These two ladies will get their preferred shade delivered in the mail shortly. Thanks to all of you who participated, and to all my devoted readers. You inspire me to keep sharing my words. We'll do something like this again in the near future....so please stay tuned.
Happy Halloween! Did you spot the real treat in the bowl? That's right, not the candy, the beautiful warm-hued Lasting Finish Pro Nail Lacquer from Rimmel London. These two shades are super hot for Fall this year and (SURPRISE!) you can purchase them at Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, Walmart, Target, and many other drug stores for just around $4 each. I've tested them out and can vouch that they do last for a week without chipping, which is near impossible for someone like me...I'm the type who refuses to spend money on professional manicures because the polish will chip by the end of the day. Final praise - before I get to the good stuff - the end of the brush is sculpted in a way that makes it great for easy application.
I find great satisfaction in going around the house, finding something to change up a bit, and then placing it in another room. It makes you feel like you got something brand new (for FREE!) because it can look completely different in another space.
Wall-hangings (like pictures, clocks, mirrors, shelves, etc.) are always rotating around our home. Moving as often as we do, we rarely hang things in the same room in each house. Layouts and wall space are always different. Plus, lighting in some rooms requires an extra mirror or two to brighten up the space - as was the case in our living room. In order to keep the "cave-like" ambiance in check, I decided we needed a mirror to hang above the couch so it could bounce some light around the room. Mirrors can be expensive so I did a quick spin around the house and found a mirror that used to hang in the nursery in our previous home.
I had bought this mirror for a steal at Hobby Lobby about 5 years ago...prior to it's nursery-life, it was in the master bath and before that in a guest room. I loved the aged pewter finish in all those spaces but that look was not going to work in our living room - it was too formal and pretty for a room we romp around in all day. So...I took it down into the garage to see what spray paint we had in our stash.
The mixing and matching of throw pillows is a useful topic that we can all put to use - after all, we all have a couch or a bed somewhere that could use a little pillow coordination. After reading through the flagship issue of HGTV magazine and viewing Monday's episode of The Nate Berkus Show, I was inspired to do some pillow research of my own. Nate Berkus had shared that the perfect equation for pillow combinations is one solid pillow to set the color scheme, one larger print pillow, and another smaller print pillow with a pattern 1/2 the scale of the second pillow. Seemed easy enough, so following that equation, I set out to find some pillow combos from popular (and affordable) home decor stores. All of these pillows can be purchased online, as well. Click on the pictures to enlarge for better detail!
- While a grouping of 3 is a popular design principle, you can always add a fourth pillow in order to balance things out - just purchase 2 of the solid pillows to add to your mix.
- If you purchase rectangular (or lumbar) pillows for your couch, always do a max of 2. Make sure to add at least 1 square pillow to the mix.
- Decorating with pillows is a great way to totally change up your home decor. You can rotate your pillows regularly or change them with the seasons (see the Christmas pillows from Crate and Barrel above).
- I don't think I've ever spent more than $40 on a pillow. Take these pillow principles with you to some other discount home decor stores: Target, Homegoods, Hobby Lobby, Marshall's, Ross, etc. - you could score some similar (but thriftier) finds.
- When combining pillows, they don't have to come from the same store. If you have some patience, find an inspiration pillow then look around a while to find the other pillows for your grouping.
By now you know that I'm all about quick and simple crafts. I love crafting, but I want to be able to do it in a few hours. From the get-go I need a disclaimer on this one: You name it, anything with a thread and needle scares me because I don't trust that it will turn out looking right. I always say that I wish I could sew, but the thought of purchasing and using a sewing machine is just so daunting to me. Thankfully, there are some great craft kits out there that don't require you to have a sewing machine...and you come away with some pretty-darn-cute looking results - like the felt owls below!
Friends, get out your slow-cooker...it's that time of year! And, who doesn't like an already prepared meal once dinner time rolls around???
Depending on which part of the country you live in, you may be able to find several orchards or farms to visit. Many places hold special events this time of year and offer fun activities like taste-testings, wagon rides, and guided tours. We visited the Kiyokawa Family Orchards at the base of Mt. Hood in Oregon's gorgeous Hood River Valley. We were able to pick our own strawberries, apples, and pears. There is a certain amount of pride involved when you pick your own fruit...it just tastes better and it inspires you to go home and bake! We made a delicious apple crisp out of some of our hand-picked apples.
We're looking forward to when our tiny tot is bigger and can help us pick!
Now this is a trip you can take no matter where you live! I don't know why, but there is just something fun about going out and seeing a bunch of pumpkins laying around. :) I think the fun is more in seeing kids react to it all. You can see our baby girl was enjoying it. When my family was in town, we visited the Roloff Family Farm (that's right the Little People, Big World family from TLC!) since it's just a few miles down the road from us. We went on a wagon ride around the property, then took some great family pictures in the pumpkin patch.
Our baby girl loved running through the pumpkin field with her Go-Pa!
We came across a sad looking desk that we found just a few miles from us. This one was in pretty bad shape...chipped paint, missing hardware, dust all over...but it's hard to say no to a solid wood and marble-topped desk with a lot of potential, right??? We liked that it could function as a desk, an entry table/side table, or even a TV stand. It can perform lots of functions, which you need in a piece of furniture if you move as often as we do!
This is a delicious recipe we modified from allrecipes.com. We tried it out and decided it would become a go-to recipe in our household. It's quite healthy as well - no butter!
Framing vintage cards is a really simple craft idea that can serve as interesting decor. It's also a project that makes an inexpensive but very personalized gift.
2. Frame that fits selected cards - an old frame you have lying around would make the project even cheaper!
1. Stay in a hotel close to the parade route, but not right on the parade route. They change the route every few years but they always post the route far in advance here. We stayed at Dream NY - a chic boutique hotel between Times Square and Central Park. The hotel was in the PERFECT location! The room was small with a simple Euro-style bath but the decor was rather hip and cool...made us feel way more swank than we are. They also have a really cool top-floor bar we splurged on for one evening.
2. Walk to the parade route in the morning and find a restaurant with big windows that is serving breakfast during the parade. We slipped into the famous Stage Deli and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast of pancakes and eggs while we watched the entire parade from a table right up against the window. Talk about perfect - we stayed warm and sipped OJ in peace while soaking in the sights. Everyone outside was cold and lost in the crowd. We were shocked that more people didn't do this - there were only 3 families in the whole restaurant that morning. We ate and watched alongside the owner and his family.
3. One night while you're there, go see a Broadway play. The ticket price is worth it because nowhere else on earth has the theaters and casts that NYC has. We opted to see Phantom of the Opera, since it's a good classic with beautiful music. It was divine!
4. Take a carriage ride at night around Times Square. Yes, it screams "I'm a tourist" but it's something you just gotta do! The lights, the sounds, the craziness - a great way to sit back and take it all in.
5. Stroll through Central Park. It's NYC's (natural) heart and soul.
6. Take the ferry over to Ellis Island. You can get off the ferry to visit the Statue of Liberty but we chose to take pictures of her from the ferry (the best view) and spend more time in the Immigration Museum at Ellis Island instead. The exhibits are very well put together and there is something mystical about walking through the grand hall where they processed so many immigrants. You can perform computer searches for your ancestors while you're there.
7. Take in the view from the top of the Empire State Building. DO NOT but a "bargain" ticket from the vendors swarming around the base of the building, claiming they can get you in a faster line to the top...it's practically a scam and you get stuck watching a cheesy NYC movie with a voice-over by Kevin Bacon. It's not worth your money and you won't get through the line any faster. Visit the Empire State Building ticket booth and purchase your tickets direct there. The views really are spectacular!
8. A must do is a visit to the 9/11 Memorial - we were there while all the construction was going on but it was still worth a trip. After viewing the unveiling on TV this last September, it made us want to go do this whole trip all over again so we can see the finished product in person. It's someplace every American should visit, lest we never forget that fateful day that has drastically changed us all.