Friday Finds

I love cute little things and a few weeks ago I found a whole Aisle of drawer pulls! If you are into refinishing furniture, this would be your dream come true. Or if you want to freshen up bathroom cabinets or a piece of furniture you already own - this is where you need to go. Hobby Lobby has so

many knobs, I would have a hard time choosing!!

Wednesday's Wisdom

Who makes you laugh? Who do you feel safe to cry with? That's who you need to be with. I've got my new found group of YaYa's! Been searching for years! 

I was thinking of them last night as we are spread across the country - some home safe, some spending the night at their offices because of the icy snow and one all the way over there in Utah having a fabulous time! I'm so Blessed!

“You know how some people, when they're together, they somehow make you feel more hopeful? Make you feel like the world is not the insane place it really is?” 

― Rebecca Wells, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

Of all the secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood the most divine was humor.” 

― Rebecca Wells, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood

#ootd Outfit of the Day

Mix patterns! Small stripes on the shirt with a larger print on the scarf.

Tracy James of Chic Made Simple chose these bracelets for this outfit. Big beads, delicate chain with pearls and blue quartz, and the delicate silver cuff. Mixed patterns and sizes in the bracelets too! Love!!!!

#mynewlife Monday

Jan. 19 - The salad we all crave! Olive Garden. Dinner with my youngest!

Jan. 20 - Headshot Day!!!!!! Alisha Crossley was amazing. She puts you at ease and works really fast with Beautiful results!  Please call her for any photography you may need! Contact her at http://alishacrossleyphotography.com

 Alisha is also co-owner of Simply Wed, a one stop Bridal Boutique. They will assist you in all aspects of your Wedding. 

Jan. 21 - taking photos in my closet to help me remember what to wear with what!!! 

Jan. 22 - my Dad's Birthday!!!! We got him a Cake from Olexa's! Best cake ever!!!

Jan. 23 - A night with Plain Chicken! 

Jan. 24 - Birthday Dinner for dad at Bellini's!! Soooooo good! 

Jan. 25 - errands at night! 

Simple Saturday

If you have been reading my posts you know my friends and I are always on the lookout for fun, different, and Free things to do together. Can you imagine an Appliance showroom having a Cooking class? Well Allsouth Appliances in Birmingham had one this week featuring Plain Chicken! I brought my mom to this one! It was So much fun especially because we got to taste the recipes!! Plain Chicken planned a wonderful Super Bowl party. She started with an easy Buffalo Snack Mix then a Chicken Enchilada Dip that was too good. It is addicting - so is the snack mix. No party is complete without something sweet so she finished it off with chocolate cupcakes with Chocolate Almond frosting! 

Call your local Appliance stores and showrooms and ask if they have events!!! Allsouth here in Birmingham always has something going on! 

Friday's Find

Johnny's in Homewood! A little Cajun, a little Greek and a little Southern. My friend highly recommended the Brisket Chili! Wow! It was good!! I wanted to try the creole Red beans - just the right amount of spice! Cornbread with the chili and I had to try the Parmesan Grit Cake. Creamy on the inside crunchy on the outside. Great Parmesan flavor too. To finish it off, we had to try the Banana Moon Pie Pudding. Delish! Glad we split it, it's very rich. Can't wait to go back and try some other things!!!!

Style Tip

Did you know one of the Best ways to be stylish is to have an organized closet. I can't believe I have never done this!!!! It will eliminate the "I don't have anything to wear" dilemma! First get rid of everything you never wear, doesn't fit, or is old and worn. You have a clean slate. Next you organize by shirts,pants, tops, jackets, vests. Then comes the fun part! Arrange by the colors of the rainbow or ROYGBIV (sounds like: Roy G. Biv) then add in cream, brown, black, grey, and white and you end up with ROYGBIV-CBBGW - Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo (purple), violet (pink), cream, brown, black, grey, and white

BEFORE - tops

AFTER - tops purged and color coded!

Take the time to do this - you will be so glad you did! 

Wednesday's Wisdom

The train whistle. I hear it several times a day and at night. Sometimes paying no attention to it. Sometimes though it breaks through and I really hear it. Mainly at night when everything else is quiet. Haunting yet at the same time comforting. Not many things are constant - trains are constant  - the whistle in the night is always there. That's why it's so comforting. It's always going to be there.

Photo by Lucas Allison

#ootd Outfit of the Day

I had my headshot done and last week's post was outfit #1. Here was the second outfit put together by Stylist Tracy James of Chic Made Simple. If I was wearing this out, I would have paired it with Army Green Ankle pants. I don't have those yet but for the headshot, pants don't matter. 

Once again Tracy chose a fabulous combination of Jewelry. Mix small and large chains! It adds so much interest!  

With short sleeves, add lots of bracelets and rings. I love the long delicate earrings! 

#mynewlife Monday

Jan. 12 - Lunch and a movie!!!

Jan. 13 - very exciting Day!!! 3 Hours with a REAL Stylist!!! Half my closet is gone and now I know what to wear!!! So worth it!!! 

Jan. 14 - Charter Cable App - I can watch tv while I cook!! 

Jan. 15 - String art Class at Free People

Jan. 16 - Lucas and I exploring our corner of the world. Lucas took this pic. We will be going on more adventures looking for interesting places to photograph! 

Jan. 17 - dealing with major stress means a Deep Tissue Massage for relief!

Jan. 18 - a Friend's hubby couldn't go to Bill Cosby so I was the pinch hitter!! What a great evening!!

Simple Saturday

Many stores are now offering events to build business. Free People is a clothing store here in Birmingham and earlier this week they offered a free String Art class. I decided it would be something different to do with my girlfriends! It was so fun! Check out your local stores and see what they might have to offer. I know West Elm occasionally has classes too. 

Find a silhouette online and print it out - then nail around edges - then tear off paper.

Cut a long piece of string or yarn, tie it off and start looping around the nails. There really are no rules!

Snip off the string leftover after you tie pieces off.

Finished product! 

Friday Find

Is your skin dry and icky this winter? I have found an awesome winter cleanser even if your skin is oily like mine. I love this stuff. I was almost out of the Serious Skincare Olive Oil emulsifying cleanser and HSN had a special on this kit so I went ahead and ordered it - excited to try the other products in her line. I LOVE IT!  Don't be afraid of using olive oil on your skin. It soaks in immediately and doesn't leave you greasy. The kit I bought is no longer available but there are other kits available HERE!

Style Tip Thursday

Arm Parties make life interesting and fun for you!!! They create Instant Style. Don't be afraid - pile on the bracelets and Cuffs. Your friends will think you are so cool!! 

Don't have enough Bracelets? Wrap a beaded necklace around your wrist! Get your money's worth from your Necklaces!

All Jewelry by Sara Blaine for Willow House. It is no longer available but watch this space for new collections from Sara Blaine coming soon! 

Wednesday's Wisdom

Cleaning out and letting Go. Sometimes you aren't given a choice to Let Go of things. Once you realize you can and that you will survive, a crazy kind of purging begins. You suddenly realize that starting over, cleansing your space, letting go, is very freeing. Who we are can slowly begin to disappear under things and even under relationships. Cleaning out is so cathartic and brings a refreshing feeling of lightness and a new Intention for creating a new Life.

My sudden NEED to have a stylist give me a complete closet and style makeover resulted in about half of my closet being donated. I had no idea until I thought about it more, that this is just another step in finding my voice!  I will never get lost again. 

"Some people are afraid of what they might find if they try to analyze themselves too much, but you have to crawl into your wounds to discover where your fears are. Once the bleeding starts, the cleansing can begin." Tori Amos