Gallery Wall Inspiration

| The Bee Life

As we near the finishing touches for our master suite, there is one wall that is completely random the room is also in need of a dedicated place to add a pop of color and make a statement (you’ll soon see the randomness when final photos are posted).

So I’ve been thinking… gallery wall! But when I go to look for inspiration I can’t find a happy medium of what I am looking for, since my ideal gallery wall is all the same, evenly spaced and matched up, like the one below.  A lot of the gallery walls I find are either simple and uniform (not what I’m going for in this space) or completely over done and just too much. Like I said, I want happy medium.

Generations of wedding days. Also like this layout for travel pics:

Here is some of my inspiration and my go-to places for finding the perfect mix of unique, personal, and colorful items for a gallery wall, especially if you’re trying to mix up the mold without over killing it!  Places like Marshall’s/TJMaxx/Home Goods are perfect to find different pieces and pops of color, I also love websites like Society 6 for unique pieces of art that’re trendy and different.  My friend Lucy; http://boundryandthorn.com/ also creates insanely cute floral letters and unique hand-drawn prints which truly give your gallery wall an authentic feel.  Another goal for mine is to have a mix of textures and materials, I’m thinking, wood accents, metal frames, or elements of gold to really pop and add dimension.

Gallery Wall Inspiration - the bee life
01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06

I already have some pieces at home that’re laying around to help get this statement gallery wall started! I just want to be sure to have a good mix of girly and masculine, since it’s also B’s space, any hints or suggestions on how to incorporate that aspect into the mix?

Fitness Friday no. 7

| The Bee Life

This week I’m going to share my 5 go-to at home workouts, that hit all of those sweet spots everyone wants to work on!

One thing I have been relying on this year, to get back into shape, has been working out at home.  As I’ve mentioned before one of the reasons I wasn’t successful last year was because I was gifted with a few months of workouts and then couldn’t maintain them based on cost and fell right back off. So, having been gifted with <expensive> workout classes again, I told myself I wasn’t going to use them until I got into my own groove at home!  The more I’ve been working out at home, the more I love it because it fits within my schedule – so when I have 30 minutes to get a workout in, I can do it on my own time, when I want, oh and it’s free!

Squats – I love squats! These work your full body but especially your butt, thighs and hips. The key to squats is your posture and formation, putting all of your weight within your heels and sticking that butt back as far as possible. An alternate position is widening your feet to work those inner thighs a bit harder.

Challenge: 4-sets of 50 squats, at the end of each set hold low and pulse for a count of 15

No Weight Arms – You may (or may not) be surprised at how much fatigue you can feel by doing some basic arm movements, with NO weights. Of course weights will add to the workout, but if you’re on the go or traveling these will be the perfect fix. The first pictured below is “Close Grip Flies” – the key here is to keep your shoulders relaxed and pushing your arms straight through the motion. The second is Triceps Extensions, the goal is to keep your neck straight and arms as close to your ears as possible while moving your arms up straight above your head, holding your hands in a fist can help the posture.

Challenge: 4-sets of 25, for both the close grip flies and triceps extensions

Side Leg Lifts – What I love about this, is that you can modify it to adjust to skill and the level of the intensity you want. This also tones your hips, which is perfect if you’re trying to work down those side “muffins.”  To add to this you can extend your top arm straight, this will intensify the core work.

Challenge: 4-sets, alternating 25 lifts on each side

Leg Extender Abs – I found this workout from doing the online Barre classes and I absolutely love it! I especially love it because there are modifications to do that still give you a killer ab workout without killing your lower back, the key is to push that lower back down so that it doesn’t arch.  The goal here is to work through the movement slowly and meaningfully, by alternating your extended legs, as you get used to this you can elevate your head (without straining your neck) and crunch to each side as you alternate.

Challenge: 4-sets, work this slow for 5-minutes and work into the side crunches – hold the side crunch on each side at least once for a slow count of 10

Planks – For someone who has chronic back pain, I’ve never truly appreciated working the core until I started Barre. Planks again have the ability to modified based on skill and evolve over time to work up strength and build that inner core strength.  Starting on your knees (and even your forearms) is perfectly acceptable as long as you keep your back straight and pull your abs in tight, and lower that butt!

Challenge: Hold for 30-seconds at the end each set

Fitness Friday 07 - the bee lifeIMG_9247A special thanks to Allie and Bekah for being my awesome fitness models (and fitness inspiration) and the crazy talented Timothy Logan for taking these awesome shots!

Wednesday Reminders – Firsts

| The Bee Life

There are definitely times when I am especially reflective and thoughtful on specific moments in time or memories and in this instance, some firsts with B.  Four years ago marked our first weekend getaway together and our first Valentines Day.  I don’t know why this year I am so gooey over V-Day, it seems to vary year-to-year and for no particular reason… although in college my girlfriends and I threw a V-Day Sucks Party. *smiles*

Anyways… as I was saying, four years ago was our first weekend getaway to the cabin, which had gotten bombarded with snow, so much that it was up to my knees! There isn’t a whole lot to do in the middle of no-where, so we played a lot of scrabble and ate pizza and even took a stroll out in the snow.  It was a fun weekend away doing a whole lot of nothing, which makes it feel like you have all the time in the world.
Our first Weekend Getaway 2012 - the bee lifeOur first weekend getaway - the bee life (1)Our first weekend getaway - the bee life (2)I love looking back at this first trip to the cabin, because it’s become a tradition and our getaway, a place to get away from all of the daily noise. I also love looking back, because I’m thankful (and sometimes in shock) for the journey that’s gotten B and I nearly to five this year. I think that’s why I am especially reflective this year since we’re hitting a small milestone, yet still a milestone in my book!

 

Five Dates

| The Bee Life

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and although I’m not the biggest fan of this day (even though this will be #5 with B) – I love, love. So in honor of our 5th, here are some cute ways to spice it up, show some more love and rekindle those “just started dating” sparks.

Five Dates - the bee life - emilyboylan.com

One.
Write a love letter. Like a really good, spilling your heart out, a page straight from a Nicolas Sparks novel, aching of the soul… down right awesome, love letter. Find inspiring poems or quotes from his/her favorite book and gush a little. A piece of paper and pen is all you need for this one.

Two.
Make Out. Like it’s the first time you did.

Three.
Go for a walk, hand in hand. I know February isn’t always the warmest, unless you’re on the west coast or a southern bell. But bundle up, go to a park, and walk hand in hand, even if it’s for 20-minutes – oh and put those phones away! Just the two of you and Mother Nature.

Four.
Play some games. Keep the electronics off, throw on some tunes and play a board game or two. Scrabble, monopoly, uno, or a little bit of war?! Have a little friendly competition over wine and candlelight.

Five.
Skip dinner. Instead of a big fancy <expensive> dinner, try breakfast or brunch instead! Whether it’s making it at home or heading to your favorite diner, heart shaped pancakes and mimosas? What could be sweeter than that?

What I love about these ideas is they really get down to the core of what Valentine’s Day is supposed to be about, an extra day in the year, to spend dedicated time with the person we love. XO.

10-Miler Training

| The Bee Life

One of my goals is to get back into a consistent workout routine, back to how I used to be when if I missed a workout it was the end of the world! The high of working out is addicting and I’ve told friends who’re trying to workout more, to stay consistent enough because once you get to that point you’ll know – I also warn it’s far to easy to break that habit (much easier than it was to create) … and here we are.

One thing that had always helped me stay on track was training for half marathons, I would run at least one a year sometimes even two when I was feeling a little extra crazy. Granted that was pre-Moz, pre-house, and still early into my job (yes I will always blame work) – yes those are excuses. B and I have signed up for a 10-Miler this April, so let the training ensue!

10 Miler Training - the bee lifeWith races I like to be able to make my own schedule, this way I can switch up days when I know I’ll be able to take a long run or only squeeze in a quick cross-training session. Since I know I have some busy weekends that’ll interfere with training I’ve taken the initiative to star* the days that are a conflict or an opportunity. For example, President’s day I can squeeze in some extra miles that I normally wouldn’t on a Monday and I have a weekend I’ll be traveling so that’ll throw some things off, but only if I let it. Being able to plan ahead for these is smart, I can game plan and accommodate ahead of time because all I need is a few days of procrastination to break everything I’ve been working towards.  I also like to track during the week my distance and time, and then tally up my total distance for the EOW, it’s just another way to track progress or be honest where improvements may need to be made.

Beware of Burnout. I am always cautious about this I am planning or starting to train for any long race. B always got burnout a lot quicker than I, but a training program that is longer than it needs to be (depending on your skill) can be exhausting by week 6 out of 12. So I wanted to keep this manageable but also a decent amount of time, since I could use a little extra discipline.

As you can see training officially starts next weekend, but I am going to try and get some miles in this weekend as a preempt since it takes mental and physical prep to be all in for training!

What’re your training tricks? Are you getting ready to train for a race?

The First 30

| The Bee Life

In order to be successful with goals, it’s important to reflect and have normal check-in’s on your progress, this way we aren’t 4-months in and look back to realize we’ve completely lost sight of major goals and progress!

Goals - the bee life

Here’s a look back at my 30-day focus:

1. Limit the times we eat (dinners) out: I’d say we were very successful in this area. As far as the weekends go, we only broke twice and one was because we were with friends. As far as lunches go, I also did pretty well, I only grabbed lunch a handful of times and most of those were salads I made myself. I not only noticed a huge difference in energy and feeling better but also my wallet! We are definitely keeping this up!

With this came more consciousness of better eating and prep for all of my meals throughout the week.

2. Do Barre 5-times a week: 5x was a little ambitious. Three was my sweet spot over these last 30-days, and I’m happy about that. I got into a groove and looked forward to doing it either over lunch or after work.  Which is progress in and of itself! I’m going to keep this up, and stick to at least 3-days a week! I love the progress and how I’ve felt.

3. Walk Moz on the weekends: This is a win-win, exercise for me and Moz! This was a success, out of the 10 days of weekends, we had 7 walks. From snowy walks to 4o-degrees and sunny, just your typical Midwest winter.

4. No sweets: I think “no” should’ve been “limited” – this was pretty successful, I was tempted a few times to buy some cookies or chocolate for B and I after dinner but resisted, instead a few chocolate chips after dinner filled the void, if there really was a sweet tooth. But generally there wasn’t!

5. Limited alcohol intake: I’d say this was a success. If I had a drink during the week, I kept it to one. And if I did over the weekend I definitely didn’t over indulge. Being mindful of how much we consume is better than not having any gauge at all.

These past 30-days have been a manageable focus; and it’s been so important and helpful for me to get back into a groove.

So what have I learned? I learned that this is just the beginning and I still have a lot of work ahead of me. I’m happy with my progress, but I know I can step up the game and still have a long way to go into maintaining this healthier lifestyle. I’m going to maintain these focuses (and try to add a few more), but most importantly reflecting and centering around 30-days at a time.

Here’s to the first 30-days of change and progress and here’s to the next!

 

Fitness Friday no. 6

| The Bee Life

We are 29 days into the new year and if you’ve joined along, 29 days into our first 30-day focus.  My focus items included, limit times we eat out, do barre 5-days a week, walk Moz on the weekends, no sweets, and limit alcohol intake.

So how did I do? You’ll have to wait and see… Monday I will give my full 30-day run down, but until then, we still have a few days to finish strong and start looking ahead at the upcoming 30-days and some more fitness tips to help you (and me) succeed!

Fitness Friday 06 - the bee life - emilyboylan.com

    1. Treat Yourself – Regardless of how ‘successful’ you consider yourself to be these last 29 days, the fact that you tried and accomplished feats is something to be proud of! It’s OK to treat yourself, whether that’s having some of your favorite ice cream, buying a venti at Starbucks, or splurging on some wine and chocolate. If we deprive ourselves too much for too long, we might end up over indulging in a moment of weakness.  It’s easy to focus on the negative, we need to reflect and acknowledge more of the positive!
    2. Pump Up the Volume – With music! Take some time to make sure you have an awesome playlist for your workouts, this will keep you motivated from the start of your workout to the finish, not to mention a few dance moves in between sets or while you’re on a run.
    3. Prioritize Goals –  One of the perks of focusing on 30-days, is the focus! It’s also a time to prioritize your goals.  Is one of your goals, to be consistent with workouts, week after week? And another to loose weight? And another eat better?  If you’re like me and have endless amounts of goals, start small and prioritize – in order to accomplish X I need to do Y first… aka in order to loose weight, I need to maintain working out week after week, so that is my first focus goal. The rest will fall into place.
    4. Be Practical – Just like prioritizing goals, be practical in what you’re asking yourself to accomplish.  Are you jamming too much in and it’s resulting you to not succeed? It’s OK if you can only workout 2-nights a week and the rest has to wait for the weekend. I am realizing that right now, running has to wait for the weekends and I can focus on Barre and strength during the week given the time I have.  I’ve even come to realize that 30 or 40-minutes is better than nothing – so although it isn’t to the standards I’d prefer or would like, I need to make strides in the right direction.

    Here’s to finishing the first 30-days strong!

    My Latest Obessions

    | The Bee Life

    Taking a page from Andy Cohen’s book, HERE’S WHAT I’m obsessed with when it comes to home decor… because I have an entire master suite I am dying to decorate.

    Neutrals – White and grey! More please!! I love creating a blank canvas to be able decorate and accessorize with pops of color.  Not to mention white and bright makes a room look 10x bigger, who doesn’t want their room to look bigger?

     

    Floral Accents – This is my way to incorporate a little girly into a space without being totally overt with pink walls … like I would love to do. *smiles* I am completely in love with these pillows and they’re even prettier in real life – because they have flecks of gold in them. *swoon* The candle from Anthropologie also has flecks of gold and an incredible scent.

     

    Navy and Gold – I mean… do I even need to explain? This is one of the most beautiful and classic pairings, in my humble opinion, especially when these colors are used as accents they can make a big impact, although if overdone not so hot.

    I won’t lie – you’ll see a few of these beauties in our master suite when it’s all finished. What’re you currently obsessing over? That piece you’ve been eyeing have pinned AND favorited on your Pinterest board.


    Product Links:
    Neutrals: Unfinished Nights Stands | Upholstered Fabric Chair | Shag Rug
    Florals: Pillows | Candle
    Navy and Gold: Handsome/Gorgeous Frames | Ottoman | DIY Curtains

    Attic Update – 6 months

    | The Bee Life

    We’re just over the 6-months into this project, yes definitely longer than both B and I anticipated – but hey! What can you do? Attic Renovatoin Update - Month 6 - the bee life - emilyboylan.comAs fantastic as the holidays were, they definitely helped delay progress as two back-to-back weekends were filled with parties, family, and endless amounts of food and drinks. Two, back-to-back weekends where virtually zero work took place in the attic.

    Since, B has been back at it and focusing the weekends on mudding! Damn, mudding. Oh and then there is the sanding… and then more mudding… oh and then you sand again! The endless messy… messy cycle.  All “joking” aside, progress is being made, there are complete sections that’re ready to go and they look so great!

    The bi-fold doors for our closets have also been installed, since the last update, and it really makes the space feel like a room. Since we bought the house the closets have been wide open so that was an awesome piece to finish!

    Another update is that we ordered furniture for our sitting area along with nightstands, it’s getting us really excited (and anxious) to get on to the next part of the project; painting and trim work – so that we can decorate and live up there! I am obsessed with the chairs, they’re absolutely perfect.

    As many times as we’ve wanted to hire someone to get this done, mainly because it would be much faster than our time frame, it’s truly awesome that we (but really, mostly B) have done 95% of the work, building a room from the studs, to insulation, to drywall, to paint, to life.

    Hopefully next month we have a fresh coat of paint on the walls!