Power of Photoshop

Now - does this not make you feel a little bit better?!?! 

- credits to Kiki's List Blog for the find of these pictures (www.kikislist.com)

I am down in Florida for my best friend's wedding! Its going to be a blast - I will have lots of fun pics to share with you next week =) 

xo

H 

Two Trends Tuesday: Emerald Green & Print Mixing (Contest)

|  Two Trends Tuesday  |

Emerald Green

According to Pantone, the color of 2013 is Emerald Green - Love it! I got lucky considering green is already my favorite color - I have plenty of this shade in my wardrobe. I have an emerald green scarf, (that I wear way too much) two emerald green purses, pants, coat, and leather jacket! I am set!! 

The draw to this shade is definitely that it is bold, yet looks good on every skin tone. It's been seen in home decor, makeup, jewelry, nails, and most importantly fashion! This luxurious color has been included in both Oscar de la Renta and Michael Kors lines. 

Celebrities are also getting the hang of this shade- wearing varieties from a deep, dark shade in a sports coat, to a bright springy- happy color, like Kate Middleton is wearing. I love this color and I think anyone can pull it off easily! Go get some in your closet before the next color comes out =)

Print Mixing

Now this may be scary to some - but once its mastered, think of the possibilities for your wardrobe! So many new things to try! The most basic was to accomplish (or practice) this trend is pairing stripes with a floral - thats 1st grade stuff. From there, working in different textures can be fun- or animal prints! The possibilities are endless and the main key is to be confident in your choices - if you like it together, then who cares what anyone else thinks! You have to wear it - not them! 

My personal rule of thumb - and I do admit to shying away from this trend more often than I should (time management issues) - is to take a piece with a small, tight patterns and then another piece with a larger bold pattern - all in complementing colors. A good example is to look above and see the center brunette girl with the leopard pencil skirt and the white blouse with little animals (?) on it. We all know white goes with all so we are good there- then you see the skirt with is clearly a tight, busy, small print - and the top, very airy and open - not too daunting to the eye - they go unexpectedly, fabulously together! 

Go for it! 

I am going to hold a CONTEST for those of you awesome enough to pull off this print mixing look!

Send pictures in your best to thevillaalphie@gmail.com and I will post the top 5 winners on my blog!! Include with pics: 

Your name, age, location and any additional info about yourself! 

xo

H

Chambray Shirt - Three Ways

Amazing Home Decor

Hello Everyone - Today is Sunday - meaning tomorrow is Monday - boo! Luckily, I start a new job tomorrow, I am half nervous and half excited! I think it will be good! 

I decided today's post will include some of my favorite home decor ideas! Enjoy! 

I love color but I cannot deny how lovely this wall looks with the mixed neutrals. I need need NEED to find a place to do this in my current home =) These shadow boxes can be found at Michaels or any craft store - I believe they usually come in black - but you could paint them whatever color you choose! The vases and pottery might be able to be found at a dollar store (which would be awesome!) but the craft store has you covered for these as well!  

Could this bed look any fluffier? I actually used this as inspiration for my current bedorom - I wanted a dark wall (I chose Navy because my living room is Gray) and all white sheets, pillows, comforter, and curtains! Love it - so gender neutral and cozy.

Okay - this is DEFINETLY on my To-Do-(Now) List! Crates can be found ($5-$10/ea) at any craft store - and it looks like you need a slab of table top/wood for the bar - besides that just your nice glasses and wine bottles - you are set! HATE the orange wall by the way - ruins it! I have the perfect corner for this project (I am thinking this will be funded by new job 1st paycheck - ya?!)

This is another room I used for current inspiration! If you see my home tour post you will see my dining room also has a 'mirror window'  - I got my mirrors at Target $5 each! So cheap!! I love it because it really opens up the room.

Not into wine? Try a coffee bar! I love this look (esp. with the red wall and dark distressed wood) It's such a fresh idea and cute for have guests over! Love the big letter on top as well - Love me some giant decor letters =) 

This is cool - Apparently these are big fake mosaic tiles you can get from Lowes or Home Depot - They are pretty inexpensive and made out of plastic. Using a few different colors of complementing paint - this makes a great, unique accent wall for any room in the house! A must-do on my list!

I just love the feeling I get when looking at this room. The deep, clean, color of these walls with the bright white and dark stained wood is perfect together! It just makes everything..POP!

This is in my future for sure. A breakfast nook that is a somewhat couch/bench type deal. It looks so cozy and unique. I love it - especially with the colors they used in this picture. 

Love the color of these walls - I like my house to have bright, statement walls - and I am drawn especially to cool colors. This blue is wild but it works and doesn't make the room look to kiddie! 

Love charcoal walls - and the mix of grays, teal and whites in this bedroom are perfect. The bed frame alone is perfect - everything is so unique and special in this room! I cant get enough - this is probably only a dream to me. (the rug too - excellent! ) 

xo

H

Make Your Life Easier

Hi! Here are some amazing tips that make my life a whole lot easier - and I am sure will do the same for you! Enjoy! ...and sorry its Monday tomorrow =(





Have company on their way over and you forgot to put drinks in the fridge. Place your drinks in a large pot and cover with ice. Sprinkle 2 cups of salt on top of the ice and then fill the rest of the pot with water. Your drinks will be ice cold within 2 to 3 minutes.

Need to open a page in a new tab? Instead of right clicking and selecting "Open in new tab", save time by clicking on the link with the middle button on your mouse. If you don't have a mouse with a middle button you can hold down the ctrl key while clicking on the link. Or for Mac Users : Ctl + T

Get rid of the gap in the back of your pants by threading elastic through them.

To reheat pizza without getting the crust soggy, place the pizza in a nonstick skillet. Heat on low until warm.

When making deviled eggs, place the egg yolks in a plastic Ziploc bag with the rest of the ingredients. Close the bag and mash everything together. Once everything is well mixed cut off a small tip from one of the bottom corners of the bag and squeeze the contents into your egg white. Just too the bag once you are done for easy cleanup.

Keep an eye out for gifts for friends and family every time you go shopping. Buying gifts throughout the year will save a lot of time and stress when birthdays and Christmas rolls around.

Don't have time for exercise? Try double tasking. Do squats while you brush your teeth. Push-ups while waiting for the tub to fill up. One handed bicep curls while stirring sauce with the other hand.

If you have already sealed an envelope and realized you forgot to put something in it, place the envelope in the freezer for a couple hours. It will pop right open so you don't have to get another envelope.

For picture frames with two holes, hang them evenly and easily by placing a single strip of masking tape over the back covering the two holes. Mark each end of the tape where the holes are located for hanging the frame. Take the tape off and place it on your wall. Make sure it is level then hammer a nail in at each pen mark

If you can't find a shower curtain to match your bathroom style (in most cases I can only find solid black, brown, white and blue or really bright 'teeny-bopper' colors) Then try looking in the regular curtain section.

To peel a kiwi cut off the top and bottom, slip a spoon between the skin and the flesh. Twist the spoon around the the entire kiwi (keeping it between the skin and flesh the whole time). Then just pop the skin off.

Use Press'n Seal saran wrap to line your refrigerator shelves. When the shelves get dirty, just remove the wrap, toss in the trash and replace. No more scrubbing nasty food spills.

Stick old newspaper or magazines inside your boots when you store them. This will keep the tops from flopping over and adding unsightly creases to your boots. 

Accidentally close a tab on your browser? No problem! Hit ctrl-shift-T and the page will pop up again.

Use a hanger with clips to hold your recipes up where you can see the. No more greasy fingerprint all over your recipe cards!! 

Before grilling burger, press a hole in the middle of the patty. The hole will disappear as the burger cooks. This will minimize shrinking and you won't have to worry about them not being done in the center. 

 If your hair turns green from the chlorine in the pool, dissolve eight aspirin pills in a glass of warm water, coat hair with the solution, let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes, then rinse. The green will be gone.

Need to hang a picture but there is nothing on the back to hang it from? Once you are done with your soda, turn the tab around. Using a pair of pliers grab the bottom (short end) of the tab and bend the tab down into the mouth of the can while pulling up at the same time. This will ensure that the ring is still intact so that you can attach it to the back of your frame with a screw and hang your photo

Need to light a hard to reach candle but don't have any long matches? Use a piece of uncooked spaghetti.

The lines on a Solo cup are measurement marks.

Tired of stopping on every floor of the building every time you use the elevator. Hold the 'close door' button and keep holding while you select your floor number. This will allow you to skip all other floors and go straight to your destination.

Out of AA batteries? Use AAA batteries and fill the gap with a wad of tin foil on the positive side.

Clear your cookies before booking flights!! Many travel sites track the number of times you have visited and will base the price depending on this. By clearing your cookies it will look as though you are a first time visitor and your price will be lower.

Need to break in some new shoes? Fill ziplock bags with water and place in shoe - spread out so water fills all areas. Put into freezer overnight. When the water freezes into ice it expands and stretches out the shoes! 

XO

H