Erin Pelicano Necklaces

Looking for an incredible gift that is not only thoughtful, but really well made? Here are some ideas for you! Erin Pelicano has designed some amazing pieces for the women in your life. 

Erin reached out to me to help showcase her work. In these photos, I wanted to convey just how beautiful the necklaces are, and how wonderful they would be for a Christmas or holiday gift. 

All of Erin's jewelry arrives in a beautiful gift box, with her signature on it in silver. Her whole presentation is spot on! You could probably tie a ribbon around the box and consider it wrapped. 

Be sure to check out even more wonderful updates from Erin around social media!

Facebook - Pinterest - Twitter - Instagram - Google+

This one, below, I'm going to have to gift to myself, I think :) I absolutely love it! 

These necklaces are going to make some incredible Christmas presents!!! Check out her website HERE.

Sugar and Spice - Yummy Creations By Cold Stone Creamery

Don't think Fall is the time to eat ice cream? Well, it is! I recently visited Cold Stone Creamery, in order to help showcase some of the most amazing ice cream I have ever eaten! There was just a small hint of spice that was very well balanced in these treats. And, if you love frozen coffee drinks, there is even a Sugar and Spice creation for you! Make sure to stop by the Springfield, IL location, the general manager was incredibly helpful throughout this project. 

I think one of my favorites in this collection is the Salted Caramel Frappe! It has just a hint of coffee flavor, just enough for me, and it's topped with a generous amount of whipped topping and a caramel drizzle. This would be perfect for an afternoon pick-me-up. 

Next, I think this adorable Pumpkin Ice Cream Pie would really impress your guests at Thanksgiving! It contains pumpkin ice cream, and is adorned with vanilla bean whipped topping and chocolate leaves! This would make such an elegant dessert option for the holidays. 

This Twisted Salted Caramel Ice Cream was also pretty great. It starts with Salted Caramel Ice Cream, and they mix in chocolate chips and pretzels. They will even top it with caramel if you ask with a smile. 

So, the Pumpkin Pie In The Sky Ice Cream was my second favorite treat. It contains Pumpkin Ice Cream, and they mix in Graham Cracker Pie Crust, Whipped Topping, and drizzle it with Caramel! At first bite, I knew this one was a winner :) 

New York City!!

I had SO much fun in New York City last weekend. I was recently working a fun content creation project for Skype, where I shared my Halloween Party Tips and DIY Ideas! This was my first time to New York City (we did visit years ago for like 2 hours, but this was completely different...)

So, the images I created for Skype can be found HERE. I had SO much fun creating some holiday content, as this was one of the first projects I have done of this nature. Halloween Tips and Tricks are some of my absolute FAVORITES, so I had a really great time! I also helped with a Pinterest Board (here), and I helped lead a fun, Skype Group Chat (search SkypeHalloween to find us!!). 

One of the best parts of this project came at pretty short notice. Skype personally invited me out to New York City, to help coordinate a Halloween party for The Lower East Side Girls' Club of NYC! Pretty incredible and practically unbelievable. What an amazing opportunity! I am still so fortunate I was the one chosen for this whole thing. I had an absolute blast, my hotel was amazing, I ate some of the best food in my life (and I've eaten food all over the country!!), met some wonderful people, and helped some really amazing kids have the Best Halloween Party Ever! 

 I also learned on this trip, that the earlier you get to the airport, the less stressful your whole trip will be! This really worked out so well, without really any problems!

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DAY ONE - Sticky Rice Thai Food + Top Hops

View more photos from Day One, below! I ate at StickyRice, drank craft beer at Top Hops, and stayed at The Holiday Inn - Lower East Side (it was super nice and newly renovated). 

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DAY TWO - LOWER EAST SIDE MURALS + ARIEL'S LATIN BISTRO + PARDON MY FRENCH

Check out the slideshow, below, to see my mural sightings and awesome NYC food! If you're in the area, I would definitely recommend Ariel's Bistro for lunch and a $5 strawberry margarita, and Pardon My French for a super fancy date night. The whole Skype team was so wonderful to take me out for dinner and cocktails after the Halloween party.

THE SKYPE HALLOWEEN PARTY

So, the main reason I was there was, of course, The Skype Halloween Party at The Lower East Side Girls' Club! The girls absolutely LOVED the party, there was a DJ that played spooky beats, I hosted a craft table featuring Tissue Paper Pumpkins filled with CANDY. Once the candy ran out, the girls practically disowned me :) The whole party will be made into a couple of short movies that will feature yours truly for a short bit, helping the girls make pumpkins, and also myself chatting with influencers from YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram! It all went super well, and I had a blast! It was incredible giving back to the community in this way, and hopefully inspiring the kids!

Until next time! NYC, I really had fun, and hope to be back soon! A very special thanks to HelloSociety and Skype for helping make this project an absolute success!!! 

A Halloween Party With Skype!

My friends at Skype asked me to share some amazing Halloween Party DIY Ideas! I have a few amazing ideas for a party that would appeal to kids and adults! Below you will find Chic and Cute Halloween Decor, Ping Ping Ghost Lights, and also a Tasty Candy Halloween Centerpiece. 

GHOST LIGHTS - I absolutely love these cute little ghosts! I created them with a few simple materials. The other fun part of this project, was that I was able to use Skype to help share this project with my friend, who absolutely LOVED them :) It's great being able to connect with people who live far away, and Skype made it easy. 

MATERIALS

- 1 Strand of white lights (with white wires). I used a strand of 50, but 25 would be great also.

- 10 Ping Ping Balls

- Modge Podge (any type will do)

- Foam Brush for Modge Podge

- Cheesecloth (found in the fabric/notions section at Hobby Lobby)

- Permanent Marker

- Egg Cartons and Painters Tape 

- Drill and Drill Bit - 5/16" - Or a large nail will be good - to poke holes in ping pong balls

- 4" x 4" squares of cheesecloth (x10)

INSTRUCTIONS

1.) Drill holes in all ping ping balls. You can also use a large nail to poke the holes in them. Make sure you poke the hole where the logo is.

2.) Draw spooky ghost faces on all ping pong balls. I searched for "Ghost Faces" online, and all sorts of ideas came up. 

3.) Grab your egg cartons and use the painters tape to create little cones, so your ping pong balls can sit up in the egg cartons. Use the sticky side of the tape on the outside. 

4.) Drape the cheesecloth squares over the ping pong balls, and use your foam brush to paint the Modge Podge over the cloth, to adhere to the ping pong balls. They will definitely begin to look like ghosts now!

5.) Let them dry for 4-5 hours, and place a ping pong ball ghost to every third or fourth Christmas light! That's it! Please comment below if you make these! 

HALLOWEEN CENTERPIECE

I used a big assortment of Halloween candy for this one! It turned out SO cute and I think kids would just love it. This would make the ultimate conversation piece at a Halloween party, too! 

MATERIALS 

- Large Glass Vase with straight sides

- 1 large bag of mini marshmallows and 3-4 other types of Halloween candy and Halloween Peeps

INSTRUCTIONS -

1.) Pour 2 inches of marshmallows into vase

2.) Layer Halloween Peeps around edge of vase, and fill center with more marshmallows

3.) Layer alternating colored candies all the way up, and top off with more marshmallows and Halloween suckers of your choice! 

THE ULTIMATE CHIC HALLOWEEN PARTY DECOR

I am in love with the look of a Monochromatic Halloween Party! Here, I used mostly black dishes, tablecloth, and Creepy Cloth to drape over the setting to really add a spooky element. Just let your food add some pops of color, and your guests will be so happy they came to party! 

I was able to use Skype to let my friend know the party was all set up and ready! 

Happy Halloween! And a special spooky thanks to Skype for hosting the best Halloween party ever in NEW YORK CITY! I will blog about that soon!!! 

Skype With Me! Let's Chat About Halloween!

Halloween is almost here! Did you know you can use Skype to text photos and messages to one person or a group of people? I will be Skype chatting this morning, beginning at 10:30EST, join me and others as we discuss Halloween ideas today. Add SkypeHalloween in Skype to join in on the conversation! http://bit.ly/3242231

And 5 people participating in these chats will win a $1,000 Microsoft package including a Surface!!! 

Ooey Gooey Marshmallow Cones

Bonfire season is in full swing! I have a yummy treat that just about anyone will enjoy! You can either make these over a campfire, or even in your oven at home, suer easily. This recipe was featured on the Missouri Department of Tourism Blog! So honored to collaborate with them!

INGREDIENTS:

Hershey's Candy Bars (roughly 1 candy bar per cone or a bit less)

Mini Marshmallows

Waffle Cones (store bought works perfectly)

Foil 

CHECK OUT MY MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM PORTFOLIO HERE.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1.) Break the Hershey's Bar into pieces, and set aside. 

2.) Take one cone in your hand, and fill the bottom 1/3 with mini marshmallows. Add a couple of pieces of chocolate, then more marshmallows. Once you get towards the top, fill the rest of the way with marshmallows, then put a few more pieces of chocolate on top. 

3.) TO HEAT: Wrap the whole cone (and luscious filling) in a couple of layers of foil. Place near campfire (not directly on the flame - you're just trying to melt the filling.), for about 8-10 minutes, being extremely careful to remove from the embers/coals. Once cooled a bit, unwrap the foil and behold the most wonderful thing you can eat while you're camping!

- If you want to easily make these in the oven, fill the cones with marshmallows and chocolate as described above, and wrap in foil. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees, place each foil-wrapped cone in a heat-safe coffee mug (ceramic go glass only). Make sure the pointy end of the cone is facing downward into the mug. Bake for about 7 minutes, carefully remove from the oven, and once cooled, unwrap foil to see if everything has melted enough. Enjoy!!!

Missouri Department Of Tourism

Super excited about this recent collaboration with Missouri Department of Tourism! They even posted my recipes on their blog (here). They asked me to submit ideas and then images of activities someone would do in Missouri in the Fall. I immediately thought about all the times we have camped, fished, hiked, and road tripped to Missouri! Bobby used to go down with his family to camp in Missouri a countless number of times when he was younger, and he was the one who really showed me the beauty of the state. 

CHECK OUT THE MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM BLOG HERE

Here are a few of my favorite images Bobby and I created for this amazingly fun and nostalgic project! View all the images in my Portfolio (here). 

VIEW THE WHOLE PORTFOLIO HERE

View This On Pinterest / View This On The Missouri Department of Tourism Blog

View This On Pinterest / View This On The Missouri Department of Tourism Blog

View This On Pinterest / View This On The Missouri Department of Tourism Blog

A Cozy And Refined Outfit For Fall

It's finally here! Chilly, wonderful, Fall weather! Scroll down to shop all of these items! Enjoy :) 

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Adidas Campus 2 Sneakers / Shop Here

Adidas Campus 2 Sneakers / Shop Here

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This exact Chloe Blazer is sold out, but you can find a similar one here. 

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Check out the beanie (above), or shop other similar ones (below).

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Gold Triangle Earrings here.

Find these cute earrings for only $3.95 here.

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Coming Soon!! Shop the rest of the outfit below...

MK WATCH - PATCHWORK JEANS - AMAZING PURSE

Emma Stine Limited

I have loved Emma Stine Limited for a LONG time. Their clothing and jewelry is gorgeous and would make any woman feel special. They recently asked me to model and photograph some of their items! I was so excited to collaborate with them. Below, you can see what I created! 

Below, I featured a few of my favorite images from the project. To view the whole photo shoot, please visit MY PORTFOLIO :) There are so many more photos to see! Enjoy! 

Learn more about these earrings - click here.

To find this dress, click here. 

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Portfolio Spotlight - FYI Style Unzipped - Cute Fall Ideas

FYI Style Unzipped was such a cute show, and a fun brand to collaborate with! I have always LOVED fashion, and you can see that in my pins I find daily. I also love TV shows where you learn about fashion, so when FYI approached me, I was beyond excited! I was asked to showcase my style in regards to scarves, ballet flats, and neon! These terms are pretty open-ended, so I did my best to try and figure out how these specific terms were most relevant to today's most current trends. Check out my FULL PORTFOLIO...

Fall Rice Krispy Treat Pops!

Ever wonder why your rice krispy treats don't turn out soft, rich, buttery, and super tasty? You may be using the wrong method. Here, I will show you the old-fashioned way to make Rice Krispy Treats on the stovetop - with real butter.

I love how these little leaf treat pops turned out! They could be customized to just about any holiday or party theme, too! Feel free to add food coloring to them to really customize them in a new, unique way. Here we go!

Ingredients:

- 3 Tbsp. REAL Butter (Organic Preferred)

- 6 C. Rice Krispy Cereal 

- 6 C. Marshmallows

- Sprinkles in Seasonal Colors

(Not Pictured)

- Parchment Paper

- Baking Dish 

- Smaller Wooden Skewers

- Leaf-Shaped Cookie Cutters

Instructions: 

In a large pot, melt butter over low heat (slower is better, so the butter doesn't burn.). As that melts, add marshmallows. Continue to melt the ingredients over low-medium heat. Make sure to watch the mixture so it doesn't brown. The mixture should look a little something like this right before you add the cereal.

Add the cereal and mix well to combine all of the ingredients. 

1.) Spray baking dish with non-stick spray or butter. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit inside the dish.

2.) Pour in Gooey Cereal Mix.

3.) Use another piece of parchment paper to pat down the cereal mixture flat into the dish. This will keep your hands WAY less messy.

Once cereal has cooled, remove the cereal and parchment paper, and put it onto a cutting board.

Use your favorite leaf-shaped cookie cutter, press firmly down into treats. You can use a bit of non-stick spray on the cookie cutter if the treats stick. Carefully insert small skewer sticks into the leaves. Make sure you don't jab your hand. I got about 12-13 leaves out of my batch, and had lots of pieces left over to devour :)

Enjoy! Happy Fall! Check me out on Pinterest.

Lavender Lemonade - Bacardi Inspired

One of the coolest projects I have ever done is working with Bacardi to show my readers how to create summer party-ready drinks with two of their flavors - Limon and Tangerine (a new one). 

I was asked to pretty much create whatever I wanted, and below you will see some of the goodness I thought up.

Actually, the main reason I thought this recipe would be great, is that the VRBO house we stayed in while we were in the Tahoe are a couple of weeks ago had some wild lavender growing nearby. I technically borrowed some clippings from the neighbor's yard, and WOW, did it smell incredible! The other wildflowers in the photos were also sourced from the neighbors, and I will tell you, I didn't even make a dent in their landscaping :) 

I made a simple syrup with the lavender, some sugar, and water. This way the lavender infused properly into the drink. But, I actually added it into some pretty glasses with Simply Lemonade and a shot of Bacardi. Below, you will find the recipe if you want to make it from scratch, with real lemons. 

LAVENDER LEMONADE VIA SIMPLYRECIPES.COM

The sugar/lemon balance will depend on what types of lemons you are using (Meyer lemons are less tart than regular lemons), and your own preference for sweetness. While all varieties of lavender are edible, English lavender and Provence lavender are most often used for culinary purposes. If you use fresh, garden flowers, make sure they have not been sprayed with pesticides. Do not use florist flowers.

Ingredients

• A small handful of freshly picked and rinsed lavender flowers or a tablespoon of dried lavender flowers
• 1 cup white, granulated sugar
• 2 cups of boiling water for the infusion
• 1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 cups or more of cold water
• Ice

Method

1 Cut the lavender flowers from the stems (no need to strip) and place in a medium bowl (a large pyrex measuring bowl works great because you can pour easily from it). Pour the sugar over the flowers and use your (clean) fingers to gently rub the flowers into the sugar.

2 Pour 2 cups of boiling water over the lavender sugar and stir with a spoon until the sugar has melted. Cover and let infuse for 30 minutes (or up to several hours).

3 Strain the lavender-infused simple syrup and pour into a serving carafe or pitcher.

4 Stir in the lemon juice.  Add another two cups of water. Taste and adjust for tartness. Add more lemon juice if too sweet.  Add more sugar if too tart. Add ice and more water to desired level of concentration. Note that the ice will melt eventually, further diluting the drink.

Add some thinly sliced lemons and a few lavender sprigs to the serving pitcher for presentation.

DogVacay - What's In Cabbie's Bag?

Sometimes, we are lucky enough to take our pups on vacation. But, sometimes, it's just not feasible. Next time I travel without my baby girl, I am considering using DogVacay! It's a service tat enables you to hire a dog (or cat) sitter to come to your house, or you can actually bring your pet to their house. There are thousands of sitters in the country, which is pretty cool, so most likely, someone close to your home can help you out. 

Cabbie + DogVacay  - Get a FREE day or night of Pet Sitting! Click the image to learn more!

In honor of New York Fashion Week, I wanted to show you what's in Cabbie's Bag! These are some of the items I would pack for her for a weekend away at a sitter's house. 

Water and food bowl, toys, poo bags, lots and lots of treats, rawhides, leash, collar, E-Collar with remote, A blankie that smells like home, and her new dog bed. 

Cabbie + DogVacay

HOW DOGVACAY WORKS

• DogVacay is an online community that connects dog owners with our 20,000 vetted and insured pet sitters across the US & Canada, ready to care for your dog like a member of their family in their home or yours.

• All reservations include pet insurance, 24/7 customer support, and daily photo updates of your pooch enjoying a "Vacay" of his own. You can finally travel with peace of mind--at prices half the price of the local kennel.

• How it works:

  • Type in your zip code and find a PAWesome sitter in your neighborhood.

  • Schedule a meet ‘n greet to meet your Host, then book your pup’s Vacay and pay online.

  • Receive photo updates showing how much fun your pup is having, and rest assured knowing each Vacay is covered with our free pet insurance and 24/7 customer care.

• Featured in the Wall Street Journal, the NY Times, Forbes and The Today Show.

BECOME A DOGVACAY HOST:

• Who can Host? You! Whether you're a professional dog sitter or just a regular dog lover, DogVacay makes it easy to earn money watching pups. Simply create a free profile, set your own rates, decide which dogs to take and when to take them. We do the rest!

• With over 1 Million doggie nights booked, our Hosts rest easy knowing each Vacay is covered by insurance and 24/7 customer care.

Cabbie + DogVacay

Cabbie + Her DogVacay Tote Bag

Use code WANDERINGGYPSY for a FREE day or night of pet sitting on DogVacay!! 

Cabbie + DogVacay

Cabbie + DogVacay

So, remember, if your fur baby needs a sitter while you are away, DogVacay has you covered! Get a FREE day or night of sitting with code WANDERINGGYPSY. 

Ulta Hair + Nails Collaboration

Recently, I was contracted by Ulta Beauty to share some of the ways I would style their nail polish. This dark denim color was really nice. I usually wear lighter colors, but I just loved how the dark indigo color complimented most of my clothing. It looked great with different shades of brown, especially leather. I was also offered a complimentary hair appointment to test out one of their new hair color services for Fall. The hair trend is bronde, and I like it a lot! It is a nice mix of brown and blonde, and my stylist made it look so natural! I am very happy with the results.

I hadn't colored my hair in about ten years, and I knew they were trustworthy enough to make my hair look natural, but elevated.

Our Big Trip!

We have been having an absolute BLAST this past week on the first leg of our road trip. I have also been gaining lots of amazing followers on Flipagram, and you can see all of my stories here - 

I just love Flipagram! I have been an active member for less than two weeks, and I have had an amazing response from their community. I have been wanting to venture into making videos and multimedia projects for some time, and this app is the best way I have found to incorporate photos, videos, and music. They make it easy to share your story with the world.

Below, you can see some of my Flipagrams from our trip so far. If you have a company and would like mw to create you a Flipagram and share it with my followers, just contact me, or comment below! I would LOVE to work with you! 

AND HERE ARE A FEW MORE STORIES I CRATED

Have a wonderful day! See you soon!

Raspberry Mint Spritzer With Lemon

I found this adorable kitchen towel recently, that just screamed "SUMMER". I loved the little graphic on it so much, I created a new, summer drink recipe around it. 

INGREDIENTS

2 - 24 oz. Mason Jars (and Ice)

Cran Raspberry Juice

Sprite or Sprite Zero

Vodka (optional)

Handful of Mint Sprigs, 2 Lemons, Fresh Raspberries, and Short Skewers For Garnish

INSTRUCTIONS

Optionally, fill each jar with 1-2 shots of vodka. Fill jars with ice 1/2 -3/4 of the way full. Fill the rest of the jar with half cran-raspberry juice, then top with Sprite. 

To Garnish - Poke skewers through 3 raspberries, set on top of glass. Slice lemons, and put them onto your jars. Top with fresh mint, and serve. Mix the mint into the drink for a bit of extra freshness! Enjoy.

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Polyvore Outfits

I used to play with paper dolls as a kid, and when my dad would bring me to a bookstore, I would choose a book with paper doll cutouts instead of a traditional novel or similar that most people would buy. After I was too old for them, I went on to cutting people and outfit ideas out of magazines. It was fun, my grandma would give me her People magazines (and the tabloid ones, too!), and I would entertain myself for hours creating collages and such. So, Polyvore is basically paper dolls on Steroids, for women in the digital age! Check out my Polyvore Creations.

This comfy outfit and other essentials are great for a road trip. 

This outfit merges 70s with 90s styles, and would be perfect for a concert! 

And, this awesome outfit has Earthy and Bohemian elements while still looking polished. 

How To Style A Fitted Crop Top for Summer.

How To Style A Black Maxi Skirt - 6 Ways! 

A cute outfit for your next concert or festival!

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Ayushi Woods Organic Lotions

I recently met the owner of a new company called Ayushi Woods. Ayushi products are awesome! They are trying to provide safe, healthy, and organic lotions, anti-wrinkle lotions, and other body products to their customers, and I love their values. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Ayushi is offering my readers 25% Off your entire order, use coupon code lily25 at checkout. 

For the past couple of years, I have been using primarily organic foods and products, and I am so happy I have switched!! My favorite product in the Ayushi line is the Intensive Anti-Wrinkle Lotion. Read more about it below! 

• USDA Organic Certified
• Completely Vegan
• Cruelty-Free 
• GMO-Free
• 100% free from any Parabens, Petroleum, Formaldehyde, PEGS, artificial color or synthetic fragrance
• No Animal Ingredients/ No Animal Testing 
• Completely handmade

First, the Vegan Shine Lotion contains avocado oil, among lots of other natural ingredients. Upon first use of this lotion, its very nice and light. It's pretty scented, but it is definitely pleasant and natural-smelling, unlike a lot of lotions I've tried. This lotion isn't at all greasy, and my hands still feel very soft. It's rated USDA Organic, which is awesome! 

I loved these  clothing items as well! Find a White Button Up (similar here), High Waisted Shorts from Pacsun (similar here), Cute Coach Wallet (similar here), Necklace from JCPenney, and Ayushi lotions! 

Ayushi is the first company in the personal care industry to be the official sponsors of the Organic Farmers Association (NOFA) and helped raise over $15,000 for organic farmers in a 5k event. Learn more here.  

These Organic Body and Face Washes are the perfect size for travel if you're going somewhere for a long weekend. The Organic Sandal Body Wash has a strong sandalwood scent.

Here are a few of the lotions they make. Looking forward to trying out the Raspberry Almond, and the Lavender. The Anti-Wrinkle Lotion has the best scent of all of them. It's very light, like a breath of fresh air. Definitely hoping to incorporate this into my daily routine! Remember, use coupon code lily25 at checkout to receive 25% off your entire order! 

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