Archive for August, 2009
Julia’s Design Dilemma
Julia’s living room is bursting with clean-lined and modern potential. Here’s her letter:
I’m so excited to transform my living room with your help! I want it to work as a living/dining room. We couldn’t decide on a furniture layout so we ended up buying both a sectional and a sofa but I’m pretty sure it doesn’t look great to have so many big couches in the room so we can lose one of them. I’m clueless about what to do with the two huge windowless walls on either side of the room. We may want to add a flat screen TV someday and so I’d appreciate an idea of where that could go. We also will need storage for kids toys down the road (we have an 11 month old). We want to paint the fireplace (the red brick doesn’t fit with our happy modern vision). The dining table and chairs can go- it would be nice to seat 6-8 people and have comfy chairs. I think the room could use some recessed lights and a pendant light over the dining table. Pretty much everything else in the living room room can go. My husband and I coined a term for the look we like called “happy modern.” We like pops of color, clean lines but still very comfy & inviting. Your house actually looks “happy modern” to us – and that’s one reason we like your blog! Oh and I want to repaint- we painted the room Benjamin Moore Barley and it’s too warm and I’d prefer a soft blue-green color. We can’t wait to see what you come up with! Thanks so much! -Julia
This space is primed for a major makeover. Here’s the plan:
And now for the mood board breakdown.
Read the rest of this entry »
House Crashing: Gorgeous & Green Digs
When Cindy contacted us a while back to do a giveaway with her eco-fabulous store, we never knew that after she rewarded one of our readers with a super fun party pack, she’d still have a lot to give. Namely, a House Crashing tour of her amazing (and Earth-friendly) home right here in Richmond. So without further ado, meet Cindy, her husband Robert, and their gorgeous mid-century rancher:
Whenever we go house crashing, we’re not really sure what to expect. We usually find the houses we invade through friends of the stylish homeowners (and this case was no exception- one of Cindy’s friends tipped us off that she had an amazing casa right after her giveaway went up on our site). But as we curiously strolled up the front walkway to the house, we were instantly & overwhelmingly smitten by the gorgeous room that awaited us. Here’s the punchy turquoise front door that leads into the happy and bright pink living room (which Robert actually painted himself- gotta love a man who’s secure in his masculinity).
Awesome local art, clean-lined furnishings and a happy colors abound, creating a modern yet oh so inviting aesthetic that had us beaming for the entire tour. We also loved how everything from the no VOC paint to the secondhand furnishings (like the blue chair above, which Cindy had recovered) come together to create a luxe look with style to spare.
We also took note of Cindy’s use of twinkling white lights in her pink room that created a magic, come-hither look that lured us right through the front door. She snagged that gorgeous table lamp from Ikea (we love that she mixes old with new and cheap-o with antique!) and even lined the back of that built-in nook with glittering wallpaper to bounce around even more light.
Beyond the joyful pink living room is a gorgeous dining room full of moody ambiance. We drooled over everything from the unique moroccan-inspired lanterns and the modern ghost chairs…
… to the eco-frienly built-ins (made from sustainable wood without any VOCs or formaldehyde) which even have a little wine-chiller worked in at the end.
And then there’s the all-green addition that Cindy and Robert had built when they felt a bit pinched in their formerly teeny-tiny home. They didn’t go super huge (as all eco-peeps agree is a bit of a waste) but did add a functional kitchen with cork flooring, a recycled glass backsplash and countertops, and energy star appliances. Cindy mentioned that it wasn’t a walk in the park to find installers who were well versed in eco materials and practices, so a lot of the work fell on their shoulders (we can only imagine how much time and research this masterful kitchen took!) but they’re extremely happy with the extra time they spent to make informed and beneficial choices along the way. All without sacrificing an inch of style I might add.
And all the green perks aside, just look at their dream of a pantry. See those floor to ceiling doors that resemble a giant armoire on the left? Imagine all the stuff you could store in there (along with that amazing island).
Of course the dining area had me at hello thanks to the white ceramic antler chandelier (we all know how I feel about white ceramic animal paraphernalia by now, right?). And that charmingly rustic yet oh so modern wood dining table below was the perfect counterpoint. Oh and one more note about the cork floors: Cindy mentioned that it’s pretty funny when you drop a knife and it pierces the cork and lands like it just hit a dart board (sticking out of the floor at a 90 degree angle). The cool thing is that when you pull it out, the cork self-heals so there’s nary a mark in sight. Just had to toss in that little detail because it tickled us to no end. After all, we do have a love affair with cork in our kitchen.
We especially appreciated Cindy’s spot-on use of brilliant yet surprisingly soothing and happy colors (that pink living room had us relaxed from the second we stepped inside, and this punchy green bathroom just made us smile).
And we especially loved how colors felt layered and lovely throughout the home- like Cindy was always thinking about what rooms would be visible beyond certain spaces. Doesn’t the pop of green beyond the inky blue bedroom look luxe and amazing? Especially with the crisp pops of white (in the trim, that leggy wood table in the hallway, and even the clean white sink base).
But perhaps the most green-with-envy-inducing space was the amazing (and of course, eco) master bathroom that Cindy & Robert designed with function and form on an even playing field. The recycled tiles and sustainable wood built-ins are amazing, right down to the pull out trash can in the middle of the wall unit and the leftover kitchen countertop slabs that they salvaged and reused in here.
So what do you guys think? Was that a fun little house crashing sesh or what? Any favorite features or rooms of the bunch? Any drool to wipe off your chin? Do tell.
Living On Less: Update
It’s been nearly three months since my “Life On Less” post so we figured it was worth doing a quick update (and collecting more great ideas from you guys on how we can all save a buck here and there). You might remember that four months ago we learned I’d be bringing home four fewer benjamins each month, and we’re pleased to report – thanks to many of your suggestions – that we’ve been able to stick to all but one of the money saving tactics I outlined in the previous post: stop buying music on iTunes, cancel my gym membership, watch movies at home and cash in some credit card points. Here’s how it all went down:
1. iTunes out, Pandora in: Several of you mentioned Pandora.com in your comments and boy am I grateful. I love it! You just input some of your favorite artists or songs and it builds a custom radio station filled with similar tunes. You can even thumbs-up or thumb-down songs to help Pandora learn your musical tastes over time. It’s completely free, though – if you’re like me – you might hit your 40 hour monthly limit pretty quickly. But the good news is that it’s only $0.99 to get unlimited access (which is a heckova lot cheaper than my old iTunes habit). I’m totally addicted, and I have you guys to blame/thank.
2. Sayonara Netflix, Konnichiwa Redbox: Again, at your recommendation we realized there was a less expensive option than our $15 per month Netflix bill. With Redbox, you can rent movies for a $1/night meaning even two movies per weekend only costs you $8 per month. And we’re not even usually that movie crazy. I think we’ve probably spent $6 total on movie rentals all summer thanks to Redbox. Sure, the movie selection is a bit narrower (note: do NOT rent “Knowing” with Nicholas Cage) but it still gets new releases and keeps us plenty entertained. Plus, we saved so much moolah with Red Box that we splurged on one trip to the theatre. I let Sherry drag me to The Proposal. Does that mean good husband bonus points for life?
3. Credit Card Points = Cash… and Magazines!: When we cashed in our stored up credit card points back in May for an awesome chunk of change, we suddenly found Bank of America offering us some free magazine subscriptions too. Usually we brush those off, but when the list showed several that Sherry and I routinely peruse at Barnes & Noble we said “sign me up.” So while this isn’t saving us any money directly, it has meant fewer trips to chill at B&N, which means avoiding the temptation to buy books… and cookies from the cafe. Plus we drop off all of our magazines at a local book store when we’re done with them (they offer them for free to their customers) so it’s a great way for us to read them without feeling wasteful.
4. Tapping the Brakes on My Gym Membership: Ok, so this is the one I didn’t follow through on. After a few weeks off I realized how much a midday workout did for stress release so I caved and kept my membership to the YMCA going. Though my workload has kept lunchtime trips to the gym at a minimum, unfortunately, I guess I’m not strong enough to let this one go. So instead…
5. Restaurant.com Is Our New BFF: Since we’re still amateurs in the kitchen, it’s tough for us to give up eating out entirely. But befriending Restaurant.com has certainly made dining out every once in a while much easier on our wallets. They sell a bunch of $25 gift cards for only $10 which means (with a usual minimum purchase of $35) we can save $15 on a meal out. Not bad, but we happened to snag a handful of coupons during a 80% off sale they were having, meaning those precious coupons were only $2! That equals a $23 savings each time we use one! And I recently learned they’re doing that promotion again through Aug 13th. Just enter “PORTION” upon checkout to score a $25 restaurant gift card for just two bucks! And there’s no waiting for the gift certificates to ship or worrying about them getting lost in the mail- just pay and print them right from your computer. Genius.
So that’s our update. What about you all? Did you uncover any new money saving tricks that you can teach the rest of us? Have you been able to stick to your money saving schemes or are you still being a tiny bit “flexible” like me with my gym membership? Our wallets thank you in advance for all the great ideas!
Pssst: To learn more about how we pinch pennies here at Casa Petersik (ex: Sherry gives me haircuts, we brown bag our lunches, we share one car, etc) check out our Save It series (read Part 1 here, Part 2 here, and Part 3 here).
Skirting The Issue
We’re back with another update on John’s sister’s little-boy-on-the-way nursery that we’ve been transforming for the past few weeks (see how we painted stripes and hung mirrors here). This week’s project is a custom crib skirt that we easily whipped up on the cheap with fabric that we snagged on sale and without the use of a sewing machine- or even a needle and thread! Here’s how:
Simple, right? We love that all you need is some fabric you heart, a measuring tape, an iron, hem tape and a bit of velcro. And this was actually our first time taking on a project like this, so if we can do it on camera you can totally follow along at home (hopefully with an iron that’s on). John’s favorite part was when I said “you’ll have a ribbon of stick” when I was struggling to describe the iron-on tape. Eh, you win some, you lose some.
And speaking of winning, how great is it that Emily can now shove a ton of stuff under her crib and no one will ever be the wiser? Especially since she thought she couldn’t have a crib skirt in a modern baby-boy nursery for fear that it would look too frilly or traditional for her tastes. Thank goodness for that inky blue geometric fabric! We love that it’s clean and modern yet oh-so-kid-friendly at the same time. Kids like shapes, right? Especially paired with zoo animals.
So that’s the rundown of our crib skirt adventure. Stick around for more DIY nursery undertakings and of course the big reveal. And because we know you appreciate a budget breakdown, we’ll leave you with our total cost for this entire project: $35. And that includes velcro, iron on hem tape, and two yards of high-end-but-on-sale fabric. We probably could have done the whole thing in under $15 but we fell hard for the fancier fabric and didn’t look back. And a custom $35 crib skirt still isn’t bad at all when you consider that this one from Restoration Hardware Baby can run ya $80.
Oh and we even had enough extra fabric leftover to make a pillow for the chair next to the crib so that’s also included in the total (we’re going to use the fabric in reverse for a complementary lighter blue pop of color nearby). Can’t wait. Seriously is it nerdy that this stuff gets us all giddy and hyper? Do any of you guys have a DIY nursery project of your own going on right now? Any buns in the oven out there? Any kid room makeovers in general (from toddler to big boy or tween to teen for example)? Let’s hear it.
Fab Freebie: Eat Bright
***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries.***
This week we’re keeping the eco-friendly theme going with a freebie from Bright and Bold. They’re a great online resource for all sorts of green home wares, including the much-loved Envirosax bags and other items like jewelry and gifts. Plus, everything on the site ships to the US for free (our favorite four letter word), so you gotta give it them for making the world a happier place.
This week we’re teaming up with Bright and Bold to offer up some earth-friendly products in a lunch-themed giveaway (shouldn’t more things in life be lunch-themed?). Three people can comment to win the perfect tools for a no-waste midday meal: their very own Klean Kanteen and a reusable Fresh Snack Pack bag. You’ve heard us rave about Klean Kanteens before (check it out here and here) and they’re consistently ranked as some of the best reusable, stainless steel bottles out there because they’re non-leaching and bpa-free. Which explains why we currently own three of them (only two are pictured because I keep one at work, so Burger’s filling in as an honorary member of the Klean Kanteen gang).
Along with the reusable water bottles, our trio of winners will also score the Fresh Snack Pack bags which are a great reusable alternative to the traditional Ziploc disposable sandwich bags. They’re made of food safe, nontoxic, PVC-free, Pthalate-free plastic that’s easy to clean and it even folds out to make a placemat. So you no longer have to worry about getting mustard on your latest work assignment (or am I the only one who does that?).
Here are this week’s entry details:
- PRIZE: A reusable lunch kit from Bright and Bold (a 27oz Klean Kanteen in your color of choice & a Fresh Snack Pack of sandwich-sized lunch bags- valued at $34)
- TO ENTER: Comment on this post with the words “I’LL EAT BRIGHT” and…
- BONUS QUESTION: Tell us your favorite go-to option for lunch? Grabbing a bite at a local restaurant? Indulging in last night’s leftovers? A classic PB&J?
- CONTEST CLOSES: Wednesday, August 12th at 8pm EST
- NUMBER OF WINNERS: Three
- PRIZE SHIPS: USA and our northern neighbors in Canada
- THE USUAL: One entry per e-mail address is permitted. The winner(s) will be selected using random.org and announced on Thursday. Good luck!
Until then, happy lunching…
Get more info on our freebies at our Giveaway FAQs page. Images courtesy of Bright and Bold.
