Trendy With A Passport

Boots to Add To Your Christmas List

We are partnering with Mukluk’s for today’s blog

It’s almoooost Christmas…and like that… it’s here! I love this time of year for a lot of reasons! The colder temperatures, the sweaters, and most of all boots!

This year is a little different than past year’s but shopping from the couch will have to do! Time to dive in and take a look at some amazing boots to pick up this season!

Earlier this fall, I was wearing tennis shoes and visited my renovation house and a 4” nail went into my foot. Ended up with a tetanus shot (my last one was 5 years ago) – it was a rusty nail and ended up taking antibiotics and the shot – now I wear boots when going to the house! The pair seen above are Ingrid Boot and I now wear these to my reno house often!

Once you find a boot that fits well, you stick with them! Mukluks are an amazing brand and have purchased them for years. The Nikita Boot is so soft and chic. It is almost like wearing a pair of slippers.

The Ingrid Boot is perfect for jeans or leggings and can be worn just about anytime. The Ingrid Boot slips on easily. The boots can be worn in a casual way or can be dressed up.

The Logan Boot is popular and when it comes in stock; it typically sells out! It is a classic style and is higher than the Ingrid – has a little more character with the style. The Logan Boot is another slip on and does keep your feet extremely warm.

The right pair of boots and the left pair of boots. The Patrice Boot (left) is cute, small block heel, with fashionable knit overlay. The Verna (right) is a cozy pair of boots with cozy faux fur – cute enough for family pictures and rugged enough for a hike. Here is a pic of my mom and I hanging out at my place. Funny story here, we were just talking about how to capture a picture of the boots and this one was snapped with Coco – turned out spectacular.

The Chris Boot is stylish and the heel provides a bit of a dressier feel. The heel is higher than it looks. It is an ankle boot and is stylish; these are not hiking boots.

The Lacy Boot is ideal for leggings or tight pants. The Lacy fashion boot had a decorative side zipper with a plush lining and block heel.

As I wrap up my final thoughts, I am snuggled near the fireplace with my Verna Boots and can say that these are cozy and comfy! Mukluks are true to size. I am wearing a size 8 in all the boots.

Let me know if you own or pair or make a purchase!

Check out Mukluks Boots.

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Xoxo,

Heidi

December 8, 2020

0 In Home/ Style

Navigating home buying/selling process for the first time in awhile

Having lived in the Columbus, Ohio area 14 years. I have owned a few properties in Columbus, Dublin, and Galena, Ohio. Most recently; sold two houses in 2020 and purchased another.

I have partnered with Nth Degree on purchases and selling the properties. The are a lot of real estate agents and Nth Degree provides staging, amazing marketing, and personal connection that makes the difference in real estate transactions. Growing up in a family business of building houses and selling houses; I have been consistently blown away with Neal and Jeff (and their team) on transformation and advice on selling and buying.

In case you don’t know how sites like Zillow and Realtor.com work: Realtors pay (and pay BIG ) to get in the rotation for Zillow. They buy a portion of a zip code/s and in turn when you call Zillow to get information on a listing, they farm it out on rotation to one of the realtors who “owns” that zip code. If you already have a realtor that you are going to use or work with, please call them and not Zillow! The realtor who answers your call and potentially takes you out to look at a house, does so with the hope that you will buy something using them and therefore get a commission from the sale. That’s how it works. Zillow does not pay any realtor to answer Zillow calls or questions or show a house requested through Zillow. This kind of situation is high on the list of realtor frustrations! If you have a realtor, call them or a member of their team.
If you are buying a house, you do not want to talk to the listing agent! Why would you? The listing agent has a fiduciary duty to the Seller. A Buyer needs to have an advocate for them. It is a big challenge for an agent to put the needs of two clients with opposing agendas both first! This is called Dual Agency and it happens and some Realtors even encourage it because it is most likely financially beneficial to them, but if you have been brainwashed into thinking you only want to talk to the listing agent realtor, you need to de-program yourself and make the better decision to get yourself a good Buyers agent who will represent YOU and YOUR interests above their Seller whom they already have a contract with!
Writing a contract in 2020
- If you are looking to buy a home today, there is a good chance that you are going to be in a bidding war. We used to say this only applied to a certain price points but not necessarily so anymore. Inventory is low and interest rates are the lowest they have ever been. At this point the old rule of supply and demand kicks in and causes multiple interests in many homes.

If you are going to write a contract, consider addressing these points:
Can you pay cash? Cash offers always take a priority with a Seller
Expect to pay more then the asking price. That’s just how it is! I recently had a great property that was fully updated in a nice neighborhood. There were 42 showings over 3 days and 20 offers!
Expect to react FAST. Be prepared. If you are financing this purchase, make sure you are pre-approved with a reputable lender. Many homes today are going into contract in less then 48 hours. You no longer have the pleasure of scheduling second or third showings and “thinking” about it. If you want it, you will need to react quickly!

Expect there to be multiple offers
- Buying a property “As Is”. If it makes sense, you may consider writing a purchase contract “As Is”. You still will want to do an inspection. If the inspection results produce normal minor items to be repaired, you forgo that and absorb the cost yourself. If something is alarming or unexpected, you can still terminate the contract based on the inspection results but the Seller will know that they are not going to be asked to repair multiple items possibly totaling thousands of dollars.
- Waiving the appraisal or a willingness to cover a shortage in an appraisal. If you are able to bring cash to the closing in case the home appraises for less then the purchase price, you may want to do this. In today’s bidding wars, there is a greater possibility that the home may not appraise for the contract purchase price. If that happens in a financed deal, you may need to cover the difference between the purchase price and the appraised number, re-negotiate the purchase price, or cancel the contract.
- Escalation clauses are very popular these days. Some Realtors hate them and refuse to allow them. In an escalation clause, you write the contract for a certain price and then agree to offer an amount above the highest offer up to your max number. The Realtor has to be able to provide the competing offer that engaged the escalation. You will need to be comfortable paying the max price in case it goes all the way to that number which may be $20 – 30,000 or more then your original bid based on the number of competitive offers!
- Home Warrantees. You can always get a home warranty but this may not be the time to ask the Seller to pay for one – you may need to absorb that cost yourself.
- Offering some time after closing for the Seller to vacate. You may not be able to take possession at closing which has been common recently. This is a Sellers market so they are going to be calling most of the shots. It is more convenient for the Seller to have a few days after the closing and they have their money in hand to move out.

-Heidi

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November 30, 2020

0 In Beauty/ Couples/ Family/ Fitness/ Home/ Style

Staying Healthy Between the Pandemic, Back to School, Flu Season, and Winter Coming!

Sleep plays an important role in our health and these days it is more important than ever to keep our immune systems as healthy as can be. Lack of sleep can affect your immune system and studies show that people who don’t get quality sleep or enough sleep are more likely to get sick and/or take longer to recover.

In a recent survey of women across the USA conducted by WomenCertified Inc, data shows:

81% of women believe a good night’s sleep contributes to her overall health.
94% of women believe that the right mattress will prevent tossing and turning thereby helping her sleep better
43% of women said that increasing sleep discomfort followed by 21% who said needing to change the size of the mattress was a reason to look for a new mattress
40% of women surveyed believe that you should replace a mattress every 10 years.
78% of women stated cost was a reason for prolonging the decision to change a mattress followed by 36% who felt that their mattress was still in good condition after 10 years
Top sleep challenges prohibiting women from getting a good night sleep were: Back/joint pain, temperature (getting too hot/cold) and a close third place tie of tossing/turning, partner disturbance, and insomnia

Mattresses should be replaced every 8-10 years. While your mattress may look fine on the outside, did you know that an eight-year-old mattress contains more than 10 pounds of dead skin cells and the average bed is home to six billion dust mites. You read that correctly: six billion!

I don’t know about you but that alone makes me want a new mattress today!

Since you spend a ⅓ of your life on a mattress, it is important that the mattress meet your needs. Mattresses are not all the same. Making sure you have a good, clean mattress is key to getting good sleep.

While a mattress is a costly investment, think of it as an investment in your health. A fresh mattress will help you sleep better and in turn keep your immune system healthy.

The Shippable Scott Living Mattress by Restonic Mattress has made a huge difference in my sleep. I am so appreciative of the quality rest and sleep I have gotten lately. I would strongly suggest giving Restonic a try and you will find that the mattress is a balance of firm and soft – middle of the road. The mattress is so comfortable with the right amount of comfort for a full night’s sleep. The pictures shown are of a queen mattress – highly recommended.

The mattress comes in the mail, bubble wrapped, and completely covered and protected. This mattress is rolled and easier to carry up the stairs. I highly recommend carrying up to the location in the box, then opening and removing from the box where it will flatten very quickly.

The Shippable Scott Living Mattress has an individually wrapped coil base and has coil edging to provide extra support under the memory foam/gel top layer.

Restonic has earned the Women’s Choice Award as a highly recommended mattress brand by women across the USA and I can see why!

Check out https://restonic.com/purchase/scott-living-shippable-sleep

October 1, 2020

0 In Home/ Lifestyle/ Style

The Maximist’s Guide to Moving

I have moved numerous times in my life, I consider myself an expert mover.

I have configured my moves in multiple ways. I have rented a truck, enlisted family, moved over days, and hired movers.

Here is how I manage bringing everything safely to the next destination. The last three moves have been done by Black Tie Moving They are amazing for several reasons:

1. Big Bulky Furniture is wrapped and placed in the truck neatly and safely.

2. Use a red carpet on your floors to keep your floor scratchless and damage less.

3. They will pack and move for you.

4. You get an estimate while on the phone. A few basic questions and you receive a quote.

5. They know the approximate time it will take to move you

6. You can pack everything and move to a garage or inside the front door to save on cost

7. They have insurance in case of damaged items on delivery

8. You get professional movers – people who move on a regular basis who get the job done quickly and efficiently

9. They are dependable and reliable. They confirm your time and show up as promised

10. The cost is worth every penny.

Moving can be stressful. it does not have to be! A quick call Black Tie Moving Phone Number or visit their website Black Tie Moving will make the transition much smoother.