Laura W. Godfrey

Y’all!

I’m beaming with pride over here for one of my dear friends and blogger besties that just launched her very carefully curated collection with an international brand! Brittany is such a precious soul and her eye for fashion is top notch. I’m not surprised at all that she’s accomplished so much in her career already and I’m so excited to have a front row seat to see what’s next!

The full collection can be found HERE be sure to use code LOVERLYGREY to recieve 25% off your order PLUS free shipping. Brittany recommends to choose UPS Express Shipping in order to ensure your order will arrive quickly! The collection is limited supply and there will be no restocks so grab what you want fast! Be sure to pay close attention to that cashmere dress because it’s selling FAST!

So proud of you, B!!

Hi, friends! I did a little poll last night to see whether y’all were more interested in booties or cardigans. Turns out, you’re interested in both! Since the poll was split pretty even, let’s just do a little of both.

I have pretty strong opinions when it comes to what kind of boots and booties you need in your closet. For starters, a good pair of tan booties are a must. Second, a pair of brown riding boots are also equally as important. For a more dressed up look, I’m also loving the sock boot trend. I’ve seen a lot of these in velvet and y’all already know how I feel about velvet!

Now let’s talk about sweaters. I’ve rounded up quite a variety. We’ve got some pullovers, a few turtlenecks, and (my personal favorites) cardigans! All of these are soft (duh) and most are very affordable! Don’t be afraid to layer sweater on sweater, too. If you have a light weight v neck sweater, it would pair perfectly with a cardigan over the top.

Thanks for stopping by today! Happy Friday to all of you!

Here it is, my loves! The long-awaited family picture post. I think I started bating with the idea a little early and then BAM before I realized it, we are more than half way thru October and it’s officially time to start getting serious about the family photo situation.

Before we get started with outfits, let’s just get this out of the way: If you have small kids, don’t ever ever EVER schedule anything more than a 45 minute photo shoot. If your kids are like mine, they can smell our fear when we head into family pics and they aint scared. All you need to focus on is getting one picture to frame for Grandma and put on a dang Christmas card. Bring bribery. Bring candy. Bring stuffed animals, grandparents, law enforcement. Whatever it takes, just come prepared. Don’t think that because this is special to you, that it will be anything but a candy eating obstacle to your kids (and maybe your husband). Lower those expectations down to a zero, momma.

Ok rant over and on we go!

Let’s talk about styling! I went back and forth on how to do this post because I just really, really wanted it to be helpful for y’all. I decided to give y’all some guidelines to help you get started and hopefully that’ll help you to do YOU and not just exactly what someone else is doing.

Pick a Feel, not a Color Scheme:

I think this is one of the first ways that people get tripped up in their pictures. Picking certain colors can end up making your pics feel static and boring. Instead of focusing on color, think about the vibe that you’re wanting to accomplish. Laid back in a field? Bohemian at golden hour? Fancy in a metro area? Get inspiration from what you want to feel when you look at these pictures. For our family this year, I am going for cozy family fun. I want our outfits to have a bit of whimsy to them and I want the textures I choose to feel comfy and soft. Choosing a vibe will help you so much in picking out the clothes because you can look at something and know if it gives you that “feel” or not.

Start with one outfit you love:

This might sound selfish but I pretty much always pick my outfit first and then build everyone else around what I’m wearing. It just helps you to have a starting point. If it’s a little harder for you to shop for your kiddos, then start there. But always try to make sure that everyone is comfortable in what they’re wearing because that will for sure translate in the pictures.

There have been years that I’ve found inspiration pieces instead of entire outfits, but it has still helped me to focus my attention and build around what I love. Last year it was this precious sparkly headband that Rowen had. I used that as a jumping off point and started building everything around that.

Don’t Match, Coordinate:

Maybe some of you have fallen victim to the khaki pants, white polo shirt family picture epidemic. But those days are over. Now it’s all about allowing each person to express who they are in their pics. A few years ago for family pictures, Reese was begging to wear her hot pink rain boots. She wore them almost non-stop that entire year and even tho they didn’t match what any of us were wearing, I went for it. Can I just tell you that those are some of my favorite pictures of all time? They were just so HER. I love it.

Its pleasing to the eye to see coordinating colors, but try leaning more toward some solids, some pattern, some differing textures, etc. If one person is in plaid, just let that be just for them. It’s tempting to just match Reese and Rowe perfectly but I’d so much rather find complementing outfits so they can each do their own thing.

Play with Textures:

I love adding a little sparkle in jewelry, some faux fur in a vest, a little tweed in Matt’s jacket, and maybe even some plaid since this is Christmas we are talking about! Adding layers and textures will help you with the coordinating goal even more because it broadens areas in which you can pick up on different colors. Texture adds depth and interest and can really help accomplish that feel we were talking about earlier!

Lay It All Out There:

Once you start pulling outfits together, lay them out on your bed and see how you like the way everything is being pulled together. If you see that things need to be tweaked, this is the time to do it… not when everyone is dressed and walking out the door for pictures. Talk about stress level ten!

Now here are some of my FAVORITE places to find affordable outfits for my whole family:

Old Navy/GAP

J Crew Factory Store

Janie & Jack (for the kiddos)

LOFT (for momma)

H&M

I’ll leave you with a few photos of our past family pics!

I’m always kind of surprised by some of the “rules” that most people still think apply to fashion. No white after labor day, no sweaters with shorts, and definitely no pastels unless it’s Spring time.

I’m happy to report that so many of these ideas are in the past and when you do it right, most trends can be worn no matter what time of year it is. Just to be clear, socks with sandals is still a NO NO in any situation.

Today I want to talk a little bit about wearing pastels in Fall and Winter. This is the time of year we start to see lots of warm golden tones, but I’m also seeing tons of beautiful pastels and I think I must be drawn to them because of how different they look compared to the other colors dominating the market right now.

My preferred way to wear pastels is to balance them with richer colors to still give some depth. In this case, the beautiful color of the lavender coat is balanced by the warmth in the boots and the depth of the navy top and skirt.

I have loved these skirts from J Crew Factory! They are so flattering and come in a ton of colors. The length is perfect for work.

This coat is an absolute dream. I would say it runs pretty large so be sure to size down a few from your normal size. I’m wearing a size 00. I could have probably done a 0, too!

The coat, skirt, and top are all 40% off right now.

Hi!

Happy Monday to YOU! Hope you had a great weekend! For this week’s Mom Life Monday tip of the day, I wanted to share an idea we have been using in our house to help with the issue of complaining. I’m sure your children don’t ever complain but just in case, here’s what we’ve found works for us!

Whenever I hear one of my girls say something that resembles complaining, I always respond with

“Before you complain about a problem, try to find a solution.”

For instance:

Rowen’s Problem: “Reeeeeeeeese! I can’t see the TV! Mommy, Reese won’t MOVE!”

My response: “Rowen, before we complain about a problem, let’s try to find a solution! Instead of complaining that Reese won’t move, please just ask her (with kindness!) to please scoot over so you can see.

If you have kids under the age of four, you will most likely have to help them find the solution in the beginning, but as they get more practice solving their OWN PROBLEMS, they will become much better at it! I’ve been so amazed to hear how much better the girls are at figuring out their problems all on their own, rather than complaining being their first resort.

I wish I could say that we have alleviated complaining all together, but it definitely still happens. The key from a parenting perspective is to be consistent, not fix it for them, remind them what they need to do, and some times give them a little guidance.

Now for today’s Momiform, here’s an outfit I get a lot of wear out of in the Fall.

The key ingredients to pull off this look is a pair of skinny jeans (these are only $65!), a cute button down, and riding boots. I’ve been hunting the right pair of riding boots for YEARS. These are absolutely perfect. When I shared them on my instagram, I couldn’t believe how many messages from followers that said that they’ve had these boots for years and they still look great!

I love a loose fitting button down, especially if it includes a pretty bow detail like this one. It’s a little more of a splurge for me but it can be worn in so many different ways. I absolutely love the color combo, too! Like I said before, these riding boots are the most affordable and comfortable pair I’ve ever owned. They run true to size and also come in a wide calf version. They have the prettiest button detail above the zipper in the back and the color goes with everything!

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog for Mom Life Monday! Today’s memory verse is “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” Colossians 3:23

Outfit details below!

Before we jump into Friday Favorites, could we just talk for a sec about how this is my FAVORITE outfit for fall thus far?! I’m loving the button up skirt and this brown and black color combo is just everything. I think a turtleneck is super duper flattering on just about anyone and this one from J Crew Factory Store is light weight enough to give the look of the high neck without feeling suffocating!

Ok! So for today’s Friday Favorites, I’m going to try to answer some of my most frequently asked questions! Let’s start with my curling wand. I get questions all the time about what I use to curl my hair and I am TELLING YOU this wand is the best! It’s the perfect size and heats up enough to curl quickly and allows the curl to stay! Speaking of making the curl stay, I’m also linking the hair spray that makes ALL the difference in the world.

Another question I get a LOT is what I use for my eye makeup, foundation, blush, eye liner, and neutral lipstick. I’ve linked all the items I use and the lipstick color I wear almost every day is called Caramel Latte. I have used this eye shadow palette for a year now and it’s just perfect for a simple smoky eye. If I can get my life together, I’ll try to post a tutorial for HOW I do my eye makeup. But this should at least get you started.

Also, while we are on the subject of makeup, here’s the self tanner and mitt that I use for application!

I also get asked on a weekly basis what kind of workout I do. Three to four times a week I do a high intensity interval training workout. Two to three times a week, I go for a run. We also love to go for hikes as a family, which typically involves me taking turns carrying Reese and Rowen on my back. So lots of activity and I use the 80/20 rule for how I eat. I try to eat clean 80% of the time and then the other 20% of my meals, anything goes. AKA I got to chick fil a!

I know this sounds super random but I also get lots of questions about paint colors in my house! The exterior paint color is Benjamin Moor Winds Breath with Rockport Grey shutters. The inside of our house is Revere Pewter also by Benjamin Moore.

Here’s everything I’m wearing in today’s post: