Friday Finds - Thanksgiving Leftovers

I love Thanksgiving food. As in, I start eating mini-Thanksgiving meals starting in early November. I load up on mashed potatoes, roast turkey, green beans and dressing at the Whole Foods bar. At Boston Market. At diners. Etc. Basically, anywhere I can get a Thanksgiving inspired meal, I eat one.

By the time Thanksgiving day rolls around, I'm just about ready to move on. I marked a few recipes that I can incorporate leftovers into with a fresh twist that doesn't resemble a traditional holiday plate at all. If you're not into straight up leftovers like me, you might enjoy these options as well! And if you're thinking about maintaining healthy eating through the holidays, there are a few fresh salad options too :)

TGIF!

Clockwise from Top L:
Country Living - Turkey and Green Apple Salad with Mint Dressing
Southern Living - After Thanksgiving Pizza (corn and sausage? yum!)
Martha Stewart - Turkey Cobb Salad
Giada de Laurentiis - Turkey Bolognese

Friday Finds - NaNoWriMo Necessities

Because I didn't write for myself for nearly 3 months, I've had the itch. My blogging break felt right and good, but the urge to write just didn't lie down and hibernate through the fall. In fact the story has been building and for the first time I joined National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).

I quickly found a few friends to be my writing buddies and we've already discussed where and when the words will flow - coffee shops and wine bars for the win! It made me think about my favorite writing gear and one big wishlist item. I'm a huge fan of handwriting as there's something about the physical act of scribbling that seems to embolden my thoughts into a cohesive story. I'm sure some people feel that way about typing, but for me there's a romance of pen to paper that can't be replaced. My favorite pens lay on the gel ink thick and consistent and my favorite notebooks are unlined and roomy. Endless cups of coffee and tea are a must (cemented by my semester in Bath, England where sipping hot beverages was practically a job in and of itself).  My new dream machine is the Windows Surface.  All the power of a laptop in a tablet. I only wish they were giving me one for saying so.

TGIF and happy NaNoWriMo-ing!

Clockwise from Top L:
Microsoft - Surface
Pier 1 - Confetti Mug
Office Depot - Uni Ball Vision Elite Gel Pen
Barnes & Noble - Sketchbook

Tricks and Treats to You and Yours!

So that was unintentional blog sabbatical. It ended up happening for no particular reason and yet a lot of reasons. I had things to say. I had pictures to share. I had content and intent. It just didn't happen. I actually have a lot of reflections on what's been going on during my blog break and I hope to implement a manageable blog schedule soon.

In the meantime, we had a super fun Halloween. Instead of spending an insane amount of money on costumes at the very last minute and wading through the worst costumes at Spirit of Halloween, I was on my game and we started reviewing costume options back in September.  I loved Jon Snow and Ghost, Mary Poppins and a Chimney Sweep, and Tom Hanks and Wilson.

Mr. P is actually pretty hard to please in the costume department.  He doesn't like wigs, tights, bright colors, going shirtless, off the wall jokes, etc.  In fact, every costume I've seen him in has been a variation of normal street clothes.  So after he vetoed what seemed like 100 of the cutest costume ideas ever, we were left with a collection of very doable, low cost options using mostly clothes we already had on hand.

We happened to be buying kitty litter one day when I saw an adorable sailor costume for Oliver. I figured it loosely fit the theme of a couples costume I had already pinned and thus the Rubinstein Family Halloween Theme was cemented: USA War Propaganda. 

Anyone who has ever tried to dress up a cat, hold a cat, or take a picture of a cat knows that achieving all three while still smiling is darn near impossible. Yet it results in hilarious outtakes that are perfectly scary for Halloween:

  Happy Halloween from Rosie the Riveter, a WWI Flying Ace and Attack of the Sailor Kitty!

Retro Redesign - Moroccan Family Room in Lone Mountain

There's such a low inventory at this point that this fixer upper in Lone Mountain is the only residence for sale in the entire neighborhood! At $799,000, it's a steal considering the location and walk score, but it obviously needs some serious TLC.



The front landscaping needs a haircut ... but there's some good bones there with the tile roof and arched front entrance.  Inside, it's a blank slate. The kitchen and baths look like they need to be gutted, but the floors look like they might be salvaged. The fireplace really spoke to me. Maybe it could use some decorative tiling?



With Spanish style exterior and the first spark of inspiration with tiling the fireplace, I decided to go whole hog and inject the entire space with some Moroccan flavor.  When I saw this colorful interpretation that relies heavily on wood tones as well, I thought it hit the mark. Christmas stockings optional of course. :)

Mediterranean Family Room by Santa Monica Photographers Luke Gibson Photography

These are some of the key pieces to incorporate into the room (outside of a good floor refinishing!). Just add a neutral sofa and you've got yourself an inviting haven while you wait out the kitchen remodel in the rest of the house.

Clockwise from Top L:
Joss & Main - Krista Accent Table
Rakutan - Lumpy Knit Throw
Wayfair - Wood and Metal Cross Set
Rosenberry Rooms - Moroccan Pouf
Joss & Main - Atwater Shag Rug
Overstock - Jali 4 Panel Room Divider

Belated Pinterest Challenge: Bookcase Styling

I'm about 9 weeks late to the Summer Pinterest Challenge.  I saw the challenge, accepted the challenge, participated in the challenge, documented the challenge, then failed at posting the challenge.  Excuses, blah blah blah, procrastination, blah blah.  Anyways, to the before picture - this is what I was working with:

We have A LOT of books, knick knacks, pictures, a jewelry stand, sports paraphernalia, and some storage boxes.  It wasn't working. It looked cluttered and chaotic.  I took to Pinterest for some inspiration, especially searching for Expedit shelving style:

via SAS Interiors

In addition to inspiration, I also brought in the big guns. My MIL is an interior decorator and she lent her expert eye to our mess. We started by taking everything off the shelves. We sorted the books and accessories. Then we started playing. We tried books in several different cubbies. We tried symmetry and asymmetry.  We went shopping in the rest of the apartment, gathering items that we thought might work. The results are a much simpler, open design. But it still wasn't quite right. There wasn't enough contrast. Accessories were lost in the cubbies. We settled on a simple and cheap solution.  I stapled a swath of burlap to the back of the bookcase and voila! That's the kind of cheapo Ikea hack I like!

I was feeling so confident about my new found bookshelf styling skills, I attacked our small built in nook in the hallway and ended up with a fun color grouped scheme.

The fog really limited the natural light in the house the day I took the pictures, but you get the idea. I'd love to change these out a bit more seasonally. You can see a small, pink glass rabbit candy dish and a champagne glass of blue robin eggs in this photo. Those are Easter leftovers that I still haven't change out! After a few more months of scavenging and collecting, I hope to have a 4 season rotation of little items. It's one of those things that just makes me smile when I pass by the hall. :)

Feline Separation Anxiety

Our Grandma's cat routinely acted out vindictively upon her return from a trip. She would describe his behavior as being mad that he had been left behind. I've heard other such tales of acting out to include vocal disapproval, extra aloofness and pottying outside of the box. Thankfully, Ollie hasn't seemed to be too affected by the semi-regular trips we take. In the past, Oliver has been extra lovey upon our return. I figured he was just a cool cat, who was happy we were home. However, yesterday, his lovey actions heightened into a clingy-ness that we haven't seen before.  On a normal day of me working from home, he might spend an hour or two by my side on the couch. Yesterday, he climbed into my lap every time I was sitting.  He followed me through the apartment, rarely letting me out of his sight. When I ran a few errands, he was waiting at the door (not unusual) and pawing it with urgency (unusual).

I've seen dogs suffer from separation anxiety, but have never heard of a cat experiencing the phenomenon. You already know I'm a crazy cat lady, and am probably being neurotic, but I've gotta ask - does your cat suffer from separation anxiety?

Friday Finds - Sherbet Summer

June gloom has settled upon the city and so has my mood. Since San Francisco summer is still a few months away, I created a summery inspiration collection. Apparently I'm on an elephant kick too as this is the second elephant accessory featured this week!

TGIF!

Clockwise from Top L:
The Pink Pagoda - Orange Chinoiserie Floral Elephants
J. Crew - Loretta Dress in Eyelet
Banana Republic - Millie Collection Enamel Lock Bangle in Pool Green
Joss & Main - Home Pillow