{sayonara, synthetics. #1}

Now that the hustle and bustle of Thanksgiving and Christmas has passed, it's time to get back to making this house cozy. I've already told  you how I plan to spend next year on a "me & martha" project. I've also decided to rid this home of plastics and synthetics and anything else that is more toxic than good. I don't intend on going over board with it...I just want to feel good about the things that we purchase. And use to feed ourselves.
I have no idea how long it will take, but I plan on replacing at least 1 thing a week, until I'm satisfied.
To get the ball rolling, I took a trip to Williams-Sonoma (pricey, yes...but we are able to splurge a little these days) and got these glass mixing bowls to replace the incomplete (and cracked) set of melamine ones we've been using for almost 8 years. I also got stainless steel measuring cups & spoons to replace the plastic ones (that may or may not have been chomped on by the disposal a time or two...).
 Several months ago, I got a new set of stainless steel cookware and gave the old scratched up, nonstick coated set the boot. Food immediately started tasting better!
I will continue to replace plastic stuff with glass or metal and will also switch out all the cleaners for natural (and probably handmade) ones, clothes made from synthetic fibers (this will probably be the most expensive part, but I want real fabrics on my body!)
I'm going to attempt to sew my own set of these awesome things.
I'm going to start adding to my compost bin. We may be planning on moving next year, but the new people can still benefit from it.

I guess this is my New Year's Resolution. To detoxify.
What is yours?

My First Furniture Facelift

I've had a running "to do" list for quite some time now. Last weekend, I decided to knock 2 items off said list and am really happy with how they turned out! We have (semi) nice wood floors in our living room and dining area...and some (semi) nice wood furniture in both rooms. The problem was that the various tables DID NOT match the floor whatsoever. It was driving me nuts. So, off to Home Depot I went. I picked out a shade of black called "silhouette" (my hubby's band is also called "silhouette", so I absolutely HAD to get that particular color :)) We have 2 tables in our living room. A rather large coffee table and an "end table"  that currently holds our cable box, xbox, and DVD player. They were a gift from Hubby's grandmother when I moved from a one room, furnished apartment to a real apartment...and didn't have much furniture of my own. They are solid and sturdy. And for the most part, we love them. We have no idea how old they are, but with all the scratches and a few scattered watermarks, they desperately needed a makeover. I started with the small table. I loved the finished product so much that I immediately painted the coffee table to match. Yes, that is the same framed picture on the tables...I couldn't decide where I wanted it to go! It's a card from my BFF that reads "You're the strangest person I ever met, she said & I said you too & we decided we'd know each other a long time."- we've been joined at the hip for about 13 years now. Anyhoo, the next day, I moved on to the yellow dining table, which was given to us when we moved into our first apartment together. That happy girl you see is our Molly. We have another girl named Cheesy, but she hates having her picture taken. Molly helped me paint by using her tail as a brush :/ I am thrilled with the way they all turned out. From mismatched hand-me-downs, to coordinated Pottery Barn knock offs :)