Vintage Hat & Brooks Brothers Coat

Kimberly and I shot this in the fall and I was waiting for the perfect time to share it! We are officially in winter here in Virginia with just shoveling out of the Blizzard of 2016, so I thought it was a perfect way to get fashionably out of my PJ, no makeup, messy hair trend that I had been sporting. Being home all weekend with the baby and Willie was great! But boy, after day 5 I was totally ready to get back into the routine and as bad as it sounds, yes, back to work.

This look is for the confident classic women. The hat I found at a vintage store with Kimberly paired with a tan vintage 100% camel hair Brooks Brothers coat is EVERYTHING! The Brooks Brothers coat was a thrift store find at only $28!! Coats and jackets at Brooks Brothers retail for almost $600, so that's a 95% savings! And the hat...ughhh I'm in love. The deep rich beautiful burgundy color is just stunning with the fabulous flower accents. It is so fun and such a great winter staple! Happy Thrift Thursday! 

  

How to Whitewash Brick

I am so thrilled to share this post!! One of my besties just purchased a new home and it has been a blast helping her choose decorations, paint colors, and even pitching in with some of the renovations! This was a really exciting project, since I have never had the opportunity to work with brick. She went back and forth on painting or whitewashing, which really in our case was really limewashing. There are almost too many opinions and ways of making brick white, but I do believe working with the lime mixture was the way to go. It only required one coat, easy application (just tedious), no blotting, ragging off, maintenance free, dries quickly, let's the brick "breathe", natural reaction, more dimension, and more natural brick qualities shine through. All and all I definitely think she took some great advice from her old Irish traditional roots on this choice!

Materials needed:

• Rubber gloves
• Short cheap stiff bristle brush
• The floppy brushes double the application time and are very hard to work the mixture into the grout lines and around the brick comers
• You will want to throw the brush away after using with the mixture or try paint thinner 
• 2 lb. bag of granulated limestone
• 2 tablespoons of table salt
• 1 can of Helmsman Spar Urethane (clear semi-gloss)
• Can to mix
• Start with mixing 2lbs. of limestone, 1 can of spar urethane, and 2 tablespoons of salt
• Add limestone to desired lightness
• If working on larger surfaces, you may want to make smaller batches to avoid the mixture clumping, or I found that adding a little water helped avoid a gloppy mixture
• If you do want more white, you can mix in some white paint or go over some bricks with the paint/lime mix for added character and different shades (we learned this on mistake, but it worked out perfectly!)

Before:

  After:

 

And with the beautifully stained wood mantle!

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The Menswear Trend: Winter Coat

Thrift Thursday!

Menswear is in!! Take a cue from your man, and shop in his closet! This trend allows you to transform something normally bulky and unflattering and style it with a chic, feminine twist.

This USA made menswear inspired coat was only $9 from the thrift store and I just adore it! When we styled the coat with tall boots, tight jeans and a cute button-down (only $7), it just made such a unique casual look that any woman can pull off. It is so comfortable and I absolutely love the detail on the collar and sleeves. And how about those statement buttons! 

2016 Goals

I know I’m a little late with the 2016 goals, but I bundled last weekend into 2015 so I could enjoy one more night of wine and yummy food! This 3 day weekend was amazing. Just having the time to do things around the house like putting Christmas decorations away, loads of laundry, working out, and spending some great quality time with family, friends, and of course baby Hartley. It was a fabulous year seeing her grow and foster into a thriving toddler and we just can’t wait to see what 2016 has in store for us!

Some of my goals are lifestyle changes that I want to continue or revamp while others are monetary goals that are fostered by those lifestyle choices.

#1 – Save $1200 a month

Willie and I have budgeted are whole married life. Subsequently, we are normally called the cheapos of our group. Willie’s best man’s speech even included, “if you need a deal or coupon, call Willie because you know he will find something”. We don’t skip on anything, at least we don’t feel like we do, but we do make “informed purchases” is what I like to call them.  Our goal for 2016 is to jointly save $1,200 a month in order to help contribute towards a home purchase in the near future. Here are some of my tips that may help you save:

• I know it sounds horrible, but it is very true, we rarely eat out unless we have a coupon or Groupon/LivingSocial deal
  • Using a coupon or local deal can save you anywhere 5-50% every time you eat out. That is a lot of saving over a year!
• Price match and never pay retail!
  • I know this may seem simple, but you do not know how many people I know that buy off convenience. Don’t do it. Also, never pay retail. I cannot remember the last time I bought something retail price. Head straight to a clearance rack (DO NOT just distracted by the sparkly shirt in the window), shop at outlets, shop sales, and duh…use coupons.

• Know what you can get second-hand
  • Realizing the savings you can achieve by shopping at second-hand markets is the best saving tip!
• Meal prep and eat at home
  • Working in Washington, DC, lunches can be upwards of $12 a day! $12, 5 times a week is $60. For Willie and I lunches alone would be $120 a week if we ate out every day.
  • Drink at home. This includes coffee and alcohol.
  • For a family of three, we spend about $200 on groceries (I do buy organic and healthier products, so you can lessen this) per week and normally only eat out once or twice on the weekend. $200/21 meals (3 meals a day for 7 days of the week)/3 people = $3.20 per meal. HUGE SAVINGS!
  • Using Costco or Thrive Market save me a ton on healthy products!
  • I meal prep every Sunday, yes…even at 9 p.m. last Sunday night when I was boiling eggs, making a paleo egg casserole, and getting our pot roast ready for Monday. This allows us to start our week out on the right eating path and not get caught at work hungry and running out to fill up on junk and paying convenience prices.

#2 – Save for Hartley’s education

Willie and I started with a financial advisor and I guess college is important, so here comes another savings goal for the next 17 years :) We are hoping to dedicate $100 a month towards Hartley’s college fund.

#3 – Live a more toxic free life

After a recent horror story from a good friend about having a severe allergic reaction to a new couch that had been chemically treated, I was pushed even further into looking into the toxins that surround us. I have always been aware and on the “holistic” side of things, but when I was pregnant I researched the crap out of things, and I was SHOCKED by how many toxins are in every products. I use my SAVINGS HERE. I eat mostly organic, use Essential Oils, natural cleaning products (I only use Young Living Thieves Cleaner for Hartley's things and love Mrs. Meyer's honeysuckle scent for dishes), Glass Food Storage, natural odor/air purifiers (like this amazing Natural Himalayan Salt), and use natural cosmetics (Arbonne's Arbonne RE9 Advanced Set, their Baby Herbal Diaper Rash Cream is also a miracle). This new year, I am committed to staying on this path to living a less toxic and environmentally friendly life style. I am also eating more raw whole foods and lessening my meat consumption!!

#4 – Expand my blog

As a “newbie” I want to expand my blog and learn how to interact better with my followers. I am committed to grow this blog and hope to reach 500 followers by the end of the year! Help me by sharing, pinning and tweeting!! Thank you!

#5 – Get inspired and share!

We are all busy…I get it. But this year I am committed to trying new things, visiting friends more often, learning from others and most importantly sharing stories, memories, advice with one another. This year will be full of wonderful inspiration! 

Get ready 2016…I’m coming for you!