Pottery Barn, I love you.

Good Morning!

Feels great to be at HOME on a this rainy Friday morning. Yesterday was my last day at my previous job, and on Monday I will start fresh in a new position in a completely different industry.

I'd be a massive liar if I said I wasn't slightly nervous. A "good nervous" though, the kind of nervous you get when you feel like you're starting something worth pursuing...

As with all things, we shall see how it goes. Well, hopefully!

I wish I could sit in my new p.j's all day and do nothing, however, I've got  a few things I need to accomplish this morning (drum roll please...!):

Dropping off Marv to be groomed (ugh......always a massive production).....
Getting my hair cut (fresh new do for the new job!)
Tending to a mountain of dry cleaning (this requires an entire paragraph of complaining, see below)

I feel super, SUPER old when I look in my closet and realize that darn near 1/2 of what I own is "dry clean only". Honestly? What the F. Who buys so many garments with ridiculous cleaning requirements (um, yeah - this girl!). After researching the cost of dry cleaning in our town, I vowed to cut back on my purchasing of such items. My vow = out the window.

I swear, I've got 25 things waiting to be done. OUCH!!!!!!! (that, ladies and gents = the sound of my wallet crying).

I wish, with my entire heart and soul that a ZIPS dry cleaner (one of those places that charges $1.99 for everything) would come here. I was be so happy, I'd nearly die.

Until then, I guess I'll be stuck paying $5.99 for a suit jacket! Lameness.

In other news, we're just about ready to start moving upstairs (reno project wise!). Or should I say, I am ready to move upstairs.....

Andrew thinks we should wait until the fall, but I don't think I can stand the old floors upstairs for much longer. They're so hard to clean, and we've got the materials sitting in the basement, which makes me feel totally wasteful. Of course, once they start working upstairs, we will be living in a cloud of dust, which goodness knows will test my patience!

I've decided that if we meet our savings goals for the next few months, I'm buying myself a new sofa (getting crazy now!). I think I've finally found the one, check it out below. Of course, the fabric I've selected is a grade C.....

Alas, Pottery Barn, you own my soul.

http://www.potterybarn.com/products/carlisle-upholstered-sofa/?pkey=ccarlisle-sofas&

Happy Weekend!
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muffins, meal planning and rental property snafus....

Good Morning & Happy Sunday!

I'm getting off to a s-l-o-w start this morning as it is nearly 10 am and I'm still in my p.j's (doesn't happen often, I'm trying to enjoy it!).

Andrew and I had a late night at the condo (window emergency, ah rentals...) so I've decided to take it easy this morning.

I baked some cranberry muffins (only turned out so-so) and now I'm planning my weekly meals. Meal planning is something that I always remember my mother doing growing up, and I must say it isn't nearly as fun as it looked back in the day....

I remember watching my mom sit at the kitchen table on Friday evenings with a giant stack of magazines and cook books (pre Google, oh the horror!) combing through page after page looking for healthy meal ideas.

My mother is an excellent cook and completely self-taught. She did some experimenting in those early years, but trial and error has certainly worked in her favor. To this day, I can honestly say that I would prefer a dish prepared by my mother over anything else that you could put in front of me.

With the recent rehab of our kitchen, I've been spending more and more time cooking (I would consider myself to be very much in the "trial and error" phase) and I've got to say I really enjoy it. Maybe one day I'll have a daughter who will help me comb through recipes, with the help of Google of course!

Because my cranberry muffins turned out so-so, I'll include another muffin recipe that I really enjoy :)

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/carrot_banana_muffins.html

If you need help meal planning and you're tech savvy there are several great tech options out there for you, my favorite is found below.

I'm lame so I mostly use good 'ol pen and paper (pen + paper also = FREE!).

Website charge = $9.95 for 8 weeks (worth it!):

=mealplanning&flow=pw,nops&gsc_campaign=ppcmealplan&gclid=CNy82s6R_7YCFccx4AodvycAyg

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Happy Sunday!

Andrew and I had agreed to not work on the house this weekend (a break was seriously in order!) so instead we went antique shopping, and I cooked up several meals for the week.....

Call me crazy, but I totally fell in love with an antique baby toy thingy (picture below) and figured it would make a quirky little plant stand. Andrew hates it and we nearly left the store without it, however I'm thrilled that I ended up going with my gut. I think it looks really cute, and as luck would have it the wing back chairs we have in the room have both the golden color as well as the sage color - perfect!

We can't figure out what it truly is (after some Google searching, it isn't a trike nor a scooter) but nonetheless, it sure is a conversation starter!

I also discovered a delicious (and simple!) new recipe. Even though the weather is starting to get warmer, on Sunday I always feel like having some "comfort" food. As is true for the majority of my recipes, I found this one on http://www.eatingwell.com/. 

It was super easy, and didn't require many ingredients (onions, garlic, thyme, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper, olive oil, and coffee). 

In case you'd like to try this yummy roast, the recipe can be found below. I'll also include a few pictures of mine (I didn't get a picture of the finished product, but it looked amazing!). 

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/coffee_braised_pot_roast_with_caramelized_onions.html

A few ingredients:

Onions, getting nice and yummy:

Adding the meat:

Once the onions are caramelized and delicious (about 5-7 minutes) all you need to do is place the meat in the dutch oven, cover the top with some of the onions and the juice and pop in the oven for about 3.5 hours. The meat ends up having a very nice, rich flavor and is very tender. I served the roast with buttered egg noodles.

Perfect meal to end the week!

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This old chair....

Happy Saturday, I thought this day would NEVER come! Among my usual weekend cleaning, grocery shopping, etc. today I've set my eyes on deciding on what I'll be doing with a spare chair that I found a few weekends ago.....

I bought this baby for five bucks and had no idea what I was going to do with it when I purchased. It had been sitting in the corner of my kitchen for a few days, then I moved it to the living room....

Well folks, I am happy to report that I think I've finally decided what I'll be doing with my amazing find....

Behold the "chair back coat rack" by FaceLift Furniture:

http://dishfunctionaldesigns.blogspot.com/2012/01/upcycled-new-uses-for-old-chairs.html

I am ALWAYS looking for my keys, so I'm thinking about modifying this slightly (fewer hooks) to be more of a key holder/dog leash thingy. I've even set my eyes on a little spot for it, above a radiator in the breakfast room. I've got the vision, now I need some supplies and the hubby (I'll admit it - for NOW he is better with power tools).

I plan on making a trip to Lowe's for the hooks and some paint(I'm starting to form relationships with certain employees, true sign that you've become a full-fledged DIYer) later this afternoon.

I've got to decide on a color first. Part of me feels like I should paint it to match the chairs (yellow) but another part of me thinks perhaps I should  play off of the whole statement aspect and make it some crazy color so it stands out - thoughts?

I'm really looking forward to turning this great piece into something that is refreshed, unique and useful!
Pictures of the finished product to follow.....

Good 'ol before:

FHL, kitchen style!

Our kitchen renovation is nearly complete. We've got 7 (count 'em, 7!) pulls to install, some random quarter round, and wee bit of painting and we'll be D-O-N-E.

I'll be honest, compiling the "before" and "after" photos tonight felt DAMN good. Almost every little bit of work was done entirely with by US!

We called in a professional for a few little things:

• Installing the dishwasher due to the old ass plumbing - Thanks Doug!
• An extra hand with installing the hardwood in the breakfast room - Dan you rock!
• Carrying appliances from the front yard to the kitchen - Mad love Gio, mad love :)
• Counter tops installed by Lowe's 
• Microwave install - Joint effort by Craig and Andrew. You rock Craig!

......We did the majority of the work including:

• Cabinet refinishing
• Tile removal and re install
• Back splash
• Changed placement of fridge
• Built over-the-fridge wine rack (I can't take any credit for this one, all the fab hubby)
• Installed beadboard in breakfast room and kitchen
• Took ugly bar thing and made it into an awesome kitchen island
• Painted
• Changed two lighting fixtures
• Baseboard/quarter round
• Installed cabinet hardware
• Refinished 4 vintage chairs for dinning table

Check out a preview of the almost finished product below!

BEFORE:

AFTER: 

BEFORE:

AFTER:

More pictures coming soon, happy Friday!

Crock Pot = Busy Gal's BFF

Alas, the time has come for a non renovation related post. Andrew and I have decided to take a month or so off before we get started on the second floor; however, I'd like to continue to blog so I'll be branching out a tad :)

Aside from home renovation and design, I also really enjoy cooking. I am certainly not a master chef, but I have been working on honing my culinary skills.

To avoid spending a ton of money eating out (isn't good for the wallet, nor the waist line!) I've been planning out all of my meals a week in advance, as well as preparing a "bulk" set of meals on Sunday. I try to make at least one of those meals in the crock pot so I'm not driving myself into a culinary coma (4-5 meals in one afternoon is lofty task!).

http://www.eatingwell.com/  is by far one of my favorite websites for meal ideas. Tonight, I put a quick meal in the crock so Andrew and I would have something yummy for lunch tomorrow.

Eating Well's Wine & Tomato Braised Chicken is quick, easy and extremely tasty. It is also a recipe that calls for several ingredients that I tend to keep on hand (canned tomatoes, garlic, white wine and various spices). Check it out below, happy crock pot cooking!

 http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/wine_tomato_braised_chicken.html

Gettin' all the necessary ingredients assembled.....

 

Looking delicious!

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Accessories, they matter!

Now that we are finishing up the first floor of the house, I've started to focus on adding some personal touches...

In my former decorating life I kept everything very simple, sparse even; because I have an EXTREME aversion to clutter. I've been known to hang wet towels on hooks inside my closet, purely because hanging them on the back of the bathroom door drives me batty. Not normal, I know.

Towels aside, I'm actually starting to enjoy having a few "things" out here and there.

This morning, I took a few pictures of some of the accessorizing that I've done as of late.

Hope you enjoy! PS - Small, adorable pup not included!

Happy Sunday!


Remy loves the new rug, funky chars and place mats!

Dining table, almost all ready for a dinner party!

Usually I don't love word signs, however this one was so fitting I had to buy it. I also love the vase I found on sale at House 15143 :)

A quick, simple wreath that I made yesterday. The horseshoe door knocker is original to the house, and I've found that it is pretty easy to hang my wreaths from it.....

YES DYLEWSKI crew, that is a "D" ;)

Another fab antique find. It actually works! I think it looks very elegant in our DR. 

I love these. Andrew and I have a soft spot for copper. We really wanted a copper sink but everyone kept steering us away (they aren't easy to care for!). These lanterns are next to our front door, I think they're a nice blend of rustic and classic.... 

This old stool was used to train dogs in the circus! I think it makes a lovely plant stand. RE PURPOSE people, it's fun!

A truly amazing find, a Brunswick Phonograph (c. 1923) that Angie and I picked up on a weekend antique store trip. She was kind enough to help me lug it from the store (twice), load it into a trunk, drive it to my house, and then help me carry it inside. Mad thanks lady, I could not have done it without you!