Tag Archives: style

Jewelry Part 2

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 Younger Daughter is one of those people who has an eye for color and texture and she puts together the most gorgeous earring creations. Every time I wear her designs, people ask me where I’ve been shopping. She just made

Pair No. 8 -- icy lavender and green drops

Pair No. 8 -- icy lavender and green drops

some new ones and I told her I’d be honored to put them up in the blogosphere for worldwide admiration. So here you go. Each pair is $15 including postage — I’ll just wrap them up and mail them to you in a first-class envelope if that’s OK. E-mail me at cathylwood@gmail.com and I’ll send you payment info. All earrings are sterling-silver findings and most of the beads are glass. She can do special orders, too. And because I can’t figure out how to do all these pics in one post, be sure to check out Jewelry Part 1. Click on any pic to enlarge it.

Pair No. 5 -- my favorites -- love the green patterned glass bead at the bottom

Pair No. 5 -- my favorites -- love the green patterned glass bead at the bottom

Pair No. 6 -- beautiful shadings of lavendar and green

Pair No. 6 -- beautiful shadings of lavender and green

Pair No. 7 -- classic navy and white -- the blue color practically glows

Pair No. 7 -- classic navy and white -- the blue color practically glows

Jewelry Part 1

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I don’t mean to brag here or anything, but I pretty much have the most creative and talented daughters ever. Ever.

Pair No.4 -- classic brown and black for fall

Pair No.4 -- classic brown and black for fall

Older Daughter is a wonderful dancer and can construct the most incredible costume  you ever saw out of the most mundane fabric and a random pile of assorted beads. Younger Daughter is equally skilled at making earrings. She is one of those people who has an eye for color and texture and she puts together the most gorgeous creations. Every time I wear her designs, people ask me where I’ve been shopping. She just made some new ones and I told her I’d be honored to put them up in the blogosphere for worldwide admiration. So here you go. Each pair is $15 including postage — I’ll just wrap them up and mail them to you in a first-class envelope if that’s OK. E-mail me at cathylwood@gmail.com and I’ll send you payment info. All earrings are sterling-silver findings and most of the beads are glass. She can do special orders, too. And because I can’t figure out how to do all these pics in one post, be sure to check out Jewelry Part 2. Click on any pic to enlarge it.

Pair No. 1 -- classic black and white

Pair No. 1 -- classic black and white

Pair No. 2 -- Beautiful blues and greens

Pair No. 2 -- Beautiful blues and greens

Pair No. 3 -- a fun mix of color, shape and size

Pair No. 3 -- a fun mix of color, shape and size

Fall Decor

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Fall decorIt’s fall, y’all! Here in northwest Alabama, it was in the 40s overnight and Fall decorwe’re pulling out our jackets and scarves and planning for the much-anticipated annual Boot Day — the first official day it’s cool enough (temperature-wise, that is) to wear boots. I know, I know — it’s only temporary and we’ve got many more 85+-degree days to come. But it is encouraging. Another thing I adore about fall is the decor. I mean, who doesn’t love cornstalks and gourds and cheerful orange pumpkins? There’s something about fall that inspires creativity, like the door of Swirlz, a delightful party-invitation store in Tupelo, Mississippi. I love the combination of the sheer orange ribbon and bare branches with the perky and sunny flowers. And then, adorning the gracious doorway of a magnificent Southern home in Decatur, Alabama, I found these lovely arrangements of gourds, mums and greenery. This is the home of Betty Sims, a cookbook author and former restaurant owner who teaches sold-out cooking classes every fall. She is Southern hospitality personified — warm, generous, funny and sweet — and I think her decor reflects that. Check out the Scrumptious Culinary School schedule at http://scrumptiousinc.com.

Shopping

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Shopping the salesThis past Saturday, I did what every self-respecting BudgetsAlabama woman did: I hit the Belk’s sale in the morning and was done in time for football in the afternoon. And there was plenty of “scoring” in both efforts (sorry, couldn’t resist). Usually, I’m leery of so-called department-store “sales.” I scorn the 15-, 25- and 30-percent off claims and don’t really pay attention until the discount approaches the half-way mark. But Belk’s season clearances are famous for good buys in the 70-90 percent-off range. Cashing in on the bounty — literally — depends on your luck in locating Stylecute items in your size. And yesterday I hit the jackpot: Six adorable finds that would have cost Sale shoppingme close to $550 but I brought them home for less than $100. Touchdown!!! Here’s what I got: A 3/4-sleeve pullover Madison dress I can wear now for early fall, a linen leaf-print Rafaella shirtdress, a cool and comfy pullover Calvin Klein sundress plus two Kenneth Cole and one Rafaella summer tops. Whoo-hoo! And the best thing is that I would have wanted these things even without the sale prices. Earlier this week I couldn’t wait for fall and now I want 90-degree July days again so I can try out my new summer clothes. This just capped off a great week of bargain-hunting — earlier I snagged a lightweight blue floral scarf at Gap for $7 and a trio of intriguing black-patterned clear-glass vases at T.J. Maxx for less than $10 total.  I think that this trifecta of good shopping is karma for when I walked out of Anthropologie the other day without buying a thing. Thank you, shopping goddesses!

Shopping

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Anthropologie Anthropologie I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — I could just live in an Anthropologie store. I mean, somebody did it at a Wal-Mart, right? I’m sure I could get away with it. Sure, I’d miss my family and the cats and my espresso machine, but it might be worth it. And here’s the thing: I know that it’s all marketing. I know that there are meetings in boardrooms at Anthropologie HQ when people sit around and say, “If we put the yellow plates here and the blue bowls there and if we hang that cashmere sweater next to the embroidered jacket with the green purse underneath, it will drive them mad crazy with desire.” And they’re right — it does. I fall for it every time. Whenever I walk into an Anthropologie store, I want absolutely every thing I see, regardless of price or age-appropriateness or even if I had any sort of plan to wear/use/read/eat from/drink out of it.

AnthropologieAnthropologie

Cajun Week

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Cajun wedding decorCajun wedding When friends and I stepped into The Brick House in Lake Charles, Louisiana, for a Cajun wedding reception, we immediately fell in love with the Mardi Gras-themed decorations. I mean, does this say “Louisiana” or what? Every table was different, and it all added to the festive family-party vibe that made us not want to leave.  This building is a former warehouse now put to use as a catering center — a perfect solution to old downtown spaces I wish more property owners would consider instead of letting their buildings just sit there. But there was hardly any sitting at this wedding reception, as the zydeco music got folks up Cajun wedding and dancing and the buffet line beckoned with andouille-stuffed Cajun wedding mushrooms, fried eggplant, crawfish pasta salad and other yummy Cajun dishes.  And this wedding king cake! Oh my goodness! Have you ever seen such a fun wedding cake? And it tasted delicious, too. The top tier was deep chocolate. Then the middle layer was a rich cream-cheese pastry and the bottom layer was raspberry — and we had samples (Oh, OK, actual real pieces. Big pieces, in fact. Actually, I think that was just me.) of each one. Even though we had driven 12 hours and hardly knew anybody but a handful of people, we had a blast — Cajun folks are wonderfully friendly and hospitable and we instantly felt like we were family. And, by the way, don’t my friends and I look stunning? We spent a lot of time and effort trying to look good so we wouldn’t embarrass our friend, the mother of the bride — the one who’s  smiling so big in the center. After this experience, I can highly recommend Cajun weddings. In fact, if you ever get an invitation to one, do not hesitate: RSVP immediately! You won’t be sorry. And come back here tomorrow for more Cajun Week.

Home Decor

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Home decorMy friend Evelyn wowed us the other night when we Decoratingarrived at her house for our monthly book-club meeting and discovered she’d been busy redecorating. Our jaws dropped — I mean, literally, I stood there with my mouth open. Before, Evelyn’s living room was a cozy and comfortable gathering spot, but she said she wanted something completely different — and she got it. Now the room is rich with color and texture and looks about a million times bigger with the emphasis on those gorgeous windows that really you didn’t notice so much before. Evelyn used a professional decorator, with she and her husband, Steve, picking out the oh-so-soft sofa themselves. She said she learned to trust the decorator — many times the decorator would pick something out and she and Steve would think, “Uh, that’s just not going to work,” but once the room came together they understood the vision. I believe this is my new favorite room. Ever.

Fashion

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Photo by Daniel Giles of the Times DailyI am pretty much the messiest eater ever. I literally cannot get up from a table without a shower of crumbs, I carry stain removal products with me at all times and my husband begs me not to drink my favorite strawberry-flavored drink mix in the car because I leave splatters of red everywhere. This problem led me to create the Cathy Wood Method of Wardrobe Selection, or, How to Coordinate Your Clothing with Your Food So You Don’t Look Like the Slob You Truly Are and Your Family and Friends Will Eat with You Again. Intrigued? It really works! No more hastily pulling on a sweater to hide the coffee dribbles. No more holding your purse in front of you to distract from the gravy droplets. You will be free to eat and enjoy without fear! Read more at http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20090826/SW/908259959/1085.

And while you’re there, read other Shoals Woman articles, such as the story on Halloween food, http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20090826/SW/908259955/1085 with my friend Kara Sams, and  another story I wrote — a guide to retirement planning, http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20090826/SW/908259973/1085.

Shopping

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Toddler boy clothesYou all know that shopping for almost-17-month-oldJanie and Jack grandson Capt. Adorable is one of my most favorite things to do — and this outfit is one of the reasons why. I love little-boy clothes! I think it’s because little-boy clothes look almost exactly like real big-boy clothes — with the cuteness factor upped by about 100. For instance, how cute is this pirate-themed shorts and T-shirt? I spied it at Janie and Jack children’s boutique at the Summit in Birmingham, Alabama, this past weekend and I had to have it. Didn’t even stop to think. It’s from the Treasure Explorer collection that has all sorts of appliqued and embroidered pirate details such as parrots, maps and treasure chests. I don’t know why this appealed to me so much — calling Jack Sparrow! — but I do know that Capt. Adorable will look … well, adorable in it.  And now that I’ve check the Janie and Jack Web site, http://www.janieandjack.com, I notice that all the pirate things are on sale. Dear husband, look away.

Shoe Shopping

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Shoe shoppingBelk shoe saleAre there any words more dear to a woman’s heart than “shoe sale?” There’s just something about a sea of markdowns that we cannot resist. This past weekend some friends and I were in Birmingham, Alabama, for the funeral of another friend’s Shoe shoppingmother. After the service, we needed some therapeutic girl-time, and there’s no better place than a sale at Southern department-store icon Belk. It’s definitely the place to be, female-wise. My friends were on the hunt for specific  shoes for upcoming weddings and christenings and I’m always open to the siren song of possibility — “I don’t really need these 4-inch purple snakeskin platform sandals or these bright turquoise-and-yellow pointy-toe flats but you never know when they might come in handy.” That is, I was open to possibilities of expanding my own personal shoe options until somehow, from many miles away, my husband felt the cosmic vibration of me being in the middle of a shoe sale and called to forestall any impulsively major purchase. How does he do that???