Blog posts that inspire

Quiet Elegance

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Good Morning Everyone,

I needed to take some time off from the blog, boutique, LTK and Instagram. Now I have been on there “liking” photos but for the most part I have not really been activate on it and it has been really nice. 

Lauren and her brother Ely are moved into college. My husband and I officially became “empty nesters” on Saturday. When we woke up on Saturday morning, we both were really sad. We do miss our kids, but we understand that this is simply a part of life. Lauren did call us that morning and I was so happy! She just wanted to tell us about her first night and how things were going. It was good to hear that she missed us! I just keep praying that the Lord is with them.

 I was cleaning up my office and found some old blog posts that I had printed out in 2016. I remember sharing this post called “To Meditate On” and I really enjoyed reading it. It will now be a part of my daily morning devotionals. It helped me to reset my mind as I start this new journey in my life. 

 

photo via Town & Country

 

Do you ever see a woman like this and just stare? I found this photo a few years ago and I had to go on a quest to figure out who it was. I found out that this elegant woman in this photo is Ann Getty. In this photo she was leaving her mansion in San Fransico in 1977 and was accompanied by her footman and butler. If you want to read more about her then read this article. 

When I saw this photo the phrase “quiet elegance” popped in my mind. I love seeing women like this. Where they don’t shout from the rooftop, “Oh I have money and this and that”. They just quietly go about their day living their lives with respect and beauty. They simply don’t see the need in drawing attention to themselves. Their elegance does it for them. I pray and hope that over time I can do that. Just live my life in quiet elegance. Enjoy your day! 

 

My Phone Gallery Wishlist

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Happy Friday,

This will be our last pizza dinner with Lauren for a few weeks. I am trying not to get sad about it. Goodness, I still can’t believe that we are moving her in her dorm room next week. I continue to pray that the angels are with her and her brother as they start their school year. I still see her little pigtails on her head. Time goes by too fast. 

Okay let’s move on. Today’s post should be a fun one. I am sharing my wish list on my phone. I keep a photo album on my phone called “My Wishlist”. I created it a few years ago. Every time I saw a place, dress, bag, antique, really anything that I wanted I would take a screenshot of it on my phone. I then realized that I needed to keep these photos in their own separate album. 

 

 

This is an actual screenshot of my wish list on my phone. You will see all kinds of things. These are all photos of inspiration. There are photos of rooms, movies, accessories, homes, antiques and honestly items that I would LOVE to create for my own brand. Oh dare to dream? What I also realized was that every time I took a photo of something, whatever it was, that item would appear, or that opportunity to visit it would come. I mean it has been very, very interesting for the last few years since I have created this album on my phone. 

 

 

I know that Habakkuk 2.2 in the Bible says, ” The LORD answered me: “Write down the vision; write it clearly on clay tablets so whoever reads it can run to tell others.” With this wish list photo album, I am “writing down” my vision. I am making it plain for the Lord to see. 

And each time that I get something on this list, I just smile and delete it. But I thank the Lord in the process. Now I am not one of those, “fake it till you make it” people or prosperity, but I do believe that you can tell the Lord the desires of your heart. He already knows what they are but if you enjoy beauty like I do, then there is nothing wrong with having it in front of you. 

If you look in the upper right-hand corner of my second album you will see the Swan House and Swan Coach House. We just booked our room for next month to go and visit. I am so excited! Continue to write down your vision! Keep those dreams in front of you whatever they may be! 

Have a great weekend!

 

 

Your Gratitude List…

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Good Morning Everyone,

I hope you all had a great weekend! I am still busy at work, and we are now on our last full week of Lauren being home! I can’t believe it. It truly is amazing at how fast time does really fly. My husband and I have been sending each other pictures of the kids of when they were little. I still can’t believe that Lauren will be off to college next week. 

Having that thought pushed me into thinking about being grateful for things in my life. I was listening to another Tonya Leigh podcast and this one was called “2 Ways to Upgrade your Gratitude Practice”. 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

I still can’t believe that I took this photo!! It is just so magical. I still remember standing in this garden last year in Newport, RH. It truly felt like a dream…. even now I am taking in this moment and being grateful that I got to see this with my family.

Tonya mentioned this in her podcast…

“I also think we can get into gratitude slumps, gratitude ruts. And for me, what that feels like is I’m going through the motions of being grateful but I’m not really feeling it. Do you know what I’m talking about?

Like, you write it down in your journal, “I’m grateful for my family. I’m grateful for my job. I’m grateful for my house. I’m grateful for the food. I’m grateful for my friends.” But you’re not really feeling gratitude. You’re not feeling the emotion of gratitude”. 

Oh yes, I have been here which is why I don’t have a gratitude journal. I always felt like that was all I was doing. Just writing things down just to be writing things down.

 

 

 

Tonya said, “When it comes to gratitude, I think it’s about quality not quantity. I don’t think it’s about the numbers of things that you’re grateful for, but the depth of the gratitude that you have for some things.

Deep gratitude is when you get into the emotion of gratitude. And the way I like to do that is to think of one thing and go deep into why I am grateful for that person or that thing.

I could not agree with this more. I have found myself in the past just going through the motions of making a gratitude list and found myself just blowing right through things. But if I take one thing at a time, I find myself exploring that item, person or event more deeply. It brings more quality to my thoughts of gratefulness more than anything. Let me know in the comments below if you have done this before. How do you apply gratitude to your life?

 

In boutique news, the Vintage Vanity Collection is now on sale. There are a few pieces that are down to $15! You may order on the website. 

 

 

Past Inspiring Posts

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Good Morning Everyone,

Well, the new large antique mall that I went and visited on Saturday was just okay. Don’t get me wrong it was huge, but the quality of the antiques was just not there for me. There were no substantial furniture pieces, no large cabinets, antique chairs, fabrics, drapery, and I mean the list goes on and on. I went to the vintage jewelry selection, and they had nothing but rings. I did see one piece of artwork but that I was it. I did purchase a Waterford vase and a Lenox vase but that was it. The quest continues. 

I do plan on visiting a new antique store this weekend. The seller that I purchased my vintage cabinet from will be returning from her vacation and she has a store front. I will be messaging her later this week to see if she will be open. 

In boutique news, I will say that things have been really slow, and I have been taking a small break from it. I am taking a step back to re-evaluate where I am with it and what will be the next step. I am looking into a few things. My goal is to find my own manufacturer to work with. I do want to create my very own pieces for my store so we will see what the Lord leads me to. I am also having issues with my PayPal plugin. I have reached out to my web support team to try to get that fixed. Sorry if you have tried to purchase something and could not. Please know that most of the items are on my Poshmark page. I will be moving more of the dresses on there until we can get this problem fixed and you are more than welcome to make an offer! 

The Equestrian scarves are only $10 on my website but if you got to my Poshmark page and make an offer for $10 I will accept it! I only have 3 left! 

In today’s post I wanted to share past inspiring posts. There are a few posts that I myself keep going back to and sometimes I am a bit surprised that I share certain things. 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

It’s funny how you can look back on something that you may have written and you can pinpoint exactly where you were in that moment. In my blog post A Time to Focus, I was at a point in my life where I was working from home and taking a step back to think about my career. Now reading it I am so glad that I was able to put things in perspective. 

 

 

Another great post and reminder is Be Someone of Quality. I shared this post in 2105. I can’t believe this was 8 years ago but still relevant to today. 

Becoming a First Lady in your Life was another popular and well received blog post. I loved sharing this and will enjoy reading it in the future. 

Beauty from Mom is another great post full of inspiration and hope. A few people reached out to me to let me know that they were in the same position as me and did not grow up with mom’s who cared about beautiful things. Whenever this post shows up I have to read it. 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

Needs some inspiration for making lists? Then elegant evaluating is a great post to remind you that getting things in order can be done slowly. I find myself doing this often. 

Enjoy certain things in your life then Things I Savor in Life is a great post to read. This is the updated version that I wrote in 2021. If I am still blogging in a few years then I may have to do another update! It will be interesting to see where I am in another 10 years. 

This post just popped into my mind. A Paris All Your Own, was such a fun short story to read. I hope you enjoy it! I hope you all enjoyed this post. 

A Snippet from Teatime Discipleship

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Good Morning All,

I feel a little better. I was able to sleep in on Sunday. I decided to stay home and rest a little, do a few house chores, and try to get some things done. While I was vacuuming my bedroom and thought came into my head. “I am in a different stage in life. I no longer want to take my weekends and just clean my house. From now on, since we are not going to have children around, I will do daily house scans and just add whatever needs to be cleaned to my list.” After that thought passed thru my mind, I had a sense of peace come over me. 

It’s interesting…. being in this different stage of life. A new chapter is beginning for me, and I am trying to navigate it as best as I can. In the mornings I love having my devotional. I have been reading Teatime Discipleship and it helps me start the day with my mind in the right place. 

I loved Sally Clarkson, the author, tips on discouragement. She provided a wonderful list to keep in your mind. 

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley 

 

  • God is with me, and He will help me succeed.  Each of us experiences “winter” seasons in our lives- times when growth is stagnant, when our dreams appear to be dead and buried. But while we can hardly perceive at the time, roots are growing deep in these seasons.

 

  • There are always do-overs in God’s economy. All of us mess up. Peter blew it royally when he denied Christ at His hour of need, but before he even sinned, Jesus told Peter He had prayed for him. Jesus had compassion on Peter before His disciple had even committed his sinful act. 

 

  • A wise woman learns her limitations. Sometimes women go so long without taking a break that they start breaking down. Wise women learn to say no so they don’t live in a constant state of exhaustion. 

 

  • I can seek outside perspective. You might need some inspiration and counsel in order to move forward. Find someone older, wiser and more experienced to help you come up with a plan. Sometimes this is easier said than done! But I have found that when I summon the courage to pour out my heart to more mature believers, I usually find compassion and often find help. (When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your comfort delights my soul. ~ Psalm 94:19) 

 

  • I can pace myself. If you’re feeling overwhelmed at the tasks ahead, ask yourself what’s stealing your peace of mind. Commit to identifying the stressors and drainers over which you have control and, as much as possible, eliminate them. Be honest about what needs to go and vigilant about removing it from your life. 

 

  • I can give the day to God. First things first! Beginning the day with the Lord will orient you. Set yourself on the right path for the hours head, with God’s truth and wisdom casting light over your priorities and plans. 

I hope you all enjoyed this snippet from Teatime Discipleship. This book also has great teatime recipes and ideas for fellowship with friends. Things have been so crazy in the world. I try to ground myself in the mornings as much as possible. 

“The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn. That shines brighter and brighter until the full day.” ~ Proverbs 4:18

 

(tips from Sally Clarkson, Teatime Discipleship, pgs. 99-105) 

Peony Festival ~ 2023

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Good Morning,

We got some exciting news a few days ago. Lauren got her first job and it is at an antique mall that I shop at!!! Now how fun is that? She is so excited and so am I. I am really shocked that she would even be interested in a job like this but so far she likes the staff so we will see how this goes. 

Today we are headed to Lauren’s future college for her student orientation. She is excited and nervous about her new journey. Today will be a day of getting more information and getting her scheduling done. On Saturday her open house party will begin and on Sunday I have scheduled absolutely nothing so that I can get caught up on housework and take photos for my new boutique dress arrival! I hope to have it posted this weekend or next week.

I can’t believe that it has been two weeks already since this year’s peony festival. I hate that that season is so fleeting. I am still on the hunt for peony bunches. I may call my local Trader Joes to see if they have any. Oh well, here are some photos from this year’s festival and here is last year’s if you want to revisit it!

 

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley 

 

When we walked into the festival this was the very first vendor that I saw. Her blue and white olive oil containers caught my eye.

 

 

I did purchase one. I could not resist. I am trying to remember the name of the company but it escapes me. Sorry!

 

 

We did a lot of walking around and of course I had to get peonies from my favorite vendor JP Parker Flowers. I swear Mrs. Parker has the most flawless, and fantastic peonies ever!

 

 

Of course, I could not leave without my favorite candles from Linnea. They have a new candle called Passiflora and I had to take it home with me. It is amazing! I do hope that they continue to make it. Another tip that I learned about was “layering the scent of candles”. So they told me to burn Petals and Fields together and oh my goodness! The smell is amazing in my bedroom. I am also interested in getting their small travel candle to take me with on trips. I can burn it in my hotel room. They also gave me a sample of their Persian Lime lotion and my goodness. I could not stop smelling my hands. So wonderful…

 

 

I had such a good time this year. I wish the peony season lasted longer! I felt really comfy but elegant in my outfit as well. I got lots of compliments on my floral tote from Express.

 

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley 

 

This was the biggest and most fragrant peony bouquet that I have ever had! It was like a dream truly. Let me know in the comments section below if you were able to get a peony bouquet for yourself. Make sure you do. Just buy it for you and enjoy it.

Have a great weekend! 

 

 

Becoming a First Lady in your Life ~ Thoughts on Elegance Series

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Good Morning Everyone,

I hope you all had a wonderful Resurrection Sunday! We kept things simple and spent time with the kids. We sat at the dinner table and just talked about life. It turned out well. The weather here this week is suppose to be outstanding. It will be sunny the whole week and in the 50’s and 60’s! So happy! 

For Easter dinner I did try Jennifer L. Scott’s black forest cake. I will be sure to share that later this week and my new desk finally arrived! I will be sharing that as well but today I wanted to share a beautiful email that I received from a company called Notiq. I have shared this company before and absolutely love their products. On a weekly basis, Notiq sends out these very inspiring emails. I had to share the one that I got this week. It was called “Elegant Secrets/ Become a First Lady”.

 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley

 

In her newsletter, VJ, the founder of Notiq, said, “What if you were a First Lady? Who will you be? What will you be known for?

While the term First Lady is often associated with the wife of a president or leader of a nation or state, the Oxford English Dictionary defines First Lady as the leading woman in a particular activity or profession. I am here for the latter. 

As a student and (humbly) connoisseur of Elegance, I have learned that while I may not be the First Lady of a nation, I can choose to live as an elegant First Lady in my private life. How? You might ask. 

It all begins with a mindset.

For a long time, and for many reasons, I suppressed my dream of fully living an elegant life. The truth is, I was afraid of distinction. I was scared of what people might say if I showed up and was (one of) the most stylish, thoughtful, graceful, or refined in any room. The idea that I could carry a secret dream of living as an elegant first lady in my own right was terrifying yet possible.

Today, I wish to inspire a fresh perspective. 

Will you consider seeing and carrying yourself as an elegant first lady? I know life is not always easy or perfect. However, what if you and I embrace a meaningful mindset that inspires us to live out dreams others judge impossible or unrealistic? What will a renewed perspective like this do for you? 

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley

 

I imagine:

  • You’ll show up differently everywhere you go. 
  • You’ll look and feel your best. 
  • You’ll take better care of yourself.
  • You’ll commit to speaking better.
  • You’ll give more thought to what you wear or what you eat.
  • You’ll likely work on your posture and decorum.
  • You’ll be more likable and approachable.
  • You’ll stand out and become more.

Remember, many first ladies were (are) ordinary people like many of us who were not born with the position of First Lady. They simply grew into their roles with intent and dedication to learning. (Hint! Hint!)

From history and in no particular order:

  1. Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was admired and revered for her impeccable grace and style until this day. (1961 – 1963)
  2. Lady Michelle Obama commands our attention with her intentional style, fashion, and poise. (2009 – 2017)
  3. Lady Nancy Reagan’s refinement and support of the arts will remain unforgettable. (1967 – 1975)
  4. Lady Bird Johnson’s warmth and love for beauty inspire diligent care and devotion. (1963 – 1969)
  5. Lady Louisa Adams’ sophistication and fluency in music and arts are noteworthy. (1825 to 1829)

Frankly, every first lady from history has something we can learn from. I simply selected a few to inspire you.

For now, I am grateful for the person you are. Might I add? I am excited about the person you are becoming. I am also confident you (too) will make a memorable and noteworthy impact.

Until next week,

VJ | Founder & Chief Elegance Officer

 

Now how inspiring was this email? I was thrilled and absolutely enjoyed this email from VJ. I just had to share it. I hope you all enjoyed this motivating email and absorb it into your mind and soul!