August Gift Guide

 Are you in need of a gift this month? Well let's do some gift shopping.......

If you need a gift for the beauty lover, check out this beauty bag

Rosmax Beauty Bag is the perfect organizer for the friend (or you) who has a lot of products to organize.

If you need a home gift, try the 

Echo Show - I think the quarantine has made this even a more fun thing to own.  

You know what else we have needed while spending more time in our homes?

This 

Extended Charging cord and it's this month's idea for the guys on your list.

For kids on your list consider this

This paracord comes in several different color options and will be perfect to help carry around that hydroflask.

And lastly for that girlfriend who has a birthday this month

Apple Watch band......this one comes in several color choices, but I think this pink would be fun to give.

Hope that gives you some great ideas for you or a friend.

See you back on Friday!

Recent Amazon Buys

Amazon and I have always had a good relationship, but we may be corresponding with each other even more lately.  Today I thought I would share with you a few of the standouts I have ordered, tried and fallen in love with

We burn a lot of candles around here and we are always hunting for one of those disposable lighters that will actually work.  So we ordered this

RONXS Lighter

It is a USB rechargeable lighter.  No more clicking to no avail. It plugs right in and charges right up.  We have really enjoyed having it.  It does not produce a flame.  It produces more of a spark but that spark lights everything just like a flame.  It also has a safety switch.  This has been one of our best buys lately.

I also needed some spray bottles.  We have been trying to cut down on all the bottles of stuff we recycle.  Honestly, our recycle pickup used to be every week and now it is once a month.  We are big recyclers, but we fill that bin up quickly.  So I grabbed these

Glass Spray Bottles

These were packaged super nicely and are very good quality.  The first thing I mixed was some Young Living Thieves Essential Oil cleanser.  We kept one bottle on the main floor and put the other on the second floor.  The counter tops in this house have never been so happy.

I showed you these the other day

Spice Jars

If you missed the post with all those details, just click here.  I just ordered my second set to finish out all my spices.  I have been grabbing these and cooking with them and they are performing wonderfully.

The last thing for today is these

E-Cloths

We have found these to be quite good in cleaning mirrors and glass.

Now as you can imagine we've had several other boxes delivered and I am in the process of giving them all a go right now.  If any other products rise to the top, I will be sure to report back here.

I have been bonding like crazy with Netflix too.  On Wednesday I will share what good things I have found there.

Have a wonderful week!

The July Gift Guide

Hey, do you need a gift this month?  Or maybe you are getting ahead on that Christmas shopping.  Listen, if this quarantine has taught us nothing else, it surely has shown us to not leave things to the last minute.  I have been so thankful that I purchased, addressed and stamped all my birthday cards for the year back in January.  It has been wonderful to pull out the cards and pop them in my curbside mailbox.  And, yes, we are gearing up for our annual Christmas gift wrapping on July 25th.  We have no idea if we will be mobile or not come December (praying we will) regardless, we will be ready.

I am little proud of my minor hoarding.  I have been able to celebrate 3 family birthdays, Easter, Mother's Day and Father's Day primarily with stuff I had in this house.  My little great nephew is taking some online camps and I've been able to pull out glue, popsicle sticks, paint and all manner of things around here.....no need to go to the store.....I have it in a bin.

Anyway, back to gift ideas.  Many of you have mentioned wanting to diversify your retail endeavors, shop locally owned, small businesses and give some other folks some financial love.  So this month's gift ideas is full of minority, locally owned options for you......let's get started.

For the Beauty Lover on your lists check out Mented.  I tried this lipstick

Matte Pretty in Pink

and this lip gloss

Mauve Over Lip Gloss

Their products are not just for women of color, but for all women. They have a really nice feature on the website called the Shade Finder.

Now if you need a gift for a Guy on your list check out Hot Sauce Shero

Summer 5-Pack

This set allows the experience of all five flavors.  Individual bottles are also available if he doesn't need a whole hot sauce assortment. But don't most people need a hot sauce assortment?

I think your Gal Pal (or you) would like these

Macaron Variety Pack

Aren't these the prettiest little macarons you ever did see?  They are from Tier Couture Bakery in Georgia.  She has such fun varieties including wine infused macarons and even carrot cake macarons.  This would be such a fun gift for someone.

If you need a Home gift for a family or housewarming check out Stewart Town Coffee.  

Coffee

They sell all kinds of coffee in whole beans, ground and K-cups.  Brighten up some family's morning with some of this delicious coffee.

And lastly a little something for the Kids on your list 

Sulwe

Every Little Thing

I am Magnificent

Hope you find some things you love.

See you back on Friday!

Summer Trunk Club

It may be sad how excited I am about putting on real clothes and going out into the world.  I have a new appreciation for the simple pleasure of picking out some earrings to go with a cute shirt and some new sandals.  I also have a new perspective on exactly how many clothes I need to own.  I will admit it, sometimes I buy a pair of jeans because they are a super good price and sometimes I may order another pair of brown sandals because they are on a really good sale.

But NOW I really only want to focus on having things that I really love.  Don't get me wrong, I still want to own them at a good price, but I don't want to own them simply because they are a good price.

For that reason, when they sent my prospective items for my summer trunk, I declined a few of them because I knew I wouldn't love them.  But because I use the trunk experience to stretch myself, I accepted anything I was on the fence about.  After all, this is all about trying things someone else selected for me.

Here's what came in the trunk and how I felt about them

 These jeans are Kut from the Kloth, a brand I really love.  They are a super cute cut and I love the rolled hem.

Jeans and Top

I am wearing them with this red peplum top.  I really liked both of these items.  But the jean section of my closet forced a veto on the jeans.  But the red top made the cut.

The jeans are currently on sale for under $65 and the top is on sale for under $45.  Unfortunately, I only found the top in black to link here.  

I also got this floral top with tie sleeves

Floral Tie Sleeve Blouse

Good news....it is 40% off right now.

Then these white jeans.

White Jeans and Striped top

Now these had a chance because I actually need a pair of white jeans.  And these were nice.  I loved the fabric.....but all the sweet heat bbq chips and loaves of bread I have consumed, vetoed these.  I am beyond buying clothes to lose a few pounds in order to wear them.  Not that I wouldn't like to lose a few pounds, but my only goal can't be to wear these jeans.....so they went back.  As did the top because literally the day I opened my trunk, I was wearing a top exactly like this in a yellow stripe.....so I didn't keep it.  But it is a great top....speaking from experience and it comes in several color options.

This is a fun little skirt and cute with the puff sleeved top.

Skirt and Top

Both of these are moderately priced and would be fun to own. This little outfit is exactly why I do the whole Nordstrom Trunk thing.  I would never have picked this out on my own.....but I loved it.  The skirt was super comfortable (it has pockets) and just a fun style.  I am so glad this was sent to me.  It was by far my favorite piece. And the top is a simple little navy knit top that I also loved. When I pulled the link it was very limited so if you are interested in it.....go quickly.

Well thanks for coming along for my try on session.  If you are interested in trying a Trunk, click here.  Remember, you select how often they come and the price point and styles you are interested in.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Essential Oils

For years I have been around people who carry their essential oils in the purse.  People who offer me a dab of this for a headache or a dab of that for an energy boost.  I always thought is was interesting, but never really took time to understand it.  But, hey, I have had a lot of time over the last few months and someone I really trusted offered me the opportunity to try them out and learn.

So I received my first oils and we have been diffusing away.  The initial kit I ordered has these oils

We immediately got started with a bright citrusy mix of lime, tangerine and lemon in the kitchen

It really was energizing and lovely.

We have more coming and I am reading all I can to understand the uses and what to diffuse for what.

I'll keep you posted on our progress.

See you back on Friday.

Memorial Day - Retail

All the retailers are climbing out of the quarantine hole....they are trying to make a comeback and I am cheering them on.  Many are having great sales this weekend.  Whether you are staying in or venturing out.....here's a few things to get the retail juices flowing

Gap is having 50% off everything with code WARM.  Maybe you'd like this little number

Tiered T-Shirt Dress

Target has quite a few things to offer including sandals are buy one get one free

Winona Sandal

Jenny Slides

Mark and Graham has many items 20% off with code SUMMER including

Fringe Stripe Tote

Anthropologie is having 50% off sale items

Poe Layered Necklace

Have a wonderful weekend.

I will see you back here on Wednesday.

Peloton

At the beginning of the quarantine everyone started doing two things.....baking bread AND ordering Pelotons.  We jumped on both of those trains.  Let me tell you if you are going to bake bread, you'd better figure out a way to exercise.

When we first ordered our bike they estimated it might be August when we received it......it came the next week.  They normally come in, get it connected to the internet and make sure all the set up is done for you.  With all the restrictions in place they pulled up to our house, grabbed it out of the back of a truck and set it on our front porch.  No worries, we have children....built in tech support.

Peloton

The girls had it up and running within 20 minutes. We all have our own profile so the bike keeps up with who is riding, our favorite instructors and what progress we are making

They offer all kinds of packages the most basic being the bike, set-up and a 1 year warranty.  You should choose your package based on how many people in your home will be riding and how many pairs of shoes you will need.  The shoes clip into the pedals so you are going to need them.

I gotta tell you the seat just about took me out.  I didn't think I was going to be able to handle it so we also ordered

Zacro Gel Seat

The extra padding definitely helped.  They also recommended you put a mat under the bike to protect the flooring so we also ordered this

Floor Mat

I road like this for about a week but I needed some additional padding and my family was kind enough to get me some padded bike shorts for Mother's Day

Canari Padded Bike Shorts

If I can advise one thing.....GET THE PADDED SHORTS!!!!!!

Ok, now let me tell you about the ride.  You all already know.  I don't like exercise.  I don't feel energized or motivated from it.  I have never experienced that adrenaline surge nor ever gotten into the zone.  But I know it is good for me so just like broccoli.....I have it in my life.

Here's what I like about the Peloton experience

1) It is quiet, very quiet.  So we all can pretty much ride at any time without disturbing anyone else in the house.

2) It is very convenient.  Really, there's no excuse.  It is RIGHT there.

3) Variety - there are live classes, there are on demand classes, there are tons of different exercise lengths to choose anything from 10 minutes to 90 minutes.  Plus there are scenic rides.  I really love the scenic rides.  You can choose national parks, all parts of the world, bike trails, street rides, you name it.  I have taken a ride in Australia and China and several US National Parks.

4) Community - You can always see who is doing the class or ride you are also doing.  I don't know why but it somehow helps to know others are there with you, pushing through, getting it done.

5) Not just cycling - there are also other classes you can take, stretching, arms, yoga, core and other strength classes.  I have tried a couple of three of those and like them too.

When you are doing something you don't really love it helps to have variety.  So far it is at least holding my attention. And I am riding quite a bit more than even I anticipated I would.

This class almost took me out

This is Alex and he doesn't play around.  He's one of the kid's favorites and that should have been my warning that he was going to be tough.

Hopefully I can keep it up.

Have a wonderful week!!!!

Retail Success

I have been ordering a lot of things on line....a whole lot.  Today I want to share a few things that have proven very successful for me.  And who knows maybe you could use them too

When we first started this stay at home thing I think it was literally 2 weeks straight before I left the house.  I was inside, blinds closed, excelling at quarantine.  Hey, I'm a pretty much all or nothing kind of person.  So I totally quarantined.  My family got out and did some walks around the neighborhood. I did not.

So this is not that unusual from my normal life.  I am far from being an outdoor girl.  But at least I got  little sunshine through the car window and while walking across a parking lot.  My husband kept trying to encourage me to go outside......yeah, I'm good in here, but thanks.

He started in on me about my Vitamin D.....well he had a point so I started taking these

Daily Vitamin D

I know it is not as good as the real thing, but it is a start.  Since the first two weeks I have gotten out a little more, but I am still taking the supplement.....

and then, I was seeing myself on Zoom and Microsoft Teams and I was borderline translucent.  I thought I was probably scaring people so I ordered this

Tan-Luxe

This is one that you mix a few drops in with your normal moisturizer.  I got the medium/dark for the body.  They also make one for the face, but I started with this one.  I love it.  The smell is very minor, dare I say, even pleasant and it works.  I saw immediate results and if I ever wear a dress in public again, I am ready.

So I know many of you are missing your regular nail appointments.  I don't do regular nail appointments, but I really needed to get my feet ready for a sandal.  I saw this stuff and thought it sounded wonderful.  

Farmhouse Fresh Pedi Sampler

This is a little sample kit of their best pedi products.  You get the Honey Heel Glaze^® (foot serum made with sweet Texas honey), lightweight Honey Lavender Sea Salt Scrub, and Honey-Chai Steeped Milk Lotion^® (a gorgeous, spiced-milk infusion of organic coconut milk and sultry cardamom).

Y'all, I am now officially obsessed with that Honey Heel Glaze.  I can't describe it.  It is wonderful.  I really like all the products, but I am for sure ordering a full size of the Honey Heel Glaze. Although, the little sample pot will last me quite a while.  Go ahead and treat your feet.

I am also treating myself to this right now

Coconut Cream Shea Butter Bar

My hands were taking a beating with all the hand washing.  I am loving the way this soap leaves my hands feeling....clean but not dried out.  Game changer.

So there are just a few things that are making these days a little more tolerable. Take care of yourself!

Have a great weekend.

Plants....that I can keep alive

I am not the best plant mom.  I try, but I forget about them.....until I walk by and crunch a petal or leaf underfoot....and then I think, oh I need to water these plants.  So I have invested in some that don't require that much attention.  Ok, they require no attention.

Afloral.com has some really nice looking faux flowers.

Check out this fern I ordered from them

Mine is the Boston Fern.  It is actually an indoor/outdoor plant.  It is treated to be safe from UV rays.  This particular one is not the site right now but here's a similar one if you are interested.

I also grabbed two of these Wysteria

I think they look pretty good in this tall vase.

I also bought 3 Eucalptus Sprays

they fit nicely into this large vase on the other side of the fireplace.

And, of course, I got a few peonies and hydrangea and made this arrangement

I needed a little spring spiff up and these florals did just the trick.....and they won't need any watering.

I think they may just survive around here,

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

If you need a present for Mother's Day, I have a few ideas for you today.  Or if you normally buy your own present for Mother's Day, as many of you do, maybe you'll find something to order for yourself.

First up, Portland Leather is offering a special selection of their products that are ready to ship.  They are currently not making and shipping products because of the virus.  But they have a limited number of items that are already made, boxed up and ready to ship.

Even better news......enter code TAKE25 for an additional 25% off the great prices.

Classic Tote

This is the classic tote, but they also have crossbody bags, large totes, backpacks, etc.  I bought several things from Portland Leather and reviewed them here if you want a closer look at their products.

Also, my favorite local store has a collection of Mother's Day bundles
Check out all the Sweet Pineapple bundles here
including this one

Conversations with Mom

Lastly, my favorite skincare line also has some good ideas for the day

Check out all of Colleen Rothschild deals by clicking here

My favorite cleansing balm is availabe

Jumbo Cleansing Balm

Plus you can get an additional 15% off with code MOM15 and shipping is free over $49.

There..... a few ideas for you or a mom you know.

See you back on Friday!

Spring Trunk Club

I received my spring Trunk from Trunk Club and thought I would share what I received in this shipment

We did this try on late one night so I had to move to my daughter's closet for the best lighting available.  The lighting is still not great.....but neither is the model so here we go.....

First outfit

Vince Camuto pleated neck top and Vince Camuto Seersucker Satin Pant

The top is a nice basic top that I think will be good with a lot of things.  The pants were a satin and I did not keep them.  I don't have a big need for a satin pant in my wardrobe.  Obviously, lots of people liked them because I could not find my color to link for you.  The link above is the same pant but in apricot.  Now actually the apricot color would be nice for a shower or wedding.......when those things start happening again.

Here is outfit number 2

It is a navy Court and Rowe sleeveless turtleneck with Boden Richmond Pant.

I liked both items and I kept the top.  I did not keep the pants.....but I might go back and grab them.  

The top comes in several colors and pant has one other color option.

The next outfit

Stretch Sweater Blazer with the Boden Carey Top.  I am wearing my own navy slacks with them.  I kept both the blazer and the top.  The links above are the same items, but the particular colors I am wearing are both sold out.  However, the colors available are still nice and I wouldn't mind having these items in other colors.

Here's a look at the top without the blazer

Next outfit is simple but screams summer

A Madewell Whisper Cotton T-Shirt with the Court and Rowe Seersucker pant.  

I love a Madewell T-shirt.  They fit great.  They wash well and they are super affordable.  The pants were cute, but I own something similar.  The nice thing about these is they are actually a grey seersucker which is a bit unusual.  I kept the t-shirt.  I did not keep the pants.

The last thing I tried on to show you is

It is the Boden Bronte Ottoman Dress and look

It has pockets!!!! Unfortunately, it is sold out on the Nordstrom site, but I did find it on the Boden site for you....just click here.

I also kept 

Halogen Camisole

I didn't model it for you.....you are welcome.  But I am in a cami 12 months out of the year, so I am always in the market for some good comfy ones.  This one fits the bill.

These booties were also in my trunk

Madewell Regan Bootie

I absolutely could not justify owning another black bootie, but it was cute and it was comfortable.  I wanted to tell you about it because it is currently 60% off so if you are in the market, this would be a good one to grab right now.

I love this whole Trunk Club experience.  It really exposes me to things I wouldn't neccessarily find for myself. Plus, it is pretty nice for someone else to select items for me and for them to all show up on my doorstep for me to try in my own home and see how/if they work with things already in my closet.

I am currently set up to receive a Trunk every 3 months which gets me a little closet refresh for each season.

If you are interested in trying out a Trunk for yourself, click here.  

You just answer a few questions about your likes and dislikes....your preferred price range, etc.

I know it may not feel like it right now.....but we are going to need real clothes again.

Take care.....see you on Friday!