GIVEAWAY!! Holidays on Chic featuring Kate Spade!!

Ho, Ho, Heyyyy!!!

I am grateful for the year I've had, even with all of its not so great parts (such is life, right?!). I had some amazing experiences, like getting to appear on the Today Show, and I want to put some positive energy back into the universe. Since it IS the season of giving,  I'm hosting a holiday giveaway!

There will be one winner randomly drawn on December 17th, who will win the following goodies:

A pair of Kate Spade Multi Glitter Stud Earrings
An original piece of artwork (8x10) from Melsys Illustrations featuring four glittery dresses inspired by the Sex In the City characters
Victoria's Secret candle in the fragrance "Bombshell"
(2) Victoria's Secret body lotions in the fragrances "Mango Temptation" and "Pear Glace"
A colorful Victoria's Secret PINK chug mug
An Izak makeup train case
Deluxe sized samples of:
Nude ProGenius Facial Oil
Orly nail polish in Fabulous Flamingo
Buxom lipgloss in Dolly

PLEASE NOTE that this is not a sponsored post and everything in the giveaway was paid for by me. This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only.


Thank you all for visiting and good luck!!!

Holidays on Chic Giveaway feat. Kate Spade Earrings

Giftsgiving! - 25 Gifts Under $25

'Tis the official kickoff for holiday shopping season! Smart shopping can allow for great gift picking and sticking to your budget. To help get you started, here's my list of wallet friendly gifts for the loved ones on your list, that they will be sure to appreciate (and use)!

1. / 2. / 3. / 4. / 5. / 6. / 7. / 8. / 9. / 10. / 11. / 12.

Here's a chance to do away with the impersonal feel that can come with gift cards, and what's better, is there's no sizing required! Giving a thoughtful gift and all that's needed is having a tiny bit of insight into her regular activities or things that she's into!

13. / 14. / 15. / 16. / 17. / 18. / 19. / 20. / 21. / 22. / 23. / 24. / 25.

And you can always pair two gifts together and still be under budget - like a multi pack of fashion earrings with the jewelry box, the tea bag caddy (or tea bag variety pack) with the tea kettle, or a couple hand towels with the foaming hand soap.

It really takes less effort than you think! Happy Black Friday shopping to all of you!

DD's Style File - All Striped Up: An Ode to Ms. Kate

It's really funny that I've never heard myself say that I favor a black and white color palette and if anyone ever told me that it seemed like one of my favorites, I would've responded with a "really??"

But apparently I've been quietly oblivious to my own styling activities, despite the fact that my dining room, kitchen and upstairs hall are all punctuated or completely centered on black and white.  And recently I've found myself reaching for bold black and white more often than usual (like here and here), often punctuating with pops of color, like today.

This dress is more of an ivory and black than starch white, but the bold structured lines offer the same crisp clean feel.

I really love the classic whimsy that stripes offer, but they can sometimes be dangerous. Vertical stripes especially, if not properly proportioned they can over accentuate areas like busts, hips and bellies. Along with the stripe spacing and sizing, the cut of the dress or top can make all the difference. There are no hard and fast rules, just make sure you wear what you love and that it's not wearing you!

Dress: The Limited (sold out)
Belt: The Limited (similar)
Necklace: Target
Pumps: Amazon

Because I like to conceal the areas of my body that I don't love as much, I am typically drawn to dresses that are flowy or, like this one, have a feminine A-line shape. Adding a colorful belt allows me to still highlight my waistline.

I have a unwavering love for Kate Spade (as I expressed in Monday's easy, peasy DIY post) so I was delighted to find that my dress was likely inspired by one of Kate's lovely dresses....and I ain't mad at that!

Both of these dresses are from previous seasons, so they aren't available, but if you like the look this is a super similar style and here are a few other cute options that are similar, found here, here, here and here!

The EASIEST DIY Kate Spade Inspired Necklace

Typical girly girl here! Things with bows make me swoon, but sometimes the associated price tags with those things do not. So I've got a quick down and dirty post inspired by the Swoon Inducing Extraordinaire, Kate Spade, who we know is all about that bow life.

So here are some of Kate's bow adorned necklaces:

And for my nifty inspired version the only things you'll need are:

A strand of pearls (I suggest a basic long version that can be looped 2 - 3 times)

Bow brooch 

Et voila!

Told ya it was EASY!

One little tip that I have is that to keep my brooch from flopping around through the day, I actually run the pin through a seam on my blouse before clasping the pearls in. This ensures that it will lay flat through the day.