Skip to main content

SOCIAL MEDIA

This was definitely a fun year for room makeovers! After we got married I did a lot of nesting and we did several home projects around that time. Last year, though, I did a ton of decluttering and really minimized our home. It was such a therapeutic project!  After we cleared things out I really wanted to refresh a few spaces in the house. The most dramatic change happened to our guest room! I still love how this room turned out and we haven't really changed much since I posted the makeover in January. We did add a small TV in place of the mirror above the desk, and I changed the Euro shams to a really nice gold/beige Ralph Lauren cover instead of the blue ones. 


January also included my favorite outfit post to date! This look is what I would love to wear everyday if I could! I absolutely still adore my camel coat and that tartan bag from Mark and Graham! Seeing these pictures actually made me go and get my haircut into that long bob again! 



February is our anniversary month! We celebrated 7 years in 2017. (Which means 8 is coming up next!) And I wrote one of my favorite posts ever about our marriage. The post sort of evolved as I sat down typing. It started out as a just a quick blurb about our anniversary, and it turned into a really neat summary of each year we've been married. Every year has been different, but it really does keep getting better. (If you work hard together at it.) 


In March I shared all the things that make me a weirdo. That was super fun to write, and I so appreciated all of the comments joining in on the weirdo party! 


Continuing the 2017 makeovers was the fun update we did to our master bedroom. I absolutely adore this paint color and I still really like the way we rearranged the furniture! I will say that the quilt set we bought absolutely did not hold up. We had it for about 6 months, and it started to feel rough and some of the seams were coming loose. We grabbed a different quilt from Ross and overall the room still looks pretty much the same. 

That post inspired my entire Home Tour series! You can see every room of our house there, including pictures of what these rooms looked like originally and how they've transformed over the years. I absolutely love before and after photos, so I thought maybe you do too! 


I was so happy to share my personal project of trying to reconcile being positive but also being irritated by a lot of things/people at the same time. This attitude adjustment really helped me! Being critical or judgemental is the last thing I want to be, so I've really worked on that this year. These feelings resurfaced a little bit last month with a family issue so I'm obviously still working on it-but I really think it's less often, which is great.
I LOVED sharing my blogger bloopers with you in May! Fashion blogging is obviously not my full time job, but I have so much fun taking pictures with my photographer and I think that really shows in this post. In future outfit posts I'd like to include more of these types of pictures! 


This June marked 1 year since we adopted Bailey! It was just absolutely amazing to watch her blossom over this past year. She is such a good dog, and all she wants to do is cuddle under the blanket with you.  She is our most problematic pug, with all the typical problems associated with the breed. She gets terrible allergies, so we have to give her a pill for her itchiness. She also has the driest eyes! The girl basically gets Restasis for dogs, which ain't cheap, but it makes a huge difference for her.


I also had a blast with Blake being a fashion blogger for the day! He was such a good sport, and these are honestly some of my favorite photos of him and us of all time! 


After testing a few home-made cleaners in the first part of the year, I was really excited to share some recipes with you all! The window cleaner and room freshening spray are still my favorites! Since starting my Grove subscription I don't make a whole lot of cleaners anymore, but I still stand by these recipes. I will admit the smell of vinegar is not my favorite, so I'm more likely to reach for my Mrs Meyers all purpose spray. 


I also have to mention my Going Digital post about ditching my paper planner! It is by far my most popular post of this year. 


June was also the month I launched my new blog design! I spent about a month working on it, and since then I haven't changed anything! I really love it and think it represents me very well. Sometimes you just gotta change it up! 



I spent a lot of time this summer trying out DIYs! I'm still obsessed with this castile soap face wash. I've changed it up a little by adding in frankincense and a bit of jojoba oil! The jojoba oil make this foam so luxurious! (You do need to shake it very well before use, since the oil and water separate.) 


My favorite project of the whole year! We did a little vlog of our annual West Palm trip, and I love how it turned out! Obviously I can see a thousand ways we could do better next time, but watching this makes me so happy. I don't think we are going to be able to go in 2018, sadly! 





In by far my most personal post of the year, I shared my thoughts on my almost mental breakdown. 2016 was a really hard year, for a lot of small reasons mostly. 2017 has been such a turnaround for me! I feel like a completely different person now. I thought that maybe my experience might resonate with you and would also help me remember this season of my life! (That's the main reason I love blogging!) 


In September I did my first giveaway! Sponsored posts are no joke, but I absolutely LOVE these photos and my teeth whitening results were very real! It actually makes me miss summer and we've only had like 5 days of cold weather so far.. 


September was definitely clouded by Hurricane Irma! We knew so far in advance that she was heading our way, and we were SO ready to go back to our normal lives. We only lost power for a few days but many of our friends didn't have power again for over a week. 


Sharing my makeup routine was something I had been wanting to do for months! I'm so glad I finally bit the bullet and shared this! I SO appreciate recommendations from other people, so I know you all do too. I AM kinda ticked when I look at my after photo because I had just gotten my eyebrows done by a complete newbie and she screwed up my left brow!! It's finally back to normal, but that picture makes me cringe a little. 


We adored our trip to North Carolina in November! It was such a nice getaway and entirely too short. The Biltmore was the highlight for me! 


After a lot of reflecting, I was so happy to be able to put into words what I've been trying to express for a while now. Friendship in your twenties is SO interesting, and it's amazing what seasons and transitions in your life you go through-and sometimes you don't even see it until much later. 


I finally did it! I managed to take a photo of my outfit every day for a month! (I seriously have about a dozen photos of outfits in July that I have no idea what to do with. Not the first failure, I might add.) The lemon dress was by far everyone's favorite! It's mine too. It's the perfect outfit when you don't know what else to wear, great for multiple occasions and comfortable!! 


And that wraps up 2017! I only had about 70 posts this year, which is crazy compared to 2015, when I posted 205 times! The thing is, I'm really happy with what I'm sharing here. I know I could do better, because I can't count how many times I don't bring my camera to something. But, what I do share is meaningful to me and it's not something that I just post for the sake of posting. 

Thank you so much for following me along this year! Bring it on 2018!!
{Here is the best of 2016, the best of 2015 and the best of 2014}

My Favorite Posts of 2017!

Friday, December 29, 2017

It's no secret that the weather in Florida makes it really hard to get dressed. Specifically when the seasons shift to fall and winter! The rest of the world is bundling up, and sometimes we're still wearing shorts in December. 









Earrings // Top // Vest // Jeans // Boots (old DSW) // Clutch // Watch // Bracelets 

The mornings can be so cold, but the afternoons can be 20 or 30 degrees warmer. I can't tell you how many cardigans I've peeled off and are in the backseat of my car...I'm so thankful that vests became popular a few years ago, because it is absolutely the perfect extra layer when the weather gets weird! They keep your core warm, but your arms are free to move around. And it's super easy to take on and off as the day goes on. 

While I definitely LOVE fall fashion (the layers and colors!!) I am totally a summer girl. Who in their right mind loves chapped lips, or when your car shocks you as you close the door, or all the brown plants?! 

This Post Contains Affiliate Links!

Ode To The Vest!

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

These Currently Loving posts are some of my favorite things to share! I feel like I'm recommending things I really like to friends. It's also how I get great recommendations in return! The things I'm sharing this month are sort of random, but it was actually really easy for me to make this list. It's all stuff I'm genuinely happy I bought and will most likely buy again!

I kind of accidentally stumbled upon this. I really needed a detangling spray, because for some reason my hair has been a beast in the tangles department lately. (In fact my watch told me 'Great workout!' after brushing my hair one morning!!) I ran into Ulta on my lunch break and as usual meandered around the store with no idea what I was doing. There were about 50 employees but no one ever asked me to help. Anyways. I found this spray. Marc Anthony was in my Ipsy box several times, so I figured I'd give it a shot. 

Not only does it smell amazing, but it really helps with tangles. I didn't really notice that it was a growth support spray until I got home but that was just icing on the cake. My hair has really grown  a lot recently (yay regular vitamin taking!) and this was actually the perfect thing to find. 

Marc Anthony Grow Long Spray

After going vegetarian, and subsequently dairy free, I have kind of had to completely re-curate my recipe collection. Super difficult, but it's also nice to mix things up and try new things. Many, many recipes that are dairy free call for nutritional yeast, which I had never heard of. 

Basically, it's a flaky seasoning. It has a really interesting nutty, cheesy flavor. Hence, why it's in a lot of dairy free recipes! It's also in a lot of vegetarian recipes because it is a source of B12 which most people get from meat. 

In addition to all of the new recipes I've been trying, I've been adding this to popcorn! It's delicious! 

Nutritional Yeast

This is the best stuff!! A friend of ours saw this dessert hummus on Shark Tank recently and when she saw it at our grocery store she made everyone she knew try it. I'm hooked! It's great on fruit, vanilla wafers, or even pretzels. 

I thought I had some in the fridge, but I guess we ate it all....so here is a stock photo! You can find it right next to the regular hummus at the store! 


In my latest Grove shipment I added in wool dryer balls! I've been wanting to get some, but they aren't the cheapest thing in the world to justify. Grove's own brand came out with them maybe a month ago, and I instantly added them to my next shipment. I am seriously impressed. They cut the drying time by almost half! You can add a few drops of essential oils to the balls and that adds a really nice scent to your laundry. The balls bounce around in the dryer and separate your clothes which really helps get big blankets dried evenly and faster. 

Use my link to sign up for Grove and get $10 off! I really didn't think I'd love this website as much as I do.

Wool Dryer Balls

I am not a candle person, but this is one that I seriously love! Most candles give me headaches, but I thought a soy candle with a vanilla fragrance would be the safest one to try. It's lovely and homey! I'm not sure if I will purchase it again because I pretty much solely use my diffuser to add scent to our house, but this was definitely worth buying! These last for something like 70 hours and you can reuse the mason jar when it's spent. 

Grove Collab Soy Candle

As a professional handwasher, I am super particular about my dish soap! I go back and forth between Method and Mrs. Meyers because I love both brands. But, I just discovered the Mrs. Meyer's Basil scent. It smells amazing! I am always scared to try new scents, unless I can smell them in the store. I actually HATE the MM lavender scent. It gives me the worst headache. So, I'm wary. Our Publix started selling the basil scent, so I gave it a sniff and was sold. 

Just this week when I was in Target I smelled the bluebell scent and that's definitely the one I'm buying next. It reminds me of the soap my mom used to buy when I was growing up. 

Also, side note. I can't have the Mrs. Meyers dish soap without a Mrs. Meyer's hand soap next to it. So, there is literally a half used Method hand soap under the sink until I buy a Method dish soap again. #IKnowI'mWeird

Mrs. Meyers Cleaning Products

Digital planning is still my jam, but I decided to try out a small addition to that system with a more at-a-glance calendar on the fridge. This ended up being the perfect solution for those times when I'm on the phone and need to pick a date for something, or just need a quick mental reminder about what we have going on. 

I have a lot more details in my Google calendar-like anniversaries and schedules. But this is very helpful for those times when I'm doing something out of the ordinary. The smaller weekly calendar we've used for years as a meal planning chart-and that system has been really great for us. Loving this little command center!

Fridge Command Center

Erin Condren Notebook (Use my referral code for a discount!)
Again, I am still digital planning, but after seeing another blogger do this I really wanted to try adding this to my routine. I designed an Erin Condren coiled notebook, which I think is SO fun. Customization is everything. 

Each page has a gray heading and then it's layed out like a regular notebook. I have been adding the date on the top of the page, and then making a sort of to-do list for the day underneath. I started on October 31st, so I felt like I could share this after a month of experimenting with it. 

I have found this SO helpful. I've been making lists each day differently. Sort of writing down whatever is going to help me be productive that day. So, some days I write a generic to do list. Other days I make a list of what I need to pack. Adding things like 'text whoever' or 'pray about this' has just taken my productivity to the next level. 

In my digital planning post I mention the app Wunderlist, which I still use! There are times a digital list is great. But, I really like writing down a few goals for the day in my notebook over breakfast and so this notebook is working great for that purpose. 

Erin Condren Coiled Notebook

Leave a comment below if we share any favorite this time! Tell me what you are currently loving, and if you like seeing other people's recommendations!
This post contains affiliate links, at no cost to you!

Recent Favorites

Wednesday, December 6, 2017


Hello!

Hi friends! I'm Kristen, and this is the Life and Style of an early 30's Floridian living the Best Life Ever, with her husband and three pugs. Runner | Avid Reader | Small Shop Owner

Follow me on Instagram