A Costume Collection - Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

As you might have guessed from my themed birthday party, I love costumes and dressing up! I especially love trying to think of creative things I can make on my own, rather than buying pre-made costumes. I thought it would be fun to take a look back on some of the costumes I've worn in the past. Since it was pre-blogging, you'll have to excuse the poor picture quality. Sadly, I don't have any pictures of some of my favorite costumes. In 2006 I did Moulin Rouge with my college roommates, in 2007 I was a Playboy Bunny and in 2008 I was a magician, complete with a top hat and little white bunny rabbit!

Halloween 2009

Peacock
My mom helped me sew peacock feathers onto a turquoise corset, I wore it with a black tutu, and made a mask to go with it. (I don't have a picture of the mask, you can see I'm holding it in the picture above).

2010

Oktoberfest
This wasn't actually Halloween, it was my friends birthday in early October and she threw a Oktoberfest theme party. So naturally, we all went all out with costumes!

 2010

Breakfast at Tiffany's
This was the beginning of my San Francisco Halloween tradition, when I knew I wanted to live here but hadn't moved yet. We dressed up on Friday and Saturday for various party's in the city. 

2010

Peacock 2.0
This was my second year as a peacock, but I mixed it up a bit. I borrowed the tail from a friend, who glued peacock feathers to a paper fan (genius). I then covered the back of the fan in black feathers, so it was more full. I wore it with a black corset, a tutu and tights.

2011

Black Swan
I pinned feathers to the side of my black corset (that I've now used for 3 different costumes) and my friend did my drastic eye makeup. I also wore a black tutu with feathers attached to the top, white tights and ballet flats. 

  2010

1920's Flapper
This was one of the only store bought costumes I've worn. It was a simple black flapper dress that came with pearls and a feather headband. I wore it with black gloves and tights. 

2012

We were too worried about watching the Giants win the world series to dress up!

It's fun to look back and see all of these pictures in one place! So many fun memories with my friends here in San Francisco.

It sounds like people have mixed feelings about Halloween. Do you like dressing up?

These Boots Were Made For Walkin'

I mentioned my struggle to find a pair of cute, brown riding boots. I've been on the hunt for years but always seemed to strike out. It was like Cinderella's slipper; too tight, too expensive, wrong color. Nothing was quite right (that sounds more like Goldie Locks). Most of my troubles seemed to stem from my chunky calves. It seemed like every pair I tried were just a smidgen short of zipping up all of the way. So frustrating, let me tell you!

Then I thought I had found the perfect solution. Nordstrom offered the Sam Edelman, 'Penny' boots in a wide calf, and they were affordable too! So of course, I ordered them right away.  Sadly, when they arrived, they were too big. Right after I zipped them up, the boot shaft would slide down and looked sloppy. So back to Nordstrom I went. This time, I tried on another pair I had seen online, which I liked and actually fit me. But I didn't love the color in person, and preferred the overall look of the Penny boot. So I asked the helpful sales lady if she thought they could stretch the Penny boots enough for the regular size to zip up. And to my surprise, she thought they could! To say I was happy was an understatement! At their suggestion, I left my new boots at Nordstrom for a week to be stretched. (Some people may only need a day or two, but I had about an inch to go before they zipped all the way). I was thrilled when I went to pick them up, now they fit perfectly! Once again, Nordstrom for the win! I love that place!

Hopefully this little bit of advice will be helpful to those ladies who also struggle finding boots that fit!

I wore them to run errands with Andrew on Sunday and break them in a bit. I love them! I know I'll get a ton of use out of them, riding boots are a closet staple living in San Francisco!

*********

When we were out and about on Sunday, we stopped at Patagonia to enter a contest they have going on right now. They take your picture wearing Patagonia gear with a chalkboard that says why you love their products and how long you've been a fan. The prize is $500!! I hope one of us wins!

Here are the pictures of us, they're supposed to post them on the San Francisco Store's Instagram account, but I haven't seen them yet :(

Theresa                                                                                               Andrew
I love my Patagonia gear:                                                                  I love my Patagonia gear: 
Because I was born into a Patagonia loving family!                                            Built for Funhogging                      
I've Been a #patagoniafansince                                                           I've Been a #patagoniafansince
                                 Birth (1985)                                                                                                2008                                    

"T" Party

My version of  a Toga costume

Last Friday, my sweet friends planned a birthday party for me, complete with a Halloween inspired costume theme! We all "Dressed to a T" and did a little pub crawl in North Beach! It was so much fun, I couldn't believe that all my friends stuck with the "T" theme! I feel so lucky to have so many wonderful friends here in the city that came out to celebrate with me! 

Some of our friends from college were even able to join the fun. Thankfully, a lot of us still live in the Bay Area, so our friends Danny, Rich and Shannon all came into the city for the night! A group of us met early at our house to have pizza and cocktails before heading to North Beach. It was fun to get the party started a bit early. The best part was waiting for everyone to arrive and see what they dressed up as. 

Fun invitation they my friends made! 

Andrew and I had so much fun putting our costumes together. We had been throwing around ideas, but nothing was set in stone. So a couple weeks ago, we decided to spend our Sunday on the hunt for costume supplies. We figured, what better place to look than Haight Street? There are tons of vintage and thrift shops along Haight, so we knew we were bound to find something. I had an idea in mind, but it would also work for Andrew if we didn't find something else for him. I ended up finding a Toga costume at the first Goodwill store we went to, for only $8! It was nothing special, but I knew with a trip to the craft store I could spruce it up a bit. 

Since I found my costume right away, we spent the remainder of our time searching for Andrew. It was actually such a fun day. Trying on random things and trying to think of something clever for him to dress up as. We decided to stick with my original idea, the Tapatio Guy! We found the perfect jacket for less than $10, and were able to borrow a sombrero from a friend! All that was left to do was make the "Salsa Picante" sign and buy a red scarf. I had so much fun painting his sign, I was way more into his costume than mine.

The toga costume I started with was a little was the typical, cheap costume shop version. It had a funky leather plastic buckle on the shoulder and weird gold ropes draped across it. After a quick trip to Joanns, I was able to spruce it up a bit. I made clips of gold leaves using gold poinsettia flowers in the holiday section. I attached one at the shoulder and another waist so the dress was more flattering. I also found a tutorial on YouTube that gave me the idea to use gold leaf on my eyes and shoulder. I just used eyelash glue and tweezers to apply it. I loved the way it looked, but warning, it took forever to get off! With a few loose curls and a gold headband, my costume was ready! It was probably the easiest costume I've ever thrown together! 

Tapatio & Toga
Andrew had the best costume of the night!

Tim Tebow and his Trainer

Troll // Texas Rangers // Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum 

College Roommates! I love my Tweedle Dee!

Football Theme Costumes
Trainer // Tim Tebow // Bears Coach: Marc Trestman

The best we could do for a group shot, poor Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee got cut off!

Here is a glimpse at our night via Instagram #tparty

I had the best night! Thank you to my amazing friends who all came and dressed up! You all made my night so special and fun!!

I didn't get a picture of everyone, but these were the various "T" costumes of the night:

 Trashy // Take-Out // Timberlake, Justin // Tomb Raider // Table Tennis Player // Twiggy // TRUMP // Troll // Toga // Tapatio // Texas Rangers // Trojan // Tim Tebow // Trainer // Trestman, Marc // Tom Selleck // Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum // Tiger //

And another friend dressed up as our friend whose last name has two "T's" 

At brunch on Saturday we voted that Andrew had the best costume. But there were so many good ones! I loved Erica's troll hair and belly gem! Everyone looked awesome! 

Apple Bread

Good afternoon! Happy Monday!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Mine was so nice, it started off with a bang for my birthday celebration on Friday night! If you follow me on Instagram, you got a sneak peek! But stayed tuned tomorrow for the full report!

Yesterday we woke up to the sound of fog horns. It was a cool and windy San Francisco day, which put me in the mood to cook! I spent the afternoon in the kitchen listening to music as I cooked and baked to my hearts content. I made Apple Bread for a sweet fall treat using the apples from our backyard. I also made a batch of my favorite, Leek and Fennel Soup.

Today I wanted share with you the recipe for Apple Bread. Even though I'd say it's more of a cake with all that sugar! I had been wanting to use up some of the apples I picked from our apple trees last week, and this was the perfect recipe. I had everything I needed at the house already, so I was able to throw it together in no time. I was inspired by this recipe, and made a few slight modifications.

Ingredients: 
1/2 cup light sour cream
3/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
3 eggs
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups shredded apple
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda

For Topping:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/3 cup Old Fashioned Oats (I used quick oats because that's what I had on hand)


Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- Grease and flour 2 loaf pans (I only have one so I used a square Pirex dish for the other, it worked fine)
- In a large bowl, mix sour cream, sugar, applesauce, eggs, spices and apples
- In a separate bowl, combine flour and baking soda
- Add dry ingredients to wet mixture, stir until combined
- Divide evenly between the two pans
- Sprinkle with topping mixture
- Bake 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. (the square Pirex dish I used was done in about 40 since it's shallow).


If you're in the market for an apple bread recipe, this one is quick and easy. And you most likely have all of the ingredients already in your pantry. It would be perfect if you're hosting an afternoon tea (good for Playgroup, Mom) or to serve as dessert. Although, like I mentioned, it was a bit sweet. I think next time I'll leave out a bit of sugar, 2 cups seems a little excessive. So I'll keep you posted on how it tastes with less sugar.

It was fun checking an item off my Fall To Do List! I loved spending the afternoon listening to my Pandora mix of Frank Sinatra, Michael Bublé, & Van Morrison in the kitchen, I guess I really am getting old!

Seeing Stripes

 sweater: H&M // jeans: Old Navy // booties: Hautelook // sunglasses: Nordstrom

Happy Friday!! A few weeks ago when I was home for the weekend, my sister snapped these pictures for me after our family breakfast date.

What I love about dressing for fall, is you can just throw on jeans and a sweater and still feel put together. This was the perfect outfit for walking around town taking photos and running errands. I was comfortable, but still felt cute.

If you follow me on twitter, you may remember when I posted that H&M was having a sweater sale, buy one get one FREE! Well I was just there yesterday, and the sale is still going on, so hurry up! I wish I would have taken a photo of the back of this sweater, there is a zipper detail that I love. Those boots were my first purchase from Hautelook, the brand is Bucco, which I had never heard of, but they were only $39 so I couldn't pass it up. I was worried about investing in a pair of booties since I wasn't sure if I could rock the trend, but I actually have worn these a ton already. They seem to go with everything and are really comfortable to boot (see what I did there)?

I hope you all have a great weekend! I can't believe it's already the last weekend of October. Where did this month go? I'm really excited because tonight my friends have planned a birthday party for me here in the city, it's going to be a blast! I'll share all the details next week!

Patagonia Love

I was born into a Patagonia loving family. My friends joke that I'm a bit obsessed, and I'm not ashamed. Not only do they have well made and functional products, the company is dedicated to protecting the environment. They contribute at least 1% of profits to environmental groups each year, use recycled materials to make many of their products, and more.  Here is a glimpse into the history of the Patagonia and what they stand for.

As you may know, my parents are very active. I spent my childhood camping, climbing and hiking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Because of my parents (especially my Dad) love of rock climbing, he was a Patagonia fan from inception. My Dad's love of the outdoors rubbed off on me, as did his love for Patagonia, or "Patagucci" as many affectionately call it.

And now, Andrew has joined the fun, and loves Patagonia possibly even more than I do. We have a goal to go to every Patagonia store together, just for fun. His favorite so far is the Cardiff store, because they carry a lot of the surfing products. While I love the San Francisco store, but also have found some incredible buys at the Reno Outlet location.

To many, it's just another mountaineering brand, no different from any other. But to me, I can't help but smile when I put on one of my favorite jackets, and remember a time I wore it on hiking up Mt. Whitney, or on top of Lembert Dome. There's a history there, which I think is what makes the company special. There is a common mindset among Patagonia customers, that has created a unique little community.

So just for fun today, I thought I'd share some of Andrew and my favorite items of Patagonia gear. Perfect for a Christmas wishlist, or to have on hand for last minute trips to Tahoe this winter. You can never have too many jackets! (That's my Dad's philosophy that I follow strictly).

These are some of my favorite items in my closet. I am always cold, so I could not live without these jackets. I wear them all.the.time. 

1. The R1 Pullover: Mine is a few years old, but it's similar. I love this thing, it's perfect when you don't need too much warmth. And it's cozy, sometimes I just wear it around the house. 
2. Down Sweater Hoodie: This is THE best jacket. I got it last year for Christmas and I bet I've worn it at least 200 times. In San Francisco, you can count on the cool, foggy weather and Andrew and I seem to live in a wind tunnel where it's 10 degrees colder than other areas of the city. You can find us wearing our downs most evenings when we take Louis on a walk.
3. Synchilla Zip Up:  My Synchilla is about 14 years old, and they no longer make the same one. But I love it. It was one of the first Patagonia Jackets I picked out myself, and I still wear it all the time. It's a testimate to the quality of their products, it looks brand new. 
4. Down Sweater Vest: This is probably my most-worn Patagonia item. It's cute, and fits great, and will keep you very warm. It's been on countless hiking and camping trips, as well as weekend walks around San Francisco. 
5. Sadly, they no longer make one of my most favorite pieces. It's a black, fitted, full zip that is perfect to throw on over my gym clothes. I thought I lost it when I moved to San Francisco (I may or may not have overreacted slightly), thankfully I found it. But they should really make them again. It's a thick, spandex-type material that is perfect for runs or just added warmth heading to and from the gym.  

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6

These are Andrew's most worn Patagonia items!

And some of the things currently on my wish list! Lucky for me, I've collected quite a few items over the years, and I don't really need anything else. But I wouldn't mind one of their new plaid flannels or a cozy pullover jacket like this. Because like I said, you can never have too many jackets! 

Andrew's wish list is a bit longer. He's trying to make up for lost time! 

And here's a Patagonia theme #TBT for you....

Patagonia Dad and Daughters
Wish we still had this jacket for Phillip to wear. It had a little thermometer on the zipper! 

Doing my part to keep the Yosemite Valley floor clean

So there you have it, my love for Patagonia is exposed!