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Here are a few other pieces from the collection:

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What are your thoughts on the collection? Mine are a resounding…eh. It looks like, well, Missoni made for Target.

That bike, however, is fantastic.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that this was probably the most fantastic family vacay in the history of the world.

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Happy Friday!

I was totally inspired by the amazing chair ‘before and after’ posts that pop up often and decided to create my own. I found this 1940′s chair on Craigslist for $25. A can of steel gray paint and some awesome fabric found on Etsy later – it is one of my proudest accomplishments!

Here we have the before – a beautiful antique, but totally busted, chair.

And here’s the after – a fun, bright bedroom chair!

An 8-cup French press.

A French press has been on my “things I really want for my kitchen” list forever, but for some reason I just couldn’t bring myself to buy one. Makes no sense, right?

The one I bought was $19.99. I have made highly questionable fashion purchases for more than $19.99. I bought a ravioli press  for $26 without even owning a pasta attachment for my Kitchenaid. There are not a lot of items in life, especially kitchen items, that can be purchased for under $20. (Soda stream, I’m looking at you)

So this morning I enjoyed my first cup of French press coffee while watching Joe and Mika chat away about the debt ceiling. Verdict: delicious, so simple to make, and a perfect start to my day.

(the same cannot be said about the debt ceiling conversation)

Best $19.99 I’ve ever spent.

Best $19.99 I’ve ever spent.

So it should come as no surprise that I gasped out loud when I saw today’s Living In on Design*Sponge was about the movie!

(Is someone at D*S reading my little blog?)

They completely nailed it with the decor and accessories to match the movie.

Want to know one of my favorite pieces of TBH trivia? It’s not the obvious Tori Spelling before she was Tori Spelling casting. Or Carla Gugino (now of Entourage fame) who played Chica.

Willie Garson (aka Sanford Blatch) has a cameo! Right at the beginning, he’s in the car with Tessa and her dad as they are driving to the picnic. Go watch it.

You can even borrow my DVD.

Among my favorites:

Rule No. 1

The first law of summer eating

While we can’t drill down too deep on this data-wise, it’s hard to contest the fact that food tastes better when you eat it outside, preferably using your hands.

Rule No. 3

Speaking of lazy

Don’t even bother cooking that corn. If it’s sweet enough, all you have to do is shuck it, cut the kernels off the cob, and toss with lime juice, olive oil, cilantro, salt, and pepper. (And no one’s going to complain if you throw in cherry tomatoes or avocado.) It’s great as a salad, a salsa, or a condiment.

Rule No. 7
No one is going to improve upon the tomato sandwich

No one—not Alice Waters, not that Danish guy whose place was voted Best Restaurant in the World, maybe not even God. Put a few slices of the juiciest tomato you can find on your favorite toasted bread with mayo, a sprinkle of sea salt, and a couple of grinds of pepper. Eat open-face.

Rule No. 22
You should do whatever you can to avoid turning on
the oven in the summer.
Unless there’s a Peach Pie in the equation

Does the friend like sweet or savory desserts? Where will it be served? Are we doing a breakfast, lunch, dinner, or happy hour celebration? Big group or small group? Will I be camping on a beach in Virginia for V’s birthday and frosting cupcakes by the light of a headlamp on the trunk of GeoffKing’s car while being eaten alive by mosquitoes?

Thursday is the 30th birthday of my forever-roommate, Rebecca. Reba is one of my favorite people to bake for, but when it comes to her birthday, there is only one option:

Duncan Hines Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting.

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Let’s be honest. Of every single amazing birthday cake you have eaten in your entire life, has  anything ever topped this cake? I didn’t think so. Rebecca knows her stuff.

Oh, and for the second year in a row, I’ll frost the cake in a bar.

Happy almost birthday, Rebecca!

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They are fairly time-intensive and have a few random ingredients, but so very worth the effort!

cast of characters

Makes 12 muffins (note: I made small muffins and got 24 out of the recipe)

Don’t throw away the juice from the can of pineapple; you’ll need it. To toast the coconut and walnuts, place them in a dry skillet over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until they’re golden, about 5 minutes. Cool before grinding them. We prefer golden raisins here, but ordinary raisins will work, too.

INGREDIENTS

¾ cup sweetened shredded coconut, toasted
½ cup walnuts, toasted
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
1½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and shredded
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ cups shredded carrots (2 to 3 medium)
1 cup golden raisins

DIRECTIONS

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 12-cup muffin tin. Process coconut and walnuts in food processor until finely ground. Add flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt and pulse until combined. Transfer mixture to large bowl.

Place pineapple and shredded apple in fine-mesh strainer set over liquid measuring cup. Press fruit dry (juice should measure about 1 cup). Bring juice to boil in large skillet over medium-high heat and cook until reduced to ¼ cup, about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly. Whisk melted butter, cooled juice, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Stir wet mixture into dry mixture until combined. Stir in pineapple-apple mixture, carrots, and raisins.

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean, 24 to 28 minutes. Cool in tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack. Serve warm. (Muffins can be stored in airtight container for 3 days.)

First, this upholstered bench that immediately went on my Pinterest board.

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The other is this pillow that popped up on my “things you might like” tab on Etsy.

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Since I’m not quite ready to drop $500 on that bench, and I already have new pillows for my couch, I am planning to combine these two lovely items. I bought a chair on craigslist a few weeks ago that is all ready to be reupholstered and painted (before and after pictures to come!) I’ve been looking for a perfect fabric to use for the cushion and I think this pillow is it. I’m going to either use the pillow cover as the fabric or see if I can buy it by the yard.

Stay tuned for updates on this little project!