14 Beautiful and Elegant Christmas Wreaths

I sometimes have a hard time decorating for holidays because I love so many different styles: traditional, modern, and glam.  I've been working on getting our front porch decorated for the holiday season and I found some great and beautiful looking wreaths to use as my inspirations.  Check out these 14 beautiful and elegant Christmas wreaths!

7 Tips to Beautiful Family Pictures

There's a lot that goes into family photos: picking out outfits, making sure hair and makeup look good, finding a photographer, and that all family members are in happy spirits.  Making sure all of these things are in order can cause a lot of stress and this stress can show up in your photos.  Then whenever you look at those photos hanging on your wall you're reminded of how crappy and stressful that experience was.  Ugh.

SO to avoid all of that, here are some tips I've found to be really helpful for my family and hopefully they'll be helpful to your family as well:

Holiday Gift Idea: DIY Genealogy Fan Wall Art

Getting a gift for parents, grandparents, or any loved ones for birthdays, anniversaries, and for the holidays can be really hard.  You want to give them a priceless gift that is something they're going to cherish and not throw away in six month, right?   I have the perfect and priceless gift idea for your loved one.  How about giving the gift of family by creating your very own stylish genealogy chart or fan where you can display, proudly, your family and heritage!

Thanksgiving Tablescape Roundup

I have always wanted to host a Thanksgiving dinner in my own place, and so I decided a while ago that 2013 was the year!  It's not like I'll be 9 months pregnant and still working. Sometimes I wonder what I was thinking, but alas, I am still excited!

I've been searching the web high and low for some Thanksgiving tablescape ideas.  I want something simple and easy to clean up.  But, something that looks nice!  And since I don't want to be standing over the sink washing my china with my newly formed swollen cankles, I am looking at paper good options as well!  Who says Thanksgiving can't be casual and chic?!

Here are a few ideas I have stumbled across that I thought might give you some last minute inspiration. Remember, Thanksgiving is about reminding ourselves of our blessings from God, the people we love, and of course the food!  Tablescapes are not that important, so keep it simple.

Family Pictures from McKell Morgan Photography

McKay, Amelia, and I a couple weeks ago got our pictures taken by the lovely McKell from McKell Morgan Photography.  McKell and I went to high school together so we've known each other for years.

McKell is a gifted photographer, she self taught herself on how to use the camera and is known for her newborn and family sessions.   She is my favorite photographer I've ever used.  She knows how to capture people where their personalities cam come through. She's all about capturing moments in families.  One reason why I really love her is because she exudes this calmness and chill vibe that really rubs onto you, and therefore making our photo session a lot less stressful.  If you live in Utah and need an exceptional photographer who is so great to work with, affordable, and has great style and taste, check out her photography on her site McKell Morgan Photography.

Here's some of my favorites from the session:

McKell also did Amelia's newborn pictures.  The most awesome part about her newborn sessions is she comes to your house and takes the pictures there!  We did them in our bedroom and in the backyard.  This was extremely convenient instead of having to drag all of my crap to a studio with a two week newborn.  Check out my favorites from her newborn pictures.

Thanks McKell for making us all look so beautiful!  Looking through these newborn pictures is making me kind of baby hungry.  Check out McKell's portfolio, services, and contact information on her site.

A Holiday Gift Guide For Your Bearded Beau

We are currently in the midst of my favorite holiday season. Turkey and pumpkin pie are great, but I'm not referring to Thanksgiving nor am I talking about Christmas (I know that we can and should celebrate Christ all year round, but that doesn't mean that I should be forced to listen to such musical atrocities as "Santa Baby" and "Christmas Shoes" before October has ended). I speak not of these holidays, but rather of a whimsical period known as No-Shave November or Novembeard. This is by far the best thing the calendar has to offer.  Okay that's a bit of an exaggeration, but really, when it is done right, facial hair can be pretty awesome and downright impressive.

Whether your significant other enjoys a clean shave, a little bit of stubbly, or a full Grizzly Adams, here is a list of gifts that will be sure to tickle his fancy.

Bra Guide: How to identify your breast shape to find the perfect fitting bra

Do you struggle to find bras that fit you?  Do you spend hours in the fitting room trying on a hundred bras and end up feeling frustrated that you couldn't find one that fit you?  I hear you girl.  I'm hear to teach and show you how your breast shape can affect the type of bras that will fit you.  It's a lot like dressing for your body shape to accentuate your favorite parts of your body.   By knowing this little secret will help save you a lot of time when you go bra shopping and you'll be able to find that perfect fitting bra without wanting to pull your hair out.

7 Christmas Albums to Spruce Up Your Holidays

You know it's the holiday season when you can hear The Carpenter's "Christmas Portrait" blaring through the halls at the Craig home. I think all of us sisters can agree that the sound of Christmas is Karen Carpenter's rich alto voice.  I can even remember leaping through our family room to "Carol of the Bells".
Whether you are looking for a classic Christmas album, or a more contemporary take on the carols of old, I've rounded up a list of six Christmas albums that will spruce up your holiday season.

A Southern Bride

In August, I  had the pleasure of traveling down to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to do the makeup for a stunning bride and her wedding party.

Shanleigh was a pleasure to work with. She was such a beautiful bride, inside and out.  It's when I get to work with clients like her-- that I am reminded how much I love what I do.  We kept her makeup simple and classic with a romantic feel.

Her wedding was featured on the Mariee Ami blog this week.  The images were shot by Scottie Jones Photography.

She wore her mother's wedding dress which she had refashioned to fit her frame.  I loved that gown, especially the sleeves and neckline.  Knockout!

Shanleigh and her mother.

Mandatory shoe shot.

There is such a special charm surrounding a southern wedding.  It's hard to describe, but for me it's almost like I step back in time for a day.  Tradition, love, beauty, family and lush flowers take center stage.

Look at that cake!

Congrats to the newlyweds!

DIY Painted and Gold Dipped End Table Makeover

I've made it my mission to decorate my living room on a TIGHT budget.  We've lived in our home almost three years and I'm finally getting around to getting to this much neglected space.  I'm making slow progress.  I added a new little piece of furniture, a small accent table.  This console table was a $3 D.I. find and knew that this small table would be a great addition next to my sofa or an antique chair.  With a little DIY, work, patience, and a lot of coats of primer and paint, I was able to turn this little end table from sad to rad!