NumberNineteen

Ballard Design Cord Cover Knock Off Tutorial

source: Ballard Designs

I have a little lamp in our kitchen that has a cord that hangs down off the side of the counter.  That cord has always irritated me.  Then, I saw Ballard Design's cord covers.  What an elegant solution!  However, $25-$35 seemed a bit steep to me.  I pulled out some fabric leftover from the living room curtains & whipped up a cord cover that I think looks very much like the Ballard version!

It was super easy too.  Here is what you do:

Measure the circumference of the plug at it's widest point, as well as the length of the cord.  Cut out a long piece of fabric that is about double the length of the cord and about 1/4 inch wider than the circumference of the plug.  Pin a hem on each short end of the fabric & sew.

Fold the fabric in half longways & pin.  Sew a 1/4 inch seam down the side.

Take one end & turn the tube right side out.  It's not hard, but takes awhile, so you might want to watch TV while doing this.

Pull the cover over the cord, scrunching up the fabric to give it a gathered look.  Ta Da!  You now have a Ballard Design look alike for practically free!

Menu Planning

sources: southern living, savorysweet life, skinnytaste

Getting hungry?  So was I.  I've been really bored with cooking and what we've been eating recently. Last year was so busy with the move & starting school that I really slid into a cooking rut. 

Recently I realised that I love the feeling of coming up with a really good dinner. I feel so satisfied when we sit down together and I've put together a table full of goodness. It's like a little celebration on a regular night.

Taking time to plan a menu has really helped me get creative and devise great meals.  I've been trying a lot of new recipes as well.  Some are great, some won't get a second go-around. 

I'm sharing my menu for the current two weeks -- it helps keep me organized and maybe you'll take away a few ideas!

Chicken Marsala with Mashed Potatoes and  Sauteed Brussel Sprouts with Shallots

Spaghetti with Marinara Sauce, Steamed Broccoli and Baked Mozzarella Sticks

Ginger-Cilantro Pork Chops, Wild Rice and Squash and Chive Pancakes

Ham & Bean Soup and Salad with Dried Cranberries, Walnuts, Shaved Parmesan and Poppy Seed Dressing

Honey Spiced Glazed Chicken, Balsamic Asparagus and Buttered Noodles

Herb and Potato Chip Crusted Beef Tenderloin, Brussel Sprouts Braised in Butter and Orzo

My friend Cindy told me how to make balsamic asparagus and it is now one of my favorite ways to prepare asparagus.  And, it's so easy!

Balsamic Asparagus

1 pound asparagus

1 T. balsamic vinegar

kosher salt

olive oil (about 1 teaspoon)

Cut the asparagus into 2 inch pieces and place in a skillet that has been sprayed with olive oil (or about 1 teaspoon oil).  Sprinkle on balsamic vinegar and salt to taste.  Saute on medium for about 5 minutes or until asparagus is crisp but can be pierced easily with a fork. 

You can also make this on the grill by leaving the asparagus stems whole and tossing them with the vinegar & salt before grilling.

The Weekend That Was

I'm getting back to work after spending long weekend with Hope & Glenn.  We'd hoped that we would finally get snow this weekend, but the storm passed us by, again.  So, we had to think of other fun activities in lieu of sledding and snowball fights.

Hope has been a voracious reader for the past few months, so on Saturday we went to both the library & a used bookstore to load up on her favorite series, The Rainbow Fairies.  She lined them all up on a chair & dug right in.  On Monday, she declared that she wanted to build a library, so I helped her construct a "bookshelf" out of a cardboard box. She issued Glenn & I library cards and started calling herself "The Junior Librarian". She "checked out" our books by "scanning the barcodes" (complete with a beeping sound) & informed us of the due dates. I swear, I did not suggest any of this to her.

On Sunday, I took her over to the pool for her lessons.  She has really improved in swimming since we went to the pool so often last summer. Almost every day, she tells me that she can't wait until the summer, when she can go back to the pool.  As far as lessons go, I'm hoping that she will finally get the hang of it soon & we can be done with them.  But, whatever it takes.

On Sunday, I spent a few hours sewing new pillow covers for the family room.  I'm loving the crimson & polka dots. In the evening, I watched the season finale of Downton Abbey. Every Sunday night since the beginning of the year, I've sat in front of the fire with a candle burning & escaped to Edwardian England.  What shall I do until Season 3 starts?  Thank goodness Mad Men will be starting in just a month!

Girl's Night Out Book Exchange Party

It's been a busy week so far, with Valentine's Day on Tuesday, Hope's picture day on Wednesday, two grad school projects and volunteering.  It's good, though.  It's so wonderful to see Hope so excited about holidays and creating memories that I know that she will have for a lifetime.

Last weekend, I hosted a girl's night out book exchange at my house.  Everyone brought a few books or magazines that they no longer wanted and everyone got to take a few home.  I provided a buffett of mini desserts (so that everyone could try a bit of everything!) and a coffee and cocoa bar with a variety of add-ins. As a favor, I made up simple bookmarks with an image of a Victorian woman reading. 

The best part was being able to share time with my girlfriends without the obligation of children or distraction of spouses/boyfriends.  We laughed so hard and everyone agreed that we need to have more girls nights.

Valentine's Day

A Valentine's suprise was awaiting Hope at breakfast this morning.  Red & pink place setting, a bucket full of her favorite candies, a handmade card & a heart balloon. 

I think that she was more excited to find it than she was on Christmas morning.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Decoupage Plates & My Bedroom Inspiration

I've been admiring decoupage plates on walls and as accents for years in magazines.  I love the mix of images and patterns under the glass.

When I found napkins (believe it or not) with these adorable birds a few days ago I thought that I'd give decoupage a try.  It was easier than I'd imagined and I'm loving the plates in our bedroom.

I've been sort of stuck as to what to do in our bedroom. We stayed with the same color as we had in the old house, Rejuevenate by Behr, as I find it to be so pretty and calm.  Short of that (and that we are keeping the same furniture), I've been uninspired.  Recently when perusing blogs, I found this bedroom:


This beautiful room is from the blog Nine & Sixteen.  I just love the feel of it -- elegant but not stuffy.  I'd love to find fabric similar to the wallpaper (the manufacturer unfortunately does not make a matching fabric, so I'll have to keep looking) for our curtains. It would look so crisp against the green walls, don't you think?

I've got several ideas that I'm going to work on to help me move closer to the feel of that room. Of course, I'll be sharing them right here!

Valentines for Insomniacs

Yesterday morning, I woke up at 5 and couldn't get back to sleep. I came downstairs to find that Hope was also up and couldn't sleep!  Since we had all of the supplies on hand, I suggested that we go ahead and make her school Valentines.

Please excuse the flash -- there wasn't much in the way of natural light at that time of morning/night.

This is the first time that we've made Valentines instead of buying ready made and it was really fun.  I cut out hearts from the patterned paper while Hope glued and went nuts with stickers. Here she is with the finished product, after the sun came up:

At first, I wasn't too thrilled to not be able to sleep, but it turned out nicely, being able to spend time with Hope with nothing us else to distract us. I find that crafting with her is one of our best times together.