Rock On (The never-ending saga)

Remember when I wanted to get two pieces of marble art like this one Grandin Road?

They were perfect, but I needed two of needed the more expensive 48" ones!  You may remember that my husband likes "real" art, whereas I like to get stuff that matches the decor.  We both actually liked these but not the $510 price tag for the gold framed-pair.

                                                

Well, the HomeGoods-Powers-that-be smiled on me once again.  I found this exact thing in 39" for a cool $100, but, alas, only one.  I couldn't buy a mate on Grandin because they sell a smaller one and a larger one but not the medium size.  I started scouring every Home Goods in our area for the mate--I even drove to an out of state (but close by-ish) location.   I didn't find the mate, but bought several things that were close-enough until finally my dining room started to look like the HomeGoods or Tuesday Morning art department.  Forgive the blurry pics, but here were some choices: 

 Some were brightly colored while others were more like muted waves.

 Others were the exact same picture but sans gold speckles or frames:

Finally, I conceded it wasn't going to happen.  In a last ditch effort, I decided to using Google Reverse Image Search to see if a 39" Gold framed piece was out there.  If you aren't familiar with this feature--you actually upload an image and google will find the image on the web.  I have saved lots of money by price comparison this way.   

Low and behold, Lamps Plus had the medium sized piece at a medium sized price with gold speckles and all.  I was all set to order just one from them to be the mate to my Homegoods Find, but I noticed the frame was silver.  I thought about buying one and painting one or both, but decided just to buy a pair from Lamps Plus. I returned the rest.

The lamps Plus packages arrived quickly and the pieces are absolutely beautiful!  The packaging was perfect and they arrived in fantastic shape.  We unpacked them and threw away the box.  Three days later, we got out our ooks and hung them.  We gazed upon them lovingly--they are really dreamy!

Then a half an hour later, we heard the crash.

In some sort of  weird accident, the actual hook on the frame fell out, sending the frame crashing down.   With only a short while until guests were set to arrive, I did a quick repair on two of the four corners, but it is clear that the frame is forever ruined.   

I spoke to the most helpful and polite customer service rep and she is helping me through this process. I am not sure of the outcome yet, but my experience with her alone is very positive that I think it will work out favorably!  I still love the image.   Until then, the saga continues.....

Passover Planning and Online Party-Supply Shopping!

I am linking up with Kelly's Korner.  She's talking on-line boutiques.  I don't buy a lot of clothes on-line anymore because I Stitch Fix, which I guess is my favorite online boutique.  BUT I sure do love a good on-line party resource, and thought I would share those.  I am using a lot to plan for Passover right now--you can skip the religious part if you just want to get to the shopping!

 I have been giving my house a deep, deep cleaning and reorganization.  For our family, this Extreme Spring Cleaning can only mean one thing: Passover is coming! If you are unfamiliar with the custom, Passover commemorates the Jewish people's Exodus.  It's a really meaningful holiday with themes of oppression, freedom, wonders,  miracles and G-d's mighty hand.  Central to the observance is to refrain from eating leavened products during the holiday because the Israelites had to leave Egypt without allowing time for their bread to rise.  Its why our Matzah (and other people's communion wafers) are so flat. You are supposed to clean your home so that not one crumb of "forbidden" food could be found in your house during the week-long holiday.  My observance is not as strict as some, but I think it is a perfect time to clean up my act (actually and spiritually). And, I happen to be having forty (yup 4-0) people to dinner the first night!!!!!!!!! Here is what I am planning:

I am always prepared to entertain a crowd and have oodles of folding tables and chairs at the ready.  This crowd tested even my massive supply--I have to bring in.  Rather than have a hodgepodge of mine and the rental company's chairs, I am just renting tables and 40 white folding chairs and these beautiful peacock-inspired linens.  I actually have 50 hot pink cloth napkins from a shower I gave once (more on that in a minute), so navy and pink became my theme.  Won't big pink blooms look so preppy and fresh on those navy cloths???!!!

The same goes for plates. I simply don't have service for forty and renting can become tricky as some of our guests will only eat on dishes specifically designated for Passover.  I know this can sound quite foreign if you are from a different religion (and I personally have a slightly relaxed stance on it), but I want everyone to feel comfortable. Which brings me to one of my favorite places to shop on-line:   Smarty Had a Party!

Find Smarty had a Party here .  It is on-line only and is my go-to source for partyware.  They have the most beautiful selection of disposables that leave you wondering if they are disposable at all.  With intrate shapes and amazing colors, they will wow you with their dishes.  I selected a silver polka dot set for this event.  They even have an eco-friendly line of bamboo if you are nervous about the waste factor!  My favorite are the picks and mini dishes that make even simple appetizers and mini-desserts that wow.  Find those here .

Another thing from SHAP that I love to the moon and back are their unreasonably reasonable cloth tablecloths, napkins and runners.  At about 50 cents each and in a variety of colors, the napkins are almost cheaper than buying paper.  These are not heirloom quality linens, but they are real, and people often comment on how nice it is to have cloth as opposed to paper.  I have used mine for gatherings and teacher appreciation meals, and oodles of friends have borrowed them.  They hold up!  Don't even get me started on the $3 pintuck runners!!!!!!  I was not paid to say this, I just love this website!!!!!  After countless orders, the only thing that didn't wow me were the   "satin" linens (which is probably just a matter of personal taste anyhow).  .....but they don't have is personalized stuff (whump, whump), which brings me to a second favorite online store for personalized party supplies.

I am a lover of personalized items and monogrammed notecards.  This extends to an extreme need to have foil-pressed napkins.  I think I got this from being in a Southern Sorority--we ordered napkins practically anytime anyone sneezed!  I am surprised we didn't have any with "achoo" written on them.   I like ones with our monograms, the theme of the party, clever sayings, and the like.  There are many, many websites that sell these items now, but it was not always the case. Long ago, long ago I discovered The Stationery Studio.  It was probably one of the first of its type on the web and can still be found here.

The Stationery Studio has it all from preppy papers and invitations to personalized bags and (of course) napkins.  I called on them for my Passover celebration to create Napkins that say "Next Year in Jerusalem!"  This is a common phrase for the holiday--it doesn't refer to actual Jerusalem, but more may we all live in a city of peace.  While I was at it, I had them make polka dotted cups that say "L'Chaim"--its like Jewish "Cheers!"

Finally, I have to say that I was inspired by have been drooling over these cups by Memphis-based party planner and Esty seller Natalie Chang.  Her Christian themed cups had this Jewish girl's mind racing.  I would have done custom with her and will do so in the future when I have more turn around time (I love supporting Memphis business even though I live away now).  How sweet is that coffee cup? She also sells pre-made napkins and other cups here: 

The last thing in my inspiration board is a graphic from the Haggadah I compiled.  That's the prayer book that you use to conduct the Seder (ritual meal the first night).  I cannot find the source where I got those sweet graphics but they really make the book pop and will help the kids know where we are in the service.  There are so many good Haggadahs out there, but the ones for small children seem too simplistic and my middle-aged kids would never sit through the adult version.  So I made these--mostly paraphrasing other people's smart words.  My cool fonts disappeared when I uploaded it,but I thought someone out there may benefit from seeing mine here

If you celebrate, have a meaningful holiday and if not, I hope you will spend sometime checking out these great shops!!!!

Spring Cleaning In Progress

Today Kelly's Korner SUYL is all about organization.  That's funny because I haven't blogged much lately because I am in deep cleaning and redecorating mode.  It's going to make for some fun reveals later.    In the meantime, you know the phrase "you have to break a few eggs to make an omelette?"  Well, I am in the broken egg phase of deep cleaning, redecorating, and clutter-removal.  I have been working so hard to empty every drawer and cabinet in my house (closets come later) that I have Goodwill and re-sale piles everywhere.  That's right, I have cleaning clutter!  That's a thing: the struggle is real!  In the meantime here are some posts of last years Spring Cleaning, I am basically up to the same thing:

I'm doing this again: cubby clean-up 

And a little of the  laundry room:

I am definitely cleaning my fridge right now like this:

Fortunately, I don't have to do the utility bath because I already did this peg board project:

And the icing on the cake will be when I get to do my closets for Spring. I am throwing it back to my most popular series ever (not that is saying much)-- my work with a closet stylist and organizer can be found here, here, and here:

I notice that my blog doesn't have great links in general to get to all my other organization posts--I guess eventually I may have to Spring Clean in here too!

Brought to you by the Number 40....

I got the idea for this post from Kelly's Korner where I am linking up today.  This post is brought to you by the number 40 (well, 39.5)!

Though I nickle and dime my poor husband to death  at Target and spend a small fortune on decor, entertaining and my little ladies, I am pretty cheap when it comes to my own "maintenance".  I don't get my nails done other than special occasions.  I wear a lot of Old Navy and plan to drive my 2007 minivan into the ground even as all my friends are trading theirs in for fancy SUV's.  Other than a few good anti-aging products from my doctor and a small collection of better makeup,  I really am not a product junkie.   At almost 40, my routine is having to changing a bit.    Here I am keeping it real with no filter in my minivan:

I see that wrinkled brow, but this post is about my hair......

Getting my hair done used to be for fun and fashion only.  I could go long stretches with no cut and I colored even less frequently.  When I got a few grays, they just blended in with whatever fun treatment I was doing at the time.  At 38, I started noticing the grays started multiplying and coming in FAST.  For all the many beauty things I don't do, I just felt like I had to address this.  I started making more regular appointments.  I tried coloring it myself every other time with mixed results.  I shopped around for a cheaper salon (and found one).    Even at the less expensive place, the cost of getting my hair done every six weeks was shocking to this low maintenance woman!  I try to stretch as long as I can, but I'm  5'3"..... so this is what everyone sees by week 5:

To get another week or more  out of my color,  I call on this product:

It is available at any old store--I get mine at Walgreens.  It is under $10 a bottle and I can't say enough good things about it.  You just spray it on--it doesn't wipe off on my clothing or sheets and it washes away at the next shampoo (I usually shampoo daily so I am not sure how long it stays, but at least 24 hours).   It blends right in with my hair--I use light brown and saves me until my next color.  One bottle lasts awhile so it's a great value!  I think this would also work well if you were growing out any dye job not just grays.

Now if only, I knew of something so cheap and easy to erase those forehead wrinkles.....

My Favorite thing to DIY: Party Paper

I am linking up with Show us Your Life Over at Kelly's Korner.  Today, she asked people to link up with their favorite thing to DIY.  This was super hard for me because I DIY a lot!  To be fair there's also a lot I outsource too.  We don't shovel our own snow or cut our own grass and we have a cleaning service once a week. Before you get the wrong idea, I pick up and do laundry several hours a day!   It is just that not doing those things allows me to plant a garden, paint, do graphic design (you know I am a graph-faux artists, right), decorate, cook, spray paint, and reupholster things.  I even get my kids in on the act:

 Okay, that was just a shameless way to show my girls way back in 2010.. weren't they the cutest things on earth??!!  They were DIY'ing, though, making flowers from toilet paper rolls. They made 80 or so that Spring.  I glued them together,  spray painted them and wired the piece for hanging.  It is a huge and beautiful art piece over my guest room bed.  Really, its great looking and I  wouldn't trade it for a "real" art piece!  Even Mr 31-derful doesn't complain that it isn't real--it's that good!

My most favorite thing to DIY, however, has got to be party paper!  This has become more and more commonplace over the years with the fabulous options at Target and Micheal's and with printers having come so far.  Still , I know many people who outsource invitations, place cards, menu cards, and signage.

I have been doing my own since 2006 thanks to a simple and fabulous program called Printing Press Extreme.  I can't say enough about this program, which you can purchase in its updated form here. I also love to use the software that was free with my silhouette to do these types of projects.  It makes it so easy to elevate even a small event like a shower or birthady party.

I just think that a little paper goes a long way.  An invitation sets the tone for the event and using matching paper items at the event is an inexpensive way to tie everything together.   Take this example from my way-back archives (I wasn't so great with photography or blogging back then).  My mother-in-law was turning 60, and my father in law was surprising her with a dinner at a favorite restaurant.    I created a pretty orange and brown invitation for her autumn, surprise party.  The room was orange and brown and it was October,s o those colors were a natural fit.  When guest arrived at the event, they were greeted by a sign that mimicked the invitation and escort cards with the same font and color.

 The table assignments directed guests to tables named after her beloved grandkids (fortunately, there were exactly 6 tables).  You can see that the table number was also in the same "suite" as the invitations and signage:

To carry the theme even further, I added a menu card to match:

We did add floral as well, but it was the inexpensive paper that really tied it all together.  Here is the whole room:

The only other thing I added was an orange bow on the columns.  I even used the invitation for as inspiration for the slideshow screens.  I have put these kinds of touches on countless parties, showers, and celebrations over the years for myself and others.  It really is my favorite thing to DIY and I am literally off to do it right now for a 40th B-day tonight!

Purim is almost here!

Purim, a super fun Jewish Holiday takes place Wednesday night and Thursday. The holiday itself is commemorates the saving of the Jewish people from the wicked Haman, who was planning to kill all the Jews in ancient Persia.  We read a text called the Megilah (the scroll of Esther).  Fun fact: if you have ever heard the phrase "the whole megillah,"  it come from this.  You get to shout out anytime the bad guy's name is said and eat cookies shaped like his triangular hat--this year I filled mine with candy bars!

The TRADITIONS are my favorite--a night of costumes, masquerading, revelry, feasting, plays (shpiels), and the giving of both charitable donations and gift baskets.  Seriously, this holiday has something for everyone!  Think of it as Jewish Halloween, Mardi Gras, and May Day all in one! 

In particular, I love the tradition of mishloach manot or Purim baskets.  They are gifts of food or drink that are sent to family, friends and others.  This derives from the Book of Esther. It is meant to ensure that everyone has enough food for the Purim feast, and to increase love and friendship among Jews and their neighbors.  You have to include at least two different types of food and anything else you like. No shocker, we always have a theme!  This year we went with gardening.... You can see I started with adorable burlap planters filled with seeds, a shovel and gardening gloves. Here they are in the chaos of our art-project staging room:

Next, I added sunflower seeds and the  hamantaschen cookies. 

Then this sweet girl set to work affixing a note with the most precious tassel:

Here are some other shots of the baskets (just from my phone--whomp, whomp):

Kiss me I'm Jewish-Irish-ish

Remember Juan Epstein? He was one of the sweat hogs from  the 1970's sit-com "Welcome Back, Kotter." Don't worry if you didn't remember this, it has almost nothing to do with my story.

I was just thinking about old Juan the other day because he was all about challenging expectations of race and multiculturalism.  Part of the character was that he was both "this" and "that."

My family is all Jewish by religion.  My ancestry, however, is made up of 1/4 Irish Christians, making my kids 7/8 European Jews and 1/8 Irish.  See, this and that.  People are always shocked to learn that I both am Southern and Jewish.  The Irish thing takes it over the top. All I can say is that these freckles don't lie!  I didn't mean to get too deep today, but I wanted to say that before I sham"rock" your perception of me.

I present to you our annual St. Patrick's Irish Heritage Shabbat.  The kids walked in from school to find the table set in all its glittering, green glory:

Oops, is a sneak peek our new chairs before my reveal post! 

 Being Friday, we obviously had Sabbath Candles and Challah at the ready!

Each girl naturally got some swag at her seat (I made the felt headband in the lower picture using a tutorial I saw on Felt So Cute  a million years ago--she's also Jewish, so I guess lots of Jews get into St. Patrick's Day).

It is poorly lit, but in this picture you can see that a little note was "flying" among the shamrocks.

Here is what said:

We truly are LUCKY to live in a time where we can embrace all these different parts of ourselves...and that we get to go to the beach!  Irish-Jewish-Ish!