If I had a Christmas stocking...

O&Co. Organic Savon de Marseille The creamiest bar of soap I've ever used!




Lululemon Braided Headband My hair is always in my face during Soul.




Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour in Dragon I've yet to see it in person, but I'm already convinced that this is going to be the perfect red.




Yves Saint Laurent Volupte Sheer Candy Glossy Balm I go NOWHERE without this. I'll take an extra Juicy Grapefruit, please!




Victoria's Secret Lacie Thongs Nothin' better.


What do you want in yours?

Katie Diamond Isla Necklace Giveaway!

Over the summer, I discovered Katie Diamond jewelry and it was love at first sight. I got to chatting with their head of PR and we've been pals ever since. She and the rest of the team at Katie Diamond has been so incredibly kind as to host a giveaway for my readers!



One lucky winner will receive the Isla necklace in the color of their choice! I'll tell ya, I wish I could enter this one! That thing is stunning!

To enter, please leave a comment on this entry telling me which color you'd choose. I know - not an easy decision!

For an extra entry, please send me a screenshot of yourself liking Katie Diamond Jewelry on Facebook.

I will draw a winner on Monday, December 5.

Good luck!

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is not my favorite holiday, in fact, it's far from it. Which feels ironic considering I pride myself on being a gracious person and I'm the thank you note's biggest fan. This year I feel extra thankful and I wanted to share why.

First and foremost, my health. (Also ironic... I've been sick in bed for the past two days. Wah!) On Thanksgiving morning, I participated in the Turkey Burn at Soul Cycle - a 90 minute high intensity ride. A standard Soul class is 45 minutes so this was a double with no break in between. The instructor always says to create an intention for your ride but this class we were told to think about what we were thankful for. I though about how I am thankful for my strong body... A year ago I wouldn't have even dreamed about trying a regular Soul class - let alone a double!

For a dad who sits in bed with me when I am sick and shares his apple slices and New Yorker, who does my grocery run because I couldn't, and who is just generally my hero... For a mom who checks in on me constantly and always knows what to say to make me feel better ... For a little sister who calls my parents when she hears me throwing up in the powder room and asks them to come home, even though they'd just left... For a Nana who has started a Twitter revolution and is so much of why I am me... For aunts and an uncle who love me for me... For cousins whom I can call best friends, and mean it... For their children, who are the loves of my life... I am inexplicably thankful for my incredible family.

I am thankful for friends that feel like family. Strong, supportive women who stand behind me and beside me. Whether they're sorority sisters or soul sisters, these girls brighten my life every single day. I may not have found the man but I have one hell of a bridal party.

I am thankful for all of the challenges that I've been faced with this year, all the ups and downs... Because they brought me to today, and I wouldn't be who I am without any of it. And I've never been more comfortable in my own skin or felt better than I do now, stomach bug and all.

Last but most certainly not least, I am thankful for all of you. You inspire me, you encourage me, and you are what keeps me going. Thank you for wanting to be a part of Jewish Girl in Wasp's Clothing. I promise you, the best is yet to come.

The obsessive planner gets the ultimate planner

Last year, my dad bought me a pink leather Kate Spade planner. It's beautiful, but the heaviness of it prevented me from taking it anywhere, which sort of defeats the purpose of a planner. If you know me at all, you've probably figured out by now that I am anal. I plan everything in advance. I need something I can carry around with me and the Kate Spade just wasn't cutting it.

I'd read about Erin Condren, a whimsical stationery site, on some other blogs and had been browsing the online store. I loved the idea that the life planner was customizable and could have my name and choice of cover design. I literally had it in my online cart but decided to hold off a bit. Thank goodness I waited! I chatted with my friend Sarah and learned that Plum District was running a deal on Erin Condren - $25 for $50 worth of product. The planner is $50. Coupled with a 30% coupon for Plum District and $10 off at Erin Condren, I ended up paying about $12 for the planner. (Thanks Sarah!)



$12 well spent! The planner is wonderful. Each day is split into three parts with plenty of writing room for all of my plans. There are also dedicated spaces for goals, to do lists, and lined pages at the beginning of each month. The planner has two pockets and a zip case with several calling cards and gift tags inside - a nice surprise! The only downside is that, ironically, this isn't much lighter than my Kate Spade planner. C'est la vie.



I got these calendar stickers at See Jane Work. I love them... except for the fact that there are only 16 stickers of each design. I'm sure it's intentional, as I'll quickly run out of 16 'work out' stickers and will have to buy more. Also, who needs 16 'taxes' stickers? That's one day of the year! And who really goes to 16 barbecues?! Alas, I think it's a really fun way to record events.

Even though I paid a fraction of the price, I think this planner is pretty much perfect and well worth the $50 price tag.

Are you as nerdily into your planner as I am? Do you write with pencil or pen? Do you color code? Tell me everything.

Jewish Baby in Wasp's Clothing

This past weekend I traveled to Georgia for a family baby naming. A baby naming, for anyone who doesn't know, is a Jewish ceremony in which a baby girl is given her Hebrew name. This is typically held at temple but back in the day our rabbi made house calls. Here we are (in our living room) at Baby Perri's naming many moons ago.




That's me in the headband!




Baby N's naming, however, was held in a beautiful and very old Southern synagogue.




It was love at first sight. She is a chip off the old blog (pun intended) and we got along famously.




I was only in Georgia for 48 hours (I flew in and out of Florida so that I could accompany Nana and co. for the car ride) but Baby N and I got to spend lots of quality time together. I'm so grateful.




My partner in crime for the weekend was my cousin and dear friend Julie, who writes a blog about her life with Chron's Disease and how she's kicking its ass! I'm so proud of her. Truly an inspiration.




Those of you who follow me on Twitter probably feel like you've met Nana by now through all my #nanatweets! She was a beaming great-grandmother and I'm so very happy we were able to get her there for this milestone.




The JBIWC is wearing Ralph Lauren, in case you were wondering.



What a fabulous weekend with some of my very favorite people. I'm so sad it's over but so thankful for the time. We need to do it more often. Life is too short.

Five little things that make my life a lot easier

I always love reading these, so I figured I'd share some.

1. I keep a box of beautiful yet generic birthday cards in my stationery kit. This way, if I don't remember about someone's special day until the last possible moment, I can easily send them snail mail wishes without having to add "run to the card store" to my never-ending To Do list.

2. I plan outfits for upcoming events months (and months) in advance. I purchased the frock on the previous post way back in February, thinking that I could wear it to this particular wedding as the deep purple is a perfect shade for fall. (Thank you for the sweet comments! The dress in Rebecca Taylor.)

3. I start holiday shopping in October. This includes picking out and purchasing my holiday cards, which is one of my very favorite parts of the season. It's mid-November and I'm almost all "wrapped up"! (Bad pun intended.)

4. I've pared down the bare necessities (and a few splurges, too) to one cosmetic bag so that when I switch handbags I don't have to worry about finding the wandering hand sanitizer or missing lip gloss - it's all finally in one place. (Side note: totally going to do a "What's in JGIWC's makeup bag?" in the very near future.)

5. I keep all of my pony-o's in a ring dish. It's a tip I picked up from InStyle. I was gifted the most beautiful Kate Spade ring dish but I'm not engaged and I don't really wear rings so this is the perfect use for it. I no longer have to walk around my apartment with one hand around my hair and the other searching every nook and cranny for one. They seem to disappear rather often, so I love that they're all in one neat place.

And one thing that does NOT make my life easier... My Love bracelet. It beeped in airport security this morning and I had to get the dreaded pat down. But it's the best thing I own, so I don't mind suffering a grope for it every now and again.

24 hours in Jax

This past weekend I traveled to Jacksonville, Florida for the wedding of a sorority sister and dear friend. What a spectacular evening!




The bride and groom walked up the aisle to an instrumental version of "Another One Bites the Dust". Brilliant!




Being silly after the ceremony. Can't believe she's next!




Gettin' down with the Maid of Honor (who was also my date)!




Such a happy couple. The wedding cake was DELICIOUS! Is it just me, or do they usually look a whole lot better than they taste? I actually wanted a second piece but was a little too tipsy to find it.




All you wise old owls out there will know what this is... We were singing "Oh Pat" to the groom! A Kappa tradition.




And from singing those Kappas songs at sorority meetings many moons ago to singing them at weddings now, these girls and I have come a long way. There are no words to convey how special it is to be able to share in all of our good fortune and big moments together. I can't believe that of the four of us, two are married and one will be in less than a year! We really are growing up. I'm so happy my friends have found love, and I can only hope that I will be as lucky someday. But for now...




I'mma be me.

Friday Five

Five funny and/or fab things that happened to me in the past week...

1. One of the building porters accidentally shut off the running water in my building at 6:45 on Saturday night. I had somewhere to be at 8:45 and hadn't yet done my hair. Luckily I had showered that morning, but dry shampoo just wasn't gonna cut it. I had to wash my hair in the sink with bottles of ice cold Poland Springs. In the middle of all this, the water got turned back on and my tub faucet nearly exploded. I had three maintenance guys in my apartment as I was getting ready, but they fixed it. And my 'do looked pretty damn good.

2. I had dinner with a girlfriend at one of my favorite restaurants, BLT Prime, on Wednesday evening. I asked for Patron and lime juice and was served Patron on the rocks. I'd be happy to drink that on a Friday or Saturday evening (who am I kidding, I'd be happy to drink that any night of the week) but not when I have a 7am Soul Cycle class in 11 hours. I sadly had to send it back. It was like five shots on ice. Delicious.

3. I got a black J. Crew card in the mail. Does this mean I have to throw away my platinum?

4. I ran into the sweetest JGIWC reader at C. Wonder yesterday. She asked me to bring back "What is JGIWC wearing today?" and I'm totally gonna. Check my twitter next week for updates!

5. It's 11/11/11 which is FAB because 11 is my lucky number. It's already been an incredible month... here's to the rest of it!


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Wishes for a wonderful weekend, my dear friends!

Missing our favorite angry, dapper Jew?

Me too.



You're welcome.

All I want for Hanukkah is...

Soul Cycle classes and spin shoes

Victoria's Secret gift card for pretty pajamas (et al)

Junk Food Little Miss Miami tee

Kate Spade Bow Ski Hat

J. Crew cashmere shawl-collar cardigan

Monogrammed Tervis Tumbler with lid and straw

What's on your list?

Here, there, everywhere

I'm here! I'm here! The past few weeks have been downright nutty and I'd like to say I'm going to settle in and get cozy but that's just not the case. Not yet. This weekend, I'm off to Florida for another wedding and the following weekend it's a baby naming in Georgia. There's a chill in the air here in New York and I'm enjoying every moment of it. (Except the unexpected snowstorm two Saturdays ago. I brought cranky to a whole new level.)



Perri recently celebrated her nineteenth birthday! Can you believe it? I sure can't! I'm unable to imagine a time when she won't seem like a baby to me even though she's so grown up. I'm just thankful and lucky that she'll play the part and still holds my hand when we cross the street without complaint.



A sweet sorority sister was in town for the installation of our newest chapter at New York University and all the gals reunited at Dorrian's on Saturday night. What fun dancing to recent pop hits and 80s classics! Few things I love more than a good Girls Night Out.


I've also been helping out C. Wonder with their opening and have been fortunate enough to meet some JGIWC readers in the store! I'll be there a few more days and have really enjoyed it. It's such a light, happy environment. I've never encountered more well-mannered shoppers in my life! Speaking of shopping, who's on top of their holiday shopping game? I only have a few more people to check off my list!

C. Wonder[ful]

My savvy readers, I'm sure you've heard plenty about C. Wonder by now. I just wanted to assure you that the store absolutely lives up to all of the hype. I went on Sunday and literally could not pick my jaw up off the floor. If I had to describe it referencing other retailers, I'd say that it felt like Kate Spade, Lilly Pulitzer and Tory Burch had a menage a trois and this is the charming, sophisticated love child that magically resulted. Heaven? You betcha.



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I think I walked around the store a good ten times before deciding what I wanted, but one things for sure... I'll be back soon to buy much more. Almost everything in the store is under $200, with many of the price points being $38, $48, and $58.



A few hours before we wandered down to SoHo, I mentioned to my dad that I was in need of a small, lightweight bag for when I'm running around the city and don't feel like carrying my Palermo, which can become quite heavy. Not only is this bag less than half of the price of the Longchamp I'd originally planned on buying to fill the aforementioned need, it's so much cuter!



I'm so glad I grabbed this long gold beaded necklace when I did. Several women came up to me and asked where I'd found it as I was paying, and it was one of two left!


Many more locations are being opened and an e-commerce site is in the works. C. Wonder is truly C. Wonderful!