Cheap Christmas Shopping Haul + Try-on

Just in time to get that Christmas shopping done... Don't break the budget this holiday season!!!! Click here for some tips and ideas on how to get that new Christmas wardrobe for pennies on the dollar!!!!

Fall Home Tour & Traditions

Decorating our home for the fall is one of my favorite things to do.... Yesterday, I had a friend to come to take some photos with her "snazzy" camera; like this one!

 

I was so proud of how our black and white fall tablescape turned out this year and she captured it beautifully.... While she was here, we decided to go ahead and do the entire house... Why not right?  Do you have time for a quick tour?

 

 Our living room....

  I just love these squirrels... They were featured in my tablescape last year...

 We decided to "bling" on the fall this year with our entry way décor!

 Our guest bedroom....

 Do you see the little studded pumpkin in our guest bath?

 Our modge podgey sitting room...

Our caramel and cocoa fall bar..... 

Our office area....

 



 

Our master bedroom...

Our master bathroom

 



I loved this fall door piece; just need to change the ribbon...

 



New patio pillows for fall...



And a little patio "makeover.."

 

I am not sure that I will get around to doing a full video before I start decorating for Christmas.... So you will have this pictorial tour just in case :)!

 

 

Now, let's talk about fall traditions... I absolutely love this time of the year!!!! I am normally done with fall decorating by the first weekend in October....

 

 

After my decorating is completed, I love to go to Starbucks to enjoy a nice cup of their Salted Caramel Mocha... Yummy! Once I get recharged, I start attending Christmas Open Houses at local boutiques to get inspiration and catch great sales for the new season...

 

Finally, I enjoy spending time and making memories with my family... Lots of travel, road trips, impromptu gatherings and good food...

 

Fall is a time to share, care, love and embrace... I love fall and all the warmth that it has to offer...

 

What are some of your favorite fall traditions?  Please share them below...

 

I hope you all enjoyed this post...

 

Until Next Time,

 

Melanie

 





Home Office/ Craft Room Makeover

It is with such great relief that I am writing this post... After many long hours, days and months... My home office/ craft room is finally complete!!!

When I was initially looking for inspiration to makeover this space, I came across this image: 

After sharing it with my personal and virtual friends, most commented that they loved the space but they did not think that it matched my personal style...  I am quite the queen of color {insert giggles}.  So I started to second guess myself and my doubts were validated when I was told that painting the walls black were almost as bad as painting them red... That was the {red} light for me!!!  {I will have to share my red bathroom fiasco with you when the time permits... In the meantime *just know* that because of it, I really have a red paint phobia}!  So, I decided to leave my beautifully painted tiffany walls and search for more inspiration...

During one of my many 80% and 90% off Hobby Lobby Shopping Hauls, I came across this picture... I fell in love instantly and the hunt was on to find all the pieces...  It was the perfect combination of colors because it included the black and white that initially inspired me, the tiffany blue that matched my walls and the hottest color ever...coral!!!!  After 3 states and 7 stores... I found every.single.piece!

Let me pause for minute and show you all the before... Where are my manners? 

 

Yes, this space was in my home!!! I absolutely hated coming in the office!!! It did not lend to my creative process, so I knew that I needed to do something and I needed to do it quickly!!! I sold the modular desk that you see here... And I kept the bookcase and file cabinet and painted them black... Slowly the room transitioned to what you saw above to what you see below!!!!

 

 

I am sooo excited about my new space... It feels so comfortable, cozy and perfect for the creative process to take place!!! I am squealing now as I sit here typing this post from my desk and not my bedroom!  { I bet hubby is too}! 

 

See the full video my clicking here:  http://youtu.be/8cxBvxaJNyc

 

Stay tuned as I complete this journey by showing you how I organized this space to ensure that it was both comfy and functional!!! Please let me know if you like projects like these and/or if you have any additional questions...

 

Until next time!

 

Melanie

 



How to Host a Progressive Dinner

I was recently invited to participate in a "virtual" progressive dinner with four other fabulously talented Youtubers.  This was an amazing experience for me and I was so gracious to be a part of this collaboration. 

For those of you are not familiar with a progressive dinner, here is some background information compliments of our wonderful host Cherie from the Youtube channel,  Live Love Latte. 

"What is a progressive dinner party?", you might be asking. It is a party where each successive course is eaten at a different host's house -- the guests progress from house to house. Hence, the name progressive dinner party.

 

I'll admit here that the first time I heard of a progressive dinner party I thought of the word in terms of being new, innovative, and hip! Which maybe it was in 1950, when these types of parties first made an appearance. Progressive parties declined in popularity during the 80's and 90's, replaced by catered affairs. Oh, those glorious days of disposable income! In recent years casual entertaining has enjoyed a resurgence and the progressive dinner party is making a comeback.

 

Essentially it is like a potluck dinner, but instead of the food traveling to one location, the guests travel to the location of the food. Everyone begins at the first house with appetizers, they the guests move en masse to the next house for the next course of the meal.

The pressure is off of any one person to be the sole host of the party, both in the entertaining and cost. And in this current economy, this struck us as a great DIY topic.

So, just how do you have a progressive dinner party of your own?

 

Select the hosts -- 3 or 4 is usually enough.

Form a guest list, keeping in mind the size of everyone's homes. While 24 people might easily fit in the house of the person who is handling the appetizers, they might not comfortably fit into the home of the person serving the main course, where the guests are more likely to be seated.

 

Keep the homes close together. Even better if you can plan a party with your neighbors so there is no driving involved, and therefore no need for designated drivers.

When planning the menu, consider foods that can be prepared in advance so that the hosts can also relax and enjoy the party.

What about the kids? You can include them in the dinner party if you want. Another (better!) idea is to have the kids at the last house with a babysitter or two. They can watch movies and eat kid-friendly food while you are enjoying adult conversation. Then you join the children for your last stop -- dessert -- which is probably the only one that the children are interested in anyway.

 

Now that you become more familiar with a progressive dinner party, I would like to invite you make a "virtual" stop by each of our homes for pre-dinner cocktails, appetizers, soups and salads, a main course meal and of course delish desserts!  No worries, you can never be to early or too late... Whenever you decide to drop by... we will be waiting on you... Below you will find the directions to each of our homes. Enjoy!

 

Cocktails: BeMyGuestwithDenise
http://youtu.be/_aUydofPv9c

Appetizers: LivingLuxuriouslyforLess (Melanie)
http://youtu.be/iIGJBb_-NHs

Soup: VeriKeri
http://youtu.be/mpLZR-K65os

Entree: LiveLoveLatte (Cherie)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHsPQ...

Desserts: AtHomewithNikki
http://youtu.be/dxdKwKvGXO8

Main Course: Live Love Latte

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=...

 

And if you are interested in a hosting a progressive dinner amongst your family, friends or loved ones.. Here is a handy tool full of tips from all of your progressive dinner hosts.

Lastly, I will leave you  with more shots from my appetizer setup.

Until Next Time,

Melanie

Jealously is a Robber

Jealously is a robber….

It robs you of connections…it robs you of friendships… it robs you happiness…it robs you of your own strength…it robs you of security… it robs you of your self-esteem, self-worth and your image… Jealously robs you of being your best self! 

Jealously is a robber…

Jealously steals the destiny and the purpose of the innocent and guilty alike… The innocent often allow others to stagnate their growth for the sake of saving {face}.  And the guilty cannot grow because they too busy hindering the growth of the innocent…In the end jealously wins because neither of them are able to fulfill their destiny and purpose! The Song of Soloman 8:6 states that love is as strong as death and jealously is as cruel as the grave… Yes, jealously brings death to your destiny and purpose!

Jealously is a robber….

So why do we allow it to creep into our homes, our marriages, our friendship, our jobs, our ministries and the like? I know why… I have been there… We allow it {meaning jealously} to come in and rob us because we do not have the courage to face the TRUTH!   And the truth is that {We Want} what {They Have}, but we don’t have the {Faith}, the {Courage} or the {Power} to believe that we can obtain just that and more!  And to make matters worse, we allow {Pride} to rob us of seeking their wisdom and guidance on how they got there!  So now our initial fear and insecurity teams up jealously and pride and creates in us a green-eyed monster that steals, kills and destroys our hopes, our dreams and our ambitions!  We cannot {Thrive} because we have given jealously the power to {Drive}!

 

Jealously is a robber….

Competition breads jealously…. I started competing in pageants as a little girl… I remember getting dressed at home and thinking that I was the cutest thing on the block!  When I arrived at the auditorium, I was surrounded by a sea of beautiful girls that all had beautiful dresses… Because I didn’t have a good self-image… I began to tear down others… {Her eyes looks like Elsie the cow....Her lips are as big as spaceships…That purple dress must have been borrowed from Barney}But when my opportunity came to hit the stage and the lights, camera were waiting for my reaction… My tearing them down did not build me up! As a matter a fact what was really in me manifested…Fear, low self-esteem and rejection!  When I look back on those pictures… I can see it all over my face! I allowed jealously to rob me of that moment because I was competing with what was around me instead of what was in me!    I was a pageant competitor until I was 25…and at my last pageant, I was crowned Miss United States Sophisticate.  I remember taking off my heels after the strap broke…thinking I am tired of the competition!  You see the competition didn’t start and stop at the pageant, it carried over into every area of my life! Competing with friends, competing for men, competing for jobs…. It was draining!  I knew there was more to life and I was determined to get it!

Celebration and Separation Conquers Jealously

When I started the process of being free from a spirit of jealously; there were two things that I had to do. 

#1- Celebrate others before jealously set in.

#2- Separate myself from those who breed {jealously}! 

Let me take a second to expound on #2!  Yes, there are people who breed jealously.  They actually get their energy, their  power and their motivation from others being jealous of them!!! These are the individuals that talk about themselves 25/8, they are inconsiderate and purposely say and do things that make you feel worse about yourself/your situation.  For example… You tell them that you had to forfeit buying a new dress because you had to pay unexpected bill… And their response is that they went shopping earlier that day and pick up that {same} dress {because they liked it too}, two Louis Vuitton purses and six pair of shoes… Don’t get me wrong, they have every right to buy what they want…But a true friend would have offered some encouraging words instead of jumping on the opportunity to {breed jealously}.

So that's why I had to separate myself from those individuals while I was in the healing process… They too needed help, but I couldn’t help anyone until I helped myself! 

Okay, let’s go back to #1… Celebrate others before jealously set in.

By making a conscious effort to do this… I was eventually able to do this even in the scenario that I described in #2.  I mean… When I started celebrating the successes of others..it really became a stepping stone for me to see that success was possible!  It was kind of like the old childhood game that I used to play outside… called Punchinello…

 What can you do,

Punchinello, funny fellow?

 What can you do,

 Punchinello, funny you?

 

We can do it, too,

 Punchinello, funny fellow,

 We can do it, too,

 Punchinello, funny you!

 

You choose one of us,

 Punchinello, funny fellow,

 You choose one of us,

 Punchinello, funny you!

You see to play the game all the kids would stand in a circle. One child stands in the center as Punchinello.

In Verse 1 - Punchinello makes motions while other children sing. In Verse 2 - Children forming the circle around Punchinello imitate motions. In Verse 3 - Punchinello chooses someone to take his/her place.

I began to realize that while I was singing Punchinello was moving and after I finished singing… I had the opportunity to imitate the move that Punchinello had just made…

You see in life we are very much like this game. When you see the Punchinello’s in your life achieving their goals and successes just sing… Celebrate with them!  Eventually, opportunity will come for you to imitate the move that they just made.  And as you keep on praising and celebrating God will pick you to be front and center and you will be able to bust a move that is uniquely you.. And there will be others watching and waiting to imitate you!!!

There is nothing wrong with imitation!  God made us in His image and likeness… However, the problem comes in we allow jealously to cause us to try and duplicate and not imitate! 

When you duplicate…you try to be….When you imitate you try to be like… There is something about their ways, their personality, their style that you like… and you incorporate those “likes” into your own! There’s a difference!

I pray that this post will bless somebody, somewhere that is striving for better!  Remember, jealously is a robber don’t be its next victim!  Protect yourself by separating and celebrating!  You will find that celebrating them will bring elevation to you!

Victory is Only a Second Away

Last year, during our annual New Year’s Eve, Minister Tamara Joy Scott released  this word from Amos….

Amos 9:13-15 {The Message (MSG)}

^13-15 “Yes indeed, it won’t be long now.” God’s Decree.

“Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. You won’t be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—and everywhere you look, blessings! Blessings like wine pouring off the mountains and hills. I’ll make everything right again for my people Israel:

“They’ll rebuild their ruined cities.
They’ll plant vineyards and drink good wine.
They’ll work their gardens and eat fresh vegetables.
And I’ll plant them, plant them on their own land.
They’ll never again be uprooted from the land I’ve given them.”
God, your God, says so.

As I mediated on this word, I also begin to reflect on the Alabama versus Auburn game that took place over the weekend. It only took one second for {tides} of the battle to turn in their favor… I remember looking at my tv screen in disbelief… thinking, {WOW},  now that was fast!

And then I began to meditate on the word that God gave us in Amos again this time last year… “Yes indeed, it won’t be long now.” God’s Decree. “Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other…..” 

God wants to bless us just that fast… But we must be in the right position to receive the provision that He has predestined for us!  That moment for me was not about luck… It was about the importance of being in the right place at the right time with the right people and getting the right results… It was about not giving up or not preparing to go into overtime; when there is still now time… It was about holding on to the hope of winning…when everyone has around you has doomed you for defeat! 

If you follow me… you know that I am really not an avid football fan. I do sports because I want to be able to create memories with my husband… So this for me is not about a college football game… It was about real life and being able to see and receive a message through any messenger.

I have been holding on to this word and believing God for a head swimming blessing all year… But I have yet to see it manifest in the natural… I have believing God for jobs for friends, healing and deliverance for family members and breakthrough in my spiritual physical, mental and financial life… and I have yet to see it manifest in the natural… Yes, I have experienced some trickling here and there, but not the full manifestation of the rivers that He wants to flow in my life.

So, I thought to myself, God… I am ready… I am really ready for a head swimming blessing.  I want things that you promised us in Amos! 

Promises from Amos

1.      Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. {Before I can walk through one open door…. Another will open… And then another…Leading to a path of open doors…. I receive the key of David {according to Isaiah 22:22}!  May your blessings rest upon my shoulders!

2.     You won’t be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—{I receive the bountiful blessings that you are pouring into my life… I thank you that every seed that I have sown, prayer that I have prayed and words that I have confessed are manifesting… Everything is maturing at once.  My harvest is here… I am reaping something new every day.  I will need help to gather all the crops that are coming in the form of {speaking engagements, new opportunities, witty inventions, investments and appointments}.

3.     and everywhere you look, blessings! {Lord, I thank you for the eyes that you have given me to see the blessed side everything that I look upon… I thank you for the eyes to see areas of untapped wealth in a time of famine}.

4.     Blessings like wine pouring off the mountains and hills. {I receive the streams of blessings that you have granted to us… Blessings that are flowing from the high places; because You have allowed our gift to make room for us and are ushering us into the presence of great men}.

5.     I’ll make everything right again for my people Israel:  { Lord I thank You, for I am Your Child, and you are making all things new in my life because I choose to trust and obey You}.

6.     “They’ll rebuild their ruined cities. {Father I thank you for rebuilding the destiny changing connections that I have ruined in my life due to making poor decisions. I thank you Lord that every cancelled appointment is being rescheduled, every late appointment is on time and every missed appointment is in remission.

7.     They’ll plant vineyards and drink good wine. They’ll work their gardens and eat fresh vegetables. {We are eating and drinking the good of the land… Everything is fresh… Everything is new…Everything has life…}

8.     And I’ll plant them,plant them on their own land. {You are giving me a land that you have predestined just for me}...

9.     They’ll never again be uprooted from the land I’ve given them. {And I will never have to endure the hell, the frustration, the rejection and the pain that I have endured up until this point in my life… My mind, my emotions, my will are fixed upon You.  And because I am anchored in You Lord… I will never have to be uprooted again}.

10.God, your God, says so. {And it is so, Amen}!

 

Father, I thank you for this word and this revelation!  I am holding on to it because I know without a shadow of a doubt that you are going to fulfill it! You said that Your word never returns to you void…

So no matter how many giants I have to fight, champions that I have to defeat or enemies that I have to face…. You don’t need a year, you don’t a month, You don’t need a minute and you don’t need a day!  Lord You have shown me that, “Victory is only a Second Away!”

 

 

Why I Create

I was recently asked why I create... After giving it some thought... Here is my answer... This is a must read for all women... If you NEVER READ ANOTHER STATUS OF MINE... READ THIS... I PRAY THAT IT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE AND PERSPECTIVE ON CREATIVITY.

All women are made to create something…. Some of us are crafty, some of us are artsy, some of us are sewers, some of us are designers, some of us are artists, some of us are entrepreneurs, some of us are cooks, some of us are stylists and some of us are fashionistas…. Whatever your gift may be it is one that coerces you to create.  Now the problem occurs when women don’t have a creative outlet….

When women do not have a creative outlet they are forced to create something {because we were made to create}.  We create drama, we create rumors, we create gossip, we create jealously {because we see other women doing what we don’t have the courage to do}, we create envy, we create deceit, we create backstabbing, we create bad relationships with men, we create hurt, we create pain, we create boredom, we create depression, we create anxiety, we create low self esteem, we create a lack of self worth, we create ways to self destruct and we create walls that are a wedge between us and our destiny and purpose because we refuse to create what we were created to create by the Creator!

Creativity can be a blessing or a curse… Positive or negative….A launching pad or an anchor…. I challenge  you today to tap into your creativity and cause all the confusion, catastrophes and calamities in your life to cease!!! 

Create something some positive and watch the Creator work in your life like never before…. Create something positive and watch the happiness, joy and fulfillment that will flood your life like never before.

And that is why I create….