By Annelle

This website features handmade Southwestern and sterling silver jewelry.  I own two of Annelle's sterling silver bracelets and matching earrings and they are very well made.  I receive compliments every time I wear them.
http://www.byannelle.com/index2.php?v=v1

My Friend Chris Biggins

She inspires everyone she touches.
http://christinebiggins.com/

Etiquette

Emily Post is the only website I trust to give accurate and time tested information regarding etiquette.  In the world we live in today there is not enough proper etiquette being used and it is apparently not being to taught to children either.  If you have an etiquette question please browse this website. http://www.emilypost.com/

Polyvore Designs and Pinterest Boards

Here is a link to my Kentucky Fashion Polyvore page where I create outfits to post on my Pinterest Board and my Facebook page.  Feel free to browse my collection of Sets.
http://kentuckyfashion.polyvore.com/

Here is a link to my Kentucky Fashion Pinterest boards.
http://pinterest.com/KentuckyFashion/

Tips From My Skinny Friends

Buffets 
Look over the entire selection of foods before you go through the line.  If the desserts are appealing then don't put bread or pasta on your plate.  Fill a dinner size plate with salad and put the dressing in a tiny bowl from the dessert table.  Always put a good size portion of a high protein food and several vegetables on your plate.  Don't get a dessert until you have finished the salad, protein and vegetable plates.  Get only one dessert and choose the smallest portion available.  A small portion leaves the exact same taste in your mouth as a large portion.

Cocktail Parties
Eat some protein while you are getting ready for the party.  Some lunchmeat or cheese will be enough. When you arrive ask for a white wine spritzer which is half white wine and half soda water.  It is very refreshing with a slice of Lime on a hot evening.  Look over the foods that are available then decide what you are going to eat.  If your stomach has protein in it you will eat fewer high calorie appetizers at the party.  The alcohol you consume will not go right to your head either.

Dining Out
Have a small snack while getting ready.  A high fiber granola bar will help take the edge off your appetite.  Don't eat any bread at the beginning of the meal.  Eat it toward the end.  You won't taste the sugar in it if you eat it first.  You would be surprised how much sugar is in a dinner roll.  If you plan to order dessert don't order a pasta dish or potatoes.  Eat salad, protein and vegetables only. Have only one alcoholic drink during dinner.  Make it last by alternating sips of water in between sips of alcohol.  Whenever possible split a dessert with someone at your table. Save half your food to take home for lunch the next day.  It's easier if you get a "to go box" at the same time as your meal so you can divide it immediately.  That's Dolly Parton's advice.

Charity Events
Many times we are served a meal that has already been "plated." This means that the salad course is already on the table and a server will bring you a plate of food at the appropriate time.  Sometimes there is a choice of dressing so choose the "clear" one.  Sometimes the dessert is already on the table so if you decide not to eat it then enjoy a dinner roll.  If you plan to eat it pass on the bread.  Never feel obligated to "clean your plate." There will be times when either you don't have room for that much food or you will not like the taste of it. 

Driving
If you spend a great deal of time in your vehicle then you must be prepared.  If you don't have the right kind of food with you (possibly in a small cooler) you will be more likely to pull up to a Drive-Thru window.  By having healthy foods in your vehicle and preparing perishable foods to place in a cooler before you leave the house you stand a better chance of eating properly throughout the day.

Work 
Again packing nutritious foods in a cooler every day will keep you from ordering high calorie foods while at work.  By having your own food handy you can eat a snack every 2-3 hours like the nutritionists recommend.  This keeps you from getting hungry and will also keep you from eating too much late at night.

Breakfast
Eat something every day for breakfast.  A high protein breakfast of eggs and or meat will keep you feeling good all day and may keep you from eating between dinner and bedtime when the metabolism is slower.

Pot-Luck or Family Style meals 
You control how much you put on your plate.  Start out with small portions, maybe the size of Nectarine.  You can usually go back if you want a second helping.

Grocery Shopping
ALWAYS eat a light snack before going to the grocery. You will make better choices.  Take tempting foods out of their original containers and place in jars or baggies.  The packaging is designed to make you want to eat the food inside even if you're not hungry.  Re-packaging will take the temptation away most of the time.  Put the expiration date somewhere on or in the container before throwing away the original package.

When you look good you feel better about yourself and have higher self-esteem.  You won't shy away from invitations because you will be prepared.  You might even want to buy some new clothes!

My advice: 
"Eat foods that are so fresh they would spoil if left on your kitchen counter for several days."

My size 2 friend kept a magnet on her refrigerator for years that read:

"Nothing tastes as good as thin feels."  

My Mother:
"One bite leaves the same taste in your mouth as 10."  

Anthony Robbins

"The higher your energy level, the more efficient your body. The more efficient your body, the better you feel and the more you will use your talent to produce outstanding results."

"After a While....."

After a While...

“After a while you learn
The subtle difference between
Holding a hand and chaining a soul
And you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning
And company doesn’t always mean security.

And you begin to learn
That kisses aren’t contracts
And presents aren’t promises
And you begin to accept your defeats
With your head up and your eyes ahead
With the grace of a woman
Not the grief of a child

And you learn
To build all your roads on today
Because tomorrow’s ground is
Too uncertain for plans
And futures have a way
Of falling down in mid flight

After a while you learn
That even sunshine burns if you get too much
So you plant your own garden
And decorate your own soul
Instead of waiting
For someone to bring you flowers

And you learn
That you really can endure
That you are really strong
And you really do have worth
And you learn and you learn
With every good bye you learn.”

—Veronica A. Shoffstall

" I hate my ________!"

I wish I had a dollar for every time I've heard a woman say that to me about one of her body parts.  What's worse is that they say it to anyone who will listen, even their husbands.  Seriously, does a wife really need to point out her perceived "flaws" to her husband?  I wonder if husbands ever agree then get clobbered for it?  One thing I've never discussed with my husband is a body part.  I like to be mysterious and not draw attention to something on my body that doesn't please me visually.  Men are very visual creatures so why tell them to look at some part of the body that makes you unhappy?  From that point on he will look at that part of your body and say to himself "she always looked pretty good to me in that area but if she says it's disgusting then maybe I should think of it that way too."  Men are also simple creatures so why fill their heads with these silly things?  If you don't like the flesh hanging on the backs of your arms #1 wear clothing with sleeves and #2 think of a woman who has lost her arms. She would give anything to have them on HER body.  If you don't like your thighs then cover them up and again think about all the women in the world with no legs who would give anything to have yours.  A woman's body was designed for reproduction.  I've never seen a Bible passage telling women to loathe these bodies God gave us to do his/her work on Earth.  When I ask men what attracted them to their wives and girlfriends they never say "she didn't have any flesh hanging off her arms and she didn't have any cellulite on her thighs."  NO!  They normally say "I can't tell you exactly why I was attracted to her....let's just say I liked the whole package!"  I always praise them for saying that because it is a correct answer from my perspective.  I know an embalmer who never wants his wife to be rail thin.  He says he has to embalm older women who have been sick for a long time and have wasted away.  Feeling bones instead of healthy flesh and fat would be a turn off.  Women have been brain washed into believing that they must be thinner and prettier in order to lead a happy and fulfilling life.  Older women believed that all you had to do was discipline yourself in order to maintain a trim figure.  Maybe it works to wear firm girdles like they did so you can't overeat.  Times have changed and working women have to fuel themselves to get through their busy, chaotic lives.  While it's a good idea to have a protein bar in the bottom of your purse and a bottle of water in your car sometimes that's not possible.  Drive-thru restaurants are on every corner and having food available when on the go has become a part of our culture.  Double that if you have children or elderly in the car who need a meal.  It takes time and commitment to have a better looking body.  You must also have plenty of incentive.  Celebrities who walk the Red Carpet frequently must be thinner because the camera adds ten pounds.  Many of them rely on products like Spanx and will wear more than one pair at a time to look thinner.  Don't think for a minute that those beautiful gowns glide over bodies with nothing more than a thong underneath.  The older a celebrity the more foundation garments she has to wear so her bulges won't show.  We have the pull of gravity to thank for our clothes not fitting right after 50.  It's as if our skin is slowly melting and running down our bodies.  I wonder if people living in zero gravity in outer space would experience sagging skin or is that just one of the many gifts of living on Earth?  If your body is healthy and still functions relatively well be counting your blessings and not your flaws.  You are perfect in the eyes of your Creator.

Plus Size Clothes Shopping

I went shopping today at one of my old, favorite stores.  I needed to return some items that were too small.  I noticed there were other middle aged and older women coming into the store to do the same thing.  This happens every time I shop there.  I used to be able to count on their merchandise when I needed well-made, basic clothing.  It was so convenient since the "color ways" were kept the same season after season so it was easy to keep adding trendier pieces as the years went by.  I amassed quite a wardrobe during those years and still wear most of it.  Times have changed and so has their merchandise.  The white blouses and tops were made of such thin fabric that I could read the price tags through them.  Unless something was lined at the shoulder I could see the wood of the coat hanger through the fabric.  The shoes are colorful but have no support so they are painful to wear.  The colors are no longer basic and neutral.  Instead they either look like cotton candy or fruit loops.  The last few things I purchased have shrunk even though I laundered them in cold water and hung them up to dry.

I left that store and drove a few miles to a store that caters to plus size women.  The fabrics were again a big disappointment because they were so thin and limp.  I imagine it's like trying to wear plastic wrap in the summer heat and humidity.  Are cotton, linen, rayon and silk so hard to come by?  Would we not want to pay a little extra for clothing that doesn't cling?  I felt a challenge coming on so I started digging, literally, through the stuffed racks.  In the first place, why so many garments crammed onto the racks?  It's impossible to find a size that way.  I managed to find only two dresses that were made of natural fabric with a pleasant "drape."  That means they will skim the body rather than adhere to every place a woman would prefer no one look.  I was impressed by the size and scale of the jewelry.  Plus size women need to wear larger pieces and longer necklaces.  Proportion and scale are very important.  I notice it more when petite women wear jackets that are too long in the torso and sleeves.  The women I know work hard at jobs or taking care of others.  I know it must be very frustrating when they have just a little bit of time to shop for clothes and it's a disappointing experience.

I get angry when I overhear people talking about a plus size woman behind her back but usually within ear shot.  First of all it is extremely rude!  I wish just one time a woman would turn around and make fun of the guy's big belly hanging over his belt.  All she has to say is "I guess it takes one to know one!"  I've witnessed elderly women making fun of what others choose to order in restaurants. They come from a different generation.  In their time a woman had no power so she had to keep herself "nice and trim" in order to get and keep a "good provider."  Now that women earn their own way they no longer have to starve themselves to keep a man in their lives.  How many metabolisms and hearts have been damaged by "Yo-Yo" dieting?   Real women do not starve or purge themselves and need attractive clothing in natural fabrics to get them through their long days.  The manufacturers need feedback from the women who wear their clothes.  I encourage you to E-mail your favorite clothing stores and let them know how you feel about what they sell.  If enough women do this it may make a difference in what you see in the stores in the future.

The Slow Dance

A good slow dance can feel like everything is right with the world.  When held in the arms of someone you love and who loves you, there are no words to describe the feelings. I witnessed an elderly couple having a great time dancing to live music in a restaurant recently. They were a stylish older couple, probably in their 80's.  The gentleman wore a pale yellow linen jacket with a blue and white checked shirt and pocket square to match.  He had on black trousers and brown loafers decorated with a "horse bit." His lady wore a floral jacket that included the colors of his attire and white cropped pants.  She had a small Rolex watch on one wrist and lots of gold bracelets on the other....one was still sporting it's price tag.  When they got up to dance I noticed she was wearing a glittering tiara like the other ladies in their group.  They were obviously celebrating a special occasion.  Everyone at their table wore very nice, perfectly coordinated clothing.  The couple that had attracted my attention were keeping up with the dance music and seemed energized rather than fatigued by it.  When the entertainer began to sing "Lady in Red" their demeanor changed.  The gentleman pulled his little lady closer to him.  Her crooked body began to straighten so they could be "body to body."  He gazed deeply into her eyes.  As he led her into a turn on the dance floor I caught my first glimpse of her eyes.  I have seldom seen such contentment and love.  They were in their own world full of their special memories of decades of dances together.  My husband and I were sitting very close to them....maybe too close and I began to pick up on their deep feelings.  Each time he swung her around I could see her loving eyes and had to look away because I was becoming so emotional.  The song was about to end so he drew her closer.  She responded and was nearly dancing on her tip toes by then.  I was overwhelmed by their feelings for each other.  The song ended and as the gentleman let go of his lady she wiped tears from her eyes.  As they passed by our table she glanced at me and I smiled. They will never know how much I appreciated being a part of their special slow dance.