Sweet Seat

Dan and I went to Salvation Army before we moved out to Kalamazoo and we were pleased to find a bunch of really neat items like silver tappered candle holders an old piece of luggage and one really cool chair and foot stool. The only thing wrong with the chair was that the fabric (above) was very worn and dirty and needed replacing.

When we first bought it I riped the old material off and kept the fabric to use as "stencils" for the new material. Here is what I found underneath - a basic thin white fabric covering the springs and foam padding. The seat of the chair was a little worn out and the springs were not tied so tight so i spent a few hours taking apart the underneath of the chair and restapling and tieing down the springs and burlap (?).

Oh, when after I pulled off the original fabric I stained the arms and legs in a rich dark brown to give it an updated modern look. It was, originally, a walnut color.Once I had that much done....I CHICKENED OUT. I had no idea how to redo the top half of the chair. The original cover had been sewn on and I couldnt figure out how to do it and make it look nice so for 5 months its been sitting in our livingroom like this and Oliver has been enjoying it. See the upper left hand corner...yah, he enjoyed it as a scratch post as much as a sleeping spot.

:( About 3 weeks ago Daniel got a bug in him and said, "ok its time to recover the chair." I was like, I would but I dont know how. I'd already gone out looking for fabric to cover it with many times. I wanted something thick like the old fabric and something with a tight weave so that the cats wouldnt destroy it with their toenails. Anyway, Daniel said we could do it together and boy are we glad we did! It was definitely a two person job!

Here is the fabric we chose. Its a granny smith apple green color and a lot of fun! Really strong, too, which makes me happy becuase the cats destroy everything otherwise! When i went to go buy it the amount we needed was going to cost us around $80+ so I asked the lady if it would go on sale soon and thankgoodness I did! That following Sunday Daniel picked it up for me for just $40! :) Make sure to ask for sales! Recovering section one....so far so good!

Whala! doesnt it look fabulous! We really needed four hands on this project and we did a great job! We are both so happy with it! and look how much fun the color is in that corner! It makes a great litterbox hider :)

Whole Wheat Pasta & Broccoli with Creamy Mushroom Dill Sauce

1 Lg box Whole Wheat Noodles

1 Head Broccoli

1 Tray Mushrooms

2 Small cloves Garlic

1 Onion

Olive Oil

1/4 cup FRESH Dill

2 cups Milk or Milk Substitute

3 T Whole Wheat Flour

1.) Chop mushrooms (in quarters), pull apart broccoli flowerettes, and chop onions and garlic.

2.) Boil noodles for 8-10 minutes in seasoned water. With 5 minutes remaining add in broccoli to blanch.

3.) Heat oil in skillet and add onions and garlic for 5-7 minutes or until translucent.

4.) Add in mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned - 5 minutes?

5.) Add 3 tablespoons wheat flour to the cooked mushrooms and onions and allow it to coat them. Stir around.

DRAIN PASTA AND BROCCOLI WHEN READY

6.) Pour in 2 cups cold milk and begin stirring while pan is on med-high heat. You are making the sauce.

7.) When sauce is thickened add in about 1/4 cup freshly chopped dill. Use your scissors to cut it up - its easier. Stirr for a min and then serve over drained pasta and broccoli.

MMMM MMM GOOD MIMOSAS :) For dinner Daniel mixed us up mimosas and they were amazing! I know champagnes are different but we used the Vueve Cliquot and it was yummy. :)

D resurected our kitty from behind my steering wheel. It was given to us by Bea in Germany.

Naughty Naughty

This is our kitchen. We have lived here for around 5 months now and despised looking at this color most days. The kitchen has no windows and with our yellow lightbulbs it can feel quite heavy and dreary in there. So, we decided to paint it. We, technically, arent allowed but D said we should do it anyway and I thought so too. So, with all the little nerve I could gather we went out looking for color chips. The floor is a really earthy stone tile of mostly milky-coffee color with green and red accents in it and I happened to see inside of the neighboring apartment and those lucky folks have a cafe au lait colored kitchen...not hideous orange! So, we do like orange - in fact, its one of the main colours of my favorite seasons - fall! But if we kept this color we decided we wouldnt be able to appreciate a golden leaf or a happy pumpkin when the time rolled around! For $8 we got this great kit that had a roller, brush and pan in it! And check out how it was recycled, super cool!100% biodegradable tray?!?!Bamboo brush - and i love the quality. It works great!OK, so we started with this chip that pulled out the really earthy green on the floor tiles, but when it went on the wall, it was not so earthy as we had hoped. Its not a bad color but not right for the space. Look how ugly the orange is above the cabinets. Gross.

So today I went back and got a color called Au Lait Ole :) The guy said its super popular. D thinks its going to be way better. I also think so, but i think that the kitchen will need hints of seasonal color in it - reds and yellows of flowers in spring, and greens and reds of apples during fall! :)

When I finish today I will post the final color. Hopefully it looks ok :)

Here is a smidgin of the Au Lait Ole

The Au Lait Ole over the green. It was quite dark in the kitchen so you cannot see it well but it is definitely lighter and less colorful than the green. What will it look like when finished?!