LoveLifestyle: January 2012

Google Friend Connect Says Goodbye to WordPress

Hey there ladies! How's it hanging. I hope the week is treating you good... almost hump day! Whoo-hoo!

But, I really just wanted to pop in really quick to remind you that as of until March 1, 2012 Google Friend Connect will no longer be an option for following any non-Blogger blogs. So, that means you and I will have to subscribe to those via a new method. Personally, I'm going to follow through the rss feed for most.

Speaking of finding a new way to follow... do you know of a faster method to change the subscription? Or to find to out if a blog is on Blogger or WordPress? Right now, I'm having to do this one by one and its no fun. Do I really have to visit each blog? (You may be thinking that I will visit as I read each post, but no my friends that is not the case. I read most post in Google Reader, which gives me a list of all new posts.) The thought of how tedious Google has just made my life is not sitting well with me. Especially since I follow somewhere in the realm of 180 blogs. If you know of any shortcuts please share!

Till next time!

Impossibilities Challenge - Done... Well Mostly

Let me start by saying, thank you! The ladies who came up with challenge were certainly inspirational.

I don't think I would've tackled this room without it.

Can you remember what the sad state of affairs called a room originally looked like? Located right off of the dining room, it was a waste of space and a hot mess, for sure.

Since this room is visible from the dining room and all visitors get quite a shot of this hot mess, I made it my aim to give them a better view. And for the last two weeks I've been trying to pull it together without spending much moolah. For the record, I spent $25 as of this posting. Not quite finished, the room needs some more "pretties," especially on the left side (side with the table). But a vast improvement by far! (It was quite cloudy today so picture quality is low. On the next sunny day I will retake.) So here it is, the big reveal!

The left side

The vintage steamer trunk holds my sewing machine and accessories. (I may paint it white, not sure yet though.) The basket on top holds a blanket or two and Mya at times.

I picked this file sorter up from an antique shop.

The right side

If you read the post from yesterday, you will notice that the bench cover is now a slipcover and the back cushion is a little shorter. I made the back cushion shorter because of the curtains, the taller cushion was laying against the curtains and driving me crazy. Also I decided a slipcover would be better because...

Every time I turn around little Miss Mya is lounging on my bench, so I figured, I better be able to take the cover off and wash it.

Doesn't everyone use a planter to hold their magazines?!

Lets do a side by side review, shall we.

Thanks so much for stopping by... till next time.

I'm partying at these spots:

Impossibilities Challenge... Latest Room Project

Hel-loooooooooo (in my best Mrs. Doubtfire voice)! I hope you had a superb weekend. Saturday the hubby and I drove 1.5+ hours to visit an open air farmer's market. The weather was amazing... 66 degrees and blue skies. I tell ya, living in California definitely has its perks! (Just be sure to watch out for the occasion earthquake.) After walking around and tasting some delectable goodies, we paid a visit to Ikea, which just so happened to be nearby. I don't get to go very often because of the long drive, so I forgot how much I looove that place! I think we spent a few hours in there. Then it was time head back home, after all I have a deadline to meet... January 31st is looming!

Once I arrived home I headed straight into my challenge room and got to work rearranging it. I moved in this ottoman in lieu of the chair that was making the room cramped. (I bought this many moons ago from Horchow, before the economy took a nose drive.)

Its really too big for most rooms in the house, but I just can't bring myself to part with it because I adore the base. The fabric however is another story, besides ~~someone~~ I spilled paint on it. Oops! Then I got to thinking, "An ottoman in the corner is going to look odd." So...

I changed out the fabric and added a cushion back.

I still have more trim to add around the base. I can't wait to share the whole bench with you... the whole room in fact!

Too bad, you'll have to come back on the 31st to see it though. Till next time...

I'm linking this to:

Serpentine Dresser Receives A Feature

I'm uber excited tonight. My serpentine dresser received a few features. First, Julia at 551 East Furniture Design featured her. Which is pretty stinkin' awesome since her furniture pieces are in a league all their own.

Next, Amy at WhisperWood Cottage featured her. And if you haven't heard Amy is running a 1st project of the year party that ends January 31st. Also, up for grabs is a feature in Cottages and Bungalows (loooooove that magazine.)

I hope you have a wonderful weekend... till next time!

Unclutter It Thursday #6 - Pantry Tools

I must postpone the reveal of my pantry, yet again. When I was finally able to retrieve the photos that were on the sd card, when I dropped my camera, they were not blog worthy. I wish I had known that sooner, I would taken more pictures while I had light today. But in the meanwhile, lets look at some items I used to organize my pantry.

1. Wicker/Metal Baskets: Baskets of all shapes and sizes are great for corralling boxes, potatoes, and even snacks.

2. Glass Jars: These can hold pasta, legumes, grain, and much more. The nice thing about glass is you don't have to worry about odors or chemicals.

3. Cabinet Shelves: The shelves in my pantry are spaced out and not adjustable so I used these shelves to get more storage space. I bought mine at Target.

4. Expandable Shelf Organizer: These things can hold a multitude of canned goods or even spices. And they save you so much space. I will tell you, make sure you get one that is deep enough to hold cans because some are sized specifically for spice bottles.

5. Undershelf Basket: This is something that I didn't get to use but I wanted to. Similar to the cabinet shelf just under-mount.

These are just a few of the items I use, but the list of tools you can use to organize your pantry can go on and on. Some wonderful sites to order from are.

There you have it folks. Hopefully next week I can get it together enough to share some photos of my pantry.

Till next time!