Dawned On Me

January 8, 2018 / Fashion

Anthropologie Mod Chevron Kimono

Welcome to a FRESH new week! Isn’t today the “official” day everyone gets going on their resolutions? Or, are you one of the ambitious types who’ve already started? Or do you not believe in resolutions all together? I don’t know whether I look at is as resolutions or just a fresh start to get my head back in the game. Kids are back to school today. I feel like we had a nice, long and busy break that included family time and some sleeping in! We headed down to Florida after hosting Christmas. We rented our condo near Naples for the Winter. My parents have a home in the same community so we stayed there for a few days to soak up a little vitamin D. It got chilly but nothing compared to the frozen tundra here in Southwest Michigan/Northern Indiana! We have a ton of snow and it’s frigid! I’ve been busy perusing some very good winter sales! This Anthropologie Mod Chevron Kimono is a super soft and versatile cardi that will take me well into Spring.

Some reviewers said they didn’t care for the short length of the sleeve. I actually thought it was a versatile option for making this sweater comfy for warmer weather as well! It was chilly, so I wore a Jcrew Factory long sleeve tissue T under it. ( I LOVE LOVE these tissue Ts) If it was warmer — a cami, tank or short sleeve would be perfect.

When we headed to Florida, we decided to leave a day earlier than expected. I literally packed up in under 2 hours which is a record for me. I grabbed these Jeffrey Campbell boots I had just bought. I took a chance not knowing how comfortable they’d be! I got lucky. They were the only boot I packed and I LOVE them! They are super easy to get on! Such a plus. I hate struggling to push my foot into booties. They also have something like a wire around the ankle area which is absolutely awesome. I felt like part of the suede was hitting my ankle in the wrong spot. All I had to do was bend the material a bit and it just stayed put and no longer rubbed. I have been eyeing these Orwell boots for a LONG time. I totally recommend them for style and more importantly, comfort.

December 31, 2017 / Fashion

Sole Society Camel Stripe Ruana

Happy New Year! I can not believe how fast 2017 flew by! Holy smokes! The older I get the faster it seems to go! We are down in Florida for the week and enjoying some sunshine! It’s cold and nasty up North.

Do you have big plans for New Year’s Eve? I have never been a big NYE reveler! You’ll find it amusing to know that my NYE tradition for over a decade has been to cozy up by the tv and watch the Twilight Zone Marathon on SyFy. LOL! Pretty lame huh? I love it. Is there anyone out there with me? If so, what’s your favorite episode? Mine is “They eye of the beholder” If you’ve never seen it, try to check it out.

Also check out my new Sole Society Camel Stripe Ruana here. It’s the perfect wrap for any climate.

It’s a bit cool down here and this ruana is the perfect with a little tank or tee underneath. You could also wear a long sleeve shirt or sweater to add an extra layer of warmth in colder climates. I Just got this thin black crewneck sweater here at Target and love it. It would be perfect underneath.

I’ve been living in these fur lined black loafers here. They are very comfy! You can also find a great knock off at Target here.

That’s a wrap for 2017. I want to wish everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous 2018! May all your wishes and dreams come true! Thanks for all the love and support this year. Looking forward to another fresh and fabulous year ahead.

Peace and Love!

December 25, 2017 / Lifestyle

Christmas Holiday Home Tour

Merry Christmas friends! It’s finally here and it’s a white one! It’s been snowing all day here in Michigan! Perfect timing! Step inside and let me show you around my Christmas Holiday Home Tour!

I’ve only been decorating since before Halloween! LOL! I’m not kidding when I say I started decorating early! Some of my best “finds” are out in stores alongside pumpkins and ghost figurines and I find that, THAT is the time to snag the good stuff! You’ll see that it will be hard for me to source the exact items here because a HUGE amount of my Christmas decor is from TJmaxx, Marshalls and my favorite of all, Homegoods!

I’ll start first with my trees. Those, I don’t get at these stores. A couple of years ago I fell in LOVE with Rachel Parcell’s (of the blog Pink Peonies) Flocked Christmas Tree. Before then, I had always shied away from flocked trees thinking they were too messy! They are — but that’s what vacuums are for! They are also SO rich and beautiful. And here is the kicker that’s taken me a bit of time to learn — They look beautiful even when you don’t decorate them…plug them in and voila- instant beauty! You don’t need a lot of anything to make these trees come alive and look so cozy and inviting in your home.

I got my foyer tree last year at Tai Pan Trading here. Tai Pan is located out west and I contacted the Salt Lake City store via Facebook message and they had read my messages but never returned them. It wasn’t until the owner saw my messages that the ball finally got rolling. He offered to not only send me a tree but give me 20% off for my persistence and the unanswered messages. SCORE! The result is this long needle, flocked, 9 feet tree of pure gorgeousness! Everybody loves this tree and as much as I do.

So this year I needed a new tree for our family room. I decided I wanted another flocked tree and heard so many great things about the King of Christmas trees. I got this one here for the family room and love it. It is simple to put together and it has a power pole so you don’t have to connect the plugs which are often a pain to find among all the branches. I decided on a blush and grey theme. I piled on the ornaments I found at Homegoods AND the huge matte grey ornaments are from all places…the dollar store!

I found so many great accessories this year! Some of my favorites include this feathered garland here and an assortment of glass trees. Similar here. (Again, all mine came from the Homegoods and the like) My other super handy decorating tool are these tiny battery operated lights you can find here. They are on a timer so every evening around 6pm I set them to come on and they go off around 10pm. You don’t need an outlet so you can put them anywhere! They use 3 AA batteries that last the whole season and then some!

And lastly my formal living room. I don’t do too much in here. I grabbed some fun and festive pillows at Tj like this one here and and here which added some color to my mostly white room. I love, love, love these read velvet pillows and they were only about 20 bucks! Here are more of those glass trees I mentioned above. I placed them on the coffee table for a subtle, yet sophisticated holiday touch. The led trees are from West Elm a couple of years ago. They have these this season and I love them. And finally, I threw up the faux boxwood wreaths on the window using these handy hooks here.

So as I wrap up, I hope you’ve found at least a little holiday decorating inspiration for future Christmases! I was just at Homegoods and Tjmaxx yesterday and they have a TON of gorgeous holiday stuff left. (This is not a sponsored post btw. I just really love shopping there lol!) I was told it will all be half off on Tuesday! So now is the perfect time to grab some great deals, stick them in a labeled bin and get ready to have fun decorating next holiday season. I always find it fun to open up a bin and see something in there I forgot about!

With that, I wish you had yours a Holy and blessed Christmas!

December 23, 2017 / Fashion

Finding the perfect leopard faux fur coat & leggings

Greetings! We are now down to the wire! Are you ready for Christmas? Each year I tell myself I’m going to plan and organize better.. but darn, time flies and here we are and I still am at it. Wrapping, decorating, you name it! Today’s look will be perfect for us here in the Midwest in the coming week! Even though it’s been a bit mild the past few days, it’s supposed to get very cold again! brrr! There’s even some talk from our meteorologists that we might have a white Christmas!! At first they were saying a dusting. It’s looking like it now might be more substantial. Frigid air calls for a warm, cozy coat! I’ve been looking around for the perfect leopard faux fur coat for a while now. There are a ton of styles out there but nothing was jumping out at me until I saw this one here from BB Dakota! It’s as soft as a teddy bear — NO kidding! I also love the softer, muted tone of leopard on this coat plus, you can just see how soft and fuzzy it is.

I currently don’t have a ton of black in my closet but it’s so essential to have some basic black pieces. This black rib knit sweater here is comfortable and also very forgiving if you have one too many Baileys over the holidays. Know what I mean? (wink, wink) 🙂

Another basic staple is a good pair of black leggings. This high waisted pair from Spanx here is gorgeous on and so comfortable. I also have a basic cotton version here by Zella that I really like as well. Anyone who owns a pair of these will tell you they are worth the investment! I really like the faux leather because it just knocks the look up a notch and they come in other colors as well! I highly recommend!!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and a Merry Christmas. I’m going to try to get a quick holiday home tour post up but don’t hold me to it. Lol! I’m making Christmas dinner and have a lot to do! We’re doing a beef tenderloin and a ham. What are you making? Thank you for stopping by to check today’s post. Please comment below. I love keeping in touch or answering any questions you might have! Peace and love!

December 16, 2017 / Fashion

Blush Fuzzy Anthropologie Cardigan

Happy Saturday everyone! One more week before Christmas. Are you ready? Better not be, because I’m not!! Yikes! Good news is that there are SO many great sales as we head into the final stretch! My blush fuzzy Anthropologie Cardigan here is on sale with free shipping! If you’ve been following me for a while here, you know I ADORE cardigans! They’re cozy and so easy to style. I have a bunch of them. This one is called the pocketed eyelash cardigan and even though you can’t see it on the model online, you can see in my photos the sides kind of drape down to form the pockets. It looks so cute on and it’s a nice twist on your run of the mill cardigan with pockets.

I also LOVE hats! I got this chunky knit hat from TJmaxx but you can get one almost identical right here for under $13! SCORE! I love the grey one! These won’t be around long so make sure to get one! There is a LONG winter ahead and chunky knit hats are so warm!

While I love hats I have to admit that I find it hard to make them look good if you have short hair! You with me fellow short hair girls? Ughh! I have to play around with them to make sure I have enough hair peeking out on the sides! Otherwise, it is just a no go for me! Not all hats work either. You just have to try them on and play around.

Funny story. I loved the look of hats with long hair so much I took the plunge a few years ago and flew out West to get extensions! Can you imagine the reaction I got when I told people I was hopping a plane to Laguna Beach for a hair appointment? 😉 It was a hoot. They understood once they learned my husband flies for Delta and the price was right! Ha! I call it my “mid-life crisis hair” LOL!! It cost me an arm (or two) and a leg (and a half) but it was awesome! This is how it looked below. In the end, I grew up and decided I would need to get a side job as it cost a fortune and it wasn’t really me even though so many people loved it and told me I looked younger. I’m a short hair girl for good now. (maybe ) 😉 If you’d like to know more about extensions and would like a blog post about my experience, make sure to comment below. I’d be happy to tell you all about my experience including cost and stylist. I had done a ton of research.

Before I wrap up, I’ve gotten a lot of miles out of my over-the-knee boots. These Dolce Vita Ohanna boots have been my favorites. Mine are a couple years old. If you’re in the market for a pair these are super close to mine.

Hope you have a great weekend! My boys play tennis and that’s what most of my weekend involves. That, and getting my meal plan ready for Christmas dinner. Don’t forget to sign up for emails below. Each time I post, a notice will shoot straight to your inbox. Also, Please leave any comments or questions below. Stay pretty and thanks as always for stopping by!

December 8, 2017 / Fashion

Jcrew wrap coat for an easy winter look

Hello Beautiful! It’s been a while! I’m so thrilled to debut my new and MUCH improved website! I just love it and I hope you do too! I think you’ll find it more aesthetically designed and hopefully easier to navigate as well! I’m excited to kick off my first post on the new site featuring this gorgeous Jcrew wrap coat here. It’s boiled wool. Typically, I’m not a huge fan of boiled wool. Back in the day when I anchored the news, our wardrobe providers would give us a boiled wool jacket to wear on the air. I felt like the Michelin man in it! It was stiff and bulky and just plain old not very flattering. I read the many positive reviews on the Jcrew website and to my delight they were right! It’s a thinner style boiled wool, soft and not stiff or clunky looking on. I’m also not usually a big fan of the color (moss green) but when I saw it on the model I thought it was simply gorgeous paired with this blue turtleneck (sold out) similar here! (Want in on my little style secret? I’m really not all that talented. LOL. I love to find pretty and pleasing things and then enjoy the challenge of trying to emulate it. I would have NEVER thought to put blue under this moss color so I let the real pros at the retail level do my work for me. LOL The end result is an easily put together outfit that packs a pretty big punch style-wise and I’ll always put my own twist on it in the end.

Like I said, even though I love to see things already put together for me, I always try to make it my own. I often get tons of compliments from my Clare V leopard fold-over clutch here. My Ray Bans here, I snagged on sale on Cyber Monday. I don’t think one can own too many Ray Ban aviators. My favorites are the rimless ones. They are super comfy and lightweight. Some, I find are not comfortable and fall down my narrow nose. (It’s a challenge because my glasses slip down easily!) This pair is perfect and I love the color.

Beside this Jcrew wrap jacket and turtleneck, I also stocked up on some of Jcrew jewelry. (Yes, I have an addiction and no, this is not a sponsored post ha!– but they had 40 percent off their entire site during Cyber week which is the best sale I have ever seen from Jcrew) Stay tuned over the next few weeks. I think you’ll be seeing more great deals pop up! I own so many blush tone pieces, I HAD to get these blush earrings here. They are so pretty and lightweight and will go with almost EVERYTHING!

I get a lot a questions about my lipcolors. My new favorite is Paper Doll by Tom Ford here. (Oh, it’s pricey but it will last a long time. It’s worth it. Very creamy and long lasting) Lip liner: Dervish here and topped with Dior’s limp plumper here

Hope you have a great weekend! What’s in store? Any fun holiday parties? We have one tonight but most of my weekend involves finishing up on last minute decorating details. I’ve been only decorating for what seems like the past 2 months. Really! It gets exhausting doesn’t it? And on a final note…. Also, please leave any comments or questions below. This is a new feature of my site now and I’m excited and happy to answer questions and get to meet you! Thanks for stopping by and please sign up for emails! My latest blog posts will come straight to your inbox! Peace!