Glitz and glam? Sign me up!

This is my FIRST ever link up post!!  So here goes!

I recently decided to participate in a gift exchange with some other bloggers.  Who wouldn't willingly participate in a Glitz & Glam Christmas gift exchange?!?!  Seriously.

This fabulous exchange idea was created by Raven at A Momma's Desires and Pacifiers (you must read her stuff...  she is HILARIOUS) and Lindsey at The Bargain Blonde (she's got some amazing ideas and all budget friendly)!

My swap partner was Stephanie at Steph's Sweet Life... such a sweetheart and you gotta love her name
{ smile }

She did an amazing job with the things she found for me...  AMAZING!!

What girl wouldn't LOVE a super soft, warm scarf, sparkly OPI nail polish, a cute silver wristlet wallet and an S ornament!  { this Xmas tree ornament fan is in LOVE }

Here's a closeup of the nail polish...

I think the best part of OPI nail polish sometimes is the names they choose.  And this one does not disappoint!  --  How's it Snowin'? { LOVE it }

Thank you Stephanie for such wonderful gifts!  You did PERFECT and I've been enjoying all of them already!!   Not to mention that it was a lot of fun getting to open a gift BEFORE Christmas

{ smile }

Have a wonderful Monday!  On a side note...  can you believe that Christmas is only 13 days away?!  Have you got all of your shopping done?  I haven't...  I know I'm crazy, but I love doing my holiday shopping in the month of December!

Thanksgiving touches { Inspiration. Inspired } Part 2

How's about some inspiration for decorating around the house for Thanksgiving?!?!  If you aren't up for the go-all-out approach with your tablesetting then here are some ideas on little touches of Thanksgiving you can do instead.

Add a frame and you've got a great addition to your mantle.

A collection of pumpkins/gourds would look festive at your front door.

A beautiful wreath for your front door by Saffron Fields design studio on Etsy.  I just { LOVE } the colors and the glittery pears!!

Add a simple and colorful bunting to your table/mantle/anywhere you want.  You can find the DIY project for this garland at A Beautiful Mess Blog.

Another printable to put in a frame, this time with words of fall and Thanksgiving.  Get the free printable here from Betty Crocker {wannabe}.

And to decorate your dessert... I found this adorable Autumn Garland on Etsy from Potter + Butler.  I think the fabric poms would look just PERFECT on this Snickerdoodle Cake with Brown Sugar Cinnamon Buttercream, get the recipe for this scrumptious cake here by Foodie with Family.   

Our you could make some cupcakes that look like pumpkins.

{ Simply add frosting to the cupcake in a dome shape, roll it in sprinkles so that it completely covers (or cover in M&Ms), then use the back of a butterknife to make the indents and then add the end of a chubby pretzel to the top. }

Here's another printable for those who { LOVE } cranberry sauce...  specifically that which comes from a can (or at least love commenting every Thanksgiving about where the canned stuff is)...  **pointing finger at you Dad**

Get the printable here, courtesy of Scene of the Grime.



Until next time, enjoy!

Thanksgiving Edition { Inspiration. Inspired } Part 1

In all honesty I have been plotting and planning for when I get to host my very first Thanksgving, it won't be this year but maybe, just maybe next year if all plans go as we hope.

Since we currently don't have a place large enough to comfortably accommodate all of our family and the goodies that come with Thanksgiving, I instead get to find inspiration for all of you to use for your celebrations this Thanksgiving.

There are so many parts to plan when hosting a family dinner for the holidays, so in this part of the Thanksgiving Edition { Inspiration. Inspired. } we'll discuss the table/place settings...  I love this stuff!! My first successful attempt was for Christmas Eve last year...  I'll share some pictures with you at the end.  But here's some fabulous inspiration that I found for you with the help of Pinterest and HGTV.

There's simple and casual with the added fun of a small pumpkin/gourd used as the name cards, { LOVE }.

There's Floral-elegance, add a few vases overflowing with beautiful seasonal flowers (or any flower for that matter) on a table with cream plates and hints of gold.

Last, but certainly not least...  my FAVE!!  I'm in { LOVE } with the monochromatic tones , the glitter, and touches of rose gold and other metallics = BEAUTIFUL!

And as promised here's my table-setting for Christmas Eve last year.  The colors I choose where gold, white and PINK!

The menu...  I used three different pieces of scrapbooking paper (pink glitter, pink houndstooth and an opaque white).  I then cut them down to different sizes so that I could layer them. 

 { TIP:  By printing on the opaque paper it made my font appear to be metallic.  I chose a dark yellow color for the font of the menu and when I printed on the opaque white paper it made it look GOLD.  FYI...  I also used the opaque paper for the placecards. }

Back view of the centerpiece since the menu was blocking it above.


While I went all out and did a whole table-setting... remember, you can always just add touches of Thanksgiving to the table or even just around the house...  hmmm...  maybe my next post will be about "Touches of Thanksgiving".

Enjoy!