A Perfect Christmas Dress

 Wearing Red Plaid For The Holidays

Hello everyone!  Today, I'm styling the perfect dress for Christmas (or any other time)! I actually got this red and black buffalo check dress from The Mr. for Christmas last year and I'm just now sharing it on the blog. 

I ordered this dress directly from Blair and I was hoping they would offer it again this year so I could link to it, but so far I haven't seen it offered. It was also available last year in a blue and green buffalo check pattern and I kind of wish I had ordered that one too for The Mr. to give to me for Christmas because this dress is just the best in terms of softness, comfort and warmth! The only negative is that it runs REALLY large so even though I ordered a medium which should have fit perfectly, it is rather loose when I don't have it belted like you see here. I don't really mind the looseness because it's comfortable but it still could have been a better fit as a medium. 

This is the type of dress that you can wear to church like I did last Sunday or you can put it on after a shower to lounge around the house in. It's very versatile. It could even be worn as a long duster over a top and jeans. The flannel is so warm and cozy! I did find a buffalo check sweater to link for you if you love the buffalo check plaid look like I do. 

And I wanted to style my plaid Christmas heels with this dress for you because I think this is going to be the swan song for these shoes. This is the last pair of higher heels I have kept mainly because I just love them and hate to give them away. But, the truth is they are too high for me to wear comfortably and they are definitely not worth a turned ankle! They do look good with the dress, though!

I hope that you have a soft and cozy favorite dress or sweater that you can enjoy this Christmas season! And click here for some more red plaid goodness to enjoy!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

Our Home Christmas Decorations

 From Our Home To Yours

Our Cozy and Whimsical Christmas Decorations

Hello everyone and Ho, Ho, Ho!  I'm excited to be able to share our home decorations with you once again. You may notice I'm not calling them "Christmas Decor" because our decorations just don't compare to the Pinterest and Instagram worthy decor pics you are most likely seeing from other bloggers and influencers. I feel that our decorations are more homey and cozy and homespun, though, and I always feel joy when I walk from room to room looking at the Christmas touches on display. This is a picture heavy post, so I hope you enjoy. And, I'm excited to announce that I will be taking part in another blog hop, this time a "Christmas On A Tray" blog hop on December 14th, hosted again by Katherine of katherinescorner.com. Sure hope you will stop by for that! Now, let's get started. 

I decided to go with two tabletop trees in the living room this year. One is a 4 foot multi-color and the other is a 3 foot multi-color tree. The 4 foot is the "main" tree with the gifts underneath. The 3 foot is the accent tree on the side table with the red Christmas bulb tree on the bottom shelf of the side table along with some cute Santas. The larger tree has fun ornaments like stuffed bears and candy cane Christmas trees while the smaller tree is dedicated to musical instruments.

Being musicians, we have collected A LOT of musical ornaments over the years. I haven't used nearly all we have but it is fun to have a tree dedicated to all things music!

On the living room mantel I interspersed some favorite items with what we already have on the mantel. I used to clear everything off the mantel and dedicate it to Christmas only. But, I don't do that anymore preferring to keep items already on display and just add in a little Christmas. The two tall Christmas houses are something we have had since our first Christmas together. I just love them. The gingerbread house was new last Christmas and it lights up. 

On the other end of the mantel are our two musical nut crackers standing guard. We have had them for many years as well. Do you notice the green Christmas tree? These were Dollar Tree purchases and I wish I had purchased more of them because they light up and turn all sorts of different colors. I have three of them scattered across the mantel. 

This is the mantel with all of the little trees glowing. So pretty!

Several little nativity scenes are displayed in the corner of the living room. Each nativity is unique. There is a miniature box nativity that opens and closes, a Precious Moments snow globe nativity and a children's nativity. Each is precious and reminds us of the true reason for the season! 

The final Christmas touch in the living room is Jazzy trumpet playing Santa flanked on each side by the soft cloth Christmas trees. Cassie and Garden love to hop up on top of this desk to look out of the window so I chose Christmas decorations for this area that wouldn't break if they got knocked off by furry family members!

The majority of our decorations are in the living room. But we do have this cute gingerbread family display in the kitchen. I think the gingerbread drying mat along with the striped mugs adds just the perfect touch to this kitchen vignette. 

I typically don't go all out adding decorations in the bathrooms as they can get in the way in these small rooms. But simple touches add a note of festivity as you see in our guest bath with blue-green pics, stars and a bottle brush tree, all loaded with plenty of sparkle!

And our downstairs bathroom shelf holds funny little mice, a woodland deer and some angels keeping watch. The bathroom decorations are all tucked on shelves where they are out of the way but fun to look at!

And, finally, we have some Christmas decorations in our foyer with a wooden tree hanging on the front door and the foyer table decorated with a tree surrounded by some Christmas critters!

I surely hope you enjoyed looking at our Christmas decorations as much as we enjoy looking at them! Have a great week and be sure to stop by on Monday when I will be sharing a dress with you that is just perfect for the Christmas (or Winter) season!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

How to Style A Green Corduroy Jacket

 Styling Green Corduroy

Hello everyone!  You know, I've always had a bit of a "thing" about green corduroy. So,when I received this jacket awhile back I was excited to wear it. Years ago, I had a brighter green corduroy jumper that I just loved wearing with different turtlenecks, so I decided to try that kind of styling with this jacket. 

I went with wearing a black turtleneck and lighter black jeans with the jacket and I really liked the pairing. I don't think I would like the jacket as much if it didn't have the cute Peter Pan collar and two buttons. Those style markers add a bit of playfulness that gives a little something extra to the styling. 

I also felt that the heavier corduroy fabric lends itself to heavier jewelry like these dangling earrings. The lines of the earrings seem to match the lines in the corduroy really well. What do you think?

It might be fun for you to look in your closet and see if you have a heavier jacket or blazer that you could style with a turtleneck and some great earrings. I find this type of outfit to be a bit "retro" which is trending right now. Kind of a flashback to the past with style. 

What are you wearing these days? Do tell. Love hearing from you! And be sure to check back on Friday when I will be sharing the Christmas decor in my home with all of you!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

Looking for some corduroy?  Click here or here for some inspiration and ideas! 

I'm Home and Happy Thanksgiving

 

Hello dear readers!  I'm home from my travels to assist some ill family members and happy to report that they are doing better. I am always happy to see extended family but I am also always very happy to return home to The Mr., Cassie and Garden! This wasn't a picture taking trip so I have no pictures to show you from my travels. This trip consisted of helping with cooking, dishes, laundry and serving food and various other things that were needed. It was a challenging trip in many ways but all went well and I am now into holiday decorating which I will share with you soon as normal blogging will be resuming. 

I want to take this opportunity to wish each of you a very Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving. For those readers not in the USA, I wish you a lovely Thursday and end of the week! Among the many, many things for which I am thankful are you my wonderful readers who read my posts, leave comments and inspire me to keep writing! Styling life wouldn't be nearly as much fun without you!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

Away From Blog For A Few Days

 

Hello dear readers. I have been away from the blog for a few days and, unfortunately, will be away for a few more as I am going to help a couple of ill family members. 

Your prayers over the next days will be very much appreciated. The beautiful flowers you see above have bloomed in abundance the last few months and, finally, they got "bitten" by frost last night and are no more. I have enjoyed looking out my door at them so much over the Summer and Fall. But, I knew they couldn't last forever, especially as colder weather is here. 

Since we won't be in touch for a bit I will leave you with one of my favorite scriptures Philippians 4:13. This particular interpretation is from the Easy To Read version.

"Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do."

Wishing you all blessings. 

Until Next Time,

Debbie

Autumn On A Tray Blog Tour

 

Hi everyone!  I'm excited today to be able to take part in an "Autumn On A Tray Blog Tour," hosted by Katherine of katherinescorner.com.  You are going to see lots of Autumn goodness today so I hope you enjoy! Be sure to read to the end of the post so I can direct you to your next stop on the tour! And if you hopped over from Christine's blog, then welcome!!

I decided to use a basket tray for my Autumn arrangement and borrowed the tobacco basket from the curio shelf in the corner of our dining room. I thought it would make the perfect tray to hold the cloth stuffed pumpkins, a couple of wooden pumpkins and, of course, this cute little squirrel. Doesn't he look like a well read little guy wearing those glasses?!

I really appreciate how the arrangement accents our table in the dining room. Even our cat, Garden, approves the styling!

I loved the fun and creativity of creating my "Autumn On A Tray!" Now, be sure to click on over to Rachelle at "My Hubbard Home"  so you can enjoy more Autumn goodness! And thanks so much for stopping by! Here's a quick peek at Rachelle's creative approach to Autumn On A Tray!

Until Next Time,

Debbie

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Four Fantastic Tops To Wear For Fall

 

Hello everyone!  Sorry I have been away from the blog this week. After a wonderful Zoom "Meet and Greet" with readers last Saturday, this week has brought some illness in my family and, frankly, I just haven't felt like blogging. Prayers for "J" appreciated!

My goal today is to share some inspiration with you for styling tops for Fall. The tops I'm sharing are some of my recent thrifting finds from ThredUp and I am so pleased with all of these purchases! This beautiful flowery top with green background by Blair fits like it was made for me. The colors are perfect for Fall but also will work beautifully in Spring and Summer. To be honest, I don't always find Blair's sizing to be consistent but this size Medium fit perfectly as it should!

Everything I'm sharing with you today, except for one top, is by Blair via ThredUp. This is actually a corduroy jacket which I thought would be black with green buttons. Instead, the jacket itself is green but in a shade I like. And how fortuitous that it will match the flowered top with green background perfectly!

So, I am actually wearing two tops here. The undershirt is a sleeveless top by Blair that is in a color I have been looking for in local stores without much success. Why is it so hard to find brown sleeveless tops? I wanted this undertop specifically to wear under brown tops and sweaters that are V-neck and need something underneath. When I saw what I was looking for on ThredUp I jumped for it! The undershirt will also be fine as a stand alone top in the summer. The outer top with jewels down the neckline also caught my eye for Fall. I always love a little bling! This top brand is First Issue-A Liz Claiborne Company. The V-neck with the jewels was very deep and I actually sewed it up a little because I don't like tops so low. However, now that I have the brown undershirt I really don't need the sewing. We'll see if I remove the stitches or not! I think the brown top(s) will also go very well with the green corduroy jacket.

So, with the three tops I've shared plus the corduroy jacket, I could create three different outfits with either tan, brown, black or olive pants. Are you inspired? Sometimes buying just a few key pieces is all you need to create a variety of interesting outfits for Fall and beyond! Go check out your closets and see what you have on hand to mix and match with. And, if you need a few key pieces, do a little thrifting either online or at your local thrift stores!

So, this post will come to most of you on Friday, but also be sure to tune in on Saturday, November 6th, when I am joining in an "Autumn On A Tray" blog hop hosted by Katherine of katherinescorner.com.   There will be lots of Autumn goodness to enjoy so be sure to stop on by!

Until Next Time,

Debbie