3 Fun IKEA Finds For Under $5

Whatever your feelings on IKEA furniture, you have to admit there are some things that IKEA does really well.
I was there this week in search of turquoise crib sheets (tip from a reader--thanks )  Alas, there were none.  Why, oh why, must every crib sheet be pastel?  Some babies mamas like bright colors.
Anyway.


I found 3 other things that I wasn't looking for, but since they were all well under $5, I sprang for them.  Check it out.


#1. Textiles.  IKEA textiles are amazing.  Have you ever visited their fabric department?  Do.  Soon.  And then learn how to sew because you'll need to do something with all the fabric you just bought.
I found these burp cloths in the children/baby section.

I love that they are NOT pastel.  And I think they could be used for so many other things besides burp cloths.  The red striped one looks great in the kitchen.

 And the one with the animals looks great hanging from a crib.

I actually think these are really big for burp cloths.  I would cut them in half and hem them for burp cloth use.  But you could also sew them up into pillows or hang them from clips for a no sew curtain.  Which I think I might just be doing in my laundry room.  Just thought of that and am now stoked!

Here Lilly demonstrates how big these cloths are.  

$3.99 for 3.  You can't beat it.

#2.  Popsicle Molds.  We love home made popsicles around here.  I think I wrote 5 posts on them last summer.  
I just saw this recipe in the June issue of Bon Appetite and it made me love home made popsicles all the more.  
I can't wait to try that recipe.  And you can even use frozen peaches.  Easier=Better.
(by the way, have you seen the new Bon Appetite?  love love LOVE it!  a post about it is due, I think)
We only have one set of popsicle molds and on a hot day, 6 popsicles might only last the day.
So I bought a few more.

These are a seasonal item so stock up now if you want them.
They are also not that big, so again, my kids could easily down 2 on a hot afternoon.

I think I'm going back and buying about 5 more sets before they are gone.

$1.49 for a set of 6.  Awesome!

#3  Paper napkins.  Do you ever look at the paper napkins at IKEA?  There are some pretty great designs.
Every time I see a new print I love, I buy a couple packs to have on hand for my next party.
I saw these and fell in love.

I thought they would be perfect for the baby's corner. (we don't have room for the baby to have a nursery, so the baby starts off with a corner of our room.  then he moves to a corner of the room he will share with his brothers and sister.  or she will share.  we'll see)
I immediately made plans to photocopy the napkin and use it as art of some sort for the baby.
When I got home and opened the napkins up, I discovered they are even cooler than I first thought.

I like a splash of red in every room, so these are just about perfect.
And, no surprise, planning on making baby a little garland, for over the crib and now I know just the paper that will be used in that project.
IKEA, even though your dressers fall apart and you have no turquoise crib sheets, I just can't stay mad at you.  You are doing me right tonight.

 $2.49 for a 30 pack.  Fantastic!

Wishing you a wonderful, relaxing 3 day weekend.

I have high hopes of getting baby's corner done FOR REAL this weekend.  

Which would be good since baby could be arriving any day.

I also have high hopes of eating lots of good fruit from the farmer's market and doing some grilling--not on a vintage grill, but grilling none the less.

Hope you get to do some things you love.

See you soon.

Love  from,

Greta

PS.  Don't forget to vote for my other blog, Lilly and the Brothers.  If you are a fan, please go here to vote.  Thank you so much!

A Custom Built Trellis for the Blackberries

On Monday, I wrote about getting fruit and veggies from the Farmer's Market.

I really love going to the Farmer's Market.  It's a highlight of my week.  

There are enough around here that in the summer I sometimes go twice a week.

One of my favorite vacation destinations is a favorite in part because it has one of the best Farmer's Markets ever.  (SLO town, see here)

But you know what is even better than fruit and veggies from the Farmer's Market?

Fruit and veggies from your own yard.

The avocado tree in our backyard was one of the major selling points for us when we bought this house.

I am not exaggerating.  Way, way up there on the list.

And if you tasted one of our avocados, you'd know why.

They are like no avocado you can buy at the store.  

Not picked while still hard as a rock, rolled around in the back of a truck and then a box and shipped north from Mexico or Chili, right to your table.

Our avocados ripen on the tree until they fall, with a thud, to the ground.

We fight with the possums and raccoons to get them and when I see a half eaten avocado on the ground in the morning, it's the only time in my life that I really think about buying a gun.

Just kidding.

Kinda.

I have avocado on toast for breakfast every morning when it's avo season.

And our oranges.  

Let me just say that, picking an orange that is still chilled from the night air, peeling it open over the sink, and inhaling the sweet, clean fragrance that fills the kitchen is one of life's greatest pleasures.

Clearly, having access to homegrown fruit and vegetables can be addicting.

So it was high time we did something about the blackberries.

We have a sad, neglected blackberry vine struggling to grow in a shady corner of our yard, under the orange trees.

Last year it produced a handful of big, juicy blackberries, tempting our tummies and leaving us longing for more.  So this year we (aaron actually) took action.

In a former life, this long wall was covered with blackberry vines.

I don't know why they were taken down, but we decided to resurrect the vines and hang something along the wall for the vines to climb on.  They'd be exposed to lots of sun and warmth from the brick wall.
A while back, Aaron and his helpers covered the cinder block wall with stucco.  (see here)
Next, he painted it a clean, crisp, beautiful white.
Then it was ready for trellises.


Which, of course, he had to build himself.

After visiting the box stores, he came home with lumber and paint and set to work.
Ready made trellises were not attractive, expensive and just not exactly what he wanted, he explained. 
(of course the time he spent designing, painting and building was not factored into the $ equation, but it never really is when you are doing it yourself)


So he found some wood originally intended for fence pickets, painted it, cut it down with his table saw, nailed them together in the exact size and design he wanted and voila!

Girls, when you're looking for a man, finding one who can use tools should not be low on your list of important qualities.  I'm just sayin.
Besides, who doesn't love a man wearing safety eye glasses?  It's so hot!

This is the dark, damp corner where our vine originates.  
Aaron took town the remnants of the old, rotting trellis and put in a new one.
(can't WAIT to get our neighbor's garage wall painted white like the rest of the walls around our house)
It required a masonry drill bit to get into that cinder block.

And then, around the corner, along the sunny side of the wall, he hung another trellis.
It's the first of 5?  Maybe 6?  It's a long wall.
I like the way he used the small pieces of wood to set the trellis out from the wall.
That way the vine can grow all around the trellis.
Which it already is.

Within a week of having more sunlight, there were more blossoms, 

And even more berries!

But my favorite part of the new trellises is the view I have of them from my kitchen window.

I look out when I am standing there washing dishes, or preparing food and smile to see my husband's handy work and the vines that are already covering it.

It hasn't even been a month, and already there is so much new growth on the vines as they push forward, wanting to cover our walls and grow us lots and lots of blackberries.

This summer we might still only have enough berries for a cobbler or 2.

But by next year, well, I have big dreams.

Who's ready for jam?

Love from,

Greta

PS.  You can still vote for my other blog right here.  I so appreciate your support.  And I'm closing in on 100, so keep it up.  You can vote every day until June 8th.  Thank you so much.

Outdoor Cooking and Vintage Grills

It's almost Memorial Day and the start of the official outdoor cooking season.

Grilling has been on my mind because our faithful gas grill bit the dust last summer and we've been without for a long time. 

I miss it dearly.

I do not intend to go another summer without a grill.

When the neighbors fire up their grills and the aroma of grilled meat wafts into our yard it is torturous.

So I've been thinking of a replacement.

You know, the usual, ugly, boring gas grills as seen at Sears, Lowes, Target and the like.

But then I saw this.

I love that beach picnic.
I love grilling at the beach,
I LOVE THAT TURQUOISE GRILL.


I found the spread in this book.

I picked it up at a thrift store for a dime.
I loved the 60s colors and layouts.
And the little details like this logo:

Also, there are always things that make me laugh in vintage cookbooks.
Like this:

So, apparently, picnicking was called eating "hobo style".
I don't think that is a very PC term anymore.
Even more funny because my son referred to a homeless person the other day as a "hobo".
He meant no harm.  He was referring to our history lesson from one of our favorite songs, Big Rock Candy Mountain.
Yep, my kids sing about lakes of whiskey and cigarette trees.  It really is a great song.
I explained we don't really use that term anymore--it was more in vogue during the times of "railroad bulls" and riding the rails.
And also the 60s, I guess.


Anyway, back to the grill.
Isn't this a beautiful spread?  
Notice the turquoise thermos with red lid in the corner?
The red, enamel pot for the corn.
And again, the turquoise grill.

I had to know if I could find a grill like that anywhere nowadays.
I struck out for a while.
Most grills are black or silver.
Or, like this one from Webber, in hunter green.

Really Webber?
It's not 1997 anymore.  We're not so into the hunter green anymore.
Unless we hang our maroon hot pad next to the grill.  
Cause the hunter green, maroon color combo is where it's at!
I'd be happy to consult for you and offer some more up to date color choices.
Imagine that grill in bright yellow.  Orange.  Even white.


Or, red.

Yes, red.  Like this little guy.
In my search for a colored grill, I opened up the latest issue of Martha and then Sunset (best magazine ever) and low and behold, this sweet little charcoal grill. 
(it's from Bodum and you can get info here.  but Amazon had way more color choices.  go here)
They both featured orange, but upon further investigation, I found several other options.  
Like the red above, which I love.
And then, deep breath, I saw there is even a turquoise grill.

Oh mama!!!

Granted, it is small.  It's meant to be a portable grill you take to the beach or camping, or grill out on your tiny deck.  It's not really what we need for grilling dinner.

But it's nice to know it's there,

And maybe, if we all get one (who doesn't need a sweet little number like this for sunset bbqs on the beach?) Webber will get  a clue and produce a bigger grill for us in a color more up to date than lovely hunter green.

I can dream.

Here's to summer, outdoor cooking and vintage dreams coming true!

Love from,

Greta

And, if you are so inclined, don't forget to vote for my other blog, Lilly and the Brothers.  
Go HERE to vote.  Thanks!

The Makings of a Perfect Meal

One of the very best things about summer is the food.

One of the very best things about living in Southern California is the weather.

The weather here is already warm enough to find this kind of food at the farmer's market.

That's a pretty perfect combination if you ask me.

Yes, our taxes are stupidly high.
There is traffic.
House prices are really, stupidly high.
But people, would you please take a look at those apricots?
And these tomatoes.

They are tomatoes that actually taste and yes, even smell, like tomatoes.
What's a little traffic now and then when you can get summer time tomatoes in May?


I was getting giddy when I walked around the farmer's market this morning after church.
I was acting almost tipsy.
Let a very large, very pregnant woman loose around ripe apricots and you might be embarrassed by her response.  I tried to keep the moaning to a minimum.
I've been craving summer fruits and veggies.


Then I found the summer squash.  All the different varieties I love.
More than boring, old zucchini.
I am in love with squash.


And this cheese.

Handmade cheese. 
It was their first day at our farmer's market and they were almost sold out by 11.
Next time I'm going to get the smoked Gouda.
But this is good too.  So.  Very.  Good.

But really it is the fruit that did me in.

I am at the point in my pregnancy now where I can't eat a whole lot.

There just isn't much room left.

This is the only time where I slow down, or even stop gaining weight. 

Some times I even loose a few pounds. (take that doc!)

All I want is lots of cold beverages of all sorts.

And fruit.

Summertime fruit.

It's been over a month that I've been longing for it.

But aside from the early strawberries, there hasn't been much else.

And the strawberries haven't been that sweet.

Until now.

Be still my fruit loving heart.

The cherries are in.
Aren't they just beautiful?
I had to take a zillion pictures of them.
James and William were very patient with me.
For a while.

But when I started snapping photos of the apricots, James said, "mom, can you stop taking pictures of the food and just make us lunch?  Please."
Apparently I am not the only one who suffers for my art.

What?
Isn't everyone in love with their fruit?

All these things add up to another favorite part of summer.

The Perfect Meal.

It's easy.  It's fresh.  It's fast.  

It is utterly and completely delicious.

And I should know.  

We just had it for dinner.

1.  Squash of some kind (not just zucchini) sliced thin and grilled or roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper.

2.  A good cheese

3.  Fresh, ripe, summer tomatoes

4.  A loaf of good bread (home made or otherwise)

5.  Grilled meat or even a quality salami.  There's nothing wrong with a little chartrucerie.

6.  Fresh fruit for dessert.  Served alone or with cake, cookies or ice cream.

I could eat that meal all summer long.

And we do.  A lot.

Thankfully I have a husband who doesn't sit down to a meal of caprese salad, salami, bread and roasted veggies and say, "where's my real dinner?"

I would have to slap some sense into him.

So yeah, I'm a bit of a food freak.  

If you haven't noticed that already.

Hope you are close to getting summertime fruit--even if it's not quite summertime in your neck of the woods.

Happy Monday and happy eating.

Love from,

Greta


In other business, if you haven't seen the kids' room redo, go here.  
It even made it to the cover photo for Shelteriffic's Blog Watch last week.
That made my day!
I am linking up the bedroom post with Life Made Lovely this week, so head over there for more lovely inspiration.


Also, if you read my other blog, Lilly and the Brothers, or even if you don't, I'd so appreciate your vote.
Go here to vote for me.
I really have no chance in winning, but it is still fun to give it a try.
Because even if I won't win, I still want to tell stories.
You can vote every day until June 8th.


I think that's it.  Now that we've talked about the perfect summer time meal, I have some vintage inspired grills to show you.
See you tomorrow!

Getting Ready for Baby Means a Room Redo

We are at 32 days and counting people.

As I have mentioned before, that means frantic cleaning and organizing of closets, drawers and especially the kids' room.

Yes, all 3 of our kids share a room.

That's 2 boys and 1 girl.

And before too much longer, there will be a fourth one in there.

Can you really fit all those kids in one room?

Yep.

Come see.

This was the big addition to the room.  The Malm dresser from IKEA.
We went shopping in Aaron's art studio to get it, which required a lot of rearranging in there for him, but it was his idea so he didn't mind.
I won't lie--not a huge fan of this piece of furniture.
I don't mind how it looks--clean lines and all that.
But the quality is sadly lacking.
It's IKEA and the truth is, $100 furniture just doesn't have the smooth gliding drawers, the heft, the drawer bottoms NOT made our of cardboard, that we all appreciate in well made furniture.
But we're making the most of what we've got and this is it.
Besides, it's big, it fits the space, has 2 drawers for each kid and most importantly, it got the clothes out of the closet and allowed me to re-organize to my crazy pregnant heart's content.


It also allowed for some redecorating.  
I'll give you a tour.


First, the dresser top.
Being that the room is for boys and girls, I have gone with a woodsy, foresty motif in here.
We all love being outdoors and trees and such, so it works.
Observe the vintage books about trees and insects.
Vintage books make great decorating accessories.

I've been collecting these animals for my kids since they were born.  They usually get one in their stocking and sometimes in their Easter basket of for their birthday.  Each one is marked with a date and name on the bottom so that when they have their own babies, I can pass them along.
I am kind of freakishly sentimental about things like that.  
I love the idea of passing things on.
And these are the kind of toys you can save for the next kids and the next and the next.
All the forest animals have been gathered for out dresser top.
And do you see the birds in the picture above?  I love them!

Here is a decoupage homage to the 3 most important men in my life.  

And that red owl is actually a bank, made from wood, from France.  We gave it to Lil for her first birthday.

Another pass-on present.

Except I kind of want to keep it for myself.  Would it be weird to get another one for me?

You can find it here.  (one of my favorite shops btw)

Moving Lilly's kitchen from this spot meant wall space opening up.
I went shopping in our poster collection and found this one we bought on a trip to Chicago about 10 years ago.
Not kidding.
Vintage reproduction of a Chicago railway sign.
Perfect combo of vintage, bright colors and woodsyness for their room.  
When I hung it, William came in and said, "Mommy, that poster looks great!"
And James said, "and I like how you used different color tacks in each corner."
Kids care about their environment--and it doesn't have to be all cartoon Transformers and Dora the Explorer just because they are kids.  Give them real, beautiful things.

There is also some other art that I made for them.
This collage shows more of the woodsy motif and also the color palette I chose for a boy/girl room.
Turquoise, orange, pink and splashes of red.
Bright, cheerful and so us.

The collage is made on part from photocopied pages of a favorite vintage book.
A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson.
It is illustrated by Alice and Marin Provensen and it is one of my TREASURES.  
Found it at a used book sale for like a $1.  (see more of their work here)

Other woodsy "art" around the room.  

A birth announcement from a friend whose seriously talented brothers always make her awesome birth announcements, a vintage Sequoia pendant found at a garage sale, and a framed, vintage, squirrel post card which inspired the woodsy motif in the first place.

You can turn most anything into art as long as it looks good.

(one of my favorite decorating tricks--these colored tacks make hanging things with tacks look waaay cuter.  i use them everywhere)

I also like to display a vintage toy or 2.  Remember this one?
It kind of works still, but mostly I love the colors and the art.

Here's Lilly's corner of the room.

Here's her wall of art.  
Another collage made by me with photocopied art from another favorite children's book and illustrator.  (his books are so amazing)
Her birth announcement framed, red polka dot bird hook and a ceramic cuckoo clock from a garage sale.  She has a lot of bird stuff cause I love to put a bird on it!

Her tiny, Snow White and the 7 dwarfs bed is made up with vintage linens: the quilt was an estate sale find for $4 and the pillowcase was made by my great grandma.

I love that.

The boys get the bunk bed.

It's huge but solid and that's good considering all the wrestling that takes place on the bottom bunk.

Wrestling is outlawed on the top bunk.

The orange "packing style" quilts are from IKEA.  I like how clean they look and how easy they are for the boys to tuck into the sides of their bed when they make the bed.

(and yes, we try to make the beds every single morning.  it makes for a saner room and mommy)

I really want more art for their side of the room but have yet to figure out how to hang it along the bottom bunk--due to all the wrestling and feet on the wall all the time.

(do your kids do that?  drives me crrraaaazzzy!)

Laminated posters?

What would a room in my house be without a garland?  
(or bunting or pendants or flags or whatever the heck you want to call them.  i love them and they make me really happy)
Made from paper, not sewn, for all you non sewers out there.  Yes, you too can have a garland.
On Lil's side the garland has more pink papers, on the boys' there is more turquoise.

I also gave the boys a spot to display their Lego creations.
Right now it s makeshift, just the shelves on the top of Lilly's kitchen, but we're going to put up a few more real shelves so they can display their other treasures too: pine wood derby cars, vintage Star Wars glasses etc.

With the addition of the dresser, we had to re-arrange the kitchen pieces.  

The fridge now sits in this little spot.  I admit it's tight, but I think it works.

It is offensive to Aaron's sense of feng shui though, so it might not last.

The main reason for all the moving about and reorganizing was really the closet.
3 kids, all their clothes and most of their toys in one closet was a bit of a disaster.
The clothes especially.
We had them in baskets that were hard for anyone but my oldest to access.
Nothing stayed neat or the least bit orderly.
Thus the dresser.
Now there are just a few hanging clothes and everything else goes in the dresser.  The kids can find their own underwear and jammies, baseball uniforms and play clothes.
It is a better system.


That, I think is the key to having kids share a room.
1.  They can't have a ton of stuff. 
For example, my kids don't have a lot of clothes--I would love to buy them more, but they won't fit and truthfully it's not in the budget.  
And really, they don't need a ton of clothes anyway.

2.  Toys must be organized in some fashion
A lot of those baskets up top are empty.  We still have space for things as we need it.  Others are filled with toys they don;t use often, like the musical instruments.
They know dress up clothes, or weapons go in the baskets on the floor and so they can clean up themselves.
Their massive collection of tiny, Playmobil people and parts are organized by theme into different bins.
They are not supposed to take them all out at the same time.
I know, I'm a toy nazi.
But when you've got knights, pirates, animal trainers and construction workers all strewn across the floor at the same time, you'd turn into a toy nazi too.

3.  Use shelves in the closet for all they're worth.

Aaron retrofitted this closet with lots of extra shelves when we moved in.  By storing almost all their toys in the closet, it frees up space in the room for them to play.

Also, we can close the closet doors and the room is clean!

4.  Get those Legos organized
If you have little boys, chances are you have Legos.
Legos are the bane of my existence.  My boys have a gazillion because their daddy had a gazillion and he saved them all.
In a tribute to my neurosis, I organized them all by color and they are stored in these plastic bins from Target under the bed. (hey, it keeps me off meds.  get off my back)
It actually does work.
When they want to build a fire station, they pull out the red box and build away. 
It's easier for them to clean up by themselves too.
I'm all about helping them do things themselves, have you noticed?

So there you go.

3 kids, 1 room, and a mommy not losing her mind from the chaos that could (and still will) erupt in there.

We are 5, soon to be 6, people living in a not that big house.

We are always looking for ways to make it work without feeling like we are crammed in here.

And most of the time, I don't feel cramped.

Especially when I remember that to much of the rest of the world, we live in a mansion.

It's only here, in the land of the McMansion, that people say things like, "4 kids in a 1950s, 3 bedroom house?  How do you do it?"

I just tell them to read the book, The Color of Water.

Which, incidentally, you should read too.  
No really, I mean it. It's a reality check and it will move you.

Hey, it's almost the weekend!  
Time for me to work on our bedroom and the baby's corner.
The crib is up.  Do you know how hard it is to find turquoise crib sheets?
The hunt is on.

Love from,

Greta


PS.  Forgot to tell you the best part. Money spent on room redo: $0!!!  
Shopped my house.
I didn't spend countless hours at my parent's house last Saturday watching HGTV for nothing.  I learned stuff.