Grey de la Grey

We picked up about a dozen paint samples from Home Depot on Friday night and another dozen from Lowes.  We taped them up on the walls in various rooms all weekend and watched how they looked at all times of the day.  For the main area (living/dining/kitchen/hallway) we wanted gray.  For Greta's room, we are looking for a grayish mauve, for the bathroom--a grayish blue, and we have NO idea for our room.  Which is kinda funny, because we got the most votes to start our paintbrushes in there.

Well, after looking at all the different paint samples on the wall for two full days, we decided against all of them.  Seriously.  One by one they were taken off the wall.  Some went right away and others took longer.  But we both knew, we hadn't found our colors yet.

Gray is a toughie.  There isn't one true gray.  It can look blue or brown or pink or green.  This morning, I learned that even more when I took a trip to Ace Hardware and picked up another dozen shades of gray from the Benjamin Moore collection.

Do you see what I mean?  These are ALL grays.  When you put them next to each other, you can really see the different tones come out.  I judged each individually and tried to find the truest gray.  Luckily, Benjamin Moore paints are the Creme de la Creme as far as colors go and I fooouuunnndddd one!!!

..okay, maybe two--but they are VERY close.  Whitestone is a pinch cooler or Harbor Gray is a teensy bit warmer, either way--these are the top contenders.  I'll leave it up to Chris to make the final call.  And although the majority favored us starting in our bedroom, we think we are going to start in the front.    Originally we thought that we would have colors picked out for every room, but alas...that isn't the case.  We want to make sure whatever we DO choose to paint the bedroom/nursery/bathroom lends itself very well to ol' Whitestone or Harbor Gray.  We want everything to feel cohesive so we are starting with what we KNOW we like and hopefully we'll be inspired along the way.   We'll get the winning gray color-matched at Lowe's to Olympic NO-VOC paint so we don't have fumes smacking us in the face, plus, our wallet will thank us.  Let the painting COMMENCE!

Our family on a Sunday afternoon

Danced around the living room to Michael Buble.

Wiped Greta's nose 123 times--at least.

Took a nap.

Laid on each other's stomachs.

Helped Greta push a chair around the kitchen island 4 times.

Had an amazing dinner.

Put Greta to bed.

Loved our life together.  

Happy Sunday.

"You got a real attitude problem, McFly, you're a slacker."

Yes, yes I am. On the blogging front, at least (notice this is Chris, not Jules- I quote Back to the Future, not Disney). I don't really have a meal to blog about this week because we didn't plan things out very well, Greta's been sick, blah blah punch line is we ate horribly- and I've been feeling the effects. Ugh.

This week I realized how important planning is when you're trying to eat healthy. If you don't plan ahead, you'll find yourself eating Chinese take out while watching the State of the Union address- two activities you end up regretting. My point is, without a game plan for the week, you're left to figure it out as you go, and that often turns out bad.

Every Saturday morning (excluding last week), while Greta takes her nap, Jules and I have our weekly planning session. We go over our budget and set our menu for the week ahead. These things go hand in hand. You often hear people when they're talking about eating healthy say that it's expensive. This can be true, but planning ahead will really help save money. It's important to know your budget before making your menu so you don't get too extravagant on weeks when money is tight, and it's important to make your menu before shopping so you only buy the things you need. If you only buy what you need for the week, that cuts down on the fresh produce you end up throwing away, making a healthy diet more attainable.

Another great thing about planning ahead is that Wal-Mart price matches on groceries. If you're anti-Wal-Mart, that's your prerogative. But price matching saves us about $20-$30 a week on groceries. That's $80 a month, sometimes $100, and it only takes an extra 30 minutes or so. Basically we're getting paid $20 for 30 minutes of research. It's worth it, I'm telling you.

So, now that Jules and I have our menu for the week ahead, I want to know what you want to read about. For those of you wondering why I'm writing on the blog and why I'm not making a cute pillow or something, Jules asked me to blog once a week about a meal we had. I'm the cook in the family, not the decorator. So it's up to you what I write about next week. Here's our menu:

Saturday-
   Grilled Chicken &Vegetables
Sunday-
   Steak, Oven Fries and Grilled Asparagus- served with crumbled blue cheese and horseradish butter
Monday-
   Turkey Burgers and Salad
Tuesday-
   Lettuce Wraps (already blogged about this one)
Wednesday-
   Turkey Chili and Cornbread (I guarantee nobody will know it's turkey)
Thursday-
   Whole Wheat BBQ Chicken Pizza and Salad
Friday-
   Pork Chops, Curried Apple Cous Cous and Cucumber Salad

Which would you like to cook? The lettuce wraps I've already done, and I think I'm going to take the turkey burgers out as well (pretty self-explanatory), but everything else is still in the running. I promise you, they're all easy, as good as you'll have at any restaurant, and a lot cheaper. So you tell me what you want to see (don't be shy), and you can read all about it next week.

Where to start??

I can just hear florine Maria, strumming her guitar, "Let's start at the very beginning.  A very good place to staaaart."  Thanks, Maria.  Honestly, as excited as we are to paint our place, we have been going back and forth about which room to start with.  Here's our thought process:

Do we go for our front room errrr area (consisting of living room/dining room/kitchen...hall?) first, since that is the first space people see?

Maybe we should paint our room first since it seems the least finished of all the rooms with no artwork up or finishing touches in decor.  (We have been here for 16 months, right?)

Or, there is always Greta's room.  Big windows, basic rectangle--it would be so easy!!

Lastly (or maybe first-ly), the bathroom.  Small little room could be a perfect way to ease into things.

We're stumped.  Excited, but stumped.  We have seen the perks to painting each room first--but that's not possible, obvy....someone ROOM has to be first.  Help us?  That's right.  We're putting it in your hands! Let us know which room you would love to see with a new coat of color and we'll tackle it before any other.  

....and there is no shame in being "Team Bathroom."  We won't read into it.  *wink wink*

Love Letters by Julia Marcum | Make Your Own Book

"We dare not stop or waste a drop so let the paint be spread!"

Anyone know that song?  Am I on a disney kick with my titles, or what?

Greta is still very sick and that has kept me busy and home-bound.  She hasn't eaten now for days and right now she is taking her first nap since Saturday.  Hopefully that means she is on the up and up.  We're keeping all appendages crossed that that is the case.

So, needless to say there have been no new projects going on here, but I am happy to report--there IS something in the works.  Are you ready for this....it's a PAINTING PROJECT.  And no, I am not referring to that one for our bedroom (although that is still in the works, too).  We're talking about painting the walls of this place!  I know what you are thinking, "But...but, you guys are renters."  Well, you are absolutely right about that one, but we happen to be pretty dang good renters.

I think there is something to be said about being a good tenant while renting.  Not only do you gain the trust of your landlord, but you also get perks (i.e. painting the walls).  Some things that we do to keep our "good neighbor" tenant status sky-high are:

• Pay our rent on time or early every month
• Don't bother our landlord excessively
• Keep the noise level down
• Get out and shovel those snowy walkways (high-five to my Chris-baby for that one)
• Slip his mail under the door daily
• Bring him dinner when we have lots of leftovers
• Offer to watch his chickens when he is out of town (we even got to keep all of the eggs!)
• Be friendly
• Send "thank-you" e-mails
• Rent for more than one year (we have been in our place for almost 16 months)
• Take pride in our apartment and keep it neat and clean

Now that we have established a good relationship with our landlord and we are all about making this apartment our home for a little while more--we felt it was time to ask if we could paint over these beige walls.  Initially, we were hoping to just paint our bedroom, but the response we received has us excited to liven up the whole place.  Here's how the asking went down via e-mail:

Hi Paul,

I wanted to send a quick email about something we were thinking. My wife has been really getting into projects and home decor things; she's done a great job of making the apartment down here feel like home and we love it. The thought we had is this: the wall color in Greta's room is different from the rest of the apartment and we think it really adds to the feel down here. We were wondering if you'd be willing to let us paint the bedroom we sleep in. We would purchase the paint, and approve the color through you of course (a cool, neutral color). We've just noticed that the paint on the back wall of our room is chipping a little, and now might be a good opportunity to freshen it up a bit (Jules is really good at stuff like that- choosing colors etc.). 

Let me know your thoughts, Paul. Of course if you'd rather keep it the same, that's not a problem. We just wanted to make the offer.

Thanks!

Chris 

------------------------------

Chris,

You are welcome to do anything you want with paint, I trust you both will do a good job. How is the ceiling in the baby's room looking?

Paul 

We feel so thankful and like the luckiest tenants out there!  There may be some of you that are wondering why we would spend money and effort painting a place that technically isn't ours.  Well, it is our home right now.  You have to feel happy and at peace with where you live; it should be a sanctuary from the outside world.  That's what all of these projects are about--making this space ours.

 So now we get to pick out paint colors, and maybe revisit some paint colors that we liked last year.  Because we live in a basement apartment, we are thinking something light, cool, contemporary and neutral.  Perhaps something a little warmer in the bedroom.  Who knows at this point.  We are excited to hit up home depot once again and get crackin'!  And for you other renters out there, we're sending good painting vibes your way--could there be colored walls in your future?

I'm sick because I ate one

I called poison control tonight.  It's my first time as a mother--not my proudest moment.  Here's the background story:

Greta is really sick.  She has RSV(most likely...the doctor wouldn't test her because there is nothing they can do for it) and it seems to be getting worse.  So, I have been extra careful to do all of the things he told me to:  humidifier full blast, Children's Motrin every 6 hours to keep her fever under control, lots of fluids and benedryl before bed to help her sleep.  And thanks to some excellent mommy advice I received, I have also been putting Baby Vicks on her chest and feet to help her cough.  She is so drained, but won't sleep or eat.  It has all worn me down significantly.  My house is a mess and I haven't showered or got dressed in days--but it's okay, I'm taking care of Greta, right?

Tonight, my worn-down brain made a boo boo and gave her Motrin AND Tylenol instead of Benedryl!!  Chris said, "That looks like her Tylenol."  I ran in the kitchen to check and it was!!  Near tears, I called her pediatrician and waited and waited and waited and then got disconnected and called back and waited and waited some more.  It was a completely frantic kind of wait, though--I could not wait any longer!!  Luckily, I remembered in 7th grade we learned the poison control center's number:  I'm SICK because I ATE ONE, I'm SICK, SICK, SICK, UPSIDE DOWN SICK.  Get it?  (412) 681-6669.  Unfortunately, I grew up in Pittsburgh and this was the number for the poison control center there.  Which looking back I totally could have called and I am sure they would have helped me.  But, remember, I am worn out and my brain isn't working.  My eyes started burning and I was thiiiis close to crying but I pulled it together and looked up the number here (it's 1-800-222-1222 fyi) and right away talked to a nice guy.  He reassured me that it was completely okay and that she would be fine and I could even give her the Benedryl, too.  I wanted to reach through the phone and hug him.

....and then I cried.

"Now don't start that, again"

(Name that movie! Hint:  think vultures channeling the Beatles.) Okay, I'm all about utilizing what I got, but having the same fabric in three different places was a little much in our two-bedroom/one-bathroom apartment.  I used the same fabric to cover a lamp and three mirrors.  And then I took two of those mirrors and put them in Greta's room and I put the other mirror in the bathroom:

Aw, cute!  Chris brushing his teeth and Greta copying--oh, yeah...this is about the mirror. :)

Because that lamp ended up in our living room, which is actually open to the dining room area and kitchen, it seemed like everywhere I looked I saw that same fabric--unless I was in our bedroom.  Eeks!  It got old. Fast.  So Saturday, I took on the project of redoing the mirror--AGAIN!  I decided a fresh mosaic look would be fitting for the bathroom.  I picked up some  a lot of paint samples (for FREE!) to achieve the look of a tile mosaic for none of the cost.

Once I stripped off the fabric and cut my paint samples into varying sizes of equilaterals--I started fitting them together.  This is when I realized this was going to take a lot longer than I expected.  It wasn't hard--just time consuming.  Luckily, just looking at all of the colorful tiles coming together so nicely got me excited enough to keep going.  As soon as I had them where I wanted, I glued each "tile" down individually and then used a paintbrush and three coats of Mod Podge (waiting at least 20 minutes between each coat) to seal it:

The whole process took a few hours, and there was even a time when Greta took a nap that I recruited Chris to help me.  It was totally worth it.  Completely.  We both love how refreshed our tiny bathroom looks.  Not to mention, it was free to do (besides purchasing the Mod Podge).  The technique could be applied to lots of stuff: picture frames, lamp bases, the top of a coffee table or end table.  However, I am restraining myself and stopping at the mirror because I don't want to run into the same problem that started this whole thing.  Heh...heh...he....

Happy Sumo. Happy Couple.

Last night, Chris and I stole 2 hours for ourselves.  The babysitter came when Greta was already asleep and we slipped away for a much needed date night.  It's been a very long time.  Definitely months since Chris and I went out on a date, just the two of us.  Hence it being blog-worthy.  We do most of our eating out as a family, as well as everything else--which we wholesomely refer to as, "family date night."  Not the same, let me tell you.  We didn't have to pick our restaurant according to the kid's menu, or cut up food in to tiny pieces for the little miss OR, my least favorite, scout out the broom and dust pan to pre-sweep under our table before our server and the rest of the place starts giving us the stink-eye--yes, I do that.  

Chris picked Happy Sumo, 'cause he loves it and I've never been and it's a place that we wouldn't take Greta--although, surprisingly there were a few little ones there.  At first we were told it would be a 90 minute wait for our table, and then Chris surveyed the seating, put on a little charm, and pointed out two open seats at the sushi bar.  We were seated within two minutes of arriving.  (That's hot, Chris.)

breaking news: we actually got a picture together

We had edamame, and tempura veggies, and then the chef handed over our sushi.  Chris got the Cosmopolitan and I got the Rockstar.  Best.  Sushi.  Ever!  It was a wonderful night, with no baby chat or baby food.  Just my man and some stellar food.  It's what dreams are made of people.    Seriously.

Um, A Little Help Here, George...

A George Foreman grill is useless for cooking meat. I kid you not, useless. The commercials always show this nice, juicy piece of chicken taken straight off the grill, but that's a crock. Every time I've cooked chicken on the Foreman (or any other kind of meat, for that matter), I see no grill marks, only indentations. The whole outside is charred to black and the inside has either turned to dust or isn't even cooked through. Of course, we have the big one that doesn't have temperature control, but why on earth would I buy a tiny indoor grill with temperature control when I can buy an outdoor gas grill for the same price? Ya dig?

That being said, I still hang onto our Foreman because it does have a purpose; and that purpose is grilled panini sandwiches. See, a panini press can cost anywhere from $200-$thousands. And they only do one job. Sure, for a restaurant exclusively making panini sandwiches, that might make sense; but for me, in my home, I'd rather spend $30 for something smaller and almost as effective. Plus, most people out there don't have a panini press, but I think 90% of Americans have a George Foreman stuffed back in the cupboard (right next to that juicer your spouse gave you that you used once and decided it wasn't worth 3 hours of cleaning to drink 2 oz of orange rind... sorry for the space-hogger, babe). Check it.

A meal doesn't get easier than this, trust me. For our sandwiches we used whole wheat sandwich thins. They're basically really thin hamburger buns, and they're delicious. A healthy alternative, too.

turkey/cheese/banana peppers - plus tomato - minus tomato/plus turkey pepperoni

Put whatever you want on them. I don't usually put sauce on mine because the ingredients steam a little and the cheese melts and it kinda creates its own sauce. Simply put on the top bun, stick in your Foreman grill and press it down. It takes about 5 minutes to cook up, and it's oh-so good. 

But what about a side dish? Well, I'm gonna let you all in on a little secret. See, we have a deep fryer. But it's a waste of time and effort in most cases. Not to mention all of the oil it requires, and all of the oil it transfers into your food. Tasty maybe, but not good for you. So we have a better alternative to making french fries, and once you start you'll never look back. Check it.

The most important step in making crispy oven fries is preheating the pan. Do Not Forget This Step! Turn your oven to 450, and stick your baking sheet right inside while it preheats. Once it reaches 450, leave the pan in for a few minutes. A hot pan will keep your potatoes from sticking. This same technique works with other foods.

While the pan is preheating, prep your potatoes. We used sweet potatoes (actual sweet potatoes, not yams- although yams would work too), but this recipe works best with a good ol' russet potato (that's my Idaho accent coming through- yes, I'm from Idaho). If you're using sweet potatoes or yams, you'll probably want to peel them first. Russets, I like to leave the skin on.

my lovely assistant, cutting the potatoes

Next step, rinse. This step isn't such a big deal for sweet potatoes or yams, but for russet potatoes it's crucial. Russet potatoes have a lot of starch. When a starch is introduced to heat, it turns into gelatin (that's why corn starch is used to thicken soups). So if you don't rinse your potatoes, the starch on the outside will make the fries pretty gummy. Rinsing them will make sure they're crispy. Sweet potatoes/yams have less starch, so this step isn't as crucial. But we did it anyway. 

rinsing fries...obviously...

Next, pat the potatoes dry with paper towels, put in a zip-top bag and add a little cooking oil. Pinch of salt and toss to coat. You can add other seasonings too. For sweet potatoes we like curry powder.

we use a canola/olive blend to cook. don't use solid olive oil- it'll burn

Take your pan out of the oven and place your fries right on it. They'll hiss at you, which they should. Spread them evenly and put back in the oven to cook at 450-475 until the tops and edges get brown spots (sweet potatoes/yams will get black spots- more sugar content).

you can't hear it, but trust me, they're hissing

That's it. So simple, and much lower oil content than deep-fried. Pair the panini and fries with a fresh salad and you're good to go. So much flavor, so much color, and so much more healthy than a burger and traditional fries. I promise it's easy and you'll be surprised how good it turns out. What would you put in your panini?

you know you want to...

Enjoy!

Crafty/Toiletry/Card hiding--BASKET Giveaway winner!!

We had some good laughs reading through all of the things you guys would put in the giveaway basket.  I didn't realize how many chocolate loving, snake charming, innovative people we were reaching.  Although, I am pretty sure NO ONE is getting an umbrella or dirty laundry into this thing--we appreciate your effort in making sure we had a good chuckle over the past few days.  And now, for the winner {envelope please}...MAMA P (!!), who would stash all of her daughter's little toys in it when company drops in.  Congrats Mama P!  We have that problem ourselves. You can read all about our drastic efforts to fix that here.  And for all you 125 (plus those that entered after the giveaway closed) people that didn't win, wipe away those tears.  There's no crying in giveaways....especially since we'll have another one for you in no time.

Psst...Chris made something absolutely delish last night, and he promises to spill all later today.  Stay tuned.

Andi's Dilemma

Isn't it so fun checkin' out other people's houses and getting ideas for your own? I hope you have taken away lots of notes from Meagan and Jenessa's decor dilemmas because, although their mood boards were for specific rooms in their homes, they can be adapted for anyone's space. This week's reader redo is no exception--and get this, we're going international! My gorgeous little sister, Andi, and her husband, Rodrigo (Rory), live in Monterrey, Mexico.

They don't have access to a million and one home decor stores down there like we do in the states, so I won't tease her with a mood board--this dilemma may be best solved by using what she already has and rearranging--at least that's what I am gonna shoot for. Here's what she has to say:

We dont have thrift stores, Target, Ikea, WalMart is such a highclass luxury store here, its hilarious. They dont even have everything we have in the states, and its so overpriced. Rich people go to WalMart. I do have a Pier 1 Imports inside a SEARS. Again, its a section of the floor, super over-priced, but, man its like....where can I get home decor? I took these shots last night and have some questions/comments to go with each: Picture 1: Our Aztec calendar, which was an incredible buy for $8 at DI (purchased in Idaho), dominates our whole living room. I love its presence, but it still manages to make our wall look bare. But how could anything else on the wall compete with that? The 2 frames on the wall, next to the red bookcase is kinda what I'm talking about. I like our red bookcase which Rory practically re-made and painted himself. And I love our matted engagements. But our other wall is like a no-touch zone, with our big aztec calendar! Picture 2: Our TV sits low. Obviously a perfect solution would be to have a flat screen hang right underneath our "Love doesn't need a language" sign. The TV stand is from Target, and it was a bad judgment call. Definitely should have bought the taller entertainment "center" Hardly a center. Picture 3: This is our guestroom/office. The office part with desk and NO 27-incher Mac. It is in ruins right now since our computer is being fixed and the desk has clean laundry all over it. Our house came with a mattress, and our neighbor built a wooden frame for us. I got all the bedding at Bed Bath and Beyond in Texas. The wall needs help, I was thinking like antique frames with my photography, I've always had that kind of vision. Bare bare walls. We painted the walls champagne last spring, it used to be blinding white. AND the owners before us used a flourescent light bulb in there! Wowzas! Picture 4: Our bedroom looks sooo shabby! I had no idea, really. I mean, is our 1 picture frame on that wall hung up crooked? Our little decor pillow looks like a reject, left friendless. And our lamp sits on a stool I covered up with a placemat....in a nutshell. Can't wait!

Picture 1

You know what these spaces are suffering from? Proportion. You have small things on big walls and some big things not being used to their maximum potential. You made some very observant and excellent points, so you definitely know you have some problem areas, let's jump right in and address them.

Picture 1: Your living room. It's adorable really. You have great pieces. That aztec calendar was a steal, you have a gorgeous couch and rug, and Rory did a great job on that bold, red bookcase--let's show it off even more! Are you ready for this? Why not turn it on its side and HANG it above your couch where your aztec calendar is? (!!!) I noticed it was backless, so it would be really easy with some L-brackets. Make sure you find some good studs in the wall and/or use anchors when screwing it in. All of the stuff that is currently in the bookcase can DEFINITELY stay there (if it all fits), rotated of course. Also, I want you to take the small lamp from your bedroom and put it in one of the cubbies of the bookcase (preferably near the right side). Make sure it can still reach an outlet because we want it to still be functional--but that other black and white lamp is going to go in the bedroom (we'll get to that in a sec). It was WAY too small for your living room, (Proportions, proportions!) the table it is sitting on, and the other floor lamp it is competing with. Now, you can move the floor lamp to the LEFT side of the couch, by the chaise. Snag those pictures off the wall by the bookcase (we're gonna need them in the bedroom, too!) and move your tiny TV to that wall, where it isn't getting so much attention. Which brings us to...

Picture 2: Wow. If this isn't a problem with proportions, I don't know what is. Luckily, an extremely easy fix now that we already moved the TV to the wall where the bookcase used to be. Grab that Aztec calendar and mount it on this wall, with the red Hernandez sign that was hanging above your bookcase below it. Done. Gorg. Move on.

Picture 3: Okay, I feel like I could make better decisions if I could see the whole room--but from what I can see, some more rearranging will work wonders. Since the bed doesn't have a headboard or footboard, why not put the side of the bed under the window and arrange the pillows like a daybed up against the wall? Right now, with the bed where it is I feel like all I can see is the AC unit. Seriously, it looks like it is a picture hanging above the bed--not good. I think I also see a white chair in there--let's put that in your bedroom in a corner (if it fits). And then on that bare, bare wall--I would love to see two poster-sized images of your best graphic design work hanging side by side. Stick to something with grays or blues to go with the bedding. Poster frames can be really reasonably priced too, but if you can get your hands on some white foam core, they can make for decent "frames" too. (See how I used foam core to frame a painting here.)

Picture 4: This is YOUR sanctuary. It shouldn't be shabby. We're going to use the idea of an art wall like I suggested for Jenessa above your bed. Gather all your frames (excluding the ones that are IN the bookcase) and arrange them in an artistic way. You can get lots of examples of how to do that here. Above the arrangement, hang your "Love doesn't have a language" sign. When all of these frames are together, they won't look so dinky on the wall. You may have noticed I didn't tell you what to do with that end table that your lamp was on in the living room. Hello, new nightstand!! It would fit nicely on the left side of your bed, with that chic black and white lamp on top. (Remove that stool on the right side of your bed now!) I also would like to see the front and center pillow currently on your bed, in the living room--and the red and beige striped one from the living room--in here.

So, there you have it. If you don't have home decor stores, like Andi and Rodrigo, or you are on a tight budget--rearranging can do wonders and make it feel like you have all new stuff. Can't wait to hear/see how things go you guys! Send us some pictures, we would love to see some after shots. Speaking of afters, Meagan's master bedroom redo is in full effect. You go, girl!

Psst...if you have a decor dilemma, send questions and pics to jmarcum1127{at}gmail{dot}com. I'd love to help!

Painting in progress here.

I thought for sure today was the day when I would finally be able to have the picture in my home (specifically, the master bedroom) that I have wanted for so long.  But now, I am not so certain.  I am feeling defeated and tired and frustrated.  I am second-guessing my artistic abilities--it has been SO long since I have tackled oil paints--and I am thiiiiiiissss close to giving up.  Would it be worth it to just wait until I have a wall large enough to house the real thing?  Am I going to see every error when I wake up in the morning?  Both maybes.  But I am at the point, where I can stop and forfeit and find something else to put above our bed, or continue painting--giving it my all--and finish it and hope for the best.  Crossing my fingers (and toes) that the latter pays off.

The ugly duckling of throw pillows.

Today, I took a hideous pillow and I made it absolutely gorgeous.  Swanlike.  Really, it may be my new favorite throw pillow.  And the idea hit me just as I was putting Greta-girl down for her morning nap--which was the perfect time to execute my plan to make one of those expensive and totally posh ruffle pillows.  Now I am here to let you know, you can do it yourself!  I used all of the scraps from those room dividers I made over the weekend (together totaling about 1.5 yards) and one of the ugly pillows that came with our couch (I immediately tossed the pillow into storage when we got the couch, because ew) and my trusty hot glue gun.  

It's pretty simple.  In fact, if you have use of your hands, I'm certain you can do this.  Swirl some hot glue in a nickel-sized circle on the pillow:

Then, twist the fabric and press it against the hot glue:

Repeat, over and over and over again:

But don't forget to admire your progress along the way:

Like I said, I was working with lots of scraps, and this technique is perfect for making those edges disappear.  I eventually worked my way to the back of the pillow and had fabric left, so I just kept going.  But, if you only have enough fabric for one side, just make that one side fantastic--you can only look at one side of a pillow anyway, right?!

You should go make one, like now.  You're gonna love it.  It's definitely given me the push to revamp all of our bedroom pillows (not all ruffled, relax)--although, this one looks stunning all by itself.  Don't you think?

Big Clutter: SOLVED!

I did it!  I finished my very first sewing project.  Thanks to those sewing classes I have been attending on Friday nights, over the weekend I finally felt confident enough to sew something without my instructor holding my hand (figuratively of course, someone holding your hand while sewing would be quite challenging).  I purchased six yards of fabric on Friday night, after my class, and started on room dividers for the bedroom, because heaven knows I don't think I could sleep another night in this clutter nest:

Before shot

After.   (Taken at night, don't worry, the window still sheds plenty of light in here)

Bye Bye, ugly-but-completely-useful elliptical.  See-ya wardrobe with no doors.  You may also recognize the wall decals are off and the carpet is gone.  Doesn't it look so much more peaceful in our bedroom?  The desk is perfectly framed and we're loving the separation of spaces.  I have no business doing a sewing tutorial, and honestly there is no need for a how-to here.  I just hemmed all the sides leaving a 3 inch hem on the tops and bottoms so I could slide in a large dowel on both ends.  The bottom dowels keep the panels weighed down a bit and the top is for easy hanging.  I picked up 4 wooden dowels at Wal-mart for $2 and also a pack of hooks and eyes for less than $1 each for hanging the dividers:

Screwed an eye into each side of the top dowel.

Hung it from a hook screwed into the ceiling.

 Easy-peasy, right?  And as you can see from this picture of the back of a panel--the pattern is quite darling and not showing up in the rest of these pictures.  I originally picked out a bold pattern for these, but I didn't want to draw attention away from the art that's going above our bed, as well as whatever we decide to hang above the desk.  So, it's quiet and neutral from a distance, but has some intrigue once you get closer.

Taken this morning...sun is starting to peek through the window

I am happy with the outcome and Chris is "so proud of his wifey."  I am having so much fun learning how to sew and it is rewarding to actually be able to make something that solves a problem--like, hiding big clutter in the bedroom.  So, what do you think?  Anyone else have use for some room dividers?  (I'd hate to think we are the only ones that have big-clutter objects to hide. )

Ikea "as is" Giveaway!

It's no secret that we are obsessed with Ikea.  But what may be a secret to some is their "as is" section after the showroom...and the market place...and the warehouse--in the front corner of the store.  We visit this section OFTEN and always walk away with a steal and a half.  After all, we can't pass up a handmade basket with a lid for 50% off just because it was a display model, right!?  So--we're passing it on to you.  We are going to work together on this once a month, okay?  We get to keep making trips to Ikea and finding these gems and you get to win them.  Do you love it?  You love it.

This month, feast your eyes on the very handmade basket we just talked about:

diameter 5 in; height 6 in

This would look amazing on a shelf above your bed, on a mantle, a desk, a countertop; mix it in to your centerpiece, set it atop a stack of magazines on your bookcase....this is truly a gem and we want someone to love it as much as we do.  

So, lets get down to the 411 on winning this little pretty:

• To enter:  Leave a comment on this post about something you would stash away in this basket.  (Get creative, we love a good laugh!)

• Giveaway closes:  Thursday, January 20th at 9 pm MST

• The winner will be selected using random.org and announced on Friday. Good luck! 

Only one entry per person.  Prize only ships to 48 contiguous states.  (We still love you Alaska and Hawaii).  

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED, 

BUT KEEP CHECKING BACK FOR OUR NEXT ONE.  

(see who won here)

P.F. Changs, P.F. Shmangs

Whenever I hear the word "lettuce wraps" my mind jumps to P.F. Changs. I love P.F. Changs, don't get me wrong. But the problem with a lot of Chinese food places is the salt. Every time I eat something with soy sauce my saliva turns into dust and I feel like I need to get hooked up to an I.V. just to get my fluids back in check.

But I love lettuce wraps. I can't just NOT eat them. What on earth can I do about this situation? BLAM!!! Idea pops in my head. "Who says lettuce wraps have to be Asian?" I mean, we're really just talking about a salad, only packaged differently. 

The lettuce wraps we had this past week, I kid you not, were the BEST lettuce wraps I have ever had in my life. For these particular lettuce wraps, I wanted to keep it fresh. Remember, we're trying to change our eating habits over here, and fresh is the way to go. That being said, my body is still going through withdrawals and I need to get as much flavor out of our foods as I can, or I'm going to snap. So we're going to split our ingredients up, cook some, leave some fresh. Check it.

Cooked ingredients (adjust amounts as needed):

Chicken- 1 piece for 2 people is enough- cut into smallish pieces

Green Bell Pepper- finely chopped

Mushroom- finely chopped (you can use any kind you want- we used cremini)

Onion- finely chopped (we used purple onion, which is mostly used fresh in salads or things like that, but it's what we had and since purple onions are a little sweeter it turned out really good)

Jalapeno- seeded, ribs trimmed, finely chopped (I love the flavor of jalapenos, but I'm not the kind of guy who wants my mouth to be burning every bite. Most of the heat is in the ribs and seeds, so removing that stuff gives a lot of good flavor and the perfect hint of spice- if you have little kids, you can leave this out)

Green pepper, mushroom, jalapeno, purple onion

Put your chicken in a nonstick pan with a little olive oil and salt and pepper (kosher salt, if you have it- if you don't use kosher salt, then you are missing out. it's not much more expensive and it makes a drastic difference. seriously). After the chicken gets cooking a bit, toss the other ingredients in and cook until vegetables are tender. Make sure you keep an eye on them and toss them around a bit so nothing burns.

when chicken gets to this point, add the other stuff

Ok, so while that's cooking you can get your fresh or "uncooked" ingredients ready. Here's what you need:

Iceberg lettuce (you can use other kinds too. I just really like the texture of the iceberg)

Red Bell Pepper (the contrast of the cooked green pepper and the sweet, raw red pepper is really something special)

Tomato

Fresh Basil (if you don't have fresh basil, fresh cilantro would work too. DO NOT substitute for dry herbs- won't be the same)

Cucumber

Green Onion

Blue Cheese (left over from our pork chops last week- if you don't have blue cheese, any kind of feta would work or even crumbled goat cheese, if you're a real food lover)

what I started with for 2 people

For the cooked ingredients, you want to chop them pretty fine because you're basically turning it all into a stuffing, and big pieces are harder to manage. For the fresh ingredients, you still want the pieces to be pretty small, but you can cut them however you want. Thin slices seem to work better imo.

ready to rock

By this time, the chicken and stuff should be cooked so take it off the heat and let is cool down for just a few minutes. To top it, you can use whatever salad dressing you have around or, if you're feeling really daring, make your own vinaigrette. Here's how we made ours:

2 parts olive oil

1 part balsamic vinegar

1/2 part red wine vinegar

1/2 part bbq sauce (blue cheese and smokey bbq flavor are a natural pair- if you're using another cheese, I would substitute the bbq sauce for dijon mustard- a thicker sauce like that will help the dressing emulsify so the oil and vinegars don't separate)

Mix it all together and add a crack of black pepper and a pinch of salt

That's it. Easy, right? Take a leaf of the iceberg and top it with your cooked ingredients, some fresh ingredients and a drizzle of your dressing.

finished product... makes me want to eat it again...

 I hope this gets your mind going a bit. Do you have a favorite salad that you just can't get enough of but your spouse tries to tell you that salad isn't a real meal? Well, turn that salad into lettuce wraps and no one can say "boo." With a meal like this, who would complain anyway? Give it a try this week and let us know what you decided to use and how it turned out. We'd love to hear about it.

Jenessa's Dilemma

Ready for another re-do?  Woooohooooo!  Jenessa and Spencer live in Rexburg, ID and are parents to two little girls (they are A-DORABLE!).  They are renters and are in need of a little living room inspiration.  Here's her plea:

Hey Jules! So I took a few different pictures so you can get the full effect. We can't really rearrange much because our computer desk and entertainment center pretty much have to stay where they are because of the internet and satellite hookups. The coffee table is also in a kindof stupid place. I had it in front of the couch and moved it for some reason and I'll probably be moving it back. Right now the pillows on the couch are tan and brown. I would love more colorful stuff, but I just can't figure out what other colors would go with our couches. I don't have any specific color scheme or anything in mind. I just want it to look good and be functional! Anyway, it's basically just the two walls, but one of them is that horrible wood panels... so good luck! hahaha I can't wait to see what you come up with! Have a good day!

Oooooh!  The wood paneling!  If you weren't renters, I would say paint that thing a crisp white in a jiffy--but since that isn't an option, I got other plans for you, little missy.  The good news is, your couches are lovely, you have a huge window and a large living room to work with.  However, the room is in serious need of light and color.  I am real excited about the things I came up with, and I hope you are too!  But before we get to the mood board, there are two things that you need to tackle first.  The coffee table and the entertainment center.  These are expensive items to re-buy, so to be easy on the wallet paint them and they'll be like new.  True, you can't paint the paneling, but to lighten things up in the room, paint the coffee table and entertainment center white.  (There is a great tutorial on painting furniture that I have used, here).  Painting those two things white will automatically liven and brighten up your room and set the stage for the rest of the mood board. 

Speaking of: 

EEEEeeee! Right?  Let's jump right in.

1.  Art wall/gallery wall/salon grouping...It isn't really an object to buy or scout out, but an idea for your existing frames.  And girl, you got a lot of them.  I am referring to more than just the five beautiful pictures of your family that are hanging in a grouping--although, that is a start.  I want you to grab all of those frames on the entertainment center (ALL of them) and that one on the right side of the window--as well as any others that I can't see, even move that family plaque over--and hang them in a grouping above the couch where you currently have five frames.  It's an incredibly hot trend right now and perfect for you and all your frames.  (For more examples on how to hang, check this out.)

2.   This carpet, my friend, is a must have for you.  Your floor is so open and big, you need a great area rug to tie things together (If you are not sure about the rug on rug thing, read this).  It's the perfect size for anchoring your freshly painted white coffee table and it is under $40.  Go.  now.

3.  You know, I don't mind your current throw pillows.  I especially like the ones with the sunburst design going on--but you're right, we need some color in there.  So, keep your existing ones but add some like these found here, here and here.  Scout out a nice, white textured pillow; one with warm blues and greens, and one with a hint of red for a pop (don't you love the little birdies?).

4.  Let's talk about storage.  You need some!  To have the good-looking and functional living room that you have been dreaming of, you need some storage to tuck things away.  This lovely basket is currently on sale for less than $14.  Two of these slid under your crisp, white coffee table atop that lovely area rug would be money, Jenessa.  Money!  Throw in the diapers, wipes, toys, magazines--whatever--and slide it back under the coffee table so that you can actually enjoy the look of your space without sacrificing the function that needs to happen with kids in the house.

5.  With a room like this, we have to add color wherever we can.  Curtains are a great place to do that.  A light and airy, patterned curtain like this will not only allow some light in, but also contribute to the color-crises.  I also noticed you had a great sized curtain rod--but, I'd like to see it in a silver like this one.   To save some moolah, why not make it silver yourself on the cheap?

6.  Another storage solution would be fabric bins like this.  They are incredibly affordable, functional and clean-looking.  De-clutter the desk and the entertainment center and organize it into as many of these containers as needed and then slide them onto the shelf....oh yeah....

7. Shelving!  We need to disguise that paneling as much as possible.  Let's face it, it's dark and not that attractive.  White shelves on either side of the entertainment center would do wonders for the space.  You can get your hubby to take a trip to Home Depot and make you some shelves, you can scout out craigslist for some bookshelves, or you can buy some.  Whatever you decide, they should be white to match your entertainment center and shed some light on that wall and they should match each other on either side.  Another tip would be to place some lighting in the bookcases on each side for extra brightness.

8.  Once you have shelving in place, you can sporadically place the bins (see 6) on them and decorate the rest with other lovely things like this, this, this and this.  Choose a white ceramic animal, something with blues, a small plant (the others in your living room should go--they are just making it feel more cluttered), and if you choose to display pictures, find  (or DIY!) a funky frame to do it.  Don't be afraid to display nice things out of reach of the little ones, this is your living room too and it should reflect that.

9. On the right side of the curtains, place a beautiful piece of art.  Something with red in it, like these poppies.  Ross always has great large canvases, so check there to save some money, or maybe you know a local artist you could commission to do this very piece for a fraction of the cost.   Make sure it is large so it fills a good portion of the space.

10.  Lastly, get that desk organized.  The things that need to stay on the desk, as oppose that you can stash in your storage bins, stack neatly in folders. Let's not draw attention away from your new gorgeous living room.

So, there she is!  Your thoughts?  I am so excited for you Jenessa.  I hope you take some of these ideas and SPRINT with them.  I wish I could spend a couple days and take a road trip and help you out, but as that isn't possible--I would love to see progress pictures as you go!

If there is someone else that is in need of inspiration for there space, e-mail some pictures to jmarcum1127 {at} gmail {dot} com.  I'd love to help!