StyleBurb

Outdoor Winter Urn

2011-12-11T09:44:00.000-08:00

It's been a while!

I haven't been kidnapped by aliens...

or living it up in Las Vegas...

I've just been busy with the day-to-day life of three kids and a dog, volunteer commitments - and now Christmas. Nothing terribly exciting has happened (unless you count Awesome Possum's braces as exciting - I'm sure he doesn't).

I couldn't stand seeing the Hallowe'en post on my blog one day longer, so I thought I would show you my big decorating accomplishment for the last few weeks ;)

Every year my dad brings me an assortment of dogwood, pine, fir and cedar boughs to decorate my outdoor urn. This year I kicked it up a notch and asked for some birch logs. They seem to be the trendy thing to add to outdoor displays this year...

... and I'm nothing if not trendy!

My dad always manages to get some branches with pine-cones. I'm not sure what the red berries are - but they are real and they look great.

I still have to add the twinkle lights and since I've got some free time today I might even add some ribbon...

... Las Vegas and the aliens can wait.

Yes - We're THAT House

2011-10-29T12:09:00.000-07:00

When it comes to Halloween, we don't do 'cute'. As a matter of fact, we pride ourselves on being the scariest house on the block...

... you know...

The Addams Family House

... THAT house...

the one that frightens away more than a few trick-or-treaters. Our 'decorations' are decidedly geared towards braver souls.

Inspired by those old movies that terrified the daylights out of me, this Halloween post will be presented to you in black and white.

Thank you, Mr. Hitchcock.

The House From Psycho

This skeleton hangs in the tree above the sidewalk in front of our house. We put a few mini spot lights in the branches around him, just to make sure he's seen and appreciated!

When our kids were younger, they never trick-or-treated at houses like ours. Once Awesome Possum turned 9, he couldn't wait to make Halloween dummies with his dad.

This gangsta dude has been with us for a few years. He never fails to surprise me - even in daylight.

'Granny' is a Purplicious creation.

What happened here?

Rattley bones...

Our graveyard...

Who's over there... in the background?

I guess the marriage didn't end well.

On Halloween night, our front porch goes from creepy...

... to creeptacular ...

I think there's a rat on the roof!

Did it make you scream?

Happy Halloween!

Creepy Curb Appeal

2011-10-20T17:19:00.000-07:00

We gave the house some creepy curb appeal this week. The big night is a little over a week away and we're getting into the spirit of Halloween!

We freakified the front lawn (which I'll show you in my next post), and spooked up the main entrance of our house.

There is something a little bit chilling about black birds this time of the year.

I don't think I've ever recovered from watching The Birds, and sometimes I still startle myself when I see these ravens sitting in their nest of twigs (an idea I got from a decorating magazine a few years ago).

We don't spend much money on our Halloween decorations - most of them are homemade and reused from year to year.


Are you lookin' at me?

Once I toss the dead annuals from the urn, I gather some sticks, secure them in the soil, and then layer smaller twigs on top. I perch a pair dollar store ravens on the sturdier sticks, and it's as easy as that.

The nest is a cheap and easy Halloween idea. It takes about 5 minutes to put together, costs under $5.00, and it gets a bunch of compliments!

I love it when Mr. StyleBurb gets into a spray painting frame of mind! He suggested giving our tired-looking gold Christmas wreaths....

... the Halloween treatment.

The wreaths look perfectly eery now that they're painted black.

Pumpkins and corn stalks finish off this part of our Halloween house. I can't wait to show you who has been creeping around the front lawn!

Autumn In A Jar

2011-10-14T15:57:00.000-07:00

This is another fall display I really should have photographed earlier...

... because those adorable little white pumpkins don't enjoy being trapped in their glass prison. (I have cleverly positioned the pumpkins so that you can't see the brownish spots.)

This is the first time I've put these mini white pumpkins in my apothecary jar.

Live and learn.

It was very easy to put together this fall display. I used leftover Christmas nuts (I can't believe I kept them!) for the base...

... added in pine cones, the little white pumpkins, and fake fall foliage.

The great thing about faux plants and leaves is that they don't start rotting just when you want to take some attractive pictures.

The apothecary jar sits on this table in my front hall and I have fun changing it for the seasons.

Since Halloween is right around the corner I don't mind changing the display a bit early. I have some bones and rats that I can use as filler.

Fake bones and fake rats, that is.

Neutral Fall Mantel

2011-10-10T15:09:00.000-07:00

I planned to show off my neutral fall mantel about two weeks ago....

.... but sometimes the best laid plans of mice and men often get put on the back burner because life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.

Or something like that!

Usually I'm all about color when it comes to decorating for autumn. I had given the family room a mini makeover in the spring by adding lots of white accessories, so this year I felt I needed to keep the mantel neutral and natural.

I began by filling an old brass and glass vase with some branches cut from the crab apple tree in my front yard. I bought the vase 20 years ago from Bombay Company. Thank goodness I rarely throw out anything that's home decor related. I knew I'd need it one day.

Hmmm... I think I may have heard that exact phrase used on Hoarders once or twice.

I copied Pottery Barn's styling trick of turning hardcover books around so that you can see the pages and topped the stack of books with a few small brass pumpkins.

I kept the existing hurricane lanterns and flanked each end of the mantel with a faux/fake white pumpkin...

... and filled in the blank spots with some of those cinnamon scented pine cones.

Once October rolls around I like the house to have a full and layered look. Layers in the fall are like a piece of pumpkin pie....

.... good on its own, but even better with whipped cream!

How Do You Like Them Apples!

2011-09-18T16:11:00.000-07:00

I really enjoy the fall season, but its arrival always seems to sneak up and bite me in the behind. One day it's a balmy summer afternoon and the next it's downright chilly and there's frost on the pumpkins....

... not that I've got a pumpkin patch. Or even a pumpkin at this point.

I've been a bit slow to get my fall decorating groove on - just haven't felt the motivation. But yesterday's visit to the apple orchard was just the thing I needed to get my head around the fact that fall officially begins in just a few days.

We're lucky to have a number of apple orchards within a 15 minute drive, and yesterday was perfect apple picking weather.

McIntosh were on the left, Delicious were on the right.

The trees were full of apples, and we barely had to reach for them.

... a little bit closer...

... got it!

McIntosh apple 'before'

McIntosh apple 'after'

Can you believe that there are 7,500 different apple varieties world-wide.

We came home with dozens and dozens of apples and a few other goodies.

The candy apple got eaten; the pumpkin pie and caramel apple pie are gone now too. The caramel apple pie was so good!

For a little while the apples will have a decorative role in the house. I knew this bowl would be perfect for apples in the fall!

I guess I'll be making apple muffins, apple crisp, apple pies, apple oatmeal, apple butter, apple pancakes etc. over the next few weeks!

How do you like your apples - straight up, baked in a pie, diced into muffins or covered with red candy coating?

As of yesterday, my new favorite way to eat apples is baked in a pie with caramel filling!

Happy New Year!

2011-09-05T16:58:00.000-07:00

Happy New Year!

I know... it's not January 1st, but that date has always seemed like a false new year to me.

To me, the day after Labor Day - when summer unofficially ends, and people head back to school or ease back into their routines - is the real New Year.

Tomorrow is my kids' first day back at school after nine weeks of summer vacation. The start of a new school year brings a fresh sense of potential, optimism, and the wonder of what's to come. The beginning of fall is all about New: new grades, new beginnings, new teachers, new friendships, new clothes, new pencils....

When you're a kid, "back to school" can be the ultimate do-over.

As much as I'm excited for my kids, and looking forward to getting back into a routine, I think many parents will agree that this is a bittersweet time of the year. A new grade is a reminder that our children are a little bit closer to growing up and leaving home. That's the whole idea of parenting, after all.

Confession: I'm the mom who got all teary when I dropped my little kids off on their first day of kindergarten.

I've never felt like crying on the January 1st New Year's holiday (well, at least, not for the same reasons as the post Labor Day new year), so this must be a special season!

Whether you are headed back to school, or back to routine, I wish you health and happiness for this new year!

Brownie Pops For Cheaters

2011-08-31T16:33:00.000-07:00

I fully expected this post to be titled "Brownie Pop Fail", but I had to come up with a new title when my Brownie Pops actually looked pretty cute, and more importantly, didn't fall off the stick.

I can't believe I made these!

I've been fascinated by these adorable little desserts on a stick for a long time; I mean Martha Stewart makes Cake Pops.

Cake Pops are even available at Starbucks. Starbucks sells these little guys for almost $2.00 each (including tax), which must mean they're pretty special and difficult to make. Right?

So I felt that the odds were stacked against me when I decided, on a whim, to make my own - with Purplicious as my trusty sidekick.

I visited Bakerella and Martha Stewart for instructions and tips on making Cake Pops.

Since I was convinced that my Brownie/Cake Pops were going to be a disaster, I decided to cheat and use store bought brownies and canned Betty Crocker frosting as the basis for my treats... that's just how I roll.

This is how I made easy (but not quick) Brownie Pops:

I tossed half of a 1.34 kg (3 lbs) container of Two Bite Brownies (the kind you find at Costco) into my food processor and whizzed them until they were crumbled.

In a separate bowl I added about half a container of Betty Crocker chocolate frosting to the crumbled brownies and mixed them together until the texture resembled truffles.

Next we rolled the mixture into balls and placed them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

I dipped a candy stick into melted chocolate and stuck that end into the ball. Everything went into the freezer for a couple of hours while Purplicious went for a swim.

Decorating was messy, but fun in a very frustrating sort of way.

Purplicious helping out.

I melted some good quality chocolate coating and spooned it over the frozen Brownie Pops. Because the pops were cold I was hoping that the chocolate would set fairly quickly, but it dripped when we were adding the toppings. That was messy!

Once all the Brownie Pops were chocolate coated and decorated I put them back in the freezer for an hour or so to set.

I didn't have anything prepared to stand them upright, but I guarantee you those little brownie balls didn't move.

I'm very proud of my chocolate and white marbled Brownie Pop.

Our favorite combinations were white chocolate coated with coconut and dark chocolate coated with peanuts.

I made them again last weekend (using the same shortcuts) for my sister-in-law's birthday. I was concerned that maybe I had beginner's luck with my first batch and that her guests would end up with melted chocolate in their laps. I almost melted with relief once I knew they turned out.

Mr. StyleBurb made a grown-up version of these Brownie Pops by adding some rum into the mix....

... now that was a good treat!

Killing Weeds

2011-08-22T12:58:00.000-07:00

We just returned from another fabulous, sun-filled week at the beach.

While we've been busy having fun, so too have the weeds growing in between the bricks of my interlocking walkway. It puzzles me that only a few feet away the grass is singed from heat and drought and yet these blasted weeds are growing as though they've been doused with top grade fertilizer.

These weeds have really gotten out of hand!

Truth be told, I don't mind the singed grass all that much because it means I don't have to mow the lawn.

But I definitely mind the weeds.

Our area has banned the cosmetic use of herbicides and pesticides, so we have to use natural ways to get rid of the weeds. I was complaining to my friend about my weed/interlocking problem and she gave me the greatest, easiest tip on how to get rid of them:

Boiling water

That's it, that's all!

These weeds were doused with boiling water about 2 hours ago:

After a few days the weeds were dead. I did my best to shoo away any ants before I poured the hot water.

Of course, you shouldn't try to kill the weeds in your flower beds or veggie garden using this method, but it definitely works on brick and concrete.

Weeds a few days after the boiling water treatment.

At this point you can just brush the dead weeds away.

It's better if you don't let the weeds get established in the first place, as I have done, but some things are more important than weeds!

Purpose Of Your Trip, Ma'am? Shopping.

2011-08-09T06:25:00.000-07:00

My 15 year old daughter 'Audrey' has a passion for fashion and has been desperate to go shopping in the U.S.. 'Purplicious' has never met a mall she didn't like and supported her big sister's pleas to do some cross-border shopping.

Eventually the girls wore us down, and we decided to spend our August long weekend shopping in Erie, Pennsylvania where the taxes are low, the selection is great and the stores are new and different. When we weren't shopping, we were either sleeping or eating. By noon Monday I didn't think we could carry another shopping bag or walk a step farther. So we headed home.

Here is our van in the middle of being loaded up for our drive back to Canada...

Mostly we shopped for clothing, cosmetics and back-to-school supplies. I bought some cute things for the house .... of course!

These are just a few of my treasures:

I saw this ruffled bowl at a store in Canada a few months ago, so wasn't I delighted to find it at a lower price and on sale! Won't it look great filled with apples or little clementines?

I seem to be subscribing to the "you can never have enough pretty plates" decorating philosophy and found these sweet plates.

This pillow practically popped off the shelf at me! You all know how much I love red and this pillow will look terrific on my bench in the foyer once fall comes ... and you know it's coming...

Even though I'm not anxious for summer to end, it's funny how a single red pillow can get a person excited about decorating for fall....

An Award

2011-08-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

The last time I got an award was on Mother's Day about eight years ago. 'Awesome Possum' gave me The Best Mom In The World award when he was in kindergarten and declared that my best skill was unclogging the toilet.

I don't think I've ever laughed so hard!

I have to explain...

When my son was a small boy he was fascinated by water and loved watching the toilet flush. He often tried flushing small toys as well as toilet paper.... which explains the need for the plunger!

Anyway, I received another award recently, which I am very delighted about. My friend Terry from These Peas Taste Funny gave me the Liebster Blog Award.

I did a little research to find out more about the Liebster Award and it seems to have originated in Germany and is meant to highlight blogs you enjoy that have less than 300 followers. When you accept the award you agree to pass it along to 3 other bloggers.

I'm not sure if this is part of the original award, but after accepting you then tell 7 things about yourself that others in the blogging community may not know.

It's next to impossible to choose which blogs to give the Liebster Award to since there are so many wonderful blogs in existence. Also, there is no obligation to accept this award, so for the blogs I'm about to mention, if this isn't your thing that's completely fine.

Here are three of my favorite places to visit:

Andrea from Our Blue Front Door

Dee from A Lapin Life &

Ange from The Blooming Hydrangea

I hope you will visit these blogs and enjoy them as much as I do.

Seven Things About Myself

1. I love celebrity gossip, so if you ever want to chat about what's going on in Hollywood, then I'm your girl.

2. I have a horrible sense of direction and almost always confuse my left and right. When I was 16 my driving instructor threatened to write an R and an L on my hands!

3. Since I was a teenager in the '80s, I am really good at doing the 'moonwalk' made famous by Michael Jackson.

4. I get dizzy very easily (if I turn around twice I feel nauseated) and HATE roller coasters.

5. I have been a vegetarian for 20 years. The reasons why are complicated, but I love leather furniture, handbags and shoes.

6. I taught grades 1- 4 before I had my family, and yet I can't seem to help my kids with their math homework!

7. I am probably the last person on Earth who still has a phone that doesn't text and comes with a pull-up antenna. I'm planning to upgrade soon....

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

2011-08-02T16:30:00.000-07:00

I dreamed about my blog the other night, which, I think, is my subconscious telling me that it's time to write a new post. I am having the best summer and was shocked to see that it's August already. Time flies when you're having fun!

We took our annual camping trip to the beach earlier in July. We've been staying at the same campground resort for years, and this year Mother Nature decided to give us a week long bear hug because the weather was fabulous!

Our home away from home on these camping trips is a pop-up tent trailer tricked out with air conditioning, water and electrical service, a mini fridge and some very clever storage compartments. Some people might call our camping style "glamping" - a combination of 'camping' and 'glamorous'.

I tend to think of our pop-up tent trailer as the grown-up version of a Barbie camper. Except that Barbie would have a much cuter camping wardrobe than me and I'm pretty sure she wouldn't be caught dead wandering the streets of the closest town in search of french fries - while wearing a pair of Birkenstocks.

Fries at the beach are the best!

We store the camper in our garage during the off-season. Bringing it out when summer arrives is a test of our nerves and our twenty-one years of marriage! The trailer was bought four years ago and unfortunately, we relied on the salesperson's measuring skills before we made the sale final.

We were expecting the camper to be eight inches narrower than it actually is. Boy were we surprised when we tried to put it in the garage that first time! There is barely an inch on either side of the trailer to fit through the garage doors.

Ah well. All's well that ends well, and once we're all set up, it's extremely easy to forget all your cares.

We spend our days at the beach and our evenings around the campfire. At night we have a dry and comfortable place to sleep.

Harry loves camping, too. He gets pretty tuckered out from chasing seagulls.

We wake up most mornings to the sound of seagulls squawking, so when Harry gives them a hard time, I consider it a doggie form of payback.

We have all the comforts of home - even a little mirror so that I can put on some mascara and lipstick and blow dry my hair...

... because Barbie would like that!

Now, if only I could decorate the camper with pink flower decals and purple fun fur, Barbie and Ken might join us for s'mores around the campfire one evening.

I wonder where I can find Barbie-sized Birkenstocks...

Farmers' Market Gazpacho

2011-07-07T19:36:00.000-07:00

The weather on the weekend was magnificent and I finally made a trip to the Farmers' Market. The local strawberries are in season and they taste so good!

This is probably the last week for local asparagus, and now tomatoes, snap peas and zucchini are ready.

Soon the rest of the fruit and vegetables grown here will ripen, and I can't wait. In the meantime, the Farmers' Market had some hot house produce and local-ish veggies for sale.

I bought everything I need to make gazpacho - which is a summer time favorite at our house.

Mr. StyleBurb and I love my gazpacho recipe so much that when our 20 year old food processor broke, we replaced it right away with this new fancier version.

Over the years I have tweaked my recipe for gazpacho until it tasted perfect to us. The aroma of all the fresh veggies is like summer in bowl!

My recipe is really simple.

- whiz 3 cloves of garlic and one small red onion in your food processor
- add in 2 ripe tomatoes, 1 red pepper and 1 green pepper (seeds removed) and 1 large cucumber
- pulse several times to chop everything into bits
- add 1/4 cup of olive oil and 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar and about 1 cup of vegetable cocktail
- add 1 tsp. of salt and 1 tsp. of fresh black pepper

- pulse until you have the consistency you like
- add more vegetable cocktail if you want a thinner soup

Chill the soup for several hours before serving. I like to top our gazpacho with croutons and I always serve Tabasco sauce on the side. Mr. StyleBurb likes it spicy!

Delicious!

School's Out For Summer: Meet The Kids

2011-07-03T08:35:00.000-07:00

My thanks to Alice Cooper for help with the title ;)

Thursday was our first day of summer vacation. I've added full time chauffeur, recreation director, camp counselor, lifeguard and police officer to my official job title of 'Stay-At-Home-Mom'.

I think an introduction of my kids is in order, since I'll probably mention them a bit more over the next two months. My kids asked me not to use their real names or photos on my blog...

...so I gave them a little summertime homework assignment: choose a blog alias and I'll find a picture of an actor or actress whom they resemble.

Audrey (age 15) is my oldest daughter.

Audrey is our Thinker. She's a gentle and sweet girl who is responsible and dependable. Audrey just finished her first year of high school with spectacular results. She plays piano and flute and is learning the trumpet over the summer. Audrey has her Blackberry with her at all times so she can be in constant communication with her friends to plan trips to Starbucks, the movies and malls. Thankfully, she's very tolerant of her younger brother and sister!

Awesome Possum (age 13) is my son.

Awesome Possum is our Comedian/Inventor. His yearbook signature page was filled with comments from his friends about how funny he is and that he's always willing to help out. A.P. is bright and witty and has a very strong sense of what's fair and just. He has a section in the basement where he can modify electronics and test out his inventions. Of course, Awesome Possum loves computer games. He builds virtual cities, houses and ''stuff". I really don't understand what he does; it all seems very technical and complicated.

Purplicious (age 9) is my youngest daughter.

*remember, they choose these monikers themselves.

Purplicious is our Artist. She's creative and girlie and loves art, crafts, baking, shopping and fashion. It's not uncommon for her to have three wardrobe changes in one afternoon. Her lip gloss collection numbers close to fifty. Purplicious is extremely chatty and inquisitive. Mr. StyleBurb once tried to count how many questions she asked in 10 minutes, but he lost count. Purplicious is very good-hearted and has a lot of empathy for people and animals.

Summers at our house are busy, loud and messy- there's never a dull moment!

Inside Out: My Backyard Deck

2011-06-27T08:50:00.000-07:00

I've always loved the idea of making your outdoor deck or patio feel like a room inside your house. At the same time, our summers are so short, that I'm all about easy and fuss-free living from June to September. When we have lunch or dinner outside, I set up the food and plates buffet-style on the kitchen counter where we make up our plates and carry them out to the deck.

This is where we spend a good deal of time in the warmer months.

I bought the outdoor carpet last summer and was happily surprised at how it anchored the furniture and brought us a little closer to making the deck feel like an actual room.

The cushions on this cozy little bench under the pergola are new this year. I haven't bothered with cushions until now because the chairs are comfortable- even though they may not look like it, and, I think I would be horrible at remembering to bring them inside during bad weather. We'll see how it goes!

I've seen many of these mason jars turned candle holders on a number of blogs, but this particular version is inspired by one from The Inspired Room. Thank you for the wonderful idea, Melissa.

A group of three mason jars placed on a wicker tray makes a nice summery centerpiece. So far I have only seen the candle light at dusk. I don't sit outside when it's really dark because I'm terrified of bats- and no amount of rational explanations have cured it!

Moving on...

I love ferns and tucked this plant stand in one corner of the deck.

I have another little seating area on the lawn. I used to have a bench here, but it fell apart last year. The two chairs are more practical because they can be brought onto the deck when we need more seating.

This is a nice sunny spot, and it's relaxing to sit here with a trashy summer novel and have tea- or something cold from the fridge.

Another one of my painted pots.

That's it for the main deck- I just have to show you one final picture of my peonies. This will be the last one because the heavy rain that fell last week took all the petals off... at least I have the pictures!

We're ready for summer- I hope the weather forecast is good!

I'm joining Amanda's party this week...

Painted Pots

2011-06-22T16:57:00.000-07:00

Last week while Mr. StyleBurb sanded and re-stained our back deck,

I dragged out my spray paint booth to give our mismatched flower pots a fresh look for summer.

I know... you want one too!

Our flower pots were a mixture of colors and styles- some plastic and some terra cotta. I decided that the best thing would be to unify them with a few coats of soft black paint. We have black outdoor furniture and I love the way black looks with our taupe deck stain. I used Rust-oleum's oil rubbed bronze spray paint that says it can be used on "wood, metal, plastic, masonry... and more."

Clearly I didn't plan to paint our flower pots when I put annuals in this big planter a month ago!

Our flowers had to spend an afternoon covered up with a garbage bag.

But everything worked out ok, and I think the planter looks very sharp!

I've had this large terra cotta pot in my garage for years.

Now it's holding my tomato plant. I even have tomatoes!

Every year we buy hanging baskets from the garden center and every year the plastic pots are different colors and shapes. We have quite a collection.

I removed the hanging apparatus, wiped them down and spray painted a few of these plastic pots as well.

I didn't prime anything I painted- I barely cleaned off the cobwebs- and I have no idea how long the paint finish will last, but I'm really pleased with how they look right now.

This green plastic pot won't make it through another summer- there's a hole in the back...

...but it looks better black, too. I wish my flowers looked a little healthier. I'm hoping they'll fill in and hide the green rim.

I bought some double bloom pink impatiens that needed to be re-potted, so I bought a few of these little cheapy guys at the dollar store.

I spray painted them gloss white and hot glued on some cute lady bug buttons I found at Michaels.

Again, I don't know what is going on with my flowers- they look a little sick.

If they don't start looking prettier soon, I'm going to spray paint them as well!

I really want to show you how my deck looks, so I'm working on that post next.

Dolly's Busting Out All Over!

2011-06-16T16:37:00.000-07:00

Peonies are sometimes referred to as the Dolly Parton of the garden

Today is a great day in my garden- the peonies are blooming! I haven't stopped admiring them or sticking my nose in the middle of the largest bloom for good long sniffs.

I may have even lovingly petted the petals a few times!

I have heard that peonies don't like to be moved, so I was expecting them to sulk for a few years before blooming. (I decided to relocate them to sunnier spot in the garden last fall)....

...but 'Dolly' has not disappointed me.

I think it might be a few more years until we get to this point....

... but for now I'm thrilled to be able to stop and smell the peonies!

Fancy Salad

2011-06-12T10:39:00.000-07:00

The other day, one of my favorite bloggers, Melissa, from Melissa's Heart and Home showed us a couple of salads that she enjoys in the summer. They looked so delicious that I decided to show you my favorite summer lunch. My daughter called this a 'Fancy Salad' when I first started making it last summer, and the name has stuck.

I use a premixed medley of baby lettuces and crucifer leaves and then pile on blueberries, strawberries, mandarin oranges, sunflower seeds and sliced almonds. Sometimes I add a chopped hard boiled egg.

My favorite dressing for this type of salad is Renee's Sweet Onion vinaigrette (I should caution you that this dressing is a tiny bit 'vinegary'). Since I eat this salad almost every day in the summer, I have probably used 10 bottles of Sweet Onion Vinaigrette since I first discovered it! I may even be addicted, because I always need to have a spare bottle in the fridge.

I love to mix sweet and savory flavors - you never know what you're going to get next!

May and June: The Busiest Time of the Year? Discuss

2011-06-08T09:50:00.000-07:00

Are May and June crazy busy months for you like they are for me? There's Mothers' Day, Fathers' Day, multiple birthdays, graduations, school recitals, weddings, showers, the start of soccer and baseball season, tonnes of end-of-year school stuff, gardening....

These are all exciting, fun and wonderful times, but it doesn't leave a person a whole lot of time to get her decorating projects done! Oh well, the projects will wait!

Here's a little round-up of what I've been doing lately.

I've already talked about my youngest daughter's birthday party. I finally found a picture of the girls as they enjoyed the brownie bar I set out for them. We eat a lot of cake in May and June, so the brownie bar was a fun change!

Then, my oldest daughter celebrated her birthday the weekend after. She invited some girl friends over for a sleepover. They watched a few classic 'chick-flicks' and laughed a lot! We decided not to venture through the clouds of perfume to take any pictures!

My son invited some guy friends over last weekend to celebrate his birthday with- you guessed it- a sleepover party as well! Mr. StyleBurb took them to a nearby driving range to hit a few buckets of golf balls first. We had a barbeque for dinner (I think my friends in the U.S. would call it 'grilling') and pancakes and bacon for breakfast the following morning.

One thing I'm learning about teenage boys is that no matter how much food you cook, it will never be enough!!

This is our basement the morning after the party- very tidy, all things considered.

In between all the partying, we spray painted some pots...

pots before getting the 'oil-rubbed' bronze treatment

... planted some containers...

... leveled the interlocking walkway...

.... and sanded the back deck so that it can be restained...

Technically, Mr. StyleBurb and my son did the interlocking and deck sanding, however I stood ready to offer cold drinks and helpful hints! Hopefully, the stain will go on this week, so I can arrange the outdoor furniture and flowers in time for the next few parties. No pressure, though!

So, that's the brief version of what's been going on here- there's still more to do. Yes- we're busier now than we are at Christmas-time!

I know you've all been really busy, too. Tell me, is this your busiest time of the year?

Raspberry Stuffed French Toast

2011-05-30T16:28:00.000-07:00

My mother-in-law has made this Raspberry Stuffed French Toast for family brunches a number of times and everybody thinks it's really delicious.

We ran out of the raspberry sauce, so I served the French toast with fresh berries.

It seems a little bit fussy to make, but it's totally worth the effort! This style of French toast would be great to serve when you want something a little fancy for a special brunch.

My mother-in-law adapted the recipe which comes from a popular restaurant in Lake Worth, Florida called Benny's on the Beach. The restaurant version calls for the French toast to be dipped in granola, instead of sliced almonds. I love it with the sliced almonds!

Mmmm.... lovely toasted almonds!

To start, you'll need....

2 slices thick bread
about 1/2 cup of sliced almonds
1 tbsp. butter
powdered sugar for sprinkling

Filling Ingredients...

1/3 cup sugar
3 oz plain cream cheese
2 cups fresh raspberries
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Mix together the filling ingredients in a food processor or a bowl until well combined.

Batter Ingredients...

2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. honey

Mix together the batter ingredients with a whisk.

Raspberry Sauce...

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 cup raspberries

Cook the water and sugar in a pan over low heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Then add the raspberries and combine in a food processor.

* I've had this French toast both with and without the raspberry sauce and both ways are delicious, so I think you could skip the sauce if you wanted.

Directions...

Spread the filling between the slices of bread to make a sandwich and press the bread together.

Dip both sides of the sandwich in the egg batter.

Dip both sides of the sandwich into a shallow plate filled with the sliced almonds.

Heat a frying pan over medium heat and melt the butter.

Cook the French toast until brown and then flip over and cook the other side.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Drizzle on the raspberry sauce if you decided to make some.

Since everybody cooks a little differently, you may want to play around with the ingredient quantities until you get something you love.

I hope you like it! I ate the leftovers cold!!

Chinese Food and Sushi Cupcakes

2011-05-22T20:11:00.000-07:00

We celebrated my daughter's 9th birthday last week. When I say 'last week', I mean it literally; all of 'last week'!

In our home, "birthdays" mean a Friend Party, a Family Party, a Special Dinner and a Cake on Your Actual Birthday, and Treats for Classmates at School. My three kids and my husband all have birthdays within one month of each other. So, we eat a lot of cake between the middle of May and the middle of June!

This year my daughter asked me to make these adorable little sushi cupcakes to bring to school and share with the kids in her class (she had seen the idea in the Family Fun Crafts for Kids magazine).

These little cupcakes are so easy to make and the kids loved them! You use a cylinder cookie cutter to make the 'sushi' shaped cakes out of pound cake.

Wrap a piece of fruit roll-up around the middle. The fruit roll-up sticks to itself- the same way it does to the grooves in your kids' molars!

Frost with white icing and top with coconut, which looks like white rice.

I diced red jujubes, Swedish fish, gumdrops, and red licorice sliced on the diagonal to resemble real sushi toppings.

A whole class set of sweet sushi cakes fits nicely into a 9x13 pan. Apparently I have requests to make these again!

That took care of the Treats for Classmates at School portion of the birthday, next came the Friend Party.

This year, my daughter wanted to take five friends out for dinner at her favorite Chinese restaurant, and then enjoy a brownie bar and movie back at our house. The restaurant she chose is right out of the movie, A Christmas Story (Ralphie... you'll shoot your eye out)!

The Chinese restaurant from the movie A Christmas Story.

The girls had a wonderful time! They had their own table for six, and my husband and I sat close by at our own table. Their conversations were hysterical!

I made loot bags out of Chinese food takeout cartons which I filled with all kinds of goodies for my daughter's friends.

I stuck hair accessories shaped like chopsticks through the top...

... and then printed takeout menus and taped them to the top of the cartons with a "thanks for coming to my party" message.

Everyone had a fantastic time!

That's the brief version of my nine year old's birthday!

My oldest daughter turns fifteen next week and she's planning a sleepover party with her girlfriends. I'm not sure who's coming, how long they're staying, or how this will impact our neighborhood garage sale in the morning, but I'm sure I'll find out soon.... I hope!

I'm joining Debbie's Newbie Party this week!

Family Room: The Sequel

2011-05-18T17:38:00.000-07:00

In movies, it's not often that the sequel is better than the original, but in the case of my family room, I think you'll agree that this post outshines the original.

I surprised myself the other day. I said something I've never said before, and didn't think I would be able to say for years:

"Wow... I like the family room! I really like it!"

Last month I explained why I've never really liked my family room, and showed some 'before' pictures detailing things I wanted to change. You can read about it here.

Since then, you've seen the family room's new pretty pillows and summer mantel. Here, now, are the rest of the family room updates.

My top priority was to brighten the family room, and, by using a lot of white paint, white accessories and white fabric, I now have a room that looks much more airy and fresh.

The walls have been painted with Benjamin Moore's Ivory White in eggshell. It's a lovely, creamy, warm white.

Mr. StyleBurb and I have long 'debated' the size of the area carpet that used to be in this room. I felt that the carpet was too dark and too small - he thought it was fine....

I removed the carpet when I painted the walls and unfortunately, it is now 'lost' somewhere in the house, so I can't put it back (that's my story and I'm sticking to it). But look how much larger the room seems without the too small rug- and I didn't spend a penny to make this change!

I'm loving the bare wood floors for the summer. I may put an area carpet back when fall comes, but for now, the floors are carpet-free and the room feels cooler- perfect for our hot, humid summers.

I bought a SureFit slipcover for the navy wing chair. Before, the navy chair and green sofas looked uncoordinated. Now, the new white pillows on the sofas and ivory slipcover on the wing chair make the furniture look pulled together.

I think that the slipcovered chair looks casual, relaxed and beachy- a great look for summer!

The single black wall sconce to the left of the sofa irritated me daily because of its anti symmetrical powers...

Here is the wall sconce in my high-tech paint booth.

... but was neutralized with a lick of Heirloom White spray paint.

Painting the wall sconce white makes it blend into the wall, while still providing much needed light.

I placed a framed print and a small table with two white pillar candles and a shell ball underneath the sconce which balances the dresser and lamp on the other end of the sofa. I already owned the shells, pillar candle holders and the framed print- they just needed some spray paint.

Again, I didn't spend a penny!

I lowered the large picture above the sofa by 4 inches so that it doesn't look like it's floating. I also tucked a basket of magazines (a la Pottery Barn) underneath the table.

Continuing with the beachy look, Mr. StyleBurb found a couple of pictures of our kids at the lake last summer. They look wonderful printed in black and white and framed.

The wooden frames are garage sale finds, also painted with Heirloom White spray paint.

To recap, this is what our family room looked like before...

... and after

I've still got my eyes open for a coffee table, but you're probably out of popcorn, so we'll have to wait for the next installment in my Family Room series.

Coming soon to a theater near you...

I will be joining these link parties this week:

Hello Dolly!

2011-05-11T19:15:00.000-07:00

Look who I found in the garden!

Sort of....

I think it's funny that gardeners sometimes call peonies the Dolly Parton of flowers. I do see the similarities.

Both are frilly, frothy, glamorous and.... top heavy!

Peonies are my favorite summer flower; the perfect combination of scent and beauty.

I stubbornly tried to grow a pink peony bush in my north facing backyard. It wasn't happy, and year after year produced only a single bloom.

It was my Charlie Brown peony bush.

I finally got the nerve to transplant the peony bush last fall, even though I knew they don't like to be moved. But, as in real estate, I had the perfect location- a sunny, well drained bed with a view!

It seems that my peonies are happy with their new location. It's nice to meet you, Dolly!

I'm hoping for a brazen display of voluptuous blooms like these:

The peonies will be the star of the garden... I'm willing to accommodate some diva demands to keep them happy!

Summer Mantel, Had Me A Blast

2011-05-08T14:47:00.000-07:00

(Bonus points if you know the reference of my post title!)

The mantel on my fieldstone fireplace got some summer lovin' last week. I decided to keep the look very clean and simple looking.

Inspired by the white seashell fabric on my new pillow covers, I added a pair of sugar starfish, some new/newish white accessories and refreshed the mirror by painting it Heirloom White.

We already had the hurricane lanterns with the seagrass base. I bought them from Pier 1 Imports last year and noticed when I was there recently that they are still available.

I found the new- but old looking- chippy urn from Pottery Barn and filled it with a small shamrock plant.

The urn needed a little bit of height so I turned the covers from two books inside out and slipped them underneath. (Finally, I have a use for Tori Spelling's autobiography.... don't judge... I loved the original 90210 when I was younger!)

My dog, Harry has barked his opinion a number of times during my family room makeover. You may recall that he complained about the BM 'Cable Knit' paint sample I was trying out until I painted it over.

Now, he seems to have a problem with the starfish- for some reason he keeps staring at them! Who does he think he is, Tommy Smythe? This time, I don't care what Harry says, I like them and they're staying.

Painting the mirror white has really lightened the look! Here is my mantel before its summer makeover.

And after.

The pillar candles that used to be on the mantel have been painted Heirloom White and grouped on a tray with the white shell ball. I'll show you where this little arrangement calls home soon.

Click here to see pictures of my family room before the updates.

Clean, fresh and bright!

Did you figure out my post title's song reference?

For those of you who are too young to remember, or not as obsessed with musicals as me, the song is from Grease and the opening number is called Summer Nights. (Raise your speaker volume... it's worth your 3½ minutes!)

I'm linking up to http://debbie-debbiedoos.blogspot.com/

and Emily's Anything Goes Link Party! at Decor Chick

Family Room Update: Pretty Pillows

2011-05-02T20:10:00.000-07:00

Have you ever noticed that the things you aren't very good at are often ones you don't like?

That's not always true.... I have proof!

I love to sing! However, I rarely know the correct lyrics to all the songs I sing, and judging by the cut-eye looks I get when I do sing, I know that I'm not particularly tuneful. Actually, that was a comment on my second grade report card: "Yvonne is an enthusiastic participant during music class, though she is not often in tune". Didn't stop me. I'm still singing!

And I'm still sewing. I've said before that I'm not much of a seamstress (fact, not false modesty), but I love to sew. I can only manage straight lines, but you might be surprised at what you can create by sewing straight! (or, straightish, as the case may be)

Last weekend I had the joy of making new pillows for my family room, which is undergoing a little freshening up. I'm trying to bring light, bright and white into this room. I already knew I wanted white fabric for some pillow covers when I visited my favorite Home Decor fabric store.

It ate away at my heart a little to have to leave such gorgeous fabrics at the store.

This white, heavy weight cotton appealed to me and inspired more ideas for how to decorate the family room.

Checking to make sure it looks good with the pillows I already have...

We have a winner!

I made envelope-style pillow covers, which require only basic math, a little measuring, a quick press with the iron and straight sewing- no zippers or buttons required. There are tutorials all over blogland on how to make this style of cover, but I found Kim's (Restoration House) tutorial very helpful.

Tip: Some of my pillows were extra plump and I found that by adding three or four extra inches to the fold over flap I was able to get crisper corners.

Front of the pillow

Back of the pillow

Tip: It wasn't easy to find inexpensive down pillow inserts, so I checked the clearance section at HomeSense and found down-filled pillows for only $10 a piece. I replaced the store bought covers with my own.

The new pillows have really lightened the look of the green corduroy sofas.

Lots of comfy pillows.

The black wall sconce to the left of the sofa has been painted white. New white accents co-ordinate well with the white pillows.

I also found a fantastic dragonfly print, so I bought one yard and made a 6th pillow cover. I think this pillow is my new favorite!

I felt like Martha Stewart as I whipped up pillow after pillow! I might even try out the zig-zag stitch on my sewing machine!

Thanks for visiting!

Fun Family Photo Cubes

2011-04-25T19:57:00.000-07:00

It's true that I always have a 'what's next list'. In fact, I started to plan a new arrangement for my giant apothecary jar two weeks ago. I liked the black and white vintage look of my newsprint Easter eggs and decided to create a display with a similar feel.

I love family photos from past and present. Mr. StyleBurb recently organized all of our family pictures and burned them onto DVDs. I wanted to somehow turn those pictures into black and white cubes for my apothecary jar.

I selected a wide variety of photos from our immediate and extended family. There are baby pictures of my husband and his sister next to baby pictures of our own three children. You'll see that I used a combination of head shots and group shots for interest.

My idea for these photo cubes was hampered by my lack of technical skill, so I consulted my Personal Assistant (aka Mr. StyleBurb) to help kick start this project. If I can learn how to do this, anyone can... believe me!

Step 1 Gather copies of all the photos you want to use and crop them to be square. A few group shots are good for variety, but the majority should be close-ups.

Step 2 Load the following template into your favorite photo editing program.

Click on this template to view it full size and then save it to your hard drive.

Step 3 Import your cropped photos on top of the cube template and resize them to fit within a square.


This is a screenshot of Photoshop Elements as the picture is being resized.

Tip: You can duplicate photographs on opposite sides of the cube. Only one side will be visible at any given time.

Step 4 Print the finished sheet. I used a black and white laser printer. By changing the printer settings you can make a variety of cube sizes.

Step 5 You'll need your second grade 3D geometry skills to cut, fold and tape/glue the flat sheet into a cube.

Here are my photo cubes ready to go...

I layered the bottom of the apothecary jar with green moss.

You see different photos from every angle.

A black and white picture of black and white pictures!

I will be joining these link parties this week:

Vintage Treasures

2011-04-17T11:18:00.000-07:00

My family and I had a great time visiting my mom and dad last weekend. I had a lot of fun shopping with my mom in a vintage/thrift store that recently opened in my home town. I've got lots of pictures to show you!

The store is packed with great finds. You can get a serious case of whiplash from turning your head too fast to look at all the treasures!

I really liked the gate-legged table. The dark brown chair (on top of the table) had such a lovely shaped back.

I spy a little toy train and three antique dolls.

The store used to be my favorite (and only... I grew up in a very small town) five and dime store. I spent a lot of allowances in this building as a little girl!

I took home a number of sweet treasures last weekend. I was excited to find the small round table (pictured above) - it's exactly what I've been looking for!

I don't have spots for everything I bought, but some things I couldn't pass up.

The glass bottle is an 8 oz baby bottle from the 1950s and cost $3. I love vintage baby items- not sure where to put it.

At $5, I couldn't pass up this slightly rusted coal furnace plate. I think it's fabulous.

I have a place on my mantel for this small crock (only $6). I love the greenish spots showing through the finish and the rustic opening.

This round table is going to get a little makeover- I've got the perfect spot for it!

I paid $12 for the table.

My dad bought this 2 gallon crock for me.

I had the crock sitting in my foyer beside the bench ...

... and then realized it would be perfect to hold these...

I think the hydrangeas look perfect here! My family thinks the hydrangeas are fake- they are most definitely real!

My parents have a beautiful home in the country. Some day I'll have to show you more pictures of their house. My mom just put two red and white checked wing chairs in front of the bay window. There is a forest behind their house with black bears, coyotes, porcupines and other wildlife. Thank goodness these animals aren't around during our daytime visits!

My dad built this blue hutch in the pantry for my mom. I love the colors they chose.

It's a perfect addition to their country kitchen.

I also found something great for my family room, but I'll show that to you later! I'm still working on the family room updates. The weather has been uncooperative for spray painting, so hopefully the temperature will warm up and I'll be able to finish some projects!

I'm linking up to these parties...

A Different Kind of Makeover

2011-04-13T19:28:00.000-07:00

Makeovers aren't only for people, furniture and fireplace mantels; our furry friends need a little TLC after a long winter as well.

My dog, Harry (who is named after Harrison Ford - I'm not kidding), got all freshened up for spring last week.

Here is Harry before he went to the groomer. He's giving us his best 'sad face' expression.

Harry is a six year old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.

Just look at all that fur!

Waiting for someone to open the fridge.

You can't even find his ears when his coat is this long!

Looking 5 years younger, and ready to face the world, is my not so hairy Harry after his visit to the doggie spa.

I have his stylist trim a little closer around his middle to give him the illusion of a slim, nipped-in waist. Harry feels a little self-conscious of his winter weight gain.

Harrison Ford is completely devoted to me! ;) He follows me from room to room and has memorized my every move. When I put on lipstick he knows it means I'm going out, so he runs to his bed to wait for me to return.

I love the way this picture captures the rich chestnut color in Harry's coat.

Living with Harry is like having my own personal paparazzo. In the morning he waits for me to come out of the shower so he can lick the water off my toes. Those of you who aren't dog lovers may find this habit rather gross, but it's something I've gotten used to.

He takes his job of keeping our yard clear of squirrels very seriously. It's difficult to photograph Harry outside because he's easily distracted by all the sights and sounds.

Who am I kidding- it's just as hard to photograph him inside as well, because he's distracted by crumbs on the floor! Even though he will be seven this August, Harry still looks and acts like a puppy.

Oh my goodness.... what a cute face! I've got to go and give him a treat and a snuggle!

Harry is going to hang out with some friends today at Debbiedoos pet party!

Picking The Perfect Paint: Is There An App For That?

2011-04-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

Job number one in my quest to freshen the family room was choosing the perfect wall color. Since the furniture is staying, I went looking for a color that might be a little more exciting than the current shade- which is white. Plain old white... paper white... no hints of grey... no undertones of blue, green or pink- just White.

You might think that since I have the full paint fan decks from three major paint companies, choosing the perfect paint color would be simple... not so much.

These are the paint fan decks that fit in the picture. I have others.

After much comparison, indecision and deliberation, I chose three potential colors:

Sherwin Williams 'Buff' -SW 7653,
Sherwin Williams 'Creme' -SW 7556 &
Benjamin Moore 'Cable Knit'- CC-306 (which I had color-matched at Sherwin Williams).

I'm sure these paint colors are beautiful in the right location. Every paint 'reads' differently depending on the light, time of day and in relation to the other items in the room.

In my family room these colors told their own sad story:

Buff looked like pee,
Creme looked like lemon sorbet &
Cable Knit... NO. Our dog would stare at the spot on the wall where I had painted Cable Knit, and then he would bark. I don't think that's a good sign. He continued to bark at the sample until I painted over it.

I returned to Sherwin Williams to buy a color-matched sample of Ralph Lauren's 'Writer's Parchment'. My neighbor painted her basement this color and I love it. However, in my family room, Writer's Parchment looked quite green. Again, No.

Sherwin Williams paint samples in fantastic one quart size.

The paint samples at Sherwin Williams are great. You can buy one quart of paint for between $6 and $7! Plus, the screw cap is such a smart idea- it is much cleaner to work with than standard pry off caps.

I now had four quarts of various shades of 'cream' and felt no closer to finding my elusive perfect paint color than when I started.

I tried Martha Stewart's 'Glass of Milk'....

Martha Stewart paint sample in approx one cup size.

... couldn't even tell the difference. On the plus side, if I ever need to tell someone the color that my family room used to be, now I have a color name!

The sample of Martha Stewart paint cost $5 for less than 1 cup. That's not a great value compared to Sherwin Williams, but I was in Home Depot and it was convenient and I was desperate.

Once again, I consulted my paint chips and this time chose Benjamin Moore's 'Ivory White' CC-130.

Bingo!!!

Benjamin Moore paint sample in 2 oz size.

This color is the perfect creamy white for my family room. It has just a smidgen of yellow, but definitely doesn't look like pee, sorbet or ghostly apparitions.

At about $5 for only 2 oz, the Benjamin Moore paint sample pot offers the least value. In these days of advanced computer color matching, I know I won't buy samples at Benjamin Moore in the future.

I had the color matched at Sherwin Williams and bought their premium paint for $20 less per gallon than the equivalent at Benjamin Moore. Up until now, I have always used Benjamin Moore paint, and while I think they offer an excellent product, their paint is quite pricey. I am curious to see if Sherwin Williams paint is as durable as Benjamin Moore's.

So, that is the story of how I ended up with a paint sample collection like this:

Color me crazy for needing 6 samples to get the perfect shade of cream!

I'm so happy I found the 'Perfect Paint' for the family room. Now it's painting time. I hope I have the right kind of rollers!

Family Room: Let The Fun Begin

2011-04-08T09:43:00.000-07:00

Our family room is the one room in our house I've never really liked, which isn't great because next to the kitchen, it is the most used room in the house.

My ideal family room would look something like this:

image from Pottery Barn

I have collected our family room furniture gradually and piece by piece; which is probably similar to the way many families have furnished their homes. But, my style and preferences have changed over the years. As well, I have made a few unfortunate decorating decisions, and the result is that the room doesn't feel 'pulled together'.

As tempting as it would be to sell everything on Craigslist and start fresh, not only is that not in the budget, it's also not necessary because the furniture is in good shape. (I think the green corduroy on the sofas must be made of kryptonite it's so durable!)

Instead, my plan is to identify the areas in the family room that irritate me the most and then make some changes- all on a teeny, tiny budget.

The family room has a fairly awkward floor plan. The room is about 11 ft x 17 ft. There is a doorway that leads to the kitchen and another doorway that goes to the hall. We have a north facing window that doesn't let in a large amount of natural light, so the room tends to be dark.

We need to arrange the furniture so that five people can watch t.v. at once. I really like the sofas, and I would like to add some more pillows to be extra comfy and to lighten the overall look.

Next, I think the area carpet is too dark and too small for the look I'm hoping for. The big problem is that my husband thinks it's fine. He's in 'Decorating Denial'.

I would love to throw caution to the wind and buy a light area carpet, but that would be very impractical since the dog hasn't learned how to tip-toe around the carpet when he has muddy paws.

I blame pregnancy hormones for my decision to hire an electrician to install one single wall sconce on the wall to the left of the sofa. I went through an anti-symmetry phase about 10 years ago- it's something I truly regret.

I'm working on some ideas to balance the areas to the left and right of the sofa.

The family room has a floor to ceiling corner field-stone fireplace which completely overpowers the room. I think there should be a law against corner fireplaces. On the positive side, though, a real wood fire is very enjoyable on cold winter nights.

The blue wing chair is in excellent condition. We originally had two wing chairs, but I sold one.... it was a casualty of my anti-symmetry phase. The chair would look fine in the room if it was a different color, but right now it looks out of place.

I'm going to pull together a more attractive mantel display. I think I'll look for some white accessories... possibly a small green plant. I'll also repaint to further freshen up the room.

We like to sprawl and relax in the family room, have snacks, watch t.v., play board games or use the wii. I think a coffee table of some sort would be very convenient; somewhere we can set down a bowl of popcorn and drinks.

I have wanted to update the family room for a long time now, so I'm really excited to get started!

Job one in the mini-makeover is painting. I'll keep you posted on the other changes as they happen.

Wish me luck!

I've Been Featured...

2011-04-07T16:46:00.000-07:00

StyleBurb is being featured today at The Blooming Hydrangea!

You will love The Blooming Hydrangea! Ange has a beautiful new blog design and blog name. This week Ange is hosting a Blog Welcoming Party.

Thank you so much, Ange, for the wonderful feature!

Grandma Joe's 63 Year Old Stand Mixer (and her banana bread recipe)

2011-04-03T17:17:00.000-07:00

Over the last few months I have been baking my way through some recipes given to me by my husband's Grandma Joe. Grandma Joe passed away last September at the age of 92.

Last week I received an email from my mother-in-law with Grandma Joe's recipe for Banana Tea Bread. There are hundreds of recipes for banana bread, and I am always searching for 'The Best'. I believe have found it!


The recipe for this delicious banana bread is at the end of the post.

My mother-in-law also sent along pictures of Grandma Joe's 63 year old KitchenAid Stand Mixer. The mixer was used daily by Grandma Joe who baked all sorts of cookies, cakes, squares and loaves.

My mother-in-law now uses the stand mixer and tells me that it purrs like a kitten and has a powerful and strong motor. The stand mixer is in excellent condition considering its age!

Grandma Joe's stand mixer with both the original glass and stainless steel bowls.

Grandma Joe would have bought her stand mixer sometime around 1947. To put her purchase into perspective, World War 2 had ended a couple of years prior and the Cold War had just begun. It's a Wonderful Life was nominated for Best Picture at the 19th Academy Awards.

The handle on the old stand mixer is the same as traditional hand-held portable mixers.

This 1940's magazine ad for the KitchenAid Stand Mixer extols the wonders of this "Electric Maid": "It mixes... mashes... beats... whips... strains... sieves... grinds... shreds... chops... slices."

I guess the wife in the ad didn't have time to change into her yoga pants and watch the latest episode of Glee!

The design hasn't changed much over the years, but the color choices have increased greatly. KitchenAid Stand Mixers are now available in over 20 different colors!

A handle has been added to the work bowl on modern day mixers.

My husband's mom used to get the job of banana masher for the banana bread when she was a little girl, but since she wasn't available to mash bananas for me, I enlisted the help of my own little girl.

My little banana masher!

This banana bread was fresh from the oven when I took the picture.

Grandma Joe's Banana Tea Bread

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups sifted flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup shortening * see note

2/3 cup sugar

2 eggs well beaten

1 cup mashed bananas (2-3)

Directions:

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Beat shortening (or butter*) until creamy. Add sugar, add eggs. Beat well.

Add flour and bananas alternating each a small amount at a time. Beat until smooth.

Grease bread pan and bake for 50-60 minutes at 350 degrees F.

* The original recipe calls for shortening, but I used the same amount of butter instead. I also tossed in a handful of chocolate chips for fun, although this was really unnecessary since the banana bread was moist and sweet enough without the chocolate.

This banana bread was so delicious...it was gone by morning! Next time I will double the recipe.

As Grandma Joe used to say: Enjoy!

I'm linking up to http://debbie-debbiedoos.blogspot.com/

Master Bathroom: From Scary to Sublime

2011-03-28T19:39:00.000-07:00

These days it seems that everything has a 'Best Before' date - including bathrooms. I knew we were on borrowed time with our master bathroom when I noticed cracked tiles, chipped grout and an area by the tub where the white floor tiles had turned gray (a sure sign of a water leak). We were fairly certain our old bathroom would not make it to year 26.

Mr. StyleBurb and I decided to be proactive, and renovate our bathroom before the ceiling below crashed through and landed on the kitchen table.

We ripped up tiles, stripped wallpaper, replaced drywall, and did lots of painting. We were prepared to do all the work ourselves, but we knew our limitations, and hired a handyman for the plumbing and tile work.

Most impressively, Mr. StyleBurb proved to be a whiz-kid at trim work and molding! Wait until you see the gorgeous Shaker-style wainscoting he made for the bathroom walls!

Before we get to the dreaded 'Before' pictures, here is a glimpse of what we now have:

Most of the work on the bathroom was finished just before I started this blog, but luckily we thought to take some pictures before we started to work.

We had already started removing tiles, wallpaper and marking out floor tiles with painter's tape.

You can see our old gross shower, and a spot where we tested our tile removing ability.

We wallpapered this room 13 years ago...just goes to show how styles change!

Okay...I am ready to never speak or think about that old bathroom again!

Selecting the new fixtures, vanity and flooring was a lot of fun, but stressful at times. We chose 12x12 porcelain tiles for the floor and a roomy 5 ft vanity with a granite top and an under-mount sink. We ordered everything through our local home improvement store, so we were able to negotiate a great discount on everything!

We decided not to replace the whirlpool tub with another whirlpool tub...

Look how much space the old tub occupied!

...and instead chose a beautiful and graceful clawfoot slipper tub.

I love the telephone style faucet!

The pièce de résistance of the bathroom is the wainscoting that Mr. StyleBurb built for the walls.

The molding color is Benjamin Moore 'Cloud White'. Here is a closer view:

I told you Mr. StyleBurb was handy! (He also made the door on the medicine cupboard.) This picture shows the molding dimensions my husband used to create the Shaker-style effect:

Our local building supply center cut the sheets of MDF wood into the dimensions we needed. The 4x8 MDF sheets cost only $22. There was no charge to cut the wood into the 8", 5" and 4" widths required. This meant that we could get 24 linear feet of MDF for just $22. The baseboard and molding cap cost around $2 per foot combined. The total cost of the wainscoting was only $3 per foot.

Rather than worry about filling and sanding nail holes, the wood was attached to the wall with a product called LePage's Liquid Nails. This adhesive worked really well, although it was a little more expensive than traditional methods.

Mr. StyleBurb also removed the old window casings, and replaced them with more elaborate ones to suit the rest of the room.

The new vanity is taller than the old one, which interfered with the mirror above. Rather than spend $300 on a new mirror, we found a glass cutter who charged only $5 to shorten the old mirror.

I would still like my husband to frame the mirror...one day!

I have been slow to accessorize the bathroom. So far I have found a carpet for the floor in front of the vanity from Bed, Bath and Beyond. The little chair in the corner is from Pier 1.

The new towels are an excellent match to the blue in the carpet.

I'm still looking for a new toothbrush holder and soap dish for the vanity.

I think a small round table tucked between the tub and the vanity would look very cute and could hold some soaps and bath salts.

I also need pictures for the wall above the toilet, but I'm not really sure what I want yet. Any suggestions?

I actually enjoy cleaning the bathroom now! Well, sort of...

Simple Spring: Introducing My Foyer

2011-03-24T19:38:00.000-07:00

The Internet was down at my house for a few days this week. This created a lot of Drama...mostly from me.

It's been a hard three days. The worst part was that I had to reschedule my hair appointment because I had to wait around for a service technician. The curl in my hair is natural; the color is "enhanced."

The good news is that I found time to add some simple spring accessories to my foyer. I like to open the front door and see something pretty, so I added a new pillow to this wooden bench. To me, nothing says springtime fresh like crisp white fabrics and hydrangeas.

When you first step inside my house, there are mirrored closet doors to the right. We always intended to replace them, but they reflect a lot of light and it's the last chance you get to check your outfit on the way out the door.

We have a coat rack in the corner, for a bit of charm and for guests to hang up their coats when the closet is full. Those are my husband's straw hats, all ready to be worn on sunny days.

On the opposite wall is the cubby organizer my family gave me for my birthday last fall. It reminds me of something you might find in an old hotel. For spring, I filled the cubbyholes with a vintage looking bottle, a cute bee pot filled with boxwood sprigs from the backyard, and a black and white photograph.

The picture is of my Grandfather as a little boy, with his sister (holding her doll) and their parents. They're standing in front of the boat that has just brought them to Canada from England to start their new life. I like the way the picture looks unframed and unconventionally displayed in the cubby.

My son made the shadow box display of nature items in art class last year and then gave it to me for Mother's Day. The leaves, flowers and moth have been hot-glued to the glass backing...so simple and yet so beautiful.

The foyer is a few steps lower than the rest of the house. You can see the console table in the background with my apothecary jar full of newsprint Easter eggs.

It's been such a long, cold, dreary winter (isn't that from a Beatle's song?) that I can't wait to bring more spring inside.

Not that I want the Internet to fail again... Ma'am, step away from the computer...

I am linking up to:

Boredom Busters: How We Survived Spring Break

2011-03-20T10:49:00.000-07:00

It was spring break at the StyleBurb house last week. Mr. StyleBurb had to work, so the rest of the family used the week of vacation to adjust to the time change.

The only thing I like about "spring forward" is that the clock in my van is now accurate. For six months of the year the van's clock is an hour fast. I could correct the time myself, but that would require me to find the owner's manual, and some things are just not worth the effort.

Anyway, here's a round-up of some crafts my kids made - just to prove that we did not sleep in and lollygag around the house until noon every day watching Ellen and The View.

Not that there's anything wrong with that ;)

These creatures (miniature foam shapes that expand in water) have been growing in a dish on my counter all week. It looks like the dinosaur is about to attack the Easter Bunny, who is smiling bravely despite impending doom!

My youngest daughter tried her hand at soap carving. This was fun until the dog ate the soap shavings that fell on the floor. I called the vet to make sure Ivory soap wouldn't harm him. Harry was fine, except he drank a lot of water and then blew bubbles when he opened his mouth.

Here is the soap representation of the Easter bunny.

The kids finally got to paint the paper machéd Easter eggs to replace the ones I used in my apothecary jar.

Even though Easter is still a month away, we also made Easter bunny chocolates using plastic molds and melting chocolate wafers.

We also made some heart-shaped chocolate lollipops...because there's always room for love!

The bunnies were wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbons to give as gifts... if they last that long!

Of course we didn't forget about St. Patrick's Day and we made mini cupcakes to celebrate. My youngest daughter decorated these ones all by herself!

She used the 1M tip on the Wilton Dessert Decorator Pro piping tool - it's amazing how easy it is to get professional looking results.

It's back to school tomorrow. Meanwhile it looks like a bomb went off in my house. Cleaning when the house is full of children is an uphill battle, to say the least.

Comedian Phyllis Dillar had it right when she said: "Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing."

The Seven Dwarfs sang: "Just whistle while you work". That's one approach to housework I think I'll try.

Thankfully it's still too chilly here to leave the windows open, so no one will hear me!

I'm linking up to http://debbie-debbiedoos.blogspot.com/ for her newbie party.

Eggs-tra, Eggs-tra...Read All About It

2011-03-16T17:24:00.000-07:00

I "stole" my kids' craft project. I know that sounds bad, especially since we're just getting to know each other! Hopefully you'll understand once I explain.

Also, keep in mind this delightful display as you read!

My three kids are enjoying spring break this week and I planned a few crafts to help keep them occupied. I bought some of those dollar store plastic Easter eggs for them to paper maché and then paint with polka dots, zig-zags and swirls.

Everything started out innocently enough.

I watered down white glue, and tore up strips of newspaper. We dipped the newspaper strips into the gluey water and layered them on the plastic eggs.

See how my daughter used her sweet little hands to squeeze out the excess water from the eggs.

The Easter eggs were left to dry overnight. When I checked them in the morning I was surprised. They looked good - really good!

The eggs reminded me of something I might see in Pottery Barn. They were faded and somewhat vintage looking. They were perfect... perfect for my giant apothecary jar (which my husband refers to as my 'hypothetical' jar....he's such a smart alec).

"Those pine cones have been in the apothecary jar since January....too long...not spring-like at all...is that sap leaking onto the glass....", I thought to myself.

That was the moment I decided that the paper maché eggs should be mine. I tried whitewashing some of the eggs as an 'eggsperament'.

whitewashed eggs

The whitewashed eggs looked good, but not good enough to do the whole batch, so the rest were left as is. I filled the base of my apothecary jar with shredded wood bark from Michael's and layered the newsprint Easter eggs on top.

It all looked so good, and so 'cheep' (24 eggs for 4 dollars) - which is why I had no choice but to "re-purpose" my kids' craft project!

Don't worry about my kids; I made it up to them. We paper machéd more Easter eggs the next day and I've got more crafts for them to do.

As long as our St. Patrick's Day cupcakes can't be used for decoration, everything will be fine.

Actually, I just realized that the cake stand on my counter is empty. It always looks better when it's filled...

I'm linking up to The Shabby Nest and Amanda at Serenity Now.

Grandma Joe's Sour Cream Coffee Cake

2011-03-13T14:04:00.000-07:00

It's been cold and rainy here for the last few days. It's a good day to stay inside and bake something sweet and warm and I have the perfect treat!

Several years ago my family headed south to Florida to visit Mickey Mouse, a few Disney princesses and my husband's two Grandmothers (who could have been Disney princesses in their youth!)

My husband's Grandmas were former New Yorkers who were spending their golden years in retirement homes in the 'Sunshine State'.

During our visit to Florida we often had dinner with Grandma Joe in her retirement home's lovely dining room. We were treated like royalty as she led us through the dining room and paused at each table to introduce us to the other residents.

"This is my grandson and his family from Canada", Grandma Joe would explain to her friends. When you're a teenager, having a car is status; when you're an octogenarian, having family who visit is most important - for lots of reasons.

Each night after dinner, we sat with Grandma Joe in her apartment and talked about her life as a younger woman. All the while, our kids filled themselves with the Hershey Kisses and soft drinks she had brought in specially for them.

On the last night of our vacation, Grandma Joe offered to let me search through her recipe boxes and take any recipes I wanted. She was a serious baker in her day (from what I hear, she was thorough, efficient and accomplished in all areas of homemaking.) Many recipe cards had already been passed along, but there were still a lot of dessert ones remaining. Perfect, if you ask me!

The recipe cards remained tucked away in my cupboard because I have a horrible habit of eating my own baking and when you're over 40, calories don't burn the way they used to!

Grandma Joe died this past September at the age of 92. It gives me goosebumps to write about it, but for some reason, since then I have felt like following her recipes for cakes and cookies.

I suppose the recipes are a little old-fashioned, and there's no way any of it is low fat! But, you've got to enjoy yourself....maybe have just a little piece.

I'm sure Grandma Joe never imagined her handwritten instructions to make sour cream coffee cake would end up on the internet. She probably jotted the recipe down from memory, which is why I think the order of operations might be a bit off, so I have made adjustments in a couple of places.

As Grandma Joe would say: "Enjoy".

Sour Cream Coffee Cake (Excellent)

Cake Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter or margarine

2 eggs

1 cup white sugar

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup sour cream (I used the high fat kind)

Filling Ingredients:

1 tsp or more cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup chopped walnuts (I used pecans instead)

Directions:

Filling: Combine cinnamon, brown sugar and nuts in a bowl and set aside.

Cake: Cream butter or margarine. Add white sugar and eggs. Add in vanilla and sour cream. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and add to the creamed mixture.

Pour half of the batter into a greased and floured tube or bundt pan. Sprinkle on half of the filling mixture. Layer rest of the cake batter and top with the remaining sugar and nut mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes.

I'm linking up to http://debbie-debbiedoos.blogspot.com/

A Room Without Lipstick

2011-03-09T20:27:00.000-08:00

The April 2011 issue of Style at Home arrived at my house last week. Style at Home magazine is a Canadian publication and April is the 'Spring Colour' edition: 'Colour you can live with'. The colour issues of magazines are always a favorite of mine!

This month, designer and T.V. personality, Tommy Smythe (Sarah Richardson's fabulous 'design sidekick'), talks about his new sofa. It's covered in beautiful, luxurious red silk velvet. He calls it his statement sofa. I have been a fan of Tommy and Sarah's work for a long time.

Tommy Smythe's red sofa: Style at Home, April 2011

One of the most interesting parts of this interview with Tommy is what he says about the colour red:

"A room without red is like a woman without lipstick.......unfinished!"

That's quite a quote! I have been mulling over Tommy's words for a few days now, and wondering whether I agree or not. I've talked about my love of red before.

My newly recovered red plaid kitchen chairs.

Red, and it's sister, coral, look amazing in so many different styles.

Sarah Richardson's farmhouse .

It can be bold and graphic when paired with black and white.

My master bedroom.

Or, red can be homey and relaxed in a farmhouse setting when used in quilts or paired with faded yellow and soft blues.

Sarah Richardson's farmhouse main bedroom.

I love adding something red into my decor, but a few of my rooms don't have anything red in them; and I like that! For example, I think if I used red in my family room - which is mostly green and white (for now)- it might look as though we celebrate Christmas all year long!

Likewise, if I threw something red into my beautiful, serene master bathroom -in shades of white, cream and blue- wouldn't the red stick out like a sore thumb? Or maybe that's the point!

I like the idea of having a 'signature colour'. As much as I look for justification for my frequent choice of red in my home, there are cases where I'm not sure red works.

And of course you can't forget the old saying: "You can put lipstick on a pig..."

Nice bedding... not sure about the curtains!

(Image source unknown)

What do you think?

Is a room without red unfinished?

Don't Cry Over Spilled Orange Juice

2011-03-04T09:29:00.000-08:00

Did you know that there are instructions on cartons of orange juice? Who knew! The instructions are: "Keep refrigerated. Shake well before serving." That seems fairly obvious to me. Since we're talking about the obvious, I think one more instruction should be added: "Secure lid before shaking."

One day last week, someone in the family (I'm not pointing fingers because it was an accident...stuff happens) grabbed the orange juice from the fridge and then shook it. The lid wasn't tightened all the way and orange juice sprayed everywhere! Juice splattered on the cupboards, dishwasher, floor and counters. Oh...the lingering stickiness of juice!

After a few days of wiping the sticky doors, I noticed that there were a number of tiny chips in the paint.

Lower cabinets...paint chip to right of left knob.

We painted the oak cupboards white a couple of years ago. The paint job has lasted very well, but every so often tiny chips like this happen:

Upper Cabinets...paint chip to right of knob.

Do you see the tiny marks by the knob? You can barely even notice the paint chips unless you're up close. About once a year I need to do a little bit of repair work on the cupboards.

I use fine paint brushes and left over cupboard paint.

I put a very small amount of paint on the tip of the brush and fill in the chips. You need a steady hand! At first the new paint is a bit bright, but after a day or two, it blends in nicely.

I just finished filling in the paint chips now. They look much better.

Upper cabinets..paint chip repaired.

Lower cabinets...paint chip to right of left knob repaired.

This is one of those nagging, non-glamorous jobs that needs to be done, would take only a few minutes to do, but is easily put off for another day...

Until an orange juice spill forces you into action. It feels great to cross something off my To Do List! That is why I'm not crying over spilled orange juice!

Pouffy Bedskirt For a Princess

2011-03-01T09:38:00.000-08:00

When I couldn't find a really cute bedskirt for my daughter's bed, I decided to make one. I'm not much of a sewer- that's not false modesty, that is a fact. I'm a little too impatient and not precise enough to be a good seamstress. However, I was able to buy all the fabric I needed for this project for only 5 dollars, so I thought I would at least try.

I bought about 4 yards of polka dot, sheer fabric during a Fabricland closing sale. I think this material is meant for making sheer curtains, but it has exactly the right stiffness to make a pouffy bedskirt, so I chose it over the more expensive organza or tulle.

I really just guessed at how to make the bedskirt, so this post isn't meant to be a tutorial...it's more like 'Show and Tell'!

To make the bedskirt, I folded the fabric top to bottom twice so that I had a length of fabric that was 4 layers thick.

I gathered the fabric into pleats and pinned everything together...

...and then stitched.

Next, I took the old bedskirt off the bed, removed the ruffles, and kept the flat sheet. I sewed the new polka dot skirt to the perimeter of the sheet and was done. It took me about an hour to make the new bedskirt.

It looks really sweet on my little girl's bed!

Once on the bed, I separated the layers of fabric to make it look pouffy.

My daughter doesn't want her whole bedroom to be photographed for my blog, but she agreed to let me take a few pictures of the bed only.....

... but I had to pay her 3 dollars! She drives a hard bargain. If I want to take more pictures in her room, I'll have to pay up. These were all the pictures I could afford!

The total cost of the bedskirt is now 8 dollars: 5 dollars for the fabric and 3 dollars for the location fee!

I'm linking up to The Shabby Nest.

Paint Sample Love

2011-02-24T10:33:00.000-08:00

We're getting ready to do some painting at our house. Hoooray! That means it's time for me to haul out my paint samples. I love paint fan decks! As a matter of fact, they would make the short list of things I would bring to a deserted island. I love to compare the colors between the different paint manufacturers and daydream about finding the perfect color for the room I'm about to paint.

My husband gets a little nervous when he comes home from work and sees this:

It usually means he's going to have to answer questions like: "Is this white too yellow?" or "do you think the green undertones in this gray will clash with carpets?"

When I read decor magazines, or watch decorating shows (Cityline's Home Day, in particular), I like to see samples of the colors the experts use. Owning the fan decks saves me endless trips to the paint stores for samples. I also bring them with me when I visit friends and help them choose paint colors. I get coffee and they get advice- it works!

My first fan deck came from Benjamin Moore. I love the Historical Colors!

When Benjamin Moore came out with their 'designer classics collection', I needed to have it! The sample sizes in this deck are about 2 inches by 5 inches, so you can get a better idea of each color.

I also like that the 'designer classics' come in a faux leather pouch; it makes me feel like a professional!

fancy!

I bought the Sherwin-Williams deck shortly after I started reading blogs. I have been a loyal Benjamin Moore customer until now, but I'm thinking about trying Sherwin-Williams paint.

Farrow & Ball is a British paint and wallpaper company. Their paint has a higher pigment content than other paint brands, so the paint has greater depth (that's what is says on the back of the fan deck). I always feel like having a cup of tea when I look over the Farrow&Ball deck!

I love reading the back of their paint samples. Their color descriptions kill me! The sample below is called 'Cook's Blue'. It was "often used in kitchens and larders during the 19th century in the belief that flies never land on it!" I love it!

This one is called Lancaster Yellow. It is described as a "pale yellow inspired by the silk on the walls of the Yellow Room at Kelmarsh Hall, Nancy Lancaster's mid-20th century home in Northamptonshire." Very British!

There are many more descriptions- but we don't have time for that today!

Is it strange for a person to like paint samples this much? I will say that having hundreds of samples at my fingertips intensifies my color indecision. Wait until you see what I do once I've narrowed down my color choices!

I'm linking up with Amanda for her weekend bloggy reading...

Sunday Morning Pancakes

2011-02-20T20:38:00.000-08:00

The three kidlets in our house are not fans of breakfast cereal. They also don't like toast, frozen waffles or instant oatmeal. They do really enjoy cooked breakfasts: eggs, sausage, omelets, hashbrowns; but we're usually too rushed in the morning for anything fancy. I wouldn't classify my kids as breakfast snobs, because two of them would happily eat Pop-tarts or a handful of Pringles in the morning if I let them. Since I would like my children to eat something that's more nutritious than cardboard, I keep an eye out for yummy yet healthy recipes for breakfast that can be made in advance.

I found this recipe for Ricotta Pancakes in our local newspaper. I like that these pancakes are made with milk and ricotta cheese, because my youngest daughter doesn't drink milk. I think they taste great without syrup. The kids think I'm nuts, though. I've made these pancakes many times since school started in September, so I think this recipe is a keeper.

These pancakes are perfect to make on the weekend. You can make a big batch, cool them completely and then freeze them. The pancakes can then be reheated in the toaster.

By the way, don't try to fish small pancakes out of the toaster with a fork...or you'll have more problems than what to feed your kids in the morning!

Ricotta Pancakes

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

4 Tbsp. sugar

3 large eggs, beaten

1 cup low-fat ricotta cheese

2 cups cold milk

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Directions

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. In separate bowl, mix eggs and ricotta then stir in milk and oil. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients, being careful not to over mix. Pour batter onto hot non-stick pan. Flip when bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake.

P.S. If you see me with my youngest daughter, and you want to tell me how wonderful this recipe is, please don't mention that these pancakes are made with r.i.c.o.t.t.a. c.h.e.e.s.e., or they will be yet another thing she refuses to eat! Thanks!!

Kitchen Before & After: Out With The Oak

2011-02-16T19:19:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to show you these before and after pictures of my kitchen! This is a project we tackled a while ago, so I had to search for some 'before' pictures. I almost can't believe this was how my kitchen looked for so many years. Our kitchen is like a busy Command Center. Life in our house happens in the kitchen and I wanted to have a kitchen I loved. However, the cabinets' strong oak grain was way too loud for me. The laminate green counters looked great in the '90s, and I'll just leave it at that!

These are the BEFORE pictures of our kitchen:

I wanted to change it all, but major surgery wasn't in the budget...then a crazy thought entered our heads...

Mr. StyleBurb is a pretty handy guy, and I know my way around a can of paint and a paintbrush, so we decided to refresh the kitchen ourselves. We knocked out the ceramic backsplash, added under-cabinet lighting, removed the old counters and sink, sanded, primed, and painted the back, front and sides of the cabinets, and installed a beadboard backsplash. Our big splurges were the gorgeous granite counter top and new appliances. I kept tally of the number of hours it took to prep and paint the cabinets and it totaled somewhere in the range of 40 hours. I think it cost less than 200 dollars for paint and supplies- including the beadboard. Amazing, right?

I am proud to present some AFTER pictures of our kitchen! Ta-Da!!!!

Here is how everything looks with the under-cabinet lights on:

You might notice that these pictures were taken at night. That's because this is the only time we could manage to keep the kitchen clean long enough for a photo!

I love my kitchen! It really is hard to believe that this is the same kitchen! The cabinets are so peaceful to look at now! I love the detail and coziness of the bead board and the shine and zip of the granite and stainless steal as well. We are so happy we did this!

This type of makeover worked well for us because the cupboards were in good shape, the layout of the kitchen was fine and there was just no way we were prepared to do a full-blown renovation of the kitchen, and really, it would have been unnecessary.

Here's a list of some tips/details that you might find interesting or helpful if you've thought of painting your own wood cabinets:

we used Benjamin Moore oil paint on the cabinets and beadboard in Ballet White. It's been a couple of years and so far, it's holding up well. The beadboard got 3 coats of paint to make the backsplash extra durable.
the beadboard and cabinets are painted the same color to visually add height.
use a tack cloth after sanding the doors and in between coats of paint to remove any dust so that you get a nice clean paint finish.
really pay attention to sanding the grooves and edges of the cabinet doors. You want the paint to stick well in high use areas.
since there isn't a window over the sink, I hung a picture instead (it's a print of the location where we got married).
update your counter top accessories if you can. I think a shiny kettle on the stove is like a piece of jewelry for your kitchen.

Red is Best

2011-02-13T15:44:00.000-08:00

I love red!

Anything scarlet or poppy or cherry,

Anything crimson or claret or ruby,

Yes, I love red!

There is something you should know about me; for years I have had a love affair with red. If you haven't already noticed, I have a lot of red in my house. I didn't plan to use so much red- it just happened!

A few years ago I painted my dining room red and I still love it!

A corner of my dining room

My house has red in the area carpets, red cushions, red accessories and now, red plaid kitchen chairs.

Red in my living room

It's really fun to decorate using your favorite colors!

Last summer when I wanted new bedding, I searched online and in stores for weeks and weeks. I couldn't find a single thing I really liked until I found this beautiful red quilt. I bought it even though sleep experts advise us to limit red in the bedroom because it apparently interferes with sleep, but guess what....I sleep just fine!

Our master bedroom

Oh, I like neutrals, and I love the look of all white rooms- sometimes shown with a bit of beautiful blue. Gorgeous!

But there's just something about red that makes me sit up and take notice. Red is vibrant and warm and cozy. From late fall until spring red is an exhilarating shot of color when everything outside seems very blah.

There are a few rooms in my house that don't have red, which I guess is a good thing- I don't want to become too predictable! My children get to decide the colors in their rooms and none of them chose red. Also, the bathrooms are neutral because I'm vain enough to want accurate lighting and subdued colors while I'm looking in the mirror!

I often think about a children's story I used to read to my kids called Red is Best by Kathy Stinson. It's a cute story about a little girl named Kelly who loves red. Her mom tries to get her to experiment with other colors but doesn't have any luck. Kelly says she likes red "because red is best" and "red puts singing in my head".

Yes...I know how she feels. At the risk of sounding like a loony bird, red puts singing in my head too!

Procrastinators Unite...Tomorrow

2011-02-08T11:30:00.000-08:00

Well, I have put off this job for far too long, and what was once just a little mess is now a BIG mess. My basement has become unmanageable and it's high time I do something about it. I always gently explain to my kids (while trying hard to keep the screech out of my voice) that it's much easier to clean up a mess while it is small instead of letting it grow for weeks and weeks.

Of course, when it comes to the basement, I have trouble taking my own advice. I have been procrastinating. It is very easy to ignore something when it's not in your face every day.

However, I now have major motivation to declutter and clean the basement, thanks to my son. He called the basement his "man cave". Say what!! He's 12! It's not a man cave! It's a family movie room and a craft room, and it's up to me to make sure it stays that way- for a few more years at least! My son and his guy friends can hang out in the basement whenever they want, but I do want it to be a space where we all feel comfortable. They don't mind the mess at all, but I do.

I'll show you a quick peek of what lies ahead of (or, in this case, beneath) me. You have to promise though to look at this picture for a maximum of 2 seconds- no studying the mess! Okay?

This is only one corner of clutter. There are others.

I'll be underground for a few days. Let the phone ring a couple of extra times when you call me this week- it's going to take me some time to actually find the phone before I can answer it!

Doggie Does Damage

2011-02-06T09:00:00.000-08:00

This is my dog, Harry. Isn't he a handsome boy!

This is a picture of some scratches on the floor near the bottom of the stairs. They're from when Harry wakes up from a coma-like sleep when he hears a bag of potato chips open and races downstairs in hopes of finding a few crumbs.

These are, or used to be, fringes on the carpet in the family room that Harry chewed off when he was a puppy:

These are bite marks on the kitchen chairs. They mysteriously appeared one night. Nobody has owned up to biting the chairs, but I have my suspicions.

I try to think of the bite marks, scratches and stains as "Character"! Just like my laugh lines and crows feet!

Books: They're Not Just For Reading

2011-02-03T10:02:00.000-08:00

If you have ever flipped through the pages of a decorating magazine, watched HGTV, or browsed in Pottery Barn, then you know all about using books as accessories. Pottery Barn is famous for stacking books on shelves, on top of and underneath tables, in baskets, underneath vases or lamps and all sorts of other creative ways.

image from Pottery Barn

I have always enjoyed the way decorators 'randomly' fill empty spaces with books. The texture of the pages and their variety in size and color make books really smart looking accessories.

image from Pottery Barn

However, my use of books in decorating has never gone beyond stacking them on a shelf. I arranged my books according to author or genre, or, if I felt like being fancy, by size. For me, once I finished with a book, I either returned it to the library (when I remembered), passed it along to a friend, or shelved it...until just recently.

In the hall I have a console table where I had put a white gourd lamp on one end. It looked fine until I put a really large apothecary jar on the other end of the table. The apothecary jar dwarfed the lamp. What to do? I grabbed a couple of burgundy hard covered books and placed them under the lamp. Suddenly, and very easily, it looked right! Have a look.

It was nice to put the Chaucer text from my university days to good use- even though I sometimes get a spine chill when I see it. (Was that even a compulsory course, and if not, what was I thinking!) Oh well, the Chaucer book looks a bit more highbrow than if I had used my Tori Spelling autobiography (don't judge...).

Also, I remember having read somewhere that books in a kitchen can give a really comfy, homey feel, but at the time I knew I didn't have many open areas for books. Then I spotted this little blank space under the microwave!

I added some cookbooks, a bowl and a few other things already owned.

This little display looks much more interesting now and having cookbooks on a counter is really convenient.

I'm working on taking better pictures- bear with me!

It's fun to fuss with displays, so I'm sure I'll find more places where I can use books as accessories, but I think I'll try to choose books that bring back better memories than my 3rd year Chaucer course!

Mad For Plaid: A Kitchen Chair Update

2011-01-30T15:42:00.000-08:00

A short while ago I wrote about needing to recover my kitchen chairs because the fabric was torn and worn. This was the worst one. Yuck!

Before I could recover the chairs though, I needed to find new fabric and I also wanted to remove the old fabric and foam. Easier said than done.

It took me a while, but I was finally able to remove the hundreds and hundreds of factory-installed staples from the seats of my kitchen chairs. Each staple needed to be pried up with a flat screwdriver and then removed with needle-nosed pliers. Did I mention already that this was not an easy or quick job? I almost titled this post "Recovering From Recovering Chairs".

My first attempts to find good looking fabric for the chairs didn't go very well . As it turns out, I found something I like even better. I love plaid.

This is Burgess Plaid in Antique Red. I found it at a terrific design store that I can't wait to go to again. They have a huge selection of home decorating fabrics and accessories.

Since this was only my second time recovering chairs, I found it tricky going around the curved edges and I used a lot of staples. I also added extra foam and batting to the chair seats so our people seats would be more comfortable. The chairs are now cleaned up and ready to show. Much better!

This is how all the chairs look around our kitchen table.

Here is a closer view of the set.

I'm very happy with how the chairs look- so cheery and homey! The green in the fabric matches well with the wall color in the kitchen and the gold ribbon adds a touch of lux.

It's also really nice not having foam brush against my legs!

Recovering My Kitchen Chairs

2011-01-16T07:04:00.000-08:00

We bought these kitchen chairs 8 years ago and after three children having three meals a day and lots of spills and other accidents, they now look like this:

I can't believe they look this bad! And....what you can't see from the photo is how gross and stained they are...or maybe you can! (I'm also a little bit horrified to notice the finger prints and smudges on the little t.v. in the background. I'll grab the glass cleaner in a minute.)

I had wanted to cover the chairs with this red material.

Unbelievably, in the 36 hours that it took me to decide if I liked it in the kitchen, some decorator bought the whole bolt of the fabric! Apparently she wants to use the fabric on chairs in a restaurant.

So....that's not happening. My husband and I went to another fabric store about an hour away. We discussed bringing home just a sample (that would have been the smart thing to do, in retrospect), but we didn't want to miss out again, so we bought enough of this material to recover the chairs.

I don't want to tell you how much it cost! Would you believe, it's just not right.

Can you tell I'm really new at this whole picture taking for the purposes of blogging thing? Don't answer that!

Anyway, the problem with this fabric is that it's just too muted for the kitchen- even though it is lovely. I am looking for something that is more vibrant. This story will continue next weekend after my husband and I visit another fabric store. I've got my fingers crossed.

In the mean time, I think there are about a thousand staples per chair seat that need to be removed before this whole upholstery event can occur.

I also need to find a new use for a few yards of oops fabric!

Late to the Party

2011-01-08T09:34:00.000-08:00

I've been reading and enjoying home decorating and DIY blogs for a while now and after a lot of thought and waffling back and forth, I've decided to start my own blog.

I can't believe how many wonderful blogs there are, and I have gotten many fantastic ideas for my home courtesy of blogs. I even suspended my subscriptions to a couple of decorating magazines because I feel like "Blogger Style" is more my style right now.

I am very excited about creating my own blog. I think this will be a lot of fun- and I know I have MUCH to learn. But count me in....even though I'm late to the party...it's better late than never!