ask me anything: answers {part 2}

Baby Showers

As a new mom, any advice to offer someone {me} throwing a baby shower for a friend? What did you love about your shower or what would you have liked?

I had a few baby showers and they were all wonderful. A good friend in Dallas hosted one, my former co-workers hosted one, and my friends from church hosted another one. Each one was a little bit different, but the best part about all of them was the company. I think the most important thing in hosting a baby shower is to make sure you listen to the expectant mother’s wishes. I am not a fan of shower games. I don’t really know why except that they always make me a little uncomfortable. But if the mom-to-be wants games at her shower then do some of those fun baby shower games. I don’t even know what they are because I just don’t like them!

Pregnant women love to eat, so have some of her favorite foods there. The baby shower in Dallas had the most adorable decorations and flowers. The hostess used the Martha Stewart paper poms and hung them outside. She had fun flower arrangements arranged in glass baby bottles. The shower that my church friends hosted was really special because all of the guests wrote little prayers and well-wishes for our family on pretty little pieces of paper. The paper had a hole punched in it and ribbon that looped through the hole. They were all hanging out this adorable twiggy tree. I kept all of them and can’t wait to show them to Hudson one day.

The things that make a shower special are the sweet touches. You can do this without spending a lot of money and you can do it by spending a lot of money. It’s up to you, but how much money was spent won’t make a difference to the mom-to-be. She’ll just remember how special everything was.

What do you think are maybe the top 3 or 5 things to get someone for a baby shower?

We just sent some gifts to some good friends of ours that are expecting. Todd really wanted to send a few certain items because they were lifesavers for us. I did a post once on what my favorite gifts have been. But these are the things that I think every parent needs: Swaddle Designs blankets (it was better for us than the Miracle Blanket), The Happiest Baby on the Block DVD (amazing demonstrations of how to calm and soothe your baby), and a Woombie for when your baby grows out of the swaddling blankets.

Entertainment

Do you have time to watch television? If so, what are your favorite programs?

This question cracks me up because I watch a lot of television. If you follow me on Twitter you know that last night I was tweeting about the ridiculousness of The Bachelor and tonight I’ll be tweeting about The Biggest Loser and American Idol. I like reality TV and scripted drama and comedy. I just love TV. My favorite shows to watch are The Bachelor, The Biggest Loser, American Idol, LOST (starts soon!), Damages (another GREAT one), Dancing With the Stars, and Real Housewives of Orange County and New Jersey. Todd and I are also know to love a good episode of Law and Order: SVU and Dateline.

We’re on eastern time and our shows don’t start until 8:00. So we usually have plenty of time to get Hudson to bed at 7:00, eat our supper, and then settle in for the TV watching. I can’t say that my husband is particularly interested in any of my favorite shows, but he plays along.

Fashion

What are your favorite pair of shoes?

Any of my TB Revas. Seriously. I have them in a few different colors because they are the most comfortable shoes ever. I can wear them with almost anything. They are the perfect “mom shoe” for me because I can make myself look put together and still be comfortable enough to do all the moving around that I have to do durning the day.

What are your favorite jeans?

That’s a hard question to answer these days. My favorite jeans ever are my 7even A-pockets. They were particularly flattering on my bum and I would wear those jeans until they’d get a hole in the knee and then I’d buy another pair. Another favorite is the Citizens of Humanity Kelly jeans. They’re also a good boot-cut jean and they have a fair amount of stretch that makes them comfortable. I was able to purchase both pairs of jeans in maternity jeans and that was wonderful!

These days, however, things have shifted and none of my old jeans fit yet. Right now I’m wearing a pair of Banana Republic trouser jeans in a very dark wash. They’re flattering and don’t seem to make me look as big as I am right now. I didn’t spend a lot of money on them. But the day that I can fit into my favorite jeans again will be a very sweet day.

I was wondering if you could recommend any budget fashion staples since I am a college student and love the products you often mention but cannot afford them right now!

I’ve mentioned before that I am not a fan of TJ Maxx or Marshalls. I know that some people find amazing things there, but I am patient and I don’t deal with crowds very well. I also get really frustrated when things are disorganized and I can’t figure out where things are. So, I try t0 do any bargain shopping online. I love finding a good sale and I signed up for Shop It To Me over a year ago. I’ve gotten some amazing items through Shop It To Me alerts. I think every girl needs the following items in her closet: a great-fitting crisp button up white oxford shirt, a black turtleneck, a great-fitting pair of jeans that can be dressed up or dressed down (not too trendy), a pair of black pants that will go with almost anything, a comfortable pair of black pumps that are appropriate for dates or job interviews. I know the colors are all basic black and white, but if you get those things in your closet, you can work around them and spend less money on cute, trendy tops and sweaters or a fun skirt. You should have a few things in your closet that make you feel as comfortable as you do when you’re wearing sweatpants and confident just knowing that it fits perfectly!

I really loved when you posted about your clothes and outfits. Will you post more of these in the future?

Absolutely. I’m going to the gym a lot more now, so when I get dressed I put on gym clothes. I know– it’s so glamorous. But I’ll post more. I haven’t been quite as inspired in the cold weather, even though I love cold weather clothes.

Home Decor

Where did you/do you get your great fashion and design sense? You always look so polished and your home is stunning (you know I’m obsessed with your house).

I’ve always loved fashion and home decor. I get it from my mom. She has a great eye and has started a new career for herself in decorating. She always just decorated our homes impeccably and I learned by watching her. Now I watch a lot of HGTV!

One of my rules is that I don’t want my home to look like the pages of a Pottery Barn catalog. I know a lot of people think this is crazy and I do love looking at the Pottery Barn catalog. But I want my house to look like us. Like we live there and made it our own.

So for every brand new piece of furniture in a room, I try to also have something older and interesting. Todd says my style is “neo-traditional.” I like traditional looking pieces, but I like to mix in some modern accessories or a modern chair. I also like to take an antique and put a modern twist on it. Like I have these gorgeous chairs that were my grandmother’s. They needed to be recovered, so I chose a bold, modern print for recovering them.

Accessorize with things you love– beautifully framed snapshots, interesting souvenirs from vacations, a coffee table book about one of your hobbies.

Your home and clothes are always so nice and cute! Do you save for this stuff? If so, any tips? We don’t struggle financially, but I have a hard time saving for big things, especially stuff like furniture.

We try to save all through the year for things like this. This past year has been a little more difficult because we had a baby, but before Hudson, we just saved any of our money that wasn’t needed for our mortgage and our utility bills. Because my mom is a decorator and goes to Market in Atlanta and Dallas, she can get things wholesale. She we just go with her to Market to get our things wholesale through her. This has saved us a ton of money. I know that we’re very lucky being able to do it this way. I don’t particularly care about brands when shopping for furniture– as long as it looks right.

Another thing I’ll do is if I find a chair that I like and the price is right, but I don’t love the fabric, I’ll buy it and have it recovered. And then I still come out ahead in the end than if I’d paid retail at a more expensive store.

It has been completely eye-opening to be able to shop for furniture at wholesale prices. And I will never pay retail again.

Your house is so adorable while still looking grown-up. How do you find decor and accessories to fit your style?

As I mentioned, my style is “neo-traditional.” A lot of our furniture were pieces that I had before we got married or pieces that were passed to us from my parents after they moved. We had a good start and we only had a few things that we had to purchase when we moved into our home. As time went on, we decided to update some things, and we bought a new bed. We got a couple of new chairs and a new sofa. I look everywhere for things that I like and don’t limit myself to one or two stores. I know that I can find great accessories at lots of different places like antique stores and other places. I was at an antique store and found an awesome little desk clock and the fleur de lis that we have hanging on the wall in our bathroom. I paid pennies for it, but both of those pieces are favorites of mine.

How did you start the process of furnishing/decorating for your new home? We’re in a very small condo now with minimal furniture that we will replace when we move into a bigger house and I’m overwhelmed at the thought of having to buy new furniture for every room. How long did it take and any tips? I’ve been googling “average cost to furnish home” so I can get an idea of how much we’ll be spending…I really have no idea how much things like window coverings cost…

As I mentioned above, we both had furniture from our families that neither of them wanted to start with. I had some of my childhood furniture that were antiques and translated well to an adult home. It takes a little while, but my advice is to take it one room at a time. Finish one room before starting another. It will help you stay focused while shopping if you know that you’re only looking for one specific room at a time.

My next purchase will be new dining chairs and draperies for our dining room. But I think we’re going to have to wait until the summer for that one.

I love love love your gallery wall! I have wanted to start one in our home but as soon as I start I get overwhelmed by the amount of pictures, options, keeping it updated, etc.? How did you narrow it down? Did you start small and grow or hang them all at once? Also how frequently do you update the wall?

I’m ashamed to admit this, but I haven’t updated our gallery wall with Hudson’s newborn photos by Millie Holloman or our most recent family shoot with Tracy Turpen. I did buy prints from both of those sessions, but I haven’t had them framed.

But I had all of the wedding photos that I wanted framed. I chose those just based on my absolute favorites and the ones that I thought would look most interesting on the wall. I chose photos of our parents, our friends, my brother, our dog. I wanted there to be pictures of everyone on the wall. We did hang them all at once. Once they were framed, I laid them all out on the floor in a grid and just kept rearranging until it was right. Todd starting hanging and did a great job.

I had planned to rotate the wall and take about half of the wedding photos down, but we still haven’t had the Millie Holloman and Tracy Turpen photos framed. Framing is obviously the expensive part, and I don’t skimp on this. I know I could frame them in inexpensive frames, but I spent a lot of money on the photos themselves. The framer that we use puts them under protective glass and it really preserves the photos. We just need to go have them framed, but I’ll show an updated gallery wall photo when we get it all done.