Wednesday, 16 November 2016

Links + Loves (With Over 30 Holiday Gift Ideas!)


Can you believe that Christmas is only 39 days away? Luckily for me, I have finished most of my shopping. I just have something small for both parents and something for my sister left to get. I am a sucker for spoiling others, but to me, spending the holiday season with loved ones is the most important thing. The other day, I watched The Grinch and this quote stuck out to me, and still stands out to me.
“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, and stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ‘till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t thought before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps means a little bit more.”

I could write a novel on things that I love, because I do love a lot. There are literally a novel on things that I love, and things that I would gift to others. So, here is part one of my novel.

Clothing


There are about two hundred things on my list right now, but I’ll keep it sort and sweet. Since I own a ridiculous amount of clothing, I really don’t need any more.

When I was Christmas shopping the other day, I found a ton of stuff that I loved at Old Navy (for myself and others). I found this sleeveless blouse and I particularly love it in Marion Berry. I swore that they had it in black in store as well. I may go back and buy it in berry, because it would look so cute with jeans for a night out with my friends, or a pair of dress pants and a cardigan (or blazer) for work.

I tried on this flannel in Big Red the other day. I loved it, but unfortunately, since I’m busty it fit terribly. I personally would recommend it to anyone who isn’t super busy. It is super comfortable and cute, just not for me.

I am an absolute sucker for dresses, there’s just something about them that I love. I really love this dress for daytime from Anthropologie. Another dress that I’m really loving is this one. I would wear it out for NYE.

On my ultimate Canadian gift guide, I talked about how much I used to despise mittens. If these Kate Spade mittens were sold about seven years ago, I probably would have worn them. Same with these ones from Old Navy.

Lastly, I am loving this poncho from Gap. I love the Gap, but quite often, I struggle finding items that are good quality, fit right and are within my price range. I bought my niece’s birthday present from the Gap the other day. I wish that I had have seen this poncho for myself while I was shopping. It may have come with me!

Music


I have such a wide interest in music. I think it’s because I grew up around different genres.

I’m honestly not one who can sit down and listen to a full CD. However, I do really enjoy Sia’s album, This is Acting, especially the deluxe edition. As well, I’m loving Oh My My from OneRepublic. Before these two albums, I don’t think I’ve sat down and listened to a full CD since Adele’s 25.

I always talk about my love for Pentatonix’s Christmas album, but surprise! There’s more that I love. I am a Christmas fiend, so I have a ton of Christmas albums that I love, as well as random songs and singles that I listen to. I have always loved Taylor Swift’s Christmas album, Justin Bieber’s and Michael Buble’s. My all-time favourite Christmas songs are Mary’s Boy Child by Boney M. and Where Are You Christmas by Faith Hill.

Movies


I am probably one of the most picky movie watchers. I no shame am an absolute sucker for romantic comedies, but give me anything else, I’ll probably hate it.

Recently, I have been in love with Me Before You. It was originally a book by Jojo Moyes, who has since written a sequel. The movie is about Louisa, a woman in her mid-20s looking for a new job. She ends up working as caregiver for Will, a man who was paralyzed after a motorcycle after. Even though Louisa has a long-standing relationship with a gentleman named Patrick, Louisa and Will eventually fall in love.

Another movie that I recently fell in love with is Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. I am a Tina Fey lover, as with most lady comedians. This movie wasn’t funny, which I loved. It showed Fey’s more serious side. Plus, it was based on a true story about a journalist who goes to Afghanistan. It did receive some negative feedback, but for the most part, it was a great movie.

The third movie that I want to talk about is How to Be Single. I was actually in a relationship when this movie came out, and kind of just rolled my eyes. I recently watched it, now that I’ve been single for a bit, and it really resonated with me. One scene that really stuck out to me was when Dakota Johnson’s character, Alice, makes a comment about dying alone with cats. I always make that joke, and I feel as though I’m identified for that joke. I actually had a reoccurring dream over two nights recently, where my dad paid off poor men to marry me just so I didn’t have to die alone with cats.

Two movies that I was horribly disappointed in were Sausage Party and Neighbours 2. I loved the first Neighbours movie, but realistically… Zac Efron and Dave Franco. What could go wrong there? I’m not sure if I’m growing up and my comedy is *gasp* maturing. However, I was extremely disappointed in both of these movies.

Books


I honestly don’t make time to read as much as I really should. I don’t know why I don’t, I really should start. Anyone who knows me (or has read a blog post about me), would know that my favourite books at Mindy Kaling’s comedic autobiography, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (and other concerns) and her sequel, Why Not Me. I have created a list of the five books that I really think I should sit down and read:
I’m writing this article with a cold, and I may have accidentally wrote “Talking as Fast as I can by Lauren Grandma.” Cool, Felicity.
Anyways, Lauren Graham wrote this collection of personal essays about love, life and working in Hollywood. Plus, it includes behind-the-scenes stories about my beloved Gilmore Girls. It technically isn’t released yet, but it would be a great gift for any Gilmore Girls lover in your life!

I’m not a big fan of fiction books, I’ll be honest. However, I do love Jodi Picoult books. She’s written one of my all-time favourite books. A few, actually. I find that Mrs. Picoult always picks the best times to release books with controversial themes. Small Great Things is about white supremacists who don’t want a black nurse, Ruth, to touch their baby. Their baby ends up dying due to their request, since Ruth couldn’t do CPR. This is a really important topic since Trump took into office. Although he doesn’t outright show a white supremacist persona, he doesn’t penalize groups such as the KKK.

Being the “bigger girl”, I’ve been there. This novel is written to be a funny book, but is about a bigger girl who turns to online dating. She becomes afraid to share photos, even when her friends did her hair and makeup. So she turns to losing weight. In the synopsis, it says “no matter how much she loses, will she ever see herself as anything other than a fat girl?”
This seems like the type of book that I want to read.

It was the short synopsis on Amazon that got this book on my list:
“Instant National Bestseller. A thrilling novel of the senses and a coming-of-age tale, following a small town girl into the electrifying world of New York City and the education of a lifetime at one of the most exclusive restaurants in Manhattan.”
The ratings aren’t the best for this book on Amazon, however, I’m a weird sucker for terrible movie and books (in others’ eyes).

Honestly, when I’ve had a bad day at work, my favourite thing to do is have some comedy in my life. Amy Schumer is one of my favourite people to get that comedy from. I have had my eye on this book for months, but still have yet to pick it up. I’m unsure what is stopping me.

Home


Last but not least, I decided to include some home related items. I included some in my post, My Grown-Up Christmas List last week. However, I thought it would be fun to include some more, because I think I’ve officially reached an age where most of my friends have moved out.

I love getting wine glasses for my friends, especially ones with cute little sayings! I love this glass from Urban Outfitters. It’s different, but cute. Plus it’s under $25! I really love this wine glass set, as well. It’s also from Urban Outfitters and is less than $20.

After a night of drinking wine, you may desperately need a cup of coffee. These mugs from Anthropologie are absolutely adorable. As are these mugs from Urban Outfitters.


A weird, random but totally adorable gift is this pizza fund jar from American Eagle. It kind of reminds me of Schmidt’s Douchebag Jar on New Girl. If you want to have an actual Douchebag Jar, here’s an adorable piece of wall art!

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