{5 Lovely Things on Monday}

 

What I'm Most Proud of Accomplishing Prior to the BIG 3-0

      As many of you probably recall I made a "30 Before 30" list last year...well I'm officially 30 now- it feels great btw. Here are the 5 loveliest things I'm most proud of accomplishing from that list!

{1} Visit New Zealand: tick!

(in NZ they say "tick it off your list" instead of "check")

     Since my dear friend, Sarah, returned to her homeland over four years ago I had wanted to visit NZ. Last fall I was at the gym stretching when I got a Travelzoo email alert that flights were on sale. Right then & there I knew I had to pull the trigger-- & what a great decision it was to do so.  It was fantastic to meet her growing family & explore the land of Kiwis land with my favorite travel buddy (aka: the boyfriend).

{2} Develop Sea of Lovely Branding

     Thanks to my artsy sister, Jenna, the Sea of Lovely logo was born.  And after much fine-tuning-- & cursing at WORD while formatting labels-- I developed a labeling process that I'm quite proud of.

{3} See My Family More Often

My sisters & I all live in different states while mom & pop are still in the Motherland 

(aka: MT). I cherish the fact that I was able to make Thanksgiving dinner for my parents- barring the minor turkey mishap- & spend Christmas under the same roof 

with the entire Lechner clan.

Turkey Day weekend

Christmas Day chaos at the cabin

Mom & Dad came for my Dirty 30!

{4} Give Only Handmade Gifts

While I didn't finish my plans for handmade 2011 Christmas gifts I can report significant strides since the turn of 2012.  Sea of Lovely gifts are out in full force!

Look Whoooooo's 1?
Baby Adele & her new "Owlivia" 

{5} Live 5 Minutes from Work

While going through some significant life changes in 2011 I also found my 

beloved vintage apartment. Very few things make me happier than being able to 

run home at lunch to say hi to my Willis :)

Wednesdays with Willis

In case you haven't heard the Pacific NW is covered in a lot of white stuff! Can you say...SNOW DAY?! The winter storm even made the TODAY show.

My work is totally shut down & I'm clearly not going anywhere...

& something tells me Willis knew that as soon as we got up today.

So far our day has consisted of some french press coffee, playing in the snow, 

eating breakfast & watching Sex & the City...

it's been pretty rough & Will is already ready for a nap.

While the pup sleeps I'll be crafting. 

Here is a little preview of what I've got going in my workshop:

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

*lucy.

{5 Lovely Things on Monday}

Now that the holidays are done & things are starting to slow down the presser foot on my sewing machine is picking up speed...
So here is my Lovely to-do List!

{1} Amy Butler's Sleep Snail

photo cred: Amy Butler's Little Stiches for Little Ones
One of my friends' littles will be the lucky recipient of this cutie!

{2} What a Hoot!

photo cred: Fiskars
Fiskars has a free tutorial for this plushie that I can't resist!!
As I've always had a love for owls that are quite the trend now I can't
decide if I want to give this as a gift of keep it for myself :)

{3} Laptop Tote

photo cred: Joy from HJD Studio
Woot-woot for Sew, Mama, Sew featuring this tutorial!
Every blogger needs a cute tote for their MAC, right?

{4} Supply Roll-UP

photo cred: Kate of Peep Threads
Washable makeup brush cases would make a great gift! 

{5} Perpetual Calendar

photo cred: Little Birdie Secrets
The best part of this project is you can start it any time of the year!

I hope all of your are starting your New Year off on the right foot & thanks for following me in my novice blogger adventures :)

cheers,

*lucy.

A "Make it Work" Kitchen

With the New Year comes resolutions & a focus on getting your life organized. This week I couldn't help but notice how many articles I came across regarding "organize your home one room at a time" or "storage for your personality". It only seemed fitting to put my two cents in & share how I made my euro-style flat's kitchen a workable space. Here's a little refresher on what I was up against:

An overabundance of counter space...

Ok storage but it's not always convenient to use a stepstool to get things down...

At least I have a gas stove & oven!

So with a very white slate I began. Step 1: IKEA. If this is how Europeans make their apartamentos work I can too!

Shopping List:

1. something to go above the oven

photo cred: IKEA
Bekvam Spice Racks x2
{these will be a snap to paint & "spice" up}

2. more space to show of the Fiestaware

photo cred: IKEA
After my dad saw my handiwork with an electric drill to mount this
GRUNDTAL wall shelf he said, "Watch out Bob Villa".
{I know he was very proud.}

3. something to dry dishes sans counter space

photo cred: IKEA
The GRUNDTAL series strikes again-- genius.

4. somewhere to hang my pots & pans

photo cred: IKEA
Some hooks for this GRUNDTAL rail & we're set!

{drum roll for the grand reveal...}

Yes, that's a fresh cobbler baked by moi

Thanks to a score from my good buds I have
instant additional counter space & storage!

My handiwork has made my kitchen so workable
even a man can cook in it :)

Thanks for reading. I'm sure even Tim Gunn would be proud of my "make it work moment" with this circa-1890 kitchen!

*lucy.

p.s. The first time I posted this entry I forgot to include these pictures:

Thank goodness for my lovely bf who mounted this rack with industrial strength!
It's definitely not going anywhere

{5 Lovely Things on Monday}

Let the DIYing for my new apartment begin!! Ahhh...where to start?! These gems have me well on my way to my first project.

{1} A New Neighborhood Favorite

Last Tuesday after a long day's work I headed to the grocery store. What I didn't expect to stumble across that dreary evening was a shop I hadn't explored in Northern Tacoma.

Que: The Design Cottage

There I met the friendly owner, Diane, who was full of creative ideas,
inspiration, blog read suggestions &...
{wait for it}

{2} CHALK PAINT!!!
I might be in love.

Go here to learn about Annie Sloan's amazing paint!

How did I not know this stuff existed?! Thank you, Diane, so much for opening my eyes to the endless possibilities of refinishing & distressing furniture!!
This paint basically covers anything=

refinish/paint furniture without the tedious prep work!

{3} My Latest "IT" Color

Meet ARLES: the perfect vintage yellow.

{4} Tutorials.

So I got this awesome new product. How do I use it? Any tricks of the trade?
Any no-no's? help.

I really like the how-to videos below by DIY extraordinaires of
Perfectly Imperfect & Miss Mustard Seed:

Waxes from Miss MustardSeed on Vimeo.


{5} The Piece.
I've got this great new product & have an idea how to use it...where do I start?
Trolling Craigslist of course!! And that is how I found these great vintage chairs that will look perfect distressed with Chalk Paint!

I cannot wait to give these guys a face-& seat-lift!

Stay Tuned...

Sweet Dreams,

*lucy.

{5 Lovely Things on Monday}

{Time to get your monogram on!}

I didn't used to be fan of initials on things but something in me has shifted.  

And today's post starts with a project done by one of my sisters.  

It's in our blood to be crafty, artistic & sew.

{1} Give Me a 'K'

Impressive work, Kali!

{2} 'P' is for Pumpkin

While hunting for fall decor ideas I stumbled across this!
Photo & tutorial cred goes to: The Butlers

{3} Fancy, Cheap & Easy DIY

Totally going to make this part of my mantel montage!
Photo & tutorial cred: Craftastical!

{4} 'M' is for ME.

Chevrons in my favorite "now" colorscheme: check.
Available on ETSY from prettymod's shop

{5} Alphabet by Anthro.

Perfect for a little's room...or anyone's room, really :)
Available here

{5 Lovely Things on this Fall Tuesday}

Many of us got out down comforters out last week and you know what that means...fall is indeed upon us.  And that, my friends, is why today is all about fall loveliness!!

{1} Foliage Reports!

This shot was taken by moi near Mystic, Conneticut
Yay for my friends who got married in CT a few years ago
so I could experience the Yankee foliage!

I think it's absolutely wonderful that Foliage Reports really exist. Take a minute out of your busy day & perusing the many slideshows that show off autumn's masterpiece. A good one I stumbled across this weekend featured
"The Top 25 Foliage Towns in New England".
Gorgeous. Can I go back...Like now?

{2} Fall Beverages

From mulled cider to Autumn-Inspired Cocktails, who can resist?

p.s. The Normandy looks promising & will be making an appearance at a 

progressive dinner come the end of October.  I'll let you know how it turns out!

{3} Early Season's Greetings
Today glo.com featured ETSY's top picks for 
autumnal handmade greeting cards. So cute!!

Photo cred: Stacy Rogers of stacyscards on ETSY

{4} Natural Decor

BHG strikes again! Check out their article to make adorable 

(& affordable!) fall decorations.

This is so simple & unique.
Plus it would work for any season-
what a great way to spice up your decor!

{5} Fall Chow
This loveliness wouldn't be complete without what our fall harvest brings...
I tend to save the best for last :)

Pumpkin-Sage Cream Sauce= YES PLEASE!

What's for dinner? Go here to see Delish.com for 15 Fall Recipes to see!

Now I'm hungry. 

toodles,

*lucy

p.s. hopefully the food & drink recipes make up for me having my epic fail of not posting yesterday ;)