White Drapes

I need to add some drapes to my windows. Obviously, since we will be moving I don't want to make a major investment in them. I figured some

white panels from Ikea

, and a bit of trim on the leading edge would work.

The trim gives the panels a custom look without commanding too much attention. 

Bay Street

Darci Goodman Design

Caitlin Wilson

Crisp Architects

Traditional Home

Kelley Proxmire

via The Pink Pagoda

I know

Elizabeth

is adding trim to her drapes for an amazing treatment. I can't wait until she post's it. 

Have you ever done this? Did you use fabric or ribbon?

Cooking Classes @ Eataly

Don't worry, I am not turning into a cooking blog. I don't have the patience or skills for that one. Last week I had the amazing opportunity to attend a cooking class at Eataly. 
 I was the tag-along on Sandy's invite. 

The class that we attended was called The Art of Spring Risotto. 

I know what you're thinking....probably what I was thinking...Risotto is HARD TO MAKE!

Well I am happy to report that it is not hard. It just takes a lot of time....45 minutes....mostly stirring...and stirring....and stirring.

Did I mention that they serve wine in every class?

OK, now we're getting somewhere. This fabulous woman, Chef  Alicia Walter, is a walking encyclopedia (Google search for you younger people) of Italian cuisine. 

I think Sandy offended her when she mentioned that she has an "oven baked" risotto recipe. I had Sandy email me the recipe. #JustInCase

The class is demonstration style....works for me!

Alicia wants you to remember the correct order of ingredients when you make risotto. Here's what I remembered; all risotto has wine in it. And salt your risotto early in the process.

The Sous Chef did most of the stirring.

There were four recipes demonstrated.

Menu

Supplí (Fried Risotto Balls with Mozzarella)
Risotto Primavera alle Erbe (Spring Vegetable Risotto with Herbs)
Risotto con Gamberi & Dragoncello (Risotto with Shrimp & Tarragon)
Budino di Riso con Uva & Aceto Balsamico (Rice Pudding with Grapes & Balsamic Vinegar)

Each recipe used a different Italian rice. We also learned what region that particular rice came from.

This is the Spring Vegetable Risotto. It was unbelievable! 

The Shrimp & Tarragon Risotto. Out of this world, fantastic.

The Risotto Pudding. I forgot to take the picture before I started.

They bruleed the top of it. I was so full at this point, but felt it would be rude not to finish every bite :-).

This dessert was so amazing, and gluten free, I bought the rice used in this recipe.

And just to prove that I really did pay attention, I made risotto for my kids. They loved it.

This was just before all the real stirring began. I wish I had a Sous Chef.

It was great meeting Sandy, and sharing this experience. You can go here for a full Eataly class schedule. 

I'm going to make the pudding soon. I'll post it on Instagram. 

Have you ever taken a professional cooking class? Did they serve wine?

I almost forgot to tell you....Alicia gave us the inside scoop on Mario Batali.

Apparently, he is big on Twitter. If you use the symbol #HeyMB he will see your tweet, and possibly answer you. I tried it, and it didn't work for me....but I'll try it again.

Come Visit Me

Hi Friends, today I am over at Stacy's blog

Stacey was so sweet in asking me to be part of her series, "A Look Behind the Curtains".

I'm talking all about how I hack design a room. 

Come see what Barbie has to do with it.

We're Moving!

Knock me over, looks like we will be moving....again! Apparently, the thing that brought us here...my husband's job....is the same thing that will be relocating us to Florida.
The West Coast area near Naples.
Here is my story in arrows...I moved to San Francisco to be with my husband. His job took us to London and then New Jersey. We thought we would be here until retirement. 
You know what they say when you make plans.

We have one year to eighteen months before we relocate. I'm happy about that because it will take a year to finish this home and stage it to perfection! I also know nothing about the West Coast of Florida. 
I am going to miss my amazing friends. I have the most supportive and loving friends a girl could ask for. Hopefully Florida in the winter will be on their destination list.
I am also going to miss my beautiful home. I love this home and have tweaked every inch of it. I will definitely need a "new project" home to replace this one. Regardless of what the other three people who live with me think.
I will not miss this

Everyone who knows me is aware of how much I hate the winters....except for my dad. He thinks they don't bother me ?!@&

Here's where you come in. I need your help.

What do you know about this area?

For the moment, let's leave the school system out of it. Assuming my kids go to private school, where do I want to live? Where would you live?
Do you know any Florida bloggers? 

My Consultation with SawdustGirl

I have been dying to work with Sandra @ SawdustGirl for the longest time. She is the amazing carpenter behind projects like this library.

Her skills are better than anyone I have ever had work in my home. 
Here is the craft room she designed and built.

This isn't Ikea....it's all from scratch.

Sandra now does consultations via Skype. For a small fee you can chat with her and tell her how you envisioned your built-in's. After that, if you want to go further, you can hire her to draw up your plans. She will stay with you throughout the entire project.

Here's my next project.

This is the opposite corner of my living room. The enormous armoire came from our last home. Remember when the tv was so big, you needed this to hide it? The shelves on the sides were made to fit our old space perfectly.
 I could just put a coat of paint on it, and call it a day. However, I think this space can be staged better and feel a lot more custom. I'm showing you how it really sits in this room. I never styled this because I never liked it here.
After a lot of questions and sharing my long term goals, we decided that bookshelves would be best for this space. 
Something like this

CWB Architects

The plan for the room is to be more library, and less den.

I should have the bookshelf plans in about two weeks. I'll keep you posted.

And The Gift Certificate Goes to...

Thanks everyone for entering the Rejuvenation Gift Certificate giveaway.  The lucky winner of the $100 is

Rene @ Cottage and Vine!

Congratulations, Rene. I know you will have a great time spending it.