make your list, check it twice

I've spoken before about my love of giving gifts, really for all occasions, even making up new ones from time to time. I really do take great pleasure in picking out specific presents for individuals in my life - thinking about what they need, & sometimes surprising them with things they didn't even know they wanted, but love (one of my all time successes was giving my now husband a beginners beer making kit, which turned into a full blown passion that he didn't even know he had!)

I have actually already completed my holiday shopping (YAY!!!) - including the 5 birthdays I have in my family from Thanksgiving to New Years (DOUBLE YAY!!!) - & am happy to share some of my shopping secrets.

**Scroll down for a $100 gift card giveaway from Simon Malls to help wrap up your shopping list too!

All Photos | Kate Davis Photography

"The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear!" - Buddy the Elf

At the minimum, my relatives receive a holiday card from me, with a recent picture inside - I love getting holiday cards from friends & family - as it is sometimes the smallest gestures that make the biggest impacts.

For your friends who have a love to travel - give the gift of a new weekender bag, so they can tackle their next adventure in style. I love this plaid duffle from my local Old Navy Outlet store.

As a style blogger, I have the opportunity to test drive many different clothes & beauty products, & it is fun for me to give friends & family some of my favorites. On this years gift giving list are these chic (& oh so super affordable) black ballet flats from Old Navy, my beloved boatneck striped shirt from J.Crew Factory, & these wonderfully cozy flannel buttons downs (with awesome leather elbow patches) from the J.Crew Factory men's selection.

If you don't know exactly what to give someone this season (or they are someone who already has EVERYTHING!), you can't go wrong with scarves & candles. My favorite scarf shopping destinations (& the order of scarves that I'm holding below), are Gap Factory (the goal dot and grey chevron ones are recent purchases from there), J.Crew Factory (the red one is currently in stock still), & Aerie (freaking love their blanket scarves - you can never have enough!)

Despite my best planning, there always seems to be someone that I forgot (or a last minute hostess gift needed) - so I keep a stock of Yankee candles on hand. They have so many great scents - that will make your house smell like the holidays for weeks & also offer up some super stylish easy melt wax warmers (I just got gifted a stylish white porcelain one that I already have plugged in, making our apartment smell seriously divine!)

I enjoy finding creative ways to wrap my presents & this year I am thinking more about how to eliminate waste in my wrapping paper game. This cute Buffalo "BEAST" bag (from Old Navy Factory) will be a great way to wrap my sister's present - she writes a blog called Ernie Bufflo & is a super beast mom to twin 3 year old girls.

Needing small gifts for co-workers? Give them their favorite gift card (January will be better with a Starbuck's gift card in hand) in this cute polka dot zip pouch, or tech friendly gloves to make their commute cozier (both under $5 & from Old Navy Factory).

My go-to stocking stuffer ideas are socks (shop the men's section for some cheeky printed ones!) or pom-pom hats (socks from J.Crew factory, hats below both from Gap Factory).

The great thing about all of my top shops for finding gifts, is that they are all housed at the Nashville Opry Mills Mall! I prefer going to the mall when I want to cross everyone off my list, all at once, avoiding paying for any shipping costs & I always save a ton. On my recent trip, I scored all of my items (including amazing things for my mom from the Kate Spade Factory store, cozy clothes for my nieces from Carter's, and fun Nashville items for out of town relatives) at over 60% off retail!

Lucky for you, Opry Mills is giving one of you a $100 gift card to finish up your holiday elfing! Enter below using the Rafflecopter widget, & the randomly selected winner will be notified by email next week!

Get social with Opry Mills: Website (lists all of their amazing stores) // Facebook // Instagram // Twitter

This post was sponsored by Opry Mills Mall, but all opinions and reviews are my own. Thank you for supporting brands & businesses that are such great partners of my blog. 

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go confidently

For me, style is best accessorized with confidence. If there is anything I hope I am teaching my 7th graders, it would be to passionately & confidently pursue their dreams!

Growing up, one of the style lessons I learned was that in order to do your best work, you have to feel your best. This means wearing comfortable clothes that you are confident in. Not the dress that might be super HOT, but you always feel the need to tug it this way & that. 

Today I am excited to share with you a new Nashville brand, Aloncii. Aloncii is still in pre-launch stages, but I am totally inspired by their vision of confidence, comfort & creativity! Find out more by following along with the Aloncii story on Facebook. 

All Photos | Nicholas Graham

Sunday Shopping: FashionABLE

In the past 6 years, the fashion scene here in Nashville has drastically changed, & I am amazed by some of the artists + businesses emerging not only on the local, but also the global stage in an incredible way. Two local businesses that I have had the pleasure of working with before* have recently joined forces, so that fashionABLE is now able to employ women who have overcome challenges - women from Nashville, & Africa.

*I actually was the first blogger to work with both FashionABLE and Miriam Designs in this feature from Mother's Day 2014!

I love that all of their products - from the amazing leather bags, eye-catching scarves, or delicate jewelry - are made with intention. These are pieces you will love for many years to come, & prepare yourself for lots of compliments and comments from strangers when you rock these items for Fall!

For the Farmer's Market: {1} leather tote // {2} plaid scarf

For Brunch Plans: {3} "able" scarf // {4} two-tone cross body tote

For Tailgating: {5} crossbody bag // {6} game day scarf (comes in tons of collegiate team friendly colors!)

Not pictured, but the Miriam Jewelry Collection is just dreamy! I just added this delicate chain necklace to my wardrobe, and I'm also totally crushing on this hand stamped cuff!

Nashville Spotlight: Masaya & Co

It thrills me to my core that conscious consumerism is becoming a greater part of our shopping options & even more so impressed by the dedication to supporting global artisans & fair trade practices that many businesses in Nashville have made (see all of my blog posts highlighting businesses that promote conscious consumerism).

When founder Aram of Nicaraguan fair trade furniture, Masaya & Co, reached out to me about their new Nashville showroom, I headed over in my car to visit!

The gorgeous showroom is housed in a lovely home along Music Row, here in Nashville. All of their amazing pieces are made by Nicaraguan artisans, using sustainable Nicaraguan trees. In fact, they plant 100 new trees for every piece purchased, to improve their own community & global footprint.

The Masaya & Co piece I most wanted to smuggle into my car? The unique hammock chairs - made by hand, using hand spun threads!

Read on for my interview with founder Aram + an awesome giveaway!

1. How did you get started in woodworking? Do you use traditional Nicaraguan practices, or is your work inspired by the country in any way?

I came to Nicaragua in 2002 as a Small Business Development Volunteer. We started our company to do reforestation on deforested cow pastures in 2007. This same year there was a hurricane in the atlantic coast of Nicaragua that knocked down 1,000,000 acres of forest. We started salvaging lumber and exporting. This grew over the years into production of finished products. I have always been intrigued by furniture making and they wood here is very beautiful. All our production is in Nicaragua so we use the local methods and everything is made by hand the old fashioned way. We like ornate joinery and contrasting wood details as the woods we have here are very colorful and have wonderful grain patterns. 

2. Why Nashville for your showroom? What is it about Music City that was attractive to you & your business?

I grew up in Nashville and my family still lives there. My father is the major investor in the company and he still lives there and oversees the us sales side. Its also a booming market with a lot of construction and a good central location for internet sales. 

3. The idea of "conscious consumerism" is definitely on trend these days, how has that effected the way you make and sell products? How do you stand out from the "trend”?

We don’t just talk green and sustainable, we actually plant trees. We are planting 130,000 trees this year in Nicaragua and will plant 100 trees in 2016 for every item we sell in 2015. The original goal of the company was to create a business that makes money by planting trees. This is still the goal and as we grow our sales in US we want to reforest as much as possible in Nicaragua. I think tying our tree planting directly to our sales will give the consumer a clear picture of the impact they can have. 

4. What is the future of Masaya? What can we look forward to seeing from you next?

We would like to expand sales nationally and increase our planting activities as much as possible. All of this will depend on our sales but responses have been good so far. Our Nashville showroom is a pilot retail outlet that we would like to develop and recreate in other cities once its up and running. We also intend to sell through other retailers and online.

Read more about the Masaya & Co history + mission on their website. 

All Photos | Kate Davis Photo

If you are in Nashville, you have to put visiting their gorgeous showroom on your to do list (see how you can get 10% off your in store purchase)! But don't stress, even if you are not a local, Masaya ships anywhere in the US!

But wait there's more! Masaya & Co is giving away the hand crafted cutting board, salad fork + spoon, & a sauce bowl pictured above. Use the Rafflecopter widget below to enter, a random winner will be selected next Saturday.

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Sunday Shopping: Ten Thousand Villages

It was my great pleasure to visit the local Nashville Ten Thousand Villages store & share their story on the blog (see the full post here), & I honestly can't stop thinking about this amazing company & the wide umbrella of artisans that they work with in 38 countries.

I am blown away by the fact that Ten Thousand Villages stores are mostly staffed by unpaid volunteers so that the artisans can earn a fair wage, while still having their products sold at a reasonable price.

Looking over the Ten Thousand Villages website brings tears to my eyes, as each product has a description of how it was made (many by 100% recycled or sustainable materials), & a note about the group of artisans that make them. Some are citizens disabled by the raging wars in their countries. Others are women who escaped sex trafficking. And many many more are men & women who are using their traditional trades to make a new life for themselves, their children, & their communities.

Often times ease of access & a high sticker price keeps me from purchasing fair trade, sustainably made products, but now that I have found Ten Thousand Villages (both online, and locally at my Nashville store), my excuses have been erased. Next time you are looking for a gift, or to add an unique piece to your home, please check out these amazing items & think about what you are actually buying!

1 Phoenician glass green pitcher, made in the West Bank // 2 Hand painted dessert plates, made in Vietnam // 3 Marble cutting board, made in Pakistan // 4 Wool llama, made in Peru (I want to give this as my baby shower gift for forever!) // 5 Mouth-blown glass pitcher (matching glasses), made in Bolivia (from 100% recycled glass!) // 6 Cotton sari + kaisa grass hamper, made in Bangladesh (this is such a great piece, at an amazing price!) // 7 Scalloped mirror, made in Peru // 8 Coconut shell "hands" salad servers, made in Cambodia by citizens disabled by war // 9 Hogla grass + bamboo handled basket, made in Bangladesh // 10 Recycled sari blanket, made in Bangladesh by former sex trade victims

Conscious Consumerism: Ten Thousand Villages

Conscious Consumerism is thankfully something that is becoming more mainstream in the marketplace & I have been thrilled to highlight some of the game changers that are putting sustainable, ethically made products into the forefront of fashion & shopping. Recently, I had the opportunity to tour my local Ten Thousand Villages Stores (also found online, & at these locations) & I was blown away by what they have been doing for global artisans for over 60 years (!!!)

Founded in 1946, Ten Thousand Villages has been paving the way for artisans in developing countries to earn a stable & fair wage, while working in conditions that afford them dignity, respect, & the ability to practice a worthy trade. With artisans in 38 countries, & 390 retail partners in the US, Ten Thousand Villages has been such a successful model of sustainable & ethical consumerism that I was shocked I didn't already know about this company & their mission!

Ten Thousand Villages works with artisans during the entire process, beginning to end. Through training, working through the design process to make products maximally appealing to US consumers, providing up front funds for artisans to purchase raw materials & pay for other expenses, educating artisans about sustainable & environmentally friendly approaches, fair compensation for labor/time, commitment to long term relationships & development of new products based on traditional skills of each culture. 

The unique aspect of Ten Thousand Village stores that literally took my breath away? Ten Thousand Village stores are mostly run by unpaid volunteers so that the artisans can earn a fair wage, while still keeping the prices of each piece reasonable. The prices are unbelievably reasonable, especially when you consider that with each piece you get to know about the artisan that made it & the culture of the country in which it was made. 

"…India is not to be found in its few cities but in the 700,000 villages…we have hardly ever paused to inquire if these folks get sufficient to eat and clothe themselves with." - Mahatma Gandhi

I loved learning about "tagua" a sustainable nut that serves as the raw material many artisans use to create gorgeous pieces of jewelry, intricate carvings & other beautiful products! Shop taguan items on the Ten Thousand Villages website. 

These beautifully hand-painted pieces of pottery are from artisans in Vietnam. Shop all of the handmade products from these artisans on Ten Thousand Villages. 

This gorgeous, hand blown glass is Hebron Glass from artisans in the West Bank. The unique swirl patterns are present because their vases, cups, & other food-safe glassware are made by smashing & melting recycled bottles. Each piece is made by a true master, & you won't believe how affordable it is! Shop all Hebron Glass from Ten Thousand Villages. 

All Photography | Kate Davis Photo

Have you ever heard of Ten Thousand Villages before? Is there one in your town? I highly suggest you checking it out, either in person or online - it will be your new source for unique home goods & gifts!

Stay tuned for my favorite products from their online marketplace & an outfit with a gorgeous silk scarf next week!

Nashville Shopping: Goorin Bros.

When I was an undergrad, I worked for a small boutique in my tiny Arkansas college town. It was my first exposure to most brands that can't be bought at Sears (the department store de jour in my hometown), & I adored getting to put together outfits for the windows, select something special for each customer, & most of all check out all the merchandise for myself when it first came in from the various vendors. The beginning of each month I would put a huge rack of items on "layaway", paying it off with my paycheck. I never made any money per se, but I loved those clothes so much!

One of the brands that has stuck with me all these years later is a hat maker - Goorin Bros. In college I had a straw fedora & a sunhat from them, but I never thought myself to be much of a "hat person". Almost 10 years later, I have now solidly attached myself to hats, almost never leaving the house during the Summer without one. About a year ago was interviewed for someone's blog, & when I hesitated after being asked "what is your favorite accessory", the interviewer laughed because they already knew that my answer was going to be my Panama hat!

I love that hats are making a comeback into mainstream fashion - & not the hats like the Backstreet Boys wore in the early 2000s - nope, I'm talking about stylish, well made, outfit making toppers! So when Goorin Bros. invited me down to their Nashville shop I was ecstatic!

This 120 year old company started in Pennsylvania, but they have since spread to both coasts, with many amazing shops in between! With many landmarks along the way, Goorin has a rich history (read all about it here), that they are now sharing with their renewed focus on reviving the local hat shop traditions. 

All Photos | Kate Davis Photography

As the Panama hat has been my go-to style for the past few years, learning more about its storied past was so interesting! Assistant Shopkeeper Iszy filled me in on all the details about how the "Panama hat" is in truth Ecuadorian, but rose to popularity in the early 1900s due to President Teddy Roosevelt's visit to the new construction on the Panama Canal. Teddy brought the style back home with him, and unfortunately the misnomer stuck. 

Goorin Bros. still sources their fine crafted Panama Hats from Ecuadorian artisans - hand-woven by generations of skilled craftsmen (and women!). It can take anywhere from 2 to 15 days to weave the full hat!

Pretty sure I took the liberty of trying on every hat in the store - especially these rich dark Panama style hats!

Trying on more of a sunhat style - that we decorated up with feathers, pins, and a silk scarf to get that Kentucky Derby look!

Unreasonably obsessed with this leather outback style hat! Would be so amazing for music festivals!

Learning how to jauntily tilt my hat to the side! Turns out, there really are no wrong ways to wear a hat, but I did learn that a properly fitting hat should allow you to reach down & touch your shoes without falling off!

Ding Ding Ding! Folks we have a winner. This pretty baby is coming home with me!

I am so happy that I got to visit the Goorin Bros. store in person, learning more about each hat, its history, & how it is made! The store was a piece of history & I couldn't believe how knowledgeable and friendly the staff were!

If you are looking for a summer hat, be sure to check out the amazing selection at Goorin Bros. (they ring in at all price points!)

And if you are lucky enough to have a Goorin hat shop in your town, please go check it out! This is such a neat trade that should continue in our communities.

The Nashville shop is located downtown, at 107 2nd Ave North (right next to Elvis!)

I received a complimentary hat, but all reviews and opinions are my own! I love checking out local shops & can't wait to share more with you this Summer!

Sunday Shopping: Nashville-based Shopping

Nashville has some amazing boutiques & businesses started here in Music City. I love what is happening with the fashion scene here & I just had to share some of my favorites with you! (I just wish more of them had online shopping!)

I regret that I haven't been able to put together a Sip, Shop, See post in a while, but hopefully this Summer I can explore & document some more Nashville neighborhoods!

1 the "Able" scarf, at fashionABLE // 2 "firebird" necklace, at Miriam Designs // 3 shredded white skinny jeans, at Moda Boutique // 4 Consider the Wldflwrs stacking rings // 5 "Belle" skirt, at Leona // 6 imogene + willie candle // 7 Ecuador Sandal, at Nisolo // 8 Nashville field guide // 9 "Mamuye" tote, at fashionABLE // 10 Warby Parker sunglasses, now available at imogene + willie // 11 wide brim hat, at imogene + willie

Any Nashville stores catching your eye lately?