Summer's Harvest Corn Chowder

5 slices of bacon, diced
1 small onion, diced
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 c. flour 
1 Pkg.(32. oz.) reduced-sodium Chicken or Vegetable Broth
2 c. cubed frozen hash-brown potatoes
3 c. fresh sweet corn, cut from the cob
1/2 c. heavy cream 


1.)  In a large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp.  Using a slotted spoon, remove from pan ans set aside.
2.)  Discard all but 1 Tbs. of drippings and add onion, pepper, and nutmeg to pan.  Cover and cook over low heat for 10 min. or until onion is soft.  Stir in flour and cook 3 min. more.  Whisk in broth and increase heat bringing to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 5 min.  Stir in potatoes and corn and cook 5 min. more.  Stir in cream and cooked bacon.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Makes 6 cups.  (About 265 calories per cup)


This is one of my families favorite end of summer/fall suppers and best with fresh baked bread, yum.

Enjoy!

PINK!

Okay now I have always been a fan of pink, duh, I'm a girl but lately it's been all over the design/decorating magazines.  There has been a battle going on in my head about which room I want to incorporate this
amazingly beautiful and surprisingly versatile color.  Do I do the laundry room?  It would satisfy my inner "Pinkist" but it would only be for me maybe even make me keep up on all the laundry.  Or do I add it to my living room?  This has been my thoughts for the past few months.  My living currently is a deep red and tan...pink may work in there without having to change the walls?  Do I do pillows?  Curtains? Maybe a pink/white multi-colored floral?  I also love blue/white china mixed with pink....

Love the pale pink curtains!

Love the mix of blue and pink very chic!

Ikea Rug With a hint of Blue

Leather Pink Pouf Ottoman (Morocco)

 

Monet's "The Waterlily Pond Pink Harmony"

 

Flirty Aprons Midnight Bloom Apron  $30.49 Overstock.com

Maybe just an adorable pink apron to wear while baking yummy delights for my boys?

a boring dining room

These were some of my suggestions for this boring dining room.

This is one of my favorite rugs from Ikea

This light in a cluster of 3-4 or just two separate pendants from West Elm.

I fell in love with this print from fabric.com  Thought this would be great for the chairs.

And a  bold graphic for the curtains?

Nature-Inspired

  

Crate and Barrel $199

My most favorite design element is nature. There is just something about natural objects....such beauty.  I love adding natural wood elements- a branch here and tree there, sheepskin/wool, leather, ahh...these are the things that make me feel at home.  I have in the works a natural tree stump end table I de-barked myself.  I haven't gotten around to finishing it but plan to....just a note: if you have allergies to certain trees use gloves when working with the wood; I had a very ichy experience when working with the elm stump I had. 

The Rope detail on these beds

Restoration Hardware $99- 18'L 2" Rope

ALSEDA Stool Ikea $29.99

KOLDBY Cowhide Ikea $199

Cowhides International $269

West Elm Stump Table $199

   

Crate and Barrel Driftwood Table $399

Side table

LUDDE Sheepskin Ikea- $39.99

West Elm

 Some of these things are very affordable ways to add a bit of nature into the home.  Some of these items are on my "wishlist" and may never come into fruition but a girl can dream.  And where there is dream there is always possibility. I would love to see your thoughts or interesting ideas on how to add natural elements in design.

To All My Ladies

  

 Friends are like panties... Some crawl up your butt. Some snap under pressure. Some don't have the strength to hold you up. Some get a little twisted. Some are your favorite. Some are holy. Some are cheap. Some are naughty. And some actually cover your butt when you need them to.    

Share this with all your ladies!

Minimalist

I am dedicating this to my sister who says she loves modern/minimalist design.  I love these photo examples of that style and here is a not so brief description of it.

those dining chairs are one of my favorite styles

                          

 Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is stripped down to its most fundamental features.  

                                                    

The term minimalism is also used to describe a trend in design and architecture where in the subject is reduced to its necessary elements. Minimalist design has been highly influenced by Japanese traditional design and architecture. In addition, the work of De Stijl artists is a major source of reference for this kind of work. De Stijl expanded the ideas that could be expressed by using basic elements such as lines and planes organized in very particular manners.

Architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe adopted the motto "Less is more" to describe his aesthetic tactic of arranging the numerous necessary components of a building to create an impression of extreme simplicity, by enlisting every element and detail to serve multiple visual and functional purposes (such as designing a floor to also serve as the radiator, or a massive fireplace to also house the bathroom). DesignerBuckminster Fuller adopted the engineer's goal of "Doing more with less", but his concerns were oriented towards technology and engineering rather than aesthetics. A similar sentiment was industrial designer Dieter Rams' motto, "Less but better" adapted from van der Rohe. The structure uses relatively simple elegant designs; ornamentations are quality rather than quantity^{[dubious – discuss]}. The structure's beauty is also determined by playing with lighting, using the basic geometric shapes as outlines, using only a single shape or a small number of like shapes for components for design unity, using tasteful non-fussy bright color combinations, usually natural textures and colors, and clean and fine finishes. Using sometimes the beauty of natural patterns on stone cladding and real wood encapsulated within ordered simplified structures, and real metal producing a simplified but prestigious architecture and interior design. May use color brightness balance and contrast between surface colors to improve visual aesthetics. The structure would usually have industrial and space age style utilities (lamps, stoves, stairs, technology, etc.), neat and straight components (like walls or stairs) that appear to be machined with machines, flat or nearly flat roofs, pleasing negative spaces, and large windows to let in lots of sunlight. This and science fiction may have contributed to the late twentieth century futuristic architecture design, and modern home decor. Modern minimalist home architecture with its unnecessary internal walls removed probably have led to the popularity of the open plan kitchen and living room style.

A Rose By Any Other Name Would Smell As Sweet

  Do to the fact that they are delighting me with wonderful blooms I wanted to share...these are a few of the amazing roses I have added to my garden this year, all except Sigrid she will be coming soon.  These are amazingly cold hardy and rebloomers!  Northern Accents really did a great job and who can beat the great names and stories that come along with these beauties.  

Lena

Oh jeez, ya never saw anything so pretty. Lena’s frilly pink and white flowers just keep on blooming. Masses of them are held above the bright green, disease resistant foliage. Developed by Kathy Zuzek, University of Minnesota.

Ole

Ole can never make up his mind, "Am I pink or am I white?" You won't care when you see the masses of flowers cover this neat, compact shrub. Cheery blossoms, super hardy, low-maintenance and the disease resistance is above average. Uff da! What more could you ask for? Developed by Kathy Zuzek, University of Minnesota. Own Root.

                                      Sven
Sven is as strong as he is good-looking. Versatile too, with a color range from violet to mauve to rich dark pink, blending beautifully with dark green foliage. Masses of blooms cover this compact, low-maintenance shrub, followed by a good showing of hips in the fall. And, donchaknow, it has the strongest fragrance of the whole darn bunch. Developed by Kathy Zuzek, University of Minnesota. Own Root.

Sigrid  

O ya, you betcha we needed another rose to add to the Northern Accents® collection. Sven was lonely and needed a partner! Den along came Sigrid with her enormous clusters of red double flowers. She stole his heart, ya know! And she'll flower all summer long to boot. Developed with Swedish input at the University of Minnesota by Kathy Zuzek. Own Root.

Keep Life Simple

This has always been a challenge for me.

I learned in design and cooking that this has proved so true but it is very difficult for me to apply this in life in general.  Things always seem to get complicated and stressful and I have to just keep reminding myself of this quote...which I found printed on the packaging of a bar of soap.  Keep life simple and things will be easier.  Keep in your mind what is most important to you and things will be less complicated.

Dining Room Ideas

Love this mix for a dining space possibly with a couple of the chairs from my previous post.  The table is my favorite.  And I love the idea of mixed seating, despite the man's love of things that match.  I agree with Nate Berkus on the love of the "collected" look.  Things you've purchased throughout the years from one place or another through travels and what not; especially because I have such a wide variety of styles I am in love with.  I love modern but also vintage pieces, and ethic patterns and prints are so beautiful.

Elements Bench- Overstock.com

Casual Country Dining Table- Home Decorators Collection

West Elm

Kooboo Wicker Chair- World Market

JOY

    

 I found this on one of my favorite blogs and couldn't help but repost because it was just the boost I needed after feeling down.  I do try very hard to not compare myself to others but it is a daily struggle.  Sometimes Life throws you a curve ball and you got to readjust your swing. 

Living Room Redo?

I am thinking of new ideas for my living/dining/kitchen...I have an open floor plan so all these rooms must blend.  I have been on the look out for a dining table; I'm thinking of a reclaimed wood piece similar to Restoration Hardware's trestle tables or maybe redoing what I currently have I have very limited space.  I may or may not paint my living room a gray tone.  These two rugs are so beautiful I'm thinking of one of them for the space but I just can't decide which one!  Both are amazing but completely different.

                                   Handmade Alexa Pino Rose Fantasy Brown Rug (5' x 8')

Overstock-Handmade Sabrina Cherry Tomato Wool Rug (5' x 8')

Oily White Pelican

Campaign Chair

I have been in love with this Pelican painting for a while now and think it would fit in with the style of both these schemes.  The chair is from World Market and I love the style- possibly 2-4 at a rectangle table with two high-back caned chairs which I have not found yet.  And once again I have two beautiful fabrics I just can't decide on which BTW would go beautifully with the tomato rug.  I originally choose these to recover a pair of chairs I had my eye on at the Goodwill but I hesitated too long and they are sadly no longer waiting for me and yet those chairs got the decorating wheels turning and sadly I think I'm in trouble.  Not another room redo!  Ahh! And I was doing so well.

I was just watching the Nate Berkus Show and he was talking about how as a designer you can be happy with the way your room is until oh, no! you see something that inspires you in another direction and now you hate what you'd done.  Well, yes...sadly this has happened and I just can't stop thinking about how over my room I am and how much I want to run and buy paint and fabric, rugs and art....the whole nine yards!  I'm trying desperately to refrain but my inner decorator is not letting it go!                   

Cool Whip Cheesecake

1-8oz. Package Softened Cream Cheese
1-8oz. Container Cool Whip
1/3 Cup Sugar
1- Ready to Fill Graham Cracker Crust or  1 1/2-2 Cups Crusted Graham Crackers and 1 Stick Butter Melted
Assorted Fresh Fruit or Canned Fruit


Using an electric mixer blend the Cream Cheese and the Sugar.  Fold in the Cool Whip until entirely incorporated.  Put filling in prepared crust.  Top with fresh fruit or canned.  Enjoy!


This is one of my favorite cheesecake recipe and by far the easiest thing you will ever make!