apartment therapy...

...if only I had known I would have included my friend Meredith in my
 blogging friends post yesterday, I decided I could still tell you about her them!

Meredith and Gwyneth the New Yorkie here
live in a 470 square foot apartment in NYC.

Not only do I admire her style and incredible attitude,

but her discipline to be creative and stay within her decor and fashion budget!
And, she is SO humble!

At the bottom of her 'dumpster diving' post yesterday in a little P.S. she casually mentioned
her entry was chosen by Apartment Therapy to be included in the 'Cool Small 2012' contest!!

She didn't ask for a vote, just said, 'Vote for your favorite!'

  Don't you love her already!  You can vote here if you'd like. :)

  

I stumbled upon her blog when I saw this IKEA Expedit at a linky party!

 It divides her living room and bedroom, I love her use of O'verlays to give it interest!
                                                                    Stunning!

                                              Makes you want to run to IKEA, huh?

                               

This nightstand is her latest dumpster dive!

Apartment Therapy is showing this photo of her entry!

Stop by and visit here or vote for her 'Colorful Work in Progress' here!

Thank you all SO much for your opinions on my kitchen art!

You guys are the best!

The outcome:

  Framed  23   vs.    Unframed  16

Do you think I'm going with the crowd or the underdogs?  

Reveal on Monday!

Enjoy a wonderful Easter weekend with your families!

  

blogging friends

Today I'm happy to be guest posting for Maureen over at Inglenook Decor.

I met her not long ago through our blogs, she also has online store,

 I love her tagline...for your urban cottage.  

           Before you head over, a few of my blogging friends completed some amazing projects
                                                  this week, I had to share them with you!

Remember my stylish friend Katie from Miss Dixie,

  she's in the middle of a dining room update, check out this beautiful redo

                                                          of her buffet and mirror.

                                                              Here's the before...

      And, she can paint, as in real artist! I can't wait to see her darling cow in the new space!

                     My creative friend Dana from Make them Wonder has a way with paint, too!
           (you may know her as the blogger behind her weekly RAK... Random Act of Kindness)
                                                   Is this the coolest monogram ever?!

My talented friend Kathy from Kate's Place could put the Energizer Bunny to shame!

Check out her beautiful kitchen, she's been painting and fluffing!

                                     This fresh, pretty vignette is on the other side of the room.




                                      Join me at Maureen's here and see what I'm up to...
                                            I'll give you a clue, it's bright and springy!

    

simple tie-dyed frosting

You know by now if it's simple, and has a little style, I love it!

Today I'm sharing my method for frosting Easter cookies to give them this tie-dye look.

Prepare a batch of your favorite sugar cookie recipe.

I'm sentimental when it comes to items from my grandparents,

 I love using their everyday items in our home wherever I can.

My flour scoop, bowl, and embroidered towel belonged to my sweet grandma.

This is all about 'the method,' so any favorite frosting recipe will work,

you just want the consistency thin enough to drizzle from a fork.

I like my colors pastel, start with one drop of food coloring per 1/2 cup white frosting.

Adjust accordingly. I ended up using 2 drops to achieve these hues.

Place your cookies close together on a cooling rack.

Dip a fork into the frosting and...DRIZZLE!

Back and forth, circles, horizontal, vertical, the point is: anything works.

If you stop mid-stream to take a photo and get a glob, no worries! 

Baking tip:  If you like big soft cookies, roll them out to 1/4" thickness and remove from

 the oven before the edges get brown. My recipe says to bake 8-10 min., I do 7 minutes. 

Continue with the remaining colors, I do all of one color before going on to the next.

Make sure you frost them sufficiently, then sprinkle while wet!

Aren't they cute?

A simple cellophane bag and pretty ribbon makes it a fun delivery

 to a friend, neighbor or teacher!



Enjoy!

Join me at Mangia Mondays here!

 

help me decide...

...on my big, bold kitchen artwork, please!

One day last month, while waiting for my framing at Hobby Lobby,
I was mindlessly browsing through their nondescript posters without any intention
 of finding one that would make me stop and think,
 "Why on earth haven't I ever looked at these before!" 

The decision is either #1 Framed or #2 Unframed

#1  Framed

#2   Unframed, mounted on a board

Of course, they would be trimmed to fit in the space.

I know you all love to share your opinion, so tell me what you think!
 

 

weekend update...

Ugly door, no more!!

I'm a lucky girl!

 Once I started scraping the paint came off of that specific board perfectly,

to think it had been like that for probably a year!

I sanded it a bit, gave the entire door a fresh coat and did a happy dance!

Motivated to get another little project off the list,

I gave this black clock a quick coat of gold paint.

I removed it from the bookcase when I did the update for spring and

the boys couldn't live without it, so this is how it looked... (in real life vs. blog photo)

Better and off the list!



We (actually, mr. simple) sanded and cleaned the deck for a fresh coat of stain. 

While I was outside I noticed this terra cotta colored pedestal in need of freshening.

  A little navajo white paint thinned with water and a light sanding...

We fit in a trip downtown for dinner on Saturday night,

the Women's Final Four Tournament was here and the 16th Street Mall was hopping!

Tomorrow a new addition to the kitchen...here's a clue, it's big and bold!