Blog posts that inspire

Missing the Arts

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Good Morning Everyone,

I have officially moved to my new office and everything is in place. I am excited about this new journey. I did order a new piece of art to place on my wall. I can’t wait for it to arrive!

Summer is drawing near and some of my favorite events are starting to pop up on my calendar. During the month of May, I normally check the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra calendar to see what the times, themes, and dates are for the Lunch Break Series. I mentioned this event before and have gone several times. Sadly I don’t think they will be having it this year due to Covid.

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

I am going to miss these events so much! I loved going to the symphony during my lunch break. It provided education, culture, food, and socializing. It provided everything an elegant being could want. 

I also really miss my piano lessons from my teacher Ms. Julia. 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

Me with my piano teacher Ms. Julia in 2016. 

 

These lessons gave me something to work toward. It caused me to use my mind in different ways. It encouraged memorization, technique, and note reading. It is truly a subject to study and one that I miss greatly. I still stay in touch with my piano teacher. She misses teaching as well but after COVID hit she had to make some life changes as well.  I also miss taking my daughter to her violin lessons. I didn’t realize how much we were doing until everything stopped. 

What arts are you missing this year? Has the pandemic affected any of your activities? Please share below. I would love to know what some of you do for elegant activities!

 

 

 

 

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. 

 

Tips for Adult Behavior

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Hello Ladies!

Well, I am happy to say that we did not have snow today but it was still cold. Next week we are suppose to be back in the ’70s. I certainly hope so! I could not believe that I was looking at fat snow flakes on Wednesday! It was just insane. Insane and frustrating! This weekend I have a few errands to run and I hope you all follow the boutique on Instagram! We just got a new arrival and I hope to have it ready next week. We are having some issues with shipping so bear with me.  On to today’s post…

Earlier last week when I was preparing for my new position and going through some of my paperwork, I stumbled on this blog post from Habitually Chic in 2018 about adult behavior. I had completely forgotten that I printed this out and had it in a file with some notes.

 

 

 

 

List from John Perry Barrow

 

It is a wonderful list and a wonderful reminder. There are so many things going on and so many things in the news that we forget to be adults. I don’t want to ever lose that.

 

photo credit: Pinterest 

I would have to say that my favorite is number 5, “Don’t trouble yourself with matters you cannot change”. I keep repeating that to myself. I really need to let that absorb into my mind and really believe that. I want to live in trust. And that is trust that God is leading me. I hope you all enjoyed this list and come back on Monday for exciting news about my Mother’s Day sale starting on Monday for the boutique. I will have the largest discount code available to use on everything except for the new arrival. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

 

 

 

Curious About Wisteria

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It is the beginning of a new week and the starting week of training for my new position. I have truly been in awe all weekend. I still can not believe that I am a supervising paralegal in my office. It still shocks me. And now this week I begin training with my co-worker that I will be replacing. I can’t believe it…

This weekend has been rather quiet. I ran some errands on Saturday and processed some new orders for the boutique. Thank you to everyone who watched and subscribed to Rosenda’s channel. I hope that you all enjoyed the video and it was great to see my dresses being modeled on a wonderful person. The pinkcasa code for the discount will be good until Wednesday. I hope you all get a chance to use it. 

On Sunday, I pulled out some old and new Victoria magazines to find inspiration and stumbled upon an article about wisteria. I don’t know much about it. My very good friend Lyndsey grew some a few years ago and it looked gorgeous on her trellis up against her home. I am so afraid to grow certain things in Indiana. We seem to have unpredictable weather. 

 

photo credit: Stephanie Welbourne Steel (Victoria Magazine)

When I was reading the article it said that the burley vines can be trained to clamber up walls, pergolas, and other sturdy supports. Another tip that it gave was that once you cut the vines special care must be taken. Removing most of the foliage will allow for better water absorption. 

 

photo credit: Stephanie Welbourne Steele (Victoria Magazine)

 

What are your thoughts? Have any of you planted or have wisteria? I would LOVE to know if you do and how you are managing it. Please comment below and have a lovely Monday!

 

 

 

To Fit or Not to Fit

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Hello All,

The weather, oh the weather has been wonderful. Our trees have begun to bloom. It’s like it happened overnight. I love it so. I hope you are able to enjoy your weather wherever you are. It is Wednesday and our daughter is back in school four days a week. I can not tell you how happy I am. She needs to be in school and I need a break from Algebra. We had a 3-hour Zoom meeting during quarantine about Algebra. I don’t want to do that ever again! 

I received the most wonderful email Monday evening. In March I wrote a blog post called, “Beauty from Mom”, and in that post, I talked about an article that I found in Victoria magazine. Well, I don’t know how but the author found my blog post and sent me the following email…

 

Message: Dear Mrs. Shockley,

I just stumbled across your blog post “Beauty from Mom,” and I wanted to say I am fairly certain your daughter absolutely will appreciate all the elegance you bring into her life. Growing up, I definitely rolled my eyes at the amount of time my mom spent sorting through boring old linens in our local antique stores. I definitely did not understand why we had multiple storage boxes of fake flowers for every season. But here I am, years later, not only “getting it” but celebrating it in the frilliest magazine I can think of.

Thank you for giving your girl that gift. And thank you so much for sharing your story. It was such a thrill for me to discover your blog. I love writing because of how it connects us to people we’ll never meet. Usually, I just have to hope the connection is made. It’s always such a joy to hear that it worked for sure.

Abi

photo credit: Pinterest (Reily Vintage Home Photography)

 

Isn’t that WONDERFUL? I immediately wrote back and told her thank you for reaching out and encouraging me. I really needed to hear that.  Now on to today’s post. 

I have recently been ordering books from my Amazon list. The most recent order was Linens for Every Room and Occasion by Jane Scott Hodges. This book has been on my “want” list for over 4 years and I am so glad that I ordered it. It is huge! 

I was skimming through it and came across a list of sheets and pillowcase basics. The paragraph that pulled me in was the fitted sheet one. How many of you like fitted sheets? I use a fitted sheet but have been wanting to try a flat sheet. I have used flat sheets in the past but my husband normally complains. 

 

photo credit: Walmart.com

 

What are your thoughts? Are flat sheets better than fitted sheets? Jane mentioned that “some don’t like fitted sheets due to the elastic, which can lose its tautness over time and often rides up if the sheet isn’t deep enough”. 

I am experiencing that now with my fitted sheets. Please share what you think in the comments section below. I am really curious. 

 

Have a great Wednesday and thanks for reading!

 

 

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.

The Beauty of Collecting ~ 3

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Good Morning Everyone,

It’s Friday and I have a few things planned for today. First I wanted to let everyone know that I am having an Easter sale on some of the items in my boutique! Some of my pieces will be $10 off! The items that are going to be on sale are the gray garden dress, ivory & pearl cardigan, pink mauve cardigan, the blue peplum top, and the preppy vintage dress! This sale will be for about a week and then these items will go back to the original price. So I hope that you all find an item that you will enjoy! 

A new dress will be arriving in the boutique and I absolutely love it! I will be posting it on the website today! I am also going to be headed out to do a little shopping with my daughter. 

 

photo credit: Cathi’s Place 

 

Well, let’s finish the Beauty of Collecting with Aerin Lauder. We are now down to her last two tips from her book Entertaining Beautifully. Aerin mentions, “Don’t be afraid to use your collections. My mother, who collects very fine antique pottery and glassware, actually sets the table with it. If there are pieces that are especially valuable (even for sentimental reasons), consider displaying them on the wall- as Daniel Romualdes does with his seventeenth-century delft plates- or on plate racks, as my mother does in the Hamptons. That way you can enjoy them every time you pass through the room, not just when you’re entertaining.” Again, I could not agree with her more. I love having the antique items that I collect out and around so that I can see them.

 

photo credit: Nicolas Fairford Instagram 

 

And the last tip from Aerin is, “by the same token, take good care of your collections. Store platters in cabinets with vertical tray dividers, or on secure plate racks. Place felt rounds or foam dividers between antique plates. Store silver in lined chests or bags made of anti-tarnish cloth. Fine crystal and glassware should be stored right side up, so as not to put pressure on delicate rims. Or invest in quilted, divided cases to store and protect infrequently used pieces”. 

I hope you all enjoyed these simple yet helpful tips from Aerin. I know that from now on I will be enjoying my mismatched pieces. I now feel like I have the freedom to enjoy those items as well. If you missed the other tips from Aerin you can read them here, here, and here.  Have a wonderful weekend everyone and look out for my new arrival coming soon!

 

 

(tips and text taken from Entertaining Beautifully by Aerin Lauder, page 80) 

 

The Beauty of Collecting ~2

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Hello Wednesday,

I am actually working a half-day today. I need to pick up my contacts and I also want to take one of my recent Gal Meet Glam dress purchases to the seamstress. It’s a bit big and I need to have the top part taken in. This will be my 6th Gal meet Glam dress (I think). This is the Elsie dress and it’s in a beautiful green color and is very flowy. I am looking forward to wearing it this spring. 

Alright, let’s continue with our lesson on the beauty of collecting. Yesterday, I mentioned from Aerin’s book, Entertaining Beautifully, that your collections don’t need to be valuable but instill joy and have meaning to you. Aerin continues with her tidbits on collecting. She says, “once you start a collection, learn about it. You will get greater enjoyment from your collecting and will make better, more informed purchases. You can learn by talking to knowledgeable dealers or shopkeepers, researching online or in books, or connecting with other collectors”. 

 

photo credit: Aerin Lauder Instagram 

 

The second tip is, “don’t feel you have to find perfect matching sets (I was so happy to read this!!!). I love my collection of mismatched floral china in the Hamptons. The mix of floral patterns in similar colors, with touches of gilding, makes for a lively, individualistic table”. 

 

photo credit: Victoria Magazine Instagram 

 

My eyebrows raised when I read the comment above. I can not tell you how many china pieces I have walked away from because they did not match. I will no longer be doing that! If I love it, will use it, have room for it, and if it brings me joy, I will be buying it! 

 

I hope you enjoyed Aerin’s collecting tips for today. I will be posting the last two tips on Friday and hopefully will be sharing another new arrival for the boutique! Enjoy your Wednesday!

 

 

The Beauty of Collecting ~ 1

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The first weekend of Spring has begun. I went out to my front yard to check the progress of my lilac bushes. Everything is beginning to come in! I am looking forward to my blooms this year. I also went and spent WAY TOO MUCH money at HomeGoods. I wanted some new bed linens and purchases about two bed-in-the-bag cases. One is sage green and I am loving the way it looks.  Alright, so last Friday I talked about the beauty of collecting and shared how I was going to be discussing Aerin Lauder’s thoughts on collecting. 

One of her first tips is, “your collections do not have to be valuable (yay); they only have to instill joy and have meaning to you. Sometimes they start quite spontaneously- when you realize you’ve accumulated more than four sets of salt and pepper shakers or you’ve inherited your grandmother’s willow-ware china, or you start picking up antique linens at flea markets. Whatever attracts your eye, pay attention to it”.  

 

photo credit: Rodolfo Marques 

 

The second tip is to “look for meaningful additions to your collections on your travels, both to enhance your journey or conjure happy memories once you’re home. I’ve bought napkin rings on safari in Tanzania, colorful candles in London, and plates in Panama. I often find inspiration through travel”. 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

Whenever we go out of town I always have at least one antique store or Goodwill on my list to visit. I have found some of my best pieces on my travels. My recent obsessions has been Facebook Marketplace. I keep finding the most beautiful vintage French provincial furniture. I really don’t have the room for it but it doesn’t stop me from looking. I am also learning that I have a small obsession with china. I love china and here again, I don’t have the room for it. Makes me so sad! 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

Another recent find at an antique store has been my Wedgwood piece. It is stunning! You know maybe in the near future I could add antiques to my boutique. It’s a thought, isn’t it? I hope you all enjoyed this post and I am happy to report that the new arrivals for my boutique have been added. You are more than welcome to purchase anything on the boutique’s page. I also have one more plus-size dress on the way and another regular-size dress. I am also trying to get a few more accessories. I will keep you all posted! 

 

 

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