what i'm wearing: my jingle ball outfit and the rejects

It's been a month since Jingle Ball, so it seems like the perfect time to post about my outfit!

...Mostly because I've officially gotten all the reject pieces into the mail and sent back.

You see, for Jingle Ball, I always order TONS of things on Black Friday, then cross my fingers that somehow something goes together.

For the first time ever, it actually worked.

-bodysuit from Boohoo [currently sold out]

-leather skirt from Zara

-snakeskin/suede booties from Kohls

-lovely, customized hair extensions thanks to Ruby Devine at Frizzles

I did my own hair and make-up again because #trustissues. Stila has a new liquid glitter eyeshadow thing that was a STAPLE for the holiday season [see another look up close here]. Add some blue bottom eyeliner, a litttttle bit of a smokey eye, and fake eyelashes and BAM I'm out the door. 

The look is definitely one of my favorites, even though I hate the whole slicked back hair thing in pictures. It was fun to test my coworkers' ability to keep their eyes up, and it looked good on stage, even with ridiculous faces.

Now, back to those rejects I was talking about. 

I ordered about $700 worth of things from Asos, Express, Boohoo, Lulu's, and more random places. I threw together some possibilities while hungover or just not put together to send to friends for opinions. If I'm gonna look good in such a moment, it'll be a real winner when I'm put together. 

Here are some of those options, without my face because ain't nobody wanna see that mess. Trust me... but there were too many solid options to NOT share.

I brought this outfit to Capital One Arena with me in case of a Nipplegate. The velvet bodysuit is fun and different, but it was too black to be festive, right?

-bodysuit from ASOS

-same skirt from Zara

-shoes from JustFab

This was another runner up. These pants would never be something I wear on any other occasion, but that's what made them fun. Ultimately, I didn't think they'd look as good on stage, but they're also from ASOS. 

Something about this seems like a pajama outfit that you can also wear out and be a little slutty. I wish I had a real reason to keep the top, but I don't get dressed up nearly as much as I'd like to. 

-Mesh crop top from ASOS

-pants from Boohoo

All of these sparkles would have looked BOMB on stage, but the sleeves were just... too much. The dress is from Lulu's.

This was another one I really loved, but I wore blue velvet two years ago and I just KNOW everyone would remember that and be disappointed. This Lulu's dress was hella comfy and flattering... and appears to be sold out for now unless you tell me within 30 hours that you want to buy a size medium from me. :)

Finally, this dress... which is the same design as the bodysuit I wore, and I LOVED it.... but uh... it covered half of my ass. It requires someone with a short torso. They seemed to be sold out of this also, but here are similar looks.

There was one more "reject," but I loved it too much to let it go to waste. The good thing about the Jingle Ball orders, is that I normally have something left over for New Year's Eve. Enter this sexy little number. 

-bodysuit from ASOS

-skirt from ASOS

-shoes from JustFab

Whew. Now I have some closure. Money is back in my account, photos are posted, I'm getting nothing for any of this besides the feeling of accomplishment and the aforementioned closure. For the two outfits I kept, it was about $125, not including accessories that I already had for a while. That's the beauty of Black Friday and I wish every day was Black Friday except not really because I would need a buy a house just for a closet. 

Maybe next year I'll hire an actual stylist.... but probably not. #trustissues #thisisfun

love,

elizabethany

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photos, videos, interviews and more: jingle ball 2016

HOT 99.5 Jingle Ball. It's the biggest night of my year. It's like prom, or maybe even a wedding. MONTHS of planning. MONTHS of outfit picking. LOTS of dollars spent... for one day... that you pray goes smoothly, but rarely goes according to your assumptions.

In September, I was pretty pumped that I had an outfit I loved ready to go, only missing one piece. Then, come Black Friday, I go to try it all on again and realize I actually hate it. *cue panic* I ordered a bunch of things, mostly from Boohoo, and prayed one would work. Two days before Jingle Ball, nothing had arrived. I was forced to find something else. Instead of going to any of my usual places, I hit up the Rent the Runway STORE in Georgetown, and got really lucky when they had just one sequin jumpsuit left- in my size. [I knew I wanted pants and sequins before I even began shopping.]

Damn, it's amazing what angles and a good mirror can do, huh?! 

I picked up shoes from DSW, earrings from Charming Charlie, necklace from Forever21, and prepared myself to do my own hair and make-up. I was too devastated with how it turned out last year when someone else did it for me[I don't even like linking to it in reference but here we are]. Cue the waxed-up braids, curling wand, Urban Decay smokey eye, NYX red lipstick, some failed attempts at contouring, and stila mascara and I was really diggin' my look for this year.

I ended up finishing the look with a giant SACK this year [with flask inside] and gave out some random goodies to the artists backstage.

Machine Gun Kelly was easily the most appreciative [and just the most fun in general throughout the entire night], Ellie convinced me that she might actually use what I gave her, Daya was the first to practically throw it away in front of me, and Joe Jonas was the one to call me out for having holiday leftovers. Sigh.

Unlike last year, I got some time "on the couch," in the broadcast room with some of the artists coming in for an interview. My girl Alessia had more than an interview coming for her, though. Days before Jingle Ball, the Grammy noms came out and her name was not included in any of the lists. That ain't right. Luckily, I know a place with some good and quick trophies and we made magic happen.

OBVIOUSLY I wish she would have been as excited as Meghan was, but I get it- she's gotta play it cool and stuff or whatever. JUST WASTE MY MONEY ALESSIA IT'S FINE.

Tove Lo also came in and made it real easy for my to once again just talk about her boobs and naked body.



Diplo came in to talk about holiday parties, what you need, and to receive a gift of course. I also tried to get a preview of his after party but there was no predicting the clustereff of artists that ended up being on his tiny stage that night. I have no idea how he was able to perform under such conditions. This is a real HQ video, straight from Facebook Live because #variety #allthesocials #HOT995JingleBallbeTrending.

And when you have a duo of DJ/producers who made a dumb but catchy song about a Selfie, then turned around and made the year's biggest hits there to close the show, I HAD to stop them backstage. I cornered them after their meet and greet for a very professional game of Urban Dictionary... which they definitely beat me at but I'm gonna say it's because they have more experiences with *substances.* Maybe. Probably. #DJlife

There are so many other clips that I'm gonna have to post as Throwback Thursdays or something because... well... let's be honest. It's January 5th and I'm JUST NOW getting this entire post up. I'm behind on things... but to look forward to:

• Machine Gun Kelly's room had some nice "air fresheners" that neither of us would shut up about
• DNCE's Cole and I had a very fun relationship, that came to a dramatic end when he asked if he could keep my flask
• Daya definitely thinks I stalk her, or mooch off of her, like her friends who were visiting in her room
• Ashley I from the Bachelor, who is seemingly everywhere, even made it backstage at our Jingle Ball as some sort of correspondent
• Ellie Goulding is one of the sweetest, but coolest chics, who is great at sneaking in the subtle dirty jokes or lines
• The girls of 5th Harmony were more separate than I've ever seen them, but now we all know why. Still- they're the sweetest girls I've ever met so I will never say anything bad about them. Especially Ally. Girl- you are a special kind of human being that I wish I could be

Finally, I wouldn't have ANY of this to show you if it weren't for my little brother. I'm sure you've heard of him once or twice. His name is Mike.

I was able to fly him in from Toledo to be my camera guy... but really, he's there to be my inspiration, my comfort, my focus-and-be-you-and-let's-make-this-great. Having him around reminds me to be myself, not focus on the camera or the fact that I'm "interviewing celebrities." I'm just a girl with a mic, genuinely interested in meeting these people who create good music and great shows. I know I won't always be able to have my favorite person next to me at big events, but it's hella nice when I can, and I'm gonna take advantage of it.

It's almost weird to even look back at all of this because it all happens so fast, you can't process it at the time. We're sprinting to the stage, then back to the hall to catch someone, then sitting and waiting for something to happen for 45 minutes, then sprinting again, losing something, forgetting something else, hitting record, and suddenly stepping out in front of 16,000 people. It's a rush that I never wanna lose the ability to feel, that's for sure. 

So in 2017, my goal is to keep the rush alive. Create more opportunities to feel it. Share it more with you... and what I preach to you and myself every day: stop making little excuses for why you can't do something or why it can wait. Don't let anything wait. Don't push anything off. Live in the today and the now and make things happen. 

love,

elizabethany

PS: Never thought I'd get a sweet gif of myself and the Grinch on a huge stage at the Verizon Center but that's my life now.

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photo diary: jingle ball 2015

Most people get excited for the holiday or Christmas season, I get excited for Jingle Ball season. For months we hype it up, it's all we talk about, and then in six hours, it's all over. It's a whirlwind that normally takes me a whole week to look back on and realize everything that went on.

First of all, my look.

Once again, I started looking MONTHS in advance. I thought about doing Rent the Runway. I ordered six dresses from all different places, and ended up going with one I got for $15 from GoJane.com. This time I was actually happy with it.

I knew I wanted blue velvet, and since my Jingle Ball diet didn't work to its fullest, the ruching was important. Necklace is from RocksBox, and the shoes are Nine West from DSW clearance. Add everything together [with the important accessories like a giant flask, some rings and plain dangle earrings] and I spent a total of $70.

The station hooked me up with getting my nails, hair and make-up done. My nails, I loved.

When it comes to my hair and make-up, I feel like it's better when I do it myself. They did wonders covering my face up, but I felt like a ghost of myself because I've never seen me without bags! I went with the fierce pinspired eyes, though.

You've already seen my backstage video that my bro helped me shoot, but if you missed my Snapchat story, I decided to upload it for you.



Each year is a little different. Last year, our entire team spent a lot of time together. This year, I barely saw anyone unless it was passing by quickly in the hallway.

We also got to see the last two performers- Shawn Mendes and Demi Lovato- with our friends on the floor. Demi, girl, you got some pipes and they're impressive.

My flask was the talk of backstage, of course. [BTW, I got it for $16 at TJ Maxx]I even took it ON stage with me and tried to make a joke about drunk goggles. Something cheesy like "y'all look beautiful, but you'll look even better in a couple hours." Out of some 15,000 people, I'm not sure I heard anyone laugh. Remind me not to try that again. Thank goodness I'm in a room alone every night so I can imagine the laughs happening.

The next day, my brother and two of my coworkers headed down to Norfolk for the Not So Silent Night. Here's to hoping I can get those videos up before the end of 2015. ;) Also, hoping we get some of the professional pictures from on stage back soon. WHATDAEFF.

Thanks for a great year.... whether you listen in DC or somewhere else, thanks for letting me keep my job. It's days like this one that remind me I'm #blessed and that I #loveyoutothemoonandback. hahahaha I hate me.

love,
elizabethany

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elizabethanytv: harassing artists backstage at jingle ball

When you work with a bunch of radio legends, you gotta find a way to do your own thing and get your own content. Now that I'm also music director around these parts, I have a little more credibility and decided to get my hands on some artists while they were in their dressing rooms, walking down the halls, or doing press.

It's basically everything we're told NOT to do. It's the most unprofessional thing I've ever done... yet it's probably the video I'm most proud of to this day.

Enjoy a different look at Jingle Ball:


The way it works back there is crazy. Everything is so specifically timed. They'll do an interview at 6:48, meet and greets at 7:04, and perform at 7:27. Squeezing in extra PLANNED time was impossible... so sometimes you just need to demand some attention and pray you don't get in trouble. [I definitely got in trouble. I always get in trouble. This time it was a scary bodyguard for a certain band made of four certain male humans.]

love,
elizabethany

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what ya wearin for the holidays

I miss seeing your outfits every week! And it makes me sad every time someone brings up how much they loved doing it... but sometimes a girl has to move on from the things she loves, y'know?!

That doesn't mean I can't bring it back for all the holidays, so a few of you jumped in on Christmas Day. 

@jennay_z went with the sparkles and animal prints while @alizook went with the cozy winter look.

I love the red hat, scarf, and make-up on @its_just_lay

@siarrahhh also rocked some animal print and sparkles on the shoes

I can't even handle the awesome matching of @iceiceandrew and his family.

Pretty white lace and a simple necklace for @hlucas87

And @kelsey_hillery0207 went pretty lace and chiffon on top.

As for me, my Christmas Day outfit was lacy too, with this green top from Forever21, Express jeans, and Old Navy booties.

Some other outfits I wore for station events: 

I wore this for my VA Beach station's "Not So Silent Night" event, which I still need to post about. 

-dress from my clothing swap

-DSW/Guess booties

-amazing blue necklace from Charming Charlie

And you've already seen the pictures from Jingle Ball, but here are some outfit details. 

It was hard to see in any pictures I posted, but my skirt had a little print to it. When I first got it, I actually hated it. It reminded me of a sports jersey material or something. In the end, it worked.

I also promised myself to not wear anything from the "typical" stores this year, but after ordering a couple hundred dollars worth of things from online stores and none of them working, I scrambled the morning of. The top is from Forever21 and the skirt/necklace from Charlotte Russe.

I fully enjoyed my accessories, though. The first ring is from Express, and the bow ring from BlueLans. I also had a few other stackables and a pretty manicure that I forgot to take a picture of before ripping them all off. 

 Thanks to everyone who tagged their pics! We'll obviously do it for #WYWNYE, so plan on it!

love,
elizabethany

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photo diary: jingle ball 2014

Last year, Jingle Ball was kind of a "welcome home and to your dream job" event for me. I had only been back a couple months and Kane introduced me on stage. This year, it was truly a year end celebration. We had the biggest artists of the year and a team that is truly my family. I took the stage alone [and damn near wet myself over it] but also felt very comfortable.

Though I don't get to see much of the show that everyone else sees, there's a whole other show happening backstage... and that's what I'm here to share.

There's meet and greet rooms, a press room that we hang in, a thousand hallways to run through where you could run into any one of the artists and/or their significant others, and a bunch of crazy radio people also trying to steal the show.

First of all... in case you're clueless, let's meet some important people.

The man, the legend... Kane. Host of our morning show, the guy I interned for that ultimately made me decide to get into radio, and the person who got me through a bit of a hiccup that night that I'm beyond grateful for.

Toby Knapp. Afternoons on our station and a big brother type mentor through my entire career. We typically tag team.... the interviews, duh.

Rose and Danni, the ladies of the Kane Show, making us the ladies of HOT 99.5 and Z104.3! They're beautiful people inside and out.

Now, for the stuff you probably care about.

You may have heard me talking about telling Calvin Harris about my sex dream I had of him, and that I did! This is the moment it happened. I'm pretty sure he's undressing me with his eyes. 

Heyzeus, he's fun to look at and smell.

Another funny interview moment was the near-fight between Lil Jon and Kane.

There were some surprises for us, as well. 5 Seconds of Summer showed up as a bunch of old people and were hilarious and quirky as usual.

And Rixton brought us the most amazing onesies from their company OnePiece. You best believe this is going to be my Christmas morning outfit.

I was able to sit in or conduct just about every interview. The only people I missed [which I'm really sad about] were Iggy Azalea, Demi Lovato, and Meghan Trainor. Not bad considering a 16-act line-up!

CharliXCX

Jessie J... right after I shocked her with how loud my "radio voice" is. Mah bad, gurl!

There are also some pictures that make me laugh. 

Why is Kane so jealous of my hand-shaking with some of the guys?! I can't even tell if he's my overprotective boyfriend or theirs, but he's not about it.

Also, Danni and I clearly hate each other and are going to fight. 

And if you were there, you miiiiight have noticed me awkwardly carrying my phone on stage with me. I didn't wanna stop down and take a picture or video, so I just recorded as I went out. It's a mess, but that's pretty accurate. My memory/brain at the time was just as blurry and cluster-effed. 

Yeah, that's really just a terrible video. Here's another shot.

It was a sold out show with 15,000 of our friends. [Well, maybe like 1,000 of those people pretend to hate us.] Insanely incredible.

Thank you to everyone who came, to my coworkers who help me out every step of the way in this business, to my family and friends who came to support, and every single person who tuned in or called in or did anything to interact with my show to make it #1 for the year. I love you for allowing me to have these "best days of my life." 

love,

elizabethany

PS thanks to Getty for some of those pictures! 

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photo diary: jingle ball 2013

Is it really over?! I've been looking forward to this year's Jingle Ball before I even knew I'd be working for the station...

It was easily the biggest event I've ever been a part of. Robin Thicke, Miley Cyrus, Flo Rida, Enrique Iglesias, Jason Derulo, Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Austin Mahone, and Fifth Harmony were in the building to perform, along with over 10,000 people to watch and some big wigs of the company.

For the first two hours, I was handing out free tickets to just about anyone who came by a tent outside the venue. I tweeted about it, but people thought I was kidding. Sucks to be you if you didn't come get some freebies.

Then we rushed into the broadcast room where we were doing our shows live from backstage and interviewing all the artists! Unfortunately, I missed out in some of them because of timing issues, but I did get to talk to Austin Mahone! As far as I can tell with his body language and reactions... he's definitely dating someone on the tour... or at least has one of those "when I get the balls, I'm gonna ask her out" crushes. 

[hopefully we'll get the full interview up soon!]

I decided selfies were the way to go for the night... 

....until I ran into Enrique and this happened... but didn't have a chance to retake it.

Everything was super planned out which was a very new experience to me. I'm used to a bit of a messy situation/schedule backstage full of boozy people... so next I rushed to the stage to get ready to announce Flo Rida with Kane. He asked me if I had looked out at the stadium yet.... and when I did.. 

...I freaked! In a good way, luckily. I wasn't nervous, just amazed. HOW IS THIS MY LIFE?! 

This was my view of the show, which looked pretty freaky when Fall Out Boy's fire was all crazy.

Full circle moment... from Kane Show intern, to officially introduced by him as the new night jock. Woah.

We decided to capture the moment with this... thanks Kane!

Robin Thicke happened to be walking by and I was all "Hey, Robin..." and he responds with something along the lines of "of course we can take a picture with you and that dress!"

So obviously we took a prom picture, right after I teased him about getting his swoon on without me having to ask for it at all.

I was also really pumped to finally get to hang with the girls of The Kane Show! We got to introduce Enrique together, so we obviously shared stories of sexy boys ahead of time.

This was honestly one of my favorite moments. I was walking down the hall, following Miley, and she runs into Jordin Sparks and Jason and they talk about how they're hunting down different people who are performing but don't know how to find them yadda yadda. It's just neat to see them all be friends outside of cameras etc. 

I didn't get to see much of the show because of everything going on in the back... but based on the pictures, stories of Flo making it rain with real dollars, Enrique going into the crowd, fans twerking on stage.... It sounds like it was pretty incredible. I also got to hear all about it when I was back in the studio for the end of the show, when everyone called in to share how exciting it was. 

As for what I wore, I got my dress from Kohl's! It's by JLo, it's got some sparkles, but was totally "winter," covered some massive bruises I got over the weekend, and paired perfectly with my new red shoes from Marshall's and red lips. 

So I guess I have to wait 360-some days for the next one to happen which is just torture... but luckily I like my job every day. 

If you were there, lemme know what you loved!

love,

elizabethany

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