Harvest Sign 2016–With Guest Blogger My Cousin Stacey

On September 11, 2016September 11, 2016 By ArlynnIn Seasonal DecorLeave a comment

My sweet cousin Stacey has been kind enough to share another one of her amazing creations with all of us!!! Wait till ya’ll see *this*!! ❤

This is me (in the black blouse) with Stacey:

Okie dokie…Take it away Stacey!!

*****Hello Everyone!! It’s your favorite random relative of Arlynn’s, Stacey!! I’m here to show you how to do a Fall decor item that requires ZERO crafting or artistic ability! Woo! (It’s also great for getting out some aggression as you get to beat the snot out of a plank of wood!) So, lets begin the easiest craft project I’ve ever created!

I had a VERY large wall space that I wanted to cover. I needed a piece of art (or something) to cover a space approx 4’ long by 1’ tall. I scoured Home Goods, Hobby Lobby, Kirklands and everywhere in between looking for such a large piece with no luck. So that meant I was going to have to create something. I wanted something to compliment the decor I already had on the opposing wall. Pretty rustic and quite specific. (No, sadly, I did not create this

beauty) But, no worries, I was on a mission and once that happens, crafting magic is about to go down!

I started by creating my “ingredients” list. Plank of wood 1’x4’. (You can make yours any size you like!), chalk paint and wax, brushes, cloth, roller brush, sander/sand paper, tools to distress wood (chains, screwdrivers, hammer, etc) letters to attach, hooks for hanging and a glue gun to attach your letters.

First place I headed to was my other favorite craft store…HOME DEPOT!! Oh my goodness y’all! I love me some Home Depot! Those guys see me and turn the other way because they know I’m going to make them cut, sand, search or reach something for me! LOL! Suck it up buttercup, I’ve got decor to create! But, they got lucky this time because I found a super cheap plank of pine for $9!! It was exactly the size I wanted too! (1’ x 4’). So, I grabbed my plank and headed on over to Michaels to snatch up some chalk paint and search for the metal letters to attach.

Once at Michaels my search began. The chalk paint was no problem! I chose a yellowish tone called “Tuscan Gold” and a brown antique wax to go over top. Easy peasy, light and breezy! Onward towards the metallic letters! Oh man, I am gonna spell the heck out of some Fall words!! Pffft!! Not so much! My husband (God Bless him) and I spent a BAGILLION hours pulling out all the letters they had on the shelves and a good amount of time on the scrabble word creator app trying to spell Fall themed words! Goodness Gracious!! It looked like my “easy” craft idea was going to be a bust. But, I’m no craft quitter! So, I got to thinking, lets mix up our media. I took both the metallic letters and some painted wood letters and finally had enough to spell a word!! YESSS!! I had chosen the word HARVEST. I figured that was better than some of the other words we had the letters for like Hokey, Chokey, Jokey, Sock, Whore 😳, Oyster and Shylock. But, I don’t know your life. Maybe you would like to create a nice “Shylock” sign. In that case, you’re in luck! But for me, I had my heart set on Harvest. Thankfully, on the other side of the store, they had some red/gold painted wood letter and I screeched “I CAN SPELL HARVEST NOW!” I’m sure the lady that was beside me thought, “Lady you need to spell MEDS”. Oh well, not the first time someone thought that! SO HA! Once I had purchased all my ingredients we headed home and the fun began!

I took my plank outside with some chains, a hammer and some assorted screwdrivers. Basically, you want to use whatever tools you have to “distress” your plank of wood. Good time to get out those frustrations! I wanted a pretty distressed look so I just whacked the heck out of that plank of wood! Don’t forget to do your edges! This comes into play later when you put on your wax top coat. See all those divits and scratches? Thats what you want. Looking back, I wish I would have added more! Also, I used a little hand held sander to round the edges and remove the splintered pieces on the corners. You don’t want any sharp angles. We want to make this thing look old.

Next step, Paint that Plank!! I loved the Fall-ish yellow of the Tuscan Gold. It also complimented the red in my wooden letters. Now, be patient and let it dry. Who am I kidding, I only let it dry for about 30 min.

Once your beautiful plank is painted. DON’T FORGET YOUR EDGES!! It’s time to move on to the wax top coat. I chose a warm chocolatey brown. I figured this would look like years of dirt and wear. Guess what?! I was correct! Mmmmm, look at that! All aged planky goodness!

I brushed on a good amount of the brown wax and took extra care to get into all the nooks and crannies! Even on the edges! Then, I wiped off a little bit with a dampened cloth. Be careful you don’t remove too much or you won’t get the super aged look we were going for.

Finished product! A nice aged looking plank with just a little bit of effort.

Also, see why distressing the edges was important? Now all the sides are gorgeous too!

So this is pretty much the hardest part of this project! Your kidding me?!? NO, I am not! Only thing left is to attach your letters and the hanging hooks. Can you believe this project?! So easy and so professional looking! I love that (if you can find the letters) you can make one for anywhere! Maybe Sock wouldn’t be such a bad word to spell after all!! Would be great in a laundry room! Hahaha! Here is my final project! It’s glorious! It has the metal in it that I was looking for and it’s just the right size! Oh, I forgot to mention that I just attached my letters with hot glue.

And hung in the perfect spot:

Seriously, how easy is this?! Now get out your word finder app, head to Home Depot and Michaels and spell some words!Enjoy making your house a home by crafting your own glorious creations!! Until next time, smooches from Stacey 😘 *****

Arlynn here again—THANK you SO much Stacey!!!! You are awesome and you have inspired me to try to do one of these beauties, and I’m guessing that you’ve also inspired many more!! LOVE you bushels and pecks and (((hugs))) around the neck!! MWAH!! ❤

I hope y’all have enjoyed this wonderful blog post from Stacey—She is a very talented lady!! 🙂

**In crafting there are no mistakes just unique creations**

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Happy Fall Y’all 2016 Series: Outdoor Decorations

On September 8, 2016September 8, 2016 By ArlynnIn Seasonal Decor2 Comments

I’m completely finished decorating for Fall y’all!! 😉 I’m a very happy lady to be done; now I can sit back and enjoy the decorations as I watch and feel the weather change. It is still so hot around here and we are almost to mid September, I’m hoping Fall will start to arrive sooner than later–I’m about done with 90+ degree days with 100+ humidity…it has been suffocatingly yucky around these parts.

OH well, I will not yammer on endlessly here in this little entry, instead I’ll just give you a little picture tour of what I did yesterday and I’ll add a video at the end where I show you how I decorated the Little Red Wagon and then give you a little tour around starting at the mailbox…:)

Here we go with the picture tour, let’s start with said mailbox. I love those little mailbox covers, I got this one here on Amazon:

I made that spray last here, here is a link to that blog post if you are interested in seeing the steps that I went through:

I made this Fall deco mesh wreath a few weeks ago–I hung it on the light post, here is a link to my blog post if you’ve like to try your hand at creating one for yourself — The post includes a video tutorial:

I switched out my decorative flags and gazing ball:

And then to finish up, I went to work on the front porch. I added a Fall wooden sign/plaque, switched out my front door wreath, and recreated my Little Red Wagon decor:

And I took a few pictures of everything after dark as well:

And now, here is that little video:

I will admit that I get a nice feeling of accomplishment after I’m finally finished re-decorating for a Season. And to add, I’m finally feeling like I’ve got enough accent pieces gathered and made that will keep me going for a few years to come; recreating the wheel for this house has been a chore <~~~ albeit a fun chore. I can’t see myself going through the next few years without creating *something* new for Fall though, it is in my nature to want to do a craft of some kind, but, for now, I’m satisfied.

**In crafting there are no mistakes just unique creations**

Happy Fall Y’all!!!! ❤

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Happy Fall Y’all 2016 Series: Living & Dining Rooms-Video Included

On September 5, 2016 By ArlynnIn Seasonal Decor2 Comments

I have finished my Fall decorating for the inside of our house! YaY, I am definitely doing a “Happy Dance”. I will admit that it is quite a chore to switch Seasons, there used to be a time decades ago when I’d throw a few fall leaves and pumpkins around and call it done. As we’ve marched through the years and I’ve honed my decorating skills, it seems that my decorating has gotten more and more involved. I never used to have to store my “generic” decor in bins while my Fall and then Christmas decor took center stage…haha. OH well, as you all know, I love the creative process, so it’s all good…even though I’m pretty pooped. All that I have left is to do a bit of decorating outside and then I’ll be finished till it is time to decorate for Christmas.

I will give you a picture preview as to what I did in the living and dining rooms and then I’ll post a little video that I made of those rooms.

Here are the living room’s accents:

And here are the accents that I added to the Dining Room:

It did not take me long at all to complete the changeover; I just love the softness that these rooms evoke, it soothes a girl’s very soul. 🙂

Here is a little video tour:

Next up, I’ll do a little decorating outside–Front door wreath, little red wagon decor…etc…:)

*In decorating there are no mistakes, just unique creations!*

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Packing – 8 Day 7 Night Cruise Series: “Suitcase Packing Tips & Tricks”

On September 4, 2016September 4, 2016 By ArlynnIn Country Decor, VacationsLeave a comment

Our Canada and New England cruise is getting closer and closer every day and it won’t be long before it is upon us which means it won’t be long before I try my very best to pack just *one* suitcase…albeit a large 29″ spinner suitcase, but just one none-the-less. 🙂 I do plan to have a Vera Bradley Weekender bag handy just in case I have any overage and if I don’t end up using it going, I know I’ll be able to fit it into my or Chris’s suitcase and will utilize it for souvenirs for our trip home.

Here are the bags I have set aside and am anxiously waiting to fill!! 🙂 (I’m excited, can you tell?) 😉

I know those of you who follow me know that I’m now a HUGE fan of packing cubes and packing folders. Here are links to the items that I use: Shacke Pak (packing cubes) & the Medium Eagle Creek Packing Folder. I know that I will definitely, ***easily*** be able to fit every item of clothing into these spiffy packing mechanisms because I am taking literally half of the clothes that I took on our 15-Night Hawaiian cruise…Here is the packing folder filled up nicely with over 20 tops that I took to Hawaii; I will take less than half of that amount on the 8-Day Canada and New England cruise.

And here is what my suitcase looked like filled to the brim with my packing folder and cubes:

–I needed that ^^ entire suitcase just for clothes–I used another smaller suitcase (below) for all of my “Must Haves” for that trip.

I am bound and determined to fit all of my clothes and must haves into my one large suitcase…..a-n-d yes ***IF*** I absolutely cannot fit everything into that one suitcase, my Weekender bag will be there ready and waiting for me–As y’all saw, it has a lovely sheath that fits over the suitcase’s handle which will make it easy to maneuver (I only have to get it from the car to the Princess folks on the dock–We are driving to NY and parking in a close, secure parking lot).

I will be packing 5 other small bags to go into that large suitcase as well, one for my cosmetics, this Thirty-One bag:

One very small Thirty-One bag for my jewelry:

And the other three bags will hold my hair products and perfume, my Must Haves, and my hair brushes and accessories:

Fingers crossed that I will be able to fit everything into that one suitcase. 🙂 I’m ready to roll now, and as I said in my other post…I’m trying NOT to wish my life away…BUT, I just need for the time to pass so that we can once again be off on an amazing adventure. One that will collect memories for us to cherish and relive for the rest of our lives. 🙂

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Happy Fall Y’all 2016 Series: Kitchen, Centerpieces, & More – Video Included

On September 4, 2016September 4, 2016 By ArlynnIn Country DecorLeave a comment

As you all know by now, I love to redecorate and create new cozy corners and more, so I’ve really enjoyed switching things out and transforming the house so that we’re ready to greet those cool, crisp morning and usher in the changing of the leaves. Fall is one of my favorite times of the year, the warm colors speak to me and help me get inspired to create. I will admit that I was well-prepared for this year’s decorating, I had organized myself pretty well when I packed away all of my Fall stuff last year so this year’s decor went together rather easily—*except* that I had to dig into my bins a little too much. When it is time to put this decor away this year, I am going to try to make myself a label and a sketch of what is where in each bin…that way I won’t spend half of my time digging and grumbling to myself that I can’t find this or that. 😉

Let’s get started, I did make a little video to accompany my explanations in this the body of the blog, it is located down below. The first thing that I started working on was this cozy corner that sits to the right of the family room’s credenza:

Next, I moved on around and put up a wreath that I made last year–It truly was so easy to make…It is nothing more than an oval grapevine wreath with a leaf garland glued on, a plaid bow, some pumpkins, some acorns, and a welcome sign:

Next was the “Ivy Table” so named because it used to have ivy stenciled on the door fronts before Chris repainted it a distressed black to match the black Hooker furniture that sit in the rest of this portion of the house. I got the shelf above it at one of our local craft stores.

I moved on into the kitchen next, the first thing I did was to make a quick centerpiece for the Island by using a tray, a Yankee Candle and rod-iron holder, and accent pieces that I had saved from last year:

Next I tackled the windows–Let me let those of you who might have just found my crafting blog know that I typically will keep “staple” <~~generic decor such as lanterns, tins, vases, ladders, and the like ~~ in place and just switch out the accent pieces to bring in whatever Season/look for which I’m going. In the kitchen windows, I leave two plate holders, two tins and a vase in which I make small flower arrangements. You’ll see below what I’m speaking about–And I explain further in the video:

And the kitchen was completed:

Next, I worked on the kitchen table. I switched out the tablecloth for one with a fall motif, then I made up the lantern centerpiece for Fall. I replaced the candles on the flanking candle sticks and added Fall candle rings and called it finished. 🙂 Here is a link to my blog where I explain how I create my lantern centerpieces: A Lantern Centerpiece For All Seasons

To finish up the kitchen eating area, I created a cozy corner, changed out the decor on the kitchen hutch, and on a corner cabinet:

I switched out a few things in the Powder Room:

I then took a moment to take a few pictures of what I had accomplished:

AND then I literally collapsed for the rest of the evening…haha. As I mentioned in my previous blog, this is not hard physical work for me, but, boy oh boy does it take some brain power. I’m a creative person by nature, but, it is still a challenge to do so many things in one day—BUT, of course, I’m anal retentive and want it all done sooner than later. 😉

One more thing that I show you and talk about in the video below is this spiffy little remote controlled outlet package that Chris installed for me–I show you how it works in the video. Here is a picture:

And here is that little video:

Next up, I’ll be showing and telling you how I transformed the living and dining rooms over to Fall—I utilized that pretty green color that I have been using in those rooms to bring Fall to life in a softer and gentler way.

*In decorating there are no mistakes, just unique creations!*

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Happy Fall Y’all 2016 Series: Family Room Fireplace/Mantel & more–Video Included

On September 2, 2016September 2, 2016 By ArlynnIn Country Decor2 Comments

Happy Fall Y’all!! Yeah, I know, it’s not quite Fall *yet*, BUT, it is September, so that is close enough for me. 😉 I love Fall decor, the warm and cozy feeling that comes with this sweet decor is something that I so enjoy creating each and every Autumn. 🙂 This year is no different, although, now-a-days, in our new home, it takes me a bit longer to get everything accomplished. 🙂 I always start with the fireplace hearth and mantel, and this year was no different. I was so excited get started too because I had broken down and purchased a gorgeous new mantel swag and candle rings from Grandin Road–They are so pretty and wow, do they ever make a huge statement! I LOVE the final look. I also purchased 3 new black candle sticks (only because they come in a set of 3–and I already owned 3 but needed more to accommodate those lovely candle rings)… Here is a link for those candle stick holders.

I created a little video to go along with this post…And will more videos as I work my way around the house in my decorating frenzy…Here are some pictures of what I highlight in the video:

As I tell y’all in the video that I always replace most of my generic decorations with my Seasonal decor. I do leave some of the “staple pieces” (for lack of better descriptive words) in place…like the Dickens houses and the clock on the mantel, and the ladders w/pip berries and just a few other items on the hearth. So basically, I truly do recreate the wheel for Fall and then for Christmas. And this year, I had to go out and purchase a couple extra bins to accommodate the generic decor that I remove I won’t use again until January–All of the Fall decor will be replaced by Christmas decor and that will stay up till the end of December. 🙂 It took me quite a few years to collect all of this decor for both Seasons; I’ve done it a little bit at a time.

Here is the fireplace completely changed over to Fall. Whew, I was bushed after doing just this…No, it’s not hard physical work, but, I use a lot of whatever brain power I have left to create this look…haha. 😉 JUST kidding, y’all know that I LOVE this sort of thing…I honestly do thrive on the creative process.

Another one of my staple pieces that stays in place and that I use as a base for my Seasonal decor is this large Longaberger basket. Here is how I decorated it up for Fall this year:

And the last thing that I highlight in the video is the staircase–I made all new plaid bows for the swag points this year as well as a new “spray” for the bullnose. I also added a little fall wreath to the bullnose…I had written a blog about that little grapevine wreath showing you many different ways in which it could be used…Here is a link to my blog post highlighting that little wreath: “Not Just a Fall Grapevine Wreath”.

As you’ll see in the video, I did trim down those crazy bow tails…haha

Here is the top of the Credenza that sits under the tv; I did create the centerpiece:

One last thing, I mention in my video are some quilted Fall placemats that I utilize on the family room end tables, and then they also sell a runner that I purchased, one for the kitchen’s Island and one for one other table. I purchased them last year, but, here is a link for a set of four quilted placemats–UNfortunately, they are not available at this moment in time but, if you check back, they might come available later in the Season.

ANYway, I plan on trying to finish the rest of the back portion of the house today and I will do a walk-thru video of everything in this part of the house. And then I’ll transition into the living and dining rooms and use some of that pretty green color to create the Fall decor in those rooms. For now, here is a video of what I’ve created up to this point. 🙂

*In decorating there are no mistakes, just unique creations!*

Until next time, y’all take good care!! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Packing: Cameras and Tech’y’ Stuff

On August 29, 2016April 20, 2019 By ArlynnIn Vacations2 Comments

Chris and I are by no means professional photographers, but, that doesn’t mean that we don’t try really hard to take great pictures that will help us remember where we were on any specific day in time and it also doesn’t mean that we haven’t tried to provide ourselves with the tools with which to accomplish those very important tasks. We use our cameras daily, and to date, I have over 63000 pictures in my Photos program on my computer dating back to 2006 in digital and then even further back, I have some dating back to as early as the 1930’s–pictures that I and other family members have scanned and that I’ve added to my library. Pictures mean the world to me, they speak volumes when one can’t find descriptive words, they hold memories that sometimes may be fleeting but are conjured again when one gazes upon a particular picture. They are one of the most important things in our lives, so therefore, we have utilized many cameras through the years; and as the years have passed the quality of digital cameras has improved drastically which makes for an even more pleasurable picture taking experience now-a-days.

When we embark on our travels we always take quite the array of cameras and accessories; our destination is what dictates what we take with us. Since Alaska is one of our favorite destinations, I will show you what we normally take there so that we can try and capture the beauty and grandeur that is Alaska. We normally will do 8 day cruises in Alaska, but, we do many excursions inland off of the ship that provide tons of photo ops…not to mention Glacier Bay a Unesco site that I never tire of and will go back to as long as we are able to do so. We always say that we might take less cameras, but, we did that one time and I got frustrated because I have found that I like to have a camera with me no matter where we are or what we’re doing (especially on a cruise ship and especially now that I have this blog and am always cognizant of things that I want to capture so that I can bring them back home and share them with y’all!!) 🙂 The one time we went with only one camera…well, I about went batty! lol

All that said, here is what we normally take with us:

This is “my” camera…You see, I get Chris’ hand-me-downs…lol…And this beauty is now MINE. I cannot tell you how much I love this camera, no honestly, I really can’t–I feel so grateful that I’m able to have something like this to utilize…and not just for vacation pictures…but also for everyday, run of the mill pictures…all of my family, dog, house, and crafting pictures are taken with this camera. For those of you who might not know, my precious Mom passed away from Alzheimer’s a few years ago. There are so many things that I miss about her, her gentle ways, her wise advice, having long phone conversations with her, well, so very many things. 😥 One of the things that I miss the most is the ability to ask my Mom where was this picture taken and who are those people in the picture–I never want my girls to have that problem, I want to provide them with all of the pictures and information that I can that will help them know and remember me (IF that horrible disease happens to catch up with me one day). So you see, cameras are an extremely important and invaluable tool for me.

And when I’m on a cruise doing ‘scenic cruising’, *this* is my very favorite lens and I insist on using it…much to Chris’ chagrin at times. 😉 😉 Of course I’m just kidding, Chris is so sweet and he laughs at me because I insist on using this lens 🙂

Here I am heading to Hubbard Glacier on the Coral Princess last (2015) summer…*notice* the lens on ***my*** camera…:) ***YES…SCORE!!*** 😉

This is Chris’ camera, and notice which lens he has on his camera when it is here at the house. Admittedly, both of our cameras sit out on the kitchen table all of the time and I will grab whichever one that will take the best picture of whatever I’m working on at the time:

Since we both utilize this lens and have a real fondness for it, here are a few close-ups:

A few extra lens’ that Chris will take along with us on vacation are these:

This is a wide-angle lens:

Here is an example of a picture that Chris took with that ^^ wide angle ^^ lens:

The next lens is great for taking portraits…Chris calls its a 35mm prime lens…

Here are a couple of examples shots that he caught of a sunrise over Kauai and one of the Lion’s Gate Bridge as we were heading into Vancouver last April:

And then there is this wonderful zoom lens–not as expensive of a lens as our ‘favorite’, but my goodness gracious, wait until you see the shots that Chris caught with it at Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay, Alaska last summer (2015).

First, here is a close up of that big zoom lens:

And here are a set of pictures of a calving event at Margerie Glacier that Chris captured with that lens:

Amazing shots!!!

Okay, there is one more little accessory that Chris takes along and this little gem will help to increase the zoom by 1.4x and it fits on both big zoom lens’:

We purchased a new, small Sony video camera before our Hawaii cruise last April (2015) and I’ve gotten a ton of use out of it, yes, while on that cruise to make a video of our Mini-Suite on the Star Princess … Here is a link if you are interested. Also, I’ve just recently used it to create all of the videos in my Video Home Tour series. And I’ve set it up on a tripod and used it to video myself giving crafting tutorials–those can be found under Video Tutorials on my Home page if you are interested in taking a peek. 🙂

And just yesterday, Chris was a sweetheart and got me a new small camera to take on our upcoming Canada and New England cruise. Okay, let me explain why <sigh>. I have gotten into the habit of having a camera draped around my neck at all times while on the ship and while on excursions. I really love having fast access to a camera that is not my iPhone because I typically don’t carry that around the ship with me.

Here I am last summer in Alaska with my older small Nikon camera around my neck:

–I took that one to Hawaii and I wasn’t happy with its performance…especially when I took video with it in the Piazza–I have tons of pretty crappy quality video from our Hawaii trip, so crappy in fact, I never used any of them in my Hawaii Blog Series. So Chris researched and researched and then purchased me this new small and very spiffy Canon Power Shot so that I can hang it around my neck on our Canada and New England cruise; it takes wonderful still shots and also fantastic video:

It has an adjustable screen that I can pull out and manipulate into different angles. for instance, when I’m in sunlight and the glare is hitting the screen…I can angle it a different way, or if I’m in other situations where I might need to see the shot I’m trying to capture, for instance while taking shots that might be above my sight line, etc…:

It also flips all of the way up so that we can use it to take selfies if we so choose…haha. 🙂

I think it will be perfect for me to use on our cruise and beyond, I’ve already attached my Vera lanyard to it and am ready to put it around my neck and head off on our next adventure.

To finish up, here are a few other tech’y’ items that we take with us on our cruises. This is a device charger–It will charge anything with a USB cord attached, great to have on the plane especially if there is no place to plug in…You can find one here:

This is a 256 gb SSD (solid-state drive) and it contains some of our favorite movies and such that we can watch on the plane via my laptop. OH yeah, btw, if you want to watch your own movies in your Stateroom, simply take a HDMI cable and hook your laptop up and take a little timeout to watch your favorite flick…works like a charm:

Speaking of a laptop, yes indeed, we always take a laptop, and yes, I do purchase an Internet package on board our ships–although, this time I won’t have to because we have moved up to Platinum level with Princess’ Captain’s Circle and we actually each get free internet minutes to use while on board…yay! Don’t judge me please, I am one of those people that does not enjoy being disconnected from the world. 🙂 Not only does the laptop provide me with a bit of contact with my friends and family, it also becomes the keeper of all of the pictures that we take on our cruises.

We take several download cords as well:

AND one last thing….My Selfie Stick—LOL Yes, that is now a necessity and something that I utilize quite a bit. 😉 🙂

Chris carries all of our cameras in his carry-on bag and I carry the laptop, selfie stick, and smaller camera with me…It all works well for us and we know that we will be more than ready to catch any picture memory that may come our way while we are lucky enough to be out and about enjoying this great big world of ours. We are so grateful to still have our health and that we can both put our feet on the floor in the morning and go through our days with only an ache or a pain here or there. 🙂

Next up and to finish up this series, I’ll discuss a few packing tips and tricks that I’ve discovered and have utilized…My goal for our upcoming and future 8 day 7 night cruises…ONE suitcase…I *can* *do* *it*— I think…;)

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Here is a shot of me with the pups, Gracie the Golden, Sophie the Black Newfoundland, and Samson the ‘lap’ dog–also a Newfie. All so special and sweet!! ❤

Packing – 8 Day 7 Night Series: “What’s In My Carry-On”

On August 23, 2016August 23, 2016 By ArlynnIn Country Decor, VacationsLeave a comment

Continuing on with my 8 Day 7 Night Series of blogs here with my What’s in my Carry-On entry. Truly, I do not take any less in my Carry-on bag on an 8 day cruise than I would on a longer cruise; but, I’m going ahead and writing this post so that folks don’t have to peruse through that massive-all encompassing-rather overwhelming other post of mine…haha. 😉

Let’s get started. This is one of my most important pieces of luggage and one that stays with me from the moment we leave the house until the moment we arrive at our destination and beyond because I will use this on Excursions and such as well. It is never out of my sight. Now for a little discussion about the type of bag I prefer to carry. On our last cruise to Hawaii, I took a Vera Bradley Campus Backpack <~~~That is a link to Amazon as it seems that the Vera Bradley website isn’t carrying this particular bag in the pattern that I have. Regardless, this bag worked out perfectly:

And yes, I have placed all of my Captain Circle Pin’s on my bag:

This is also the bag that I will be taking on our next cruise to Canada and New England–We will be driving to that port thank goodness–I cannot tell you how thrilled I am that we don’t have to fly–my long legs do not care for that attribute of traveling–flying that is. You know when we were kids and it was an exciting adventure to get on a plane and jet off to wonderfully fun places. Yeah, well, I still love to go to the wonderfully fun places, I just wish I could do it without being made to feel like a sardine smashed in a can…lol. 😉 (I will admit that the last couple of times we’ve flown, Chris, bless his sweet heart, has upgraded us to 1st class for a nominal fee (he watched the price of the seats each day and when he saw them drop, he jumped on them and moved us—I was SO grateful!!)

ANYway, I digress, I loved that ^^^ bag when I carried it to Hawaii, but, I do want to show you one other type of bag that I will utilize as a Carry-On every now and again. This bag is a Trimmed Vera Tote <~~ Again an Amazon link to a different pattern than I have. Here is a picture of my bag in Parisian Paisley–IF you go to order this bag, please, please, please be careful and be sure to get the Vera Tote that measures: 18″ Wide, 15″ High, & has a 12″ Strap drop (Vera has many totes, most of which are smaller than this one). Here is mine:

As you can see, it has tons of pockets inside to hold all of your goodies and beyond. 🙂

This bag also holds my 13″ MacBook Pro very easily and that is always my consideration when choosing a Carry-On bag. Don’t judge please…:)

Here are the other things that I routinely take in my Carry-On, I’m sure your list will vary slightly to meet your needs. 🙂

When flying we all have to adhere to the TSA’s liquids rules, so I always take a quart-size ziplock bag to utilize for our liquids:

This is the bag I use for my computer and iPhone chargers, it is a Vera Bradley Double Zip Cosmetic Bag:

I take a catch-all bag to carry small possible necessities. 🙂 The bag I use is a Vera Bradley Medium Zip Cosmetic Bag:

Of course I take a wallet with cash, credit cards, ID, and Passport…This is a Vera Bradley Kisslock Wallet:

My Kindle Paperwhite:

Earphones:

A crossword puzzle book—I’m always trying to do something to stimulate my brain, I really love doing crosswords and I even play a game on my iPhone called Words With Friends…I’m constantly working on expanding my vocabulary and challenging myself–a girl is never too old to do that right? 😉 🙂

I take one of these Pocket Folders with me to carry all of our travel documents, i.e. travel insurance papers, boarding passes, and the like. I do carry the other couple of folders in my checked baggage and I use them to save our daily cruise paperwork like the Princess Patter, port informational sheets, etc…

I take a pencil case…Vera Bradley Brush and Pencil:

Let’s face it, we all could use a little something to freshen our breath and clean our teeth when traveling…I try to take something like this along:

And that about does it…Other than I will throw in a small packing cube with some unmentionables—*just* in case we have any flight delays and such. I don’t usually take an entire outfit though–unless we’re heading somewhere where I couldn’t go and buy a quick outfit if absolutely necessary.

I hope that this little post will help those of you who are getting ready to head out on a trip. Whether it be by plane, train, or automobile, these little items should suffice nicely to help get you to your destination.

Happy Traveling ALL!!

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Packing – 8 Day 7 Night Cruise Series: “My Must Haves”:

On August 18, 2016August 23, 2016 By ArlynnIn Country Decor18 Comments

Yes, yes, I know, I have already written a extremely long blog post expounding in great detail about *all* of the things that one might need to pack for any length of cruise. And when I wrote it we were preparing for a 15-Night Hawaii cruise, so those were the parameters in which I was working, 15 days seemed like an eternity to be away–well for this country girl anyway. Admittedly, there is a plethora of information in that one post and it might be a smidge over-whelming. 😉 All that said, since most of our cruises are 7 day adventures, in this new “Series” I want to show how I’m planning to downsize that extreme list and share how I am going to try like crazy to consolidate everything into one large suitcase. In that other blog monstrosity, I covered “What’s In My Carry-On Bag”, tons of “Must Haves”, and I even included my “Packing Tips & Tricks”. I thought it was time to break up the monotony of that long post into several separate, shorter, more succinct, and a bit easier to peruse through posts, especially since I’m going to be downsizing the amount of ‘stuff’ I take which will work well for a 8 day cruise–yes, I do count embarkation day as Day 1 and disembarkation day as Day 8–I’m talking Saturday to Saturday cruises here (or whatever other day of the week a cruise starts on and ends on exactly a week later). For Hawaii, I took a small’ish’ Spinner suitcase ***just*** for my “Must Have” items. Here is how that suitcase looked right before I closed it up:

Whew–I took A LOT on that cruise…I will admit though, I did utilize every single item I took. BUT, my goal is to downsize a bit considering 8 days isn’t that long to be gone, so, I have gathered the following items to take along with us on our next cruise which will be to Canada & New England on the gorgeous Regal Princess this Fall. So let’s get started.

Disinfectant Wipes:

The very first thing that we do when we enter our Stateroom is to wipe down all surfaces, door knobs/handles, the telephone, the tv remote, the balcony railing, etc…

Hand Soap:

Bar Soap:

We do not care for the shower gel that they provide in pumps in the shower, so we bring our own favorite bar soap…

Odor Eliminating Spray:

I think the reason that I take this is obvious… *wink*…

(there are no exhaust fans in the bathrooms on a cruise ship)…

I never use Tums off of a cruise, but I always use Tums while on a cruise…

A Pop-Up Folding Laundry Hamper

This fits nicely into the Stateroom’s closet and collects all of the dirty laundry so that it is not spread all over the floor–Compact to pack too…

Clothes Peg Clip Pins

I mostly use these to hang up my shower cap on one of the towel racks inside the shower, but, they could also come in handy to hang things up on their provided clothing line (that is located in the shower–you can pull it out from a receptacle on the shower wall and attach it to the other end of the shower–I’ll show you a picture below:

Here is that clothesline:

I always take my own hairdryer, yes, Princess does provide a hairdryer in every room, but, for my hair which is fine but rather thick, well, it just doesn’t do the job in a timely fashion.

Here is the hair dryer Princess provides on all ships I’ve been on so far:

(I do hear that on the Royal and Regal, there is a hair dryer in the drawer at the desk, I’ll let y’all know when we get back from our cruise how that puppy works)

Tide Pods and Downy Dryer Sheets:

Yes, I normally will do laundry onboard, yes, even on a 8-day cruise, so I throw a few pods and some dryer sheets into a zip-lock bag because they don’t take up much room or add much weight and I’d rather our clothes smell like I like them to smell rather than how they smell using the products that you can get on the ship…

Here are the laundry rooms on board the Star Princess’ Dolphin deck, most of the laundry facilities on board are pretty much the same and are on several of the Stateroom decks (check your ship’s deck plans to find specific locations for laundry facilities). On the Coral’s Dolphin Deck the washers and dryers were stacked, on the Star they weren’t. You use your cruise card to purchase tokens, one color of token that will start the washer and dryer and if you choose to purchase their products, another color token can be used in the vending machines–See pictures below:

Magnet Clips

The walls in the Staterooms are metal–I usually will hang up the day’s Patter or my Card Lanyard, etc…

A Flashlight

Just in case we lose electricity, one never knows you know…

Scissors

Travel Illuminated Clock

I like to be able to see what time it is if I happen to wake up in the middle of the night…

Sewing Kit

Zip-Lock Bags

We purchased these coffee, and in my case, tea thermos cups on board our last couple of cruises. Chris is so sweet, every morning, he takes these cups and goes and gets me hot tea and himself a cup of coffee from the Horizon Court’s self serve counter.

Now, I know y’all are going to chuckle at me with this next item, but, I usually will take a small bottle of dawn with us so that I can wash up those cups each day–Yeah, my anal retentiveness rearing its ugly head…;)

And believe it or not all of that stuff (minus the cups and the hair dryer) fit inside this Vera Bradley Grand Cosmetic Bag and will fit into my one large suitcase (hopefully, the jury is still out on whether or not I can fit everything into one large suitcase; if necessary I will add one Vera Bradley Weekender Bag).

BTW–As an extra precaution, I will put any bottle that could potentially leak into ziplock bags before placing them in my Vera Bags. Even though the Vera’s are lined and I doubt if leaks would escape, I don’t want to take the chance. 🙂

Now to finish up this post, there are two other things that I always take with us…

Small first-aid kit

And

A grab bag with different OTC medications, these things can cost you a pretty penny if you go to buy them at the Sundries shop on board, so I just take a smattering of things, pain relievers, cold meds, anti-nausea meds (we’ve never been sea-sick, but, this girl likes to be prepared) That Vera Bradley bag is a Large Cosmetic Case:

Well, that does it, I feel pretty good that I’ve been able to downsize the amount of items that I’m planning to take with us on our 8-day Canada and New England cruise.

I’m trying to wrap my mind around what other smaller more succinct posts to create, I do know that I will be doing these specific posts moving through the next several days/week:

What’s In My Carry-On
Tech’y’ Stuff
Packing Tips & Tricks

Beyond that, well, we’ll see what I come up with…haha. 🙂

Until next time, y’all take good care!! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

Canada & New England Cruise Wardrobe Choices

On August 15, 2016November 1, 2016 By ArlynnIn Vacations20 Comments

Before I even get started here, I must say one more time that I’m no fashionista, but, I do like to try to look put together which helps me, a plus-sized girl, feel pretty–I think a nicely put together outfit can help those of us who might struggle a bit with our weight to feel a bit better. 🙂 So soldier on girls…of ALL shapes, sizes, and loveliness!! ❤

So let’s get started, our next cruise is fast approaching, we will be heading to New York–actually driving to the port this time– and will be climbing aboard the Regal (what?!!!) Princess that will then carry us to Canada & New England for our 7 night cruise.

Here is what our Itinerary will include:

I’ve been keeping an eye on our countdown and it is clicking along nicely. My Mama always told me to never wish my life away, and I try really hard not to do that, but, I will admit that when I’m looking forward to a cruise, I might do a little wishing that the time would move just a wee bit quicker. 😉 I’ve been trying to gather some clothes together for this trip and of course the challenge of not over-packing looms ahead of me…I will admit fully that I’ve overpacked greatly in the past. But, on our last cruise to Hawaii which was 15 days through all sorts of different weather, I managed to not over-pack too, too much. SO, I can certainly manage to pack for a 7 night cruise without overpacking…right? Fingers crossed folks, fingers crossed!! 😉 I’m approaching this packing challenge much like I do my Alaska Cruise wardrobe challenges only I’m going to try to go with more Fall-like colors. Also, as I mentioned above, we are driving to the Port, and we will need to get our luggage to the ship by ourselves and then we will be self-disembarking so I really need to try to fit everything clothes/must haves/shoes/everything in one large spinner suitcase — and if I need a bit more space, I’m planning on taking a “Weekender” bag to fit the little bit of overflow going if necessary and also provide a little extra room to add some souvenirs into on the way back. One great thing about the Weekender bag is that it has a sheath on the back of it that will allow me to slide it down over the handle of my suitcase which will consolidate both pieces and allow me to pull both with ease.

Here are the bags I’m planning to take:

The suitcase is a 29″ spinner from Samsonite. And the floral bag is from Vera Bradley and is called a Weekender…Here is a link . <~~ That link will take you to a Weekender bag, but not to the one I have pictured, as I couldn’t find one like it on the Vera site…what? (I bet you could find it on Ebay though–the pattern is called “Parisian Paisley”). As I mentioned above the Weekender has a sheath on the back that will allow me to place it onto the handle of the suitcase.

I will also be taking a “Campus Backpack” from Vera (again, that link that I provided there is not the pattern I have, but Ebay is my friend when I can’t find what I’m looking for on the Vera website–This black and white pattern is called “Midnight Paisley”). I will use this to pack up my laptop, travel papers, wallet, a little bag of necessities, crossword puzzle book, my kindle, etc…

Of course, being the geek that I am, I have placed all of my Princess Captain’s Circle pins on the front of the bag:

Now, let me show you some of the clothes that I’ve chosen and put together as possible outfits for this cruise. I figure, since it is going to be Fall on the East Coast, it is likely going to be somewhat chilly especially the further North we travel. So let’s start with the jacket that I will be taking for this trip, it is a Columbia Arcadia Casual Jacket. I purchased it in a 2x which fits me fine (it is a little large on me–I usually wear a 2x/18w/tall–But, I like it that way, I can layer much more easily if I have a little wiggle room. 😉 🙂

Okie dokie–Here are some of the outfits that I’ve put together, these may be subject to change and if I do change anything out, I’ll update this blog accordingly. 🙂

Let me preface this by saying that I’m only going to be taking black slacks–no jeans, no skirts, no other colored ‘bottoms’, and no dresses. <~~~ My attempt at keeping my packing to a minimum. 🙂 Here are a couple of links to the black stretchy slacks that I wear all of the time and that pack up beautifully. They never wrinkle and they wash up perfectly every time.

Plus Size: Roz and Ali Slim Legged Pants

Misses Size: Roz and Ali Slim Legged Pants

As you can see, one of my very favorite accents is a pretty scarf–Adding one really brightens up an outfit and they pack so easily and take up practically no room.

I thought I might like to take a pair of boots to wear with a couple of pairs of leggings that I have…Here are a two more outfits that I’m considering.

Of course, I need a nighttime knock-around outfit (I’ve been known to skip on off to the laundry room in such an outfit… 😉

A friend of mine (thanks Pat!!) has introduced me to “Compression Socks”, but, these are not the “ugly-white-hard-to-put-on” compression socks of old. These socks are so pretty and will really help to prevent my feet from swelling (I never, ever have swollen feet when off of a cruise ship, but, on our Hawaiian cruise, my feet got terribly swollen for a time–They did go back to normal but, for awhile there they were not lovely and they were hard to fit into some shoes..haha). Here is a link to “Plus Sized Support Like Crazy Compression Knee-Highs“. They do come in regular sizes as well. Here is a picture of the ones that I purchased and that I will be taking along with me on all of our cruises moving forward:

Shoe wise, I will be taking my dress-type boots as I know I’ll have room for them:

And also, I’ll take these two pairs of shoes–I’ll wear the Skechers Performance Womens Go Walk 3 Unfold Walking Shoe on our Excursions off of the ship. And I’ll be wearing the Sam & Libby shoes while on the ship to dress up the outfits a bit. And that’s it for shoes…Honestly! 🙂

***UPDATE: I am writing this on the day that I’m fixin’ to pack everything up for our cruise, and I have to tell y’all about a pair of shoes that I found. I had worn these shoes years and years ago and for a time there, I couldn’t find a replacement pair as I wore them till they had holes in them. Imagine my delight, when I finally came across them here. These are the *most* comfortable shoes I’ve ever worn, and they will replace the Sam & Libby shoes that I have pictured above. They run true to size and literally mold to your feet when you put them on…I love them!

Jewelry wise–I’m not going to take a ton, I’ve picked out these pieces so far–I love Brighton jewelry and my daughter Christin usually gets me a set for Christmas; I pictured 2 of the sets she has gotten me first.

***UPDATE: Day of packing post here again..haha….I’ve added a couple of things to my jewelry choices. Christin (my oldest) had gotten me this Brighton necklace for Christmas last year, I’m definitely adding it to my choices:

***UPDATE: And then, how could I forget my old standby—I love this little choker necklace and earring set from 1928 jewelry, I’ve had this set for over a decade and they are one of my major goto pieces…classic and simple:

***UPDATE: And my bracelets–The large bangle is actually from Vera, the two Alex & Ani bracelets are from my daughter and my cousin Stacey, the Brighton (hearts) goes with the heart set above, and the twisted bracelet is one that Chris got me literally 20 years ago and I’ve worn it every day since:

Wow, I can’t believe that that is *all* I’m going to take, but, truly, that is it! I do want to add a couple of packing tips and tricks of mine here though in case some of you are new readers and haven’t heard me lament about how much I LOVE this Eagle Creek Pack-It Folder

Here is my Medium sized folder stuffed full with over 20+ tops (this is what I took for our Hawaii cruise):

And my Shacke Pak packing cubes–I cannot stress enough how much I was able to fit into these cubes. I highly recommend them!

So, there we go, I’ll continue to tweak my wardrobe, probably until the moment it is all packed up in that folder and those cubes, and, admittedly, I might change out an outfit or two, but, this is the ‘look’ I’m going for–Outfits that are casual but, ones that I can dress up with a change in jewelry/shoes/scarves/etc…

I *think* I’m getting closer to being ready to pack my suitcase…OH, but, wait…I still have to work on my “don’t wish your life away” skills for a little while longer until it is truly time to go! 😉 I will be blogging that entire cruise, so stay tuned for my “Canada and New England Blog Series”.

Until next time, y’all take good care! ❤

~Arlynn ❤

***Final Update: Two other things that I did to prepare for this trip this week were, one, I got my hair colored as my grays were waving back at me when I looked in the mirror…and two, I got my nails done—I have “Pink & White” acrylic nails and my little technician did a lovely little design on my ring finger nails for me…:) I am ready to pack the rest of my stuff now!!