DIY Outdoor Table & Shade for 2

from Martha Stewart Living

This is one of those “duh” ideas, but I have to admit that it didn’t cross my mind until I saw it on Martha Stewart Living. I am really enjoying having a deck. We have a small table with a small umbrella that we use for dining. We usually eat outdoors in the evening when there is no need for the umbrella. If we are out during the day, we are usually relaxing with a glass of tea. No shade. This is a bummer, especially with a hot weekend coming up. I want to be out enjoying it before the rainy season. I think if I did something like this, the umbrella would get much more use. It’s an easy project. I can find a small wood table at a thrift store or yard sale. I’ll slap some of my exterior mistint paint on it. I

Here’s the tutorial.

I’ve been very busy this week wrapping up some loose ends while I still have the time. I’m still working on before and after pictures. This helps me see how much work we’ve actually done. It’s easy to get obsessed with the “what’s left to do” stuff and ignore everything that you did. It’s supposed to be near 90° this weekend. I doubt anything will be getting finished on this house. Time to hit the coast!

-Victoria

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Outdoor Living Spaces: The Hip New Way To Say Patio

Featured in Country Home

I really should be cleaning off the deck and scrapping paint off of a vintage aluminum picnic table so that I can repaint it, but I it’s easy to procrastinate. Even when it is beautiful outside. Are you surprised that I don’t want to scrape paint in the midday sun?

I was very excited about having a deck this year.  It is very nice but I thought it would be a great outdoor living space. It’s not. It’s nice to set on and nice to eat on space. That’s it. I always see this whimsical fantasy pictures in decorating magazines featuring beautiful daybeds outside (outdoor spaces here featured in Country Home and House to Home). What’s the purpose of these spaces and where are they? I assume that they only exist  in photographs and couldn’t make it in this harsh, cruel world. They are better decorated than my indoor living space :). These fantasy spaces have comfortable outdoor seating with throw pillows, paper lanterns, outdoor rugs, and even coffee tables. It’s all beautiful but far from practical. I say that if you are at the purchasing an outdoor rug stage in your life then you need to reevaluate your life and maybe get a new hobby or go on a vacation with that expendable income. Maybe I’m clueless, this is very possible, because I live in the Pacific Northwest. We have nice summers, not very long and the rest of the year it rains. I’m better off investing in a nice deck stain than nice patio furniture and paper lanterns. Maybe you can live like this in Southern California? I see these in pictures on resorts in Mexico. Maybe you have to haul this stuff in and out every day? I don’t know. Regardless, these outdoor living spaces take a wonderful picture and I always wish I was relaxing on one of those comfy outdoor daybeds. I won’t have a perfectly decorated living space but I’ll have a nice one if I just get out there and pull it together. And these pictures have motivated me to do so. Time to pull together my budget-friendly and totally practical “outdoor living space”. This is the cool new way of saying “deck” or “patio”. And if you say “outdoor living space”, you sound really rich. Have a great weekend!

-Victoria

Featured in House to Home

David’s Commentary:

I find this idea to be the kind of irrational thing that a designer comes up with without thinking about too much.  The moisture, mold, insect, rodent and bird-poop assault that would be pressed on your furniture in this setting will make almost any textiles nasty in under a week. One slight rainfall on a foam cushion will keep it moist enough to mold for weeks.

Perhaps this gets pushed by retailers so much because it’s a really attractive concept that requires that you replace the items used 3 times a season?

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My Asian Melon & Cucumber Fro-Yo Recipe

One of my favorite things to do is to create frozen yogurt flavors and various other frozen treats. Here is my recipe for a super refreshing Asian Melon & Cucumber Frozen Yogurt. This one is perfect for summer because it is well, frozen, and it isn’t too sweet. I am a fan of tart fro-yo and this is a very refreshing take on tart.

First prepare your ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions. For me this requires pre-freezing the bowl. That’s why I keep in the freezer at all times. Never know when I want to create a new flavor!

You’ll need:

32 oz. (about 4 cups) of plain nonfat yogurt. I use Trader Joe’s French Village Non-Fat Yogurt because I like the price and the texture.

1 small Santa Claus melon. This was so hard for me. I purchased a small Nerf football sized melon at a Korean grocery. The melon name was written in Korean. I had no idea what it was but after doing research online (there seriously is no good melon references on-line), I think it is a Santa Claus melon. I’m pretty sure (even though it isn’t really an “Asian” melon). A Santa Claus melon will do.

1/4 of average sized English cucumber

1/4 cup sugar (optional and I don’t use sugar in this recipe. I like tangy.)

Cut open the melon and remove all the seeds. Remove the rind and chop into 1-2 inch cubes. Chop up the cucumber into slices. Put the melon and cucumber into a blender and puree until smooth. It is important to puree until smooth because these fruits have a high water content. The “chunks” will freeze too icy and have an unpleasant texture.

In a large bowl, combine the yogurt and the melon/cucumber mixture. Mix with a whisk. If you would like a sweeter mixture, now is the time to add the sugar. I can see adding sugar if you have an unusually tart melon. Mix until all ingredients are blended and (if you choose) the sugar is dissolved.

Put the mixture into your ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions. I have to leave my mixture churning in the machine for up to 2 hours. The machine is deafening.

Spoon the yogurt mixture into a container. I usually use the yogurt container and Ball Plastic Freezer Jars (with the green lid). Freeze until mixture is firm about 2+ hours.

Before serving, let fro-yo soften so that it is easy to scoop. I find that this mixture needs a longer time to soften about 30 minutes before scooping, if you don’t wait, you’ll get the mess you see in the picture (still tastes good). Garnish with mint ( love having a herb garden, orange mint is used in the pic, love their smooth leaves). Fro-yo keeps in the freezer fro 7-14 days. We usually eat the batch in less than a week. Because of this, I can’t comment on texture changes the longer it stays in the freezer. The fro-yo will have a pale melon green tint. It’s very pretty.

Give this a try and tell me what you think! This can also be served with drizzled minted simple syrup for added sweetness.

-Victoria

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Whimsy Decorated Porch with Paper Parasols!

Midwest Living porch

I don’t have a porch, but I have a nice deck. Of course, the grass is always greener and we want what we don’t have. I didn’t think about it too much until I stumbled across this picture in Midwest Living. I love it. What a retreat! This makes me consider living in the Midwest if I could have a porch like this, well for a split second it does, I love the West Coast and this porch has a West Coast vibe with those colors and chrysanthemum Asian prints. I love the linens, the paper parasols, and the mix match chairs. Very cool look for reunions, birthdays, and wedding receptions.

We are having a beautiful weekend with lots of sun today here in Western Washington. The garden is thirsty but I don’t mind being outside. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

-Victoria

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DIY Bandana Quilt Tablecloth For Summer Gatherings

Tablecloth from the Aeshetic Nest

I can’t wait until our little “project” ,umm, goes away! I want the projects in my life to be slapping a new coat of paint on a flea market furniture find or planning summer parties. I like to pretend that I’m doing something for the 4th of July. I like to pretend that it won’t be chilly, gloomy, or rainy and that I don’t have a bathroom subfloor to put down. I like to pretend that I’m having a 4th of July BBQ on our awesome new deck with adorable decorations and a rocking meal plan. Maybe next year?

I found this adorable DIY tutorial for a bandana tablecloth quilt on The Aesthetic Nest. It’s cute and Mrs. Aesthetic Nest makes this look so easy to do. You could totally finish one before the 4th! I would love to make one of these for a 4th of July celebration. I would use red, white, and blue bandanas. And yes, I’d have to make it a western (I’m from Nashville!) with horseshoes on the table and galvanized water cans filled with black-eyed susans. My BBQ meal plan would be Paula Deen goes Pike Place: grilled salmon, oysters, grilled local veggies (nothing is better than a grilled Walla Walla onion), orange blossom spongecake with a raspberry coulis, and mint ice tea.

I know I do not have time this year to throw together an adorable bandana tablecloth. But, if we do get blessed with decent weather this weekend, I can do something similar by using red, white, and blue bandanas as napkins or place mats. I’ll bring out the cowboy boot steins (isn’t it lame that I have those?) and put daisies in a milk glass vase. The food will still be good. Good food is always a priority here at Tudorks.

I most likely won’t update our blog this weekend. David has a three day weekend and there is always something to do here at Tudorks! I hope everyone has a great 4th of July weekend!

-Victoria

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Raspberry Time: My Raspberry Truffles Recipe

OK. So this is my first recipe attempt. I want this to be more of a “home and life” type of blog. Hopefully, we won’t be renovating forever! Stop smirking. I keep telling myself that there is more to life than renovation!

We are getting a first round of seasonal berries raspberries in here in the PNW. They aren’t the best but they sure are good when you haven’t had them in a long time. Since they aren’t at their peak yet, I decided to make raspberry truffles. I took a recipe from Epicurious.com (don’t you love iPhone apps!) I am one of those people who uses recipes for ideas. I usually use them as vague guidance and do what I want. This recipe is from Gourmet December 2004. Here’s the recipe. What did I do differently? Well, didn’t have brandy, used cream sherry and I used 2 1/2 tablespoons. My fresh raspberries kept disappearing, hmm, David, perhaps? So, I had lots of ganache left over. I couldn’t let it go to waste so that is why my truffles looks so odd and globular. The rest of the ganache David ate with a spoon after planting hedges. (BTW- got hedges for $2.50 a piece!) This recipe is so easy. I put those deformed truffles in the fridge for about 2 hours while I tended to the garden and did chores. I then took the truffles coated them in a plastic baggie of organic unsweetened chocolate. And here they are:

My raspberry truffles

I just purchased this cake stand and couldn’t wait to use it. Isn’t the Eiffel Tower a cute touch? 🙂 The truffles didn’t last very long. It wasn’t me, it was David, I swear! A few were left out the next day. The cocoa powder begins to settle strangely on them. It doesn’t help that they were in a glass dome in our dining nook. The dining nook has windows and it was a sunny day in Western Washington. The flavor was still great but they looked pitiful. I’m sharing that information in case you want to make these for a gathering or something. Heat is not nice to truffles. Duh, huh?

This is a super easy recipe and I didn’t change much. I can’t wait to do chocolate covered cherries. And figs…

-Victoria

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Apologies, apologies

Card from http://www.zeichenpress.com.

I must apologize for totally neglecting our home blog. As you can imagine, we’ve been really busy with life outside of renovation. We both work full-time. David got a new job and a promotion! His nerd skills worked in his favor earning him the title of manager of IT. I’ve been working and going through the grad school application process. Tons of other things have happened these past few months. Including a computer issue that left me without my home inspiration folder and a few of our before and after pictures 😦 This last thing got me down. But, hey, maybe I needed new inspiration. So, I’m pulling up my boot straps by admitting that I’m a slacker. I’m on the hunt for new inspiration. We have done so much to the house that I haven’t share. I have so much to show you and I’m manic with design ideas. This blog will be updated 5 times a week. (Thanks, to my new lady-of-leisure schedule. Now I remember why I don’t work in private sector and instead in the schools: summer!)

And you have to forgive me. (More apologies!) Since I have so much more time on my hands, I’m getting a bit more Martha Stewart-ish. And I’m currently obsessed with creating new and exotic fro-yo flavors. My newest dream, forget my current career, drive around and sell exotic fro-yos and custards from a vintage ice cream truck in Portland. I’ll have to share my creations with you. Forget cupcakes. Designer fro-yo is what all the cool kids are doing.

And I’m sure I’ll be doing so much to the house this summer. We still have much to do. And I’ve got to raise a well-adjusted frug. He needs constant enrichment. Does snacking on paint chips count as enrichment? Oh, and we have a garden! Our first one ever. I’m loving it.

Stay tuned…

-Victoria

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It’s Going To Be A Long Time Before I’m Relaxing In A Hammock…

But, I did find some that I really like.  Hammocks are strange things. They usually make me feel uncomfortable and find them unpredictable. I feel this way because I had a cousin, the epitome of ADHD, push me out of one every time I “kicked back and relaxed”. I ate dirt so many times…But, it is pretty cool to be “floating”. We have some fruit trees in the backyard under the blackberry bramble. At one time the backyard/garden was a “bird garden” and I bet very nice. Now it looks like something that would protect a forbidden castle housing a sleeping princess. And it is the home of 3 of the hugest raccoons ever that feed on whole plums all night. Since this ordeal has taken forever and we’re going to be lucky just to finish the interior issues before the rainy season, gardening is not going to happen this year. We’ll be lucky to destroy/control the bramble and to mow the lawn. But, I do like to think about it. The weather is pretty mild here and I need reasons to be out in it. Maybe next year we will see some change in landscape. I would love to have a moody night blooming garden with these lovely gothic hammocks. Could you imagine lounging in one of these under lightweight spring fruit blossoms in the shade, sipping a violet flavored Italian soda, and browsing through your favorite magazine. It would be the good life. The hammock above retails for about $200. The one below is a sling chair and more my spend. I think I would feel more comfortable with my feet grounded. This way I could sit up and hold my iced latte, run my toes through fragrant creeping thyme, and read a nice Victorian era ghost story. This style goes for about $150. Both of these hammocks are available at The Victorian Trading Co. They have some other models available, the Wedding styled one is lovely.

-Victoria

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The New Minimalist Lifestyle

Hey, this reminds me of my stark life!

This past week, um 100 days, has been kind of hellish. We still haven’t closed on the house and really don’t know when we will. We hope to close tomorrow but we’ve been hoping that for over 100 days. All the docs are in but I’ve lost hope on closing this deal. Last week we were in a panic. The rental property wanted us out because we couldn’t sign a year long lease since we are hoping to close on a house soon. Our other options included month to month renting which was expensive, $1300 + other expenses for 700 square feet out in the middle of nowheresville. We could rent a vacation rental for a minimum of $900 a week. This would of been nice but David is still working over the summer and this would of made his commute too long. The other option was to rent a hotel and this was over $100 a night and totally booked because of the heatwave that took over the area. People were renting hotel rooms just to cool off. Just for 3 nights it would of been over $350 at a crappy hotel. These options had the possibility of totally breaking us. But, we really didn’t have any other options other than calling the housing deal off and just renting yearly again. We asked the stupid property management crew if we could rent month-to-month and they gave us a “no” about a month ago. After we had moved all of our stuff to a stinky storage unit, rented a U-Haul, and were doing the last cleaning touches to the rental at about 3 hours before we were supposed to turn the keys in, we get a call from the PM crew asking if we would still like to rent the place for a month. Some timing. We didn’t want to but it would be cheaper than our other options plus we don’t have an actual closing date and the other house isn’t move in ready. We were a few hours from homelessness and this seemed to be the best thing to do in our state of desperation. So, now we are in a minimalist house pulling some of the things from storage out that we need. Need I remind you that we loaded that stuff into storage on the hottest day like ever in Washington? This has been a really abusive week, months, but at least we have a home for the time being. A very minimalist ,almost like camping, home where we sleep on an air mattress, have like 5 clothing items, no washer or dryer, no pots/pans, tables/chairs, etc. I am seriously not a candidate for the minimalist lifestyle. I am not a fan of this starkness. It’s too frustrating and cold. Oh yeah, we threw out all of our food. I hate to complain about this but it is all a bit overwhelming. Currently, we have a home, an empty home, but it is a place to live and we know how much the costs are monthly. No surprises. Hopefully we will close this week and be able to start the other home’s renovation. It would be nice to have a clean place to live during this rehab time. I hope it all works out, it usually does, but man have we been up doo-doo creek lately without a paddle!

-Victoria

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I Should Be Emptying The Rental House In 100 Degree Heat…

But, I’m just worn out and need a break. Even if a break means sticking to the computer chair while the vintage fan blows scorching hot air from outside into my face. Our inside thermometer reads 95. It’s misery and I get to load, pack, carry furniture and David’s Talentmaker  into a beat up U-Haul. Oh, and I get to singe my nose hairs with the vapors of bleach in hopes of getting a security deposit back. What a great day!

A perfect living room

Anyways, enough of my whining over a miserable heatwave here in the Pacific Northwest. I’m from the Southeast. I’ve seen these temps before but never without the modern marvel of a/c. So, while I sweat out pounds and pounds of liquid, I would like to share a room that makes me happy. I love this vintage modern living room. When I think of all of the hard work that I am doing now and all of the misery of the renovation ahead of me, I think about how it will all be worth it in the end. (Geez, I hope so. Talk to me in 6 months and still see if I say this stuff.) I like this simple room. I love the architectural details, the robin’s egg blue walls, the not so frou-frou chandelier, the wide planked wood floors. This room would be lovely in the nude, but it really looks great with help of the mid-century modern furniture. The lines are simple, the colors muted. And it looks like what we already have in our possession. It’s a nice way to make our 40’s-60’s furniture work with our mid-30’s house. I really can’t wait until we get to transform the place. Rumor has it we close tomorrow, but we’ve heard this before so it is hard for me to trust anyone. Until then I’ll be working hard, working on developing the ugliest heat rash ever, and working on keeping it all together. We still don’t know officially where we will be living. That being said. If you don’t hear from us in a while we are either homeless sleeping on the park benches by the ferry terminal, hiding in a remote cabin around Mt. Baker, or in our new house working hard and waiting for it to be internet ready.

-Victoria

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