Winnipeg Realtor and Real Estate Blog

Dressing for the holidays or for any party can be a hard thing especially for women. Finding the perfect outfits can be so stressful and can add to the stress levels already there from the holidays in general. Here are some helpful tips to help you get through it a little easier!

Dress to fit your body! Everyone has different shapes and sizes and the best thing to do is to fit your body and feel comfortable. There are so many fashionable looks out there for all different kinds of body types, there is nothing worse than trying to get through an evening in something that is a little to snug for you. When you go out shopping for that perfect outfit there are tons of tailors out there that can help you find it! Don’t sell your body short if you are not a size 0 dress, make your style fit you and work it!

Add the right accessories! Accessories are the best way to take a simple look and make it look red carpet fabulous! Something easy like a great pair of earrings can really spice any look up, whether they are a pair a simple yet stylish studs, or long dangles it can really help with your look. Try downsizing from you regular purse where every woman keeps their entire life and find a small sleek looking clutch, this helps by taking a little baggage off your shoulders and leaves you with just what you need, cash, cards and maybe your touch up lip gloss! Lastly make a bold statement with an awesome looking, out there necklace and embrace your neckline!

Color. I know that the little black dress is something pretty much all of tend to gravitate to but try experimenting with some different color tons! Make an entrance in a bright red dress, or even a beautiful yellow tone! Try miss matching colors with your shoe color as well. Sometimes standing out in a crowd is better than always blending in I think, so go for it stand out and be beautiful!

I hope that all your Christmas parties create fun and lasting memories for you, be sure to look fabulous and be safe! MERRY CHRISTMAS!

If you and your family love the smell and look of a real Christmas tree at Christmas time then let me help you with a few tricks of the trade in keeping that spirit and tree looking its best this year! I know that a lot of people venture into the fake trees and let’s face it, it is way easier to maintain and virtually no clean up but having a real tree does help give your home more of a Christmas feel to it!

When you get home remember to trim the trees trunk about one & a half inch before placing it into warm water. If you are not putting your tree up right away be sure to store it in a heated area away from freezing temperatures and snow. When you are ready to set it up you should make another fresh cut off the trunk the same size then put it up in at least 1 gallon of water.

There is always limited space to put up nice big trees in your home or ever small ones as they do tend to take up a lot of room, but try and stay away from any heat sources like heat vents, fireplaces of any kind or radiators. Leaving it next to any of these things will dry the tree out way faster which is what you want to try and stay away from. If your home is regularly dry then you could always try putting a humidifier in the room for the length of time that your tree will be up for.

Be sure to keep your pale or whatever you are using to sit the tree in is always full of water or you water it on a very regular basis. Once the water level gets to the base of the trunk it creates a resin and the tree stops absorbing water and will die way quicker, and that’s the last thing you want is a dying tree for Christmas Day!

I hope these super simple and easy tricks will help you and your family have a beautiful, fresh and green tree this Christmas to enjoy! Happy Holidays Everyone! 

Do set a budget. Sometimes around the holidays it can be very stressful for some families/people when it comes to income and shopping. My suggestion is to take a look and what you can afford to spend and make a list of everyone you need to buy for. Then and I know it’s hard to decide who and how much you want to spend on someone but it is very important so that you don’t go over budget and put yourself in a bad financial situation. Besides it’s always the thought that counts and not how much you spend!

Don’t take your credit card shopping. Back to setting yourself a budget, taking your credit card can defer you from your budget plan. Its money that is just sitting there and a lot of the times really easy to spend, especially around the holidays where so much buying is in order. It’s never fun to receive an online bill or bill in the mail showing how much you owe back, my moto is if it’s not in your account don’t charge it, because most likely if you can’t pay cash for it you won’t be able to pay it back to your bank. Try and stick to your cash budget plan, or if you are going to use your credit card say to gain more miles or points depending on the type of card and rewards you have, then make sure you have the money in your checking’s account to repay it back right away!

Do online shopping for some things. Let’s face it, everywhere you go around the holidays is PACKED, so packed in fact that it can be stressful to think about where you’re going to park, and is what you wanted still going to be in store. There are so many things to think about when you are going into the craziness of the malls/shops around Christmas time. It can be helpful to look online first and lighten the load of your list that way, instead of worrying about long lines and pushy people! Plus sometimes you can even find better deals online that you wouldn’t necessarily find in store!

Don’t procrastinate. We all know that at Christmas time even a month before things start to decrease quickly off the shelves! So don’t wait! Go and do you shopping at least a month before December or as early as October! There is nothing worse than waiting last minute to find out that what you really wanted to get someone isn’t there anymore and won’t be back in stores until Christmas is over! You don’t want to be left with slim pickings because that will sure dampen your mood! Also another plus of shopping early is that you miss all the chaos and hustle and bustle!

Do check return policies. Make sure ESPECAILLY if its clothing or shoes that you always ask customer service what their return policy is as all stores are different. It’s never fun to receive or give a gift to someone that either doesn’t fit or isn’t exactly what they need OR maybe they got two of. It’s always best practice to get a gift receipt with your purchase and know for yourself what the return policy is so that you know they can take it back if they need to!

I hope everyone has a stress free shopping experience this year, and you get everything on your list! Merry Christmas!