by Mandi | weekly specials
The theme of the week is NATURE and if there is one thing I know about Nature, it is the one place where I feel like you can truly escape. You can “get lost in the wild” and spend some quality time alone – just you and your thoughts – or with a friend – disconnected from technology… only you and that person or group of people will stimulate your thoughts.
I grew up taking family camping trips, going to a camp each summer where we learned to hike, canoe, rock climb, cook out doors and play outside. Nature was a part of life for me then. Sadly though, as I get older, and especially with a career that keeps me behind a computer most of my day, I am not outside as much as I would like. The picture I took above was on a hike from TWO years ago and I realized… wait, was that my last hike? I have GOT to get out more!
I am going to sound old here, but do kids today get outside as much as they should? Do they play in creeks making home-made pottery from clay that they dig up? Do they build forts out of old sticks in the woods? Do they go on nature walks or witness a caterpillar transforming into a butterfly? Do they catch lightening bugs, punch holes in the top of an old mason jar and keep them in their room at night? Where would we be without the wonder and beauty Mother Nature gives us?
I will say that today I was so excited to talk to a friend of mine that is going to take a camping trip with her husband and kids to a “wilderness camp” of sorts. While at the camp, they will hike and learn to survive off the land. How cool would that be? Learn which plants you can eat, how to split wood and all of the other things people knew how to do 100 years ago, that we could never figure out! You can read more about the specific camp they are going to here.
I’ll close with a few of my favorite photos I took on one of my favorite mountain days! The following pictures as well as the first picture in this post were taken on a hike in the North Carolina Mountains right outside of Blowing Rock at the Linn Cove Viaduct! Beautiful place with an easy hike! What pictures do you have? Have you found anything fun while being outdoors?
Can you see the man’s face in the rock?
EXTREME CLOSE UP of tree bark
One of my favorites that a friend snapped when I wasn’t paying any attention.
This weekend we are heading to Charleston, SC and I can’t think of a better way to experience being outside. I think we will take a long walk on the beach with our feet in the water, walk across the bridge staring out at the ocean, walk through a garden and take in nature … see what we can see!
* The firefly picture was “borrowed” from 2 Chicks and a Road Trip. The lightening bugs picture was used on their #10 Southeast Delights post.
by jenn_davis | featured guests
Today we are so happy to have Courtney from
Charming Little Nest here to share with us how, with a little savvy, was able to create her dream kitchen!
When we built our first home, I knew EXACTLY what I wanted the kitchen to look like. I wanted white cabinets, black granite counter tops, and espresso colored wooden floors. Unfortunately, the white painted cabinets offered by our builder were much more than we had planned to spend. So we decided to paint them ourselves. I know it seems crazy to paint BRAND NEW cabinets, but I was pretty stuck on getting the look I wanted, and my husband was pretty stuck on staying within budget. We chose maple cabinets so that the final look would be smooth and white after some elbow grease.
Steps to Painting Our Cabinets
1.We removed all of the doors and drawers. (We hadn’t put the hardware on yet.)
2. We sanded everything, then applied two coats of primer. (I used Gripper primer. If you are going to paint your cabinets, make SURE that you paint the primer on very smoothly. Even though it will be covered in paint, this is crucial to a smooth finish.)
3. We applied two coats of white “Painter’s Touch” by Rust-oleum paint. (With lots of dry time between all of these coats!) I used a foam roller brush for the larger areas and a very high quality synthetic brush for the detailed areas. Spend the money on good tools people….it will pay off!
4. I put two coats of Minwax Polycrylic on as a final step. (I waited for the paint to cure overnight before applying the Polycrylic.)
The paint on the walls is “Lauren’s Surprise” by Sherwin Williams.
We fell in love with the Lansa handles at Ikea. Not the obvious choice for a “French Country” kitchen, but we loved them and they added lots of character.
I love to be in my kitchen. I only wish it always looked this clean!
by jenn_davis | creative tips
Savvy, as defined in the dictionary, means to understand or comprehend, yet it’s funny how today we associate savvy-ness with budget friendly DIY projects. Perhaps savvy should be redefined with simply an image of Martha Stewart or perhaps the two sisters from A Beautiful Mess….and after Mandi’s post this week I believe her portrait would suffice as well!
With so many interpretations of savvy, I really wanted to sit down and define this word myself.
Resourceful.
Isn’t this more accurate? Shouldn’t being savvy relate more to how your knowledge is applied, and not just that you happen to know some stuff about stuff?
I thought I would share a recent example of my savvy resourcefulness.
If you happen to follow my personal blog then you have probably heard me mention several times that my best friend will be getting married in Las Vegas next month. This week I surprised her by making her wedding favors for her destination wedding.
I thought customized casino dice would be the perfect gift for a Vegas wedding….
This was an extremely easy and relatively inexpensive project. All it took was a little creativity, research, and resourcefulness.
Some call it Savvy!
