The Blonde Diaries

Capturing the Mediterranean in your home

As glamorous as it sounds, I just can’t pack up and move to a coastal town on the Mediterranean Sea. Oh how I would love the idea of a relaxed life in a sea town with beautiful colors surrounding me and fresh food. My reasoning side kicks in every time I have that fantasy. I have responsibilities, a job, and family keeping me at least for now where I am at.

I was looking the other day for something to hang in my apartment. I have finally come back around to decorating in part because the beige walls are starting to kill me. What I found was a fabulous artist that captured the feeling of the Mediterranean that I love the artist is Jean Claude Picot and Park West Gallery. The Park West Gallery helps bring artists and art fans together through various art auctions throughout the US, Canada, and even aboard cruise ships. If you are not able to stop by the gallery or meet them while on tour, you can easily purchase by phone through one of their art dealers. The information is very easy to find on the website as far as the varied methods to purchase art, the artists and works on sale, and the price. If you are trying to cover some bare walls and love the Mediterranean like I do check out Jean Claude Picot’s work at the Park West Gallery and see if you can find a home for a piece on your walls.

Are your boots made for walking?

Before coming over to Houston and living full-time I didn’t really pay too much attention to men’s cowboy boots.  They just seemed like any old shoe that you would wear working on a ranch or at the Rodeo.  Well much to my surprise, people wear their cowboy boots rather frequently here in Texas and even in the city of Houston.  I have never owned a pair and decided to check out Cavender’s to see  what was available and can I just say wow!  I did not know that so many different styles, colors, and variations of cowboy (and cowgirl) boots existed.  With such a huge selection available no one should have problems finding a pair of boots that fit and are comfortable to wear all day long.  If you are in the market for a pair of boots or if your’s are not fitting that comfortably give Cavender’s a check.  There is bound to be a perfect pair in their store lineup!

Watching the Time Pass with Cartier

Watching the time pass while at work is not always easy when you are trying to be discreet and appear to be paying attention. I have found myself in some rather boring meetings this week, well maybe not boring but due to it being summertime they are boring right now. I have been watchless for quite some time now and typically rely on either my laptop to tell me the time or my cell phone. Well in meetings I do not have either and it is quite painful. So I started thinking about how I need a watch. I went over to The Watchery and found a wide selection of brand name watches such as Cartier and Tag Heuer at prices that would make these affordable for young professionals like myself. The Watchery does a great job helping you search by brand name, gender, and price. Additionally, they have a great inventory system that alerts shoppers when inventory is running low on specific products so you can decide if you want to keep shopping or buy the watch you are eyeing at that moment. There is a two year warranty on luxury watches through The Watchery and you also get a free watch when you make your purchase which you can give to someone else. That is a pretty nice deal. If you need a watch, visit The Watchery today.

A helpful tidbit of information for budgeters

Last week I mentioned a site, ZenniOptical.com, I had found for $8 eyeglasses to my fellow budgeters. There were a few lingering questions I had regarding quality and how to order that I was able to answer in a video I found with Zenni on Fox in a feature called Deal or Dud. The overall conclusion reached in the video was that the site is a great deal for older children (8 and up) and adults who have uncomplicated prescriptions. Additionally, the frames and lenses were tested in a lab by doctors and found to be spot on with what you ordered. The problems found related to the lady’s young son, if I recall was 5, who she couldn’t get a good measurement on as far as his pupil distance or eye to ear and the color of his glasses were a tad off. Overall it sounds like a great bargain and a great site to shop for glasses. I think I’ll give these a try. I don’t know where I picked up the black rimmed glasses = smart but I want to try it out.

What great customer service!

A few days ago I popped online and purchased one of Mike’s birthday presents and included something for myself. Who could resist right?? Well today I received a phone call from that merchant (Tapout) only to hear that my portion of the order was out of stock. I was quite sad because sadly I spent longer than 10 minutes agonizing over which t-shirt I wanted before ordering the other day. I was happy though because the customer service rep that called me was really sweet and instead of outright canceling my order or throwing it on backorder like some companies do, she offered to replace my shirt with another or refund my card. So lucky for me I was able to check sizing with her and order the correct size and get the shirt I originally ordered but in black not pink. The other super nice part is that the customer service computers are not connected to the warehouse system to see what is in stock and what is not so she actually took the time to walk over to the warehouse before I got off of the phone to ensure the new shirt I wanted was in stock and could be shipped out with the other item I ordered for Mike. So I would like to give an A+ to Tapout.com’s customer service for going above and beyond to help me complete my order. I hope it gets here in time for Mike’s birthday next week and everything fits so we can wear it for the UFC fight night on August 9th. Hmm maybe I should have gotten one for Beth too since it’s her favorite (Georges St. Pierre) fighting that night. I’ll have to ask Saturday night when we go watch the fight - Geaux Rampage!