If you follow me on Instagram, then you recognize the above shot that I posted right before I went sailing with the Scott brothers. Well, we weren’t exactly alone, there were a few others – 2,000 to be exact.
Earlier this year, I found out about the HGTV Sailing with the Scotts design cruise, leaving out of Miami (how convenient). It was hosting bloggers and designers alike, with an itinerary full of fun and lots of informative design and blogger panels. It was also sailing out the week of our wedding anniversary (again, how convenient). I approached my husband with all these “convenient coincidences” and he said “book it!” I couldn’t wait to see what was in store!
We would be leaving aboard the Carnival Ecstasy.
And the itinerary included a stop in the Keys and one in Cozumel.
I have watched the Property Brothers so many times on HGTV but they also had a lineup of talented designers joining them. Along with Drew and Jonathan were Jason Cameron, The Junk Gypsies, Jillian Harris and Kim Myles.
Of course, I did what any reasonable person would do – I did my hair. I figured I couldn’t go on a design cruise with my hair all crazy. Thank me later for not including the before shot. It’s my gift to you.
I thought this hairdo would last days…
Not the first time I have been wrong, but it was fun while it lasted.
So my hair husband and I boarded the ship after 40 minutes of leaving our home. I love that about living in Miami.
There was live music on the ship all the time.
Our rooms were ready but our luggage wasn’t, so we sat down for a margarita.
Later in the afternoon, we all headed to the top deck – the brothers and the design team were going to kick off the cruise by welcoming all their guests.
My husband and I went on this cruise without our boys so we were soaking up all the alone time. It’s amazing how it feels to finish sentences and even conversations without the kiddies around. We still missed them though and were constantly saying “Oh, they would have loved that!”
The first stop was Key West. We got out and looked at all the cute, colorful homes and took lots of pictures.
The Keys has a certain vibe that is unlike any other place. We live pretty close so we have been there many times. My husband is a fishing aficionado and The Keys and fishing go hand-in-hand.
We walked into a cigar shop where the lady was rolling the cigars right in front of us.
We left the keys after a few hours and the ship was then headed to Cozumel, Mexico. I have very few pictures of Mexico because we went snorkeling. We had a blast and it’s not something that we can do with our youngest, so we wanted to take advantage of the alone time.
So far I had no pictures with the brothers. They gave us these fans when we arrived so I figured it was as close as I would get to the selfie-with-the-Scotts. I had said hi to them a few times at this point but I was too shy to ask for a picture.
#IAmABigFan – quite literally.
I didn’t feel bad asking this guy for pictures and he obliged every time.
Love him!
During the day, there were a ton of events and panels that I went to and afterwards I got to meet some of my blogging friends. Here is Jen from I Heart Organizing and Cassie from Hi Sugarplum! They are both so sweet!
I am also a big fan of all these awesome ladies! Here is Mallory from Style Your Senses, Emily A. Clark, Jennifer from Dimples and Tangles, Me and Sarah from Sarah M Dorsey Designs. It was so cool meeting them in person, as I already feel like I know them from reading their blogs.
They are all so approachable and open about sharing their success stories and even struggles with blogging. They were part of a really informative bloggers panel.
I loved meeting them!
I had to include this picture. The cruise was put together by a company called Premier Cruises that handled all the coordinating with the HGTV design crew, all of us bloggers, the designers the crew and the fans. They were all extremely helpful and available to all the guests, so a special shout out to all of them!
This is me with Tiffany from Premier.
While I was going to these panels, my husband would text me pictures like the one below. He thought he could make me jealous because he was relaxing in his flip flops while I was in heels. Like I would care about such nonsense and pettiness.
It worked.
I did get to relax and wear flip flops after learning from all the panelists. I was able to read a lot of this book called For the Love
In the evening, the very talented painter, Jared Emerson would paint on a new canvas for everyone to see how he brings his works of art to life. He paints with his bare hands. He really is amazing!
There was a special reception hosted by Lug Bags, two nights before the cruise ended, and I was able to meet more people.
And get to know more about the #LugLife story.
And finally take a picture with this guy! Yay!
They are both so nice and hard-working! Everytime that I saw them, they were either hosting an event or chatting with their fans. They must have been tired but they never showed it. It was a treat to meet them!
Then I came home and never did my hair again. The end.
I hope they do the cruise again next year. Maybe you can come too!
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that are probably meant for garages, but they are heavy-duty and perfect for holding bulky items. Also, I think it decorates the room a bit and adds character to the wall.
dutch ovens carry a hefty price tag but it is so worth it in my opinion. If you are only purchasing one dutch oven, choose one that is on the larger side so that you can really get your money’s worth as far as the versatility of the pan. To me dutch ovens equate slow comfort food and consistent results. 
brand and I have purchased them one-by-one over the years. They are pricey but I have never had to replace them, they cook evenly and clean up beautifully.
. If treated properly you can hand these down from one generation to another. The downside is the weight but the upside is how durable and versatile they are.
is my favorite and although it’s main use is to cool cookies, I use it to cook bacon in the oven. This cooling rack fits perfectly into the half sheet pan and I lay a whole pack of bacon on it, cook it in the oven, and avoid all the splatter that occurs when cooked on the stovetop.
with good online reviews. Wooden cutting boards are also the most gentle on knives and therefor preserve the edge of the knife more than other cutting board options. If you clean and oil your board regularly you won’t have to deal with a board that easily cracks which you would then have to dispose of. Tip: I have also found a lot of good cutting boards at Marshalls stores.
(pictured below) that had so many good reviews and decided to give it a try. I figured it could always return it (let’s hear it for Amazon Prime memberships!). There was no need for returns because this Kuhn Rikon press has worked amazingly well, and with little effort the clove comes out perfectly minced.
for the obvious but I also use them to form meatballs (keeps them a uniform size), and to scoop out cookie dough onto a baking sheet. They are also perfect for transferring the perfect amount of cupcake batter into lined muffin tins. Since I use them for different purposes, I have more than one size.
is sturdy and perfect for tenderizing meat or to even it out for even cooking. I also like to thin out chicken cutlets so that I can add a stuffing mix before rolling them and cooking in the oven. I do keep this one in the hand wash category because many mallets are not dishwasher safe since they can lose their shiny finish.
I zest citrus, I grate small amounts of hard cheese, nutmeg and grate ginger. They are effective, lightweight and easy to use.
is perfect for dividing bread or cookie dough and I always keep it handy to transfer chopped onions or peppers to the pan. I usually leave this out on my cutting board.
to protect his desk, sharpened colored pencils (he loves to draw) and a diffuser. I use the diffuser to either diffuse oils that help him focus while doing homework or lavender to help him rest at night. If the boys have colds or congestion, I use oils that help with that. We all have diffusers in our rooms but I was glad to find 
for him because it was a perfect match for his room and as he would say “it’s manly”.
