Thrifting and Fall Decor: Owls Ahead

Is anyone else ready for fall? I am. I am already drooling over holiday decorations, I even have several holiday/fall related Pinterest boards. : )

This week our Hobby Lobby had 40% off all Fall Decor and I figured I should check that out...

I wound up with only a few things. Several candles (which smell delicious). We love candles. As soon as the temperatures drop our house is alight with candles. I love the warm glow and scent of candles and we have boxes full of them.

Most of our candles sit on trays, so I bought the cute yellow glass owl votive holder. I also got the owl statue. It is meant to be a fall only decoration, but it looks pretty good holding up my James Herriot book, doesn't it?

I also decided to check out a thrift/consignment store we've only been to once. I didn't have anything in mind but figured I'd go check it out.

I've never considered myself a good thrifter. When I used to walk into a Goodwill or thrift store where I used to live I would feel all panicky and gross. They were so unorganized, messy and everything looked seriously used...badly.

The places I've been to in Ohio are so different. They are pretty neat and organized, and there are a few things that look battered but most everything looks like it came from a good home, was loved but just wasn't needed anymore.

With my thrifting odds greatly in my favor, I went over and wound up with stuff!!!

 Christmas tins!! Do you guys put your holiday treats in these kind of tins? I grew up with tins like this and I was telling my mom, that the sound of opening a tin to get a piece of chocolately fudge was part of the holiday experience. Putting goodies in tupperwares just isn't the same. The ugly green one on the left actually has a music box in the lid and plays "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". I think I'll spray paint that one to cover up the ugly green and yellow stuff.

Everything wound up being on sale and when I first went to check out I didn't have enough for the minimum purchase. So I had to go bulk up my finds. At the last minute I spied these awesome owl prints!

It was immediate love! I don't care for the frames, but those are easily replaced or painted. The feel of the prints is so vintage and cool. Plus, they're owls.

Like how Arson totally photo bombed the bottom pic?

I also bought two small milk vases and a reusable bag that says  "Keep Clark County Beautiful". I'm having fun getting ready for the holiday season and loving Ohio thrift stores.

Do you guys go thrifting? Find anything awesome?



WIAW: More Zucchini

I have enjoyed cooking in my kitchen this week more than I ever have! Wanna know why? Because, it's finally painted. Everytime I walk into the kitchen I feel proud that it's done and happy that it looks so pretty. It's also caused me to wash the dishes after every meal (I can't stand the dirty dishes in my pretty kitchen anymore). I used to wash dishes once a day.   Anyway, let me show you what I ate this week!   Breakfast: Egg with half an orange, half a whole wheat English muffin with peanut butter and Chia seeds. Few tomatoes.

Lunch was interesting the other day because I tried a product I didn't think I ever would. Fake sausage! I was in the "fake meat" section the other day grabbing a package of tofu when I saw these Smart Sausages by Lightlife. I was intrigued and figured I'd give it a try. For my almost six months of no meat, I've stayed away from the fake meat products, I didn't see the point. My goal was not to experiment with fake meat, it was to focus on fresh foods, veggies and fruits. But, for some reason, I couldn't resist.

I took a good look at the nutrition label before buying and was surprised at the amount of protein and potassium, and the lack of fat. There is a bit of sodium, this isn't something I'd eat knowing my sodium intake would be high for the day. I tend to leave salt out of everything, even when a recipe calls for it, so having one item a day with a higher sodium content isn't the end of the world for me. But, keep it in mind.

I made mine in a fry pan with just a drizzle of olive oil. I loved it! It browned up beautifully and actually tasted like I was eating sweet Italian sausage. This would be great to bulk up a pasta dish, but I liked it all by itself. With my giant apple, Brie slices and tomatoes.

If you're wondering why I'm eating so many tomatoes, it's because I have to keep up with my plants.

The other day I also decided to experiment and make some zucchini chips. I saw one recipe that had olive oil, salt and pepper. So I tried that (first picture) minus the salt. I also tried a lemon basil (half of second picture) and then a horseradish (other half of second picture).

My favorite were the lemon basil. They turned out the crispiest. The ones with olive oil had a chewier texture. The horseradish ones were just ok.

The two trays made about 2 cups. It was pretty fun to make, and easy. Since I just put them in the dehydrator and let it do all the real work.

While looking for zucchini ideas I saw that the blossoms were edible. ooohhh.

I immediately went out and picked the ones that were there. I should have waited a day or two till they were bigger, but I was too impatient.

I saw a recipe that stuffed them with ricotta. I can do that. I made a ricotta/basil mixture and stuffed those pretty flowers and baked them. Delicious! Not to mention, pretty.

I had a pretty fun week making new food, especially since a lot of it came directly from my backyard.

Hopefully, in a few weeks my big tomatoes will be ripe and I'll be experimenting with making homemade spaghetti sauce for the freezer.

Kitchen Redo is Done!!!

YAY!! My kitchen is done! Well, mostly done. I still need curtains, a rug and more decor. But, the paint brushes are washed and put away and my kitchen no longer looks like a hardware store blew up in it.

Just to remind you how ugly it was before:

For paint I went with a pretty orange, Carrot Stick by Behr, only I color-matched it at Lowe's. Don't hate me Behr. The paint guy put that smiley face there. See why I prefer our Lowe's?

And here is some of the in-between. Painter's tape and all.

Then, voila! The gorgeous results. The picture on the left shows the view looking from the front door.

A while back, I picked up this Flock of Birds from Target for $20. I saw them and couldn't get them out of my head and bought them. I saw the empty corner above our trash can holder and knew that's where I wanted them. They are quite nice, they come with double-sided foam tape. 

And there ya go! A nice, wistful feeling for that corner. 

And just two more of the mostly finished kitchen. The wall by the table will eventually have something, but not sure about that yet. In between the windows we will hang a winerack and Andrew will be making me a small bar. I think it will really look great in the space. 

I never want to take on a painting project by myself again. If Andrew were here, we would have had this done in two-three days. I am glad it's done and I am so happy with it.

Let me know what you guys think. Any suggestions for the giant bare wall behind the table?