When I moved into my townhouse last fall I was so excited to fix it up. We were able to save a little money from the sell of our condo in Salt Lake City so that we could do fun projects right away. The project we decided to tackle first is the kitchen. And I knew it would be stressful, and I knew it would be hard, and I knew it would take a long time. But it seems like it is taking FOREVER! Right now we are in the waiting mode.

Our cabinets are in, our flooring is down, our counter tops are on…so why can’t we use our kitchen? No kitchen sink. It seems that running water is an essential part of any kitchen activity, so we are still using our wet bar on the third floor as our mini kitchen until a new kitchen sink–one that actually fits–arrives. (However, we are using our refrigerator on the first floor. We’re getting our exercise!)

One of the biggest mistakes we have made so far is our choice of wall color. We were in a pinch because we still hadn’t picked out a paint color the day before our cabinets were to be put in, so I hurriedly made a decision. I really, really wish I had an interior design friend who could have helped me pick out the color. So now that we have decided the yellow clashes too much with our off-white cabinets, I am searching for someone who actually knows what they are doing. I don’t want to pay for another can of paint just to hate it as much as I hate the yellow.

My kitchen, bad wall color and all. As you can tell it isn’t moved into yet.

On Saturday I was wandering around the 9th and 9th area in Salt Lake City and wandered into The Square Nest where I met owner/interior designer Paula Daly. If her store says anything about her, it is that she has great taste. After telling her my color dilemma, she kindly offered to help me pick out a color for my kitchen! I just e-mailed her some photos of my kitchen and I’ll let you know what the verdict is. I’m thinking a beautiful teal color would be nice, but we’ll see if Paula agrees. If you are ever near downtown Salt Lake stop by The Square Nest to meet Paula. I just loved all the unique decor items she had in her store, and I found some things that would be great Mother’s Days gifts. Her store is at 931 E. 900 S and is open from 10-6.

P.S. The only reason we were able to do our kitchen is because my great little brother, Jacob, works at the KraftMaid warehouse in West Jordan. They give sweet deals to family members. If you need new cabinets, I suggest forcing a family member to get a job there.

Tags: Interior Design Ideas, Utah Home Decor Stores by Tricia
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This weekend I took a trip to Highland Gardens in Utah County. I’m a huge fan. I discovered this fabulous nursery when I was shopping for props for a photo shoot about two years ago. Don’t ask me why I thought a nursery would have something unique and interesting for the shoot, but I did. And I’m so, so happy I stopped. Not only did I get a bunch of great stuff, but it also made me think of nurseries as more than just a place to get plants. Highland Gardens also sells antique furniture, home decor, and gifts. Right now they only have part of their show rooms full of plants and products, but when it gets all revved up it seems like their garden center goes on for miles. I love it.

Fred Ball on KSL Radio did a small business segment on them about two years ago. You should read the transcript to find out all about Highland Gardens.

Highland Gardens are located at 9736 N 4800 W in Highland, just north of the Mount Timpanogos Temple.

Tags: Utah Home Decor Stores by Tricia
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Tomorrow is the Little Bee Craft Boutique. I think this little expo sounds like a ton of fun, but the best thing is that it only costs $.50 to go!

Image from Little Bee Craft Boutique’s web site.

And thanks for the reminder Vanilla Joy!

Tags: To Do by Tricia
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I had a very interesting experience today. I try to do a little PR here and there for the lavender farm I work for, and my boss and I were invited to be a guest on a talk radio show that streams online. We jumped at the chance! The program is called Bluebird Sisterhood and we mainly talked about lavender and Lavender Days. I was a little nervous, but it ended up being a great experience.

After I got back to my office I decided to stream the program they had going live right then. It is called I Buy Utah and was hosted by two women with really fun personalities. They were talking all about local events, local designers, and mentioning other random things going through their minds. I thought it was great! I can imagine them digging up some information about a great place I’ve never heard about, or a fun event I will want to go to. I can’t wait for next week’s show.

It streams online at Planetary Streams at noon Mountain Time every Thursday.

Tags: Very Interesting by Tricia
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These night tables are my pick of the day. They are only $15 each. They’d look awesome with a new coat of paint. Picture from listing on KSL.com

I love a good deal. Actually, I’m in love with good deals. I’m one of those people who might buy a sweater just because it is on clearance, and everything on clearance is 20 percent off, and if you use your store credit card it is 15 percent off that. And, no, I never wear that sweater, but I was blinded by the love of a fabulous deal!

Anyway, as everyone knows classifieds are one of the best ways to find good deals, especially on things for your home. In Utah we have two great online classifieds to choose from: national Cragslist and local KSL.com. My favorite deal so far is from KSL.com. I bought beautiful, new-out-of-the-box, brushed nickel door handles for 5 bones a piece! They start around $30 at big box stores. (Sorry no pictures; they are in the condo I sold last fall.)

Every now and then I go online to browse Craig’s and KSL, and I’ve noticed some things about both that I like and dislike. Usually one is a clear winner over the other in certain areas:

1) Search by geographic location

It is so easy to shop where you live on Craigslist. Utah is divided into Logan, Ogden-Clearfield, Provo-Orem, Salt Lake City, and St. George. So if I’m willing to travel for whatever it is I’m searching for I can search other areas, but if I want to stay close to home it is easy to do that.

With KSL.com you can’t search by location at all. If you find something you love and then notice it happens to be listed by someone in Podunk, Idaho, you are left calculating gas costs or mending a broken heart.

Winner: Craigslist

2) Images

Craigslist does have images, but you must click on each specific link to see the picture. Then you have to press the back button to browse the rest of the listings. This gets annoying after awhile.

KSL.com has the picture of each listing on the first page. You really don’t have to read anything to find what you want because the pictures do all the talking.

Winner: KSL.com

3) Search for specific items

Craigslist has categories, but they are quite broad for my needs. The one and only category I use for searching household goods: furniture.

KSL.com has a lot of good categories, which is wonderful when you need a specific little something. The categories I browse through most often: couches, loveseats and sectionals; chairs; dining tables; and pianos, keyboards and organs. But they have many, many more to choose from that would all fall under “furniture” on Craigslist.

Both online classifieds have a search feature, but if people don’t put the keyword you use into their ad then you might miss something.

Winner: KSL.com

4) Popularity

I think both Craigslist and KSL.com have a great selection. I’m going to be a wimp on this one and say it’s a tie.

So as it stands KSL.com is the winner, but you can decide for yourself.

Tags: Utah Home Decor Stores by Tricia
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I was searching the blogosphere today (using Google’s blog search–way fun) and came across a blog called Sparrow Originals by an interior design student at Utah State University. She posted a great little tutorial on making fun paper globes.

I think this idea can be used by so, so many women in Utah because I know they have a ton of paper scraps lying around because of all the scrapbookin’ going on in the house! I don’t even scrapbook and I have a ton of gorgeous paper scraps lying around. (Ok, here’s the truth. I don’t scrapbook, but I do make homemade cards. They are too fun to resist.)

Can you imagine a bunch of these hung from the light above your table on a special day, or strung on a string to make a garland?

Tags: DIY, Interior Design Ideas by Tricia
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I have recently fallen in love with a little bakery in American Fork. Not only do they have wonderful breads and pastries, but they also have turquoise walls, orange framed menus, crystal chandeliers, and red and white checked flooring. And the way they display all their goodies is so fun.

The decor just makes you love the food even more. I personally indulge in a panini and chocolate cupcake about every other week. They are Flour Girls and Dough Boys located at 35 N. Barrett Ave. (just off main street) in American Fork.

Photos via FG & DB’s photo stream on Flickr.

Tags: Utah Home Decor Stores by Tricia
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The view from First Avenue. From MMGoode via Flickr.

Sometimes I dream about living in the avenues (these are the old, beautiful homes in Salt Lake City). My husband and I considered buying a home there about a year ago. But we just couldn’t have lived with the lack of closet space and the old, old bathroom. Maybe I’ll be able to afford one of the big, refurbished homes there in the future…ah, dreams.

But even though most people can just dream about living in the avenues, this weekend we could actually go walk through them…maybe pretend they are ours. Too bad I have already planned a trip down to Capitol Reef National Park. I really did consider canceling our trip so we can go on The Avenues Home Tour. It sounds like my kind of fun! This is how the Utah Heritage Foundation describes the tour:

Come see how the styles of Utah’s architecture evolved from 1850 to 1950 in the historic Avenues neighborhood. The tour will feature some of the finest homes designed by Utah architects and constructed in different periods of Utah’s history.

Oh, man. I really, really want to go.

Tags: To Do, Uncategorized by Tricia
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I was just reading O Magazine and there was a mention about the pillows above from Maison de Vacances. Ok, I must admit that I love the O List, but $150 for a simple pillow? Not even a pair? I just can’t bring myself to do such a thing.

I have actually always been amazed at how pricey pillows are. Even pillow forms are expensive (although I have been impressed with some of the offerings at ikea). I found some really great shiny, burnt orange pillows at Tai Pan about a year and a half ago. They were only $10 each and have looked fabulous on my white couches. I am a big fan of trading out pillows every so often, after all it is one of the easiest ways to get a new look for your front room fast. But if you are going to keep changing them out you don’t want to spend a fortune, and call me crazy, but I think $150 a pillow is a small fortune. It is why I love my pillows from Tai Pan…so cheap!

I am enchanted by some of the pillows from Meringue Designs, including the quilted pillow above. I found her shop on etsy and am so happy she is from Provo. Not only does she make the pillow covers and sell them at very good prices, but she’ll do custom orders too.

Tags: Interior Design Ideas by Tricia
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Pretty soon I’m going to start looking for new front room furniture. I’m thinking of getting the usual sofa but swapping the love seat for two chairs. Seriously, who said you had to have a matching couch and love seat? (I’m pretty sure that most people in Utah think this is a rule.)

Lately I’ve been having dreams of reupholstering an old chair that has some character with some great new fabric. I need to do my research to find out how much it would cost to get it commercially done. I’m thinking that going this route may be less expensive than buying an awesome chair to begin with–and if I get to pick the fabric it is a huge plus.

Here are two chairs I found after a quick look on KSL.com:

This lovely chair is going for $50.

You can get two of these babies for $50.

And using fabric like the stuff Design Mom posted about today would be oh so sweet! They are by a designer named Joel Dewberry. Alas, there isn’t a store in Utah that sells his stuff. So we’ll either have to buy online or stick to Joann’s.

Tags: Interior Design Ideas by Tricia
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