Fabric Choices

Here are my fabric choices for the Wingback Chair and the little antique chair. I ordered from www.fabric.com, they will be arriving in a couple days.

Osnaburg 45'' Natural $3.98 a yard
Inside/cushion for the Wingback, and the seat of the antique chair

Premier Prints Zippy Slub Charcoal $8.48 a yard
Outside of the Wingback chair

Craigslist Finds... continued

I am slightly obsessed with Craigslist (no seriously just slightly); I have the app on my phone and I check listings late and night and first thing in the morning, and sometimes in between.

So I found a couple "new" pieces of furniture for the house.

Dresser for the husband (I think the flowers in the center need t go bye bye)
I will be repainting this.

Two adjustable bar stools for the counter for the kitchen/dinning area

Chest with two drawers and casters for the guest bedroom
(I will be refinishing this item)

Little chair for the media center thingy in the living/dinning room area.
It needs to be repainted (bad paint job), the legs are a little wobbly.
I have ordered the new fabric to recover the seat

Detail of the top

I am excited about my finds! I have vacation time coming up next week and school is out until the spring semester; fabric has been ordered and supplies have been purchased. Time to get to work!

Lasagna Roll Ups

We love lasagna and this recipe was a fun way of changing up the traditional way of doing layer by layer of noodles. I love how easy it was to remove each serving of the lasagna rolls; no cutting needed, no layers shifting and sliding.

Ingredients

1 box of lasagna noodles

1 jar of pasta sauce (24 oz)

1 pound of grated Mozzarella Cheese (or any cheese of your choosing)

1 small tub of ricotta cheese (You can substitute 1/2 tub Philadelphia Cooking Cream instead)

1 pound of meat

Cooking Directions

• Boil a pot of water add the lasagna noodles, drain when finished cooking, and place them to the side.
• Brown your chosen meat (Italian Sausage, ground turkey or beef, etc.) in a frying pan, cook until browned, allow about 5 minutes for the meat to cool before you begin assembling the rolls. 
• While you wait for the meat and noodles to finish cooking; mix together 1/2 the jar of sauce, ricotta cheese, and half the mozzarella cheese. After your meat has cooled add it to your cheese mixture.
• Place a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of your 13x9 backing pan; doing this will stop the noodles from sticking to the pan and keep the noodles moist.

Roll Assembly

• Preheat your oven to 350F
• Place one lasagna sheet out on a clean hard surface (I used a cookie sheet), scoop a spoon full of your cheese and meat mixture onto one end of the lasagna noodle, sprinkle cheese down the length of the noodle and roll. After you are finished rolling, place the assembled lasagna roll on the bottom of your 13x9 baking dish. 
• Your pan should hold at least 12 lasagna roll ups depending on how full you fill them, I fit all 18 lasagna noodles/rolls on one baking dish; you may need to have another dish on hand in case you run out of room.
• When you have assembled and placed all the rolls in the pan, pour the remainder of the sauce on top and spread out evenly, then sprinkle the remainder of your meat and cheese mixture on top.
• Then, place the baking dish in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes or until cheese is thoroughly melted.

Serve and enjoy!

MyWayMommy Blog Lasagna Done Differently 

Red Coconut Roll (Salara, Red Belly, Coconut Slice)

These remind me of being back home in St. Vincent; whenever I go back home I go straight to the bakery and buy a couple bags of these sweet treats. I was happy to find this recipe on the Inner Gourmet blog (link below). They are easy to make and so yummy! If you do make this recipe leave a comment letting me know how they turned out.

Ingredients

1 tbsp dry yeast
¼ cup warm water
¼ cup sugar
1 cup milk
¼ cup shortening
1 tsp salt
3 cups flour
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp butter
1 egg white

Filling

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup shredded coconut (sweetened)

1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 tbsp water
5 drops of red food coloring (or until it gets to the deep red that you want)

Preparation

• Dissolve the yeast in warm water. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of sugar. Mix and let stand.
• Warm the milk then set aside. Combine the salt and sugar with the flour, cut shortening into the flour mixture then add the yeast, and egg. Pour the milk in and knead to make moderately stiff dough. Shape into a ball.
• Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with aluminum foil; let rise to double in size for about 1 hour. Combine all the filling ingredients and set aside.
• Punch down the dough and divide in half. Roll each half into an 12 inch x 8 inch rectangle, and brush with melted butter.
• Sprinkle half of the filling mixture on each rectangle of dough. Roll up lengthwise and seal the edges.
• Cover and let rise until double in size.
• Brush the rolls with beaten egg white. Bake at 350°F  for 20 - 30 minutes. Until the tops are brown
• Cut into slices and serve.

 Yields 2 rolls.

Inner Gourmet Blog Guyanese Red Coconut Roll

Lemon Bars

Crust:

• 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus extra for dusting
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened but still cool, cut into 1-inch pieces

Lemon Filling:

• 7 large egg yolks
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice (4-5 lemons)
• 1/4 cup grated lemon zest
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream

Make crust:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9x9 or 7x11 pan with foil. Push the foil into the corners and up the sides; having a little overhanging foil will help when removing the completed bars. You can spray the sheets with nonstick cooking spray or not (I didn’t and they came out fine).

Combine flour, confectioners’ sugar, and salt with a mixer or by hand until combined. Incorporate the butter and continue to mix the ingredients; until the mixture is pale yellow and resembles crumbs. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and press firmly with your fingers or a spoon into an even layer over the entire pan bottom. Bake the crust until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Make filling:

While the crust is baking, whisk the yolks and whole eggs together in medium saucepan. Add the granulated sugar and whisk until just combined. Add the lemon juice, zest, and salt; whisk until combined.

Add the butter pieces, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly and registers 170°F on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 minutes.

Immediately pour the curd through a single-mesh stainless steel strainer set over a clean non-reactive bowl. Stir in the heavy cream; pour the curd into the warm crust immediately.

Bake until the filling is shiny and opaque and the center jiggles slightly when shaken, 10 to 15 minutes.

Let cool the finished bars cool completely; about 2 hours, before removing the bars from the pan using the foil, and cut into squares. Dust with confectioners’ sugar before serving.

Makes approximately 16 bars.

Gastronomy Blog Lemon Bars

Craigslist Finds

This past week I got two chairs from sellers on Craigslist.

Chair #1: was an old Wing back chair that is structurally sound with normal fading fabric, cost $30; this chair will be my first big re-upholstery project.

Chair #2: started out costing $25 and was said to be in perfect condition, then the seller discovered there was a tear in the canning on the back of the chair that took the price down to $15, after I met with the seller she told me that God told her to gift me with the chair; so, I got it for free. She was a sweet generous older woman with a nice heart. I appreciated the gesture; and free is within my budget!

Guru inspecting the Wingback chair

Now to get the tools and find the right fabric

My FREE chair!

Satin black Krylon spray paint, black & white floral print for the cushion.
I have to figure out how to fix the tear in the canning.

Mini Haul - Estate Sale Goodies

I love estate sales and surprisingly so does my husband. A couple weeks ago we went to an estate sale not too far from our house and I ended up buying a couple things. There was so many items at this house and in the workshop/garage next to the house; tools, old chairs, and a whole lot more. I didn't buy much, but I did find a few small items within my budget that I don't have to repaint or refinish. The ladies running the sale were very friendly and informative and we had fun looking around at all the old and antique somewhat overpriced stuff.

Steel Letters

Missing two letters but I wanted them anyway

Wall Scones: in the perfect color

Little decor items for the master bedroom

Next project: Sitting/Reading Room Table

I bought this little table a couple months ago from the Habitat for Humanity Restore in Plano, TX for $25. The price was right and an added bonus is that all proceeds to go towards helping Habitat for Humanity provide affordable housing for those in need. This will be painted and be placed in my sitting/reading room; updates later!

I love the legs and shape of this piece!

I finished my first furniture piece!

After a week, of being sick and feeling terrible I have finally completed the dresser that I bought off Craigslist!

I have been "sharing" half of one drawer of a dresser with my husband for the past 2 years, and now I finally have my own dresser with multiple drawers all just for me! It took me all of 2 seconds to move my stuff from one dresser to the other.

Materials/Products Used:
Krylon Blue Ocean Breeze spray paint
Krylon Spray primer

RustOleum Hammered Metal spray paint
Sander (sandpaper)
Minwax Dark Walnut stain
Minwax Polyurethane

I am happy with the final results; I can't stop looking over at my gorgeous blue dresser!

Thoughts?

Finishing up my first furniture piece.

I bought a cute dresser off of Craigslist about a month ago with the intention of refinishing/repainting it. I decided on chocolate and turquoise for the master bedroom and bathroom. So I wanted to add punches of color to the bedroom through accessories and furniture pieces.

I hope to complete the dresser tomorrow, but in the meantime here are some images of what my husband and I finished today.

My husband sanding the top of the dresser (with my birthday sander)

Added Minwax Dark Walnut stain

Added a clear glossy sealant to the drawers

Placed repainted hardware back on drawers

Had a mishap with one of the drawers that needed to be fixed

Additional progress images:

Fixing the top of the dresser (it was loose)

Before paint

Primer

After paint

Before

After

More pictures of the finished product later!

We bought a house a few months ago...

... now we need to decorate and furnish it on a budget. Since it is a new construction, it is a totally blank slate.

So Craigslist, Goodwill, Estate Sales, Garage Sales and paint are becoming my new “best friends”.  

I have a few furniture pieces that I am refinishing between school, work, RA, and life, so I am a weekend re-finisher.

Projects in progress:

Dresser for the master bedroom.
Colors for the master bedroom & bathroom are turquoise and chocolate.

 

Staining the top a dark wood stain

Tables for my sitting/reading room, (which is supposed to be a formal dining room).
Colors for the sitting/reading room are gray, yellow, and purple.

Messy Project Room

Guru is guarding this little table

Knick Knacks

Hobby Lobby Letter, Estate Sale candle sticks (there is more stuff...)