Valentine's Home Decor




Valentines Day has become one of my favorite holidays as an adult. I don't remember much fondness of it growing up, but since I met Mr. Right, it's always been a special day for us. At home I'm working on growing my collection of V-day décor. While we have a lot of great florists and other places to shop for wonderful items to fill your home, I have to say that I really miss having a Target/HobLob/Michael's/etc. during the "off season" holidays. And maybe it's just me but I feel like the only Valentine's décor I do see is "galentines" focused which is great, but I kind of love the traditional xoxo, be mine, and sweetheart pieces personally!

I stopped into Classic Florist here in town, and saw this precious garden flag. It really kicked off this next round of holidays for me. I missed decorating for Valentine's last year because we moved that same week, but I intentionally began pulling my pieces as I was putting away Christmas a few weeks ago. Transitioning straight into another season of celebration has definitely helped with the post-Christmas blues.













A lot of my pieces are from my very first bridal shower which you can check out here. And if you'd like to see how I styled them in my last house, read this post

What do you love most about Valentine's Day? Do you have any fun traditions or memories? 

Love to you all! 



Ring in the New Year with a Sparkling Smile




This post is in collaboration with Smile Brilliant; all opinions are my own. 

New year, new you, right? 

Maybe not a totally new you, but what about a brighter smile?!

I take great pride in my teeth after years of braces and other drama, and always thought I had relatively white teeth. But years of soda and a coffee habit I can't kick has taken it's toll. And while my teeth weren't yellow, they just had lost their sparkle. 

I've used drugstore whitening strips before in the past but hated the taste and how slippery they always feel on my teeth. While great in a pinch, the long term results weren't awesome. Thanks to Smile Brilliant, I've found a more personal, thorough solution. 

How it Works
I was really intrigued about trying the Smile Brilliant whitening system because they create trays that are designed based on molds of your actual teeth! So they don't slip and slide around like other strips, allowing the whitening solution to coat your teeth more accurately.



 Smile Brilliant sent me a kit full of the supplies: material to create the molds of my teeth, whitening and desensitizing gel, and a lot of very specific instructions for the whole process which I loved! After mixing the materials together and creating a mold of my top and bottom teeth, I sent the molds in; within just a week or two, I had my own custom whitening trays



The Smile Brilliant whitening gel is really powerful and it has to be left on for quite a while {at least 45 minutes} but there is an additional desensitizing gel that made the whole process a lot better for me. I have pretty sensitive teeth, and had to space my whitening out a few days at a time, but the desensitizing gel really made my teeth and gums feel more normal after whitening than just 
whitening alone. 



My Results
While I didn't see a whole ton of shade difference in my teeth after three tubes of whitening, they are a lot brighter and the overall color of my teeth is more consistent. I began getting a lot of compliments on my teeth and my smile, which of course is an added bonus! 

Before

After


Your Turn
So are you ready for a bright, shiny smile of your own? Smile Brilliant is offering the chance to win a $139 credit for a custom whitening kit of your own! Enter to win by clicking this link:  


You must submit your name and email address via the link in order to enter the giveaway. The winner will be selected and contacted via email in two weeks from today {January 10, 2018}! This contest is open to readers in the USA, UK, Canada, and Australia. Good luck!



Want to go ahead and order your own kit? Use my 10% coupon code: piperellice





Home Teeth Whitening