When I Grow UP I Wanna Be Beth Dutton!

OK come on now be honest....who else has fallen in love with the new drama Yellowstone? Don't we all secretly want to have those "rish people problems", have Rip whisk us away, and be as baaaaad as Beth Dutton? I know I do... I secretly long to love on a thousands acre ranch my family as owned for generations.... that would be a good fight to wage to keep that heritage.

Well that may be a couple hundred years too late to be in my cards but I can still channel my inner Beth Dutton in one of her iconic looks, even if she did wear it better....

Dress similar here, cardigan similar here, boots Amazon

My Fall Stitch Fix

My absolute favorite time of year is fall! I love the colors of the mums and the leaves turning and the cooler evenings... one thing I do NOT love is that it means winter is next! I love an outfit of a cute sweater jeans and boots but cannot stand when a bulky coat needs put over that! I decided instead of dwelling on what's to come that I would instead enjoy what is currently here and play in the leaves with my new StitchFix (use link for a $25 credit) outfit! 

All clothing from StitchFix (use link for a $25 credit), Boots by Ariat Fatbaby Barn Boots

Nova Cellars

 I just don't know how many times I can emphasize that I am so lucky to live right in the middle of Northeast Ohio's wine country! Granted sometimes those adventures do take you right over the PA line but there are just so many wonderful wineries right near me....

This past weekend I discovered Nova Destinations Winery, through a Groupon wine tasting nonetheless, with a good friend of mine... we did the tasting and left with a few bottles for home. While this particular winery is not set back on acres of land (in fact it is right on PA Rt 208) it does still hold its charm. Like most wineries that hold my heart there is  water nearby... granted it is a man made lake that you can walk around in less than 5 minutes... but water all the same....

For your own tasting experience at a discount, buy the Groupon here..... where have you found for an out of he way hideaway/ secret?

A Private Festival

Every year like clockwork at the 16th of July the sleep little town of Lowellville, OH comes to life with the whirl of kiddie rides, screams of aggressive mora players, clanks of bocce balls, and Italian music. The sausage and cavatelli could be smelled in the air from blocks away. Just like everything else this year though the festival looks a little different. There are no vendors.... no crowds gathered in the street.... no games... no children running to capture the elusive flags that can be traded at city hall.... no bocce balls on the court and no numbers being shouted in Italian.... 

In the darkness hidden from public view we still gather with the band playing our song... a culture and heritage that cannot be set aside regardless of the world around it. Tradition must go on! A private viewing of a select handful of us still gather to prepare the Baby Doll. We don our masks and still cheer on... we have even more to rejoice in the start of this new year for us... we have endured and survived even more than in past years on this night. 

In some ways the year's festa was the best ever. It reminded us why we actually have this tradition and connected us more to our roots than the annual hustle and bustle had done in years. We were connected again, we were apart of what I ancestors had passed on to us. Despite the lack of carnival environment, the music still cues up and there is more childlike excitement in the air than any year before.... The doll dances and the fireworks shoot into the air and every Calabrian in the crowd is shaking their fist at rough year that has just ended!! Buona Festa..... until next year!

Weekend Warrior- Kitchen Facelift

 So on what may possibly be the hottest day of the year so far, I wake up and decide to start scraping the stucco off of my kitchen ceiling. I wasn't even a third of the way through when I began to seriously question what I was thinking.....

Once the mess was there though and the sweat was pouring off of me... I knew I couldn't stop now though. The end goal was to add a most cost effective illusion of a tin ceiling and to give new modern life to the counter tops without replacing them. I also added a kitchen island for more counter space and storage in my small kitchen. 

I found an island on Wayfair and was quite happy with the look of it once together. 

Once all of the old plaster work was off of the ceiling and I had a smooth though not perfect texture, I wallpapered the ceiling for a tin effect for a quarter of the cost with a print I found online from Lowe's. It may sound unconventional to do this but it worked with some ingenuity.... meaning it was not easy feat to keep the paper upside down while the paste dried by any means but the end results were worth it. 

Once the mess from the ceiling was cleaned up, I moved onto resurfacing or should I say covering my old countertops. I found a product made for this purpose on Amazon that is almost like contact paper but actually thicker. I was very easy to apply and the results were night and day.

What do you think of the outcome? What kind of projects have you gotten done during lockdown?

Shutdown and a New Reality!

 The entire world shutdown at the end of March, as I am sure you are aware. At first we were all in disbelief and fear of the unknown, then we moved into boredom and depression. This blog fell by the wayside as well, since there was no where I was going and nothing exciting I was doing. Now mind you, I cannot truly say I have in fact been locked down entirely for the past 3 months because if you think a true Italian family is still not seeing each other regardless what any governor says, then you just don't know...

If you had told me earlier this year that I would spend a months watching a documentary about a gay man who raised tigers and setting my phone to remind me of governor updates daily, I would've absolutely thought you were insane though. That is exactly where it went at first though....

Dante started taking extra naps with less to bark at....

Coco got to the point she was so tired of Netflix that she took over the remote....

It wasn't all just "Tiger King" and "Wine with Dewine" though... I also learned the luxury of deliveries! What a time saver this proved to be... and it may just be something that stays long after the pandemic is gone. Groceries now came right to the door, as well as, all those heavy items from Sam's Club through Instacart (use link or code: ASTONE3B41DC to sign up and save $10) and dinner could arrive in minutes from Door Dash (use link to get $10 off each of your first 3 orders). Even the wine began to be delivered right to my door to make those governor updates more tolerable.... Splash wines never let me down and was not a monthly club... you order as you want with fast delivery.

It wasn't just food items though. I decided to branch out even more and try a stylist service and some makeup subscriptions as well as a cleaning supply services. So first I tried StitchFix (use link for a $25 credit) looking for more stylish clothes to lounge in. I absolutely fell in love with this service and was amazed how well the clothes actually fit. How is it that I could actually be in a store and find nothing that fir but someone who never saw me could ship something to me that fit like a glove?

I also fell in love with Mrs. Meyers cleaning products and how the scents changed from season to season. I signed up for Grove.co (use link to get a free starter set with order) and never looked back. I found many other wonderful products through them as well that became household staples such as the Paw Sense Pet Deodorizer and their wrinkle release spray. 

From there I moved on to also trying some make up subscription boxes as well... well actually, I think I tried them all if I am being honest. Ipsy proved to be too much with its small samples and a new makeup bag every month. Really how many cosmetic bags does a gal need and if you did like the product, you had to track it down elsewhere to get a full size. I also tried Birch Box, which proved a little better. The sample were more like travel sized and if you like the product it could be bought from their site. If you are looking for more of a full-sized subscription, Boxy Charm (use link for credits towards your order) is a good subscription with an online store as well. My favorite of all I tried though actually was a lesser known box called Singles Swag (use link for $15 off). I think the best part about Singles Swag is that it is not just limited to makeup. The monthly box typically includes a mix of makeup, an inspirational book, and a trial snack. Having these books in hand, I did read more the past few months despite the overuse of Netflix. And with all those makeup trials, I think I may also have finally captured the perfect "relaxed on the couch natural look" selfie!

What have you discovered so far in this pandemic lockdown? What is getting you through it? 

Finding Tranquility

 The world suddenly seems like it will never be the same. Our lives have changed drastically in the last few months and it has become increasingly easy to get caught in the stress. We can't go anywhere without a mask, there are riots in large cities, and you can't even find toilet paper of all things!

In the midst of all the madness I still somehow managed to find my own peaceful little seclusion where I could evade the madness in silent mediation. On a whim one day I just drove down into the backside of one of the wineries where I used to visit prior to the shutdown, no one was around, not a sole... I pulled over and took the camp chair out of my hatch and just sat a while listening to the water hit the bank. I have gone back several times again since already and still no one has been the wiser. It feels like my own little secret where I am, at least for a moment, the only person on earth. 

Back at home I have had more time to practice my yoga as well and to watch the flames dance in a backyard fire pit. I also have taken daily visits to the hatchlings of robins in the arbor near my patio. It is cathartic to watch the progress they make each day. We humans may have shutdown but nature and the world go and in some small way that brings tranquility. It is also a reminder that this too is temporary.