home improvement | kimberly ah

Aug 29 2013

crafty adventures, home is a 1970s apartment, homemaking, summer manifesto

Paper Weaving Party

I mentioned here that I had some ladies over on Sunday night for a casual evening of paper crafting. We all worked on paper weaving projects, both big and small. I’ve been wanting to do some paper weaving for awhile now, and the stars finally aligned for all of us to get together and try it out. We each tried something different… Linda did a weaving with a vacation picture and a journal page, Jackie worked on a fabulous sushi weaving and a huge weaving of British-themed papers, Karen practiced with some old craft papers and I was aiming to finish a small piece of art for the bathroom. My creation is one of the three DIY art pieces that I mentioned during my Summer Manifesto. (“Summer” is going to extend into September around here!) The weaving is made from four different 12×12 scrapbooking papers, all shades of grey of course. I am going to put in into one of these frames (I have an extra) and hang it in the master bath. I added the shiny silver at the end and I quite like the little shine it adds to the otherwise monochromatic (aka DULL) weaving. (For the record, I like monochromatic…and dull.)I’m waiting until after our vacation to frame it and hang it. I’ll share that with you when it’s all ready. Perhaps when that is done, I can actually show you the bathroom?

For today, I am dealing with a broken air conditioner (nothing like shelling out money for that right before vacation!), cleaning our apartment and trying to get our ducks in a row with cat/house/garden sitters and packing. I can’t believe Japan is just a few days away!!

Tagged crafts, decorating, diy, home, home improvement, homemaking, summer

Aug 28 2013

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gardening, home is a 1970s apartment, homemaking, summer manifesto

Shamrock Revival

This shamrock plant was “dead” in the spring. It had been sitting on my kitchen window ledge and on my desk since March 2012, and over the winter, it kind of gave up. I think lack of water and limited sunlight were contributing factors. I almost threw it out, but the book clubs ladies encouraged me to keep it and move it to more sunlight. I dug around in the soil and found the little oxalis bulbs. They still looked healthy, so I planted them in a fresh pot with some fresh soil and stuck the pot in the north corner of our balcony and forgot about it. (Forgot about it=rarely watered it.) The next time I noticed it, several leaves were popping up…by the end of July (when this picture was taken), the plant was thriving, bright green and full of flowers. Lesson learned…it needs more light. I have two other oxalis sitting on my kitchen window. Their leaves are purplish green…I’m thinking about moving them outside for the rest of the summer, too.

When we get home from Japan, I have to start thinking about the plant plan for the cold weather months. I have brought more indoor plants into the apartment this past year, and finding a place for both the houseplants and the balcony plants (the ones that come inside for the winter) is going to be a challenge. I’m a little sad just thinking about it.

Tagged garden, gardening, home, home improvement, homemaking, summer

Aug 02 2013

3 Comments

gardening, home is a 1970s apartment, homemaking, summer manifesto

The Summer Balcony

The balcony is in full summer mode right now. Everything is blooming like crazy, even my old geraniums! (They started blooming in mid-June and have been going strong ever since!) And, I’m happy to report that it’s August 2nd and ALL of my plants are not just alive, they are thriving! I think this is only partly due to the fact that I’ve been diligent about watering, but mostly due to the mild weather and the fact that I picked pretty easy going plants this year.

In the spring, Naoto and I relocated the bird feeder to the north end of the balcony. We also decided to stop filling it during the summer. The birds can find plenty of food in nature right now, and the birdseed makes such a mess on the balcony and blows into my flower pots, starting weeds in my flowers. We’re happy to fill it up again in the winter to feed the birds when they need it most and (more importantly) to give Presley back her birdwatching pastime. Once we created more room, I made a little conversation area on the south end of the balcony. It’s hard to work with the space, since it’s only five feet wide. There’s not much room for walking (as you can tell by the fact that the chairs are soooo close together!) It’s not perfect, but it’s fine for small gatherings. We’ve had our neighbor friends over quite often lately and it’s been wonderful to take advantage of the mild summer nights out there. On the north side, we have our little bistro table and the “potting area” (the pile of pots in the corner). In the morning, this area is nicely shaded for early morning letter writing, reading and crafting. (You know…the things I should be doing instead of watching the TODAY show!)

I’m a little nervous that August is going to be sweltering since we’ve had such a perfectly mild summer so far, but for now, I’m just going to try to soak up as many hours as I can outside.

Tagged decorating, garden, gardening, home, home improvement, homemaking, summer

May 22 2013

3 Comments

gardening, homemaking

Geranium Troubles

Do you remember this geranium from last year? Well, it’s back outside again this spring–it’s the tall, skinny, flowerless one right by the gnome above. Last year, it lived with a couple of annuals and an ivy geranium (which, sadly, did not make it through the winter). This year, I planted a couple of fresh new geraniums with it. It looks nice and colorful in the hanging pot. The trouble is, I have another hanging pot filled completely with last year’s geraniums. It looks sad. See?

It’s just hanging out…not producing any flowers…last year, my old geranium didn’t bloom until August…I don’t want this pot to languish without blooms until then. Is there anything I can do to hurry it along?

It’s too late for this year, but it looks like I should take a different approach to overwintering my growing geranium collection. (I just leave them all in their pots in a north facing window…not much overwintering there!) This article from the Iowa State University Extension Program was informational on the proper way to overwinter geraniums…I’m hoping next year, my plants will be ready for blooming in the spring!

Tagged decorating, garden, gardening, home, home improvement, homemaking

May 15 2013

3 Comments

gardening, homemaking

The Garden Awaits

It has been such a weird spring around here. There have been days where temperatures were creeping towards 90, and then the next day, I’m pulling out my winter coat again. Typically in the Midwest, you can put your tomato plants in the ground by Mother’s Day (Sunday). We had plans to plant our garden on Saturday after the Community Garden meeting, but there was a frost warning on Sunday night, so we put planting on hold. Sure, we could have put our seeds in the ground and then waited to put the tomato and pepper plants in, but we kind of want to do it all at once. Naoto is off from Trader Joe’s the rest of the week, so hopefully we can squeeze in a little garden time one of the evenings this week.

Last weekend with my parents, I chose three tomato plants, one pepper plant and a bunch of seeds for the garden (pictured above along with some from my pen pal Danielle). Everything is pretty straightforward except the vining plants, which will need a little trellis to grow up into. The trellis will need to be a weekend project in the coming weeks. Ahhh…projects like this make me realize how little we know about gardening…but that’s the fun of this project, right? (Right?!) Naoto is very excited for the daikon radishes and I’m most looking forward to our tomato varieties, the golden beets and the lima beans…I love limas!

Today I am working on repotting some flowers I bought yesterday. Now that we are spending more time out there, I want to make sure it’s not a giant mess of outdoor furniture and empty pots (which it is now). Off to work!

Tagged decorating, diy, garden, gardening, home, home improvement, homemaking

Mar 21 2013

5 Comments

home is a 1970s apartment, homemaking

Slow Productivity

We are having a little party on Saturday night (Fondue Fun Night!!!), so naturally I’m busy hanging stuff on the wall, checking out Jell-O molds and planning menus instead of doing what I’m supposed to do (finish cleaning, finish the spare room, finish painting the bathroom door…)

I’ve had the square Ikea frames for almost a year now. I originally had another idea for them (I actually own four), but that didn’t work out. I’m not sure this worked out either. I’m not in love with it. It’s fine, but not great, but I can’t decide if it’s the placement, the papers, the colors or just the whole thing that’s bothering me. (If you’d like a closer look at the papers–you know, without the camera glare– the left one is similar to this Lokta paper, the middle on is this Japanese paper, and the right one is this Lokta paper.) I love the papers…I took the colors from my chevron pillows…I love the gold, I’m just not sure if it all looks a little too matchy matchy..maybe it would look better with only one paper design in all three frames? Maybe I need a new lamp? (I definitely need a new lamp shade!) Also, this whole set-up doesn’t help with that awkward hold between the side table and the television…

In addition to hanging some lame frames, I finally got up the nerve to hang the bathroom mirror yesterday! I was very nerve-wracking, lots of measuring and leveling and math (the math part I can handle…it’s the stress of holding the measuring tape and the level and the drill and the screw that is the hard part! Home improvement is not a solo gig!) So, the mirror isn’t hung perfectly, but it is centered and level, so that’s perfect enough! You should have seen all of the hang-wringing and sweating that was going on in there as I held my breath and prayed for a straight outcome!

Hopefully next week, I can be back with some pictures of the finally finished bathroom. I am still searching for an elusive frame for my artwork (and I have to paint the door still…can’t forget that.)

In the meantime, any ideas for the living room?

Tagged decorating, diy, home, home improvement, homemaking

Mar 05 2013

3 Comments

home is a 1970s apartment, homemaking

Another SNOW Post

It’s SNOWING again! And it’s a downright snow day for many people–schools are closed, church BINGOs are cancelled, people are going home from work early (or not going at all)…I, on the other hand, will be heading out to work later. But until then, I’m happy to curl up on the couch and watch the snowfall.

Yesterday I spent a good part of my day digging around in the guest room. It’s gotten to the point where I need to take another trip to drop off a carload of donations (yay!) and I really need to get rid of a chair and three desks before I consider things DONE, but as far as getting the stuff organized, I’m almost there.

I also have this little plan going on in the living room. I have three handmade papers all ready to go in frames on the wall.

Yay for progress…no matter how slow it is!

Tagged decorating, home, home improvement, homemaking

Mar 01 2013

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homemaking

March-ing On

Usually February drags on slowly for me. The brutal cold, the dirty snow that won’t melt away, holidays a distant memory, the fresh start of the new year wearing off…February might only be 28 days, but usually it feels like two months rolled into one.

Not this year. February flew! I think it had something to do with the Week of Indulgence, Naoto’s surgery and the fact that it hasn’t been overly cold or snowy this winter (so far!) The charm of the chill and the snow hasn’t worn off quite yet. (But take note, Spring…I’d love to see you soon!) Whatever the reason, I cannot believe March is already here!

In March, I’d like to…

…get back into our gym routine (We broke our habit while Naoto was recovering–I have no excuse–and now we need to work back into a good routine.)

…try out some new recipes (since every stand-by in our repertoire is off-limits until Naoto heals completely)

…finish an embroidery project (because it’s been too long)

…finish the bathroom & share it here on the blog (again, it’s been too long)

…finish clearing out the guest room (oh, how this project has dragged!)

…finish my framing & hanging projects (are you sensing a theme here?)

…plan a little birthday celebration (that includes something sparkly, like champagne!)

How about you…any plans for March?

Calendars: Rifle, Heather Lins Home and K is for Calligraphy

Tagged celebrations, decorating, home, home improvement, homemaking

Feb 27 2013

A Thankful Update

One week post-surgery and Naoto is feeling ready to go back to work. He had a follow-up appointment with his surgeon today and he gave Naoto the go-ahead to return to his office job and to Trader Joe’s (which makes me nervous because “light duty” means nothing to Naoto!) While he’s been home, Naoto has been showered with love on Facebook and Twitter, through phone calls and texts, in the mailbox and in soups from our neighbor friends and my book club friend, Peggy. We are truly so thankful to have so many kind friends and coworkers (seriously, Naoto works with the nicest people!).

Naoto has really embraced this liquid diet like a champ–getting excited about microwaving another bowl of pureed soup and spooning into a new flavor of Jello (my specialty) cannot be as easy as he makes it look! Next week, if all goes well, his diet expands like crazy–we can even add fish, pasta, rice and (meatless) casseroles! What a huge difference that will make!

In other news, it snowed again yesterday…this picture is from my walk home from work last night. It’s the kind of wet, heavy snow that leaves everything a mess. There are deep puddles at every street corner, which have pushed the “waterproof” standards of my cheap snow boots! It’s still snowing tonight, so I’m lucky I can stay home tomorrow and Friday to FOCUS on finishing the guest room…yes…I’m still working on the guest room. Actually, I stopped working on the guest room because I felt it was a lost cause, but now I’m ready to be DONE with the guest room, so I am going to work until it’s done. I’ve already donated ten bags of things (both from the guest room and our clothes closets) and there is plenty more that needs to go. It will be nice to begin March with a nice clean guest room so I can focus on other things around here…like framing more things…and making more Jello.

Tagged decorating, food, home, home improvement, homemaking, snail mail, Trader Joe's

Feb 25 2013

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home is a 1970s apartment, homemaking

Another Procrastination Project

The spare room is still a disaster. The bathroom still has no mirror or towel hooks. The floors need to be swept. Am I taking care of those things? No. I’m hanging up kitchen art.

I spent Saturday framing a bunch of old family pictures. My plan (eventually) is to make a family photo wall on the open wall in the dining room. (You can see a bit of the wall in this post.) I would have hung everything up on Saturday (I’m feeling very hammer happy these days.) except I realized I have zero pictures of myself. Grandparents, parents, and a young Naoto, yes…but no young Kimberly. I’m going to have to see if I can come up with some good choices (hint, hint, Mom!) before I start making holes. I’d love to do something like this by Young House Love, mixing my photographs with other sentimental things but, let’s be honest…at the rate I’m going it would take a lifetime to fill our wall!

Since I couldn’t hang up the stuff I’d framed (and the bathroom details are on hold until Naoto can help me lift things), I decided to finally hang two more doughnut pictures in the kitchen. The top one is a letterpressed greeting card that I found while cleaning and the bottom one is the picture (the sprinkles are police officers) that has been sitting on my kitchen counter for a long while. It took two minutes–no templates, no measuring, no level…I just eyeballed it this time. It’s a small improvement, but it feels good to get two more things on the wall (instead of on the floor!)

And while we are talking about the kitchen…when the weather got colder, we brought in our wicker loveseat from the balcony. It just happened to fit on the little wall in the kitchen. (We kept Presley’s food and water bowls along this wall, but she moves them around so much that pretty much the whole kitchen floor is her food and water bowl.) It turns out that the loveseat has been a useful little addition to the kitchen. We hang out there when we’re cooking and Presley takes naps on it every day. It’s kind of the perfect place for her. She can get her snooze on and be aware of what is coming out of the refrigerator. She can hear the sound of the cheese drawer opening and yogurt containers opening from anywhere in the apartment…being close gives her the advantage of seeing if the food choice is worth the effort of getting up to beg for it.

So, that’s what’s going on around here in the recovery house. Naoto is probably going back to his day job soon…Presley and I are going to miss him as we’ve gotten quite used to him hanging around with us during the day!

Tagged decorating, home, home improvement, homemaking, letterpress