BLOGtober Fest, Day 1: Fall Fashion & Decorating

Today you'll be reading lots from other Arkansas Women Bloggers about Fall Fashion & Decorating. Um, say what?! Fashion and decorating? From me?!  Whatever in the world might I have to say about fashion and decorating?  Not a lot, trust me! I'm a sweatshirt/t-shirt/sweater and blue jeans kind of girl. Though, I will say that of late, it is a necessity that my jeans be boot-cut.  You see, my friends, I have fallen in love with cowboy boots.

I could go into a long spiel about my boots and which ones I have and all that. But I'll spare you.  I will tell you that my Daddy bought a beautiful pair of black lizard-skin boots before my wedding and that's what he wore with his tux. (that was fine by me) So, when he learned I wanted boots he was more than happy to buy me a pair. One for my birthday last year. One for my birthday this year. And I love them. The second it cools down around here, they are on my feet!! All my Facebook friends get a little nauseous when I talk about my boots. But seriously. They're pretty awesome.  So, there's my fashion advice. Get boots. Wear them often. Love them. Okay, I can't let you out of here without you seeing my boots.  First pair, Birthday 2011, Old West snipped toe and they are on sale at Shepler's for much less than my Daddy paid for them. You can't go wrong with them, trust me:

Second pair, Birthday 2012. I saw them with all the advertising for the AWBU conference (Country Outfitters was a sponsor). Daddy ordered them from Country Outfitters. They are much more dressy and girly. They rock.  Laredo brand, Miranda in gray. It's a brushed leather so I don't dare wear them in the rain! They are fabulous:

Now I feel better. You've seen my boots.  :)

As for decorating, well, my oldest daughter did all my October decorating this year. I was at the office, the kids were dying to get everything out. So, they did. Elizabeth put all the jack-o-lantern stuff on the dining table. We've had to change up the table decorations a little because our table is square now. I don't do anything special to the mantel because it holds each of my kids' professional portraits.

Outdoors, I have flipped and flopped and flipped and flopped and flipped on paint color for the Adirondack rocker on our front porch. It was black and the weather had really affected it over the past four years:

 Originally, I thought ORANGE, it would really pop on the front porch! So fun and a little bit shocking against the grey and white brick.  But then I realized there's just no way to make orange work during the holiday season, winter and spring. So, my next thought was RED. But I kept coming back to how to make red work in the spring. Not happening. Finally, I settled on a great PEA GREEN. Perfect! I can use this for everything but post-Christmas winter but I can figure something out between now and then. Bought primer, bought paint. Sanded the chair, started priming. Ran out of primer. Went back to Home Depot. Waffled on RED again. And then, I saw it. AQUA.  Perfect. Use it with pastels for spring; bright colors for summer; orange/brown/gold and maybe a little eggplant or maroon for fall; red & white or cream for Christmas and other blues for the rest of winter. Oh my word. Finally! (although I did briefly entertain the idea of  SKY BLUE or ROYAL BLUE).



I'm still on the hunt for outdoor pillows in the colors I want for each season - but every time I see the chair on the porch, it makes me smile...

...and not just because this adorable face is sitting in it.  It's really a lot of fun! Anyone have suggestions on where to get some great outdoor pillows that don't cost a billion dollars?

P.S.I've also discovered I love spray paint.