Love in the air

It's Friday in NYC, and as always, love is in the air. Whether you're going to your favorite hole in the wall Mexican place, or for a stroll to see what you happen on--I have the perfect dressed up but casual enough date night attire. 

A fur vest is practically a staple these next few months. If it's a little chillier where you are, layer it over a cardigan or tailored leather jacket. Mix in some tangled gold chains and you have the perfect urban bohemian. Don't forget the red lips. 

Fall Date Night by taylor-nulk featuring a faux fur gilet

H M vneck t shirt, $13 / Faux fur gilet / Topshop black velvet jeans / H&M chunky platform boots, $40 / Rimmel Lasting Finish By Kate Moss Lipstick - Various Shades, $8.74

Monthly Vibes: November playlist

November brings the temperatures down low, and believe me my will do be productive goes down with it. All I want to do is snuggle under a fur throw, serve up some indoor s'mores. November music is exactly that. NYC in the winter is a little softer, a little slower. This month I have a lot of folksy guitar for those indoor campfire moments.  

Here's what I'll have on repeat this month. Open up Spotify HERE to enjoy my monthly vibes. 

Five Finds

As fall blows through, I'm feeling the winds of change. I'm looking at jobs, and how to get there. New 'adult' cocktails, and sophisticated as sh*t DIY gifts that people better be really happy to get because I'm a broke girl, remember? Broke but crafty. Here's what I'm loving this week:

1. The dreaded "weakness" question & how to answer

2. A fabulous Basil Bloody Mary recipe for lazy hangover mornings

3. A beautiful lace trimmed sweater from Urban. 

4. Tried and loved brown sugar bacon recipe. 

5. Homemade gifts for foodies like infused olive oil 

Weekend in review: Halloween

November rolled in and all I was left with was a candy coma and residual hair dye. Totally worth it. Here's how Halloween played out in NYC this year:

Can you tell I get really into the spooky spirit? 

1. Troll Doll 

2. Pop Art/Lichtenstein/Comic Strip grrl inspiration

My roommates and I had a Halloween pre game party where I made candy corn jello shots (relatively cheap and fun to make)

My boyfriend the soccer player:

What were you for Halloween? 

Date for One

Carrie Bradshaw reminded us all to fall in love with ourselves first. And sometimes that means taking yourself on a solo date where laughs, tears, and eating all the Junior Mints yourself are totally acceptable. So take some "you" time. You deserve it. 

PS. St. Vincent was great. Laughed and cried and left with a completely filled heart.

Falling for Neutrals

It's that time in NYC where we all get bundled in booties and beanies. I love a good neutral with a masculine edge. A nude face is perfect with rosy lips and cheeks, and heavy mascara for a fall doll kind of look--keeping it just feminine enough. Layered necklaces embody the fresh piles of golden leaves on a perfectly casual look. Voila, one of my favorite casual fall looks. 

Falling for neutrals by taylor-nulk featuring lips makeup

J Crew pink sweater / Gap stretchy pants / Fringe ankle boots / With Love From CA spike statement necklace / Boohoo double layer pendant necklace / Yves Saint Laurent lips makeup

#falldoll makeup

XO, Taylor

Four Finds

1. Some simple color inspiration for my new big girl NYC apartment (ah!) {mysimplyspecial.com}

2. midi rings on midi rings. I still don't have any. 

3. A beautiful Pumpkin Soufflé scented candle. So fall. {anthropology.com}

4. Great hostess resource. How much booze to buy for a party. {foodandwine.com}

Moody Makeup

'

With Halloween coming up, and winter just around the corner, I'm feeling less and less like putting an effort into what I'm wearing. If I could be a human burrito from now until March, I would probably try. That being said, easy additions to a makeup routine can reflect the weather while looking completely chic. I'm obsessed with the moody makeup. 

1. Lipsticks {Haute Core // MAC, Black Cherry // Revlon, Deepest Cherry // Maybelline}

2. Lashes, Lashes, Lashes

3. Like with Haute Core, once you go black, you never go back.

4. Blush {Warm Soul // MAC} brings dimension to your face. Moody makeup is powerful, not a washout.

Broke Girls' Cookie Shooters

If you're going to drink your calories, at least put them in a chocolatey shooter. Drinks and dessert for cheap. YUM.

You'll need: 

1. a pop-over tin (easy to find at any Bed Bath and Beyond) 
2. pre-made, pre sliced cookie dough. If you're feeling fancy...just leave this blog now.
3. 1 cup chocolate chips
4. dessert liquor (think Kahlua, Godiva, etc.)

Let's get down to business: preheat oven to 350

1. spray non-stick pop over pan and mush down slightly smaller than golfball sized cookie balls. With pre made, pre sliced dough, the work is done for you. Easy. 
2. mush those into the pan making little cups. 
3. bake for 7-8 minutes; take out and use a wooden utensil (like handle of wooden spoon) and gently mush the cookies to maintain cup form.
4. bake 2 more minutes and repeat wooden spoon use
5. continue 2 or three more times until cookie is baked through AND in cup form. 
6. let cool and while doing so, melt chocolate chips in microwave. 
7. paint inside of cups to create a liquid barrier. 
8. cool in fridge until hardened.
9. craft your shooter and enjoy! 

Monthly Vibes: October Playlist

©iStockphoto.com/Donald Gruener

It's Pumpkin Spice Latte season, and I am not complaining in the slightest. Here's what I'm listening to this month! Wrap me up for this sweater weather and send me off listening to deep lyrical folksy-stuff a la The Middle East and Deer Tick. Following that this month with some great melodic grooves that just send you into the most ambient zone. Mapei and James Blake are filling that quota this month. 

Listen below or open the link to the web player here. Follow for updates on what I'm listening to throughout! 

Lots of love, always. Enjoy picking my musical brain this month! 
Wrapped up in love always. 

Broke Girls' Oktoberfest

New York City is so crisp and alive in October. It's just cool enough to wear your favorite dresses with only chunky knit cardigans as your weather proofing for the night. With everyone so cute and relishing the last outdoor parties of the season, I've got this seasonal drink that tastes like apple bid and won't set you back much. And as queen of the pregame I ask: who doesn't like crafty cocktails for less?

1. With a brown sugared rim (everything tastes better in a Mason Glass. #science), add your preferred flavor of hard cider. I went with Cinnamon Angry Orchard, then add a shot of Fireball whiskey. 
2. For extra flair and DIY cocktail points: add a cinnamon stick or two. Mmm fresh from the farm apple goodness. 
3. Voila! Now go indulge in your Broke Girls' Oktoberfest and get some Insta worthy shots of your craft cocktail. 

Let's be friends

Berry ain't out of season yet

Berries might not exactly be in this week's grocery budget, but at least Fall's finally here, and old favorites can show their true colors again. Here are my berry fave wallet friendly ways to keep berry on and betches on trend--booze included. 

(Not so) Humble Beginnings

It was sad to get through all six seasons and realize that I'm not a Carrie. I live in an outer borough and stumble through life on $4 Blue Moons, not Cosmos. Maybe I have an Upper East future, but for now this is for my self-important millennials:  she wanted us to "fall in love with ourselves first." So this is about indulging in the now and letting the rest fall into place. I've got champagne taste on a wine product budget, but I'll make it work. 

#ootd 

{JCrew: chambray // Forever 21: cami // GAP: jeggings // necklace: gifted // nails: Essie Find Me An Oasis}