Vintage Roses- A New Book

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Good Snowy Morning,

And we have tons of snow! It is so cold here and it will be in the negatives tonight! I am working from home today as well. I am hoping that I can go out and run errands on Saturday but we will see. I am trying to get some things ordered for Lauren’s 17th birthday! Can you guys believe she will be 17 next month? Her favorite party of mine was the flower arranging birthday party that I threw for her in 2015. She was only 10! Her paint party was a blast as well. Time is slipping away, really fast. 

I think most of you know that I ordered the Georgianna Lane Book called “Vintage Roses” and I could not be happier with it. It not only has beautiful photography but is very informative. I wanted to share some snapshots of it below. 

 

 

 

 

I love a soft pink rose. I wish I could find these at my local grocery store. This is called the Heritage rose. It was introduced by David Austin in 1984. 

 

 

This flower is called Tasogare. This is a sugary, sweet-pea lavender in hue. This is a Japanese rose introduced by Morji Kobayashi in 1977. Tasogare means “sundown time” in Japanese, and is also used as a metaphor for old age. 

 

 

 

Queen of Sweden! Isn’t she beautiful? This is a beautiful English Musk hybrid that was introduced by David Austin in 2004. It is a cross between an Old Rose and a Noisette. David named it to commemorate 350 years of friendship between Sweden and Great Britain. 

I could just stare at it for hours. I may have to take this book with me to the garden nursery when it gets warm and ask if I could grow these here. 

 

 

These deliciously blowsy roses are called Penelope. I have ALWAYS wanted something like this growing on the sides of my home. I think these became popular again by Sarah Jessica Parker in the television series called Sex and the City. It is a hybrid musk and can grow around 59-79 inches. It can grow taller in warmer climates where it can turn into a climber. It is tolerant of shade and can withstand poor soil if it must. It was created in 1924 by Reverand Joseph Hardwick. 

I hope you all enjoyed this little snapshot of this stunning book. Please stay warm and enjoy your weekend!

 

 

Winter Antiquing

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And a Good Morning to you All! 

Well, we have not received much snow here in Indy but we are forecasted to get 14 inches from now until Friday!!! Yes, you read that correctly 14 inches in my area! So my plan today is to get into my office quickly, get some of my work done, grab my laptop, and work from home the rest of the week. I will be leaving my office early today. I don’t want to get stuck in the ice storm that will be arriving BEFORE the snow! Wish me luck!

It will be nice to work from home for a few days. Lauren will be home as well e-learning so it will be nice not having to rush out the rest of the week. One of my new books just arrived. I ordered Vintage Roses and I cannot wait to take some time this week and read it! It is so beautiful!

Okay now let me share what I found at my favorite antique store.…

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

I spotted these gorgeous plates as soon as I walked in. I have no idea what the name of the pattern was but I loved the blue!

 

 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

The next item were these charming pink vases. It was only $12 for both! I am still regretting not buying these!

 

 

The next thing that I spotted was this elegant green dish. I have no idea what it was but I loved the color. Beautiful right?

 

 

I walked around some more and spotted these vintage wine glasses. I wish I had room for all of these things. I adored the wine glasses to the right on the second shelf. Goodness, I should have just purchased them. 

 

 

Here are some more goodies in this chair. I could not pass up that blue and white trinket dish or the pillow. Just look at all the rich colors and textures. 

 

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

 

In the end, I purchased a pink-tinted vase, a gold rope tray, a Chinosiere ginger jar, a Limoges floral platter, the textured tasseled pillow, the blue and white vintage tray, and the gold plant stand. I spent under $50 on everything. I am so excited about my finds. I can’t wait to use everything. I do use my things. If they are beautiful that just makes life so elegant to me. Now I am going to get my day finished and come home. We will see how much of this 14 inches we will get! 

Enjoy your Wednesday!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January Favorites ~ 2022

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Good Morning,

I hope everyone had a restful weekend! On Friday I came home drank a glass of wine and relaxed. My husband picked up my favorite dinner from the Cheesecake Factory and it was a really good night! 

On Saturday I took my shoes in for repair, went antiquing and grocery shopping. I found some wonderful finds at the antique store.  I will share them later. For right now let’s get into my favorites for the first month of 2022!

 

 

First on my list is this gorgeous blue and white scarf from Amazon! I still can’t believe that this beautiful accessory came from Amazon. You know they do surprise me sometimes. 

 

 

Second is this elegant hair clip from Jefferson Lane. I knew when I ordered it that I was going to turn it into a brooch. I just added a brooch pin to the back and viola! An elegant piece for my wardrobe. 

 

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley 

 

Third are my chinoiserie-inspired teacups and new teapot from HomeGoods! I still can’t believe that my location had these! I had the biggest smile on my face when I spotted them on the shelf. I have been using them ever since. I wish I could find the link for them but I found this one and this one on Amazon. I did manage to find this coffee mug as well. 

 

 

It has been REALLY cold here in Indy and so I pulled out my faux mink coat that I found during the summer at H&M for only (and get this) $44! What a steal! This coat is so warm! I love it so much. My coat is sold out but QVC has this one, this one, and this one. 

 

 

Fifth has been my floral tights from Target. They are back in stock!!! You better hurry and order your size!

 

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley 

 

The sixth has been this incredibly chic and vintage-inspired soap dish from Amazon! It is super heavy and amazingly good quality! It was under $20!

 

 

Seventh is my winter antiquing trip that I just took. I will share my finds later this week! If you follow me on Instagram I posted a reels video on my feed. 

 

 

And lastly are my new Coach heels. I have been stalking these online for a while. They do have a pair that is on sale and they are here. There are more items that are on my favorites list but this list would get too long and I have already posted most of them on my blog. 

Oh I almost forgot. Last weekend we had our monthly Chic Society Zoom call and I enjoy these so much. I did learn about a new Youtube channel called Lazy Dancer Tips. I am really enjoying this channel. It is helping me so much with my posture, how I stand, and how I sit. My favorite video has been the “Look More Elegant with 3 Simple Tips”. I hope you all enjoy this video and this month’s favorites. Have a wonderful Monday and stay warm!

 

Please note: some links are affiliate links and if you make a purchase through this link, I will receive a small commission for referring you to the product. Thank you so much in advance if you decide to make a purchase through my link.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oprah’s Rose Garden…

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Good Morning Everyone!

It is freezing here in Indy. Yesterday’s high was only 12 degrees! Goodness! But I think some warmer temps may be coming our way next week. This weekend I plan on doing a “closet review”. I plan on purging, donating, and posting new clothes to my Poshmark account. I also plan on taking in another pair of shoes in for repair. 

Honestly, I do want to have a day to just sit in my bed and watch movies. I just want to relax. It has been so cold this week. With all of the talk about colder temperatures I thought I would share a recent rose garden that I stumbled on. It belongs to Oprah….

 

photo credits: Veranda Magazine 

 

This is Oprah’s property in Montecito California and it is 65 acres! Oprah said that when she purchased this property she had no idea how or what she wanted to do with it. 

 

 

She ended up hiring a master rosarian. I didn’t know that a job like that even existed! Master Rosarian? Wow! She hired a gentleman named Dan Bifano. I may be looking into this profession soon. When I continued to read the article Oprah went on to say that she helped her rosarian plant, and arrange her flowers in her garden. This task is so rewarding. I love gardening especially if there is a plan. 

 

 

I love this section in her garden as well. I would love to have something like this in my backyard. This is simply a dream. I could see me having alfresco dinners here regularly. Especially during the spring and summer nights. 

Oprah said,  “Sometimes I stand under the arbor, close my eyes, and allow myself to take in as much as I can: I hear birds splashing in the fountain and literally smell the roses. This garden makes me present.” 

If you want to read the entire article you may do so here. You know this garden reminds me of the Butterfly Garden that I visited in 2015. Looks like I may need to take a second visit in the spring as well! Have a great weekend! 

 

 

Paula Deen’s Birthday Cake

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Good Morning,

Oh goodness, is it the weekend yet? I am ready for the weekend already! It has been such a busy week at work and it is only Wednesday! But on to something fun that I saw on Facebook…

I think that I mentioned that I follow a Facebook page called Grandmillennial Style and we are always sharing our finds and decor from our homes. Well someone shared these wonderful photos from Paula Deen’s 75th Birthday party on our group page. I have no idea who the photographer was or who posted the pictures but I do know one thing, I need to find out who made her cake!!!!

 

photo via Facebook 

 

OMG! This was her cake! It’s incredible, isn’t it? Oh my goodness!

 

photo via Facebook

 

I kept staring at it trying to find out how it was made. I am so curious about this cake and in love with it!

 

photo via Facebook

It’s a beautiful cake, isn’t it? My only hope is that the information about who the baker is surfaces. My 40th birthday is this year and I would LOVE to have something similar to his made. I may have to just take this photo and have someone try to make something similar. What do you all think? I hope this put a smile on your face today. Have a great Wednesday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vanity Porcelain Roses

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Good Morning!

We finally got some snow here in Indy. It’s not much but I am so glad to see it! This weekend was nice and quiet. On Saturday I just puttered around the home (I love doing that), went to the grocery store, soaked my nails, and went and had a wonderful dinner at Longhorn. I got the grilled chicken, buttery mashed potatoes, green salad, and a glass of wine. It hit the spot!

On Sunday, I worked on the blog, did some boutique inventory, and went to Von Maur. I wanted to look at some Estee Lauder products in person. I am really curious about a new scent that I just found called Dream Dusk, a lipstick called illuminating shine and the intense brightening cream. The cream is suppose to help reduce your scaring. I already use the Perfectionist Pro and it has been working beautifully! 

Speaking of Estee Lauder products I saw on Saks Aerin Lauder’s home decor items. I immediately fell in love with her Introduction Bloom Porcelain Flower. 

 

photo credit: Aerin.com 

 

Isn’t it gorgeous! Aerin and Estee are notorious for creating beautiful vanity items. 

 

 

Now they do come in two different colors. The darker color is called berry. 

 

photo credit: Aerin.com

 

They are made of ceramic and measure about 5.7″ in diameter and 2.1″ in height. They are just lovely pieces!

So lovely that I had to order my own!

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

 

I have no regrets! Most of you have already seen my dresser/vanity and know that I love beautiful vintage items and this rose is a wonderful addition. It’s classic, beautiful, and will be timeless. 

 

 

 

 

 

I took this photo so that you can see the size of it. It fits right into the middle of my hand. It’s not too big or too small. Honestly, I ordered two! I wanted a second one for my office at work. I seriously have no regrets ordering these. Now I know that they are a bit expensive so I searched online to find something similar and a bit less expensive and I found this one and this one on Amazon. 

Beautiful things are so hard for me to pass up. Especially something that has the potential to be a family heirloom. I love heirlooms. I have no heirlooms from my family but have a few from my husband’s family and I think that they are the best things to have. It shows your family’s taste, their minds, and their heritage. Lauren, our daughter, is going to have a LOT of heirlooms from me. I just hope that she cherishes them. 

Have a great Wednesday!

 

Boutique news: With Valentine’s Day fast approaching I wanted to put some of my dresses on sale. The Lillian Vine dress is still on sale and now the Frances dress is on sale as well as the Charlotte Velvet dress! I think all of those would be a great dress to wear on a date night! And if you purchase one of those dresses you get a free pair of earrings your choice! Just put a note in the note section when you are finishing your purchase! 

 

Please note: some links are affiliate links and if you make a purchase through this link, I will receive a small commission for referring you to the product. Thank you so much in advance if you decide to make a purchase through my link.

 

Macaroni Soup- A Comfort Food Recipe

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Good Morning Everyone,

Goodness, these Fridays sure do come pretty fast. January is almost over and I keep looking at my closet thinking, “okay I have to do a cleanout soon”. There are a few items that I need to put on my Poshmark closet account and I few items that I need to donate to the women’s shelter. Speaking of women’s shelters I have not been able to volunteer at Dress for Success for almost two years now and it has made me so sad. The pandemic has really ruined a lot of things but we will continue to pray and move forward. 

I did want to share that my macaroni soup came out so good! I was so happy with the results and had to share it will you guys!

 

 

It was so simple to make. I followed the instructions. I browned the meat with olive oil and chopped up my veggies. 

 

 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

One thing that I did differently and that was cook my pasta separately. The instructions do call for you to cook your pasta with the meat and veggies but I didn’t want that. I cooked it separately and then added all of the veggies, seasonings, and broth together. 

 

 

I love seeing all of the colors and textures. It was so good! I did add some beef bouillon and they gave it a little more flavor. It was so warm and tasty. 

 

 

I did bake some french bread and we had this with it as well. It was so good. I had it for lunch twice this week. The recipe was so simple, the ingredients so affordable and the soup was so filling. The link to the recipe is here if you wish to try it and I hope you do. 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Thanks for reading!

 

Just a reminder the Lillian Vine Dress is only $20 this weekend. It’s a great transitional dress!