A Special Celebration

I participated in an Ambassador Program on behalf of Millennial Central (#MC) Consulting for Marriott Rewards. I received Marriott Points to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation.

This year Marriott Rewards® is celebrating their 30th Birthday and they want to celebrate it with you! How you ask? They want to throw a party for someone special in your life!  All you need to do is head over to yearofsurprises.com and tell them about who you want to celebrate and why they deserve to be celebrated.  Today is your last chance to enter Marriott Rewards® Year of Surprises during the Nomination Period #3 (the final entry period!).

So far this year Marriott Rewards® has announced eight winners, and thrown four amazing parties for four unique individuals!  They helped host an Engagement Fête, a 30th Birthday Bash, a 50th Birthday Party, and a High School Graduation Celebration.  Today I'm going to tell you about the fabulous Engagement Fête thrown for a very deserving girl!

A Country Style Engagement Party was thrown for Stephanie and her fiancé John at the Vineyards and Winery at Lost Creek in Leesburg, Virginia.  Stephanie was nominated for a Marriott Rewards® Year of Surprises by her best friend Cameron.  Cameron nominated Stephanie because she knew she needed to have some fun after she experienced an extremely difficult year.  This year Stephanie underwent brain surgery and suffered a stroke; the odds were against her, and doctors thought she would never walk again.  However, Stephanie triumphed and can not only walk, but was able to spend the night dancing at her engagement party with all of her family and friends.  Next Spring, Stephanie and John will be dancing at their wedding.  Check out the YouTube video here!

Now that you've heard this inspiring story you need to go nominate that special someone in your life for a party of their own!  Marriott Rewards® is looking for creativity, so make sure that your personality shows through in your nomination.  All of the rules can be found at Year of Surprises Official Rules.  While you don't have to be a Marriott Rewards® member to enter the contest I highly recommend that you enroll now for all the great benefits you'll get once you join.  (You can enroll at the Marriott Rewards® Enrollment Page.)

Who's the special person in your life you would like to nominate for a party?!

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Confess...

|  One  |

I confess that I started watching Orange is the New Black at the beginning of the week and now I know why everyone loves it so much.  It is such a good show and so addictive.  I'm almost through both seasons already!

|  Two  |

I confess that chocolate covered pretzels are my latest guilty pleasure.  I take a Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar, put in a bowl and microwave it for 1 minute in the microwave, then stir; once I've melted the chocolate I dip Synder's Gluten Free Pretzels in it.  

|  Three  |

I confess that I am so happy the first week of classes are over.  It's so great to get the first week out of the way, and I don't have classes on Friday so this weekend I get four days off!

|  Four  |

I confess that I feel like when school starts it should automatically be fall.  I don't want it to be super cold yet, just that perfect fall weather because I associate that with the beginning of school.  Does anyone else feel this way?

|  Five  |

I confess that I feel really awkward when I take a selfie.  I've been taking a few for Instagram lately to document my outfits, but I feel always feel weird and end up taking a million before I can decide on one I like.

I hope everyone has an a great holiday weekend and enjoys any extra time off they may have!  I seriously cannot believe that Labor Day weekend is already here, I feel like summer just flew by before my eyes.  I think that it is still not registering in my brain that school has started, I'm hoping that after this weekend I can get more into the swing of things.  Is anyone else having a little trouble getting out of summer mode?  I'm hoping it's not just me!

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

D.I.Y. Faded Glitter Letters

Monograms are so chic and when decorating my new room I knew I wanted to incorporate my monogram into the decor.  Over the summer I was on a crafting kick and the idea came to me to make faded glitter letters so that I could make my own monogram to hang on the wall.  My room has touches of both silver and gold in it so I used these letters to tie the two colors together.  These are fairly simply to make, very inexpensive, and a fun update for any room!

Supplies:

-Wooden letters

-White paint

-Paint color of your choice

-Glitter (I mixed silver and gold glitter for mine.)

-Mod Podge

-Sponge brush

-Paintbrush

Instructions:

-Paint the letter with 1 coat of white paint.  Allow to dry completely.

-Paint the letter with 2-3 coats of the paint color you have chosen, allowing to dry between each coat.

-When the letter is completely dry apply Mod Podge to three-fourths of the letter, leaving the top fourth of the letter dry.

-Sprinkle a generous amount of sparkles onto the bottom of the letter.

-Tilt the letter forward and allow the sparkles to fall down it.

-If there are too many sparkles in one spot immediately take a dry paintbrush and brush them off until there is the desired amount of sparkles in that spot.  You want it too look as if the sparkles are fading up the letter (heavier on the bottom, darker on the top). Allow to dry.

-Shake off any excess sparkles.

-Apply Mod Podge over the entire letter.

-Allow to completely dry.

~Use pictures for reference.

 

I absolutely adore how my monogram turned out!  Next I want to make a set of sorority letters like this too.  How can you not love glitter letters?!

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with Mix & Match Fashion, and Treasure Tromp.

Emmys Best Dressed List

I love when the Emmys come and kick off award show season!  To me award show season means loads of fashion eye candy to check out, which is something I look forward to every year.  It's always fun to see the hits and the misses, the fashion and beauty trends, and everything else in between that hits the red carpet over the months that the season spans.  Today I have my top 5 looks from Monday's show.  Make sure to let me know what you thought of all the Emmys dresses in the comments!  

1. Sarah Hyland in Christian Siriano

I am completely obsessed with this look and it was my absolute favorite of the night.  Back in 2011 when Gwyneth Paltrow dared to bare her abs at the Emmys it was considered scandalous, but fast forward 3 years and Sarah's crop top is incredibly chic and on trend.  In addition to her beautiful top and skirt, I am loving her impeccable topknot.  From head to toe Sarah's look is perfection.

2. Heidi Klum in Zac Posen

It's great to see Heidi rocking something a bit more low key than her typical over the top look, and it definitely suits her.  Her Zac Posen gown is a gorgeous color that looks amazing on her.  Heidi finishes with some giant jewels, which makes the look super glamorous.

3. Michelle Monaghan in Giambattista Valli Couture

There's something about long sleeve gowns that I just love, and Michelle looks fabulous in this white frock.  The high slit is very trendy and adds some sex appeal to a dress that would otherwise be considered conservative.  The gold and maroon accessories complete the look and bring in a nice pop of color.

4. Sofia Vergara in Roberto Cavalli

Sofia is always a bombshell, and she did not disappoint for the Emmys.  This white gown is absolutely stunning and highlights all of Sofia's curves.  The silver accents on the dress make for nice detailing and brings her jewelry into the whole look.

5. Taylor Schilling in Zuhair Murad

I love the nude color of Taylor Schilling's gown, it is a pretty neutral that looks great on her.  While the color is lovely, the standout part of this dress is the brilliant beading, which is just incredible.  

Which Emmy gowns were your favorite?  Any dresses you loved that I didn't mention?

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with What You Wish Wednesday, I Feel Pretty, Mid Week Muse, Random Wednesday, and WIWW.

Instagram Life Recap

From time to time I like to give an update on my life by sharing a few of my favorite Instagram pictures. (By the way if you don't follow me you totally should @crumbsandcurls!)  I mentioned the last time I did an update that I was participating in the 100 Happy Days Challenge, which is something I have absolutely loved.  I have about 3 weeks left in the challenge and it has gone by so fast.  It has definitely made me notice the little things in life that make me happy and I encourage everyone do their own 100 Happy Days Challenge!

I was dying to get my hands on this copy of Vogue.  I am a huge Blake Lively fan and am very excited for her new website Preserve.  The article in here is all about her new adventure and has some details about her life with her gorgeous husband.

I've mentioned on here several times that my family moved a few weeks ago, however I don't think I mentioned that with our move came new bedding for me!  I took this picture when I initially set everything up and was so happy with how it all came together.  I love my fluffy pink princess bed!

Recently I started a pen pal-ship with the lovely Jordyn of The Fairy Princess Diaries.  I just love getting snail mail especially because she sends me the prettiest notes around! 

Between my family moving and going back to school I spent a lot of time in different HomeGoods this summer.  On one of my trips I saw this beautiful print and had to snap a picture of it.  It's seriously an addictive place to shop!

I shared this delicious churro fondue with my Mom during a lunch date at Max Brenner in Philadelphia. Max Brenner is the most amazing spot and is known for their amazing chocolate confections; if you are ever near one of their locations you absolutely have to stop by.

I have been wanting to make steamers for years now and this year my Mom made them for my Dad's birthday.  Needless to say I was very excited to dig into this giant bowl of them!  They were absolutely delicious and we ate 100 clams between four people.

I haven't seen one of my best friends in months so we only just got around to giving each other our Christmas presents!  She got me these adorable kitchen accessories from Anthropologie that I cannot wait to use.

I got these magazines while I was in Greece this summer.  I really want to collect international fashion magazines and this is the first addition (I brought it as one magazine in a bundle) to my collection.  What better way to start my collection then with Gisele?

Coco has decided that my bed is actually her bed.  This is her the other night rolling around in my pillows and making a mess of everything.  Thankfully I was getting ready to go to bed and she essentially unmade my bed for me!

To decorate my new room I made these faded sparkle monogram letters that I hung above my bed.  I will have a tutorial up for these some this week!

So this is my Instagram as of late!  You all seriously need to check out 100 Happy Days because it is something you will enjoy, I know I have!  I start classes today so I wanted to wish good luck to everyone going back to school, and tell everyone who isn't going back yet to enjoy their last bits of summer!

  

                

Make sure to add me on Snapchat - @kthomp22!

Today I'm linking up with More Pieces of Me and On the Daily Express, #HowISummer, MIMM, and Monday Morning Gossip.