a little spruce-up and a lovely birthday

I bought this large wicker basket at a thrift store and knew I wanted to paint it "some day" and finally got around to accomplishing that last week. I just used painter's tape to separate the two colors, and then used spray paint. I like the way it turned out.

 And then there's this boring, brown console table that I wanted to experiment with...

I know a lot of people would be like, "OK, so go ahead and paint it, what's the big deal?" But you're talking to someone who is not good with painting furniture. Just not one of my fortes. So I decided to paint just the drawers. I used the Americana Decor chalk paint from Hobby Lobby. 

You wouldn't believe how much of an ordeal just painting and waxing two drawers was for me. What would probably take anyone else an hour at most, took me a couple of days.

I'm sure this table would look better with the top and/or shelves painted white, too but I'm not sure about that either. For now, I'm just leaving it as is. 

 

Thanks for all the birthday wishes! I had an enjoyable day yesterday with cards, presents, and then a fabulous Thai dinner out with Brian and Tim.

After we parted ways with Tim and were on our way home, we stopped in the downtown area of our town to take a walk along the riverwalk. We also went into the local cupcake shop to pick up my complementary birthday cupcake and chat with some locals. 

Turning 29 wasn't so bad after all. ;-)

Linking up with Tweak it Tuesday. 

 

{almost} birthday babe

I had the most enjoyable girl's day out with my mom and aunt yesterday.

We walked up and down the streets of a charming town, laughed 'til we almost peed ourselves, talked serious stuff, went into kitschy shops and a thrift store, stopped for iced tea at a local coffee and tea shop (where the barista overheard my aunt talking about my upcoming birthday on Monday, so she decorated my cup), and had the most delicious al fresco lunch.

We dined on the rooftop patio, which had soft, pleasant music playing and a good view of the town. Oh my goodness, the food was marvelous! I had marinated pork tacos with roasted pineapple, and sauteed corn with epasote, serrano peppers, chipotle aioli, and cotija cheese.

 Our waitress must've picked up on my mom talking to me about my birthday, so at the end of our meal, she came out with a tres de leche cake with three forks for sharing. And the cake was absolutely delicious. My no-sugar eating plan, be damned! That cake was worth it.

My little town had its annual fest this weekend, of which I haven't gone to in years. There's carnival rides for kids, loud bands, tons of people, and lots of beer. Just not my style. The older I get, the more I crave peace and quiet. There's also fireworks over the lake on the Saturday night of the fest. I watched them from my back yard, wearing jeans, closed shoes, and a long-sleeved hoodie with the hood up over my head. Try and get me now mosquitoes - mwah ha ha! As I was holding up my phone to take photos, wouldn't you know it, those little buggers descended upon my exposed hands. Next year, gloves? Happy weekend, everyone.

those juicy red summer jewels

When summer gives you an abundance of tomatoes, why not whip up a quick, easy, summery tomato sauce? I promise this is such a simple recipe, anyone can make it ~ even if you think you can't cook.

 Chop half an onion and 3-4 cloves of garlic and saute for a minute or two in 2 T. olive oil. I made the chopping easier on myself and used my mini food processor.

Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and add them to the onion-garlic mixture.

 

Simmer on medium-low for about 10 minutes, stirring every minute or so. You will start to see the tomatoes breaking down and getting nice and "saucey".

 

Near the end of the cooking time, add salt and pepper to taste, then thrown in a handful of chopped, fresh basil. (Another thing I have a ton of in my garden right now.)

 

Simmer and stir for another minute, and that's it! This sauce is fantastic over any kind of pasta, grilled chicken or steak, as a hamburger topper, or even mixed into scrambled eggs. If you don't use it right away, it keeps in the refrigerator for a few days. Or, you could even freeze it and pull it out in the winter and enjoy a little taste of summer!

 

Bonus: When this is cooking, your house will smell like an Italian trattoria. ;-)

 

hello monday

 Hello to sunny skies with poofy clouds and the rolling farmland of Wisconsin...

Hello to the little Swiss village of New Glarus, Wisconsin...

and beautiful window boxes full of flowers on the fronts of restaurants.

 

Hello to the cool copper kettles at the New Glarus brewery...

 

Hello dragonfly with its stick body, lacy wings and bulbous head...

 Hello to juicy red tomatoes from the garden...

 

 

Hello sleepy kitty lying on the newspaper...

Hello to a clean, organized desk drawer...

and hello to painting projects...

 

 What are you saying hello to today?

 

for the love of houses

In my previous post I said that last Sunday we took a day trip to Evanston and that we walked around a neighborhood so I could take photos of beautiful houses and gardens. I have always had a fascination for houses - inside and out. Even as a child, I loved going to look at model homes with my parents.

These are some of the ones that really caught my attention...the architecture, the colors, the details, the gardens. All so stunning and so much personality.

 Love the red door on this house.

This to-die-for porch. Why weren't the owners sitting out there, sipping their lemonade and watching the passers-by?

This house has so much attention to detail. Check out the window box full of flowers on the upstairs window.

Looks like they divided this stately home into two living quarters. See the two front doors and address numbers with the low wall in-between? I wouldn't mind living on just one side. ;-)

A purple house? Somehow, it works.

 

This house was a few blocks away, right across the street from Lake Michigan. And, guess what? It can be yours for just $2.2 million, because it's for sale! Click here for all the details. (The back yard and interior are gorgeous.)

You cross the street from the above house to a tree-lined, grassy park with this view.

That's part of the Chicago skyline to the right.

 

 And now for some of the gorgeous gardens.

Something unique we noticed while walking around neighborhoods and even in the shopping district...colorful knitted yarn pieces wrapped around tree trunks...

hung on fences...

 

and even wrapped around utility poles.

We were wondering what this was all about. Through a Google search I learned that Evanston's Public Art Committee did their first "yarn bombing" this past winter. You can read about it here if you are interested. I love the color and whimsy it adds to the city and thankful that vandals have left this art untouched. Hope you enjoyed the tour!