-
brands providing free products for those impacted by the LA fires
the la wildfires are sadly still going and to say it has been beyond devastating for so many is an understatement. i don’t know anyone that lives here in la that doesn’t know someone personally that lost everything.
if you have friends or family that were victims of the fires, you’re also probably feeling like you’re at a loss on how to support them.
so many companies are generously providing products to the families who have been impacted, but the friends i know don’t have the bandwidth to retrieve any of it. so if you’re looking for a way to help, doing it for them seems like an amazing way.
i’ve seen spreadsheets with this info, but my brain can’t personally handle them, so i thought a simple concise list would be helpful.
sending love to everyone in LA right now.
lalo
will replace lost baby/kids’ products
cybex
donating strollers and car seats to affected families
nanit
will replace lost baby monitors
chatbooks
will reprint lost photos
artifact uprising
will reprint lost artifact uprising prints and photo books
shutterfly
will reprint lost photo books, canvases, prints or any shutterfly product
made by mary
will replace lost jewelry
asher bingham
an la based portrait artist who is offering beautiful sketches of lost homes for free.
smol
if you or someone you know has lost a smol product.
babyletto
donating cribs to those impacted
avocado
donating bedding
clare v.
100% of profits from their los angeles je t’aime collection will be donated to the american red cross, which is providing safe shelter, food, essentials and support for those affected by the fires.
woolgrass farm
woolgrass farm created the sweetest limited edition bear named “Monarch” to represent the strength of california. if you or someone you know has lost everything in the fires you can get a free bear using the coupon code CALIFORNIA.
tubby todd
providing a $50 credit
great jones
donating kitchenware
z supply
donating women’s clothing
donni.
donating women’s clothing
reformation
donating essentials like men and women’s clothing, personal care items, baby supplies and shoes.
rylee and cru
donating baby/kids’ clothing
kyte baby
donating baby/kids’ sleep bags and sleepwear
bobbie
donating baby formula
merci milo
donating baby/kids’ toys
a.l.c.
donating clothing packages
credo beauty
donating beauty care packages
roz
donating haircare essentials
facile
donating self-care kits
marea
donating clothing
show me your mumu
donating women’s clothing
slumberkins
donating a “sprite” snuggler, their doll supporting grief and loss
hexclad
donating 10,000 frying pans
coterie
partnering with perelel health and bobbie to donate diapers, formula and women’s essentials.
beautiful by drew
donating a small kitchen appliance to every family who has lost their home
additional resources
katie marble
offering free family photography sessions
kelsee pietz
offering free family photos
the expert
offering free one-hour video consultations with a designer to those who have lost their homes
boll & branch
offering a safe home and additional support through the organization helping from home
lugg
offering free moves, including transporting belongings, donating items or relocating to safety
free uber and lyft rides
uber and lyft are helping evacuated residents by providing free rides to shelter locations.
- for uber — evacuees can redeem a free ride up to $40 by applying the promo code “WILDFIRE25” in the wallet section of their uber app before requesting a ride to a shelter location.
- for lyft — use code “CAFIRERELIEF25” for a free ride worth up to $25. each user can use the code for two rides maximum.
u-haul
u-haul is offering 30 days of free self-storage to victims across southern california. the u-box container disaster relief program is also available to assist evacuees and affected families.
furnished rentals
a spreadsheet with furnished rentals.
and another list of furnished leases, via ali jack with compass.
moms helping moms
matching moms with other moms who have clothes, gear or toys with moms who have been impacted by the fires.
i hope this helps in some small way. ill add more as i find them and let me know if theres anything i missed.
featured image from daydream under the stars
-
shalloty tarragon chicken thighs
this is one of my favorite weekday chicken dishes to make – and both kids even love it! i’ve been making it for years now and what i love about this recipe is how it seems like a fancy french dinner, but it’s actually very few steps and very few ingredients and totally easy enough to do while you sip some wine and make your sides.
while we love chicken thighs, but you could obviously make this with any chicken cut of your choice!
i also said 5 shallots, but honestly the shallots are my favorite part and i could always eat more of them. try this recipe and you’ll see it’s very low key and adaptable!
shalloty tarragon chicken thighs
Ingredients
- 4-6 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 1/2 cup butter
- 5 shallots, peeled
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 1 tb dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp fresh tarrgon, chopped
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
Instructions
- season your chicken thighs on both sides with salt and pepper while you heat a large skillet over medium heat
- melt your butter and then brown chicken thighs on both sides until a meat thermometer reads 160℉
- remove the chicken thighs from heat and rest on a plate, while you add the peeled shallots to the pan. cook for about 10 minutes until they're softened and carmelized.
- deglaze the pan with your wine and add the fresh herbs along with the dijon.
- whisk together and if you need to thin out the sauce a little, use starchy water (if you're making a starch on the side) or if you don't have any and need to thin it out – you can mix a little water and flour or cornstarch.
- add the chicken thighs back to the pan and cook on low heat for another 5-10 minutes.
this is such a cozy fall or winter dinner, i hope you love it as much as we do!
-
printable letter to santa
now that arlo’s at the age he can write, i thought it would be so cute to make a little printable letter to santa for him to fill in — and your kids too! i kept it simple but fun and lots of prompts to make it personalized. i hope you enjoy 🙂
(and to be clear, he’s only 4 so i spelled out the words for him haha)
-
air fryer lazy latkes
hanukkah is right around the corner and i just realized i’d never shared this mind blowing latke method on the blog! so yes, i know the significance of the miracle of oil is sorta lost with this method – but i used LOTS of oil spray so that should count for something.
i have made latkes the proper way and while they were amazing, these are almost just as good and take less than 30 minutes! if you love latkes, but you’re way too lazy to spend all the time and grating energy, i highly recommend trying this way! your spotless stovetop will thank you.
instead of grating the potatoes, i just use a bag of shredded hash browns – no standing on your potatoes in the sink to get all the water out necessary! this method could not be simpler or more lowkey! the grated potatoes i buy are “simply potatoes” but i’ve seen a few different brands at the grocery store.
air fryer lazy latkes
i know this sort of defeats the miracle of oil but they taste amazing and take so little time!Ingredients
- 1 bag of shredded hash brown potatoes
- 2-3 shallots, grated or 1 large onion
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp coarse kosher salt (or 1 tsp fine sea salt) plus more for sprinkling
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
- good olive oil spray
Instructions
- preheat your air fryer at 400℉ as you make your potato mixture and liberally spray the grates of your air fryer with a nice olive oil spray
- grate the onion and mix with a bag of shredded hash browns
- mix in 2 beaten eggs, ½ cup flour, tsp coarse kosher salt, tsp baking powder, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- spoon four latke piles down and using the back of your spoon, press them down flat, spray them again!
- cook at 400° for about 6-8 minutes until golden on one side. flip with a spatula and spray and cook the other side until perfectly golden on both sides!
- serve immediately but if you can't, crisp back up to serve in your air fryer! garnish with chives and/or a little salt.
happy hanukkah!
-
holiday gift guides for everyone on your list
in case you want one big list of all the gift guides we created this year, here it is — hope you find lots of special gifts for your loved ones!
click on the guide you want to shop
for the entertainers
always one of my favorite gift guides to make because i loooove pretty hosting things even when i barely host anyone at all! lots of different easy gifts for the host or hostess in your lives!
for the in-laws
i feel like in-laws are especially hard to shop for because you may not be comfortable asking them what they’d actually want, or maybe you don’t want to spend a ton of money but still want to give them something meaningful — so i found lots of different types of gifts at different price points!
for the cook
for all your loved ones who are always in the kitchen, i gathered a bunch of unique, stylish finds in all different price points that would make such good gifts if i do say so myself.
for him
this is always the hardest gift guide for me! i try to find things that aren’t all cliche “guy stuff” but still be… guy stuff ?! i think i found lots of cool things that i know my husband and brother would for sure like!
for her
i made sure for this gift guide for her that i would only choose things that i would want, so i hope you like it too!! lots of different price points for gifts for your sister, wife, mom, aunt, girlfriends … anyone, really!
for the little kids
all kinds of adorable play things for the little ones!
for the big kids
for the older kids! i even made an effort to include some tween gifts!
for the babies
babies don’t need much — but a little special something is always fun because who doesn’t like cute baby things!!?!
stocking stuffers
lots of ideas for grownups and for kids!
gifts under $25
here are some gift ideas for your white elephants, co-workers, neighbors — anyone you’re not trying to spend too much on but you still want to give them something they’ll love!
-
my favorite cozy christmas movies to watch a million times
this list is probably somewhat predictable, but i love love pretty much exclusively watching holiday movies in december, so i thought it was time for my personal list.
as much as i like a mildly cheesy one, i’m not super into the hallmark-y ones, i can only take so much cheese i guess! here is my current list but i do plan on adding to this as i watch and enjoy new ones (hopefully!!)
the holiday
(streaming on hulu and amazon)
i find jack black terribly annoying in this movie (so much so that he almost ruined it for me), but otherwise i love it!
the family stone
(streaming on hulu)
the coziest of all! i’ve watched it 50000000 times now.
holidate
(streaming on netflix)
definitely dirtier than most of the movies on the list, but actually sweet too and i thought their chemistry was good!
love hard
(streaming on netflix)
this one is actually funny and pretty sweet. my brother thought the musical scene was dumb, but i loved it!
something from tiffany’s
(streaming on netflix)
ok this might be my favorite new addition to the rotation!
zoey deutch is so charming and they have such good chemistry. i also love that she’s jewish because we don’t usually get to be in christmas movies!!
love actually
do i have problems with the movie? yes. but do i want to not watch it? no i’ll probably still watch it we only have so many high quality christmas romance movies !!
our little secret
(streaming on netflix)
ok this was surprisingly entertaining – was not expecting to enjoy it as much as i did lol.
round and round
(not seeing it streaming free anywhere ugh)
it’s rare we get a hanukkah romcom, especially one that’s actually pretty good!!! this is a fun groundhog day type movie and i think bryan greenberg is just so cute.
dash and lily
(streaming on netflix)
this one is a mini series that takes place on christmas – a teenage romcom series that i binged in one night and really loved. super cute!!!
while you were sleeping
(streaming on disney+)
is she a total freak? yes but i really love a young bill pullman.
happiest season
(streaming on hulu)
the first time i watched this i thought it was kind of dumb, but then i watched it again and was like you know what, i’ll take it!! haha. it’s cute enough to be on the list!
honorable mentions (aka holiday movies i like that i don’t find necessarily “cozy”)
scrooged
(streaming on hulu, prime and paramount+)
the christmas movie i watched most as a kid behind a christmas story. the best!
trading places
(streaming on prime and paramount+)
most people say coming to america is the best eddie murphy movie but i honestly think trading places is so much funnier.
why him?
(streaming on hulu and disney+)
lol my mom loved this movie and i thought it was a little stupid but i really love that my mom loves it, so it stays!!!
die hard
(streaming on hulu and tubi)
you can’t make a christmas movie list without die hard, can you?
obviously i left some out because i can’t go on forever, but i will add more movies as i watch or think of them, please let me know if there’s any that i should add!!
-
festive holiday cocktail ice cubes
if you’re hosting a holiday party, these gorgeous ice cubes are so much easier than making individual cocktails for your guests! you just freeze the ingredients and plop the cubes into your glass, add your alcohol and you have a totally fancy and festive cocktail!
i made a more cold weather alternative to an aperol spritz, but you could totally do this with any cocktail or alcohol you want.
festive holiday cocktail ice cubes
you can make these for any sort of cocktail of your choosing, it makes the process of bartending so much easier if you're hosting guests!Ingredients
- cranberries
- cinnamon sticks
- fresh rosemary
- star anise
- orange slices
- ginger beer or juice of your choice
- aperol
- prosecco
Instructions
- in your ice cube mold, stick your largest ingredients in first – orange slices/cinnamon sticks if you're using
- throw in your cranberries, star anise, rosemary sprigs if you're using
- pour in the ginger beer or juice and i added some sparkling water even though i know you can't really freeze it, but it waters it down!
- carefully freeze (ice cubes typically need 2-4 hours to freeze properly)
- when ready to serve, remove cube from the mold and add to your glass. pour the alcohol in, i did equal parts aperol and prosecco.
sources:
ice cube mold / champagne coupes / ribbon drink marker DIY / my dress / tablecloth
photos by marie buck
-
things i love from wayfair’s cyber monday sale
this post is sponsored by Wayfair
with all the sales everywhere in your face all weekend – i know it can be oooooverwhelming to say the least. Wayfair has so much amazing stuff on sale (up to 80% off and free shipping!!), so i thought it would be really helpful to put together one master list of great deals i’ve seen scouring their site, so you don’t have to!
i hope this post makes your cyber monday shopping a little easier (and more fun)!!!
click on the section you want to jump to
furniture + home
boucle upholstered bed
my new bed! and i am OBSESSED!
kitchen + dining
appliances
baby + kids
holiday decor
SO MANY GOOD THINGS ON SALE! i hope you found something you love.
-
black friday sales you should know about
sooo many sales happening, as i always say i know it’s overwhelming. i feel the same way, so i put together some of my favorites on sale to browse casually through ’em.
if i shop on black friday, i usually go through lists of things i’ve actually needed or just do my holiday gift shopping today. i reaaally want a wagon for the kids (and a new fridge but i’m gonna hold off on that)
frame tv
we all know the frame tv is $$$$ so the time to buy one is when they’re on sale! honestly i love mine so much and could never go back to a big black rectangle on the wall.
buy on samsung site
buy on amazon
merit
20% off sitewide
my favorite makeup ever! so many staples i use now – my favorites are: the minimalist stick (i use the linen color) and brush no.1, great skin moisturizer, and flush balm! i really love everything they make and appreciate that it has totally changed my non knowing how to wear makeup game.
pehr
30% off sitewide
one of my all time favorite kids shops – i love love their sweet clothing, but my most important staple from them is totally their sleep sacks! izzy has been sleeping in one most of her life. they’re so cozy and so beautiful.
eyebuydirect
50% off lenses and 30% off frames
my go-to for prescription glasses. i wear both eyeglasses and sunglasses from here and they have so many cute styles but also let you return if you don’t like them on! the ones i wear most these days are the moonglade
heather taylor home
30% off select items
the most gorgeous table linens that elevate even your fast food dinners!
madewell
50% off
some current favorites linked here
doen
up to 65% off
the most gorgeous dresses and blouses ever! they rarely have sales so now is the time to stock up! i’m so excited i finally snagged an anthia pointelle tee and a cilla tee
schoolhouse
20%-25% off everything, 30% off bedding
the cutest homewares! i pretty much want everything on the entire site.
lulu & georgia
up to 30% off sitewide
my go-to for furniture shopping! so many gorgeousssss things on sale. some faves linked here.
rugsusa
30% off sitewide
obsessed with so many styles they have right now!! faves linked here.
magnolia
25% off sitewide
obsessed with so many items and their prices are already super reasonable but when they’re on sale – what a steaaaal. i want that spoon rest and the pie dish is one of my favorite things! faves linked here.
amazon
so many favorites on sale!
my storefront is here!!! lots of good deals.
-
holiday gift guide : gifts under $25
here are some gift ideas for your white elephants, co-workers, neighbors — anyone you’re not trying to spend too much on but you still want to give them something they’ll love!
i found lots of inexpensive gifts that i still think are fun / useful / cute!
amazon
kitchenaid flex edge beater
for the cooks who own kitchenaid mixers, this attachment is so superior to the standard one without the rubber!
amazon
personal popcorn maker
because microwave popcorn is actually terrible for you! throw in a bag of kernels and you have a really sweet gift.
amazon
personal library kit – cookbook edition
for anyone who lends out their cookbooks, their own personal library kit! (and here’s a non cookbook version)
amazon
beaded ceramic bowl
just a cute little bowl for snacks. bonus points if you fill it with said snacks!
amazon
fluorescent colored pencils
gid has neon colored pencils and they are actually so fun to enhance your drawings.
amazon
graza finishing olive oil
i’ve gifted this drizzle oil many times before, it’s such a good finishing oil for pizzas, pastas, salads etc.
amazon
everiday sambal chili
everyone is all about the chili crunch these days, but sambal is such a good spicy cooking staple!
amazon
cherry disco ball light
this one i chose with coworkers in mind — wouldn’t this be a fun gift for their desk!!?
i hope these ideas helped you!!
