My cute sister, who lives near Washington D.C., wrote in to tell me about a store she loves. She said:

I have a recommendation for you regarding home decorating stores. There is a chain out here called HomeGoods that I LOVE to check out on occasion. It is owned by the same people as Marshalls and TJMaxx, but the entire store is dedicated to home goodies. We have a bunch of them around here. I looked online and it looks like there’s only one in the Salt Lake area. It may be worth checking out if you feel like it one of these days. (Since there’s only one in your area, hopefully it’s a good one and not totally lame!)

Well Tiffany, the HomeGoods store you are talking about is in Brickyard Plaza (off of 33rd South and 13th East in Salt Lake City) which is approximately .5 miles from my old condo, and I too love the store! Their furniture prices are still a bit too much for me, but their prices on wall hangings and accessories are awesome. In fact, when I was redoing my downstairs bathroom I needed an inspiration piece that wasn’t too pricey. After looking at a ton of stores around my house, I still hadn’t found anything, so I made the trek up HomeGoods and WALA! A cute picture practically fell into my hands. $25 later, I was the proud owner of this little bird.

We decided to paint the walls blue to match the little bird’s feathers and are going to have some yellow accents. Someday, when the bathroom is actually finished, I’ll post pictures of this little guy hanging up in the bathroom for all to admire.

Photos above from the HomeGoods website.

Tags: Utah Home Decor Stores by Tricia
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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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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 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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