So it's been awhile.....

You know when you are not planning something and then it just happens....

Out of the blue I suggested to my husband in April that we consider moving.

We had put a fair amount of money into Hotel Chads,

(what we affectionately called our home)

but it needed a lot more money...new bathrooms, roof, back yard patio, need I go on.....

so I thought we should find a home that already had "newer" bathrooms, a little more space,

and did not need a lot of work put into it.

We talked about this decision on a Friday,

randomly looked at a house on Saturday that the girls saw online,

and bought it on Tuesday.

WOW

Was not ready for that, but sometimes these things just happen.

The house was PERFECT for our family.

We had the BEST realtor, Skye Bruce, with Skye Bruce Properties,

and she sold our home in less than a week once we listed it.

Cannot say enough good things about Skye....she kept my sanity through this entire process.

Here we are the last night we were the owners of Hotel Chadsworth.

We will cherish the memories but are looking forward to....

Living life on The Ledge....our new home.

We literally moved just two miles away...so no school changes or carpool changes!

Amid chaos, we moved in three weeks ago.

It was actually kind of comical....

Katherine came home from Tech, Caroline graduated from VCU with her Bachelors, we had a graduation party in the old house for 40 people, Grace came home from Boarding School, Jack played in a three day volleyball tournament, Laura took the SAT, 

and we closed on Ledge (our new street) all within about a week.

A pic from graduation day....just to brag a little,

she graduated with honors and Caroline was one of 22 people out of 800 applicants who was

accepted into Virginia Commonwealth University's Advanced Standing Masters Program.

She will complete her Masters of Social Work within one year.

We are fairly settled

(if you call not being able to find most things)

into our new home and are loving the space...

We have six of our eight children home full time this summer,

and I am beyond excited to have everyone home!

We are blessed.

A Sandal Scandal Part III

OK so if you were a regular reader,
(back when I used to post regularly....)

you are well aware of the Steven Bonanno Sandal Scandal I have posted about here and here. 

Almost identical to the Jack Rogers, this is their Palm Beach Sandal.

So a few weeks ago I went out to get the mail and there was a package crammed in the mail box.

Strange, I didn't order anything.

Well....at least not anything that would have fit in my mailbox.

I tried to read where it was from.

I don't carry my "cheater" reading glasses to the mail box so I couldn't make it out.

Came inside and....

OH. MY. GOODNESS.

Could it really be my sandals?????

Why yes, it was one of the two pair I ordered!

Sadly, it's the platinum pair that came.

I already bought a replacement pair of Jack Rogers platinum sandals.

Two years ago.

I had ordered a pair of pink and green monogrammed sandals from Stephen Bonnano,

and was REALLY hoping those were going to be in the box.

So I'll save the platinum ones for when my Jack's wear out.

Dare I hope that in another year the pink and green monogrammed ones will show up?

I will keep you posted on the continuing Stephen Bonanno sandle scandal!

Barbour or Bust

I will be honest.
I find it somewhat annoying when what I've been wearing for years becomes a "trend."

I have dressed the same way since I was able to pick out my own clothes.

So when Lilly became wildly popular a few year ago,

I didn't have to look for white label Lilly on eBay because I already owned it.

And when the Jack Rogers craze started, I had already worn out at least a dozen pair.

So has anyone noticed there is a Barbour jacket epidemic?

I bought my first Barbour jacket about sixteen years ago.

Ladies Barbour Tennant Jacket

Here's a little story that separates the people with TRUE classic style

from the people who claim to be preppy and classic.

My first Barbour jacket was a black quilted Eskdale.

Last fall we were at a USNA football game and I let Caroline borrow it for the day.

The two women sitting behind us started a conversation about my jacket.

They were openly mocking my "fake" Barbour jacket.

They were discussing the fact that Barbour does not even make a coat in that style,

and if I was going to have a "fake" then this was a bad fake one.

This is what my old Barbour looks like...

These women are the kind of people that annoy me.

If they had ANY class,
they wouldn't be talking trash about what my daughter happened to be wearing right in front of her,

and they would recognize an older style Barbour jacket.

I don't buy for labels.

I buy because I love something...the style, the way the fabric feels, the way it's made, the color...

I am a believer in wardrobe staples and investment dressing.

Caroline in her Barbour jacket....

I have to admit that I'm quite happy 

that my daughters have chosen to adopt my wardrobe philosophy.

So for the two women at the USNA game mocking my daughter,

talking about being "fake"

you think you're classy....but you're busted.

Isn't it S'well?

If you are like our family,

you have about 2,845 water bottles of various types 

taking up a lot of precious real estate in the kitchen.

We have the Terves water bottles, the Camelbaks, and everything in-between.

Well here's the new frontrunner....

The S'well Bottle

They come in a zillion colors....

And of COURSE you can monogram them....

I have to say these are AWESOME water bottles.

They keep cold drinks COLD for 24 hours,

as in "there is still ice in your water the next day"

and they keep hot beverages hot for 12 hours.

PERFECT when I'm dying for a hot cocoa at the November USNA tailgates!

My girls all have at least one of these SWELL S'well bottles

and you should too.

Here's the website....

S'well

And they also happen to sell them at Tweed, 

a darling shop in Richmond, Virginia where Caroline and Katherine work.

Check them out!

Moving Day...

See here for my post about decorating a room for Caroline.

Well I have made GREAT progress!

The movers came last week to move her furniture upstairs....
was not sure her armoire was going to make it to the third floor,
but the movers were awesome and figured a way to make it work!

I am going for an "updated classic" look,

and since toile is pretty classic and conservative,

I wanted to add a fun print to the mix to add a little bit of a trendy feel.

My mom and I found this green and ivory geometric print that matches perfectly!

The plan is to find a bench for the end of her bed and cover it in that print.

This is a very accurate picture of the colors...
the photos I took of her room don't show how pretty and bright the shade of green is.

I'm also looking for a small upholstered club chair I can slipcover in an ivory twill (shown above),

and I'm going have it piped in the green and ivory geometric print.

Also added these glass lamps with a silver finish for a more updated look.

Gotta LOVE HomeGoods

So here is where we were two weeks ago...

And here is where we were at the end of moving day.....

I've decided it's unrealistic to try and have this painted before Christmas.

It will take me at least a month to find the right shade of green!
Clearly, there is still work to be done....
accessorize and hang pictures, but I'm on track to get it done within the month.

I'll post her finished room in the New Year!

A Little Kitchen Bling

Lol it's been a year now since my kitchen renovation 

and I still have not blogged about it.

My excuse it that I can't get very good pictures of it.

I will use Teddy's camera to do it one of these days.

Anyway......

I was just commenting to my mother that I don't love how I have accessorized my new kitchen.

I do not want a "beachy" feeling kitchen,

but the kitchen is done in "beachy" colors.

The cupboards are white, but not a bright stark white 

and the walls are a light blue that would remind you of a beach house.

You will see what I mean when I eventually post about it.

Here are a few things I am hoping to add to my kitchen add a little more bling to it:

MacKenzie Childs Tea Kettle in Parchment Check

Can't have the tea kettle without the canister set...

MacKenzie Childs Canister Set

I'm also looking for a foot bath to put on the island....

the natural choice is a blue and white porcelain one similar to this one

source

I have some blue and white porcelain cache pots in my kitchen right now,

however I don't feel like they look very good on the counter.

SHOCKING

 You would imagine that blue and white porcelain goes with everything.
Not.
I'm moving out the blue and white and looking for something else.

Here's a foot bath that I think might look better...

Sadly, this is out of stock.

So I'll keep looking....I think a pink and green foot bath would blend better with my color scheme.
I'm planning to keep seasonal flowers potted in it.
Or silk ones....let's be realistic here.

These things happen to be on my Christmas list.....
Hopefully they will find their way to my kitchen!
What do you accessorize your kitchen with?

Stitch Fix Review

Has anyone heard of the clever online fashion service called Stitch Fix?

I just found out about it from my fabulous supervisor at work,

(her name is also Christine)

and had to try it out!

Basically, Stitch Fix sends you a box of five items every so many weeks

based on a style profile that you create when you sign up.

They hand select items just for you based on your preferences,

and you can select from tops, bottoms, dresses, shoes, and accessories.

I did not want to get shoes or handbags.

They send you the box,

you try it on,

send back what you don't like,

and keep what you do like!

I was super excited to try this out,

especially because I gravitate towards the SAME brands and the SAME styles

almost all of the time.

I thought it might be a good idea if I stepped outside my comfort zone...

a little.

Stitch Fix has a Pintrest board,

so I checked them out to see if they would have the kinds of things I might like.

I came across this outfit on their "Preppy" board

and thought Stitch Fix could definitely work for me!

source

Clearly my style....classic and timeless.

So my box came today!

 Impressed with the packaging.....

 And here are my five selections....

 Two tops and a sweater....

 This is an A-symmertical zip knit jacket...

 And this is a knit black dress with a scoop back.

Hmmmmmm........

Tried to be positive so I tried the things on.

Not photo-worthy.

To be honest, I hated all of it.

First, I did not like the colors of anything they sent.

Well, ok a little black dress is a must have, but not this one.

I also did not like the fabrics.

I did not feel like any of the items were even close to what I put in my profile.

Disappointed would be an understatement.

I did like how they send a style card with your box....

 Very handy and a great tool to use if you are keeping what's in your box.

It reminds me of the fashion boards you can make on Polyvore and share.

Now.....

Just because I did not have a good experience does not mean that Stitch Fix is a bad thing.

If you are a lot less picky than I am,

and your style is more trendy and less preppy,

then I think this would be something really fun to try.

Christine (supervisor) has had great luck with it and she is very stylish...and picky like me.

Once you get your box, you log into your account online and "check out" 

and you have the opportunity to tell your "stylist" why you are returning an item.

This helps them to get a better idea of what to send in your next box.

Sadly, I am returning all of my items in the pre-paid label that comes with your box.

My overall review of Stitch Fix is that it's a fun concept that will work for many people.

If you are pretty set in your style and you have go-to brands that you don't really deviate from,

then it may not be for you.

I'm going to give it a whirl one more time and then decide if I want to keep it going.

Let me know if you've tried it....