Hello, fall.

Posted in Around the house, DIY, Gone Pinning by mszerwo

It’s officially here: fall, my favorite season. How did I celebrate? I set my DVR for this week’s new shows, watched football, napped with the cats, bought some very fall-colored flowers, shopped for Halloween and Christmas (yes, I’m crazy) crafts and gifts, busted out my slippers, oh, and I did some ~~spring~~ fall cleaning.

In due time I’ll share my holiday crafts (they’re really good!) and in the meantime, here’s another necessary life tip that I found on Pinterest: getting that stank out of your towels. Our first necessary life tip was a solution for fruit flies. If you have a fruit fly issue, do this. You’ll thank me. I promise.

Our second anniversary is coming up on Tuesday and I was worried we were going to have to our fancy, still soft and cozy towels, because of their “funk.”

We’ve tried bleaching the white towels and that sort of works, but we were at a loss for how to un-funk the green ones. So, I searched “towel smell” on Pinterest and about one million results came up, all pointing to one solution: vinegar and baking soda.

I gathered my supplies and threw our towels into the washer this afternoon I just pulled them out of the dryer and… drum roll please… IT WORKED!

Add this to your to do list, if your towels need some rejuvenation. I couldn’t be happier and I’m totally going to wrap these up for an anniversary gift for Brandon. Cotton is cotton, right!?

Have a great week! (I’m off to shower and use our better-than-new towels!)

16Sep2013

Finishing the foyer

Posted in Around the house, Crafts, DIY by mszerwo

FINALLY: a DIY craft project to share with you! We’ve been so busy with finishing the backyard (which will never be fully ‘done’) and the pizza oven (which is oh-so-close to being done) that I’ve been totally slacking on the ‘everyday’ crafts and fun projects for inside the house. I guess that happens with summer, right? We’ve got to take advantage of the nice weather when we’ve got it.

Before our big backyard debut/patio-warming party, I had a few projects that I wanted to finish on the inside of the house. Some of them were finished, and for the others, I printed out over-sized band aids with “Work in progress” written on them. (More than a month later we still have some up and … I kind of like them!)

One of the more important projects on my list was the foyer. It’s remained mostly un-touched since I moved in, more than five years ago. It was time for a re-fresh. In my mind, the re-fresh was easy: throw some paint on the walls, build a new table for the landing and think about other decorations. Turns out, that was a bit pie in the sky.

I had wanted to try and make a table similar to this one from Room & Board. The more I thought about the table, the more I realized that it wouldn’t be right for that space. (Especially since Jack likes to use the table in that spot as a shortcut up the stairs.) If I made a table as tall as the Room & Board one, it would topple over on a regular basis. So, I had to re-think my idea.

It just so happened that right around that time, my Grandma was downsizing and getting rid of some furniture. It was just my luck that one of the pieces she was getting rid of was perfect for our foyer!

Tada! Our new entryway

Once we had the base in place, I needed something to go on top of it. I spent some quality time with a girlfriend searching at the Goodwill (my favorite is in Bellevue, WA) for a tray or some sort of inspiration. I ended up finding a little ceramic dish, but it doesn’t look right. It’ll be used for another project. Instead, I discovered some inspiration at Marshall’s in the form of a mail tray lined with decorative nail heads. The tray wasn’t right for our space, but, it gave me a general idea and I was off to JoAnn’s, to get the tools so I could make the perfect tray myself!

Assuming you have all of the necessary tools, making a tray like this is super easy. (I don’t have the proper tools, but my parents do, so I headed over for a quick visit…)

Nail-head trim tray

Tools needed*

The shortest, cheapest 8″ wide piece of shelving you can find (I used an MDF board)
One long piece (about 6 feet long) of 1.5″ MDF trim (slightly rounded on one side)
Gorilla Wood Glue
Nail gun and small nails (courtesy of my Dad)
Miter saw (Thanks again, Dad)
Spray paint in the color you’d like to paint the tray (I used Rust-oleum Black Metallic, one of my favorites)
Packages of nail heads for the trim (I used 4 packages of the 3/8″ size)
Rubber mallet for setting the nail heads (it’s gotta be a rubber mallet, not a hammer)

Instructions

Decide how long you want your try to be and cut the bottom of the tray that length.
Measure and cut the trim the length of the tray. Match up the edges and make a 45 degree angled cut, so that the edges of the trim are flush with one another and jointly form a 90 degree corner. If your trim is rounded, make sure that your cuts are consistent and the rounded edges are all on the outside or inside, but not split up.
Place Gorilla Glue (or some other wood glue) in a zig zag/dotted pattern where the trim meets the base. Only do one piece at a time.
The glue should hold the trim on, but I used four small nails on each side, to make sure that the trim was secure. Plus I hadn’t used the nail gun yet and I wanted to try it out. I’m a natural.
Let the glue dry and spray paint your tray. I used some red keg cups to hold the tray up, making sure that I got the base. I used three thin coats.
Once the spray paint is dry, it’s nail head time! The MDF was pretty soft, so I used my thumb to line up and push them in. It worked pretty well. I also kept a large paperclip on-hand, in case I needed to pull one out. Once each row was in place, I hammered them in with the rubber mallet. My lines aren’t the straightest, but I think it adds personality.

*Please note: This tray is mostly for show and is pretty heavy. I don’t think it would be good for moving or carrying items on.

What did I put in the tray? It’s pretty clear in the photo, but I painted a cheap ceramic votive holder that I found on clearance at Michael’s and some grey IKEA 4″ x 6″ ribba frames that I bought thinking they were black. Oops. But they’re prefect for this spot. And now they’re all GOLD. (I have a problem.) I found some fun images online and printed them on cardstock. The images I’ve got now are great, but I plan on switching them out with the seasons and holidays. The tray is just the right width and the three frames and candle holder fit perfectly.

I also made a cool terrarium with a hurricane we used for our wedding, a pre-historic looking plant that we had growing very tall in the kitchen and a small pot of mixed succulents. It turned out great an cost less than $3!

I need to get back onto Pinterest for un-focused, general browsing and find myself some more crafts! What are you crafting these days? Anything that you think I should try my hand at? Tell me in the comments!

8Sep2013

2013 Fall TV premieres

Posted in Around the house by mszerwo

Photo via Castle’s Facebook page

Get ready… get set… it’s time to make sure your DVR is ready for the fall TV season!

In my mind, Labor Day is the turning point of summer when the sun sets a little earlier each night, there is a bit of a chill in the air, and I start craving yummy stews, fall sweaters and football. But that’s not all. Fall also means the return of the ‘normal’ TV shows, which makes me a very happy camper.

Labor Day also prompts me to search out a fall premiere calendar and here is what I found. Thank God for my DVR, so I can stay up to date on all of my shows and still have a life while I pretend that I’m not this into TV.

What will I be watching? Good question. Let me tell you!

How I Met Your Mother (CBS) (So sad that it’s the last season! I’ll miss these guys!)
Castle (ABC) (One of Brandon’s favorites too. I’ve been catching syndicated episodes on TNT and I’m excited for the new episodes to be back! Will Kate say yes!?!?!)
Scandal (ABC) (I love Olivia Pope!!)
Grimm (NBC) (Another one of Brandon’s favorites. Last season was too short. I can’t wait to see what adventures Nick and Monroe have been up to. Will Nick really become a zombie or will the Captain save him?)
Modern Family (ABC) (Another Brandon favorite. I love their hijinks.)
Nashville (ABC) (Love, love, love this show… and the music. Almost makes me want to live in the south. Almost.)
Parks and Recreation (NBC) (As a government worker, this show is even more funny for me, I’m just sad its the last season. Go Leslie! Take over the world!)
Glee (Fox) (Everyone’s question: How will they handle Finn’s death!?)
Law & Order: SVU (NBC) (L&O SVU is always on our tv. Although I’m not very current, I like the show and can pick up almost anywhere.)
Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) (It’s about 5 seasons past being cool, but I save Grey’s to watch when nothing else is on.)
The Simpsons (Fox) (An old favorite that we record and watch during dinner sometimes.)
Once Upon a Time (ABC) (It’s getting a little weird, but it’s still good when nothing else is on)
Suburgatory (ABC) (I was sad to find out that ABC has pushed this premiere to the winter. It’s also one of our favorites)

And I’m going to try out some new shows…

Ravenswood (ABC Family) (From ABC Family: Ravenswood will center on a town, not far from Rosewood, PA (the home base of Pretty Little Liars), which has suffered under a deadly curse for generations. Five strangers suddenly find themselves connected by this fatal curse and need to dig into the town’s mysterious and terrible history before it’s too late for each of them. This is a Pretty Little Liars spin-off that is supposedly creepier than PLL! EEEK!)
The Blacklist (NBC) (From NBC: For decades, ex-government agent Raymond “Red” Reddington has been one of the FBI’s most wanted fugitives. Brokering shadowy deals for criminals across the globe, Red was known by many as “The Concierge of Crime.” Now, he’s mysteriously surrendered to the FBI with an explosive offer: He will help catch a long-thought-dead terrorist, Ranko Zamani, under the condition that he speaks only to Elizabeth “Liz” Keen, an FBI profiler fresh out of Quantico. For Liz, it’s going to be one hell of a first day on the job. Sounds like another L&O/Castle!)
Trophy Wife (ABC) (From ABC: They say the third time’s the charm and reformed party girl Kate is hoping that’s true when she becomes Pete’s third wife. She fell into his arms (literally) at a karaoke bar and a year later, Kate’s got an insta-family complete with three stepchildren and two ex-wives. Pretty typical rom-com. Sounds entertaining at least!)
Betrayal (ABC) (From ABC: Two lovers’ worlds will collide, culminating in a powerful and compelling story of sex, love, loyalty, marriage and treachery in the provocative, sensual and gripping new drama, “Betrayal.” Sounds trashy and intriguing! Just my type of show!)
The Goldbergs (ABC) (From ABC: Before there were parenting blogs, trophies for showing up, and peanut allergies, there was a simpler time called the ‘80s. For geeky 11-year old Adam these were his wonder years and he faced them armed with a video camera to capture all the crazy. Growing up in the 80s, I think I’ll like this show…)

What about you? What will you be watching this fall? Do we share any favorite shows?

Thanks for reading! And happy watching!

6Sep2013

{Gone pinning} Damn fruit flies

Posted in Around the house, DIY, Gone Pinning by mszerwo

‘Tis the season for bugs: mainly spiders but also fruit flies. As a regular reader, you’re familiar with our love of wine. Well, we’re apparently not the only ones in this house who love wine. (No, the cats don’t drink. They’re too young…) The fruit flies also love our wine and tonight it reached a breaking point and we took our problem to Pinterest.

Anyway, Pinterest had some great ideas for us. We chose a pretty easy one with ingredients that we had on-hand. It was 9:30 p.m. on a Friday night… We opted for the “shot glass traps of apple cider vinegar and a teaspoon of dish soap.” AND… it worked!

Please note: we don’t normally have a lot of fruit flies. I’m attributing this surge in fruit flies to the overripe bunch of bananas in the fruit bowl and the unusually humid weather. We’re not dirty people. (Brandon says and he’s always right…)

We still have the note cards (extra two-year old wedding invitations) draped over the glasses to protect our wine and there are still fruit flies overhead, but I’d say we’ve caught/drowned 80 or so fruit flies between the three traps. Per the instructions, we first used a shot glass and filled it with the vinegar and soap. It worked pretty well, especially when we “assisted” and blew the fruit flies on the edge into the death mixture. (Sorry…it was right there in front of us…)

We then took one of our mini pie dishes (from Crate & Barrel, apparently not for sale anymore. I couldn’t find the link…) and filled it with the death mixture. It worked like a dream. I’d highly recommend the mini pie dishes — they’re great for tea bags, random pins and screws and snacks — and this concoction. It’s cheap, easy and effective. That is the winning combination for a successful pin. And that’s why I love this death mixture. Thanks, Pinterest. I can now (almost) drink my wine in peace.

How have you dealt with fruit flies in the past?

21Aug2013

Pizza, pizza: We’ve got a ceiling!

Posted in Around the house, DIY, Food, Garden by mszerwo

We’ve been busy planning for our big backyard debut party this weekend (menus! decorations!) but managed to make some progress on the backyard pizza oven. What do you think?

We took out the first round of supports and… It held! I was pretty nervous about it. In fact, I freaked out a bit about not having a “keystone.” As it turns out, you don’t need a keystone if you’re using grout. (Thanks, Dad.)

We got inside the oven (so did one of the cats) and chiseled off some of our grout drips. We filled in the seams on the first bend of the arch and then added the remaining two rows. Ta da!

Clearly the oven is on my mind: I designed the entryway in my dreams last night – along with something about Sesame Street, which I haven’t thought about or seen in at least 10 years. I think it was that the letter of the day is “s.” Somebody analyze that and let know. Maybe it means that I need to enjoy a “S”yrah tonight? Anyway, I took some remaining measurements before I left for work and will continue designing it in my head today.

We’ll buy bricks tomorrow after work and hopefully get the firebricks covered by Friday and the forecasted rain. Hopefully it rains just enough to refresh the plants, but not so much that it ruins the backyard’s debut party on Saturday!

Happy wine Wednesday!

5Aug2013

Library love: Party books!

Posted in Around the house, Library Love by mszerwo

As I mentioned before, I’ve got a thing for the library and my latest kick has included party planning books. I brought my stack of books to the cabin over the weekend, poured myself a glass of wine and dove right in.

And since I’m married to a soon-to-be accounting professor, I had to calculate the total value of the books and see what I “saved” by checking them out from the library instead of buying them: $142.88. Not too shabby. Not too shabby at all.

Now, let me save you some time and share my recommendations on my latest library picks:

Around the Table: Easy menus for cozy entertaining at home by Ellen Wright (Retail: $27.95)

I had high hopes for this book and was moderately disappointed once I started reading. I was pleased to find out that Ellen and I have similar party planning philosophies and the same idea when it comes to keeping ingredients on-hand for surprise guests. I also liked how the recipes were laid out by ‘event’ and each menu was fully detailed. I did manage to find a couple of recipes that I’m really looking forward to trying: stuffed mushrooms with shallots p. 87, piroshkies p. 105 and Soni’s Chicken Provencal p. 150.

I’d save your money and recommend checking this book out of your local library rather than buying it.

Easy Entertaining at Home by Sandra Lee (Retail: $14.99)

I sort of love Sandra Lee and her semi-homemade philosophy. I have not-so-secret hopes of being the Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade of the crafting/DIY world, since no one has much patience these days. I used to subscribe to Sandra Lee’s magazine until they stopped publishing. Anyway, back to the book.

This book really focuses on cocktails which isn’t a bad thing, it’s just not really my thing. I did mark at lot of booze recipes (sorbet shooters, p. 16, Sandy’s spiced wine, p. 41, ‘Born this way’ tequila-limeade-raspberry slushy, p. 49, ‘Pear bella’ pear brandy-peach belllini-champagne drink, p. 114, so that’s a plus.

Some other soon-to-be favorites that I marked include: prosecco cake, p. 12, maple cakes, p. 42, pear puffs, p. 46, and ‘Blushing berry cupcakes,’ p. 138.

I’d save your money and recommend checking this book out of your local library rather than buying it, although there were quite a few great ideas!

Party Confidential by Lara Shriftman and Elizabeth Harrison (Retail: $29.99)

I had no idea what to expect with this book, but I was intrigued, the cover included some classy parties and some tacky parties and a photo of Serena Williams. I really liked how each party theme is detailed and they discuss the menu, lighting, playlist, favors and “steal it” ideas for DIY’ing the parties for yourself.

Party Confidential also lists some themes for parties and one of them I think was stolen from me: Come on Barbie, Let’s go party! Here is a gem of me from my Barbie party, circa 2008. I was Birthday Barbie and I had a great time. Best party ever.

There were interesting sections about giving toasts and hostess gifts, but other than that, I was less than impressed. Save your money on this one too and pick it up at the library.

Celebrate: A year of festivities for families and friends by Pippa Middleton (Retail: $50)

This book was heavy (400 pages). Lots and lots of good information, most of which didn’t apply to me since I don’t have kids. However, Pippa does keep a dress up box, crafting toolbox and party cupboard, p. 174, so maybe we are meant to be friends. I really liked the ‘creepy cocktails,’ p. 34, including blackberry collins and the blood and sand. I also thoroughly enjoyed Pippa’s countdown to Christmas and edible gifts, p. 92. I’m looking forward to making her Christmas truffles and gingerbread stars this holiday season. (Yes, I’m already planning the holidays…) It appears as though Pippa also plans a great Valentine’s Day. Her chocolate truffles and rose-petal martini, p. 197, may make it to our house come February 14, along with the nutella madeleines that she has slated for ‘afternoon tea.’

Brandon is a chocoholic so Pippa’s “the chocolate game” caught my eye. This game includes a large chocolate bar, some winter layers, and dice. You roll the dice and when a six is thrown, the player puts on their ‘winter layers’ (including mittens) as fast as they can and then they cut and eat a square of the chocolate bar. You keep on going like this until all of the chocolate is gone, or something. This game was on page 301, so I was tired of reading at this point.

Should you buy the book? I wouldn’t. $50 is a lot of money! But there are some good haggis recipes. (Ick.)

Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade gatherings by Sandra Lee (Retail: $19.95)

I had really high hopes for this book (see my ode to Sandra above) but this one was pretty disappointing. I really liked the idea of party themes and had hoped for some great ideas but instead I found a daisy-themed party and a wine and cheese party with ROOSTERS. Some people really like faux roosters. I’m not one of those people. Plus I’m highly critical of wine and cheese parties, so I was pretty let down.

I did find a recipe that I will use come the holidays: a gingerbread martini, p. 118. I also thought the avocado shrimp salad, p. 242, looked pretty tasty. I also was a fan of the napkin folding instructions and place setting examples in the back of the book, of course, those are easy to find thanks to Google Images and Pinterest.

Definitely don’t buy this book and instead check it out of your local library.

Phew. Long post! A special shout out to the Seattle Public Library for having such a great catalog! Based on my above research, it’s clear that you should really pop by the library to check out books before committing to buying them. (Literally! Get it? Check out. Heehee.)

17Jul2013

Library love on Megan’s Island!

Posted in Around the house, Exploring Seattle, Library Love by mszerwo

If you’re a regular reader, you’re very familiar with my healthy addiction to spray paint, cats and all things wine. I wanted to let you in with another addiction I have: the library.

I’ve always been a library user, in fact, I’ve managed to keep my same library card for the past 25+ years! Here it is. What great penmanship, right?

Anyway, my library use comes in spurts and lately I’ve been on quite a kick. Of course I use the library for the typical fiction and non-fiction books, but recently I thought to expand my search a little bit: movies, CDs and COOKBOOKS! I also have been a big fan of checking out business, marketing and branding books for my small business, Little Britches Bakery.

My latest series of library holds focuses on party planning, cookbooks involving wine and books having to do with pizza, all things pizza. We’re still in the process of designing our backyard pizza oven but I’m researching dough and sauce recipes and topping ideas now.

I’m planning on reviewing my library finds for you in the upcoming weeks.

Happy reading to you and I’d love to hear your library stories and favorite books!

(Just as I was writing this I got an email from the library. I have Beasts of the Southern Wild waiting for me!)

24Jun2013

Flip the switch: Bistro lights!

Posted in Around the house, DIY, Garden by mszerwo

Cue the oooohs and aaahhs: It’s BISTRO LIGHT time!

My parents put up bistro lights over their patio a few years ago (for our rehearsal dinner in 2011) and ever since I’ve wanted them in our backyard. One of the main reasons we put in the patio was to put up bistro lights!

First draft of the layout

My Dad was essential for the design help. As with most projects, this one was a lot more work than I initially thought. (We’re facing something similar with the pizza oven right now…) It took me a bit to wrap my head around the guide/guy wire concept, but luckily my Dad had already been through the process once and was patient when explaining it (over and over again) to me. He even provided detailed drawings, like this one.

First things first, I had to buy the lights. I used the same company and products as my parents did: Budget Lighting.

This is what I ordered. The grand total ended up being $154.70 + shipping. BLI has a $25 minimum order, so I ordered double lightbulbs to replace them as they burn out, since ordering additional bulbs later wouldn’t meet the minimum order.

Here’s what all of the “ingredients” of this project looked like:

With the materials in hand, my Dad drew a more detailed sketch and we went to Lowe’s to pick up the remaining tools: “S” clips, tighteners, hooks for the deck and tree and an outdoor extension cord.

We measured and cut the wires to match the diagram. Then we drilled into the trees and connected the wires. Where’d Brandon go!?

From there, we hung the lights, flipped the switch and voila! What do you think? I almost want it to get darker earlier again. Almost.

19Jun2013

{Wine Wednesday} Szerwo Szellars

Posted in Around the house, Drinky drinky, Wine Wednesdays by mszerwo

Happy Wine Wednesday! This week I’m going to tell you about the presents I gave Brandon for his birthday in April.

Wine tags from Amazon

Brandon and I are in two wine clubs (Davenport Cellars and Efeste) and have a tendency to collect wine faster than we can drink it. As a result, we have quite a few bottles “laying down” in our cellar. Unfortunately, our current set up doesn’t really allow for easy identification of bottles. Alas, present number one: wine tags! These were cheap and easy and I ordered 150 from Amazon.

In an effort to keep track of all of our bottles, to know which ones are ‘ready’ to drink and which bottles we need to replace, I also found present number two: our very own Personal Wine Curator! This thing is great. Here are the services they offer: Get drink dates, pair food and wine, track purchases, wine values and sales, print lists, tasting menus and reports, and interact with a worldwide community of fellow wine lovers. Because of Brandon’s school schedule, he has only had a chance to input about 15 bottles. So far, so good. He’s looking forward to inputting the rest of our bottles and exploring the system. It’s on his summer to-do list.

The third present was a find from the REWINED Designs shop on Etsy. Playing off of our last name, Szerwo (pronounced “Sir-vo”) I bought this customized aluminum sign that reads “Szerwo Szellars.”