Picture This

I have definitely been all up on Pinterest and one of the first things I would like to do is.... put up a gallery wall in our bedroom. Above our tv and dresser. I had made some art for right over it when we moved in and immediately disliked it. We shall call it a Pinterest Fail.

The inspiration was something like this:

 

with amazing artistic painting penmanship and very original... however I had some issues and kept messing up so I thought, grey is in our bedroom decor.. I can have a grey background and wah-la. This is what I ended up with:

Needless to say...  I am embarrassed to even post this. I have hated it from Day One. The dimensions in the space, my handwriting, the coloring, everything. And I did not do a single thing to fix it.  EYESORE!!  (also, sorry for the terrible pics)

SO last trip to Ikea, I stocked up on a few cheap frames. I have a few old ones and a few from Target. Definitely need some more and of course to figure out what I want to put IN them... BUT here are some of my new inspirations for our bedroom. A nice little gallery wall :)

 

Debating which style of frames I like best.. should I stick with photos or also add phrases/quotes/etc? Should I keep it all picture frames or add a canvas (because I have a cute small one from our engagement photos)?  Ahhhhh who knew a gallery wall would have so many decisions? 

I think I like first one best... but maybe because that one is actually around a tv so I can picture it better.... What should I do?!

Home Sweet Home?

Definitely still evolving style wise for the home.  We are about to renew our lease at our current apartment and after 2 years, and about to start year 3, I think I have lived here long enough to finally call some spaces complete.
Sometimes I find it hard to decide between what I love, what I like, what I need.... I've tried where I only walk out of the store with something if I LOVE it. If I don't get it, it is still on my mind and it is still there next time- it's fate and I guess I like it more than I thought and I should have it. HOWEVER this can sometimes result in a modge podge (not always a good thing) of items that don't really flow together.
Currently I have been putting a wish list together of things I would like to do around our apartment. But before I do, I am definitely taking a few quizzes and using Pinterest for some 1) affordable 2) semi-easy 3) cohesive changes for our spaces.
Here are a few quizzes I took (and my results):

HGTV Style Finder Quiz
Your style is Classic Casual
AKA Transitional. A mix of contemporary and traditional. Usually updated, graceful, enduring.


Stylish Home Design Style Quiz
You most resemble a "Bespoke Classic".

Center hall, formal dining, stately living. To cook a grand meal in an elegant kitchen is your joy. A bedroom with distinct character - warm and charming. Your decorative canvas stretches to the property lines. Set your table in a festive fare. A cool refreshing drink - and often more than one! Pre-war, upper east side attitude. At the end of the day… you don't take things too seriously..

Suspected "Bespoke Classic": Princess Diana, Fred Astaire, Ralph Lauren

HomeGoods Stylescape 

You are BOHO and a touch Classic

 Boho isn't just carefree. She's adventurous and passionate, loving color and new and unusual uses for things. She's into the Revamp, Reuse, and Recycle, and she can't get enough of foraging for a good deal while mixing and matching silk-and-knit textures and vibrant colors anywhere she can.

- Classic knows there's a place for everything—and everything belongs in its place. And she imbues her sense of structure with a graceful elegance, an undisturbed calm, and of course, an irrefutable beauty.

 So definitely some similarities... "classic"- which is a word I definitely have found myself choosing when I was planning our wedding and with trying to plan a wardrobe or space. So  Time for some Pinterest and further planning my to-do list. I will share it when I have some game plans!

Anybody else feel like it was at least Wednesday today? Just me?

Food. Yum.

Holy Cow- Day 2, Post 2. I am proud of myself already.

So Today is Monday. Which often means Burger Monday! (drool) There is a place just down the street from us-  Old Oak Tap -that has $5 burgers with fries on Monday as long as you buy a drink.  This is from a girl who did not really eat burgers ever growing up. I have eaten more burgers in the last two years that I have been married than I did my entire life. All thanks to a 2am burger! When you add bacon and an egg (sometimes hashbrowns) to your burger. If you have not tried it, do so now. It's life altering.
Anyway, back to the $5 burger deal.  More times than I care to admit, we don't tend to plan dinners on Monday because this is our back up plan. It is easily one of our favorite neighborhood restaurants. If coming to Chicago...maybe make your way over to the Ukrainian Village. I will fill you in on some of our favorites!!

But when we are planning dinners, these tend to be our "Top Go-To Dinners" at the moment:
1) Spaghetti Aglio, Olio e Pepperoncino-- this is actually a decently healthy option. We definitely saute the garlic, olive oil, and pepper flakes together before mixing with the pasta- and even though we like hot foods... definitely cut back on the red pepper flakes a bit! We also tend to add chicken and a have tried aspargus in it too. Can't go wrong!
2) Crockpot Chicken Tacos-- three ingredients + 1 crockpot =amazing! Plus leftovers! Make chicken salad or nachos, etc. We love when we make the Chicken Tacos on a Friday in the fall and then have nachos for football on Saturday- it is a crowd pleaser! Plus allows for a little variation based on what salsa you use or if you do add in ingredients like jalapenos!
3) Spicy Crunchy Chicken Wraps-- Obviously you can vary your chicken choice or even what dressing you use. Maybe make them into a buffalo chicken wrap.
4)  Turkey & Colby Panini-- We tend to go very basic with our panini with meat and cheese from the deli, and occasional add ons to our preferences. But these panini recipes jazz it up a bit! Bonus: a pasta salad that I am loving as a side (or main) right now is from my sister.  Farfalle noodles (cooked according to box), with peas (room temperature), bacon (cooked and crumbled), and mixed with buttermilk ranch. Chill in the fridge and serve. BEYOND GOOD!
5) Chicken & Asparagus Penne-- and one that will soon make it into our regular line-up. It seems to be just what we are enjoying these days! Made easy and relatively healthy!

These are definitely the easy recipes we just tend to have the ingredients for in stock at home.
I have put the links to the recipes, because at this point I would be kidding myself taking pictures of food.

Happy Monday!!!

As my dad would say answering the phone: " Yello"

So.... I'm finally doing this. I have wanted to start a blog for some time now. I have been following multiple blogs for years and have always been interested in it. Not that our life is anything extraordinarily interesting... but we are happy. Even if this ends up only as an update to friends and family on what's going on in our life OR get me (and the hubby) to try new things and get out of our comfort zone= it has served a purpose.
I'm sure in the beginning, posts will be minimal and hop around as I think of them... but I hope to evolve and grow with the blog as we do with our life. From food, home, style, DIY, life.... it's pretty much going to be hanging with the lemons :)