Fabric covered headboards have always been one of my favorite decorating tricks. It’s something I’ve seen lots of stylists pull off on magazine shoots, and have always wanted to try it myself. The new issue of Cookie magazine shows off this look as a great way to decorate a room that houses more than one kid. You can give each one his or her own unique fabric. There’s a very simple how-to at the mag’s site, and they offer up this handy link for a plain fabric headboard as a the basic starting point. The best thing about this trick is that you can change the fabric easily, so you can constantly play around with bed linens and color schemes. No-guilt decorating for the non-committal. Hooray! — Angela M.

Here’s a great discount we just had to pass along to you. One of our favorite kid catalog companies, Serena and Lily is offering $250 off any crib or dresser. That certainly helps take a bite out of the hefty price tag on those Netto cribs we love so much. If you’re splurging on a nursery set up in the next few months don’t miss this deal. Just enter code CRIB250 at checkout. Offer ends September 1st.

Have you ever had the chance to watch more than 40 bald eagles in their natural habitat less than 50 feet away? Neither had I, until we visited Neah Bay on the Olympic Peninsula.

We got up early to drive from Lake Crescent to Cape Flattery, the most northwest point of the U.S. This turned out to take three hours — the Peninsula isn’t huge, but because most of it is covered in national parks and forests, there isn’t an incredibly direct route. Cape Flattery, part of the Makah Nation, is home to water an astounding shade of blue and sea caves that echo the bellows of sea lions. After walking the trails along the tops of the rocks, we decided to find a walkable beach.

We ended up a few minutes away on Hobuck Beach. Though guidebooks tell us that Hobuck is popular with surfers, around 3 in the afternoon the beach was utterly deserted. It was low tide, so we spent a good hour wandering about exploring the tide pools. Never had we seen so many fat, colorful starfish, mint-green sea anemones, and enormous rocks literally jammed with mussels. Click to the link to see where we watched dozens of eagles have their evening meal! Read the rest of this entry »

If you have to bring your work home, you may as well slog through it sitting at a super-chic desk, right? This vintage chrome base, lacquer-top campaign desk is in mint condition and was designed for high-end furniture manufacturer Thayer Coggin by the legendary Milo Baughman, whose ultra-glam pieces are much in demand these days. (In fact, a burlwood-and-bronze version of this very desk is currently listed on 1stdibs for an eye-popping $4,500.) The sleek, sophisticated workstation measures 54 by 24 inches, with two u-handled drawers that sit flush at the front. Top it with a pretty lamp, pull up a luxurious upholstered chair, and tuck your laptop into a drawer when you’re not using it, and the desk will be an incredibly stylish addition to any room you place it in. Current bid: $305. (Hurry — the auction ends Tuesday evening, July 15.) –Leah H.

See more of Leah’s great finds at her blog, More Ways to Waste Time.

1. When exploring new colors for your walls, always try out a test swatch first. As DJ wrote: “… Get several colors that you think might work, paint large squares of them on various walls, and see how they look over a period of several days at different times. It’s a lot of work, and I’m essentially lazy, but I REALLY wish I’d done that with our living room, which is a lovely buff color in daylight, but turns olive green at night under artificial lights.” Click here to color advice on see more in How Do I Make My Living Space Brighter.

2. The high price of gas has us seeking out alternative modes of transport. Elizabeth shares: “I live in and work in a city, and have a small commute and live near the places I shop and hang out, so I got a scooter. It is adorable, goes a decent speed, is more fun than a car, and gets roughly 80 mpg. I love it!” Click here to say how you’re dealing with the crunch.

3. You have some great ideas for names for Angela M’s honey. Raegan had four suggestions, all of which we love: “Happy Bee Bompany; The Graceful Bee; Bee More Company; and my favorite: Gotta Bee Honey.” Got a name suggestion for us? Click to share your brilliant suggestions.

4. When it comes to teething, lots of simple things around the house could help your suffering baby. Cassie writes: “Wet washcloths work best if you just wet one end of it, that way the baby won’t get wet as well. Although, any organic cotton rag would work just fine. [My daughter] Violet loved to chew on frozen bagels, wood toys, and little stuffed animals fresh from the freezer.” For more, check out these gorgeous organic teething rags here.

5. Yardstick frames are a fun idea, as long as you don’t over do it. Cautions Kate: “Be careful that it doesn’t end up looking like teacher-kitsch… (no apple and pencil totchkes, etc).” Click here to steal this decor idea.

Love love love the D Bros cups and saucers as seen at MoCo Loco.

Speaking of MoCo Loco, they’re among the best international design blogs as chosen by Holly Becker for Domino.

More Gocco printing, this time some lovely gift tags from the window ledge.

Thoughts on reusable grocery bags (and egg boxes!) from Chocolate & Zucchini.

Two things we like at You Grow, Girl: front-yard gardens and wildflowers. (Here’s a hint: those “grow a wildflower garden” kits work surprisingly well.)

This is timely: an eco-friendly fruit-fly trap at Apartment Therapy.

Not Martha thinks ahead, debuting her “Button on Blanket” sweater. (Get the pattern from Yarnish here.)

One of the coolest things you may not know exists in San Francisco: DEFENESTRATION, a building adorned with furniture that appears to be flying out of its windows. More great photos at Freshome.

Finally, a little bit of encouragement for those of us stressed about our home decor: an “offhand decorator” at the NY Times.

Having barely enough room for essential furniture items (ie. bed, couch, dresser), the idea of having a bar in our 1-bedroom apartment seemed pretty far fetched. However, after recently receiving a bottle of port I find entirely too pretty to tuck away inside a cabinet, I was determined to find a new solution. I bought a simple lacquered tray from Global Table and set it upon my wicker ottoman (it acts as extra seating at parties). I topped it with two sets of pretty port glasses, one from Global Table and the other passed down from my Nana, an antique carafe and the stylish bottle of port that set this whole project in motion. I’m pretty pleased with the final product. I think we’ve got a great looking piece of functional, drinkable art. –Erica P.

I’m not suggesting that you start adorning your walls with ducks wearing ribbons! It’s actually the picture frame on this piece, which was on the wall of the cabin we stayed in recently in Michigan, that I love. I checked it out and construction was simple — someone simply glued the frame together in the back, using a couple strips of balsa wood to connect the yardstick pieces. They rounded off the corners but I think this would look great with square edges, too. Imagine it framing a vintage family photo. Just a bit of cabin chic for your own home! –Mary T.

There’s a new book out this week that we’re very excited about: Simply Sublime Bags: 30 No-Sew, Low-Sew Projects by Jodi Kahn (with photos by our good friend and talented photographer Scott Jones). This adorable how-to guide serves up 30 easy projects to make your own chic clutches, handbags and totes. Most are so simple, even non-sewers like us can handle them! Our favorite is this one made from colorful place mats. Jodi was kind enough to share the details with us.

You’ll have to look closely to see that this traditional-looking tote is actually made from a few woven place mats. Place mats make great bags! They’re the perfect size to work with, and the finished edges make everything go much quicker. Doubled straps help reinforce the bag and make it quite sturdy. Not only are place mats easy to use — they’re also readily available and inexpensive. The tote pictured here is fashioned from two striped place mats I picked up at Target for less than $3 each and a solid — colored mat I found at Pier One for under $5. At such prices, you can afford to make a tote for everyone seated at your table! — Jodi Kahn

Click through to the next page for the complete how to on this adorable bag! Read the rest of this entry »

Big news from the bee corner! As you can see, our hives are growing — and getting more colorful. We have added a second “hive super” to all three hives — a “super” is a layer in the hive. Once one layer is nearly full, the beekeeper adds another level to encourage more bee and honey production. After two levels are full, a third is added — this is a honey super. The honey super has a screen barricade that prevents the queen from entering, which means she can’t lay eggs there. Since the baby bee production is limited to the bottom levels, the top floor becomes filled with pure honey comb. That’s where we can take the honey from. As you can see from the photo, our first hive (on the right) already has grown to three levels. We could have honey from that hive in just a couple of weeks! As for the colors, well, we thought the bees needed a little decorating. Our next big task: coming up with a name for our little honey production. Any suggestions? — Angela M.

Click here to see all the beekeeping posts.