House Slippers

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There is nothing like coming home from a long workday and taking off your heels. One thing that I have grown to love are my house slippers.





I try to get them in dark colors so they can hide dirt. I really like these slippers. I found them at Walmart. Shocker!!! 
They are called the Dearfoams Ballerina Slippers.
Another great option are these great Isotoner Ballerina Slippers.
I found these great slippers on T.J. Maxx.com
They are called the Velour Ballerina Slipper.


Whatever you find just know that there are great options out there for being comfortable and looking chic at home.

photos via Mrs. Shockley

The Barefoot Contessa on Netflix

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I was reading one of my favorite blogs last weekend and I thought I saw a misprint. She said that episodes of the Barefoot Contessa was on Netflix!! I thought, “huh”. Repeat that. So I re-read it and sure enough she said that Ina Garten was on Netflix. I was so excited!!

I love her show. I love the easy recipes, the table settings, her home just everything about it. I have already been “binge” watching it. It is season 1 of Back to Basics. So if you have Netflix grab a seat and enjoy a few episodes of Ina. I know I have already been inspired.

My table at home, inspired. 



photos via AHFE

Elegance…..

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My home
“Elegance is a glowing inner peace. Grace is an ability to give as well as to receive and be thankful. Mystery is a hidden laugh always ready to surface! Glamour only radiates if there is a sublime courage & bravery within: glamour is like the moon; it only shines because the sun is there.” 

― C. JoyBell C.

photo credit: AHFE

Slow Cooker Chicken

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There is nothing like coming home and having your dinner already simmering in your slow cooker. I love creating slow cooker meals. It is so easy and the meals are always wonderful.

I have been trying to get into the habit of doing this more. With my daughter’s busy schedule and homework after school cooking a meal can turn into another job if you are not prepared.

So I have been buying chicken and putting it in the slow cooker. Then when I come home all I have to do is make the side dishes and voila dinner is ready in 30 minutes.

The dish that I have been making a lot lately is chicken breast with Campbell’s cream of chicken soup. I just put a few chicken breasts in the crock pot with salt, pepper and 2 cans of Campbell’s cream of chicken soup. I turn on my slow cooker to low and let it cook for 10 hours.

The chicken falls apart on the fork. Pair it with some mashed potatoes, vegetables and french bread and you have a healthy warm meal that the family will love. Well, at least mine do!!! Enjoy!!!

My slow cooker chicken




photo via AHFE

My Autumn Porch

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Well it is official autumn here in Indiana. It is already starting to cool down a bit but no worries, I LOVE the fall!! I can’t believe Halloween will be here soon then it will be time to start putting up Christmas decorations.

But let me slow down and focus on autumn. My husband and I went and picked up some giant pink mums from Costco. They were only $17! It was a steal! I love them on my porch. I really haven’t decorated a whole lot this year but that is okay. Just do what you can and make the most of your home.

I love my little pumpkin sticks. 
They are so easy and are great 
autumn decor items.

I love white and green pumpkins. It’s something different and they keep the decor looking fresh.

I love this giant cast iron pumpkins that I picked up at T.J. Maxx some years ago.
I just put a candle in them at night and they just glimmer.

I love my pink mums! 
photos via AHFE

The Scent of Home

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Last month I shared that I was reading a book called, “The French Beauty Solution“. I have shared a few ideas and solutions from the book (see here and here if you missed it). I have really enjoyed this book.

I am learning a lot about my skin and how to take care of it. The book discusses different creams that you should use at different stages in your life. She gives recipes on how to make your own facial scrubs and home scents.

Now I loved the paragraph about creating a relaxing spa atmosphere at home.  I wrote about some of my favorite home scents, see here if you missed it. The section about “scents” was wonderful. Here is what Mathilde discussed about scents……

“The easiest way to create a relaxing spa atmosphere at home is by stimulating the most potent of your senses. It’s all about scent. Burning a delectably fragranced candle is the quickest way to transport you out of the everyday. This has been proven by more than thirty years of studies undertaken by International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. (IFF), one of the largest suppliers of raw fragrances to perfumers in the world.

Find a scent or scents that evoke strong memories of something pleasurable or wonderful in your life. It would be a vanilla that reminds you of your grandmother’s sugar cookies. Or lavender-for that trip you took to the south of France where you wandered through acres of ripening plants waving gently in the wind. Or sandalwood- for the time you went to Chinatown in San Francisco and got caught in the rain only to discover that the little sandalwood fan you’d just bought smelled even more delicious when it was wet. I love lighting candles that smell like the vine flower- yes, it grows on grapevines!- because the scent reminds me of our vineyard in Bordeaux at the end of spring, when you can feel that summer is soon to arrive.”

Photo by Brigitte Tohm on Unsplash


text Mathilde Thomas 

The Art of Witty Comebacks ~Harper’s Bazaar

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I am so behind on my magazine reading. I mean I am months behind!! So while waiting for the Bloglovin website to come up I picked up the September issue of Harper’s Bazaar and being to read an article called The Art of the Retort.

There were some excellent points on how to master the witty comeback. My husband is a very witty man and sometimes when we are alone at home I ask him how he comes up with his responses. He always tells me that he has no idea. I guess some people are just naturals at being a “smarty pants”.

But Joan Juliet Buck explores the power of wit. He are some of her points:

One, wit is a response.  Two, wit must contain NO aggression.  Three, wit must be fresh.  Four, wit must be uttered with an innocent sincerity that turns reality on its head.



One: A witticism is a spontaneous reaction to a circumstance. A quip never refers to anything that is not happening right now, and cannot begin with “By the way…,” “The other day…,” “When I was a child…,” “or non sequiturs such as “I always thought dandelions were onions.” The quip must magnify the absurdity of the Here and Now, which requires some discipline, even training. There are shortcuts.

Two: There is nothing witty about expletives, aggression, or meanness. Action Theater, teaches you that the richest material comes from playing off a close observation of what the other person is doing or saying. Action Theater also teaches you to think not only on your feet but with your eyes, ears, hands and tips of your hair.

Three: Recycling will save the planet but is the death of wit. The best lines are best used once. Others can repeat your good lines, but you cannot. Quoting yourself is as bad as saying “I’m beautiful.”

The lonely wit must be sincere, unguarded, true. Anything really funny that is going to come out of your mouth won’t be the result of the calculation, research, product testing, rehearsal, dry runs. It will be the kiss of the flying spirit. 


Four. Don’t be too smart. Show-offs depress and irritate.


Photo by Taisiia Stupak on Unsplash
text by Joan Juliet Buck