Posts Tagged ‘kitchen’
Wednesday, September 1st, 2010
Happy September! In Arizona, we’re absolutely not seeing the temps drop yet, but we can sure celebrate Fall inside our home. We can and indeed … we are. (Hard to tell which is my favorite season, I know.) I’m going for fresh, clean, and light. Not so much the traditional darker tones that we typically see this time of year.
Note: I’m personally not into the gory, scary, icky, dark side of Halloween (at all). You won’t see any spiderwebs and bats hanging from my ceilings any time soon. I know. Call me un-fun, but it’s just not in me. Anyway, this decor will last through all of Fall, including Halloween and Thanksgiving.
John Broderick, personal friend & woodworker extraordinaire, made the lazy susan. That’s not seasonal. It’s there all the time, but I wanted to mention that since I keep getting questions about the lazy susan. More on John in this post about our pantry.
All the glass containers are from Michael’s (using a 40% off coupon) and Home Goods (usually great deals). These are terrific for switching things out each season or for special occasions. They’re great year-round. Ornaments in all colors are now available everywhere (seems to early, but that’s just how it is). I picked up the orange ones at Hobby Lobby and already had the green ones from Christmas decorating over the years.
Got those little green foam bead things at Hobby Lobby and these pretty, sugary little pumpkins at Pier One Imports.
Below: Found this giant green pumpkin at Home Goods and I had everything else from over the years. Notice the use of candlesticks here. Not for candles, but to elevate stuff. A fun technique that can be used for all sorts of decor, seasonal or not.
We always have a few pictures around the house from our childhood. I want our kids to remember that we were once kids too. Plus, I think we need the reminders ourselves sometimes. : )
Above: That sprig of green was not originally part of this pumpkin. More on this later. And that candlestick? It was blah & black and I gave it a little facelift with white spray paint. Of course. (If you missed it, click here and you’ll see a free download of spray-painting tips, down on the right side.)
Below: Candlesticks and pumpkins are Home Goods finds from this year. Love that place. I can already see how the candlesticks will look come Christmastime — giant ornaments on top. Or something like that. Fun.
This here is a niche in our kitchen that has these 2 TVs that always rotate through our pictures. This was David’s vision (he’s genius), which John carried out and built earlier this year. Naturally, the pictures are all Fall-related right now.
This wreath was one of my favorite Target bargains. I scored it on clearance last year. Or two years ago? Can’t remember. Doesn’t matter. It’s a fun splash of just the right colors.
Below: I think these black & white candlesticks are great year-round too. I think I picked those up at Hobby Lobby last year. I think they still carry them.
Tags: decorating, fall, halloween, kitchen
Posted in holidays & seasons, home, style & design | 77 Comments »
Thursday, August 26th, 2010
Today, I am surprisingly not showing any signs of injuries from last night’s handstand fest with my kids. They were completely amused. Apparently I haven’t done handstands for my kids before? I guess I can check that off my bucket list.
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Today, the little man tried eating breakfast at the bar like a big kid. Is is possible the beloved high chair will soon see its retirement from our kitchen?
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Today, I am all prepped and ready to scrapbook with Porter’s 2nd grade class for the first time. Photos are printed, cardstock pages are printed, pattern paper strips are cut. Check. If you are interested in doing this with your child and his/her class … be sure to grab the free download page templates HERE. All the information is there too.
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Today, I am nibbling on these mint brownies for a friend’s baby shower tonight. The top layer? Melted semi-sweet chocolate chips. Divine.
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Today, Silly Bandz are scattered, organized, displayed, and worn in our home. Evidence of what the kids are into these days.
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Today, I am taking my “note-to-self” seriously (from last week). I made a quick sign to put by the doorbell. I don’t need a delivery person interrupting the precious nap time anymore. We’ll see if it works. Want one too? Check out the Free Stuff page and download it for free.
PS – I just remembered my web-designer-brother Andrew came up with a clever little no-soliciting sign a while back that you may also enjoy. Click here.
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What about you? Name one thing that you are up to today.
I will choose someone at random to win a free 3-month subscription to e-Mealz. This is something new for our family lately (based on many of your recommendations) and we really like it so far. Several of you have asked which plan we’re trying. It’s the WalMart Low Carb plan.
I’ll announce a winner on Friday and also share a code for everyone else to get a discount.
Tags: 2nd graders, breakfast, chocolate chips, e-Mealz, giveaway, handstands, kitchen, personal yearbook, school, sign, silly bandz
Posted in family & children, photography | 399 Comments »
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
In the world of Project Life, and specifically for those of us who are capturing a slice of life every day, POTD is an everyday term. It stands for Picture of the Day. Our kids have even started having an opinion of what they think should be in the POTD for our family’s yearbook. Love that.
It’s been a while since I’ve shared some POTDs, so here’s a look at some recent shots that help to illustrate our family’s story.
I’m a re-arranger. In our home, I move things around on a regular basis. This is the latest arrangement in the middle of our kitchen table. It’ll likely be different in a couple weeks. This photo illustrates my interest in home decor as well as one of my personality traits (I rearranged my bedroom furniture all the time as a kid.)
Reminder to moms who are creating books for their kids & families: Don’t forget to include yourself, your hobbies, your quirks, your interests. You are just as much part of the story.
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We are so grateful that Porter (7) and Claire (4) have such a special friendship and get along really well. One of their latest “things” is that Porter massages Claire’s ears. I’m serious. Totally random and totally sweet. This photo illustrates Porter’s caring nature and represents their sweet relationship.
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Last night’s dinner: French Dip sandwiches. One of our favorites and the kids’ first time eating them. Click here for the recipe. This photo illustrates an everyday occurrence and basic human function — eating. It’s part of life and therefore, part of our story.
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Our oldest niece has left for college. I’ve been thinking about Kyra a lot and wondering how she’s doing. So excited that she is going to experience life away from home. So excited for what is in store for her — educationally, socially, spiritually. So this was part of our text conversation this past week. This photo illustrates a family relationship, how texting is a part of our world, and how I personally embrace new beginnings in life.
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Speaking of new beginnings … our baby is learning to swim! Crew has had a handful of lessons and I work with him as much as I can. Every day he has had a lesson he is extra snuggly with me. And I dig it. Particularly because David is the main recipient of Crew’s snuggles at home. This photo illustrates how much this sweet boy really does loves his mama and how much I eat it up when he slows down enough to snuggle with me.
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The other night Porter wanted to watch some spy show. I wanted him to hang with me in the office while I did some projects. A few minutes later he handed this to me. I had no idea he was working on it. Honestly, I think the boy knows I’m a sucker for his art. Very manipulative, isn’t he? Of course I fell for it. This photo illustrates how Porter uses art to communicate his deepest desires. (Note: I scanned the art.)
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Every day there is something worth recording. Actually, there are a thousand little things worth recording. But even just taking a picture of one thing, writing one story or anecdote — these all add up to illustrate the story of our life. Even if it’s not every day, I know that so many of you are doing what you can to tell your story. I just love that.
Tags: ear massage, french dip, glass jars, home decor, kids' art, kitchen, lazy susan, swim lessons, texting
Posted in photography | 12 Comments »
Thursday, June 17th, 2010
Napkins and fruit. Two essential things in our kitchen. This is how I did a quick makeover on a couple of our kitchen accessories. This napkin holder was a part of a set we got at Costco a while back. Thousands of families have the same one in their kitchen. (Oh Costco, we love you.) It was time to bid farewell to the black and give it a fresh coat of green. Key Lime, to be exact.
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I found this at Home Goods recently. It holds our non-refrigerated fruit on top of our kitchen bar. The change is subtle. It was a weathered & worn white and now, after a little love from a metallic spray paint, it is silver.
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You’ll notice I didn’t do any distressing on either one of these pieces. They both have a clean, glossy finish. The end.
For spray-painting tips, techniques, and tid-bits be sure to get the free download in Monday’s post here.
Tags: fruit, kitchen, napkin holder, spray paint
Posted in DIY, home, style & design | 12 Comments »
Monday, April 26th, 2010
About a week and a half ago, I blogged about kitchen towels and how I wasn’t finding really absorbent ones. You guys offered some great ideas and suggestions, both here and on Facebook and Twitter.
By the way, several of you mentioned the don’t-use-fabric-softener-when-laundering-your-towels tip. I agree. Using softener really does seem to hinder the absorbency.
Anyway, there was an overwhelming sense of loyalty to a particular brand of kitchen towels that convinced me to give them a try. Williams-Sonoma. Many of you have been using & loving these towels for many, many years. So I’m on my way to becoming convinced myself. We picked up these and these.
Today is Day One of using the towels and I have to say … things are looking good. These towels just may have a bright future in our kitchen.
Tags: kitchen, towels, williams-sonoma
Posted in home | 33 Comments »
Friday, April 16th, 2010
Is it just me, or have all the kitchen towel companies come together to play a joke on the consumers? It’s like they said Hey, you know what would be funny? Let’s make really fun kitchen towels. But instead of acting like towels they just LOOK like towels. Hee-hee.
Clearly I have a problem kitchen towels.
In short, my problem is this: Why can’t I find kitchen towels that are absorbent? You know. Like actually soak up the water from your hands or drying dishes. Seriously. Do they exist? Am I looking in all the wrong places?
Please tell me your secrets. I know you guys must know something about where to get amazing all-purpose kitchen towels that are great for actual, real drying. Please share.
PS: Please can they be cute too? Every cute towel I see is so for looks and so not for getting the wet off of anything.
I can’t be the only one with this issue, am I? : )
Tags: kitchen, towels
Posted in products | 157 Comments »
Friday, February 19th, 2010
I know. This picture practically matches my website. Ever wonder where the color palette inspiration for my website came from?
This is a corner of our kitchen counter. I so enjoy clear containers. You might remember the tall piece filled with sparkly ornaments for the holidays (this post). I was on a quest to find something to put in there after the holidays. Thanks to one of my all-time favorite go-to stores, Home Goods, I found the perfect filler last week. Love, love, loving the orange with the aqua.
Big canisters: Where else, but Target? : )
Stuff in the canisters: Ingredients we actually use (I love when form and function come together). Flour, sugar, rice, granola.
Challenge: Have you taken a picture of one of your favorite corners in your home? If not, do it this weekend.
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By the way, for those of you trekking along with your Project Life (or for anyone intrigued) … How would you like to take a peek at someone’s work in progress? Jessica Turner did a short video, flipping through her album, discussing her approach. She also shares a few links to other really great Project Life albums. So if you’re in the mood for a little inspiration … go here.
Yes, we’re still working on getting a Gallery set up here on my site so that we all have a home base for sharing Project Life ideas and photography ideas. It’s coming.
Tags: color, containers, glass jars, home goods, kitchen
Posted in home, organization, style & design | 8 Comments »
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