About Emily Fanning

What to Wear to a Fall Wedding

September 9, 2014 by Emily 7 Comments

We somehow got away with ZERO summer weddings this year, yet have three this fall! I’ve surveyed a number of friends over what colors to wear to an autumn wedding, and the overwhelming response is dark purple or orange, neither of which I particularly love on me. So I’ve been on the hunt for additional options to get through these nuptials…

Do you have any autumn weddings this year? What’s your go-to style or color?

The Paint Bar

September 8, 2014 by Emily 3 Comments

Here are the facts:
-My grandmother was an artist.
-My mother is an artist.
-I am the furthest possible thing from an artist.

So when The Paint Bar invited BF and I in for a class, I was preeeetty hesitant. We’d done a Paint Nite at a local bar before [he hung my finished painting in his bathroom… don’t think that was a compliment], but I’d heard great things about this brick-and-mortar location for one-night-only painting classes, so I eventually said, why not?

So. much. fun.

If you’ve done a Paint Nite at a Boston bar, you sort of know the drill– The Paint Bar’s set-up is similar:: Register for the class that fits your schedule [you can preview the paintings on the calendar as well, so be sure to pick something you’ll be excited to display!]. | Show up, pump your paint, grab a drink at their cash bar, and the rest is a breeze! The instructor walks you through the entire painting, stroke by stroke. It’s not quite as easy as paint-by-the-numbers, but it’s pretty darn close!

Mia was our instructor and made the night extra fun [I mean, anyone that’s going to play me some early 2000s *NSync & B.Spears is a winner in my heart]. What I really loved, though, was hearing about how it’s a family business… and you can’t go wrong with any instructor in this family.

Boston Date Night Ideas

Ok I’m not saying mine was fantabulous or anything, but it’s a HECK ‘O a lot better than anything I could have attempted without instruction. The wine probably helped as well.

I’m already looking forward to planning a night out with girlfriends here [dying to try this sailboat class], but it was PERFECT for a date night too. BF told me he’d definitely do it again… holding him to that.

With two locations, it’s even easier to book a class.

[ The Paint Bar Newbury Street ]
[ 248 Newbury Street ]
[ Boston, MA 02116 ]

[ The Paint Bar Newton ]
[ 823 Washington Street ]
[ Newtonville, MA 02460 ]
[ 617-467-5777 ]

Can’t wait to see what you all make! xo

Full disclosure: I was provided a complimentary class at The Paint Bar. All opinions expressed are my own.

#INeedSparkle

September 6, 2014 by Emily Leave a Comment

Life has been… overwhelming lately. Between logging long hours during one of my busier seasons at work, packing and unpacking and trying to figure out how the hELLO Ikea furniture parts are supposed to fit together, and getting into the nitty-gritty + rather stressful parts of wedding planning (hi, guest lists), we’ve been lacking excitement in our daily routines. And that just won’t do, because, well, #INeedSparkle.

But even though travel plans are sort of off the table right now…spontaneous, shmancy date nights are being pushed to the back burner…and NYFW wasn’t ever even in the cards, I’m doing what I can to find sparkle in the ordinary. Wearing my sequin bolero to the office, just because. Donning a statement necklace with a t-shirt. Trading flats for heels at 6pm and calling up a girlfriend to go grab a Tuesday glass of prosecco. It’s little things like this that call make all the difference + add a little glimmer back into those long days.

What do you do to add a little extra sparkle to your week?

Full disclosure: This post was sponsored by Heaven Hill Distilleries
Heaven Hill Family of Brands. Bardstown, KY © 2014

So Long, Sweet Summertime

September 5, 2014 by Emily Leave a Comment

This summer flew by. I know that’s the absolute most cliche thing I ever could write, but good GOD wasn’t it just May? Though I suppose planning a wedding + moving to a new home after three years of nesting will, in fact, take up a lot of hours.

Anywho, here are some snippets of this oh-so-transient season as captured by my phone. Do you follow me on Instagram? Yes? Sorry for being so repetitive. No? Get on dat.

ALL of the lighthouses. Venue hunting down the Cape. Many days in Scituate. Another year on the Vineyard. Date nights and happy hours along the water. Trips to Newburyport + Bennington + Saratoga. The rainiest 4th of July I’ve ever experienced. The World Cup, and a boat cruise around the Boston Harbor that reminded me, for the umpteenth time, just how obsessed with this city I am.

Here’s to a fantastic fall, friends. xx

Up Island

September 2, 2014 by Emily Leave a Comment

I think I took more photos on this single day we spent up island–which is really just the #westside of the island–than I did the entire rest of the trip. The little fishing village Menemsha, specifically, is just the most picturesque place, and the Menemsha Fish Market? They are seriously competing for best lobster roll I’ve ever had.

Then there are the Aquinnah Cliffs just down the road a bit. Holy smokes. Even more beautiful than I remember. Massachusetts’s own little Cliffs of Moher.

For more about Gay Head Lighthouse and the Aquinnah Cliffs, see last year’s post, and for a full Martha’s Vineyard travel guide, click here!

Weekend Wear

August 29, 2014 by Emily Leave a Comment

Oh sweet, sweet summer, how quickly you are coming to a close. It’s going to take some time to transition out of the glory that is shorts + nights without sweaters + open-toed shoes, but here goes nothing…

[ Chambray Romper (edit: oops! original sold out | try alternatives here; here; here) | Elmsdale Cardigan (extra 20% off!) | Soludos Classic Stripe Original Espadrille (extra 20% off!) | Transport Tote (monogram it!) | Narrow Knot Turban Headband ]

And a roundup of some of the best Labor Day Weekend sales!

Anthropologie:: Additional 20% off sale
Banana Republic:: 40% off with code BRLABOR
BaubleBar:: Summer styles 50% off
C. Wonder:: Additional 50% off sale | 30% off full-price items
GAP:: Up to 40% off everything
Forever 21: Buy 1, Get 1 Free on Clearance with code BOGOFREE
J.Crew:: Extra 40% off final sale items
Jack Wills:: Extra 20% off with code LABORD
LOFT:: 50% off new fall styles + 50% off summer sale
Madewell:: 20% off select items + 30% off sale with code YESYES
Nautica:: 50% off sale items | 30% off everything else with code LABORDAY
Old Navy:: 40% off everything
Tuckernuck:: Extra 20% off sale with code LABOROFLOVE

Everyone have a safe and wonderful long weekend xx

Oak Bluffs Gingerbread Cottages

August 27, 2014 by Emily Leave a Comment

Possibly one of the things Martha’s Vineyard is most well-known for [besides being the filming location for the infamous Jaws and the birthplace of Vineyard Vines] is its darling Gingerbread Cottages. They’re scattered all around the town of Oak Bluffs, but the bulk of them are grouped together in an area that was once a religious campground community.

I’m telling you– this place is better than Disneyland.

I LOVE these hydrangea-purple shorts that blended right in, and I’m clearly taking every opportunity I have to soak up the last of shorts-weather!

Have you been? Back me up here:: it’s part tiny German village, part fairy-tale world.

A Guide to Martha’s Vineyard

August 26, 2014 by Emily 11 Comments

Our second Martha’s Vineyard summer trip is complete, and I already can’t wait to plan next year’s!

This island does not disappoint, and the best part–my dear Bostonians–is you can visit for a day, a weekend, or a month. There’s enough to do and see to last you all summer, but it’s easy enough to get to [take the ferry from Woods Hole, Falmouth, Hyannis, New Bedford, or even Rhode Island] and–for the most part–easy enough to get around that you can pack a mini getaway into a weekend, or even a day if you’re ambitious.

[ travel summary ]
who:: This year, we rented a bigger house and brought two friends with us… a couple’s retreat, if you will.
what:: SO MANY THINGS. Visit each of the five towns– Oak Bluffs, Edgartown, Vineyard Haven, West Tisbury, Aquinnah, and Chilmark. See the lighthouses. Take a cruise on the Black Dog Tall Ships. Jump of the bridge where Jaws was filmed. Ride the Flying Horses carousel. Bike the whole island.
when:: SUMMER. Like Nantucket, many businesses will close in the off-season. July and August are the busiest, but you do bargain a bit more with the weather in June.
where:: Rent a house or stay at the Pequot Hotel | Eat fried seafood at Nancy’s and Lookout Tavern; enjoy a nicer dinner at The Sweet Life | Coffee at Mocha Motts | Treats at Murdick’s Fudge and Chilmark Chocolates | Shop at In the Pink, Slip77, and the home of original Vineyard Vines.
wear:: All I can say is, it gets CHILL-ay at night, and you do not want to make the same mistake I did and attempt riding a bike in a dress. Shorts, all the way.

Apartment Snippets

August 25, 2014 by Emily Leave a Comment

This week I say goodbye to my sweet little space of the last three years. That’s the longest I’ve stayed put yet, and I loved turning my little nook of the apartment into something that was so quintessentially Emily. I’m SO excited about our new space and new neighborhood, but I will always treasure the fun years I spent in my crazy post-grad home!

I haven’t shared many looks at my apartment on the blog [let’s be real, it wasn’t exactly Glitter Guide– or Apartment Therapy– worthy], but here are a few snippets I’ve collected over my time in it…