Take a Little Trip With Me

Have I mentioned that I’m sick of winter?   Yeah, well it’s still winter, and I’m still sick of it.

Let’s take a dreamy little trip to the beach.  In Michigan.  Yes, Michigan!  (Ha ha, I’m probably the only one that will get it, but that was a Michigan tourism slogan several years ago!)  Every couple of years we’ve been making the summer trip to our favorite fresh water beaches near New Buffalo, Michigan.

2006

Last year about this time I did a post about a house that was for sale in New Buffalo.  I decided to browse the real estate listings again for a good one to show you.  It’s hard to beat last year’s house, but this one has it’s own charm.

This one is in Union Pier, MI, just up the road from New Buffalo.  It’s listed at $2,350,000.  Aw, come on, that’s only $10,000 a month, as long as you have a $470,000 down payment (20%)! 

The listing says it was built in 1950, but the exterior kind of has a 1920 vibe to me.

I love all the rounded-top windows, and I’ve always wanted a rounded entry door (I don’t think this is the main entry though; it appears to step down into a bedroom).

 

It has nice open space.

The kitchen is updated.

Look at those rounded french doors!

Okay, I’m just crazy about these doors and windows!  Even the bookshelf echoes the shape.  And look at the sunlight on the wall through the doorway!

The hearth room has a wall of french doors which open to…

…this amazing deck overlooking the lake (look at the tree coming up right through the deck).  From here you step down to…

…this cabana!

Keep on walking, right down to your own beach.

Looking from the beach back up to the house.  Fabulous! 

There are a lot more photos of this place in the listing, but don’t get any crazy ideas.  I wouldn’t want to get in to a bidding war with you!

A Decorating Dilemma

Amanda is being the hostess with the mostest lately! She’s got another party going on (starts tonight), Decorating Dilemmas. Submit your problem area, and give suggestions to help others. She’s done this a few times and it’s always fun!

We’ve been in this house for over a year and a half, which is a bit of a miracle considering how often we’ve moved in the last 10 years (check out Parade of Homes for more on that). We put a contract on this house just as the building process was beginning, so it was brand spankin’ new and fresh for us…something I never dreamed I would get to experience.

But, and I hesitate to even say this, I think the honeymoon is over. Oh, I still like our house and am very grateful for it, but the little things are starting to get on my nerves. Size, for one. The living areas, in particular, are really not large enough.

One problem that creates is furniture placement. Here is the family room as it has been for most of the time we’ve been here. I was standing in the dining area as I took the photo, so you’re seeing the whole room.

This arrangement is the most open and gives the feeling of the most space, but in my winter doldrums, I began to feel a lack of cozy. So I tried rearranging the room with the couch facing the fireplace.

I always felt it would close off the room too much and make it feel even smaller. I do really like having the couch facing the fireplace, though.

A few more views, to help give you the idea of space and maneuverability, and also to point out one big problem: the broken zipper on the slipcover. ETA: I should mention that I think the reason the zipper broke in the first place is that it takes Herculean effort to get the two zipper edges together, so I'm not sure it would work to repair it with velcro or whatever. It's an extremely tight fit.

( Pinkerbelle was playing and has blankets on the hearth)

Questions for you, keeping in mind that I would consider this a seasonal, winter arrangement:

• is it too crowded?
• should I replace the big coffee table with a smaller round one that is in my basement?
• should I let the broken zipper bother me very much? Solutions?

And one other thing….the lack of light fixture.

I do not use overhead lighting, so should I just cap it off? Add one of these ubiquitous light fixtures that are in other areas of the house (don’t ask how the builder decided where to put them and where not…it’s a mystery)? I know ceiling fans are decorating taboo, but one would be useful in this room. What do you think?

( I once heard these called “b00b lights” and thought it was very apropos.)

I’m not terribly concerned about accessories because in my mind’s eye most of this stuff is temporary and I have some ideas which will take time to implement. That said, I’d love to hear any and all suggestions for this room that you may have.

TCB

I had a busy weekend. Or maybe I just wasted too much time napping. Oh, and today ended up being a snow day for the kids, so they’re home. I can’t figure out this school district; this past Friday was sleeting and snowing all day long and they were in school. Today they are forecasting a storm starting late this evening and school was cancelled! Whatever.

Anyway, I just now got around to switching over my blogroll. Now, if you click on the Blogroll button, it will take you to a post with a list of the more popular blogs that I enjoy (still need to add the links).

The list of blogs on my sidebar I took from Amanda’s My Blog Rocks! party, plus a couple other friends. I think this will be a rotating, rather than permanent list, but I haven’t decided on a system for it yet. Please visit these blogs; I’m sure you will find some new ones to enjoy.

Starting next Monday, I’m going to begin a (probably) weekly feature highlighting various bloggers. For now, I think I’ll make the choices on my own, and I will contact you ahead of time so you can let me know if there’s anything you particularly would like to show. I need to make a button for that!

In the mean time, I hope you are getting ready for my Pottery Barn Knock-Off Party! Um, actually, I need to get started on my project!

A Lot of Words for a Minor Announcement, with Random Unrelated Photos for Interest

Amanda’s party yesterday was a lot of fun; thanks for all your lovely comments!  It was great to meet a lot of new-to-me bloggers, and that got me thinking (bear with me as I take you through my thought process)…

 

I never have caught on to following blogs in a reader, or a feed, or even my Blogger dashboard.  It took me a while to even realize that blogs I follow show up there!  I know, right?  What did I think following was? 

When I find a blog I like, I bookmark it, and I occasionally peruse my bookmarks.  But mostly, I use my blog roll to let me know when someone has a new post up, and I pop over and visit.  Which is not to say those are the only blogs I visit, for sure!  Because I always end up on rabbit trails following links from those blogs to other blogs, or Dixie sends me an email with a link to something she found, or whatever.

I spend more time on the computer looking at blogs than I care to admit, really!

So, back to the new-to-me-bloggers.  I got thinking that the uber-popular blogs don’t need any help from me by having their link displayed on my sidebar.  But if, instead, my blogroll was made up more of regular bloggers, blogs that might be new to me, etc., it would do two things.

1.) It would make sure that I visited them more often! and 2.) it might give them a little extra exposure and help them out a little.  Not that I’m claiming to be such a huge and influential blog that just a mention from me will launch your successful blogging career!  (I’m still waiting for that to happen for me!)

But every little bit helps, and I want to support other bloggers.  So over the weekend I’m going to work on switching over my blogroll, starting with the ladies that linked up to Amanda’s party.  (Of course, I’ll still visit the uber-populars, and I think I’ll just move that list to a less prominent spot.)

I’m still thinking through some things, like will my blogroll be a rotating list, or will it just continue to grow and grow?  And I’m thinking about some kind of ongoing highlight post, where I’ll feature a blog, not because of some amazing project the blogger did, but just because.  Hmmm, maybe I should call it something corny like Homebody’s Highlights!

Thoughts?  Suggestions?  Discuss….

My Blog Rocks!

 

 

My bloggy friend Amanda is hosting this party so that those of us who can’t make Blissdom this weekend can have our own fun.  To tell you the truth, this is a little uncomfortable for me.  I don’t like to toot my own horn.  But sometimes having fun requires stretching yourself a little, right?  So here we go…

1.  I’m all about saving money.

When I claim to be frugal, I mean it!  I do not mean that I shop at Homegoods instead of Dillards (although I do sometimes shop at Homegoods!)  I mean I unashamedly shop the thrift stores first, and sometimes wait months until I find just what I’m looking for at a ridiculously low price.  When I say cheap, I mean $2, not $50.  Well, depending what it is.

2.  I show you how to save money, too.

From tips for shopping craigslist, to an entire series on making gifts from thrift store components, to telling you how to refill your “non-refillable”  Swiffer WetJet solution bottle, I share my money-saving strategies.

3.  I have an entertaining, lighthearted, and occasionally humorous writing style.  I think.  Maybe.  I hope.

That’s all I have to say about that.

4.  I post regularly (3-5 x/wk) and have pretty good variety, while keeping to a home-based theme.

Thrift, decorating, house-keeping, family, recipes….there’s a little bit of everything.

5.  I host some fun parties to let my readers show off their stuff.

Thrift Store Thursday, Thrifty Gifty, and coming soon, the PB Knock-off Party!  I hope you’ll come back and link up with your self-made Pottery Barn knock-offs!

 

 

I’m going to add one more: It doesn’t cost you $299 entrance fee plus $125-190/night to attend my blog.  There, wasn’t that better than Blissdom?  Sorry, no Harry Connick, Jr., though.

Okay, now head on over to Serenity Now and discover some more awesome blogs!

Who’s Copying Who?

It’s no secret that many of us in the home and decorating realm of the blogosphere love Pottery Barn. Many of us take great delight in recreating something of theirs at a fraction of the cost.

Lately, however, I’ve begun to wonder if the tables have turned. I’ve seen several “New” items in the PB catalog that I’ve been seeing on blogs for months.

For example, here are a few samples of their new bird and nest themed line (just type “bird” into the search box for the whole line…there’s a lot):

Embroidered Bird & Nest Pillow Cover, $39 (even though these are new, the nest pillow is “no longer available”, but it’s certainly a familiar icon around the blogs)

Nest Sentiment Lumbar Pillow, $49(“nest”, typography, nubby natural burlap-y fabric, need I say more?)

Birdcages $39.00 - $49.00(I think we all have one or two of these floating around, probably picked up at a garage sale or thrift store)

New Jewelry Display Frames $29.00 - $49.00(I made a version of this back in December, and I got the idea from many other bloggers before me; my cost was about $2)

New Ceramic Platters with Chalkboard Center, Set of 2 $99.00(I know you’ve seen these around the blogs for quite some time. $99? Is that a joke? Get a $3 plate at the thrift store and a can of chalkboard spray paint and make it yourself for well under $10.)

So, my question is, is Pottery Barn watching the blogs and picking up on popular trends that way? Taking our ideas and recreating them at exorbitant prices? Kinda flattering isn’t it? And yet, a little insulting, too!

Here are a few of my PB-inspired knock-offs:

• Jewelry Organizer
• Monogrammed Vases
• Apothecary Jars
• Alphabet Balls (seen in PB store but not in catalog)

I think I just decided a linky party is in order! I’ve been having winter doldrums and blog-block lately, so this will give me something to look forward to.

Tuesday, February 16 come back here to link up your PB knock-off. It can be something new, or something you did a while ago. Grab my button and invite your friends!

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Somebody Should Invent That

This weekend while chatting with some acquaintances, the subject of paint came up. They mentioned that they had heard that color-changing wall paint was on the horizon.

Curious, I got online and searched.  I found this from Alsa Corp:  Eclipse wall paint is heat-sensitive.  Remember those t-shirts back in the early 90s?  That’s what this reminds me of.  Interesting concept as a wall paint, but I’m not loving the color, and at $349 a gallon, I’m wondering how popular it would be.  In fact, I couldn’t find Eclipse on the actual Alsa website (and it appears that the last update to the website was 2008), so I’m wondering if it’s still available.

I also found this wallpaper which works on the same premise.  The flowers bloom and fade as the room temperature changes.  If I was forced to make the choice, I’d for sure choose the wallpaper over the puce paint, but it’s still not really my thing.

Back to the original idea the couple was telling me about.  They said that it was computerized and through probes on your wall, you could choose the wall color.  I can’t really figure out how that would work, although I don’t doubt it may be available one day.

Imagine the possibilities!  What if the whole Benjamin Moore or Sherwin Williams color palette was computerized, and by simply choosing a color (and probably paying online) and pushing a few buttons, Bam!  Your walls instantly go from Whole Wheat to Svelt Sage.

That’s just crazy talk, people!  One of you inventor-types should get on that right away.  I won’t charge you for giving you the idea if you give me free access!