Shopping Tips

If you have cool summer coloring, this is a great time to shop the sales.

Sweet Mr. Mickey took me down to Sevierville to shop in the huge Tangier Outlet Mall on Saturday. 

This is the palette of colors that look best with my own coloring. These colors are most often sold in the summer months, so that is when I do the bulk of my shopping for clothes. I dress in lightweight layers for most of the year, so this formula works for me.

Do you study your own coloring to guide you in finding what looks best on you? There are now several different programs that help you to identify your best colors, such as the original Color Me Beautiful system. Do a Google search for color analysis, and you will get several results. Knowing exactly what colors look best on you makes shopping and getting dressed so much easier.

Earlier last week, I found this Coach bag at the outlet in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. It was priced at $428, but after the sale and another discount they offered that day, I got it for $119.99! I like this bag because it is a smaller size and a neutral color. I also like it because the logo is so small. I do not care for items emblazoned with logos. 

The sandals are by Bjorndal from Rack Room Shoes. I found these on the same shopping trip.

   

 

The dress is by Dana Buchman from Khol's.

As the temperatures have started to climb into the 90's I am embracing low sandals with lightweight sleeveless dresses. I did take a navy blue shrug sweater and higher heeled neutral sandals to wear to dinner on Saturday, but it was never cool enough to require the shrug.

Fleetwood Mac!

On Monday evening, Mr. Mickey and I went with our closest friends to the Fleetwood Mac concert at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina.

We arrived a few hours early so that Mitzi and I could go shopping and have dinner before the concert. Since the arena is located in the financial district, the shopping choices were dismal, so we opted for a long walk and sightseeing instead. 

Charlotte has undergone a tremendous revitalization since my last visit. It is a beautiful, clean and safer city.

There were sculptures, waterfalls, fountains, art installations, green spaces, parks, and flowers in all the numerous plazas and on every street in the area we walked in. 

A storm was starting to blow in as we walked to dinner later in the evening before the concert.

The flowers in this plaza were amazing!

Did I mention it was windy?

This was one of our favorite bronzes.

Safe in our seats at last!

It was Mick Fleetwood's birthday!

Stevie Nicks at 65 still looks wonderful. Her haunting voice is so unique. Lindsey Buckingham sang, played an amazing solo or two, danced, and never left the stage for the whole concert, which lasted for almost three hours. He has incredible energy! John McVie was his usual subdued, extremely talented self.

The sets and additional screens that dropped down at times were fabulous. It was so amazing to watch Lindsey Buckingham's fingers playing that guitar.

The next day there was time for another quick walk around the area before breakfast.

Banner Elk

We often drive up to Banner Elk to have dinner at our favorite restaurant, Artisanal.

Banner Elk is a lovely village on the way to the high country of North Carolina.

This crazy stone wall winds all up and down the hills leading to Eagles Nest. Driving through the countryside you will see many gated communities that feature luxury log homes and fabulous mountain retreats. 

This is the gatehouse of Eagles Nest and one of the smaller log homes in the background. As you approach the top of the mountain the homes become more and more fabulous, such as this one. 

One of my favorite college campuses can be found here in Banner Elk. Lees-McRae is located near the heart of the village. 

Stone buildings and beautiful gardens can be found throughout the campus. 

I am sure many black bears have wandered across this campus over the years.

I am sitting with a bronze of the founder of the college.

This is the front porch of the historic rock house.

The main street of the village is lined with flowers and punctuated with this bronze statue of a baying elk.

Mickey's entree was so pretty!

My after dinner Grand Marnier was quite lovely also.

I am wearing a blue Traveler tank and pants from Chico's. The deep fuchsia jacket is from Stein Mart.

The Nina evening shoes are several years old but I had not yet worn them. They have tiny light topaz color rhinestones on them.

Dinner by a Waterfall

Saturday was a wonderful day! We decided to take the convertible for a drive in the country to enjoy every moment of it.

We visited Damascus, Virginia, along the Virginia Creeper Trail and the Appalachian Trail, and several other trails.

We had a lovely early dinner outside by the waterfall at the Damascus Old Mill.

We were hoping to hear one of our friends, Lightnin' Charlie, perform live music this evening, but we misremembered the dates. His performance was the evening before.

Ducks came to rest by the water's edge as we were leaving.

Upstream, more ducks were teaching their young ones how to find food and not get too close to the edge.

I wore the beautiful bangle bracelet, which my friend Lois surprised me with earlier this week. 

Our next stop along our journey was the 'World's Shortest Tunnel' through Backbone Rock on Hwy 133 between Shady Valley, TN, and Damascus, VA.  It was constructed in 1901 for hauling timber from Tennessee to a nearby sawmill outside of Damascus.

My hair was cut this week, but after a day in a convertible, it looked better from the back than the front.

The turquoise knit top is from Belk. The white ankle pants are from Chico's. The Adrienne Vittadini sandals were from T.J.Maxx last year.

This visit brought back memories of a ten-mile hike alone on a sunny day several years ago. I hiked for several miles along the Appalachian Trail, stopping here in this park later in the day to hike over this rock formation and on to a nearby waterfall in the woods. I feel so blessed to now have Mr. Mickey to share my adventures with.

For more information about all the many wonderful places to visit near this area, go to Appalachiantreks. 

  

Black and White for Date Night

After a long very stressful day of work, there is nothing better than sitting down to share a meal and the comfort of your best friend. 

Mr. Mickey and I had a lovely dinner in our favorite restaurant and then moved outside to the patio to have a scotch and water and enjoy the perfect weather. A lovely twenty-something woman waved excitedly when she saw me from across the patio. I racked my brain for several minutes, trying to figure out who she was but decided she must have confused me for someone else. Mickey always makes me laugh. He said, "She must recognize you from Redbook."


This top is no less than five years old. I think I found it at T.J.Maxx. The pants were hand-me-downs from my sister. The shoes are a couple of years old from Kohl's.

The bracelet, earrings, and ring are all in silver tones. The small leather clutch bag is from T.J.Maxx. 

Family Time

Father's Day was spent with my family and Mr. Mickey, of course.

I wore a chambray Tencel tunic from Coldwater Creek last year, over a Chico's white tank and Chico's khaki side zip ankle pants.

The belt and charm bracelet are also from Chico's. I never like to wear belts at my natural waistline, but these hook belts from Chico's are great because they are worn low over the tummy, creating a longer, leaner look.

 

The suede cutout booties are by Nine West from last year.