With the holiday weekend around the corner, I’ve decided instead of hitting the road like many of you are, I am going to keep it easy and stay at home.    As you know, I travel quite a bit for work so the idea of a staycation right now sounds might amazing to me.

Today, I potted some ferns for the front porch and decided to invert some pots to give them height.    Let’s hope I don’t kill these guys!  (inside tip: the plastic pots the ferns came in can be dropped off at any Lowe’s stores for free recycling, even if you didn’t buy the pots from Lowe’s).

Leaning some artwork by the kitchen sink against the large panes of glass windows actually works!  I like the unexpected feel of it.

Cute upcycling idea to turn packing material into a garland…

Yarn bombing?

And my new collection of recycled wood furniture is hitting stores like TJ Maxx and Marshalls right now.  This little side table (made from recycled wood from old boats) is just $19.99.

Have a wonderful weekend.  I’m off tomorrow and will be back Tuesday!

Had a lovely weekend recently in Ojai, CA which I might just called the greenest, nicest place on Earth.    The beyond perfect Ojai Valley Inn was home for my short trip which mixes meandering gardens with lushly appointed rooms and stellar customer service.    Can not say enough about the place.

Ojai is famous for their Pixie oranges, but they also grow tons of other citrus and produce as well (including probably the world’s best avocados).    I love how the farm stands are all done on the honor system.

A pretty Saturday afternoon with hanging lanterns above.

Here is my pal and photographer Shelly Strazis as we shoot each other at lunch.    I shot the visit to Ojai for an upcoming story.  Yes, I am developing my own magazine!

Ojai is also a very spiritual place and we were lucky to accidentally find this dome where classes were taking place… We shot the interior and exterior for the magazine.

I did something rather grown-up recently and I’m really happy I did:  I commissioned a fine artist by the name of Katya Usvitsky to make me an original piece of artwork to hang in my home here in Bucks County, PA.

I met Katya through a mutual friend who suggested she might be great to work on a freelance graphic design project.   But when I spent time in her studio space in  Brooklyn, NY, I saw her real side passion as a fine artist was something I could gravitate towards…

As my work is being created (it will take 6 months), I saw she had some smaller pieces she made to be wearable art that I thought were very original and darling.

Love the pop of color on this ring.  Still trying to figure out her technique….

Another lovely piece.

On my way out, saw many floors of raw industrial space in the building.   Can you imagine what kind of incredible loft home/studio/office this could be?

Obsession Alert: Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Co.

It’s in New York City and they basically take frozen ripe bananas and somehow turn it into delicious soft serve like ice cream that is dairy, gluten and artificial anything-free.

Totally reminded me of this gadget—the Yonanas machine–I saw on HSN a while back…

Since I neglected to take a before photo since I wolfed it all down, here’s what it looks like.  Lots of yummy flavors, but the original is what I love: a very subtle banana taste, super creamy, light and feels like a guilty indulgence but really isn’t.

Fruit and Water: That’s it.   How can you go wrong?

Welcome to my new obsession…..

1. Even in an age of digital reading, printed books are still in-demand and can be donated if you’re ready to make room on your bookshelf at home.    The rule of thumb of donating books is this:  If the book is less than 2-3 years old from when it was published, donate it to your local library, who will re-sell the book at a fund-raiser to raise money for their valuable work.  If it’s older than that, donate it to a Salvation Army or Goodwill store, who will resell them in-store.   Either way you donate them, be sure to get a receipt for tax deduction purposes.
2. Beauty products can still be used well after they’ve been used up or expired in new and different ways.    A clean mascara brush, for example, can be used to scrub in between stones in jewelry or watch links to clean away dirt and debris.    Unwanted nail polish (perhaps a color not to your liking) can be used to “paint” the stems of wine glasses to give them personality and color.   And lipstick that broke can be melted in a microwave safe dish for :20 seconds and poured into a clean tin (think small mint tin) and applied to the lips with a brush or fingertips.
3. Here are some simple ways to reuse old nail polish at home:  Deep hues can be used to paint sets of keys different colors; think deep red for the front door, a purple for a rear door, etc.  Torn window screens can easily mended back together using clear nail polish; just apply, dry and let it set.  You can’t even see where you’ve applied the polish!   And trying to thread a needle can be challenging; make it easier by dipping the tip in nail polish to make it stiff and easy to sew with.
4. Look for new bio-plastic bottles hitting the marketplace made from sugar cane.   Sugar cane is grown on abandoned pasture land (so no deforestation), harvested and used to not only make plastic bottles, but to also power the factory to make them.   It uses up to 70% less energy than petroleum.   The new bio-plastic blended bottles (which can be found in products like Pantene shampoo) are also recyclable in traditional curbside recycling, too.
5. Who knew that those little cable boxes in our homes could be eating up more power than a new refrigerator or even air conditioning systems?    Since the cable boxes are on full-tilt power 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, they can eat up a lot of power; combine DVR machines and non Energy Star rated TVs, and you’ve got a recipe for energy disaster.    The best solution is to turn it off: plug the TV and cable box into a power strip and power it down every night before bed.    Turn it back on in the morning (it only takes 45 seconds for the whole system to reboot) to cut down on energy savings by 1/3.