Making house a home

Friday, October 9, 2009

fall must haves: scarves

stripe scarf

$9.99

aeropostale

two tone printed scarf

$12.50

old navy

click here for some pointers on ways to wear scarves

Thursday, October 8, 2009

fall must haves: boots

i've started off with my two favorites for boots. i am really liking the western boot inspriation...

sofia suede boot

$99.50

delias

sadly i can't find these anymore

but i think i found them at charolette russe

slouchy leather western boot

$23

go jane

ruffled boot, too cute

$21.50

go jane

surprise these boots are from walmart. i think they're kinda cute
flat boots
$29
walmart

again from walmart. tweed mary janes, great combo. would be cute paired with some colored tights
tweed mary janes
$20
walmart

another great shoe paired with some colored and textured tights
reta pump
$32.99
target

i'm really into mary janes and t-straps for some reason
patent mary jane
$19.99
target

i can see these black and plum pumps paired with plum textured tights
t-strap pumps
$19.99
target

you've got to have some black pumps as a classic staple to your wardrobe. i thought the pleats on these pumps gave it that extra oomph.
pleated pump
$10.48
target

sorry for the teeny tiny photo. i wasn't so sure about these at first, but i am starting to kind of like them. although i am not sure what you wear them with? maybe some skinny jeans?
criss cross heel
$26.50
wet seal

gingham check flats
$8.50
forever 21

not a great one for cold weather but i love t-straps and wedges
t-strap wedge
$8.74
target

again not the best shoes for cold weather but they sure are cute
$18.24
sunny flower wedge
forever 21

oh i love the cranberry color, the ruffles and velvety texture

ruffle flats
$24.99

target

i really love the color of these pumps

$22.99

charlotte russe

and there you have it. my favorites for boots and other shoes for the fall! which are your favorites?

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

cheesy broccoli and rice casserole

photo source

Cheesy Broccoli and Rice Casserole
adapted from Cook's Country

Serves 8-10 as a side dish

2 slices hearty white sandwich bread, torn into pieces
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons butter, melted; plus two tablespoons chilled
1 garlic clove, minced
2 pounds broccoli (about 3-4 medium heads of broccoli), florets cut into 1-inch pieces, stems chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1 1/4 cups long grain white rice
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/4 cups half-and-half
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 9X13-inch baking dish. Pulse bread, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese and melted butter in a food processor until coarsely ground. Add garlic. Set aside.

Microwave broccoli florets (save stems for later), covered, in a large bowl until bright green and tender, 2 to 3 minutes (no need to add water). Be careful not to overcook or they will become soggy and discolored. Melt remaining butter in a large pot over medium heat. Cook onion and broccoli stems until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add rice and cook, stirring constantly, until rice is translucent, about 1 minute. Stir in broth, half-and-half, and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, until rice is tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Off the heat, stir in cheddar cheese, cayenne, remaining parmesan and broccoli florets.

Pour the mixture into prepared baking dish and top with bread crumb mixture. Bake until the sauce is bubbling around the edges and the top is golden brown, about 15 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Serve.

recipe source

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

something wicked this way comes...

i've been trying to do daily activities with my little one lately and i decided this halloween countdown would be fun to do. we made a witch version.

burp cloths, bibs and onesies oh my!

i had a few friends having babies lately so i decided to put some of that cute baby inspiration out there to work....

i made these burp cloths out of cloth diapers and fabric from...wal-mart (i know can you believe they actually carry some cute fabric?)

i also got some help from this tutorial but instead of a zig zag stitch i added ribbon and sewed it on using a straight stitch

i also made some reversible bibs by using one of our own bibs as a pattern and following this tutorial

i also made some flower clips and a card (using inspiration from here for the card)

the clips are easy all you need is some ribbon, flowers and hot glue.

here is the boy set that i made:

burp cloth

reversible bibs

i decided to make some applique onesies with this set. i got the rocket template and applique instructions from here

elephant template

and there you have it. it's a very cute and practical baby gift. you can never have too many burp cloths right? i'm not the best seamstress out there but really these are very easy and simple to make. keeping it real, i did have some difficulty with the machine eating up my burp cloths but all in all its easy. if i can do it, you can do it!

p.s. thanks for all the tutorials and inspiration. if you would like to see my collection of inspiration go check it out here

i am also joining kimba's diy party. go check out what everyone else is making here

thanks for stopping by!