Royal Wedding Part 3 ... Keep Calm...

... and Carry On!

yep, that's pretty good advice for most of us...

and I'm sure that it holds true for the bride and groom...

"Keep Calm and Carry On".

i loved this saying the first time

 i discovered it from Rachel Ashwell and Shabby Chic quite awhile back.

she didn't invent the saying but personally I really think she gets credit

for rejuvenating it after many years:)

or at least for introducing us in America to it.

after all, many of us first saw/read it in SHABBY pastel colors

in one of her books.

i loved it from the first,

and last summer with the whole MS thing,

it kind of became MY motto too.

we have posters,

a necklace,

notecards...

as with everything, people are going crazy and making up new ones.

sometimes i think it's getting a bit overdone, you know?

but some of the new ones are really CUTE so maybe it's all good...

"Keep Calm and Marry a Prince"

"Keep Calm and Eat a Cupcake"...

and this one...

anyway, did you ever wonder where this came from?

here is an old newspaper article explaining the story.

it originated in the UK by King George the VI,

was lost and forgotten until the 80's.

so there you have it...Keep Calm and Carry on!

and with that in mind...

here is the next giveaway!!!

a KEEP CALM gift basket...

 and like before, I WILL throw in a few more goodies...

our favorite chocolate bar from London,

cute piece of jewelry and a few other surprises. 

thank you all for your comments this week..

keep them coming and I'll be sure you get in the drawings!

well, our decorations are up,

every crown I've collected is out,

even my Nutcrackers are paying us a visit!

by this time tomorrow, the prince will have married his princess...

tomorrow is a simple, fun day...recipes for scones and pudding

how to talk like a Brit...

favorite British exports...

and Saturday features my all-time favorite English lady...

Rachel Ashwell.

The theme will be 

"A Shabby Chic Wedding".

Cheers then!

XOXOXOXOXOX

Suzanne

Project Princess ... The REAL Blog Giveaway Post...FINALLY

Kate Middleton...

soon to be

Princess Catherine .

formerly known in British tabloids as

"Waity Katie"

all because she waited 8 years for her Prince.

and now she is just a few days away from becoming his princess.

probably as close as we will get to a real life fairytale.

let's hope it lasts happily ever after!

so Kate...

they say you have quite a style about you.

 I have to agree.

you didn't ask for this style setter label.

 the people gave it to you, just as we do all the time with famous people.

but so far, you're doing great.

 college years aside.

Kate definitely has a great style about her.

and while I hope she is allowed to become her own person,

I don't think she minds at all borrowing from her

beautiful mother-in-law's book of style tips.

 Diana, as she matured, turned into a very stylish beauty.

I think she is honored to be compared to Princess Di...

her fiance's Mum...whom he says he still misses dearly.

misses having someone to call "Mummy".

so sweet.

but back to Kate.

pretty lady...what ARE you going to wear to marry your Prince Charming?

everyone thinks they know...

but few do.

even I think I know.

haha...if only I were kidding!

i really think I have an idea of what she MIGHT wear.

okay...a VAGUE idea...but still...

i have done my homework you know.

for example, all those designers saying she would look great in strapless,

or VERRRY fitted and sleek.

HELLOOOOO...

she is marrying into the ROYAL family,

at WeSTMINSTER ABBEY!

not exactly the place you slink down the aisle in something skin tight.

in fact, from all I have read, the shoulders are to be covered.

somewhat fitted is okay but not overly tight.
If she COULD wear strapless, maybe with a long lacy veil draped over her shoulders,
I LOVE this dress.

but I don't think strapless is where she'll go.

here are some of my choices that make the 

ROYAL DON"T list:

1. the TRASHY dress...definitely a don't...royal wedding or not.

 2.  the TACKY dress...enough said:)

3. TOTALLY inappropriate dress.  IS it a dress? I'm thinking the Queen would NOT approve:)

 Royal Don't #4.  Color.  Dip Dye.  Tie Dye.  no rainbows allowed at the royal wedding:)

one dress that would probably not be considered appropriate for the 

royal bride but that I love and think she would be stunning in is the gown

worn by Carolyn Bessette when she married 

John F. Kennedy Jr. 

 simple, elegant...perfect for Kate...

but not this wedding...not in Westminster Abbey....not when you are marrying

a real life prince:)

yes, she seems to be her own person...

but she also seems to be discreet and respectful of the position she is in.

so...I think Miss Kate will pick something flattering to her slim figure BUT...

respectable, elegant, classy, stylish, timeless.

this dress will be photographed and be around forever...

long after she is gone, as we well know.

 and she will pick something that says to Prince William...

I am your Princess.

I can handle this:)

so here are some of MY ideas...

i hear lace is in style for wedding gowns this year.

i have sources, you know:)

and VINTAGE lace especially.

so...i'm thinking lace.

timeless.

elegant.

Queen Elizabeth wore lace.

and who can forget that other princess...

Princess Grace.

 or maybe something like this...

 it is a LONG aisle and I think the dress does need to make a statement...
and standout a bit.

 i guess i like a few details about this one but not necessarily the dress...

 a bit more fitted but elegant...and she could pull it off at 5'10".

   this one is cool because it would allow her to have a fitted, strapless gown with a lace bolero that is removable.

 but THIS one is my favorite.  Maybe a bit covered up but a statement for sure.
It would copy well...and you know it will be copied.

this just looks like a princess gown to me but I've not been to many royal weddings so...
Okay, so you have my thoughts. 
now we'll have to wait and see when she steps out of that Rolls Royce.
What do YOU think the dress will look like?

a few more notes on princess style...
hats are a good thing.
it seems that Kate likes the color blue.
 she wants to have makeup artists on hand but also wants to do her own make up.
her favorite skincare product is:

Rimmel cosmetics is an inexpensive British line
with some products being sold in the U.S. stores like Target and CVS.
I've used a few of their products for sometime. 
considering their price, they're pretty good.
for a bigger selection,
check online.

 anyway, Rimmel is suggesting various products for Kate...
and I have those products for YOU!!!!!

  Yes, for the Project Princess blog giveaway,
you get a bag full of Rimmel products suggested for the future princess,
shades she likes, and also a few other British goodies.
the Rimmel products are:
1. Fix and Perfect makeup primer, 2. glam Eye Shadow trio  3."Sexy Curves" black mascara
4.  Black eyeliner 5. Lipstick in "Just So"...rosy shade  6. Creamy Lipgloss in Rose Cocoon
7. Lasting Finish nailpolish in "English Rose" (appropriate) 8. "Rose" bath fizzers
I'm imcluding a miniature Union Jack teapot, English Breakfast tea in a red phone booth tin, a surprise piece of jewelry
and our FAVORITE candy bar from England.
at least that's where we discovered it and fell in love.
we have a lot of Europeans and British people near where I live so we have a UK section in our grocery store,
stocked with Aero Bars.
these candy bars have little air bubbles in them so they are very light in your mouth...
YUM-MY!!!!!
before it's all done, I will also throw in a few other things, just for fun.
how can you win?
simple!
leave a comment telling me you'd like to win.
 easy peasy-that's a British phrase:)
no need to have a blog of your own.
open to anyone leaving a comment.
don't be shy.
okay...now we ALL have no excuse for looking like a princess!

come back tomorrow where you can win another
gift package.
this one is themed "Keep Calm and Carry on".
cute, huh?
Thursday's giveaway...Time for tea and cake:)
Friday/Saturday...Shabby Chic giveaway (my favorite British export)
enter for one or for all.
no limit!
Happy Royal Wedding Week.
XOXOXO
Suzanne

Royal Wedding Day 2 ... Project Princess

 ummm...okay.

this is not what you're thinking.

this is a preview to today's blog, NOT the actual blog post.

why a preview? 

because this crazy shabby chick is waaaaaaaay behind today.

yikes...I'm so excited about my blog for the first time in a long time

and I feel like I have a MILLION things on my to-do list.

yikes!

 MY princesses outside Westminster Abbey:)

but...I WILL have my blog post up later tonight...

but not too late.

and i HOPE, HOPE, HOPE you'll come back!

because I'm excited and...

my first giveaway in MONTHS and MONTHS is tied to my

PROJECT PRINCESS post.

i think you'll like it:)

 i know I've been bad about replying to comments but THAT is

going to change.

i mean it:)

REALLY!

It's really important to me to be better about this because like everyone

else, I do love hearing from you!!!

 shabby chicks in London

 

 okay MATES...that's it for now.

check back later for my post and first giveaway.

since I'm not exactly broadcasting this to every group possible,

you have a great chance at winning because only my LOYAL readers will

even know about this.

and that's as it should be:)

XOXOXOXO

Suzanne

P.S.   some great shows on TLC all week.

Royal Wedding Part...I Love Fairytales

oh my gosh...
i keep hearing it...

whining about the royal wedding.

"who cares", "I could care less", "nobody likes the royals anyways"...

on and on.

well...BOO!!!

so don't watch it.

me...i love a good wedding once in awhile:)

I was going to use my first day of royal wedding week to talk about

"Princess" Style.
maybe turn us all into princess's!
right... hahaha

maybe on day 2.

today, I'm doing something i rarely do...

hopping up on my soapbox.
yikes...right?

but just like nobody is forced to watch the wedding...

nobody is forced to read this.

but do come back tomorrow:)

okay...what's the big deal?

ummm...we DO have a bit of history together...

even if our OWN history is not very old.

200+ years or so.

and not all of it is BAD history together.

we have worked together during some very big moments.

 but here's why I personally love the whole idea of this royal wedding.

 1.  I LOVE a good fairytale! 

my blog was actually named "fairytales and grace" last summer.

that was because I personally felt as if my own fairytale life

was crumbling and I needed to be reminded that it's all good,

dreams do come true...

just not always the ones you choose 

but maybe the ones God has in store for you.

I doubt there is a child alive who didn't play make believe

at some point.

maybe it was a little girl who pretended to be a princess...

or a little boy who fantasized about being an astronaut or cowboy.

it didn't hurt us then and it won't hurt us now.

so let's lighten up and think back to our own fairytale days.

2.  this is Prince William...Princess Diana's son.

 I'm sorry...I know she had her moments...

some good, some not so good.

but she LOVED her boy.

she deserved better than a man who couldn't say he loved her

when they announced their engagement AND had a girlfriend from 

day 1.  we have NO idea what truly went through her mind.

but we DO know she wanted her boys to have as "normal" 

a life as possible and that would include marrying for LOVE.

Since William is marrying a "commoner"...I'd say it's love.

he has carried the title of "the people's prince" and he carries it well.

 people say he is privileged.

yes, he is.

but he has had far more pain at a young age than many do.

at a young boy, he had to live through the pain and embarrassment of

his parents VERY public and VERY messy separation and divorce.

he must have thought it would never end.

then when things looked a bit brighter,

he was told on the eve of flying to meet his mother for a vacation together,

that she had died in a car crash.

who can forget the pictures of him walking behind her casket.

i don't begrudge him a bit of happiness.

i believe if he had his way, he and Kate would have run away

to Africa and been married long ago.

but there's this tradition thing to think of...

3. which brings me to "this tradition thing".

the British Commonwealth still includes about 1/3 of the world.

they have royalty...they LOVE tradition.

I love tradition.

(and NOBODY throws a wedding like the royals.)

somehow it's comforting in our own family

and in our own world,  to know that THIS is what we do...

TRADITION...

and I imagine it is the same way there only on a much

GRANDER scale.  

so the royals don't actually govern anymore.

let me tell you, I went to London last Fall (and LOVED IT!!!)

they may not govern but they DO rule.

it isn't the prime minister's face on the money, postal services...just about everything.

 they have a tradition and a history we cannot fathom...

we were so impressed how many brits KNEW their history and

respected it...and the royal family!

we could learn... we could learn...
but just like in America, hearing from those people makes boring press.
we sell WAY more papers by printing the negative stuff, right?

4.  which brings me to those who are tired of hearing about it.

don't even get me started...

let me tell you of some things that are old news to me.

no, scratch that...

they are NOT news at all yet they are headlines for us.

Lindsay Lohan...

Charlie Sheen...

so called "real housewives"

the trashy Kardashians...

Brad and Angelina...

Barry Bonds (steroids and athletes...who knew? duh...)

ANY celebrity or athlete behaving badly!!!

anything oprah does.  nothing against her but...

politicians behaving badly...

who got kicked off the latest reality show...

the academy awards (or any awards show these days)

facebook...

twitter...

 no, we in America have NEVER had any scandal...

can you say Bill and Monica?

(hey...i did say i was on a soapbox today:)

  okay, so don't bother with the royal wedding.

it's so SILLY compared with what we normally watch, you know?

girl from BucKlebury meets young prince.

girl marries prince.

lives in a castle.

HOPEFULLY lives happily ever after.

 if that kind of fairytale is too phony, too clean, too boring...

don't watch.

instead, check out the cursing Kardashians and mean housewives.

but for these 3 shabby chicks...

we'll be watching.

and we'll love it.

just like I watched Charles and Di with my "Mum"...

my girls will watch with me.

it's a once in a generation thing.

we'll talk about her dress.

we'll drink tea and eat raspberry scones.

(or maybe the special heart shaped Will and Kate donut from Dunkin's donut":)

we'll ooh and ahh...

probably get teared up thinking about her long walk down

the aisle of Westminster Abbey...

and we'll wish this young couple the very best.

and hope they can change the course of things for a 

sometimes dysfunctional royal family and the country they serve.

and then we'll go back to everyday life.

Jordan will be playing tennis next weekend.

Taylor will be performing the role of Peter in "Peter Pan".

i will be dressing up like a pirate on Saturday afternoon and then

going to a Ball Saturday night. 

my husband will golf, go into work.

i'll walk the dogs...and pick up poop.

(hmmm...that might be one time i wish I were a princess:)

so ya...i think maybe I'll get lost in the fairytale this week.

if you care to get lost with me,

stop by tomorrow...and the next day and the next.

I DO HAVE A GIVEAWAY PLANNED...

but I also have a temperamental camera so bear with me:)
and I will tell you, it has beauty supplies, paper supplies and food included!

yes, we'll have a JOLLY good time!
promise, promise, PROMISE!!!
and please don't hold my rant against me:)
but I just had to do it...
cheers, then...until tomorrow!