Bargain Shopper

Since I am no longer working we are on a tight budget in the Mason Household. But I am a shopper at heart, it's in my blood. There is nothing that thrills me more than finding a good bargain. Even back when I was working and money wasn't so tight, I still loved scouring consignment stores, TJMAXX, and HomeGoods looking for deals. I thought I would share a few of my recent finds I scored at great prices!

GARDEN STOOL
I have been wanting one of these forever. My mom found this beauty at HomeGoods for $59.99. Can you believe it? We saw the same one in the Horchow catalog for $350.



ZEBRA SERVING TRAY
You all know I love me some Zebra (well, really I love all animal prints). So when I saw this tray at TJMAXX for $14.99, I knew I had to have it.



VINTAGE BOTANICAL SERVING BOWL AND PLATTER
I found these two beauties at Goodwill. $9 a piece. The gold detailing is amazing. I have an obsession with old Botanical Serving pieces, which is funny because I am pretty modern in my tastes otherwise.




LAMP
Another TJMAXX find. I saw a lamp identical to this at GDC Home for $400.



VINTAGE ANIMAL PRINTS
Another treat my mom found at a consignment store. There are 12 prints and she paid like $12. I am going to frame 6 of them to hang in a group in Sterling's nursery. I am envisioning them with a white mat and skinny simple frame. I think they will look great on his Chocolate walls. They came enclosed in this cute binder too.





Do ya'll love finding a bargain as much as me? What have you found lately?

Hit Me Baby One More Time

Lets dish. Did anyone catch Britney on Good Morning America yesterday morning? My girlfriends and I have been emailing back and forth all day discussing. I so wanted Britney to kill it with her performance, but sadly she didn't. She did Look AMAZING. I mean seriously her body was fierce and her legs were so toned. I am glad she is back to blond too. She looked gorgeous. Her performance however was awkward. It looked like she was moving in slow motion and she hardly did any dance moves. I am wondering if she was on some sort of medication because she just seemed out of it. She just sat in her chair and hardly danced. I am longing for the "Slave For You Days." That was the peak of her career.



I am still a huge Britney fan and I totally support her comeback. Lets just hope she has some better moves up her sleeve for her tour with Enrique. Team Britney all the way. Has anyone bought her new CD? Is it worth buying? I do love her music to workout to.

Salmon Cakes

This is my cheap and healthy version of Crab Cakes. My grandmother used to make these all the time for us when I was growing up. They are a tried and true family favorite. Normally Matt hates Salmon but he will eat my Salmon Cakes and Sterling loves them too. Salmon is so good for you; I cook these frequently so my men get some fish in their lives. These would be off the hook with fresh Salmon, but I normally just use the canned kind because it is more convenient (and cheap). I tweak this recipe whenever I make it based on what I have in the house. They are great with fresh parsley, bell pepper or corn added in.






SALMON CAKES
-1 CAN PINK ALASKAN SALMON (THIS WILL MAKE 4 SMALL CAKES,DOUBLE IF YOU WANT MORE)
-1 HALF A WHITE ONION FINELY DICED
-2 STALKS CELERY FINELY DICED
-1 EGG
-1/4 CUP PANKO BREADCRUMBS
-SALT AND PEPPER TO TASTE
-CANOLA OR OIL OLIVE FOR FRYING

DRAIN THE CAN OF SALMON. SEASON SALMON WITH SALT AND PEPPER. ADD IN ONIONS AND CELERY AND TOSS. LIGHTLY BEAT AN EGG AND ADD TO THE MIXTURE. MIX WITH PANKO BREADCRUMBS, ADD MORE IF NEEDED. MOLD INTO 4 SMALL CAKES AND PLACE ON A PLATE. REFRIGERATE FOR 30MINS TO AN HOUR. THIS HELPS BIND THE CAKES SO THEY DON'T FALL APART WHEN YOU COOK THEM. IN A SKILLET HEAT A FEW TABLESPOONS OF CANOLA OR OLIVE OIL ON MEDIUM HEAT. ONCE HOT ADD THE SALMON CAKES. COOK ABOUT 4 MINUTES PER SIDE OR UNTIL NICELY BROWNED.

**IF YOUR SALMON CAKES SEEM DRY WHEN MIXING THEM, ADD ABOUT A TABLESPOON OF MILK, IT WILL HELP BIND THEM. WE USUALLY SERVE OUR SALMON CAKES WITH FRESH BEANS AND ROASTED ASPARAGUS. THIS WOULD ALSO BE GREAT WITH A REMOULADE SAUCE FOR DIPPING**

Obsessions- Things That Sparkle

I am thrilled to have Alex from Things that Sparkle guest posting today for my Obsessions Series.

Alex has some seriously fabulous style and her house is beyond gorgeous (it was just featured on Made By Girl). Her blog is always filled such inspirational decor and fashion ideas. I look forward to reading it daily! Thanks for participating Alex, I love your list and agree on all your Obsessions! xoxo

Thank you so much Natalie for including me in your obsessions series! Here are the five things I am obsessed with right now:

1. Wallpaper. Is there anything better? It has the ability to completely transform a space. Sadly the boyfriend doesnt love it, so I've been limited to the entry and guest bathroom. Better than nothing though right? (image via)

2. In love with this perfectly styled vignette from Furbish, my home decor OBSESSION.

3. The perfect pop of pink. The waterfall island and unexpected wood shelving doesn't hurt either. (image via)

4. Can you tell I like pink? All the shades of pink purses are killing me for spring. Love every single one!! All from Net-a-Porter

5. My last obsession is SPRING. I live in Chicago where spring usually comes pretty late, (aka we don't have it at all: winter one day, summer the next) but the past couple days its been amazingly warm! It is getting me very very excited.

Birthday Recap

My Birthday weekend was wonderful! We did alot of shopping, eating and drinking. I swear I gained 5 lbs, I am most definitely avoiding the scale until later this week!

Our first meal out was at Husk.

Matt was supposed to babysit Sterling but decided he was dying to eat at Husk, so my sweet sister-in-law came over to babysit so Matt could join us.

I have been to the bar at Husk several times and enjoyed it. I must say though I was a bit disappointed in the restaurant. Our service was horrible, we had a female waitress and she was not attentive at all. We had to ask her to bring us bread after we saw all the other tables had some. Our food was completely mediocre. We started off with pork belly sliders, that in my opinion did not have enough meat and were lack luster. My mom and I spilt the trigger fish and it was bland with no sides.

My sister, however, ordered the duck and it was fabulous. It came served with this amazing farro and roasted sweet potatoes. The duck was seasoned and cooked perfectly.

If you decide to eat at Husk definitely try the duck it was the star of the evening. I think I had such high expectations for Husk because everyone had hyped it up so much. Don't get me wrong our meal was not horrible at all (although the service def was) but it was not as excellent as I thought it would be.
Update- My husband asked for me to add that he thought the service was fine.

The next day we all went shopping in Mount Pleasant. My grandfather gave me a gift card that I used at Gwynns to get these cute TB Sandals. Gwynns is one of my favorite stores in Charleston, they have such a great selection of shoes and home accessories.

My mom treated me to this DVF Top (although mine is purple, not yellow)

Sterling was totally exhausted after our day of shopping!

After all our shopping we needed some refreshments, so we made our favorite drink, Skinny Ritas (tequila, fresh lime juice and agave nectar). It tastes like a Margarita minus all the sugar and calories.


Later that night, Matt took me out to my favorite Mexican restaurant, Zia for my actual birthday dinner. There is nothing I love more than Mexican food. I ordered the carne asada nachos and tequila flights = pure heaven.

Friday night we dined at Wild Olive.


My mom's friend Anita, came down from Charlotte to enjoy the girl's weekend with us!

Everything we had here was delicious. The Callia Malbec wine was off the hook as were the Risotto balls.

If you live in Charleston you must eat here! It was our favorite meal of the weekend. The pasta is made fresh daily and the atmosphere is lovely.

Saturday night my two girlfriends, Jill and Alissa, joined us for a ladies night out.


We all drank 3 bottles of wine before we even went to dinner, so I knew it would be a good night. We had planned to go to the rooftop bar but sadly it started raining and got chilly so we decided on JPaulz.

They have half price bottles of wine on Saturdays which was a pleasant surprise. We all shared some truffled mac and cheese and sushi. The perfect combo in my book!

Our waiter was hillarious and kept bringing our entire table free shots since it was my birthday.



Late night my mom and sister surprised me with Carmel Cupcakes from my favorite local bakery, Sugar. They literally melted in my mouth, they were that good.


Today I am in recovery mode for shizzle. Big hugs and kisses to Matt, my Mom and Taylor for making my Birthday so fun, fabulous and special.
Btw if you read this whole post I am flattered, I realize it was SUPER long!

I Dream of Closets

Ever since I was a little girl I have longed for a walk-in closet. Although as I get older, lets be real, I want an entire room converted to a closet. Sadly, my current house is old which = tiny closets. But a girl can dream. One day I will get my huge closet, and when I do it will be pink with zebra or leopard carpet. For now here are some closets that have me swooning.



I have to be honest I am not a huge "Mimi" fan but her closet rocks. Love the pink tufted chair.


I love Olivia and would love to raid her closet.


Yes please to the see-thru closet doors and pink hangers.




Last but certainly not least is the closet of Kelly Wearstler. It is perfection but I expected no less. I need that carpet in my life.