In Take

These past couple weeks have been quite the whirlwind. Closing a show, working on a new one. Saying "hello" to old friends and saying "goodbye" just as quickly. It figures that it would take a nasty cold/flu combo to knock me out right as I was getting back in to the swing of my old routine. This holiday season I've been burning the candle at both ends so I was bound to fall off the horse at some point. Now I have time to catch up on blog content, marathon Slings and Arrows and hack up a lung today. Don't you wish you were so lucky? 

Out Take

Took an unintentional break for my trip back to a Ohio, and what a lovely 30 hours it was. I wish I had more time, but Mom and I are back in Chicago for a bit, and then my friend is flying in for New Year's! Most excellent. Thanks to everyone that made my trip hilariously wonderful. Not pictured: my friends hamming it up with my parents in a bar moments after I stepped off a plane. Priceless.

Warm and Snuggly

It might be the festive time a year, my drafty apartment, or just my inherent dorkiness, but I am falling in lurve with matching pajama sets. They're classic, warm and are guaranteed to make your Christmas look like a Norman Rockwell painting. Throw on an over sized robe and cushy slippers to bring the yuletide with style.

/ 1. Aerie Fuzzy Scuffs / 2. Gap Flannel PJ set / 3. J.crew Vintage Pajama Set  / 

/ 4. Aerie Lace Trim Robe / 5. Gillian O'Malley Flannel Coatset / 6. Gap Fleece Sherpa Lined Robe / 

/ 7. Gillian O'Malley Woven Pajama Set / 8. Hanes Premium Men's Knit Robe / 9. Target Leopard Slipper /

Sunday

Despite Chicago's insistence that it should be drizzly, hazy and all around gloomy I'm still in the holiday mood which makes, what? Eight weeks now? I got my little tree put together, the holiday show I'm working on will be going up this week, there's a staff holiday party and a decreed Ugly Christmas Sweater day that I am pumped for. I'm already making plans to bake cookies and knock out all of my Christmas shopping this week, and even better plans to see friends over the next couple of months. Chicago drizzlies can't knock a girl down when she's high on the love of the season...that's not a euphemism for something drug related.

Hope you're enjoying your Sunday!

-K.K.

Old Dress New Tricks

In high school I remember stealing moments in between school and the time Dad would come home to watch re-runs of Sex and the City and ogling over, what else? The styling. The clothes were great, but how everything was put together in a quirky fashion forward way made my seventeen year old self aspire to high fashion style on a writer's budget. The one thing that got under my skin is how they would wear these beautiful ensembles and then never again! Why pour all the funds in to something that gets a five minute debut and then disappears in to the bowels of Carry Bradshaw's tiny closet...or her stove turned sweater rack.

Please excuse that bottom right pose. I don't know what I was doing but my hair looks great!

But after moving in to my studio I began to unpack dress after dress that I wore once and hung back in my closet. I realized that it's difficult to wear the same dress twice, especially since facebook culture reminds everyone we're friends with that we've worn it already. Plus it's nice to show up in something fresh for a special occasion. But in keeping with my 24 Before 25 list I want to wear everything once. So this holiday season I'm going to try (try I said!) not to buy a new dress.


I don't want to make any promises here, some of this season's offerings are just too tempting. But I have some strategies to keep my paws off a new dress that will just end up sitting in my closet:

// 1. Update with a cute pair of tights / 2. Keep it fresh by trying a new beauty product / 

/ 3. Accessorize with new or different jewelry / 4. Step out in a festive pair of heels / 5. Top it off with a chic menswear inspired tux jacket / 6. Pick out a new hairstyle to give the seasoned dress some oomph! //

Let's see how long I last. I'll definitely post re-styles once I've worn them!

Mama I'm Coming Home

Friday night I called my Mom and asked what the possibility of me flying home for 48 hours was. She said they were great, especially for Christmas. Saturday during my lunch break I booked a plane ticket for right after the Sunday matinee of the Christmas show I'm working on, and now I'll be home for Christmas! We'll drive back to Chicago Christmas night so I can be back at work the day after, and then I'll get some quality time with Reid and Mom leading up to New Years. My fears of sitting alone in my apartment Christmas morning and shedding tears in to my oatmeal have all but vanished, and I'm super excited to see my family and get some Tim Horton's. How I miss Tim Horton's...and also my family.

Can't wait to see you C-bus, I'll be home for Christmas!

Deck the Halls

The complaints about the holidays coming earlier and earlier keep rolling in, and right off my back. Obviously since I was ready to listen to Christmas music in mid October. But think about it folks, if we start decorating for the holidays early then there's an extra month to enjoy your hard work making your dwelling look festive, three if you're like me and let some x-mas stuff slip by through January.

Here are a few understated ways to inject some holiday cheer in to your home without driving you nuts before December:

Greenery is always a nice touch, especially in winter where you start to become tree-deprived.

 

Stick to either red or green while decorating, that way the Christmas spirit isn't all up in your face.

 

Use good old fashioned paper snowflakes! You legitimately can leave these up all winter long.

 

These metallic starts are festive yet not over the top.

Add some glitter: cheery and stylish.

 

White lights put some warmth in to your space, I love the glow they create in the evenings.

Photos:

 1 / 2 / 3 / 4

Sunday

I have been fighting tooth and nail to prevent myself from listening to Christmas music all week long. I justify it by saying that at the very least it's Frank Sinatra or Bing Crosby, but I know in my heart of hearts that it is far too early for "sounds of the season". And yet, I find myself singing it around the apartment and craving a screening of White Christmas.

After fighting all night with different cough medicines and waking up to a less than warm apartment, I crawled under a blanket on the couch and let Pandora take care of me. I don't know if it's the joy of the season I'm looking forward to, being able to stay in and drink a hot toddy without guilt or wear my red rubber snow boots out and about, but I'm truly looking forward to Christmas this year, despite not being able to go home.

I hope everyone enjoys their Sunday! (Only 71 more days until Christmas!)

-K.K.

Post Christmas Sale-ing

I want to post some things that Mom scored at post-Christmas sales. We've never been a hardcore Black Friday shopping kind of family, but we decided it would be fun for Mom and me to go shopping on the Mag-Mile and the Loop when she came to visit. After getting some awesome stuff at low prices, I might have to make shopping after x-mas a tradition.

 I finally found a pair of red jeans. They also match the new addition to the apartment, my new vacuum! We were getting pretty overrun by dust bunnies so I am very glad to have it.

I've been on the hunt for a pleated skirt since this fall, but couldn't seem to find one the right length or a color that I liked; this one is perfect! Fourth, rust orange jeans (and the re-appearance of the Lebowski sweater). They look more brown in this picture, but I assure you they are a funky 70s shag carpet colored orange. They looked so darn cute and unique peeking out from under my long winter coat.

  

 Lastly, a Chicago local staple, a big chunky scarf. Were I to hang it on my neck it would drag the floor, and it's so thick it's impermeable to wind. I love it.

Did anyone else score some good stuff at the after Christmas sales?





I'm Baaaaack!

I could practically hear Steven Tyler screeching "I'm back in the saddle aga-e-ain! I'M BACK!" when I crossed state lines. Mom and I carted a whole other batch of my belongings to Chicago, only the true essentials mind you. My shoe collection has doubled and the bookshelves on the fireplace will make it look like I read too! Before I brought my small library it looked like Roommate was extremely well read and I was only literate in comedy and musical movies...this still might be true. And of course there were all the presents that had to come back with me too, Santa-Mom, Santa-Dad, and all my Santa-Relatives gifted me everything I wanted this year and more!

Exhibit A: My Blanket Sweater, A.K.A. The Lebowski Sweater. Perfect for curling up with a White Russian. Doesn't it tie the room together?

Exhibit B: The Warmest Jacket Ever! I had it on for two minutes indoors and was already sweating. And Chicago Local points for it covering my bum! Note the awesome ear warmer, courtesy of my "little" brother who I e-mailed with a link and he immediately bought it while he was still on the phone with me. Maybe not the most surprising but I am in love with how warm and stylish it is.

Exhibit C: Get out the scrap book, it's baby's first Chanel! I about died when I found this in my stocking Christmas morning. Every good mall trip for the past three years has involved me swinging by the perfume counter to spritz some Coco Chanel Mademoiselle and soon after demanding: "someone smell me! don't I smell purdy?" Now family and friends can smell me whenever I kindly command them to and it'll be a white musk-bergamot romp through a Parisian rose garden! (with some bourbon vanilla thrown in for good measure)

I'm sure I'll blog more of my favorite new things throughout the week. Mom is here until Saturday so getting pictures shouldn't be as hard as it normally is. Also more theatre-y things! The show I'm working on is going in to tech next week and I can't wait! Baby's First Chicago Theatre Show! Where's that scrap book?

The Merriest

Have a Merry Christmas!

I have one more day in sunny (snow free) Columbus, Ohio and Tuesday Mom and I will road trip it back to Chicago. Hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday!

Photo via

I'll Be Home

Preparing for the trip back to the mothership! I'm flying out tomorrow which means there's a limit to how much I can actually pack...meaning I can't just stuff odds and ends "I think I'll need" in to my car. I'll be driving back with Mom, so that means I don't have to leave room in my suitcase to bring Christmas presents back either, ah-ha-ha!

If you were curious, this is how I pack...

I used to get horribly stressed out about packing. Now I have a system (as you can clearly tell from the above picture)

1.) Pick a color scheme. That way everything matches and can be mixed around. My scheme this time was black, white, and tan with pops of red and green (and denim is a given). I usually pick a color scheme based off what I'll be doing while I'm there or one new piece in my wardrobe that I really want to wear.

2.) Pull items from your closet that fit the color scheme and where you'll be going.

3.) I list the kind of outfits I'll need (a formal outfit, travelling outfit, etc.) and put outfits together on a sheet of paper. Whatever items of clothing I don't use on the list go back in the closet.

4.) Packing make-up, accessories, and shoes is really easy after that. Pack make-up that compliments the clothes, and I always make sure I have a formal shoe (if I have a formal outfit), a flat, tennis shoes, and a pair of boots during the winter.

And this is what I end up with! If you're neurotic like I am the color scheme method of packing is awesome. If you're relaxed about packing then keep on trucking! You clearly have life figured out.

Can't wait to be awake and at the airport in less that twelve hours, you better be ready Columbus!

Chicago Style Weekend

My weekend in a cell phone photo tour:

First, sparked with some curiosity about the neighborhood and a little cabin fever, Roommate and I went to the beach on a blustery cold day. The beach is only about two blocks from where we live. I can see it from the el platform when I wait for the train, so it seemed worth exploring up close.





Can you see the Hancock Building? Pretty sweet.

It was fa-reezing! And like most things I see in Chicago I thought to myself: this will be way better when it's warm out. And by "most things" I mean going outdoors.

But the outdoors didn't stop us from from going on a hike later. Bound and determined to fulfill a noble quest, Roommate and I went bar hopping.

Four bars in one night to be exact. Thank you foursqaure for motivating me to leave the apartment on a Friday. The first two bars were just north of us next to the train, kind of little hole in the wall places. Once we committed to earning the badge, we found a really cute bar attached to a theater in Roger's Park. Louis Armstrong music, festive holiday decorations, reasonably priced beer...what's not to like? And on our fourth and final stop...

Giordano's! From what I understand of Chicagoans eating here is a pretty crucial step in becoming a true local. And like I said before, being a Chicagoan is 10% what I witness and about 90% what people tell me... more specifically what Tina Fey tells me. According to Misses Fey, I'll be going to Gio's East of Chicago next.





While it is described in above article as "a casserole in a bread bowl" I think it's more like a giant mozzarella stick with plum tomato sauce. The crust, which is normally my favorite part, was a little too bland and cracker-y. But wash it down with some Goose Island 312 and you feel like a legit local. I'm still longing for some deep dish turbo crust from Jet's Pizza. Word on the street is I can get Jet's here, but somehow it isn't the same.

Saturday I woke up to this...

It was somehow more magical than the first snow. The flakes were sticky and fluffy, and the ground was evenly coated. It put me in a much Christmas-ier mood. The rest of the day was spent shopping in the loop, more specifically at Christkindlemarket. It's a German Christmas pop-up festival that sells cuckoo clocks, hand blown glass, and tasty tasty smelling food. I say this because I was not willing to wait in in the super long lines. I'm sorry I didn't take more pictures but it was elbow to elbow people shuffling in circles looking at all the different arts and crafts. The rest of my x-mas shopping was done in Andersonville in their awesome boutiques.

After Roommate and I got back there was a holiday gathering with only neighbors in our building that don't have children. It was filled with mulled wine and watching Jackass 3D, the perfect holiday movie if you ask me. It's right up there with White Christmas.  

Today was a lovely rehearsal and blog writing session complete with apple slices, cheese, and sour patch kids. Yum! A super weekend.

Happy Sunday All!

Picture via

Christmas Cheer

It's begun! Chicago Winter took me by surprise this morning. I woke up and looked at my phone which was sporting little crystallized snow flakes. I rushed to the window and this is what I found...

Eeps!

It snuck up on me to say the least. Luckily the windows are taped, the heat is finally turned on, and we've already decorated for Christmas! I would like everyone to meet my Christmas tree, Albert!

Albert in all his dining table glory

Now, as expensive as Albert looks, he was actually quite the bargain from Target. He had many brothers in sisters in shiny red, sparkly purple, shimmery silver, and crisp white. But we found Albert sitting by his lonesome with his less than eye catching matte green pre-lit cousins. Albert's color? Roommate described it as "dirty silver". He has kind of a Silver and Gold theme going on, and we love him for it. And since the ornament selection was not so great, Albert is decorated with things we found around the apartment. Earrings, feather hair clips, and beer bottle caps attached to the tree with scotch tape and thread. I am one proud mama.

From his good side

Roommate inadvertently picked out the tree topper when he spotted this peacock. He has one eye and his name is Azuleanno.

 

And Azuleanno matches the other new addition to the dining space, the blue twinkle lights.


All in all, the Macaque's Igloo is looking pretty spiffy for the holidays. And now that it's stuck in my head...