Happy Saturday everyone!  This has been the craziest week, and it turned out so different than I thought it would, but that is just so much how life is, isn’t it?

I rounded up some of my favorite looks from the last few weeks on instagram and I also listed the best sales happening this weekend at the bottom of the post…

Favorites from the J.Crew dressing room.  Seriously so many good things this season.

My favorite moto jacket, I have in two colors.

Who’s obsessed with all things fair isle for the holiday season.

so many good booties in the Nordstrom Fall clearance sale.

I’ve been living in this coat, and these jeans.

Favorite slippers, possibly ever.

This tunic sweater is amazing.

see, second color. obsessed.

look at that face.

My favorite leopard shoes are back in stock!

These rock stud flats are my favorite.

I found an almost identical scarf, and I wear this one every single day.

Weekend sales:

Tomorrow is the last day for the Nordstrom Fall Clearance sale.

25% off at J.Crew this weekend.

40-60% off at J.Crew factory.

40% off your entire purchase at Banana Republic.

40% off your entire purchase at Gap.

50% off sweaters and outerwear at Old Navy.

20% off full-priced home items at Anthropologie.

40% off everything at Loft.

Sweater. Jeans. Flats.

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is setting the table for dinners.  My mom always set beautiful tables, and I try (try is the key word) to live up to that.  It made the meals so special and setting a pretty holiday table brings me an immense amount of joy.  And none as much as my Thanksgiving table, when it is all about the meal, and gathering together to be thankful for what we have.

This year I’m going with a farmhouse inspired theme, incorporating a little navy gingham and warm wood tones with a bay leaf garland for a little added green and real mini pumpkins and squash to finish it off.  In theory I love big centerpieces, but the reality is, they make conversation around the table nearly impossible, and I’d rather my family see each other while we eat, so I usually go with something a little more low profile, like these simple candlesticks.

It’s my dream to one day buy an old farmhouse and fix it up.  You know, chickens, horses, a garden and all that… and I have to admit that it was the inspiration behind this year’s table.

So take a look, and I hope this inspires you to do something pretty with your thanksgiving table.  And remember, it doesn’t have to be fancy to feel special.

(don’t forget to join me on my “24 days of Gratitude” challenge by subscribing on the right.)

more farmhouse favorites:

Anyone who grew up with me knows that I’ve always been a huge Halloween freak.  I always loved dressing up, decorating, trick or treating and just all the fun a festive stuff that leads up to October’s holiday.

When I was younger my costumes were very intricate, (one year I was a full on Geisha girl- white painted face, black wig and all) but now that I’m a mom and have way less time since there are 4 kids to make costumes for, I’m all about the quick and easy halloween costumes that are still fun and festive.

The key to creating a great but easy Halloween costume, is coming up with ideas that use pieces you mostly already have or can easily find and then wear again later.

Things like a little black dress, a striped shirt or a good pair of jeans that you can turn into an awesome costume.  It’s a match made in busy mom heaven…

Here are my top six quick and easy Halloween costumes:

Where’s Waldo.

I’m sorry but if you were a kid in the 90’s then you’ve got to love Where’s Waldo.  And you really couldn’t ask for an easier costume.  This one is so fun, and all you really need is a red striped shirt, a red pom beanie, a pair of glasses and a cane or umbrella.

Little Black Dress Witch.

I was at a halloween party this weekend and someone said, every woman needs a go-to witch hat for when you’re in a costume pinch.  Not sure if it was a little freudian slip, or what, but it’s also rather true.  Instant ready made costume.  And also it’s the easiest, chicest costume ever because all you really need (besides said hat) is a chic little black dress and some fun tights.  And double bonus, if you plan it right, you can snag a new LBD and then it can double as your holiday party dress.  Voila!

Old Fashioned Zombie.

The truth is that you can put anything behind zombie and make it a costume with a little undead makeup contouring: zombie soccer player, zombie librarian, zombie mom (oh wait, that’s me).  But doing this old fashioned zombie costume was one of my favorite ever.  The vintage inspired clothes were such a fun twist on a basic costume and we did it with the whole family which was extra fun because my kids got really into character.  (Hannah was a zombie flapper girl, the boys were zombie newsies, Ava was zombie Rosie the Riveter… you see?  So fun.)  This one is simple as well because all you really need is a vintage style dress and some creative hair and makeup.

Glenda the Good Witch.

A costume that calls for a pink tulle skirt?  Sign me up. I did this with Ava as Dorothy and it was really cute.    Such a fun excuse to wear one of my favorite pieces from my closet.  This also works well for ballerina, fairy,  princess and basically fulfilling childhood fantasies in general.

French Mime.

The french mime is one of my favorite costumes.  It literally incorporates a bunch of my favorite wardrobe basics, a black striped shirt, red ballet flats, and classic slacks.  Also, it allows me to fulfill my 5th grade dream of wearing a beret in public.  (I’ve talked about my beret obsession as a kid haven’t I?)  A little red lipstick (this is my favorite in Russian Red) some white gloves, suspenders, a neck kerchief, and a little personality.  You’re good to go.

Rosie the Riveter.

Talk about a ready made costume.  If you don’t have a good chambray in your closet yet, then we’ve got bigger problems than what you’re going to be for Halloween… ;-)  Seriously though, all this calls for is good denim and a red bandana.  If you’re looking for an excuse to buy a good pair of bootcut jeans, these Hudsons are the way to go, and I’ve had this exact chambray shirt for like 4 years and it’s the best one ever.  A little red lip and some boots finishes the job.

During the colder months I get the nesting itch bad.  Since it rains a lot in the PNW we spend a lot of time indoors this time of year and I suddenly have the urge to start fiddling with all the different spaces in my home.  So today I thought it would be fun to talk about one of my favorite decorating subjects, gallery walls.

The first home we owned right out of college was this little shoebox in Utah just north of Provo.  It was a cute little house with a front porch all along the front and a driveway in the back.  (I can’t believe how long it’s been since we lived there, it feels like a dream now.)  It was the first time I ever had a home that was my own to work on.  We put up beadboard and did some faux finishes and I learned a little about my style and what I wanted to do with my home.

 When we built our home in Arizona it was a big upgrade.  It wasn’t fancy but it was a well-built home twice the size of our first one, it was brand new, and we were in love with it.  We picked out all the finishes ourselves and it’s was a perfect blank slate.  It was also the first time I got a real case of decorator paranoia.  Everything was so fresh and perfect, I was afraid to make a mistake, or put a hole in the wall that I didn’t like.  We also had a giant wall in the house in our great room with no windows that proved to be a real decorating dilemma.   I had no idea what to do with it.  I was large and wide and  I didn’t know how to break it up, or what to put on it.  I bought a huge piece of art, (like so big it barely fit in my car) got it home, hung it up and the wall completely dwarfed it.

So I started googling (this was before Pinterest) and that is when I first discovered gallery walls.  I was smitten.  I created a file on my computer (because that’s what we all did before pinterest) and started saving inspiration pictures of my favorite gallery walls.  This was my solution to the giant wall dilemma.  I just needed to design mine.

I found a bunch of images via Pottery Barn of their collected gallery walls and I instantly fell in love with the idea.  I’ve always loved Pottery Barn’s approach to decorating because it really adheres to what I believe about a home; that it should feel livable for those who are in it, and that it should be decorated in a personal and meaningful way.  That was the kind of gallery wall I would create.

So I started collecting, and I’ve never really stopped.  This is the state of that original gallery wall today and it’s always evolving.  I’ve added a few more

A gallery wall is a great solution for those big blank walls in your house and I love that it’s an affordable option for decorating a space.  Large art can be rather pricey, but collecting smaller pieces over time is  a lot easier to do affordably.

So here are my top three tips for creating a gallery wall you’ll love:

1.  Pick a theme. It can be a subject or a color but there should be something that ties each piece in your gallery wall together.  For my foyer gallery wall, I chose nautical and also navy, but it doesn’t have to be so obvious, for the gallery walls in my girls rooms I went more with an idea/color scheme.  For example, Hannah’s gallery wall is whimsical with a hint of spunk and it’s mint and pink shades.  Ava’s is more dreamy, with soft blush and a little gray.  I’m not a person who loves my gallery wall frames to be too matchy-matchy, I like it when there’s an eclectic mix, but I do think they need to be tied together by a common theme, or else it just starts looking messy.

2.  Make it personal.  I believe that the best gallery walls are the ones that are meaningful.  It shouldn’t have a came-out-of-the-box feel.  The coolest gallery walls have a more curated feel.  Meaningful pieces collected over time.  It takes a little longer to create, but it works out so much better.  I chose this theme because I’ve always loved all things nautical, and also because Seattle has a huge boat culture with the sound.  My husband also learned out to sail this year so it’s even more meaningful now.  I’ve collected sailing art over the years, maps from places we’ve been or want to go, hung up numbers for our anniversary, and framed pages from an old sailing book I found in an antique shop years ago.
My “a smooth sea” inspirational quote is one of my favorite parts of the wall.  I made it in 2014 when I went through my big battle with anxiety after losing my baby and a bunch of other personal struggles that happened.  I would repeat it to myself every morning and throughout the day as a reminder to keep going and that what I was battling would make me a stronger more capable person in the end.  Now when I see it, I feel so happy and proud of how far I’ve come, and also it’s a great reminder on days when I want to quite life.  My gallery wall brings me a lot of joy because it has so much meaning and so many memories tied up in it. Each piece has earned it’s place on the wall.  Collect art and pieces that speak to you and feel meaningful.  My favorite places to shop for gallery wall art are Minted, and Pottery Barn, and I love Etsy for quote art.

3.  Add some texture.  I think the best gallery walls have a little added texture.  Adding pieces that are more than just a framed piece of art can add so much visual interest to the collection.  I love finding these kinds of pieces at local antique stores or online.  For this gallery wall, I’ve got an oar, a metal anchor, a ship bell I inherited from my mom (who got it from my grandpa) and some metal numbers.  I also love adding metal letters and pieces with interesting shapes, like these antique snowshoes or skis from Pottery Barn.

Bonus tip.  I lay all my pieces out on a big open spot on the floor and arrange/rearrange them until I get a grouping I like.  Then I snap a picture to see if that grouping really works. (The camera never lies)   I never do the whole paper on the wall thing, partly because my shapes aren’t uniform enough for that to really work, and partly because it’s a time consuming pain and I find that just eyeballing it and hanging them one at a time right off the floor works way better for me.  I only occasionally need to add an extra hole and that doesn’t really bother me.