I found my kitchen style

I was poking around on HGTV.com, Lowes.com and HomeDepot.com last night.

I found a few things that intrigued me. I liked different elements of different styles.

Until I saw this one. I loved it. This one was on the Home Depot site.

I immediately thought "Yes, that is my kitchen!"

A brief survey of the people who know me best bears out that reaction.

I may go for yellow instead of blue on the tile. I may not.

And the layout will have to be different to fit my space.

But the overall style and feel is spot on for me. I love the simple lines. I love the modern elements like the stainless sink and appliances and the dark counter and how it all contrasts with the retro feel of the subway tile.

Now I just need the funds.

Time to start cooking up some ideas

Here is a simple card I did for an online swap. It is just the image stamped in the magenta then versamarked and embosses in ultra thick clear, then versamarked again and double embossed in the ultra thick clear. It gives it that glassy look I like.

Stamp is from Stampin' Up.

Anway, I had a busy, but good day today. I started by doing some errands (carwash, Target, bank, etc.). Then I had lunch with a friend and went to work.

I really didn't accomplish anything at home, but that is OK. There is always tomorrow. And the weekend.

I want to start looking into some ideas for my kitchen remodel on Sunday. I am so excited about this. It really will be nerve-wracking for me though. It is a huge deal and likely will end up being a good chunk of money.

I have a friend who recently redid a kitchen (among other things), and he is going to share his budget with me and what all he put into his remodel. You can check out what he is doing on his blog at http://intergalacticrehabs.blogspot.com/.

I am so looking forward to a new kitchen, but worry about the work time and being without a kitchen while they do the construction. I guess there is always paper plates and cooking on the grill if I get sick of takeout.

Once I get started on this whole adventure, I will post some before, during and after pictures.

So, anyone go through a remodel like this recently? Have any tips?

Keeping it clean

This is a card I made as a good luck card for a friend moving to a new state and a new job. I loved the textured paper, so that was the inspiration for the card.

The stamps are All Night Media (http://www.plaidonline.com/productSearchResults.asp?cat2ID=36&cat3ID=99.) It was one of those boxed sets with a theme. The inside is stamped with the symbol for good luck (and the words under it.)

The base of the card and the paper right behind the image are DCWV matte stack papers. The patterned paper came from one of those pound-of-paper packs that is just filled with all sorts of random scraps.

I kept the palette simple with the tone-on-tone paper and a simple sheer ribbon. I really wanted to let the texture and the image be the focus, so I didn't use extra embellishments or too much fussiness.

The image was just colored in with markers.

My friend loved the card. She said she framed it and has it at her desk at her new as a reminder of the friends she still has in California.

Awwwwwwwwww... sweet!

Playing ketchup, er, catch up.

First of all, no tire problems to note here. Whew!

I know I have not posted for a few days, but I had a busy weekend of chores and errands.

Here is a recap: Sunday we had our monthly stamper group lunch. It was fun as always. And the food was good as always. My contribution was dessert. I made a lowfat trifle with angel food cake, nectarines, strawberries and a sauce of part skim ricotta cheese and honey (instead of a heavy cream or custard). It was quite good and light. And the nectarines were fabulous in it.

After that I went home and did some chores around the house. I still have stuff to do. It never seems to end.

Monday was a good day. I found out I was approved for my refinancing. I was able to lower my interest rate and take out some equity all while keeping my payments the same.

Yay! I am planning on remodeling the kitchen. I also want to pay off a bill. But if I can stretch the moeny far enough, I may do some work on the guest bathroom.

That is going to be a very involved process for me. I have so many ideas of what I want in the kitchen. But the basic space and layout will not change. So I need to do some research and planning.

The notary came over that evening and I signed all the paperwork.

What else did I do Monday?

Oh yeah, I went to pottery. I was bummed to hear that the teacher I like won't be back in the fall and may not even be back for the summer class I have already paid for. I guess they will get someone to take that over if she leaves. I hope they don't cancel.

I decided to skip the Thursday class next session. Two days a week was too much. I like that Thursday time for chores. If I get the chores done Thursday before work, I don't spend so much of my weekend on them.

The rest of Monday I puttered around the house and did some cleaning.

Then I went to the late showing of "Knocked Up." It was a cute movie. Overall I enjoyed it. I could definitely tell it was from the "Anchorman" "40-Year-Old Virgin" people. So many of the actors were the same and the writing style is the same.

I don't buy that a smart, gorgeous successful woman like Katherine Heigl's character would hook up with a schlubby stoner like Seth Rogen's character. But hey, it is entertainment. Sometimes it requires turning off your brain and just enjoying the jokes.

As always, Paul Rudd was great. I think he is underrated as a comic actor.

Today I met a former colleague for lunch at a Japanese place in Torrance. It was washoku style food, which is Japanese comfort food. It was unusual in some ways, familiar in some ways. But very, very good. Even the stuff that was a little funky for me was at least interesting. My only experience with Japanese food is really sushi and the various dishes you might find in a sushi place. It was fun to try something new.

The name of the restaurant is Yuzu. It is in Old Torrance.

I had a lunch special of grilled halibut. It came with salad, miso soup, rice, tofu and a couple little dishes of pickled and stewed vegetables.

That is the art for this post. That was taken in dim light with a camera phone. Trust me, it looked MUCH, much better in person. And it tasted fabulous.