Sunday 25 December 2011

Leaving Heaven

Well, it’s been real nice living way up here
In paradise, over the atmosphere
But I can’t stay long, gotta make my way
I’m leaving Heaven today

You see the world is dark and it needs a light
I’m gonna hang a star in the eastern sky
So everybody’s gonna know where I touch down
I’m leaving Heaven right now

I’m gonna walk around that broken Earth
Trading in these streets of gold
So if you ever wonder how much you’re worth
You should know
That you’re the reason why I’m leaving Heaven

Ain’t gonna be no kingdom, ain’t gonna be no crown
Just a little old manger, in a little old town
But it’ll do just fine for this humble King
I’m leaving Heaven let all the angels sing

And when my time comes to an end
I’ll lay down my life like a truest friend
And when I get back home, I’m gonna make some room
So, don’t you worry, ‘cause I’m coming back for you

And you will say goodbye to that broken Earth
You’re gonna walk on streets of gold
And if you ever wonder what my love is worth
Well you should know
That I’m the reason you’ll be seeing Heaven
-Matthew West


Merry Christmas Friends!

Thursday 22 December 2011

Christmas Party Attire

"What am I going to wear to this party? I have nothing to wear!!!" Sound familiar? Well, those are frequent words around here this time of year. Mostly because I am usually eating 24 hours a day from Thanksgiving until New Years, and I literally have nothing to wear that fits. But I'm doing better this year on eating, so I have had some choices on what to wear.

But how do you know what to wear to Christmas parties? Well, most importantly, you need to ask the hostess what the attire is. It can be cocktail, Church or business attire, or casual. Once you know that, you can narrow down your options. I gave you some example pictures below to guide you. This is for next year of course since the Christmas parties are over, but you can certainly use this advice for New Years or any other parties throughout the year!

1)Cocktail attire

Our company Christmas party is pretty dressy. Not because we have it somewhere super fancy, but because we are all girls, and we like to play dress up! Look at last year compared to this year.

Last year
This year. Makini (Back row on the left) said she refused to be outdone this year. She said she was way too casual last year, and she wasn't going to let that happen again! She was so cute. I told her if she wasn't so tiny and had a booty, she could've passed for Beyonce's twin!

As you can see, you can choose anything from lace, to fur, to strapless silk, to satin, to sequins, to ruffles for a cocktail attire party.
I chose head to toe winter white for this party. I got my inspiration from my friend Devon. She wore a similar outfit for a fundraiser we went to in the Fall, and I thought it was stunning. Thanks for letting me copy you! How I got the look. To The Max satin strapless top: it's been in my closet for about 5 years since I had my business. It's an old faithful. J Crew herringbone pants: Borrowed them and gold shoes from Ellen (college roommate who now lives 5 minutes from me. We are sharing clothes again just like the good old days!). Winter white Target cardigan that I've had for a few years. Mom's pearls. No money spent, and and it was a brand new outfit for me!

2) Church/business dress
Donna had a lovely party, and the possibilities are endless what to wear at one of these. You are seeing me right now about to leave, so I have on my Kelly green coat (Tulle...love it and I get compliments every time I wear it). I thought Donna and I looked perfectly Christmasy in our red and green in this pic.

Keep it simple. I say the easiest way to go is to wear a nice pair of slacks and a dressier shirt (I wouldn't wear this to church or work, but who's keeping tabs? Ok, I would with a cardigan over it.). Don't feel like you have to wear a dress, unless you have the perfect one. Like for instance Christy's vintage Dolce and Gabana. She looked like Gwen Stefani circa 1994. Coolest. Dress. Ever. I wish I'd have gotten a better pic where you could see the whole thing. Fab. Don't we all wish we had rich aunts who give us their designer hand me downs?

3) Casual

Above are pics from a neighborhood all girls party. I was invited to this last minute (I didn't know the hostess, but she told a friend to bring me, since I'm the new girl in town). I was a little frantic about this one. I had no idea what the attire was. I called my friend Courtney and she told me she was wearing jeans. Phewww. That's easy. Another top that I have in my closet from boutique days with black tissue tee, skinny jeans, black booties, and red necklace for a pop of color.

Of course, when you are the hostess, you can do anything. Especially if it's accessorizing with a Jerry Garcia Santa.


This one was at my house. I hosted Tadd's family Christmas. Yes, my hair is wet, I have no shoes on, and don't think I wore make-up that night. But I did ALL of the food by myself, and the outfit was this last thing on my mind.
Tadd's sis, mom and brother's girlfriend.

Me, Linda (my Mom in Law), Aunt Sherry, Cousin Allison (holding Mia) and Cousin Ashley (Mia's mom)
This was another one with Tadd's family in Gadsden. Ashley hosted. I got to meet sweet Mia for the first time! She's even cuter in real life!
When you are with family, you get to just be comfy and cozy. Just remember to wear stretchy pants (or a long top so nobody can see that you have your jeans unbuttoned), because you know you are going to be eating all day!

So in conclusion (for anyone that is still reading the longest post in the world), the most important rule to follow is to wear what looks good on you. If you get too far out of your comfort zone to try something new, it will backfire. Stick to you rules for your body-type, and stick to the proper attire, and you'll be fine. Oh, and get rid of the ugly Christmas sweaters!

I'm so crafty

I've never considered myself the crafty type. But this time of year, though busy, is always a fun time to introduce some fun crafts. Being home, homeschooling, has given us more time to do this than normal. For me (don't judge), crafts are a great babysitter for me. The little kids get busy with scissors and glue, and I can have some quiet time with Alex to do some school work. So here are a few things we've been busy with lately!

This is our Jesse Tree. This is our fist year of doing this. It's been lots of fun for the kids! We printed off the ornaments we found online, glued them to construction paper circles, and wrote the scripture reference on back. We also laminated them so we can use them year after year. Next year, I plan on using a small Christmas tree and hanging the ornaments on it. I just needed to wait until the end of the year when all of the trees go on clearance! But for now, a tree cut out of green poster board worked.

H and E made these cute trees. The ones I saw online had ornaments painted on, but that would've been a hot mess in my house. So I let them cut construction paper ornaments and glue them on the trees. We used toilet paper rolls for the tree trunk. They loved this project and I thought they turned out adorable. We also made a bunch more of these without the trunk as Christmas cards. The kids handed them out yesterday at the nursing home we went to for Christmas caroling!

So in conclusion, I guess I am kind of crafty. I do, after all, make people! And no, I'm not pregnant.

Saturday 3 December 2011

What's on your list?

When you are a mama on a limited budget, you have to be creative with your wardrobe. So how do I do it? Where do I get my inspiration? How do I put outfits together? How do I keep it fresh without breaking the bank?


Well, I'll tell you. I am ALWAYS looking for new outfit ideas. The first step to being able to make many outfit combinations is to have a good workable wardrobe with all of the basics and plenty of accessories. If you don't know how to do this, email me and I'll help you.

The second thing to do is to look for outfits you like and try to recreate them with your own spin on them based on what you already have in your closet. This is what I do. I love looking at InStyle, Lucky, and People Style Watch magazines for the trends of each season. I take ideas from these magazines, TV shows, or people I see everyday and then hit my closet!

I keep a mental list of things I want for the season and try to only by a few items each season to save money. Here's whats on the list:
1) Grey boots
2) Black boots (I have some, but would like a new pair. That way I can pass these to my sis...she's been on my case for a good 2 years now to hand them on to her).
3) A fur vest. Ok on this one, I can't see spending money on it because it is a trend that I don't think will last past this year. So I asked my sister-in-law if she had a spare she'd like to part with for the year, and she did. So this one I can check off the list with no money spent! If you are wondering how I'll wear it, I plan to pair it with a very feminine shirt, a skinny belt over the vest, skinny jeans, and some slouchy boots or pointy toe python heels (all ideas I pulled from several magazine pictures and a TJ Maxx commercial).
4) A dark pair of nice jeans I can wear with heels. Took care of this one. I went to TN a few weeks back to shop with a client, and left all of my clothes hanging at home in my closet. Great excuse to hit TJ Maxx. I totally got lucky to find a pair of jeans there for $30 that were actually long enough for me. Great buy...another item checked off my list.
5) A pair of leg warmers. What? Leg warmers back in style? Yes. I saw my cute friend Meredith wearing a pair peeking out of her riding boots. Adorable. I love it. Maybe Santa will put some of these in my stocking!

By making a list like this, you will save so much money. In my business, I call this "Shopping with Purpose." If you have an idea of what you need in your closet, you will save so much money and avoid impulse buying! I hope this is helpful. I'd love to hear your ideas. Where do you get your inspiration? What's on your list for this year?