On our run the other morning, my husband and I ran past a house with a decorated carport tent on their driveway. I immediately knew it was set up for an outdoor thanksgiving. What a brilliant idea! So, thanks to my unknown neighbourhood muse, I've decided to pull together some outdoor Thanksgiving essentials during social distancing. 

#1. Carport Tent: As mentioned above a carport tent is a great way to celebrate the holidays outdoors with your loved ones while being able to keep your distance and tackle the weather. 

#2. Outdoor Heaters: I feel like an outdoor heater is a good investment right now because the winter is coming and who knows how long this social distancing is going to last.

#3. Separated Seating: You may already have a few chairs and bistro tables on hand so pull them out and spread them around your yard or driveway. Don't be afraid to pull the ones out from indoors as well.

#4. Basket of Blankets and Toques: Have a basket of blankets, toques and mitts on hand for your guests and family members. Everyone has a different level of chill so it's a nice gesture to have a warm blanket at the ready.

#5. Cute Festive Masks: You can pretty much find masks anywhere these days and since it's something we have to live with we might as well have fun with it.

Don't forget your Yeti, biodegradable paper plates and Thanksgiving decorations and then you're all set. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

SHOP THIS POST

Here is a photo of what this tiny pantry looked like before:


... And here is the after:


Tips for Organizing your Pantry:

Remove Everything and Clean
To start remove everything from your pantry (even if you know you're going to keep it). Throw out or donate unwanted food, consolidate snacks and only keep the essentials. Clean the shelves thoroughly and perhaps think about painting or wallpapering the inside of the panty.


Take Measurements and Plan
Measure the depth, length and height of your shelves. Visit the Kitchen Stuff Plus website and determine which container sizes correspond with your needs. Do you need containers for pasta? spices? Baking confections? Cereal? Other food? Keep in mind not everything will require a new container.


Purchase and Layout Containers
Once you've confirmed your plan it's time to put it into action.  Purchase your containers. Give them a rinse. Place them in your empty pantry as a trial run. Test out different locations. Step back and take a look. Once you've confirmed their placement you can fill them and start setting up your pantry.


Finalize your Pantry and Enjoy
Place the rest of your food back into the pantry. Again adjusting as you go to ensure optimal space is used and it is pleasing to the eye. Enjoy your pantry and have fun cooking!



I'm really happy with the way this turned out. It reminds me of a tiny store in my kitchen. Be sure to check out the other bloggers in the Modern Handmade Home Series Thalita from The Learner Observer, Lindi from Love Create Celebrate and Colleen from Lemon Thistle.  



This post is in partnership with Kitchen Stuff Plus. All expressed opinions are my own.
 

First things first, I'd like to thank our Modern Handmade home series partner Kitchen Stuff Plus for all the organizational storage required for this laundry routine. Specifically the 3-drawer fabric carts which are at the center of the idea.


Disclaimers:
- I don't separate based on colour or fabric. Most of my kids clothes are dark (I rarely buy anything white for my boys).
- I do laundry by person rather than by a big family basket.
- If the clothes are really soiled I wash them completely separate.
- I do not fold pajamas (and never will).

Okay, so here's the gist, I used two sets of these fabric drawer units from Kitchen Stuff Plus. I assigned one drawer for underwear/socks, one drawer for pajamas and one for dirty clothes. The rest of the drawers are for folded clean clothes. I told my kids to always place their dirty clothes in the bottom left drawer (the one for dirty clothes). Then once it is filled I simply grab the drawer full of dirty clothes, wash them on a quick cycle, fold the clothes (or don't fold, whatever floats your boat), put them back into the drawer I brought them down in and insert it back into the top of the unit. Then I insert an empty drawer in the bottom left as the new dirty laundry drawer.


I know this sound complicated so I've put together a video to help explain this laundry routine a bit better:
By removing the traditional laundry basket I am able to skip a step and it prevents me from getting lazy. And, in a pinch, I can always just place the unfolded clean clothes drawer directly back into the unit (and live with a few wrinkles). I hope this makes sense. Please feel free to ask any questions below.

Be sure to check out the other bloggers in the Modern Handmade Home Series Thalita from The Learner Observer, Lindi from Love Create Celebrate and Colleen from Lemon Thistle. 

This post is in partnership with Kitchen Stuff Plus. All expressed opinions are my own.

1. Style - Your home probably already has a certain style or a style that you are trying to achieve so you'll likely want to continue this into your kitchen and bathroom fixtures. Delta faucets has something for every style; whether you're a traditionalist who appreciates craftsmanship and heritage details or someone with a transitional style that leans towards cleaner lines and classic looks or perhaps your style is contemporary with more simplistic modern lines, there is something for everyone. If you're not 100% of your style take the Delta Style quiz to help make it a bit clearer.

2. Finish - Today there are so many finishes available. There are silver undertone finishes like polished nickel, brushed nickel or chrome that tend to act as a neutral and are the most common. Then there are the warmer tones like champagne bronze or copper that can highlight a unique fixture. Becoming increasingly more popular are bold solids like black or white that can add a modern classic touch. How do you choose? First decide whether you would like a statement piece to act as a focal point in the space or if you would prefer for your fixtures to match the other hardware in the space like the towel bar or cabinet pulls. This tends to be the most common and safest bet. For our kitchen reno we selected the Delta Cassidy two handle faucet in a champagne bronze to match our cabinet hardware and sconces, I love the way it pairs so nicely with our navy cabinets as well.

3.  Technical Specs - These considerations are not as much fun as the previous two but are no less important. When choosing your faucets for your kitchen or bathroom be sure to confirm how many holes are in the sink and select a faucet accordingly. Check the spout height, ensure it will work in your space, that it is comfortable and doesn't bump into anything. Single verses multi-handle is another consideration, single is easier to clean but the symmetry of multi-handle is also nice. Finally for a kitchen faucet decide if you would like a pulled down sprayer or conventional handle sprayer. 

I feel that faucets and hardware are the jewellery of the kitchen and bathroom so it's important to get them just right. I hope these tips have been helpful. Stay tuned for my full kitchen reveal coming soon.

This post is in partnership with Delta Faucet Canada. All expressed opinions are my own. 
 

We're slowly moving into our new home. This week we tackled our master bedroom. It's not totally done yet but it's done enough to live with for awhile. The previous owners of our house had a ceiling fan in the master (one of those tulip fluted fans from the eighties) my first thought was to replace it with a regular light fixture (because that's always been my knee-jerk reaction to ceiling fans), however I decide to take a look at the ceiling fans on the market today and see if they had evolved with the rest of the world Guess what? They have! There are so many amazing options for ceiling fans now days, everything from finishes to number of blades to remote controls so I thought I'd share my tips for selecting a ceiling fan below.


As part of the Modern Handmade Home Series we've partnered with Emerson Fans to update one room in our homes. Emerson Fans have set the industry standard for ceiling fans of high quality and timeless design. From the minute this fan was installed I've been in love. Honestly I love waking up to the nice breeze every morning. I selected the Astor model (it's new), it comes in black and white with hints of gold. I love it's round shape, it really compliments the rest of the light fixtures in our home. Here are some tips on how I landed on this one:

1. Ceiling Height
Fans are generally good in spaces with ceilings 9 ft or higher.  If you have ceilings on the 9 ft side be sure to select a flush mount ceiling fan or one that can get as close to the ceiling as possible. Emerson Fans has a whole bunch of recommendations around this on their website so be sure to check it out.


2. Remote Controls
Those fans with the little pulled down chain still exist but they've made advances in how these could be controlled remotely. For example, my Astor fan comes with a remote control that enables me to change the speed of the fan (up to four speeds) and turn the light on and off without leaving my bed (very handy at night). Be sure to look into these features, it's something I didn't think about at first but I'm so glad I did.


3. Lighting
Not all ceiling fans have lights included. This is a personal preference. There are many lighting options for fans, everything from LED to the shape of the shade, there are tons of decisions to make. Be sure to double check the size and shape of the light you select because it will need to correspond to your fan fixture.

All I can say is that I love my fan. I'm a fan of fans (whamp wham).  I don't think I'll ever go back. 
Be sure to check out the other bloggers in the #modernhandmadehome series to see how they've incorporated an Emerson Fan into their home: Lindi from Love, Create, Celebrate, Colleen from Lemon Thistle and Thalita from The Learner Observer.

Well it’s Week 3 of the One Room Challenge Spring 2019. Again this week the weather has not been cooperating so a lot of my plans were put on hold. Honestly I haven’t made much progress overall, in Week 1 I shared my patio makeover plans, in Week 2 I shared some 2019 Outdoor Trends and this week I’m sharing 5 Thrifting Tips because that’s all I’ve been able to accomplish due to the torrential downpours we've been experiencing. As always be sure to check out the Official Participants in the One Room Challenge and the other Guest Participants Week 3 progress.


5 Thrifting Tips:

1. Have an idea of what you’re looking for
Have your phone loaded with your Pinterest pins, moodboards and inspiration for the piece you're hunting for. This past week I went on my routine thrift store run and found this amazing mirror that matches my moodboard inspiration perfectly.

2. Know your local thrift shops
If you’re looking for furniture there are some that carry more furniture than others. Avoid Antique shops as their prices are inflated (unless there is something specific you’re looking for). Don’t be afraid to ask the thrift store employee which day they restock their items (most places it’s every day).

3. Get creative, imagine what things could be
Very often there are items in thrift shops that can be upcycled into great pieces of home decor. For example, 90’s flush mount light fixtures can make an excellent DIY succulent terrarium or a wire lamp shade can be transformed into a DIY lampshade plant stand or you could upcycle some patio chairs with some spray paint and rope.

4. Craigslist and Kijiji
If you can’t find what you’re looking for in the thrift store consider looking online.

5. Don’t buy ripped or stained furniture
Upholstery is super expensive and pretty difficult to doyourself so avoid buying fabric furniture pieces that have been soiled or torn.


I hope you’ve found these tips helpful. And I’m hoping the weather is nice to me next week so I can get some actual work done on my space. I only have everything to do lol.

Be sure to follow me on Instagram for details on my progress and other fun stuff.

I have this stubborn spot in my house where I want to put a plant but it's too far away from the window to keep it alive. I’m sure some of you have been in this predicament. What’s a plant-loving girl to do??? Enter the artificial plant. I knew if I went down this route I wanted my artificial plant to be as “real” as possible so I did some research. I figured out my “real” criteria and found an amazing company that checked all the boxes. Décors Véronneau is a family owned, Quebec-based business that offers a vast selection of artificial plants and flowers and I am honoured to be partnering with them today to share my 5 tips for selecting an artificial plant.

As background, I have been on the hunt for a real olive tree for awhile. Unfortunately the only ones that I found at my local nursery were too tiny and would take forever to grow. I found this artificial Olive Tree at Décors Véronneau and it is just perfect. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or make requests, their customer service is helpful and friendly.

1. Opt for the Higher Quality Version
As with many things, you get what you pay for. The same is true for artificial plants. The cheaper the plant the cheaper the look of the plant. In the end it’s an investment, higher quality fake plants last longer and look more realistic. The artificial plants at Décors Véronneau are of the highest quality and are beautiful.


2. Pay Attention to the Details
Look for unique “real” details in your artificial plants. For example, my olive tree has a trunk from a real tree and it has fake olives! They look so real I could almost eat them. It’s these small details that will have you guests guessing “is that real or fake?”


3. Compare to the Real Thing
Bring a photo of the real thing to the store or pull it up on your phone when shopping. Compare the real plant with your prospective artificial plant. Look at the way it hangs, the spacing of the leaves, the shape of the leaves. Look for an artificial plant that reflects the details of the real plant. Having a photo on hand will help in your search.


4. Real Dirt or Mulch
This is something I would have never thought of but when my olive tree from Décors Véronneau arrived it had real mulch in the pot, it literally had me guessing whether or not they had sent me a real tree. Honestly this is number four on my list but it should be number one. Such a game changer in terms of faux plants.


5. Look for Texture
Along the same lines as the mulch, look for texture on the artificial that matches the texture of the real plant. Luckily today’s trends in house plants lean towards the more “plastic” looking plants like succulents and fig leafs which is a texture easily replicated in an artificial plant. 


Faux plants are no longer the faux pas they use to be. I hope these tips have been helpful. If you’re in the market for a beautiful artificial plant that will last forever and trick your visitors into believing it’s real be sure to check out Décors Véronneau (and their pots are pretty cute too).

This post is in partnership with Décors Véronneau. All expressed opinions are my own.

Is there anything more satisfying than organizing a space that has been on your list forever? I recently organized my entryway and it feels great to have a functional foyer again. As background, the front door of my home opens directly into my living room so there really isn't an actual entryway. With a few key pieces from Kitchen Stuff Plus, our Modern Handmade Home sponsor, I was able to turn my non-entry entry into a welcoming space in my home. Today I'm sharing my 5 Entryway Organization Tips I learned along the way.

Here is the before pic of my entryway space. As you can see the front door opens directly into the living room, there are a bunch of coats thrown on a random ottoman, shoes are everywhere and it's boring.


Entryway Organization Tip #1: Coat Hook or Coat Rack

To prevent your kids (and husband) from throwing their coats on the sofa or floor you need to make it easy for them to hang up. Hanging a coat on a hook is easier than a hanger in a closet.  I limit my family to one coat at the front therefore one hook per person. All other coats get hung in the closet. I got this coat rack from Kitchen Stuff Plus and spray painted it gold to match the other items in my space. Quick tip, remove the middle bar to create a smaller coat rack for the kids.


Entryway Organization Tip #2: Boxes and Baskets

I know it seems unusual to have a loose box floating around but I find it's a great way for the kids (and husband) to easily stow their small seasonal items like mitts, hats, sunscreen, flipflops etc. Kitchen Stuff Plus has a wide selection of boxes available. These fabric boxes are from their Axis line and they match my neutral space perfectly.


Entryway Organization Tip #3:  Shoe Storage

There is nothing that bothers me more than when you can hardly open the door because there are so many shoes in the way (just kidding that doesn't happen, just kidding it does). This shoe cabinet from Kitchen Stuff Plus is the perfect solution to store shoes when you have limited space like me. Everyone gets a row which holds two to three pairs of shoes - the rest go into the main closet.


Entryway Organization Tip #4: Surfaces

My Nana always had mints on her entryway table, I loved that. Having a surface at your entryway is important to catch keys, pens, notes and maybe some mints. This tray I found at Kitchen Stuff Plus is for the bathroom but I like the marble look and thought it would look great as an entry tray.



Entryway Organization Tip #5: Seating

A cute chair or bench is needed at the entry for putting on shoes and waiting for the kids to put on their shoes. Be sure to choose something that isn't too large where the kids (and husband) might be tempted to pile their coats. This green accent chair from Kitchen Stuff Plus is a lovely stylish solution. It's a great chair and would work in many areas in the home.


I hope you enjoyed my 5 Entryway Organization Tips and found them useful. I also organized my entry closet. See the before and after below - I can't stop opening this door.
Be sure to check out the other bloggers in the Modern Handmade Home series to see how they organized their homes with Kitchen Stuff Plus; Thalita from The Learner Observer organized her kids closets, Lindi from Love, Create, Celebrate organized her bathroom and Colleen from Lemon Thistle organized her kitchen.