This post was sponsored by Heluva Good! Dip as part of an Influencer Activation, like always, all opinions expressed in my post are my own.
So chips and dips… I will use any portal necessary to get the biggest bite from my dip, anyone else with me on this???
I’m proud of my snacking skills, my hosting abilities, and how HUMBLE I sound right now haha I’m also really passionate about working with companies that are philanthropic. You’ve seen me talk about this during the release of my Gift Guides this month so you’ll understand why I’m proud to have teamed up with Heluva Good! Dips and Walmart today!
I love that we’re helping to raise awareness about 1) their delicious dips and 2) ’tis the season of giving and Heluva Good! Dip will be donating a portion of sales to Toys for Tots that will run through the remainder of the year. I mean, talk about my two favorite things teaming up … spreading dips and spreading joy.
Dips make for delicious snacks perfect for anytime aka when everyone is waiting for dinner to be made this holiday season, just set out some chips (and some pita, oh and some crackers too) and Heluva Good! Dips for them. This is a for sure crowd pleaser every time!
Easy snacking, a time to gather around the table and catch up with friends and family, chips and dip are nostalgic for me. During this time of year when we can’t be with our families due to the pandemic, it’s so wonderful to have some tradition here at home. My mom always had her favorites in the fridge and can you guess what it was? French Onion! That’s my go-to flavor as well, it’s so creamy and SO yummy.
If you’re passionate about benefitting great causes and supporting brands that are like minded, please join me in purchasing your Heluva Good! Dip at Walmart or Walmart.com (pssst available for pick up or Walmart grocery delivery) and help donate to Toys for Tots this month. How convenient and wonderful it is to do some good, simply by purchasing something your family will enjoy while helping to make someone else’s holiday just as wonderful.
It’s a Heluva Holiday to give back … see what I did there? 😉
Happy holidays from me and mine to you and yours <3
Comin’ in hot! Our Bride Guide series chat this week is all about how to handle the stress of planning a wedding. With a task list as long as CVS receipts it can all be so overwhelming. I want to share with you the way I broke it all down for myself since we did the planning ourselves and how I managed the Bridezilla-ness of it all.
Lists on lists baby! There’s a timeline of events, there’s the EVENT, and there’s all the planning in between. So today we’ll talk about the things that go in between the engagement and the HONEYMOON <3
Honestly, typing out hashtag was so fun for me because umm what world do we live in that creating a hashtag has become one of our wedding priorities! Ours was #exoticnationwedding LOL Do the damn thing is pretty high up there though, all of this to say you’re getting married and it’s going to be the BEST time of your life!
So go through this list, fill it out for yourself and see where you are. Decide the big things like budget and who, where, when NOW, and the rest of the list we can get to. Do you like how informal my speaking is… “no stress baby just think about the W’s” (who what when where) HAHA
Get inspired! Pinterest is your new BFF! And your BFF is the MOH! I loved rose gold, romantic decorations, corals, and royal blue! The DIY part is next week, this week I just want you to focus on the answers you gave last week and the list you’re making this week.
I have so many recommendations for THE dress, invitation sites, how to map out the seating chart, and the best way to go about the cake/favors/and decoration details. Check out BHLDN, get on Pinterest, start putting together what size wedding you’re having so that all of the other details come together much easier for you, and create that task list… starting here.
I really hope all this list creating helps to get all of the stress out of your head and onto paper so that you have a starting point and a clear idea of what your next steps are. Knowing what’s next really does help to keep the stress at bay, what’s scary is the unknowing part and the ‘do I have time to do all this planning’ part. But with a clear plan you’re breaking it all down into ONE thing at a time and it’s much more manageable.
What shall we talk about next week? What to DIY? What to skimp on what not to? Where you should apply your budget? How to make everyone happy when this is YOUR day and you’re just trying not to go crazy? Tell me <3
It’s wedding season! The warm summer months, breezy beautiful evenings, it’s the most coveted time of year to plan a wedding, bridal shower, and bachelorette party. With this Bride Guide I’ve got you covered and over the next few weeks I’ll go into detail about what’s necessary, what’s not, and what’s just fun FUNS- the best part! This is my favorite series that I’ve ever launched and starting today, we’ll begin with the basics.
First thing’s first, if you’re wedding is in less than 6 months away… BOOK YOUR VENUE! Start looking now, book it and let that first big thing v important thing, be taken care of so you can focus on the fun stuff like your dress, the party, the food, the people…did I mention the party?
So congratulations on your engagement and I’m happy you’re here! My mission is to help you stay far far away from Bridezillaville <3
Thought starters:
who, what, when, where, how- the who is easy: you and your fiance´, the intimate or larger than life wedding is the what, so now it’s all about prep and plan! The how will come, first answer some of these questions
what’s our budget- is this a DIY wedding or a ‘spare no expense’ kind of wedding, will it be small and intimate, or will everyone and their mother be there? Is there a wedding planner or are you it?
location location location – venue for the vows and the reception, church or other space to exchange vows and then a separate location for the reception? Multiple locations? Outdoor? Indoor? Destination?
details- catering, open bar (for the love of love please do an open bar), cake/cupcakes/pies/dessert table, favors, decorations, flowers, seating charts, all that we’ll go into in my next Bride Guide article
the most fun part- THE DRESS, is there a party dress, the groom/bride/partner, the bridal party, hair, makeup, accessories, bridal shower, bachelorette/bachelor parties, all the things that make this season so fun, so memorable, so worth every penny-every tear-every argument-every frustration
So now that you’re thinking about these things, lets break it down even further for next time and do me a favor and leave me a comment or DM on Instagram and tell me all the topics that you want to hear about. All the things you want me to go into detail over, I’ve got you!
Congratulations! I’m so excited for you and I cannot wait to share more of this Bride Guide series with you <333
Love it or leave it Valentine’s Day is this Sunday and there’s been a flood of holiday themed treats and DIY posts. Who am I to stop the momentum? We’re celebrating Galentine’s Day today so grab your favorite gal pals, a bubbly drink, and lets start baking!
Today’s menu includes frosted cinna-hearts, pita heart-wiches, and a dessert skewer … not in the shape of a heart. See, we’re themed! Hearts everywhere!
For your frosted hearts you’ll need one package of cinnamon rolls and some sprinkles!
Unravel the cinnamon bun and split it into two halves and then shape the two into a heart!
Bake per the directions on the packaging and then drizzle the frosting over top and sprinkle with ALL the sprinkles!
These pita heart-wiches are super easy and super yummy! Just take 2 pitas and layer them up with turkey, cheese, cucumber, or whatever your favorite fillings are. Then cut them up and enjoy! They’re especially enjoyable when you use a heart shaped cookie cutter!
I sliced a few of these in half which made them look like broken hearts, which still tasted delicious AND fit the theme of my next post ‘the achy-breaky Valentine’.
The macaroons were from Trader Joe’s and after you thaw them out it’s as if you picked them up fresh from the bakery! Salted caramel is my favorite!
For the dessert skewers just take a paper straw (I got these from the dollar store) and stack your favorite pastries, alternating between them. I chose snickerdoodles and blueberry muffins! Almond milk and another straw for sipping and we were set!
That red glowing drink you see in the background is cherry-cranberry juice spiked with our favorite vodka!
I hope this inspires you to enjoy a holiday with your friends, Valentine’s day ins’t just for lovers! It’s a day to celebrate all the loves! If you really don’t feel like celebrating and you just hate the holiday all together, then I have a post for you on Sunday (yes ON Valentine’s Day, see what I did there) with menu items like Bleeding Heart Brownies and Sour Cherry Puckers, so stay tuned for that!
Here is my most recent video, our first installment of Pinterest DIY-Not! I made Melt My Marshmallow treats and Cherry Whiskey Smashes! They were just as delicious and they sound!
Do you have any plans for Valentine’s Day? A Galentine’s day celebration perhaps? Share with me your plans so we can all live vicariously through one another and P.S. if you aren’t Subscribed to me on YouTube please do, I post videos twice a week! See, so much sharing! xx
Happy Friday!!! Today I’m back with another installment of our holiday cocktail series featuring my favorite smokey beverage, Banhez Mezcal! This is Santa’s Helper Pt 2, the follow up to Episode 1 and in this recipe we sweeten with agave instead of our homemade cranberry syrup and I love the addition of cranberry bitters! So if you’re pressed for time and need to whip together something fancy and fast, this is for you!
Don’t forget I’m hosting an exciting GIVEAWAY with Banhez which includes the entire cocktail creating kit you see in this video! PLUS a 1L bottle of Banhez Mezcal so now you can make these cocktails at home! All you have to do to enter is comment on this post and the other two episodes by Monday and I’ll pick the winner next week! To purchase a bottle of Banhez for yourself and a friend (ahem this makes the perfect gift) I’ll link you HERE!
Santa’s Helper #2
2 oz Banhez Ensemble
1/4 oz agave
2 dashes Fee Brother’s Old Fashioned Bitters
2-4 dashes Fee Brother’s Cranberry Bitters (modify for how much of that cranberry flavor you want)
Stir in Japanese stirring glass (or pint glass) with a long spoon until you can easily move the spoon through the ice. Strain into a rocks glass with ice, garnish with orange zest and a rosemary sprig.
Banhez Pro Tip: this recipe is easy to batch but given how spirit-forward it is, it can lose flavor the longer it sits in ice, so keep that in mind 😉
Tada! It’s sweet and tangy, light yet flavorful, and the smokiness of the Banhez Mezcal won’t go unnoticed! This is one of my favorites because of how quickly you can stir together the ingredients given most of them are already in your pantry!
Give this a try and let me know what you think, I know you’re gonna want to batch this! P.S. did you hear that I’m hosting a giveaway featuring this beautiful set below?! Enter in the comments, good luck <3
Giveaway Entry Rules:
– must be 21+ years old to enter
– winner will be selected at random
– enter as many times as you like, the more you enter, the more chances you have to win!
– an ‘entry’ is a comment on all 3 of my Banhez Mezcal cocktail recipes that’s here on my blog. Here’s Epi 1 and Epi 3 for you, be sure to comment on all 3 articles and good luck!
– stumped on what comment to leave? Tell me a fun fact about yourself or what your plans are for the holidays!
– and drink responsibly always please and thank you <3 , love Mama Lizama
It’s #WineNotWednesday babes and today we’re making a dairy-free White Russian cocktail with a twist! A lil zing of coffee cold brew baby!
I particularly like this recipe because I’m dairy free now, it tends to upset my stomach and this version still has the richness of the original minus the kick, literally. I replaced the dark liqueur with cold brew and this Stumptown is one of my favorites! ps chocolate liqueur everything please and thank you!
For this deliciousness you’ll just need to pour 1/4 cup cold brew, a few shots of vodka, some ice, and a shot of liqueur into your shaker and shake it up!
Pour that into your glass and stir in gently 1/4 cup almond milk and garnish with nutmeg! Enjoy babe!
Does this recipe sound just like an espresso martini? LOL it just may be! I didn’t google it before making, I just threw it together for you so try it out and let me know what you think!
I felt so inspired booking our Bali honeymoon that I created a lil vacation in a blender for you! This cocktail IS A VACATION for your senses! Yes all of them because it smells like an island, it’s so pretty to look at, and it tastes tropical and mangoey! I love mango and coconut anything so here’s this #SaturdaySip just for you!
In a blender add an entire can of your chosen Malibu flavored canned beverage, 2 oz of Malibu Coconut Rum, and 1/4 of the frozen blended juice. Toss in sliced mango, lime juice, ice, and blend. E N J O Y!
I made two ninja blenders worth of this magical drink and Joe and I had a tropical dance party in our living room. Beachy music and all!
Please sip responsibly and let me know what summer flavors you’d like to see in this week’s #WineNotWednesday!
Winter is here! Yassss it is week two of GOT season 7 and I’m so excited to share with you a new drink each week in its honor! This will be an especially themed #SaturdaySip for your Sunday’s viewing pleasure, and today’s shake up is “Winer Is Here”!
Shake it up baby! You’ll need:
1 oz lime juice
1 oz mezcal
1 oz reposado
1 oz simple syrup
1 egg white
Shake everything up into your shaker without ice and then shake it up again WITH ice. Pour into a salted rim cup (very ice like) and enjoy!
What ingredient would you like see used on this week’s #winenotwednesday? Here’s the last drink in case you missed today!
YOU’RE GETTING MARRIED!!! I’m getting married too yayyy ! So now what do we do?!
Get married they said, it’ll be fun they said. Except, they forgot to say that there’s a lot of planning and unneccessary details that go into your wedding. And it IS fun, but what’s up with all these RULES! Who made up things like, wedding favors, a wedding theme, oh and do you know the color of your linens?! OH OH and will you need chafing sets?! Ummm what? I just want to wear a pretty dress and say I do to my best friend in front of everyone we love.
So incase you too are going through all of the details of wedding planning, here’s a little bride guide from me to you, as I navigate through all of this with you. From sorting out the to-do list, to prioritizing the following umpteen things that must get done. So deep breaths my pretty, here we go!
1. Create a website or landing page for your guests – we’re using Weebly but there are a ton of other web hosting sites, we just love that this one is FREE! This is a great place to put who, what, when, where, and how to get there for all of your friends and family members. Include accommodations (if you block out rooms they’ll get a discounted rate), shuttle or bus information if there’s any, schedule of events, where you’re registered for gifts, and a deadline for their RSVP
2. Send out Save The Dates – this part doesn’t make any sense to me. You’re sending guests a Save The Date WITH your wedding date on it, but then they need a formal invitation also . . . the rules part. We sent out Paperless Post save the dates and on them we included our wedding website and asked our guests to RSVP that way. I purchased ‘coins’ and sent it out after importing all of my guest’s emails- made it so easy! There’s also Evite and other places that you can send online invitations through. If you choose to have them printed, Minted and Paper Divas are great I’ve heard and won’t cost your first born!
3. Location, Venue, Food – oh and the DJ, centerpieces, wedding gown and accessories, bouquet, and other big ticket items to sort out. Once you’ve chosen your venue and location, set a day and time and get to planning baby! Don’t forget to ask your venue if they provide tables, chairs, linens, and a set up/ break down crew. Food options, open bar, centerpiece arrangements, and cake cutting fees are also some things you’ll want to confirm with your venue. If you get a ‘day of wedding coordinator’ than they’ll make sure you’re standing where you should be when you should be *ie when you’re dancing with your girls, champs in hand and it’s cake cutting time*. Otherwise, do what we’re doing and have your DJ keep the timeline.
4. Pictures, flowers, and things that get lost in the shuffle – like ordering wedding favors, picking out a cake topper, and making sure you order 2 sets of garters (one for throwing and one for a keepsake). All of these things you’ll get to as you go down your list of To Do’s but some things that could help you stay within budget are to DIY some easy things, and to research the hell out of everything.
see if you can drop off vases and containers to your florist and just pay them to fill them with your floral arrangement choices. They’ll usually also credit you for this since they won’t need to use their own vessels
shop around for shoes, accessories, gifts, and your veil. I ordered my veil from Melinda Rose Design (who also specializes in headpieces!) and she’ll send you samples of the veils so you can color match with your wedding gown. Pretty brilliant and for a fraction of what A LOT of veils will cost you. I love the ‘try before you buy’ option that she offers
search sites like Luna Bazaar and Oriental Trading to order centerpieces, gift boxes, etc. They’re very reasonably priced and I guarantee whatever your shabby chic heart desires, they WILL have
delegate responsibilities to your bridal shower, see above photo 😀 (and here’s fun ways to ask your best girls to be a part of your big day). They’re there to help you and to make sure your most special day goes as smoothly and stress free as possible. No one wants to be around bridezilla! LOL So recruit the help where you can
if you’re planning your wedding in another city/ state/ country, it does help to create a mock table on your living room floor to get an idea of 1) how many people you want sitting at each table 2) how many pieces you’d like to have as your centerpiece 3) if you’re having favors and if you’ll place them at the table with your guests or not . . . Joe came home to see this (below photo) had taken over our living room and I was SERIOUS about picking out those damn centerpieces! haha
5. SET A BUDGET – okay okay this prolly should’ve been the #1 thing to do but honestly, we went over budget just in planning where we’re having our wedding so there’s that. Budgeting out your expenses does help to wrangle your ideas and keep priorities in order. If you go over on your dress than maybe order your shoes from DSW instead of Christian Louboutin 😉
At the end of the day, it’s going to be THE most special day and the love your life will be standing beside you, in the presence of everyone you love. None of those little details and stressors will matter, I promise. So just enjoy the magic of planning it all, take time to reassess what you want over what you need, and everything else is just decoration (thank you Pilar for that one!).
There are a ton of other tips and tricks I’d love to share with you but I’ll put them all together in another post, so stay tuned <3 I really hope these #JessBrideGuide posts and videos are helping you.
Have you used any of these resources already? Are there any other tips you have to share with us brides to be? Thank you in advance for the help!
