Lindsey Portugal

Farmhouse Pendant Lighting

August 28, 2019

We moved into this house last year, and I have wanted to replace the pendant lights ever since then. The builder had put in some basic lights that just weren’t very unique. However, it was very difficult for me to find something that I truly loved. I love globe pendants but most of them were very modern looking. (Here is the ugly “before” photo I snapped)

I finally found these pendants while searching through instagram pages. I actually couldn’t find the link for the original product but I did a random google search and found them. They were by Decor Therapy and they are called Clifton Pendants.

As much as I LOVED these pendants, I was very worried about the size. All the descriptions said that they were 12 inch globes. That would be very large. I figured if they were that large, I might just cap the middle pendant on my ceiling and just hang two. Because of this, I bought the pendants at Home Depot. There were some other sources where the lights were a little bit cheaper ($10 less per light on average), however, I knew that if they didn’t work, I would have to pay return shipping which would cost me more. Home Depot does free ship-to-store, and then if you don’t like it, you can return it in store.

Some stores have them in multiple color options., If they had a black option, I MAY have purchased that but all I saw was brushed nickel and oil-rubbed bronze. I went with the brushed nickel and I am super happy with how they look.

Size wise, I am not sure where they are getting the 12inch globe number from at all these stores, because the globes are more like 9 inches in diameter, much to my delight! 12 inches would have been too big, but 9 was PERFECT!

They also do NOT come with the Edison bulbs, but I had Edison bulbs left over from a special order I made for my fan. These Edison bulbs are brighter and produce a whiter light than traditional Edison bulbs. You can find them on Amazon here.

I took a couple photos of the lights on as well so you can see how they look. They really brighten the room., I love them and I am so glad we made the decision to buy them!

My Farmhouse Style Homeschool Storage Console

August 19, 2019

So over the next few months, I am really hoping to integrate some of my real life into this blog. I have realized very quickly that I am NOT a fashion blogger in any way shape or form. However, I am a natural mom and I also am a homeschooling mom. I hope to share some of my passions on here for those things soon! I also love to decorate my home and find cute functional pieces. While I wouldn’t say my style is true farmhouse, I definitely love some of the farmhouse elements.

I was homeschooled myself from 2nd grade through graduation, This year, I just started homeschooling my own daughter. We started in July so that we could do year-round schooling. This gives us the flexibility to take more time off in the fall and spring when the weather is gorgeous. Then we can do school in some of the summer months when no one really wants to be outside in the heat. One thing I learned through my years of being homeschooled, is that homeschool rooms rarely work (note that I said RARELY, some moms do find them helpful and actually love a homeschool room set up). My mom had a homeschool room but we never really used. I decided to completely bypass the idea. I knew that we would probably do most of our school work on the kitchen table so I wanted something that would hold the books in close proximity.

I did some searching for some consoles and I came up empty. Most of them had glass doors (which would show all the books through them), or they were $800! No thanks! So I had this console made by a local business nearby. It is actually based off of this Ana White design (with some slight modifications).

It has been the perfect addition to our home! I added the baskets from Amazon here. They hold all the markers, stickers, flash cards, paints, etc. Inside the cabinets is our mess of books. We also added an adjustable shelf inside so that we would have more space.

You can see here how close it is to our kitchen table. It makes it super easy to get out the books in the morning and put them back when we are done.

What do you think? How do you homeschool? Do you use a homeschool room?

Side note: Are you a mom wanting to homeschool but haven’t had the courage to dive in? If so, please reach out to me! It has kind of been my mission lately to inspire women to do what they are called to do! I think women in many ways are called to educate their children. Let me inspire to you make the leap because you will find it worth it a thousand times over!

Our DIY Barn doors

August 10, 2019

When we moved into our new house, we knew we would need to find a solution to our backdoor glass doors. While we love the light that the doors provide, they offer no privacy at night. We decided that best way to address this was with barn doors.

After pricing out a couple options for custom barn doors, we decided to try our hand at making them. I am absolutely thrilled with how they turned out. I will say that if I ever move out of this house, I will be so sad to leave these beautiful doors!

We used the tutorial found here for the barn doors. We made some slight alterations for our custom size. We used wider boards for the top and bottom, and narrower boards for the cross board and sides.

My husband and my mother actually put the doors together and I finished and painted them. We used small head screws to screw through the back boards (so they wouldn’t be seen from the front). After assembling the boards, we used wood putty to fill all the holes, and then sanded them smooth.

Painting was probably the most complicated task of all. Staining would have been easier but I wanted a less rustic look. I used Benjamin Moore Advance Paint in Simply White. However, this paint was very difficult to work with. It is a paint that is SUPPOSED to self level and dry slowly. I found this was not the case. It dried very fast for me and did not self-level very well. I ended up having to put about three coats on each door and it was very difficult. I will say that the paint did dry VERY hard which I LOVE. However, I will say that if you decided to use this paint, DEFINITELY get a paint sprayer. You WILL see brush strokes or roller marks if you don’t.

We used this bypass bracket that we purchased on Amazon. I will be honest that the instructions weren’t GREAT but we figured it out. If you have a trim piece around your door like we do, you will have to make sure you put a board at the top. Otherwise the doors will hit your trim because the bracket hangs the doors too close to the wall. Also, having the board allows you to position the doors wherever you want without having to pay attention to stud placement. We wanted to use a bypass bracket so we could stack both doors over to the left.

So what do you think? Have you ever made barn doors? It is such a fun and relatively easy first project to start with!

Designing Your Own Piece of Diamond Jewelry

July 10, 2019

Disclaimer: This post is a sponsored post. This means that I have received a small fee or free item as part of my collaboration. I do NOT receive any compensation for you using the links below.

I myself have always been a big earring girl. You all have probably seen my posts about my large wood earrings. I love my large earrings. However, large earrings mean small necklaces. I have been on the hunt for a small diamond necklace that goes with everything. I haven’t ever found anything that I LOVED., Many times the chains are the wrong metal or they are just too long. You know that awkward length where the pendant sits right on the neckline of your shirt?

So I have found a company that addresses all these issues! Anjolee.com. I was able to completely customize with Anjolee and get the necklace I loved on a 16″ chain! It is perfect! I can see myself wearing this necklace every day.

What I love about Anjolee is that everything you buy is completely customizable. You find a design on their website that you like and you can customize the stone quality, the color metal, the size of the chain (for necklaces). It’s basically a custom piece of diamond jewelry! For my particular necklace, you can choose between yellow gold, white gold, rose gold, and platinum.

They have this new collection of floral pieces which are really beautiful. The one I received is called the Essence of Nature Diamond pendant. I also loved the Tulip pendant and the Lotus flower pendant. They have so many beautiful diamond necklaces (and other jewelry pieces) to choose from that I encourage you to check them out!

You can also choose to add on a third party certification for your diamond as well. Their products also come with a 30 day return policy as well. So you know that you are safe in purchasing.

I am so excited for this piece and definitely will look to Anjolee whenever I am in the market for a new piece of jewelry!

Customizable Football Fan Girls

July 8, 2019

I don’t always put together a blog post for my latest product offerings but I wanted to display this one so you could see all the options. Introducing my latest football “fan girl” illustration. For the first time ever I am offering a DIGITAL download. This way you can use it as your profile picture, or on your phone screen. I do ask that if you share it on social media that you reference @LindseyPortugal (for Instagram) and @LindseyPortugalStudios (for Facebook). The item is for personal use only (for you only)., You cannot send it to other people (I ask that each person buy her own), It cannot be used for business or advertising purposes (or in a logo of any form). It also cannot be printed on items for SALE (stickers, planners, etc). It also cannot be altered.

You can have it printed for your house via any lab you choose (or if you want to use one of my professional print labs let me know and I can price that for you). Each download will come with a personal use license document so that you can have it printed at any lab you choose.

So here are a few of the fan girls I have created so far. You have your choice of team colors, skin color, and hair color. I can alter hair style if you wish for a small additional cost.

They are only $12 too! Purchase yours today!

And of course… my favorite 🙂 Dallas

Fort Mill Headshot Photoshoot

June 4, 2019

So sometimes I offer photoshoots! Although many of you know me as a photographer, you also probably know that I removed most of my photography services from my website. This is not because I don’t necessarily offer photography services anymore, I just don’t advertise them quite as I used to. I wanted to focus of my website to be my art and my blog. However, I still love to do photoshoots (especially for bloggers!) on the side when they get referred to me. This is a recent shoot I did for a local business owner.

The light was GORGEOUS that day and my client wore the perfect wardrobe! I absolutely love how these photos came out. If you are looking to book a photographer and you love my style, send me a message via the website, or any one of my social media platforms.

Contact me at [email protected]

My Absolute FAVORITE Moisturizer

March 25, 2019

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. This means that I will receive a small fee if you purchase something using my links below. All opinions are mine and mine alone. Read more here.

I am doing an entire blog post on this moisturizer because well, it deserves it! This was such a fluke find too. I was out of town and I was looking for something to moisturize my face. So many brands out there greenwash their products (ie they seem natural but they really aren’t) Anyway, I went to my go to brand Earth Mama Organics. I picked up a bottle of their baby oil (I know I know… but stick with me!).

This stuff is AMAZING. It actually is not oily on the skin at all. I was so shocked on how great my skin felt after using it. It also reduced redness that I have had most of my life.

I actually had purchased a new moisturizer for Christmas from Beauty Counter (before I found this) and ended up going back to this after trying the BC one.

It isn’t like typical oil either. I have used different oils on my face before (coconut oil, olive oil, etc) and most of them feel too greasy or they just don’t absorb well. This feels so good on the skin. I even had my sister try it just to make sure I wasn’t losing my mind and she felt the same way!

I have started using it on my arms as well (although I am not as regular with moisturizing as much as I am my face). I want to see if it can help with some of the redness I have had there as well.

Anyway, I recently signed up to be an affiliate with Earth Mama because I love them so much and I have a coupon code for my readers that you can use until the end of April to get 20% off. The coupon code is Lindsey20.

Here is a link to the product here! Buy a bottle and try it yourself! I would love to hear your thoughts.

Featured Product: Watercolor Home Paintings

March 18, 2019

Lately, I have been painting a lot of custom art. It is definitely my favorite thing to do! Some of my favorite things to paint are these custom houses. These paintings make PERFECT housewarming gifts and moving gifts! They also are great gifts for realtors to give as closing gifts to their clients. Actually, many of these featured watercolor home paintings have been for realtors to give to their clients.

Each watercolor home project starts with a photo of the home. If you are local to the area, I can also come take a photo for you. I then trace the dimensions of the house so that it is completely accurate. Once complete, I begin the painting process. Most of the bushes are painted free hand so I can alter any foliage on request. I have added trees, added flowers, and added wreaths on doors, etc! It is all customizable!

If you are interested in commissioning one of these, just send me an email at [email protected] The turn around is typically 2 weeks. Each of these paintings is an 8×10 painting with an 11×14 mat. The pricing for these start at around $150.

My Favorite Natural Postpartum Products

February 25, 2019

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. This means that I will receive a small fee if you purchase something using my links below. All opinions are mine and mine alone. Read more here.

When you are planning for your baby, we spend a lot of time focusing on…well… baby! Buying baby new clothes, the crib, the blankets, the car seat, the bath products etc. However, many moms don’t think about themselves! Postpartum care is so important for moms because having a baby can be rough on your body. As a doula, I have seen a lot of different products out there for postpartum. However, there are some products that for me stand out above the rest! These are postpartum products that not only have I recommended as a doula but I have used myself.

Amazingly all but one of these products come from one brand that I love and trust: Earth Mama Organics (also known as Earth Mama Angel Baby). Earth Mama Organics has also graciously given my readers a coupon code! This coupon code can be used on any of their products (non-sale items) until April 30, 2019. Use Lindsey20 to get 20% off!

First up! This product that I am about to rave about might be a little… well uncomfortable to discuss for some! I am THAT friend, the one that has gifted this item at a baby shower (thats how much I LOVE it). I get some odd looks at the shower, but let me tell you how many times I have had my new mama friends text me and say “OH MY GOSH! This stuff is amazing!”…. my only response is “I know right?!” So what is it?

It’s the Earth Mama Herbal Perineal Spray (used to be the New Mama Bottom Spray). This stuff is amazing for postpartum moms. It helps to ease “down there” after a vaginal delivery. What I love about it is that you don’t have to touch anything (cause goodness knows you don’t want to do that!). You just use your perineal bottle first to rinse, then spray on for sweet relief!

Next up, the Herbal Sitz Bath. If you have a home birth or a birth center birth you will probably have one of these after you deliver. Sometimes they will give you the remaining dry herbs they didn’t use but it often isn’t much. I know with Noelle’s birth, I took quite a few of these baths in my postpartum healing days. This sitz bath was by far my favorite!

Ok enough talk about the “nether regions”, let’s talk about our milk making machines now! Any mom can tell you, the first week or two of breastfeeding can be ROUGH. Even if your baby has a perfect latch, there is still an adjustment period for the nipples. I used lanolin for my first baby, but then I read some information that made me very uncomfortable using it for my second baby. I used this Organic Nipple Butter instead and LOVED it. I actually ended up using it on my dry cracked lips too (since I delivered both my girls in the winter and it was just so dry outside!). It is amazing how fast it works at actually healing the skin.

Now, this product I HAVE NOT USED, but I have heard rave reviews as a doula. I don’t typically like to recommend products I haven’t used but in this case, I feel comfortable doing so. If you are prone to mastitis, I would definitely recommend these. These are Booby Tubes. They are gel free tubes that basically you place around your boob and they can be heated or cooled to give you some comfort. They are made with organic cotton and flax seed. You get two per package – one for each booby 🙂

I am including one more product here that I have not used personally because I have heard great things: The Skin & Scar Balm. The only reason I have never used this is because I didn’t deliver via cesarean. However, for all those cesarean mamas, check this product out! It is also for stretch marks as well. Personally, I haven’t found any product to help with stretch marks (although I haven’t tried this one).

Teas

Earth Mama Organics makes some AMAZING teas that I continue to use and my daughter is over a year old. To be honest, I had a cup of their periodic tea this morning (just because I liked the taste)! They have MANY more teas on their website as well. If you would like to shop all their teas, click here. I am only mentioning the ones I have TRIED.

First up, the Milkmaid Tea. Now, every mom is different when it comes to what works for them to keep their supply up. I have used a multitude of teas in the past but I will say this one worked the best for me. I am NOT saying it will work well for you, but it did for me. I tried a couple other organic versions from Whole Foods and they just didn’t work like this one did. Now, the flavor is not my favorite (but I haven’t really found any “milky” teas that taste super great) but it WORKS! Note: It does have fenugreek, just in case you are sensitive to that.

The Periodic Tea. THIS THIS THIS THIS!!! I absolutely LOVE this tea for postpartum. I would drink a mug full of it every morning. The flavor is AMAZING. It also can be used for your period as well. Do not use it during pregnancy. Seriously, even if you aren’t postpartum, this tea is phenomenal just to have on hand for that time of the month.

All of this said, Earth Mama Organics has some amazing postpartum products. There are so many other products on their website as well. Check them out and don’t forget to use the discount code above!

Non-Earth Mama Products

Although I didn’t mean for this blog post to be completely Earth Mama Organics, I just know what worked for me and their products worked. I also love how I can trust their ingredients to be pure. They are never putting in anything questionable.

I did want to include this one item however that I absolutely always recommend for my post partum friends or clients.

Philips Avent Breast Shells

These are amazing for really sore nipples. They allow your nipples to be suspended within the shell (ie nothing is touching them). Most breast pads are just that “pads” and something is touching your sore, cracked nipple. These also collect the milk so that you aren’t just dripping either. I recommend these over breast pads ANY day. They are really for the first couple of weeks though, after that, I just move on to breast pads.

Natural Life Gift Guide 2018

December 14, 2018

So I definitely had some interest when I polled my instagram for a crunchy/natural living gift guide. This gift guide is basically items that are great for transforming your life into a healthier one.

Some of these items may not be the most “glamorous” per se, but hey we have all received socks and underwear at Christmas at times right? They aren’t worse than THAT (AND they help you live a more chemical free, natural lifestyle)!

Some of these gifts are also ideas for the kiddos. They live in your house too right? So might as well include them in the effort to clean up the chemicals!

So here we go

Planet Boxes – You have seen my post on these (and if you haven’t here is the link). I love these boxes because they are so convenient and they are made with stainless steel. They also help you get creative with lunches!
Dirty Genes Book – This is a book by Dr. Ben Lynch. I HIGHLY recommend it. If you have heard of the MTHFR snp, you will definitely enjoy this. Many of us are trying to be healthier but we need to go a bit deeper. This book will help you do that. It will also give you a good foundation into some functional medicine concepts! If you don’t want to READ it, get the audio book here!
Earth Mama Organics – I really could do a whole post on them. There are so many products out there. I love their lip balms, and their baby wash. Their post partum tea is also AMAZING. We also use their diaper balm, and I use their baby oil on my face (which seriously has reduced redness for me!). If you are about to deliver a baby, I HIGHLY recommend the perineal spray (it is a LIFE saver!) They have a line of deodorants and sunscreens that I have yet to try as well.
Primal Pit Paste and Schmidts – I love both of these natural deodorants. You can get them easily on amazon in a variety of different scents. Traditional deodorants are so full of chemicals and even aluminum. Moving to a safer option is a huge step in cleaning up your health and lifestyle. My husband even uses this one and says it works well!
Poofy Organic Nail Polish – So many chemicals in nail polish. SOOOOO many. Many of them actually go into your blood stream too. I know we think that our nails just keep everything out but they definitely don’t. I love Poofy polish. I use it on myself and my girls. Honestly, check out everything from Poofy organics! They make so many other great products as well!
Salt Lamps – So I am not going to write anything on here one way or another on whether salt lamps are beneficial. I have seen things that definitely say they are, and others that say they aren’t. I do however think they are pretty and love the warm glow they give off. We use one as a nightlight in our daughter’s room. So if you like them, check out these.
Homeopathic kit – Dive into the world of homeopathic remedies. This is a great starter kit and there is a great book here that can help you manage it. I got this kit for Christmas a couple years back and have really enjoyed learning about homeopathics and trying my hand at different remedies
Wellness Mama cookbook – LOVE LOVE LOVE this cookbook. I love it because the recipes are so nutritious but also not a million ingredients. Don’t you hate that when you get a cookbook and you realize it is going to take you 2 hours just to shop for the ingredients for ONE recipe. This is a different kind of cookbook! Check it out! I use it often and have modified many of the recipes as well.
Natursutten pacifiers – We use these natural pacifiers and really love them. This is a great stocking stuff for your little ones that really don’t understand Christmas or have anything specific they want.
Berkey Water Filters – Now I will give a small disclaimer here that we no longer use our Berkey because we upgraded to a much more expensive system. However, if I was to pick a filter that didn’t cost thousands… this one would be it! It filters so much and has been tested to keep your water clean. Clean filtered water is SUPER important these days, and a Brita definitely doesn’t cut it!
Pots and Pans – We use a combination of pots and pans. We use these stainless steel ones (here) that I love because they cook evenly. I know they are expensive but we have tried others and these really do cook well. We just buy one at a time. Le Creuset is a really great brand as well (I especially love their large pots), and Xtrema is another GREAT brand. These are all not cheap, but consider adding one pot or pan to your arsenal a year!
Hook & Loom Rugs – Did you know that most rugs have a load of toxic chemicals in them? Most rugs contain fire retardants along with a host of other chemicals. Hook and Loom rugs are natural materials and do not contain any of those nasty chemicals. Some of them you can even machine wash! The one linked is the one we own.

Ok so that is it for now. Honestly, there is so much more I could include. I think I will be doing a natural makeup review in an upcoming blog post. There are too many great brands out there to just pick one or two, so stay tuned for that!

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