Blog - Alison's Notebook

Smiling woman with a silver pixie cut wearing a cognac crossbody bag, blue sweater and white jeans on a sunny park promenade

Crossbody Bags For Women (7 Styles And How To Wear Them)

Do you ever wish you had both hands free when you go out? Maybe your shoulder bag keeps slipping down your arm. Or you’re juggling a coffee, your keys, and …

An open bedroom closet with a few navy, gray, cream and light blue clothes spaced on hangers and a small navy carry-on suitcase in front

The Flight Attendant’s Packing Rule I Use on My Whole Closet

My closet has fewer clothes in it than it has in thirty years. And somehow, I have more outfits to wear than ever. I owe that to a friend from …

Smiling woman with a gray bob in a coral sweater and navy trousers walking past a historic stone train station

Best Color Combinations Over 60 (7 Pairs That Always Look Good)

Do you ever stand in front of your closet and wonder which colors go together? You may have a coral sweater you love, but you’re not sure what to wear …

A jar of twist ties, a bag stuffed with plastic bags, rubber bands, glass jars, old margarine tubs and folded wrapping paper on a kitchen counter

Electronics Boxes, Twist Ties and Every Receipt: Things Our Generation Was Told to Keep

If you grew up with a mother who washed out bread bags and saved them in a drawer, this list is for you. My mother saved everything. Twist ties, rubber …

Smiling plus size woman with silver hair in a merlot velvet jumpsuit walking through a hotel lobby

Plus Size New Year’s Eve Outfits (7 Festive Looks To Copy)

Are you looking forward to New Year’s Eve, but not sure what to wear? Maybe you want to feel festive and pretty. But you also want to be comfy, since …

Extra lamps, a wall clock, nesting tables, folded TV trays and a footstool gathered on a spare room floor to sort

Lamps, Clocks and Little Tables: The Small Furniture Nobody Wants

Seven lamps. Three clocks. Five little tables. That’s how many we had sitting around our house that nobody was using. I counted them one morning this fall, with a cup …

Smiling woman with short silver hair doing biceps curls with purple dumbbells in her living room

Strength Training For Women Over 50 (A Simple Guide To Get Started)

Do grocery bags feel heavier than they used to? Or does getting up from a low couch take a little more push? You’re not alone. As we get older, we …

A wall of wooden bookshelves full of books in a spare room, with a quilt-covered reading chair and a floor lamp by the window

The Librarian’s Rule for Books: How I Weeded My Shelves Without Giving Up Reading

My friend from church was a school librarian for thirty-one years, and she couldn’t give away a single book. At school, she cleared out old books every summer. She knew …

A lighted ceramic Christmas village with a steepled church, a mirror skating pond and bottle-brush trees on cotton snow on a dining room buffet

Christmas Villages, Nativity Sets and Santa Collections: What to Keep and Who Wants the Rest

Every year on the day after Thanksgiving, my mother turned her dining room buffet into a little snowy town. She spread out cotton for snow and set a small mirror …

Woman with wavy silver hair smiling after doing her makeup in her bathroom

Makeup For Older Women: 6 Simple Steps for a Fresh, Natural Look

Have you noticed that the makeup you wore for years doesn’t sit on your skin the same way anymore? Maybe your foundation looks a little dry. Or your powder settles …