Kitchen Clutter

Kholer has some tips for taming your countertop jungle up on their site. It's all common-sense stuff, but it's a nice way to get started if you are feeling a little overwhelmed.

Via The D Home Blog

Humane Spider Catching

I saw a post about this spider catcher on Apartment Therapy. I'm not a big fan of spider webs in the house, but I can never bring myself to spray or smash my little eight-legged interloper. After all, spiders eat bugs and the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Apparently this device allows you to catch and release spiders without risking a bite or accidentally amputating their little legs.

New at CB2

Rhumba Vases, $8.95 - $12.95

Twig Placemats, $3.95

Mudra Placecard Holders, $19.95

Curvy Salt and Pepper Shaker, $19.95

City Candleholder, $39.95

New Stuff at Target

Trbeca Swivel Circle Chair, $79.99

27"x27" Bus Canvas Wall Art, $29.99

Cork Base Lamp, $49.99

Canvas Pillow with Flocked Headphone Design, $19.99

Table Lamp with Smoke Amber Glass, $49.99

7.5"x14.37" Wall Clock with Sunburst, $14.99

20"x15" Wall Shelf with Mirror, $29.99

Interior Design for Cat Lovers

If you have cats and want to give them a fun environment that just happens to look great, check out Cat Interiors for inspiration. The site is based in Germany, but many of their beds and furniture pieces look like projects that could be tackled by a determined do-it-yourselfer.

Via Apartment Therapy

Pre-Fab Do-It-Yourself

Pre-fab do-it-yourself is no longer an oxymoron. Apartment Therapy recently featured a site that does two things I love. First, it takes an interactive concept, the hack, and applies it to the off-line world in a way that inspires innovation. Second, it provides do-it-yourself project ideas for those of us without a garage full of tools. The site is called Ikea Hacker.

The concept is simple: collect tips and ideas for tinkering with Ikea products to create new, custom furniture and accessories. The blog is only a few months old, but it already has some great ideas, including the mock-DNA bulb chandelier pictured above. Have a hack of your own? Submit it to ikeahacker@gmail.com.

Shopping Deals on ebates.com

A deal hunting friend ran across a convenient way to get cash-back for shopping online, a site called ebates.com. Registration is free. All you need is your e-mail address. Once registered, you can search through hundreds of online store listings, all offering discounts and rebates ranging from 2-25%. Ebates makes their money by earning a commission on the sales they refer. They kick-back a large portion of that commission to you as a rebate. Here are a few of the rebate listings I found this morning:

Neiman Marcus: 3%
Home Depot: 3 %
Uncommon Goods: 6%
BestArt: 12%
Sur La Table: 4%
Target: 4%

Special deals and coupons are also available on the site. Happy shopping!

Water Conversation

North Haven Gardens will be hosting a four-part lecture series on conservation, starting with a presentation on saving water. The series, which begins on August 20, also includes lectures on trees and turf. With many of the Northern suburbs already rationing water, it's time for all us to take a look at how much money and wet stuff we waste keeping our yards green.

If you can't wait until August to find a solution for your wilting grass and yellowing flowers, peep some outdoor water-saving tips at savedallaswater.org.

I'd venture a guess that low-water landscapes will be all the rage next year.

Great New Product - Duo Curtain Rod

Those who've tried to hang a towel to dry in a small bathroom, there is now an alternative to tossing it over a wet shower curtain. In a nod to this dilemma, the Duo curtain rod was created with one rod for the curtain and one to hang your towel on. It's more efficient and more sanitary, and the product is one of the 108 2006 IDEA award winners.

Duo Curtain Rod, $49.99 at Home Focus.

More Art on the Cheap

Here are a few more options for finding affordable art. I picked these up from a post on Apartment Therapy, but I've screened them for actual affordability for real people (i.e. $30 - $300).

Etsy - Check out the art section of this site which specializes in hand-made goods.

Tiny Showcase - Postcard sized prints of original art. There's a new piece each week.

ebay Art - All sorts of art up for sale to the highest bidder.

Art Prostitute - Original art and prints for sale.

Pixel Girl Shop - Another site selling handmade goods, original art, and prints.

Art on the Cheap

Painting a Day blogs have been the subject of more than a few articles recently. Touted as a cheap "in" to purchasing original art, the blogs feature postcard sized paintings done in one sitting (1 - 3 hours in most cases). The subjects range from simple household items to outdoor scenes, most accompanied by the artist's description of their inspiration. Many of the paintings are quite stunning, like this egg by Duane Keiser. Keiser's works are available for sale on e-bay and sell for $100 and up.

Other Painting a Day Artists:

Elin Pendleton

Julian Merrow-Smith

Karen Jurick

Weekend Excursion

I found this on the Shop Better Here Blog:

Christmas in July

The weather outside is frightful, all right -- frightfully hot - but there are only 172 shopping days until you know what. Whether you have holiday gift-buying in mind or not, stop by the Texas Pottery and Sculpture Guild’s 15th annual Christmas in July sale to browse through a variety of one-of-a-kind works from more than 30 clay artists, including functional pottery pieces, sculptures and objets d’art. The sale starts Friday night with a “meet the artists” reception where you can meet the artists and continues on Saturday at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center. Don’t forget to register at the door for a chance to win a piece by acclaimed Acoma-style potter Debbie Brown.

Norma Cavazos
* Friday from 5 to 9 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center, 1300 Gendy (just east of the Kimbell Art Museum), Fort Worth. 817-738-1938 and 817-964-0152.

* Free admission.

Shakers Shake it Up

This is a photo of yellow trim in a Shaker home from one of the aforementioned posts on Apartment Therapy.

Trend Watch: No More White Trim

I'm tired of white trim. When we bought our home last year, I dreamed of repainting the living room doors, built-ins, and trim in a chartreuse. After a brief foray into trim painting in our extra bedroom (we use it as an office, and the teal wall color we chose made the white trim look sad), I have realized this is a job best left to the professionals or the infinitely patient.

Our home was built in the 50s, and though I hate to admit this, the trim paint on our bedroom door has a few chips and cracks. Underneath several coats of white, I can see that the original trim color was a grey-green. Clearly, trim used to be the domain of more than white and cream.

A few weekends ago, we trekked out to Stonebridge Ranch to take a look at new homes. We found a charming neighborhood of craftsman-style homes by Darling, which offered the option of taupe trim. It looked great on the vintage-style mouldings. I've also recently run across several posts about colored trim on Apartment Therapy. Doors and trim are meant to be decorative. Unless it's a part of the room design, there's no reason they have to be white. Let's hope this is the beginning of the end of dull trim.

Sale

Horchow Finale's Plano and Dallas locations are having a sale. If you head to the Plano location, be sure to check out their scratch and dent sale, located next door.

Horchow Finale: 3046 Mockingbird Lane, Dallas, TX 75205; (214) 750-0308.
Or visit 3400 Preston Road, Plano, TX 75093; (972) 519-5406.

Sale at Sur La Table

Sur La Table is having a sale on their Web site this week with many seasonal items and some Wusthof knives ($29.99-104.99) amongst the mark-downs. The Shop Better Here blog on the DMN site promises that the official summer sale will begin on Friday, but there is already plenty to choose from, including Christmas, Valentines, and Easter items. This Tagine is marked down to $39.99. I have no idea how to make a Tagine, but they say you can also serve rice in it. That's a good enough excuse for me.

Target Rips-off Someone, and It's Good

I know I've seen something like these before... They are derivative of West Elm, which in turn was copying Jonathan Adler, or another pricey-er designer. The end result is five great vases in a beautiful color palate with an even more appetizing price - $39.99 for the set.

Sure, some of the finer details may have been lost, and these vase's shapes might not be quite so elegant as those of their $110 counterparts. But, they will look 99% as good up on the shelf and you will be able to afford to eat this month.

Puzzle Vases, $39.99 at Target.com and in stores.

Weekend Sale

World Market is having a clearance sale beginning Friday (that's today). I haven't checked it out, but it's a good bet that they will have mark downs on seasonal items and wicker staples.

Long Lost Stripe Painting Photos

I finally found the copies of the taping / painting process for my entry about the stripe.

Death to the Open Kitchen

I just ran across a link to this NY Times article about an end to the open kitchen trend. This has been one of my personal gripes for years. Now days, you can't find a new home with a closed kitchen. I've lived with both kitchen designs, and having my kitchen on display from the living room has absolutely no appeal. I didn't spend months agonizing over my living room decor to clutter the view with dirty dishes and have a greasy residue settle all over my furniture.

- via Apartment Therapy