JUNE 7, 2012 I have this old lady dress I bought off ebay about two years ago for $10 and I've been holding on to it saying I'm going to hem it and make it into a really cute summer time dress. I've held on to it because it's from Jones New York and it's really great quality. But now! Maxi dresses are in& I'm all about it! With some fun, modern accesories I've created nursing home chic (lol)  I really need a photographer Watch: Men's accessories at Target, Belt: Ross, Necklace: Avon (old), Ring: R.E. Piland  Earrings: H&M Kelly& Katie from DSW (old) JUNE 6, 2012 I rush my booty to work every morning so there is zero time for taking pictures of my outfits, so I did it when I got home last night. Jean shirt: Banana Republic, Green cropped pants: Land's End, Sandals: Target, Necklace: AE Shirt& necklace are no longer available  Yes, I take mirror pictures. JUNE 4, 2012 I feel pretty, oh so pretty! I painted my nails for the first time last night since like March. And I tried something a little different (different to me, since I'm a pale nude polish kinda girl).  Wet 'n wild Uncovered, Mary Kay Gold Leaf, Mary Kay Base/Top coat I never paint my nails because it chips too easy! But, last week one of my girlfriend's was bragging about how long her Mary Kay polish lasted, so I'm giving it a whirl. 1. Paint one hand with your base coat, once your done with that hand your first 2 fingers should already be dry. Wait a minute. Move on to your next hand. Wait another minute. Dry? Next step 2. Paint one layer of your main color (Wet n Wild Uncovered for me) on your first hand. Wait one minute. Paint one layer on your next hand. Wait one minute. This polish dried super fast! 3. Repeat step two, for your second coat. 4. Do two layers on your accent finger of your other color (Mary Kay Gold Leaf for me) on both hands. Wait about 4-5 minutes for everything to set pretty well. 5. Two layers of top coat on both hands. Wait about 5-10 minutes, ta da, you're gorgeous. MAY 22, 2012 I would love to share a couple of my favorite style inspiring blogs with you all. First ... love Maegan. She is way out of my price range, but she has some great DIY's and I have always loved finding look for less pieces (I will share those with you as I go along) Second the gOOd life. She is great, again, because of the DIY's. I also love these ladies, because they keep it real. And that is what I aim to do.

In my new book Handmade Houses: A Century of Earth-Friendly Home Design (Rizzoli) I explore the history of ecological architecture, telling the story through a presentation of homes located in the United States, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

I love those rotisserie chickens you buy at the grocery store for $9 but since it's No Spend Month, I'm making my own! Yay for doin' it ours...

Want the most delicious cookies you've ever tasted? Of course you do! Cream cheese takes baked goods to a whole new level of delicious...

Do you have damaged antique caned chairs that are in need of repair? This post will teach you how to cane an antique chair from scratch. Be forewarned, this is a long post. The first thing you need to re-cane a chair is, of course, cane. There are plenty of sources for this raw material, ranging from your local woodworking shop to online sources. I use http://www.rockler.com/ for both the cane and the wooden pegs you will need to hold it in place while you work. It is important to match the original cane width, so make sure to measure the old stuff before you throw it away. There are two types of cane you will need: the Once the cane is pliable, take out one strand and identify which end to start from. You can do this by pulling the cane through pinched fingers. In one direction you will feel bumps protruding and in the other direction it will feel smoother. Make sure you are always weaving so you are pulling in the smooth direction, otherwise, the cane may catch and break. Start by inserting the end of the cane in a hole directly next to the back corner hole along either side rail so that a few inches of the cane protrudes from the bottom of the hole, then use a peg to hold in place. Weave so the shinier, curved side of the cane is always up. String the cane to the opposite hole on the other side rail, pulling the cane tight and put another peg in to hold it in place. String the cane up through the adjacent hole towards the middle of the side rail and repeat the process, moving the second peg as you go to hold the cane tight. Once you get to the end of the strand of cane, pull tight and keep the second peg in place. Use additional strands as necessary until you have the first layer of cane completed. Next, repeat the process along the front and back rails so that the second layer of cane is underneath the first. The next layer of cane should again go side to side in the same manner as the first layer but underneath both layer 1 and layer 2. The cane for this layer should be set adjacent to layer 1 as seen in the picture, so layer 1 and layer 3 end up side-by-side. Since a lot of pegs are being used to hold cane in place, now is a good time to tie off the ends and free up some pegs. To do this, flip the chair, rewet the cane ends and loops on the underside of the chair, and then using the tip of the awl, gently lift a loop adjacent to an end and slip the end underneath. The final layer will go the same direction as layer 2, but will be woven within layers 1 and 3. To do this, starting at the front rail, weave the cane under layer 3 and over layer 1, making sure the cane is side-by-side with layer 2. As you weave, make sure to rewet all of the already-woven cane with a soaked washcloth so that it remains pliable. Once you are finished, tie off the cane ends and using some caning pegs or the shaft of the awl and a hammer, gently tap the cane into place so that it forms a tight, even grid. The next step are the diagonals, which, require the most forethought. It is easiest to start the diagonals at the opposite back corner holes and weave both diagonals at the same time. One diagonal will go under layers 1 and 3 (side-to-side strands) and over layers 2 and 4 (front to back strands), while the other diagonal will do the opposite. If you are weaving correctly, the diagonal strands should be on opposite layers where they intersect. Once the diagonals are finished, tie off the ends and breathe a sigh of relief because the hard part is over. The last step will involve both chair cane and binder cane (soak some of both). Cut four pieces of binder into lengths that are long enough to stretch the length of 1 rail plus about 2 inches. Insert one binder strand into a corner hole so that the cane just reaches the bottom of the hole and lay it across the other holes along the rail. Using chair cane, weave up through the hole adjacent to the corner hole and underneath the binder cane, leaving a short tail of cane. Wrap the can around the binder and insert back into the same hole, pulling tight to loop the binder into place. Take the chair cane up through the next hole, repeating the process until you reach the opposite corner hole where you will insert the free end of the binder cane. Repeat this along the other 3 rails. Tie off any loose ends, and, using scissors, cut the excess cane. Now you have a beautifully-caned chair for a fraction of the cost that a pro would charge. This post was written by my multi-talented husband, BJ. Not only is he a chemist, handyman, musician, gardener, floor-mopper, glass blower, beer brewer and excellent cook, but he canes antique chairs too! Linking to: Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday regular natural seat cane and binding cane, which is thicker and will be used to hide the holes around the perimeter (be sure and measure both). You will also need caning pegs and a caning awl (or a scratch awl), both of which can be found on Rockler. Once you’ve gathered the materials, soak the chair cane in hot water for at least 20 minutes to make it pliable enough to work with. While it’s soaking, cut the old cane out of the old chair with some strong scissors and needle nose pliers, making sure all holes are clear. If you find yourself needing to re-cane an older chair that cannot accept prewoven cane, it might seem like your only option is to shell out big bucks to have a pro do it. Chair caning is easier than it looks and you can do 4-6 chairs for the price of one on your own. However, it does take some attention to detail and patience, so plan on spending a few stretches of 3-4 hours to complete your first. With practice, you should be able to complete a chair in 5 hours or less. This tutorial is for the conventional weave of natural cane on a chair with curved side rails, but instructions for other weaves, chair types, and rush weaving can be found in The Caner’s Handbook by Bruck Miller and Jim Widess, which most consider the Caner’s Bible.

Check out my Etsy and get some goodies of your own! AVOCADO BREAKFAST SALAD COCONUT CREAM PIE LARABARS CROCKPOT GREEK YOGURT CROCKPOT KALUA PIG CROCKPOT "ROTISSERIE" CHICKEN EASY STOVETOP GRANOLA GRAIN FREE COOKIES GRAIN FREE ENGLISH MUFFIN SEA SALT CARAMEL COFFEE SPICY BLACK BEAN AND AVOCADO DIP SPICY BLACK BEAN BURGERS JUNE 26, 2012 Making bread crumbs& stuffing jalapenos I love jalapeno poppers and all things jalapeno. However, jalapeno poppers are 'spansive. And bad for you, and most importantly no pizza places deliver to my house. So what's a girl to do? Make her own. And share it with the world. I was inspired by this recipe here, but I found you get yummy results with about a 1/3 of the ingredients. Step 1: Make bread crumbs out of nasty ass bread that you already made. You'll need: Really gross bread (or really good bread, to each their own) 1. Preheat your oven to 350F 2. Lay slices of bread on a cookie sheet, and place in oven for approx 20 mins (depending on how much bread you have) 3. Remove bread from oven, is it crusty? Good. Cool slightly. 4. Food process/magic bullet/blender (whatever) until it is nice and crumby. Ta-da. If you have more than you're going to use in about a week, freeze the extra. Now, on to the important/delicious stuff. You'll need: 12 jalapenos 2 oz cream cheese (room temperature) 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese cilantro bread crumbs 1. Leave your oven on from your bread crumb making extravaganza. Slice the tops off your jalapenos, slice down the middle and remove the membranes and the seeds (or leave a little if you like it spicy) 2. Mix together your cream cheese, mozzarella and cilantro. Get to stuffin' those peppers. 3. Roll the cheesy side of the peppers in the bread crumbs. 4. Lay jalapeno skin side down on a baking sheet and bake 15-20 mins 5. Dip in ranch dressing and stuff your face. . What delicious snack food is your go to? JUNE 8, 2012 Twice Baked Cauliflower. Or once boiled, once baked cauliflower. Or two times cooked cauliflower. Or just yummy, cheesy, vegetable-y stuff. You choose. This is a great potato substitute, or veggie side dish choice for those adults in your home who choose to act like children and refuse vegetables. Not naming names, Josh. I adapted the original tutorial from Kalyn's Kitchen. You'll need One head of cauliflower 2 oz neufchatel cheese 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt 3 green onion sprouts 3 oz cubed cheddar cheese black pepper 1. Bring a pot of water to boil. Chop your cauliflower into small pieces. Boil your cauliflower in the water until soft enough to mash (about 10 minutes) 2. When the cauliflower is soft, drain. Mash the cauliflower in your pot (free of water). 3. Transfer your cauliflower to a baking dish you have sprayed with cooking spray. Mix with desired amount of black pepper, neufchatel, greek yogurt, green onions and 2 oz of the cubed cheddar. 4. Top dish with the remaining 1 oz of cheese. Excuse the picture. My camera randomly decided it wasn't going to flash for about 10 minutes. 5. Bake at 350F for about 30 minutes. I left the top off so it was nice and brown. JUNE 2, 2012 So many desperate yummy snacks to be discovered when you're not spending extra money on junk. I wanted something salty sweet on this late night so I decided Cinnamon Sugar Corn! I popped some SmartBalance popcorn. Which FYI needs something on it if you don't like the taste of warm, stale cardboard. Melted 1 tbsp of margarine, mixed in 2 tsp cinnamon, individual packet of Stevia. I drizzled the margarine mixture over the popped corn, put the top on the bowl and shook it up. YUM YUM! Only about 150 calories per serving too. MAY 29, 2012 Who loves Starbucks frappuccinos? Put ya hands in the air, and wave 'em like you just don't care!! Me too. But they have approximately a million calories and a whole lotta dairy (I'm lactose intolerant) soo I've been pinning a lot lately& decided to make my own this weekend. I didn't follow any exact recipe so I'll just show& tell what I did. First, you need Blender/food processor/Magic Bullet Coffee (cooled off, I just used left over from the previous day) Crushed ice Chocolate syrup Milk (lactaid in my case) Half& half Whipped cream 1. I filled the cup to our Magic Bullet completely full of ice (approx 8 ozs of crushed ice) 2. I topped about 2 tbsp of chocolate syrup on the ice. It's better on top (no pun intended) because then all the chocolate doesn't sink to the bottom before you get a chance to drink it. 3. I then poured milk about half way up the cup (we'll say 3 oz) 4. I then poured about 2 tbsp of half&half into the cup just for some extra creaminess. 5. I filled the rest of the cup with black coffee (probably 2 oz) 6. I blended everything in the Magic Bullet for about 20 seconds, just enough to combine everything. 7. Top it with whipped cream, ta da! I'd also like to share my breakfast burrito recipe! Ingredients: Whole wheat tortillas Eggs for each person (I used 5 because, Josh eats 3 eggs at a time and I eat 1. So I had enough leftover for my next breakfast) Cheese/meat/veggies of your choice Olive oil 1. Preheat your oven/toaster oven to warm your tortillas. We like ours really crispy, so I put them in before I started cooking anything else. 2. Put your stove on medium to start warming the oil. Chop your veggies (I only used a green pepper but tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, spinach are all good for breakfast burritos). Saute your veggies& meat. I always have leftover sliced steak in the freezer (for some reason I can never finish the last like 7 bites of a steak so I freeze it for later) 3. Once your veggies are to the tender/crispiness you prefer, start adding the eggs. Scramble them as you add them to the pan. 4. Once your eggs are almost completely done, start adding the cheese. I just cut the cheese into small cubes because I hate washing the cheese grater. l-a-z-y. 5. Once your cheese is melted, take it off the eye and stuff your tortilla. So you ask, who doesn't know who to scramble eggs? I answer, I honestly don't know. This is mere inspiration for what to do with leftovers when it's 6am. MAY 22, 2012 I would love to share my favorite meal inspiration blogs, and how I plan our weekly meals. First, I love Stephanie Brandt Cornais at Mama and Baby Love. Her take on freezer, slow cooker meals is pure genius. My crockpot and I are BFF's so she is just making my life heaven with her ideas. You'll probably never see me copy a meal to the 't' (because I'm no lover of measuring cups or precision) but she is definitely a fairy godmother of meal ideas. I also look to her for health tips because I love all natural solutions to common medical needs. She is the reason I'm currently taking Cod Liver Oil, but thas a whole 'notha post for a whole 'notha day. Second, Sarah Cook at Frugal by Choice, Cheap by Necessity. She is great for how-to's. As in how to make water kefir soda, how to make cottage cheese and how to make/can applesauce. She is trying to feed her family on a budget, and I can totally relate. Earlier this year, Josh took about a 65% paycut from what he was previously making and that seriously changed my former $500/month grocery budget. That was when couponing began for me. Plus, she is just plain ol' hilarious and funny is numero uno in my book of necessary traits. My last ladylove is Rose at The Londoner. When I found her post about Dairy Free Chocolate Ice-Cream I knew it was meant to be. For the time period that is approximately my whole life, I have been chopping up, freezing& grinding up bananas for a ice-cream like treat. Mostly, because I am lactose-intolerant (like seriously intolerant, but for whatever reason I am a lover of all things dairy based hahahaha). She's really great at simplifying what seem like daring recipes. I can appreciate that. Now that I have shared all those that inspire our dinners (snacks, etc), let me inspire your meals! So, mostly I plan our meals by checking out our pantries/freezer/produce drawer and looking at what is on the verge of expiring. Because I procrastinate like that, got a prollem? Fruit is much more exciting to me when there's a lil mold on half (moldy half goes to compost pile btw). So anywho, this week we have asparagus that is about a week old, a whole lotta black beans (I always forget I have them& then buy a million more cans when I go to the grocery store), a half eaten package of bacon, a whole lotta boxed potatoes (a la couponing), and some Jarlsberg cheese that has got to go. So watch me while I put all that randomness into my mindbox, and spit out some magic! Monday: Josh must salvage whatever he can while I attend my weekly Mary Kay partayy Tuesday: Chicken cordon bleu inspired potatoe casserole with bacon wrapped asparagus Wednesday: Country Living inspired Spring Onion Soup with Jalapeno popovers Thursday: Mama and Baby Love inspired Italian beef over pasta Friday: Spoon Fork Bacon inspired Spicy black bean burgers& zucchini fries Saturday/Sunday: Thinking that far in advance is hazardous to my health See how my mindbox (aka Pinterest) did that? For the whole week, I spent $11 on 2 lbs of strawberries for our regularly scheduled snackings, about 3 lbs of zucchini (which I will continue to use into next week), and a bag of russet potatoes all at Wegman's near my job. They have much better produce than the podunk Food Lion near my house. Happy eatin!