"15 Easy Ways to Update Your Home"

 

Yesterday a post from HOUSE BEAUTIFUL

appeared in my Facebook feed.

It was titled, "15 Easy Ways to Update Your Home."

It was interesting to see how many of the ways I have/or would consider doing.

1.  Paint a piece of furniture Kool-Aid purple.

WOULD NOT consider, mainly because purple

is not one of "my" colors.

However, I have just recently painted

a pine wardrobe with white chalk paint.

2.  Collect seashells to embellish a fireplace surround.

I love seashells, but haven't been to the beach lately.

3.  Hang a wind chime inside the house

where it can catch a breeze.

I DO have a wind chime hanging on my front porch.

4.  Set up an outdoor room --anywhere, any way you can.

YES, YES and YES!

My front porch is all set for spring and summer use!

I will be spending many, many hours here in the weeks to come.

5.  Dress your bed in all white for the summer.

DONE!

I'm cheating just a tad with a bit of color in the quilt and pillows.

6.  Paint your home office leafy green,

to create the feeling of a tree house.

I haven't done this, but, sitting at my desk

already feels like I'm in a tree house:

(Views from my desk today.)

7.  Don't just clean up a room -

put away all the stuff that's accumulated on every flat surface.

Although I haven't done this completely, I have been

decluttering a lot this spring.

8.  Sometimes the simplest window treatments are the best.

Yes! Just sewn and hung this spring!

9.  Slipcovers!

Yes again.  I've made slipcovers for two small chairs

and if I could ever find the right fabric would happily

have them made for two love seats in the living room.



10.  Cut flowers and greenery from the yard

for each room in your house.

Sort of...although I don't often bring cut flowers into the house,

I do raise violets, have them throughout my house,

and usually have some blooming.

11.  Paint your bedroom closet a favorite color.

Already done...the same vibrant blue as my bedroom.

12.  Plant a little garden - even just a few flowers - by every doorway that leads into the house.

Flower boxes are all planted on the front porch.

(Does basil by the backdoor count?)

13.  Vintage garden accessories look even cooler

when used to decorate the inside.

I love this look and actually walked through the house

to see where I've done it.

The best I could come up with is a favorite print

in my living room of a vintage garden chair.

14.  If you don't like an architectural detail --

a brick fireplace, wood ceiling beams --

paint it a chalky white.



I have never loved the look of my fireplace

(although I adore having it in the winter with a fire going).

It has been painted white since I have lived here,

AND, I have just given a fresh coat in the past month!

15.  Mirrors add and spread light wherever they're used.

I know and practice this with mirrors through out my house.

One of my favorites is a set of old french doors I had backed

with mirrors in my small dining room.

They make the room look twice as large and add more light!

I think I did quite well!

How are you keeping your home updated?

This week I am partying at
Make it Pretty Monday at The Dedicated House
Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch
Give Me the Goods at Rain on a Tin Roof
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style
Open House Party at No Minimalist Here
Simple & Sweet Fridays at Rooted in Thyme

Tuna Salad - Kick It Up a Notch!

As the weather starts warming I'm in the mood for lighter meals.

This recipes comes from  Martha Steward's HORS D'OEUVRES.

It is a recipe for a finger food I first served for a gathering several years ago.

There were a few left over after the party and the next day for lunch,

I put them in a pita and discovered it was a wonderful sandwich.

CURRIED TUNA SALAD

makes 40 hors d'oeuvres

Drain 1 7-oz can of tuna well and put it in a mixing bowl.

Add 1/4 c. currants

1/4 c. chopped toasted pecans

1/2 c. mayonnaise

1 T. red wine vinegar

2 T. chopped chutney

Curry powder to taste

I like Harry and David's Mango Chutney.

Mix well.

Refrigerate until ready to use.

Martha then topped rounds of cucumber slices, for hors d'oeuvres.

I usually double this recipe, decreasing the mayo a bit,

 since I use it for sandwiches.

I'm trying to get more fish into my diet.

Do you think this will count?

More Sweater Pillows!

I recently posted a tutorial on how to make

what I'm calling, "Sweater Pillows."

I am continuing to make them

and loving it!

I am only limited by the sweaters I can find!

Wouldn't this set be perfect at holiday time?

Or, how about this set?

This pretty moss green set is from a

sweater I hand knit several years ago.

What could be more "right" than

up cycling and re purposing a well loved sweater?

Be sure to visit my Etsy Shop to see more.

Eating What You Crave vs Craving What You Eat



I'm a firm believer that eating habits are just that..."habits."

If you eat something often enough, you'll begin to crave it.

Without a doubt, I know I'm addicted to sugar

and need to eat less of it.
Don't even let me get started on chocolate,
or ice cream.

With that in mind, I've been looking

for some healthy alternatives.

Last winter I discovered frozen blueberries.

Yes, I know, there's nothing new about frozen blueberries.

I had just never bought them.

I also discovered I could add 1teaspoon of vanilla extract to

a quart of plain yogurt

and get a pretty good vanilla yogurt.



(You must stir it completely to get the vanilla mixed throughout.)

Because the yogurt I buy is also sugar free,

I add sweetener each time I have a bowl.

I use Equal, but (a little) sugar or honey would work great too.

Top the yogurt with the still frozen blueberries.

Now go take care of some morning business,

walk the dog, start the coffee, make your bed,

unload the dishwasher, you get the idea.

Soon, those blueberries will be thawing

and releasing their juices.

Yum, this is so good,

and so healthy.

I've been having it for breakfast most mornings

for quite a while and now find

it's exactly what I prefer for breakfast. 

Why not train ourselves to crave some

healthy foods?

Have you found some healthy foods you actually crave?

Linking to Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farm

The Curtains are Done! The Curtains are Hung!



I'm loving this fabric combination.

I bought the fabric two weeks ago

and already the window treatments are

sewn and hanging.

Whew!

I've been boring everyone I know about

wanting to make this change for more than a year!

Two other fabrics were purchased last year,

but I decided they were not "right."

So, it's actually been a long time coming.

The treatments are ultra simple,

so the sewing did not take

a huge amount of time.

My entry, living room and dining room

all flow together,

so I needed the same fabrics for all

three areas.

This is the window seat in the dining room.

This double window is in the entry beside the front door,

to the right...

...If you turn to the left you see the living room,

and a bit of the dining room.

(See those two square windows on either

side of the fireplace?

That's another long term project.

I hope to find, or have made

stained glass panels for them.)

I don't need the bottom cafes in the living room

because I have roll up wooden shades there.

These windows over look the porch and the street out front

and the roll ups are usually open during the day.

This is the view from the living room into the dining room.

The dining room again.

And finally a view back to the entry from the living room.

I'm delighted with the freshness this change brought.

I also went through and did a bit of decluttering.

I have so much stuff I really like,

but I have to remind myself,

I simply cannot have it all out at the same time!

Can you see why I needed the same fabrics

for all three spaces in my little cottage?

Join me this week at

Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Open House Party at No Minimalist Here

Etsy Cottage Style

Mission Accomplished Part II

I've put in some serious sewing time this week,

making new window treatments for

my entry, living room and dining room.

I usually contain my sewing projects to my sewing room,

but dealing with the yardage needed for curtain making,

forced me to move to the dining room table

for the cutting portion of this job.

I purchased thirteen yards of the blue graphic print and...

...six yards of the floral

(not to mention, seven yards of lining).

That much fabric needs to breathe...

It's always a little scary for me to make the first cut.

Did I measure right?

Did I calculate right?

Have I thought it through well enough?

But, cut I did.

The bottom cafes and their linings all ready to be sewn.

I'm using these nifty little rings with hooks

for the top valances.

I'm making a very simple valance.

It will be made up of a series of squares,

the two fabrics, sewn together,

then folded diagonally with

two inches of the back fabric creating a boarder.

Can't wait to show you what they look like hanging!