Don't Worry 'Bout a Thing.....

Let me just say this..........I love home-owning!!  While it is no easy task to update a home built in 1950, I am loving every minute of it!  My little home has already transformed SO much in such a short time.  I should probably slow down and relax a bit, but where's the fun in that?  Once a plan gets in my head, I stop at nothing until I accomplish it.  It's just how I roll.......

So far, my living room and master bedroom are complete with new paint, new vent covers, new blinds and new electrical outlets and lighting.  This weekend I finally finished my hallway.  Hallways can be boring but I wanted mine to be special.  At first I thought I would put stripes on the wall at the end or maybe a herringbone pattern but then I thought.........CHALKBOARD PAINT!!!  Yes!  I have been obsessed with the idea of chalkboard paint since before I closed on my house.  I have already decided that an entire wall in my kitchen will be painted with chalkboard paint, why not one little wall in the hallway, too?  :-)

The wall designated for the chalkboard had a texture on it and I had some leftover mud from the drywall guy who flattened my kitchen ceiling.  I used the mud to create a smooth surface on the wall that would be more conducive for chalkboard art.  This was my first attempt with mud and I think I was successful.  Putty knife, sanding and oh boy what a MESS!  lol  But the desired outcome came to fruition and up went the chalkboard paint!

Here is a before and after....

Once all was dry..........I set upon a 4 hour journey with chalk in hand.  A while back, I found a vinyl lettering pattern that I wanted to order that had a Bob Marley song lyric and thought it would be cool on a wall in my house.  The chalkboard art idea, although more difficult, was much cheaper and quite honestly, WAY cooler.  This was all done free-handed.  I have always loved to doodle, especially lettering.  And I suppose my  6 years of art classes didn't hurt.  :-)  I have to stop and stare every time I turn the corner.........

Here is my masterpiece!

Le sigh........I love it!

Next on the list will probably be my guest room.  :-)


On another note.........BABY BIRDS!!!  My sweet neighbor gave me a beautiful hanging plant as a welcome to the neighborhood gift when I first moved in.  (Super sweet!)  Shortly after hanging the basket on my front porch, I found a nest with eggs!

This is mama bird...

And all but one egg has hatched so far....Here is a picture of baby # 1...

What a fun piece of nature to witness!




Cheers, my friends!
Much Love,
~ Sylvie

My "Double Rainbow" Bedroom

Yes, I said "double rainbow"......it's the only way I can describe the amount of love and excitement I have for my new sleeping chambers.  it.is.freakin'.dreamy.

I must say, I owe a lot to my bf, who hung my "canopy" and repositioned my lighting (took down ceiling fan and hung up chandelier right over my bed as well as replaced all my outlets and covers...........He-Man, Hero, Favorite).

Here are some before and afters.  Enjoy.....

Before

After two coats of an oil -based white on the baseboards and trim, I painted my bedroom "Purpoise" by Sherwin Williams....

And here we have the After photos.....le sigh.  Ain't it purdy?

I also have my chandelier on a dimmer (again, a thank you goes to the aforementioned HeMan, Hero, Favorite above).

The canopy effect was created by hanging pvc pipe on the ceiling.  I found some cheap sheers at Ross, 2 for $5 (I actually have 7 sheers on mine).  The sheers fit nicely over the piping (which is attached to the ceiling w/ brackets).  Behind the headboard and hanging from the ceiling are white Christmas lights.  This whole canopy project cost me under $40.  Paint and lighting?  Well, that's another story.

Oh!!!  I almost forgot.  I found that beautiful white quilt with lace top-stitching and two shams at an antique store here in town for $39.  Score....

I love my bedroom.  I feel like a princess sliding on a double rainbow all the way across the sky.

My next project will be the hallway.  I'll find some way to make it look amazing.  Maybe some stripes?  Who knows!

:-)

My Itty Bitty House

My dream of becoming a homeowner has finally come to fruition!  It has been a long, ridiculous process but man, what a ride!  I have finally found the perfect home for me, and it has been aptly named my "Itty Bitty House".  My "new" home is only 860 sq ft.  I say "new" because it was built in 1950.  For what it lacks in modern features and stature, it surely makes up for with charm.

My sleeves have been rolled up for the last 6 days and I don't intend on stopping anytime soon.  The house needs some love and I have plenty to give.  At the moment, I am concentrating on revamping the living room and bedroom before I move my things in this Saturday.  So far, I have painted the trim and baseboards with a nice oil-based paint.  Two coats with a 24 hour wait in between for drying.  The former owners were smokers so there are plenty of nicotine layers to cover.  Example:  bleh...

I have painted the ceilings, they were pretty nasty, too but now look brand new.  A new ceiling fan has been mounted in the living room.  My color choice for the living room is pretty bold but awesome.  Here is the before and the after.  Still need a 2nd coat of paint which will go up today and obviously the tape needs removing.  :-)

Before:

After: (At least one wall, lol)

Before:

After:

I'll be sure to post better pics later, but for now these will do.  Tonight I am going to paint my bedroom a dark gray and put the 2nd coat on in the living room.  All outlets and their covers and all vent covers will be replaced as well as blinds.


I am going to be a weekend warrior for a long, long time.  LOL  Hope you've enjoyed the sneak peak!  I'll be sure to post more as I go along.

I'd like to end this post by saying that the power of positive thinking and the law of attraction are very powerful and effective tools to get what you want out of life.  I have focused so much on this happening and now it is finally mine.  I realized this yesterday and was completely blown away by how quickly your world can change just by saying, "yes" instead of "no", by believing there IS a way your dreams can come true.  If you want something, make it happen.

Cheers!

Dumpster Chair

So, a couple of weeks ago I had just got home from work.  I parked my Jeep in my usual parking spot (two spots  down from the dumpster).  As I got out of my sexy beast of a ride, I noticed a chair sitting next to the dumpster and thought, "Wow, thats a pretty cool little chair!"

Now, mind you, I am no dumpster diver and not that I have a problem with people who do, I just never took anything from a dumpster before but something told me to check out that chair.  It looked in really good shape to me so I brought it inside with the hopes of revamping this antique-ish treasure.

A few days later while perusing my Facebook feed, I saw a post from my friend, Whiskey Birmingham (aka Miranda Neff - obviously a priceless roller derby friend).  Whiskey had just opened her new upholstery business and was taking orders.  Um.....PERFECT!  A few messages later, I dropped my dumpster chair off to her and picked out an awesome fabric.  I took the frame home with me and commenced to painting.

Two coats of heirloom white spray paint (because whicker is a b#$%h to paint with a brush).

Then I used a Java Brown glaze in the nooks and crannies and even some on the edges to give it that neat antique look.  Next I used a non-gloss protective coat to keep the paint from chipping.

By the time I had finished with the paint job, Whiskey had finished reupholstering the cushion for the seat.  She screwed it back on for me and BOOM!!!  I now am the proud owner of one awesome dumpster chair that looks anything but.  

Whiskey did an AMAZING job.  Very professional and very time savvy.  She may just be starting her business but she is already fantastic and i HIGHLY recommend her if you need any work done.  I couldn't be happier with the outcome!

THANK YOU, WHISKEY! 

Holy Wow Tilapia & Sylvie Sprouts

I love food.  I love to cook.  But more than that, I love to cook for others.  Pleasing the taste buds of my loved ones is something I cherish.

I relish every aspect of preparing a meal.  From prep to plate, from the sound of my blade connecting to the cutting board to the sound of the sizzle in my pan -- cooking can be incredibly therapeutic if you let it.  I also love the lingering smell in my house and I must admit, I do get a little sad when the smell of garlic has left the tips of my fingers.  Weird?  Maybe, but I don't care much.

Here is a dish that I created last night.  Don't like brussel sprouts?  Bet you'd like mine!  It's pretty funny that I'm excited about these brussel sprouts (given the name "Sylvie Sprouts" by my BF) because I absolutely loathed them as a child.  Sorry, mom.  :-)  I am fascinated by how much our taste buds can change as an adult.  I used to hate chinese food, chili and sauerkraut, too, but they are all very welcome within the confines of my belly these days.

Enough, enough already......

RECIPE!!

Holy Wow Tilapia & Sylvie Sprouts

Feeds 2
Ingredients:

Sylvie Sprouts
20 Fresh Brussel Sprouts (must emphasize FRESH, pretty important folks)
3 cloves roughly chopped Garlic
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 cup (ish) Butter
Sea Salt & Freshly Cracked Pepper

Holy Wow Tilapia
4 Tilapia Filets
Flour
Olive Oil
Sea Salt & Freshly Cracked Pepper
3-4 Large White Button Mushrooms sliced
2 Green Onions chopped (white & green parts)
1/2 Shallot finely diced
Handful Parsley chopped
Juice of Half a Lemon
1/2 cup (ish) Chicken Stock

Ok, now that we got THAT out of the way.....

Let's start with the Sylvie Sprouts!

First, cut each brussel sprout lengthwise like-a so...

Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat.  Coat bottom of skillet with olive oil.  Add chopped garlic. Stir the garlic for a minute or two or until it just begins to brown and then remove the garlic with a slotted spoon and set aside in baking dish.  This step will flavor your olive oil with the garlic like a boss!

Next, add the brussel sprouts to the skillet chopped side down until slightly charred on the bottom (usually takes a minute or two).

Then add the sprouts to the baking dish with the garlic.  (Reserve remaining oil in skillet for tilapia)

Drizzle the sprouts with more olive oil, season with salt & pepper and add the butter.  Stir to make sure all the sprouts are covered with the oil.  Put it in the oven uncovered at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.  After about 10 minutes, stir with a spoon and put those babies back in the oven. 

Now.....onto the Holy Wow Tilapia.  mmm mmmm mmmm.....

Pat the filets dry with a paper towel.  Season with salt & pepper.  Then very lightly coat the filets with flour.  

Using the cast-iron skillet used for browning the sprouts, add a little more olive oil and set the filets in the skillet.  Once slightly golden brown, flip the filet (I seasoned with a little more salt at this point).  

After both sides are done, place filets on a plate lined with paper towel to catch the oil and cover with foil to keep the fishies nice and warm.  

In that same cast-iron skillet on low heat (this skillet does work, son!) add the chicken stock and about a tablespoon of flour.  Stir with small whisk until all the flour is incorporated with the chicken stock.  Then add the mushrooms, shallot, green onions and a little salt & pepper to taste.  This sauce is only slightly thickened so if it seems too thick, just add a little more of the chicken stock.

Cook together for about a minute or so and right before it's time to serve, add the parsley and lemon juice and stir.

Time for plating!  Layer the filets on top of each other (oh, who cares....just put em' on the plate!) and ladle a bit of that awesome sauce on top.  Sylvie Sprouts on the side, although those babies could be a meal all on their own....SWEAR.

Serve that plate of heaven (yes, heaven....) with a bottle of your favorite white wine and Aretha Franklin cracklin' on vinyl and your guests will be putty in your hands.  

Enjoy!

autumn surge

my most favorite time of year is upon us, autumn.  october.  leaves morphing into striking hues that inspire me so.  scarves and gloves.  sweaters and fuzzy socks.  boots and jackets.  blankets and hot chocolate.  soon, the familiar smell of chimney fires will fill the crisp air outside and transcend me back to my childhood.  i loved that smell then, still do.  i couldn't take in enough of it.  playing outside with friends.  happy times. 

with autumn comes many changes.  and those winds of change also spark the dramatic need for change in my own personal life.  i feel on fire in autumn.  i acquire that surge of energy needed to put wheels in motion.  i'm not sure where this annual desire comes from, or why it arrives.  after much thought over the years, i can only liken it to my childhood.  the end of summer, the beginning of a new school year.  school clothes, school supplies.  new classes, teachers, possible new friends and all the new anxieties that come along with the unknown.  fire, unsettling excitement.  energy.  change.  and for some reason, my psyche feels the need to recreate this need for change every autumn. 

someone very special to me brought this odd quirk of mine to my attention several years ago.  although, i did notice this "surge" myself, i mostly thought of it as a time of reminiscence, a longing for a time when life was simpler.  and maybe part of that holds true, but the need for change was certainly evident.

i ask myself now, what is so wrong with wanting change?  isn't that part of growing?  like in autumn, nature  withers in order for new growth in spring.  what is wrong with wanting to shed the undesired and fill life with something new and more positive?  why was this "quirk" of mine considered a "flaw" in your eyes?  this belief of yours convinced me that i was self-destructive.  unwanting of happiness.  perhaps you failed to consider that our ideas of happiness did not coincide. 

i consider myself ever-evolving.  continually in tune with what the universe has in store for me.  day by day riding on the waves of destiny.  i gave up fighting change.  i gave in to acceptance.  conformity does not exist in my world.  i've been called a gypsy.  that makes me smile.  maybe i am in a sense, but again..........what is so wrong with that?  maybe what was wrong was that you wanted me to be something i wasn't. or perhaps for a period in my life, i was attempting to be something i wasn't.  perhaps both.  who knows, really?

i find it odd that this blog ended up being about you.  i'll always adore you.  i've no ill words about you, for they do not exist.   i am thankful for your presence in my life.....then, and even more so now. 

i hope you find your kind of happiness.  you deserve it.....as do i. 

my quest for vegan-hood

food.

quite possibly my most favorite word, activity and obsession (other than my dog, cooper).  i like to fancy myself a "foodie".  and one of my most favorite things to do is prepare a meal.  i love being in my kitchen.  i love shopping for food.  i think about food probably more than most people i know.  when going out with friends, i like to know where we are going to eat way beforehand so i can drool over the menu ALL DAY.  i love food.  i love the smell, the sound, the taste and the visual aspect.  food is my obsession, yet also my dilemma. 

a few years ago i stumbled across a book, "Skinny Bitch" by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin.

i was tired of the weight i had gained.  i wasn't "fat".  no, nowhere near.  but i had smoked for 9 years and when i quit smoking, i gained 25lbs in 6 months.  25lbs!  when putting on my jeans became an all-out war, i decided i was ready to make some lifestyle changes to get back to my size 6.  a trip to the bookstore resulted in a 3 year struggle with food choices and lifestyle that i still battle.

i didn't realize when i bought "Skinny Bitch" that it was a book about being vegan.  vegan?  no more cheese?  NO WAY!  but, the book was an easy read, very entertaining and...........very eye-opening.  up until that point, i hadn't really given much thought about where my food came from and much less what was in it.  and the chapter on animal slaughter had me sobbing like a damned fool.  (i.love.animals.)  after reading that book, i made a change in my life.  i became a vegetarian with the hopes of someday reaching "vegan-hood".

the hardest part for me, believe it or not, was NOT giving up meat.  it was changing the way i cook.  having to "re-learn" how to cook in a way that was healthy.  constantly researching new recipes for my new lifestyle.  trying new things like tofu and kale.  

i was successful for a short period of time.  thanksgiving and christmas was a bitch!  all that intoxicating aroma of cholesterol washing over me.  but, i made it through.  however, it was difficult diving into this new lifestyle while living with someone who didn't want to jump on the train with you.  eventually, i caved.  i went back to being a shameful carnivore. 

after my divorce, i jumped back on that train.  this time with much more vigor.  i also watched several documentaries and read a few other books on veganism, our sad, sad food industry and the powers of juicing.  let me tell you, juicing makes you feel like a god.  ok, maybe not that awesome, but it does make you feel amazing.  i felt better than i ever had in my life.  i gave up the cheese (my biggest weakness), i gave up coffee (ouch).  i lost about 15 lbs and i had more energy than ever.  i.was.a.vegan.  for a minute.  well, actually about 6 months.  but, thanksgiving and christmas were just around the corner.  i remembered the utter disappointment of my belly from the previous year's holidays.  i didn't know if i could endure that sort of torture again.  so, i came to the decision that i would allow myself a bit o' turkey on thanksgiving and one bratwurst on christmas.  (ok, so ya know......i'm half german.  my family eats brats for christmas because we're cool like that). 

for months i dreamed of thanksgiving.  i couldn't wait for the day.  but before then, my birthday rolled around.  i thought, if i can have turkey on thanksgiving, surely i can have a cheeseburger on my birthday???  (huge cheeseburger FREAK)  i allowed myself this juicy, fatty birthday present and it awarded me a huge tummy ache and maybe a little vomit.  tmi??  but after i recovered, it felt worth it.  i savored that memory until thanksgiving when i was much more careful with my meat intake.  i only had a sample of turkey.  but it was deeeee-lish.  back on the wagon.

christmas 2011 would be the demise of my "vegan" run.  (i put vegan in quotations because well, i DID cheat a couple of days).  i went a little further than just one bratwurst.  i went crazy from christmas until new years.  i gluttonly devoured everything in sight, with the thought "this is my reward for being good".  i'll go back after new years.  well, i didn't and i haven't since then.  add the return of my bad eating habits to my retirement from roller derby in October 2011 and  you have one girl who is back to commencing WWIII with her denim. 

but recently, i feel like i'm finally ready to jump back on that wagon and my plan is to kick it off with a bang and a pow.  one week juice fast.  oh my.  maybe i'll still allow myself a little "present" on the holidays, but i think i learned my lesson.

i know i have a lot of friends who like to poke fun at my choices, but let me encourage you to do the research.  "Skinny Bitch" has a lot of good information to start with.  "The China Study" by T. Colin Campbell will blow you away.

if you're not a big reader, watch these documentaries.  they are all on netflix.

Forks Over Knives

Food Matters

Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead

The Gerson Miracle

that should be enough to get you started.  do your research.  know the facts before you criticize, and that goes for any subject for that matter.  just because you don't understand something, doesn't make it wrong.

i don't claim to be an expert on proper nutrition, i don't claim to be a vegan either.  but......do know that i am trying to do what's best for me.  i'm reading, i'm learning.  i'll get there.

but before i start on my quest again.......do know that i WILL be stuffing my face with everything that i will miss.  just one more sweet love affair with a cheeseburger from claud's, ok....maybe two.