My Utah Loot, Other Trip Updates & Some Features

We were in Utah from June 29th thru July 6th to visit my family and had a great time as usual. We did very little shopping {more on that in a minute} but I did score a few great finds. Surprisingly I didn’t buy one piece of clothing {a total rarity since Utah shopping is so much better than Nebraska shopping} but here is a shot of what I did get.

In the back corner you can see black & white J. Crew Seville Stripe Wedges – on clearance for $38 at the SLC store at City Creek {they appear to be more expensive online but are still an extra 40% off thru the end of the day}! They coordinate nicely with the Hamman Stripe West Elm hand towels that were on sale for just over $5 each {usually $10 each}. Because every girl needs their shoes to match their hand towels. I have wanted some of these towels for ages, and I was okay with the original price, but I didn’t want to pay shipping on top of it. I scored two for around $12 with tax at the store at City Creek. This was also my first time in a West Elm store – I have always had to shop out of a catalog in the past. The remaining items you see pictured all came from Tai Pan. There are only seven locations across the country and it is one of my favorite home decor stores to visit when I’m in Utah. The prices are very affordable and it is essentially a warehouse of everything home decor. I’m excited to use these items around our home

I was able to meet up with my blog/Instagram friend Sita Montgomery {The Family Room Design Studio} for dinner one evening. Sita is the first blogger friend I have met in person and she couldn’t have been nicer/sweeter/more beautiful. If you don’t follow her blog, be sure to check it out! She has incredible taste and I love all of her client projects that she features. This photo also demonstrates how HUGE my head is compared to most others. Seriously. It was so great to meet Sita in person.

I mentioned that we did very little shopping. The main reason for that is we were more like tourists on this particular trip {which you may have noticed if you follow me on Instagram}. My husband has been to Utah nearly twenty times and had never been south of Provo {if you’re familiar with the state, you know he was missing some of the best parts}.

So, we headed to Moab for two days to visit Canyonlands National Park, Dead Horse Point State Park, and Arches National Park.  After that, we went out to Antelope Island State Park for him to get a close-up shot of the Great Salt Lake. In future years, I really want to take him to Lake Powell for a week! If you have never been to Utah, it truly is a beautiful state with such a wide variety of geography and aesthetics.

{Our early morning hike to Delicate Arch at Arches National Park}

{Dead Horse Point State Park}

{Canyonlands National Park}

{Antelope Island State Park}

{Antelope Island State Park}

While I was in Utah, I did some blog reading and was delighted to see that Kirsten Krason from 6th Street Design School featured our guest bedroom makeover as part of her Last Week’s Links series, focusing on the fabric combo of the pillows on the bed. The room was also featured over at A Stylish Interior, Home Stories A to Z, Domestically Speaking and No Minimalist Here while I was out of town!

To read more about this room visit this post.

I’ll be back to my regular blog posting over the coming week. I hope you all had a happy and safe Fourth of July weekend!