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THE CHEATERS CLIFF NOTES....

We have already established I cheat (when it comes to home cooking that is).  I have little time and patience, unless it's the weekend or the very unusual dilemma of no deadline then I don't mind getting all gourmet and what not.  I do a lot of weird things, one is ordering things and never using them, which would be the subscription I've had for over a year for 'Everyday Food'.  Why I ignored these little sprites I have no idea.  I casually opened one last week and they have thus far changed my life.   I have gotten more compliments on my cooking then I can count and have added other continents to my repertoire, as I was stuck in two countries Mexico and Italy for quite some time, an occasional French jaunt but only when I was feeling really adventuress. I made this little ditty over the weekend, Brie wrapped in chicken:

In the mag they give you shopping lists, which is super convenient as I never remember to bring mine to the grocery any way and am convinced once I get there that all we need is Nestle Toll House cookie dough...So the convenience of tossing one of their mini mags in my bag isn't too off-putting.  You know what the best part of this all is?  You don't have to subscribe, they pretty much put all the recipes on line for those whom unlike moi don't want to add another expense to their lives.  The recipes are really easy and so far goof proof (trust me if I can do it a monkey could).  If you too want to seem like you have graduated with honors from culinary school than head on over to this mecca of domestica

30% HOMEMADE...

Are you familiar with this skinny lady?  Am I the last person on earth to find out about her?  I guess so, as it looks like she has quite the little empire growing.  To tell you the truth, I didn't want to like ol' Sandra Lee, I find it hard to believe that someone that thin could actually offer me any kind of cooking advice that I would want to take.  I didn't like the way her set was decorated, I didn't like this and I didn't like that, so when my DVR decided to tape her show instead of my Fave chef Giada (a woman that obviously enjoys her food), I decided to watch the darn show anyway. 

To my delight Sandra Lee was really cool, her philosophy was exactly the sort of thing I needed:

With her trademark 70/30 Semi-Homemade^® philosophy, which combines 70% ready-made products with 30% fresh and creative touches, Sandra is recognized as the foremost advocate to the over-extended homemaker. She created the foundation and continually supplies fresh information that allows anyone and everyone to take 100% of the credit for something that looks, feels or tastes as if it were completely made from scratch. 

Sandra Lee my dears is a cheater!  Not only is she a cheater, she's made a whole business out of it! So when you are in dire straits and need to make, oh I don't know, six-seven meals a week like myself, Miss Sandra will come in handy, you can find some of her recipes here.
 

BTW, thanks to the ladies that have forked over some of their 'cheaters' recipes, I am so happy that we won't be eating frozen pizza again this week...

THE EVERYTHING ATELIER

So here it is in all of its glory, not even minutely done in my opinion, but better than it was before. The top row shows detail on my newly gilded chair, I really liked how it turned out. There's no paint that I know of that can mimic the sheen of metal and the faux silver leaf does the trick (btw, just so you know I bought the cheapest one they had).  I love the way I was able to establish a worn look to it, so it didn't look like a new chair,( okay, I lie, I was going for the idea of chrome and as I progressed I realized the mistakes were better than my original vision, so there, you caught me, happy?)

The 2nd row is the chandelier (I think all ateliers should have one) and the raised curtain rods which make the ceiling seem like it goes on forever.  The rods are a brushed aluminum and the finials are inlaid mother of pearl mosaic (I'll have to get on a ladder to get you a nice close-up), I got them at Target for basically free but they are really nice quality and feel like window jewelry (I DIDN'T get those beaded pearls). The curtains are sheers from Ikea, it seems to me they're the only inexpensive home retailer that sells their curtains at an extended length, making me think that maybe the Scandinavians have been doing the ol' raised curtain  trick for many moons.

Okay there's Boeuf, my insane Frenchie, in her chair that I gilded for her, (or so she seems to think).  That table is just a temporary, I plan to make an 85"L x 35"W table with a long shelf that runs the length of it so I can stuff all the WIPS and cutting mat, etc under it and look like I am really a neat. I could try drawers, but my woodworking skills are not that advanced, not good to be an easily distracted individual when you decide to venture into woodworking.  The floors are Ebony and were near impossible to do.  Strands of my long hair (that is apparently falling out) are embedded in the polyurethane top coat.  I could of gone with a matte finish or semi-gloss, but with a high-gloss you get a sheen and reflection that makes the floor look like a body of water, the finish makes the room feel larger as well, something I wasn't planning on but a nice treat.  Phew, the last row, first pic is my faux-mercury glass, so EASY, if you like this look you must try!  The last photo is the inside of the closet, which I painted Tiffany Blue (sorry I can't remember the darn real name) BUT almost any Anawalt can mix you a custom color for no additonal cost, yea!

NOVEAU LURVE

I love a new invention as much as the next guy, especialy if it's pragmatic and helps me save valuable time and energy.  I would prefer it to be green, but we can't always have everything we want, eh?  This little diddy of an inventon is pretty damn amazing.  You spray the little bugger on to your wrinkled garments and shake out, hang.  A blink of an eye later they are wrinkle free.  Tough wrinkles you can use your hand to help smooth the process along.  I successfully got the wrinkles out of a thin cashmere t-shirt, a linen shirt dress all of my tissue cotton t's ( a nightmare of wrinkles, always) and the bed sheets.  It does smell a bit like Downey lite, but it's not offensive. This is the perfect in a pinch tool to a flawless wardrobe.  Get yourself some here.