June Stylish Monday - "Feeling Fresh and Fruity"

On the second Monday of every month a group of style bloggers and I pick a theme, style an outfit based on that theme, and then do a link up together where you can join too!  This month's theme is "Feeling Fresh and Fruity".  The ladies and I are showing either our outfits with fruit prints or fruity colors.  

When I first saw the theme of this month's challenge, I was going to purchase some cute dress like what Andrea is wearing.  I've seen so many adorable 1950's style fruit print dresses on Amazon or Modcloth that I just love.  I especially like all the cherry prints.  However, since I'm trying to maintain more of a minimalist wardrobe these days I decided to shop my own closet and I was surprised to discover that I had at least three items with fruit prints on already, two of which I'm showing in this post.

I decided to style this coral tee shirt with gold pineapples on it and a pineapple scarf.

When I think of fruit prints I  think of bright, fruity colors like coral, orange, fuchsia, purple, yellow, etc.  Many women don't feel comfortable in bright colors (I know I don't like to wear a lot of color head to toe) so I wanted to show how to incorporate the fruit print trend with neutrals so it's not so bold leaving one feeling like they look like a piece of fruit.  😃

I decided to pair my bright, fruity tee with a pair of tan pants.  I purchased these pants from a thrift store, believe it or not.  They were originally from Talbots.  I NEVER go thrift store shopping for clothes.  I just don't have the patience for it.  But I happened to be in the thrift store searching for baskets, when I spotted these pants and a really cute skirt, both for around $3.00 each, so I bought them both!  I thought to myself "I need to shop at thrift stores for clothes more often." 😂

I played off the metallic gold in the pineapples on the tee and carried a metallic gold bag and added a metallic gold belt.

For jewelry, I also used a lot of gold, but my bracelet has some bright, fruity colors too!

For footwear, I chose a comfy pair of flats that had a tan base to match the pants, but a floral print with bright, fruity colors.  And then to complete the whole look, I painted my nails coral to match my tee.

Now, it may not look it, but it was a cold, rainy day in the 50's when I took these pictures.  I didn't even want to take my coat and scarf off to take the pictures, I was so cold!  But I wanted to show you yet another way to add fruit prints to your outfit that doesn't have much bold color at all.  

I simply covered the coral tee with a blue jean jacket and then I put a fairly neutral pineapple print scarf over it.

The scarf is very neutral with a sheer white background and grey pineapples.  Only the bright yellow tassels have a lot of color.  The scarf is a great way to incorporate the fruit print trend without having an overwhelming amount of bright color.  

And now, let's see what the rest of the ladies are wearing this month, and be sure to link up your outfits with us too!

Shelbee

Shelbee - Shelbee on the Edge - “I bought this bright orange blazer a few months ago but had trouble styling it until I found this adorable fruity printed swimsuit. And I figured why not style a blazer over my swimsuit. It’s not like I follow fashion rules anyway!”

Ada

Ada - Elegance and Mommyhood - Fruity Floral Flounce!!! That’s what I am calling this outfit. Between the florals and paisley design of my ruffled skirt and those bright orange sandals I got the citrus fruity vibes and all the Summery florals going! 

                                     Nancy

Nancy -  Nancy’s Fashion Style - “I am feeling like a basket of fruit or a box full of fruit sweets, lol, in this outfit! Oranges, strawberries and raspberries! Love that color combination! I have ombre nails at the moment with red and orange. You can take a look at last Tuesday’s post for that!”

Emma

Emma - The Style Splash - "I bought this Fabienne Chapot striped cherry print dress on eBay. I'm a big fan of the Dutch brand and their quirky prints. A shirt dress is summer staple for me as they're cool and easy to wear."

Lucy

Lucy - Lucy Bertoldi.com   “This month’s collaboration got me digging into my wardrobe for something fresh and delish to style up.  Found this fun lime maxi decorated with cherries- how sweet!  Lime green is already a favourite with me- especially for summer- and with the added fun red-cherry print, well that’s enough to get me smiling😊  Fresh, quench-thirsting look for this hot Montreal summer- I’m ready!”

Michele

Michele - On Instagram as Seechele_styles - “Feeling fruity in my Target dress with lemon and limes and oranges on it.”

Andrea

Andy - Pearls and Pantsuits - “I love the retro feel of this fruit print tiered shirt-dress. I was looking for a simple tiered dress on Amazon, when this one caught my eye. I couldn’t resist its charm! I styled it with my red gingham print sandals that have been on repeat this summer.The fruit print and gingham combo makes me happy!”

Nicole

Nicole - High Latitude Style - “In interior Alaska, summer temperatures remain pleasant in the drought season except when it rains. The record is 100F in Ft. Yukon,but we already think 85F is too hot. In the monsoon season, it feels unpleasant due to the high humidity and temperatures in the 50F or so. Thus, in early summer, it’s shorts and tank tops with flip flops, in late summer, it’s rain gear and layering. Since the Sun is in the sky 24/7, sun protective clothes are my go-to.”

Julie

Julie - Fashion Trends and Friends and Instagram FashionTandF -  “Nothing says summer more than fruity prints and bold fun colors especially after long cold Illinois

Nina

Nina - Sharing a Journey - “We are definitely out and about these days.  My bright colors mirror my optimism for the sunny summer days ahead.”

Suzanne

Suzanne - Ask Suzanne Bell - “I love the vibrant pattern and color of this bold wrap skirt; it feels so optimistic, fresh, and cheerful. Bold prints can be a bit intimidating to style, so I say keep it simple, with neutral pieces; like this black ruffle top, raffia bag, and hat. From there, allow the print piece, to be the star of the show!”

And ME!

Amy - Amy’s Creative Pursuits - “Love fruit prints but you don’t want to look like a piece of  fruit?  Here’s  how to incorporate the fun fruit print trend into a neutral outfit.”

Have A Great Day! Amy

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February Stylish Monday - Date Night at Home

February is the month of LOVE so the ladies of Stylish Monday decided to show our date night outfits!  Only, in the age of Covid and lockdowns, we added a Valentine twist to show what we would wear on a date night at home!

Now my husband and I will be going out for Valentine's Day this year since it falls on a weekend, but there have been many years when the big day fell on a weeknight and we celebrated at home.  Whenever we have a date night at home, I usually do my hair and make up for him, and wear something cozy, yet sexy.

For this challenge, I chose to wear a romantic floral kimono that was actually a gift from my husband.  I paired it with a floral camisole that is so perfectly matched one would think it came with the kimono, but it did not.  I wore soft, cozy joggers from Amazon, and added jewelry and heels for more pizzazz.

A typical at home date night for us would involve a nice meal, and sitting by our wood stove enjoying each other's company.

Since there was so much color going on in the kimono and tank, I kept the jewelry simple by wearing all black jewelry.  It's hard to tell in the photos, but the tank is sequined so I didn't need much more glitz and glam at all with jewelry.

The kimono is sheer and almost knee length.

And now let's see what the other ladies are wearing, and be sure to link up your outfits at the end of the post.

Shelbee

 Shelbee on the Edge - This date night at home theme was announced just before my scheduled date night at home for our 11th wedding anniversary. While I had plans to dress up a bit for our special night, my hormones decided otherwise and slammed me with debilitating cramps all night long. And so I ended up spending our date night in my coziest things curled up on the couch! But if I had been able to dress up, I would have worn this comfy black velvet pant suit that is a recent thrift shop acquisition. I love the elastic waistband and wide legs of the pants making them feel more like pajamas than dress pants. I layered a cowl neck sweater under the velvet cardigan and slipped my cold tootsies into some furry line rose gold mules. A simple tassel necklace and earrings in gold and rose gold completed my look. All set for date night 2021-style!

Nancy

Nancy’s Fashion Style - “For  A date night at home, I let Gerben choose his favorite outfit on me!

Can it be anymore boring? In my eyes, I don't even like black and white together. And although he said that I have a lot of beautiful dresses, he likes a black pencil skirt, a simple white blouse and classic pumps. A few simple golden jewelry and, and that is what he likes the most of course.....my black stockings! Oh men.....”

                                                                                 Nina

 Sharing a Journey - Wondering what to do for Valentines Day this year?  I’ve got you covered with a two part series!  Last Friday I created a whole post about what to do for Valentines Day 2021 and today I’m sharing some great outfits to go with a variety of possible dates!

Suzanne

Ask Suzanne Bell - Like many moms, I don’t remember the last time I went out on Valentines Day with just my husband. But, that doesn’t mean we don’t celebrate with a bottle of wine and usually steamed mussels for the 4 of us, and of course a yummy dessert! Jennafer Grace makes the most beautiful, old Hollywood style comfortable pieces  - like this 2-piece shimmer set - perfect for lounging in style at home. Today I’m sharing how I style a few of my Jennafer Grace favorites along with a recipe for my favorite cocktail..Cheers!

Andrea

 Pearls and Pantsuits - “The hubs and I enjoy date nights at home every Sunday night, and they rock for me, because he usually does all the cooking! He also mixes up one heck of a cocktail. I found this beautiful rose top at Target, and styled it with my favorite jeans and booties, added my Mom’s pearl necklace and felt super fancy! Pop on over for all the deets on my outfit, and that cocktail recipe you are NOT going to want to miss!”

Julie

  Fashion Trends and Friends -  Mr. FTF and I are pretty boring when it comes to at home dates.  We like keeping it simple.  For us a good time date night at home includes:  carryout (I don’t cook!), Netflix, maybe a bowl of popcorn or some type of desert and LAUGHS always lots of laughs!  I’m usually dressed super casual - think sweatshirts and sweatpants (I do have the cutest Valentine’s set!)!  However since it is the week of LOVE, I’m sharing all of my Valentine’s looks - many can actually be worn year round.  By the way, we love to go out and do so at least once a week.  Illinois is back open for indoor dining so we have reservations at our favorite restaurant for Valentine’s Day!  Hope you feel all the LOVE this week and have many reasons to LOVE BIG!

Michele

On Instagram as Seechele_styles "Wore this thrifted blue and white heart sweater to date night last weekend paired with my vintage Levi’s jeans and pop of red hand bag  and fun sneakers with red shoe laces."

Nicole

 High Latitude Style - “Date night means dancing for us. Then a sleek fit-and-flare dress is a Must. This dress has too much cleavage for my taste, but works well for layering with a halftee underneath. In Interior Alaska, date night can also be early in the morning. In winter,  it’s dark until late in the morning (only 3.5 h of daylight at winter solstice. In summer, there is daylight 24/7 for 84 days. More on Alaska lifestyle on the blog.

Emma

 The Style Splash - "We don't usually go out for Valentine's Day - and we certainly won't be this year - but I welcome the excuse to wear red! The rainbow striped sweater with the word "amour" on it (French for love, of course) seems very appropriate."

                                                                                   Gwen

Gwen Lives Well and Instagram - GwenLivesWell - I don't know about you, but I can probably count on one hand the number of times I've actually been out on Valentine's Eve. I mean, yes, when I was in my twenties with no kids, maybe I might have ventured out, but more often than not, home is where I wanted to be. Why deal with busy restaurants, cold food, harried servers when you can have a romantic Valentine's date night at home? Sharing some suggestions for fab date nights at home, whether it’s Valentine’s Eve or not!

And Me!

Amy’s Creative Pursuits - .   A date night outfit to wear at home has to be comfortable and cozy, yet pretty and romantic at the same time.  This black floral kimono was a gift to me from my husband.  I love to wear it on our home date nights with a romantic camisole.  I completed the “Comfy  & Cozy” requirement with a pair of soft joggers.

Have A Great Day! Amy

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A Handmade Wedding Card For A Beautiful Wedding

Today I have a post to share that celebrates the goodness of life amidst all the sadness with the world's response to Covid.  I had a very busy, but blessed weekend celebrating two life moments in two dear friends lives:  one was a wedding and the other was a baby shower.  I've known both of these dear friends for many years.  We have watched together our kids grow up, and now we celebrate the marital unions of our children and the birth of our first grand babies.  There is something special about friendships that stand the test of time and that celebrate life's milestones together.  This week I will cover my dear friend's Julia's daughter's wedding and next week I will cover the baby shower of my other dear friend Sandy's daughter-in-law.

First, I want to show the card I made for the bride and groom:  Savannah and Trevor.  I kept the card on the simpler side because I think that is more to Savannah's taste, plus I was really pressed for time this week.  

I used a retired Stampin' Up set called "Wedding Wishes".  I simply stamped the main image and sentiment directly on a card base and colored it in slightly with Copic Markers.  I then adhered the card base to a light grey mat to make it pop.  

Now I'd like to show you a few snap shots of the wedding venue.  The wedding was held in a renovated factory that took milk from its original form and made it into other products such as condensed or powdered milk.  They named the 1903 building "The Condensery" in honor of its history.

They did such an excellent job of keeping the beauty of the original craftsmanship of the factory and yet adding the modern conveniences like elevators.

There are three rooms on the upper levels of The Condensery.  One was a large banquet hall and overflow room, and the other room is used as a dance hall/bar.  On the lower level of the building is a restaurant.

I just loved these big wooden doors!

This is the large banquet hall with the wedding party table on the right.

The bride kept the decor simple, yet elegant and a bit rustic at the same time:  the perfect blend for the atmosphere of the establishment if you were to ask me.  Each table had a burlap runner with a blue Mason canning jar sitting on top of a round wood slice.  The floral arrangements included pink Gerbera Daisies mixed with Baby's Breath.   Small gold votives and some Lindsor Truffles completed the display.

My favorite decor of the wedding was the dessert table...but I am partial to cake so why wouldn't it be?  I just loved the rustic decor of this table!  

Savannah used old wooden crates and old metal tins to create different levels of height on the table.  Pretty pink and white cupcakes were placed in delicate, lacy pink liners once again contrasting the beauty of the old with the new.  A few of the same floral arrangements used on the tables was brought in to tie everything together.

I just loved this cute sign too!  I am one that really enjoys the art and taste of a beautiful wedding cake at a wedding, but if you're not going to have a cake, as many couples today choose not to do, this was a great alternative as it was very well done.

The bridal bouquets were a romantic mix of pink roses and pink Gerbera Daisies mixed with white roses and babies breath.  They were so lovely.  The wedding was originally scheduled for May but was delayed due to Covid lockdowns, that is why the bride went with spring colors.

Many weddings have personal touches woven throughout to commemorate lost loved ones who could not be with them in person but are there in spirit.  One of the most touching aspects of this wedding was to see beautiful butterflies in the brides and the matron of the brides hair to remember the brides beautiful nephew and the matron of honor's lovely infant son.

The bridesmaids wore exquisite, full length,  blush pink halter dresses.

The bride looked absolutely stunning in her gown by Ines Di Santo.  

And finally, I want to show you my dear friend Julia, the Mother-of-the-Bride.  Julia is such a naturally beautiful woman any day of the week, but she looked exceptionally gorgeous in her dress by Tadashi Shoji purchased from Nordstrom.  It has an off-white lining with a sequined taupe sheer overlay.  My dress you will hear more about in my next "Ageless Style" post.  I had originally purchased a blush pink floral halter dress for Savannah's wedding, but when the wedding was moved to September, and the temperatures dipped to low fifties/sixties, I thought I'd better find something else to wear.  I found this gorgeous fall dress at JCPenney.

Of course my husband/photographer never noticed the wind blew my flutter sleeve up before snapping these photos 😄 But I do love this dress.  It is a very soft knit and is so comfortable to wear and the colors are very suitable for fall.  I loved it so much I wore it again the very next day to the baby shower!

This last photo is not only to show my footwear but these gorgeous wooden floors!  My husband couldn't stop commenting on how much he loved the floors of this old building.

I hope you enjoyed seeing how life continues on in spite of Covid and all the other nonsense going on in the world right now.  It was a wonderful weekend to get away from it all, and enjoy ourselves and celebrate the things that are really important in life:  family, friends, and God!

Have a Great Day!

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