Over the years, I have slowly made my way around o Over the years, I have slowly made my way around our house … decorating, renovating and reorganizing it into a soft place to land. The only part that I haven’t touched that much are our yards (except for a fire pit area that went in two years ago, thank you pandemic). I want our outside to be as much as a sanctuary as our inside is, so I plan to spend the next year digging in (no pun intended 😂). I don’t have a green thumb, so feel free to spam me with all your awesome, low maintenance ideas as we create a Japanese-style zen garden. 🤩 I also hate gardening, so there’s that, but am hoping that some #gardentherapy changes my mind as much as it changes the space.
✌🏻 ✌🏻
About last night … we spontaneously decided to m About last night … we spontaneously decided to make a @crumblcookies run at 8:30 and snagged a front seat to Mother Nature’s show. 😍
I took five books with me when we went on a little I took five books with me when we went on a little vacation in May, and got through two of them, one of which was The Magnolia Story. You are, no doubt, familiar with Chip and Joanna Gaines, but you might not know how they became so popular or how their business exploded. This book, told by both of them, shares their journey from their dating stages to just a few years ago. It’s quite amazing how their path unfolded, with the universe seemingly guiding them every single step of the way. Every time they hit a crossroads, they received clear signs to continue to point them in the right direction. It was interesting to learn more about their story, and a great reminder that you need to trust in yourself and follow your passions, and everything really does just fall into place. Chip has his own book out too, Capital Gaines, which I added to my list after I read this one. If you’re curious about their story or just need confirmation to continue to chase your dreams, read this one. ✨ #catesbookaweek 6/52
“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the w “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” – Roald Dahl ✨
We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister an We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister and her family were away. She has settled into a new routine here (ours 😂), and now doesn’t get up until after 9 am, stays up until well past midnight, eats a very late dinner, knows that the kitchen is where the magic happens and sits for a treat after her morning backyard visit. We’ve broken her in nicely but she will be returning with her continued bad habit of suffering from #fomo, playing tag with the cats, and barking every time she hears a door open or sees someone go up the street. We did our best. 😇
The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Gar The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Garlic butter and bleu cheese butter from @njgarlic (the bleu on steak! 😍), empanadas from @catalina_empanadas_2017, half sour pickles from @pickleculture and the quiche and bread were from a vendor I forgot to get the name of. This was all from the @bernardsvillefarmersmarket. Today I hit the @denvillemarket and added full sour pickles from @pickle_licious and a roasted garlic and duck fat loaf and cheese biscuit from @bobolinkdairyandbakehouse. Basically give us all the bread, cheese, butter and pickles and we’re happy campers! Did you hit up a farmers market this weekend? What’d ya get?
Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it is with the gnocchi from Trader Joe’s. Skip what their directions tell you and pan fry them in olive oil, add some of their 4-green bag of vegetables, salt, pepper, drizzles of pesto and a sprinkle of parm. So freaking good and dinner on the table faster than you can order take out. 🤤
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Sweetnicks

Food and Life

Whimsy + Pottery Barn

September 16, 2009 · Narrative

Fortune

When it comes to decorating the house, I’m a total child of Pottery Barn.  So much so that I used to save all their catalogs … until they had the bright idea of publishing books showcasing their decorating style.  Classic, traditional but with a comfortable enough slant that you feel you can put your feet up and relax.  After all, between the kids, their friends, and pets, stuffiness and plastic covered loveseats are totally out for me.

But as much as I love Pottery Barn, I also like to bring a little bit of whimsy to decorating the house, with little things here and there that are unexpected.  Like our fortune area.  Fortune cookies have always been a fun part of getting Chinese food.  An old friend and I used to choose our cookies, and then switch before opening them.  For some reason, the men in our family never eat the cookies, but Nick does.  He and I always wait for the end of the meal and then tear into the cookies to read our fortunes.  A few months ago, we started talking about the different fortunes and that it was a shame that we had to throw away the good news.

“But maybe we don’t,” I said.

“What else would we do with them?” he asked.

We started brainstorming.  I thought it would be fun to tack them up somewhere, but with an upcoming move on the horizon, I didn’t want to embark on any big project that we might have to undo.  We started tossing the fortunes into our kitchen coin jar … until last week.

Nick's Fortune

We knew we were going to put them on a wall somewhere, but I wanted it to be subtle. Like a happy surprise that you caught a glimpse of when you turned the corner. We ended up choosing the trim on this little alcove by the dining room. It’s perfect. We pass by there many times a day and it’s just a fun little thing. Originally I had planned to use straight pins to attach them to the wall and even found pretty ones with shiny colored metallic little tops. But the pin is too long and too hard to get into the wood without it bending. So I started looking for push-pins, but something different from the usual primary color bulletin board kind. When I found a set at Target, I knew they were perfect. A shorter pin and small round pops of color.

I love that one of the recent fortunes that Nick received was about Popeye (not that he even knows who he is, unfortunately) and eating vegetables. How appropriate. And my last fortune? The last one in the picture … “To love and be loved is like feeling the sun from both sides.” Love it.

I took the first picture, and Nick, the second. I always find it interesting to see his perspective when taking a picture, and this time, it was completely different than mine.

Good fortune really can be just around the corner… if you plan it that way.

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Posted In: Narrative

Comments

  1. Sarah Caron says

    September 16, 2009 at 9:32 pm

    What an awesome idea! I’ve thought that it’s a waste to toss them too. Using them like that is a great way to not let them go to waste. And the different perspectives? Perfect!

    Reply
  2. Southern Grace Gourmet says

    September 16, 2009 at 10:30 pm

    What a brilliant idea! I love ingenious and unique decorating ideas! I also love to use items that aren’t typical in decor, like you did here, great idea, the pins are really cute too. It reminds me I had a friend that got a fortune one day that said, “Help, I am being held captive in a chinese fortune cookie writing plant” We seriously didn’t know if it was a joke or not, but i am sure it was! It was typed!

    Reply
  3. claire says

    September 16, 2009 at 11:31 pm

    Cute idea! I always love when people do Christmas cards that way…just an extra little detail that makes your days more fun!

    Reply
  4. mandy says

    September 16, 2009 at 11:57 pm

    I think this is a great, fun idea! I have fortunes stuck in the side of my mirror, taped to the side of my computer monitor, tucked in my wallet, and placed around in other areas. I’ve seen them framed and hung as a picture as well. Great idea to tack them to the wall with decorative pins!

    Reply
  5. Joanne says

    September 17, 2009 at 6:13 am

    This is a great idea, kind of like your own, personalized feng shui. I think it’s little touches like this that are going to make you happy in your new home, and actually turn it into a home for you guys.

    Reply
  6. jan says

    September 17, 2009 at 8:54 am

    now you’re giving me ideas, if I EVER find my couple of way cool fortunes that I tucked away somewhere.

    Reply
  7. Jess says

    September 17, 2009 at 9:03 am

    Love it!

    Reply
  8. Kris #40 says

    September 17, 2009 at 9:21 am

    So cute!

    Reply
  9. Josie says

    September 17, 2009 at 10:24 am

    I have a seriously hard time tossing out fortunes – I love this idea! It is better than taping them to my computer monitor which is what I did at work :)

    Reply
  10. Debbie says

    September 17, 2009 at 10:36 am

    Very cute idea. I love fortune cookies and love reading them. I did bake your Reeses Peanut Butter Cup cookies last night. They were wonderful! We all loved them and I’ve taken some to work because they are just too tempting to have that many around at home!

    Reply
  11. Emily says

    September 17, 2009 at 11:27 am

    Whew, I finally got caught up on all the yummy posts since the last time I checked your blog about a month ago. I can’t wait to try a lot of those delicious recipes, especially the PB Cup cookies!

    Reply
  12. pamela says

    September 19, 2009 at 8:30 am

    What a neat idea! I still have a fortune from that I just loved, and it’s gotta be over 15 years now. Good memories you’re making!

    Reply
  13. Ana says

    September 23, 2009 at 3:04 pm

    Love your idea, it is awesome, really cool!
    Ana

    Reply

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Over the years, I have slowly made my way around o Over the years, I have slowly made my way around our house … decorating, renovating and reorganizing it into a soft place to land. The only part that I haven’t touched that much are our yards (except for a fire pit area that went in two years ago, thank you pandemic). I want our outside to be as much as a sanctuary as our inside is, so I plan to spend the next year digging in (no pun intended 😂). I don’t have a green thumb, so feel free to spam me with all your awesome, low maintenance ideas as we create a Japanese-style zen garden. 🤩 I also hate gardening, so there’s that, but am hoping that some #gardentherapy changes my mind as much as it changes the space.
✌🏻 ✌🏻
About last night … we spontaneously decided to m About last night … we spontaneously decided to make a @crumblcookies run at 8:30 and snagged a front seat to Mother Nature’s show. 😍
I took five books with me when we went on a little I took five books with me when we went on a little vacation in May, and got through two of them, one of which was The Magnolia Story. You are, no doubt, familiar with Chip and Joanna Gaines, but you might not know how they became so popular or how their business exploded. This book, told by both of them, shares their journey from their dating stages to just a few years ago. It’s quite amazing how their path unfolded, with the universe seemingly guiding them every single step of the way. Every time they hit a crossroads, they received clear signs to continue to point them in the right direction. It was interesting to learn more about their story, and a great reminder that you need to trust in yourself and follow your passions, and everything really does just fall into place. Chip has his own book out too, Capital Gaines, which I added to my list after I read this one. If you’re curious about their story or just need confirmation to continue to chase your dreams, read this one. ✨ #catesbookaweek 6/52

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Over the years, I have slowly made my way around o Over the years, I have slowly made my way around our house … decorating, renovating and reorganizing it into a soft place to land. The only part that I haven’t touched that much are our yards (except for a fire pit area that went in two years ago, thank you pandemic). I want our outside to be as much as a sanctuary as our inside is, so I plan to spend the next year digging in (no pun intended 😂). I don’t have a green thumb, so feel free to spam me with all your awesome, low maintenance ideas as we create a Japanese-style zen garden. 🤩 I also hate gardening, so there’s that, but am hoping that some #gardentherapy changes my mind as much as it changes the space.
✌🏻 ✌🏻
About last night … we spontaneously decided to m About last night … we spontaneously decided to make a @crumblcookies run at 8:30 and snagged a front seat to Mother Nature’s show. 😍
I took five books with me when we went on a little I took five books with me when we went on a little vacation in May, and got through two of them, one of which was The Magnolia Story. You are, no doubt, familiar with Chip and Joanna Gaines, but you might not know how they became so popular or how their business exploded. This book, told by both of them, shares their journey from their dating stages to just a few years ago. It’s quite amazing how their path unfolded, with the universe seemingly guiding them every single step of the way. Every time they hit a crossroads, they received clear signs to continue to point them in the right direction. It was interesting to learn more about their story, and a great reminder that you need to trust in yourself and follow your passions, and everything really does just fall into place. Chip has his own book out too, Capital Gaines, which I added to my list after I read this one. If you’re curious about their story or just need confirmation to continue to chase your dreams, read this one. ✨ #catesbookaweek 6/52
“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the w “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” – Roald Dahl ✨
We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister an We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister and her family were away. She has settled into a new routine here (ours 😂), and now doesn’t get up until after 9 am, stays up until well past midnight, eats a very late dinner, knows that the kitchen is where the magic happens and sits for a treat after her morning backyard visit. We’ve broken her in nicely but she will be returning with her continued bad habit of suffering from #fomo, playing tag with the cats, and barking every time she hears a door open or sees someone go up the street. We did our best. 😇
The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Gar The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Garlic butter and bleu cheese butter from @njgarlic (the bleu on steak! 😍), empanadas from @catalina_empanadas_2017, half sour pickles from @pickleculture and the quiche and bread were from a vendor I forgot to get the name of. This was all from the @bernardsvillefarmersmarket. Today I hit the @denvillemarket and added full sour pickles from @pickle_licious and a roasted garlic and duck fat loaf and cheese biscuit from @bobolinkdairyandbakehouse. Basically give us all the bread, cheese, butter and pickles and we’re happy campers! Did you hit up a farmers market this weekend? What’d ya get?
Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it is with the gnocchi from Trader Joe’s. Skip what their directions tell you and pan fry them in olive oil, add some of their 4-green bag of vegetables, salt, pepper, drizzles of pesto and a sprinkle of parm. So freaking good and dinner on the table faster than you can order take out. 🤤

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