New couches

We ordered new couches in December 2023. They were delivered in early March 2024.

Our living room is set up movie theater style, so both couches are on the same wall, opposite the TV and fireplace. 

I bought a king size white quilt and made seat covers so I do not have to worry about dog nails on the leather. 

I simply cut the quilt in half, folded the halves in half again and bound the raw edges in wide bias tape I had on hand. 

The skinny table was a vintage find on Facebook Marketplace. I had a piece of glass cut for the top so I can set my Kleen Kanteen thermos there without a moisture or heat worry. The white cord is my phone charger. 

The table lamp is from Target. The floor lamp is a vintage family piece. 

The white circle on the floor is an easy access outlet. I never use it. The kids all use it when they are home (gaming systems, laptops).

Apples

 

First, thank you to casting for being diverse. I could tell all the players apart easily. Sometimes I really struggle with this. 

We recognized Annette Benning and Sam Neill immediately. That was the hook for starting this seven episode limited series. 

I like that length. It is much more time than a movie would provide, but it is limited. Win. Win. 

We liked the writing, directing, acting. We enjoyed this series. 

I did not know one thing about the story line before I started. We did not know where it was going. And I am not spoiling it. 

I would encourage you not to look up anything, there are spoilers out there. 

I will say, one has to watch the screen. “Then” and “now” are used to define time jumps. As someone who usually plays Wordle or Candy Crush when I watch TV, I had to watch more closely than my usual. 

I subscribed to Peacock in order to watch the current season of The Voice and Law and Order. Any additional items I find/found to watch are/were a great bonus. 

The jonquils and grape hyacinths are in bloom

 

Milk glass

Note - if the term Milk Glass is foreign to you -

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_glass

https://www.marthastewart.com/8118499/collecting-milk-glass

Did you wonder about the shelves at the foot of our bed in last week’s post? 

There was a hint of white in the photos. 

Here is a better angle -

Here is a close up -

That is a vintage Milk Glass Collection. (There is also a modern egg plate.)

What to do with these shelves was an issue. 

Working on the pantry, a lone/large piece of milk glass put this idea in my head. 

I collected the rest, very purposely, on Facebook Marketplace for very little money. 

These are beautiful vintage pieces. 

Here is each milk glass in detail -

This is my original/inspirational piece from the pantry - 

This is a modern deviled egg plate from Target. It blends. It is a good way to store this oversized piece. 

Originally this larger space held a box TV. I am having a shelf added to make this space disappear. I will add two pieces of milk glass to the new shelves. 

I find the vintage Milk Glass very restful. 

I love small collections, groupings like this are art to me. 

The milk glass is the perfect use of this space. The white pops nicely. It is easy to dust. 

The white Milk Glass is also the reason I did not chose white quilts when I redid the bed linen. Gray linen works so much better. 

Long ago this space was a clutter/mess (below). It was not restful. It was a terrible dust problem. 

Our bedroom linen, simplified

I forgot to take a before photo. I laid the old quilts on the bed and used the drawing function to reinstate the glare of the white plastic covers on the box springs. 

Changing bed linen one day, I realized how unifying and simple all gray bedding looked. I have a gray weighted blanket and a gray Beddy on my bed. 

I was not about to waste time, money and my thumbs making two all gray quilts. 

I ordered four sets of gray bedding from Target. 

I ordered two gray quilts from Kohls. 

Everything was returnable if the grays clashed. 

Why four sheet sets? Two fitted sheets to cover the box springs, one set for my husband’s bed, one extra set for my husband’s bed. My bed utilizes a Beddy. I made extra pillow cases with one of the extra flat sheets. 

Luckily the quilts were not available in xl twin. So I was forced to order full/queen which then gave me the width to tuck in these quilts. Since both beds are propped on cement blocks, the wider width works well for us. 

It might seem odd for a quilter to purchase solid gray quilts. 

First, it is hard on quilts to tuck them under a mattress. It causes threads to break. I have no concerns about tucking an inexpensive store bought quilt. 

Second, tucking the bottom of the quilts keeps the beds tidy. Vacuuming is easy, there is nothing on the floor.

Third, the all gray is very restful and unifying. I crave simpler these days. 

I prefer simple quilts these days

I read one quilt blog.  I mentioned her book lists previously. I set up a “quilt blogger” label for her. Clicking on the label, at the bottom of this post, will find the previous post. 

I enjoy reading about her quilting. She is prolific. She posts nice pictures. Here is a post with all her quilts from 2023 -

https://sisterschoice.typepad.com/sisters_choice_quilts/2023/12/quilts-of-2023.html

Some of her quilts, I love -

Sometimes I gravitate toward specific elements of her quilts, like simple blocks she makes to form a border. 

Here is a good example. I love the posey blocks on this border.

Too many different, complicated blocks combined into one quilt just looks exhausting to me. I am so far past being able to sew that style of quilt. The setting/sashing of this quilt is quite unique. 

I prefer simple quilts. I like very basic blocks with organized colors that look restful. These often look old fashioned. But somehow, they are absolutely timeless. 

My favorite quilt photo from another quilt blogger -

https://mondaymorningdesigns.com/2021/07/12/making-a-scrappy-on-point-nine-patch-quilt/

Utilizing my freezer drawer as a pantry

My Daffodils, Squills, and Forsythia are in bloom. Pictures posted earlier in the week. 

I think of the freezer section of our refrigerator as an extension of our pantry. 

I utilize candy molds, which I have in four sizes, to freeze liquids. 

I freeze small disks of lemon juice and lime juice (above). Otherwise I cannot use up a bottle fast enough in the refrigerator and it expires. 

I freeze medium disks of marinara sauce. Again, I cannot use a jar fast enough. It molds in the refrigerator. 

I freeze larger quantities of broth (below) and skim milk, leftover from cartons I open for recipes.

I use freezer zip lock bags to hold my frozen items. I label and date them carefully. 

We precook chicken breasts/shredded and ground beef/chopped. Then we freeze it in double portion sizes. 

My husband does most of the work on this project. We freeze this meat very flat in zip lock freezer bags so it is very thin in the bag. I can easily break it apart, frozen in the bag, and add the meat, at the very end, to whatever I am cooking. It thaws and is heated immediately by the rest of the food. 

Example, crumble frozen chicken into pieces, put on a plate, cover with hot rice and vegetables and it thaws/heats immediately. Add crumbled meat to pan of hot sauce or soup just as the pan is finished cooking, and it is instantly thawed. 

I divide low fat cream cheese into 8 portions and freeze (below). Previously I used a small portion of cream cheese for a recipe and then threw away the rest of the package, moldy, a few weeks/months later. 

I freeze unopened packages of shredded low-fat cheese. Then I always have it for a recipe.  

I keep one package of each type of frozen organic vegetables in the freezer at all times. I add these vegetables to everything I cook. Using frozen, instead of fresh, simplifies everything. 

I keep a loaf of bread in the freezer. We have sandwiches once every couple weeks. 

I keep a small package of flour and half sticks of salted and unsalted butter in the freezer, ready for recipes.

🥶 This icon popped up so many times, while typing this post, that it seemed to be begging to be included. 

Squills are in bloom, they are tiny

These are bulbs too. 

Full size and miniature daffodils are in bloom

Forsythia are in bloom