Lifestyle Archives • Every Day Dress by Rebecca Collins

Recent Trip to NYC

After several years of saying no to work travel, I finally up and did it.

January Happenings

I’m really not sure where the time has gone, yet days like these are unforgettable.

Love, Wear, Repeat

I’m longing for longer days. In the meantime I’m leaning into the dark, moody light and wearing my good things as often as possible.

First Wednesday

Nothing unusual, and no resolutions. Wishing you all a promising New Year.

Keep on Going

With the high chair finally pulled up to the table after six days of anticipation, we were all looking forward to being together.

We are on day five of the Blizzard of ’22, and it feels like we’ve never left holiday lockdown. Last year we were all tucked in with Covid; this, we’re homebound with unplowed streets and driveways, a city-wide driving ban, and never-ending snow falling.

I’ve been thinking a lot about what to write and share on social media, particularly during hard and scary times, and what I realize now is that there is always a hard or life-threatening time going on somewhere and that I might as well write.

If I waited until the coast was always clear, I would never write or share, so here I am. And not to minimize or be unaware of what goes on around me in the world, if I want to bring it back to the raison d’être for my site here, I will have to say, wear the dress.

*I could only leave the whipped cream outside for 3 minutes or it would have frozen.*

*I made two vegetarian lasagnas for Christmas Eve.*

*Christmas Eve table. We like to plate the salad in the kitchen.*

*Here is the spinach artichoke lasagna with an Alaskin King Crab leg, our annual tradition.*

*Scratch Red Velvet Cake for dessert. I get most of my recipes from the New York Times Cooking App, and like to most use those that have 5 stars.*

*Christmas Ever with my two youngest. We’ve been living in this pj’s yet I make the effort to get dressed every day, even though going nowhere.*

*Christmas morning table. Silver sequin tablecloth, $50, from Amazon.*

*Ham and eggs, alwasy a hit. I’ve been in the kitchen forever. 🙂*

*Christmas dinner is most always an easy tenderloin, mashed potatoes, and green beans.*

*A classic New York Cheesecake (I made it the day before) with a raspberry coulis.*

Here is Bill’s Christmas cracker, a paper tree tied on top of a red truck. We’ve been moving them aroud the house and using them only as decoration so far as Ethan, Lindsey, and Rory are still snowed out of Buffalo. We are waiting for all of us to be togetther before we pop them.

*Last night it was many hands on deck as we used the Christmas ham and frozen peas to make a simple yet delicious pasta dinner.*

*Plating in the kitchem, teaching my girls how to leave the rim of the plate clean and to twirl the noodles with tthe tongs.*

*For this dinner I wore blue leather pants, black turtleneck bodysuit, and shearling slingbacks.*

*Last night’s dinner. We use everything in the fridge. This morning I walked to the market with a backpack to get eggs and butter.*

Take every opportunity to show up for yourself and those in your world as your best. Use your good china, put a cloth on the table, make each meal a celebration, always make room for another guest or two, put on some lipstick if that’s your look, and wear the dress or whatever it is that you might be keeping for good. Good is what’s going on now.

*The last time we were out and about, Thursday, December 22nd. I wore the dress. 🙂*

Easy Holiday Tablescape Ideas

*Ethan sampling the Hors Doeuvre samplings before the guests arrive.*

Happy first day of December, and by the way, how did we get here?

My head is stirring; this is the month of no rest—Jingle jingle.

Caroline, Sean, and Grands were in town last week, and we had three parties spaced out over seven days.

Coupled with the first big snowstorm of the season and no bread or fresh flowers at the market for a spell, I had to get creative with the decor.

*The calm before the party storms. I wanted to rent chairs so they would match; my husband drew the line on that, no rentals for family parties. We did need two high chairs and a booster seat. 🙂*

*Evergreen garland, clementines, silver sequin tablecloth, silver candlesticks.*

Sunday evening, I served a delicious Boeuf Bourguignon for fourteen, intertwining an evergreen garland down the length of the table and peppering it with clementines. The silver candlesticks were hauled up from my office and given a quick shine before filling them with used tapers. The silver sequin tablecloth was purchased on Amazon for $50 and added instant bling, and beef stew with red wine sauce spills can do no harm. A quick turn in the laundry machine on cold, hang to dry, and good to go for the next fete. The dry cleaning turnaround time for the formal white linen slows me down.

*White linen cloth, orange napkins, roses, orange clementines, glitter place cards*.

The white linen came out for giving thanks on Thursday, and the evergreen garland went back outdoors, waiting to be hung by the family entry. Peyton and Booie made the most adorable place cards, generously glittering BOTH sides.

*Lindsey made the festive ba*lloon garland.

We celebrated Booie’s 30th birthday on Saturday with cocktails, food, a rousing game of Trivia, and a decadent Red Velvet Cake. I brought the silver sequins back for round two, adding a pair of fun Bistro tables. Lindsey made a festive balloon garland like the icing on a good cake, and we all partied the night away.

These little party tricks are easy, relatively affordable, and show your guests that you care. Bonus points when your tablescape is edible; the clementines were enjoyed by young and old alike.