Archive   |   December, 2011

any over-the-top holiday lights in your neighborhood?

Posted by in holidays

crazylights

crazylights2

Here’s a sure sign that I have moved to the ‘burbs: There are some crazy Jerseylicious holiday lights nearby! The other night, we joined our wonderful neighbors for a new tradition — drive-by gawking at all the yard bling in Union, NJ. However, after spotting this insane display we actually had to get out of the car for a closer look. Every inch of the property was covered — from the life-sized Mr and Mrs Claus waving from the front steps to the blinking spiral candies around the border. We were in awe. Though I admit to having a couple of retro-style snowmen lights on our front porch, it literally pales in comparison. Best of all, they weren’t the only ones on the block partaking in the festive adornments. It was refreshing to see others were inspired — not intimidated — by the display.

Do you have a neighborhood you like to visit to see over-the-top lights? — Angela M.

More holiday decorations posts:
Christmas is over but we’re leaving the lights

Store your holiday lights in paper tubes

Oh no! A pre-lit tree that doesn’t light!

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from beer bottle to beer glass, part one: ‘cutting with string’ fail

Posted by in crafting

theburningbottle

If you enjoy beer as much as we do in our household, you probably share the love for microbrews. One of our favorite makers is Portland’s Hopworks Urban Brewery (or HUB), whose Abominable Winter Ale features art (by Martin Ontiveros) as cool as the beer is delicious. We love the Abominable so much, we’ve decided to keep him around by turning those empty bottles into snazzy drinking glasses.

Now, we’re pretty handy, but we don’t own a glass cutter, so of course I Googled for other ideas. I landed on this tutorial on cutting a bottle using string and acetone. As you may have gathered from the post headline, it was not a rousing success. It looks so easy in the video! What did we do wrong?

Step one: Tie a string around the bottle where you want the bottle to be cut.
Step two: Soak the string in nail polish remover (that’s the acetone — we used a small ramekin for this).
Step three: Place the string back on the bottle (wear gloves and keep the open acetone far away from you) and set the string on fire with a match; rotate bottle to distribute the fire. (I did the “one-one-thousand, two-one-thousand” counting thing for between counts of 12 and counts up to 20 and beyond while the string was on fire.)

coldsinkbottle

Step four: plunge the bottle into a sink filled with icy water and apply pressure to both ends of the bottle — voila! the bottle should cleanly snap at the string. Except in our case, when the bottle should do NOTHING AT ALL, not matter how many times you try.

First we tried cotton string: caught on fire, but bottle did not break.

Then we tried cotton yarn: soaked up more acetone, burned better, but bottle still did not break.

Then we tried several rows of cotton twine that looked more like what they use in other videos online): burned well. Burned for an entire minute. Bottle did not break.

These bottles bear mute testimony to how many times we tried:

bottlesdraining

Next step: Anyone have a glass cutter? — Mary T.

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the puppy files: introducing…cupcake!

Posted by in decorating, favorites, living with kids, living with pets

cupcake

Hello dear readers! It’s Monday afternoon, and though I am a little more sleepy than usual I didn’t want to wait a moment longer before introducing you to our new puppy, Cupcake. (Yes, our four-year old daughter picked out his name.) We picked him up from the breeder on Saturday, and spent about an hour there playing with him and his siblings, and getting some last minute tips on puppy care. It really helped to see where he was coming from. The house was big and warm and cozy — a puppy paradise, really.

We brought him home via a four hour drive that went surprising well. The little guy mostly snoozed contently the whole way. As soon as we got home, he promptly set about exploring his new place. It took him about five minutes before he found a spot to poop. Luckily, it was on the hard floor and was easy to clean up. We spent most of the night laughing and playing, amazed that he was already so good fetching; all those squeaky toys really are actually a ton of fun! The first night in the crate was not so bad. He fell asleep after about ten minutes and only woke up once around 2 am. After a quick, cold visit to the backyard, he went back to sleep until dawn. I thought, this is easy…

That was until last night, which seemed much harder than the first. Perhaps it was finally sinking in that his brothers and sisters were not going to show up? What ever was going on in that little walnut of a brain, Cupcake would not quiet down. After about 20 minutes of unsuccessfully trying to lure him to sleep, we decided to move the crate downstairs. Bad idea. He cried all night! Well, at least until around 2:30 a.m. when I took him outside (burrrrr — when did it suddenly get so cold here?!) and then moved the crate back up to our room. I got him to go to sleep by literally sliding it as close to our bed possible and then sticking my fingers in the crate. Not exactly comfortable for me, but it worked! We’ll try that again tonight. My plan is make sure we wear him out with lots of play before we put him in the crate to sleep.

People keep telling me that dogs learn to love being in their crates but it’s hard to imagine. From the wails he made last night you would think we were torturing him. Please tell me it gets easier! — Angela M.

Previously on the Puppy Files

Getting Our Home Ready For a New Pup

After Losing Our Dear Cat, We Ask: Is It Time For a Dog?

Chosing the Perfect Breed

What to Look For In A Breeder

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our no fail hostess gifts: part 2

Posted by in giving, holidays

megangift
Megan Barone: Yummy smelling body butter or candle
My favorite hostess gift of late? Something from Pacifica; either a body butter or soy candle, depending on the host/hostess. I discovered their yummy smelling and nourishing body butters on a trip to Hawaii, and have been obsessed with all of their scents ever since. There really is something for most everyone in their line, as the scents run from guava (perfect for my 10year old niece) to Coconut (my favorite) and earthier, unisex scents like Sandalwood and Juniper. And they just happen to be all natural, cruelty & GMO free, and made in the USA. Best thing, however, is being able to conveniently pick up those hostess gifts while running around town. You can find Pacifica products across the US and Canada at Whole Foods and Sephora locations.

katiegift
Katie Donbavand: Mermaid bottle opener
My favorite part of any party is always the last few hours. Your shoes are kicked off, the dawn is peeking over the horizon, and everyone (and everything) is mellow. It’s the perfect time (if your host is game) for a hand of cards and one last beer. My standard hostess gift has you covered for the last, dwindling moments of the party. Combine these dazzling, silver playing cards from Kikkerland ($11) with this fantastic, cast iron mermaid bottle opener from Fishs Eddy’s ($19) and your hostess will always be ready to entertain those last few stragglers.

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Becki Singer: Feather tray
If you’re planning ahead, these gold-plated feather trays from Vanillawood (a favorite local shop of mine) are my latest obsession. The tiniest size is just $32, and is one of those little luxuries she’ll treasure. It’s perfect for catching her jewelry next to the sink or on her nightstand. For the last minute, I read recently that Ina Garten frequently gifts her hostess a pound of coffee from a favorite micro-roaster and a bag of homemade (or bakery-bought) granola. I love the idea of not interfering with their serving plans for the evening, but instead making sure they have a delicious breakfast the morning after. Happy Holidays! –Becki S.

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Ginny Figlar: Monogrammed mug
My go-to gift right now is Anthropologie’s Homegrown Monogram Mug for $8. I bought one for myself this Spring, and have since bought others as thank-yous and gifts for my daughter’s preschool teachers (filled with fleur de sel caramels … yum!). You can go with first name initial, last name initial or both, or spell out a word like “joy.”

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a fuzzy wuzzy holiday: felt takes over

Posted by in etsy finds, holidays, living green

feltmenorah
Front door wreaths aren’t the only thing popping up in felt this holiday season. We spotted this lovely felt menorah over at Etsy (via iVillage). This clever design allows kids of all sizes to partake in the lighting of the flames — or rather, the buttoning of the flames! The wool felt is from upcycled sweaters, and is a great new homey tradition. ($60)

feltmistletoe

Another great seasonal tradition is the mistletoe. We love this one from branchhome.com. Each one is unique and comes ready to hang. Though kisses are not included it does come with thanks: Sales of this product help provide an income stream for sheepherders and artisans in the Rajasthan State of India, where it is made. ($26)

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