Author Archives: Kaitlyn White

Southern Living Decorating Charm

21st December 2012

Image via the Southern Living Idea House Website

Since graduating college, I have taken on a love-hate relationship with home decorating. On the love spectrum, there is nothing I love more than finding the right little wooden box to store magazines or the perfect trinket to fill a shelf. However, on the hate side, it seems my post college tastes and my post college bank account have yet to catch up to each other.

Thank goodness for Pinterest and its never ending supply of DIY solutions for a gal on a budget.

So when a good friend shared tickets to visit Southern Living’s annual idea house, the wannabe decorator in me jumped on the opportunity. Each year, Southern Living Magazine selects a home and stages it from top to bottom {Talk about dream living spaces} giving guests inspiration and shopping tips from top to bottom. This year’s home is conveniently located in the picturesque town of Senoia, Georgia, just a little over an hour south of Atlanta.  I’ll let you read all about the house itself with Southern Living here.

Even though I am unfortunately not writing this from the comfort of my own restored 1900’s farmhouse, there were quite a few fantastic ideas I can’t wait to tackle myself – on a 24-something’s budget and timeline.

Curtains are such a simple way to brighten up a room and add a splash of elegance, no matter how small the space. I toyed with the idea of creating my own out of burlap for quite some time before settling on this pair I created with a painter’s drop cloth and some stenciling, but I have fallen in love all over again with this pair at the front of the home. The little details of rope as a tie back are just perfect. And with sites like this one, this is a cheap weekend project I’m adding back to the list. 

Little trinkets and collections are one of my favorite ways to add character without a single, expensive piece. These vintage trophies are fantastic. Target had a similar collection recently, while I also love the idea of a collection of old bottles  {which I also have a soft spot for} or even a collection of ceramics.

Pillows, pillows, pillows. Who wouldn’t want to fall asleep on this porch-side daybed? While my dreams of a southern porch are still on hold, there are plenty of easy pillow tutorials out there, or you are always only a shopping trip away from finds at TJ Max, or my personal favorite, World Market. 

So there you have it, I’ve fallen in love and will be adding ‘move to the country’ back to my bucket list. However, in the meantime while I’m living in the real world, these little projects will have to keep me occupied. What projects have you completed to make your house {or in my case, apartment} feel more like a grown up home?

{PS, interested in visiting the 2012 Southern Living Idea House yourself? Check out the full remodel and order tickets here and be on the lookout for the 2013 home soon}.

The Pilgrims and the Romanians

23rd November 2012

Late yesterday afternoon as my Mom and I checked off the final items of our grocery list,  we received a phone call from my Dad. While Thanksgiving at my household is always a small affair with our immediate family, he shared how had invited a new guest to join us for Thanksgiving dinner. Our new guest to be was a coworker from Romania who does not have any family in the United States. He had shared with my Dad that afternoon in conversation that in his nearly decade in the States, had never experienced Thanksgiving. My Mom of course welcomed him with open arms and plenty of food (as any Italian chef always cooks for 15 when the group is certainly less than 10).

This afternoon, we listened to this man share his story of how he had always dreamed of coming to the United States, from the time he was a teenager. He made the trek here a little less than a decade ago and shared with us how in his first few months, he wanted nothing but to return home as the experience of knowing no one in a new place was overwhelming. He quickly reminded himself that this was his dream and well, he stayed. He shared his history, what eventually lead him to Georgia and what he is most Thankful for in his life.

The day’s conversation left me with a quite a few things to be thankful for and certainly a few reminders for each and every day.

Share your passions with others. Share a meal, a conversation or extend a welcoming hand. I’m so incredibly blessed to have parents who have not only taught me this every day of my life, but who also continue to outpour their love on others. If you think no one is watching, think again. Your actions inspire those who surround you.

Follow your dreams. Don’t ever sell yourself short of exactly as you have planned them. With dedication, hard work, faith and maybe a little luck, you can achieve that little ‘what if?’ in the back of your mind. Sure, you may have to make a few tweaks along the way, and the road will always be rocky, but you are the only one person truly responsible for your destiny.

While a single Romanian man at our family dinner table is far from the tales of the pilgrims and the Indians more than 350 years ago, it was certainly full of simple reminders of thanks and left me a little more inspired and grateful on this historic and humbling holiday.

What Happens in Vegas Needs Help from Facebook

16th November 2012


I can officially cross “we’re going to Vegas baby” off of the bucket list (though I’m not certain it was even there to begin with) by competing in the Great Urban Race National Championship this past weekend.

P and I are always looking for weekend adventures, and with fewer football games and more money saving post-college, when I saw a Tweet from Yelp Atlanta giving away tickets to the Great Urban Race’s Atlanta race in April, I jumped on the opportunity. We were lucky enough to win the race entries, went into the race knowing nothing and we somehow managed to qualify for the race’s National Championship in Vegas (you can read all about the Atlanta adventure here).

We aren’t quite Vegas people (and boy we confirmed that one this weekend) but couldn’t resist the opportunity to go and compete. More bucket list items, right?

To put it simply, The Great Urban Race is a local version of the Amazing Race (though not affiliated) and sends you across a city with 12 clues to figure out, a challenge at each location, four hours to finish and only public transportation to get you from point A to point B.

Saturday’s Vegas race took us to places like the Graceland Wedding Chapel where we had to memorize vows (and I proposed), decode combinations to remove handcuffs at the Mob Museum and determine real from fake at the famous Gold and Sliver Pawn Shop from Pawn Stars.

Over the course of the day, we ran more than eight miles, made our way around town on countless buses and trams and our social networks came to the rescue with Tweets, texts, phone calls and even Facebook posts to help us solve the clues. We worked as a team to finish in just over four hours, crossing the finish line in the top 20 (though a penalty or two might have set us back a few slots in the final results, but we’re not counting that).

If I don’t have to see a naked women card flicked at me or walk the strip from the MGM to the Venetian for a few years, I’ll be OK with that, but the experience was exciting, challenging and just the break we both needed from the day-to-day. We cannot wait for the adventures the Great Urban Race will bring again in 2013 and this time we hear the National Championship will make its way to New Orleans. Hurricanes, jazz and cobblestone streets? Update: the 2013 National Championship has been confirmed for San Juan, Puerto Rico. Even. Better. Count us in. 

Check out the Great Urban Race to see when it’s coming to your hometown, and sign up. I promise it’s worth every penny and maybe you’ll take home the grand $10,000 prize next fall.