Yarn shopping plans and a kitchen update

So the dishwasher and garbage disposal or in BUT the dishwasher was plugged into the same line as the garbage disposal and, therefore, the dishwasher cannot be run unless the disposal is on, too.  It will be fixed very soon, I am assured.  So today I had to do a HUGE load of dishes by hand.  I also have been engulfed in moving around everything in the kitchen since I lost a large cabinet and drawer and have to find a place to put all of the displaced bowls and mixing spoons.  The kitchen is still a bit typhoonish, so no picture yet.

I also was given the green light to go YARN SHOPPING(!) Hubs is letting me go buy expensive yarn store yarn for a few Christmas presents.  I am so excited!  I have a randomly striped scarf, ssimple pattern, in grey tones and a Jacques Cousteau hat in mind (but not in red, probably also in a coal or slate grey), but I can't say for whom.  I think I'm going to use Brown Sheep Company yarn, but of course I will have to check out all of my options!  I'm also involved in another project that I can't say a thing about but you can get details on Ravelry (I'm droppedstitches72, feel free to friend me!).  Will post some photos of YARN after I go shopping!

What are you knitting right now?  I'd love to know!

Joss and Main

I'm so excited to share Joss & Main with you! It's a new site by CSN, and as you all know, I love CSN for it's quality items and incredible service (and the fact that they sponsor giveaways here is pretty sweet, too). I've ordered from them, returned items, spoken with customer service, and have nothing but good things to say about my experiences.

Joss and Main offers luxury home goods at deeply discounted prices (up to 70% off). Sales only last 72 hours, but new sales are added daily, so there's plenty of merchandise available. In the coming week, eye accessories by Trina Turk, sustainable kitchenware by Totally Bamboo, and Fresh Topiary will be featured, among other things. And right now, Noritake is offering 32 piece place settings for $299 (these regularly sell for around $1250, so if you've always wanted some Noritake, it would be a great time to buy it!). And I discovered Kahla, a cool German porcelain range, with pieces starting at $39.95.

The "Abra Cadabra All White Set" by Kahla, $39.95 (I Love this!)

This elegant floor lamp by Robert Abbey is $79.95. How many times can I say "I love this" before it gets old?

Sign-up is quick, easy, and free (although you should know that it is by invitation only, so click on one of the links here and you'll be in like Flynn). There is no obligation to buy a thing; window shopping is allowed and encouraged. So check out Joss and Main and dream over life's little luxuries.

What I've Been Up To (aka I'm Not Dead)

1. I've been doing a tremendous amount of knitting. I never learned how to hold the yarn correctly and I throw the yarn with my thumb and index finger Continental style which has resulted in a monster case of tendonitis in my left pinkie finger. I have just convinced myself tonight that (a) I need to hold the yarn correctly and (b) I must go on a restorative yarn hiatus. Oh, and typing hurts, too, but I had to post!

source

2. I've been tackling the former dining room, then Collin's room, with totally destroyed carpeting and really bad walls room. The carpet has been torn up except for a little patch of 50 year old berber (which will come up tomorrow) that was under a bunch of furniture. The carpet pad disintegrates when pulled up, which makes for a lovely mess, but the carpet has long needed to come up. Bye Bye Berber!

The last little pathetically nasty piece of berber carpeting

I've painted the walls a lovely robin's egg blue (which I am proud to say that I mixed myself using left over paint and those little paint samples to tint what I already had).

OH, and I NEVER thought I would do this, as I'm all about maintaining the original beauty of a vintage house, but I painted the paneling in the room (I'm still sort of gasping as I type this, even though I LOVE the way it came out).

Here's the paneling in the living room for some comparison.

It's dated and dark, and painting it white brightened up the room so much it was totally unbelievable, but the paneling is also this gorgeous knotty pine. Really pretty; it makes people sort of gasp when they see it because you rarely see paneling of this quality in houses anymore. But I bit the bullet and painted over it in the dining room.

I still have to paint the floor, find a new ceiling fixture (there's a groovy one at Ikea that I like, but our nearest Ikea is 100 miles away (Ikea, why haven't you placed a store in Columbus, OH? Oh, and would delivery kill you?)) And I have an idea for floor pillows that are made crazy quilt style using old sweaters that I steak and sew together and then do one of those cool embroidery stitches on, but I'll do those after I get the room done. Hmmm, so I think that's about it. That's the news, Walter Kronkite!

The great room re-do

So I'm going to be redesigning our dining room which was Collin's bedroom into a bedroom for William. Will is old enough that I looked at bed sets for his room that would be something he can use forever. So I browsed bedroomfurniture.com for inspiration and found a few amazing bed sets to share with you.

The Curt Christian Designs Parker Beacon Hills Sleigh Bedroom Set is So Nice! Nice enough that I think it would become mommy and daddy's bed and Will would get a hand-me-down bed! $2,684.00

I've always liked the idea of a platform bed - they are clean, usually come with built in storage, and the South Shore Copley Platform Queen Size Platform Bedroom Set with Two Storage Drawers also comes with a reasonable price tag to match - $354.98 for the queen bed and nightstand.

The classic metal bedstead will never go out of style. The American Drew Ashby Park Dark Copper Bedroom Set has a very classic line, isn't frilly like some metal beds, and comes in a nice copper finish. $997.50

The Arts and Crafts style will never lose its appeal and can really fit in with any decor (I think it'd look swell in my Mid-Century Modern abode). At $698.00, the Tradewins Arts and Crafts Bedroom Set in Chestnut is a moderately inexpensive and handsome bed which would be masculine enough when my baby becomes a bachelor (not too soon, please - stay 3 for lots longer!)

I'm hoping to do something along the French sleigh bed line - this is after I pull up the carpet, finish the subfloor, repaint, which shouldn't take any time at all, you know?! Will keep you updated with the progress of the great room re-do!

Dining Room Dreaming

So you all know that I am perennially redesigning my house in my mind. Recently I've gotten back to what I'd like to do with the dining room when Collin moves out of it and it can be a dining room again. This time, I've been looking at Kitchen Tables that would fit into my eclectic, sort of vintage, especially Mid-Century Modern decorating scheme.

The Modus Hudson X-Base Dining Table fits into that whole groovy Mid-Century Modern scheme. I absolutely love the styling of it, although it may be a bit Too modern for my tastes.

The way I usually go with a dining room table is something well made, expandable (this one has a butterfly leaf), with a Shaker Style. This way the dining room table doesn't dominate the room and the focus can be on an amazing sideboard or piece of art. The Hillsdale Plainview Dining Table in Brown totally fits the bill.

I had to include this table because it is so elegant. Can you imagine having a candlelit dinner at this gorgeous piece of furniture? Unfortunately for this family, we need a larger table. Last Thanksgiving there were 10 of us, and I don't even have grandchildren yet! When I get my mansion with multiple dining areas, I'll definitely have to have the Hooker Furniture Linden Hill Round Dining Table.

And then I found it. The perfect amalgam of vintage look that is simple enough to fit into my MOM home and is just, well, beautiful (I must warn you, it has a beautiful price tag to match). I am telling you, the heavens opened and the angels sang to me when I saw the Stanley Hudson Street Warm Cocoa Riverside Oval Dining Table. Then I showed it to my daughter, who said "It looks like a table. I don't get it." Well, dear daughter, you don't have to get it. I am in love.

All of this goodness can be found on CSN, from whom I've always gotten great service and have become a loyal shopper. In about a week I will have a product to review for you (not sure what the product will be at this point, but am excited nonetheless). If you haven't shopped CSN, go and have a look around. They've got some wonderful things.

I'm thinking about . . . Lighting!

I love table lamps. And I love CSN. So, just for a little window shopping and to use my interior decorating skills, I looked for some lovely table lamps for a few popular interiors.

French Country

Isn't this bedroom gorgeous? And I love the French Country Rabbit Lamp ($125.40) - very whimsical, but understated. It would be perfect for the bedside table. Or if you are one for something with more polish and sophistication, this Alabaster Lamp ($143.91) is just the thing.

Romantic Decor

*Swoon* over this beautiful, shabby living room. Am also swooning over the Sabrina Accent Table Lamp in blue ($137.30) and the Minka Ambience Romance Small Table Lamp ($89.91).

Scandinavian Design

I've waxed poetic about Scandinavian design before; this room is amazing. The Robert Abbey Double Gourd Table Lamp in baby blue ($207.70) picks up on the classic blue of Gustavian design; for a more contemporary take, the Andre Glass Cylinder Table Lamp ($162.20) is a beautiful choice.

Classic Decor





The Kenroy Home 31" Spyglass Table Lamp ($104.40) will create a stylish statement on any side table; this Deco Steel and Wood Table Lamp ($152.90) is elegant yet understated.

Enter my children's music cd Giveaway here

Giveaway and Dining Room Dreaming

Currently, our dining room is our middle son's bedroom. It hurt to give up that room. We actually used it, sat down as a family to eat Sunday meals, did the whole Norman Rockwell thing.

I've been fantasizing about decorating the room when we get it back. Pale yellow walls, my grandparent's secretary, and a few pieces of carefully chosen dining room furniture.

So I got myself over to CSN's Dining Room and found a few items that I could stand to live with!

I've always wanted an Oriental Sideboard. The Ming Dynasty Sideboard is a thing of beauty, understated, yet oriental in feel, and that great Oriental red mahogany color.

We need new chairs. Our table has two leaves and can seat 8, but the chairs are loose, squeaky, and I'm sure they are going to break out from underneath us any day now. I love the glamorous styling of the Woodbridge Home Designs 5312 Series Side Chair, and the color would match my existing antique table well.

And I found something for my kitchen. Remember, my kitchen is vintage, pink, and aluminum. And it is really large. With the table out of the center of the kitchen, I'll be able to place an island, something I've wanted since I moved into this house almost 10 years ago. I am totally in love with the John Boos American Heritage Grazzi Butcher Block Kitchen Island. I could just marry it.

CSN has more than 200 stores selling everything from pet accessories to bath towels, furniture to light fixtures. And right now they are giving away a $40 gift card through my site!

There are several ways to enter the giveaway:
1) Leave me a comment below about the giveaway.
2] Follow me - if you already follow, this counts, too - and let me know about it in a separate comment.
2) Post something about this giveaway on your blog and let me know in another comment.
3) Post about the giveaway on Twitter (I'm erinswallace on Twitter) and let me know in another comment

I'll be determining the winner by random number generator next Thursday, June 30, at noon. Good luck!

Custom Imperial

I live in a brick ranch built in 1968. Since the day that casa Wallace was born, nothing has been changed in it. Sure, it's gotten some paint and repairs, but the kitchen, bathrooms, built-ins, everything is pure 1968. I know from HGTV that my first act upon moving into the house should have been gutting and remodeling the house - but I bought it because of the time capsule charm. I love my yellow tub.

I've written about my super cool kitchen before. Now that I have a photography class under my belt, I thought I'd share some better pictures of my fab cooking space.

More Bloggy Goodness

292 posts! That's what I had to catch up on just from missing 2 days on my Google Reader! There are so many good blogs out there; here's a few that I love.

Meet Me At Mikes, a lovely, crafty site by Pip.

Bloom, which everyone loves. Camilla also publishes Montana Mornings with her friend, Sarah, and she's hosting a photo workshop that is FREE! I'm all in and so excited!

Gabrielle of Design Mom and Michelle of Pretty Mommy will keep you looking fashionable. Gabrielle also does posts on birth stories; she is currently expecting.

For the Francophile in you there is Paris Breakfasts and Lunch in Paris.

There are some absolutely beautiful Scandinavian blogs (two of which I can't read but are beautiful to look at). You must read Emmelines Blogg, Kay Loves Vintage, Cloudberry Knit, Ulrika Kullenburg, and mi-rachel.

And finally, for now, I want to mention a newish blog that is short, sweet, and looks at life's moments of Every Day Joy. She doesn't have a huge readership. Drop by and leave her a comment. You'll make her day!

I haven't really even mentioned all of the yarn blogs that I read (they are listed in my blog roll). You can't go wrong with any one of them.

All of these great pictures came up on We Heart It when I typed in "blog."