Notes 01.

Holiday reading begins, snapshots from Thanksgiving, and tracking Black Friday purchases like it's my job

Welcome to Notes, my biweekly round-up of the books on my nightstand, the outfits I’m styling, musings from my journal, and snippets of my adventures around the city.

Grab your beverage of choice and get cozy as you read through this first edition of my biweekly round-up!

Holiday reading season is in full swing for me! I read my first two holiday books towards the end of November and I’m keeping it going into December.

I’ll Be Gone for Christmas by Georgia K. Boone

When I saw this holiday romance written by a Black author, I had to pick it up! If you love the movie, The Holiday, then this just might be the book for you. Clover and Bee, our two main characters, need a break from their lives. They decide to swap houses for the holiday season, with Bee heading to cozy small town in Ohio, and Clover spreading her wings in the city of San Francisco. Add in some sapphic romance and a character dealing with grief, and you’ve got a very enjoyable holiday romance with some emotional depth. I thought this was such a cozy read and it was the perfect way to kick off holiday reading season.

Most Wonderful by Georgia Clark

I’m heading to the Catskills this weekend for a reading retreat at Scribner’s Lodge and I couldn’t be more excited!!! MOST WONDERFUL was already on my TBR and then it was selected as the featured book for the retreat, which was too perfect. It’s a queer holiday rom-com featuring three siblings (which means triple the romance!). They’re all at a bit of a crossroads in their lives and decide to retreat to their famous mother’s house in the Catskills for the month of December while they figure things out. I absolutely loved this one! It’s unapologetically queer, full of boisterous and cozy holiday vibes, and I loved the sibling dynamics. I cannot wait to take this book with me to the Catskills this weekend and discuss it with the other retreat attendees!

I never go to black tie events and then somehow I had two of them in November?! No complaints at all from me because I love an excuse to dress up and both events were so much fun!

I reactivated my Rent the Runway subscription specifically for these events (get 40% off your first month if you want to try it out!). I rented this gown from Dress the Population for the NYPL Young Lions Benefit Party. The New York Public Library is an iconic location for a party and I truly felt like I was on the set of Gossip Girl amongst all the chic attendees.

Later in the month, I wore this beautiful ML Monique Lhuillier gown to the National Book Awards, which many people refer to the Oscars of the book world. The dress had pockets and I could twirl in it, so 10/10 from me.

I’ve also been doing a bit of shopping during the Black Friday sales. I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect travel outfit and I’m excited to try out this CashSoft set from Gap (top and pants). I will report back!

Although my birthday was a few weeks ago, I just got around to doing my birthday spread (yes, I’m behind on my journal, lol). Even though my birthday didn’t exactly go as planned (I was at home sick on the couch), I still managed to have a nice day. I was excited to work on this spread because I’d collected some fun “junk” from the flowers my husband bought for me and from the slice of cake I ordered from my fave, Little Cupcake Bakeshop.

I went with a pink color scheme and I think it turned out pretty cute! I will say the left side wasn’t exactly what I’d envisioned, but c’est la vie! Even when I don’t love the final result, I still enjoy the process of making the spread.

I’ve also done some Black Friday stationery shopping at Rifle Paper Co. and some small businesses (including Sarica Studio, Lydia Southgate, and Nany Craft Shop). I cannot WAIT for all of my new stationery goodies to arrive and there just might be a stationery haul when they do!

Did you all have a good Thanksgiving? We had a great one! It was just me and my husband this year, but as per tradition, we still cooked up a storm.

I have some tried-and-true favorite recipes that I like to make each year (including these cumin lime roasted carrots). I also like to try one or two new recipes every year. This year I made Rosemary Garlic Focaccia Muffins and they turned out so good! Fresh bread is simply the best. I’ve made focaccia once before and it’s fairly easy, just somewhat time-consuming since the whole process takes place over the course of two days. Definitely worth it though!

Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this post! I’ll see you back here on Friday to chat through all the books I read in November 📚