Winter reads

One of my new year's resolutions is to be more sustainable and keep on workin' on my urban homestead. Well, today I came across this post on Design Sponge that included many inspirational books on sustainability, urban homesteading, and living handmade.


I'm resisting the urge to go out and buy every book on this list (another 5 days 'til payday), though I think this one is a must-buy for a weekend read:

The Urban Homestead: Your Guide to Self-sufficient Living in the Heart of the City
Now, we don't exactly live in the city, which is great because we have a lot of space to work with (read: garden, raise chickens, maybe a goat or two?) This post may have inspired me to put my work gloves on, rotate the compost pile, and start digging this weekend.

Happy Friday to all!

New Year, fresh start!

Wow, it's Wednesday and I'm still recovering from my vacation! I'll do a recap post soon (once the pics are uploaded), but in the meantime, I wanted to talk about my need for a fresh start this year. And by that I mean freshening up our house. As most of you know, we bought our first house in June - we haven't done too much to it on the inside - mostly just fun stuff on the outside. I told myself in June that we would wait for the winter to begin inside projects (since who wants to paint when it's 90 degrees outside)? Anyway, we scored a bunch of great Home Depot gift cards which will be perfect for our inside-the-house projects. First up, I want to paint our bedroom. Something gray and smokey - or maybe green and soothing. I'm not quite sure just yet, but Making it Lovely's bedroom has my style written all over it:


What do you think - dark gray? Or soothing green?

On the 15th day of Christmas...

I'm finally posting pics of our decorated house! First stop - the mantle. I've always wanted a mantle to decorate for the holidays, but in the past have had to do with a make-shift mantle/bookcase. And now, I have one!I've seen so many posts on decorating mantles in different themes (2 of my favorites are here and here), but this year I thought I'd stick with a traditional look (and stick with what I already have on hand to save money). Here's what it looks like (sorry for the crappy cell-phone pics). No matter, it's awesome! It's cozy and lovely and homey. Can't wait for folks to come over for Paul's party this weekend to see it in person.

Hopeful to win...

Go to MyDeco and enter your own mood board in the the "All I want for Christmas contest". You can win $100 to spend in their boutique! I created one last night - things that you might not find in my house, but things that inspire my decor...



We'll see what the judges say :) Fingers crossed!

Who loves Dottie Angel?

I melt when I see anything that Dottie Angel puts together. I wish I could make stuff like her, and I wish our house looked like hers. It's kind of an obsession. A few days ago I was sifting through some of her images and came upon this:


One day, this will be my backyard. Chickens running around, kitties lounging, forest and grass for all to frolic in, and pennants and flowers decorating the porch. A girl can dream, right?

Vintage pillows

I'm kinda in love with these pillows found on Tuuni:


Think I could make them myself? They are such a great idea (and a perfect way to reuse all of the doilies and lace I have around these parts...)

Home

A scene from Soulemama's house
I've always known that I'm a domestic person. I like to sew, bake, garden, cook - use my hands in any way to create something. Now usually, these items don't turn out exactly how I want them to, but that's not the point. The point is that I like creating. Now that we have our own home(!) these domestic urges are like, 10 fold. I want to paint and clean and garden and cook...and..and..and...the list keeps growing, but I don't mind! There's something to be said about investing in something and making it your own. Paul could really care less about the color of our curtains or the fact that we don't have a bed skirt - but he loves his garage and everything in it. It's actually been a struggle for me to focus on my work ("career"), knowing that there are so many exciting things to be created at home. I didn't realize how much this would really change my routine, as now I'm constantly thinking about new recipes, vegetables to can, or how to make my own dish cloths. In my dream world, I would live like SouleMama (who recently moved into a new house, complete with a barn, pigs, and their 4 kids). She gets to create things at home, with her kids and honey around. That simple(r) life sounds pretty great right about now....

Our (soon-to-be) newest additions!

I have mentioned a few times that I've wanted to build a chicken coop and have chickens in our backyard...and that dream is (almost) a reality! I've finally convinced Paul that NOW is the time to get them - originally, we were going to get them next spring. However, it takes them about 6 months to start laying, which would mean we wouldn't have eggs until next fall. If we get them now, they will be laying by spring. Yay! Fresh easter eggs! So, we went to Home Depot, got a plastic tub and heat lamp for the chicks new nest. After a month, they'll go into the coop in the garage for a few months until they've gotten all of their feathers...then they're out to the backyard! I've ordered 1 Buff Orpington and 2 Rhode Island Reds. I really can't wait. I've been doing so much research on Backyardchickens.com, which has been a great resource. I'll post pics as soon as they arrive!

Kitchen prints

Spotted on Design Sponge a few days ago - John Holcomb's state-inspired food prints. Here are a few of my favorites:





I'm really wanting to fancy up our kitchen soon - just a few coats of paint and some new artwork will suffice until we have the funds for new cabinets and flooring. I think these are perfect for that!

Dreaming of Fall

You would never know that fall is here in the Bay Area – for the past 4 days, we’ve had record high temps in the 90’s/100’s! It’s WAY too much for me, since I’m beginning to get in the fall mood. Everything in blog-land is fall inspired – pumpkins, plaid, and comforting. Fall is my favorite season, and to me that means cozy scarves, soup, and cuddling in front of a fireplace (and now we have one!) We’re going to be hosting our first Thanksgiving in our house this year, and I’ve already found a cute tutorial for place cards over at Twig &Thistle. Check them out here!

The difference between house and home...

I really love the stuff that Cox & Cox carries ("the difference between house and home"). There are many unique items that you can't find elsewhere, or can't make yourself. For example, this cute compost bucket for your counter top:



But a button heart? Really? I can make that for 50 cents. 6 british pounds? With shipping, that's like $15! For buttons!



I'm just sayin'. It's cute, but I think I may make my own for the upcoming holiday season....

Wallpaper fetish

Why am I obsessed with wallpaper? I'm not sure what it is about it - Paul is convinced it's 1970's house decor, but I'm convinced it's not. I mean, look at this new collection by Oh Joy for Hygge & West! My favorite is Petal Pusher - Cream and Blue. I can totally see it behind our stainless steel range...

I'm back!

...with no photos of our new house, unfortunately! This past week has been full of red bull & coffee, take out food, lots of brown boxes, and everything MOVING related! I'm happy to report we're fully moved in and STOKED on our new diggs. Can't wait for you all to visit!

And, in true Shannon fashion, I'm heading out of town (...just as soon as I've moved in, I'm gone!) I'm teaching a junior whitewater school on the Green River in Utah. I can't wait! I haven't been to Utah in 3 years, so I'm really looking forward to floating Desolation Canyon.

Tata for now, friends. I promise to return with TONS of pics, both from the house and of my trip. Happy Summer!

It's official: We're moving!

Yay! After a last minute effort that required running-around-like-a-chicken-with-my-head-cut-off, the house is ours! Guess what we're up to this weekend??

Bed Time

The countdown is on - we're moving into our new house in 3 weeks!! (barring any unforeseen circumstances, that is!) We're dedicating this weekend to packing, since we'll be camping the following weekend. All of this excitement is getting me thinking about...REDECORATING! I scored a few awesome things at the Groveland Flea Market this weekend (photos to come soon), but I'm currently swooning over DwellStudio's Target bedding collection. I'm sure it's been around for a while, but I haven't been in the market for new linens. Here are a few I'm considering:

Home update

I'm sure some of you may be anxiously awaiting photos of our "almost" home. "Almost" is the term we've been using around here - Paul doesn't want me to get too attached just yet, in case something doesn't work out and the deal falls through. Unfortunately, that's just not my personality, so I'll continue to daydream about new fixtures, curtains, and couch placement until those keys are in our hands. A girl can dream, right?

Anyway, we didn't get a change to take photos this weekend of the place (too busy with the home inspection...which went well and solidified our decision), though this weekend I might be able to get up there to take a few "real" ones. Here's a somewhat crappy one I took on my phone:


Isn't it so suburban and sweet?

Appliance shopping

What am I doing on this lovely, Friday night?? Appliance shopping. Why, you ask? Because WE GOT THE HOUSE! Yes, my friends, the unbelievable is true - they accepted our offer, we are in escrow, and are 45ish days away from becoming homeowners! Yeah, it all happened a little fast, but in a good way. And now, I'm perusing Craigslist for used stoves. Yes, the previous tenant took all of the appliances. Kind of a pain, but we can make due with used, Craigslist versions for now (that is, until we win the lottery and can remodel the whole place). To be honest, (and knock on wood), the place doesn't need too much work. Which is one of the reasons why we love it. Along with the fact that it's across the street from Paul's best friend (i.e. "husband). Really, we're terribly excited....