Inspired by a Christmas Gift: Tan Plaid Scarf
Well, it has finally arrived…the last day of this miserable year. And with every ending comes a new beginning. Hopefully this new beginning will not be as tainted with tumult as the end (and the middle) of 2020.
The snow has started arriving here in the North Country and it brings such an innocence and peace with it as it blankets the earth in newness symbolizing that all seasons come and all seasons go and the world just keeps on turning. Some days, some weeks, some years, the best we can do is hope we don’t fall off this spinning globe and disappear into the abyss. For 2020, I am just thankful that I had enough strength to hold on until the very end, always making the best of what we’ve got.
Before we ring in the new year, however, I want to share this beautiful tan plaid scarf that my dear friends, Sheryl and Adam, gave to me for Christmas.
They also gifted me 5 pairs of the softest, coziest, warmest socks ever. Two were the same fabulous pair that I had gifted to myself this year from Amazon. If you suffer from super cold toes like I do, you need to check out these socks. They are a heavy sweater knit and feel like blankets on my feet! I have them in ivory, black, and gray and I wear them every single day as I lounge and putter around my house. They are available in black, ivory, gray, tan, red, and pink. I think I need to order the other three colors that I don’t already have!
Being the amazing friends that they are, Sheryl and Adam had paid very close attention to the fact that our toaster oven is dying a very slow and annoying death. For example, if you want toast for breakfast, you are best served to begin toasting it at bedtime. If you’re lucky, it may be ready by morning! It really does take forever to toast the bread, but in the appliance’s defense, I think we have had this same toaster oven for about 10 years. So now you are thinking they got us a new toaster oven for Christmas. But nope! They did one better than that and got for us a combination toaster oven/air fryer. I will admit that Jeff and I both let out a very elated squeal when we opened that gift!
There was also a bottle of mezcal for me, a bottle of rum for Jeff, and the offer to keep the boys for a sleepover tonight so we can have a New Year’s Eve date at home and enjoy our alcoholic beverages. We, of course, accepted said offer and are very much looking forward to a quiet night at home…kid free! I may even get dressed all fancy for the occasion.
I cannot express enough gratitude for these amazing friends of ours! They are really such wonderful humans and we are blessed to call them friends. You can see my beautiful friend Sheryl in a post I shared back in 2018 that featured inspiring midlife women whom I know, Forever Fierce 2018: Midlife Women on Being Fierce.
But let me get to this gorgeous scarf. It is super soft and I am always thankful to have something cozy to keep me warm, like the houndstooth ruana that I received my mother-in-law this year. I love oversized blanket scarves, especially plaid ones, and this tan, ivory, and gray plaid is so elegant and classy. I do have to admit that I was a bit concerned about the color with my complexion, but I was determined to make it work and I do believe that I succeeded. The great thing about the color is that I do not own any other scarf in these tones and I own a lot of scarves.
As soon as I took to my closet room to style this beautiful piece, I knew immediately that I wanted to create a winter white outfit with hints of tan and possibly gray. I ended up not incorporating gray into this outfit, but I have some more ideas for this scarf in the future. Once I was dressed, I realized that a winter white outfit was not going to photograph all that well against the snowy landscape so we went hunting for a building that would contrast with the white.
We decided the old paper mill was perfect with the dark brick facade until I lost half of my boots in the snow drifts! I did end up changing my boots to tan ankle height combat boots for a thrifting adventure. I think they might have looked a bit cuter than the knee high boots but would not have fared as well as I traipsed through the snow to get the perfect shot. My ankles would have been frozen!
I will let you know that it wasn’t all that difficult to walk through these snow drifts in 4 inch heeled boots. It was problematic, however, walking over the ice covered parking lot to get to the safety of the snow piles. Thankfully, my amazing husband is always there behind the scenes to hold my hand and get me safely situated for photographs.
I was excited for the metal stairs to lift me above the snow a bit so you could see my boots, but there were more stairs buried beneath the snow than I realized and they kept me surprising me as I tried to get back down. I did almost end up sliding right down the steps like kid on a sledding adventure. I just wasn’t dressed properly for the occasion!
Well, that’s about all I have for you today. What are you some your favorite gifts this year? And what are your plans to welcome in the new year?
I invite you to stop by tomorrow for my Friday Link Up On the Edge party! We can ring in the new year together with your fabulous styles and any other topic that you have been sharing in your blog or social media space.
Wishing you all the best in 2021. May the year be much improved from this one!
Keeping it on the edge,
Shelbee
Linking up with these Fabulous Link Parties.
Shop my look…
Outfit Details: Scarf-Christmas Gift / Hat-Wona Trading / Sweater-Old Navy (old) / Dress-Kohl’s (old) / Boots-JustFab (old) / Velvet Scrunchie-Torrid (old) / Tights, Mittens, Necklace, Earrings-all old
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
I am a midlife woman, wife, and stay-at-home mother of 2 boys and 2 cats. I have a passion for helping other women feel fabulous in the midst of this crazy, beautiful life.
22 Comments
Tamar A Strauss-Benjamin
What a warm and cozy outfit! Happy new year, friend!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Tamar! Happy New Year!
xoxo
Shelbee
Jennifer
Omg you got so much snow!
Jennifer
Curated By Jennifer
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
We had a big storm move through on Christmas night! I think we only had 15 inches of snow though which really isn’t all that much where I live. We tend to get disappointed when our single storm snowfall doesn’t hit 2 feet! Weird North Country folks! Wishing you a very happy new year, my friend!
xoxo
Shelbee
Bojana Krienke
You made it! We made it! And ultimately we are stronger probably for it. I absolutely know that there are friendships that I want to invest in more moving forward and ones that I am ready to let go of as well. Your two friends sound like caring and thoughtful individuals and those are the ones that we always want to invest in. Not only do they obviously make you look adorable, but they lift you, support you, and listen to you. Wishing you all the best in 2021!
bosbodaciousblog.blogspot.ca
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Bo, thank you so much for these beautiful words as we bring this crazy year to an end! Friendships have come and gone throughout even just this year and perspectives have definitely changed for the better. Finding the really good humans amidst all the bad in this world is like finding diamonds in the sand, isn’t it? And we must cherish those humans because they are much more precious than diamonds. We have made it to the end of a very trying year but hopefully we have learned how to be better humans. I really appreciate your blogging friendship and support throughout the year. I hope you have a blessed new year, my friend!
xoxo
Shelbee
Barbara
Wow, I love the combo of mezcal & blanket socks they thought of as a warm & personal gifts. Although their ‘gift of time’ was probably the best of all: friends who ‘give up’ a holiday to babysit are rare:)
Why do you call a big scarf a ruana, btw?
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Barbara, thanks so much! They really are wonderful friends indeed! A ruana is a bit different from a scarf. It’s more like an open poncho style wrap. This tan scarf is just an oversized oblong scarf, but the houndstooth one from the day before is a ruana because the way the fabric is cut and split. You can read a bit more on Wikipedia to see the difference. I hope that helps!
xoxo
Shelbee
Sheila (of Ephemera)
See, this is why I do all my photos in the same spots, year after year! It’s not as adventurous or interesting, but I don’t fall down the stairs or get over my feet in snow (not that we have that much snow ever!). You look stunning in your winter white ensemble, Shelbee! I love that the scarf was your inspiration. I bought my husband a ginormous scarf like that in red and cobalt for Christmas (found it thrifting for $10).
Enjoy your kid-free zone this evening, and please ensure you get up to loads of shenanigans (heh heh). I’ll be enjoying a 3-hour Zoom dance party/photo-share/chat with my besties, and will be dressed to the nines for it.
Here’s to 2021. It’s got to be better!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Sheila, my friend, thank you so very much! I enjoy your photo spots but I do have fun playing in the snow and laughing at my own clumsiness out there! Haha. That scarf for your husband sounds amazing…red and cobalt! What a striking color combination. I bet it is fabulous on him! We kept it quiet and low key last night without any shenanigans really. My premenopausal cycle has been kicking my butt lately and I was feeling rather icky from it last night. So I smoked some pot (lots of pot actually to try to mitigate some of the cramping pain) and went to bed by 10:00! I hope you had the most wonderful Zoom dance party! I look forward to reading about it on your blog! Merry New Year!
xoxo
Shelbee
mireille
I do love the tan and white combo and added bonus of snow! I can always dream for some pictures in the snow here! The cold and the rain just pass each other by here! I love the contrasting background. You always inspire me! I wonder if I could do something like that with a white dress of mine… Winterize it! humm.. going to snap a pic of your outfit and make a note!
http://www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Mireille, thanks so much! Snowy pictures are fun for changing up my backgrounds, but the snow gets old and ugly really fast, too! Here is a link to a post where I wore this little ivory dress in summer time. It’s a cute sleeveless dress that I also have in a pinkish color. It works really well for cold weather layers but it’s equally great in the summer time, too. I love discovering versatile ways to extend wardrobe pieces! I look forward to seeing how you style your white dress for winter.
xoxo
Shelbee
Mica
I’m amazed you got so much snow – it’s so hot here, we had the aircon on again yesterday! Your neutral outfit looks great though, that scarf is such a pretty gift! 🙂
Hope that you had a wonderful Christmas and are having a happy new year 🙂
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Mica, thanks so much! We have actually been having a very mild winter here without much snowfall at all compared to our norm. I can’t say that I am displeased with less snow than normal (the children are though)! Wishing you and your family a very happy and healthy new year, my friend! Stay cool in your summer time heat!
xoxo
Shelbee
Michelle
Beautiful wintery outfit! And I love the way it photographed against the red brick. Yay for tall boots – that’s a lot of snow! And what thoughtful friends you have! Enjoy your kid-free evening!
Michelle
https://mybijoulifeonline.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Michelle! We had a total of 15 inches of snow on Christmas night which actually isn’t all that much for these parts! Now it’s all just kind of dirty and icy now. And I did enjoy my quiet kid-free evening, but I was asleep by 10 pm!
xoxo
Shelbee
Patrick Weseman
Looking so very nice. There is something to be said for white tights.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you, Patrick! I am not sure why but the white tights seemed to be favored over all the other colors that I wear!
xoxo
Shelbee
Kate | The Organized Dream
I love the way you styled this scarf! Super cute! I also love those knit socks!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Kate! Oooh, the socks are so cozy! Happy New Year!
xoxo
Shelbee
Lorena
OMG SO MUCH SNOW!
Yes, finally the year ended, here it seems like we are still in 2020 as things are the same, in fact we are in total lockdown 🙁
I think you’re looking fabulous, the outfit and the backdrop look amazing.
Cheers.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you so much, Lorena! It really does feel like the same old thing in the new year! We are in lockdown mode as well with really no end in sight. So I am focusing on improving my home and surroundings since I will be stuck here for a while!
xoxo
Shelbee