HerKentucky Welcomes Megan Whitmer

HerKentucky is thrilled to welcome Megan Whitmer as our newest writer!

Megan a Lancaster, KY native who lives in Lexington with her husband and two young daughters, is an aspiring YA Fantasy Fiction author.  Y'all may remember Megan from the great guest post she wrote about her quest to publish her first novel.

We're so excited to hear what Megan has to say!

Versona Accessories Giveaway

Fall is in the air, Keeneland is underway, and it's time to break out the sweaters.  And that, my friends, means it's time to pull out some dressier accessories.

I always find that autumn is the best time to accessorize.  The season's boots, tweeds, and sweaters call for a little more pulled-together look.  What better way to achieve this look than with a pretty new pair of earrings or a sassy scarf?

To help y'all get pulled together for fall, the folks at Versona Accessories have generously offered to give a $25 Gift Card to one lucky HerKentucky reader!

Versona Accessories specializes in fun, affordable, and of-the-moment accessories.  Whether you're looking for a statement necklace, bold bracelet, beautiful scarf or the essential jacket/ blazer of the season.

Versona Accessories is celebrating their Grand Opening in Lexington's Hamburg Pavilion today.  The store will be located at 2304 Sir Barton Way, next to White House/Black Market.  Stop in and see them for your fall essentials, and enter below to win a gift card!

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Kentucky Quote

Pink Ribbon T-Shirt Quilt

This is what a square will look like.

I've always wanted to make a t-shirt quilt. For years, I've saved quilts from ball games, sorority dances, and charity events. I've matched them to the perfect fabrics and I've made diagrams of their placement. And then, every time, I stopped.

As y'all well know by now, I come from a quilt family. I can distinguish a nine patch from a Log Cabin or an Ohio Star from a mile away. I've learned the appliqué stitch. I can iron like a boss. The thing is, I just can't cut straight. Turns out, that's a big problem when you're making a quilt.

This October, I'm getting past all that. I'm making a throw-sized quilt to commemorate many years' worth of breast cancer charity runs. This cause hits really close to home for my beau and me, and we've always made an effort to support breast cancer research charities. Needless to say, we have a lot of pink ribbon t-shirts sitting around the house. A quilt is a perfect keepsake to help us remember all the fundraisers we've participated in over the years.

My basic pattern.  I'll keep y'all posted.

My grandmother helped me create a pattern for my quilt. We cut nine t-shirts into 15" squares. Each square will be framed by a 2" wide green and pink border. These squares will be sewn together and framed by a 2" wide contrasting border, then quilted.

Since I've cut up over a decade's worth of fundraising commitment to use as quilt squares, I'll need to participate in a few new races and earn some new shirts. Fortunately, there are plenty of opportunities to raise money for breast cancer research in the Bluegrass State this year!

This part scares me far more than running a 5K!

Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure

Lexington (5K) -- Saturday, October 6, Downtown 9 AM

Ashland (4K) -- Saturday, October 13, Central Park, 9AM

Louisville (5K and 10K) -- Saturday, October 13, Iroquois Park 9AM

American Cancer Society Making Strides Race

Lexington -- Sunday, October 28

Louisville -- Sunday, October 28

Ashland -- Sunday, October 28

Couples Tailgate Shower: A Guest Post from Just Lovely Katherine

Katherine of Just Lovely Katherine is one of my very favorite bloggers.  She's the modern Southern Belle -- sweet, adorable, and creative.  She's also a Lexington-based attorney and is planning her wedding in her "spare time."  Katherine graciously offered to share some photos and planning tips from a fabulous tailgate shower she recently threw.  I think y'all will love it! -- HCW

"We're a drinking town with a football problem!" Or so say some! As most of you are probably aware (or totally unaware because we aren't even on your radar), the University of Kentucky isn't exactly known for its tradition of great football. So around here, it's all about the tailgating! Bring together family, friends, food and fun and what better lineup than that for a couples shower, tailgate-style! Even though we don't do football well here at Kentucky, we still like to throw a tailgate that would make any SEC team proud! So, here's how to go about throwing a Couples Shower Tailgate.

Let's break this down into list form, because lists are my thing! 

1. The first step in planning any party is to pick a theme. Well, let's back up...first go to A Pair of Pears blog and download their Party Planning Printables. Their free worksheets are fabulous for keeping organized! Now, decide on a theme. Head over to Pinterest and start looking for inspiration (thank heavens for Pinterest!) 
2. Once you have an idea of the overall look and feel of the party, the next step is to come up with a guest list and order invitations. I had Mary Ellen at Mellen Designs come up with a custom invitation for our tailgate shower. Her work is darling and the invite turned out so perfect! She incorporated UK and monograms! She can create anything, so be sure to get in contact with her for your next party!
3. After creating a guest list, you should have some sort of idea of how many folks will be attending your soiree, so start thinking about what types of food and beverages you will be serving. For our tailgate shower, we went with delicious southern style BBQ from a local restaurant. Great for feeding the masses! For drinks, we had planned on getting a keg (remember, it's a tailgate afterall), but ended up just purchasing a trunk-load of cases of beer. Keep in mind that when most guests come to the shower, they are also coming to tailgate...in other words, you will need plenty of beer (more than you would for your typical shower)! I think we planned for 5-6 beers per person. 
4. Now, we have a guest list, invitations mailed out, food selected and ordered, what next? The fun part! Decorations! Like I suggested above, Pinterest is a fabulous source for inspiration. Gather ideas you like, then you can DIY (or attempt to DIY)! One thing to keep in mind - you will have to haul all this stuff to the stadium and back. 
5. If you are co-hosting an event, be sure to take some of the pressure off yourself by assigning tasks for the other hosts. You can't do it all on your own! I asked my fellow bridesmaids to bring side dishes, desserts, serving things etc. 
6. Try to incorporate your team colors, football and the honorary couple wherever you can. Then just concentrate on the details that really make a shower special. I painted some flower pots in blue and white an added a "T" for the couple's last name. I planted flowers and a small tree in them and sent them home with the bride and groom-to-be. I made bunting by cutting small rectangles our of fabric and hot gluing them to cord. I also made a rag-type bunting to decorate the food tent. Simply cut up strips of fabric and knot over a long string or ribbon. I baked a blue and white cake and made little "r {heart} j" cake toppers. You can get the little wooden letters and shapes at your local craft store. Glue them to a dowel rod and paint. Easy peasy!

That's about all there is to it! If you are smart, you might consider doing this for an away game and throwing a tailgate shower at home! It was a lot of work to take everything to the stadium and get it set up. Plus, the couple had to haul all their gifts back after the shower. Despite the hauling, it was a huge success and everyone had a fabulous time!!! And no...UK didn't pull out a win!

Leona Trunk Show

One of my favorite stores in Lexington, AJ's Casuals, is having a Leona trunk show this Thursday-Saturday.  

Leona is designed by a lovely little southern lady named Lauren Leonard from Nashville, TN.  She attended The University of Alabama and moved to NYC after graduation.  After living in New York she started Leona and started selling to boutiques all over the south.  She is now based out of Nashville, TN.  

Here are some of my favorite looks from Leona's fall/holiday lines.  

And here I am wearing a Leona dress last year: 

You can get 15% off your Leona purchase at AJ's this weekend! 

Keeneland Style Guide

Every year, in springtime and autumn, it seems that tons of new visitors arrive at HerKentucky  with variants of the same search: "What should I wear to Keeneland?"  I always want to reach out through Google, find all of y'all in Jacksonville, Ontario, and everywhere in-between, give you a hug and say "look nice and be yourself."

Now, the dress codes for Keeneland vary pretty wildly according to your location.  That really is my favorite thing about this racetrack.  There's a way to have fun at any budget, and at any level of dress.  But, as we've said before here at HerKentucky, visitors to Keeneland just try a little harder.

If you're going to stay near the Paddock -- General Admission, Grandstand, or Equestrian Room -- there's no need to dress up very much.  Guys are fine in khakis and polo shirts, and girls can wear slacks.  In fact, you may even see folks wearing (gasp!) jeans.  These are the areas nearest the track itself, and people are truly there to watch (and bet on) the horses. With that said, don't be surprised to see a lot of dresses and sport coats in the lower-levels.  In recent years, a culture of dressy tailgating (think Steeplechase) has popped up among college students and twenty-somethings, and the second floor (General Admission) Sports Bar often resembles a campus bar or fraternity semi-formal.  While the dress code says "casual", there's plenty of Vineyard Vines ties and Lilly Pulitzer to be seen.

If you'll be dining in the upper-level, enclosed dining rooms-- The Lexington, Kentucky, or Phoenix Rooms-- then expect to dress for a business event.  The Lexington and Kentucky rooms -- dining rooms often reserved for business and social gatherings-- have a "business formal" dress code; these areas require men to don a coat and tie, and skirts/dresses/dressy slacks for ladies.   The Phoenix Room-- another reserved dining room-- is "business casual", requiring collared shirts and slacks for men and dresses/pantsuits for ladies.  During the week, many professionals take long business lunches in these areas, as is reflected in their dress code. 

The members-only Clubhouse similarly requires coat and tie for men and dressy pants/skirts for ladies.  I find that a skirt suit or a dress paired with a pretty cardigan or wrap is always appropriate for the upper levels.  In general, if you'd wear it to church or a business meeting, you're golden.  Most of all, remember to look nice because you'll see plenty of people!

What do y'all wear to Keeneland?