Riesling's "New" Car

Us Robinsons love a good hand me down....

Another man's treasure

Some things in life are hard to come by. True love, good friends, a rewarding career, and lets not forget tin coffee cans. Seriously! Plastic has total taken over the industry but a tin coffee can, especially one with a lid, has so many uses. They are super sturdy and great for storing all kinds of things, like screws, nails, construction materials, buttons, or craft supplies. You can get really crazy and make a light fixture or lamp. You can paint them and use them as mini vases or planters for herbs.

You could easily have a few in every room of your house. If only they weren't so darn difficult to come by...

Well yesterday was Jim's lucky day. He was just walking down the street to work and there it was, a perfectly good tin coffee can in the street. A brief inspection revealed that it was not infested with roaches or been used as urinal by a homeless person, so he picked it up and continued on his way. Once inside the office, with great excitement, as he was carefully wiping and cleaning the canister, he showed off his new prize to several staff members. All of whom thought it was the weirdest thing. Why anyone in their right mind would pick up trash off the street? Perhaps it goes back to my redneck Ohio roots, but my initial response was "Sweet!"

Three Cheers for BS

I guess it's time to break my blogging silence. And I can't think of any better topic to do so with than baking soda.

Try to contain yourself.

Personally I get giddy just thinking about all the fun and exciting ways to use this stuff. It all started with removing a little water ring from the butcher block top on our kitchen island but the phenomenon has spread into my bathtub, sinks, and drains. It's soooo versatile, effective, and cheap.

Let's start with the island....

At one point this lovely Ikea piece filled with water rings and heat spots had me swearing that I'd never purchase furniture from those darn Sweds ever again. The butcher block top does take some upkeep, but now that I've figured it out it's no so horrible. And honestly we're a bit lazy about the upkeep and just down right lazy about using coasters, so it gets a little rough looking before I decide to spruce it up.

First I use steel wool over any water rings or imperfections that have popped up since the last go around. ALWAYS go with the grain of the wood. It will actually pull up some of the wood but don't panic, it's kind of like a light sanding.

Gentle wipe away any dust.

Then it's on to my dearest friend B.S. (baking soda) to clean and deodorize the surface. I just sprinkle it directly on the surface and scrub away with a damp rag or sponge. This does sometimes result it a bit of a mess on the floor, which I don't mind because I like to actually see the baking soda working. If it's an issue for you just mix a few tablespoons of BS with warm water and apply with a sponge.

Now it starts to get exciting.

I cut a lemon into quarters and use the lemon to give the surface a nice deep scrub.

That's right. Use the lemon as a sponge. CRAZY.

Then it's time for a finally wipe down with clean, warm water. I'm a bit excessive with the BS so it sometimes takes a few wipe downs to get it all cleaned off. First, any chucks of BS go right into the kitchen sink for my next exciting kitchen cleaning venture. Then a rag usually does the trick.

At this point things are looking pretty good...

But the key is to seal it off with mineral oil to keep those water rings away a little longer. First the surface needs to dry. So this is the point where I turn to the kitchen sink filled with chucks of BS. I usually sprinkle in a few more tablespoons and grab another lemon quarter and scrub away. My stainless steel sink has never looked so good! Even Jim noticed how shiny and clean it was the first time I tried it.

After I I'm finished scrubbing alway all the grim with my lemon sponge, I take my bucket of warm water that I used for rinsing the island top and add about 1/2 c. of vinegar and it to rinse the sink. Make sure to jump up and down as it bubbles and fizzes. The vinegar and BS will act as a natural drain cleaner to keep those pipes nice and clear.

If I'm feeling really ambitions I haul my supplies up to the bathtub. Again I just sprinkle with BS and scrub away. For the tub I use a reusable scrub brush with a handle on it. I guess I don't feel like it deserves or necessarily needs the lemon scrub. Plus it usually involves a little more scrubbing in the tub to get the soap scrum ring off, but the BS works sooo good you won't need any other bathroom/tile cleaner. I again mix some hot water with vinegar with I'm all done to rinse down the drain to keep it all free and clear.

I'm exhausted. Is that darn island dry yet?

On a superwomen type of day I take my bucket filled with clean warm water and 1/2 c. vinegar and take to window washing.

On a regular house cleaning day. I probably stopped at the kitchen sink and sat on my butt with a glass of lemonade by the pool waiting for the island to dry.

Once the butcher block surface is completely dry I apply a generous coating of mineral oil, wiping with the direction of the grain in the wood. I found the mineral oil cheapest at Ikea and it's definitely worth the extra effort for a beautiful, radiant island top.

If it's the first ever application, I recommend doing 3-4 coats and then just try to keep up with it. This also needs a little dry time, followed by a little swipe with a clean dry cloth to remove any excess oil that didn't absorb.

Now my island, sink, tub, and drains are all fresh and clean with just a few simple household ingredients. Pure and simple.

Books

We agreed that a 'library' space was essential in the new house. After shopping around we acquired 3 nice tall bookshelves . I wanted three to balance out the window on the opposite wall in the living room. Plus we have a ton o' books and in true library fashion wanted to include all our reference and textbooks, along with the novels. Textbooks are big. They take up a lot of space. We definitely need 3 bookshelves. We overestimated. We didn't even fill two of them.

I remember digging through boxes in the basement insistent that there had to be some missing. Nope. It's just that it seemed like we were bursting at the seams with books in our old apartment. Which we probably were, but our new house is about 20x larger so that gives us a little more elbow room to start off with.

The good news is Jim's a read-a-holic. He's in the middle of completing the Modern Library Top 100 Novels and wants to own all of them as well, so it probably won't take too many years to fill up the remain shelves. I've also decided to start bargain hunting this week and have managed to purchase 12 books for less than $30. Not to shabby.

And because talking about bookshelves isn't enough fun, a video for your enjoyment...

A Journey's End. The Dining Room

I've been avoiding posting the "after" pictures for weeks now. I wanted to get some of the small details taken care of before the grand unveiling. I scratched a few things off my list, but there's still not a single thing hanging on the walls, the curtains aren't steamed, and I'm still hunting for a server/credenza type piece for the barren wall. Who knows when I'll get any of it done, so here you go. The dining room area as of today...

Nichols & Stone Dining room table and 5 chairs: Craigslist $125

The table top definitely needs to be refinished, but it's really solid furniture and the price was right. For the time being it's fine and when we have friends over for dinner I just cover it with a table cloth.

Table: West Elm $349

I originally bought it for the foyer, then moved it to the living room, but have decided that I like it most of all here.

Curtains: Ikea

I don't remember the exact price but Ikea is a great place for cheap curtains. I have 2 panels of the linen color on each side and one panel of lace. The lace are one of my favorite additions in the last week.

Rug: Home depot $197

It's a bit more modern than I had envisioned. The rug I actually wanted was from Pottery Barn, but it would have been almost $1200 for the large size I needed. On a whim we checked at Home Depot and both really liked this one. The colors match nicely and it's not too think for a dining room area.

Sofee is happiest of all.

She love hiding under the table, but hated that there was no rug/carpet there.

Blank Wall.

Searching Craigslist, clearance sales, and thrift stores for a long server/buffet piece and will transform this area to more of a bar area. Not much else to say about a blank wall.

Hutch: Craigslist $300 including delivery

Eventually I want to move all the glasses and bar items to the currently non-existing bar area and display something else here. What I don't know yet. I have way to much space and not enough crap.

Rump Roast

I spend my early mornings squatting, lunging, squeezing, and stretching my way to a perfectly sculpted buttock. My efforts have left with me with a toned (at least more toned) but significant less insultated booty. Seriously. I'm shivering just thinking about the walk thru the parking lot in my dress trousers or night walks with Jim and Sofee dog.

I have a really warm ski jacket that Jim got me for Christmas last year, but it stops at the waist. So my top half is toasty warm and thanks to good winter socks, boots, gloves, a scarf, and hat most of my body also fairs pretty well. But, my little hiney gets so freakin' cold! So, I've had my eye on the winter clearance sales for a 3/4 length winter coat to double for dress or casual. And luck would have, I finally stumbled upon a steal of a deal at Land End's Canvas on this beautifuldown coat.

It's super warm without being bulky; the hood easily fits over my favorite hat; and I can easily wear it for casual or dress. Because it was a clearance item color choice was limited in my size. I was/am a little concerned about the cream color getting dirty easily, but the fabric is water resistant and easily wipeable. And most of all the price was right.

Regular price $140.

My sale price $49!!

AND free shipping.

Makes for one happy lil caboose.

How many words can I use to describe my ass in one post...backside, fanney, tush, gluts....

Wine & Dine

My desire to feed other people must be genetic. My mother was always dead set on serving you if you were in our home and it was something that obviously made her happy. As a teen, my brother live in the basement and had his own entrance to the house, so it was possible for him and any number of people to get into the house without encountering her. She was a big fan of putting food on the stairs just in case they got hungry. Even if you were just stopping by for 5 minutes she'd insist you take a pack of those peanut butter cracker things with you. It obviously made her happy. Ask anyone of my high school friends.

Every single decision we've made regarding renovating our kitchen area has revolved around the idea of guest being here. I've said it so many times in response to such a variety of different questions that Jim just chuckles now. He's beginning to think I'm a lunatic.

We have now completed all major construction projects in the kitchen and I was able to find a sweet hutch on Craigslist for only $300 (including delivery!) to the dining room table I also snagged out of someone's garage from a Craigslist posting.

I declare this room suitable for hospitality!

In case you have forgotten what this lovely space looked like to start....

current dining room. previously known as the "TV room"

I can't believe we decided to get rid of that awesome drop ceiling. (insert sarcasm)

These boots were made for walking.

All this lovely winter weather can be hard on the footsies... and footwear. I decided this year I needed to invest in a brown and black pair of non-heeled boots, which turned out to be harder than I expected. I didn't want something too casual or too granny.

I found these Steve Maddens for a steal at Famous Footwear and wear them constantly on the weekends. They are so comfy and the color goes well with pretty much anything. I love having my skinny jeans tucked into boots to avoid getting all the wet and muck on them.

I was a bit more challenged finding black ones. I already have a pair of heeled knee high boots to wear with skirts or dresses but the heel makes them inconvenient for casual. I finally settled on these. I was a bit hesitant at first because they seemed a bit too clunky, but the price was right (and I had a coupon!) so I decided to go for it.

I'm actually really happy I did. I've worn them a lot during snowy or rainy days and they keep my feet warm and dry. I typically wear them for casual but I did wear them to work last week during a snow storm with a knee length skirt and tights and got a lot of compliments. And last weekend I paired them with jeans, a long sleeve tee from Gap, and my black blazer for a casual Saturday morning at work.

The plaid flannel scarf is one of my favorites!

A vintage find amongst my mom's old stuff.

I wonder how many more months of winter I can survive on the excitement of these fun winter fashions...

Citrus

Another busy weekend at the Robinson house. I started off my Saturday with an early trip to the flea market in our town. Flea markets are the best. And the weather was perfect for browsing around with a hot coffee. For a whooping $15 I came home with a set of coffee mugs that match my moms old dinner plates, 2 rolling bins, a coffee urn, a candlestick, and 4 super cool 50's style glasses with orange stripes! I'm still so psyched.

The rest of the weekend wasn't so luxurious.

We're trying to tackle removing a bazillion layers of paint from the front doors...

Looks like fun, right?

For the most part we (mostly Jim) have had good success with the a non-toxic, biodegradable paint stripper called Citristrip. There are just a lot of layer and a lot of small details on the doors, so it is proving to be very time consuming. This was basically the second straight weekend working on them. It has required all kinds of little brushes and scrappers and is a very messy process. I think Jim was getting frustrated by the progress, so he tried out some old fashion smelly chemical stripper. I couldn't take the smell. I'm not sure that it was that big of a difference, especially for all the terrible fumes it caused.

Not complete, but we're getting there.

Speaking of citrus...

World on the street is that my little spider friends are not so fond of lemon or orange. Would you think I was crazy if I happened to spray all the bushes, trash cans, mail box, and patio areas with lemon antibacterial spray cleaner? Hypothetically speaking of course...

P.S. for a reminder of the true before check out post here and here