Monthly Favorites Archives - Page 3 of 15

February Favorites ~ 2024

February 27, 2024/4 Comments/in Monthly Favorites /by mrs.sshockley

Good Morning!

I can’t believe it is the end of February and our wedding anniversary is this week. We have officially been married 20 years! I can’t believe it. I remember back in 2016, I wrote a blog post called Renewing Vows and I shared how I wanted to renew my vows when our 20 years approached.

I must say that in that short amount of time, my views have changed a little. I recently brought it up to my husband about renewing our vows and he imposed a very interesting question to me. He said, “would you want to spend that kind of money on a vow renewal or would you rather travel”. I must say that I thought about it, but my heart strings were pulled by the opportunity to travel. I believe more people are becoming more interested in experiences than things and I can understand why. I am not saying that my desire to have a large wedding is gone but that question did make me think twice. What do you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Now let’s into those favorites for this month…

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

First on my list are my new custom stationary notes cards from Etsy. I was stalking these for a while on the website. So glad that I ordered them. They remind me of the English countryside.

I have been adding new organizing items to my home and office and I spotted these. This clear file sorter is perfect for your office and home. I love the gold tips on the corners. I also added this gorgeous gold and white ginger jar that I found at the At Home Store. My ginger jar is not available online, but this one is similar.

Nothing like antiquing on a beautiful day. I recently got to go, and these are two of the pieces that I picked up. The clear candelabra and crystal ice bucket are perfect additions to my tablescape inventory. I got the candelabra for only $20 and the small crystal ice bucket for $5. When I looked up the price for the candelabra it was over $150! Wonderful find!

My home office has been receiving some small updates here and there. Having my antique finds in my office space means a great deal to me. I could not resist these swan candle holders from Bath and Body Works. They are so beautiful! I went and got two! If you are interested in getting one don’t wait too long. Once they are gone, they are GONE!

These were so wonderful to enjoy this week. I volunteer at Random Acts of Flowers and sometimes we have an overflow of flowers. This month it was blue hydrangeas! Can you believe it? It was so nice being able to take a bundle of these home. It really made my day.

Small organizing tools can make life easy. I saw this fridge Lazy Susan and I thought I would give it a try. It does save a lot of space and is so easy to use. Installing it was nothing as well.

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

Continuing with home products, my dream is to update my laundry room but until then adding helpful tools to the room has made taking care of my clothes much easier. I found this stain brush on Amazon and have been wanting to give it a try. I must say it was the best $15 I have spent! Being able to add my stain remover to my dresses and scrub it in with my brush. Game changer!

I have seen these Amazon belt organizers in several influencer closets, and I have always wondered about them. So I order three for my closet and must say that I have no regrets! These are great! I can see my belts and I feel like it takes up less space.

Another organizing addition to my closet are these wardrobe organizers. You can use them for just about anything. I am using them to organize my longer and thinner scarves. Another game changer for me. It keeps them nice and neat, and I don’t have to worry about where they are.

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley

And the last favorite for this month is my vintage Christian Dior silk scarf that I found on Etsy. It is so beautiful and one of a kind. I have been watching it for months before I decided to order it and I must say that I have no regrets. It’s stunning!

As usual I hope that you have enjoyed these finds for the month of February. I wanted to also tell you that the boutique is having a $10 dress sale! Some of the boutique’s dresses are only $10. Order as many as you want. Enjoy!

Affiliated links attached.

January Favorites ~ 2024

January 30, 2024/in Elegant Living, Monthly Favorites /by mrs.sshockley

Good Morning,

Oh my goodness everyone, I had a good weekend, but I sure do feel like I was hit by a truck this week! I don’t feel sick but I am emotional and physically drained. I had lunch earlier last week with some of my Guild friends to work on a special project for the showhouse this year. During our lunch we started talking menopause and perimenopause which I think I am in the thick of.

I talked about how I loss 18 pounds during Covid and then last year it ALL came back within a few months. My friends shared a doctor with me that has a podcast, and I have started watching some of her videos regarding symptoms of perimenopause. I am on a journey right now to figure things out, but I will be SURE to share with you all what I am learning and supplements that I have started to take.

I also binged watched Operation Niki’s organizing videos on Instagram. Oh my goodness! I love them all. I have so many items in my Amazon cart. Lord! I have also joined TikTok! My handle names are of course @ahomeforelegance and @mrs..shockley. I hope you can find me and follow along. Now let’s get into my favorites for the first month of 2024!

You all know that I have been on an organizational kick recently and finding this bag was a part of it! I get stopped non-stop about this bag and the trolley that it comes with! I mean even men stop me about it! This has been a game changer. I normally carry two totes to the office every day and having this tote that I am able to put on the trolley and pull it into my office has been wonderful. Now my particular color is quite expensive but there are other colors that are a little less. Let me know if you get one!

The second was a crazy find! So for Christmas last year I really wanted a Christian Dior advent calendar but at $1,000 (with products) I could not stomach spending that. Also, with products it could be hit or miss with if you like them or not. I really just wanted the calendar part and then it dawned on me, “hey I wonder if anyone will just sell the calendar on Poshmark”. So I checked and found one! This particular seller was selling hers for just $40 and I quickly added it to my cart and purchased it. It is so elegant, and I cannot wait to use it this upcoming holiday season!

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley

Now with these shoes I understood the power of an influencer. These shoes were posted on the LTK app. There were about 4 pairs left in my city and I thought I would just pop by one and pick up a pair. Wrong! By the time the evening came there was only ONE pair left and I had to call the Target which took them 2 hours to answer the phone, to find out if the pair was still there! I was able to put them on hold and pick them up but oh my goodness! My city was filling online orders because of the demand! It was incredible! So glad I got a pair but sadly they are sold out!

My fourth favorite is a table full of wonder. While I was putting away all of my Christmas decor, I decided to change my floral arrangements around my home as well. I put all of the arrangements on my dining room table and saw this. It was so wonderful! I left it like this for a few hours and just enjoyed it.

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley

Speaking of flowers doesn’t this pink bouquet look wonderful in this vintage vase? This was one of my antique finds during my shopping in January. It is stunning and looks wonderful on my dresser. It is from FrenChic in Franklin, Indiana.

My sixth favorite was my very first avocado toast! Yep that is right! My very first avocado toast. This had avocado, poached eggs, bacon, and was marvelous! This was what I ordered at a place called the Garden Table with my Guild friends.

My last favorite is a newly discovered YouTube channel…

This channel is called American Viscountess and it is spectacular if you love touring historical castles and properties! You could seriously binge watch her channel. It is quite enjoyable!

I hope you all enjoyed my favorites for this month. I will have some more organizational finds and decor ideas coming soon!

December Favorites ~ 2023

December 27, 2023/2 Comments/in Monthly Favorites /by mrs.sshockley

Oh my goodness friends, I hope you all have been well and had a wonderful Christmas! I had a wonderful Christmas but boy was I sick! I don’t know if I got food poisoning or if it was upset stomach, but I was down for the count last Thursday thru Saturday. I didn’t feel better until Tuesday of this week! It was horrible! I couldn’t move and liquid was leaving my body from every hole possible. Ugghhhh!

But I got through Christmas, that sounds so bad but I did. My family could tell that I was exhausted and was gracious and helped out a lot. I got some great gifts. I got some gift cards to my favorite places but one gift that stood out to me was my Hermes pop-up book that was given to me from a co-worker! It’s fabulous! I will share photos soon.

Now let’s continue with my December favorites…

First on my list are my wreaths that I picked up at Michaels. They were on sale, and I have been on the hunt for quite some time. I added them to my stair rail and could not be happier. I do want some thicker ones but what I could do is order two more to have for next year and just add those to the ones I have for a thicker look. I added some satin ribbons as well.

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

In addition to the satin ribbon, I got some houndstooth ribbon from Michaels as well. I dressed some of our gifts with it. My husband was a fan!

More beautiful boxes… I was so surprised when the Estee Lauder counter ladies gave me these beautiful Chanel gift boxes. They are very small but fit perfectly on my vanity as Christmas decor. I will be sure to add them next year as well.

The fourth item was my new Julie Vos Monaco cuff. This cuff has literally been on my list for almost a year. I was so happy when they dropped the price by $100 and then I got 20% off! Yay!

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

My fifth favorite has been my home office. That’s right being home as much as possible this month has meant the world to me. I loved my Christmas decor, holiday candles, snuggle blankets, and delicious treats. Every time that I had a day to be home, I did not want to leave! My space truly made me happy this holiday season.

photo credit: Laudree.com

Okay, I saw a LOT of advent calendars this year but this was the first advent calendar that I REALLY WANTED and sadly did not get. It was Laudree’s 2023 Advent calendar and it was gorgeous! I saw it on Instagram and stalked it for weeks. I told my husband, but he did not order it in time. It’s okay. I will be stalking Poshmark for the next several months. Someone is selling their advent calendar from last year but I don’t want that one. I want this year’s so we will see. I also fell in love with the Dior advent calendar but that one was almost $1,000! I will be stalking Poshmark for that one as well.

And lastly…

Have you all seen this video from Helen Mirren? It is wonderful! I looked up some of her beautiful products and I ordered them from Amazon. I ordered her L’Oreal hydrating lip balm, and the L’Oreal Perfect Rosey Tone face cream. I’ll let you all know if I like them.

I hope you all enjoy this month’s favorites. I have some beautiful tours to share with you all very soon!

Affiliate links attached.

November Favorites ~ 2023

December 1, 2023/2 Comments/in Monthly Favorites /by mrs.sshockley

Hello!

Happy Friday! I don’t have much planned this weekend and I am happy about that! Yesterday my team and I went to the Ayres Tea Room for lunch. It was so good and we really enjoyed ourselves. The temperatures are dropping, and it is starting to feel like Christmas. I have 3 more luncheons to attend and then it will be time to go and see the Nutcracker with Lauren. I am looking forward to it this year.

And now here we are with my November favorites. It’s actually December! So crazy but anyway here are the things that I loved this month…

First on my favorites for November is my white mum. This was the biggest mum that I have ever had, and I still have it! It looked absolutely beautiful on my blue and white garden stool this fall.

Second was my floral arrangement session at Random Acts of Flowers. I try to make sure that I volunteer at least once a month. This was so fun! I met a lot of women and I felt like I was creating something beautiful and meaningful for someone else. #Volunteeringrocks

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

Third was the new showhouse! I am so excited to see what the designers are going to do at this year’s showhouse. Did I mention that there is a vintage greenhouse attached to this home?

Fourth has been my Christmas decor for this year. I posted a video on my YouTube channel if you missed it!

Fifth has been this merlot vintage Micheal Kors bag from Poshmark. I was on the hunt for a red or burgundy tote, and this come up in my search! I could not believe it and the color was perfect along with the gold hardware. I got it for a steal!

The sixth is the Barbie Dreamhouse ornament from 1999! My mother-in-law purchased this when it debuted in 1999 and I have wanted it for my tree for years. I found it on Poshmark as well! I made an offer, she countered me and then I accepted! Yay!

And last on my list are the gorgeous gift bags from Aerin Lauder. So I went to Von Maur to get some more moisturizer for my face, and I always ask the Estee Lauder counter girls if I could have certain gift bags. I have only been turned down once and was so happy that she gave me two! Aren’t they wonderful?

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend! The boutique’s sale is still going on. Use code BlkFriday23 for 20% off your entire order. New arrivals included! Have a great weekend!

Elegant Amazon Finds

October 13, 2023/8 Comments/in Fashion Posts, Monthly Favorites /by mrs.sshockley

Good Morning Everyone,

The weather here has gotten quite crisp, and I am loving every minute of it. My husband always has a fit when the temperatures drop but I love the crisp weather. I feel like I can open up all the windows and let that fresh air in the house. It’s wonderful. I especially love it when the crisp air is coming in while I am burning my apple scented candles. So lovely!

This weekend I don’t have much planned. I just need to make sure that I have my calendars in order, and I finish working on my Christmas list. Speaking of gifts, I am sharing some great and affordable gift ideas from Amazon!

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

First on my list is this fabulous hydrating facial mist from Elizabeth Arden. I have had this for a few weeks, and I love it! Every time I use it someone gives me a compliment about how my face is glowing. I would highly recommend it.

My second beauty find is this dusting powder from Woods of Windsor. I found this while watching Lydia Millen on YouTube. She mentioned dusting powder and how no one ever uses it anymore. She mentioned this brand and I had to look for it on Amazon. It is wonderful and the scent is perfect. This is the lily of the valley scent. I will be going back to order the jasmine scent next. This is a perfect beauty gift for yourself or someone else.

Next is another great travel find or for daily use. I found this pill travel case on Amazon as well. It is much bigger than the one that I currently have, and I love the separate sections that it offers. I can carry a lot more and a variety of pills. I have my aspirin and vitamins in here now. It’s perfect!

Now I stumbled on this dusty pink purse bags while shopping for something else. These come in different sizes, colors, and with a draw string for tight closure. They are made of breathable silk. This are so beautiful and would look great in your closet and covering your handbags.

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

The last item is the best thing that I have purchase this month! I was inspired to look for atomizers while watching Lydia (again) and decided to a search on Amazon for perfume atomizers. I found these and wanted to give them a try. I have to say they are phenomenal. I love being able to fill each one with my favorite perfumes that I normally cannot carry with me. There are five in a pack and the come with the tools to remove the perfume from your bottle.

I hope you all enjoy these Amazon finds! I love finding elegant things on Amazon. It’s quite fun!

I do have the new arrival for the boutique finally. The Belle Rose Maxi is available in small, medium, and large. It is so pretty and perfect for any occasion! It is covered in rose peonies!

August Favorites ~ 2023

August 29, 2023/4 Comments/in Beauty & Health, Monthly Favorites /by mrs.sshockley

Good Morning Friends,

Empty-nester week 2! It has been going well so far. Lauren will be coming home this weekend because there are no classes on Monday so we will be so happy to see her. We do have some running around. She has a hair appointment and I have my first waxing appointment! Oh my goodness you guys wish me luck! I have never done waxing before, but I need to try it. Shaving is causing me all sorts of issues! And I mean issues! If you would like for me to share my experience, please let me know below.

Okay, let’s get into my favorites for the month of August!

photo credit: Mrs. Shockley

First on my list is this beautiful bouquet of hydrangeas from my very kind neighbor. I was opening the windows to my home office and saw his huge hydrangea tree and thought, “oh I would love a few of those for my crystal vase”. I sent my husband over to ask and he cut me a few! How grand is that?

Second on my list is the new Aerin Lauder Rose de Grasse perfume called Rouge. I had to go and smell it and it smells just like red roses. It’s quite lovely. If you want to try a sample here is the link to order that. Enjoy!

Third on my list is my new monogram tote from Abbot and Lyon! I have always wanted to try a monogram tote and I actually got to see this tote in person while I was in South Carolina in May. A woman walked by me, and I stopped her and asked about it. The quality is quite exceptional, and the price is incredible! I have no regrets ordering it. It is quite large and has lots of organizational compartments on the inside.

Fourth was my delicious meal that I got at Ford’s Garage. It was a new restaurant that my family and I decided to try and it was really good. The lime vinaigrette was outstanding! Oh so good!

The fifth is my new Kate Spade Leopard tote. I saw a beautiful influencer with this bag and went on the hunt for it. It is sold out everywhere. I managed to find it on Poshmark. Yay Poshmark! This is going to be perfect for the fall.

Sixth on my list are these travel contact lense containers. I found these on Amazon and they come two in one pack! Great for traveling or keeping in your handbag for easy access!

photo credits: Mrs. Shockley

Seventh is this incredibly chic white umbrella that I also found on Amazon. I love the gold handle and gold hardware. It is so elegant and comes in different colors. I ordered it and took it to my office immediately. It’s quite lovely.

The eighth item is this lovely goat milk soap from Beekman 1802. Now I have been watching this company on QVC for years and was always curious about their products. I saw a recent show of their bar soap and after seeing how it lathered on t.v. I had to give it a try, so I ordered it from Amazon. I have been using it for a month and I LOVE IT! Oh my goodness, it is so creamy, and the lavender smell is very light. I love using it.

And the last item is my new lip balm from Elizabeth Arden. I found this on Amazon and wanted to give it a try and I must say it moisturizes my lips very nicely. I use it daily and carry it in my handbag. You should give it a try. I will be ordering the 8-hour hydrating facial spray, and hand cream as well. Those items will go nicely in my handbag especially with winter on the horizon.

I hope you all love my favorites for the month of August. My monthly newsletter will be hitting your mailboxes soon! Please make sure that you check your spam folder if you are not getting it! Have a great day and…

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