Hey guys! It’s that time of year… everyone is buying a new house or getting into their first home! I find my friends that are renting prefer to make moves in the summer too, since winter can be a much messier time to move here in Edmonton. That really just results in a load of housewarmings and “new place barbeques” where bringing a small gift is often somewhat expected. I’ll be honest. My go-to gift for a new home or new marriage is usually a bottle of wine and a kitchen fire extinguisher. Two things every house needs, right? But sometimes it’s fun to think outside the box and grab a friend something practical or beautiful to make their new space a little easier, or homier. Life is always so expensive right after you’ve moved or bought a new home, and a thoughtful gift that is totally frivolous is always…
Stumped on what to get the new homeowner in your life for the holidays? Look no further!
Hey all! I’m really excited to be writing this post today. I have been waiting for the right moment to show you all my living room decor and I think this is it! I’ll start by saying, I spent a grand total of $660 furnishing and decorating this space. While it is NOT complete by any means (I want to add a cosy rug to help dampen noise echo, organize my TV stand better, and get a piece of art for above the TV), I think it looks great and I’m so happy and proud of how its turned out. So how did I spend so little? Well let me tell you first what I actually bought in here! The coffee table ($315, made by a local craftsman), lamps ($160, Costco), small chairs (second hand, $60), patterned pillows (16.95 x’s 2, grey pillows ($12.97 x’s 2) and side tables ($65 total at Homesense)…
Now that I no longer have a roommate, I feel a bit more comfortable investing in pieces I love for the kitchen and entertaining. When people come into my house, I think there’s always quite a bit of surprise when they realize this girl that loves bows and sweet dresses has a home styled in an industrial-rustic way, with loads of black pieces and natural wood anchoring a bright, open space. I love this aesthetic because it allows me drop in mirrored pieces, touches of pink and pattern without my house screaming “single female”. Everything is functional, comfortable and durable for when I want to have a few friends over. When I bought my home I didn’t have much in the way of decor, and expensive projects like custom blinds sucked up all of my “fun” money I had laying around. When I realized things like dishes and glasses were being…
I live in a three story townhouse, and my bed is on the third floor. Sometimes, it can get so, so hot and I’m tempted to turn tail and hide at my parent’s place, where I not only sleep in the cool basement but also they have air conditioning! While that compulsion isn’t so bad on the weekends when I don’t have to get too much done, during the week that means I have to get up about 30 minutes earlier and spend time packing work clothes/makeup to get ready in the morning, as well as drive into my house on the highway to tuck my car into the garage before walking to the bus station. It’s a lot of variables to add to an already hectic average work day, so I really try to keep my house cool to avoid doing that, as much as I love midweek visits…
Hey! Today I wanted to talk about something I do pretty much every year with my mum- custom flower pots. While my mum probably could afford to purchase pre-made planters and pots of flowers, she makes her own each year and says that the best way to save money on having a nice yard is to take the time to learn how to do it yourself. The type-A’s amoungst us will also appreciate that these are 100% customizable to your own color and varietal preference. So lets get started! When you’re within a day or two of having time to plant, get to the local greenhouse or big box store and start looking at plants. As you are looking, keep in mind where you’re wanting to put these plants- if they’re going in a shady area, find some that are shade lovers by reading the tags inserted in the…
Easy Pantry shopping list and not buying groceries for 25 days!
Hello! Here’s the next post in my ‘new homeowner chronicles’ which is getting used to a very different storage situation in my new master bathroom. In my bathroom at my parent’s house, my sister and I shared a bathroom with drawers, shelves, a storage cabinet… there was a lot of room and diverse options for storage. Which was good because I have a problem… and that problem is makeup and skincare products. Honestly, it wasn’t just that I have way too much makeup (although I do). I also have very, very sensitive and dry skin that for a long time, I was buying lotion, shampoo and different foundations etc etc to try and cover and combat. I still have a ton of difficulty with my skin, but thankfully I’ve found a few things that work now. The hangover of that was way too many products that I couldn’t even use,…
Recently I was so bored that I told my mom that I was going to clean my baseboards. Yes. While this is a totally productive way to channel boredom, I truly try to clean on a schedule now that I live alone. I have a roommate/renter, but she won’t really tell me, “Hey, the vents need cleaned”. Little things that you don’t conscientiously notice end up compounding into a gross “My guests must think I’m a heathen!” moments. When I moved into this house, my mum and I spent a lot of time talking about what cleaners were necessary and which were merely ‘nice to haves’. Have you ever noticed how ridiculously expensive cleaners are!? Thankfully, the most often used cleaner in my house is now vinegar, which is good because I’m an overzealous weirdo with sanitizing things and vinegarabottom of this post is my cleaners shopping list- you may…
Hello! Here comes how I used the other half of that butternut squash I mentioned in this post. This recipe came to me with a bit of inspiration- a friend had eaten a butternut squash ravioli out at dinner recently and it looked delicious, and it had a brown butter sage sauce that smelled heavenly. Now I’m good, but I’m nobody’s Nonna and I wasn’t feeling experimenting with creating ravioli. I wanted to get that deliciousness in, but in a not-so-fussy kind of way. For the hangry amongst us. So, as I like to do when I’m trying out purely experimental things and need to get an unbiased opinion, I invited my good friend Connor over for dinner. The guy is not afraid to tell me when I’m being a major jerk, so I feel pretty confident that he’ll tell me if my food tasted bad. As a result, he is…