16 Fresh Ways to Plug AND Unplug This Summer

Summer is the time to unplug, turn off your iPhone and head to the beach with a scandalous book in one hand and a set of headphones in the other. And yet… actually ‘unplugging’ isn’t so easy when most of us read on our trusty Kindles or iPads and all of our carefully curated playlists live on Spotify or Rdio.

1. Papyrus: If you’re throwing the always essential summer picnic or pool party this August and want to send out invites the classic way, I would recommend heading to the nearest Papyrus for a handful of these beautiful handmade picnic cards. Just make sure you plan a picnic that looks just as good as this one!

2. Cleverbug: Or if you feel like trying something new, you can jump on your iPhone and download Cleverbug, an app that connects to your Facebook and lets you send photo-personalized cards anywhere in the world. Once you download the app, just select “invitations” from their various categories (they also have birthday, thank you and Valentine’s cards to name just a few), fill in the date, time and RSVP info, select a photo or two and send. And your first card is completely free!

3. The Jane Austen Collection: Finally planning your very own Jane Austen book club? If you’re envisioning a get together at a chic coffee shop or a handful of your friends talking about Gwyneth Paltrow’s portrayal of Emma Woodhouse on the big screen while sitting in a circle of beach chairs, then you should consider investing in this beautiful vintage-looking set designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith for Penguin Classics.

4. Slice Bookshelf: Feeling literary and tech savvy? Then transport Pride and Prejudice to the digital world and check out Slice Bookshelf, a new social way to keep track of what you’re reading, get recommendations and share your latest favorites with friends. If you’re planning a book club meeting you can use the comments feature to coordinate and even borrow books from friends through Bookshelf’s “borrow and lend” feature. And to make your experience extra social, Bookshelf can automatically import titles you’ve bought online or liked on Facebook and Goodreads, so it’s easy to get started right away.

5. Cocktail Recipe Books I like to think of myself as bartender in constant training (read: I’m always down to craft a few cocktails for my friends pre-beach day), which is probably why I often find myself lingering at the table of cocktail books before checking out at Urban Outfitters. If you’re playing host or hostess this summer, check out their selection. My personal favorites are The Staff Of Parragon’s The Bartender’s Guide (for famous drinks and recipes), Emma Christensen’s True Brews (so you can brew beer, wine, sake and more at home, true DIY style) and Andrew Bohrer’s The Best Shots You’ve Never Tried (for a more aggressive get together).

6. Mixology: If you want to take your mixing skills to the next – er, digital – level, then the Mixology app is a must-have. With this virtual liquor cabinet you’re guaranteed to impress even the biggest drink snobs. Mixology comes loaded with over 1,000 ingredients so that you can browse drinks by category, liquor and mixer or learn about mixing techniques and the perfect glassware. You can even use your location to find bars and liquor stores.

7. Adorable Agendas: Heading to Mexico for an authentic margarita? Then you’ll need do some research (and make sure you don’t lose your notes and plans somewhere along the way). I try my best to jot down ideas, recommendations and reservations in one place. If you want to make your vacation plans even more colorful then you should check out a Lilly Pulitzer agenda or Kate Spade Saturday notebook. Because nothing says summer quite like something pink and green and patterned.

8. TripIt: Can’t bear the thought of writing all your plans out or printing a million confirmations? Then TripIt has you covered. The mobile travel organizer creates one itinerary for all your plans, so you always have vital confirmation numbers and addresses at your fingertips. All you have to do is forward your confirmation emails to plans@tripit.com, and voila, TripIt’s itinerary will show your flight plans, hotel reservations, rental car bookings, and even activities like boat tours, online restaurant reservations and event tickets all in one place.

9. The Perfect Beach Bag: Heading to the beach, the bay, or the pool? Then we have the perfect bag for you. Roberta Roller Rabbit’s totes are not only adorable, but they’re big enough to carry every beach necessity under the sun. I’ve even used mine as a carry-on flying coast to coast.

10. Stow: If a beach day is just one of the many parts of your vacation plan, let us introduce you and your packing needs to the Stow app. Once you download Stow, you’ll answer a few basic questions – whether you wear glasses or contacts, if you take medication, and if there’s anything else you just can’t live without – and select what kind of trip you’re taking. Stow will supply a template that you can use as packing checklist. Not as cute as your beach tote, but just as useful!

11. Foreign Language Phrasebooks: Vacationing abroad? Then you’ll want to make sure that packing list has a pocket dictionary or phrasebook. The traditionalist in me would suggest a Pocket Oxford dictionary, but Lonely Planet has plenty of student-friendly dictionaries and phrasebooks as well. Both are available in plenty of languages – ready to be consulted and consumed by the eager traveller.

12. iSayHello: If you’re totally lost in another language, then it might be time to turn your data and check out the iSayHello apps, the perfect digital phrasebooks and translators for when you’re on the go. Whether you want to learn a few last minute phrases in Italian, German, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Polish, Japanese or Chinese, iSayHello will make sure you’ll never be at a loss for words while traveling again.

13. Craft Store It Up: If you’ve been meaning to compile your exotic snapshots, concert tickets and other summer collectables, then head to the nearest craft store when a rainy day hits and start scrapbooking. As much as online services make it easy to pull together a digital scrapbook, it’s not the same as crafting your own photo mats, getting your fingers sticky with gold glitter glue and laughing with your siblings over ridiculous photos that don’t quite make the cut.

14. Shutterfly: Want to skip the glitter glue? Then grab your laptop and head straight to Shutterfly, where you can choose from 20 styles of photo books in five sizes or create your own custom scrapbook from a collection of layouts, backgrounds and embellishments. Of course, the best part is that you can upload photos right from your digital library, which if you’re anything like me, is full of preciously preserved moments.

15. Chevron Frame: When it comes to saving and sharing a memory, frames will never go out of style. Anthropologie always has a few stylish frames to choose from – like this adorable Chevron frame – and these Beach Avenue Frames on Etsy capture the summer spirit perfectly. So if you want to have a few memories on your desk or wall, or if you’re gifting a moment captured on film, I say splurge on a colorful frame.

16. Printstagram: With Printstagram, my go-to Instagram printing company, you can turn your Lo-Fi filtered memories into printed polaroids, calendars, posters, mini books, stickers and more all right online. There’s nothing like a Sepia-toned photo of a Lake Tahoe sunset to make you nostalgic for a long June night.

Have any other on and offline recommendations for making the most of your summer? Share them in the comments!

This edible crescent-roll cornucopia is our way of making a normal cheese boardmore festive — and definitely more fun — during the holiday season. Our go-to this time of year is a massive cheese plate that can stand alone and be the main attraction, or the starter for a larger meal. Press on for the surprisingly easy steps to braid a breaded cornucopia.

Chris Andre

Materials + Tools:

  • 1 roll of tin foil
  • 2 packages of crescent rolls
  • 1 egg (for egg wash before cornucopia goes into the oven), optional

Chris Andre

Instructions:

Start by sculpting tin foil into the shape of a cornucopia (it looks like a cone with an upturned tail). Pro tip: Lightly pack tin foil so it's easier to remove later from your baked cornucopia. Crescent rolls should be buttery enough that this shouldn't be difficult.

Chris Andre

Your tin foil mold should look a little something like this.

Chris Andre

Pop open the crescent rolls and cut the triangles into strips. Pinch together the ends of strips to make strips longer.

Chris Andre

Braid crescent roll strips. You can make these as fancy as you want. Not a braiding pro? Skip this step and leave those strips alone.

Chris Andre

Wrap tin foil cornucopia with braids/strips. Make sure you cover all the tin foil. Leave a little wiggle room at the opening of the cornucopia, so that when you’re done baking you can pull some of that tin foil out.

Chris Andre

Use any extra dough to cover the bottom of your cornucopia. Pinch the sides and anchor those braids/strips in.

Chris Andre

Brush on egg wash before placing your cornucopia in the oven. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes. Take out of oven and cover spots of cornucopia that are already golden brown with extra tin foil. Bake for another 20 minutes at 250 degrees Fahrenheit.

Chris Andre

Let it cool down until it’s easy to handle. Remove tin foil.

Chris Andre

Place cornucopia in corner of your cheese plate. Arrange cheese on your serving tray.

Chris Andre

Add crackers — we like to have two or three options.

Chris Andre

Don’t forget to fill up your cornucopia. It's called "the horn of plenty" for a reason. Fill with fresh fruit like grapes, apples, and pears.

Chris Andre

Add nuts like walnuts and pistachios to fill in any empty spaces. Garnish with fresh herbs like rosemary and sage to finish it off.

Chris Andre

Voilà! Invite over your friends, open a bottle of wine, and dig in!

Chris Andre

A cornucopia cheese board will become your new favorite holiday tradition.

Show us your crescent-roll cornucopias on Instagram and check out our baking classes (and our Easy Thanksgiving Desserts piece) for more holiday food inspo!

DIY Production and Styling: Paris Fried

Paris Fried: Paris loves any excuse to celebrate and throw a themed party. She loves experimenting in the kitchen and has a terrible sweet tooth. When she's not crafting in her studio, she's at the farmers' market buying seasonal produce or at her favorite local theater watching double features.

This post has been updated.

Though Black Friday is traditionally the official start of the holiday shopping season, we argue that it’s been kicking since mid-October. We know, we know: it still feels extremely early to start thinking about the holidays, but they’ll be here before you know it! Plus, many brands and retailers are already promoting their holiday goodies with plenty of sales and discounts available right now.

If you’re ready to embark on your holiday shopping journey, but still need answers to questions like ‘when’s the best time to shop?’ and ‘where should I shop for gifts?’ and even ‘how the heck do I save money this season?’, you’ve come to the right place. Consider this your go-to guide for holiday shopping in 2024.

Scroll on for our best guidance on navigating this busy time of year and finding the best gifts possible!

When's the best time to do holiday shopping?

Kaboompics / PEXELS

The best time to do holiday shopping really all depends on your personal shopping goals. Do you want to get a jump on items you know will sell out soon? Do you want to save the most money possible? Do you want to focus on handmade, personalized gifts? These factors will undoubtedly influence your holiday shopping schedule.

Cottonbro Studio / PEXELS

Shopping early can be advantageous for all of the aforementioned goals. A lot of retailers start promoting their holiday products early on, giving you ample time to snatch up that limited-time lip kit or fancy water bottle you’ve been eyeing way before the holidays.

Plus, some of the best deals for holiday shopping happen ahead of Black Friday and Cyber Monday – in 2023, Experian observed a surge in early spending in October, thanks to early discounts, a trend likely to continue in 2024.

Finally, shopping early can be especially helpful if your plan is to focus on handmade or personalized gifts, giving the artisan you buy from (or yourself, if you’re DIY-ing your gifts) plenty of time to craft the item with love and care.

Gallup reported in 2023 that one in four shoppers start shopping as early as September, a trend likely to continue in 2024 – so you might already be embarking on your shopping spree!

Mikhail Nilov / PEXELS

If right now is just still too darn early for you to start holiday shopping, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are some of the best times to shop since so many retailers offer their largest discounts of the entire year. Plus, the late November-early December timeline can feel a bit more appropriate for the gifting season opposed to late October-early November, when everyone’s still recovering from Halloween.

The only thing to consider during this time is the shipping timelines for the items you purchase – but most retailers will typically advise their specific shipping schedules, so you don’t risk your goodies arriving late.

Where should I shop for gifts?

Ron Lach / PEXELS

You have three main options when it comes to where to shop for holiday gifts: online, in-store, and via our amazing gift guides. Of course, each method has its advantages and disadvantages.

Shopping in-store offers a tangible experience: the opportunity to hold specific items in your hands and gauge exactly what they’ll be like when you give them as a gift. The pitfall with shopping in-person is that it typically requires a commute and journeys through potentially very busy malls and shopping strips, which can add to the already-stressful holiday experience.

In-store shopping can be more physically exhausting, but it’s all about preference! Sometimes strolling through the stores that get all dolled up for Christmas is the best part of the season.

Andrea Piacquadio / PEXELS

Per Google, 65% of those planning to shop for the holidays say they will shop online more. Shopping for gifts online can be super helpful since you can centralize your findings in your browser’s bookmark tab or via virtual cart(s). Plus, shopping online can pose more opportunities for saving some money: lots of retailers typically offer discount codes for online users, especially if you sign up for their digital marketing channels (like email and text) and make a purchase.

Shopping online isn’t just shopping, either. The internet can be a stellar research tool to help you vet whether certain products are worth it, where they can be bought, and when they’ll be available. In fact, Google reported that more than half of U.S. holiday shoppers who went into a store last year say they looked up product reviews online and/or located an item in-store by checking it online.

Kaboompics / PEXELS

Last but not least, scrolling gift guides has to be our favorite place to shop for gifts – and not just because we write and publish them.

At their very core, gift guides help streamline the holiday shopping process, alleviating the stress that bubbles up when you’re wondering what the heck to shop for in the first place. Our gift guides are backed by real people, real experiences, and real opinions from our editorial team. We only promote products that we really love and believe in, oftentimes ones we’ve tested and reviewed ourselves.

We have gift guides for just about everyone on your list, with more on the way! Check ‘em out:

What are the best kinds of gifts to give?

Kaboompics / PEXELS

The best kinds of gifts to give are thoughtful gifts that consider the giftee’s interests, wants, and needs. These gifts can be sentimental, practical, or both simultaneously. What matters most in a gift is that it’ll be meaningful to them past just the holiday season, whether it’s helping them get through daily tasks, reminding them of a memorable trip or event, or giving them small doses of joy.

“Shoppers are increasingly looking for personalized and unique gifts that reflect the recipient's personality and interests,” says Mia Anderson, Owner of ChicSew. “With the rise of online shopping, many consumers are opting for curated gift boxes or experiences that add a special touch.”

Cottonbro Studio / PEXELS

Gift boxes, personalized items, books of interest, self-care goodies, and even gift cards can all be thoughtful gifts depending on the recipient. If you have no clue what your giftee is into, it’s not a bad idea to ask them what they want the most!

“My idea of a great gift is something that is in tandem with the recipient's interest and offers something new to the person, be it learning a new skill, enjoying a calming activity, or simply spending quality time with the family,” says Alfred Christ, Sales Manager & Marketer at Robotime. “This season, we encourage shoppers to shift their focus on quality and the memories their gifts will create and not just merely material aspects.”

When is Black Friday?

Sora Shimazaki / PEXELS

Black Friday is always the Friday after Thanksgiving. This year, Black Friday lands on November 29.

When is Cyber Monday?

Kindel Media / PEXELS

Cyber Monday is typcally the Monday after Thanksgiving. This year, Cyber Monday will land on December 2. Oftentimes, retailers and brands extend their online offers through the week (coined Cyber Week) after the event. Salesforce reported that 67% of shoppers in 2024 plan on shopping during Cyber Week!

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up-to-date on our best 2024 gift guides, shopping advice, and all things holiday!

The holidays at Starbucks are creeping up on us, people! Peppermint Mocha season will return on November 7. If you’re a die-hard Starbucks fan, you know Red Cup Day is a whole holiday in itself – the frenzy for a free reusable cup is truly no joke. There’s even an entire website dedicated to counting down the madness! Even though there’s no official word on when Red Cup Day 2024 will be, there are several clues that cue us into the annual event. Scroll on for details!

What is Red Cup Day?

Starbucks

Red Cup Day is Starbucks’ highly-awaited annual event that marks the start of holiday beverage season at the coffee chain. For one day only (and while supplies last), customers who order any of Starbucks’ holiday drinks will receive a reusable red cup that features a bespoke design for the respective year.

Starbucks

Here’s a list of all the drinks rumored to be available on the Starbucks holiday menu starting November 7:

  • Peppermint Mocha
  • Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha
  • Caramel Brûlée Latte
  • Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte
  • Chestnut Praline Latte
  • Salted Pecan Crunch Cold Brew
  • Iced Gingerbread Oatmilk Chai

What do the red cups look like for 2024?

Starbucks

Starbucks hasn’t officially announced when Red Cup Day will be for 2024, let alone what the famed red cups will look like this go-around. The one obvious point is that the cups will be red! They’ll also likely feature some festive motifs that echo the holiday season. Last year’s red cups boasted playful white and green stars and ornament-like shapes.

Why should I participate in Red Cup Day?

Starbucks

Red Cup Day = freebies, which can feel really rewarding if you’re really into receiving free goodies. Plus, it’s just a fun way to lean into the holiday spirit. The red reusable cup keeps giving beyond Red Cup Day, though! Every time you use the reusable cup for future Starbucks orders, you get a 10-cent discount as well as 25 bonus stars toward your Starbucks Rewards account to save up for more discounts on drinks, food, and merchandise.

When is Starbucks' Red Cup Day 2024?

Starbucks

Again, Starbucks hasn’t alerted us on when Red Cup Day will be for 2024, but based on previous Red Cup Days, we can infer it’ll land on the third Thursday of November. In 2022, Red Cup Day happened on November 17, and for 2023, it was November 16. The third Thursday of November in 2024 hits on November 21, so mark your calendars, everyone!

Additionally, check back here for official info as Red Cup Day approaches.

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This post has been updated.