KEEPING YOUR FEET DRY IN THE SNOW
So this morning, out of the clear blue, Joe asks me about a tiny house. I am sitting there looking at him thinking what in the world is he talking about. He then throws the bombshell that he wants to build a tiny house for us and he wants it to be between 400 and 800 square feet. ? Does the man not know who he is married too??? I could use a closet that size just by myself. Lol!!! He then starts talking about being minimalistic and downsizing. My idea of downsizing is to get rid of anything that I haven’t worn in three years not limiting myself to three of everything.
He wants me to start looking for plans and then he came up with a brilliant idea. He wants me to ask YOU gurls. He said there is power in numbers and that surely one of you have a cute tiny house (cabin, over the garage, MIL suite) that you might have a plan for. Finally, I asked him WHERE he intended to build this tiny house. I was trying to figure out if he was wanting to sell everything we own and live in a 20×20 house. I like togetherness but that might be a little excessive. So, I am humoring him for the moment and hoping he gets over this phase, but if you have a good plan or website for one please let me know. I can always use it as another closet. LOL!!!
If I was going to describe my outfit in one word I would say, colorful. I bought this dark teal cardigan earlier in the fall but I have never worn it. I had it laid out but nothing ever seemed to be what I was looking for. However, I was moving some things around in my closet and I happened upon this wonderfully thick sweater by Louis Dell’Olio. It is a gorgeous color called, Port, but it comes in several other colors. I like the fact that it is a longer version than what I have gotten in the past. I loved the two colors together so I decided to see if I could come up with an outfit. Here is where I wore this sweater the last time and it was one of my favorite looks.
I started looking through my jewelry first to see if I had some things that would tie the two colors together. The Aspen earrings caught my eye first. These light blue babies are a 2″ drop and they have an antiqued look to them that I really like. I put the Idina bracelet on and took these pictures. But, when I checked out the pictures in the house I went and changed to the Wanda bracelet instead. I didn’t like the Idina colors with this look and the Wanda was just plain silver which went with my collection of Alex and Ani bracelets. 
Did you notice in some of the pictures it looked like I had small bleach stains on my outfit? That was snow flurries that were flying around. It snowed about 3 or 4 inches and I wanted to keep my feet dry. I put on some thick wool socks and then pulled on my gorgeous tiffany blue Hunter Boots. These babies were a Christmas present from Joe one year and he had to look high and low to find them. I, of course, picked out a color that was as rare as hen’s teeth. These boots will probably get a lot of wear once the spring rains start up.
Back to my cardigan or duster, it was from Cato Fashions but they never keep there clothing up very long. I looked and it is no longer available. I have actually quit going there because I can’t get it on the blog fast enough for you to be able to purchase the item. I did find some (similar) ones that I will link to below.
In case you are wondering about the scarf, it was a present many many years ago from a young lady who was working at the lumber company. She went on a trip to London and she brought me back this scarf. I love it and I try to wear it at least once or twice a year.
It is time for me to start trying to get my “tan” on. We are supposed to go to Orlando the last of this month for a trade show and I hope to get to take Emersyn and Beckham to Disney at least one day. I am so pasty white from the winter that I wouldn’t put on a pair of shorts if you paid me right now. I have been trying to use my body moisturizer with a few drops of the Active Hydration Serum in it on all of my body. The winter has really made my skin even drier than it normally is, which is terrible. As a Valentine gift from me, from now until midnight on February 14th I will be gifting a body moisturizing lotion or a sunless tanner to EVERY order placed as a Preferred Customer. So, if you would like R+F as YOUR valentine present then you need to tell your hubby to get in touch with me. Or, do what I do and order it for yourself and tell the hubby not to worry. Believe it or not, he will be relieved!!! Go to www.tstephens5.myrandf.com and hit the shop button. Once you go to checkout it will prompt you to login or sign up as a Preferred Customer or a Retail Customer. Remember, become a PC and get the free gift mailed to you from me.
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I think a tiny house would be perfect as a vacation place, near a lake, mountain or beach.
I live in 900 sq feet, city apartment in Vienna Austria. I will return to the states to live in a 600 ft condo. But I have lived in a 3000 sq ft house in a previous life. I thought I would hate it, but I love it. You only keep what you love. My clothes are a wardrobe, I cycle summer and winter. The summer are stored under the bed til April. I purge every year and will only return to the states with what I really Love. It has been a positive experience for me. I love the tiny houses, not a hostage to your possessions.
Hi Tania, We have a 800 sq. ft. getaway condo in Wisconsin. It’s a townhome style condo, but stacked. Our unit is on the 2nd floor, stair walk-up. Inside, our place is two stories. We have a spiral staircase to get up to the 2nd level loft, which is open on both sides. We keep a futon couch up there (Indian themed room), plus it has a several foot long closet for storage, and it houses our water heater. Downstairs, the main floor has an itty bitty living room w/fireplace and a little opening in the wall to see into the kitchen. Plus a bedroom and 1 little bathroom with a barely walk-in closet. The kitchen can fit a mini stackable washer/dryer. But there is no dishwasher. It’s a tiny galley style kitchen.
We have no garage, although some units have tandem garages, but they are not close to the condo buildings – they are housed in garage buildings a bit of a walk away. Anyway, even though our space is tiny, we see the Wisconsin river from our living room (w/balcony attached)! And the loft/high celing makes our place feel bigger than it is. Plus the condo buildings are set on 61 acres, 1/2 mile of riverfront, with tennis courts, pool, a mini marina for boats, garden area, plus clubhouse. So there is outdoor space. Ha, my husband recently proclaimed he wants to retire there, and I reacted pretty much the same as you did to Joe. Ha, if we had a garage attached, I’d be more likely to agree to it since I love our lil home so much. But talk about downsizing a wardrobe and ‘stuff’. Wowsers. (What is it about guys wanting to live in teeny spaces when they retire??)
Hey Tania! I just starting following you today! I’ve seen you pop up on Pinterest before and I love your style I just never took the time to look into who you are. I saw on one of your postings something about your sister’s book that she wrote… by chance is your family Ole Miss fans? We owe a condo in Oxford, love that place! Also, we just finished turning a detached garage in our backyard into a home for my 87 year old mom to occasionally stay in. It’s only 500 sf. and oh so cute!! It really turned out great but I don’t think I could live in it with my hubby! Lol
I look forward to learning more from you!
Welcome to my crazy blog, Tammie! I have people tell me all the time that they found me on Pinterest. Lol! No one in my family is an Ole Miss fan as far as I know. We are from Tennessee so we pull for the University of Tennessee.
LOL – my hubby is always talking about a tiny house. I just humor him and say “yes love”, then I crowd him for a few hours and then that thought leaves. I think tiny houses are a cool concept with a main gathering area tying them all together – sort of like a regular house. I love your outfit today!
No. No. No. To tiny house. Was a fad that has sailed. Many are regretting it. An older friend of mine kinda, sorta tried it on a small, not tiny house, and took me aside one day and advised me to never do it. She said biggest mistake they ever made. Said could down size but not to that extreme.
We are thinking about downsizing too. My idea of downsizing is getting rid of the formal dining and formal living room. Everything else stays!!! No tiny house. I would die. Buy a camper instead and use it to drive to the resort!!
Hunter boots will keep your feet dry, but living in Canada, I can tell you they won’t keep your feet warm.
Hi Tania. I love the Hunter rain boots. Especially the color. My daughter has them in black but I’d like a pair in that color or the berry color you listed as an alternative. With warm socks they’re perfect for winter. Going to start looking. Like the whole color scheme today. The scarf makes it all work and that’s a helpful hint. Have a great day. And a ” tiny house” even as a second vacation home would be way too small in my opinion. I don’t see how anyone lives that way unless your 21 with no kids.
I LOVE tiny houses & would downsize to one in a heartbeat and then travel all over the U.S. if I could ever convince my husband to get on board! Not likely 🙁 Anyway, to get ideas on floor plans, check out http://www.tumbleweedhouses.com – they are one of the first companies to embrace the minimalist movement with tiny houses. Also, you can always do a google search for “tiny house plans” & then view the images section too….you’ll find plans from many different sources. I also agree with with another commenter to not stop styling from Cato. I’m not as concerned with buying the exact same articles of clothing you are wearing. I use your outfits to either “shop my closet” or try to buy similar items if I need to. Love your inspiration!!!