Happy Birthday to Jake!

Also known as everyone deserves Muddy's on their birthday. 

Jake's birthday was today. He's officially in a new demographic according to many geographers - he is 26! He's my old man now. The poor guy has a test tomorrow and Wednesday so he spent the day studying but we did manage to go to lunch with my parents at his favorite, the Happy Mexican - he loves the Shane King Burrito. My parents were so sweet and got a box of Muddy's cupcakes for us all and so we retreated back to their house for presents and cupcakes. They got lots of different ones (including my stand-by, the grasshopper). Everyone deserves Muddy's on their birthday. 

We had two left over and got sent home with them - one got a bit smushed on the way but you get the point. The left one is Jake's favorite, Frankly Scarlett, the red velvet, and on the right is a new contender in my eyes, the chocolate with cream cheese icing (which has some quirky name that I can't recall). The thing I love about Muddy's (besides the price) is that their cake to the cup cake is really moist and tasty. I'm not a huge cake person and usually love the icing but not the cake. In this case, they've got me hooked on their cake. 


The other thing about Muddy's is the atmosphere. It is such a cute, local, quaint place where, to quote Cheer's, everybody knows your name. Another cupcakery opened right down the road and despite the piles of icing they have on their cupcakes, you won't find me going there because I love the homegrown feeling of Muddy's. Support local business!


OK - off my soapbox (...stepping down...). Jake's birthday - we've spent the day inside because of studying and snow but honestly I'm glad to have the guy to myself all day even if he's studying. I love being able to go in and see him, nose in the books, studying away. It is really sweet. He's got an interview for med school in a week and I'm hoping big time that they finally see the light and let him in. He wants it so bad! 


Other than studying, Jake spent some time doing his next favorite activity, playing with our boys:

They love him. And a good belly-rub. 

An Open Letter to IKEA

Dear Ikea, 


I'm a huge fun who resides in Memphis, TN. You guys over in Sweden may think Memphis is a stereotypical hick southern town, but in fact we are a booming metropolis and have many assets that would cause you to look into putting your next stateside IKEA location right here in Memphis, TN. 


Currently, you guys at IKEA have put your closest store 6 hours away from Memphis, in Atlanta, GA. I've been. It is glorious. The thing is, I think you may have something against the South. Other than Atlanta, the only southern IKEA store is in North Carolina. There are a few in Florida, but lets be honest - Florida isn't the south. Maybe you crazy Swedes think that us Southerners sit around in our overalls chewing on hay and sipping lemonade out of mason jars but that is far from the truth. Southerners love great looking household items at good prices just as much as our West Coast and New England counterparts. 


I'm writing to propose that you put your next IKEA store right here in the heart of Memphis - Midtown. There are some great properties at steals of prices. Midtown would be perfect. It is a happening place - the New York Times even thinks so. We've got all sorts of urbanites who could fill our renovated bungalows with Ektorp sofas and Hemnes bedroom furniture. And don't even get me started on your storage features. I've been lusting after a perfectly arranged closet ever since I visited your store three years ago. These Midtown houses have very little storage. 


A Midtown store would be a great asset to your company not just because us Midtowners clearly deserve an IKEA (Target has been teasing us with talks of a store for years now) but also because Memphis is in the heart of the Mid-South and is easily accessible to people from many surrounding places. With I-40, the major US interstate, running straight through Memphis, people could come from all over to visit your store. Think about all those Arkansans, Mississippians, Kentuckyites, and more who would mosey on over to visit the one and only IKEA. 


It is about time you European masterminds at IKEA came on down to the land of the blues, home of Elvis, to see for yourself why IKEA needs to put a store in Memphis. I'd personally shop there every week - it is a sacrifice I'm willing to make. I just can't drive 6 hours any more to get all the picture frames, assembled furniture, and meatballs that my heart desires. 


Personally yours, #1 IKEA fan in Memphis, 
Kathryn

Project Kitchen: Put a cork in it?

As you may recall from this post about my dream kitchen, I have an intense love for painted wood floors in kitchens. They're all the rave right now and we looked at a house with them and I fell in love. 


For a reminder, here's the picture I loved of the painted wood floors as seen in Coastal Living: 

The only problem is that we don't currently have wood floors in our kitchen. I can't fathom actually buying nice wood floors then painting them. It would be one thing if I had nasty ones (like I bet the ones in that house we looked at probably were) and I was trying to hide the fact. But new wood floors? Definitely not going to paint them. The other issue is that wood floors are comparably expensive and with our peasant sized renovation budget, probably not going to happen. 


But then fate intervened. I'd been hearing about cork floors for a while now - on HGTV, in talking to friends, etc. On the phone with our contractor/project manager for the house (and de facto member of the family due to time spent working with our family - I mean, he came to our wedding), he mentioned whether I'd seen any cork floors. They apparently are about the same price as tile and are easier to install. So, in true fashion, I googled cork floors. And look what popped up:

While not as shiny as my painted hardwood, it is the same idea. And it is more resilient for all the messes we'll have in our kitchen. And easier on the budget. And "green" too, I hear. I love it! This is definitely being filed away in my "idea" folder on my desktop for the renovation. 


Another thing that is funny about the picture above (which by the way is from Country Living) is that I was just telling my mom that above the counter with my gas range (so on the wall next to the stainless range hood) I wanted a stainless pot rack. And look what is on that wall - I mean really. Available at IKEA, I hear. Good thing I know some people planning to move to Atlanta for a job in a little bit... I sense a road trip coming on. 

A blustery day

Friday brought snow and ice to Memphis. Around these part we're not used to such foolishness. After hibernating all day inside, we ventured out down the two blocks to my parents' house for dinner. My dad made a cassoulet (french stew, apparently) and we hung around their house for a bit until their power went out. 


I snapped this picture on the way in of the ice coating their trees out front:

Project Kitchen: Inspiration

I love the internet. Why? Because in searching for pictures to inspire our kitchen renovation, all I had to do was google "kitchen galley white cabinet" and got this:

This is a house that is for sale in California - you can see their listing here. I don't own these pictures, clearly. 


While not EXACTLY like my space, it is pretty durn close and provides an excellent idea for me in exploring our renovation plans. We've got painted wood panelling in the kitchen instead of beadboard, but close enough. This wall with the sink is pretty much spot on what our wall there looks like. The banquette seating is where ours will be if we go that route except no bay window and where that door is would be a window. Also, I love the farm sink in the picture with the dark granite counters. Ahh..

From this picture you can see more of the kitchen. Where the door to their den is in the picture is where our pantry is. The fridge is where theirs is, just turned to face towards the kitchen because we've got a door to the dining room where the fridge cabinet is. 

This picture shows well the idea I had of narrower built in cabinets - except ours would be on the opposite wall, in between the kitchen and the banquette. The built ins have to be narrower than actual cabinets because the wall actually comes in a bit at the break in the kitchen. 

Check this out - I've been having issues with what to do with our microwave we don't have yet, since there is no space for it currently. This kitchen has it in their built in cabinet and even has a cool little shelf below it that pulls out. Love it!


I've been struggling with the question of what to do with our cabinets. Just for a reminder, they look like this currently:

Well after toying with the idea of just giving them a shiny gloss and new hardware, I decided that I do want to paint them (and of course give them new hardware). I figured this out because every time I saw a nice kitchen with wood cabinets I was just not as excited as when I'd find a picture of a kitchen with painted cabinets. Our cabinets aren't the square front door type, which bothers me, but I'll live. I thought we'd be able to just buy new doors for them and make them square front but turns out they are all different sizes and that will add up quickly when it comes to having to get them custom. 

(picture from Google shopper- a Frigidaire gas range)

The other thing about the inspiration pictures above is that I don't like the white appliances. We'll do stainless probably. We need new appliances. Washing your dishes before and after they go in the dishwasher isn't the most fun thing ever. For appliances, I'm definitely thinking a gas range is a must. I love this one I've posted above, but not its price tag. I'm a budget shopper and hope to find the appliances at a good price. Any ideas on where to go for that?

House Tour: Back Bedroom (a glimpse)

So as you may remember from my anniversary post, Jake and I spent a few weekends ago working on our "master" bedroom. Here's the before as a reminder:

Well its not quite time for a true after but what we have gotten done:


- Painted the walls
- Hung a picture wall of Ellen's ginkgo pictures (I'm in love)
- bought a fancy antique four poster bed for a steal (but currently don't have rails for it yet..)
- finally put the dresser mirror on the wall
- started hanging curtains


What we need to do:
- assemble bed (see above comment about rails - currently the bed is leaning against the wall)
- put up two remaining curtains
- CLEAN


So in the meantime, I'll share a project I did. Take a look at the picture above. Notice the bedside tables that are clearly a birch color, not the nice cherry that my dresser and newfound bed are? They were computer desks from my parents (so... free!) and just the right height for our bed. Also, see the awkward lamp shade? I tried to take the old lamp shade from a different lamp and spray paint/paint pen it. It was sad. No good. 


So, I did this:

First, the bedside table. I sanded, sprayed it with grey primer spray paint, then spray painted it with red spray paint. Let that dry (and ran to get more red paint...). Oh yeah - played with my new favorite toy, the plastic spray paint gun thing that makes my hands not cramp. Where has that been my whole house owning life?


After a lot of spraying and drying, I took giraffe scrapbook paper (since I love giraffe print and it is the "theme" of the room) and mod podged it to the top of the table (per La's idea - what a great one) and then used the scrap giraffes from the bottom to do an edge on the inside drawer: 

Also, at the same place I bought my awesome antique bed, I found a lamp shade for something like $3 that really dressed up my spray painted lamp (which I think I actually got from that same antique store about 4 years ago - I'll blog about my favorite antique store besides Sheffield's soon). I took the pictures that were stapled on canvas from our engagement party and used the mod podge to seal them on the canvas for a smoother look. 


Now I've just got to tackle the rest of the list and I'll be on my way to having a completed master bedroom!

Go there: Cafe Eclectic

Ever since Cafe Eclectic opened, Jake has said we needed to go there. Yet I have this complex where I really don't like trying new restaurants so I put off going there. We went once for dessert (when I got a King Leo Peppermint Sundae that was amazing) and looked over the menu. The thing is that at Cafe Eclectic when you look over the menu, nothing jumps out as AMAZING. Well at least not to me. So another six months went by and we didn't return (even though Jake has wanted a N'Awlins Dog ever since that dessert trip). 


Well luckily for Jake, Elise suggested Cafe Eclectic the other night for dinner. Deciding it was time to check it out, I agreed and off we were. That night I got the homemade mac and cheese with a "cute little salad" and was hooked. The mac and cheese was....oh goodness. Well lets say it was "amazing" and agree that there are no real words to describe it. I love mac and cheese and consider myself to be a mac and cheese critic so for me, this was it. The "cute little salad" turned out to be a DELICIOUS assorted greens salad with the most delectable vinaigrette dressing. See, I have an obsession with Stirling's coffee house in Sewanee because they have a homemade dressing and I crave it. And here I find that right down the street from me is the identical homemade salad dressing. Oh goodness. 


Anyway back to Cafe Eclectic. It was so good Tuesday night that Elise, Jake and I decided to walk there today. One of the (many) perks of living in Midtown is that there are great neighborhood shops right by. So, with the good weather on our side, we walked over to Cafe Eclectic, our own little neighborhood spot. This time I remembered to take pictures, like a good blogger. 


It was very crowded and we were surprised to find that they don't serve lunch until 1pm on Saturdays. We waited for a table and kinda sat around at the bar for a minute. Luckily the brunch crowd was clearing out (brunch must be good - there were a lot of people eating it) and we got a table. The service was kind of funky. On Tuesday night we'd had this cute waitress who was super friendly and fast. Today we had an older guy who was very nice but not attentive. We knew what we wanted and set down our menus (the universal sign in restaurant land that you're ready) and yet it took probably another ten minutes for him to come by to get our order. But we're nice so we were cool with it. Plus the food is good so it was worth the wait. 

The vibe of Cafe Eclectic is chill - modern yet cozy at the same time. There's a coffee bar where you can sit, there is a display case of baked goods (we're going to get some bread soon, I think), and then two rooms of tables. One thing I like is that even though it was full in there, it never seemed crowded or loud. Those things bug me. It was also clean, which is a good thing always.

Another cool thing about Cafe Eclectic is that they have fun sodas. Jake got a Cheerwine. I discovered that they have Mexican Coke. I love some Mexican Coke. See, in other countries they don't put high fructose corn syrup in their cokes. They put real sugar. So for a place to serve Mexican Coke is really exciting because it means I can have a "real" coke. It is $2.00 so I'd have to really want one, but it is bigger than a typical glass bottle coke. 

After a bit our food came. Jake got his N'Awlins dog (finally - he's waited six months) and I got a grilled cheese. They both came with the "cute little salad" that I love so dearly. I will say that if you choose correctly, lunch can be quite inexpensive there. My grilled cheese and salad was about $4 and Jake's dog and salad was $3 I think. Pair that with water and a slight tip and you're out of there pretty comfortably. 


There are many things on the menu that I need to go back and try (apparently the Chicken Pot Pie is a definite need to try dish) and they usually have a fun soup (Hamburger dill was on the menu one night). With it two blocks away, I'm sure I'll be hitting up Cafe Eclectic quite often in the future. 

A day gone to the dogs.

On Saturday, after a delicious lunch at Cafe Eclectic, we decided to take our doggies to the park. Well and by park, I really mean to the fenced in football field at Snowden Middle School (don't worry, we picked up their poo). 

See, a fenced in football field is advantageous for our dogs since they like to follow scents and wander. Luna Addington and her owner Elise came along as well. 

Beamer, Sebastian, and Luna proceeded to run after balls, chase each other, bark, and find every mud hole possible. 

Here's Luna and Beamer enjoying a good tennis ball...

Elise threw the ball for them, which was very nice. 

                                        

At the end, the dogs were just worn out. It was a good day and a good time with friends. 

Blading.

I mentioned that Ellen's birthday was Thursday. Friday night we had a ridiculously fun 80's themed skate party at Cordova Skating Rink. Elise hosted the party for Elle and all our favorite people were there. 


I decided to go Risky Business on the theme and took one of Jake's button ups and paired it with black leggings. I accessorized with hot pink sunglasses (at night) and an authentically 80's beaded necklace of my mom's.  

The best part? I used to be quite the avid rollerblader back in the day. And my mom saved these for me:

My blades. I got these in middle school and apparently my feet haven't grown since then. So last night I may have been the only one rolling into a 24 year old's birthday party at the Skate Center with my own blades but I was sure happy when I was whizzing by on the rink. 


What a fun night! Skating, 80's gear.... AND a Muddy's birthday cake. Happy Birthday, Ellen!!

Happy Birthday, Ellen!

Yesterday was my dear friend Ellen's birthday. She got some great presents (read about them here: Ellen's blog. 

I also made Ellen a little something for her birthday and wanted to share it with you. For those of you that don't know Ellen, she is very artsy and has her own funky style. She is truly her own person and I love her for that. I wanted to make something for her to add to her art collection to hang in her house. 

Lately I've been doing a lot with mog podge and wanted to use it to make something awesome for Ellen. I went by the scrapbook store and got some cool scrapbook pages and an awesome bird sticker. The rest, as they say, is history: