MUSTARD SWEATER- LEATHER SKIRT - MY THANKSGIVING OUTFIT

Hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful Friendsgiving at our home.  At this time of the year, I wanted to make an extra effort, in thanking all of you, who have supported my blog, over the last 10 years. Yes, this blog just turned a decade old. I couldn't have done it alone. I continued to write when I was happy, I continued to write when I was devastated. All of you as my readers continued to read. Together we just completed 10 beautiful years. This year is also the year when my marriage had completed ten years.  But this is also the year when my husband was detected with an aggressive form of cancer. And this is also the year when he beat Cancer. So it has surely been a year of milestones.

Who is ready to talk about some Fashion in this new post. Yes, I know, outfit posts have been less this year, as my favorite photographer was incapacitated. But now I have a brand new post, for all of you. My Thanksgiving outfit. An I had mentioned earlier, we host Friendsgiving at our home, every year. I always say that friends are the family we choose. And since my family is away oceans apart, friends mean so much more. We are so thankful for all of our friends in our life and all that they do for us.

Since I am the hostess, I try to pick out outfits that are comfy yet dressy. Rather than buying new clothes, I decided to shop my closet. I had picked out this beautiful Mustard Sweater, a few years back. And I had always wanted to feature it in an outfit post,and never did. So finally I decided, I had to feature it, as I was bringing it out of hibernation for Friendsgiving. Mustard has been on trend for some time now and is still going strong. I am sure you'll remember my Mustard Dress post from a  few years back, which I had worn for one of the nights for KCFW. Mustard is one of those colors, which is a fall staple, in my books.

I decided to pair it with a Leather Midi Pencil Skirt. This skirt is one of my investment items, as I can always style it for Fall-Winter, and it is always a good idea. I always believe in investing in some wardrobe staples, and you can pick pout budget-friendly items for super trendy pieces. The slouchy sweater and the fitted leather skirt are a perfect balance of proportion.

For accessories, I decided to go with Pearls. Not something, I usually do right. An old friend of mine, and a fellow blogger babe, back in India, had been posting about these fabulous Pearl Hoops which she had picked up from H&M. So I took the cue and the next time, I was at the mall, I picked something similar. Thank you Rebecca - of Project Style for the recommendation. Pearl is another element that is super trendy now, and you can find some great options everywhere. If you didn't want to do pearl earrings, you could also opt for pearl clips. Hair accessories like barrettes are really having a moment.

For shoes, it was Leopard Pumps. I pulled the leopard theme further in my cute graphic purse. Warmer themes galore in this outfit and I love it. If you enjoyed my outfit, then I will line up some similar picks for you to browse through or maybe even shop. Thank you once again for supporting me in my blogging journey.

SHOP MY OUTFIT :

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MY MINIMALSTIC FALL DECOR - THANKSGIVING & HALLOWEEN

Its almost Thanksgiving, and I finally managed to get some photos of our fall decor at home. As many of you know, my husband has been battling cancer since April, so the whole project od decorating or even photographing it might have got a tad delayed. Coz in a week or so, all of this will change into all things Christmas. Do you decorate your home for the holidays? I am what can be called a minimalistic decorator, as I just focus on our main living area. I like to add accents, which we can add in, to complement our existing scheme. We have an open-concept floor plan. Our design style for our home can be described as a blend of farmhouse-industrial. 

My Fall decor is minimalistic, as I had earlier mentioned, and a blend of Halloween and Thanksgiving. Halloween is big for our six-year-old, as its one of the highly awaited holidays for her. And Thanksgiving is big for us, as we host a Friendsgiving dinner at our place, every year. 

When it comes to the decor pieces, I have tried to stick to the warmer tones, indoors. The traditional Fall colors, of oranges, reds, and greens are scattered around our main living space. Pumpkins in various sizes, and materials and textures. From glass pumpkins to grassy pumpkins, from velvet pumpkins to cotton pumpkins, we have it all. I changed up the color scheme for our front door and opted for cooler tones. The bright and moody magenta velvet pumpkin on my wreath is a showstopper. The reason was that our front door is bright yellow. So I needed cool tones to balance out the warm tones of the front door. 

I do have a few signs with cute messages, spread across my house. So I wanted to bring in that element, in my Fall decor as well. I added a Thanksgiving-themed graphic sign as the anchor piece in my mantle decor for Fall. 

I have used a few kinds of garlands on the mantle and on our dining space hutch - from fall leaves to white and green pumpkins on a vine. They add that touch of Fall to our existing decor. I have a DIY centerpiece for our center table: a few pine cones foraged in our neighborhood, a beautiful candle which was a gift from one of our friends, and a wooden charcuterie board. 

I love throws, and always love adding to the collection. I added a plush brown throw and crocheted white throw, to tie in our cushions. I like changing up the cushion covers, with the seasons. So for Fall, I added in warm yellows, and deep greens, as part of the living room decor. They are a perfect contrast to our cool-toned couches, and the animal hide rugs on the floor. I have two cowhide rugs, overlapping each other on our warm-toned hardwood floor. The green and yellow cushions also tie with our emerald green velvet ottomans. 

I have replaced a few times I had as part of our Halloween decor and switched them up with more Fall-themed accent pieces. For instance, some fresh flowers, from one of my friends, seemed to be the perfect fit for our kitchen table. For Haloween, as you can see above, it had a plush witch and a craft pumpkin done by our six-year-old. 

I hope you liked this small tour of our Fall decor at home! Stay tuned for some more festive decorating posts, coming up soon on the blog. And do you most stores have Fall decor on major discounts, like HomeGoods, Michaels, At Home. So if you are still waiting to decorate your home for Thanksgiving, you might just snag some cute pieces at a great price. 

SHOP LAST MINUTE  THANKSGIVING DECOR : 

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STRANG HALL - A CHEF-COLLECTIVE COMING UP IN OVERLAND PARK

Calling all local foodies! Not one, not two, but six  Chef-driven restaurants are coming to town. Yes, you heard that right! Add a coffee shop and a bar to the mix. Strang Hall is a chef collective under one roof, which will be opening its doors soon. Downtown Overland Park, has been undergoing a  major facelift, and Strang Hall might just be the star of the new block. I can't tell you excited that makes me as I am forever looking for great dining options in the southern part of the KC metro. If you were thinking fo Strang Hall to be just another food hall, then you are mistaken. As its much more than that. 13,00 square feet of fine dining, from six different chefs.Tim Barton, the founder of Strang Hall, seeks to create a unique culinary experience by partnering with local chefs. A series of media events and the narrative of Strang Hall was unveiled, along with some exclusive tasting sessions.  

It is hard to pick favorites, but let's start with Chef Remy Ayesh. I love me some tacos, any day of the week. Chef Ayesh's restaurant will be called Nida, which means Nest in Spanish. Why did I start my article with Chef Ayesh, well, both of us went to KU Journalism School. She returned to her culinary roots to follow her passion. After holding prestigious positions in New York, Chicago, and Kansas City, she will be packing a flavor punch in a tortilla. 

From Spanish-Lebanese flavors to something closer to home. Chef Anourom Thomson will be opening Anousone(A-New-Sone). Chef Thomson will be serving comfort food with a Southeast Asian flair. While I have eaten my way across quite a bit of Asia, I must add that it was my first introduction to Laotian cuisine.

Chef Chad Tilman's Italian-inspired Norcini shall be offering craft sandwiches and both red and white pizzas. Chef Tilman is well known for inspiring foodies on how to eat local. From being a skilled butcher for over twenty years to being a forager of wild mushrooms, Tilman's culinary journey is fascinating for any foodie.

ChefMark Dandurand shall be opening Fond -which seeks to serve familiar dishes by injecting exciting flavors to create something wholly new. From butcher shop fare to vegan plates, Chef Dandurand has quite a few culinary surprises up his sleeve.

Chef Jon Ponzer brings an East Asian flair to a fried chicken concept, at his restaurant - Basabasa. A fried chicken sandwhich with spicy Kimchi or a close cousin of the  Japanese chicken sando. As an Asian foodie myself,  I can tell you that Asian fusion with fried chicken, seems like quite a culinary match made in heaven.

Last but not least, is Chef Erin Bassett's restaurant Solstice, which higlights seasonal produce and her passion for healthy food. Chef Bassett seeks to have a menu that uses the freshest of produce sourced from local farmers, featuring soups, sandwiches and seasonal salads. 

So which Chef's creation will you be interested in sampling first? Strang Hall shall be opening its doors to the public in December. Bon Appetit !


Thank you Nam Cu for photographing me at the preview events. 

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