you heard?  This year's Pantone Color of the Year is Ultra Violet.

Ultra Violet can be a little bit much, but as an accent color it has a fun and energetic vibe.  If you're looking for some ways to incorporate this trendy color into your style, check out the following links!

Top Row (Left to Right): Butter London nail polish, Julep It's Balm Lip Crayon, C9 Champion Pull Over, Keurig Coffeemaker, Nike Flyknits.

Bottom Row (Left to Right): Lilly Pulitzer Elsa top, Safaveh rug, Kate Spade earrings, Project 62 Tufted Bed, Julep Eyeshadow 101, Essie Play Date.

Would you incorporate this color in your wardrobe, beauty routine or home in 2018?

TTO the Winter Wardrobe: Jess

Each season, we bring you our favorite wardrobe essentials.  Since winter weather (and style) is in full swing, we thought we'd show you some of the clothes we are living in this winter.  This week, we'll feature Jess's essentials and will share Ryan's next week!

Hey guys, it's me, Jess.  Here are the wardrobe items I cannot live without this winter!

1.  Old Navy Boat-Neck Sweater tunic: I love this sweater so much, you guys.  I originally bought it in the cranberry color (which I wore for Christmas), but eventually ordered the jade as well.  It's not too bulky and just the right length for throwing over a pair of leggings or skinny jeans.  With boots, a scarf and a cool pair of earrings, you're set for any occasion.

2.  Sorel Joan of Arctic boots:  I mentioned these in a pick-six, but they were a Christmas present from my husband.  They're super cool looking and they keep my feet warm and dry at recess duty.

3. Old Navy Open Front Cardigan:  I'm a big fan of light layers, especially since the temperature at work is so variable.  With layers, I can feel warm enough but I don't end up feeling like a stuffed turkey all day long.  This cardigan is great for throwing on over a plaid shirt or simple v-neck t-shirt.  Plus, there are pockets.  I may be a total nerd, but I love when there are pockets in a cardigan!  Yay, someplace to put my hands!

4.  Frye Melissa Boots:  Although I have quite a few pairs of Frye boots, this style is my favorite.  They work with pretty much any outfit (dresses, jeans, etc) and they're totally worth splurging on (especially on SALE, as many colors are here on Amazon)!

5.  Kate Spade Rose Gold Earrings:  These were another Christmas present (Thanks, Ry!) and they are my new everyday earrings.  They're just subtle enough to go with literally everything and just special enough to get noticed.

6.  Spring Fever Blanket Scarf:  I know we've mentioned this a million times on the blog but I love these scarves so much!  They come in great color combinations, provide style and warmth to any outfit and how can you beat that price!  I should probably stop ordering them, but I'm not gonna.  #sorrynotsorry

What are your winter wardrobe essentials this season?  Let us know in the comments below!

Friday Pick-Six: 1/5/18

Here's what we're loving and living for on the FIRST Friday Pick-Six of 2018!

1.  For New Year's Brunch earlier this week, Jess made Smitten Kitchen's Monkey Bread with Cream Cheese Glaze.  How amazing does it look?  And it tasted as good as it looks!  Pro tip--you can assemble the whole thing all the way up to the rise in the bundt pan and let it sit in the fridge overnight.  Just make sure to set it out on the counter and let it come to room temperature before baking.

2.  In our stockings this year, our awesome mom gave us these adorable La-Ta-Da bracelet/hair ties.  How cute are they?  Also, with each purchase, La-Ta-Da donates to Girl Up, the United Nations Foundation's adolescent girls campaign that provides leadership training to girls around the world!

3.  If you have a Macbook and want to protect it (and look cute), try this hard case and keyboard cover I got from Amazon last week!  I love the rose gold color, but there are so many great options!

4.  It's an oldie but a goodie, but we got caught up in a Parks and Recreation marathon and that show totally holds up!  If you haven't watched it, you definitely need to binge it right now!

5.  Every New Year's Eve, we enjoy a meal of snacks and appetizers.  Most of the dishes change from year to year, but we always have these prosciutto and leek empanadas.  The Manchego cheese makes them extra special and they're even good leftover the next day.

6.  Are you guys watching the new season of The Bachelor?  We were kind of disappointed when Arie was chosen as the new Bachelor, but we have gotten sucked into this show once again.

What are you loving and living for in the new year?  Let us know in the comments below and Happy New Year!

Lilly Pulitzer After Party Sale Haul (In Real Time)

We hope our tips helped you score some great finds at this year's Lilly Pulitzer After Party Sale.  Here's a live-time recap of our experience!

12:02 AM: I checked the Lilly site one more time.  The regular site and app are both down, so they must be getting ready for us!  Trying to get some sleep, but it's more exciting than Christmas Eve! --J

4:32 AM: Okay, so I couldn't sleep and woke up, so I decided to check around on my phone.  Looks like Zappos and Amazon have all their sale items up.  I scored a Jennalyn dress at only $16 with the sale and a gift card from Christmas. --J

7:40 AM:  Making coffee and getting breakfast for the kiddo at home for J and getting settled in at work for Ry.  Hoping we can get in quickly and efficiently.

8:01 AM:  The queue begins.  We're each given a place in line.  The times seem to be refreshing quickly, and the app is moving faster than the desktop site.  We wait for a few minutes and focus ourselves!

8:10 AM: And we're in!  We both get into the sale within about a minute of each other.  We were both able to check out for the first time with Elsas, although there weren't many non-solid colors available.  We decided to just go for it and check out and then plan on getting back into the sale.

For Jess

And these two for Ry!

8:28 AM:  You guys, I'm back in and I decided to go for a dress this time.  I wanted something with sleeves and in a blue/green color so I grabbed a DeLago Tunic Dress. --J

Meanwhile, Ryan grabbed a dress, too.  How classic is this one?

8:47 AM:  One more time back in and this time, and I was thinking of my kiddo when I snagged this cute swing dress.  --J

10:00 AM:  Decided to check again and bought this Stasia sweater.  --R

2:32 PM:  We both took a break for a little while (Ry for work, J for hanging with the kiddo and our Mom).  Now we're thinking about a couple more things.  Trying to decide if we need leggings, too.

9:30 PM:  While watching Real Housewives of New Jersey, we scoped out the sale one more time.  We noticed that they've added popovers and shorts!  Ry decides to buy these Magnolia shorts, too.

THURSDAY 8:01 AM:  There are still lots of great things left on the sale today.  According to the Lilly site, the sale runs until tonight at midnight, so watch social media for any updates!

Have you guys been shopping the sale?  If so, what did you score?  Let us know in the comments below!

TO BE CONTINUED...

Ranch Oyster Crackers

When we were kids, we occasionally visited our late grandparents in Chicago.  Around 5:00 everyday, they had Happy Hour.  Our grandpa would mix gin and tonics (Fresca for us) and we would snack and chat about the day.  One of the staples from those Happy Hours were these Ranch Oyster Crackers.  We recently thought about trying them ourselves and were so happy they were just as delicious as we remembered.  And perfect alongside a cold beverage if you know what we mean.  If you're looking for an easy and tasty snack option for your next Happy Hour, try out these Ranch Oyster Crackers!

Here's what you'll need:

After gathering all your ingredients, mix the oil, Ranch Seasoning, dill, lemon pepper (see note), garlic powder.  I used a measuring cup for ease of pouring.

Pour the crackers into a Ziploc bag and pour the dressing over them.  Seal the bag (be sure to do this!) and mix them throughly.  Spread them out in a single layer onto a sheet tray and pop them in a preheated 250 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.

I made a couple of small tweaks to the original recipe.  Since I didn't have lemon pepper, I substituted fresh lemon zest with black pepper.  I also used only half of the recommended oil and used melted salted butter instead to up the flavor.

There you have it!  How easy was that?  Grab a handful, pour a cocktail and you've got Happy Hour!

Give them a try and let us know what you think in the comments below!

The Lilly Pulitzer January After Sale!

We love the preppy and pretty prints of Lilly Pulitzer, but not the price tags!  That's why we get serious about the bi-annual Lilly Pulitzer After Party Sales.  If you're already a Lilly shopper, then you know that these sales are no joke.  Prices go WAY down and the internet loses its collective mind.  We scored so many cute things back in August at the sale and are looking forward to many great deals next week.

This year's sale starts TOMORROW, January 3rd, 2018 at 8:00 AM EST SHARP!  This time, the sale will run for two days, ending at 11:59 EST on Thursday, January 4th.  

After several years of successfully shopping this sale, we've got a few tips and tricks that can help you score some great stuff!

• Preparation is key. A few days before the sale, log into the site (or create a login) and make sure your information is up to date.  You don't want to be fiddling around on the site during the sale, trying to add your shipping address or billing information.  You might find that items go out of stock as you are trying to check out, so time is of the essence.  Traditionally, the site goes down a day or so before to prepare, so make sure you get everything set up early.  Also, download the Lilly Pulitzer app for your phone, too.

• Get up early and get ready!  On the day of the sale, you want to be up and ready to go right when the sale starts.  Seriously, that first hour or two is craziness and you don't want to spend time starting up your computer or making coffee.  About an hour or so before the sale, start up your devices and log in (see the next bullet) so that you're ready to shop.

• Multiple devices are a must!  When the sale starts, you'll be put into a virtual queue and let into the site in order.  Don't freak out if you are told some ridiculous number (like "You're number 45,000!"), things move quickly.  Because you want to get in as soon as you can, you'll want to try to login on multiple devices or platforms.  When we've shopped in the past, we've used two different browsers on our laptops as well as the app on our iPhones.  Once you're in and shopping, keep an eye on your other logins, because you might have more success in one platform or another.  Last year, we were able to check out in the app before online, but it's different every time.

• Choose your favorites and start there.  We've talked about our love of the Elsa top and they go out of stock in a blink of an eye.  If you want one, start there and if you have one in your cart CHECK OUT IMMEDIATELY.  Don't waste time, just check out or you could lose your item (RIP, Elsa top in Red Right Return from Jess's cart in August 2014).  In our experience, the Elsa tops and children's clothes go first, so start there if you're interested. 

• Check out as many times as you need.  Shipping is free, so if you have an item or two in your cart that you really love, just check out.  You can always go back into the sale (you'll be put into the queue again, so keep that in mind), but checking out ensures you get the stuff you want. Things will disappear from your cart (they're not saved for you until you check out), so move quickly.  

•  Don't get too carried away!  The prices will be low and it's easy to get swept away in the chaos.  You might be tempted to grab items just because they're great deals, so it's easy to crush your budget.  We usually set a dollar amount budget for ourselves ahead of time and stick to it. It might also work to set a limit on the number of items you want or the styles (i.e. one dress, one top and shorts).  

• Don't forget other Lilly retailers.  Lilly retail stores, Amazon, Zappos and 6pm will also be marking down Lilly items.  Some of our best scores have come from these sources, so be sure to visit those sites.  Sometimes they have different stock items on sale, or more color options so check them out.  It pays to make sure your shipping and billing info is up-to-date here too, although things don't seem to fly out of stock quite as quickly.

•  All sales are final.  Final sale items cannot be returned, so make sure you want what you order.  If you're interested in sizing info, check the Lilly site or Nordstrom, so that you can make sure things will fit properly.

So there you have it, our tips for one of the best sales of the year!  We'll be checking in on Instagram stories on Monday to update you on our experience and our haul, so follow us there.  Good luck and happy Lillying!

TTO the Year: The Best of 2017

As the year comes to a close, we have been thinking about some of our favorites in 2017.  We thought we'd share some of the things we've loved this year in a variety of categories.

Favorite New (to Us) Beauty Products:

• CND Shellac Nail Polish:  We know that folks have been getting shellac nails for a while now, but 2017 saw our first shellac manicures.  We're always super happy with the color and staying power of CND Shellac.  Plus, we love our manicurists!  (Hi, Angela and Anna!)

• Julep Boost Your Radiance:  We've reviewed this and put it into Friday Pick-Six.  This rosehip facial oil smoothes and soothes your skin with a glowy (not greasy) finish.

Favorite Trends:

• Plaid:  We have always loved plaid and it was so fun to see it out and around everywhere this fall!  

• Cozy Knits:  One of the main reasons we love winter fashion is wearing cozy knitwear!  

Favorites in TV and Movies:

• Insecure:  We loved how funny and smart Issa Rae's HBO show about love, friends, work and relationships is!  Can't wait for the next season!

• Master of None (Season 2):  We've loved Aziz Ansari way back in the Parks and Rec days!  We loved the first season of this show and the second one was just as great.  

• West World:  Admittedly, Ry was into this show for quite a while before Jess started watching it.  Eventually, we both loved the unpredictable twists and turns and stellar acting.

• Wonder Woman:  We loved the action in this fun summer action movie and it reminded us of playing Wonder Woman as kids!

What were your favorites from 2017?  Let us know in the comments below and hello 2018!