Foreclosure 2 Fabulous

New Hedgehog!

2012-01-16T17:00:00.004-05:00

Flipping through estate sale ads a few weeks back I noticed another Walter Bosse inspired hedgehog set. This one is a complete set and its made from a different material, probably aluminum. One of the first things Kari said was "now we can sell the other one." Silly wife. I told her I want to collect them all, at least all the versions.

Now it sits with the original brass version, which is missing the largest tray.

The Winter Chill

2012-01-06T17:55:00.017-05:00

While the winter has been mild in DC, we have been trying to button up the house. We have refinished several tasks over the past few weeks but have yet to post any of them.

I think the biggest complaint we have about our house is the lack of insulation (followed closely by the sketchy electrical system). We have been back-and-forth on what we want to do, but have yet to pull the trigger. There is no insulation in the walls, when I talked with a contractor last spring about sprayfoam in the walls he said we would be better off to insulate the attic and possibly install a radiant barrier. The house is brick and block, leaving probably 1.5 inches between the drywall and the block.

The rockwool insulation we have in the attic is filthy and unevenly distributed. Rockwool has roughly an R-value of about 2.25 (per inch) in loose fill installations.

So we have a two options - a quick-fix and a slightly more arduous fix...

1. Leveling out the old insulation and install new insulation over the top. We can either use a blown-in cellulose or the new EcoTouch® fiberglass insulation.

2. Basically option #1 except we remove the old insulation. This will be way easier than my previous attempt since Kari found a local rental store that carries specialty insulation vacuums. I really want to remove the old insulation, mostly because its filthy, and anyone reading this post knows I border on OCD when it comes to cleaning. The other benefits are that it will give us a chance to check out the wiring in the attic and methodically purge the attic of old wires from the 1960s security system. Another benefit is that we can install a new vapor barrier. The original brown paper barrier is deteriorated, torn and missing in several areas. If we install the roll/batt insulation in the attic the insulation must be installed with the paper facing downward to the living area. With loose blown insulation, we will have to lay down a polyethylene vapor barrier first, then blow in the insulation.

The second problem we have is there is no insulation in the floor of the overhang on the front of the house. The overhang makes the two bedrooms freezing in the winter. To see if there was any insulation in the overhang I cut a section out of the finished ceiling in the basement. No insulation, but at least there is a wood bottom and its not open to the perforated soffit panels. The only choice is to open up the basement ceiling and fill with insulation. Admittedly this is low on our priorities, since one room is my office and the extra bedroom is empty since Kari has the bed in Wilmington. But in the event we want to convert the extra bedroom, into say a nursery, we will definitely need to button up the insulation.

The other indulgence I have been contemplating is new windows in the house. Our current windows let in a fair amount of air, and in the case of a couple basement windows they used drywall sections to fill the gaps around the window. Most importantly I want to replace the patio door and extra large living room window, but the two will cost nearly $5400. The total cost for all our windows in the house was $16900. Not surprisingly the discount per window goes up significantly with each additional window. Need to start playing the lottery.

Versatile Blogger Award

2011-11-15T21:00:00.001-05:00

It's not everyday in your life that you are blessed with the opportunity to rekindle a relationship with a great friend from years past. Thanks to a random facebook post, a shared love of vintage memorabilia, and the power of the internet I was able to do this with my old/new friend Erin over at Grandma Great's Treasures. She recently nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award.

It's funny how internet awards generally require the awardee to do something. :) It should definitely be like a slot machine instead and your computer spits out gold coins or cookies or something...

Anyway, :) First I happily link back to Erin's great vintage blog.

Second I tell you seven things about myself. I thought I'd share some things I've learned about myself since living alone for the first time in my life!

I sleep the same way at the apartment that I do at home. Same side of the bed, start out facing towards "Micheal" then roll the other way.
Cooking for one person is pretty much impossible. And I eat much worse when I'm not worried about what I'm feeding someone else.
You can take the girl out of the messy, but you can't take the messy out of the girl. I know that doesn't really work, but it's true. Now we I know how the house would look if Micheal weren't there to keep me in line. He really doesn't know how it looks, I'm afraid if he did he wouldn't let me come home...
I drink a lot of Dr Pepper.
It's weird to not talk for hours at a time. At least when I had Kali I could talk to her, now it's just me, not talking...weird.
I leave things open, cabinets, doors, cereal boxes. It drives Micheal crazy.
I miss my husband, I miss my cats, I miss my couch, I miss my steam washer/dryer.

Now I'm supposed to nominate three other blogs - but it took me long enough to get this done so...I'm gonna punk out on that part. Thanks for the nomination Erin! So glad we've reconnected!

What We've Been Up To

2011-11-09T19:17:00.000-05:00

I'm still plugging away at internship up in good'ol Wilmington. This week is officially WEEK 10!!!!!!!! I'm very much enjoying the experiences on internship although not enjoying the bachelorette lifestyle. I've made it home every weekend except this last weekend where Micheal came up to see me and deliver the finished TV stand!

A quick photo update life activities...

The freak snow storm that hit this area came and went only dropping a few big flakes on the DC area, but I enjoyed them as they came down!

Instead of the traditional carving of the pumpkin we went the spray paint route and set this guy out for the 10 or so trick-or-treaters that came to our door!

Our kitties are enjoying the fact that we turned the heater on!

Two of my favorite ladies came to visit me this weekend!! We had an amazing time catching up, laughing, making random trips to Stanton PA to La ToNALteca...It was amazing to see you girls, thanks for the visit!

Vintage Audio Cabinet - Before & After!

2011-11-07T18:54:00.000-05:00

The very first day we owned the Mazda Michel gave me the green light to hit up craigslist for something fun that would fit in the back. I found this cute little guy for $10 and the maiden voyage was on!

The goal for this audio stand was to stain it to match the Brasilia dresser and then bring it up to Delaware with me to serve as a TV stand. We looked up a few sources for recreating the "Brasilia" coloring which required a 2-stain process. This first effort turned out to be too dark so I won't share the blend quite yet - I think we've got it down though with the Brasilia Dresser.

We also replaced the original legs with the hairpins from this guy we picked up at an estate sale.

The final result!

A nice little comparison collage - notice all the stains, including the nice star/candle stain, are gone!

I love it!! :)

The Before and After for Micheal's Dresser!

2011-10-26T22:08:00.000-04:00

Since I do most of the blogging I tend to be the "keeper of the photos" and when I asked Micheal why he didn't include a "before" picture he said he couldn't find one. So without further ado, BEFORE and after. :)

The second photo gives you an idea of the damage on the finer details and the corners. I apologize to those who cannot stand the sight of painted wood (sorry mom) but it would have been very very difficult to sand and stain all the pieces!

DC Metro Deals Under $100

2011-10-24T22:42:00.000-04:00

Some Craigslist finds - since I don't have time to go grab this stuff up myself I'll pass along my finds to you!

Not quite the vintage "poof" but still a nice wicker accent - $30

A cute vintage dining set that would look great with paint and new upholstery! - $50

Vintage oval mirror that would look beautiful either cleaned up or spray painted. Turquoise? Yes please! - $24! Couldn't beat that at Marshalls!

While these aren't vintage they have that industrial AND I'm pretty sure are a steal at $50 for both.

TEN DOLLARS for this beautiful 1940s waterfall desk/vanity - WHAT?! Looks to be in good shape too.

Cutie pa-tootie plaid leather ottoman - $50 is a bit pricey for my taste, but it sure is sweet!

We feel violated... (well, mostly me)

2011-10-22T21:49:00.000-04:00

Not that we copyrighted it or anything, but you can't tell my they didn't google "foreclosure 2 fabulous" and what comes up first? US!! And the show is lame. I had always intended to just buy the URL for F2F but never got around to it and it made me pretty sad when I saw that it was now taken. They started posting in March, le-sigh. Maybe when I'm done with internship I can give them a run for their money! Micheal suggested starting to make web episodes for some of the stuff we do, maybe I'll give it a try. :)
-Kari

P.S. You might notice the other tabs have stuff on gluten-free, it's an experiment - I'm on day 6 or so with only one major slip up.

Micheal's Fancy Dresser

2011-10-21T18:40:00.022-04:00

We finished the dresser a few weeks back, so I thought I would finally get some pics up. It sat for awhile in the basement as countless other projects took precedence, I finally decided to knock it out when I realized the basement was getting a little crowded with projects. Originally I wanted to strip and stain the dresser. But I'm glad we painted it instead, there were a few "beauty marks" that would have been difficult to minimize, I started to embrace the imperfections when painting the dresser because it added a little character without throwing off the aesthetic (you can see one of these marks on the top left drawer).

I started by removing the hardware and drawers. One of the main reasons we decided to paint the dresser was the realization that it would be nearly impossible to sand the edge carvings. Absent that hurdle everything was sanded using 120 grit paper with the Ridgid palm sander and the final sand by hand. The edge carvings required a little more strategy. Folding a small section of sandpaper over 1" metal square allowed me to get inside the crevices without rounding the edges.

The best lesson from the last dresser I painted was to paint the inside of the drawer slots because when the drawers are closed you can see the unpainted wood from different angles. So this time I taped off the inside of the drawer slots giving them a nice finished edge. To prevent the drawers from scuffing the paint I inserted small felt pads where the drawers would slide across the paint.

Kari used a polyurethane finish on the top to give it more durability. Although it added a little shine to the matte finish there is less fear about scratching the paint. I reattached the original hardware keeping the aged patina. I have yet to sit down and decide where all the clothes will go, so far I've only stocked the sock drawers. I love the short top drawers, because now everything is nicely displayed.

Weekend Landscaping, Nixing Bushes

2011-10-11T18:18:00.038-04:00

The past few weeks we have finished a few projects, most notable my dresser and a small record cabinet. We have also been discussing larger projects like insulating the attic, reconfiguring our entry door, and building a front deck. However, this weekend I opted to work on the yard. Landscaping is a challenge because our front and back yard are inclined and the front bushes were probably put in to lessen erosion. Ultimately we want to terrace the front yard. Not sure on the design yet, but I'm a fan of mixing metal I-beams and wood.

Once all the bushes were pulled I tried to level the slope of the front yard and unintentionally succeeded in pulling all the creeping quackgrass and smooth crabgrass.

I pulled the first bush with the pick axe and quickly decided to use the truck and tow chain for the remaining ones.

The days are numbered for the remaining bushes in the front yard. Our wishlist includes putting in a simple narrow wood deck with large planters. Need to start playing the lottery.

Dear 20's

2011-09-29T22:49:00.000-04:00

Dear 20's,

As I started thinking about you I realized that birthday #30 is really the first birthday of reflection. When I turned 10 I was super excited. No longer a child, but not quite a teenager, I was living in the here and now and quite happy to be 10. Of course at 20 everyone is looking forward, scoffing at their teen years and ready to be an "adult" and live it up during the roaring 20s! Always looking forward. Now as I turn 30 in less than 2 hours I am very happy to look back and appreciate the last 10 years and what they have meant to me. And WOW, what a crazy/busy/exciting/scary/wonderful 10 years it has been!

I have done way more than I ever thought possible. I have learned about myself and become confident and happy with who I am - and MAN that was a major accomplishment for me! I met my husband, welcomed a nephew and three nieces into the world, moved approximately seven times and about 2,00 total miles, experienced three proposals, two defenses and a wedding, followed a dream that lead to a few nightmares but is ultimately coming to a satisfying end.

I learned to love to cook, tried to learn to be more organized (although I still fail regularly), talked my husband into buying a house that gave me "warm fuzzies" that sometimes makes me want to take those warm fuzzies and squish them....but not most of the time. :) I started sharing that adventure with the world and a few people have come along for the ride.

I have added so many AMAZING people to my life that I truly count myself blessed to be loved and supported by so many great people. I went from having a few close friends in one small area to have many very close friends who are spread across the US! I worked a job that I hated and a job that I LOVED. Considered becoming a nurse, learning to draw someone's blood, following my plan to be a psychologist and still question myself regularly if that was the right decision or not. (I think it is, I still hate wounds.) I've had supervisors that I...um...yeah...and supervisors that I LOVED!

I have done crazy things just for the adventure - Black Friday starting at midnight, 1am, 4am and 5am just depending on the year, camping out overnight in the bone-chilling cold with my best friends to secure my wedding spot, fighting off crowd of crazed brides to be with my best friends to go wedding dress shopping(?) - Life is SERIOUSLY not about the destination, and MAN have I loved the journey so far!!

I have watched more hours of HGTV than I care to count, become friends with 50+ "book club girls...", spilled the contents of a crock pot in my car twice, traded in my tennis shoes and jeans for heels and skirts, mourned a Jayhawk Championship loss and celebrated an AMAZING Championship WIN! I didn't get into graduate school twice and got my first pick on internship. I learned how to sew, sand, grout, route, paint, drill, and lots more of that stuff. I have traveled to Florence, Rome, Venice, Pisa, Siena, Paris and back to Rome.

I'd write more but I'm almost out of the 20's and into the 30's, and this almost 30 year old needs to go to bed for a long day tomorrow. Dear 20's, you were great. I'm ready for your older, more sophisticated sister the 30's. Only exciting things to come, a real job (maybe?), I'll get to meet my future child~~ren~~, the first time someone calls me Dr. Kari and it's for real, total freedom, and maybe even a tattoo. I'm not packing it in 30, you don't scare me, I'm ready!!

Love,Kari

Education by fire

2011-09-20T21:25:00.000-04:00

Things I have learned recently...

Don't wear heels on inpatient consult day
Kali is a different cat at the Wilmington vacation home - she meets me at the door, she talks to me constantly, it's crazy!
I will definitely pick comfort over style when it comes to my next couch
Getting a first "realish" paycheck is awesome!
They weren't joking when they said 50+ hrs a week. Tues/Wed/Thurs I stay until about 8:00 and get there around 8. Generally it has been 9 hrs on Mondays, 9 hours on Tuesdays, 12 hours on Wednesdays, 11 hours on Thurs and 9 hours on Fridays. ..and then there is the work at home we won't count up. :)
If there is no traffic, I don't stop, and everyone else is driving 80+ I can get from the vacation home to HOME in about 1.5 hours
The vacation home has slugs (out front) and house centipedes. House centipedes are panic inducing when those ga-jillion legs scuttle across the floor
Living alone sucks

Welcome to Miami Wilmington...

2011-09-05T23:52:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm here...at what I'm calling our "Wilmington vacation home." You know you always wanted a vacation home about 2 hours from the beach just outside of Philly! Might as well be Miami!We came up a few times before the final move to clean, measure, and get to know the area.

Micheal even braved cleaning the top of the refrigerator for me. In a rental. If that's not love, I'm not sure what is.

We haven't done much to the house over the past three weeks (shocker) but we have spent some of our quality Micheal/Kari time hitting up estate sales and thrift shops. 'Cuz that's how we roll. Picked up this little table at an estate sale just to salvage the hairpin legs. At $12 that's a great deal because they also had all four foot things (technical term) which are pretty hard to come by.

The crusty tile top has already been disposed of and the legs are ready to be cleaned up and put on the TV/Audio stand we bought a little ways back!

We got the lotus candle holder at CB2 and the vintage Polaroid at a thrift store for $5!! The inside workings are in AH-mazing condition. I love it.

Since I posted last I've survived an earthquake, an aftershock, a hurricane, moving away from my husband, and my first week of internship. And I'm exhausted. :) The vacation home is not very "settled" so as I put stuff away and make it look a bit more presentable I'll post pics.A few things I've learned...

Wearing heels for a week straight after a month of sneakers and flip flops in rough on the feet
AI Dupont has two groundhogs
When you have the litter box in the bathroom there will be inevitably the that awkward moment when you and your cat are both using the bathroom at the same time.
When a hurricane is coming hit the peanut butter aisle first!
Walk in closets are pretty cool, I won't lie.
The bachelorette lifestyle isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Progress

2011-08-18T13:58:00.000-04:00

Use the old sofa pieces to cut out the pieces from the new fabric
~~Buy a new litter box for Kali before we move~~
~~Use the Restor-a-finish on the side tables~~
Use goof-off to clean the paint splotchies off of the lamp we just bought
Go for a walk
Buy new foam and cording for sofa
Schedule my groupon mani/pedi
~~Reserve the moving truck~~
~~Call to confirm that the power is on~~
Take lots of deep breaths and fit in the occasional piece of chocolate and ~~Dr Pepper~~ and not feel guilty

Motivation? What Motivation?

2011-08-18T12:03:00.000-04:00

The sofa frame is here...

(Excuse the litter box)

The fabric is here...

(Excuse the black furry paperweight)

...and I'm here

I'm struggling folks. We plan on having a moving truck next Wednesday and that's so close I don't feel like I can get anything done before then. Which then leads to getting NOTHING done before then. I have a bad neck spasm, I'm sad, I'm grumpy and I just want to lay on the couch all day and each chocolate and drink Dr Pepper. Pity party, table of one please?

So Micheal says, make a to do list. Can it include getting a massage please honey??

Use the old sofa pieces to cut out the pieces from the new fabric
Buy a new litter box for Kali before we move
Use the Restor-a-finish on the side tables
Use goof-off to clean the paint splotchies off of the lamp we just bought
Go for a walk
Buy new foam and cording for sofa
Schedule my groupon mani/pedi
Reserve the moving truck
Call to confirm that the power is on
Take lots of deep breaths and fit in the occasional piece of chocolate and Dr Pepper and not feel guilty

Okay, here goes. One foot in front of the other.

Weekend Update 8/15/11

2011-08-15T10:00:00.004-04:00

Hi all! We had a pretty good weekend - we went to our first auction out here (and Micheal's first ever!) and invested in an awesome piece of mid-century memorabilia.

Sat we headed out to Potomac, MD to a "Living Estate Auction" to check out how auctions go here on the East Coast. I've been to many an auction in Kansas, even worked a few and loved rummaging through boxes and the thrill of the bid. Turns out nothing has changed!! We had a great time and picked up a few fun things.

We paid $2 for the turquoise pottery, it's in great condition and I think I want to make it a cookie jar. The Christmas tree was $3 and is why I went to the sale! My grandma has one and I've always loved it so it'll make me feel all warm and fuzzy when I put it out at Christmas.

These guys (dessert dishes) were an impulse buy. There are actually 12 of them along with saucers that I haven't dug out yet. I thought they were cute and the auctioneer did dollar choice on all the boxes since no one was bidding and I couldn't say no.

Guess who wanted these guys? Two dollars brought them all home, on the way out the auctioneer told us he had valued them at $50 a piece, so who knows! Hand carved in Ecuador according to the bottoms. They're growing on me.

Saturday night we were watching Room Crashers on HGTV and the host did a mid-century room. They had a sputnik light included and I just melt when I see those, they're so awesome...and expensive. I took a chance and typed "sputnik" into CL and wouldn't you know a month old ad popped up with a sputnik for $100. We took a chance and contacted them and they still had it!!

Now, $100 might sound like a lot for us to spend, and in reality it is - however...these sell for $300 and up which I would never pay so to find one that is in our range was rare. And as Mike and Frank on American Pickers say: "The time to buy an antique is when you find it, because you never know when you'll find another."

So she's MINE! Aren't her legs sexy? :)

Tomorrow we head up to Wilmington to pick up the keys and clean my new pad. Take some measurements, make lists, and try not to cry too much.

Side Chair Makeover

2011-08-14T21:29:00.001-04:00

Back in March I made Micheal trudge out in the rain to pick up this free chair from of course, craigslist.

I originally emailed about it because the lines of the arms seemed to fit the mid-century look; however, when we got there it was clear that wasn't mid-century, probably more like late 70s. BUT it was cute and free and dangit we went in the rain! So I carted it home.

This is where a person has to decide between painting and refinishing (staining.) My mama taught me never to paint wood and I've tried to stick by that... However, in this case staining would have not dealt with the outdated look. With the blessing of my mom, I painted it Dove white (Behr) and recovered the cushions in a bright, fun print!

Steps:

Clean and rough up with sandpaper
Prime with Kilz new odorless oil-based primer due to stain bleed-through
Spray with Behr Dove white paint with my new HVLP paint sprayer
Recover cushions
Replace seat webbing

I'm very happy with the finished product!! It transformed into such a fun and bright piece of furniture. It'll be on the truck to Delaware next week!

Shared on the DIY Showoff

DIY Sofa Reupholstery - Day 1

2011-08-11T00:09:00.000-04:00

I'm going to be honest; I pretty much figured when I bought this sofa with the intention of reupholstering it that it would stay red thatch for quite a while. Mostly because I have a lot of great big ideas, but sometimes the follow through is lacking.

HOWEVER! Not this time folks, I broke out my tools, my gloves, my Dr Pepper and started this Herculean project. I'm going to try and take you along the journey with me rather than amass a week of photos and try to remember all the steps I took along the way. :)

Choosing Fabric

Things I considered when choosing fabric:

Color - be able to match apartment but also transition back to our house when I'm done.
Texture of fabric - I like the look of basket weave, however the kitties really do too (scratch scratch).
Price - upholstery fabric is expensive! And you'll need a lot.

Couch Disassembly

The tools I used and found to be the most helpful so far are a set of dykes, gloves, and a small flat head screwdriver. (Also Advil and your carbonated beverage of choice!) Now - GET BRAVE!! Grab an edge and pull and ~~cry~~ pry! One of the internet tutorials I read suggested starting at the back so that's what I did. Start by inserting your flat head screwdriver and try to pry yourself out an edge to start working on.

The top came off pretty easily but I couldn't get the whole back panel off. The fabric appeared to be inside the arms instead of a full back panel. When I looked inside this is what I saw:

It appeared that the sofa was made and upholstered in several different pieces and then put together. Good for construction and aesthetic, bad for Kari.

Taking apart the sofa by myself was going to be tough so I decided to start removing the fabric in another area. This time, the front of the arm.

I'll get some better pics of how I used the tools to remove the fabric since I'm noticing now I don't have any photos of those. But this photo series shows the importance of documenting how the sofa is constructed as you take it apart. You have to put it back together the same way!

The construction of the arm is very important to recreate so I get the same finished look. When you finally get a full piece off make sure to save it label it - I used a sticky note and put where it came from and any specifics on how it was attached. You will use these as templates to cut new pieces out of your pretty fabric!

About this time I took a break, bought a Mani-Pedi on Groupon for when I'm done, and went to get some emergency DP. Then Micheal-gyver got home and it was GAME ON!

My final note for today is to make sure to take pictures of all the complex corners, again so you know what to do with that funky corner you cut out using the old fabric pieces as a template.

Things I learned today

When working on a 60 year old sofa, make sure your tetanus shots are up to date
If you husband asks you "what are you doing" when he gets home and you've got your arm elbow deep in the sofa...he's probably really just interested and not trying to annoy the crap out of you. So be nice.
Wear gloves, nails, staples, all that stuff is sharp! (And rusty, see the first "thing")
Dykes work better for pulling staples than needle nose pliers - thanks babe!
Make sure you have more than one Dr Pepper when starting a project like this :)

New Stuff is Fun :)

2011-08-09T23:36:00.000-04:00

"Knock Knock"
Me: "Helllo UPS man!! Thank you SO much!"
UPS Man: "Alright...(wave)"

Man, he could have at LEAST said you're welcome...but it's HERE! The sofa fabric is here! Yay! This is what happened next:

Moshe: "What's that? Something for me?"
Kali: "No punk, it's for me. Back off before I smack you upside your fool head!"

She's a brat, what can I say. :) I really love the fabric though - I was nervous ordering it online since I hadn't seen it but fabric.com offers free shipping on orders over $35 and free returns so that put my mind at ease. I pulled off the first piece of the sofa tonight, so it's on now! No turning back!

I also took Micheal on another late night ~~Frosty~~ craigslist run (with a Frosty stop on the way) to pick up this cool lamp, or as the poster described it "striking."

The amber color is very pretty, and it's tall! I'm not a huge fan of the shade, it's kinda dingy so I'll probably replace with a nice white and a bit shorter drum shade. Here's a pic to help understand how tall it is...

:) So the lamp itself is about as tall as Da'Moshe. He's so helpful, I tell ya.

Cute, Fun and Easy Lantern Makeover!

2011-08-08T17:38:00.000-04:00

After a week of laundry and closet organization I definitely needed to add something cute, fun, and easy to give me a little DIY pep. When I saw that pyrex dish at the thrift store last week there were two other little guys that had caught my attention and I just couldn't get them outta my mind. So I went back hoping they were still around.

Yay!!

As you can see from the pics, they were a lovely brass color. Which of course called for a nice coat of spray paint to update these guys. I disassembled them and used some Bar Keeper's Friend to scrub them down because they had a few oxidized and rusty areas.

I primed with Rustoleum's gray primer, painted with Rustoleum's turquoise and then finished with their matte finish clear coat. I also ran the glass covers through the dishwasher to get them cleaned up. I'm in love!

I think they're so fun and summery! I used paint I already had, so my only cost was the 10 bucks I paid for the lanterns.

Painting Note: I did run into a problem while spraying with the turquoise, some bubbling in the paint - I think it had to do with the heat index and humidity, but I was tired of waiting! So I sanded it down and painted again with a lighter hand and it was fine.

In other news, the fabric I ordered for the sofa reupholstery project is due to arrive tomorrow.

I'm only slightly terrified as that means I'll have no excuse to delay this monster of a project...

Lastly, Kali approves of the cushion I recovered for the outdoor furniture. Too bad it's gonna have a divot now from her chunky butt!

Until tomorrow! - Kari

Weekend Update 8/7/11 & WWL

2011-08-07T21:09:00.000-04:00

I'm totally uncomfortable with the fact that it's August 7th, just thought I'd put that out there.

I think Micheal and I have pretty much decided we're not going to dive into any major projects over the weekends since we only have a few left until I leave. So the "weekend updates" might be a little slim but hopefully I'll have fun stuff to post during the week!

We did pick up a new piece of furniture this weekend (I know, I know...) - but how could I pass this up for $15?? I'm gonna flip it, I swear.

We're gonna try out some new products that get good reviews on the blogosphere. Howard's Restor-A-Finish and Feed-N-Wax.

I also used Floorplanner.com to create a mock-up of my apartment in Wilmington. Just a beginning plan but gives you an idea of what I'll be working with - the bedroom is pretty small but the living space makes up for it so I'm excited to decorate!

What We Learned

Don't go for a walk the night before garbage day when it's 95 degrees out. Phew.
The "small frosty" rule now must be applied to the champagne drinking. "Small Champagne."
People can still have stupid teenager "firsts" well into their 20's.
Disassembling the guest bed to take with me was a mini gut-punch.
Our neighbors are doing some DIY and it's "[our] fault" - we inspire! Woo hoo!
Latex paint continues to be sticky or tacky for up to months when used on furniture because of "blocking."
I'm (Kari) stronger than I look. :)

Simple Before and After - Closet

2011-08-04T13:37:00.000-04:00

Amazing "Before & After" pictures are all over the interwebs - I find that they do one of two things to me. They either inspire me or intimidate me. I feel like if I can't turn my closet or my washroom into a beautiful oasis worthy of a Better Homes & Gardens Magazines front page spread I might as well just leave it the messy hole that it is.

Don't do it! Especially if you have no closet doors (like me) to hide the mess. So I followed some simple rules to closet de-cluttering.

If you haven't worn it in 6 months donate it.
If you've only worn it ONCE in the last six months just so you don't have to donate it on your next closet purge, you should still donate it. :)
Keeping clothes that you don't like to wear or don't make you feel good just to have a full closet is not a good idea.
Try not to use your closet for storage. I was keeping these items in my closet although I'd never wear them:
While I definitely want to keep my cheerleading paraphenalia, it's unlikely I'm going to break it out in case of a rain storm. So to the keepsake chest they went!
Use one type of hanger - I had plastic (in blue, white, purple, turquoise, black...), wire, Zips, and store hangers. This makes for a cluttered look, so I went for all white plastic (which I had the most of) and added some wooden skirt hangers from IKEA.
Use extra space. I put up some 3M hooks that I had around the house to be able to hang a few things that were just piled onto the top shelf.
And finally, if you have three cats, bring the vacuum to address the dust/hair bunnies (ew)

Then stand back and feel good about the work you put in even IF you don't have a mini chandelier, striped walls, or anything fancy like that.
So who's in? Is it time to clean out your closet?

When does the fun stuff start?

2011-08-02T20:42:00.000-04:00

So far this "stay at home wife" thing isn't all it's cracked up to be... I had visions of being super productive and knocking out DIY and crafty projects left and right to share with you guys! So far I've...

Taken in 8 years worth of dry cleaning (give or take 7 years and six months).
Made my Residency/Wilmington binder so I have all my moving and job docs in one place.
Dropped off all the random stuff we had sitting around to donate at the Salvation Army.
Went to IKEA to buy matching hangers for all my work clothes and my new closet.
Went to three different pharmacies to find someone that was smart enough to understand that if I have a prescription for Allegra-D I can buy MORE than one box!!
Dropped off my badge and final paperwork.
Canceled my KTag and got an EZPass.
Made Falafel.
Made one quick stroll through the thrift store and almost bought this cool pyrex.
Downloaded the Windows 7 software for my printer so I could print coupons I didn't get ot use.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz......have you fallen asleep reading this? I have... It's all stuff that needs to be done, so I'm knocking it all out. But tomorrow I tell you, something interesting will be done! :)And for fun, here is one of Moshe's favorite passtimes, kibble hunting. I took a screen shot of the elusive kibble because if you blink at the beginning of the video you don't see it, he's that fast.

POUNCE!

Unemployment

2011-08-01T11:34:00.000-04:00

I actually prefer the phrase "between jobs" since that is much more accurate. Today is August 1st, which means I officially no longer work for Children's National and I have 29 days until my new job starts at A.I. duPont Children's Hospital in Wilmington, Delaware.

I'll be writing about this a lot over the next month. Who would have thought after two years of marriage I'd be moving into my own 1 bedroom apartment for the first time in my life. I've never really lived alone, or even in an apartment with friends - it went parents, dorm (4 years), Micheal.

I'm overwhelmed by all the things I need to do, the stuff I need to buy, and the ultimate reality that on Sunday the 28th Micheal will drive from Wilmington to Silver Spring and then it'll just be me and Kali....

So what do we do when we're feeling overwhelmed?? We make lists and a "moving to Delaware" binder and avoid the inevitable emotional stuff like the healthy psychologist that I am!

I've already started shopping for bed linens to try and decide what "motif" I want for the bedroom. I can't decide between a more bold/whimsical design or a classy, more feminine design.

Shopping at BB&B this weekend I found a few that I like.

I was immediately drawn to this when I saw it - I think it's beautiful and has such a great color palate for coordinating the rest of the bedroom.

However this quilt (not the pillows) I thought looked really classic and I could create a really rich feminine look which might be fun and different for me - deep purple sheets, love.

These two guys are on clearance and I like both of the patterns and color combos as well (and the price!)

Alright, gotta get to work. My first job is to get all my work clothes dry cleaned, purge some old pieces, and ready to go since I don't have to wear them this month! Woo!

Weekend Update 7/31/11 & WWL

2011-07-31T23:50:00.001-04:00

Team Struemph was totally ready to hit the reno hard this weekend, so Saturday rolled around and everyone took their places.

I started the weekend making ONE cushion out of the SIX that are needed for the outside furniture.

Yes, I'm blogging about finishing the one. It was an accomplishment, trust me. :)

We also did some painting...

...and I worked hard to keep my tomatoes alive in the 100+ degree weather.

It's been no easy trick!

After I typed that all out it doesn't seem like a ton but we were very busy this weekend and I have lots of fun projects to share this week!

What we learned...

The 60 year old sewing machine in my cabinet works better than the 5 year old one I had on top of it!
Always be nice to your pharmacist. There may be a day when you're going to be without insurance the next day, it's five minutes before they close on a Sunday and you need to beg them to fill a new prescription. Fortunately, I am their favorite customer (no joke) so it was nooooo problem.
Champagne + Sparking Cranberry Juice is deeeeeeeelicious!
Micheal and I both look good in turquoise (and Micheal needs to work on his toe painting skillz).
Our neighbor is also not mowing his lawn because it's too damn hot, so we're off the hook for having a jungle lawn!

Weekend Update 7/27/11, WWL style

2011-07-27T19:35:00.000-04:00

I really need to stop buying things in the "green apple" color...
I picked up this little green guy at C&B outlet for my new place for $5.95! I laughed at myself when I moved it over to the side table to get a better picture and realized I might have a bit of a green obsession. :)
C&B is discontinuing my line of dinnerware (insert super sad face.) So we went on a scavenger hunt to finish out the set with four place settings of each color I want, green (ha!), teal, and purple.

After three stores I only need two more Max Green Dinner plates and two more Max Green Salad plates, so if you see some shoot me a message!
The cushions from this chair fit almost perfectly in this chair so when I recovered them they were temporarily snagged for this chair in the living room while the other one waits to be painted!
No matter how long or bad your day was, coming home to a kitty perched on your reupholstery project with her tongue sticking out will make you smile.
Moshe doesn't like the new pantry door...he likes full access to all areas of the new house!

GASP!! New pantry door?!?! Yes folks, it's done. More pics to come! Woot woot!

The Craigslist Queen Strikes Again!

2011-07-27T00:04:00.000-04:00

Hello my dears!! I was working on the weekend update post tonight and doing my normal perusing of craigslist and was stopped in my tracks when I saw a listing that said "Broyhill Brasilia Dresser -$65"

WHAT?!?! Pulled it up and started dialing as I called Micheal over to get his approval. The listing had been up for an hour so at that point it could already be gone. Micheal saw it and said "CALL - we can go get it right now!" Mind you, it's 9pm. They'd already had some interest but because we were willing to get off our butts and go get it tonight, it was OURS!

So a 9pm CL trip and this beauty is now part of our family!

Swoon - If you're not a midmod nut like me, Broyhill's "Brasilia" line is kinda like end-all be-all of super cool brand name 60's furniture. Similar dressers sell from anywhere between $500 and $1000 and are very hard to come by so we're crazy excited!

Weekend update to be finished tomorrow. Night!

Thrift and CL Finds

2011-07-18T22:04:00.000-04:00

We had some good luck this weekend with our local thrift store and "christened" the Mazda on her first day with a craigslist run after we got home on Saturday.

Hammered Copper Pot from Unique Thrift

I'm going to clean this up and transplant my tomato into it! Only $15 which is a great deal for real copper. The interwebs suggests using a salt covered lemon to clean off the oxidization. I'll let you know how that goes.

Atomic Coffee/Tea Pot?

I zeroed in on this beauty from like two aisles away! Also at Unique Thrift this new addition to my china cabinet was only $3.93! Cleaned up beautifully with my BFF Bar Keeper's Friend.

MidMod Record Cabinet

Scored this little guy on CL for $10. It needs to be sanded and restained and will likely be my TV stand for the new apartment!

It benefits me that Micheal is loving driving the new Mazda3 (with a hatchback, woot!) so now when I say "look what I found on CL" he's all "let's go!!"

Weekend Update & WWL 7/17/11

2011-07-17T22:39:00.000-04:00

Hey all! Some fun stuff to share with you this week!

We...

Purchased me a new fancy laptop
Got approval for my apartment in Wilmington

Purchased a new car
Got locked out of our house
Opened new doors
Went to the Second DC Truckeroo with our friends Mike & Sam
Scored some great thrift/CL finds

What we learned...

Our house is not easy to break in to!
Half of the green "leaves" on our tree in the back yard were actually poison ivy vines, ick!
Buying a car will always suck and even when the negotiations are technially over they're really not.
Car salesmen are shocked when you decide to leave mid negotiations to get lunch.
Our deer friends had twins!

Orange is the New Black (Kitchen pics!!)

2011-07-16T00:56:00.001-04:00

Our kitchen renovation started last July when Micheal texted me this picture while I was on vacation back home in Kansas.

After this there was no turning back. It's been a long year and it's still not 100% done but I felt we reached a spot that I could share pictures of the stuff that is done, because it sure is purdy, and we sure did work hard.

When we bought the house in July 2009 the kitchen needed just a little updating...

The appliances had to be replaced immediately but that left us with the painted tile backsplash, filthy cabinets, builder grade floor, fluorescent lighting...NO MORE!!

So without further ado...

New: Sink, Faucet, Floors, Pulls, Appliances, & Counters


Before	After

Extra Storage!

Our new orange kitchen, I'm in love!

The final list:

Floor trim
Pantry door
Backsplash (someday)
Fix passthroughs
Breakfast bar

Not bad compared to the original list from 8/10/2010...

Making Progress

2011-07-07T21:00:00.000-04:00

We had a pretty productive 4th of July weekend! Here are some projects we're working on...

Working on this thrift store table I bought with my mom here.
(Note, I don't know why this photo isn't centered, I can't make it right, so it's off center, whatevs.)

Putting new veneer on the cabinet doors for under the sink.

We also made trip to our favorite building surplus store, Community Forklift and scored a few great finds!

I'm in love with this awesome hanging bubble lamp! A steal at $15!

This awesome nautical themed door was a whopping $4!! Curious aren't you?

We should be finishing up several projects soon so prepare for some great before and after pics! I'm excited!

Metro Steals (??)

2011-07-01T12:06:00.000-04:00

I'm having trouble coming up with a name for recurring area specific thrift/CL finds that I want to post on the blog a bit more regularly. That way I don't feel as bad when I leave something behind. (No really, I do occasionally leave something behind...)

I thought DC Deals was cute, but in reality inaccurate since I rarely trek into DC to go thrifting. Since I live in the "DC Metro" area I went with Metro Steals for today, I'm going to try it on, wear it around for a while to see what I think. Suggestions are welcome!

I went to the Montgomery County Habitat for Humanity Restore and found some cute stuff. This is one of the best restores I've been to, particularly for furniture and appliances. Probably has something to do with being located in one of the most affluent counties in the US. Score for us!

The "steals" if you will...

Cute little midmod dresser, laminate top, the rest is wood $35.

Even cuter midmod dresser, but also pricier at $75.

Coordinating teak lamps (the wood is different colors) for $25/each, but right now they're having a 50% of lighting sale - score! At $25/pair I might be going back for these guys...

Nice brass lamp pair, would look great spray painted a bright color or oil-rubbed bronze. Also $25/each on sale for 50% off.

They have several boxes of this larger vintage-looking honeycomb tile, I didn't get the price but they're always very reasonable.

This set would be a great splurge for someone with a small apartment. Because they're clear they don't take us as much "visual space" thus making your apartment feel larger. :) (Or so I'm told by HGTV.)

I hope everyone has a wonderful 4th of July weekend planned! Micheal and I are talking about braving the crowds to watch the fireworks at the National Mall. We'll see if we actually go through with it. :)

Team Struemph + 1

2011-06-29T10:11:00.001-04:00

I'm kind of looking at the past 10 days like a mini-bootcamp for parenting. :) Granted I got to be the "cool aunt" and let him stay up, drink soda, say "yes" to a lot of cool things, but I also learned the more you say yes, the more you have to say no! We did LOTS of fun things and I took TONS of pictures, so prepare yourself. :)

Smithsonian National Zoo

Cost: Free! (Map $2.00)
Outside Food & Drink: Yes!
Hours: 10am to 6pm
Metro: Woodley Park or Cleveland Park Stops

We decided this was the lion version of Moshe!

On the way home we stopped at a frozen yogurt place, this is what Ezra got...

Yum?

Smithsonian Museum of Natural History
Cost: Free!
Outside Food/Drink: We brought our own lunch and ate in the cafe
Hours: 10am to 5:30pm (was open late our day until 7:00)
Metro: Smithsonian Metro Stop
Tips: Butterfly house is FREE on Tuesdays!

Tyrannasaurus Cafe Lunch

Big Bugs

The Butterfly House was free on Tuesdays so we checked it out, it was truly amazing!

I even made a friend. :)

Smithsonian Air & Space Museum - Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center

There are two buildings for the Air & Space museum, one on the National Mall and one by Dulles Airport. We were told that the one by Dulles was much better so we trekked out there.

Cost: "Free" ($15 to park!)
Outside Food & Drink: No, McDonalds
Metro: No
Tips: Flight simulator $8/pp and other VR machines $7/pp

We were greeted by this:

Awesome Planes

And the "coup de gras" the test space shuttle!

Baltimore National Aquarium

Cost: $25/adult regular admission $20/child regular admission (you can add dolphin show and 4D immersion for extra.) Parking garage $20 - $3 coupon=$17.
Outside Food or Drink: No, Cafe
Metro: No
Tips: Buy your ticket online and go on weekdays!

I love these guys...

Check out these fish!! They "spit" their prey off of low hanging branches!

After this we went for a paddle boat ride on the inner harbor, Ezra gave up paddling after about.....5 minutes. :)

WHEW!! Alright, and WWL this week:

All nine year olds should try out for Jeopordy because they KNOW everything. Duh.
Bedtime is very exciting.
When I was referred to as "mom" I felt old but when the waiter called us "family" it made me feel warm and fuzzy.
According to Micheal my purse is simply an extension of his pocket.
Never take a 9 year old to a thrift store when he has money to burn, the have LOTS of CHEAP junk!
Re-reading a chapter book from childhood with a kiddo is super cool.
Having my mom come was the BEST idea ever!
My sister Jolene is SUPER WOMAN! How she does this with four kids under 10 on a regular basis I'll never know (really, no more than 2 for me people!)
When your alternator fries it can mess up the rest of the systems on your car.
The more you say yes the more you have to say no! (Ah positive reinforcement at it's best!)
If you don't plan on buying anything either avoid the gift shop altogether or go first so you get the disappointment out of the way early.
Ezra's favorite part of the Air and Space museum was getting bacon on his cheeseburger.
The word "technically" should be removed from the English dictionary.
None of those little annoyances really matter, because man we had a good time!

Happy Monday!

2011-06-27T13:48:00.000-04:00

I hope everyone is having a good Monday! Micheal and I are recovering after hosting my 9-year-old nephew for the past 10 days. We had a BLAST but man, this surrogate parenting stuff is exhausting!

I'm working on a post with pics of all the fun things we did in DC, but here's a sneak pic at some pics:

My mom came out the last few days too!

Natural History Museum

I also took my mom to my local thrift store, just so she could have a "visual" when I called her while I was roaming the aisles. And just our luck, all furniture was 50% off! So I picked up this little guy for a reasonable $4.50 and plan on painting it black and might even put a funky pattern on the top!

More to come this week - Ciao for now!

F2F in Rome!

2011-06-18T00:30:00.000-04:00

Micheal and I were blessed with the opportunity to travel to Rome last week and we had an amazing time. This was our second visit to Rome, the first occured in 2003, in stifling heat, with my parents. That summer we practically sprinted through outdoor sights like the Colosseum due to the heat, so we were very excited to get back and spend a little more time re-acquainting ourselves with Roma.

We stayed at a very quiant Bed and Breakfast, Cernaia Suites that was in the northern area of Rome and close to the University where Micheal's conference was. It's a very affordable option for those looking for a clean, quiet, friendly place to stay. The owner/operator, Renato, is fabulous!

It's right off of the Piazza della Repubblica which has a few places to eat, a bookstore, and some small vendors.

Daytime

At Night

The first day we walked to...

Piazza Barberini

The Spanish Steps

The Trevi Fountain

Stopped to get gelato...

That night we went back to the Trevi Fountain area to have dinner and went to a small bar near our hotel that served free popcorn with their alcohol and made friends with a group of Japanese tourists. I look like a spazz in all these pictures so..you get none. :)

Day 2 we went and registered Micheal for the conference, sat in on a few talks about boring math stuff and then headed into town. Crazy enough, the first store we stopped in had this fab Eames chair as part of the decor!

Then we headed over to the Piazza del Popolo

A story about that pretty rose. So these guys wander around major European cities (they were in Paris too) and try to get you to buy a rose for your significant other. We're pretty good at saying no but this guy had a good trick figured out. He asked you to listen to his story, he started to talk about having no work, his family, and as he was doing this he asked me to hold a rose...then he wouldn't take it back!! But would badger you to pay for it. So we paid a Euro, and I had a rose. Sneaky...

We stopped and got some more gelato...

Then we must have wandered for the rest of the day because I don't have any more pictures.

Day 3 we headed out to the Mercato via Sannio (near the San Giovanni metro) - a clothing market. It was HUGE. I forgot to take photos so here are a few from the web.

(Source: TurkeyArena.net and Romatoday.it)

It was very neat, I almost bought some pink Carhart pants as my new work pants! Regret that missed purchase...

Then we headed over to Vatican City.

Vatican City

We headed back to change and went out to dinner at a fabulous pizza place, "al Forno della Soffitta" via Piave 62-64 near the Piazza della Repubblica. This is me posing by my new dream car, a vintage Fiat 500 on the way to dinner.

Day 4 was a slow day, we were tired...

Day 5 was probably one of the most fabulous days of my life. We rented a VESPA and scooted around the beautiful city of Rome. Ah-mazing.

First we went to the Colosseum.

I took this photo because I have one of my mom and I in a very similar spot in the Colosseum in 2003

We hopped back on the scooter...

Saw some sights

And ended our day/trip in Piazza Navona, just the same as the last trip.

It was truly a wonderful trip! If you made it through all these photos, way to go!

Twigs and Glass

2011-06-15T13:54:00.000-04:00

I'm officially on summer break! I'm now working about 2.5 days a week and have the other few days free to tinker around the house and get projects done during the day while Micheal brings home the bacon. I mentioned here that I wanted to add some other items to our DIY'd floating shelves in the bedroom (instructions here.) So yesterday I set out to add something decorative with a recent garage sale find and some twigs.

I picked up the glass jar at a garage sale for a dollar and once we ran it through the dishwasher it was beautiful! I had some extra twigs laying around that I bought on clearance at Target so I thought I'd see if I could get some height on the bedroom shelves. But brown twigs? No thank you, that's so...forest. ;)

So I broke out some spray paint and did half grey and half turquoise to match the decor going on in the bedroom.

I really like how it looks, particularly the extra height it gives to the setup.

Nearing an End to Kitchen Cabinet Purgatory

2011-06-14T20:32:00.007-04:00

F2F is nearing a 1 year anniversary on our kitchen remodel and the largest obstacle - the restoration of our cabinets - is nearing completion. During this time we removed the doors and hardware, sanded, painted, and reinstalled the doors. Sounds easy right? Wrong! We were determined to reuse the original cabinets and and as a result we endured countless headaches and ultimately found a way to make everything work.

In the next few weeks we will detail a few of these headaches, ending with pictures of the finished cabinets on the year anniversary.

Ciao!! We're back!

2011-06-13T21:24:00.000-04:00

Of course, I forgot to mention we were leaving... Oops - sorry! We spent the last week in Rome, Italy living it up Italian style. Which means, eating, walking, sight-seeing, eating, GELATO, shopping, drinking, and then eating some more. And we did ALL of it! :)

Here we are with me rocking my awesome floppy hat at the Spanish Steps

Right after this picture Micheal said to me, "was I even in that photo or was it all hat??" That sacrifices we make for fashion honey...

Instead of drawing out our week in day-by-day posts like I did for Paris (which I'm pretty sure only my mom read all of them...) I'm working on a more succinct photo extravaganza with some Rome travel tips if you're ever going to head on over there!

This is also my first week of "summer vacation" if you will, before I head off to internship so I'm hoping to get working on some projects to share with you!

Ciao for now!

DC Craigslist Deals (Mid-Century, Art Deco, Vintage) - $50 and under!

2011-06-02T13:33:00.000-04:00

Craigslist is insane right now with great deals because everyone and their aunt in the DC Metro area is moving or spring cleaning! There are so many great pieces of furniture out there that my only way to cope without buying them is to share them with you all. :) So here goes! (Click on the picture for a link to the original ad.)

Vintage Chair $40

I might still pick up this chair for myself... I've really been wanting a sofa chair to recover for my apartment bedroom.

Mid-Century Modern Coffee Table $50

Very nice lines, appears to be in good condition.

Vintage Dresser $50

I'm surprised at how much I like this dresser since it's not MCM. But it's really cool.

Super Cool MCM Clock $25

I'm in the process of refurbishing my starburst clock right now - but how cool would this be, maybe spray painted white? And at $25 it's a good deal!

Tile and Wood MCM Coffee Table - $50

The tiles are totally NMS (not my style) but could be replaced. Look how sexy her legs are though!

Art Deco Desk - $35

Come on, this is just gorgeous!

Vintage Wicker Chair - $15

Spray paint it white, whip up a new cushion, and it's a beautiful before and after! AND the seat opens up for storage, bonus!

Knockoff Eames Lounge Chair - $50

I know it says "authentic" - while it may be authentically old, it's not an original Eames - but it's still cool!

MCM Dresser - $40

Super cute, still thinking about this one for the apartment in Delaware.

A How To: Easy Sew Couch Pillows

2011-06-01T10:31:00.001-04:00

Let's start this off with the caveat that I am NOT a professional seamstress, so if you're looking for a fancy "how to" on making couch pillows with things like zippers or piping you're in the wrong place. :) If you are a sewing novice (like me) and are looking for an easy pillow that takes about 30 minutes - look no further, you're here!!

Cost breakdown:
1 yard fabric for the front $8.99
1 yard fabric for the back $7.00
2 pillow inserts (free, reused old ones!)
Thread $1.79 (on sale)

Total cost: $17.78 for two pillows, could have been much cheaper too if hadn't paid quite as much for my fabric. :)

Step 1: Get some fabric. Go crazy!! These are couch pillows, one of the best places to add that extra pop of color or pattern if you're a bit too nervous to throw down a zebra print rug or paint your walls orange. I literally got lost in Hancock Fabric this weekend looking at all their new summer prints (my mom can vouch for this since I had her on the phone for the hour I was wandering the store.) Some prints that caught my eye:

I ended up using a pattern on the front and a more subtle accent fabric for the back. For two 20" pillows I would suggest getting 1 yard of each type of fabric. You'll have some extra but it allows for mistakes! Also get some thread that will blend in and if you don't have any extra pillow forms laying around (I used two from old pillows we don't use anymore) grab two pillow forms. Make sure to bring at least one coupon, all of the fabric stores accept each other's coupons!

Step 2 - Cutting out your fabric. Most instructions will tell you to cut 21 inches for a 20 inch pillow, however I like my pillows "fuller" looking and don't use as much of the edge so I cut mine at 20 inches square. So if you're making two pillows, fold your fabric in half and measure a 20 by 20 inch square to get two squares (if only making one then just cut and measure one 20x20 square.) Repeat with the back fabric.

I a tip from Cottage Magpie to use a glass to draw and cut rounded edges which makes sewing the corners much easier!

Step 3 - Pin the wrong sides of the fabric together leaving a gap on one of the sides to later stuff the pillow into.

Step 4 - Sew the edges together.

(This also gives a good shot of the rounded edge.)

I used a zigzag stitch with my length knob (the numbered one) set at about 1.5. I set the fabric so it would be sewing right at the edge, it was essentially riiiiight outside the edge of the viewing hole on the presser foot. Remember to sew all the corners but leave one side open!

Step 5 - Flip it inside out and fill out the corners.

Use your fingers to even everything out and then iron the edges flat.

Step 6 - Iron a crease on the fabric in the opening.

Essentially you're folding it over enough so it matches the rest of the pillow, it's only about 1/4 inch if that. Do the same to the other side making sure they match up.

The ultimate goal when ironing is to keep the other side from showing. So when you look at the back you should see no pattern from the front and vice versa.

Step 7 - Sewing your edge. Head back over to your sewing machine and use the straight stitch function, again I had it set at 1.5 on the number knob (so technical I know). And stitch all the way around from opening to opening right at the edge of the fabric.

See what I mean about right outside the viewing window of the presser foot? And you'll only be on one of the feeders as well so make sure to help feed the fabric through. I didn't do any backstitching when I reached the openings because that would be visible and we're going to sew over them anyway.

Step 8 - STUFF STUFF STUFF! :) So you've got the pillow sewn all around the edges with your opening left, jam that pillow in!

I use the roll and stuff method. Roll the pillow up, have someone hold the hole open and push it in.

Step 9: Finishing the edges. Now you're going to sew the opening shut to match the rest of the edge of the pillow. To make it easier to get your full pillow into your sewing machine squish your pillow down and put either safety pins or stick pins through the fabric to keep the pillow down like this:

Then match the edges of your opening up and pin them closed. Take your pillow to the sewing machine, drop the needle about 1/2 inch back on the already sewn line (to help lock in the other stitching) and then slowly sew the opening closed. I had Micheal help hold the pillow while I guided it through the machine.

Step 10: The haircut. Now your pillow looks like Cousin It - don't just give it a regular haircut! The beauty of this pillow is you can tie off the ends so they're strong and invisible. Grab a regular ol'needle and pick up and thread through one piece of "hair" if you will :) - then insert your needle into the gap left by sewing the opening shut, like so...

Do this for each "set" of threads if you will (the top and bottom stitch) and then tie them in a double knot inside the crease and trim! You're DONE!! The first one took me a bit longer, but once you get the hang of it, it's a quick 20-30 min project.

Please ask any questions or suggestions for making the project easier to follow are welcome. Have fun!

Weekend Update and WWL 5/31/11

2011-05-31T15:36:00.001-04:00

Today is what my mom and I regularly refer to as a "Monday/Tuesday." The Tuesday after a long weekend that feels like a Monday, but generally is even worse than a regular Monday.

SO I wish you a HAPPY Monday/Tuesday and I hope you enjoyed your long Memorial day weekend! We were really productive this weekend!

The biggest step forward though was in the kitchen. When we first moved in we removed the sink cabinet in the kitchen to install a new sink, garbage disposal, and plumbing. Knowing that we were going to renovate the kitchen at some point we didn't put the cabinet back. So for a very long time our kitchen sink area has looked like this:

This weekend though, with the aid of the fabulous new table saw, Micheal knocked out the necessary pieces to put everything back together!!

Be still my heart!!

The original doors for this cabinet were water damaged, I tried to save them but could never get one totally smooth. So we snagged these guys for FREE off craigslist this weekend and will use our handy dandy router to cut them down to size.

I also whipped up a few new throw pillows for the couch - super easy "how to" coming tomorrow!

What we learned (recently):

According to the 10+ mosquito bites I got in about a 20 minute period and the 90+ degree heat, summer is OFFICIALLY here!
Always always check your extension ladder to make sure it's locked before you climb it.
New screen doors cost about 40 bucks...
While HGTV is motivating...we actually get a lot more done when we turn it OFF! :)
One of our outdoor spigots is leaking inside (awesome).
Wendy's can run out of Frosties...(there should be a law against this)
When discussing dinner plans with a friend and her husband, if you ask if she is "adventurous" you should specify that you mean in regards to food choices. ;)
Weed-whacking is an acquired skill.

Hey Hey Hey....Goodbye....

2011-05-30T18:20:00.001-04:00

After our unsuccessful attempt to pull the evil holly trees with the trunk, Micheal decided it was time to get serious and called out a few landscaping companies to get quotes to get rid of those buggers.

Turns out that not only are they aggressive, annoying and prickly, they're also diseased. Awesome. It's a long drawn out story, but a quick breakdown is:

Tree disease --> sticky leaves --> attracts small bugs --> which attract spiders --> which attract flies and hornets.

YUCK!

He also said that they're way to close to the house and we needed to move anything that we planned on replacing it with out further into the yard. We got about 5 quotes ranging from $300 to $1000 but since we're no longer trying to plant a tree in the exact same spot we decided to take on the job ourselves.

So we plugged in every man's favorite tool [reciprocating saw] and cut down the tops of the trees, leaving the truck to use as leverage for pulling out.

SHAZAAM!!

I'm so so so happy they're gone!! My brain is already buzzing with ideas for landscaping, lighting, a wood porch, plants, power-washing... Just more to add to the ever-growing list!

(Gratuitous husband plug to follow, if you're easily nauseated by spouse to spouse messages, stop reading here...)

A big thanks to the hubs for braving the trees and getting rid of them for me - as soon as he chopped into them they started fighting back, bugs were everywhere, it was super gross. I stood back and took pictures at a safe distance....you rock babe!

How To: Tile Floor Part 1, Removing Old Floor

2011-05-25T10:00:00.001-04:00

Tired of your floor but don't want to shell out the big bucks to have someone lay it for you? If you watch HGTV enough you know that laying tile is definitely something you can DIY, you just have to be brave! So I'll give you a nice step-by-step tutorial to help you get up the courage. :)

First thing's first, what to do with your old floor? You have a few options:
1. Tile over the existing floor
2. Take out all tile down to the original subfloor
3. Find a compromise between options 1 and 2

We went for option 3. Option 1 is obviously the easiest, HOWEVER, the issue with option 1 is that with each layer placed your floor gets taller and you end up having to put a "watch your step" sign between the kitchen and the dining room.

Our first step was to remove the 12x12 tile flooring. To do this we needed:

Mason's Chisel
Mini Sledge Hammer
Elbow Grease

Take the mason's chisel and place it at a 45 degree angle at the edge of the tile. Use the sledge hammer to pound the chisel until it goes under the tile a little bit. Do this along the edge of the tile, side, middle, side.

Continue to do this until you can get the chisel fully under the tile and then use it to pry up the tile off of the thinset.

Depending on the adhesion it might come up as a whole tile (about 75% of ours did) or it might break like it did in the above picture.Under the thinset there was a layer of cement board that was screwed to the subfloor. Because it was fairly crumbly we used a pry bar and pried up each 3x5 piece of cement board leaving the screws to take out later.

This was a HUGE mess, but generally came up pretty easily.

Next was the 80s vinyl tile squares that had been glued to a thin layer of fiberboard that had been glued to the 70s vinyl (yes, that's a lot of glue.) We needed to pull the screws which was quite the undertaking because they were filled with thinset and concrete dust and many of them had been stripped.

We literally had to get down on our hands and knees and scrape out several of the screw heads so that they would catch the drill bit. Not a very glamorous or fun job but made the job much easier. After all the screws were removed we started popping up the vinyl squares to identify where the seams of the fiberboard were. Then used the wonderbar to pry up each section of board. I was initially prying willy-nilly and it was very difficult with lots of tearing fiberboard. Once I focused on whole pieces it was MUCH easier.

This left the 70s linoleum with lots of construction adhesive and cardboard residue. This was where we decided to stop because underneath the linoleum there was asbestos tile. The tile is not hazardous if left undisturbed, so undisturbed it shall be! To make the floor as level of a surface as possible we used the Dremel Multimax with the Rigid Scraper Tool to scrape up each piece of glue. Yuck.

Before

After

And that left us with a nice solid, flat surface to begin laying our floor on! This was a long enough post, so enough for Part 1. Part 2 is prepping the floor to lay tile!

Hedgehogs and History

2011-05-24T18:45:00.019-04:00

I frequently search Ebay and Etsy for trinkets that I think Kari will like (tolerate). My personal style is probably a little more eclectic than hers so I have to dial back. She frequently gives me the "you are so odd" or "you can put that up in YOUR office" look when I see something I really like. When looking for items to decorate the house I am amazed by the discrepancy in prices. I hold the idea that something is only worth what someone else is willing to pay, but sometimes I wonder how a "price" is determined. I recently bought a unique nesting hedgehog set made of brass that was titled "Hedgehog Stacking Ashtrays."

I really love the aesthetic. Once it arrived I proceeded to display it on the beforementioned shelves in the bedroom. In a fit of boredom I thought I would see if there were variations in the design or similar sets. I was floored. There are currently 2 sets of Hedgehog "stacking ashtrays" on Ebay for $249 and one for $298, there is an incomplete set selling for $99. Why is this amazing? I paid $13 for mine and it is an original Walter Bosse Vienna Bronze Hedgehog Ashtray Set.

Once I started looking at the pictures online I thought I had a copy or variation of the design since the base hedgehog didn't have a long nose like those in other pictures. Then I found a few pics of all the pieces and realized the piece is a 1947 Walter Bosse cast, but I am missing the largest "ashtray." Either way I love the hedgehogs and they sit on our shelf defying the Moshe's attempts to knock them off.

The backstory to items like these are equally intriguing. The hedgehogs were designed by Walter Bosse, an Austrian designer known for his modern Vienna Bronze figurines. Interestingly he died impoverished as a result of other artists copying his work, he spent years in court trying to receive royalties for his designs, as a result of his efforts he is considered the founder of modern copyright law for designer goods and handicrafts. When he passed, he was buried without a gravestone. Years later a consortium of collectors had a gravestone designed using his infamous hedgehogs for inspiration.

Shelf Ideas

2011-05-20T09:18:00.003-04:00

This was actually the title of an email Micheal sent me after reading the update on Monday. He's such a good husband! Some super cute etsy finds that would look great on the shelf! Both are a bit pricey for my taste but are great inspiration for some DIY projects maybe??

Source: Red Tile Studio

Sourche: MonkiVillage

We do have a new router that needs to be tested out - DIY letter press letters? Hmmm...

Pink Gloves

2011-05-19T09:13:00.000-04:00

I'm such a ~~sucker~~ consumer - right by the checkout counter at Home Depot they have packs of brightly colored gardening gloves in Hot Pink, Purple and Green. So of course who went home with pink gloves?

This girl!

They turned out to be very handy as we decided to tackle a few outdoor projects that had been on our list for a while.

First order of business, pull some offensive bushes.

See that random planter bed? One Japanese Holly, one azalea, about 100 irises, a few random day lilies, and some liriope. Micheal has been asking if he could clear it out for a while, since it has no symmetrical match on the other side of the yard and significantly impedes his mowing he has always disliked it.

A few quick pulls from the truck and the bushes were gone and we dug out the irises and day lilies because we were going to transplant them elsewhere.

Before giving him the green light I made him promise we would put down sod so I wouldn't have a big dirt pit. I'm still waiting... ;)

Using the truck to pull the azalea bush was a bit of overkill, but it was really practice to try and rid ourselves of the demonic holly trees by the front door. We dug out around them some, hooked up the chain, and cried when the smaller of the two scoffed at our attempt to uproot it.

Micheal set to dig it out more after that.

At about this point he was wondering aloud how much it would cost for a tree company to come pull them out, or maybe the cost of renting a bobcat for a day. Holly Trees - 1, Team Struemph - 0.

We took the irises and lilies and planted them along our property line with some salvia and other flowers that we picked up at a local nursery along with the Japanese Maple I picked up last fall on clearance. We're trying to create some separation between our yard and the wild weeds and foliage in the woods next door.

We planted four patches of flowers and I'm going to continue to add until it's a solid row. I want to include spring, summer, and fall blooming plants so something is always in bloom!

Weekend (Life) Update and WWL 5.15.11

2011-05-15T22:30:00.003-04:00

Ciao my dears - sorry about my absence, but I had to make an unexpected trip home on the 29th to visit with my grandmother before she passed. She was a lovely woman and I was very lucky to be able to sit and have some much needed talks with her before she went to her heavenly home.

But now I'm BACK and super excited for June to get here. Starting in June I'll only be working a few days a week so I'm looking forward to working on the many projects that are sitting around the house unfinished.

Exhibit A:

My super cool mid-century chair has turned into a cat bed because I’m halfway through making a new cover for the top cushion. Piping sucks.

Exhibit B:

My grandparents gave me this amazing starburst clock!! I’ve wanted one SO badly and this baby was free! It needs new guts and I’m going to paint it, I already have it’s new home all picked out!

Exhibit C:

I just can’t figure out what I want to put on these shelves. We’re slowly adding things, but I really want it to be set and done. And the glaring holes in the middle of the shelves are a constant reminder that it’s NOT DONE! I’m thinking of being trendy and doing an “S” for Struemph and another wedding photo. Also need to get candles that will fit those little candle holders on the left and something to go in the blue vase.

This weekend we were busy in the yard – I’ll share some pics tomorrow!

What We’ve Learned Recently:

1. Cicadas live underground in their infancy stages and look disturbingly like mutant grub worms (which I already have an unhealthy fear of.)

2. Continental says that if you’re not in your seat 10 minutes before the scheduled take-off time you’re SOL. No matter how hard you’re crying.

3. If you miss your connection when flying home to visit a dying relative a kind flight attendant might covertly offer you a Xanax. (Man I must have looked bad….)

4. We’re going to ROME!!!!

5. The end of the movie “The Crazies” sucks.

6. Wear kneepads when installing tile, EVEN if your knees feel file while installing. They will thank you the next day.

7. My mom and I are two peas in a super productive, type A, “I’ll do it myself” pod. :)

8. If you want cool plants (particularly shade plants) skip Home Depot and go to a real nursery.

9. Hostas are “like candy” to deer. Damnit.

Weekend Update & WWL 4/25/11

2011-04-25T22:17:00.000-04:00

Ciao! What a weekend at the Struemph House! Saturday we started the process of tiling - I left Micheal to measure and plan (two of his many strengths!) and went to Miss Clara's first birthday party! I got a little crafty with wrapping her gift...

When I got back it was time to take the plunge! Mix thin-set, lay tile, and 9 hours later...

A 2am photo on my phone - but so beautiful.

After the necessary time to set had passed it was time to grout! Seriously, I'm so tired. But it was so worth it.

Before:

After:

Moshe had to try it out as soon as he was allowed back in! Forgive the non-full kitchen pics but all of the appliances are still out because we still have to seal the grout. So another two days without a dishwasher, water, and fridge in the kitchen. Chinese takeout anyone??

What we learned:

Start laying tile before 3:30pm - quality of work declines once midnight rolls around and you're still running the tile saw in the dark and the rain.
Don't ask your husband to move a solid sleeper sofa the day after laying tile for 9 hours - if he's amazing like mine he'll do it but he won't like it.
When strength and stubbornness fail, there is always ingenuity.
Don't use a rubber mallet to try and squish down your tile that is setting too high - the stand and wiggle method works much better and is much less destructive.
Backbuttering is an art.
Being the grout sponger is messy business.

Don't try to take a picture of your leg looking down, it is not a flattering angle.
I like my thin-set Frosty consistency as opposed to peanut butter consistency.
Take pictures at the beginning, at the end you just want to get done so the motivation to take extra time for pictures vanishes quickly!

And I'm spent... How to posts on floor prep, laying tile, and grouting to come.

I hate it when it rains in DC

2011-04-18T13:30:00.000-04:00

So when it rains in DC everything stops and everything is excused.

"I'm sorry I'm 45 minutes late for my appointment, but it's RAINING!"

"I'm not going to go to the grocery store, can't you see it's RAINING!"

"I know I shouldn't have robbed the 7-Eleven at gunpoint...but it was RAINING!!"

Okay so maybe not so much on that last one, but the rain foiled our weekend plans on installing our brand new, fabulous, beautiful, non-contractor dirty beige tile.

Isn't it lovely??

It was scheduled to arrive between 9 and 12 but didn't arrive until 6 - so we sat around all day with our laser level, chalk snapper, grout, etc etc etc for nothing. And we really needed the full two days to do the measuring, dry fit, laying of tile, and grout so instead of trying to SQUISH it all into one day we have postponed until next weekend.

The weekend was not a total loss though! Micheal found his "dream saw" on craigslist, barely used for about 30% of the price so we trekked up to Brookeville, MD to snag a beautiful, new-to-us Ridgid 10 inch table saw. (Insert manly grunt here.) He wants to do his own post to show her off so I won't post any links or pictures.

On our journey we learned that we lived on one of two "Highways to Heaven" in the DC area! On the 15 mile stretch between our house and hers there were THIRTY-SIX churches!! Including:

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Photo Source Astrom DC)

The Prayer Stop (Photo Source The Enigmatic Travelor)

Along with 34 other beautiful churches including a Mosque, several Seventh-Day Adventist churches, another gorgeous Ukrainian (non-orthodox?) church with a full wood (teak? cedar?) exterior. It was actually pretty humbling to see people of so many faiths celebrating in one area.

Other things we learned:

Don't drive down a road with 36 churches on a SUNDAY and expect to make it to your destination on time.
Having as many stairs as we do SUCKS it comes to delivery time and the guy wishes you luck as he drives away... (grumble)
Stubbornness is truly an excellent substitution for strength.
Never underestimate the ability for a power tool to make a man giggle like a school girl in the privacy of his own home.
Streaming Netflix is dangerous!

WOO HOO!

2011-04-14T14:26:00.000-04:00

The tile is coming the tile is coming!!! Saturday between 9 and noon - so excited!

Goodbye 70s!

On a related and somewhat disturbing/hilarious note...I was watching HGTV the other day (shocker) and something crazy showed up on one of their promos.

Ummm...does the UGLY 70s VINYL in the lower right corner look familiar?? Man I REALLY hope that was a before shot...

Micheal's "Adult Dresser"

2011-04-06T10:00:00.000-04:00

We hit up a sale last weekend and Micheal fell in love with a huge dresser that was on the second floor of a DC Colonial. He was really excited to buy it because he felt like it would be his first "adult dresser." I'm pretty sure the fact that it has small and big drawers is what qualifies it as "adult" - learn something new everyday! ;)

Close up of the detail

It's in good structural condition, but it has enough cosmetic blemishes I made him promise we could paint it black instead of sanding and staining. I have yet to find a stainable wood filler that doesn't look like c-rap and this will require a bit of filling. He's wavering...but I'm trying to stand strong.

Weekend Update & WWL 4/4/11

2011-04-04T22:28:00.000-04:00

Several big things happened this weekend.

We set about 75% of the cement board that will be the base for our new tile.
We ordered the TILE!!! I changed my mind at the very last minute, deciding I didn't like the look of the tile we picked. This sent us to The Tile Shop - a fabulous store that I can't believe we didn't visit before! This is what we decided on and ordered.

We got a 20% discount for ordering in the store, they deliver for free, and it should be in sometime this week! Awesome!

We're so close to being done with the kitchen I can TASTE it!! :)

What We Learned (recently)

We aren't willing to pay "estate sale" prices that are run by companies, so I've had to alter how I look for sales and furniture.
Fear the DC "Not In Service" buses...
Real fans mourn the exit of their team from the NCAA tournament, bandwagon fans thank their team for a fun two weeks.
Corded drills are intense!
"Wii arms" should be an official medical diagnosis.

Floor Progress

2011-04-02T13:53:00.000-04:00

Before:

Before that...

Before that...

And that's as far as we're going! Putting down the cement board this weekend to get ready for the new tile floor. Woo hoo!!

Unique MCM Storage

2011-03-18T09:36:00.000-04:00

Micheal has gotten really into mid century kitchen gadgets, so when this showed up in the mail about a week ago I wasn't totally shocked. :)

It's an organizer for your aluminum foil, wax/parchment paper, and paper towels! Each flap is imprinted with one of these words and has a serrated edge on the flap for foil/paper removal.

We're planning on mounting on the wall over in the baking corner like this:

We've already got a snazzy paper towel holder we like and it only fits small standard rolls so we're planning on putting something else in the bottom part. I'm thinking ziplock bags for easy access during cooking. I think it's pretty nifty, he gets my stamp of approval on this purchase!

Holy 70's Batman!!

2011-03-14T14:43:00.003-04:00

I feel like I should be breaking out my peace necklace and bell bottoms to work in this kitchen!

The kitchen floor is kinda like a time capsule:

2000 - cheap 88 cent sq/ft tile from Home Depot
90s/80s - vinyl squares with awesome blue diamonds
70s - psychedelic orange flowers
60s - scary asbestos tile, grey with pink and blue dots! (There is a small triangle exposed in the doorway that you can see.)

Under the orange there is asbestos tile :( so we're stopping at the 70s and will build our floor back over that. The asbestos is nicely sealed up under there so it's safe to leave it! But taking up the three layers of flooring got us a good inch of height back so we won't have to install a step to get into the kitchen. :)

This chunk took about...an hour (ugh) so probably another full day of floor demo ahead of us!

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

2011-03-12T23:52:00.000-05:00

The Good:

The Kansas Jayhawks are the 2011 Big 12 Champions!!!!!!! Ready for another National Title!!!!

Photo from KUsports.com

The Bad:

We went back to the thrift store today and the table was already gone. :( The #1 rule of thrifting is that if you think it's cool and a good price, it's likely someone else will too so you better buy it! So for this table it wasn't meant to be, but I'll keep looking!

...and the ugly...

Hello 1980! Mom, I'm sure we had this in one of our houses right?

Down to the first layer of linoleum, I'm thinking about just leaving it. The diamonds are blue and toootally match my blue bins. :)

Okay, maybe not... To bed for us, it's been a long day! Until tomorrow!

Thrift Store Trip

2011-03-11T22:02:00.000-05:00

A recent stop into my local thrift store introduced me to this beauty!

It's quite possibly the longest coffee table I've ever seen but remember, the couches were really long back then too! It was listed for a mere $19.99, however I need another random piece of furniture to refinish right now like I need a fork to the eye. So I was strong and came home, only to do a quick search on the internet to see that refinished it might be a really nice financial investment for a furniture flip.

So I'm going to head back tomorrow, hope it's still there, and check to see if it has a brand name imprinted on the bottom. As each day passes and it's not mine I feel like there really needs to be an addition to our mid-century family!

Weekly Update 3/10/11 and WWL

2011-03-10T21:59:00.000-05:00

We had a great weekend because my friend Kathleen was in town to visit! We ~~spruced up the guest bedroom and bath~~ made the guest bedroom and bath habitable and semi-functioning so she wouldn't have to brave the fully pink monstrosity that is our master ~~closet~~ bathroom.

We hit up Lauriol Plaza, known to many an urban socialite as the home of the wonderous swirl margarita. They do not take reservations so we showed up at 8pm on a Friday night to a packed lobby and people hanging out drinking the swirls straight out of the pitcher - glasses are for sissies!!

Photo from 'Till It's Done

On Sat we got the majority of our old neuropsych/concussion team back together for reminiscing and baby time. Clara and I are totally BFFs. :)

Sunday we took Kathleen back to the airport and hit up the Home Depot on the way home to get a plan for finishing the remainder of the kitchen. We have decided to replace the tile on the kitchen floor with some really fabulous 12x24 porcelain tile. It will be an amazing change and really step up the "wow factor" of our kitchen reno..as if the orange didn't already do that. :)

Then Sunday night I got an email saying a chair I had wanted on CL Free was mine if I wanted it so we trudged out in the cold and rain to procure me said chair:

Isn't she cool? Poor Micheal had to stand in the cold rain trying to figure out a way to get her in the car, which ultimately led to a haphazard disassembly job because she was just too big.

It's likely that she's from the 70's/80's rather than the 50's/60's because of her specific design/lines. So I'm actually considering (gasp) painting her white (!!) to modernize the look a bit. She'll be coming up to Delaware with me in August so I plan to have her all beautified by then!

However, friends visiting = minimal work. Micheal hung another cabinet door (I know this doesn't sound like a major accomplishment but when I hash out what it has taken to get these doors up you'll understand why it has been one at a time) and another drawer installed.

What we learned:

Never take a woman's margarita while she's in the bathroom, no matter how loud you think she's getting...
Kathleen needs some practice at MarioKart
I LOVE wedding planning
You are NOT allowed to go through the dresses at Davids Bridal by yourself
My willingness to embarrass myself by making silly faces and sounds to small children has not waned with age
We're pretty sure the layers of kitchen floor go: tile, cement board, linoleum, particle board, linoleum, subfloor.

Mid-Week Update and WWL 3/2/11

2011-03-02T23:29:00.000-05:00

I'm SO ready for March!! More warm days, college basketball (GO JAYHAWKS), home renovations...what more could a girl ask for?

I'm very excited to share several things with you this week. First off, last Friday we got the results of the match process for my internship, and the verdict was...

DUPONT!! I'm VERY excited about the excellent training I will be receive at this amazing children's hospital. It's such a huge relief to have that whole stressful process behind me.

We had a low key weekend working on the house which included a trip to our favorite housing supply store, The Community Forklift. Sometimes we go and don't find anything, this was not one of those trips! This time we had to leave the store before we had even gotten to the back because our cart was full!!

I found this amazing antique window that had full pains of wavy patterned glass that was the perfect size for our pantry door project.

Upon closer inspection we realized the pattern was (be still my heart) STARBURSTS!!

AND IT WAS ON SALE!! It was kismet. How much did we spend for these two amazing panes of glass? A whopping $35...I love you Community Forklift. We had to disassemble the window to get the glass into the ol'Jetta, but trust me, it was old. :)

We also picked up a wall-mount sink that we will tuck away for the guest bath remodel (that's next!!)

Not the best picture, but you get the idea.

It was a great weekend - I don't start at Dupont until August so I'll have lots of time this summer for projects! Yay!

What we learned:
1 bottle of red wine = sweet dance moves
Two hours can seem like forever when you're refreshing your email every 15 seconds!
Do not try to calm an indoor cat who is poof city trying to defend the household from a stray outdoor cat...it's not pretty
Good things come to those who wait
The power surge we had two weeks ago fried our scanner :(
I simply refuse to follow a sewing pattern, I have no idea why I continue to buy them
Target clearance WILL be the downfall of my bank account

Modern Dinnerware - Crate and Barrel

2011-02-23T10:00:00.004-05:00

C&B does a great job providing modern decorating options and I recently took advantage of a sale to replace the dinnerware we got for our wedding (that we returned due to poor quality) and I LOVE it!!

It's the Max Dinnerware line and I currently have six place settings

4 Teal

and

2 Plum

I wasn't 100% sure about adding in the purple element to the teal/orange/green combo I have going on in the kitchen but this vase set (that I bought...) gave me the confidence that they colors would blend well.

It allows for a transition from the BOLD kitchen colors to a more sedated, yet coordinated dining area. I mean, I can't have bright orange everywhere can I?

Another great feature about this particular line of dinnerware is that they change up the color options with the season. So their new spring colors include green, grey, yellow, and blue!!

I see new plates in my future!!

Weekend Update 2/21/11 and WWL

2011-02-21T22:27:00.000-05:00

Hey all! It was a beautiful weekend here in MD! Unfortunately that beautiful sun-shiney weather is being replaced by a severe winter weather warning for tonight. You'd think I was back in Kansas!

We took advantage of the nice weather and hit up a few estate sales and picked up these cuties...

(I plan on turning them into candle holders!)

...and jetted up to Baltimore to check out another building surplus and salvage warehouse, The Loading Dock. In comparison to our local warehouse, the Community Forklift...I was not impressed. They had a larger selection of tile and flooring, but the prices were a lot higher for most things including doors and windows.

On our way we got caught up in the smoke of a brush fire that ultimately closed I-95 North and South (which is a BIG deal!)

It was pretty ominous in that cloud!

We also retrofit our wonky wobbly drawers with fancy new slides and put up a few more doors. Here is Micheal trying to determine if everything is level...

What we've learned (recently):

Evidently the tissue box is a good place to store Neosporin (??)
Kansas and Missouri aren't the only states that are 70 degrees one day and snowing the next
When you're #1 and you lose it's not as big of a deal if EVERYONE else loses too! (Even though Duke then gets to be #1...lame)
Audiobooks greatly cut into my phone conversation time
I need to get a notepad to write these down, because I SWEAR I had more moderately amusing ones
Parsley is one HARDY herb!! I just picked 1/2 cups worth of parsley from my "garden" that has been covered in about 5 inches of snow, frozen, rained on, AND there is new growth!
Waiting really REALLY sucks
Funny cat pictures always make me laugh
There is only so long in life that you get to be "that girl" that can eat anything and not gain a pound
The Jetta truly cannot go into the shop and leave for under 1k

Mid Century Wishlist

2011-02-08T22:21:00.000-05:00

I want one of these for our basement sooooooo bad.

Photo via ApartmentTherapy and www.malmfireplaces.com

It's a vintage Malm fireplace and it would seriously be the perfect addition to my house. I have been diligently searching craigslist and will continue to until one comes up within 3-5 hours of my house that is reasonably priced.

IT WILL BE MINE!!

Chair Fabric and Padding - Cover or Replace?

2011-02-07T16:25:00.000-05:00

Reupholstering dining room chairs can be one of the easiest and cheapest ways to update your dining set.

Like these guys, RAWWR!!

However, with our two dining table acquisitions off of Craiglist Micheal and I have run across a pattern (really lots of patterns) of layering new fabric over old fabric, time after time after time...

One layer might not be a huge deal, especially if the first layer is in good condition - but when we cut back the tiger print on this chair, the fabric underneath was disgusting. I had to put on a mask and gloves because of the dust and smell.

But what if that dirty first layer was covered with another 6 layers on top of that? Some of them vinyl so it seals in all of the dust, dirt and nastiness?

This really just isn't healthy, especially with a husband that has severe allergies. These chairs were built in Italy in the 50s, so the earlier layers could have up to 50 years and two countries worth of dust, dirt, food, and grime. So I'm going to show you how to replace the entire seat, cushion and all. It's just a little more work for a lot more peace of mind.

How to Replace and Reupholster Seat Cushions

What you will need:
Screwdriver
Needle Nose Pliers
Staple Gun
Marker
Fabric Shears
1/4 - 1/2 Inch Foam
Thin Quilt Batting
Fabric

Step 1:
Turn your chair upside down and remove the screws that are holding the seat to the chair. Save your screws!

Step 2:
Turn the seat over, take out your needle nose pliers ~~give them to your husband~~ and begin pulling out all the old staples. This is the most time consuming and difficult part. With every staple just remind yourself "clean happy home, clean happy home..."

This will leave you with a wooden seat that is now the template for the next steps.

Step 3:
Use the wood template to draw an outline on your foam padding.

Step 4:
Put the padding on the chair and trim up the edges. Cut the front at a 45 degree angle.

(Note: the edges do not have to be perfect, the batting will even it out.)

Step 5:
Use your seat template to cut out a sheet of quilt batting and fabric that will cover the padding and the seat.

You can cut big and trim down later if needed.

Step 6:
As you staple you want to stretch your batting enough that it's tight, but not too much so it tears. When stapling the batting (and the fabric) start in the center of each side.

Then do each corner. Always mirror your staples across to the other side. Fold the batting in to try and get the flattest finish possible.

Repeat Step 6 with your fabric, taking the extra step to fold the raw edge over before stapling.

Spray each seat with scotch guard and VOILA! Reattach to the chair with your saved screws and you have a refreshed and updated dining set!

PS - You're not going crazy, the first chair is not the same as the final project. I did a compilation of two chairs to get the full effect and to have a picture of each step! :)

Weekend Update 2/7/11 & WWL

2011-02-07T15:01:00.000-05:00

Heeeeeeeello!!! How is everyone doin' this fine day? Pretty good over here at F2F, we're starting to get back into our groove with weekend home projects after my post-dissertation/post-interview, sit in my pajamas on the couch and watch TV endlessly phase...

Alright - hold onto your seat while I update you on what we worked on this weekend.

THE KITCHEN

Trust me, it doesn't just feel like we've been working on this forever, we have been working on it for a very long time. But we've learned a lot of lessons about renovation planning that we will use for future projects.

This weekend we:

Cleaned up the crazy basement work space
Painted, cut and installed trim on the pantry
Installed a shelf under the cooktop
Touched up the paint errors, so all the orange paint is taken care of!

What We Learned This Weekend:

If you have no self control, don't make no-bake cookies. Even IF you have self-control you may not be able to resist these puppies...
You know how some little kids that are a HUGE pain in the but are hard to be mad at because they're so dang cute? This applies to kitties too...
We're definitely cat people. The puppy bowl totally bored me, but I could watch the kittens in the halftime show play for hours...

This isn't the ACTUAL halftime show, but some extra footage of the filming, still hilarious!
That we need to start collecting Dorito Dust to sprinkle on our house!

Craigslist Queen!

2011-02-01T10:00:00.001-05:00

I've gotten some pretty good deals on CL since coming to DC including my dresser, Micheal's dresser, and my desk. However, the newest addition to our mid century decor has to be my best find yet!

Isn't she beautiful!! Look at those lines! Hubba hubba! There is a fourth chair that is currently sitting at my sewing machine.

The story goes like this - I was ~~obsessively~~ casually refreshing the craigslist "free" section when an ad popped up for free furniture. Included was a pic of this table and chairs (although the chairs were covered in an ugly vinyl) in the two seconds that I hesitated someone else beat me to the punch. But the nice woman took my name and said she's call if the other person backed out. Fast forward to the next day, she called!! The guy couldn't make it so it was all mine if I wanted it. My wonderful husband agreed to trek over to Arlington to pick it up and man was it worth it!

Man this table is cool and in great condition! Both sides fold down for easy storage!

Just to see what a good deal I might have gotten I Googled "mid century drop leaf table" and to my surprise I found my table right away...for $750 without chairs!! WHOA! With chairs it ranges from $1000 to $1250! Not sure I'll ever be able to top that one, but I'll keep trying!

My Mid Century Dining Room - Swoon!

Check out that original Herman Miller Bubble Lamp!

DC Snowtastrophe

2011-01-31T10:00:00.000-05:00

Last year we had "Snowmageddon" and "Snowpocalypse" and last week we had what I'm deeming a "Snowtastrophe." Heavy, heavy, wet, fast snowfall on Wednesday evening resulted in probably one of the worst traffic related incidents DC has ever seen. Horror stories of people being stuck in their cars for upwards of 8-12 hours trying to get home were abound. We got 8-12 inches in about a 5 hour period, weighing down trees (three full trees down on our street alone) and power lines resulting in hundreds of thousands of people out of power.

WE on the other hand...left work early, made it home safely and quickly, and kept power throughout the whole ordeal.

Our only minor casualty was a major limb that LOOKED from our window like it had crashed down on Micheal's car. We ran out to check out the damage and breathed a sigh of relief.

THANKFULLY the limb fell straight down with the large part on the road and only the outside branches falling on Micheal's car.

The heavy snow protected the car for ANY damage or scratches - so blessed! As you can see it was still actively snowing, we spent the next hour or so digging out our cars, and dismantling the tree with our neighbor Jeannette so her husband could get through (when he got home at midnight after leaving work at 6, ugh.) So crazy!

Weekend Update 1/30 & WWL

2011-01-30T21:30:00.000-05:00

Hola! Ciao! Hello! How are you all this fine day? Me? Thanks for asking, I'm doing great. No more traveling, no more marathon interview days, no more rental cars, and no more hotels (all though room service was delish!)

Now to dive back into home projects, and TRUST ME there is plenty to keep me busy (and hopefully you entertained) until I start internship (hopefully) in July.

I've got lots of fun things to share with you this week including my best craigslist find yet, our little snow disaster, dining chair full pad replacement and reupholstering tutorial, and for today....

KITCHEN UPDATE!!!

A brief reminder of the old:

Friends and family have been hounding me for updated pics so I cleaned up today and snapped some update shots.

Hello my beautiful orange kitchen! Below I've highlighted some things to check out.

Some more pics...

I've officially deemed this my baking corner! The extra 3 feet of counter space we added is ah-mazing!

Check out the longer handles we put on the drawers compared to the matching smaller ones on the cabinet doors.

The view to the living room - keepin' it real with the kitty dishes :)

The view from the living room

So what do you think? We reached that point about 2 months back where everything was functional so we really became complacent with moving forward. But now we're both motivated to get'er done!

What have I learned over the past few months...

They don't have small vehicles for rent in TX (or at least the weekend I was in Houston) - hope you can drive a truck (or take a cab...)!
Big fluffy pancakes delivered to your room before an interview are amazing.
If you're flying Southwest you'd better get in the A group or you're gonna be riding bitch fo-sho.
The brush attachment on our vacuum has a long and a short option! Who knew?! (Well, Micheal did since he showed me...)
It's really hard to make decisions that will set you and your family's path for at least the next two years if not longer.
Parking is a SUPER motivating benefit!
I could never have a career that required me to travel regularly.
If you're looking for a cat in our house, check by a heater vent. Kali and Moshe have taken to lying on their backs and heating up their bellies.
Angry birds? Yes please!!

My House Sits Quietly...

2011-01-20T20:07:00.000-05:00

...while I travel about the US trying to convince different children's hospitals that I would be an excellent addition to their staff for the next year. The great news for me, Micheal, my kitties and YOU is that tomorrow is my LAST ONE! Which means we can get back to finishing up the kitchen and other projects around the house!

Here's a quick peek into the past three weeks of my life:

Interview #1 - St. Jude's Research Hospital, Memphis TN

Interview #2 - Kennedy Krieger Institute/Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore MD

Interview #3 - Alfred I duPont Children's Hospital, Wilmington DE

Interview #4 - University of Louisville Health Center/Kosair Children's Hospital

Interview #5 - Children's Mercy Hospital, Kansas City MO

Interview #6 - Texas Children's Hospital (Baylor Psychiatry Department), Houston TX

Interview #7(tomorrow) - Oklahoma University Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City OK

I can't tell you my favorites because of APPIC rules (and because I haven't totally decided yet..) but they're all really great training programs. After I'm done with interviews I rank the places I interviewed in order of preference and submit to APPIC. Then each site ranks all their interviewees in order of preference and submit to APPIC. Then a big computer mushes all that info together and spits out an email that (hopefully) tells me where I will be spending the next year of my life. As you can see there is a good chance I'll need to move, but never fear! I can always blog about decorating a small apartment on a tight budget when you're working 50-60 hours per week!! :)

Faux "Before and After"

2010-12-21T10:00:00.000-05:00

So this really isn't a "before and after" as we didn't really DO anything other than move everything back into the kitchen! (And some random piles on the table..and the floor...) But it made a HUGE difference so I thought I'd share.

Before:

After:

Our beautiful china cabinet is so happy to no longer be a makeshift pantry!

I almost forgot there was a door there!!

Where I'm going and Where I've Been...

2010-12-20T10:00:00.001-05:00

WARNING!! TEXT HEAVY POST!! Since most of the people that read this are still friends and family I ask that you all indulge this personal update!

For the past 4.5 years I've been working towards my Ph.D. in clinical child and pediatric psychology.

Micheal and I at my Masters graduation in December 2008.

My mom and grandma came for my graduation, it was very special.

I posted a little over a week ago that I successfully defended my dissertation and one of my readers (Hi Ann!) asked for a little blurb about what my research was on. So quick blurb:

Title: Maternal Depressive Symptoms and Health Outcomes in Young Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes: A Mediational Model.

Across research studies about 25% of mothers of children with type 1 diabetes report clinically elevated symptoms of depression (which is much higher than the general population.) My results showed that mothers that report high levels of depressive symptoms also report being less involved in their children's diabetes management. In turn, when mothers are less involved in diabetes care their children didn't check their blood sugar or use insulin as frequently and they ate less frequently.

This was a HUGE step in my education (duh) and is also very appealing to internship sites so the impact of being done has even bigger implications. Over the next month I'll be traveling to Maryland, Delaware, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas and Oklahoma for interviews. There is a chance that the F2F family will be split up for a year but we're hoping against hope that this won't happen! Thank you all for your support and I'll keep you updated!

Weekend (Life) Update and WWL 12.19.10

2010-12-19T22:29:00.000-05:00

I guess it really doesn't count as a "weekend update" if it spans about 10 days, but I figure when you've got something that works just roll with it. :)

Turns out we're kind of in a rut when it comes to home stuff - my life was consumed with dissertation and internship applications for so long that now that those are over I can't seem to get myself rolling again in the DIY world. So I'm coming back to the blog to try and remotivate myself! (I feel a New Year's Resolution coming on...)

We have decided to "finish" the kitchen to a usable stopping point leaving the tile backsplash and new tile floor for the spring when we've recovered financially from my internship travels in January. We actually only have a few things left to reach that goal!!

1. Window and pantry trim
2. 4 cabinet doors and 1 drawer
3. Pantry door
4. Paint touchup

HOLY CRAP!! I honestly can't believe the list is now that small - remember this list??!

I KNOW you all want some pictures so I'll share a cute/quick little redo I did of a vintage kitchen stool we bought. We got this at the Arlington Flea Market over the summer for a whopping $8!

Loving the beige vinyl?? Kali was...

A quick switch out of the fabric and this updated step stool/chair is a perfect addition to our MCM decor!

I looove it. :)

Last but not least - What We Have Learned (recently):

Cats somehow magically know the difference between the cat carrier when it's just sitting out and when it's going to the vet. Try to put Indi in the cat carrier on vet day? Watch out for devil kitty!! Leave them in the living room? They fight over who gets to sleep in them...
People in DC STILL panic over 1-2 inches of snow even after Snowmaggedon and Snowpacolypse last year.
Constantly refreshing Gmail doesn't make internship interview emails (or rejections for that matter) come any faster.
Toys R Us is well prepared for the shopping madness that is the last Sunday before Christmas: 10 checkout lines running, in and out in 2 minutes. World Market is NOT, line halfway through the store. I got a lot of shopping done while Micheal was waiting in line. :)
Buy a pashmina and/or a cheap fondue pot for your next "Dirty Santa" gift exchange.
Puppy chows is kinda like snack crack.
It's silly to buy two rolls of Christmas wrapping paper (no matter how cool it is) if you're buying and shipping all your gifts online.
I'm awesome at charades!!

What a week!!

2010-12-09T23:02:00.000-05:00

So many things going on right now!! Just a few things that happened this week:

KU beat Memphis (again) - WOO HOO!

My fantasy football team somehow squeaked into the playoffs with our win last weekend - Go Maryland Modsquad!!

I successfully defended my dissertation!!!!!!!!!!

Here I am rockin' out a slide during my practice talk about bootstrap confidence intervals and sporting the signature Dr Pepper. (Micheal needs to work on his photog skillz...)

Celebrating with a few of my girls afterwards!

AND we tore out the old counters and sink and installed NEW BEAUTIFUL ONES!!

Here's a sneak peek!

GOODBYE UGLY LAMINATE!!!!

Pantry Party!

2010-12-06T23:34:00.000-05:00

I'm almost ashamed to share these before and after pictures with you, simply because it means I have to admit I actually stored FOOD in this pantry before I made it pretty. (Hangs head in shame...)

It's clean and happy now!! It's AMAZING what a coat of paint can do!

Dirty ashamed pantry:

Ick...

Double Ick!

New happy pantry!

I need to work on straightening my camera shots!

I am SO happy with the bright clean look! The wall paint is "Celery Sticks" by Behr and the shelf paint is the same as our cabinet paint, Glidden's Swiss Mocha color matched with Behr Premium paint.

Micheal also caulked in the corners to make the shelves solid and so no crummies can fall down in the cracks! We've got the trim ready to cut and paint and the famous door is being given new life.

If you're still receiving my blog entries, thanks for hanging in with me during the off and on posting! My dissertation defense is scheduled for Wednesday which is a HUGE life moment for me. Maybe after that I'll have some free time. That is..until I start internship. ;)

Hanging In There

2010-11-22T22:42:00.000-05:00

Hey all - I have been avoiding even OPENING blogger because I was scared to look at the "last post" date...Nov 5th. Sigh. Well I'm (we're) here and hanging in there.

Here is how things are looking:

Dissertation defense scheduled for December 8th at 3pm (WHOA!)

One interview scheduled at Children's Mercy in Kansas City for internship

December 15th is the general notification deadline for sites to contact about interviews (I applied to 15 and most wait until the deadline.)

Hopefully lots of interviews and traveling in January! I applied to 15 sites in 13 states!!

We've also been making slow but steady progress on the kitchen! We're hoping to knock out some big things over the Thanksgiving break! Here is the before and after for my pot/pan cabinet under the sink:

Before:

Eeewwww - this is NOT my grime and would NOT come off without sanding. Ew.

After:

So clean!! And my awesome hubs built me the pullout drawers for the pots. We're going to put another set above these so I'll have lots of pullouts to store all my awesome cookware!!

I'll post some more over the holiday weekend. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

Home Depot Paint Options: Behr Versus Glidden

2010-11-05T22:00:00.000-04:00

Behr Wins!

Glidden:
Pro - Cheaper
Pro - Had my color

Neutral - Acceptable coverage

Con - Sticky when dry: BAD for furniture
Con - Funky sweet smell

Behr:
Pro - NO sticking!!
Pro - Acceptable/good coverage

Neutral - Better smell than Glidden, but still stinky

Con - Used color match but color wasn't exactly the same
Con - A little more costly (although not much)

I didn't have any paint allegiances before starting the kitchen. We ended up selecting Glidden because they had the color I wanted for the cabinets, Swiss Mocha. It was cheaper than Behr too, bonus! However, after a few coats of paint on the cabinet doors I began to get run into a major problem - "sticky" paint.

I was painting 15+ cabinet doors and cabinets so I needed lots of room but quickly learned I couldn't lean the doors against ANYTHING (even when dry) without the painted surface sticking to the other surface. This resulted in a TON of touch up painting, cursing, and some more touch up painting. In hindsight we realized that we also used Glidden on the buffet we refinished (Here) and had the same "sticking" problem. We couldn't put anything on it without having it damage the paint even after waiting the suggested 48 hours.

I decided mid project to switch to Behr to see if it would make a difference and boy did it! I'm happy to say that our cabinets and cabinet doors no longer stick to everything! We did a color match and it didn't come out exactly the same, BUT since everything needed a new top coat anyway it wasn't a big deal.

We will be going with Behr (when shopping at Home Depot) from now on.

Planting Vegetables in Biodegradable Pots

2010-11-03T22:08:00.001-04:00

In one of our WWL posts all the way back in May (Here) I talked about how planting in the biodegradable pots stunted the growth of my plants compared those taken out of the pots. I cleared out my garden box last weekend and found additional proof to support my theory.

Check out the difference in those roots!!

The tomato plant on the left was planted directly in the dirt and the tomato plant on the right in the biodegradable pot. How crazy is that?! Lesson learned. :)

Hello? Bueller?

2010-11-02T22:03:00.000-04:00

Anybody home??

Yes we're still here and surviving, barely. Pretty much everything (renovations, blogging, cooking, sleeping) has been on hold for the past few weeks while I worked towards my dissertation and internship deadlines. I submitted a full draft of my dissertation on Monday at 2:15am and have submitted 7 out of 14 internship applications. So I was able come up for air long enough to say hi!

Micheal was able to make some progress on the kitchen while I was dissertating - we have FOUR cabinet doors hung now! :) Sadly I don't have many pictures to share, any of me would have been pretty scary since I have lived in sweats on the couch for two weeks.

So I will share kitties. :)

They love this chair!

We also have been going to estate sales for fun breaks on the weekends (I know, we're dorks) and have picked up a few cool items. Micheal's keen eye got us one item for $4 and when we got home and looked it up it was listed online for $275! Quite a deal! :)

We're ready to go back to kitchen reno this weekend so hopefully will have some pictures to share!

WEGMANS!!

2010-10-16T21:03:00.000-04:00

Is coming to a town NEAR ME! If you live near me it's coming to a town near you as well. I love love love this grocery store. A Wegmans was built in Fredericksburg about 3 months before we moved away and I was so sad to leave it.

So imagine my excitement and surprise to get this in the mail!

The part that's covered up says that it opens October 24th!
Grocery shopping next weekend! Seriously, if there is one near you and you haven't checked it out go do it. NOW.

Target Finds

2010-10-15T16:22:00.000-04:00

I'm sure like many of you Target seems to be the enemy of every pocket book in America. But they have such COOL stuff! I'm loving these two rugs right now, the black/white contrast and patterns would go great with our mid century decor. Good thing Christmas is coming up! :)

Room Essentials Starburst Accent Rug

Room Essentials Bright Rung

I said we were busy last weekend right?

2010-10-14T22:53:00.000-04:00

Well I wasn't lying! And since this weekend is creeping up on us I decided to lump the rest into one post. :) Mega-productivity post!! (And avoiding my dissertation post...)

1. Put in the new cabinet Micheal built to fit the old refrigerator hole. This will give me 34" of additional counter space and was build specifically to house my amazing Green Apple Kitchenaid Mixer.

Before

Middle

After

2. Built our own roll out cabinet shelf

The cabinet under the wall oven is one of those deep buggers where you stick long lost small appliances and then curse when you want to get out the mini-chopper and you have to unload the hand mixer, the crock pot, AND the rice cooker to get it. Also you look glamorous laying on your side reaching all the way to the back hoping there are no vicious dust bunnies.

We visited The Container Store and drooled over cabinet systems like these:

But $60?! For a drawer??

So we used one $13 set of drawer pulls and about $8 worth of wood to create our own. Yay DIY!

We put in 2x4 on the side to attach the drawer pulls.

One on each side - we went for the fancier "ball-bearing" slides. If you wanted to be even MORE frugal you can go for the $6 drawer slides.

To build the drawer we measured and cut a piece of plywood panel with our handy dandy finishing saw and cut four pieces of 1x4 for the sides. Next wood glue and nail gun!

3. Install above microwave cabinet, microwave, and signed our work. :)

This process was intimidating...we purchased our amazing Kenmore Elite microwave from Sears Scratch and Dent so it did not come with destructions (as my dad would say.) So we downloaded what we could and used the holes and screws available to try and figure out to hang this mammoth piece of cooking equipment.

Micheal build this upper cabinet that would attach to the top of the microwave and we hung the metal backing that the microwave slides onto.

Then we put on the F2F signature and left a note for any future homeowners who might remodel our kitchen in the future.

It was a very tense 10 minutes when we were holding and screwing this guy in but it was SO worth it. I love it...

And there you have it! Big plans for the weekend too! It's so close I can smell the cookies, can you?!

What I learned today... (and recessed lights!)

2010-10-13T23:27:00.001-04:00

What I learned today was that no one cares about all the stuff I write unless I include pictures. SHEESH! ;) So here are some pictures of one of MANY productive things we did this weekend!

We installed recessed lights to replace the large commercial ceiling light in our kitchen!!

See it there at the top? No not the hideous pink one (although it's gone too) the big white square. Yeah, it's pretty bad - functional - but not our style.

First step - TURN OFF POWER! Then remove old light and take a picture of how it's wired.

Second step - we went into the attic and turned the junction box into the attic since the light placement would be changing. Then patch the hole!

We went through a few options trying to decide which lights to choose.

We looked at these small 3" lights at Home Depot:
and settled on a similar version but with florescent bulbs instead.

After selecting the lights we needed to decide what was the best layout for our room. We need lighting in two major areas: Above the sink/cooking area and in the breakfast nook area. So we elected to put up the lights in groups of threes.

Next we measured out where to plan to place our lights:

Then we held the light up over the marks and traced the footprint of the light so we could cut the holes using a drywall knife.

At this point Micheal realized when we measured we had not taken into account ceiling joists (oops!) - fortunately for us we didn't hit any with our holes, but next time we would check this out first. :)

These lights were SUPER easy to install. (Unless you fall off the ladder, scrape your leg on the counter and only evade death because your husband was there to catch you...) They just push up in the ceiling and clip onto the sheetrock.

After this I did the wiring...in theory the wiring for recessed lights is very simple. One light ties directly to your switch and the lights connect to each other in a line. But of course with our house nothing is easy. It took me two hours on my side in the attic, some bruised ribs, and a lot of curse words to get this done but...

Let there be light!!

Weekend Update & WWL 10/11/10

2010-10-11T22:51:00.000-04:00

It was a busy weekend in the F2F house! We got a ton accomplished and they are nice visible changes so it's starting to feel good - it's starting to really come together!!

Finish door and windows
- ~~Metal trim~~
- ~~Mud~~
- Sand (some final sanding left to do unfortunately)
Walls
- ~~Finish priming gray~~
- ~~Paint oran~~ge - WOO!! One small wall left to do.
Cabinets
- ~~Pai~~nt - doing some finishing touchups
- ~~Buy~~ and install handles
- ~~Buy~~ and install hinges
- Put new bottom in under sink cabinet
- ~~Install side panel beside dishwasher~~
- ~~Put in cork~~ shelf liner - we're doing it as we go
Electrical
- Replace all old outlets and switches
- ~~Turn this junction box into the attic and patch ceiling~~
- ~~Maybe replace ugly light~~
- ~~Move outlet for microwave~~
- ~~Install microwave~~
- it's BEAUTIFUL!
Trim
- ~~Finish sanding window trim~~ - Gave up and took it down, it was messed up.
- Prime and paint window trim
- Finish sanding pantry trim
- Prime and paint pantry trim
- Sand floor trim
- Paint floor trim
Ceiling
- ~~Sand~~
- ~~Remove hooks~~
- ~~Paint~~
- ~~Sand~~ and paint patches
Counters
- Remove old counters
- Cut new counters
- Install new counters
Backsplash
- ~~Decide on~~ and purchase backsplash tiles
- ~~Remove old vent and patch hole~~
- Install & grout tiles
~~Buy~~ and install new sink
Clean grout in floor
New pantry door

We also built a pull-out drawer for the cabinet under the wall oven - we were trying to make this more usable space. How many of you have lost things in the back of these non-accessible cabinets? This drawer is awesome and easy to build!! Directions to come of course :)WWL:

No matter HOW many sizes of screws you have you will always need the one that is 1/4" longer or shorter. Sometimes 1/4 inch can seem like 1/4 mile!
We are now coloring in the lines.
Don't switch paint bases in the middle of a project, even if you color match.
Indi does not have a mute button.
Uncle Julio's swirl margarita is good, but not quite as good as the ones at Lauriol Plaza.
It is amazing how quickly a smell can permeate the house - our new sink is amazing but the rubberized coat was so so so stinky. It's been outside since we got it!

Pitfalls of Pets and Renovation

2010-10-06T12:57:00.000-04:00

Generally our kitties just run for the hills when we get out the power tools (especially poor Moshe) but occasionally they poke their little noses into the construction zone particularly if it's a day without noisy tools.

So far Kali has stepped in my paint pan, Moshe regularly tried to brush against wet paint or wet joint compound. Indi walks through all the construction dust because she wants to be RIGHT WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES!!

But this was really the best/worst/most hilarious and I had to share a pic.

Poor Moshe...that require a good washing of the paws, of which he was not a big fan. I love that you can almost see the process unfolding - the back right paw hits and slides, the back left paw spreads out to try and get some grip...lots of laughs that day. :)

Weekend Update & WWL 10/4/10

2010-10-04T22:43:00.000-04:00

We got to cross a few things off the list this weekend! (And when I say "we" I totally mean Micheal because I was one big germ-wad that held down the couch.)

ALL THREE UPPER CABINETS ARE HUNG!! WOOT! If that's not progress, I don't know what is.

We need to clean up the insides a little but I am choosing not to paint them. I know this is a pet peeve for some people and I might regret it sometime later but I'm willing to take that chance. I want cabinets.NOW.

We're doing cork liner on the bottom of each shelf and I really like the way it looks. I couldn't find ANY contact paper that I liked (that's being nice, it all seems to be hideous) so the cork is kinda pricey but worth it.

What we learned:

1. The Maryland ModSquad is not invincible (sad face...stupid fantasy football)
2. Trips to Home Depot are not nearly as fun with tissues in one hand and Robitussin in the other.
3. Little Japanese Maple trees are 39.99 at Home Depot - I see one in my future along with the demise of two VERY pokey holly trees.
4. It can go from zero to COLD in 3.5 seconds when you have no insulation.
5. Even at the age of 29 (cringe) chicken noodle soup and a grilled cheese sandwich are awesome when you're sick. (And so is your amazing husband who makes them.)

Sink is ordered!

2010-10-03T01:35:00.000-04:00

While Micheal and I were both agreed on the fact that we DEFINITELY wanted to replace our current sink:

It was an inexpensive choice from Community Forklift to replace the sink original to the house. But the smaller basin has proven to be totally non-functional.

Despite our united front to replace said non-functional sink, we were having trouble agreeing on a replacement sink. Despite of how well we get along, design choices have turned out to be our achilles heel for agreeableness. So it has been a learning process about how to come to decisions that make both of us happy.

I wanted a white sink - I thought it would go very well with our color scheme and I felt were a more inexpensive option.

Micheal really liked the granite composites or granite sinks or a higher grade stainless steel sink.

If we had unlimited funds I would get one of the apron front sinks that are so popular right now.

Coming to a compromise has been a bit of a challenge. We almost went up in price to get one we both agreed on (which is our typical MO but is getting a little tough on the pocket book):

Instead we combined his desire or higher grade stainless steel with a bit more of a modern design that I found appealing. So it wasn't the same old standard blah SS sink.

We ordered from Overstock.com and they had free shipping for Oktoberstock month. :) I can't wait until it arrives! It was a great compromise and I think we're both happy with the decision.

Re-Hanging A Cabinet

2010-10-01T23:43:00.000-04:00

That's right people, we have cabinets!! And since I'm on the couch suffering the plague given to me by my coworkers I have time to post. :)

There are several things to consider when hanging cabinets - most importantly is how the cabinets are going to be securely attached to the wall. Generally you want to anchor your cabinets into the studs on your wall that are supposed to be space out every 16 inches. However when RE-hanging cabinets your kind of at the mercy of where the cabinets were hung the first time. Studs or no studs.

Additionally in an older homes like ours there aren't studs between the brick and sheetrock, but a very thin "fir strip" every 16 inches. These fir strips don't provide as much support as a stud so we supplemented with super intense screw/anchors.

We measured to make sure they were long enough to go through the cabinet, the sheet rock, and into the brick/mortar to give us the support we needed.

Now to hang them.

First we built up a makeshift stand to hold the cabinet so we could get it level and mark where the holes needed to be drilled.

Once we got it to the height we needed Michel put some nails in the pre-existing holes and gently tapped them to mark on the wall where we needed to drill.

Next we used a long drill bit to pre-drill the hole all the way into the brick. Get a bit that is the same width as your anchors. Ours were 3/16.

Then we put the cabinet back on our cabinet stand and used a power drill to drill the anchors into the wall.

And voila!

And then stick a few things in it to get that warm fuzzy "I just hung a cabinet" feeling.

Life Overload

2010-09-28T14:23:00.000-04:00

Alright folks, here's the deal. In addition to being a part time home renovator/blogger I am also a full time graduate student in the throws of dissertation and internship applications.

I proposed my dissertation last Wednesday, my first set of analyses are due on Thursday (my birthday, what a present!), first draft of results due Oct. 31st, internship applications due Nov. 1st and dissertation defense is scheduled for Dec. the 8th. HOLY CRAP!

So this is to say that my posts will like be sporadic even though we're moving forward on the kitchen. Weekend updates may not be on Monday and my WWL may not be very witty.

We DID make progress this weekend though! We hung ONE cabinet. That's right, one cabinet - and it looks DARN GOOD! Do I have a picture? Yes...on the camera that hasn't been downloaded. So for right now use your imagination. :)

Okay, back to work.

My arm hurts...

2010-09-21T10:19:00.000-04:00

...from all this arm twisting I'm getting to show off the orange kitchen!! Okay, so here's the thing. These pictures are bad. There is no way around it - there are NO lights in the kitchen at the moment, only a lamp. And unfortunately I leave before the sun hits the kitchen and get home after the sun leaves the kitchen. So these pictures had to be taken with...(gulp)...flash. Which any blog photographer worth their salt knows really doesn't do the photo justice.

So there is my disclaimer. AND it's still under construction so is kind of a mess.

Stop stalling you say? Alright, here goes!

Before:

After:

I'm SO happy with it!! I mean, it's a LOT of orange right now, but remember that there are cabinets still to go up on the walls that will cover a lot of it. I finally feel like I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and it's exciting!

Weekend Update & WWL 9/20/10

2010-09-20T21:27:00.000-04:00

Wow, it's been a while since I've written one of these!! Fortunately since we've been back from Paris we've been pretty busy. Let's take a look back at Kitchen Goal List.

Finish door and windows
- ~~Metal trim~~
- ~~Mud~~
- Sand (some final sanding left to do unfortunately)
Walls
- ~~Finish priming gray~~
- ~~Paint oran~~ge - WOO!! One small wall left to do.
Cabinets
- ~~Pai~~nt - Bottom cabinets done, bottom cabinet doors almost done
- ~~Buy~~ and install handles
- Buy and install hinges
- Put new bottom in under sink cabinet
- Install side panel beside dishwasher
- Put in cork shelf liner
Electrical
- Replace all old outlets and switches
- ~~Turn this junction box into the attic and patch ceiling~~
- ~~Maybe replace ugly light~~
- Move outlet for microwave
- Install microwave
Trim
- ~~Finish sanding window trim~~ - Gave up and took it down, it was messed up.
- Prime and paint window trim
- Finish sanding pantry trim
- Prime and paint pantry trim
- Sand floor trim
- Paint floor trim
Ceiling
- ~~Sand~~
- ~~Remove hooks~~
- ~~Paint~~
- *Sand and paint patches
Counters
- Remove old counters
- Cut new counters
- Install new counters
Backsplash
- ~~Decide on~~ and purchase backsplash tiles
- ~~Remove old vent and patch hole~~
- Install & grout tiles
Buy and install new sink
Clean grout in floor
New pantry door

Man it felt good to write all that STRIKE html code!! We showed you the patch over the stove last week and you also saw that the walls were primed gray. And after gray comes...ORANGE - I know you're excited...

More pics to come!

So, WWL:

1. Stink bugs are an epidemic in all of Maryland and NOVA in the fall, not just in our house. And they're back.

2. You need to let drywall mud "cure" fully (the internet provides conflicting views of how long that is) before priming and painting. Otherwise you get peeling paint. (ANNOYING)

3. We have "official" permission to put stuff into our neighbors construction dumpster! (No more late night trips under the cover of night...)

4. Raccoons are SMART little devils!! AND the like kitty food.

5. Indi DOES NOT like raccoons. (POOFY KITTY)

6. Dark colors of paint don't look good until the third coat.

7. Cooking by lamplight isn't all it's cracked up to be.

8. I am the ULTIMATE craigslister!!!

9. My ~~third arm~~ new phone IS AWESOME! It has the wifis...and the bigger GBs...

It still amazes me...

2010-09-16T22:05:00.000-04:00

...that we regularly wake up to this:

This is our happy deer family! Mom and two babes.

Look! You can still see his spots!

Even though they've eaten all but one of my hostas (I guess I'll have to plant more of that breed next year!) they make us happy so it's an okay trade-off.

Back to Business

2010-09-15T13:03:00.000-04:00

Thank you all for ~~scrolling quickly through~~ indulging my two weeks of Paris posts. We had a lot to do to get back into the swing of home renovations and I didn't have anything else to post! It was also my best coping mechanism for the question "tell me about your trip" - when you've spent a week in Paris where do you start!?! On Day 1...in your blog.

But now it's back to home renovation and I'm really excited about the progress we're making on the kitchen. The biggest accomplisment we've made since returning from Paris is the patch up a huge hole in our kitchen!

See that sorry excuse for an "exhaust fan" over the cooktop? No your eyes are not fooling you, there is SUNLIGHT coming in through the fan. It's essentially a hole to the outside with a small fan wired into it. Hello bugs, good-bye heat/cooling!

So that guy had to go. You can see here that we actually filled the hole with spray foam over the winter because we were losing so much heat.

The FIRST thing Micheal did when we got home was get to work tearing it all out and sealing it up.

Nasty...

He was excited. :)

Then we went about patching up the hole. He used the same technique that we used to patch up the big hole around the dryer vent to patch the hole outside. (Once we have enough money we'll pay a mason to come fix all the little brick problems around the house.)

Then we cut out the sheetrock around the hole so we would have some studs to attached the drywall patch to. Then TRIED to use spray foam to fill the hole...

Kinda drooping...

Drooping a bit more...

After this shot it all starts pulling away from the brick and sludging down the wall towards my beautiful cooktop! Instinct kicked in and I tried to catch it...with my hands. Bad idea. Upon inspection of the can it says no contact with skin, and it means it. I had yellow hands for about 5 days and it essentially worked like a chemical peel - my hands are very exfoliated though!

So ultimately we filled it with the pink insulation and patched with drywall. Now the hole is no more!!

Sorry about the light source...we also removed all the lighting because we're going to be installing recessed lights soon!

Last night we primed the ceiling, tonight there are a few spots that need to be touched up with patches and then it'll be time to paint the ceiling. THEN comes orange walls!!! I'm so ready.

Day 6 - Final Day

2010-09-14T17:54:00.000-04:00

The last day, what to do, what to do... Eat, shop, check out some modern art, stop for a tea and hot chocolate, go do some thinking, and go out for a great dinner! OKAY!

Our first stop called out to us from across the street:

How could I resist the Morgan store??

Next we headed to the Pompidou Museum of Modern Art. Mostly we were attracted to the cool entrance!

You walk up the tube to get to the art!

Here we are having a picnic lunch with the pigeons in front of the Pomp.

We headed into the museum only to be distracted by the gift shop - but in our defense, it had some cool stuff!

The Parisian solution to not having a yard to garden in!

Or plant a tree!

Did your shovel break?

Use it to make a...serving dish?!

Here is a little tour of the museum of modern art, these first paintings I thought were nice, but as things progressed we got to a lot of stuff that I did NOT "get"

Of course I loved the furniture they displayed. :)

This on the other hand... Art?

Next we headed to the Musee Rodin where "The Thinker" is proudly displayed in the garden. I learned something I didn't know about The Thinker from Steve's Guide to Paris - The Thinker was actually intended to be part of a large recreation of "The Gates of Hell" inspired by Dante's Inferno.

Here is model of what the finished product would have looked like - with the scale of The Thinker compared to this model the finished piece would have been enormous.

See The Thinker there at the top?

I think the rain gave it a cool effect. :)

The detail is astonishing

Again I stopped to take some pictures of flowers...

...and Micheal took a moment to contemplate life's great mysteries with the most pensive man of all times.

When we left we did a little window shopping and found some cool modern shops.

LOVE these starburst mirrors

Funky lamp, don't even think about asking how much...

Micheal liked the funky colored hanging lights

Liking the glass shelf

Then we headed back to the hotel to get changed and a little dressed up for our last night out.

We had planned on going fancy, but fancy just seemed to elude us this trip. Which turned out to be great on this dining trip. We had the most delicious cheeseburger, fries and wine AND amazing service (hard to come by) at The Royal Turenne.

Then we headed home to pack up and say goodbye. It was a great trip, thank you for letting me write it all down so we can look back on it and remember fondly our first trip to Paris.

Paris Days 5 - Markets, Miracles, and Munchies

2010-09-13T21:56:00.000-04:00

Well, I was going to try and do one review a day, but THAT obviously didn't work out. Dang job and being a full time graduate student and renovating a kitchen!

The first half of the day has no pictures from me because my camera had died and it seemed as is EVERY Monoprix in Paris was sold out of converters!

So Day 5 - we headed over near the Bastille to try and find some Parisian markets! We were lucky to find a HUGE one right next to the Bastille and man was it awesome. Fresh vegetables, amazingly sweet and juicy fruit, lots of fruits we had never heard of before! (The following photo was borrowed from the Duke Study Abroad Website)

There were lots of "non-Parisian" vendors as well selling...well...junk. But it's fun to look at junk right? Well the fun had JUST begun.

The second market we went to was an antique/junk market. :) Some tables had lotsa cool stuff - some tables...you just didn't go near. Particularly the table by the guy sitting on the ground mixing something in his Smirnoff Ice bottle. Amazingly I made it out of both without buying anything! We did stock up though on fruits for our planned picnic that night on the Pont du Art!

After much wandering we started walking back towards the hotel. I wanted to ride these bikes that were all over Paris (image borrowed from guardian.uk.co)

You're supposed to be able to kind of check them out and return them to any bike rack (and they're everywhere.) So we head up to the pay station and begin to navigate the complicated instructions (image borrowed from geographypages.co.uk)

Only to find that our stupid American Credit Card doesn't work because it doesn't have this fancy chip thing. I was so sad. (I made Micheal try twice, and at another machine later because I was in denial.)

God must have been watching and wanted to help with my disappointment because a true Kari miracle happened at this point. I hadn't had a Dr Pepper for 5 days because no one carries them in Paris. COKE must own Paris. I drank a few Cokes but I was definitely over it by day 4. As we walked away from the bicycle stand I saw a man walk by with what else...a cold can of Dr Pepper! Me: "HEEEEYYYY!!!!!!! Where did you get THAT?!?!" (Thank goodness he was American...) Him: "Right down the street at the restaurant called "Great American Breakfast." 5 euros later I had two of the most expensive and yet most delicious Dr Peppers ever. Sigh...

On the walk back we FINALLY found a Monoprix with a converter so we headed home to charge up (both the camera and me) before we headed back out.

On the way to dinner and in theory the Musee D'Orsay we ran across a cool comic book store and I lost my husband. :)

The coolest thing I found in the store were the fancy Harry Potter wands!

Pretty sweet eh?

We spent a little too long browsing so decided we'd go see The Musee D'Orsay next time we went to Paris. :)

While wandering to dinner I HAD to take this picture, it's SO Paris.

Get it? Wine and Cheese?? :) And a girl holding a baguette... so French.

Well that Wine and Cheese made me hungry so it was dinner time! We started with what seemed like a very safe dish - shrimp with avocado. Sounds good right?

I've seen bigger and fresher looking shrimp come out of a fancy feast can! AND to top it off, dive into the avocado...and find every single onion ever grown in the history of Paris. No lie. Dis.gus.ting.

Fortunately dinner was much tastier and FUN!

Grill your own dinner! Granted, we didn't expected it to come out raw, we thought the meat would come out sizzling on the stone, but hey - when in Paris right?

We've got duck, chicken, beef and one prawn. The duck was the best.

After dinner we went back to the hotel to grab the fruit we bought earlier in the day, some wine, and our lock to put on the bridge for our after dinner picnic. And it started to rain. Great night for a picnic! But as with most Paris rains it didn't last long and came and went throughout the night. The bridge was a little slow because of the rain but we did see some kids drinking and a couple of pot transactions, so a little excitement.

Micheal enjoying his wine (even if he doesn't look like it.)

Look at the size of those grapes!

Our love lock...awww...

Fruit, wine, a wonderful husband, Paris and surrounded by decades of love - what else could a girl ask for?!

This concludes Day 5. Markets, Miracles, and Munchies. :)

Paris Day 4 - Champs-Élysées, Arc de Triomphe, and The Louvre

2010-09-06T23:50:00.000-04:00

Day 4 was a busy day! Micheal got up early and went to a few talks and the conference, and (shocker) I slept in! When he got back we headed out to grab some lunch and then head towards the Arc de Triomphe and The Avenue des Champs Élysées.

Along the way I spotted a flower and plant store with some beautiful things for sale! I wish I could have brought some home!

What I affectionately referred to as "The Champ" is a hoity-toity super fancy/expensive shopping area in Paris. Our bank accounts got scared just WALKING down the street, let alone going into any stores! The Champ starts at the Arc de Triomphe, a monument to those brave souls that have fought and given their lives for France.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Another arms length shot!

Then we started down The Champ, window shopping and people watching. There was one store we had to go into though...

The Louis Vuitton Store!

There were a lot of other cool stores to check out as we went along, including the Toyota concept store.

I would SO drive this.

The Ultimate Green Car! ;)

The future...

We ran across an "MCS" store and wanted to go in and check out what kind of cool store shared it's initials with my awesome husband.

Turns out it's the Marlboro Classics Store! Micheal thought it was pretty crazy that Marlboro points have evolved into a fancy line of clothes.

Once we were done with The Champ we had some lunch and then headed back to the hotel for a rest because we were going to The Louvre in the evening! On Wednesdays the Louvre is open LATE until 9:45 so we decided to do an evening viewing to try and skip the long lines.

Beautiful at Night.

The plan of going late worked fabulously, we walked RIGHT in, no lines. We ultimately went a little TOO late, about 7:45 - I would suggest going at like 6:30 to 7 for enough time.

Even the entryway is grand.

Here is our tour of The Louvre:

Venus de Milo

Winged Victory

The Mona Lisa

Ancient Egypt

I find this just amazing

Medical Text?! Thank goodness for PDF. :)

Creepy

Cat Sarcophagi

Think Kali would go for an ear piercing?

We got chased out after Ancient Egypt. Everything was simply spectacular though.

We had a great night!
Day 4 in Paris was fabulous!

Paris- Day 2 Part 2 and Day 3!

2010-09-04T01:03:00.000-04:00

Going back through my pictures I noticed I left off some from the end of Day 2. I'm separating days by outfit. :) So to finalize Day 2...

We ventured up to see the 360 view boasted about on the hotel's website and it did not disappoint!

Gotta love camera timers!

Stunning views

We continued wandering and I had to take this picture for Jolene:

Finally a beautiful shot of the final rays of sunlight:

Day 3!

Here we go, day three - what you've been waiting for - Eiffel Tower Day! I was very excited to say the least! We grabbed the C RER train which would take us over by the tower.

The metros/RERs all have these fancy snack machines. There is a little tray that comes up to get your soda so it doesn't fall and get all shaken up!

It was interesting to see variations of our candy bars - notice the two types of Kit Kat.

Riding the two level train!

Hopped off the train and started heading in the direction of the Eiffel. At this point you can see it from pretty much anywhere so it's not hard to locate. :)

We walked through a lovely garden/walkway to get there. It had some beautiful flowers.

Micheal patiently waiting while I photograph flowers. :)

Getting closer!

So when visiting the Eiffel Tower you have a few options for going up into the tower. You can either ride an elevator to either the 1st or 2nd floors or you can go to the top. There will be a LONG line for this. Or you can walk up to the 1st or 2nd floors and according to the travel mags the 2nd floor has the best views. (The top is windy, small, and so high you can't really see the monuments.)

Since we generally dislike waiting in long lines we opted for walking up the stairs. This is not an undertaking for the faint of heart!

...already doubting this decision.

There are 360 stairs between each level (the equivalent of walking up to the 21st floor of a building.) It was exhausting, and I won't lie, I took a few rest breaks but we made it...to the first level!

Le Palais De Tokyo

Now the decision comes, is the first floor your final destination? Do you walk up to the second level? Do you wimp out and pay more to take the elevator?

You only live once right?!

This is me taking a break and pretending to take a picture...

WE MADE IT!! And that expensive water was SO worth it!

However, what goes UP must come down...

We made it down without incident. What an amazing experience!

That night we made our first attempt at going to a "nice restaurant" instead of a cafe.

The result? EPIC FAIL!!

I won't necessary lay the blame with Micheal...but he DID accidentally order the rabbit instead of the scallops...

It was truly disgusting. Out came these cold circle shaped jello like molds with congealed broth and rabbit bits. Micheal actually GAVE me a piece knowing it was cold like this (I didn't know)...I couldn't do it. I apologize to the waiter that had to pick up that napkin with the rabbit bits in it. The wine was good though...

After dinner we went shopping in the little area we were in - it was supposed to be a pretty wild and crazy area. We stopped into this little shop and I tried on a few dresses. Here is a Paris Dressing Area :)

After some wandering we hitched the RER back.

Paris is also beautiful at night (of course)

I didn't get any pictures of this (sadly) but we spent some time on the roof that night with our beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower all lit up. And to our surprise when the clock hit 1am the Eiffel began to sparkle!! It was beautiful. After about 15 min the lights went out and we took that as a sign to get some sleep and prepare for another exciting day.

Paris Day 2 - Monday

2010-09-02T21:15:00.000-04:00

Some people choose to get up at the crack of dawn on their vacations and start taking in the sites. I think those people are crazy.

So on day 2 we got out of bed at the crack of...about 10:30 :) and prepared to head out for some more adventures. This fateful day adventure came in the form of RAIN!

We ducked into this little cafe (the heart of Paris eating, little cafes) before the sky erupted. After mulling the menu over we decided to get a croque. This is essentially the Parisian version of a hot grilled sandwich with variations of toppings and fillings. Popular and available at pretty much all cafes, it's a safe option if you can't read anything else on the menu. The "Madame" is ham (jambon), cheese (fromage) melted on top and a cooked egg (ouef).

Similar to East Coast rain, Paris rain does not last very long. By the time we were done eating the rain had stopped and we were ready to wander. Again doing some window shopping (and photographing) this display reminded me of my friend Ashley over at Decorating Obsessed.

Not sure why, maybe it's the tall silver vases that I could see on her beautiful black buffet. :)

During our adventures I started to garner inspiration but a rather unlikely source considering where I was. You think, Paris - fashion capital of the world, stunning museums, delicious food... I was inspired by doors. Ha. :)

But really, with these historic buildings there is not a lot of room for curb appeal or to set you apart from the other 200 year old high rise next door. This only leaves your huge double door and house number for some individualization.

Beautiful blue door with top number

Awesome red door with side number

No description needed...

They even had cool storm/security doors!

Loving this one

We want this for our house! Both the cool door and the house number!

At this point Micheal needed to go register for his conference (since that was the reason for going) so that led us up north of the city and on our first metro ride!

Next we went into to Saint Paul Catholic Church and lit a candle for my cousin Brianne. The inside was of course beautiful.

Our advice is that when you're traveling take some time to get to know your city before running straight to the landmarks and museums. If you're running from place to place you might miss out on some amazing views!

We went out in the evening after our afternoon rest and ate in the Saint Germaine area and had some yummy glacier (ICE CREAM!)

Paris Day 1

2010-09-01T21:57:00.001-04:00

So I'm going to do this like a bit of a recap, a bit of a travel guide, and a bit of a review of the places we visited. Is this home renovation related? No...but since we were gone for a week I don't have any of that stuff to share with you. :) So Paris is what you get!

We arrived at the Charles de Gaulle Airport at about 7:30am and took the B Line RER Train to the center of Paris and got off near our hotel. More on the RER and Metro later, but this is an excellent way to get around Paris, much cheaper than a taxi and if a public transport novice like me can navigate it, anyone can.

Riding the RER

We stayed at the Holiday Inn - Notre Dame in the area of Saint Germain. Our hotel room wasn't ready yet so we were able to leave our bags and go wander about the city.

It was pretty early on a Sunday morning, so it seemed that Paris was still slowly waking up.

A quiet Paris street

By the Seine River

Two of many strange sculptures watching over Paris

Our discovery of the "love locks" on the Pont des Art

A beautiful view of the Seine

And my first sighting of the Eiffel Tower!

The locks on the Seine bridge were all marked with initials and dates of couples that had decided to leave a token of their love behind. Some had even been engraved! Those people had been prepared. We decided that we wanted to leave our mark too and would do so later in the week.

Then we then wandered into the courtyard of one of the most famous and beautiful buildings worldwide, the Louvre.

We of course were just passing through at this point but I could resist snapping a quick picture of one of the smaller pyramids.

Walking through one of the many shopping districts there were many beautiful window displays full of color.

The downsides however, to this little trek were that it was getting hot, I was tired, not dressed for it to be getting hot and was quickly getting grumpy. This is probably my last tolerant smile before I was done and ready to go wait in the lobby and give the front desk evil looks until our hotel room was ready.

We went back and thankfully our room was ready! The room was cute and very cozy.

(Disclaimer: I was too tired to take a pic when we first arrived so this is after it's been "lived in" a little. It was much cleaner and more crisp when we first got there.)

And by cozy I mean small. But that's the norm for European hotel rooms, and I mean really with architecture like this...

...I'm not there for the hotel room.

After a rest we went back out to explore the Paris nightlife.

The Fontaine Saint Michel by our hotel.

Where we saw this entrepreneurial young group of men dancing for money

The quiet Paris streets all lit up!

A beautiful view of Notre Dame from the Seine with a lovely group of guys serenading us with classics from...the Backstreet Boys!

For our first day in Paris, it was pretty awesome.

We're Home!

2010-08-29T16:59:00.000-04:00

Wow, what an amazing week! We got back yesterday evening to three very needy kitties that didn't let us sleep much last night.

Here are a few pics just to tide you over until I write some reviews!!

Bad Blogger

2010-08-20T10:50:00.000-04:00

Despite the many complaints about changes to Google's Blogger, I am actually referring to myself and not to my blogging tool. This week has been hectic and we've done absolutely nothing to the kitchen. Why?? I'll give you a hint...

....

....

....

That's right, we're going to PARIS!!!! We actually leave tomorrow, arrive in Paris on Sunday and we're there for a whole week. I plan on taking LOTS of inspiration pictures to share with you all when I return.

Until then, Au Revoir!!

What a week...

2010-08-14T21:40:00.000-04:00

It's been a long and crazy week. It started Monday when this beautiful, sweet, loving, docile girl:

Turned into some sort of evil demon

She decided that her best buddy Moshe was no longer someone she wanted to be friends with and turned into a growling hissing mess...so it's been a week of trying to figure out what happened, working on getting them in the same room together without killing each other, and sending kitties to their appropriate corner if necessary.

If THAT wasn't enough to deal with a big storm came through on Thursday and knocked out our power. So not only did we have grumpy kitties, we had grumpy kitties in a hot dark house. Awesome. Power was out for about 36 hours - darn you Pepco!!

Both of these issues have definitely impeded our kitchen process but now that we've got power, and the Indi is slowly returning to her normal sweet self we're back on the job!

AND we've gotten a few things DONE!

Finish door and windows

~~Metal trim~~

Mud (In progress!)

Sand (Next!)

Cabinets

~~Decide on and buy cabinet handles~~ - Hallelujah!

Long ones for the drawersShorter ones for the doors
(Sorry the pictures kinda stink, I never found my camera charger so I'm operating with our old 3.2 MP backup.)

Back to work!