Search Results for: blog outdoor dcor

Cool Weather: Indoor and Outdoor Tips for Cooler Months

If you are an avid gardener, you may already be aware that certain plants prefer cool weather. If you’re new to gardening, you might be surprised to learn that some flowers, grasses, foliage, and even food producing plants do very well in cool weather. Some even prefer it. In the vegetable garden, try different types of lettuce such as wild lettuce and loose-leaf varieties. They are simple to plant. Sprinkle some seeds in the area you wish to plant, gently cover them, and add water. Romaine lettuce will require a bit more space and effort. Plant seeds separately a few … Continue reading →

Outdoor Living Spaces: Simple or Extravagant?

Does the area you enjoy outside your home have to look like your living room or appear to have been created by a designer to be considered an outdoor living space? I don’t think so. If it’s an area you use often or “live in” such as a patio, deck, or even just part of your yard or garden, I think it qualifies. I don’t have anything fancy, as our land is still a work in progress, but I prefer to stay outside more often than not when the weather is right. I enjoy barbecuing instead of cooking in the … Continue reading →

First Bite of Mom’s Chili

It has (thankfully) been growing somewhat cooler in the state of Texas during the last weeks. Nothing like the temperatures I hear of from other parts of the country. Sometimes social media can make you sad when friends elsewhere talk about thier favorite season of autumn while you enviously look outside at the summer-level heat emmanating off of the sidewalks outside your closed window. At any rate, my family is feeling the pull of seasonal jackets, foods, films, and other items despite their uselessness in our current climate. This led to watching a holiday film, making some cookies, and putting … Continue reading →

The $500 Fall Renewal Sweeps at Shop.com

Comparison shopping is great. You look for the item and up comes the item listing at all available stores. The prices, according to each store, will vary, but the item is the same. This type of shopping will give you the know how of which store you will save the most money at for the item that you are looking for. Shop.com is giving one lucky consumer a chance to win a $500 shopping spree just in time for the fall weather ahead of us. Just think of all of the great fall items that you can buy, especially clothes. … Continue reading →

More Summer Decorating the Easy Way

Summer decorating shouldn’t be a chore we dread doing. It should be light, and bright, and fun, like other summer activities. In fact, with a few easy ideas, you can add that light, bright, feel to any space and keep the summer fun coming. You will often hear that you should paint your furniture white or replace heavy or dark pieces with those that are lighter in color and/or scale during the summer. What if you don’t feel like painting or moving furniture? One good trick is to top dark pieces with bright table runners (placemats work too) or add … Continue reading →

Home Week in Review: October 1 – 7

Whew! What a busy week. My family has two birthdays that land a week apart and aside from the family celebrations, we also had a birthday party in there. I did get a little bit behind, but my articles for this week are available now and Mary Ann has done a great job of keeping you updated with wonderful ideas while I played catch up. Home Chore List: Twice-A-Year Cleaning Chores (1) Mary Ann’s Chore Lists are quite handy. Breaking things down this way may help us get more organized, but I’ve noticed something else: this breakdown shows just how … Continue reading →

Contemporary Fall Wreath Ideas

Wreaths have been around for a long time. They tend to be round in shape, although not just circles. Some are oblong or heart shaped. However, you can make a wreath-inspired decoration for the interior or exterior of your home using other shapes. If you want to use round wreaths, try doing something different with them. For a new twist on standard wreaths, add a pair of them, one on each side of the doorframe, instead of the standard one in the center of the door. You can also use smaller styles and line up three or four vertically on … Continue reading →

3 Natural Autumn Centerpieces

Want to create beautiful Autumn centerpieces for your home using natural materials? Here are three different ideas you can use. Help me pick the one that will grace my table. I have to admit that I was really inspired by Sherry’s post, Fall Decorating: Outdoor Décor. In the last section on Autumn accessories, she talks about using natural materials to create outdoor decorations. That got me thinking about decorating indoors. Specifically, I’ve been thinking about centerpieces, lately. We’ll probably host Thanksgiving this year, so I want to make sure that our table looks beautiful. Yes, Thanksgiving is a bit of … Continue reading →

Home Week in Review: September 10 – 16

I hope you’re enjoying your weekend. I know I plan on relaxing today. Even if you don’t plan on tackling too many chores today, you should find some of this week’s articles helpful for when you do need to get down to business. This week kicked off with a Quick Trick for Extra Seating. You can bring those outdoor chairs inside and dress them up for instant extra seating. Another tip to go along with this article is to consider buying higher end outdoor furniture the next time you shop for such items, since the styles and quality available today … Continue reading →

Building a Deck?

We built a deck shortly after moving here, so it was probably around eight years ago. I’m actually surprised it lasted as long as it did, but it’s about time for a new one. We “winged it” the last time, and while it’s not perfect, it really wasn’t too bad. This time, however, we hope to build a better one and we don’t intend to replace it any time soon, so we want to do it right. I’ve been researching deck plans, tools, and materials and there is some great stuff out there. For example, some home improvement centers offer … Continue reading →