I just love the look of fair isle-patterned clothing and accessories when it gets chilly out.  It makes me think of snow, cozying up by a fireplace, and the holidays – perfect for this time of year.

Since fair isle is classic, you can find it almost every winter in practically any store and at every price range.  Lucky for you, however, there are plenty of great fair isle pieces for under $20—none of which venture into the dreaded ugly holiday sweater territory. Read More »

It’s official.  The holiday season has started.

I’ve spent weeks and weeks bemoaning the fact that Christmas commercials were airing in November. Macy’s has had their holiday decorations up for months. The Starbucks baristas have been wearing Santa hats since the day after Halloween. “It’s not even Thanksgiving yet,” I kept saying. “Why are people already doing their holiday shopping, why are the decorations already up? The holiday season starts after Thanksgiving. That’s the way it goes!!” The early start seriously upset me. And I refused to take part in it. But now, it seems, I have nothing to complain about.

Thanksgiving is over.

We’ve watched the parade. We’ve carved the turkey. We stuffed ourselves with stuffing and cranberry sauce and ate pumpkin pie until we wanted to puke. And then, when the feeling passed, we ate more. The holiday season is upon us. So I better just get in the spirit. Here’s how.

10. Watch a Christmas movie. Everyone has a favorite holiday movie. So what better way to get into the holiday spirit than by watching Tim Allen in The Santa Clause or the Olsen twins in To Grandmother’s House We Go? There’s always the recently made into a musical, Elf, or the kind of creepy but still enjoyable The Polar Express. Everyone has a favorite. Just find yours on YouTube and enjoy.

9. Order a peppermint mocha or a caramel latte. These have been available since the first of November and although I drank my coffee from Starbuck’s Christmas cups I refused to indulge in a peppermint mocha until the day after Thanksgiving. So after I did some cyber shopping, I went out and got one. It was worth the wait.

8. Decorate your dorm room. Don’t wait until you’re back home to decorate for the holidays. Get into the spirit now. Studying for finals and finishing out a semester that should have ended the day before Thanksgiving is depressing enough without prolonging your holiday cheer. So don’t. Hang twinkle lights. Make paper snowflakes. Throw tinsel everywhere. And while you’re decorating… Read More »

The holiday season always gets us thinking about what we’re thankful for. There are so many things in my life to appreciate (my education, my family, the entire Bravo lineup), but being the makeup addict that I am, I am particularly thankful for a few key beauty products. These five things have really changed my life and I want to share them all with you. Read More »

That's going straight to your thighs, ladies.

Ah, Thanksgiving. A time to seriously over-indulge in some delish foods without feeling like a total piggy. A time to eat until you can’t button your pants anymore. A time when the leftovers are better than the original.

But hold on a second – have you ever stopped to think about how many calories you’re ACTUALLY consuming? Between the piles of mashed potatoes and second helpings of pumpkin pie, you are most likely taking in enough calories to last you a week.

Yes, it’s true, Thanksgiving can definitely be a time when you can cut loose and not worry about your diet and exercise regiment, but do you really want to totally sabotage that healthy diet?

If you answered yes to that question, stop reading now and go indulge in a few plates of stuffing for me. Everyone says ignorance is bliss and that couldn’t be truer than at Thanksgiving dinner.

If you answered no, here’s a list of the average amount of calories in some of our favorite holiday dishes. Read it, learn it, know it, then choose wisely

Turkey: Thankfully, the centerpiece to any Thanksgiving dinner is also one of the healthiest parts – before you add that delicious gravy, that is. Four ounces of white meat is only about 180 calories, but if you go for dark meat, 4 ounces goes up at 323 calories. And with gravy, it can be as much as 350 calories. (And remember, most of us eat a lot more than 4 ounces, so these numbers obviously vary.)

Stuffing: My favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner, I usually take 2 or 3 giant scoops of this stuff. Or at least I did, before I realized that the average stuffing recipe has 165-190 calories per half cup. That means I’m probably taking in 600 calories in stuffing ALONE. Read More »

My favorite holiday has always and will always be Halloween (well at least until Super Bowl Sunday is finally acknowledged as a national holiday).

I mean, what is not to love about Halloween? It is a night of pure debauchery devoted to stuffing your face with Twix’s and candy corn without guilt, wearing the sluttiest of slutty costumes without shame, and inevitably hooking up (a man in a mask? yum.) without judgment due to all the socially acceptable scantily clad outfits.

Halloween is basically one long session of foreplay. Only bummer about the best day of October is the walk of the shame the next morning. Maybe you thought the Lady Gaga costume was a good idea for the 31st, but you may not think so while you’re walking home the next morning in a bright blue pantless body suit with smeared eyeliner and glitter all over your face.

So to avoid being the solo slut this Hallow’s Eve, dress up in a group costume with your friends so you can walk home together.

Group costumes are interactive, more creative than the insert Sexy in front of anything costume, (ex: sexy nurse, sexy teacher, sexy plumber, sexy firefighter, sexy scuba diver, sexy nun?), and ideal for a quality Facebook profile pic.

So here are our top ideas for this year: Read More »

But which home is home?

We’ve been following Charlsie, a 2010 grad, on her journey through the post-grad life, from the big move to the big job hunt to the major “Is this real life?!” moments. And now, with fall in full swing, she’s got something else weighing on her mind.

Whether we want to believe it or not, the holidays are approaching. I know, it feels like summer just started – even though it really just ended – but the reality is that temperatures are dropping, leaves are starting to change, and before we know it, it’ll be time for turkey, presents, and busy shopping malls. Like many people, I’m left with the question of where to spend the holidays at.

In college, it was so black and white. For the holidays, I made the seven hour drive home to my mom’s for Thanksgiving break and winter break. My dad isn’t a big fan of celebrating the holidays, so whether he spent the season with my sister and me or not – it didn’t matter to him either way. So, when the holidays started to come up in discussion with my family, I immediately figured I’d go home to Atlanta.

But I can’t help but feel like I’m leaving someone else behind, no matter what kind of holiday location choice I make. And since plane tickets nearly cost an arm and a legs these days, it makes things even more complicated. Really, it seems impossible to please everyone. Read More »

Hey, single ladies, guess what? I’m in a relationship and I hate Valentine’s Day, too!

There seems to be an unspoken February rule that if you have a boyfriend you are not allowed to complain about Valentine’s Day. I, for one, think this is bulls**t. I have a boyfriend, yes, but you know what? I hate Valentine’s Day. Haaaaaaate it.I hate it even more when I have a boyfriend than when I don’t!

Here are the top three reasons, in my book, why the big V Day can suck it.

1. Holidays that come with expectations are always stressful (see: New Year’s Eve, anniversaries, etc.), and Valentine’s Day is one of the worst. It’s one of those days full of things you are ‘supposed’ to do, and the pressure to be creative and thoughtful and loving and perrrrrfect is totally overwhelming. That can often lead to a seriously sucky night, especially if you and boyfriend are not on the exact same page about the whole event. Ladies, admit it, we can be tricky about this day. We “don’t really care about it” and, “it’s not a big deal,” but sometimes that just means “I want YOU to think of something and surprise me.” Nothing ruins a holiday like silent disappointment, when you can’t really be mad about a lack of, well, anything, because that’s exactly what you said you wanted! And it’s doubly bad if you planned something for your honey, only to have your sweet surprise be one-sided. Okay, maybe that’s just me, but I hope I’m not alone. Read More »

On the dreaded day of February 14th, I used to be the cliché girl dressed in all black because I proclaimed Valentine’s Day to be a dumb holiday created by card companies to ruin the institution of love. But really, I was just bitter about that fact that I wouldn’t be receiving a single Valentine’s card, nor did I have anybody to give one to.

My first Valentine’s without a boyfriend, I found myself alone with only Ben & Jerry (and maybe Jose Cuervo) to comfort me. I watched Kate & Leopold. I watched A Walk to Remember. I watched The Notebook. To top it all off, I ate half of my body weight in chocolates that my mother sent me. DE-PRESS-ING.

So after three consecutive Valentine’s Days cursing happy couples and dressing like Marilyn Manson, I figured there had to be a better way to “celebrate” and vowed to never be the bitter, depressing, single girl again. And for the past three years, I have had the happiest and most fun Valentine’s Days ever. And I’ve been single for every single one.

I can truthfully state that, as a single girl, Valentine’s Day is now my third favorite holiday (after Christmas and Super Bowl Sunday, of course). Read More »

When I walk through my local Salvation Army or thrift store, I fully expect to be assaulted by an abundance of glittery, jingly, horrendously ugly Christmas sweaters. That is where they belong, after all. Once a trendy item among soccer moms, those same women have since woken up from their chardonnay-induced comas and realized that no one should be wearing something with a fuzzy/light up Christmas tree on the back. So they donate them to the needy.

And by the needy I mean those of us with an Ugly Sweater Party coming up that need the ugliest top we can find.

When I was walking through my neighborhood department store last week, then, I was more than surprised (revolted might be a better word) when I came across an abundance of these things hanging on the walls. Yes, brand new Christmas sweaters – as in they were designed and manufactured in 2009 – for sale! Which means that people are still buying these fugly things. And I mean fugly.

I went in for a closer look (after making sure there was no one around to witness it); it took my eyes a bit of time to adjust to the florescent light bouncing off the sequins but when they finally did I was nearly blinded by the price. Seriously, some of these things cost as much as a good pair of designer heels. It’s like people are paying extra for the fug. WTF?!

I don’t know why these things still exist or who is letting their loved ones stock up, but they’re out there. In places you’d never expect. What you are about to see is real. And it’s really happening right now. Brace yourself; it’s not pretty. Read More »

We finally made it through finals. Goodbye flashcards, 10-page essays and staying up all night studying. Hello Christmas cheer, sleeping until noon in our queen-size bed, and stuffing our faces with homemade cooking.

Of course the best part of ending the semester isn’t being able to throw your notes in the garbage (although that is pretty amazing); it’s the fact that we finally get to enjoy the holidays! You’ve got parties to attend, red and green mini dresses to wear, and major gift wrapping (and unwrapping!) to do!

So what do you need?

The perfect get-you-in-the-holiday-spirit playlist of course! And, no, that crappy oldies station that has been playing Christmas music since Halloween just won’t cut it. You need the best of the best, so we’ve sorted through all the latest Christmas tracks and our old standbys to bring you the ultimate holiday playlist. Play it at your holiday party, while you’re lounging around the house with your dog, or while you’re eating raw cookie dough during your baking sesh with mom.

Because there’s nothing (that isn’t smothered in frosting/filled with rum) like a little Jackson Five and N’Sync to lift those holiday spirits.

Click here to rock out with your stocking out.

Happy Holidays!