Happy weekend!

I've been finding a lot of weird stuff on the street lately.

These pictures don't have anything to do about Memorial Day weekend, but I thought I'd share them with you, because they're pretty funny.

I found an avocado and an onion.  AllI need is a tomato and I can make quacamole!  Just kidding, I didn't keep them.  


This is my wishlist for the weekend.  I hope I can do it all!


See Bridesmaids.


Eat Mexican food.


Go for a bike ride.


See this exhibit at the Met.


Make banana bread.


Maybe the beach?


Have a great weekend!

Better than it looks

I made tortillas from scratch this week and it went a little something like this. *

 

Tortilla recipe from the back of Bob's Red Mill Masa Harina.  Pork taco recipe from here.  It was surprisingly easy and possibly one of the most delicious things I've ever made.  I'm never buying tortillas again!

* I also tried out my new Labelbox app.  Also, highly recommended.

Before & After

Once upon a time, on the Upper, Upper West Side of Manhattan (112th Street, to be exact), I found a chair on the street.  She was a lovely chair.  I painted her green and put her just inside the door to my new sublet so I'd have a place to leave my purse when I came home.

Eight years, five apartments and two paint-jobs later, the poor thing needed to retire.  Someone sat on her last month and she literally collapsed underneath them, much to my humiliation!  Sorry chair, you had a good run, but it's time to go.

Enter the bench.  

I've been thinking about a bench for this space for a few months.  I liked the idea of having a bench for extra seating; two people can sit on him, instead of only one, like my chair.  Also, I thought a bench would look great under my sewing table - something to echo the simple rectangular shape of the the design.  I knew exactly what I wanted, but couldn't find anything in traditional stores (Target, etc.) so I began to scour craigslist.  It took me a while, but I finally got the bench of my dreams from a very nice lady in Midtown who was moving and selling a bunch of stuff.  $40 - not free, but I would hesitate to pick up something upholstered off the street.  I'm not shy about garbage picking, as evidenced here, but I draw the line at fabric/upholstery.  Why, I couldn't tell you.  I just do, okay?

Four coats of paint (yes, really) and a $6 yard of fabric later and I have this:

Ta DAA!  

Not bad, right?  I'm so happy with the result!  The white paint-job really accentuates the shape of the bench and how perfectly it echos my West Elm Parsons desk.  I recently painted that wall Benjamin Moore's Labrador Blue and now everything pops against the color.  I love that I can access the drawers of my desk without having to pull out the chair, which is a bonus I didn't even think about.

Ugh, this shot isn't white-balanced but I wanted to give you a close up.  The blue of the fabric is actually more a teal but it looks very similar to the wall color in the picture.  It's not that match-y in real life.

And here's a wide shot of my office/sewing nook.  I bought that rail and hanging cups from Ikea and it's changed my life.  I love having things (scissors, Sharpies, etc.) out and easy to access but this keeps them up and out of the way - the best of both worlds.

Stay tuned for more Before & After action - coming soon!!