can I turn my house into a cash cow?

winter vegies

2012-01-19T17:02:00.000-08:00

Today was our first delivery of organic produce, fresh from the farm. I signed up for weekly deliveries from Full Belly Farm . The produce varies each week, depending on what's in season. Right now the two celery roots are simmering away on the stove--they are delicious in salads. The daikon radishes are the only item in today's box I've never eaten. It's exciting to try new vegetables, and to be surprised at what is inside the box!

adding some color

2012-01-06T09:36:00.000-08:00

Here's a new pillow, called the Labyrinth Persimmon Pillow from Dwell Studio These colors that I've been adding-- in the pendant, the tablecloth, and now pillow--are warming up winter. This morning it was in the 20s, the leaves and blooms are gone from the garden so give me color!

a new year, a new light

2012-01-01T14:50:00.000-08:00

We got rid of the old track lights above the dining table and now have this beautiful pendant (a quality-control reject from Madeline Weinrib). I made the tablecloth yesterday from Serena & Lily fabric that was slashed 75% at their year-end sale. Am loving the bright colors!

japanese tape

2011-12-24T13:58:00.000-08:00

When I couldn't find my tape dispenser I decided to wrap presents using these fun rolls. A local shop, Once Around, has a big glass jar of different ones and unlike some places you can buy them by the each instead of a packaged group.

Swedish smorgasbord

2011-12-23T17:24:00.000-08:00

We always have Swedish food for Christmas Eve dinner. Here is this year's homemade picked herring. Traditionally the meal starts with a small plate of this fish eaten with knackebrod, which is a rye-crisp type of cracker. Then, using a fresh plate, help yourself to the meatballs, ham, boiled potatoes, gravlax, cheeses, pickled red cabbage and green salad. Often it takes a few visits to the table to try everything. Smorgasbord is wonderful and allows everyone to please themselves (it's OK to pass up the pickled herring but hopefully everyone will have at least a little taste).

cardamom coffee braid - vetebrod

2011-12-21T17:01:00.000-08:00

Now's the time for this Swedish treat. We love this bread in our house, in fact I use 3 times the amount of cardamom called for in the recipe. On Christmas morning we spread slices with lots of butter and have it with hot coffee while we open presents. For the second batch I plan to shape the dough into Lucia Buns, small spirals and figure eights.

paperwhites at christmas

2011-12-16T18:21:00.000-08:00

These will be all finished by next weekend. But I have some more at early stages of sprouting so maybe they will be flowering. It's tricky, trying to time blooms.

last leaves

2011-12-14T05:40:00.000-08:00

Our cat Min enjoyed a sunny spot on a blanket of leaves. Soon after rain was due so I swept them away.

made in Sweden

2011-11-27T15:03:00.000-08:00

I found the candelabra on ebay and then bought white candles from Denmark that will fit as standard tapers are too fat. I love the charming hand painted wood, so very Swedish!

Here is hoping that the paperwhites I am forcing will be in full bloom for Christmas. I scouted thrift stores for clear glass cylinders so the cool-looking roots will be visible. The local nursery has a bulbs half price so today I bought some hyacinths to force. I have been inspired by the gorgeous seasonal flowers, bulbs and wreaths at the Swedish blog liljorochtulpaner Can't read a word of it but can't get enough of the photos.

livingroom, newly painted

2011-11-18T19:58:00.000-08:00

Weekends are when I get stuff done, so it's taken forever to paint the livingroom. But finally it's done, the ladder and dropclothes are no longer in the middle of the room. I am really happy with the result. Benjamin Moore "Pale Pewter" is the color and it is very Nordic cool and calm and I think looks good with the trim color, "White Dove" (my favorite white.) The curtain rods are up but I haven't decided what to do about curtains--I kind of don't want to cover the beautiful 1930s window trim.

#occupy wall street

2011-10-15T16:59:00.000-07:00

There was an Occupy Wall Street demonstration today neaby and a few hundred people were there with all kinds of wonderful homemade signs. Lots of people drove by, laying on their horns, giving thumbs up, waving in support. Who knows, maybe they will be out there with signs next time. I sure hope so.

apple time

2011-10-11T16:31:00.000-07:00

A library friend gave me a big bag of Rhode Island Greening apples from her tree. I've made apple crostata, a recipe from Barefoot Contessa. I like how you just heap the sliced apples onto the dough, toss on the crumb topping and fold up the edge. No pan to fit the dough into, no pre-baking, just easy and delicious.

Rosendals Tradgard in September

2011-09-27T18:06:00.000-07:00

The Swedes love their gardens--a little wild, thank you--and these pictures from Rosendals in Stockholm show that a gorgeous harvest time, before the first frost. Stockholm can have snow in October!

Here in Northern California the days start out cool then get warm. The sky is cloudless, the afternoon shadows long and light that tints everything honey color.

an apple, water, flour

2011-08-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

Those are the ingredients in the French country bread I made. It took a week from the time I chopped up the apple and added water (which after a few days began to ferment) and eventually, when flour was added, produced the yeasty basis for the bread.
I am still amazed at this process and the successful result I had! I heap credit on William Alexander's book 52 Loaves which inspired me with his year-long quest to reproduce a peasant bread he had tasted years earlier and couldn't get out of his mind. It's a wonderful, often funny journey that takes him to France and on visits to food scientists and flour producers as he develops his recipe.

The bottom photo shows the container of "levain" or starter which stays in the refrigerator, ready for making the next loaf.

end of summer at Rosendals

2011-08-26T09:26:00.000-07:00

I know I've shown pictures from Rosendal's in Stockholm...here is what the garden is looking like now in waning summer.

getting rid of the rug

2011-08-19T17:15:00.000-07:00

Good riddance to the old living room rug. You see what a mess lay underneath, the backing decomposed so it looked like cornmeal all over the floor. Lots of vacuuming and lemon oil and elbow grease later and you see it is looking lots better and cleaner. We need to go over it another time with the lemon oil but the condition of the 1930s floor is very nice and I'm happy to keep it bare. We went through a few xacto blades to cut the rug into strips that fit in the garbage can--one rolled up strip goes into the can each week.

inspired by Copenhagen

2011-08-11T16:43:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned before, many Danish homes have pretty lanterns at their front door but I couldn't find any at home that I liked. Until now! Here is one I bought at a cute boutique in San Anselmo called Delectables. I love it with the ceramics from Lotus Bleu the terrific design boutique in San Francisco where my daughter works.

rescued from a dumpster

2011-08-01T08:11:00.000-07:00

Dumpsters attract my attention when I'm out walking but usually they're filled with debris. How about this iron planter?? I went right out to buy moss and plants and in no time I've got happy flowers perched on my deck railing.

Illums Bolighus

2011-07-08T09:38:00.000-07:00

There are other department stores in Copenhagen but the house/home store of Illums Bolighus is fantastic. We were told we would likely find a particular souffle dish there--we needed to replace one we'd broken in our exchange apartment. If that dish hadn't crashed to the floor, we wouldn't have discovered this gorgeous store, filled with all the top Nordic and European brands of homewares, marimekko, iittala, Design House Stockholm to name a few. The displays were stunning--check out the rainbow of colors of Peugeot pepper mills, the glorious KitchenAid mixers and racks of pretty Marimekko paper napkins. In the big glass tubs are cool looking clothespins (the Danes like to dry clothes outside in summer, these pins would make the job more fun).

You see the lanterns? Many houses in our neighborhood in Copenhagen had lanterns such as these at the front door; I've been looking here at home for cute ones like these, without any luck so far.

more Copenhagen favorites

2011-07-05T16:55:00.000-07:00

If you go to Copenhagen (yes, do!) make sure to eat at Restaurant Sankt Annae You will find all the Danish specialties on the menu, which means it takes a long time to make up your mind. The salmon I had for lunch was perfection (served on Royal Copenhagen). The Danes love to party, so the waitress was kept busy filling up the bottles of acquavit for the tables where there seemed to be a toast every five minutes. The world's happiest people? Well I believe it.

La Glace

2011-07-04T14:42:00.001-07:00

Delectable works of art, that's what is to be found at La Glace in the heart of Copenhagen. It's one of the oldest pastry shops in the city. The ambience is so refined and elegant that while savoring this sliver of cake I wouldn't have been at all surprised to see the Queen of Denmark come in for an afternoon sweet.

Royal Copenhagen

2011-07-02T15:45:00.000-07:00

No way could you get a view of the Royal Copenhagen pattern in yesterday's post so here's a picture that's a little better.. They have not just the classic blue but also orange, plus the motif is larger. How pretty it is! There was a Royal Copenhagen outlet near our apartment but I passed right on by, not wanting to be tempted. I'm sure even outlet prices were beyond me...So, here again, the Royal Cafe

cafes in Copenhagen

2011-07-01T09:41:00.000-07:00

Visiting and sampling the bakeries, cafes, restaurants and food shops when I'm traveling is at least as important to me as going to museums and other tourist attractions. The list I made of "musts" for foody Copenhagen was way more than we could do in the two weeks we had there but here are some highlights.

The Royal Cafe and Bakery, is off the main pedestrian street, the Stroget, along a little passageway between the iconic stores of Georg Jensen and Royal Copenhagen. Walking into the bakery is to enter a fantasy of Mad Hatter-painted walls, silver tea servers and of course work-of-art pastries. This danish pastry was one of the best I had...and it was such a pretty presentation, maybe you can just make out the Royal Copenhagen motif of the plate?

back from Copenhagen!

2011-06-27T18:17:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of some of what I loved about this city: bikes/biking everywhere--look at the sea of bikes at the Central Station; and the pretty streets and buildings. (We DID bike everyplace, everyday, except when we were heading out of the city and took the train oh and when we caught the train to go over the bridge to Sweden for lunch!)

cheesy rolls

2011-05-28T18:11:00.000-07:00

A mixed-up weather day, rain then sun then rain again, perfect to stay in and make a yummy snack. That's Parmesan cheese on top.

Thursday we leave for 2+ weeks in Copenhagen! We're doing a home exchange and are so very excited! I've xeroxed lots of guide book suggestions of places to visit and of course places to eat...the Rough Guide has a section on the best bakeries in the city, bring them on! It will be fantastic to live like a local in our city apartment, riding bikes everywhere (or where we don't ride, using the excellent Danish transit system). Next to Amsterdam, Copenhagen is Mecca for cyclists. Check out the site copenhagencyclechic and you will see one of the big reasons we decided this is a city were crazy about before we even packed out bags. Oh and the fabulous Danish design that awaits...Thursday, roll on!

the seat of power gets cushier...

2011-05-20T18:15:00.000-07:00

...while the workers take cuts. What am I talking about? Well the recently-hired City Manager where I work (the City of Larkspur), has been impressing on all employees that the City budget is in a state of "structural deficit." We know what that means -- that in the near future we worker bees are going to be hit with cuts. But the infuriating thing is that while talking about being compelled to dip into reserves to balance this year's budget, the City Manager went and bought himself a new $900 leather chair! I know there are stories like this in the news every day, and each time I say "shame on you" to the mighty for thinking that the boss is entitled to spend money to make things, well, cushier (never mind the hefty salary) while the folks at the lower level fall further behind.

bike to work day/bike everyday!

2011-05-13T17:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the 17th annual Bay Area Bike to Work Day. There were "energizer stations" along most routes that bike commuters use. This one was at Breaking Away Bicycles in Ross, where I was handed a musette bag containing nifty little gifts. My favorite is the handout from our library system, "Ride To Your Library: Selected Titles About Bicycling". I put in a request for a fun-sounding book, "Eat, Sleep, Ride: How I Braved Bears, Badlands and Big Breakfasts in My Quest to Cycle the Tour Divide." And the Cliffbar was thoughtful. Three cheers for Bike to Work Day!

going after grunge

2011-05-07T16:58:00.000-07:00

When you look at the patio furniture on our back patio you can tell we had a very wet winter and spring. My little power washer was great at blasting off the algae. Now we can once again enjoy sitting out there (although there is a chance of rain again tomorrow, Mothers Day).

flea marketing

2011-05-02T18:29:00.000-07:00

The Alameda Flea Market has been around for decades and it's the biggest one in Northern California. Yesterday my daughter and I went--not super early like people who are on serious missions--but by mid-morning we were there, poking among the stuff of about 800 sellers. We thought things were pretty pricey but here's what we purchased for 5 bucks, a terrific bold tiny tray, definitely often used by its previous owner. My kind of beautiful.

garage sale find!

2011-04-30T17:02:00.000-07:00

It seems the winter rains are finished--we haven't had rain for a week and today was beautiful and sunny. So that means garage sale season is starting! Here's what we found at a sale on our walk home from the coffee shop. A black, like-new, Restoration Hardware bistro set, perfect for the months of outdoor living that are ahead.

more painting

2011-04-21T17:45:00.000-07:00

Painting the walls and ceiling in the hallway isn't exciting to anybody but me (I love how white paint reflects any glimmer of light). It's turning into a 3 coat job, one of primer and two finish coats. By the weekend it will be done and back I go to painting trim--there are four doors in this little hallway! I made a detour and painted glossy black this long-ago garage sale find. The more I look at Scandinavian interior blogs, the more black and white I want. The search is on for a black and white striped cotton runner for the hall. First thought was Ikea but no luck.

best in Seattle area

2011-04-05T18:34:00.000-07:00

We go there to visit our kids...and go to a couple of great bakeries. Macrina has three bakeries and cafes in Seattle. Just take a look at the fantastic cookies in the window of the 1st Avenue location. There is always bunching up of people at the counter, waiting a turn to buy to take away or to eat at the cafe. In my carry-on coming home yesterday I had a crusty loaf of Apricot Bread, also Olive bread and a sweet streusel-topped fruit bar. The macaroons got eaten well before flight time.

We had breakfast at the Bread Peddler in Olympia. This bakery-cafe is another busy place so picture-taking has to be very quick. Fruit tarts, brioche, "chocolate shots", scones, bread pudding, muffins, however to decide? And beautiful breads too, we grabbed a baguette and whole wheat/rye loaf. Oh my, I love to eat in and around Seattle!

our blossomy time

2011-03-31T09:59:00.000-07:00

The clouds have disappeared for now and the bulbs and flowering trees have burst--here are some favorite spring blooms in our front garden on this beautiful sunny morning.

painting trim

2011-03-23T17:44:00.000-07:00

Can you see the trim around our windows? It is original--our house was built in the 1930s--and is one my favorite things about the house. So now I am working on repairing the cracks & chips and then priming and repainting. I keep pushing myself to do more sanding, a real chore, because these moldings deserve the best treatment!

assembling an emergency kit

2011-03-16T16:27:00.000-07:00

After watching a lot of CNN's earthquake coverage and seeing many times the graphic of the Pacific "Ring of Fire" that California is part of I am beefing up the disaster kit I keep in my car. You see I have the usual: change of clothes and shoes, small first aid kit, a couple of plastic ponchos and realize it is incomplete (where's the flashlight/energy bars/extra cash...?) In the house we have an emergency kit but it too needs improving. So that's what I'm doing. Am also painting but more on that later.

lotus bleu

2011-03-04T09:16:00.000-08:00

On San Francisco's Hayes Street, this sliver of a shop calls out a welcome from half a block away with brightly colored awnings, front door and delightful window displays. Once inside you will start thinking that it's time to chuck the cool white decor and go with guaranteed-to-make-happy yellow/orange/greens/reds: felt rugs from Nepal, wool and cotton rugs from Madeline Weinrib, handmade alpaca throws from South America, heavenly cotton bedding & napkins & dishtowels, fabulous ceramic lamps and as you see here vintage furniture reupholstered in delightful high-spirited fabrics. The store's design team is always ready to help with custom orders -- you want to re-cover your craigslist dining chairs in shocking pink, they can turn them into show stealers!

get to your library...

2011-02-27T18:53:00.000-08:00

Do you realize public libraries are threatened with severe cuts? At least in California, which has an enormous budget deficit, library funding might be greatly cut--and with that comes a double whammy since federal matching funds would be lost as well. Think of everything you can get at a public library: free books, loads of newspapers and magazines to peruse, free loans of DVDs, ebook downloads, free computer time, computer tutoring, storytimes for tots, afterschool programs for school-age kids, author events, early-morning yoga classes and the list goes on. Libraries typically open early (sometimes at the crack of dawn for those yoga classes) and close as late as any big mall store (sometimes at 11 p.m. if it's during finals week, providing a safe quiet place for students to cram). Workhorses, public libraries are that!

Workers at our library passed around the recent story of an English community, facing a shutdown of their local library, enlisted their patrons to check out every single item in their library to show the budget slashers they'd better not mess with the library.

So I hope you will visit your local library this week and partake of what it has to offer. If you need a specific mission, look for this book, "At Home in Turkey" by Solvi Dos Santos. It is full of gorgeous pictures of city homes as well as retreats and palaces on the mythic waters that surround Turkey. Very interesting is to view and read about the study and library of Orhan Pamuk, Nobel Prize winning author, with their view onto the Borphorus.

The rich details of Ottoman empire architecture and furnishings are on full display in this beautiful book.

a new bakery opens!

2011-02-18T17:50:00.000-08:00

In a tiny old cottage on a residential street, Ponsford's Place www.ponsfordsplace.com seems like the kind of neighborhood bakery where our mothers and grandmothers bought their daily bread. Whole grain breads are made of specially milled flours (today the bread choices were rye and millet; challah was due out of the oven soon). The still-warm pastry filled with ricotta was fantastic as was the perfect little dome of a spicy dried fruit and oatmeal cookie. You can see the gorgeous looking jars of preserves (haven't tried them yet). And the proprietor will sell his flour, how great is that?!

The bakery isn't open every day as the owner does other things too like teach at a culinary school. You know the bakery is open when the Bread Man sculpture, of course made out of bread, is standing out on the sidewalk. Today it was raining so he held an umbrella and wore a poncho.

I want everyone to know about this gem of a bakery!

shopping craigslist

2011-02-16T17:03:00.000-08:00

We found this chair on craigslist. It cost $20, is in new condition and even has a little cushion. Still to find is something to set the printer on other than the recycled particle board cube, a stand for the tv, and a slipcover for the sofa.

We prowled the Alemany Flea Market in SF on Sunday and came home with a pretty wristwatch and a Cole Haan carryall bag. There's not much big stuff there, but lots of jewelry, tools, clothes and bric a brac. I thought the prices were good--the lady was asking $15 for the watch but took $10 "since you like it so much." Panorama Bakery was selling delicious big delicious cookies and a taco truck was there too.

signs of Spring

2011-02-09T18:41:00.001-08:00

It's flowering plum from our tree out by the street. The first thing to bloom each year, it was the warm weather over the weekend that caused the pink, fragrant blooms to pop. I just had to cut some branches to bring inside.

screen door rehab

2011-02-04T09:09:00.000-08:00

The rips and holes in this screen door finally got to me (it is much more derelict than this picture shows). So I removed it from its track and have pulled off some of the screening and the gasket-like cording to take to the hardware store so I select the right replacement materials. The whole thing is oxidized and grimy with ancient dirt and bugs and cobwebs...will this turn out to be a big or small weekend project?

making some progress

2011-01-31T09:34:00.000-08:00

We went thrifting over the weekend with a list of things we want for the hang-out room downstairs. At a place called The Barn in Fairfax we scored this great floor lamp for $25. The mirror we made some time back using a window from a salvage yard. Still figuring out the pillows--I Iove heaps of them, especially to distract from a tired sofa.

Our daughter has a new job at the design boutique Lotus Bleu in San Francisco. She selected a pair of napkins from designer Madeline Weinrib ($24 a pair) that we will stitch into a pillow cover.

Correction: napkins are Simrin, not Madeline Weinrib.

Rosendals Tradgard

2011-01-28T09:14:00.000-08:00

I got an email from Rosendal Garden, one of my favorite places in Stockholm, shown wrapped in winter. With a history as small farms and pasture land, hunting grounds, and summer vacation spot for Swedish kings, Rosendal is now a beautiful organic garden and education center. We rode our bikes around the property last summer, ate at the cafe and admired the produce and plants for sale in the glass greenhouse. The round pink building is the Orangerie.

There is a wonderful apple orchard with venerable trees still producing fruit. As you see, each tree has a tag naming the variety and year planted. So this tree has stood since 1864! Gnarled and leaning, each tree uniquely showing its age, the Swedes allow nature to grow a little wild and wanton. Time isn't treated as an enemy. I love it.

weeds

2011-01-22T17:52:00.000-08:00

...they keep on growing, even in winter. It being a beautiful sunny day it was perfect to get out and clean things up a bit, including pulling out plants that got hit by frost a couple of weeks back. Pruned some more roses too--I feel guilty if I don't fill up our green can (yard waste bin) for the Wednesday pick up when there is so much that could be pruned/raked up/yanked out. My buddy Min came out to supervise.

room triage

2011-01-18T16:33:00.000-08:00

Yes, this room needs a lot of help, a total makeover really. We still call it the playroom even though it hasn't seen Legos, blocks or the Brio train tracks for ages. Since our daughter has moved back home we want to make it a pleasant place where she can work on projects at the big table (which you can't see here) and just hang out. We gathered up some pillows we already had to try out colors and patterns-- I like the bold patterns. Ebay has some great Marimekko fabric and pillow covers but first we have to decide on color. I happen to be a big fan of black and white with a bright splash of yellow or green.

In the spirit of "making do" and spending very little money, the old sofa will get a slipcover (I made a cover for the TV room ottoman, guess I can stitch together a sofa cover); IKEA has some over-worktable lights as well as good storage containers; and we saw a TV stand at Target yesterday for $29. So that's a start.

pruning

2011-01-09T15:56:00.000-08:00

The sun came out today, hurray! So I started pruning the rose bushes--in our area we can do this at the beginning of the new year. In the foreground are cuttings which I have taken from the prunings and stuck in the ground. This is how I have multiplied my mini roses which are easily propagated this way. I love these mini roses, they bloom almost non-stop. The bare canes and cuttings don't make the prettiest picture but just imagine what we may have in a few months!

crafty

2011-01-04T08:48:00.000-08:00

My daughter and I have made thank you cards. We used stamps from a set given by my great grandfather to my dad, probably in the 1920s so they are very old. I think they haven't been out of the box since Dad was a kid but the scuffed-up wooden box has been passed on to me. There are alphabets in different fonts along with numbers in different sizes and "lb" "per" "pair" "each"-- used by a shopkeeper I am guessing. One of my favorite stamps is the "AND" we used with our initials on the backside of the cards. Isn't the detail beautiful?

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T09:40:00.000-08:00

The bloom still hasn't opened on my Christmas amaryllis but you can see it is peeking out a little bit. It's cold here, 31 degrees on our deck this morning. We've cranked up the heat so maybe that flower will be enticed to open for tomorrow, New Years Day.

Christmas Eve

2010-12-27T20:45:00.001-08:00

Christmas Eve has always meant Swedish smorgasbord. Growing up it was prepared by my grandmother who was Swedish. These days the dinner is at our house and although we purchase many of the foods on our smorgasbord, there are some homemade highlights such as the gravlax that our neighbor Jorma prepares that is gorgeous to look at and fantastic to eat.

When we were in Stockholm in July we bought the little bottles of acquavit specifically to serve at Christmas Eve smorgasbord. Each bottle was a different flavor but since we don't read Swedish we never were entirely sure what those flavors were. In truth the acquavit wasn't a big hit with our group but I love how the bottles looked in the big glass bowl filled with ice.

what's inside??

2010-12-20T18:23:00.000-08:00

It's Swedish cardamom buns, wrapped up for co-workers...I keep increasing the amount of freshly ground cardamom I use in the Vetebrod (Swedish coffee bread) I make. At our house we love this distinctive spice. The uninitiated wonder what is the flavoring in the bread. Today someone asked, after a sampling, if it was Fiori Di Sicilia which is a heavenly citrus-vanilla extract used in panettone. Oh, that's another bread I hope to make this week!

biscotti baking

2010-12-16T08:53:00.000-08:00

Biscotti are my favorite cookies and now I don't make any other kinds. I love how they don't get stale unlike most other cookies. I have tinkered with these Almond Anise Biscotti and for my taste they are just right. This year I cut back on the eggs and refrigerated the dough overnight before baking and solved my problem of dough spreading out too much when baking.

The other photo is Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti from the SoNo Baking Company Cookbook. Two concerns here: the recipe doesn't call for vanilla or other flavoring (I added some vanilla); and it's a little tricky figuring out when they are done when you don't have the visual cue of golden brown tops.

do you know about Wallboard Anchors?

2010-12-10T18:42:00.000-08:00

They are the plastic gizmos you see here and are what you need to secure a screw in a wall that's made of sheetrock. I took down the spice rack to paint the wall and when I tried to put the screws back in the same holes the screwdriver just went around and around--there was nothing for the screw to attach to. Enter the wallboard anchors. Screw them in the holes and then the screws into the anchors and all is nice and secure, hurray!

Holiday window shopping

2010-12-08T19:30:00.000-08:00

Treat yourself and stop to admire the beautiful shop displays-- that's what I did early this morning (even though it was dark and raining), stopping in front of Primo Regali in San Anselmo, all bright lights and glittering wares. The small shops have the best windows: check out Stripe in Santa Cruz, it looked beautiful today too!

grout repair

2010-11-28T14:39:00.000-08:00

This crumbling tile grout at the kitchen counter has bothered me for a long time. In some areas it's not crumbling but has cracks and in others chunks of the grout have fallen out, although the tiles are still secure. I've never done grout repair before but today I mixed up a paste-like compound and using my finger filled the spaces and cracks. Of course first I cleaned out the broken bits with a special grout-removal, scraper-type tool.
:
As I write this, it is a couple of hours later and I am periodically going over the areas with a damp sponge. I'm reasonably happy with this repair except that the new grout needs to get a little dirty so it blends in with the old. Since this area is right around the cooktop, it shouldn't take too long :) Or, I might get busy with a toothbrush, boiling water and bleach...

Holiday baking

2010-11-26T18:50:00.000-08:00

We love Swedish vetebrod, a yeast bread full of butter eggs and cardamom seeds. The recipe calls for 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground cardamom seeds but I use lots more because our family is a big fan of this aromatic spice. Here are two braids but little individual S-shape rolls are also typical. Making vetebrod means the Christmas season has begun in our house.

2010-11-21T18:22:00.000-08:00

Today I tried two new bread recipes. One is from the gorgeous new book "Sarabeth's Bakery" and the recipe is "House Bread." When I saw the full page photo of this bread in the book I knew I had to try it. It just came out of the oven so I haven't tried it yet...The other recipe is "Amy Scherber's Whole Wheat Walnut Bread." This bread is made with a biga or pre-ferment which is a mixture of a tiny bit of yeast, some flour and water all stirred together and allowed to sit for 8 hrs or more. Then this very elastic "pre dough" is added along with more yeast and the rest of the ingredients. That loaf came out of the oven earlier and I did have a slice, thickly spread with butter oh so good!

These two bakers have shops in NYC. For me, a good reason to plan a trip!

one hour east of San Diego

2010-11-15T17:10:00.000-08:00

...here's the country you will find. It's rugged, timeless, with here and there orchards of gnarly old apple trees that are these days dropping fruit for little bands of grazing cows. While visiting my family down there the past few days, here's a bit of the glorious landscape I saw. Don't you love the old stone house in among the oaks and boulders?

Autumn in the neighborhood

2010-11-10T08:53:00.000-08:00

Some early morning views today as I walked around town.

2010-11-07T17:10:00.000-08:00

On the weekends I've been making bread. The recipe I've been using is Coarse Grained Whole Wheat with Toasted Walnuts from the book "Amy's Bread" which I keep modifying. The loaf you see here has no walnuts and is partly whole wheat flour and partly a blend of rye and whole wheat flour that I brought back from Stockholm. When I saw this 50/50 blend of wheat and rye in the grocery store I had to try it and so packed home a 2 kilo bag. Also a bag of rye flour (and envelopes of Swedish yeast--and yes, I did get nailed for extra baggage charges at the airport!) I think I pretty much have the recipe I want now, maybe to be called Coarse Grained Whole Wheat Rye and Flax loaf.

my World Series slipcover

2010-10-31T16:23:00.000-07:00

This is what I've been doing while watching the playoffs and now the World Series. The ottoman was so nasty, ripped along the edges where the cat has scratched it to shreds (don't even want to take pictures of that). Sitting on the floor in front of the tv, cutting, pinning and basting a simple slipcover out of some heavy denim that's been in the closet for years...and today I sewed it up and here it is! Way better.

mission accomplished

2010-10-22T09:47:00.000-07:00

Here is that little paint project, all done but taking a lot longer than I had figured on. Sanded off the spray paint and then brushed on a coat of oil based primer followed by two coats of Martha Stewart Crevecoeur (a sample size bottle I got for free at Home Depot).
I like it because it helps make the fixture less noticeable than it was before which is good since we are "making do" with it for now.

one step forward, two steps back

2010-10-16T18:33:00.001-07:00

So as you know we try to salvage anything we can and here you see the 80s- or maybe 70s-style light fixture over the sink in the bathroom (where everything was finished except this small detail) all masked and ready to spray paint a stainless steel/nickel tone. Better than the old gold finish! But one light spay and the finish "beads" rather than levels nicely. Can you see that in the second picture? Not acceptable. So I am going to buy a little can of paint, lightly sand and then hand paint it and hope it turns out OK. Disappointing.

This book makes it tough...

2010-10-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

to choose a color concept for a room. "Paint the Big Book of Natural Color" by Elizabeth Hilliard and Stafford Cliff is page after page of breathtaking rooms and sources of inspiration: the deep Mediterranean blue walls of a home on Santorini with window frames the color of cumulus clouds; the gray of stone gargoyles on an ancient French cathedral brought into an elegant bathroom in England; and humble whole wheat bread, toasted rich and maybe a bit charred,used as an accent color in a folk art museum in Sweden. Oh and the whites are just as compelling: the color of birch tree bark, the pale face of a barn owl, a morning"s frost. I've mentioned books by Stafford Cliff here before and each one is a treasure. Take a look and tell me, what do you think?

fall garden beauties

2010-10-02T19:51:00.000-07:00

The Japanese anemones stand tall and graceful above their foliage and are my favorite fall flowers. A dear friend gave me a clump from her garden years ago and they have gradually taken over in the areas that get morning sun, even coming up along the gravel driveway. Pretty by day and by night.

getting rid of stuff

2010-09-30T17:28:00.000-07:00

For the last month or so I have been getting rid of one thing each day. Some days it's more than one thing. These bags are the latest collection ready to give to the thrift store. Even before this "one a day" program I regularly filled bags of unwanted/unused clothes and housewares to donate (when you have kids you are always clearing out the old as new things take their place). Getting ready for home exchanges is big motivation and certainly we can't have bulging closets when we do VRBO. Besides, it just feels good to pare down.

thinking ahead to Spring

2010-09-21T17:59:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I bought dozens of white tulips to plant right at the edge of the street. Now they're in the refrigerator to chill for a couple of months.

Borrow this book!

2010-09-16T18:11:00.000-07:00

Today I found a book at the library by one of my favorite interior design authors, Stafford Cliff, and I am thrilled! It is called 1000 Home Ideas and like his earlier The Way We Live, this book has hundreds of gorgeous photos, organized in subject areas such as "Openings and Closings" (doors and transitions), "Shelf Life" and "Stylish Storage" I've shown a page from "Steps and Bannisters" here. The "Walls of Wonder" section shows displays of things people collect and/or use every day such as workboots, cutting boards, wooden kitchen utensils. Believe me, these are NOT sterile Pottery Barn interiors!

H&M Home World Premiere!

2010-09-14T18:01:00.000-07:00

When we were Stockholm one of the first places I went to on the big shopping street is the new H&M home store. It's the first and only one anywhere so far! It is on the second floor of one of the (many) H&Ms in Stockholm. There are no stacks of merchandise from which you serve yourself. Instead you take a little refrigerator-type magnet that has the picture of the item you want and take it to the register. Then a staff person gets you the item (I didn't see them do this because I didn't buy anything). Interesting how that will work out. The displays gave me the feeling of being in a museum, gazing at beautifully lighted and cleverly mounted exhibits.

more Sweden

2010-09-11T10:40:00.000-07:00

The Swedes love lingonberries and the sweet-tart preserved berries are served frequently (and always with meatballs). I brought back this jar of jelly, so good this morning, spread on toast.

more Swedish style: outlets and switches

2010-09-10T09:17:00.000-07:00

Here you see some electrical work in our Stockholm apartment. Why did I take these photos?? Because here is proof that it is entirely possible to add switches/outlets to an old house without ripping into the walls! I have always wanted another lamp in our bedroom but the outlets are already maxed out. It doesn't bother me to see the wires running along the trim...so add this project to list!

Swedish style

2010-09-07T16:21:00.000-07:00

We did a home exchange in Stockholm recently and how beautiful was this heating stove in the living room. Beautiful glossy white tiles, in a room bright with light and white paint, I came home inspired...and am painting the dining room walls white, no more "peanut shell" which the walls have been for years Today I bought a can of Benjamin Moore "White Dove" in pearl finish, a step up in glossiness from the eggshell I had been using. Will see!

the front steps

2010-07-11T13:33:00.000-07:00

The front steps sorely needed a new coat of paint. Used my new power washer to clean them first, then some scraping and here is the exciting part, putting on the pretty green paint!

a little detail

2010-06-29T18:29:00.000-07:00

The heater vent in the bathroom needed attention--rust and old paint--so I got out the steel wool and cleaned it up, then spray painted it with Rustoleum white satin finish. Looks way better!

How many coats??

2010-05-23T12:11:00.000-07:00

I've run out of paint and am losing track of how many coats of paint I have applied to the bathroom walls. I think it is 4, plus primer and still I don't have that great looking saturated white. With the skylight there is lots of natural light coming in this time of year so I can really notice the lack of color depth. I got a new paint pad thinking that was part of the problem. The best coverage is the hand-painted areas. I'll buy another quart,apply one more coat and be satisfied. But isn't the new teak countertop beautiful!

Italian street painting (at Larkspur Library)

2010-05-08T18:57:00.000-07:00

This has nothing to do with what I am doing at our house, but I love this chalk painting, done on the concrete threshhold outside of the Larkspur Library where I work. So beautiful. If the rain comes back tomorrow, it will wash away...thank you Gemma.

choosing a white paint isn't easy....

2010-05-05T18:21:00.000-07:00

I painted some color samples on the bathroom walls. I want fresh, clean white to go with the brown tiles and (as yet uninstalled) teak countertop. "Linen white" which I thought I'd want (in the center left) was instantly eliminated as too tan. I decided to go with "White Opulence" from Benjamin Moore. The little sample bottles are great--no need to buy a whole quart of paint and then decide it's all wrong.

I have tsp'ed the walls, this weekend I will prime them and then hopefully it will cover in 1 coat?

bathroom countertop demo

2010-04-26T19:36:00.000-07:00

Today was a happy day--the herringbone countertop in the bathroom began being demolished. How pleased I am to get rid of this busy, brown and carmel colored tile countertop from the 70s. We are having a new top made out of teak, a wood that is a good choice for wet places (it is often used in boats). We still will have the brown tile shower and floor but plan to give the bathroom a modern look by painting the walls white and adding new chrome elements in towel bars and sink and shower fixtures. I went to the paint store today and grabbed lots of Benjamin Moore white paint chips. This is very fun!

Happy Easter!

2010-04-04T17:46:00.000-07:00

Isn't this a pretty bread bag? A b-day gift from my lovely daughter, it is made of bamboo fabric and with a handy drawstring, it's perfect for keeping this loaf of whole wheat walnut bread fresh. She found this great bag at a favorite Berkeley foodie spot, the Cheese Board.

another good book...

2010-03-28T18:49:00.000-07:00

Here's a book full of great photos and ideas of quick decorating fixes. "Speed Decorating" by Jill Vegas is great for people who are putting their house on the market and need to spruce it up fast but it offers lots of inspiration for anybody tired of their same-old rooms.. I have known for a long time that the inside of my closet needs patching and painting ( pieces of, what? wallboard? are falling to the floor) but the thought of tackling that job was too forbidding to entertain. Her book inspires -- I can do this nasty job! Now the project is on my list.

get that ceiling finished!

2010-03-13T18:03:00.000-08:00

Oh, getting closer, one more session of neck craning and this will be done!

fabulous photos you must see...

2010-02-25T18:22:00.000-08:00

"The Way We Live" is an astonishing book of photos of homes, inside and out, from Burundi to Paris, Stockholm to Oaxaca. This book came across the desk at our library and I keep renewing it because I can't give it up. What I especially like is that the spaces don't look so "done" but have an idiosyncratic, spirited feel. Want to be inspired, well then get hold of this book!

2010-02-22T08:57:00.000-08:00

After work I'm off to the paint store--the breakfast room ceiling I'll paint is all scrubbed and ready to go. Spring is starting to happen here as you can see by the hyacinths I cut from out front today. It's to be a rainy week but the blossom are even more fragrant then...

All done!

2010-02-14T10:45:00.000-08:00

This is the fun part--taking a photo of a finished room! Behind the bed, just this one wall, is painted a color called Soho from the Ralph Lauren Urban Loft palette. Cutting the edges called for a steady hand and shallow breathing to get the line straight (I don't like masking tape, it always seems give an imprecise line for me). All the rest is painted White Dove from Benjamin Moore.

So I'm excited for the next project: painting the ceiling in the breakfast room. But it's sunny after many gray days and Valentines Day at that so am going to get outside and get started tomorrow!

Inspiration

2010-02-08T18:37:00.000-08:00

How gorgeous are these Stockholm interiors from emmas.blogg.se....they really do inspire me. Happy to say that the bedroom is about done (just 1 more coat on some trim, why doesn't paint ever seem to cover in just one coat, never mind that we went from Vanilla to white??) When it is sunny I'll put up pictures.

Since I work in a library I get to see lots of books on interior design and decorating. Why not visit YOUR local library and have a look at one of my favorites, "Contemporary Chic" by Rozemarijn deWitte. All the homes in the book exhibit the elegant, restrained European look I love. Creamy linen and honey woods or energetic primary tones--I love them all. Check out this book !

2010-02-03T18:27:00.000-08:00

I got the second coat on the door and trim and some sanding of the baseboards in the bedroom. This paint went on well (Benjamin Moore White Dove in pearl finish) with none of the problems of too-fast drying which I've had in the past, maybe because our weather has been so damp?? My plan is to finish the baseboards this weekend. The white walls and trim are inspired in part by my current favorite blog, http://emmas.blogg.se which is a feast for the eyes if you love looking at sparkling white Swedish interiors, spare with a hit of color. Check out this blog--there is also a wonderful tour of Emma's favorite places in Stockholm!

2010-01-26T15:27:00.000-08:00

When I've mentioned my idea of renting out the house people have said "oh that sounds like a lot of work." I'm fine with working hard but it does bring up a good point: how much time and effort will be involved here? And let me start off by saying this is work that Jim and I will do ourselves, after work and on weekends. This is nothing new for me--I almost always have a room I'm painting or a garden project. But things that have been put off (like painting the downspouts and clearing out closets) will have to get done. There are A LOT of those kinds of projects around here.

I'm planning to add photos of the works-in-progress and what I'm really hoping is that you other

DIYers will send on tips and ideas from your own experiences. As soon as these rainstorms end and we get some sunny afternoons I will get back to painting the bedroom woodwork (started before the holidays). The forecast for the weekend is for sun: time to get started. So if you are a crack woodwork painter, please let me learn from you!