Local Gem: Soy Cafe

On a main street in Philly’s Northern Liberties neighborhood is a quiet café that has my heart: Soy Café. It’s one of those places where you walk in for the first time and immediately feel like you’ve been there before. Like the home of an old friend. It’s comfortable. Bursting with shape and color left and right, the décor is an eclectic mix of new and vintage furniture and wall art made by local artists. There’s a small area where you can buy little creations from local artists, as well – like pressed-flower cards and handmade jewelry. I love the idea of local businesses supporting other local businesses — so sweet. Read More

Alternative Pumpkin Decorations

Now is the perfect time to start preparing your house for fall festivities, and with Halloween just around the corner, we wanted to share a few alternative ideas for decorating pumpkins and gourds! Read More

Easy Beauty Trick: DIY Smudge Eyeliner

We love easy beauty tricks here at Free People, and today I’m sharing one that was introduced to me in my teenage years. In the girls’ bathroom at school one day, my friend whipped a lighter out of her back pocket. I freaked out for a quick second, but then I saw where this was going, and I was in total awe. She was making her own smudge eyeliner. Read More

My Favorite Lookbook Outfits, Broken Down

This week’s lookbook, “After Hours,” has a different feel than others we’ve done recently.  Shot in New York City by Guy Aroch, the lookbook features model Ashley Smith in a hotel room overlooking the city lights at night.  Rich textures like velvet, fringe, beading, and a subtle shine make for a dark, moody look and a girl who is ready to take on the night.  The images bring to mind brisk evenings, throwing on a jacket over a short, flirty skirt with tights and heels, and dancing down twinkling streets to the warmth of wherever that night is taking you… Read More

The First Ever BLDG 25 Blog Love Awards: Call For Nominees!

This Saturday is a very special day… it’s the blog’s 7th birthday! To celebrate we wanted to do something fun and different this year, and we are so excited to announce the launch of the first ever BLDG 25 Blog Love Awards!  Every day we are inspired by the creativity that we see all around us on the web, on instagram, on Pinterest, and in our day to day lives, and we want to honor our most-loved of the year. We’ve narrowed it down to the following categories and now we need your help! Read More

Homemade Honey Ginger Throat Drops

Fall is the time of year when I am most prone to allergies, and one symptom I always have is a dry, scratchy throat.  Not to mention, winter is nearing – the season of colds and sore throats.  I wanted to be prepared going into this season and had done some reading online about how to make your own cough drops.  It didn’t seem too difficult, so this weekend I set out to make my own honey ginger throat drops. Read More