Merry Christmas!

To all of my readers around the world who are celebrating Christmas today (as I am), have a merry and blessed day celebrating His birth filled with love; joy, peace and hope!

EVERY good and perfect gift truly is from above!

Warmly,

Snow? I Can Dream....

My current background

SNOW. Do you love it or loathe it?  For many that happen to live in a State, Province or Country that is used to their fair share of the white fluffy stuff, many asked would say they'd wish it away for sunshine and tropical weather anyday!

I, on the other hand, grew up with it for many years and have spent the last few years living without it. Tropical and sunny is nice, but I'm ready for a seasonal change, this has been one long, hot year with just a few days of chilly. This will be my fourth year here to be exact and I MISS the snow . If you had asked me about this 5 years ago I may not have had the same feeling. You see getting up an hour early to shovel my driveway and chip the ice off of my windshield was never the highlight of my day. In fact, it was windy, bitter cold and often quite wet and slippery. For those that adore the fresh, clean scent of freshly fallen snow, dream with me a little from the comfort of a warm, cozy place.

I was on the hunt for a new background for my laptop (my red autumn leaves were just a little outdated) and here is what I found....

I love the idea of a winter chalet or log cabin curled up by the fire with some hot cocoa and a good book. Look at that freshly fallen snow on the rooftops-gorgeous!

 This beautiful snow-covered bridge is so pretty and reminds me of a more simple time in life. I love how this photo captures the snow actually falling!

A close-up of some snowflakes!

The snow brings winter birds.

 Crisp, clean and majestic.

I love the contrast of the icy branches against the bright, blue sky.

Snow and ice in Greenland-how artistic!

Perfect for the ones who don't like driving in snow. ;)

I love deer. I saw some in the mountains while spending a week in California this fall.

The perfect snowy, sunny day.

The snowy scenery wouldn't be complete without a snowman.

Isn't this just precious? This photo warms my heart.

You can see a third deer's ear in the background behind the railing.

So interesting to see animals check each other out. ;)

Happy Day Dreaming!

 

12 Homemade Christmas Gifts and Decor for Under $10

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Shopping for Christmas gifts on a budget can sometimes feel like a downer. Likewise, decorating a home and not knowing how to do it with little cash can make the best of people feel frustrated. I've provided some of my favorite holiday decor and homemade gift ideas. Most of these double as the other so as you are getting your own home ready you can make some extras that will prove to be creative, special presents for your loved ones. Have a blast making each of these fun crafts at a fraction of what you might pay in a store. Enjoy!

1. Berry Votive Holder- Dress up any plain glass votive holder with berries on wire at any Michael's craft store and wind around the holder. Once the circle is formed use some fine craft wire or picture hanging wire from any dollar store and tie the ends together. My favorite colors are gold, silver, burgundy wine, or red. For a fun flair use cream or baby blue. Use these in your own home or wrap them up as a set of four or six in a pretty box with a gorgeous bow for a great gift. The exact same items double as napkin holders too!

2. Festive Napkin Holders- Use plain wooden napkin holders and paint them any color such as red, gold, silver, or white and embellish them with a small bell, snowflake, beads, or simply another paint color with pattern of snowflake, polka dots, stripes etc.

 3. Funky Centerpiece- Fill an inexpensive glass vase (tall cylindrical work best) with all sizes of the same color glass ornaments balls. I like red, green, gold, silver, or blue. Use one color but multiple designs such as stripes, swirls, frosted, shiny etc. With a large enough bowl this can make a great centerpiece. Try hot and spicy red for your dinner table. You can purchase inexpensive balls at dollar stores, discount stores like Ross, Walmart ,Target or try the Salvation Army.

4. Ornament Wreath- I've seen so many gorgeous ornament wreaths and they can easily be made with marked down ornaments after Christmas for the next year and make a wonderful gift. the one above was made by none other than Martha herself. Here are the directions to make your own!

 5. Create Cool Coasters- Use a (4) 4" ceramic tiles from a hardware store of any color (white works best) and use rub-on stencils with Christmas designs, festive verbiage or even monogram letters to use on each tile. Once finished you can spray with a glaze gloss to seal it. You'll want to put some self-adhesive felt or little rubber feet on the bottom so the coasters won't scratch the table. Walmart is a great place to find the felt material.  

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6. Christmas Art Frame- Use pre-made frames that are fun and fit at least a 4" x 6" picture for holiday words such as JOY, LOVE or PEACE. Use pretty wrapping paper or fonts from your computer then print them out to slide behind the glass instead of a photo. Silver and Gold frames are my favorite for the season. Feel free to use barn board, wood, plastic, whatever you have around the house. These are cute décor gifts for friends and family also.

7. Mini Snow-covered tree- Collect a bunch of twigs long enough to pop out of a decent size vase. Use decoupage glue and white tissue paper to create a neat effect for the vase or leave as clear filled with glass ornaments or whatever you like. Spray paint the twigs white and use fishing wire to dangle tiny ornaments and vintage jewelry for fun effect. Use on a table, at an entry way, or in a bedroom. Feel free to add some basic white indoor lights for a nice evening glow.

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8. Monogrammed Towels- To stay on budget, buy some great basic kitchen towels with a simple stripe at the bottom in red, blue, green or even black. Use a lettered script stencil and some fabric paint to paint their surname initial on the towel. Feel free to make up a set of two with different colors if you can find the kitchen towels at a super discounted price. Alternatively, if you have a sewing machine that will stitch the monogram on, you could use that instead.

9. Holiday Centerpiece- One of the simplest centerpieces is a glass vase filled with water and real cranberries (not frozen, not dried) and a white floating candle. Use an interesting vase with a large opening or a great glass dish. Either way the cranberries and candle will float and look wonderful. Ensure to use a non-scented candle if this will go on your dining table. We wouldn't want the scent to interfere with the wonderful aroma of your home-cooked meal.

10. Home-Made Snow Globe- Use old jam jars to create a winter snow globe. You'll need water, the jam jar, glitter of your choice, epoxy glue, ribbon and a small figurine or a few for the inside. Use the epoxy glue and secure the figurine(s) to the lid on the inside. Then pour some glitter or plastic mini snowflakes inside the jar. Now add distilled water without bacteria and close the jar tightly. Lastly add some ribbon around the bottom of the globe (the lid) to hide it and you are done. Again, gift or your own décor...you decide.

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11. Holiday Dishware- Places such as Ikea and discount stores can provide for a set of 4 bowls and plates that you can paint up with glass paint. Be sure if you are going to eat off of them that the paint is used for that. You can use white ceramic or glass bowls and dishes. For the glass set, use glass etching cream and a stencil for a great effect. Wrap up the set and away you go.

12. Primp those Pillows-Take your existing pillows and make them holiday ready with some simple organza. Take square or rectangular pillows and wrap the sheet of organza around the back until the ties meet the front. Now make a bow. The idea here is to use colors that work. So, if you have red pillows, use some gold organza. If you have plain white pillows, use red or gold etc. If you are handy with the sewing machine you can make some simple square slipcovers for your existing ones so you can change them back when the holiday is over. Using an old knit sweater is another fun cover for them. A neat idea for slip covers is velvet. Use an iron and a stamper. Take the backside of the fabric and place the iron there. On the good side of the velvet is where you'll press the stamper into. After you are done the pattern will be revealed either as one large centered detail or several small ones all over. Use this for chair covers too!

If you enjoyed the DIY projects in this post but don't feel very crafty and you're still looking for a unique gifts for your family, you can get started by checking out these ready made great Christmas gifts for mom.


What lovely decor and homemade gifts have you created this Christmas? I'd love to hear about it!

Want more Christmas-related posts? Click the links below:

12 Dates of Christmas

Party dress inspiration

Gift Cards are the New Fruitcake?

Quick tidy up tips

Humble & Merry Christmas

To Re-Gift or not to Re-gift?

I Won a Christmas Blog Giveaway

Re-gifting Etiquette

Thanks for reading!

XO

Reader Request: Bringing Classy Back

As promised in Thursday's post, here is our first reader request, and it comes from Kimberly-thank you for your candid email!

Hello,

I love your Classy Woman blog. I just found it tonight through the "How to do Everything" website and I've been reading the website for hours already.

I believe in everything you wrote and want to find myself/reinvent myself again.

I was divorced 2 years ago and have really let me myself go, not really taking care of myself and just existing most days. But, your post sparked my interest and reminded me of the classy and elegant woman I used to be. I took out my Journal and began to write ways to find myself again.


Do you have any specific suggestions for me?


I've gained a tremendous amount of weight (for me) and I know this has to be dealt with first and foremost. Making time for myself and not saying yes to everyone else's requests is another biggie for me.


Thanks so much,

Kimberly

Here was my e-mail response to Kimberly and my suggestions are below.

Hi Kimberly,



Thank you so much for your e-mail. :) I'm so glad to hear that you've been enjoying my blog and that you found it!


I'm sorry to hear about the turn you took after the divorce. This is common for many women after such a transition, you are not alone. I even watched a similar type of shift occur after my mother and father divorced several years ago. It is truly a physically, mentally and emotionally draining time in one's life.


I am delighted to share some great ways for you to take charge of your life again and regain that powerful, classy and fabulous woman that you so dearly miss. Taking time for yourself is SO important and that is one areas that I'll be addressing in the post. When you are left with more responsibility, it is natural to take care of everyone else first but it is us women that suffer in the end. I used to be a Personal Trainer and managed a nutrition store several years ago and can provide some good information tips and fresh inspiration to help you lose the weight you've gained as well.


I will be posting a response to your 'reader request' tomorrow- Sunday, Dec. 20th. :) I'll email you once it's posted!



Have a blessed weekend.
 
Warmly,
Karla


One of the best ways to recover after an emotional event like a divorce is to take more "you" time. With children that may mean getting a babysitter for a few hours or asking a family member or friend if they'd mind watching them. The best thing is to schedule one weeknight or weekend time slot per week where you can get out and have coffee with your girlfriends, go to the gym, go see a movie or get a manicure. This time is important to release the stresses of your week and get connected with other women. It doesn't have to involve spending money, even taking a hot bath with specials oils, candles and soft music playing can be soothing and will calm your mind. Be sure to surround yourself with positive, uplifting, classy women.


The key is to use a dayplanner or calender to pen in these special days for yourself. Don't feel guilty that you are leaving your children for self-rejuvenation time. The truth is that you can't give what you don't have. If you're running on empty you won't be able to give others your best until your batteries are recharged.

Most women I know feel overwhelmed because they've said 'yes' and promised to do too many things for others, leaving no time for themselves. The best thing to answer in response to someone asking you to take on responsibility that you don't have time for or don't really want to do is to say with a smile, 'I'd love to but I just can't".  If they ask again in another way, just repeat the same phrase. If anyone continues to ask why you can't do it or why you won't they are simply being rude. No means no. Once you start saying 'no' instead of 'yes' you will feel freedom that you haven't felt in a while. You will have just opened up your schedule for a whole lot more 'you' and 'family' timend you'll feel a sense of control over you life that you probably haven't  felt in years.


If your budget allows, buy one new item for yourself each month. It doesn't have to be expensive but it does have to be something that will give you a lift. Maybe it's a new pair of shoes that go with much of your wardrobe and make you feel happy and sexy whenever you wear them. Perhaps it is a new shade of lipstick or a fun nailpolish to transform your toes. Whatever it is, it has to make you feel good about yourself.


Many women start to care less about their appearance and do not spend the same kind of time getting dressed for work or going out with friends. Often, older jeans and sweats become the norm and they forget what it's like to get dressed up or feel like a beautiful woman. While your goal might not be to attract a man or even look for someone at this moment, you'll feel more confident once you spend some time in this area.  Look at your closet wardrobe and separate it into two sections: one for work/nicer outfits and the other (hopefully smaller side) for relaxing in  your home and gym attire. Make a diligent effort to try to dress up even when going to purchase groceries for example. It may seem like extra work but you'll feel better about yourself. Women always stand taller and have their heads held high when dressed to make themselves feel beautiful vs. dressing to get the task done.


Love Yourself! We as women must speak nicely not only to others but most importantly to ourselves. What we tell ourselves everyday shapes how we see ourselves. Thoughts like 'I feel so fat today' or  'look at all these wrinkles!' only help to create a negative self image. We need to speak kind words to ourselves especially on those days when we feel anything but beautiful, and we all have those days. We need to love and be thankful for our health and what we do have.


Your Home- Make sure your home is also a true refuge, filled with things you love. When people reinvent themselves they often reinvent the space around them too. Sometimes a cluttered home, unhealthy fridge and pantry or jam-packed closets can be barriers to success. These areas often hold many people back but they don't realize it. It is very freeing to purge anything from your home that does not make you happy. The same is true for clothing. If you don't feel good about yourself in it, do not wear it and if it's fasionably outdated, pass it along by donating it so someone can get some use from it.


You had mentioned that you 'let yourself go' and this is common for many women dealing with such transition. Just like it's important to schedule fun time for yourself, you'll also want to schedule several weekly gym days or walking days. Start small and move up as your body gets used to the level you're at. I don't recommend overwhelming yourself with 2-hour workouts. Begin by walking in your neighborhood or on a treadmill. Day after day increase your distance or the intensity/speed. Once you feel comfortable with that you could move to resistance training by using some light free weights and increase the weight slowly over time. Anything that involves too much sacrifice, too much time or too little food will drain you of your energy and desire to lose weight. Take things slowly watching both your food intake AND how much exercise you are getting in each week.


I could write you a whole book on health but I will share with you the essentials:


1. Exercise a minimum of 30 mins 4-5 days per week.
2. Drink plenty of water (your weight divided by 14 is how many 8oz glasses you require)
3. Take a solid multivitamin
4. Eat as many veggies and as much fruit as you can
5. Focus on whole grains, eliminating white bread, pasta, rice.
6. Eliminate sweets/sugar-filled foods (they will zap you of your energy!)
7. Eat protein with each meal (cottage cheese, cheese, peanut butter, meats, fish, etc.) as they will keep you feeling full longer and help with your muscle development
8. Make sure you're getting enough fiber to keep things moving (about 30-35 grams per day)
9. Eliminate alcohol and caffeine as they really wreak havoc with your metabolism and your organs.
10. Eat whole, raw foods like veggies, fruits as often as you can and try to avoid chemicals and preservatives which can interfere with the liver's optimal functioning.


*Disclaimer* Note that it is important to consult your doctor when implementing a new weight loss, fitness or diet regimen.


Be sure to set some attainable and realistic goals for yourself. Remember, it took some time to put  the weight on and it will take some time to take it off.  Spend more time at a local YMCA or your own backyard with the kids playing outdoors and incorporating more activity into your life so it feels less like work and more like fun! Another  great way to make working out more fun is to join with a friend where you'll have an instant  accountability parter who you need to 'show up' for.


Here are some additional articles on health that I have written that I hope you'll find helpful:


Lose Weight with Negative Calorie Foods
Exercise and the Mind-Body connection
Lose Weight and Keep it off for a Lifetime!
Eat Healthy with 10 Simple Tips
Lose Weight, Feel Great
7 Healthy Food Substitutions


If you are feeling as though the emotional burdens of the divorce are weighing heavy on you and friends and family are not enough to talk to, do seek out someone who can help you work through this time in your life.


Additionally, my husband is an Author and Life Coach and has a great book available on Amazon that might be helpful for your healing process. It's called Breakthrough for a Broken Heart which is a must read for anyone that has gone though a divorce, break up or loss of someone special.


As you probably read in one of my posts, I have a book for Classy Women due out shortly and I will share the details at that time if you are interested in picking up a copy so you can bring classy back. :)


Kimberly, once again thank you for sharing your question. I hope you will find these suggestions and resources helpful and I believe that by sharing your comments and questions in your reader request that both your words and this post will postively impact the lives of other women at a similar place in life. Please feel free to send me an e-mail and update me/us on your success.


Be Blessed,

I FINALLY Won a Blog Giveaway!

Are you the type of person who ALWAYS wins? Whether it be scratch tickets, radio contests, giveaways or draws, you just seem to win them all? Or are you more like me who rarely wins but when you do you get SUPER excited? I wanted to share my excitement with you and give you hope that after multiple entries, if you keep entering blog giveaways long enough you'll eventually win. ;)

What has caused my excitement you ask? Well, I happened to wander on over to visit Ashley over at the Domestic Fasionista to peruse her wonderful Christmas posts. I read her post on being 'Blessed by a Frugal Christmas' and loved all the great, inexpensive ideas where the focus is on using what you have to decorate for Christmas, something that I firmly believe in.

At the end of her post, she had a fun giveaway for this Gooseberry Patch Christmas Book:

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I left a comment with a few frugal Christmas decorating ideas and I won this amazing book! Thanks Ashley! It arrived a couple days ago and I really enjoyed flipping through it to uncover some amazing recipes and some fun crafty ideas too!

Here's a sneak peak at one fo the recipes that I plan on making from this book. Do these look delicious, or what?! It seems easy enough to make and would be a yummy Christmas Day treat to munch on, or a sweet gift!

Sorry for the blurry pic, I snapped a pic from the book.

TOFFEE

1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup butter
3/4 brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Butter an 8"x8" baking pan; spread walnuts on the bottom. In a saucepan, heat butter and sugar; bring to a boil stirring constantly. Cook until mixture darkens, about 7 mins; immediately pour over walnuts. Sprinkle chocolate chips over the top; cover with a baking sheet to hold in heat until chocolate begins to melt. Spread chocolate over top. Regrigerate; break into pieces when cool. Makes about one pound

Recipe provided in the book by Wendy Lee Paffenroth. Pine Island, NY

At the time I had read Ashley's post, I had also been meaning to write a post of my own on our frugal Christmas, so here is my previous post titled 'A Humble and Merry Christmas'.

Speaking of blog Giveaways, stay tuned as Classy & Fabulous has some new sponsors and we're working together to provide you some fun giveaways in the New Year! I'm looking forward to seeing many of you become blog giveaway winners yourselves this year!

Be sure to 'follow' this blog so you'll be eligible for the goodies and we'd love it if you'd tell a friend. ;)

Have a wonderful weekend!

Reader Requests

After almost a year of blogging about the ins and outs of being a Classy and Fabulous woman, I'm creating an open forum where you will be able to email me your post requests and questions and I will answer them specifically in the form of an upcoming blog post so other women can benefit as well. If you want your question(s) to remain private, just mention that in your message or subject header and I will be happy to respond to you only and will not publish your question. If you've wondered about how to dress classy for an upcoming date or what the etiquette is for a particular occassion, or even how I snag such great deals, I'm here to answer them all. :)


Simply look to the left hand side of this blog page and scroll down until you see the large cream-colored envelope. Click on it and then type and send your message along with a subject header named 'Reader Request'.


I want this blog to be an open community of women to grow, learn from one another and feel comfortable. So, with that said I'll be starting the 'Reader Requests' this month. You can always chime in too and leave your opinion and feedback in the comments' section. The amount of reader requests will be determined by how often you email me. As a matter of fact, I have received my first few requests recently and wanted to share them with you. Stay tuned for those upcoming posts!


I look forward to reading your emails soon!

Warmly,

WARNING-Wash Before You Wear!

Do you know where you newly purchased clothes have been before you put them out for a night on the town? It may have never occured to you that the very 'new' articles of clothing you purchased are actually downright dirty!

When shopping for clothing and trying it on in the fitting room, we always want to believe that we were the only ones that tried it on-until we find a dark ring of foundation around the neck or lipstick on the sleeve, but that's not even the tip of the iceberg on the type of 'dirty' I'm referring to.

Most of the clothing widely available in the U.S. was not manufactured in the USA at all. Most clothing comes from China, Indonesia, Taiwan, etc. What you probably didn't know is that all of the clothing and any fabrics are first sprayed with toxic chemicals that prevent fungal or insect contamination. If clothes are not washed first before wearing, you are in effect wearing pesticides on your skin and breathing them in as well. This is also prevalent in baby clothing which is why it is also key to wash all baby clothing in fragrance-free natural detergent first before every putting it on baby's delicate and sensitive skin. A baby's liver has to work much harder to remove such toxic compounds which is why infants are not supposed to wear even sunscreen at a very young age.

Did you know that most of the clothing that you'll buy has also probably wound up on the floor of a store at some point? When I was young, and fresh out of highschool I had a chance to work at two different clothing stores and I can tell you first hand that the clothing has a tendency to collect dust and when tried on in a fitting room, often winds up on the floor, sometimes stepped on and when being re-hung by store employees, has often been dragged on the ground if the article is long such as a bathrobe. Doesn't sound too appealing, does it?

Last week I was behing a woman at the checkout at a local Target store and I heard her tell the cashier that she didn't want to put the clothing on the conveyor belt (I don't blame her). After all-groceries such as packages of chicken run on the same belt so it's liable to become stained or dirty. She surprised me though when she then commented "I don't want to have to wash it BEFORE I wear it". That part I didn't agree with so much because of the reasons mentioned above. It's important to wash everything including undergarments and bras in packaging also, they are also treated before being shipped.

We never know what fabric or clothing goes through from the country of origin all the way to the truck or boat it was packed on to the point that it reaches a warehouse and then finally makes its arrival at the store. It may look clean, but I assure you  that ALL clothing is in fact dirty. As annoying as it may seem, after all it IS another step and another thing we need to worry about, I promise you the 2 seconds it takes to pop it in with your other laundry will be well worth it in the end!

While we're on the subject, if you're unsure of which type of pure, natural and eco-friendly detergents to use that are also safe for your skin (mainstream commercial detergents are not safe and can irritate delicate skin with harsh chemicals and fragrances causing allergies and skin irritations, and also pollute our waterways and fishy friends), here are a few great choices:

1. Method 'Squeaky Green'- Laundry detergent for adult/baby (they also offer dryer sheets)
2. Seventh Generation- Offer Adult and Baby detergents
3. Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day-Lavender Laundry detergent (other natural scents available)
4. Ecover Delicate Wash -Great detergent for lingerie, intimate apparel
5. Purex Natural Elements-Least expensive eco/skin-friendly detergent.

I have tried all of these above. They are a little more expensive than the traditional soaps however you are not only helping the environment, but are adding less chemicals to your skin that it absorbs and that your liver then has to process and detox. These are all concentrated formulas so you need less of them.

After learning the truth about what is really in our clothing, will you be washing before you wear?