Modern Shed

There is a far corner of my backyard where nothing seems to grow. The douglas firs and our 100 year old big leaf maple demand all of the dirt, nutrient and water resources. I no longer want to compete with or disturb their very deep roots. I love the idea of a structure to fill the space and enjoy our established trees. One of these gorgeous buildings from Modern-Shed would be perfect.
My shed would be warm and cozy, outfitted with electricity for light and heat and perfectly sized for a yoga or reading retreat. If you can't beat them, join them (the trees that is).

Out of the Country

Before:
We had this great bookshelf, solid wood, built-in shelves, lots of great details, but a little too country styled for our liking. A ton of work went into its transformation (due to many refinishing mistakes I made), but with advice from many and grit determination, we transformed the bookshelf to better suit our style.

After:

Recycle

Ceramic Compost Pail, Williams&Sonoma
When it comes to recycling, we live in a great city. It's is made easy by city efforts, it gets done because they make it doable. Curbside recycling has been a way of life in our household for years. Last year the city upped the ante by adding food scrap recycling. Food scraps are collected right from our yard waste bins and are then composted with yard debris. I probably should be making my own compost, recycling scraps in a compost pile. I tried, it didn't work for me. I hated the giant black container, I could never figure out what they were referring to regarding the correct ratio of organic materials. Oh and I could never "stir" it.

Curbside scrap recycling works for our family, it has reduced our trash by 30-40%. We are now used to throwing scraps in our container, not in the trash or garbage disposal. Recycling this way has a huge impact on our environment, it is simple and practically free. (Though not necessary, I purchase the biodegradable bags -$4 for 25 bags, the process is less messy with the bags).

Most cities have or will be implementing mandatory scrap recycling laws. San Francisco boasts a self-imposed goal of a 75 percent recycling rate in 2010, with zero waste by 2020! Be wise about waste and join in now.

Great Gray

This sofa from Jayson Home and Garden is the inspiration color for my living room sofa slipcover.  It would be easier to find white cotton twill, but I am holding out, hoping to find a silvery, blue gray cotton twill somewhere, somehow. 

Product Review - Coffee

I do love my morning coffee.  And while I acquire many pantry staples from Trader Joes, on a recent nudge from my mom, I purchased their French Roast coffee.  $9.99 for 26oz., it comes whole bean, dark, rich and smelling just the way great coffee should smell.  The canister is colorful but I just had to transfer the beans to my flea market find jar.

Another coffee rave review is for SLO Roasted Coffee out of San Luis Obispo, CA.  I have been a fan of their coffee since the late 90's.  For my dads' 70th birthday, my siblings and I pooled our funds for coffee for a year.  He enjoyed a pound of coffee/month.  Teds' top picks:

• Scottish Toffee
• Carmel Caramel
• Morning Fog Lifter

I find their coffees well worth the price and will usually order at least 3lbs. to make shipping costs worthwhile.  The best part of waking up is definitely a delicious cup of coffee.

JOY Bag

My "use what you have" motto went into effect with leftover slipcover material this Christmas.  Now I know it is a little late, but I think this project would be great for any gift giving.  I was inspired to post this craft after my mom mentioned the 29 Day Gift Challenge.   Hmmm, Valentine's Day will be here before you know it...L O V E bags maybe?

Lovin' Slipcovers

Lovely cat Zoe shredded our Ethan Allen chaise for years.  I couldn't part with the chaise, I love the curves of the roll back and the legs.  With about 6 yards of white cotton twill, cotton twill piping (pre-made from fabric store) and 2 days of sewing, I was able to transform the chaise back to a respectable state.  Zoe still loves it but only for lounging on, no longer as a nail filer. For some reason, once I slipcover a piece of furniture, she will leave it alone.  I guess the looseness of the fabric is no longer appealing for her cat scratching needs.

Although I did not document the slipcover making procedure, I do have the following tips:

• Choose a fabric that is easy to work with, preferably without patterns that need lining up
• Buy more fabric than you need.  If you run out, you may not be able to find more from the same dye lot.  Even with white twill, there can be a difference in shades
• Choose a fabric where you can find pre-made matching piping, piping is a must for a finished look, though not difficult, it is time consuming to make matching piping
• Prewash and dry fabric
• I don't make patterns, I just start with the biggest section of the furniture piece and pin and sew from there
• Use velcro for the cushion covers
• Go to your local library, search "slipcovers" in books for step by step instructions
• Just get started, if you are able to make pillows, you can make a slipcover for any piece of furniture

My next slipcover project will be the large sofa in the living room.  I promise to better document the steps with photos.  Now I just have to find the right fabric and lots of it!