I Went to The Bachelor Live in Washington, DC!

If you know me, then you know I am a major major fan of ABC’s The Bachelor franchise. The Bachelor franchise presents shows related to The Bachelor, including its spinoffs The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise that each air on ABC each year. My Instagram (follow me @_thepinkchickadee!) also double as a The Bachelor franchise superfine account in my Instagram Stories on occasion – haha! So, you can most definitely say I am a HUGE The Bachelor Franchise fan!!! Needless to say, when I saw that The Bachelor Live sponsored by Kendra Scott was going on tour with former The Bachelorette lead Becca Kufrin and a rotation of Bachelor leads (Justin Glaze from Katie Thurston’s season of The Bachelorette being The Bachelor lead for the Washington, DC show) and coming to Washington, DC’s Warner Theatre, I KNEW I needed to attend!

*Disclaimer: Please note that this post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase through one of my links, then I will receive a small commission. This commission is at no extra cost to you. Additionally, this post is not sponsored, and all opinions are my own.*

I was scrolling on Facebook on one magnificent day which is VERY typical for me – LOL! – and happened to see that The Bachelor Live tickets were being sold. So, I went onto the website and happened to find a ticket for under $60 in the center of the Orchestra section at the end of an aisle. I also bought a VIP Lounge add-on to avoid the LOOONGGG bar lines for $30 and of course ticket insurance. I posted about it on my Instagram Stories, intending to go solo, and to my surprise my coworker and friend Katherine booked the seat right next to mine so away we went!

The Bachelor Live was such a blast! Essentially, this show is a mini accelerated season of The Bachelor with roses and ALL with contestants being women from the crowd who also purchased tickets themselves. Very entertaining is an understatement of describing the night. There was a lot of photo opportunities, fun merchandise, and LOTS of entertainment all throughout the night. Not to mention, the fact that I got to see former The Bachelorette Becca Kufrin host it all live with a surprise cameo from her boyfriend and Bachelor Nation alum Thomas who surprised her with a sweet Birthday treat (it was her Birthday the night we went, too!!). All in all, very romantic, entertaining, and a blast!

I wore my floral one-shoulder ruffled dress that I got on clearance while in college from Altar’d State. I, then, paired it with my black sparkly Kate Spade crossbody, black Kendra Scott dangling drop earrings, black with gold chain Kendra Scott necklace, and my black rock stud Valentino Rock Stud dupe flats from the Mix No6 brand sold at DSW (however, I got these for $1 at the Philly Aids Thrift Shop when in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania this past September). Since The Bachelor Live was sponsored by Kendra Scott, I HAD to wear my favorite Kendra Scott jewelry pieces! Last but not least, I pulled off a classic Taylor Swift and did a cat eyeliner look and paired it with red lipstick. Needless to say, my outfit was ALL from my closet and I didn’t shop for any of it before the performance.

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Now, I am very very very excited to be able to hopefully go to The Bachelor Live again next year. But, in the meantime, I will link some pieces from my outfit for your shopping pleasure!

XOXO – Katie <3

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The Life of Katie!

Happy happy Tuesday, y’all! Today is the day after Valentine’s Day and is a day in which it feels like a return to nothing but reality. Personally, I have always loved holidays such as Valentine’s Day and embrace my singleness and self love to yours truly and going back to my typical day to day life beyond allll the hearts and pink and red items on the shelves of every store. BUT, Valentine’s Day isn’t just the only time and excuse that we have for self love and care – it should be every day. Today, I’m sharing with y’all a peek into the Life of Katie and, yes, life beyond Valentine’s Day!

  • Exciting professional opportunities – This past week has been nothing but a whirlwind of excitement for me professionally. I’ve been onboarding to a project that’s in an area that I’ve since become extremely fascinated with since learning more about it and working on it on a very minimal basis back in December. While I won’t share much about my work on here, I will say that I am REALLY excited about this project and my future growth professionally on it. This project requires that I go into the office starting most likely this Spring sometime every Tuesday and Wednesday which will be so great for my social soul! At the same time, I am also on a planning committee for a STEM-related female empowerment group at my company, and it has been nothing but a blessing to me.
  • Neurodiversity awareness thanks to The Bachelor – So, if you follow me on Instagram (@_thepinkchickadee) – I’d LOVE to connect! Then, you probably already know about my major obsession with ABC’s The Bachelor Franchise. This season of The Bachelor starred Elizabeth – a neurodivergent woman who was proudly open about her disability on the show. While there was a bit of drama this season, as always, Elizabeth truly preached on being a woman who has a disability and others, including myself, rallied behind her. Elizabeth truly created a safe space for all of those to share their disabilities and embrace their differences, too. Trust me, it has been a beautiful thing. Everybody is unique and having Elizabeth on The Bachelor truly showed that to us all.
  • Enjoying Shonda Rhimes’ Inventing Anna on Netflix – Just like The Bachelor, I am ALSO a major major major fan of Grey’s Anatomy! The writer of Grey’s Anatomy is Shonda Rhimes – who recently wrote Inventing Anna aka the Netflix series documenting the true story of Anna Delvy who is actually Anna Sorokin. Anna Sorokin was a Russian/German socialite con artist who changed her name to Anna Delvy and moved to New York City and conned several thousands of dollars out of several folks. Anna Sorokin was famously in the news, given her arrest, trial, and imprisonment following her scandal. Needless to say, Anna Sorokin walked all A LOT of people and her story is extremely intriguing. Not to mention, my inner Grey’s Anatomy fangirl LOVED seeing some of the show’s many supporting actors in Inventing Anna. Read more about her story and a bit more about the Netflix film series by THE ICONIC Shonda Rhimes here.
  • Booking up my Spring/Summer 2022!! – Yep, you heard that right. My calendar’s ALREADY booking up for Spring/Summer 2022. LOTS of excitement is happening over the next coming months. Some of the festivities include: turning 23, graduation ceremonies and parties, a good friend’s 21st Birthday, conferences and galas hosted close to home, and much more! As someone who likes to stay busy, I am OH SO glad that I can live my hustling life that I so truly love to the fullest.
  • Binge-watched Netflix’s Sweet Magnolias Season 2 in a day – Many of us fellow bloggers LOVE Netflix’s original series – Sweet Magnolia’s. While I won’t share any spoilers here in this post, I will say that I did watch the entire Season 2 in a day, which was A BALL to do, too! There were a ton of mic drop moments over the course of Season 2. At the same time, I really enjoyed ALL the gorgeous fashion statements made by several of the characters throughout the season. ALSO, I love love love some good olde Southern Charm, and Sweet Magnolia’s gives me that charm that I so miss while living up North (although, I prefer living up North at the moment!). Bring on Season 3, Netflix!
  • Draper James x Kohl’s Collaboration Fangirling – So, Draper James recently dropped a GORGEOUS collaboration with Draper James. The pieces come at a much more affordable price when compared to the brand’s usual retail price on their main site. Many of the pieces are super classic as per usual with Draper James and workwear ready to go. Knowing me, I will *probably* be purchasing some new pieces to add to my work wardrobe as I go into the office this Spring. Below, I have linked some of my favorite products from the collaboration!
  • Girl’s Weekend with Bryn last weekend & Girl’s Weekend with Alanna and Hannah this weekend – So, this past weekend, my Instagram was FLOODED with photos of me and my best friend Bryn’s Girl’s Weekend here in the Washington, DC area. A fun fact about Bryn is that she actually grew up here in the Northern Virginia area and moved down to North Carolina. Like myself, she wants to relocate to here after she graduates from college – something that we both bond over regularly! We both explored so much of the Washington, DC area – from the National Mall, the White House, Reston Town Center, her old neighborhood, The Wharf, and everywhere in between! The time that I had with Bryn was nothing but priceless and is irreplaceable. Such special memories were made, and I am SO excited to celebrate my best friend Alanna’s Birthday THIS WEEKEND down in good olde Raleigh, North Carolina and have a 3 night slumber party with her and my best friend Hannah at her new place in the area. I love these girls more than words can say – they’re truly the best best friends I could ask for, amongst others too!!!
  • Women in STEM awareness at the Smithsonian this March – The other day, I was on LinkedIn. Actually, it was a Saturday – haha! Well, I saw a post on something quite amazing – orange statues going up at Washington, DC’s Smithsonian in honor of Women in STEM. As a PROUD Woman in STEM, I am more than excited about this display throughout the majority of March here in my own city. Women empowerment is so so so important, and especially, for women in STEM who sometimes to me feel like a dime a dozen.
  • Marshall’s/TJ Maxx Swimwear Obsessed – Recently, I have been OBSESSED with Marshall’s and TJ Maxx’s swimwear pieces. I’ve most definitely been browsing a lot lately online, but luckily for my wallet, have yet to commit to buying anything from it. BUT, I do plan to buy an adorable new swimsuit this season. Below, I have linked some of my favorites that are currently online!

Whew! Now, that was a lot. I hope y’all are well, and, as always remember to take time for YOU!

XOXO – Katie <3

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Halloween Goodie Bags for Under $10

Will you accept this rose? Aka a quote that all of us Bachelor/Bachelorette fans LOVE to use! Last Tuesday night was the premiere of Claire Crowley’s season of the Bachelorette. Unlike any other season, Crowley’s season was filmed in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic tucked away at a private resort in Palm Springs, California. If we were living in a non-coronavirus world at the moment, I would have had a massive viewing party with snacks and goody bags. However, Covid-19 is still with us and my plans have shifted. So, in lieu of a party and in order to keep our social distance, I decided to make my own Bachelorette premiere goody bags!

Since I could not invite all of my friends over to my apartment, I decided to essentially make an RSVP list for those who wanted to receive a goody bag. That way, I could make a precise number and personalize them accordingly. Just as if we were having a party!

As for the goody bags, I tried to keep them consistent yet personalized. Inside each goody bag, I gave everyone a tiny slice of pumpkin bread. The pumpkin bread is an AMAZING box recipe which is super easy to bake that I got while at Trader Joe’s. As for the look of the bag, I purchased a pack of 20 clear goody bags from Target along with pipe cleaners in various colors. In order to customize everyone’s goodies, I typed up and printed out a little note with each person’s name asking them whether or not they would accept “this rose”. *Bachelor Nation fans rejoice!!!*

Although I could not have an actual Bachelorette celebration this year, I am still grateful that I got to do something with friends to celebrate it as we each socially distanced to watch the season premiere. One of the most important things about this pandemic is that is has allowed for us all to become creative and still make our own fun. As my Aunt Sherri always says, “there is always room for laughter.” Indeed, My Aunt Sherri is not wrong!

XOXO – Katie <3

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At-Home Wine Night Essentials

Just because social distancing may be the new and temporary normal does not mean that we cannot recreate as much as what we used to enjoy in our pre-pandemic lives. I know that I really looked forward to having wine nights with some of my friends at school and at home, especially once I turned 21. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, I have had to find more creative ways to create new memories. I recently created a blog post titled 11 Social Distancing-Approved Gatherings, which listed ways that we can still gather with our friends and family while maintaining our social distance. Although group wine nights may not be done the way we are used to having them such as in-person with The Bachelor and a big bowl of popcorn, but it does not mean that we cannot recreate what we love about wine nights at home! In today’s blog post, I will be sharing how to create your own at-home wine night.

First Things First: The Wine!

Y’all are going to laugh at me – it is kind of embarrassing – but I am not well-versed in the world of wine. However, my very favorite so far out of them all of Cupcake Vineyards’ Chardonnay (as pictured). I also really love Prosecco. So, I have asked three of my good friends who have pretty good taste in wine (if I say so myself!) to share their recommendations on the wine’s that they LOVE!

Alanna’s Suggestions

  • Menage Trois Moscato
  • Woodbridge Moscato
  • Jacobs Creek Moscato
  • Barefoot Moscato is pretty good I’ve tried the watermelon and strawberry Fruitscoto and the Apple Barefoot Spritzer is really good!

Lexie’s Suggestions

Wegman’s literally has the best wine selection that I have seen so that’s where I always get my wine now. They literally have one in every county and region of North Carolina now (as well as Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and many other East Coast states).

Then I really like the Dark Horse wine too!

Jasmine’s Suggestions

The two wine brands that I know a bit about are 19 Crimes (they have good red wine/Cabernet) and Cupcake (the Moscato is literally fire). Also, I’m a big fan of Lamarca Prosecco. All of these are super market finds and are reasonably priced.

Second is Snacks!!

Now that you have determined what bottle of wine you are going to have at home, it’s now time to grab some snacks! My friends and I are definitely fans of a popcorn and wine night, but that is not the only option. A cheese board is such a fun way to spice up a wine night as well as a homemade dinner dish such as pasta, pizza, or risotto. Additionally, a baguette/toast and olive oil is also another simple way to enjoy some wine. Nevertheless, the options are ENDLESS!

Recruit Your Crew and Get on Zoom!

Once you’ve decided on the perfect bottle of wine and something to nibble on, it’s now time to recruit your crew! Get your best buds together and set up a time on Zoom or FaceTime to catch up with your favorite wines in tow. One fun thing that y’all can do is each share what wine you’re drinking and/or recently loving. You can also choose to watch a movie or TV show together, such as old episodes of The Bachelor or 90 Day Fiance or play an online card game like Cards Against Humanity. There are in fact several things to choose to make it fun. Whatever y’all choose to do, make it fun and uniquely y’all’s!

Cheers!!!

XOXO – Katie <3

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