Life is Beautiful

Motherhood, Sewing, Family

My Shop is Now Open!

~ Etc.

I no longer sell these skirts due to the manufacturing error. Thank you so much for your interest!
My website is finally launched and I am taking pre-orders for my gold sequin skirts! It’s been a dream of mine to be a fashion designer and it’s finally coming true! I’ve always said to myself that in everything that we do, there should always be a greater reason behind it all. Like blogging shouldn’t be just about getting free stuff or earning money or becoming “internet famous” but it should be because you want to help others save money by posting deals, or be a positive example in some way, or recipes to help other households to make delicious food, what have you. So my reason for blogging was a stepping stone to my clothing store, which is a stepping stone to bigger things. $10 from every skirt will be donated to Operation Underground Railroad, an organization I call “the warrior angels on earth”. Eventually as my shop grows, I want to donate 20%, 30%, 40% and 50%! That is my dream. To help the poor, the innocent, or the helpless on a large scale. That is the drive and the force behind all I’ve been doing up to this point.
Anyway, so here are my skirts, I love them! My shop is http://www.amiello.com/. There were lots od mishaps and setbacks in getting these produced, and I didn’t get to make as many as I had wanted, so the quantities are limited. I couldn’t decide which color I liked better so they’re available in two colors; a champagne gold that is matte sequins so it’s not as shiny, it’s more subdued, classy and not as “showy”, and then the true gold which is bright, fun and sparkly, the life of the party kind of a skirt!
Champagne Gold

 

 

True Gold
photographs by Jessica Peterson Photography.
Which one would you wear? I’ll be posting outfit inspirations for many different ways to style a gold sequin skirt, so stay tuned! And as a thank you to my wonderful readers, I am offering a 30% off discount code! (Shh, don’t tell others, I posted a 20% off code on my Instagram and everywhere else.;) Use code: FRIENDS30 for 30% off your order. This code is valid for 5 days from today, until November 21st.

 

Our Star Wars Halloween Costumes

~ Etc., FAMILY

 

I die at my dog’s costume, isn’t it awesome??? And I wish they had Queen Amidala in my size!
Halloween was fun for me when I was at the age to go trick or treating. But after I was 14 years old and my friends and I stopped going trick or treating, it wasn’t as fun! We didn’t hit cool Halloween parties(there weren’t that many parties in Utah growing up), we would just end up passing out candies at one of our friend’s house, eat snacks and watch a scary movie. Then we would all get too scared to go home so we ended up squishing in a queen size bed, the 4 or 5 of us.
But after we had kids, Halloween is so much fun again!!! Because I get to, I mean, the kids get to go trick or treating and I mean I HAVE to go with them to make sure they’re safe, you know? Then afterwards when they’re asleep, Jay and I get our candy tax, the best part of Halloween!
  

My 7 Beauty Secrets for Healthy Skin

~ Etc.

I want to be upfront and honest here, I am not the best person to ask for skincare. You didn’t expect me to say that, on a blog post called “My Beauty Secrets”, did you? Haha. You guys, most of the time I don’t even wash my face at night! I know I know, it’s terrible! But now that I am in my 30’s and noticing fine lines and how my skin isn’t as good as it used to be, I’ve gotten so much better at taking care of my skin. I still don’t wash my face 70% of the time, but it’s better than 99% like before! Right? And to continue the giveaways going on this week as a thank you for being an awesome reader, I have asked one of my favorite skincare products PMD to give one of you your own PMD personal microderm, so make sure to enter the giveaway! I bought these devices for my mom and my sister last year for Christmas, they really work.

 
 
 

My 7 Beauty Secrets

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Pumpkin Patch

~ Etc.

not pictured: we each took turns getting buried in corn. Well, except for our little boy who was way too squirmy to sit still long enough to be buried.

The kids had fun, I was a stress nut-case. Okay, it wasn’t that bad but I was thinking to myself, “Why do I keep subjecting myself to these stressful situations where it’s over-crowded, super busy with long lines and chaos everywhere? WHY???” But then watching them and playing with them, I thought, “I know why I do it! Because of these cute darn kids, look how happy they are!” And it makes losing the keys and frantically searching EVERYWHERE, only to find it inside of the folded stroller cover  seat, or bringing my Nena & Co. bag but the straps were too long and I didn’t realize it until the end, but it dragged on the cement and the ground, thus the whole bottom being scratched, all worth it! It really does.  And as I was editing these pictures, it reconfirms to me that it’s so worth it because look how happy my kids are! Argh, I am so obsessed with my kids!
I asked my oldest daughter to take some pictures for me and look how awesome she is! At first, it was her idea to take pictures and begged me to take pictures, but after about the 5th time, which was a few weeks ago, she grunts and tells me she doesn’t want to do it anymore. So I had this brilliant idea to tell her I’d pay her $1 every time she takes pictures for me, per outfit and now she does it happily and willingly! Yes!!! 
overalls | shirt: gap | boots: old navy | fedora

The next day, we carved pumpkins and roasted the pumpkin seeds. We didn’t take any pictures to post on the blog or Instagram, so maybe it never even happened. 😉

Sunday Best

~ Etc.

So you know how I’ve had some professional images lately of some of my DIY’s and outfit posts? Well, would you believe it if I told you that all these pictures were done in ONE HOUR in one photoshoot? That is why I am wearing the same shoes, same necklace, no handbags, I didn’t even think to get different accessories until I got in the car, and I was like screw it! This is too much work!!! Haha. All my fashion blogger friends get photoshoots done where they shoot multiple outfits at one time like few times a week, and I seriously don’t know how they do it. Photoshoots are so stressful! But after it was done, it’s been very nice to have these nice images to use for weeks. I guess having photos for 3 weeks worth of posting is worth it for one photoshoot, right? 
Anyway, I am having a giveaway for this Shabby Apple dress on my Instagram, you should come enter! And I post sneak previews of my DIY projects and updates that I don’t post on here. 😉