NYE Attire

I am so happy to be ringing in the New Year tonight at my bestie from 2nd grade's house. Besse and her wonderful hubbie have planned a fun night for all of us. Instead of getting together for drinks at a bar or just standing around chatting they have organized an official game night to ring in 2010. When I say official I mean, they have teams, game stations and......prizes! I am really excited! Game night, New Years Eve party, what to wear? I still need a little glitz, a little sequin, but something casual to hang out with and rock out to rock band with. I love the little sweater with sequin from H&M, some hot pink lipstick, jeans, sparkly makeup, I'm ready to go.

I hope everybody has a fabulous evening. Happy 2010!

May the next decade bring you only fabulous, wonderful, amazing things!!!!!

xoxo~Becca

Planning for the New Year

At the beginning of every year I search and search for what agenda to purchase. There is something I love about writing in a calendar. I still use my iPhone for a majority of my appointments but there is something I love about writing in a paper agenda and seeing the big picture. Here are a few of my suggestions if you are searching for one as well.

My Agenda - These are made my the same company who make the Mom Agenda's. They are so detailed with room for every day and every time. They come in pretty metallic colors this year. I love that they started making them for the not moms. I have a busy life too!:)

Moleskin - The classic moleskin brand has created a book with individual planners for each month. You do not need to carry around a large year planner anymore! My sister and I discovered them last week in Seattle and I think we let out a little cheer of excitement when we saw them!

Graphic Image - I have been admiring this planner for two years. It is so pretty. The pages have gilt edges, you can get it monogrammed. I love it. Maybe I will treat myself to this in 2010.

Planner Pad - I know, this is not a stylish planner, however I have heard all of raves about them. If you want to be super organized invest in this and decorate the outside!

Tiffany's - OK this would be a luxury I know, but how pretty is it! Patent leather Tiffany blue!

Kate Spade - I always loved this planner, unfortunately they switched it up. Unlike in the past with a daily calendar they have made it smaller to only have three pages per month. If you are looking for a pretty desk calendar, this is it.

always planning! xoxo

3,2,1......

3,2,1....another Happy New Year! Wow, time flies.

As one of my besties Brandi told me, "This year will be the year of Becca!".

That is right Bran. I truly hope so! This has ended up to be a year of change and I'm ready for the next decade to show up and be wonderful.

Ever year I make resolutions, I make promises to myself, I make a list and I do not think a year has gone by to accomplish all of them. That being said, I do think looking back that every year I have at least accomplished one new thing that I wanted to. Three years ago I started practicing yoga, two years ago I said was on my way to marathon #5 by 30 and I am and last year I said I would start blogging and well....here I am! So I guess one new thing a year is better then nothing! Absolutely!

You read so much about New Year's resolutions. Losing weight (my forever resolution), saving money, getting a new job, etc. etc. I am truly going to kick off 2010 and live it for me. Live my life to how I want to. Here is a little list of what I hope to accomplish during 2010. I hope you can join me along the way. If I cross off only one thing then I will be happy! xoxo

~Yes, at the top of the list, lose 10 lbs. Forever on my list. ~

~Be fit! Not stick skinny but strong!~

~Save my money so I can have a nest egg, an emergency fund, money by my 30th birthday and not question where it went.~

~Drink less coffee, drink more water.~

~Go on a fabulous trip oversees. Where who knows? An adventure!~

~Visit the yoga studio twice a week.~

~Be more productive at work so I do not spend late hours at the office.~

~Have more ME days alone. It's OK to spend time alone.~

~De clutter. Get rid of a lot of items I've been dragging around since college!~

~Look at what is next for me and do it! A new job, a new place, a new city!~

~Be inspired everyday. Take a picture, live in the moment. I'm a planner yes, but I need more inspiration. I need to find my true passion and figure out where I take that! Wish me luck~

Let the 3 day count down begin to 2010!

-

The Wonderful World of Etsy

My sisters gave me a few cute treats from Etsy this year for Christmas.I love the new shopping option (malls, online,Etsy!). In the past few months I have found myself browsing online during breakfast, during the day, before bed....at Etsy! The wonderful world of Etsy, it is a great place to explore! Shopping on Etsy is a fun site to shop on because you never know what you will find. Cute items handmade and vintage finds, all organized by stores, its a fun way to find treasures. From everything from handmade stationary, jewelry to party decor, I have found many treasures. Here are a few of my favorite sites below.

Orange Beautiful has a great shop. I bought this cute Candy print to frame in my kitchen.

They also have a wonderful blog full of lovely designs.

How fun is this necklace? A gold Ritz Cracker necklace!

This was a gift from one sister to another this year. Shop the Peapod Treasure Store.

I can't wait for my crown pillow to come in! I bought this from Sa-Sea Boutique.

Statsh Stlyle has fun vintage decorations. I got the pink balls from Jenn's baby shower from Stash Style.

I love the note cards I received last week from Charity. She bought them on Small Screen Design. Super cute!

Please feel free to share your deals!

xoxo

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! I hope everybody is having a wonderful day full of relaxing, cookies, mimosas, cocoa, friends, family, gifts, carols and lots of Holiday Cheer! I am thankful to be in Seattle with my family for the holiday season and am enjoying spending time catching up at my sisters new place. Lots of cooking, cocktail making and holiday laziness for the D'Amato family. Christmas truly is my favorite time of the year. I hope you have a wonderful day with everybody you love around the Christmas tree. Have a fabulous Christmas!

xoxo

holiday sweets

I'm a girl with a MAJOR sweet tooth. The holiday season gets my mind dreaming of holiday goodies before Thanksgiving is even over. I have wonderful memories of my sisters, me and my mom decorating sugar cookies for hours. We were never a family to make pre sliced cookies....oh no! We would spend hours, days, baking the sugar cookies, rolling them out, cutting out many different designs and decorating them. Decorating sugar cookies has started to be an art to my family. Martha Stewart has truly taken over our sugar cookie skills!

Tonight I am flying away to Seattle to spend the holidays at my sisters new fabulous place. The D'Amato family will be drinking lots of vino and no doubt, consuming a lot of cookies.

This lavender snowflake inspired dessert buffet is so pretty. I love the snowflakes on the cake.

Last week I went over to my friend Besse's for a night of cookie decorating, catching up, drinking bubbles and watching Rudolph. I saw these gingerbread men with ties and stole the idea and made a Chuck and Blair gingerbread couple. Too cute!

Every year I am very intrigued to make my own croque em bouche. The layers of profiteroles layered in caramel are just as yummy and sweet as they look. Maybe this year I will take a shot at it. It looks so intimidating!

OMG! I think I lost my breath when I saw these photos. Of course, Amy Atlas is at it again. I dream of waking up and being part of Amy Atlas's amazing dessert team! This year Amy created a holiday party for O magazine. How much better does it get, Oprah and Amy Atlas! LOVE! Check out the entire set of photos on Amy's sweet site here.

xoxo

I'm dreaming of

There are less then 5 days until Christmas. When I was little I would get excited and nervous that maybe Santa didn't know what I wanted. However, Santa always pulled through and my American Girl Doll or Barbie always made its way under the tree.

This year I am finishing up my Christmas shopping a few days before and of course I keep finding items that I am dreaming of. One for me, one for you, my new method of gift giving. :)

my christmas wish by rldamato featuring kate spade

Ok I know that these items are a dream...but hey, a girl can dream! A bag from Valentino, Rebecca Minkoff, a pretty top from Kate Spade, a leopard coat from Juicy, a much needed cocktail ring by David Yurman, classic patent Tory Burch shoes, tickets to Michael Buble, surprises in blue boxes, happiness, world peace, you know..lots of nice things!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

snow days

I woke up yesterday to a winter wonderland outside of my apartment. I loved it! Snow Snow Snow! The streets in DC were empty, peaceful and white. I decided to spend my day locked up in my apartment enjoying some much needed rest. After cleaning my apartment from top to bottom, reading my piles of magazines and catching up on much needed DVR, I ventured outside to the store.

I grew up with a lot of snow days off from school. WV had a lot of snow in the mountains. I had the desire to run and jump through the snow on the way to the grocery store...and I did. There is something about the snowy weather that made me feel like a kid again.

What else is better then having some champagne, Christmas Tree lit and inviting a good girlfriend over for dinner and a movie. I made Cerys and I Christmas cocktails (St. Germaine, Cranberry Juice and Prosecco). We dined on yummy comforting Chicken Noodle Soup and watched UP (what a cute movie!).

Chicken Noodle Soup, so easy. I created my own recipe by sauteing garlic, onions, carrots, tomatoes, celery, fresh thyme, salt and pepper and olive oil. I went the easier route and used boxed vegetable broth and sliced chicken breasts. My apartment smelled delightful and it was warming and perfect for a nice winter day.

It was a wonderful snow day! Today the sun is out, the snow looks like a white snowy delight. I love it! Snow, winter, the holidays! Happy Winter!

xoxo

wrap it up

I love a nice wrapped gift. I nicely wrapped present for me or a present to give. There is something surprising and wonderful when you receive a beautiful wrapped box. I come from a family that loves wrapping gifts. My grandmother still asked for Lord and Taylor boxes when shopping even if she didn't have a gift to give because she loves the boxes. My sister Charity is always showing up with fun ornaments, vintage thrift store finds attached to the packages. Katie seems to always have beautiful wrapping that has been planned and themed for the season. And me, well, I love a theme as well. One year I found Tiffany Blue wrapping at Michael's and wrapped all my gifts in it with a big white bow. Unfortunately what was in the box wasn't from wonderful Tiffany's & Co. ,but it looked amazing. One year for the labels I printed out pics of me for the gift tags, that was a laugh on Christmas morning:)

I LOVE the gum drops and hot cocoa wrapping at Kates Paperie.

Kates Paperie is a dream for the stationary, paper obsessed!

This year my family is travelling to the West Coast to celebrate the holiday season at Katie's new place in Seattle. I am so looking forward to the time away and visiting with my family. It has been weird shopping for Christmas gifts because I have been shipping everything. Unlike other years where I sit at home, glass of vino in hand and wrap up all my presents, this year I do not have anything to wrap at home. I am thinking of shipping some fun paper to Seattle so when I arrive I can get in the holiday spirit.

The polka dots might be heading to Seattle. They are playful and wintery and if I have wrap left over it is not to holiday to use through out the year.

A few of my favorites I found are the glitter boxes from Paper Source.

I have reused these boxes many times, they are gorgeous!

I found the pink grey hound paper and the empress paper online at Elum.

I thought they were so pretty and glam.

Love the peace sign! Place it on a gift and they can see it every year on the tree.

I grabbed a mini one last night at Pottery Barn. Good deal for $4 and so cute.

I decorated my gifts with paper doilies once, they were pretty and simple.

I ADORE this picture! Martha online has templates to download the paper and print it.

I might try it out.

Packages wrapped in yarn is so delicate and pretty.

Happy Holidays!!!!! I hope you have as much fun wrapping up all of your presents as I do!

xoxo

Terrain @ Styers

After a long stressful weekend (last week) I decided it was best for me to head out of DC. I packed up my stuff and hopped on the train to Philly for the day. My dear friend Christa and her hubby Jerry were so sweet to allow me to tag along on their holiday filled day at Terrain. I had no idea what I was getting into.

Terrain at Styers is the amazing home/garden/lifestyle store that the fabulous creators of Anthropologie opened outside of Philadelphia. Terrain is way more then a store! I had thought we were going to a nursery, ok, whatever. Terrain was amazing! It had lightly snowed the evening before, so as we walked up to the store, the Christmas Trees for sale were covered in white and smelled like the Holiday Season. There was a fire pit with blankets on benches next to the trees. We found out later that we had just missed the afternoon marshmallow roast! (next time).

The Poinsettia house was filled with multiple types of poinsettia's, orchids, hydrangeas with a mix of fancy gardening tools. My eye is always drawn to the flowers and the fixtures thinking, "How could I use this for a party?". The fancy gardening tools....since I do not have a yard, nope, not now.

The main store had displays of bath items, cooking supplies, light fixtures, stationary, trees, flowers, it was gorgeous. If I had a house I would want to come here and buy everything to decorate with and plant around the yard. I settled on two small paper white bulbs and a snow pine scented candle. The display of bulbs was so impressive compared to buying them at the local Home Depot. The Voluspa candle makes me feel like I have a real pine tree instead of a 3ft tinsle tree.

At the back of the store is where the impressive cafe stands. We grabbed some coffee and cookies but I was very intrigued by the organic yummy brunch menu. Next time I visit Christa and I are totally driving there for a dinner. I believe there is an Anthropologie across the street! hello!

So if you are around Philly make it a point to visit Terrain. It was a wonderful place! SO much more then a nursery.....something for everybody!

xoxo

I want to start but apologizing for my delay in blogging. For the next few weeks I may have a few delays on the blog front. I also may be changing the blog name. No worries, I will fill you in if I do! I am going through quite a lot of flip flops. I'll post soon. Happy Holidays!

December Dazzle

I can't believe today is December 1st! Day one of the holiday season! I absolutely adore the Holidays! I love everything about it!

I have always had a special place in my heart for glitter, sequins and sparkles. I am so excited that this seasons fashion has sparkles everywhere. Shoes, handbags, dresses, skirts, even tights are sparkly. Fabulous! I'm hoping to add one of these fun items to my closet and dress up at a holiday soiree. I think I would even wear the striped sequin jacket to the office, why not, it is the festive time of year, why hide it for only the evening!

Happy Holidays! May each of your next 25 days be filled with sparkles and glitter!

xoxo

merci

Merci! Thank you!

Today I give thanks to everything I have in my life! I have a lot of change going on in my life, lots of decisions to make in the near horizon. I love Thanksgiving Day because it really is a day to be with your family and the people you love and gather and catch up and cook together, eat together, laugh together. This past year I have had a lot of roller coaster moments, exciting and stressful and I thank each and everyone of you for being a fabulous friend. Thank you for listening to my cry, laugh and well... talk your ear off. I am grateful and thankful for having the most amazing people in my life to encourage me to follow my heart and find what I truly love. I know that there are some days this past year where I have gotten upset and angry over not being passionate and happy in my current position but truly when I step back I couldn't be more thankful for the life I have.

Ok, yes, that is it. Thank you. Merci Beaucoup! Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! xoxoxo

.....now go drink some bubbly and celebrate!
xoxo

road trip

This morning I am on the road, off to Connecticut. Thanksgiving 2009 will be spent at my Grandparents in Torrington CT with my parents and my sisters. I haven't seen my grandparents in a couple of years and I am really looking forward to it. I will be on the road bright and early to meet my parents in Virginia. It has also been a few years since I've been on a road trip with my parents. Five hours to Connecticut, lots of traffic and I can already hear my Dad telling me to get off of my iPhone (one of the best Christmas gifts HE ever got me)! I feel like I will be back in high school already....and I kind of love it. As we get on the road, in a plane, on a train, here are a few of my travel essentials that I think are...well...essential.

*Magazines - magazines galore! I have packed my latest issue of Vogue, In Style, Vanity Fair. Lots of Hours to indulge in fashion magazines.

*Comfy clothes - OK, not sweatpants, but come on, stilettos and skinny tight jeans do not sound comfy in the back seat. Cute converse and jeans, yes, comfy and cute.

*Treats - Chocolate almonds, licorice, something sweet to satisfy my sweet tooth during the long trip.

* H20 - TOTALLY!

* New Tunes - I downloaded some new music this week, some holiday tunes, some mixes from Friends. Whether I'm belting out tunes on my own in the car or I am falling asleep with some relaxing songs, podcasts, audio books, a must.

*A Cuddle - a big pashmina, a blanket, maybe a scarf. Something to cuddle up with and get some zzzzz is essential.

....my phone. OK, I know, I am obsessed. I need to go to Iphone Addiction support group, ha. Hey, I have turned off my work phone and work email for the next 5 days and CAN NOT wait! At least I can catch up with some personal emails on my phone. Nothing like 5 hours to reconnect with besties.

Have a safe trip! xoxo

fashion obsession

For months I have been OBSESSED with Mrs. O's clear belt! Where can I get one? She seems to be able to put it on with any outfit and it looks so chic and stylish. I love that it is clear plastic, kind of funky, but still as the First Lady, she manages it to looks amazing!

Sonia Rykiel makes her version. I can't seem to find the belt anywhere except EBay for $200. I think $200- for a plastic belt is out of my budget. Help, I'm obsessssed! Why must I always become obsessed with a fashion item I must have! Oh well, just another girl with a love for flair! (yes flair. sequin berets, owl earrings, nothing simple....well a plastic belt).

xoxo