Dazzle with Your Best Foot Forward this Spring!

May 18, 2013 By

I always like to share the little things in life that make me happy. You know, like shoes, sandals, heels and flats. A girl can never have enough, you know?

So I wanted to take a moment to introduce you to one of my favorite sites to shop for shoes, ShoeDazzle.com! The shoes not only high quality but affordable, with a wide variety of styles to choose from. All the shoes pictured above are under $35.00.*

From top left to right:

*All these prices reflect the 25% off coupon you get when you sign up with ShoeDazzle for the first time. Don’t worry, it’s free!

So here’s a rundown on how ShoeDazzle works:

ShoeDazzle is the original online personal-styling innovator helping millions of women shop for the perfect pair of shoes or accessories with on-trend personalized recommendations with Rachel Zoe serving as the Chief Stylist!

To join the site (which again, is super easy and free) they suggest you take a short quiz so the site can get a feel for your style. ShoeDazzle will then give you a showroom of shoes and handbags they think you’ll love based on your quiz selections.

Not only does shoe dazzle carry a wide variety of styles but they also carry a variety of brands, including their own line, Chinese Laundry, Seychelles, Dolce Vita, Michael Antonio, and Beau+Ashe.

Here a few additional perks for signing up:

  • 25% off your first order! Once you take the quiz to determine your style, you’ll get an email with a 25% off coupon code good for two days from the time you signed up.
  • They have a “Daily Fix” where every day, a brand new, on-trend shoe is released on the site. It’s sold for one-day only pricing with free shipping!
  • “A VIP members-only “Shoe Fund” program is offered for $9.95 per month. For $9.95, you get $9.95 VIP dollars that you can spend or save and have it roll-over to the next month. VIP members also get 10-25% off all full-price items, free shipping on all orders, and more exclusive perks like sneak peeks to products and sales!”

Anyway, make sure to stop by, take the quiz and see what the stylist choose for you! It’s a lot of fun and there are a lot of cute shoes. Win win!

 

 

[Thanks to ShoeDazzle for sponsoring today's discussion]

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These Two…

May 14, 2013 By

These two definitely make my life complete. A big thank you to Jeni Prosser of {framed} for capturing these precious moments while strolling through downtown Cincinnati on a beautiful April Sunday morning.

 {Taken in Over-the-Rhine, Downtown Cincinnati and Lytle Park}

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It’s Spring! Time to Declutter that Closet!

April 24, 2013 By

Have you heard of the book “ I Have Nothing to Wear!: A Painless 12-Step Program to Declutter Your Life So You Never Have to Say This Again!” by Jill Martin? It’s a nice read and had some really insightful tips to making sure you always have something to wear.

Just recently I also happened to catch an interview where the author Jill spoke about clearing out your closet in just two steps and here’s some of my favorite tips I took from both her book and interview that I’d like to share with you.

First things first, you have to admit you have a problem. Realizing that you have too much in your closet is the first step to decluttering. Consider removing all the things that may be taking up precious room or that’s causing you to be overwhelmed.

Here are a few examples:

  • Clothing that you haven’t worn in years.
  • Clothing from high school that  or any clothing you are holding onto because of sentimental value.
  • Clothing and accessories you bought just to lift your mood.
  • Clothing with tags still attached that you may not have even purchased this day, month or dare I say, year.

All of the above are things that are taking up room and need to go to make way for the clothing you will actually wear. Here’s a perfect example: If you have twenty favorite t-shirts from over five years ago, I would suggest keeping only a few and putting the shirts you do decide to keep in a keep sake box to free them of your closet.

This also goes for the changing of the seasons. If you have your winter coats mixed in with  your tank tops, now’s the time to remove the winter coats from  your closet, at least for another 6 months or so and store them in a different place- whether it be a coat closet or in air-tight containers.

So step one — purge your closet. Get all of the above out of your closet and from there you can store it elsewhere, donate it, sell it on consignment; you can be the judge of that.

Step two of this process is to then organize what you do have remaining in your closet. Speaking from experience during my college years, having your socks mixed with underwear that are mixed with belts next to mis-matched shoes just doesn’t work well.

Having a place for everything is beneficial when it comes to putting laundry away or better yet, keeping your clothing off the floor. Also it can greatly reduce the time it takes you to get ready in the morning, because you’ll know exactly where everything is.

So there you have it.  Only two steps and you are on your way to a clutter-free and manageable closet!

I highly recommend checking out I Have Nothing To Wear!: A Painless 12-Step Program to Declutter Your Life So You Never Have to Say This Again! You can purchase it for around $10 on Amazon by clicking the title above or click here to reserve your copy at the Cincinnati Library.

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Happy Easter & The Ears Tradition

April 1, 2013 By

I feel like Easter is always a nice time to snap a few pictures of Myles. I mean, yeah of course, we all like to take pictures of the kids at Easter. But when I purchased these bunny ears you see him wearing…. before he was even born, I wanted to make it a tradition to have him wear them each year (even if I have to bribe him when he’s older and filled with embarrassment) to see how much he has changed from year to year as we celebrate Easter.

It’s pretty incredible! Below are the past two Easter pictures:

Man, this little guy is sure growing fast. The picture to the left is from when he was just 14 months and had him out egg hunting and attempting to ride a tricycle and the picture to the right is tiny tiny Myles at only 3 months, or actually 2 months old!   He couldn’t even sit up or anything, It’s hard to remember him that way.

Anyway, we hope you all had a fabulous Easter!

 

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FENNOfashion Joins Miss Selby’s Soaps & Such

March 29, 2013 By

I am happy to announce that I’ve teamed up with Renee Selby of Miss Selby’s Soaps and she’ll now be carrying FENNOfashion in both of her boutiques! I’ve known Miss Selby since 2010 and couldn’t be happier to be a part of her growing natural skin care company. (Click here to check out all the great products she offers)

Her newest location is opening this Monday, April 1st at the Middletown Towne Mall, which is right off of exit 32 on 1-75.

I am loving the interior of her newest store. It reminds me so much of my own office. PINK everywhere!

Her other shop is located in Waynesville, Oh  and  is nestled in the midst of downtown Waynesville’s many quaint shops and restaurants. If you ever find yourself exploring this adorable destination, make sure to stop in and check put her bright pink store. They are open Thursday – Sunday 11am-5pm.

Miss Selby’s Soaps & Such mainly carries local products ranging from gourmet candies and jams to jewelry such as FENNOfashion and handmade natural bath products such as the ones pictured above. The cupcake soaps look good enough to eat!

Miss Selby’s Soap and Such is a perfect place to find a gift for anyone, or to pick up something new for yourself.

So, if you live in the Cincinnati area, you’ll definitely have to check out her stores!

 

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Now Trending: The Color Pistachio

February 22, 2013 By

As we head into spring over the next few months, the most popular colors for this season are hitting the racks and being seen in all the latest accessories. Without a doubt, it’s hard to go without spotting something in the color Pistachio. Perfect for the warmer months ahead, the color Pistachio is a light and pastel colored green. It’s been a popular color for bridesmaids dresses, home decor, wall colors and of course, clothing and accessories.

Below you can find nine “Pistachio” colored items to help you stay right on trend!

From Top moving Right:

I had to throw this print in there too. It’s handmade and super cute:

Pistachio Mustachio Print, Etsy, $3.00

What do you think? Do you think this is the perfect color for Spring 2013?

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Monkey See, Monkey Do! Myles P. Turned Two!

February 11, 2013 By

This past weekend we had Myles’ 2nd birthday celebration. It’s hard to believe yet another year has passed. I felt like we *just* had his first birthday party!

Anyway, here are just a few pictures of our small but fun, sock monkey themed celebration.

I absolutely love this picture. He was having such a great time and couldn’t be more pleased that he got his own cupcake- all to himself.

We had the cutest invites. (Thank you Posh Pixels for the design). All I  had to do was sew a little line around the edge of the invitations which was fun! I hadn’t sewn paper in awhile- or anything for that matter.

My mom making the cupcakes — cause everyone knows I can’t bake and if you didn’t, well now you do!

 

The cupcakes finished! John made the little toppers for the plain cupcakes and I made the little monkey ones using pieces of vanilla wafers and brown gel icing. Oh, and I made the stands. You can find out more about how I made them here, on cincysavers.com

Of course we had to decorate the chalk board/mirror to go with the sock monkey theme…

Another cupcake shot and the cookie cake I decorated. Not too bad, right?

Decorations. These little pennants were made with just random pieces of scrapbook paper in different colors and textures that I thought would go with the theme. I really like how they turned out!

So I’ll admit, this is sort of weird but it was fun and everyone got a good laugh out of it. I took a bunch of random pictures of Myles I found on my computer, enlarged them and printed them in black and white. They are from when he was three months old to just several months ago. I would have liked to add more to the birthday hats I cut out of the extra scrapbook paper but didn’t have the chance. If anything, Myles loved it so I kept it up until this weekend.

The uncertainty of fire on his food tray. Don’t worry, we were really close and he knew not to touch it.

Present time!

I still can’t believe my little guy is two! Time goes fast, that is for sure.

On a side note, I blogged about Myles’ party on cincysavers.com last week with tips on how to throw a kids birthday party on a budget. You can find that blog post, here: My Baby is Two and How to Throw a Birthday Party on a Budget!

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My Friday Baby: Week 104 (2 years old)

February 2, 2013 By

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Creative Ways to Wrap Your Presents

December 23, 2012 By

 

I feel as though wrapping presents can sometimes be just as intense as shopping for the presents. Does anyone else feel like this?  By the time I get home and stack all the presents on the table and get my wrapping paper out, I’m anything but enthusiastic.

So this year, I tried something new. I got creative with my gift wrapping and made it fun. Using bits and pieces of supplies from past DIY projects over the year, twine, craft paper and some paint, the task of wrapping became quite fun.

It’s been several years since I’ve traveled by plane around Christmas time, but I know several airlines ask that you don’t bring wrapped presents in your luggage. So to avoid buying last minute wrapping paper and bows, you could actually just pack a few of the things listed below in a zipped plastic bag accompanied by craft paper and you are set!

My favorite Christmas wrapping essential: Plain Brown Craft Paper

You can get a massive roll at craft stores for a fraction of the cost of Christmas wrap or as mentioned earlier, if you are traveling and need to wrap presents at your destination, craft paper comes in small suitcase -friendly rolls as well. It is just really versatile, which is what I love about it.

List of embellishments for your wrapped presents:

  • Felt cut outs
  • Twine (can be found at most dollar stores)
  • Christmas picks
  • Small pieces of Pine
  • Ribbon Scraps
  • Lace (I found mine at a thrift store)
  • Paint
  • Decorative Scrapbook paper
  • Old Magazines
  • Fabric Scraps
  • Coffee Filters

And here are just a few of the things I came up with:

Using a toilet paper roll, my mom dipped it in green acrylic paint to create the pattern on the craft paper. I then taped a leftover piece of glittery scrapbook paper off center and added ribbons and a little piece of a Christmas decoration to complete the look.

Using coffee filters, I folded the filter in four, then just started cutting shapes to create snowflakes. This would be a great project for the kids to do. I varied the sizes of the snowflakes then attached them to the craft paper and twine with a dab of hot glue, completed with a few little rhinestones I found in my craft room!

The above present is leftover ribbon I had from a previous DIY project and then pieces of a Christmas pick. Christmas picks can be found during the holidays at crafts stores and in with Christmas decorations. They are usually used to create your own wreaths and to put in trees, but are great for adding a little character to a present. The particular Christmas pick above was $.79.

This present was wrapped very similar to the one above it. I used lace from a thrift store in the center, followed by a few layers of twine and a little piece of a Christmas pick I had left over from another project. It’s simple. It’s fun and you can get reallycreative without spending a lot of money. Even better?  Everyone will be impressed with your awesome wrapping skills!

Lastly, if you’d like to complete your presents with beautiful gift tags, here are a few free printable tags available:

[Free Gift Tags courtesy of MommybyDayCrafterbyNight]

[Free Gift Tags courtesy of PenNPaperFlowersINC]

[Free Gift Tags courtesy of sharonrowanphotodesign.blogspot.com]

Enjoy!

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My DIY Holiday Wreath for under $12 + Tutorial

November 30, 2012 By

One of my favorite things to do during the holidays is decorate. Whether or not we choose to create our own decorations or purchase them ready to hang, your new holiday decor can add up rather quickly.

So I set out on a mission to Michael’s Arts & Crafts last week to see if I could purchase the supplies to make a wreath, ready to hang, for under $10.

Here’s what I purchased:

  • 18″ Evergreen Wreath $3.59 (on sale)
  • Bushel of small poinsettias $ 2.49 (on sale)
  • Pine cone Christmas Picks $.50 x 3 (on sale)
  • Glittery Ribbon $1.49 (on sale)
  • Berry Picks $.50 x 2 (on sale)
  • Brown glittery Foliage $.1.00  (on sale)

Total: $11.07

Other supplies you will need for this project – a hot glue gun, glue sticks and a small piece of ribbon, twine or wire to hang the wreath. As you can see, a lot of the supplies I purchased were on sale so it was a little easier for me to stay within my budget.

Luckily, stores like Michael’s and Hobby Lobby will continually have Christmas crafting supplies on sale throughout the season, so you should be able to get your supplies for around the same price. If there is something you want that is not on sale, both stores offer coupons for “40% of any one item” almost every week. You can find the printable coupons on their websites or by downloading the stores apps.

On to the wreath making –  It is a lot easier to do than you think, I promise! I’ve taught multiple wreath making classes over the years and everyone is always surprised how simple it is to create a beautiful wreath for any season.

First step, I laid out all my supplies to take inventory on what I was working with.

Next, fluff your wreath as you would a Christmas tree after it’s been boxed up for a year.

Next step, prepare the Christmas picks and flowers so they are ready to go on the wreath. I cut the fake poinsettias off of the stems and broke apart the pine cone bunches. I cut the fake berries off the vines and separated the glittery brown foliage into smaller pieces.

Once you have everything you want to put on your wreath ready to go, simply start placing the items on your wreath. Rather it be pine cones, flowers or ornaments, it’s a good idea to place everything on the wreath first, then glue it in place once you have everything the way you’d like it to look.

Above is what my wreath looked like with everything just placed on it. I was happy with the way it looked, so one piece at a time, I started gluing things down using a hot glue gun-applying glue generously to the bottom of the pine cones and flowers. This wreath is intended to hang outside and I want it to stay intact through wind, rain, and snow. This means the more glue, the better!

Lastly, I added the ribbon for a little extra sparkle. After unraveling the entire roll, I just wove it around the pine cones and flowers, with no particular placement in mind. Just add a dab of hot glue to the underside of the ribbon every 4 inches or so to make sure it stays in place. I used heavier ribbon that has wired edges because I feel like that would last longer and hold up better than sheer ribbon.

And here it is, the final festive wreath:

The last step is tie a small piece of ribbon, twine or wire to the back of the wreath and it will be ready to display for all to see!

 

And next week…more to come on how to decorate the front of your house..on the cheap of course! Sneak peek below:

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