Archive for October, 2008
We Bought A New House!
Actually, we got two of them but they’re for the birds. Literally. We picked up two cheap ol’ $3 birdhouses at Michael’s after learning that now is the time to put them out to hopefully catch the eye of some feathered friends (who will someday repay you by catching their fair share of mosquitoes in the spring). But they weren’t much to look at, and didn’t seem built to weather the elements, so of course we whipped out our tools for a little home makeover. Here’s they are before the renovation, with their porous and rickety balsa wood frames and their woven (and therefore not at all rain proof) roofs:
Zero dollars later (thanks to some leftover all-weather deck paint from the sunroom floor project and a few extra roofing tiles that we had lying around) we whipped up something a bit sturdier and a lot more rain-friendly. We just reinforced the rickety wood frames and attached the roofing tiles (cut to size) with good ol’ Liquid Nails, and drilled a small hole in the back of each house to allow them to hang on a tiny nail hammered directly into the tree. Voila:
Something sturdy and sweet to come home to. Times two.
So what do you think about our two new homes? Any tips to get some fabulous mosquito eating birdies to come to roost? We can’t wait to see who comes to feather our little nests…
Our Very First Byline
Check your mailboxes, swing by the newsstand or, well, come to Richmond (ok, maybe that’s too much to ask) because our very first article in R Home magazine has made its debut!
As we mentioned last month, the fine folks over at Richmond’s favorite shelter pub invited us to become regular contributors. So starting with this Nov/Dec issue, you can check out our “Try This” column that’s full of fresh and simple DIY decorating ideas. For this holiday issue, we’re offering up new and unexpected ways to decorate with a true classic: Christmas ball ornaments.
And if you don’t live in Richmond, don’t worry. We’ll bring you all the ornamental details once we get closer to the holiday season. The only thing you’ll miss out on are the fancy, professional photos which, I can’t lie, are pretty sweet. But we snagged a bunch of our own pics from behind the scenes to share each and every festive idea, so stay tuned…
Oh, and if you’re here thanks to the article – welcome! Kick your shoes off and stay a while. Make yourself right at home.
David & Emily’s Color Conundrum
When Emily and her husband David contacted us to help them select colors for their almost-open Mexican restaurant, we whipped out our paint swatches and got right to work. Here’s their letter:
I love your blog and desperately need your color help! My husband and I are opening our second restaurant and need direction. It is a quick casual Mexican restaurant and we like bright bold colors. What we really don’t want is the campy Mexican look with sombreros and Mexican blankets. We are trying to go for a more modern Mexican look- where it looks Mexican, but not like a 70′s bad TV version or most Mexican restaurants with old pictures of Mexican bandits hanging on the wall. Does that make sense? Of course it’s still under construction but the floor is a brown stained concrete, and there will be a lot of stainless steel on the trim and kitchen walls. The tables will be wood and the chairs will be multicolored – red, blue and yellow. I can’t wait to see what you come up with. Thanks so much for your help!! -Emily and David
We can’t wait to see which color combo David and Emily pick. And let me just preface our three digital color schemes by saying that the paint chips are about a million times more dynamic and harmonic than the photoshop rendering below, so we definitely encourage David and Emily to grab all the suggested paint swatches and bring them into the space to decide which scheme tickles their fancy the most. But without further ado, our three bright and current color scheme suggestions:
Here’s the color palette breakdown.
Read the rest of this entry »
Ten Trades That’ll Detox Your Home
We’ve made some pretty major eco changes around here, and we wanted to share our switcheroos for anyone out there who’s interested in creating a less toxic environment at home (did you know the air inside the average house is four to ten times more polluted that the air outside?!). So without further ado, our pretty painless trade outs that make greener, healthier living a snap:
Switcheroo #1: We swapped out our old water bottles (we used to reuse plastic Propel bottles and other sport bottles to keep water cold in the fridge) for stainless steel Klean Kanteens that ensure there’s absolutely no nasty leeching or off-gassing into our air and our drinking supply (John even keeps one at work so no matter where he is, he’s drinking pure h20 and nothing more). We also replaced all of our Tupperware and plastic mixing bowls with glass containers and bowls (and even switched out our old plastic cereal dispensers for some pretty cool oversized glass jars) to further eliminate any chance of tainted food. The added bonus is that we no longer have to think before sticking things in the microwave since everything’s glass and not plastic. Love it.
Switcheroo #2: We tossed our scary and probably carcinogenic non-stick Teflon coated pots and pans and snatched up a Chefmate 8 Piece Stainless Steel cookware set (on sale for $35) from Target. 100% stainless steel insures that nothing’s tainting our food (or our air as it heats up) and although there’s a bit more clean-up involved, it always feels like a fair trade for a healthier home (we’ve read report after report that advises sticking to glass, cast iron and 100% stainless steel and avoiding aluminum and of course Teflon at all costs). Update: we upgraded to these seriously amazing pots & pans a few months later and love them (no more scrubbing).
Switcheroo #3: We replaced the sheets on our bed with Target’s Home Organic Sheet Set made with 100% organically grown cotton fiber and eco-friendly dyes (even the packaging is recycled and made with vegetable dye!).
Switcheroo #4: We replaced our old, lumpy memory foam mattress pad (which are known to off-gas, and since you spend a third of your life in bed…) with an 100% cotton and down feather bed without any firesafe chemicals or waterproofing sprays from Bed Bath & Beyond. Oh and we also switched out our vinyl shower curtain and liner (a huge off-gassing offender) for a floor to ceiling fabric curtain and liner combo for added ambiance and a truly clean shower experience.
Switcheroo #5: We tossed our old cheapie vacuum cleaner (from our apartment days) and picked up a surprisingly affordable Dirt Devil Vibe Quick Vac with a HEPA filter (by far the most effective way to keep the air cleaner and allergens at an all time low when it comes to vacuuming).
Switcheroo #6: We switched all of our paint and stain for no VOC alternatives (now available everywhere from Lowe’s & Home Depot to Benjamin Moore).
Switcheroo #7: We made it a priority to purchase organic produce, meats, eggs, and even butter/dairy products and eliminated sugar free gum and all sodas except for Boyland’s or Jones soda (which are made with pure sugar cane- no aspartame for us, thanks). Of course it’s expensive (and grocery costs are already at an all time high) but our health is pretty darn important too, and it’s about time we started taking care of the only bodies we get.
Switcheroo #8: We also switched out almost every product in our bathroom. By trading chemically enhanced hand soap for Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap (we love the almond scent) and swapping our shampoo, conditioner and lotion for Avalon Organics products we definitely greened up our clean-up.
Switcheroo #9: I also upgraded my make-up to purer and more eco-friendly alternatives. All my old nail polish was traded for a few bottles of Honeybee Gardens natural nail polish (so natural it’s vegan!) and my old Nars bronzer and blush were swapped out for Physicians Formula Organic Wear (which come in recycled packaging and are available right at CVS). Even my ChapStick & Vaseline were traded out for Dr. Bronner’s 100% organic lip balm (the petroleum in Chap Stick is now listed as a possible carcinogen due to the refinement process). Make-up never felt so healthy…
Switcheroo #10: And of course we already swapped out our dishwashing liquid, laundry detergent, and glass cleaner for Seventh Generation products that are just as good to Mother Earth as they are for babies and dogs to inhale. We also vowed never to burn anything other than soy candles and have completely eliminated air fresheners and fabric softeners- two highly scented (and highly chemical) contributors to indoor air pollution. The funny this is that we swear our clothes are just as soft so we wonder if fabric softener is a total placebo product anyway. Try going without for one load and tell us if you can honestly tell the difference.
So there you have it. Some pretty simple (yet totally rewarding) changes that we made to reduce our toll on the planet (while reducing the toxins in our home). Of course there are still a few more switcheroos that we can’t wait to implement: adding a water filtration system under our sink, planting an organic veggie garden, swapping our old mattress for a 100% latex organic one, replacing the air filters in our heating and air system (something you should do at least once a year for clean indoor air), adding bat houses and birdhouses to naturally control the mosquitoes in our yard, etc. But we’re confident that we can do it thanks to the super seamless transition we’ve made to our newer, greener existence.
What about you guys? Do you have any easy changes that you’ve made to detox your home? We’re still learning as we go, so we rely on you to keep us up to speed on all things eco!
For more home-detox tips, check out this Planet Green post
Images courtesy of Amazon (some of the links included above are Amazon Affiliate links).
Re-Decorating
If you’re like me and Sherry you have a mild case of design A.D.D. that requires you to refresh your decor fairly often. But constantly snatching up new furniture, art and accessories isn’t a cheap habit, which makes it an especially hard itch to scratch in this economy. So more and more lately we’ve found ourselves exercising the art of remixing the items that we already have to give ‘em a whole new life and a fresh new look.
Which is why we just had to share this list of the 5 “Quick Fix Makeover” tips that Apartment Therapy spotted on the O at Home website. It’s a great collection of some low- and no-cost ways to redesign your space, leaving you more dough to stash under your mattress…er, I mean in your high yield FDIC insured savings account.
Rearrange: Take a new furniture arrangement for a spin; try art on a different wall or move things around on a book shelf. Even pulling things in from different rooms can make quite a difference. Then just live with it for a day and leave it if you like it.
Reorganize: Organizing is a way of turning random clutter into deliberate, functional design. And a room that looks more clean and organized automatically looks bigger and better.
Repaint: You know Sherry and I are strong believers in the power of paint. Whether you’re taking a fresh coat of new color to a whole room, an accent wall, or a piece of furniture – it’s a surefire way to give your space a new look.
Repurpose: Find new uses for things you already own. For example, Sherry and I just started using a decorative capiz shell covered jewelry box to hold our extra remotes and recruited some rarely used juice glasses to double as votive candle holders.
Retail: Once you’ve tried some of the above ideas, you can at least feel better about resorting to dishing out some cash for a few new things. If nothing else, you will have narrowed or focused your shopping list to the stuff that you really need. Better yet add the items to your Christmas list to save dough and get only the stuff that you really want and need for the holidays- instead of a bunch of clutter that you then have to organize come January 1st.
And I’ll add one more to list…
Reconsider: I have my frugal father to thank for always double-checking my purchases with these questions: “do I really need that?” and “do I already have something that does this?” For better or for worse, this moment of pause has probably saved me and Sherry from buying more than few unnecessary items for our home- which means less clutter and more money in our pockets.
Have any of these redecorating reminders saved you guys from forking over some unnecessary dough recently? Got anymore quick fix ideas to add to the mix? Share and share alike.
Image courtesy of O at Home
