I felt so bad for the guys for the classroom date. Only because I’m the worst speller of all time and I would’ve had so much anxiety if I was on that date. Honestly not much can freak me out, but I honestly think I would’ve cried if that was my date back when I was on the show.

Oh my gosh, her one on one with Brandon during the night portion of the group date was super cute, but also so funny because you could tell she wanted him to kiss her. She even grabbed the side of his face. But then he just said those corny lines and they both started laughing. It was awkward but still super super cute!

I was honestly surprised when Jaime got the first one on one date. The person who gets the first one on one date of the season usually always makes it really far on the show. I guess I just kind of thought that it was editing when she was saying she liked him so much the first episode, but she must really like him!

I loooooove Rick! I thought he was so weird the first night with the table/entrée thing. But oh my gosh, the little fill in the blank thing he did for her was so sweet and romantic and I just love them together. Again I did not think after watching the first episode that I would feel this way about him and her but oh my gosh I was sold after tonight‘s episode.

Jamie

Where to begin with Jamie? Even before all the stuff at the cocktail party I was so skeptical about him. \

That said, I absolutely loved their one on one time together, and I felt that when he opened up about his mom it was one of the most honest and raw conversations I’ve ever seen on the show. From any season ever. The way Michelle was able to respond to him just once again shows her level of emotional intelligence. And I am glad he felt safe to open up to her about it. I can’t imagine going through that.

But I was not surprised that Jamie acted the way he did when he heard someone mention that she might’ve known Joe before. But the fact that he told her that he didn’t really care about it but everybody else in the house did was so slimy and cowardly of him. I watch these episodes as screeners sent to me, so I  didn’t get to see the clips for what’s coming up next week on the show, but I can only imagine that Jamie is going to get exposed for what he did. And I hope he does because he doesn’t deserve her.

2nd Group Date

I love watching Michelle and Joe play basketball together on the group date. One of my absolute favorite movies of all time is called Love and Basketball. If you’ve never seen it I highly recommend it. And I’ve had this idealic picture in my mind of a relationship like the one in that movie ever since I was a young girl. So I love that they could potentially be that real life couple!

Although I will say her feelings for him make me the most nervous. He definitely has the most potential to break her heart in this experience. I’m slightly worried about how they talked before all this and he basically ghosted her.

She seems to have a really strong connection with Nayte too! Goodness I can’t believe how many strong connections she has already! I take back what I said in my first blog about feeling like she didn’t have a lot of guys there that were casted for her. She’s got the start of some really great relationships starting and I’m so happy for her!

Scunci Launch!

OK you guys know I can’t finish this post without mentioning that my third hair accessory line with Scunci just launched today! I truly can’t believe that I have a third collection with them and that it’s in 5000 Walgreens stores nationwide. I seriously have to pinch myself about it and it would not be possible without all of you! It would mean so much to me if you would pick something up for yourself, a friend or anybody on your holiday shopping list this year! This line really is perfect for the holidays and I designed it with all different hair types and people in mind! Plus all the pieces are affordable so I’m hoping you can cross a few people off your list with my hair accessory line this holiday season! The link to the entire collection at Walgreens is here. But I’ll add a few photos of some of my favorite pieces below and you can always head to this blog post if you want to see photos of the entire collection and how I style them.

The post The Bachelorette…Class Begins! appeared first on Ali Manno (Fedotowsky).

So Happy to be BACK and Here for Michelle!

I am so glad to come back this season. Oh my gosh, no joke I was tearing up emotional not even two minutes into the episode. Michelle started talking about her childhood and her parents and their love  -I just choked up. I don’t know if it’s because I haven’t watch the show in a while or what,  but it got me. I adore this family and I adore Michelle!

I LOVE Michelle

Speaking of Michelle, let’s just talk about her for a minute. I was able to watch most of Matt James season, so I am very familiar with Michelle. Oh my gosh I don’t know that I ever realized just how stunning she is. Not just on the outside, but on the inside too! I always thought she was great on his season, but while watching her as the Bachelorette, I find myself completely drawn to her! She has this presence that is just so captivating that I can’t help but stare and want more. I think she’s going to be an absolute incredible lead and I’m so excited for her to find love! Whatever man ends up with her is one lucky guy.

STOP HERE IF YOU DON’T WANT POTENTIAL SPOILERS

I just want to say upfront that there are potential spoilers in this blog. There has been a lot of talk all over the Internet about the new Bachelor and if ABC has already chosen. I’m gonna talk about that in this blog so if you don’t want to know about that I wouldn’t read further! Although nothing is confirmed by ABC. Also, if you’re on the West Coast, wait until 10pm PST to read this if you don’t want spoilers about tonight’s episode!

The Guys

Chris S.

I really like him and so far he seems like a nice guy. But I guess I’m just immediately skeptical because he’s from Louisiana and he moved to Los Angeles. Which makes me feel like he is not on the show just looking for love, but on came on TV because he’s always wanted to be on TV.

Joe

I absolutely love how they have so much in common, and he seems like such a nice nice nice guy!

However I don’t really know what to make about him ghosting her. If what he said is 100% true and it was just that he was very overwhelmed with the state of the world and what was happening around the George Floyd situation, then I truly feel for him. I love that she told him she wishes he communicated that and I agree with her. But on the other hand I could understand how it could cause you to shut down a little bit and not pursue someone you were talking to online.

That said, part of me did wonder whether or not he was telling the truth. All I know is that if it comes out that he was not truthful in any way, it’s going to really come back to bite him in the ass. Just part of me worries that we’re gonna find out online from someone that he was actually dating and that’s why he didn’t message Michelle back. I hope for his sake that’s not the case. I just have a bad feeling about it.

Clayton

So I know there’s articles everywhere and tons of rumors that he is potentially the next Bachelor. I feel like that information had to of been leaked on purpose and I wonder why. Is the Bachelor franchise trying to see what people will say about him throughout the season knowing he is in the running to be the Bachelor and do they want the public to weigh in more before they make a decision? Or is it because the Bachelor has to start filming super soon in the season so ABC just knows they edited this guy well enough that everybody’s gonna fall in love with him. Ha! I’m not saying he’s not a great guy. I’m sure he is. But these editors know what they’re doing and they know how to make us fall in love with their next Bachelor.

But even though ABC hasn’t officially announced, other outlets like E! and pretty much every other source has said it is him and even already have lists of the women. Crazy huh?

I also know that the new host Jesse posted a photo with him and he used #thebachelor in the caption and he tagged all the main Bachelor Instagram accounts. Not to mention Mike Fleiss also tweeted that the new Bachelor is someone from Michelle’s season.

So it’s very interesting why they did all this. It must just be because they have to start shooting the Bachelor soon or maybe even already did. The way the seasons went this year is a little weird because usually the Bachelorette would’ve already fully aired, but because we have two Bachelorette’s, Katie and Michelle, Michelle’s season is airing way later than a normal Bachelorette season would.

Nayte

She makes it very clear that she liked Nayte when he came out of the limo. Every season the show and producers likes to start strong and usually has the first person out of the limo be somebody that they feel will have a strong connection with the lead. So I think will be seeing a lot more of Nayte!

He got the first impression rose, so clearly there’s a big connection there. But I can’t help but feel like it wasn’t a strong as a connection as we normally see. I don’t know, that’s just how I felt watching but only they know what they really felt.

Chris G

I mean the fact that he’s  a speaker for a nonprofit that helps children is just incredible, of course! Their mutual love of kids is going to give them lots to talk about!

Ryan

I knew Ryan was trouble after his first few sentences in his opening package. Not because of what Kaitlyn and Tayshia found in his room…that came after and then we obviously realized he’s a jerk. But right away in his opening package he used the: “I know how to plow a field ladies” quote and it really bothered me right off the bat that he was addressing the women watching the show as to sort of flirt with them rather than focusing on Michelle. It just seemed very bizarre to me.

I love that Michelle right away asked to see the notes. Like a good teacher should! Show me that homework! I want to see what you wrote!

Honestly it doesn’t even matter what the notes said. The fact that he had notes at all is just not OK. It’s clear that he wanted to be on the show and wanted to make sure he got a good edit more than he actually wanted to find love. Honestly I tried to see his side. I said to myself, “Okay he had his girlfriends give him some notes because he doesn’t know much about the show and he’s going on national TV”. IF it’s even true that he doesn’t know a lot about the show, which doesn’t sound like it’s the truth. I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt that he wanted to be prepared. But there absolutely shouldn’t been anything in there about screen time and wanting to get screen time and he should’ve left his notes at home. Sure he might have had a girlfriend write on things so he felt prepared and got advice. I think anybody would be smart to get advice before going on the show. But all the notes and then little places that he wrote in the notes it’s just crazy. I’m so glad she sent him home right away and I love how she did it with such confidence.

A Few Final Thoughts

One thing I will say is that it’s really hard to figure out when she says she’s really into someone or if it’s edited to make it seem like she’s talking about a certain guy or if it really is that guy. I always try to pay attention if there’s any cut in the editing or if she uses the persons name in a single continuous frame without edits. I know this is silly, but I just know how much the show can be edited to make it seem like she says certain things about certain people that she actually isn’t talking about. I remember back when I was on the show it being edited to make it sound like I said something about being really into one of the guys and I actually said it about a different guy and not the one they made it seem like on the show.

Are These Guys for Her?

I absolutely hate to say this, but I feel like I have to because I’m so curious what all of you thought watching. Did anybody else feel like this didn’t seem like the best group of guys suited for her? Absolutely nothing against the guys or any disrespect to them. There’s some wonderful men there! But I just felt like so many of them didn’t feel like a match for her. When she was talking about how great she thought the night went it felt like she didn’t really mean what she was saying. I honestly hate saying this because I adore her and I want this to work out for her so badly. But I guess it only takes one. So as long as there’s one guy that she ends up having a great connection with that’s all that matters. But I just kind of feel like she wasn’t set up for success. I’ll be rooting for her the whole way regardless!

Now tell me all of your thoughts! I wanna know if you guys agree with me or disagree with me. So much to discuss in the comments below!

If You Missed My Affordable Friday!

Last but not least, before I go I always like to end my Bachelorette blogs with some looks I love from the week just in case you missed some past blog posts. If you did miss my Affordable Friday post from this past week, I’m so glad you’re seeing some of the looks now! I’m just copy/pasting some of the outfits and blog copy I wrote about earlier in the week for you guys to check out. My top three items I wrote about are the over the knee boots, $14 white sneakers, and the gorgeous berry colored Turtleneck sweater tank. It’s seriously so beautiful and flattering. More details below on some of my favorite looks I wrote about!

First though, just because I get so many DMs about robot vacuum sales and I swear at least once a week in my Facebook group people ask for good deals, I wanted to share this too! I know so many people love the iRobot so I just wanted to share with you guys real quick that you can get one certified refurbished on eBay right now for $27.99. That’s seriously $100 less than anywhere else you’ll find it online. In fact, I’ll include a screenshot below of how much you would pay if you bought one on Amazon today for the 980 model. They also have one that’s $149 that’s a different model. I don’t know if you guys know what certified refurbished is, but essentially it’s just an item that was fixed and made to seem like it’s brand new item! They come with a two-year warranty, money-back guarantee, and packaging to seem brand new. I have loved everything I’ve gotten certified refurbished, so I just wanted to share in case you’re looking for a great gift or a great deal. I’m under no obligation to share this whatsoever I just love a good deal as much as the next person.

 1. iRobot 980 | 2. iRobot 670

Onto the Affordable Friday posts, I will start with this turtleneck sweater tank. I didn’t know what to expect when I ordered it. I usually do not like shirts that cut off right at the shoulder. I don’t know what it is about the cut of this specific sleeve, but it is so flattering! I think maybe because it’s not tight around my arm and it’s a little longer down. I’m not really sure. But I am so so so so so obsessed with this $15 tank.

 1. TURTLENECK TANK | 2. CELEBRITY PINK JEANS | 3. OVER THE KNEE BOOTS

I’m wearing it with this pair of Celebrity Pink high-waisted denim pants. I don’t know if I should call them denim because it’s actually more of a jegging, which essentially means it looks like denim, but it’s super soft and stretchy more like a legging. It’s kind of like if a rough denim and a super soft legging had a baby and it was a jegging. Oh my gosh, let me tell you I’m obsessed!

First they’re only $17.98. A steal! If you look at the reviews on Walmart’s website for Celebrity Pink denim, they’re all exceptional and these are no different. I didn’t really know how they would fit because it says they’re juniors, but the juniors curvy line, and I didn’t really know what that meant. I ordered them in the size that I would normally get which is a 7. I’m usually more of a 9, but I’ve lost a little bit of weight recently so I went with a 7 and they fit great! In fact they’re so stretchy I could’ve probably even done a size 5. So if you’re in between sizes definitely choose your smaller size.

Finished off my look with these over the knee boots. These boots are INCREDIBLE!!!! Let me tell you I am so so so obsessed with them. I can’t even tell you how many bloggers I have bought boots from online because the boots look just so adorable and oversized on their tiny little legs. No body shaming here. All legs are beautiful. Big legs, little legs and teeny tiny little legs! But I will say I don’t have those teeny tiny little legs, so when I would buy the boots they would be tight around my thigh and just not give the same oversized look that I saw from these other bloggers. So that’s why I was so excited when I found these boots because they truly are oversized at the thigh. I feel like these boots will work so well for anyone who has wider thighs like me or wide calves! They’re true to size and I got my normal size and they are an incredible price at under $45!

They also come in a few other colors if you’re looking for a different color.

Graphic Tee Look

For this outfit, I’m wearing the same awesome denim and white sneakers, but I switched the top out for this MTV tee. Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Can I say ‘oh my gosh’ one more time? Get this T-shirt! It’s under $12 and I absolutely love everything about it. From the bright colors, to the fit, to the retro MTV logo. I actually have another MTV shirt that I bought from Walmart a few months back and I love it so much and it just makes me feel so nostalgic! When I saw this one I had to get it, especially when I saw it was basically $10. Again, look at the reviews because there are so many amazing reviews.

 1. MTV T-SHIRT | 2. CELEBRITY PINK JEANS | 3. TIME AND TRU WHITE SNEAKERS

You’ll see that it’s technically a men’s t-shirt, so when I originally bought it, I sized down to a small. But honestly it was super fitted on me in a small, so I ended up returning it to get the size medium. I just like my t-shirts a little bit more loose-fitting and the small size was just like a fitted t-shirt, so it depends on what you want. I would say get your normal size even though this is a men’s tee. Medium is my normal size, and again I love thatt it comes in size small up to XXXL.

To complete my outfit, I’m wearing these white sneakers that are only $14.97! Let me point out right off the bat that there are over 213 reviews for the sneakers and they are overwhelmingly positive. People rave about these sneakers so I had to get them. They are super cute and have a really fun gold detail on the back that I love. I feel like it makes them look more expensive and truly the quality is amazing! If I didn’t know I would think they were Steve Madden shoes, but for a fraction of the price. Also, the sizing is spot on. I got a size 7 which is my normal size and they fit great. Isn’t this this perfect fall-fashion outfit AND so easy to throw on!?

Work & Fun

I really wanted to include a look for this Affordable Friday that could be worn to work during the day and then out to drinks with friends at night. This tank is exactly that! You seriously are not gonna believe the quality when you get it. I would think it was a $50 camisole in a boutique. Look at the reviews, there are 85 star reviews and it comes in 4 other color/prints!

 1. BLACK CAMI |.2. CELEBRITY PINK JEANS | 3. OVER THE KNEE BOOTS

I got a size medium which is my normal size and once again this tank top is size inclusive with size XS to XXXL. I wish you guys could feel the material. It’s hard to explain, but it’s not like that super thin cheap fake silk material that a lot of camis that look like this are made of. It’s got more balance and weight to it and it just feels expensive. Plus, the way it falls on your body is just really flattering and comfortable. I truly love love love love love this tank and I think you will too!

 1. BLACK CAMI |.2. CELEBRITY PINK JEANS | 3. OVER THE KNEE BOOTS

For the office, I recommend throwing a blazer on over it and then when going out with friends after work depending on where you’re going you could throw on this fringe sweater if you’re going somewhere casual and it’s chilly out or a full leather jacket to make it more nightlife appropriate. Stock is low on these blazers, but I definitely wanted to link them for anyone who fits these sizes or needed a suggestion!

DRESSES

Summer Dress for Fall/Winter Trips!

I also really wanted to make sure I included some cute dresses in this weeks Affordable Friday post. I didn’t have any in the last when I did and I got some messages from people requesting them in this one! I’m gonna start with this beautiful dress that I brought on our trip here to Florida. I love absolutely everything about this dress! So I honestly don’t even know where to begin. I guess I’ll start by saying when I ordered it I thought there was a good chance that the material was going to be kind of stiff. But to my very pleasant surprise and material is so soft and lovely! I truly truly truly cannot believe that this dress is only nine dollars. It doesn’t seem possible. Right now the exact one I’m wearing is still available in sizes small up to size XL. So snatch it while you can! You will not believe how amazing this dress is when you get it I ordered a size medium which is my normal size.

1. GORGEOUS APRON DRESS

And last but not least is this absolutely adorable dress! But SIZE DOWN (keeping reading). To be completely honest you guys, when I first got it I thought I was going to return it because I thought it might be a smidge short on me. But here’s a tip for you guys if you ever have a dress that you think feels just slightly short. All you have to do is pair it with a pair of over the knee boots and it instantly feels longer. When I first wrote this blog, I knew I was gonna share this dress, but thought I would let you guys know that it was best for somebody 5’6″ and under. But now I think it’s actually great for someone my height too. I’m 5’7″, maybe even taller. It just works so perfectly with an OTK boot and I couldn’t love it more!

1. DRESS (SIZE DOWN!) | 2. OVER THE KNEE BOOTS

And the dress is size inclusive and ranges in size XS up to XXXL. However I will say size down in this one! I’m normally a size medium and I got the size extra small based on the reviews. However that is kind of making me think that if I had gotten a small if it would’ve been a little bit longer on me. But honestly, I love the length with the OTK boot so sizing down 2 worked for me! So make sure to size down on this one – one or two sizes! It just really pretty! From the print to the chiffon balloon sleeve I just love it and it’s only $16.88!

The post The Bachelorette – Here for Michelle!!! appeared first on Ali Manno (Fedotowsky).

Last Night May Have Felt Uncomfortable

I also want to say this because I’ve seen a lot of talk online from people about how disappointed they are in this season. Look I get it, the season was heavy. We saw a lot of drama and these conversations around race can feel uncomfortable. I know, the majority of people watch TV to escape from life. Heck that’s why Hallmark channel is one of the highest rated cable channels on TV if not the highest rated. People want feel good stories right now because frankly, the world in real life is a pretty scary place. We’re in the middle of a pandemic and we have gone through some very turbulent times as a country in the recent years. More so than I can remember in my life up until this point. Or I just was unaware in my adolescence and in many ways, I was ignorant.

That said, I get the wanting to escape. The thing that everyone has to remember is that these topics are sooooo important. Talking about racism and having an open dialogue where people can learn and grow is important. This wasn’t supposed to be feel good TV. Emmanuel said himself, these conversations feel uncomfortable. But we HAVE to hear them. And we MUST learn from them.

Matt

I felt for Matt so much when he talked about the pressure he felt the season. Can you imagine stepping into the shoes as the first black Bachelor with everything going on in our country? The social injustice, the conversations around racism, the death of George Floyd and so many others – all of it. It’s got to be so much to take on. I can’t imagine the weight he must have felt and still feels. But this is what I do know, I know what it’s like to be in that position in terms of being the lead of the show. The pressure and scrutiny and hate is intense. So I can only imagine with everything going on in our world, the extra level that he had to deal with and how hard that has to be on a person. It’s too much for any one person to take on. The sadness and pain in his eyes was gut-wrenching. So I have to say that I completely respect him for how he handled everything. I don’t think I could have done it.

Racheal

I believe Rachel has shown how committed she is to learning and growing and being better after all of this. I think everything she said were the right things to say (I say “I think” because it’s not my apology to accept) and I believe she’s staying accountable for this and hoping to be better at the end of the day. The only thing I’ll say is that I feel bad that she didn’t feel comfortable expressing her own hurt in the situation. For example, when she first came out and Emmanuel asked her how she’s been.

She said it was a loaded question, but that she didn’t want to victimize herself. I get that she doesn’t want to victimize herself in terms of the fact that she attended an antebellum party – which was WRONG. She is NOT the victim in that case. But it’s okay for her to talk about how hard it’s been dealing with the hateful comments and the bullying that she has undoubtedly received. Yes, she made a huge mistake. But that doesn’t mean she can’t say “Hey, I’m not okay because the hate I’m receiving is horrible”. I personally might get some backlash for saying this, but it’s how I feel. Honestly I’m writing this super quick this morning while I drink my coffee and I’m feeding breakfast to my kids. But that was just the one thing I sort of felt bad for her about and honestly, I feel like it’s just in my nature to want the best for everyone and to hate when anybody’s hurting. This show is intense. The fans are intense. The hate is intense.

Rachael and Matt

In terms of Rachael and Matt’s relationship, I think it’s fair to say that there’s no way their relationship could work at this point. There’s too much pain and too much hurt… and quite frankly too much to take on. Look, I’m not putting myself in that position because I’m not black and therefore I cannot understand what it’s like to be Matt, but what I can understand is what it’s like to be the lead of the show – the amount of pressure the public puts on you is so intense that it makes your relationship more complicated. So on top of the hurt he expressed and is feeling, and it being too hard to come back from that hurt, he also has hundreds of thousands of people criticizing the relationship in one way or another. And that I know, has got to be almost impossible to get through together. I feel for both of them.

And I’m sorry my comments are only on after the final rose. I didn’t get a chance to watch the whole episode. But I usually don’t say much about the final episode other than I wish the best to the happy couple. But obviously that’s not the case here. But I will say I wish the best both to Matt and Rachael. I hope they’re able to heal from this.

Two Bachelorettes!

I’m a huge fan of both Katie and Michelle also I am pumped for both of them! I think they will both make incredible Bachelorettes and I plan to watch both seasons! I guess I’m a little confused as to why they chose 2 women for two seasons. Does that mean there’s no Bachelor in Paradise? So one season is just taking the place of the Bachelor in Paradise season? If that’s the case I’m honestly a bit disappointed because I love Bachelor in Paradise. I know many of  you reading this are more up-to-date with all the spoilers out there than I am, so if anybody has any insight I’d love to know in the comments below!

While Your Here

Before you go – big update to my site! I did an entire blog post about my discount codes that will now live at the top of the homepage on my website. This is so if you guys ever want to get any of the products I recommend you can easily come back to this blog post to find the link and discount code to get a deal on it! I get so many questions about my codea via DM and messages that I figured this would make it easy for everyone!

While you’re here on my site if you wanna check out my emergency prep blog that I wrote yesterday, you can read it here. Plus you can see the ridiculous use Kevin has for the helmet I bought him. I’m telling you, he’s gonna be happy we have that helmet when a big storm hits! I share a few other things that I bought to prepare. If you don’t have an emergency kit prepared take this as your sign to prepare one now!

Love you all. Let’s be kind to one another and try to listen to others. Especially when they tell us they’re hurting. This should go without saying, but I’m going to say it to keep this a safe place. Any comments that condone any form of racism below will be deleted. Let’s lead with love and kindness and understanding when choosing our words – today and always. xoxo

The post The Bachelor – Uncomfortable Conversations appeared first on Ali Manno (Fedotowsky).