Classic Love Letters

Ok, so remember how my goal for my little dining area is a feminine, yet sophisticated spot? 

Well I still haven't figured out what I want to do about a table and chairs, nor have I found the perfect love seat... 

but ya know what I DID find?

Are they not the cutest thing you have ever seen? They are love letters from some of the classics. 

I am obsessed with them. I adore how romantic and sweet they are. They are handmade too, such a great find. The fine people at Uncommon Goods were so kind to let me pick them out! You can find these napkins here. 

Love LOVE. 

Uncommon Goods is a GREAT gift resource, as the have many unique items. 

{great link to items under $50 here.}

While shopping around, I also fell in love with these:

That is right. They keep your wine chilled. I am quite certain a genius thought of these.

OR if you are a bourbon drinker, check these out. 

 They are made out of soapstone so they wont scratch the glass, and they also stay cold for long periods of time. Perfect gift for Dad right? You know Father's Day IS coming up...

In fact, here are some more ideas for that special guy on his special Father's Day. I don't know about you, but my Dad is the hardest man to shop for EVER, and Father's Day and his birthday are so close, so it is just a double whammy. But now I am armed with ideas :)

I am highly impressed with the quality of my adorable love letter napkins, and will definitely be checking back in with this website when I am looking for a unique gift... or maybe even something for myself ;)

xo

21 days of LOVING your hair!

I couldn’t be more excited to partner with the great people at ULTA Beauty to help promote their Love Your Hair campaign.

What is Love Your Hair you say? Well, allow me to enlighten you. It is a 21-day celebration of hair, people, HAIR! And since I am fluent in hair, you can see how this excites me greatly.

We girls can sometimes be hard on our hair. Admit it, you have been known from time to time to neglect your hair. Maybe you went to work with wet hair, maybe you threw a hat on because you are running late, maybe you even allowed yourself to be in public in a NOT so pretty pony… c'mon, you’re guilty, and I'm guilty. We all are. We also can be downright ugly to our hair by bashing the hair the we were blessed with, when we should be embracing it!

During these fine 21 days of hair celebration, ULTA Beauty will be highlighting different “Beauty Steals™” each day that will be available at a discounted price (for that day only). Make sure you check in daily to get the best deals! I was extremely lucky to get to sample every “Beauty Steal” that will be highlighted, and I have some new found MUST haves for all of you ladies out there. The Love Your Hair celebration will also include events, demos and prizes.

 I challenge you to take the ULTA Beauty hair pledge with me, and pledge to LOVE your hair.

Now join in with me, what do you pledge to do? 

Wake up 10 minutes earlier to style that beehive? Not go to work with wet hair? Not cut your own bangs? (I am talking to you Erin). Use a heat protectant with your straightener EVERYDAY? 

Whatever your pledge may be, if you tweet it along with the hashtag #ULTAhairpledge you will be entered to win free blowouts for a YEAR! You can see sample pledges, more info, and other ways to enter HERE.

ANNND, there is more.

Wait…more?

Yes, more.

I will be giving away a $100 gift card! All you need to do is leave your hair pledge in the comments or let me know you tweeted it. Easy right?

I had a little too much fun by myself (and my sidekick Sadie of course) sampling out all of the ULTA beauty steals. In honor of the wedding season that is upon us, I decided to showcase some different and easy DIY ways that you could wear your hair to a summer wedding (and yes, tutorials will be coming in following posts in honor of this joyous hair occasion!)

Here are some of my end results:

 I used the following products to achieve these looks, with the most crucial being the Kenra volume hairspray-I'm Obsessed. New fav. Link below.

Abba Volume Conditioner

Big Sexy Hair-Root Pump (adds texture and volume, goes on towel dried hair)

CHI 44 Iron Guard (helps protect your hair from heat styling, a necessity)

Osis Dust It (adds major volume, essential for poofing-if you find it normally difficult)

Dare I say that I have been turned into a Kenra Hairspray advocate? I dare.

It is amazing, I love the fine mist and incredible hold. I have always been a fan of items 2, 3, & 4 above, but now also enjoy the all natural Abba line of shampoo and conditioner.

So girls, join with me and take the ULTA Beauty hair pledge. Your hair will thank you!! Don't forget to check out ULTA's 21 days of Loving Your Hair, and tweet your #ULTAhairpledge for a chance to win free blowouts for a year, and a $100 gift card!!

PLL, signing off, from the Poof Parlor (official Simply Flawless headquarters) ;) 

haha.

xoxo

Sweepstakes Rules:
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: "#SweepstakesEntry"; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
c) Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 5/15/13 – 6/1/13.
Be sure to visit the ULTA Beauty page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

PLL...gluten FREE?

Yup. Six weeks in. And feelin' good. 

You see, this all started with a diagnosis of eosiniphilic esophagitis. You can wikipedia that if ya like, but basically I was randomly throwing up after i would eat. Post-EGD, the gastroenterologist said it was the highest eoseniphil count she had seen, yikes! It was TUUURIBLE. She sent me to an allergist to figure out what the heck was going on.

I was also having horrendous allergies that just decided to surface randomly around 26. I was convinced the allergist would give me a pill to cure all and life would be better. 

Wrongo. 

Not that simple you see. I had every test you can imagine done...twice. And I did not really test allergic to anything! My mom has said for awhile that I should a. try cutting out dairy or b. eliminate gluten. The allergist agreed.

Well neither of these sounding like very much fun, so I put them off. I finally got super fed up with the the constant allergic issues, so I decided to give it a go and SEE if it would help-and I love cheese...so gluten free it would  be. 

I did my research (there are a ton of resources out there!) and found that it actually didn't sound that hard for me, considering I like to eat whole, natural foods anyway. The main struggle would be bread, for sure. But you'd be surprised, I don't really miss it! Gluten Free Girl was great at explaining everything :)

So what DO I eat? A lot of fruit, veggies, chicken, hummus, cottage cheese, almonds (and rice when I make myself!)

Here is a little sample of my day to day... 

Other things I am obsessed with include: 

If you have never tried those Nut thins- I command you to run to the store and get them. Cheddar and Pepper Jack are the best. They are made with rice and nuts, and are the best little gluten free snack cracker.

AND.... that is not all. I decided since I was eating better, I should also cut out the diet coke. I know it's bad for you, you know it's bad for you, so gone it is.

I think I am finally on the other side of the DC hangover. I have switched to a lot of water, and green tea. And an occasional vitamin water zero- which is sweetened with stevia, not aspartame. 

AAAANNNND... I am down 9 pounds. Bonus!

While gluten free doesn't always mean weight loss, it does make sense that if you are making smarter choices with the foods you eat, that you will see results. It is still calories in/calories out, people. I found a really good article here that explained some common mistakes people make if you are ontemplating gluten free. 

I realize gluten free is not for everyone, and I make no promises I will forever be gluten free, but right now it works for me. While I don't have celiac, I am definitely convinced that I have a gluten intolerance. Six weeks in to gluten free, I feel better, I have not thrown up ONCE, and my allergies are 500 times better-weird how it all works together. I am also less tired, and I have even noticed that my skin is brighter and more clear!! SWEAR! 

It's a novel idea, this real foods thing ;) hehe

OH- and you can totally still have wine. {I knew you were concerned.}

Happier, and feeling better PLL.
xoxo

weddings and vintage lace

I spent my Saturday at the cutest little wedding venue called the Ashley Inn. It was adorable. Chandeliers in all the bedrooms, so vintage and romantic! I did 9 ladies hair for this gorgeous brides wedding. 

Is she not stunning?? I am obsessed with her dress!

I didn't get a chance to capture pics of all the girls, but I managed to sneak a few. They were all so gorgeous! 

After a quick nap, a curling iron burn, and having to be cut out of a dress with a broken zipper, I finally made it over to my Friend Brooke's for her graduation party. Congrats Dr. Brooke!! We are so proud of you! 

{that top I am wearing is from Victoria's Secret, many moons ago}

And then on Sunday we celebrated this little peanuts birthday...

and mothers day! The little newly engaged birthday girl tried on my mom's wedding dress that she re-made after she lost hers in the fire before her wedding :( full story here. 

It was so sweet. We all hope to wear this to our rehearsal dinners, but seeing how it is the tinniest thing I have EVER seen, it looks like it may only work for Hannah. Unless I get a rib or two removed. ;)

Since we were celebrating the momma (and the baby sis' 22 birthday!) I put this together, all of us at 22. I have no doubt 22 will be a great year for you my little banana!

Love these ladies. What a great weekend! Minus the blister on my hand from an unfortunate run in with a curling iron. #FAIL. 

xoxo

saw it. pinned it. DID it! (a day late...)

Wait, it's not Thursday? WHAT? 

;)

Somehow I missed getting this up yesterday, which is surprising since I have been anxiously awaiting joining in on this fun with Steph and Katie. 

Anyways, here is my most recent saw it, pinnned it, did it!

I became obsessed with this wreath on pinterest, surely you have seen it. Well I got crafty one night with some vino, and voila. Wreath made. 

Here is what I used... all supplies from Michaels. I used shades of tan and cream hydrangeas, but you can use whatever you like. I do however suggest getting 9 total, instead of my 6. Apparently I couldn't count that day, but I made it work. I also chose to use burlap ribbon instead of the satin kind. 

I literally just placed the flowers on the wreath where they looked best, and hot glued them babies on. I then used the burlap to craft a bow of some sorts. I found it helpful to use one of those bread ties on the ends of a loaf of bread, to hold the bow together, and I hot glued it additionally in places to make it look the way I wanted it to. I wish I had a more scientific explanation of this-but the truth is I have no idea what I did. Which is pretty much the story of my life, especially with hair. 

Once the bow was made, I just hot glued it on the wreath, and BOOM. Wreath made. Call me Martha Stewart-but don't... 

Isn't it just adorable? If I must say so myself ;) 

Here is my little front door. And no, I do not live at 3333. I photoshopped that sucker. I couldn't in my right mind put my house numbers up here?!? 

I did however make that little house number sign, from products I found at Lowes! I just slapped some dark wood stain to match my door on the piece of wood, painted the top part white, and put the numbers on. Luckily the roomies fiance, Brian, is super handy and knew how to drill it into the brick. Thanks B!

And yes, I have a topiary. Officially domestic. CHECK. ;) 

a little weekend recap...

Things move fast over here in the baby's world! She had engagement pics this past week, which I of course helped her get ready for! Isn't she just the cutest? 

We also celebrated Friday night with a little engagement dinner with both families. So much fun getting to spend time together! 

 Little nugget... I just love her. So strange seeing her with bling bling on that finger! Love it :) 

Friday afternoon I also got a wonderful surprise from Ulta... HOLY moly. Even Sadie was astonished. We can't wait to get in and try all of these products. Stay tuned hair girls... stay tuned. 

I feel so un-Kentucky, because I don't have a whole lot to report from Derby this year, my head was hatless. FAIL. I had a great afternoon just playing with some friends, and drinking bourbon slush. ;)

It was a bring your own pug party. Natch.

These two are now the best of friends... aside from what Sadie's expression may indicate. 

And yeah yeah, if you follow me on instagram, you know I have some 'splainin to do. ;) 

sit tight! 

xoxo

TWINS!

Why are twins so fun? (says the lady who has never birthed twins)

Mind you-I do have lots of twin experience, so my opinion is valid. Shant we forget my nanny diaries. ;)

Well today I just wanted to give a special congrats to my my work BFF Melisa-Beth who became an aunt again last night when her sissy delivered twins!!! 

{MB's sis blogs here, if you want to keep up with her sweet family.}

MB-It has been so fun working side-by-side with you for the past five years getting to see how both of our lives change! I cannot believe you are now and aunt to THREE babies, and your sis will be leaving the hospital a family of FIVE!!! Congrats to everyone, love you so much! 

Mommy and babies are doing fantastic :)

Sidenote: can you believe how awesome Maegan looks in the two top pics?? That was last week... at like 36 1/2 weeks or something. Crazy. Girlfriend is all belly!! 

WHO looks this amazing after having TWINS?!

Those tiny little faces are just too much! I can't handle all the adorableness.

Makes me miss these girls as babies! 

So many exciting things happening! Yay for the new babies!!! So happy for your family Maegan!! 

Love you MB!! 

xoxo

Baby sissy is...

Color me speechless, because I am SO EXCITED I don't even know what to say!! I have already said what I wanted to say in a card I wrote sis along with a little engagey prezzie. Banana-you know what it says ;) 

I am so happy for my BABY sissy and her now fiance Ben!! Ben has been in Spain for almost a year on a special grant teaching English and such. He came home for the first time since, and proposed to baby sissy in the airport. Absolute perfection. 

She called Lil' sis and I on one of those fancy three way calls to tell us the news. It was so special. 

I was out of town for the big engagement, but don't you think for one minute I didn't have something prepared ;) 

Becky and I maaaay have known what was going down, so we got a little something together for the new baby bride. 

Hannah is graduating in less than a month, and I just think it is so cute that Ben proposed in time so she could still have a candlelight with her sorority sisters!! So stinking cute. When I get engaged one day...(again...) you bishes better send me a lit candle ;) 

I jacked all these pics from her facebook. She is so cute, humble, and thankful for all of the well wishes. I just adore this baby and could not have dreamt up someone better to love my baby sis than Ben!! 

SO HAPPY!!!

 Love you Hannah Banana!!! xoxox

{and for all those inquiring minds about OTHER lil sissy out there... I have a feeling we will be celebrating another engagement any day now!!}

Yay for sisters, and CHEERS for engagements. 

xo