Planning Your Staycation

As I continue on this week about my favorite things of summer, I thought I should spend some time on a topic that brings relief to many people this time of year. That topic being, summer vacation. Since this year many of us are cutting back, I thought I should introduce a new, trendy, and less expensive area to visit. A place located right in your own back, and front yard... your home! This summer it's time to treat yourself to a STAYcation. I know your thinking, boring, but really there are some great ways to make your home into a five star retreat and today I plan on sharing. So DON'T pack your bags, we're going on STAYcation!
Lets start, right here with your own backyard...
Ok, ok... I know your backyard probably doesn't look like the Hearst Castle. If your backyard does look like the hearst castle, lucky you becuase you'll probably be taking a real vacation this summer! If your backyard looks more like the one below, congratulations. You are about to turn your patchy grass into your very own resort. Whether you claim a small area or a large yard with a pool, your backyard can be a great getaway from life. First, I suggest investing in some lounge chairs. The good thing about lounge chairs are that they come in all different types of styles and sizes depending on how much you want to spend. What better way to feel like your at a resort than to go outside on a sunny day and fall asleep in a lounge chair. I think having your own lounge chair to staycation in, is a lot better than actually going to a resort. You have much more privacy and don't have to worry about whether that creepy old guy with the body hair, is staring you down (theres always at least one!). You can start your morning lounging with a newspaper and cup of coffee then, if you work all day, come right back home grab a beer or a glass of wine and relax some more! If you want something with a lot of cushion, these two lounge chairs from Pottery Barn are pretty nice. If your looking for a romantic staycation, the big one would be perfect to cuddle up on. The smaller one, for a single, is really cute too. If you had two it would be perfect for you and a friend. If those are too much for your wallet to handle, there are also these less expensive (I never use the word cheap!) lounging options all under $100, From Kmart A nice addition to the lounge chair, are some lounge chair covers. I love these Tote' N Towels from Pioneer Linens. The great thing about these are that they start out as a tote bag and switch into a lounge chair cover or towel. You can also make them very resort like, by monogramming them with your initials or have some fun by creating your own resort name to monogram on there. These are really nice to have especially if you live near a lake or beach. Just throw your stuff in and go! If you want to really feel like your in paradise, add some nice green plants and some tiki torches. Tiki torches glow in the backyard very nicely and if you fill them up with a citronella oil, they will keep away all the bugs. Whether you have a pool or not, with just these few ideas, you can make your backyard an oasis. I found this beautiful picture below from Bamboo and Tikis, that shows a great example of what you can do with just some lounge chairs, plants and tiki torches. There you have it, a tropical resort to come home to all summer long. Transforming your bedroom into a 5 star hotel room, is actually quite easy. Your bedroom is the key to a fabulous STAYcation. Lets start with your bedding. One of the questions we hear most in our linen store is, "where can I find some sheets like the ones I slept in at the (insert fancy hotel name here) resort and spa?" It's always an easy question to answer, as most of the linen brands we carry make the fine sheets in hotel. If you want to give your bed the hotel look and feel, my first choice for bedding would be the Grande Hotel Collection. I put these linens at the top becuase they have the classic hotel look with the double rows of satin stitching. They are incredibly soft, as they are finely woven with 100% Italian Egyptian cotton. These sheets are probably even better than the fine sheets you sleep on in a hotel. I like to think of buying nice linens as an investment with a really fabulous return. The Grande Hotel collection will definitely give your STAYcation the feeling of a luxurious resort. If your looking to add some additional comfort try the Versaille Pillow by Scandia Down. This exceptional pillow, pictured below, is filled with certified hypoallergenic Hungarian white goose down. It's the creme de la creme and will keep you sleeping soundly for years to come. Now heres the really good news, not only can you sleep like your in a palace everynight, you can sleep in, without any worries of a check out time or a housekeeper knocking on your door to wake you up! If you have kids, that last part about getting woken up, does not apply to your STAYcation...Well Im going stop my post here for today. So take some time to soak in the first half of ideas for booking your STAYcation. Stay tuned tomorrow for part 2. I'll share some tips on making your bathroom into a spa!