2012 mini-recap and Happy New Year!

I did my Favourite Five project post yesterday, and while I was looking through the blog files I found my goals for 2012:

A few of my home goals for 2012 are:
1. Furnish / design my living room. I need curtains, more furniture, and a new layout.
2. Finish our kitchen makeover with new counters and everything that goes with them (sink, backsplash, etc.).
3. Get A/C installed (this one is really the Mr's goal...I didn't post about our new boiler, so I'll definitely have to post about A/C when we get it. ha!)

It probably doesn't help that I forgot that I set these out, but here's our progress:
1. Living Room - still needs some work, but we did buy and hang curtains, got a new couch, and found a chair that is currently being reupholstered! Coffee table has been extended into 2013... :)

2. Kitchen makeover is DONE!! See the full reveal here.
3. A/C is INSTALLED! And with our super hot summer this year it was great timing.

Now to think of some 2013 goals...until then, have a lovely New Year's Eve whether you are hitting the town, or hitting the couch :)

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Friday faves - my fave five projects of 2012

I have been visiting, lounging, EATING, and all around taking in the holidays this year. The Mr. and I are currently on a little getaway enjoying some extra holiday time, but new year's is coming up which means it's almost countdown time! Amongst the million countdowns there are this time of year I am counting down my five favourite projects of the year. Speaking of countdowns...remember sitting by your tape recorder to tape  favourite songs from the RADIO every new year's eve?? ohhh life before iTunes.

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Here are my fave five for 2012:


Kitchen Reveal - we were SO excited to get this project done, and are loving every little bit of it. We are currently working on a little extra project for this space (to be revealed in 2013).

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DIY Doormat - this was a fun and easy project, with a lot of impact. Hard to believe I did it almost a year ago!

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Cast-iron pan makeover - This was the Mr's project through and through - super rewarding to get an old cast iron pan from an antique market and fix it up! (we use it ALL the time).

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DIY cakestand - what do you get when you stick a bowl to a plate? This...

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 Curb-find stool make over - these were a great and free find...add some spray paint and cushions and voila!

There were many other fun projects over the year, and I'm sure many more to come in 2013!

Holiday wishes {all wrapped up}

I hope you are all getting ready for the big Christmas hoorah! It is litterally around the corner - stop shopping, stop wrapping, and sit back (maybe have a drink or two).

I'm already enjoying my break...I'm fortunate enough to have an office closure until January (such a good thing) so I am trying to really sink into holiday mode. I figured I should do one last post that includes this year's wrapping. Here are some shots:

 

And...I'm in for a white Christmas...

From me to you, have a happy, healthy and loving holiday season! 

My Christmas tradition

I'm over at Recreated today sharing my favourite Christmas tradition...hint...it has something to do with my tree:

Pop over and check it out!

Weekend recap {mini-Christmas}

Hellllloooo long lost friends! Thought I would give a little weekend recap to get back into the swing of things on the blog...this past Sunday was "mini-Christmas" for me and the Mr. It's a way for us to celebrate Christmas on our own, since we typically spend actual Christmas with our families. In the past we have said that mini-Christmas day is NO chores, NO work NO projects. Welllll it didn't quite go like that this year, but we haven't had a project in a while so it was basically a "gift" for the Mr. to work on a project (or at least that's what I like to think...). Before we get to the details, let's talk food...

We had Green Eggs and Ham for breakfast

and Beef Wellington with roasted leeks and brussels sprouts for dinner (so good).

I will share some of my Christmas wrapping later in the week...but for now onto the project!

A couple of weeks ago we bought an over the range microwave - we are so DONE with not having a hood fan. When we did the kitchen we toyed with putting in a hood fan, but our microwave is currently above the stove...so where would it go? It would have to take up valuable counterspace which wasn't really an option. So a microwave/fan combo was it. Well, those things have plugs that come out the top (instead of out the back), and they need a cabinet above them to be secured into the wall. Enter, project. The Mr. and his friend figured out a plan to get a new electrical wire up into the kitchen, which was then used for a new outlet above where the microwave will be hung.

Now we just wait for the electrical to be hooked up at the panel, and for the actual install to happen!

That was our delicious and busy weekend (although, more busy on the Mr's side than mine)...how was yours?

Book Review - Long Way Down

Today is book review day! Just like I said in my last book post (errr...my last post...sorry it's been super busy over here) make sure to head on over to the Design Pages for Carol's review...I'll be adding mine to the comments section!

Book club reminder - get reading!

A reminder that on Monday December 17th, Carol at the Design Pages will be reviewing our most recent book:

Funny story...I initially chose this book based on a friend's recommendation...but then I looked back in my iPhone notes and she actually recommended a DIFFERENT book with a similar title. woops.

Long story short, I read this, and liked it (gasp!) - you should too. See you on the 17th for the review!

Holiday party DIY's

Yesterday I gave a peak at the Christmas party we hosted, and as promised today I will share some of the simple DIYs that we did.

Epsom salt candles
I saw these on pinterest and knew that I would be making them for our party. I have a collection of mason jars in the basement that the Mr is always encouraging me to use (ok, encourage is my word. His word may be "recycle"). How could I get rid of them when I know Pinterest is chock full of ideas? This one is super simple - put Epsom salt in the mason jar as your base, push a candle into it, and voila - candles in snow.

Bunting flags
This one is really easy and maybe teetering on overdone, but I like the cheery look of bunting flags. For these I used old scraps of wrapping paper (those ones I always keep just in case I find a present that needs a 2"x2" piece of wrapping paper - riiiight). Bunting flags are a much easier way to use up the odds and ends. I cut them into triangles and some pinking-sheared rectangles, punched two holes in the top and the laced white yarn through. Although I have different shapes and different patterns I made sure to keep everything white and red to carry a simple two colour theme.

Gold pine cones & nuts
These are leftovers from my wedding three years ago (do you get the message that I like to re-use??). I took pinecones and walnuts and spray painted them gold for some glitz. I put some in vases to complete my table runner centrepiece.

Wreath
I bought a fresh wreath from Home Depot and planned to Zhush it up. Unfortunately the last few weeks have got away from me, but I did manage to snip some berry branches from my front garden (it looks exactly like holly). Not a huge change, but it looks a bit more festive!

And finally the food. I baked a couple of weeks ago and put the cookies in the freezer until this weekend. Then I made a few recipes to round out the table including pistachio covered truffles (my new favourite) and mini pizzetas with caramelized onions and mushrooms.

 

The food was a hit, and I now have a new love for pistachios. What's your favourite new recipe for the season?

Holiday kick-off

I hope you are all in the holiday spirit now that it's December! The Mr and I hosted our annual Christmas Open House on Saturday. It seemed early when we sent the invite, but now that it has come and gone, the timing was perfect. It meant I had to get my butt in gear with baking, house decorations and the tree! Fortunately the Mr. was insistent that the tree was up in time for the party, so we had the full nine yards.

I will cover some of the DIY details tomorrow, but for now here are some photos to give a quick recap!

About 25 adults, 4 children under the age of 2 1/2, one visiting dog, and a partridge in a pear tree took part. Here come the holidays!