Tuesday, May 15, 2012

easy turkey burgers.

i dont claim to be a chef, nor am i, but when i make something delicious, i think i definitely need to share it with the world.



these are my famous home cooked turkey burgers. usually i have will grill them on the bbq, but he doesnt get home til late on tuesday nights so tonight i george foreman'd them.

heres the recipe:

1.) get a package of ground turkey meat. i really like this jeannie-o brand. and i always get the 99% fat free kind.




2.) dice up maybe 1/4 c. onion. white onion, yellow onion, red onion. dont matter.



3.) chop up a few fresh basil leaves. ive also used cilantro in the past. both are great.



4.) throw the meat, onion, basil into a bowl and mix w your hands. 

5.) add salt, pepper and garlic powder for taste.


6.) shape into patties. i usually make 4. 

7.) cook until they arent pink anymore. 

8.) enjoy! i didnt have any buns tonight so i just had mine with a side of mustard. 



nom nom nom.















Monday, May 14, 2012

free stylin'


via pinterest

so much embroidery/cross stitch cuteness has been popping up in my pinterest feed. the concept of something hand made and so simplistic has me ecstatic to try this on my own. we went to value village yesterday to do some thrifting and i stumbled across a this bag of embroidery thread for only $1.99 and two hoops for .69 cents.





but now that i have the supplies, i am a little scared of starting it. i know that  cross stitching is a very tedious and time consuming hobby. i dont function well when creating things that way, but maybe its time to learn some self discipline. i would like to free hand a design, not go off of a pattern i find somewhere, and just see how it goes but i dont know if thats the best idea...

via pinterest

via pinterest

via pinterest


we will see how it goes. i need to do a little more research and maybe try and find a tutorial on free hand cross stitch or embroidery. and if it doesnt work out i can always go to this etsy shop and buy something.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

couch surfin, i mean searchin






(anthropologie) $1399
we might be in the business of picking up some new couches in the near future. as you may know, i dont make any decision without doing my fair share of google-ing different options and this situation isnt being treated any different. i know exactly what i want, which makes it a little difficult cause that leaves me with no flexibility.

here is a list of my stipulations:

1.) style- antique, vintage, victorian, wooden feet, velvet, tufted. anything with some flare. 

(urban outfitters) $659
(urban outfitters) $749
2.) color- currently our living room colors are earthy warm tones. the couches we have now and tan and brown and ive got a mustard yellow tufted chair that i got last summer at a yard sale. i would like to keep it in the color scheme that we already have going, but the more i think about it, i could change the colors in the living room. i do like grey and yellow together...

(urban outfitters) $749
(dania) $2498
3.) price- heres where things get sticky... used, you can pick up a couch like this off craigslist for as low as $100 bucks. you might have to re-upholster it or it could be covered in dog piss, but hey, it was only $100. new, i have seen them anywhere from $600 to $6000. urban outfitters has some couches that ive been eyeballin, but i just dont know how they would hold up long term and i dont want to buy something just for it to fall apart. i know that i would NEVER spend any more than $1000 on a single couch and a lot of the higher end couches are up there. i would be interested in seeing how much it would be to have a used one re-upholstered. my step-dad has some super great victorian furniture that he had re-done years ago and although i dont love the colors he chose, mauve and emerald green, it works for him and they still look great!

we still have plenty of time before we "need" new seating arrangements. hopefully the most prefect sofa will turn up at a yard sale or at a local consignment shop. 

Friday, May 11, 2012

its the simple things.

you know that feeling of accomplishment you get once you complete a d.i.y project or when you finally get the results you were expecting after mimicking a pinterest tutorial? itsnt that feeling just the bee's knees? i think so, but more often than not, thats not how it goes. on several occasions, i have been left frustrated, irritated and with nothing but a huge mess.

this is how my brain usually works... "OMG! i have the best idea in the whole entire world! my idea for this ______ is the most genius thing that i have ever thought of. i am a master creator! i am the greatest! this _______ is going to complete me and end all my desires of searching for the perfect ______. blah, blah, blah...", you get the idea. then i start to gather the tools/supplies/materials and it usually crumbles in front of my face. there is usually some minor hiccup that throws it all off course and i yell up to the sky and give up. ha.

but recently i have found that when this sort of thing happens, it helps if i at least try and make something little to build my morale back up, and it seems that these little accomplishments wind up being the staples in my home that i appreciate the most. so ive snapped a few pictures of my most used and beloved small-ish creations.



this is my chalkboard that i made after the failing of a painting a buffet properly. it was an old reprint of some oil and vinegar scene. i just unmounted the actual picture, spray painted the frame yellow, painted over the old print with chalkboard paint, and put it back together. so simple. and its been great having something that will and i can write little reminders on.

here is my precious little succulent garden. i dont quite remember what drew me to transplanting all these little guys into one little area after purchasing them from home depot, but they are so easy to care for and so stinkin adorable.
i imagine them to each have their own little personalities and have conversations amongst one another. its a like little succulent commune. im a dweeb.



these are salt and pepper shakers made from tiny wine bottles i did awhile ago after a dry spell that i blame on the long, cold, inspiration-sucking winter. all i had to do was get the wine bottles, soak them in hot soapy water to remove the labels, poke holes in the caps and fill them up. these are great because almost everytime we sit down to eat i am reminded of how crafty i can be. hahaha.














and finally, a little indoor herb garden, created after the frustration of many unsuccessful attempts at making some fabulous paint swatch art. i had the little glass jars laying around from a prior visit to ikea and planted basil, lavender, chives and cilantro in them. they now reside in the windowsill above my kitchen sink.

big projects are great, and have a huge wow factor, but sometimes doing those simple little 20 minute ideas are the ones that you can appreciate the most.



Thursday, May 10, 2012

inspiration obsession



we currently have a half assed coffee table. its an ikea hemnes side table that floats all over the living room. i have been thinking bout trying to make something thats a little industrial looking or at least eclectic. i love the idea of making something out of junk, or a repurposing. 
while searching all over the interwebz i came across a site called scraphacker which has tons of ideas for uses of old doors. in that site i came across the picture found above and the link to the original tutorial found here at this sorta old life. anyway, both blogs are pretty amazing and have great, easily achievable ideas.
i showed the pics to will and he said that he was on board also, so keep your eye out, this may be appearing in my living room soon! :]
-- here is another awesome table that i found at scraphacker and they got it from designsponge. 

re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and re-blog and...

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

im baaaaack!! same awful punctuation and grammar, new and improved blogger outlook.


 yes, i am back. after almost a year hiatus, i am returning with high hopes and optimism. :] initially i had quit blogging simply because i got tired of spending all this time uploading photos and typing out step by step how i achieved the project, or whatever it was that i was talking about. it wasnt even that it took too much effort or that i didnt have enough time, it was that i felt like it didnt matter that i posted about it. nobody cared. i was presenting to an empty audience and that made me feel, hmmm... like a giant, pretentious idiot. what changed my mind you might ask? nothing. i still feel a little douchy, but whatever, its fun, and i missed it. so here i am, back at it. posting away about home decor, d.i.y projects and junk that i like. this time be prepared for a little more personal stuff from me, though. i am not going to be just posting about house related things anymore. i need to broaden this a little bit to keep us all entertained. anyway, enough of that. time for some pictures of whats been going over the past year!
















-explinations and details to come.


so there ya go. a lot has been going on. and im truly excited to be back sharing it with all of you.