Biltmore Trip/Kings Island~ 2020

/in , /by

Good Morning Everyone,

It’s the last day of July and we are expecting some cooler temps next week! Yay! It’s been hot. It has taken me a while to get this post together from our trip. I can’t believe that 2 weeks have passed already!

So let’s get into our recent vacation to the Biltmore and Kings Island.

This is the view when you enter the park. We only spent one day here (thank goodness). It was so hot and wearing a mask was not the best thing. 

This was the first rollercoaster that Lauren got on. Now she and my step-son had a great time at the park but we did have a few issues.

On one of the rollercoaster rides Lauren’s face mask fell down and once the ride was over we wanted to purchase the photo. The staff would not let us because her mask fell down. Now I get it, they don’t want us posting that to Facebook and people thinking that they don’t have to wear a mask but come on now. Wearing a mask on a rollercoaster was a bit much to me. Now if you are walking around and standing in line, okay wear your mask but while riding that’s a bit much to me (they did space everyone at least two seats apart). 

The second issue was with me and my husband. We wanted to take a “break” so we found an area in the park (it was not crowded) where we can sit and take off our masks. No one was around us but a security guard came up and told us to put them on. Really?!!! No one is around us. Now they had these “break areas” where you could go and take off your mask and they want you to do it there. But what’s over there? You guessed it more people!! It made no sense to us! Just nuts!!!!

Oh and if you had one of their $20 fountain drinks in your mouth they would not tell you to wear your mask as long as you were spending money. 

I was so happy to leave Kings Island and head to Asheville. Arriving at the Biltmore was a breath of fresh air!!!

Now you did have to wear a mask while touring the home but we understood that and most people stood over 6ft apart. People were quiet and absorbing the home. It was a much better tour this time. This is the garden room. I spy blue and white!!!

The gorgeous dining room. I didn’t take as many pictures this time. I wanted to enjoy the home and not have a camera in my hand the entire time. 

I completely missed this the last time we were here. I spy blue and white again! Beautiful details!

I loved the furniture in this room. The contrast between the floors, rug, and furniture is so elegant to me. 

Mrs. Vandebilt’s room, always a favorite. 



Mr. Vandebilt’s study



After the tour, we headed to the gift shop which I did not get to visit the last time. Alas, blue and white. So pretty!
My husband and I also did some wine tasting in this room and purchased 4 bottles of the Biltmore wine. We then headed outside to the gardens. 

Lavender

The conservatory is a work of art itself.

I also didn’t snap any food photos this time. I really wanted to just enjoy my vacation and not take pictures the whole time. But I did have to get a photo of this dessert that my step-son ordered. It was a little too tart for me but visually beautiful. 

Despite the heat, and the mask frustration, overall it was a really good trip. Considering we are in a global pandemic this was a low-key, simple vacation and we enjoyed it. My husband and I tried to keep things in perspective and remind ourselves that we don’t have too many more of these left with our kids. And the Lord has provided all of our needs and our “greeds” during this whole Covid scare. 

Thank you Lord and forgive us for being silly sometimes. I hope you all enjoyed this post and have a wonderful weekend. 
(photos via Mrs. Shockley)


Downton Abbey Exhibit ~ Biltmore Vacation

/in , /by

Hello Everyone!
Okay, I know, I know… most of you probably have watched my video where I discuss how I have not watched the Downton Abbey series. It’s okay, I plan on watching it soon. I can only watch one series at a time. I can’t do multiples. It’s just too much for me. 

I did, however, want to share one of the exhibits that I got to visit while at the Biltmore.

The one thing that I learned about the show is that it is set during the 1912 sinking of the Titanic and left the future of their leadership in jeopardy. I found that part so interesting. Now I know I need to watch the series!

This particular exhibit was much smaller and located by the winery. 




This is some of the “daywear” worn by Lady Mary. 
These are some of the evening dresses worn by Lady Edith. The original dress of lemon sorbet silk crepe with scalloped hem heavily decorated with seed beading, sequin, and metallic embroidery, layered over a tiered silk and chiffon scallop hemmed slip. 


Evening and daywear collections

This is jewelry belonging to the Crawley family. Wealthy aristocratic women could afford jewelry made from precious metal, real pearls, and beautiful gemstones. 

My favorite is this exquisite brooch. I could not get the details for it. We had a line of people behind us. I would love to recreate this or find one similar. 

Wedding dresses, one was worn by Lady Edith. Again I could not get all of the details but I am loving the blue one. 

Bridal and wedding accessories worn by Lady Mary & Lady Edith

Wedding suit worn by Mr. Carson and a wedding dress worn by Mrs. Hughs (I think). Both are very lovely. 

The last photo that I was able to take on the tour were these various hats worn by the Downton Abbey residents. When you take a step back and look at these clothes it just makes you wonder about where we are today. You can barely get people to put clothes on let alone look nice. 

My heart somewhat grieves when I see items like this because I know we will never look like this ever again. But thank goodness for shows like this. They are great reminders and wonderful breaks for the soul. 

Thank you for reading!!
(photos via Mrs. Shockley)

July Favorites ~ 2020

/2 Comments/in , /by
It’s the end of another month in 2020. I know many of us can’t wait for this year to be over. We have lost so much this year already. I somewhat dread 2021. I don’t know what to expect. I am trying to be positive. 

Well, let’s jump into my favorites for July…

The first item has been my rose lip cream from Fresh. I take it everywhere, it smells so lovely and is quite a large size. I have no regrets buying this from Instagram. I love it!

My next favorite has been my electric tea kettle that my step-son got for me for Christmas. He found it at Costco but I find one similar from Amazon if you are interested. Our office will not let us use office appliances due to Covid so we have had to get creative. This kettle provides me with the hot water I need to continue to have my hot tea while I am in the office. It has been a blessing. 
Third has been my recent Poshmark Finds. I love Poshmark and continue to purchase from it. It gives me great opportunities to search for items that I want and to negotiate prices. See my video below to take a peek. 

The fourth was my blue and white table setting project. I had so much fun doing this. I loved it and still look back at my photos. 

Fifth were my beautiful pink lilies that I found at the grocery store! Aren’t they stunning? I added some leaves from my peony bush outside to give it more greenery. I loved having these in my home office. 





And lastly, has been the beautiful Instagram account of Nicolas Fairford. 

Pin on Flat
photo credit Nicolas Fairford 
I don’t know if any of you follow him but he has such an elegant and inspiring account. He has superb taste and a wonderful Youtube channel if you are interested.


That’s it for my favorites for this month. Most of the items that I love I have already shared them this month. We will see what August holds. Honestly, I am hoping for cooler weather. It has been so hot lately and wearing a mask does not help. Father, please be with us. 



(photos via Mrs. Shockley)

Blue and White Cameo Earrings

/4 Comments/in , /by

Good Morning Everyone,

The end of July is upon us. Our daughter is suppose to start her sophomore year next week. We thought she would be attending in-person classes but her school has decided to e-learn for the first few weeks. Sounds good to me…. 

I still can’t believe it. Our daughter will be a sophomore in high school. Goodness these years are flying by! She was only 9 when I started blogging. It has been 6 years already!

Not to mention my step-son will be starting his sophomore year in college. He can’t wait to go back. God be with our children this year, please. 

Now in today’s Friday post I wanted to share these beautiful earrings from Nicola Bathie. I have been following her on Instagram for sometime now and I love her jewelry. 

She recently had a sale and I was able to grab her sought after pearl cluster- Paris blue cameo earrings! 

Gorgeous aren’t they?

My box that they came in. 

They are so beautiful. You can’t help but to stare at them. I just stared when I first opened the box. They are just stunning. 

Now they are quite large and she has created a smaller version but the price is still a little high. 

They are a statement piece for any wardrobe. They are quite striking but in a good way. You stare not because they are too big but because of how beautiful they are and very different which I like. 

I hope you can check out her website and subscribe to emails. She does have sales which can help you to get a beautiful pair of your own. Have a great weekend!


(photos via Nicola.com and Mrs. Shockley)

A New White Lamp

/4 Comments/in , /by


Good Morning Everyone,

Still hoping that everyone is well. It’s been a rough year. I had 4 people that I knew pass away. Only one to Covid and I am already worn out by funerals.

Taking a vacation last week was much needed time away. We really loved Asheville. It was a great time! I will be sharing some photos this week from our adventure.

Today I just wanted to do a quick post about a lamp change up.


I decided to update my lamp in my office. I have had my lamps since 2007 and I felt a change was needed. So I ordered this white Vienna lamp from Home Depot. I love the way it looks and I think it is a perfect fit for the table and decor. 

This is what it looked like before. I believe the white lamp stands out more and gives it a more updated look. 


I am so pleased with how it looks. It looks sophisticated and chic. I was a little apprehensive about buying a white lamp. I am not into all of the white interiors that everyone seems to be steering toward. I love splashes of color here and there. 


But I think this turned out well and was a great purchase. I also ended up purchasing a new faux floral arrangement from HomeGoods while we were in Asheville. 

Let me know what you guys think in the comments section. 


Have a great day!




(photos via Mrs. Shockley)





My Blue and White Table Setting

/2 Comments/in , /by

And it is Friday Ladies,


I hope everyone is well. I want to jump right into my post today. Most of you have probably already seen my photos on Instagram of my blue and white table setting but I just absolutely had to share this on the blog. I loved it so much!

I put this together early in the morning last Friday. I had just had my breakfast and was watching a Youtube video of Theodore Leaf’s blue and white table setting. 

I then thought to myself, “could I do this”? I began looking around my home and realized that I had a ton of blue and white! 

Yes, I could absolutely remake this table with my own spin. 

The placemats and napkins are from HomeGoods and are Ralph Lauren. I paid only $14.99 for the set of placemats and only $9.99 for the set of napkins. Goodness, I just love Homegoods!

The ginger jars are from HomeGoods as well. My blue and white plates are from TJ. Maxx and my local antique store. My teacups are from eBay.

The green goblets are from my mother in law and the napkin rings are from Sur La Table.





This was such a fun little project for me. I just smiled once it was finished. 

All of the floral arrangements are faux and are from HomeGoods and Joann Fabrics.



This little project gave me such joy. I have NEVER attempted anything like this. I loved every minute of it. Once I was finished I told my daughter, we need to film this and put it on Youtube. She agreed. My video is below in case you missed it. 




Thanks again to everyone who reads my blog and watches my channel. I will be on vacation next week. I will share what we did and if there are any new finds. Everyone have a wonderful week! 




(photos via Mrs. Shockley)




My Purse Essentials During Covid

/4 Comments/in , /by

Good Morning,


The Covid saga continues. With numbers rises it makes you wonder if we will have a second quarantine. I hope not. I try to make sure that I do my part but you can’t control people (nor do I think we should) or their actions. 


I just wanted to share what I have in my purse while I run errands around my city. 



Here lately I have been carrying my quilted handbag (sorry it’s no longer available) around to run errands. It is still so chic.

I managed to get everything I need inside and it works quite well. 

Right now these are the contents of my handbag. I have my clutch which carries, my makeup, lip care, brush, mirror, hand sanitizer spray,  body spray, my wallet, sunglasses, and this Coach drawstring dust bag.

The Coach drawstring dust bag carries all my Covid essentials. This dust bag came with my wallet when I purchased it. I have about 6 of these. I always keep them. 
I have my rubber gloves, my face masks, and french lavender hand sanitizer spray in my dust bag. 

I adore this hand sanitizer spray from Bath and Body Works. It doesn’t dry out my hands, it smells marvelous, and I can use it to spray my shopping cart when I feel sort of squeamish. 

My husband even loves my hand sanitizer spray. He goes on and on about how good it smells. They have other scents if you are interested. 


I hope this post gave you some simple ideas about how to carry your items with you. I never thought in a million years that I would be carrying a face mask in my purse. It’s amazing how the world changes so fast. 


Enjoy your day. 





(photos via Mrs. Shockley)