I salute you for all you do

Happy Veterans Day!

Thank you to all the active service men and women and Veterans.

Love,
Trimmed and Taylored

Ringing in the holidays ... a little early

OK, I confess, I'm already getting excited for the holidays and thus preparing my Christmas list. Every day I'm going to share with you what's on my wish list to help inspire you with gifts for the holiday season (or a little sooner).

Right now I'm blinded by a slew of sparkly gold cocktail rings ... a lovely gift to open on Christmas day and an even lovelier one to wear on New Years.

Rings by trimmedandtaylored featuring Betsey Johnson jewelry

Items in this set:
Betsey Johnson ring, $50
J Crew ring, $30
Asos.com ring, $21
Modcloth.com ring, $20
Charlotte Russe ring, $4

Rings clockwise: Betsey Johnson Metals Bow Ring, $50, Nordstrom.com ; J. Crew Golden Orb Ring, $30, JCrew.com ; Speakeasy Cocktail Ring, $20, ModCloth.com; Vintage Style Fan Ring, $21, Asos.com; Rose Ring, $4, CharlotteRusse.com; Daisy Cluster Ring, $24, PatinaStores.com

I'm always envious of the well-styled girls blogs and magazines capture in "street-style" photos. Take the blog Streethearts, the project of two photographers in Oslo, Norway who snap photos of all the beautiful people they pass.

These street styles, though on real people, often seem so far out of reach. I wonder how I can put a look like that together at home!

Well here is Henriette, one of Streethearts au naturale models who's style I love. I've taken her look and created a tangible version from head to toe for under $250. Check it out and next time you see someone on the street with a great look, remember, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery.

Henriette by trimmedandtaylored featuring Nine West shoes

Items in this set:
Banana Republic cardigan, $98
American Apparel top, $19
Forever21 skirt, $17
Nine West boots, $99
GAP tights, $13

Clothes clockwise: bracelet, $7, Forever21.com; tee, $19, AmericanApparel.net; chunky cardigan, $50, BananaRepulic.com; white cardigan, $30, GbyGuess.com; Nine West booties, $99, Piperlime.Gap.com; skirt, $17, Forever21.com; belt, $9, CharlotteRusse.com; tights, $13, Gap.com

Well read

My books by trimmedandtaylored on Polyvore.com

Items in this set:
Aikmandesign.com
Uploadpicturesonline.com
The Big Sister's Guide to the...
Amazon.com: The Little Black..., $5.79

There are a few books I have found simply invaluable since I left the comforting arms of college and entered the big, brave world of single-gal-in-the-city.

The first is The Big Sister's Guide to the World of Work: a tongue-in-cheek guide to everything from interviews to promotions that is as informative as it is entertaining.

The writers are Marcelle Langan DiFalco and Jocelyn Greenky Herz, two women who started at the bottom of the barrel in NYC jobs sharpening pencils for bosses who only paid attention to them when they "did something wrong or (their) skirts were too short."

These two snarky, savvy writers battled their way to the top of some of the biggest media companies in the world.

Read this book for a good laugh and incredible advice. Then read it again and again and again ...

My second pick is The Little Black Apron: A Single Girl's Guide to Cooking with Style and Grace. Written by three women - a writer, a chef and a nutritionist - it offers healthy, delicious and easy recipes for one as well as ideas for entertaining a whole group of gals. Also filled with hilarious remarks and sassy stories, this book will be one you read in and out of the kitchen.

Both of these books are available on Amazon or check out their Web sites at

BigSistersGuide.com and LittleBlackApron.com

Dinner date

As much as I love my girlfriends, in a city this big and busy, it's hard for us all to get together. If we're out at night, it's too loud to catch up and dinners at restaurants add a stressful high bill to the night of fun. So last night, my friends and I began our now monthly tradition of coming together for a potluck dinner.

A different girl offers up her apartment each time and the host cooks the main dish. Everyone else is assigned the right accompanying pieces from appetizer, to sides to dessert and drinks.

Our first try at it was at my apartment and I was so excited to host. I love playing host and my collection of vintage aprons definitely came in handy in the preparations.


For the main dish I made chicken stuffed with mozzarella, basil and tomato ... a recipe I found here on Martha Stewart's Web site. I substituted sundried tomatoes for canned diced tomatoes with olive oil and garlic for a more bruschetta-esque flavor. I also kept the ingredients on top of the chicken instead of stuffing it, this way the mozzarella got a nice brown crust in the oven. I'm sure the stuffed-version would give it another fantastic spin.


All of my friends really came through on their ends. Jess was in charge of the appetizers and in addition to some always-yummy edamame, she introduced to a fantastic new combination - hummus mixed with pomegranate. We ate it with some pita chips and I was practically stuffed before dinner even began!


Jen brought a delicious dish of brussel spouts which she cut, rubbed individually with garlic and cooked with fine chopped pancetta. Her dedication paid off, the flavors were incredibly delicious!


Gena showed up with tons of fresh asparagus which she drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with garlic and pepper. Always a simple, great side!


Lauren made a delectable salad with spring greens, cucumbers, pears, feta cheese and topped off with creamy maple balsamic dressing from Stonewall Kitchen. It tasted restaurant-quality good!


The dessert girls made sure our sweet cravings were well-fed. Amanda made fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies and bought four (yes four!) types of Ben & Jerry's ice cream to pair with them. Justine stopped by Crumbs for a scrumptious assortment of mini-cupcakes from M&M to Cookies & Cream to Coconut.

And Sam, Jenni and Michelle kept the wine flowing.

I was having so much fun I forgot to take any pictures of the night! There was lots of laughter, tons of great food and so much warmth in my tiny home!

I highly recommend trying this out with your own group of pals. Email me for tips on recipes, table arrangements and more!

Images from top to bottom: Vintage dinner party from turkeyfeathers.typepad.com, Chicken from MarthaStewart.com, Pomegranate from Basicjuiceblog.com, Sprouts from GoodHousekeeping.com, Asparagus from FoodMedic.com, Salad from FoodNetwork.com, Crumbs from CelinaBean.com

Although Halloween is the holiday that is right around the corner, Christmas decorations have already started springing up in many stores, and I can't lie, it's already got me excited about the impending winter season.

And if the stores are going to start wrapping gifts, I may as well get in on the action and right now I'm loving hats with bows. Here are a few of my favorites under $50.

Bows by trimmedandtaylored featuring Monsoon accessories

Hats clockwise: Cream felt bow beret, Debenhams, $13; Kate Landry Tweed Cloche hat, $28; Lilah pull-on cap, hats.com, $35; Chunky bow beret, Urban Outfitters, $34; Red hat, Monsoon.co.uk, $43; Wine satin bow ribbon hat, Debenhams, $28.

Yesterday I showed you how to use orginal pieces of photography from Etsy to cover your walls in seasonal looks for fall and winter. Today I've found you the best pieces for spring and summer!

So pine for warmer months, go pick up a few inexpensive frames and start shopping on Etsy!





Spring clockwise: Pink Magnolia Bloom by NatureMandalas, $24; Spring Bloom by NatureMandalas, $14; Oh for Spring Again, by BucksCountyFrames, $35; I would follow you anywhere by ZuppaArtista, $24.

Summer clockwise: Beach Day by Urban Pink Photography, $24; Feel the sun by Arialmages, $25; Palm Springs Swimmer by LunaParkProductions, $25; Ferris Wheel II by Blissful Colors, $35.