bff = Black Friday fun !!

So who among you was brave enough to get up in the middle of the night to snag some Black Friday deals?? I'd love to hear all about the loot you scored !

It saddens me tho to see many stores now open on Thanksgiving day ... I wish the employees could have uninterrupted time with their families, to relax and enjoy the holiday.

I slept in today ... no 3:00 AM shopping jaunts for me, no way! I did take advantage of some cyber door-busters yesterday tho. But today I made the rounds to some of my FAVE stores ... at a reasonable hour. First stop ... my local scrapbook store, Everything Scrapbook & Stamps, of course! The timing was perfect ... they just stocked a new collection that I've been waiting for: Tropical Travelogue by Graphic 45. The colors and designs are absolutely stunning (and have me craving a trip to Tahiti, LOL)!

Then I met my sweetheart Sal for lunch al fresco at The Olive Garden (yum!) before heading off to Joann Fabric & Crafts. My next stop was Pier 1 Imports to pick up this fun holiday candle that caught my eye in their BF ad (soon I'll post a pic of how I "candlescape" it --- I have what I *think* will be a cute idea!). Wow oh wow is their store filled with holiday SPARKLE ... I saw glitter & bling at every turn !! I swear I could just move into that store! And I love Pier 1's clever slogan for this year's holiday season:

The final place on my BF itinerary was Barnes & Noble ... I joined Sal there to cap-off a fun day, relaxing with a chai latte and book browsing.

Hmm, where to next? I hope to stop in another 2 of my fave stores -- Michaels and Crate & Barrel -- sometime during the weekend. Let the fun continue! :-)

Happy shopping,

so very THANKFUL for .....

My sweet & precious little family!

Celebrating Thanksgiving, Florida style ... at the beach!

Ginormous newspapers overflowing with Black Friday ads!

Sal and I couldn't schedule in a trip to be with family this holiday ... too many big research proposal deadlines next week. {sigh} But, we're making the best of a working weekend .... and took today OFF to relax (toes in sand!), and to be thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving!

food for thought

I really love magazines! I think they're some of the most fun things to get in the mail, a nice surprise. I subscribe to several scrapbooking mags, and of course a travel magazine too. But this weekend when Sal and I were browsing in a Barnes & Noble, I came across a new magazine that really spoke to me. It's called VegNews and, as the name implies, focuses on vegetarianism. But this mag is different than other veggie mags....rather than obsessing over recipes and healthy eating (cooking is just not my thing!), its theme is the vegetarian lifestyle which, in addition to a meatless diet, includes cruelty-free choices when shopping, traveling, decorating, etc. It covers the whole "eco-package", and I love it! (And, of course, the magazine is printed with soy ink on recycled paper.)

After flipping through an issue, I came home and went online to subscribe. Their website has a cool list of 222 Reasons to be Veg, here are some of my favorites:

# 13 not eating the bodies of tortured souls;
# 17 resisting cruel fashion trends without a second thought;
# 30 being the change that I want to see in the world;
# 34 watching loved ones and strangers slowly evolve toward vegetarianism;
# 39 looking into the faces of animal companions without guilt;
# 45 meeting brilliant, compassionate, creative people who advocate for the voiceless;
# 48 viewing non-human animals as fellow earthlings rather than as mere objects;
# 63 being the voice for the voiceless;
# 74 being consistent (claim to love animals? prove it!);
# 86 becoming a conscious consumer***;
# 108 treating all animals with the same respect and consideration;
# 165 vegan online shopping***;
# 168 cruelty-free Thanksgiving;
# 185 snuggling up in a warm, not-down comforter;
# 187 my vegetarianism gives me a sense of purpose in life - I can't imagine living any other way;
# 208 wearing my own skin and no one else's;
# 213 the music of Paul McCartney (there are lots of famous vegetarians!)

*** Certainly, being a conscious consumer isn't easy....I sometimes have to search hard for shoes, purses, etc. that are "cruelty-free" (i.e., not made of leather or other animal products). And I say that as someone who loves to shop and enjoys cute shoes and fashionable purses as much as the next gal. Products made from leather, suede, down, angora, etc., are ubiquitous, but I by-pass them and keep looking. I buy items that say "man-made materials" on the label, and I've had great success finding fashionable products at stores like JCPenney, Chadwick's, and Payless Shoes, among others. (A woman once asked me if my purse was a Chanel, but it was from Payless, and made entirely of synthetic materials!)

P.S. ~ happy birthday to my brother-in-law, Paul in Philadelphia!

curiosity lamp

Pottery Barn holds free decorating classes now and then, and I attended one last week......it was to showcase all of their new spring stuff. Their new goodies sure are bright, colorful, and easy on the eyes. PB's "curiosity lamp", as they've dubbed it (love that name!), really caught my attention while I was there. I couldn't help but wonder just how great a scrapbook page or canvas would look in the built-in easel, light aglow over my latest project, displayed on a table in my scrapbook room......hmmm......I suddenly feel compelled to do my part to stimulate the economy (wink).

Time to go check who's winning the South Carolina Democratic primary......

tote-ally fun!

I've had my eye on this Palazzo tote bag for a while and could resist no longer. Crate & Barrel.....one of my favorite stores ever!....has these great patent tote bags, and I chose the black one with white handles. It was a tough decision, but that one has a fabulous lime green nylon lining --- such a pretty contrast to the b&w! Best of all, they are made only of faux materials, PVC and nylon. How nice to find something so stylish without a trace of leather.

I'm not usually one to buy totes, but this one was also irresistible to me in a store window recently:

The fabric is just stunning, a combination of hibiscus flowers, leopard print and paisley swirls. It's called "Jungle Biscus", for obvious reasons, and I love that name! Fun stuff!