Mama Style File: Spring Finds

It so doesn't feel like spring outside lately! In fact, it feels the opposite of spring. It's rainy, gray, and quite chilly. I have spring on the brain and wish it would spring up sunshine and warm temps! And because I'm dying for spring, I've pulled together some of my spring finds that I can't wait to wear!

For my tops, I'm into all things flowy, girly, and a little bit ruffly! I'm also into the off the shoulder/cold shoulder trend. So much so, it's all I can hone in on. I'm also into the funky jeans trend. Paint splatters, raw edge cuffs, rips and tears, and all things slouchy! And even though they look rough, you can totally dress them up with cute tops, sweaters, and heels. They're perfect for trips to the zoo, farmstead, and World of Fun visits with sandals and tennis shoes! And, I feel some happy hours, girls night, and possible date nights this summer in these cute finds.

Seriously, how cute are all of these pieces! And I forgot to mention my obsession with the pom-pom sandals! Actually, I'm into pom-pom everything! These sandals are from Target and super affordable for a fleeting trend!

What are looking forward to wearing this spring? 

Happy Friday!!

XO,

Andrea

Home Decor with Decaso

I am always in the throws of redecorating my house. It's on small scales like removing a table and adding a new one. Removing furniture and not replacing it. Adding a rug. Repainting walls. Or simply adding a throw pillow here and there. When you redecorate, it doesn't have to be a gut job! Small things make all the difference when brightening and lightening up a room.

On the flip side, there is the gut job! Taking all existing furnishings out and replacing them with brand new pieces! I would love to do that in my living room. I actually stated this to my mom the other day. I can't afford it, but it's always in the back of my mind. How timely was it that Decaso reached out to me and asked me to design my dream space if money wasn't an object. And I jumped at the opportunity! However, the pieces are so amazing, and my vision isn't always clear, that I couldn't create just one room. I created three! Keep reading to see what I've designed!

Obviously, I do not have an interior design degree or background, but I know what I like when it comes to design. I like certain lines, textures, colors, and eras. I'm a huge fan of Mid Century Modern. I love beat up antiques that look like they've been loved for years. But, I do love my Hollywood chic that comes complete with mirrored objects, fluffy fabrics, and high shine polish. Again, no clear vision when it comes to one style aesthetic. So with all the being said, let's take a look at room number one.

In a world where I didn't have a five year who puts their shoes up on the furniture, I might invest in a white couch. I love the softness of white. The blank canvas that a white couch brings to a room. It allows me to add color throughout the space while still keeping the couch a focal point. And did you notice it's Mid Century in design? Because the lines of the couch are so simple, it allows me to bring in chunkier pieces with a little more flair. Like the swivel brass and upholstered chairs. How fab is that color?!? I'm obsessed! And I love a pop of color in a room. I added a black shiny rattan ottoman as my coffee table and marble topped side tables to flank the couch. The Art Deco credenza is perfect for a buffet or bar. Add trays, decorative bowls, or these gorgeous blue and white vases. Place a mirror on the wall to add depth, a floor lamp, and other accent pieces like this structured clock. Love it!

Room number two isn't all the different from room one. Same color palette, same lines, and same textures. However, I made the couch the pop of color and all the other pieces within the room simple. Another Mid Century couch for obvious reasons and super modern lounge chairs give this room a more upscale vibe. I went with a marble coffee table with simple high shine end tables. The black mirrored desk would look gorgeous placed behind the sofa. I would add these horse head bookends and structured clock to the desk as room accents. A round mirror and simple floor lamp complete the look. So chic!!

Room number three couldn't be more different. I kept the whole room black and white. I think of Hollywood when I saw this room come together. Maybe a little Rachel Zoe, right? I went with another Mid Century sofa that looks like you could literally curl up and get comforted in it's soft fabric. I added modern black leather arm chairs and brought back the rattan ottoman. I also added the black side tables, the Art Deco bar, and simple white vases for a little accent. I love the pineapple table lamps. I would add them to either the side tables or the bar. The floor lamp just adds a little more flair and the mirror completes the entire look. I think this might be my favorite!

Now that you've seen the rooms, which one is your favorite? Or, do you have a favorite piece that you would love to add to your existing home? There would be no way for me to pick just one! So maybe I can just come and decorate your room for you!

Head over to Decaso to see more pieces. The site is chocked full of amazing designs and designers to browse for ideas. It's truly stunning! Now it's time to get back to my home decor updates!!

XO,

Andrea

Appropriate Dress Code

There are a lot of opinions going around regarding the recent headlines about a United flight asking a 10 year old girl to change out of her leggings because it didn't meet their dress code standards. And if you only read the headline, you might shake your head and ask what does it matter if the girl was wearing leggings. Everyone wears leggings. But if you actually read the article, it states that the girl was flying on a travelers pass, and per company policy, when using the traveler's pass you must adhere to the company's dress code. And I see absolutely nothing wrong with United's decision. 

When blogging under Style My Way, I wrote about airline travel attire and how I used to be required to wear dresses and other Sunday best clothing. No one flew in their pajamas or yoga pants. Flyers took travel seriously, as a privilege, and dressed the part. Today, it looks like most travelers literally rolled out of bed and wore what they put on the night before. And I for one find it incredibly disrespectful for other patrons and the airline staff. You couldn't find a descent pair of jeans and nice shirt somewhere in your closet? I'm sure you wouldn't wear this while out on the town. Why wear it in on a plane? As you can see from the photos below, this is how our family dresses when we travel. My sons first flight consisted of jeans, a button down, and sweater vest. His second was also jeans, button down, and nice pull over. 

After arriving in Veags, my husband and I hit the strip in exactly what we wore on the flight out. 

With the exception of the shorts, my husband changed upon arrival, we hit the streets of NY in what we wore on the flight. 

And I don't just stop at airlines. Whenever we are on the go around town, McKinley is always in what I call dressy casual. At the zoo, Deanna Rose Farmstead, the mall, or at the park, he is always in something cute. And I'm not the only one who takes pains to dress their child up on a daily basis. I have two girlfriends who's daughters are darling on a daily basis! Don't believe me? Head over to Bun In My Oven for evidence! Those girls are the best dressed girls I've seen in ages, aside from my other girlfriends daughters!

For me, it's a respect thing. I have far too much respect for my city, the patrons, the establishments we visit, and the school we attend to have my child show up in nothing but his finest. Sure, there are times when he's in cotton shorts and a t-shirt, but that's usually when playing in our own backyard. Even when heading to our local park, he's pretty darn dapper! 

I started a styling series at the beginning of Kindergarten called Dressing McKinley, but with winter and heavy coats, I wasn't able to capture as many daily looks as I would like. I hope to continue the series now that spring and summer are on the horizon. But, I was able to snap a few photos before heading out this morning of just how I dress my son for school. That's right! He's in a pinstripe button down, half-zip Polo pullover, jeans, and my all time favorite Stride Rite shoes!

And for the record, another girlfriend's son dresses up for school daily and even goes so far as to sport a sweater vest every Wednesday! I love that I'm not the only one out there!

Keep up the good work mamas! Dress those kiddos up and don't apologize for it! Our kids are dressed to impress!

XO,

Andrea

Mama DIY: Vintage Bar Cart

You all know that I love my vintage bar carts. There is something about the 50s and 60s that I just can't get enough of and these vintage aluminum carts are one of them. Remember this one I updated about a year ago? Well, I was at it again, but this latest one took me a year!

My mom and I found this cart last year while we took a vacation to the river. It was a mess! Rusted out, bolts that had to be cut away from the legs, and completely unusable. It had to be mine! I started working on it last August, scrubbing rust for the rest of the trip, but when we got it home, school started and I just didn't get around to working on it. All of that changed when we had some amazing weather in mid February. I was ready to tackle this potential beauty.

In the beginning, I tried everything to help remove the rust. The brush seen above, CLR which I poured directly on the shelf, steel wool, and lots of elbow grease. Nothing was working. My dad even brought over his circular sander which sat in my garage until February! That's when I got started again. Over a weekend, with amazing weather, I was able to knock off the majority of the rust from the top and bottom of each shelf. I was ready to get this thing painted and back together.

Remember to wear your face mask and gloves! The dust was disgusting and flew all over the place!!

Post sanding! Can you believe how much rust is still visible? However, they were soft and smooth and ready for paint!

My work space for the weekend.

I had picked the color months earlier, a pretty Tuscan gold. Something about the gold made me think late 60s and it was perfect! After three coats of paint per shelf, we were ready to assemble. My mom worked on the legs separately to get rid of as much rust as possible, but I ended up painting those as well. 

I even painted the original casters a shiny black! The only thing not original are the nuts and bolts. There was no way to salvage those. 

And here is the finished product!

It's all dolled up and for sale in our Southern Unique Elegance booth! Want it? It's yours! Just stop by and pick it up! I love it!! If I could find a place for it in my house, I would keep it!! 

I am on the hunt for a new bar cart! I'm obsessed with updating this vintage find and I'm thinking it's my "thing"!! What do you think of her? I think she's gorgeous!

Next DIY project is an over-sized coffee table we found at Savers. It's a Mission Style table that looks horrible! It's going to be gorgeous when it's done. Can't wait to share it with you! I also have some home interior updates to share with you as well. I'm loving home decor and design these days.

XO!

Andrea

Spring Break So Far

It's Wednesday and we're already half way through the week! I feel like we've done nothing but put drops in McKinley's eyes and ward off the cold by doing all indoor activities. We've had some fun along the way and some extra fun with Joel taking a half day off so he could hang out with us! Here is what we've done so far!

Over the weekend, we spent most of our time at home which allowed McKinley to heal and not spread pink eye to the public! Thankful no one else was infected within the family, including my dad who is currently recovering from cataract surgery. However, on Sunday, we decided to let McKinley spread his wings by doing a few things he loved since his eyes were so much clearer and he had been on drops for a full two and a half days. We headed to Crown Center for lunch at Fritz's, followed by a trip to Union Station to check out the model trains. Yes, we are there all the time, but this is his spring break and he's had enough sickness with the flu last month! After the trains, we headed back to Crown Center for another visit to Under the Sea. He loved it just as much the second time around. Those exhibits are truly the best!

On Monday McKinley and I had a little mama/son time at his other favorite place, the mall! We headed straight to Build-A-Bear where he cashed in his gift card for Chirpity, his new spring chic. He's super cute and has made himself at home among the other bears in McKinley's collection.

From there, we were off to the food court for lunch! There is nothing like a slice of pizza and a little conversation while people watching. From there, we took our adventures to the Disney Store! Yet another gift card to be used, this kid has tons of money to spend, where he got the Donald Duck Roadster Racer "Duck Car" and a Dinoco helicopter from Cars. Up next, the Lego store. He loves browsing all the cool sets that are on display, reading the number of pieces listed on the really big boxes, and telling me which ones he wants for his birthday. And, he got a starter kit with a cool mail helicopter. I see a theme here... And as always, we rode the carousel. We had a great time!!

Yesterday, my husband took a half day of vacation to hang out and we headed to our favorite bowling alley! Man was it packed. Everyone had the same idea, but what does a family do on spring break when it's pouring down snow and freezing? And wouldn't you know it, McKinley got his first strike and neither of us saw it! McKinley and I headed to the counter to ask for a few additional minutes on our lane to finish our tenth frame. It was McKinley's turn to bowl so he headed back to the lane. Joel was setting up the Gator and didn't see McKinley slide in right behind me. While Joel was asking me where he was and me telling him he was bowling, McKinley runs over to tell me he knocked down all ten pins! That's right, a strike, and we didn't see a thing.... Wah, wah! He actually bowled his best games! He's turning into quite the bowler.

He picked several spares as well!

 Finally, we explored the world of Shrinky Dinks! My childhood is now being experienced by my child and I love it. Now to find him a Lite Brite! However, they weren't actual Shrinky Dinks. It was Shrink Art, a box of really cool designs that McKinley loved picking out and coloring. We waited for Dada to get home before we shrunk him and McKinley was amazed by the whole thing. I had forgotten just how cool it was to watch! It's run reliving the past through the eyes of McKinley!

 

 Today we are thinking of going to Party City to look at possible birthday party themes. Someone turns six next month and I'm not ready!! We may head to Louisburg to check out the booth, We are thinking of making St. Patrick's Day cookies, with some Easter thrown in, and there will be some play time in there somewhere! What are you guys doing today?

XO,
Andrea

Spring Break Kickoff - Pink Eye

Hello Spring Break! Hello Pink Eye! What? That's right, McKinley woke up Friday morning around 8:00, which is serious sleep in props, with pink eye! At first I thought maybe it was just allergies. His eyes have looked like that before with spring seasonal allergies, but as the day went on, his left eye started looking a little more red and had a little bit of crust along the lash line. Better to be safe than sorry, with my dad having cataract surgery today, we loaded up and headed to our local CVS Minute Clinic. The NP thought it my be viral, since he was also running a low grade temp and both ears were a little pink....seriously! But, because of my dad's surgery, she decided to go ahead and treat McKinley with drops. Okay then....

These are Friday morning eyes. See why I thought maybe allergies.

We headed back to my parents house, after getting the okay for McKinley to be around my dad as long as he continually washed his hands, where I popped the cork on a bottle of champagne to cheers the kick off to spring break, pink eye, and a way to end our Friday! And, my husband had just walked through their front door to be informed of the diagnosis and shook his head in bewilderment. How in the world had he gotten pink eye and what about the low grade temp and pink ears? I shook my head, told him I had no idea, and sipped my much needed champs! I needed all the liquid courage in order to put the first round of drops in McKinley's eye. The first round of drops ever administered. And as predicted, it didn't go well. Tears, yelling, and him constantly telling me to blow on his eye! Only six more days with so many more drops to go.....

Oh, did I mention McKinley had planned to sleepover at my parents and we had planned on going out. My parents insisted it was okay he stayed, my dad had been exposed so there was no turning back, and McKinley would have been so disappointed if he hadn't been able to sleepover. Before we left, it was another round of drops, another round of tears, and another round of yelling "Blow on my eye, Mama!" I needed another drink!

So here we are on Monday and things are getting so much better! He's eyes aren't nearly as red, drop administration is going so much better, and I think we are going to make it! It was touch and go there for a while. He thought he was blind on Saturday morning when he woke up with his right eye swollen shut from the pink eye goo. Oh, did I fail to mention that he had it in both eyes come Saturday morning? Worse in the right than the left and it started in the left! Sunday morning met us with the same eye issue, however both eyes were glued shut which lead to tons of tears and a lot of screaming "I can't open my eyes!" But he feel back to sleep and woke up with the ability to open both without the assistance of a wet washcloth. And, we were able to get out of the house. We went to places where he wasn't going to really touch anything, but he also isn't really infectious anymore. I think today is going to be a really good day. We will either go to Chuck E. Cheese, where we never got to go on Friday, or maybe to the mall for a little retail therapy at Build A Bear and the Disney Store where he has gift cards to use. I will ensure he has a special week after he cried to me on Saturday night, worried that he would have to spend his spring break at home and not able to go do anything fun all week. It broke my heart!

These are Saturday's eyes.....

These are Sunday's eyes!

So here is what I've learned about pink eye. Wash everything! Your hands to the point of chapping. Wash everything your child might have come in contact with! That includes all sheets and clothes. Clorox wipe all of the toys, door knobs, and phones! Lysol everything else. Like your pillow that you didn't know had been Lysoled all day by your husband, and when you finally went to bed, couldn't escape this weird smell all night! And if you aren't washing your hands with soap and water like they did in the movie Silkwood, you're using copious amounts of hand sanitizer! I couldn't be more sanitizied that I am right now! But at times I feel like my eyes are burning, itching, filled with goo, and that I need at least another shower. I'm not sure if I have pink eye or lice! By the way, these are the four things you'll need to survive pink eye! You're welcome!

Has pink eye hit your house? If so, what did you do to help cure the dreaded passing of the infection? Any home remedies? With us being on the tail end of it, some other readers could use the information as well! Please share with us all! In the meantime, we are off to try and enjoy the rest of the week, and I'm applying as much hand cream as I can find. 

XO,

Andrea