Finding inspiration...

My absence from the blog should be pretty obvious to everyone by now.  I've been traveling, & busy with personal stuff, & just generally uninspired to write or spend any money on my home, crafts, or otherwise.  Over the next few weeks, there will be some changes around the blog, as I do my best to give it some new "flair", & reinspire myself to keep giving you fabulous readers new & exciting stuff.  

In all my reading about blogging & such, I have heard that everyone goes through periods of time where they just don't feel inspired to write anything, & I guess I have more than my fair share of moments like that.  My philosophy, however, is to write when I've got something to say, & don't when I don't. I'm sure y'all are smart enough to tell when I'm "just phoning it in" or don't truly have anything important to talk about... & let's just face it... Yacking about silly stuff all the time just fill up blog-space & create new content just isn't my style.  I'll talk about something when I feel it'll be important to YOU, because that's really what it's all about.  Without readers, what am I doing here anyway??

Speaking of making improvements (& in an effort to regain my inspiration)...  I've decided to participate in the 20/20 Fall Cure series, put on by Apartment Therapy.  Fall, in my opinion, is the best time to clean & declutter, because winter's cold weather just makes me want to stay home where it's warm & cozy & it might as well be an enjoyable place to hang out. 

So today is day 2 of the 20/20 cure...  Which means I've got some catching up to do.  I'll have to knock out 2 days in one!  It's only supposed to take 20 minutes per day, so that means I've got 40 minutes to get it all done.  

Catching up...

Day 1:  Surface clean one room... (notice all that crap on my coffee table from my recent couponing adventures...)

I decided to work on our living room, because I know that realistically it can be done in 20 minutes, and because it is the room we hang out in the most. 

X:  Floors Vacuumed.

X:  Surfaces Dusted. (Including baseboards & ceiling fan, ICK!!  Don't judge.) 

X:  Put away things that don't belong & straighten up other items.

Day 2:  Buy flowers.  Yep, that sounds pretty easy.

I'm not normally a "flowers kind of gal" (My husband is well aware - I'd rather have tools or craft supplies.)  But I have to admit, Maxwell, that these did bring a smile to my face more than once after I brought them home.  What really made my smile even more was this price tag.

But don't they look great sitting in my pseudo-foyer (aka: behind my sofa)??  They smell great too.  I didn't pay much attention to what the label said, but I think they're some sort of daisy.  Any of you flower experts care to help me identify them?

 

Fast, easy, & cheap meal planner!

I've always envied all these cutesy menu planners I see around the internet.  I'm a list-maker by nature, and if I don't do something to plan out what we're going to eat for the week, I without fail end up buying a bunch of random junk at the grocery store that you can't really make a decent meal out of.  This also helps us save money by designating (usually) only ONE day of the week to go out to eat, which is also a nice perk!  I really don't have a lot of time to make some kind of fancy system for myself - but I'm way jealous of all this organization and planning.  Hey, I just do the best I can - but stay tuned, cause you'll see my own quick and frugal system at the end of the post!

Some of my favorite meal planners:

Adorable printable meal planner from Eat at Home:

Elaborate, magnetic, pre-printed system, from 5 Dollar Dinners:

Printable, & graphically-awesome planner from Ollibird, to be framed as a dry-erase system:

And my all-time favorite, from Make & Takes, is another dry-erase system which has a background that can be easily coordinated with any decor:

So in my hurriedness, impatience, and jealousy of all this wonderful organization, I found my own nearly-instant (and FRUGAL) meal planner system. As I was browsing for some picture-hanging hardware at Bed Bath & Beyond the other day, I ran across their brand new "College Dorm" section in the front of the store, geared toward all these kiddos who are going off to college for the first time. It seemed like it was meant for homework assignments, but when I saw it, it just screamed "MENU PLANNER"!

Then when I saw the price tag, I thought to myself, "Duh - I totally have to get these!"...

...so I brought them home.  :)

How stinkin' CUTE are these as a dry-erase menu planning system?  I am SO excited about this.  I love cheap quick fixes.  Call me lazy if you want, but I just prefer to call it smart, hehe.

Easy, cheap, organized, and cute - what more could you want?

How do you plan & organize what you cook each week?  I'd love to know how all of my readers stay organized with their meal planning & grocery shopping!  And don't even get me started on you crazy couponers... that's just more than I can wrap my feeble little head around - more power to ya though!

Delft, Netherlands - My visit to the "Markt" (Market)

Back in April, we took a trip to the Netherlands. It was wonderful! My sweet husband planned the whole thing, & did an excellent job. We started out in Amsterdam, then took a detour to Bruges, Belgium for a few days, then we went back to the Netherlands to Delft, & finished up back in Amsterdam.

Delft was such a charming city to visit - one of my favorite things about Delft (in addition to the Royal Delft Blue pottery it's known for) was the weekend "Markt" (Market) on the square, that happens every Friday & Saturday. It was so different - I can't even compare it to one of our local farmer's markets or flea markets, because the selection was SOOO broad!  They have everything from fruits & vegetables, costume jewelry, purses, clothing, antiques, and electronics… and I haven't even mentioned the best part - fabric & craft supplies!

View of town square in Delft, NL - during weekend "Markt" (Market)

The booth where I purchased my Delft Royal Blue tiles

My 2 tiles! Cloisonne Style. "Old Church" left, "New Church" right

Now - for the BEST part about the Markt...

I found this AMAZING booth that sold nothing but buttons, trims, embroidered appliques, & other wonderful sewing notions of every kind!

LOVED all these gorgeous buttons.

Cute bias tapes are a huge weakness for me!

Why can't we have shopping like this here in the states?  Excuse me while I let out an enormous *SIGH*.

Design Dilemmas, Episode 1 {Baby Boy B's Nursery}

A good friend who I've been lucky to know since high school has recently learned that she'll soon be a mommy to a little boy, in addition to the two sweet little girls she's already blessed with.  This is going to require a make over for what will be his future nursery!  I offered to help her with a new regular feature I'd like to call "design dilemmas" until I think of a more clever name.  :)

Existing Conditions:

• The existing dark cherry crib & changing table will need to stay.
• The existing carpet is a "light oatmeal" color (mostly off-white with a few gray & brown flecks).
• There's only one window, so natural light is limited.

Wish List:

• She'd like to feature photos of daddy's old cars and trucks (see below) in black & white or sepia, matted in white with dark cherry frames.  This is where the "vintage car & truck" theme will come from.
• There's a possibility that a dark cherry glider would be added, with a custom upholstery.
• New paint & a somewhat "subtle" color scheme: There's an ongoing effort to give the whole house a more "sophisticated" (less bright) color scheme.
• Decorative letters, featuring baby boy's initials or name
• No polka dots

 Above: Examples of Daddy's Cars & Trucks

Below is an inspiration board I created for Baby Boy B's nursery:

Chevron print fabric has been around for a while, but as we all know, it's recently made a HUGE comeback. I thought this print was "handsome" & "boyish" without being too "cutesy". The gray & white combo is very versatile, & can be accented with just about any other color.  I chose orange, because this particular family is quite fond of the Auburn Tigers - & let's just face it, orange is awesome, funky, & cool.

A:  Chevron Print Bumpers, on Etsy, from tuftlovefabric

It seemed like a good idea, with 3 kiddos soon to be running about, to get a dark colored rug that would hide wear & stains. This rug incorporated our charcoal & orange so well, & the ivory will help add more variety to the color scheme.

B:  "Capsules" rug, from CB2

I can't tell you how cool I think this throw pillow is.  I love the fact that it appears to be made "quilt-style", but it still matches our bumpers perfectly. Playing around with different scale patterns is one of my favorite design principles.

C:  Chevron Pattern Throw Pillow, on Etsy, from decoYellow

To give the room a sophisticated look that baby boy can grow into over time, I decided to keep the curtains fairly simple & neutral.  Although these are dark, they are sheer, which will let plenty of light in that single window.

D:  Curtains, from Ikea

To add to the natural light in the room, I chose this modern table lamp from Ikea. The pop of color it adds is a great addition to the room, & could be easily swapped for another accent color if orange doesn't float your boat.

E:  Table Lamp, from Ikea

I really loved how these decorative car & truck figurines incorporated some of the dark/cherry wood tones that are already existing in the room/furniture. These would look great on top of baby boy's bookshelves.

F:  Vintage Wood Car & Vintage Wood Truck, from My Kirkland's

Sherwin Williams is my favorite paint manufacturer - they have such wonderful neutrals to choose from, & they're all organized in such a way that it's VERY simple to go a shade lighter or darker, even for the most paint-phobic individuals. I included two colors here that would be good to try out in the room before making a final decision, & these days it's so easy to get a small tester to try out before you commit to the color.

G:  Sherwin Williams: 7057 “Silver Strand”

H:  Sherwin Williams: 7059 “Unusual Gray”

One of mom's goals was to incorporate baby's initials or name, in decorative lettering on the wall. These oversized Zinc letters seemed like a great way to do that, & would work well with the vintage car & truck theme. They remind me of the letters that you'd find on the outside of an old gas station.

I:  Zinc Letters, from Anthropologie

This fabric would make a great cushion cover for a glider, or possibly a slip cover for an existing chair that could be reused. It's a good balance between cute & boyish, & incorporates all the right colors from our scheme.

J:  Honeycomb Fabric (for Glider), from Fabric.com

And last but not least, my favorite item... The Hubcap Clock. This one speaks for itself, folks.

K:  Hubcap Clock, on Etsy, from StarlingInk

I hope this inspiration board and resource guide helps the mommy to be with her design decisions!

If you'd have a question that you'd like addressed in our "design dilemmas" section, please email them to me using the link on the toolbar at the top of the page.  I'd really love to hear from you!  Obviously I won't be able to get to EVERY single question, but I'll do my best to feature questions that I think would be interesting to lots of my readers. Please send a paragraph description of your "design dilemma", & anywhere between 5-10 photos of things like existing spaces, inspiration items, or other things that would be crucial to decision making.  I'm going to try to do one of these segments every month or so.

-ST

Mother's Day Printable Roundup

For all you procrastinators out there who haven't picked up a card for your dear mother yet, it may be last minute, but it's not too late!

Check out all these lovely & stylish cards I've rounded up for you across the blogosphere, & be sure to include a special gift, or at least some hugs & kisses!

 

Matryoshka Doll Card, via: Creative Mamma

Black & Gold Floral Card, via: Living Locurto

4 Bird & Tree Themed Options, via: Pumpkins & Posies

Mother's Day Coupon Book, via: Penny Candy Studios

Floral Card, via: Creative Mamma

Multicolor Damask Cards, via: Anders Ruff

Non-Traditional Mom-to-Dad Card, via: Ambrosia Girl