Friday Favorites

Hey Friday, how you doin?  : )  I'm so happy to see the weekend! Yet another fun one in store for the Bowden's.  Tonight, you guessed it, we grill, although I must admit I have eaten quite the substantial lunch that hubby might, in fact, be the only person dining this evening! Tomorrow, I'll enjoy a much needed hair appointment, picking up my bridesmaid dress from the alteration store for Kim's wedding next weekend, and finishing a few more little errands. Dylan's on yard duty {I did promise, however, to pitch in and help rake those annoying beautiful magnolia leaves in the front yard....urgh!} and then a fun night with our friends!  Appetizers and cocktails at our house for a bit, then on to Little Alley for the best food ever!!!  I can already smell the filet!

Sunday is church at North Point with a new series starting which we can't wait to hear!  Then, I think we'll relax {or try to unless I come up with some project or something, ha!}. 

I do want to get started on a new book that is out called Gone Girl which is a suspense novel and I'm always a sucker for that on the edge of your seat, suspense in books, movies, etc. I'll report back on the novel and if I find it to be as good as the critics say.

Here are my Friday Faves:

1. Cheese Plate Dinner.  I'm sure I've mentioned this before but Dylan and I love having nights of trying different cheeses and nibbly things for dinner.  Especially on weekend nights~usually Sundays.  Well, last weekend we ventured into our favorite store, Roswell Provisions, to pick up some delicious items.  Of course, we always get their freshly baked baguettes and some dipping sauce and some type of meat to go along with the cheeses.  We splurged a bit and also got one of their divine strawberry cupcakes.  Hey, a girl's gotta live, right!



We enjoyed a delish local white cheddar, some peach mango habanero chevre, sausages, baquette cut
into cubes, crackers with black pepper, olives, and three dipping sauces: A balsamic and olive oil mixture, a Roasted Garlic Rosemary dipping sauce we've had for a while from RP {these spices last a long time!}, and finally a creamier Buffalo Chicken and Blue Cheese dip {also from RP}.  All scrumptious!

Instructions are on the package, this one you just mix in to light sour cream and
mayo and stir.  I added more than the 2 Tbs of seasoning because we dig a big kick of flavor!

For this one, just mix in some of the spices with a tbsp of hot water to release the dried herbs fragrance, oils, and flavor and bring it to life.  Then you drizzle in olive oil and give it a stir!  Super easy!

The heavenly strawberry cupcake!!!  We rarely eat sweets but this
pretty little cupcake is so good and moist and not too terribly rich.   I adore strawberries
so the owner gave me three fresh strawberries to go along with the cupcake. MMMM GOOD!!!

2. Unique Color Combos.  I recently completed our guestroom {well all except for finding curtains} and I don't really know where my inspiration came from but I ended up with a color combo of this slate blue-ish gray color for the walls, white bedding with orange {tangerine} and white zebra print pillows and a sky blue additional flower pattern throw pillow.  Sounds strange but it turned out beautifully I think.  Serene enough for guests to enjoy but still pleasantly bright and airy {I think because I limited the paint to only one accent wall}.  The bed frame is a super super old antique bed from my Mama Ruth's house.  I adore it and often think how lucky I am to have received this beautiful piece with so much history. I must walk in this room 2 or 3 times a day when I get home from work to admire the bed and the colors.  I'll have to get a pick of the detailing on the headboard and footboard and post soon.

The sunburst mirror was a huge score from Home Goods and adds
another aesthetically pleasing element, reflection of light and the sparkle it brings to the wall.

The orange and white pillow, another Home Goods find.  $10 a piece, so cheap!
The blue flower pillow from The Painted Monkey in Roswell on Canton Street.

3. Eye Shadow from Ulta in Granite.  This is an eyeshadow I picked up about a month ago during a sale at Ulta and it really is great shadow!  This color works well with my green eyes and helps them to pop!  It looks great when wearing a black dress/shirt or with a crisp white shirt.  A little fancy for day unless you do clear mascara...to me, more night appropriate for a smokey, but not too smokey, eye with a little shimmer.

4.  Trader Joe's Sparkling Lemonade.  I've enjoyed {and posted about} their Sparkling Blood Orange Juice so wanted to give another flavor a shot.  This lemonade is sensational!  Not your run of the mill type lemonade by any means. Its slighly sweet with that kick of sparkle and zing!  I think this would be great to serve at a baby shower or for a kid's birthday party.  I like to have these sparkling juices as a departure from soda's like diet coke and diet sprite.  Those are just not good for you!  So this is my attempt at slowly easing away from those type drinks.

Last week, I curled up on the couch in our living room, sipped on this fabulous lemonade and read all my party planning books!  Pure bliss!  : )

5.  Two Favorite New Blogs.  http://www.brooklynblonde.com/ and http://www.eatsleepwear.com/   Both of these bloggers scream style!!  Love looking at their outfits and ideas.  If you're really girly like me, you'll love it too!  Both have sophisticated yet trendy styles.  And they both frequently sport a high top knot bun!! My fave summer hair style!!! : )

 Hope you have a super wkend!  Of course, I must leave you with pics of our "babies!"