Happy Memorial Day!

From Wikipedia: Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U.S. Service Members who died while in the military service. First enacted by an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — to honor Union soldiers of the American Civil War. It was extended after World War I to honor Americans who have died in all wars.

Memorial Day often marks the start of the summer vacation season, and Labor Day its end.  

Begun as a ritual of remembrance and reconciliation after the Civil War, by the early 20th century, Memorial Day was an occasion for more general expressions of memory, as ordinary people visited the graves of their deceased relatives, whether they had served in the military or not. It also became a long weekend increasingly devoted to shopping, family get-togethers, fireworks, trips to the beach, and national media events such as the Indianapolis 500 auto race, held since 1911 on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend.

Enjoy the long weekend and remember our service men and women!

DiY Scarf Vest!

I have to share this quick-and-easy solution for a vest accessory!  From the amazing studs & pearls blog, this super simple and fast vest-from-a-scarf DiY.  Looks AMAZING!

DiY: Scarf Vest at studs & pearls

Technorati Tags: crafting,creativity,DiY,fashion

Totally in Love!

With Nick, of course, but I recently found a new clothing store that I’m totally enamored of… Ruche!  They held a Polyvore contest last week, and here’s what I came up with:

Based on their “Unending Love” collection, I used Polyvore to put together a fun collection of my favorites!  The new "remember darling" dress is one of my absolute FAVORITES! I wanted to highlight the delicate, romantic feel of it with warm, sweet accessories and colors, and make it suitable for any occasion, professional or personal. The focus is on warm peach and gold to accent the warm white of the dress' lace, but with a cool surprise in the shoe color. With your hair up, the earrings would really sparkle, but no necklace to interrupt the cute buttons and high neckline. All the focus here is onwards and upwards!

What’s your recent favorite shopping find?

Technorati Tags: fashion,creativity,jewelry,shopping,accessories

A bit of organization…

My recent finds in accessories left me with a delightful problem: I needed better storage for my scarves and belts.  Before, they spent time hanging on the builder wire shelf organizers that were installed when the house was built.  They’re not a bad system, but they leave a lot to be desired for storing small items, and my accessories sort of hung there limp and neglected, and I couldn’t see anything or access anything easily.  I had a few requirements for my new solution: pockets needed to be clear or see through, so I could identify what was there, and they should be vertical storage, both fairly easy to come by.  I came across two separate solutions…

A traditional wall-mounted belt hanger was useful for not only some of my belts, but for my bathrobes and some of Nick’s belts, too.  My second solution was the over-the-door shoe hanger!  This version was made with a great open mesh that would let me see what was inside the pocket!  And with 24 compartments, there’s plenty of space for lots of accessories!  I haven’t even filled it up yet!

  

The shoe organizer does hang on the ‘front’ of the closet door, but we rarely close it, and our master bedroom is fairly private, so I’m not too worried about the decorative implications for the moment.  I’m definitely feeling more creative and have a lot of new inspiration when getting dressed in the morning!  Bring on the accessories!

What are your favorite organization solutions for accessories?

Technorati Tags: decorating,organization,shopping,fashion

Got stuff?

I helped my sister this weekend by organizing and photographing some leftover décor items from her wedding last August.  She had a lot of great items good for weddings or just everyday décor!  I thought sharing here would be really helpful!

These photo frames are 3.5x5” metal, and we used them to hold charming childhood photos of the bride and groom.  Silver tone, we have 8 left!  “Gold tone,” which looks more like silver or platinum, we have about 50 left!  Get them for .75 each.

We used this square glass jar in the “candy bar” which we all enjoyed very much!  It’s a big one, at 17.5” tall x 6” across both ways.  Asking $15.

This giant glass ‘snifter’ vase was also part of the candy bar!  It’s 12” high, ~ 9” across at widest, with a 5” base.  Asking $5.

Please contact nikki285@hotmail.com (my sister) for purchase or more information!

I have driven 300 miles…

I spent the last few days with family and just got back!  I spent a good chunk of time helping my sister decorate by sewing curtains and assisting in hanging shelves.  I do love me some decorating!  My adorable nephew also turned 6!  I can’t believe it!  It was a fun trip, and I’ll be back on schedule on Monday.  To complete this post, here’s what I woke up to Thursday at my parents’ house:

Oh, Wyoming.

Diet shopping spree!

At the end of the semester I’m usually a little broke, but I REALLY needed a little shopping therapy!  So I headed to my favorite shopping-lite location, my neighborhood ARC!  Here’s some of the fantastic finds I made there!

Top left: random scarf, top and skirt from Forever 21, random belt; total: $17.  Top right: H&M dress, yellow viscose scarf; total: $9.  Bottom left: assorted belts and scarves; total: $8.  Bottom right: totally adorable vintage apron for just $3!

I was super excited to find some pieces from my favorite stores, and I can’t wait to wear them!

What do you do when there isn’t much extra money around and you need a SHOPPING fix?  Tell!

Technorati Tags: creativity,fashion,clothing,thrifting,frugality,shopping