Tomorrow. It’s here. The SHOT OF BRANDI HOLIDAY GIFT A
DAY posting! Like a good elf, I’ve been researching, book marking and writing
posts for the entire month of December of gifts for a variety of friends,
family members and kids. I’m super excited about some of these items!
(photo from Shot of Brandi* Google analytics)
Anyways, here’s five links to keep you occupied today.
·
Um, wow. Hey 59 People that stumbled on my blog
looking for images of Mario Lemieux’s new house because of this past post! Surprise!
I don’t have any hockey scoop for you – just glitter, wine and crafts around
these parts. (And yes, I’m watching you
people. I have analytics on this blog, what, what!)
·
Having a bad
day? Check out Daily Odd
Compliment (thanks, sometimes reader Britta)
Happy Nail-vember Ladies (or men-who-like-manicures-that-shall-not-be-named)!
If seeing all of those nail shots on Pinterest wasn’t
enough – (you know, the ones that show a woman’s hand holding a bottle of nail
polish) - now there is a new trend of people celebrating all things nails in
November (aka Nail-vember!). Maybe it’s just a way for girls to celebrate
something other than Mo’vember OR it’s the new trend of mashing up works
(Friendsgiving and marketing campaigns that I’ll refuse to name). Regardless,
I’m jumping on this bandwagon and showing you my favorite nail items.
Disclaimer: I’ve probably had less than 10 or 15 manicures
in my life. I’m in no ways a nail expert, so this post is likely for the nail
novices – or those that just slap on some color on a weekly basis (if that).
(source)
·
Remember those Advent calendars that you had as
a kid? Well Ciate
stepped up that game with 24 days of mini polishes.
·
I always tend to find myself spending time in
the airport looking at my awful nails. So I typically end up purchasing one of these
nail files from The Body Shop. These things seriously last forever. I have
one at my desk from 2010.
·
I love myself a good Kate
Spade product and this nail set is no exception. I think it’s perfect for
what I call the mullet girl. Business (in the front) and likes to party (in the
back) – you get some good day/night shades.
·
For years I was a straight OPI girl, but now I’m
totally Essie. For me, OPI takes FOREVER to dry. Check out Essie here and a post that I wrote about fun ways to
use Essie as a party favor!
·
I’ve also been dabbling in luxury lacquer from
Deborah Lippmann. The fun names of these shades make for great gifts – “Bring
on the Bling” for the newly engaged gal, “Swagga
Like Us” for your fly friend, and the True
Blood set for the vamp obsessed.
·
In regards to keeping those hands super soft, I’m
partial to Bliss
products. They last forever and keep your hands silky smooth!
(source)
·
Yellowtail wine satisfies girls craving for
glitterly products by adding some sparkle to its Sweet Red Roo wine!
(source)
Variations of this Tattoo Stand have been floating around the internets
thanks to Pinterest. When I first laid eyes on this genius idea, I thought – I MUST
recreate this ASAP in a future party!
My mind immediately
went to a place like Oriental Trading to purchase faux tattoos, but then I stumbled
about Tattly.
Seriously –
this site is awesome. The tats are contemporary, stylish, cost-effective and
above all removable! Forget a face painter, I need to find an excuse to host a
party with a tattoo stand! Oh and that stand would be so easy to make out of a
cardboard box. A college secret – if you go to Wal-mart late at night when they
are re-stacking the shelves, sometimes they will give you some boxes before
they throw them away!
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Turkey,
stuffing, gravy (not for me), corn, pumpkin pie…aughhh the foods of
Thanksgiving!
There’s
a somewhat new trend out there called Friendsgiving – a pot luck among friends
to celebrate Thanksgiving.
Shot
of Brandi totally supports this concept. Yeah, making two turkeys can be a pain
in the butt, but two Thanksgiving feasts is awesome! And it’s a way to get
together with your friends before that hectic month that is December!
So I
sold you and you want to host a Friendsgiving, right? Here are some décor and
recipes you may want to incorporate!
Thankful
Wall – use brown packing paper to create a wall for people to write what
they are thankful for. Think of this as an offline Facebook wall!
Turkey
Shapes (for placecards) - I
also like the paper hat kit!
Glitter Banner (you can totally make this)
Turn
the party into an opportunity to do good by collecting cans or donations for a
local food bank!
Recipes
I don’t care who you vote for…just vote.
Also, I just wanted to reflect on where
I was four years ago.
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The Shiloh Grill
in Pittsburgh is quickly becoming one of my favorite spots in the city. They
have AMAZING lobster mac and cheese (and it’s still delish without the
lobster!), a super rad bacon night in which you can just get a basket of bacon,
a super sweet brunch that comes with a cocktail….and last, but certainly not
least, it’s like one block away from the Mt. Washington view of the city –
great for out of town guests!
Last
November, I visited the grill with sometimes reader Brady’s brother and his fiancé
Carli. On this trip, I ordered the Pumpkin Sangria. Let me tell you, this
liquid concoction was TASTY!
I
Googled the recipe, but found a similar one below to share with you all.
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Oh
and if you are in the Pittsburgh-area, after a rough fall…no, not season, I mean
straight up fall at work that involved me face planting it on to the floor, I decided
that I needed some Sangria tonight to help sooth my multiple rug burns. I discovered Max & Erma’s $8 pitches of
Sangria on Thursdays. Let me tell you – this deal is WORTH IT. We squeezed at
least 5, maybe 6 pint glasses out of that pitcher. To put things into perspective,
a normal glass of Sangria is $6. DEAL! (Thanks for the big straw, Critus – I think
he sensed I was having a rough day). Vampire eyes not included.
Yield:
6
servings
Ingredients
·
2 tablespoons sugar
·
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
·
2 tablespoons maple syrup
·
Six 4 to 5-inch long cinnamon
sticks, for garnish
·
6 pumpkin candies, for garnish, such
as Brach's
·
1 bottle white wine, chilled
·
3 cups mango peach juice blend or
tropical juice blend, chilled, such as V-8 Splash
·
1 cup pumpkin spice liqueur, chilled
Directions
·
In a small bowl, combine the sugar
and pumpkin pie spice and mix until well combined. Transfer to a saucer. Add
the maple syrup to a second saucer. Lightly dip the rims of 6 punch glasses
into the maple syrup. Then dip the rims of the glasses into the spiced sugar.
·
Insert the cinnamon sticks into the
bottom of each pumpkin candy and set aside.
·
In a pitcher, combine the wine,
juice and pumpkin spice liqueur. Stir and pour into the rimmed glasses. Garnish
with the pumpkin candy cinnamon sticks.
·
Cook's Note: If you cannot find
pumpkin spice liqueur, combine 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice with 1 cup brandy
in a container fitted with a lid. Shake vigorously and let sit for 1 day to
infuse into the brandy
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