H-Town Break Down!

In my spare time—said with a total sarcastic snicker, a la my quadruplets I raise around the clock!—I am a freelance writer and editor. (Check out my professional website here...which totally needs to be updated, btw.) I love writing and I love writing for magazines. My articles tend to focus on retail, fashion, designers, profile pieces, travel and design. All the fun, creative stuff!

If you live in Houston and need some ideas for a fun night out, or you're planning a visit to H-Town, check out my latest travel piece in the January issue of Atlanta-based magazine, Jezebel. Party down, bottoms up!

Link to read full article: http://digital.modernluxury.com/publication/?i=140930&p=96

And below is a page from my monthly fashion and retail report for Houston magazine. Have you ever been into Calypso St. Barth? Their stores are super chic and they stock luxe finds like beautiful cashmere scarves. Sigh.

Link to full article: http://digital.modernluxury.com/publication/?i=140757&p=41

{Quad Squad} Babies in the magazine!

Just for fun, I wanted to share a page from the December issue of Houston magazine—I used to be a full-time editor there several years ago, before moving to Scotland, and now I freelance for them on a regular basis. In the contributor's column, where they highlight various writers and photographers that have articles and photos in the magazine that month, there's a photo of myself and my crew and a little blurb below it. Only six months old, and the quads are in their first magazine.... awww. ;)

To read it online, follow this link: http://digital.modernluxury.com/publication/?i=135962&p=24

And for extra kicks, below is my article on jewelry empire maven Kendra Scott. Love her! You can read her story, then flip the page to check out my monthly fashion and retail report on Houston: http://digital.modernluxury.com/publication/?i=135962&p=52

Happy nearly Friday!

Going pro: Visit my website!

Hello fellow bloggers, friends, family and new readers:

I'm proud to announce my professional website is up and running! At long last, it contains all my professional information, background, writing clips and a growing client roster. Look forward to seeing more new recent clips soon. So hop on over and take a look, then spread the word - Amber Bell Creative Freelance is open for (more) business!

Journey across Scotland

Breaking news!

Fancy a road trip across Scotland? Take a look at my recount of our jaunt 'round the country, when my husband and I traveled from Aberdeen to Isle of Skye last spring. The story came out in Scotland today in Your Weekend, a supplement to the Press & Journal daily newspaper in the UK. I'm so excited!

{Click images to view and click again to enlarge}

Defrosting...

It is COLD!

I even feel that is an understatement.

But it looks like we have a few more days to go.

When I left this morning, it was 22 degrees out. There are rolling power outages here in Texas that last 15-20 minutes at a time. I was getting frustrated with trying to get things done this morning in a powerless house (after waking up early to get ahead... fail!). So I headed off to the gym for a workout and figured I'd shower and get ready there in the light. No such luck. The kickboxing class I wanted to take was cancelled because their power had been off periodically as well and the group workout room was 34 degrees! But the electricty was running for the time being so I hopped on a treadmill and then did some weights. Better than nothing, I always say.

Because it was fr-fr-freezing outside, I wanted to stay comfy and warm. Heaven knows I had plenty of practice doing that when we were covered in snow while living in Scotland! In fact, I wore a hat that I bought in Scotland for my trip to Paris last December, along with the usual European winter getup, which consists of a tunic, leggings, boots and a scarf. I don't do many fashion posts but I thought this was cute enough to put out there, so bear with me!

Next up was Starbucks so I could grab some hot tea and borrow their Internet, which turned out to be a success. Then I headed on down to River Oaks for a lunch meeting for a story I'm working on, and a tour of Houston's new West Ave development at Westheimer and Kirby. Once all is completed, it'll have patio table-lined walkways, shops and restaurants - sort of like a buzzy piazza in the middle of town. Here's a peek:

Photo credit, L-R: J. Schmal; Candace Garcia; courtesy of Ivory Bridal.

Speaking of stories, I just had a health and beauty feature and a retail/shops page come out in the latest edition of Houston magazine, which you can view by clicking here and here.

Tonight, the Houston area is expecting snow and/or ice, so I'm planning to work from home and no where else tomorrow... assuming my Internet doesn't cave. I know we Texans are big weenies when it comes to freezing temps, but we're just not prepared for it to get this bad! How are you staying toasty? 

Read my words!

I wanted to share with you all a very exciting moment in my editorial profession: the release of my first issue of Dallas Brides magazine! Before the husband and I moved to Scotland for a year, I was the editor of Houston Brides (published by the same company) and enjoyed it so much. This comes as a surprise to many of my friends, I know, as I'm not generally one for flowers, dresses and cakes. But there's just something I love when it comes to writing about weddings!

Since our return to Texas, I was delighted when I was offered the post as editor-in-chief of Dallas Brides, a sister publication to my former magazine. And even better, it's in my hometown! I had a blast jumping back into my "old shoes" and assembling a matrimonial resource for Dallas-area brides full of local reporting, trends, bling and beautiful, beautiful dresses. (I could seriously look at wedding gowns all day.)

To read my editor's note below, click on the image once and then twice to zoom. Or read the entire issue, cover to cover, right here!

I also relished the opportunity to pen pieces for CS Brides in Chicago (click here and here) and The Atlantan Brides in Atlanta (here and here).

Looking for wedding tips or trends? In search of a freelancer to freshen up your blog or write about the latest bridal news? Visit my professional site to learn more and contact me!

The Big D!

I took a speedy trip to Dallas earlier this week for some work and, most importantly, my mom's birthday!!!

On this particular road trip, since I was all by my lonesome, I stopped off in Corsicana at the Collin Street Bakery for some delicious treats and my all-time favorite: pecan bread.

There's something you should know about this pecan bread. It is absolutely the best bread ever. I love it. Love, love, love, love. When I was younger, my mom and I always dropped in to buy an armful of the loaves because I would eat it out the wazoo - and we're talking breakfast, lunch and dinner. Just couldn't get enough, nom nom nom...

Well, since my metabolism isn't cranked up to what it used to be, I can't eat pecan bread around the clock. But I sure did relish a couple slices this week. I gifted a couple special folks, like my mom and my sister, with some fall gift bags and custom labels I made (I was in the mood for fall!) then tucked in a loaf of pecan bread to boot.

So my mom toasted some up for breakfast one morning with butter and fresh peach jam that I brought from a recent stone fruits dinner I attended.

Even though the Texas Stadium is gone forever (and revived in the new Cowboys Stadium located in Arlington), I still love the warm fuzzy feeling I get when I see Dallas appear around the corner. Nothing says "welcome home" more.

God bless America.

And yes, I did take these pictures through my windshield while on the road. Don't worry, no one was injured.

Which brings me to the next topic: my newest freelancing gig. I am proud to inform you all that you're readin' the writin' of the new editor in chief of Dallas Brides magazine! The whole thing went down last week and I was thrilled to my toes to receive the offer and accept the position. I absolutely love bridal magazines and writing about weddings and working with vendors in the industry. It's something I would never have even known about myself, until I was offered the same position with Houston Brides magazine (they're owned and published by the same company).

I am so pumped to have my own magazine again. The semi-annual publication is a great notch on my freelance company's belt, and I can't wait to get the first issue out and about on the streets of my hometown.

To take a detour down memory lane, let's revisit my first-ever editor's note in Houston Brides - which, ironically, talks about my own planning process in Big D for my big day.

In between a bit of work, there's always a chance to play. Like staying over at my mom's house, getting to spend some much-needed time with her and celebrating her birthday. We watched TV shows, made country patriotic pillows and jewelry (more on those later!), concocted late night sandwiches, blogged, attended my sister's baby adoption, went to dinner at Rockfish, saw Easy A at the theaters (hilarious!) and enjoyed an all-around good time. I love hangin' with my mom. :)

My mom has held art class at her home every Tuesday night for more than 30 years.

One of the gifts for my mom's bday - a Pumpkin Spice scented candle.
Her homes always smells like this in the fall, usually from freshly made pumpkin muffins!

Now that's my idea of a late night snack!

There were also two little kitties who seemed happy to see me. Snowball and July (I'll let you guess which is which!). Like I've said before, I'm just so ready to have a place to call home base for awhile and get all our pets and things in order. And in one location. All in due time.... patience is a virtue, and I need it now!!!

Today has been a long day - I drove back to Houston last night, woke up completely exhausted today and then had a flu shot and blood taken at the doctor's this morning. I don't know about you, but I don't "do" needles. Like I turn pale white and look a little questionable. So getting poked and prodded with a sharp object just isn't a great start to my morning. But I resurrected it with a lil bit of shopping, some of which is for a project I'll be posting soon! Think pillows and turquoise.

For now, dear readers, the bed, my new read by Jeffery Deaver and a little LED book light are calling my name. Happy weekend, y'all!

Cowboy Boots & Wedding Dresses

My mind is on all things matrimonial this week, as I scramble to meet an editorial deadline for the local Aberdeen wedding magazine I contribute to. It's fun helping them plan and write each issue, bringing back fond feelings of when I headed up my own bridal magazine in Houston.

Plus, it's nice to be appreciated simply for being Texan!

As I pen the latest on new tartans for kilts this year, dashing dress designs from UK labels and how to successfully plan a big day at your neighborhood castle, I fondly recall our recent Scottish wedding experience here in Aberdeen. So unique! The music and kilts alone makes it seem worlds away from the typical American festivities.

Which then turns my mind to my own wedding nearly four years ago. And how wonderfully fun it was - a downright perfect Texas day.

I spotted this rustic wedding collage on the web, and thought it was charming. Wouldn't you love a big ol' reception in a vintage barn?

{via Likely Design}

Makes me think of our own wedding portraits we had done... three years after we tied the knot! It's never too late for a good picture, eh?

{Photography by Shannon O'Hara}

"I dreamed of a wedding of elaborate elegance, a church filled with family and friends. I asked him what kind of a wedding he wished for, he said one that would make me his wife."

~Anonymous

Phantom Faces

Ahoy, ahoy there mates.

I still have a juicy fun-filled recap of our trip to Spain last weekend that I need to finish and post. Man, it was so crazy when the soccer team pulled off their World Cup victory! But more on that very soon, I promise.

Since we returned from Spain, I've been a little busy with work (aside from freelance writing, I'm the sales and marketing coordinator for an Aberdeen-based events company).

We've been making last-minute preparations for about 200 clients going to the British Open at St. Andrews throughout the weekend.

So my day today looked a little something like this:

For those of you that don't know, that's the Old Course at St. Andrews behind me

with the well-known, and quite legendary, Swilkin bridge in center view.

Not bad, eh?

I didn't think so either.

I'm still looking out for ole Tiger Woods so I can snap his photo, then give him a right punch in the jawbone for being such a skank.

Apparently word on the street is that he's been practicing in the wee hours of the morning to avoid extra publicity. Harumph.

Anyways, since I've slacked in the blog-writing department for the past few days, I'll leave you with a bit of reading to do in another medium.

This nice little travel feature on our weekend trip to London came out in the latest edition of Upbeat, your local Aberdeen Airport magazine.

I had a lot of fun putting it together. And you might even see a familiar someone....

Yup, that's the husband! The editor asked me to send in a couple of my pictures from the trip and that one, as well as the one of Trafalgar Square, are both my own works of art.

Click on this image once and then twice to zoom in and read:

There's just something nice about seeing things in print... it never gets old.

Now time to "tee off" for another day of work on the green!

'Ello, Guv-nuh!

I was so excited to see my latest articles in the fall/winter 2010 editions of Dallas Brides and The Atlantan Brides magazines.

One even includes Gov. Rick Perry. Well, more like his son and new daughter-in-law and their fantabulous wedding blowout in Dallas!

Piqued your interest, have I? Read on, dude.

Click on each image and, once it's loaded, click again to zoom in and read.

Don't forget to enter my pretty turquoise giveaway! I need all the help I can get!