And so the planning begins!

Good morning everyone! It’s Monday and I think I am finally able to get myself back on blogging track! I was a little MIA last week so today I am bringing you a mix of 2 things. I am going to share some things I have compiled so far for my wedding & share a belated “Thrifty Thursday” featuring a couple snapshots from my engagement shoot!

Last week I started to put together a binder to help keep me organized through this process! It is helping me stay calm and as least stressed as possible during the wedding planning (my maid of honor is doing a pretty good job at that too)! Within the last week or so Aaron & I have started to create our guest list. It’s A LOT bigger then we imagined haha, I guess that’s what you get from having a large family & you become friends with everyone you meet! Along with a guest list (which bores me after awhile, although it needs to be done) I started filling in the pages a bit.

This past week I chose a few hairstyles:

Picked out a few dresses for inspiration: (AND made my first visit to David’s Bridal to try a few on!)

Made a finally decision on a cranberry/burgundy & gray bridal party:

Chose a few DIY projects for the BIG day:

& as a surprise I received this awesome book from a couple at our church:

I have been wanting a book like this to go along with my planner. I am in love with this one for the reason that every chapter starts with Bible verses and words of inspiration to keep you in the right state of mind. Because through all of this keeping God number one is the biggest priority. PLUS, having this book as a guideline gives me more to share with you all!

OKAY so now a little sneak peak into our engagement shoot featuring my “Thrifty Thursday” Pinterest inspired outfit of choice 😉

It was a perfect fall day so we kept it simple with our colors. I didn’t need a handbag but I could of used a cup of Starbucks which the girl has in her pic! I took the inspiration from the shirt/dress and military green jacket with leggings & swapped the flats for leather boots & added a statement necklace 🙂

OH, and I forgot to mention…I did not spend a dime on this outfit, just an added bonus!

That’s a wrap! See you guys tomorrow 🙂

Much love,

Brooke Ashley xoxox

Did that Pinterest board just come to life? Week 4!

Hey my blogging friends! Happy Thursday! What a crazy week it has been! Super busy but guess what…I found time to go shopping for this weeks “Thrifty Thursday!” This week was a challenge. The past 2 weeks I have left a picture of the following weeks outfit. I did that for 2 main reasons: the first being that it keeps me in check and not wasting hours aimlessly looking to gather together a full outfit under $20 (so far so good!). The second reason is for you guys! It’s nice to have a visual and know what to look forward too! (Or not look forward too if it’s not your style)

Oh yes, so about it being a challenge…here is why. Last week when I left the picture for this week it was actually 4 different outfits all with similar taste but I was at a lost. So I asked you all to vote and pick one for me! The vote was fairly even with these outfits:

Both are extremely adorable! And well if it were up to me I would have bought all four…my bank account would not have liked me so much. I finally made up my mind and I went with the first outfit, THEN it was sooooo hard for me to find a cardigan (that I actually liked and would wear again!) SO I improvised! I took a couple things from each outfit and created something new! I found a shirt that was the mustard yellow,  which was super hard for me & not my fav color, a pair of jeans (which were desparetely needed), a purse, cream cardigan, & the cutest boots! The point of the pics is for a guideline…your allowed to break the rules here! So enough of me rambling here it is!

Aren’t those boots so cute?! They were $4! My total cost this week was $20 EXACTLY!

Much love,
Brooke Ashley xoxox

P.S. I don’t have an outfit picked yet because I will begin preparing for my engagement pictures soon and I have not made up my mind! Color suggestions???

Did that Pinterest board just come to life? Week 3!

Well hello bloggers & readers! Welcome to an early edition of Thrifty Thursday! Why a day early you ask? Well I am headed up North this weekend (tomorrow!) & I was planning on bringing my new outfit with me! Sooooo I figured I would share today…PLUS I will barely have any service so better I do this today!

*** Please don’t mind any silly placement for I am doing this on my phone because my computer was acting up***

If you are just joining me be sure to search under category “Thrifty Thursday” to see both of the past looks I have created! Both from Pinterest & last weeks being my Halloween costume! Also, remember I am creating these outfits in $20 or LESS!

This week I spent $13! Keep in mind I already had the boots, leggings, & scarf! Spool I bought my sweater from Plato’s closet for $12 AND git an awesome deal for this adorable wristlet & bracelets for a total of $1 😉 What a great shopping adventure it was! Of course ONCE AGAIN…after taking pictures I realized I missed a minor detail…the sunglasses. Luckily I already had a pair of those too!

I had the HARDEST time finding a floral wrestler in my budget. I thought this one was adorable! It's my new makeup purse 🙂

Keeping it short and sweet this week because I gotta get packing! See you all Monday! Enjoy your week & weekend!

P.S. Which outfit should I put together for next week?! Leave your choice below!

Much love,
Brooke Ashley xoxox

Did that Pinterest board just come to Life? Halloween Inspired!

I cannot believe tomorrow is Halloween! Where is the time going?!? And guess what day today is…THURSDAY! As promised I will officially be starting my “Thrifty Thursday” segment. Two weeks ago I shared my first post with a Pinterest inspired outfit that I re-created under $20! Well I had soooo much fun doing it. Well since tomorrow is Halloween I think you kinda already know where this one is going! Oh yes, Halloween costume UNDER $20!

P.S. Rocking my RUBY lipstick by Motives Cosmetics to bring a little tint of color 🙂

I have been pretty excited to share this one with you all the past couple days and let me tell you why. I am not a huge Halloween person BUT I do enjoy dressing up! I don’t like being scared, I don’t like the gruesome costumes, haunted houses, haunted hayrides, being chased with chain saws, zombies, etc…& the number one thing I dislike the most is the amount of money people spend to dress up. You have to agree with me here! SOOOOOOOO long story short I am sharing my DIY Halloween costume with you that I spent a grand total of $17.00 on!

For starters where did I get my costume inspiration… Pinterest of course! & here it is:

This year I went with a bank robber. Not very classy I know 😉 BUT it was very easy to put together for not a lot of money. For starters I already own countless amounts of black bottoms thanks to my leggings & I own several pairs of Chuck Taylor’s that was a given for me. But you can wear any black shoe that you may already have.

Let me share some pics before I go on!

Cute little money bag was a great find at a Halloween outlet priced 2 for $5. Original price $10 a piece…YIKES

The only accessory not shown is my gloves (which I also already own, you can buy a pair for $1.00 at Wal-Mart!) I already took my pictures when I realized I didn’t have them on…whoops! I cannot even begin to express the frustration I was having trying to find a black and white striped shirt. Seems silly right? I looked EVERYWHERE. Thankfully ROSS came to the rescue. I walked in and was able to bring about 5 different styles into the dressing room with me and coming out with the winner at $5.99. Putting together a costume for ONE night or two if you are a party kinda guy or gal DOES NOT have the break the bank. Use your resources (PINTEREST)!

Are you on Instagram? Share your DIY Halloween costumes with me! I wanna see what you come up with 🙂

Tag me: @brookeducati & use hashtag #BrookeAshleyLifestyles !

Tune in NEXT Thursday to see me create this simple, casual, fun (& typical) Fall fashion under $20!

Much love,

Brooke Ashley xoxox