TOP TWELVE SHOTS of 2017

Omni Chandelier, Z'Gallerie, home decor, glam decor, Luxor Living and Style , Houston blogger, blog, Top Houston style, home decor

1.   CHANDELIER LOVER

Like most ladies, I absolutely love chandeliers!  When we decided to move into a new house in January, I struck a deal with my husband.  We could buy the house, which was about 10 years old, if he let me remodel the entire thing before we moved in. I didn’t want to drag it out over time while we were living there!

My vision included cramming as many chandeliers as possible into the house!  Since we had visited Paris earlier in the year, I decided to use the inspiration from the Palace of Versailles for our little Texas home! The remodel went very smooth and we were able to move in on time!  You can see some of the blog posts here!  

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2. HOME REMODELER

This is probably the fourth home I have gotten to revamp, and it gets easier each time!  This time, I really got to have fun and not worry about boring things such as resale potential!  My dad stated, “Well, that’s great as long as you don’t need to resell it,”  after seeing the beginnings of the work! LOL!  The saying goes, everything needs to be dull, safe, simple to help with selling potential….which I refer to as vomit. It was nice not having to worry about anything except what we want.

The other great thing was that my husband had literally no input! 🙂  It was heaven to not have to debate each little thing! There’s another link here. I had to have dog friendly flooring and furniture so those were really the only requirements.

As I sit here, almost a full year later, the entire decor part is complete and now I can focus on gardens and real life.

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3. BIRD WATCHER

It’s always been a desire of mine, to be able to get up close and personal on a fresh bird’s nest.  I’d always wanted to be able to watch the babies grow!  I finally got my chance when a few months after we moved into the new house, a bird made it’s nest in a pot on my front porch!

I checked it several times a day and got to photograph the babies as they grew for a few weeks! If birds are your thing, you can see the shots here!

hummingbird

4.  HUMMINGBIRD STALKER

I find it annoying when people always talk about how blessed they are. But OMG, I feel so blessed because I’ve always thought of hummingbirds as my favorite bird…and I have tons of them that I feed now!  I spend hours trying to photograph them, and finally got a few fun shots.  Not perfect or detailed, but they speak to my heart.

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5.  FASHION BLOGGER

I work for Johnny Was Clothing, a California brand that I love…so I blog about their clothes a lot. The shot above was actually showing off a custom dress that Eshakti  sent to me, along with a Johnny Was Biya coat that I love!  Although I have made some money from my blog this year, I am not one of those people that only shows you things that I want to earn a commission on by linking to an online shop.  If it’s something I think is cool, but won’t make a dime for me…so be it.  My blog is an ongoing commercial about clothing.  What is terrible is that I could provide a lot more content due to my ongoing new supply of clothing but time is an issue. For us, if I happen to be dressed and in the mood…we snap pictures. I want to do so much more writing and hopefully this year I can get better at a lot of things…blogging being one of them!

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6.  LASH BOSS

I finally got to do something I’ve always wanted to do!  I’ve started a new business in the cosmetics industry!  After researching strip lashes for years, I took the plunge and developed my own brand, Bosscat BeautyI designed two types of silk strip lashes and decided to start the business with one product, the Glam Edition Lash BoxThe fun part was getting set up and building the first product from start to finish. Social media advertising is also fun.  This next year will be about setting up retail accounts while also growing individual online sales to help promote brand awareness. I’m proud of my work so far and can’t wait to see how it goes in 2018!

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7.  CREATIVE DIRECTOR

One of the greatest jobs that I have with Bosscat is being able to create and design products that I  hope people love!  The above is just a first shot that I took for initial marketing once my boxes first came in! I will take a little time and get better at it, but it’s a start!

dogmom

 

8.  DOGMOM

Somehow I turned into a pink loving, flamingo floating, bleach blonde, dog mom. I think it’s funny as hell.  I wanted to include this cell phone picture because it is so real.  This past summer, each afternoon for an hour, I would try to relax outside with the girls.  They love getting on floats and we just hang out and watch the birds and squirrels. It’s a little bit lonely at times to have such a simple life, but at the same time, I love peace and quiet so it’s really a cool life.

 

9. JAZZY LOVER

Being a dogmom, really started with adopting my Jazzy about 16 years ago.  She was skinny, small, not too outgoing of a personality.  She looked me straight in the eyes though, so I adopted her for the connection and her desire to understand.  We knew she didn’t have much longer, so we took all three girls on a #dogcation  a few months before she died.  She had an accidental death three days after we moved into the new house. It has not been a year yet.  I loved her and gave her a safe home for 16 years and try not to think about her accident.  She was a great little dog and this year I had to say goodbye.

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10. PET CEMETARY GROUNDSKEEPER

If you read #9….then you get why I created a Pet Cemetary in my yard!  It’s my little special place to honor Jazzy’s life and respect her with a memorial garden while having a great prayer spot at the same time!  I’ve never shared a peak before.  This next spring my biggest project will be my back yard.  It’s freezing right this minute and probably killing my palms and fruit trees so a big clean up will be in order.

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11.  WANNABE YOUTUBER

I started making a few videos again, due in part to the new Bosscat venture!  It is so hard to try to come off as your true self, and look ok, and have fun!  The thing is, that it really is fun to make videos if you have the time to put in!  This year is going to take some serious time management in order to meet my personal goals! It would be so neat to be interesting enough to do well at videos but not sure if that’s in the cards!

 

12. MAKEUP ARTIST

I made time to do makeup on a new friend this past year! I met her through work and really like her so we took a day to play! Nothing feels better than doing what you love and spending time with nice people so it was a high point for me! Leilani is a total ray of sunshine!

 

In closing…these are just a few simple pictures that help show my year, and what is important to me.  Well, some of the things anyway!  I also love President Trump, Jesus and my husband. We’re not supposed to talk about politics or serious things because we want to appear neutral.  It’s very hard to pretend to be neutral when there’s so many serious issues in the world and my conservative belief system is not in line with the previous status quo.

It irritates me when a woman mentions Trumps “ridiculous tax reform bill” which was only “for the rich” and he’s only President “to make more money for himself.” Most people who bitch about the tax reform agenda have not processed their own tax return or run a business so how would they know about tax code ?  So yes…it’s very hard to stay neutral a lot of the time.  I hope to branch out a bit and share more in the future.  Blogging is very therapeutic!

Let’s have a great 2018, everyone!

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#VELVET

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Quay Sunglasses, Johnny Was Black Velvet bag, scarf, tunic, Michael Kors watch, David Yurman ring. alex and Ani bracelets

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#WONDERWOMAN

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Once I saw Linda Carter as Wonder Woman on TV a zillion years ago, I had told myself that even if I could not ever become Wonder Woman, I could at least have cool red boots. My life goals are all being met, slowly but surely!

I love my red Prada bag, but have never worn much red before. However, here lately I am trying to incorporate more red accessories for a fun pop of color.

After I saw these boots and fell in love, I Googled red booties on the net, and found a lot of different styles for a myriad of prices. Check out these Gucci boots! Gucci boots, red booties, Gucci booties, fashion blog
Amazing! However, the price is not in my realm of acceptability right now, so I settled for my Forever 21 find that is similar to the Steve Madden version or even Sam Edelman has a similar offering.
The bell sleeved black top is from Francescas and I had come it across it accidentally as I was stocking up on candles. The studded denim s from the now defunk Cache brand ! When I worked for them, I spent so much money on clothing, and I still have a random find here or there. The jeans are great, but I’ve had to stop myself from wearing them to the airport due to all the metal!
I met a new fashion blogger recently, and she made the comment that she wanted to be “different” than everyone else. The thing is, if every post a blogger does, only involves brands that they get paid commissions from, it becomes too inauthentic. This is why everyone appears to look the same.
For me, I get bored relatively easily. My challenge is sticking with something because I have so many interests. My blog helps me to work on things I enjoy and hone my follow through skills. It gives me an outlet for things I am interested in.
My posts might not be perfect, but that’s me. Perfectly imperfect! With fabulous boots.

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#dogmom

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We occasionally take a minute to breathe.  we wonder how people with kids do it all.  We feel terrible for not taking the dogs anywhere so we can’t imagine how parents have the energy to do it all.  On this day, we decided the stroller originally intended for Jazzy before she passed away, would be the perfect tool to take the girls for a quick outing.

The problem with them, is that they are not around people a lot…so their manners are in need of a tune up.  They feed of of one another, so if one barks at another dog, so does the other.  By zipping them up in the stroller, we hope they can get used to seeing the world without barking at anything they see! Eventually they can graduate to their leashes. In our neighborhood, that’s how we roll but for a real outing, this seems to be the easiest way to start!

A lady walked by with a huge dog and these girls went crazy.  Jazzy would just avoid looking at anything unpleasant and never barked, so they would follow her lead. Now I just have crazy and not quite as crazy feeding off of each others kookoo vibes.

We still love them!  Although I do need to work on my ill behaved babies!  The story of how I ended up being only a dogmom is kind of funny, and was never my intent. However, we absolutely love our home life and plan on adopting another little furry soul when the right one comes along! I think I will post a video on this topic soon, because I am trying to post more videos. Pictures do not easily tell the tale and people really like videos as opposed to reading.

My eyes were watering like crazy from allergies, but I discovered Flonase this week! It really helps!

I’ve been severely sleep deprived all year from a neck issue so my husband said I look like I’m in pain most of the time, and in a lot of photos.  I am, but I try to hide it or not think about it. My blog is supposed to be my happy place, so I never mention it.  I saw a blogger years ago, who was ill…and she mentioned it in every single post. I don’t want to be that person. I also do not want to ever be a pill zombie so I work hard to do what I can outside of that. I guess i am explaining why I often crop off my head!  Honestly, it’s about the fun of clothing anyway so my sometimes tired, sleep deprived face doesn’t need to be seen unless we are showing makeup or lashes or making a video!

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#HARAJUKU

Yokito Top, Gucci glasses, Tiffany bracelet, layered gold

gold jewelry, gold bling, layered necklaces

I learned a lot when deciding what to title this little post. It’s not really a specific look with an official style name. However, it is an Asian inspired Yokito blouse from Johnny Was… so for some reason, Harajuku Girl came to mind. From that I learned the following;

1. Harajuku is a district in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Harajuku is the common name given to a geographic area spreading from Harajuku Station to Omotesando….
2. Harajuku has gained a reputation for being the center of alternative fashion such as decorer, gothic lolita, and punk. But in reality, it’s much less strange than you’d think!

Basically, the Harajuku girl alternative fashion is a rebellion against the expected status quo and I can get behind that. 🙂

Meanwhile, here I am back in Texas…constantly being told that I don’t fit in or look like regular people do. I guess that I’ve always had a weird, fun, I don’t give a shit type of streak that has never gone away. My brother claims I still have a Cyndi Lauper look ever since she popped on the scene back in the day.  I guess she was the original Harajuku girl if we were ever to trace it back.

When I get dressed quickly, the wildest things get worn together.  Another person might throw on a white t-shirt with gray sweat pants to run out the door, but I do not own those things. I guess that’s how fun and quirky looks get created.  I want to be cute, but I want to be comfortable, but I want to…never wear cotton…it’s just super common to me…yet I’m rushing, yet I then grab a nice pair of glasses and then it is all ok because they are a force field between me and the world.

Then there’s the gold thing.  My cross never comes off.  The pendant was a gift from my husband.  It was his father’s and if I lose it, I should just run away from home.  In an effort to not have to run away from home…I just wear it most every day. Plus, it has Jesus on it so there is that. The mini krugerrand coin was a find at a Pawn Shop last year. I believe in gold. I believe the dollar will fall and it’s amazing that it hasn’t done so already.  Whatever the new currency will be… it will be backed by gold. Period.  So gold is my thing for a lot of reasons.  I feel like the value of gold is clearly being held back, and once it can’t be held down anymore, gold will be better than cash.  Cash in the bank will take a huge haircut so gold is a hedge.

Basically, what I am saying is that gold is fashion but it’s so much more. I try not to be attached to things but I enjoy them while I have them.

During the visit from Hurricane Harvey a few weeks back, I heard that you only get to take one bag with you if you are rescued by boat. One night, in the middle of the night, it rained so hard nonstop…so I decided that we needed a plan.  I have two hands…there would be a dog in each one and everything else could go to hell for all I cared. Possessions are not everything and once you’re dead – they are nothing, so we can’t get too wrapped up.

We ended up fine with no flooding and we are very thankful.  Others were not so lucky.  The whole thing really makes you think about possessions and things and how much we spend as well as how it could all be gone tomorrow so we can’t invest everything in any one area.

That being said…nothing shown here is new! The really cool silk top is from Johnny Was last year, and I have only worn her a few times. the Calvin Klein blazer is previously shown, as are the shoes from Gianni Bini and the Tory Burch bag.

I’m super behind on posts and have a closet full of super cool things to share that I’ve gotten over the past year!

My Bosscat Beauty eyelash line is set to finally launch in October so I really want to continue with the blog, but also adding in videos and posts for Bosscat so stay tuned!

-SDS

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