Friendsgiving- A Family away from Family
“Friends are the siblings we choose!” I say this more often than anything else. I grew up far away from my cousins so my friends were always the extended family that I missed growing up with. Now that I live 10,000 miles away from home, most of my festivals and holidays are filled with friend’s get-together and outings that actually cheer us all from missing home.
me and Lakki (my support system, I can’t imagine where I would be without her)
While I’m grateful for a lot of things these past years, I’m grateful for my friends the most who are just a phone call or a knock away when I need them. I am blessed to have my best friend as my roommate from the past 10 years who loved me in my dorky days and difficult moments, where if the rest of the world saw me, they would probably walk away.
my roomies- Swapna (my biggest supporter and promoter of my blog, she is hair goals and the sweetest soul who will be ready to help anytime you ask), me (the fat nose gal :P) and Arpita (the bestest cook any roommate would want,warm and kind person)
When Chesapeake Bay Candle approached me to share my Thanksgiving tradition, I was excited to know someone is actually interested in my Indo-American vegetarian Thanksgiving tradition (huh! that was too long to type). Although we don’t exactly celebrate Thanksgiving in India, there are several other festivals celebrated that convey a similar theme of giving thanks, such as Pongal, Onam, and Vaisakhi.
The idea of Thanksgiving for me is celebrating the holiday with my friends, having a big fat Indian/Thai meal (because Asian restaurants are the only ones that are open on the Thanksgiving day :)) and then head to the mall or stores for the rest of the night, have a heavenly hot chocolate with salted caramel in Dunkin Donuts at midnight and an early morning pizza at Target ‘s Pizza Hut. This has been my unbroken tradition for several years. Now, that I think of it, I am happy to be doing the same thing with the same people all through these years
Outfit Details: (left to right) Swapna- Lace dress (last seen here) | Necklace | BP wedges
Me- Faux leather pleated skirt (on sale) | Sweater (also like this) | Necklace (also here) | Pumps (also love this) | Earrings
Arpita- Velvet dress | Pumps | Earrings
[Also Check 13 Thanksgiving Outfit ideas]
me and ale (miss u! my roommate from college, my partner in all crimes, my twin, a person who can make me smile instantly and the best friend anyone would love to have), picture from our last year’s NYC trip
me & Akhi (my benchmate from college, a cutie-pie, my award-winning partner in all my projects, a creativity stirrer, a wonderful writer and the best doodler I know. Oh! you should check her Instagram for daily journal doodle art)
Like every other Thanksgiving, I am celebrating this with my girls. I love dressing up for festivals, we girls enjoy stealing each other dresses and help one another with makeup and hair. We like to eat our heart out, change into warm clothes and head out to splurge on sales.
There are many things that go into making a holiday memorable, most importantly being surrounded by friends and loved ones. Good food and decor is a delight but the fragrance is what brings everything together and creates lasting memories that can be triggered when you cross that scent again in years to come. Like the smell of the freshly baked cake in a pressure cooker remind me of my good old summer vacations, the smell of jasmine transports me to my moms garden, and the smell of pumpkin, campfire, and falling leaves makes me pumped for Autumn.
I am always drawn towards warm and woody smells so this holiday, I am picking some nature inspired scented candles from the Chesapeake Bay Candle Home Collection like the Autumn leaves, Balsam Citrus, Waterfall, and Hinoki Bonsai that has a relaxing and nostalgic aromatic scent. I love all these scents, I seriously can’t pick a favorite. I love the toasty pine cone smell of Autumn leaves, the fresh water lily smell of waterfall, citrus orange and clove of Balsam Citrus and the unveiling notes of eucalyptus, cedar, and spices of hinoki bonsai.
They are not the strongest scented candles. But it’s nice to catch a whiff of it while walking by it. If you are sensitive to strong smell like I am, these candles are your best bet.
The candles from Chesapeake Bay Candle have wicks made from 100% cotton and they are lead-free. The wick is small to ensure that the flame doesn’t grow tall. Each candle has been poured by a skilled artisan, how cool is that?
- Pumpkin Spice– creamy nuances of harvest pumpkin with ground cinnamon and spicy clove amid fresh apples and golden vanilla.
- Autumn Leaves– the changing of the season brings notes of apple, crushed leaves, and crisp citrus in the air as acorns, sandalwood and amber rest at the base.
- Waterfall– Waterfall is a crisp scent of a morning breeze splashed with hints of cool citrus and fresh water lily amid soft cotton undertones.
- Cinnamon Spice– Red-hot cinnamon sticks, crushed clove buds and toasted nutmeg blend with comforting notes brown sugar and earthy wood bark.
- Balsam Citrus– Citrus orange and pine needles shimmer with fresh oak and snowy pinecones over hints of festive clove and toasted allspice.
- Hinoki Bonsai– Hinoki Bonsai is a captivating aromatic scent unveiling notes of eucalyptus, cedar, and cypress mixed with accents of oakmoss, spices and white amber.
All this time I have never realized that my idea of Thanksgiving is always been Friendsgiving
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Table Set up: Dining table | Table Runner (also like this) | Serving Bowl | Gold Tray | Gold Silverware | Metallic beverage tub (not seen in the pictures) | Napkins this and this
Outfit: Burgundy Sweater | Pleated skirt (similar here and here) | Pumps | Necklace
*This post is sponsored by Chesapeake Bay Candle. As always, all opinions are my very own!
Thank you for stopping by!
Love,
Surekha
