$10 for $50 to spend at Vistaprint

Ladies and gentlemen....if you're looking for a great deal on business cards, invitations, or printed stationary of any kind, get thee to Living Social ASAP and purchase today's Atlanta daily deal! There's a little over 9 hours left on this, so don't miss out!

Super Simple Creamed Spinach

Lately, I've been on a mission to increase the amount and variety of fresh veggies in our diet. I picked up a bunch of fresh spinach at the farmer’s market late last week and had no idea what to do with it. So I went on a search for an easy recipe and, of course, I waited to look it up until after I'd done my grocery shopping for the week…so I had precious few of the ingredients needed to create the recipes I found. That was until I came across a recipe for easy creamed spinach made in the microwave! The original recipe called for frozen spinach but, since mine was fresh, I decided to use that recipe as a springboard to create my own dish. It turned out to be creamy, yummy and delicious! Here’s what you’ll need:

Ingredients

1 bunch fresh spinach

4oz cream cheese

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste

Directions

Rinse spinach, remove stems and set aside

Add olive oil to saucepan and warm over medium heat

Add spinach and cook until wilted, stirring often

Add salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes

Add cream cheese and stir constantly

Adjust seasonings to taste (optional) and serve immediately

I made this as a side dish for the manicotti that I made for Sunday dinner. The recipe is so quick, simple and really delicious! But I have no idea how this re-heats because we had none left!

Turkey Hill Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Turkey Hill Vanilla Bean Philadelphia Style Ice Cream

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Last night we had dinner at a local Hibachi restaurant. We ordered the chef's special that came with a tasty ice cream treat for dessert. However, by the time we got to the dessert portion of the meal, our server informed us that they'd run out of all flavors except green tea ice cream. Now I'm a vanilla ice cream kinda girl so I decided to pass. To cheer me up, my fiancé stopped at the grocery store on the way home and let me pick out the flavor of my choice. After looking at every available option I finally decided on Turkey Hill Vanilla Bean Philadelphia Style Ice Cream. It was on sale for $2.99/gallon, boasted an All Natural recipe, and I was intrigued by the idea of Philadelphia Style ice cream. I soon discovered it is creamier than the regular stuff and is made by churning super simple ingredients: milk, cream, sugar, and various flavors. This stuff is all kinds of delicious! It's so good that we've been eating it all day! Turkey Hill is a Lancaster Co., PA dairy that makes all natural products in addition to other frozen treats and drinks. Check out their full line of products HERE.

Revlon Berry Delicious

Revlon Berry Delicious 

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Winter is now officially upon us and I've switched to the darker nail polish hues with the falling temps. But a few weeks ago I was perusing the shelves of my local CVS in search of those wonderful yellow tags that signal a sale or the potential to earn Extra Bucks. On that trip I spied Revlon Berry Licioius (on sale for $3.99 with $2 Extra Bucks back). But, in an effort to curb impulse shopping, I figured I didn't need it and decided to leave it on the shelf.L Instead, I went home and shopped my stash for a dupe with no luck. Fast forward a few weeks to this past Friday when I learned that CVS was having an awesome deal on Revlon, L'oreal, and Cover Girl cosmetics for 50% and 75% off!! Unfortunately, Revlon Berry Delicious was completely sold out, but I still picked up five polishes for less then $6 bucks so I wasn't too bummed. Today, I was in another CVS store with a Revlon coupon burning a hole in my pocket and what did I see on the Revlon display? Berry Delicious with a big, fat 75% OFF sticker!! At regular price, this polish would have set me back $5.49, but with the discount it was only $1.37! Plus, my Revlon coupon took an extra dollar off that amount. Yes, dears I paid a whopping .47 cents for a polish I've been wanting for weeks!

The Art of Thrifting

Photo by: mikefats

I picked up the Sunday paper on...,well, Sunday and I'm ashamed to say I just got around to reading it last night.  The Style section of the AJC featured a story on Daniel Troppy and his personal (and now professional) penchant for thrifting. Everyday he scours local thrift stores in search of designer finds, which he then resells in his boutique, Doubletake Recycled Luxury. Check out his Thrifters Boutique HERE. He has some really good pieces available so it's definitely worth it to check out the site. I think the best part of the story though are the tips Daniel provides like which metro Atlanta thrift stores usually have good finds and even a stain removal product called Carbona Stain Devils, which can be found in the detergent aisle of your local grocery store.

Sephora Birthday Haul

I love being a member of Sephora Beauty Insider rewards program because that store is always so much fun to go into, their website is slick and they always give you a free gift on your birthday! Last year (my first year in the program) I got a cool lipgloss trio. And this year it was a little something for the eyes. 

The Beautiful Eyes Kit includes Lash Plumper Volumizing Mascara in Black,  Nano Eyeliner in Silver Green, and Colorful Mono Eyeshadow in Aspen Summit. (describe gift here). And to top it all off they sent me a $15 gift certificate right around my birthday as well! I’d been planning to stop by the Sephora in Lenox, but this little digital gem in my inbox was just too good to hold. I logged on and got to shopping right away. Of course it took a while to narrow down my choices (I mean, we’re in a recession, right?!) but once I did I felt like I came away with something good. And once that box arrived (in less than a week!) I was sure of it! In addition to my Beautiful Eyes Kit I also got:

Sephora Collection Colorful Artist Lipstick Palette

 Sephora Collection Nano Eyeliner Forest Green

 Flora by Gucci Eau de Parfum

 Viva La Juicy Eau de Parfum

Narciso Rodriguez Essence Eau de Parfum

Coastal Living

Coastal Living, Dec. 2010

If you have a Coastal Chic sensibility like us, you MUST subscribe to Coastal Living magazine. I mean, check out the Dec. 2010 cover above. To die for, right?! Whenever my new issue arrives I save it until the time when I can just lounge and slowly flip through each page and drool over every single thing inside....from the redesigns to the recipes I can't get enough! Plus, it's super cheap. Ten issues (a yearly subscription) will set you back $10 bucks. You just can't beat a dollar an issue...and now if you sign up HERE with your credit/debit card, you get $2 bucks off. That's $8 for a year's worth of Coastal Chic inspiration!

Do-It-Yourself Home Makeover

This is NOT us!

About a year ago my fiancé and I decided our place was in need of a makeover. Now I'm the shopper in the family since he hates it (GASP!) and also has a tough time deciding what he likes when it comes to stuff like interior design. He knows he wants it to look clean and clutter free, but beyond that it's anyone's guess. After much prodding I discovered that his tastes are more on the modern side...pretty much if it looks like it should go in a hospital or a bathroom (frosted glass and chrome) he'll love it. Me? I prefer a more traditional style. I've never met a tufted pillow or couch that I didn't like! lol! I soon realized that if this redesign was going to happen I'd have to take the helm. I looked at hundreds of paint samples and pictures of furniture, but still kept coming up empty. Then it dawned on me that I was grasping at straws by going about it this way. If I took the time to define an overall style that represented us and what we wanted for our home, the process would fall into place. And, boy, did it ever!

Beauty by the Beach

Can anything be more casual glam than a beach house? I mean, really....take a look at some of these beauties I found. We're on our second snow day in Atlanta and it's the dead of winter, but looking at these fabulous beach inspired homes just does something to warm the soul.

Can't you just imagine the sweet, salty smell of the ocean breeze blowing through those gorgeous floor-to-ceiling windows?

A sea of seafoam gets a punch of color with that deep blue chaise lounge. I could curl up on that with a light blanket and a good book now.

This kitchen just looks like it's stocked with good stuff like buttery soft croissants, peach or pumpkin butter, and tons of fresh tropical fruit.

The different shades of green are so soothing and the morning sun pouring through those windows would make everyday feel like a vacation.

 Look at that view! Nothing else needs to be said....

I always wanted a tub like this. The weathered shutter and rubber tree plant give this white bathroom subtle touches of tropical flavor.

Free Kindle eBooks

My fiancé gave me a Kindle eReader as a graduation gift this past summer and I fell in love! ...and about a month and a half later Amazon released an updated version of the device. The newer version is skinnier and comes in two colors, but I still love my Kindle 2 because it does what I need it to do - hold a HUGE amount of books while giving me the ability to play fun word games and surf the web. Right now I have about 500 books saved on my Kindle and over 98% of them were free! In fact I've bought less than 5 Kindle eBooks since I've owned my device. Find out how after the jump!

New Year's Nails Still Going Strong

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It's the 4th day of the New Year and I'm pleased (and quite astonished) to report that my New Year's manicure is still in near perfect condition after 6 days despite hand, hair, and dish washing...not to mention packing and cleaning! There are no chips or cracks and minimal fading on the tip of my right middle finger. The best part about it is the polish I used, Wet n Wild's Wild Shine in Champagne, only cost about a buck! See my nails now after the jump!

Wedding Day Countdown

Besides being the start of a new year, 1/1/11 started the official countdown to my October wedding! My fiancé and I are too excited for words! We became engaged last July and I swear I started wedding planning the very next day! Color scheme? Dress? Location? Too many questions with infinite answers because no two couples are alike. Of course, I'm a Casual Glam girl so it stands to reason that I'm marrying a pretty laid back guy. While we both appreciate tradition, neither of us like the rigidity of rules and formality. Suffice it to say that our wedding will be a Casual Glam affair with plenty of traditional touches where appropriate and lots of original ideas that reflect our personalities throughout!

Happy New You!

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No, that wasn’t a typo. I meant you and not year, because to me the New Year is all about a New You. I’ve always loved the idea of reinventing yourself. As a kid that special time for reinvention was always over the summer break, which gave me enough time to prepare the debut of my newly reinvented self at the beginning of the school year in the Fall. As I matured and my school days were put behind me, New Year's Eve took on a whole new level of significance for me as a time when adults reinvent themselves in preparation for the upcoming new year. During the final weeks of December after the Christmas cards have all been signed and sent and I’ve scratched everyone off my Christmas list, I begin a period of reflection where I examine the past year…my triumphs and my failures…areas where I succeeded beyond my wildest imagination and others where I fell flat on my face. It is with this knowledge that I make a list of goals for the upcoming year. I don’t call them resolutions because that term rings so empty to me. It speaks of lofty, unattainable ideals that are committed to only for a brief period of time before the euphoria of the new year wears off somewhere around week three. I’m not saying this is the true meaning of the word resolution, but rather how the meaning has been cheapened in popular culture.