Green Smoothies

My mom got a Vitamix for Christmas because she really enjoys making green smoothies. I was extremely turned off by these smoothies for awhile because they have all kinds of weird ingredients in them. However, she got me to start trying them, and I quickly realized that once you get past the weird ingredients they are actually quite yummy!

Now I make them for myself everyday, and I LOVE them! I can't get enough. Sometimes I will replace a couple of my meals with them. I normally have 1 for breakfast and after I workout. Sometimes I also have them as a mid-morning or afternoon snack. If I didn't eat healthy for lunch I will have on instead of dinner.

These can be made in a blender, but the vitamix does a much better job of grinding up the 'gross' stuff. It's a lot stronger too so it can handle larger items that aren't cut in tiny pieces.

INGREDIENTS

Remember: all ingredients are optional and you don't have to use all these things in every smoothie. It's fun to alternate things and come up with yummy recipes!

In all of my shakes I always put:
Almond milk
Coconut water
Protein Powder (I use MusclePharm)
Quick Oats
Flax seed or oil
Greek Yogurt (I only use this sometimes, and a very little amount)

Greens:
Spinach
Kale
Avocado
Cucumber
Celery
Lime
Mixed Greens

Fruits:
Grapefruit
Oranges
Blueberries
Banana
Peaches
Pineapple
Kiwi
Strawberries
Apple

Check out some more recipes and ideas here.

Enjoy!

Leah

DIY Jewelry Holder

I realized that I had a lot of necklaces, bracelets and other accessories, but I had no way to organize them. I never wore half of them because I couldn't see what all I had. I had seen a lot of great ideas on Pinterest for jewelry holders, and finally one caught my eye. I decided to take what i'd seen and make my own jewelry holder. It has worked out wonderfully! I wear all my jewelry a lot more often, and it looks cute hanging in my room too!

What I Bought:
2 silverware organizers

30 Symmetry Screw Hooks (I just guessed how many I would need based on the amount of jewelry I had, but you can get as many or as few as you need)

Paint and finisher

Paint Brush

White ribbon

Hot Glue Sticks for my glue gun

2 Wall hooks

I bought all of my supplies from Walmart. Below are photos of the drawer organizers and the symmetry screw hooks that I used.

Symmetry Hooks (Walmart)



Bamboo Silverware Drawer Organizer

 

 



To Get Started:

I painted both drawer organizers in a pretty green color, and let that dry. Then I began trying to screw in the hooks along the bottom of the organizer. I quickly realized that it was going to take me forever to screw all of them in. Thankfully my gracious fiance rescued me with his drill and drilled pilot holes for me. Once he did that screwing the hooks in was much easier. You have to be careful not to screw them to close to the edge because it will split the wood.

Here's how I arranged my hooks:

I actually added about 15 hooks on the bottom of each organizer, and I alternated them kind of in a zig zag instead of straight across. I thought this would be easier to hang and see my necklaces.

After getting all of the hooks in I needed to add ribbon so that I could hang them on my wall.

I bought ribbon that was just smaller than the width of the sides of the organizers. I started at the bottom on one side and hot glued the ribbon all the way up one side. Then I measured how much 'extra' ribbon I would need at the top to hang. Then I laid the ribbon on the opposite side and glued it down leaving the extra ribbon on top connecting the two sides. (This will make more sense when you see the finished product).

At this point I was almost done! I hung my two wall hooks where I wanted my jewelry organizer to hang. I let the hot glue under the ribbon dry over night. The next day I was ready to hang them and add all of my jewelry!

They turned out so cute, and I LOVE how organized my jewelry is!! I use the hooks in the top section for rings, the middle section I use for bracelets and/or short necklaces, and the bottom hooks I use for all of my necklaces. I also have bangles that won't fit in the middle section so I hang those on the top big wall hooks.

Enjoy!

- Leah

Shopoholic?

Because I have an unconditional LOVE for shopping and fashion I thought I'd blog about that today. I have a special place in my heart for a good shopping spree or a great bargain! Some may even say that I'm a SHOPaholic :). I can't lie it is a thought that has crossed my mind, but unfortunately it has not changed my shopping habits. However, because I am in my twenties, and I have the usual Entry level job making very little money I have learned how to shop on a budget and still have a closet full of clothes, shoes, accessories etc!

Today I thought I'd share a little bit about where I like to shop and why! I am a very loyal shopper. If I find a store that has great bargains, customer service, and options I will continue to shop there until it does me wrong. I very rarely pay full price for ANYTHING. In fact, I can't think of the last time I did. I am not a couponer, but I do try to find coupons before I go on a shopping spree. I also check out deals that different stores are having so I make sure to hit those first. For those of you that aren't familiar with it check out Retail Me Not for great sales and coupons that stores have available.

So here are some of my favorite places to shop and why. I've also included my favorite 'finds' from some of them. :) Happy Shopping!

Favorite DEAL websites:

GroopDealz - sign up for their emails, and they send you great deals on jewelry, accessories and more!

Very Jane  - sign up for their emails, and they send you great deals on jewelry, accessories and more. I have found that this site sends some baby stuff (which I don't need yet), but they send a lot of stuff for women also!

Shop It To Me - This is a favorite site of mine! You create and login and a profile. You choose designers and stores that you like and your sizes. It then sends you emails as often as you'd like (I get them daily) with great sales from those stores and designers! Beware: this site is dangerous as it comes straight to your inbox with amazing deals!!

Haute Look - This is a site i've always loved. It has great deals for certain periods of time. You can find some really great steals here.

Buy/Sell Websites:

ThreadFlip - This is a website i've found recently that lets you buy and sell designer items. I've found some really great deals here, but I haven't actually purchased anything yet.

Etsy - If you don't shop on Etsy you are seriously missing out! It is my favorite place for monogrammed, personalized, vintage and unique things! I've especially grown to love it as a Bride-to-be! So many cute home made things here!

Online Stores:

UrbanOG - Came across this site on Pinterest, and it has some cute things for extremely low priced.

SheInside - Also came across this site on Pinterest. It's inexpensive, and has a lot of cute things.

ModCloth - This online store has the cutest dresses, especially for Gameday. If you're from the South, you know that it is a Southern 'trend' for college girls to 'dress up' in their team's colors for football games.

Boutiques:

Francesca's - You can't go wrong with Francesca's. They have cute clothes, jewelry and shoes! I shop here regularly!

Lizard Thicket - This is one of my new favorite boutiques. They have so many cute things!

Fab'rik - I just recently discovered that I love Fabrik even more now because as a Bride-to-be you receive 20% off EVERY time you shop while you're engaged!!

Entourage - This is a really cute boutique located in Athens, Ga. They have really great stuff, and I usually just shop on their website.

Charming Charlie - You can't go wrong her. They have every accessory in every color!

Apricot Lane - This boutique has multiple locations, but this one is linked to the Dallas location. They have really cute things on all of their websites!

Stores:

TJMaxx - I absolutely love TJMaxx, Ross and Marshalls. I shop at all three of these places all the time! You can find some amazing deals on designer (and no-name brands) at all three of these places! However, you have to be patient and willing to look for the deals.

Ross

Marshalls

Target - Who doesn't LOVE Target?! It's my happy place :) I shop there way too often!

Nordstrom - Nordstrom is my favorite department store. You just can't go wrong. They often have great deals, AND they always have FREE SHIPPING online!

Forever 21 - Even though i'm not 21 anymore I still shop here regularly. They have amazing prices and really cute stuff!

Loft - I LOVE Loft. It's my go-to store for work clothes. The prices are very resonable, and they almost always have deals! Plus you get the Ann Taylor quality.

Shoes:

Zappos - Love this shoe store. They have everything, and they always have FREE shipping!

DSW - I love DSW because they have great deals, and you can return any online purchases in the store, which is really convenient.

6pm - Always has great deals!

Shoe Mall - Always has great deals!

Amazon Shoes - Amazon is great for any type of shopping, but I recently discover Amazon/shoes. It's got great prices AND you receive 20% on your first purchase when you sign up for Amazon Shoes!

Splurging and Staple Items:

Anthropologie - Great dresses! I always look for the sales.

Victoria Secret - Great bathing suits and sweats!

Banana Republic - Great business dressy clothes. I get a lot of my work pants here.

Michael Kors - My favorite designer!! However, I refuse to pay full price for MK things. I have bought all of my MK purses and accessories at the outlet mall, or TJMaxx/Ross, or on sale!

J Crew - I love JCrew. Once again I always look for the sales!

Top Shop - great store, but it's expensive. Every now and then i'll splurge and buy something here.

White House Black Market - I love White and Black. They have such cute things! I shop here occassionally when I have a little extra money :)

So there you have it! The places I shop regularly and why!

- Leah

Will you be my MAID?

My wonderful boyfriend (now Fiance) got down on one knee and asked me to marry him in November. So naturally I am very excited to begin planning my wedding. One of the first things I wanted to do was ask my two very best friends to be my MAIDS (yes I'm having two) of honor. I have never been the type to have just one best friend, and these two ladies have been with me through thick and thin.

Once I made the decision I was going to ask them at the same time I realized I needed a cute way to ask them. I began doing my research on Pinterest to find cute and creative ways to ask your bridesmaids. I found a lot of great ideas, but I wanted something original. One idea I had seen and liked was a box that said 'Will you be my' on the front and when you opened the box it said 'Maid of Honor' on the inside.

I loved this idea so I set off to Michaels Craft Store to get my supplies.

I bought:
2 small wooden boxes with a latch
Coral paint (this is my main color for the wedding)
A black paint pen for writing on wood
Pearls
Paint Brush

Then I got started. I painted the boxes inside and out in the coral paint. Once that dried I took my pearls (these were flat on one side and round on the other) and glued them on the lid of the box in the shape of the first letter in their name (one had a K and the other a C). I was very excited about how this part turned out!! Once that set I took my black paint pen and wrote on the top 'Will you by my..' Then I opened the boxes and on the inside of the lid I wrote 'Maid of Honor?' They turned out so cute!

Next I needed to fill the boxes with cute things. I decided to go with a coral and pink theme because those are both colors for my wedding. I went to Love Street Boutique, Target, and the local liquor store.

This is what I put in each of the boxes:
A shot glass (Love Street)
A magnet about shoes (Love Street)
A coral Twistband (Love Street)
A friendship ring and keychain (Love Street)
Essie Tart Deco nail polish (Target)
Eos Chapstick (Target)
2 Mini flavored Little Black Dress Vodka shooters (local liquor store)

I laid tissue paper in the bottom of the boxes to make everything stay put, and then I arranged all my things in each box. They turned out so cute, and I could not wait to give them to the girls!

We decided to have dinner and drinks at Chili's, but little did they know that I had something very important to ask them! :)

After a few drinks I whipped out the boxes from the bag they had been hidden in, while making them close their eyes I put the boxes in front of them. When they opened their eyes they were super excited, and so was I because my boxes were a success!!

And of course they said yes!! :)



- Leah

New Beginnings

So I've been wanting to start a blog for a long time, but I just didn't know where to begin. Finally I realized that I will never completely know what I'm doing so I decided to take the plunge.

Why I wanted to start a blog:
I wanted a way to express myself, and share exciting things that I do. I love fashion, crafts, social events, traveling, and the SOUTH. I want to share all of my adventures, fashion finds, and anything else appealing.

Why Sweet Southern Heaven:
I love the South. I've lived here my whole life, and it has my heart. I love everything southern from food to pearls to football. The South is my Heaven, and I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

What I will be blogging about:
I want to blog about fashion bargains because I am always trying to find great steals on shoes, bags, accessories, and clothes. I love crafts and do lots of DIY projects so I will definitely be blogging about those. I also plan to blog about any adventures and exciting things that come my way so stay tuned!

I'm looking forward to my blogging adventures, and can't wait to see where it takes me!


Leah