Dining Room Makeover: Part I

I've mentioned before how I am attempting to lighten up my house.

I repainted the living room and foyer last year and have been very happy 

with the soothing new color.

I am almost finished repainting the kitchen to a creamy white 

and am also tackling the dining room.

Our dining room has been a beautiful, rich red color since we moved in here

 about 11 years ago.

I have loved it for years and gotten lots of compliments on the color.

But, as I've added more white pieces, like this china cabinet from the thrift store,

 I began to feel that there was too much competition going on in here.

Most of the furniture is dark, like this sideboard.

Suddenly, I looked at a picture like this and thought the contrast was just too much...

it seemed jarring to me.

So, this week, I decided to begin to change this space.

I have been painting for many years, do it didn't seem daunting to me.

When we first moved to Virginia, about 34 yrs ago, 

my husband had a small construction company.

In addition to being his only construction assistant, I also began painting interiors 

and doing wallpaper on the side because we needed the money!
 I took my two girls with me if they weren't in school and they played 
while I painted vacant houses for our uncle's real estate business.

This was in the days before iPads, iPhones, computers, etc.

 So, the girls played with toys and ran around the house doing tumbling!

The first day I primed the room.

Are you as shocked as I was with the change?

Suddenly the room seemed more in harmony. 

That leaded glass window looked so much better!

I immediately noticed that more light was flooding into my back hallway, 

which has no windows.

I was immediately happy with the decision to paint.

Next day came the base coat of a taupe/khaki color. 

I will tell you that I shop the "oops" shelf at Home Depot ALL the time.

 Every now and then, I find a color I think I can use. 
This gallon of paint was $7. Behr brand, eggshell finish...perfect! 

I've had it in the garage for a few months.

I was initially going to paint it the same color as the foyer and living room 

but I spotted this can while I was searching and decided to give it a try.

You may have noticed that there is wallpaper on the walls.

We added that about 4 yrs after we were in the house.

It's a paintable wallpaper with a beautiful embossed design.

I had a similar paper in my foyer in the old house and loved it.

It adds an elegant feel and can be changed with paint just like any other wall.

Next, I am doing a dry brush technique with cream. 
This is what it should end up like.

Check back  on Friday for the final result!

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Americana Footstool

For about a week I've been puttering about with this little footstool.

I've just been so busy with things around here that the poor thing wasn't getting any attention!

I finally finished it and wanted you to see how darn cute it was!

 I found it at the thrift and it was so cute I couldn't resist picking it up.

I pondered what to do with it for a few weeks.

Just painting it was OK but I wanted to do something different.

Then I remembered the blue and white checked homespun napkins

 I had also picked up that day with a mind to make a pillow. 

There were three napkins so I took one to use for the stool.

I gave it a coat of white spray paint and then topped it with some outdoor padding

 I had leftover from another project.

I just used spray glue to attach the padding to the stool.

Then I covered it with the napkin, using small tacks around the edge.

You need a pair of needlenose pliers to hold these while you tap them in.

I used carpet tacks.

I decided to do an Americana theme so I took some red and white ticking

to make a ruffle.

I chose to keep the raw edges and to stop the fraying

and add a pretty touch, I used this scallop stitch in Navy blue.

Then, I used the same navy blue to gather the top with a double row of stitching.

Hot glue to the stool and

Three Cheers for the Red, White and Blue!!

Goes great with cupcakes and hydrangeas!

What do you think of my little Americana footstool?




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From Our Home to Yours

It's Memorial Day.

I always think of my Marine Corps Dad on this day.

He served 16+ yrs and went through two wars.

It's good to remember those who have given us the freedoms we have.

Either by fighting and living to fight another day 

or by fighting and not surviving to fight another day.

Some have fought and continue to fight every day.....a battle over injuries and disabilities.

You know, I've never told anyone this but when I see a war veteran somewhere,

 I go up to them and say

"Hi, I just wanted to thank you for serving your country."

They are ALWAYS nice and usually surprised. 

I hope it brightens their day and it doesn't take much time.

I encourage you to do that too. 

Sometimes they have a cap, Tshirt, or license plate that helps you to know who they are.

It's a good thing to do.

So, from our home to yours......

Happy (for some) Memorial Day.

 Semper Fi Dad

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French Friday:Paris Cooking Class

Bonjour!

As promised, I will give you the recipes for some of the delicious foods

 we prepared in our Paris cooking class!
( part I part II)

But first I want to tell you that this is my blogiversary week!

{source}

 I actually first posted on May 22nd 2011.

My first post tells you the reason I started blogging 

so if you'd like to know THAT story, 

go here.

Blogging has been one of the best things I have ever done for myself.

Through blogging.......

I have made some wonderful, supportive, and praying friends.

I have been inspired to get off my bottom and make my home and garden better.

I have been motivated to start my own business.

I have discovered that my creations are worthy.

I have grown artistically.

I have grown computeristically

(Karianne...I MADE that word up...Ha!)

I have helped some people.

I have indulged my passion for writing.

I have renewed my interest in cooking and sewing.

I have increased my confidence

(my word of the year...thanks Marian)

I have improved my self-esteem

and...

it all happened in JUST ONE YEAR!

How's that for a self improvement plan?

So, even though I initially looked at my blogiversary and thought

I'm a big fat ZERO because I haven't grown much

God yanked my hair and said

"stop it right now and think about what HAS happened"

He was right

 {sigh... as usual}

 So a special 

Thank You 

to my faithful supporters {you know who you are!!}

All right enough about me and my blahblahblahgging...back to recipes for you!

First the vegetable terrine

Terrine de Legumes du Jardin

For 6 servings (18cm mold)

2 zucchini

3 oz string beans

5 oz broccoli

6 eggs

1/2 cup (150g) heavy cream

1 teaspoon parsley, chopped

salt, pepper

1. Preheat oven to 360 F (180 C)

 2. Wash zucchini, do not peel, cut into small dice, remove string bean tips, wash broccoli and      discard stems

3. Steam vegetables until al dente

4. Mix eggs thoroughly with cream, tarragon and parsley, salt and pepper

5. Place vegetables in bottom of mold, cover with egg/cream mixture and bake for 45 min or until set (check with knife)

6. Allow to cool before unmolding

Paule's notes:

You may use asparagus, fresh peas and carrots. make sure to steam vegetables before using as they will not cook thoroughly otherwise. This terrine can be prepared the day before and is best served at warm or cool, but not cold.

Lorraine's notes:

We used a standard size loaf pan.The parsley is flat leaf parsley, the tarragon amount is not given I see so maybe the same amount would be good. I really don't remember using tarragon that day but we may have. In class, I think we used more than 1 teaspoon of parsley because Paule took a regular old spoon and added that amount...closer to a tablespoon. Paule said that she only recently used carrots and that she liked the color addition. She also said that using frozen peas is fine and they don't need to be precooked. I think you could also use yellow squash which would be pretty. Paule laid some chive stems on the terrine before baking to make it pretty. She served it on a bed of mixed field greens and drizzled some of the sauce over it.

Sauce Vierge

1 small tomato seeded and diced

Fresh herbs of your choice: parsley, basil, tarragon, chives, cilantro

1 cup olive oil (25 cl)

a few drops of fresh lemon juice

salt, pepper, or cayenne or Piment d'Espelette

1. place tomato in bowl with other ingredients and set aside for 2 hrs.

Paule's notes:

This sauce is very good with broiled or poached fish or over pasta

Lorraine's notes:

In class we reamed 1/2 a lemon which is much more than a few drops. The tomato was about the size of a racquetball.

Now, I'm going to guess that you don't have a jar of preserved lemons sitting around 

so I'm not going to give you the chicken recipe today....

don't get you apron all twisted because I will, just not today. 

Because, next week, I'll show you how to make the preserved lemons 

so you'll be ready to make the chicken!

Next....Strawberry Tart...

make this on the weekend...add blueberries and you're set for Memorial Day!

Tarte au Fraises Creme d'Amandes

{strawberry tart with almond cream}

For 6 servings (21 cm shell)

 pate a tarte Caillat (see below)

1 pound strawberries, hulled and halved

2 oz (60g) unsalted butter

2 oz (60g) granulated sugar

2 oz (60g) ground blanched almonds

1 tablespoon flour

1 whole egg

1 tablespoon Kirsch

1. Prepare tart shell 

2. In bowl, mix sugar and ground almonds

3. Add butter and blend in thoroughly, then add egg and Kirsch

4. Spread creme in bottom of tart shell

5. Bake at 350 F for 20 min

6. Set aside to cool and prepare strawberries if you haven't already

7. Arrange berries over creme and dust with powdered sugar

Lorraine's notes:

I think the eggs Paule used were large (the general rule in baking). We chopped fresh mint in class and sprinkled that on top. Paule said using premade almond flour was fine as long as you check and be sure it's pure almonds and nothing else.

Ma Pate Sucree

The Caillat Family Crust

For 6 servings 

Use an 8 1/2 inch or 21cm tart pan with a removable bottom

3 oz (90g) unsalted butter

flour as needed (about 1 rounded cup)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon sugar

pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 410 F (210 C)

2. In glass oven safe bowl, combine all ingredients EXCEPT flour

3. Place in oven until mixture is boiling and butter is starting to brown, about 15 min

4. Remove from oven and add some flour immediately and begin beating with a spoon

5. Continue to add flour, one spoon at a time until dough leaves side of bowl and forms a ball

6. Press evenly into tart pan

7. Pierce the bottom well with a fork and press the sides with the fork as well to form ridges.

8. Bake for about 15 min or until light brown and starting to show fine cracks

9. Set aside to cool

Lorraine's notes:

OK, this is definitely a hands on crust and you'll just have to give it a try to see how it beats up. It was DELICIOUS and super easy. The browned butter made it taste like a toasted cookie crust. The texture was very "short" and crumbly. The flour is just all purpose flour and the oil was canola or grapeseed oil (did you know that's the same thing? I didn't)

You can see the crust being made at:

http://www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2009/05/french tart dough a la francaise

Last but not least...I'll have surprise for you next Friday...I can't tell you what yet

 but I have to go paint my dining room to get ready..... 

Have a great Memorial Day wekend!

Are you going to make the Strawberry Tart?


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Paris: Galeries Lafayette

Bonjour mes amis!

One last look at some Paris shopping for you!

During our cooking class

(part 1 part II)

our host Paule was asked where to buy certain products.

She began to gush about her favorite shopping spot

Galeries Lafayette.

One of the students had been there and found it 'overwhelming'.

I could see Paule was surprised at that and asserted that she was in there at least weekly 

and that the food section was especially nice.

It was near where the class was, so after lunch my husband and I decided to go check it out.

 The inside was amazing.....

It appears be an opera house doesn't it?

Each balcony is a small shop...usually a designer...

after all, we're in the fashion capital of the world so designer stuff is everywhere!

The attention to detail is simply amazing. 

I tried to find out if this was actually something else before it was this mall 

but it appears to have been built as is!

Take a look at the ceiling

I found this close-up below in a store promo pic

It's a bit blurry because I enlarged it but you can still see the amazing beauty!

The second day we were in Paris, I knocked the little heel off my ballet flat.

I then wore a pair of wedge espadrilles for our trip to Versailles.

That was a LOT of walking and I ended up with little band-aids plastered all over my feet.

I had no choice but to knock the other heel off the other shoe 
and wear the comfortable ballet shoes totally flat.

When we arrived at the mall, I said "I'm finding the shoe department to look for some flats".

It was at the basement level so we went down a beautiful, large spiral staircase

 to the bottom floor.

Here is a stock, store picture

I will tell you that I did not take many pics inside. There were lots of people and I felt a bit uncomfortable snapping too many pics because it seemed impolite and SO tourist.

So, you'll see several stock pictures from the Galeries Lafayette website.

Back to shoes.....

The whole mall was organized into very small departments....each one a designer.

I'm not sure I realized there were THAT many designers to fill such a place

 but obviously I was wrong!

For example, this display on the table and the rack you can see behind it (full of flats)

was one designer...that's all.

All the personnel were tall, thin, dressed in black and VERY polished looking.

I immediately felt gauche and out of place 

(another reason I didn't want to whip out the camera)

There would be maybe 3-4 staff in each of these small departments.

If you wanted something, they went to a storeroom and brought it out.

The cheapest flats I found were 175E so, no flats for me.

The most expensive pair of shoes I've ever bought were about $70.....

because they were boots!

The most expensive shoe I saw was 695E,

but I'm sure it wasn't the MOST expensive in there.

Interestingly, my husband had been watching a lot of France TV (in english)

 and had told me about the very high unemployment and how the E was falling.

Despite that, I saw MANY people....mostly young women, lugging designer bags 

and buying very expensive items. 
I'm not sure if credit debt is an issue in France but I saw that there was a 
store credit card that you could get.

We moved up a couple floors and found a cafe......

with a nice menu and a wine list! 

People were sitting there having coffee or wine or drinks with a pastry, cheese plate or salad.

Expensive, of course....

This is the bar....that little black board is the wine list.

What a view!

We managed to find the gourmet section that Paule had talked about.

There was some construction going on and we had to walk down a long plywood hall 

and take a second elevator.

Not too bad, until we had to leave, then we were lost for a bit!

I spotted this right away and since I have kids crazy for Nutella, we needed a picture!

As below, the gourmet section had a cheese shop, butcher shop, bread shop,

 fruit section, vegetable section, prepared food section, etc......

Below are some stock pics...sorry for the blurriness...

As in the smaller markets, there was much discussion going on about the RIGHT selection.
I finally bought my macarons here in the pastry shop.
We chose salted caramel and raspberry.
Delicious!
We found a small coffee spot in the gourmet section and had a coffee.
As we sat there we were next to the wine shop, which was right next to the escalator. 
There were two security guards at the escalator....I guess wine is a big shoplifting issue?
We purchased some Maille mustard.....which I have read is the best.
I have seen it here but decided to buy it in Paris after Paule told me 
that the one sent to the US is not the same. 
The French version has wine in it and they cannot import that version.
So, we bought several for some gifts and for ourselves.

My feet were killing me and our day had been long so we headed home
 for a rest before dinner.
I'll leave you with this pic I found taken with snow and lights.
It IS an overwhelming experience but I am so glad we went!
Truly a DIFFERENT mall experience than here in the US.


Hope you have enjoyed shopping in Paris!
(If you missed the day at the flea market...look here.)

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Blooming Hydrangeas

One of my very favorite things each year is when my hydrangeas bloom.

I just love looking out my studio window and seeing them.

The pathway to the backyard is lined on both sides with large bushes.

 Depending on the soil in each spot, I get a wide variety of shades.

I love this soft blue and chartreuse combination.

I also love the lavender and chartreuse.

When we moved in about 11 yrs ago, I brought a hydrangea from the former house.

It was the traditional hydrangea and bloomed for only a brief time.

I missed it so that when the Endless Summer Hydrangea was produced,

I knew I had to get that.

Everything you see is this strain.

They will continue to bloom for many weeks and I just love it!

They have spread on their own.

I can't remember, but I think I only bought two or three originally.

Wherever a branch touches the ground, a new plant springs up.

I just dig them up and put them in a new spot.

I just can't seem to get enough of them!

To me, there just isn't anything more old fashioned, lush and beautiful

than a hydrangea.

Classic blue

Just opening......all chartreuse

Do you love hydrangeas too?




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Bird Clipboard

It feels nice to get back to some projects....

not sure I'd EVER say that!

I hope you have enjoyed the posts from Paris and the few after I returned.

It was such a lovely trip and I will remember it always. I hope I can return one day!

I will be sharing more on French Friday (yes, I think I'll keep that going awhile)

 including some of the recipes we used in the cooking class.

But, right now, I have a graduation looming which means some company,

 which means sprucing up the house!

So, you're going to see a bit of that this week (I hope).

Before I could get started on some of those projects I had to take some things up to the shop.

That was just a couple days after returning and my head was still pretty fuzzy

 and I was pretty tired.

But, I had a couple ideas in the back of my head for creations 

and once I dug into my stash of stuff in the garage and the attic I had enough to take.

Here is the bird on a clipboard I made....

I had three clipboards I had found at the thrift. The clip was starting to rust a bit, 

which was perfect!

I also had this fantastic book from the thrift.....Birds of Britian

The cover is great with a beautiful wing design all over.

You know I love books and I find it VERY hard to destroy them.

First, I looked the book up to be sure it wasn't valuable.

It's from 1907 and all the copies I could find were only valued at about $10.

So, I felt better about that and decided to use the illustrations in projects.

I chose to use the Song Thrush and the Missel Thrush because I wanted a pair.

I used gesso on the clipboard along with some brown stain to age it a bit more.

Then, using the pages with the description of the bird I was using, I covered the clip.

Some more gesso and stain to age it and seal it.

Then, I found a pad of paper I had purchased which was vintage looking.

I've had it awhile because it was too large to run through the copier 

and I hadn't really decided how to use it.

This was perfect. It fit nicely on the clipboard.

I love the vintage printing in the corner and the red lines.

 I tore the print from the book and tore the edges.

I glued it to the paper, put it under the clip and then attached it to the clipboard with spray glue, 

once I had it where I wanted it.

I still had a bit of the descriptive page left so I added that on the back.

A bit more work to eliminate shiny spots and adding more vintage effects and it was done!

I made a pair of them.

I hope they sell!

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