This is a list of 100 Things that make me happy... more details here.
46. Game Night
47. Sprinklers
48. Boating
49. Tubing
50. Swimming
Rainy Day Randoms
1. It’s POURING today, which reminds me that I need a trench coat. Never got around to buying one this spring, so I definitely need one for the fall. I want this one:
via
It popped up in my email from bluefly today… and bluefly is just so darn PERSISTENT with their reminders, discounts, etc. I might just have to get it. The main issue is… why am I thinking about fall clothing already… I should be focusing on summer while it lasts! ie… another maxi dress.
2. I’m all caught up in trashy shows right now… is anyone else?
Love in the Wild… the perfect combo of desperate girls and douchy guys:
Big Brother… always a summer must for me, and they brought back some of my all-time faves (ie… Jeff):
Bachelorette… I can’t stand it, yet I can’t stop watching it. I’m basically just putting in time until Bachelor Pad starts.
3. Do I need a vintage suzani or two to throw over my white slipcovered sofas??? This is The Parker Palm Springs ala Jonathan Adler
viaIt popped up in my email from bluefly today… and bluefly is just so darn PERSISTENT with their reminders, discounts, etc. I might just have to get it. The main issue is… why am I thinking about fall clothing already… I should be focusing on summer while it lasts! ie… another maxi dress.
2. I’m all caught up in trashy shows right now… is anyone else?
Love in the Wild… the perfect combo of desperate girls and douchy guys:
Big Brother… always a summer must for me, and they brought back some of my all-time faves (ie… Jeff):
Bachelorette… I can’t stand it, yet I can’t stop watching it. I’m basically just putting in time until Bachelor Pad starts.
3. Do I need a vintage suzani or two to throw over my white slipcovered sofas??? This is The Parker Palm Springs ala Jonathan Adler
Inspiration File: Black & White Bedroom
viaI LOVE this room! It’s Jessica Waks’s Toronto apartment bedroom. Isn’t is fabulous???
I want this exact feel for my family room. I have the white backdrop covered… just need to add the amazing Missoni pillows… and the Hermes throw.
STOP. Who am I kidding? Considering the number of chocolate covered fingers flying around my house, nothing with the names Missoni or Hermes will be entering my family room for many many years. Boo.
Anyways, Jessica is a Style at Home design editor, and her blog is The World According to Jessica Claire.
Sewing Project: Easiest Dress Ever
This project was so easy! You could probably even do it with fabric glue. You buy the fabric like this… with the shirring built right in, then just sew one straight line up the back! 
However, I decided that the length was a bit frumpy, so I ended up cutting off two strips about 8” wide from the bottom to make a ruffle. (The following picture illustrates how precise I was… hahaha)
Next I sewed two seams with super big stitches:
Then yanked on the two top strings to gather it up:
Then just sewed it onto the bottom of the dress! Done! Voila!
It turned out pretty cute, here it is in action at the lake:
However, I decided that the length was a bit frumpy, so I ended up cutting off two strips about 8” wide from the bottom to make a ruffle. (The following picture illustrates how precise I was… hahaha)
Next I sewed two seams with super big stitches:
Then yanked on the two top strings to gather it up:
Then just sewed it onto the bottom of the dress! Done! Voila!
It turned out pretty cute, here it is in action at the lake:
The White Slipcover vs. The Chocolate Chip
BEFORE I WAS EVEN DONE SEWING…
I know… disgusting, right??? I wish I could blame this one on the kids, but I hadn’t even let them get anywhere near the new slipcover yet… this one was all me. (Why am I even admitting this???)
Yep, that horrifying brown stain was the result of me eating a handful of chocolate chips while watching Bachelorette. All of a sudden I looked down, and there was chocolate melted ALL OVER MY ARM plus the back cushion of the couch!!! Seriously??? Who does that???
Just wait. The story gets better. Instead of rinsing the cover right away like I should have, I did what any immature individual would do, and hid it! Yep, I actually hid it from Jeff because I didn’t want to explain it (or deal with cleaning it up) until morning. Brilliant, I know.
Fast forward to the next morning…
I scraped off what I could and threw it in the washing machine. When it came out, there was still a mark. Ack!!! Panic!!! I took it to the kitchen sink, and scrubbed it with this (my favourite Method dish soap):
I threw it in the washing machine a second time. When it came out, the stain was almost completely gone. Like, you have to look really close and know exactly where it was to find it. Good enough for me.
Fast forward to yesterday…
CHOCOLATE COVERD FINGERS vs. THE WHITE SLIPCOVER
This time it was the kids, and there were 4 of them, so it was on almost every cushion. Fortunately, I had the Method down this time (hahahaha… get it? Method? like the soap?) So I scrubbed them immediately with the dish soap and threw them in the washing machine and they came out PERFECT!!! No left over stain AT ALL!!! SUCCESS!
The only issue now is that I don’t love doing laundry so much that I want to wash these things every day. So I’m on the hunt for something somewhat stylish to throw over them during the day. Ugh. Subject for a future post, I guess.
I know… disgusting, right??? I wish I could blame this one on the kids, but I hadn’t even let them get anywhere near the new slipcover yet… this one was all me. (Why am I even admitting this???)
Yep, that horrifying brown stain was the result of me eating a handful of chocolate chips while watching Bachelorette. All of a sudden I looked down, and there was chocolate melted ALL OVER MY ARM plus the back cushion of the couch!!! Seriously??? Who does that???
Just wait. The story gets better. Instead of rinsing the cover right away like I should have, I did what any immature individual would do, and hid it! Yep, I actually hid it from Jeff because I didn’t want to explain it (or deal with cleaning it up) until morning. Brilliant, I know.
Fast forward to the next morning…
I scraped off what I could and threw it in the washing machine. When it came out, there was still a mark. Ack!!! Panic!!! I took it to the kitchen sink, and scrubbed it with this (my favourite Method dish soap):
I threw it in the washing machine a second time. When it came out, the stain was almost completely gone. Like, you have to look really close and know exactly where it was to find it. Good enough for me.
Fast forward to yesterday…
CHOCOLATE COVERD FINGERS vs. THE WHITE SLIPCOVER
This time it was the kids, and there were 4 of them, so it was on almost every cushion. Fortunately, I had the Method down this time (hahahaha… get it? Method? like the soap?) So I scrubbed them immediately with the dish soap and threw them in the washing machine and they came out PERFECT!!! No left over stain AT ALL!!! SUCCESS!
The only issue now is that I don’t love doing laundry so much that I want to wash these things every day. So I’m on the hunt for something somewhat stylish to throw over them during the day. Ugh. Subject for a future post, I guess.
White Slipcovers
I have spent the last couple of weeks in my own personal sweat shop (we have no a/c) sewing slipcovers for my two family room sofas. I`m not a patient person, and I thought this project would take an afternoon. Well, two afternoons: one per sofa. HA!!! In reality it took me WEEKS. (Not like I was full-time sewing… I was working with 1 to 2 hour pockets of time whenever I could squeeze them in.)
I`m happy to say that I`m FINALLY finished!
Here`s a reminder of what the sofas looked like before… the mismatched beiges were driving me bonkers.
NOTE #1: An important quote that I had to keep in mind while finishing off this project:
NOTE #2: I don`t really feel qualified to give a slipcover tutorial. I did take a slipcovering class years ago, but I can’t say I really followed a set of specific directions this time. I just kind of held the fabric up, pinned, cut, and sewed. Basically I just winged it. However, I would recommend this great tutorial from Honeybear Lane (I found it after I was pretty much finished!)
I`m happy to say that I`m FINALLY finished!
Here`s a reminder of what the sofas looked like before… the mismatched beiges were driving me bonkers.
NOTE #1: An important quote that I had to keep in mind while finishing off this project:
“Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”
- from Gretchen Rubin`s Happiness Project.I could have nipped an tucked these suckers all day long trying to get them perfect. But really, that`s a waste of time when they will probably be used to set up a “Wipeout” course within a week.
NOTE #2: I don`t really feel qualified to give a slipcover tutorial. I did take a slipcovering class years ago, but I can’t say I really followed a set of specific directions this time. I just kind of held the fabric up, pinned, cut, and sewed. Basically I just winged it. However, I would recommend this great tutorial from Honeybear Lane (I found it after I was pretty much finished!)
100 Things: Lake Edition
I’ve gotten a bit behind on my “100 Things” project (typical of me!) Anyways, after spending a fabulous week at the lake, I decided it was the perfect time to continue my list of 100 Things that make me happy... more details here.
36. The beach
37. NOT having to go to the beach!
38. The yard
39. Golf
Jeff…
Me…
40. Best. Shot. Ever. (I CRUSHED IT!!! hahaha)
41. Sandbox
42. Fresh flowers
43. Rest Time
44. Play Time
45. Bud Light Lime
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