Melissa Bonamici Pagliaro: Lifestyle

Dave and I moved into our first apartment together in September and it has been an amazing adventure so far!

Me and Dave getting the keys to our apartment

I am thrilled to finally be finished with the decorating, I'm sure I will still be buying knick knacks and little things in the future, but all of the big things are in place.

Design Process

The design theme for the apartment was "cozy neutral." I loved the tan and white colors for big pieces of furniture and thought it would be an appropriate color scheme for us as a couple living together. Neutrals are very warm and inviting in a space and it was important to me for the apartment to feel like home.

Living Room and Dining Room

The apartment has a great open concept design in the living room and dining room. We arranged our furniture to keep this space as open as possible. The couch and love-seat were from Raymour and Flannigan. The entertainment center is from Ikea. The coffee table and dining table were from my parents' house. The dining table was actually my parents' first kitchenette. To give an accent to a very muted color scheme, I chose an abstract patterned throw blanket and area rug. I hope this gives the room a nice contrast with the big pieces of furniture. I also chose glass lighting fixtures and a glass coffee table to break up the white pieces of furniture and give the illusion of the space being more open.

Our living room and dining room

Kitchen

The kitchen is fantastic! It offers lots of counter space and was recently renovated with granite countertops, dark wood cabinets and stainless steel appliances. When we took our first tour, my jaw dropped when I saw the kitchen!

Bedroom

The bedroom stayed in the same "cozy neutral" color scheme. The bed and frame also came from Raymour and Flannigan and the bed spread and vanity came from Bed, Bath and Beyond. The mirror came from my room at home, orignally bought from P.B. Teen. The cabinets came from Ikea and the space worked out perfectly so that they could be used sort of as "end tables" as well.

When we first saw this apartment, there was no furniture inside, it was a completely blank slate. I am so proud of how we made this apartment into a home, it took a lot of time, work and energy but it was all worth it in the end.

Since Dave and I started dating in 2011 life has definitely been an amazing adventure. He always inspires me to be the best person I can be and to follow my dreams and passions. I would say a lot of this blog is him pushing me to do what I love most and never look back.

Something that Dave in return is very passionate about is flying. So when an opportunity arose for us to actually get to fly a plane, you can imagine we both were super excited. He was able to get vouchers off of Amazon for flying lessons in the Greenwood Lake Airport in West Milford, NJ so basically he and I could both learn how to fly a plane, ahahahahahahaha!

This past Saturday we finally did it! I was crazy nervous all day mostly because I was afraid of getting sick since the plane would be so small. Once we got there though I was really excited and eager to try it. Dave got to fly first, I was so unbelievably proud of him, achieving his dream and getting a chance to do something he's always wanted to do! And he did an incredible job, definitely a natural pilot!

When it was my turn I got nervous all over again but the instructor was so nice and made me feel at ease and comfortable. In my book, we're all still alive so that means I did a good job hahaha!

I'll always remember that experience and cherish it forever. To me it really symbolizes our relationship. We try new things together, take risks together and push each other to follow our passions and dreams. I couldn't ask for a more amazing man to share my life with, I can't wait to see what other crazy things we get ourselves into!

So as promised this post is all about the bridal salon I work at! Castle Couture is located on Route 9 South in Marlboro, it's an excellent location for people looking for high quality fashion without the hustle and bussle of traveling to NYC. When you walk in for the first time it can definitely be overwhelming, you are literally surrounded by hundreds of beautiful gowns, I said on my first day it was like walking in heaven.

The salon is very modern, clean, elegant and you feel like you're in some posh New York store. Pictures are below! What's truly remarkable is the number of top designers that they carry, I'll also provide a link to their website so you can see the just how many choices you have to select from. There really is no other salon in New Jersey that can match it.

According to popular bridal website, TheKnot.com, the average cost of a wedding gown is around $1100. Castle Couture easily caters to that budget or any budget for that matter while at the same time treating you like a princess that you deserve.

And if you're not looking for a bridal gown, that's okay too! Castle Couture also offers an enormous amount of evening wear, mother of the bride or groom gowns and prom and pageant wear as well! There is also a diamond store for any type of jewelry that you may be interested in, it really has everything!

Castle Couture's Website

Hi everyone!!! I am so excited to finally say that I'm officially off of the job market! Some of you may already know that I recently graduated college and the road to finding a first job was not easy.

I started the search in late April and focused mainly on the PR industry, looking for any entry-level positions that were available. My main resource was LinkedIn, it provided me with great access to companies I had never heard of before, it was really easy to navigate and most importantly it gave me the ability to connect to professionals in the industry.

By the time I graduated I had already been on a couple of interviews but they all fell short and when I was done with school I was left with no job waiting for me. A lot of people said to me it was a great opportunity to enjoy my time off and relax but I knew in my heart I had no chance of relaxing if I didn't have a job on the horizon. But that's not to say I was sitting around just waiting for a job to fall in my lap. I was lucky to have a least an interview or two a week, all related PR or marketing but it just wasn't working out and I was getting really frustrated. Even my go to resource LinkedIn didn't have anything new to offer which made it scarier. I kept thinking there was no way I would find work by the end of the summer.

I decided that I needed a new strategy. As much as I loved PR and obtained a degree in it, my main passion has been for a long time bridal (if this blog wasn't an indication enough LOL). I started looking into anything bridal/wedding related and needed to expand my resources as well. I made profiles on Monster and Indeed and was thrilled to actually find jobs that I could apply for.

One job in particular caught my eye, a bridal salon that is close to my house was looking for a Bridal Consultant. The salon is called Castle Couture, it is absolutely beautiful and I knew that was the place for me. I applied for the position and before I knew it I got the job! Since I had background in PR and social media marketing, I will definitely be helping with that but I'm also now a Bridal Consultant in training, shadowing other consultants and meeting brides and their families who are excited to find their wedding gown and plan their special day.

Yesterday was my first day and I felt as if I was walking in heaven. I can't describe the amount of happiness and joy I feel to not only be working but to be doing it in an industry I love and doing what I love. Something I always say is if you follow your passion then success with follow you. When I finally applied that concept to my job hunt I found the right job for me in the right place for me. All of the frustration and disappointment that comes with graduating, looking for a job, and not getting a job was worth it in the end. And even though it was only a four week period, it really felt like an eternity.

Now I am so excited to start a new chapter in my life and share it with all of you! Keep a lookout for a full post on Castle Couture and why it is really a treasure to any bride in the Central/Northern part of New Jersey.

Hey guys! OMG please ignore that ugly green spiral thing!! SO sorry about that! Here's something totally different from what I normally do! I'm pretty much talking about my future after college and what my plans are (or lack thereof) haha! if you're going through the same thing or there's a big event about to happen in your life let me know, I'd love to hear rom you :)

Click on the link!

My attempt at Kate Middleton hair hoping it stays curly haha! #katemiddleton #obsessed

Yesterday I bought my first grown up bike and I'm so excited! It's a cruiser bike that I got from High Gear Cyclery in Millburn.

I've already gotten great use from it, me and Dave biked through two parks this weekend and made a list of places to bike this summer. Hopefully we can also bike through Washington DC either this summer or next summer :)