Another Reason to Drink Wine...

Like I need another reason to drink, but these cork floors made from wine corks are absolutely delish.

I am going to start saving all of our wine corks just for this purpose.

I can't tell if I like the white or clear grout?


And look they can be dyed to create a pattern too:


Read more about these floors at Apartment Therapy (I know, I need to get my own inspiration), or at Jelinek Cork.

Do you think these floors would look good in my dream kitchen??

Apartment Therapy Kitchen Love

Is anyone else following the Apartment Therapy Room Color Contest??

Well, this is my pick to win.
I adore this kitchen.
A bit modern, a bit funky, and a bit bold.


And the good news, Mr. Spice loves it too.

I could die for this fridge:

Now if only we owned a house that we could remodel.

And just so you know, this kitchen perfectly mixes the colors that I am trying to use in our hallway. Yep, I am trying to make orange work. Ekk, it's hard.

What's your favorite house in the running?

Mirror, Mirror On the Wall...

Our hallway is driving my batty.

It's BORING. It's the first thing you see as you walk into our house, and it's in some serious need of a good dose of color STAT.

And while I've been incorporating a rather bold color (which I'll wait to reveal until I have pics), I've decided that a slate blue/gray would be the perfect complement to an otherwise overwhelming color.

And recently, I found an awesome mirror that is just dying to be painted. So, I give you my inspiration:



Both pics are from Apartment Therapy.

So what color do you think I've paired with it??

Hint: It's not red or purple.

Blog Fail

So I totally failed to write a post on climate change on Blog Action Day. Uggg. Blog fail.

But I did make one very big Eco purchase on Friday. I finally bought a BPA Free water bottle from EcoUsable.



It's already been hiking with me and to the gym. I love it so much that I think I want one for home and the office.

If you haven't already upgraded your old Nalgene or Sigg bottles, I'd highly recommend these babies. Now if only I had seen it in pink.

And again, I promise, all hope is not lost on this blog. Didn't you see the nifty new header above? And once I find my camera- ekk, where could it be??- I will start updating with all the projects that I've been working on. Or not working on- our poor living room chair needs a lot of TLC.

So, what's your water bottle of choice??

Blog Action Day 2009

Readers- I haven't abandoned this blog completely, I promise. I am going to work on getting back into blog mode starting next week. At this point I have so much to blog about, I don't know where to start.

But good news, I was prompted to blog again by Blog Action Day!!

This year's topic is: Climate Change. I don't think I've mentioned it here before, but Climate Change, more specifically Sea Level Rise around San Francisco, is apart of my day to day work.

So since I have the knowledge, I am going to share it. I am planning on devoting a week, starting October 12th, to Climate Change issues. I am sure there are other more technical sources out there on this topic, but my goal is to digest this topic into a few easy to read posts. I think that if you truly want to live in a Modern Organic World then you need to know what you can do to mitigate and adapt to all the changes our World is currently going through.

If you are reading this and have questions about Climate Change, e.g., what you can do, if you can really make a difference, etc., let me know and I will try my VERY best to give you a straight forward answer.

So hold on, I promise pictures of our apartment very soon!! I've been hard at work trying, very unsuccessfully I might add, to make it look cute enough to blog about it. Until then, let me know, do you still question IF Climate Change is happening??

Newlywed Bliss???

Moving is stressful.

Moving is painful.

Moving is a test to the newlywed glow.

The saying, "whatever doesn't kill you, makes you stronger," was written by someone who just moved.

When Mr. Spice and I first moved in together, there were a couple days where I seriously questioned what the hell we were doing. Somewhere along the line I realized it wasn't our relationship that sucked- it was moving that sucked.

Two years later and a wedding in between, I no longer question my relationship with Mr. Spice, but I do question my sanity. WE are the spiting image of male vs. female.

I wanted luxurious silk curtains in the bedroom, while he wanted something darker and more natural.

I wanted to spend money on pillows and accessories, and he wanted to upgrade the bathroom fixtures.

He wants a large book case with doors to hide his 'stuff,' and I want to showcase everything we have.

I want simple flatware, he wants the stuff with the most design on it.

In the end, it's the last one that got me to break down in Bloomingdales. Yes, I threw a tantrum in Bloomingdales over flatware. I am that girl, that crazy lady, that Wife that seems like she must have everything she wants.

But really, I was exhausted from the move; I had found something I liked; and I decided that I wasn't in the mood for compromise.

I admit- it was all my fault. But after purchasing the curtains I still am not too sure about, spending $80 on a new shower head and shower caddy that he liked, I wanted something that I liked. Luckily, he saw the gleam in my eye, knew the store was closing, and acquiesced to my choice.

So this morning, I drank my coffee and ate my cereal with our (scratch that) my new spoon and thoroughly enjoyed every second.

I'll never know if he likes them, but they bring me joy, and have brought back a bit of our newlywed bliss that had gotten lost in the shuffle.

Anyone else suffer from post move stress??

Let there be light

This image on Apartment Therapy has me swooning for massive kitchen windows:


While our new place has MUCH better light than our old place. I would love to be able to rip out the walls and put in wall to wall windows in our kitchen and living room.

The bedroom on the other hand; well, our new bedroom looks out over a stairwell/courtyard and there is a lovely light that stays on ALL night. After a few nights we got the hint that the plastic shades were not enough to block out the light, so I put up some old yet thick curtains to block out the light. They are all wrong for the bedroom and space, so I am in serious need of some suggestions to block out the light in our bedroom.

Here are the options I have been contemplating so far:

1. Thick silk luxurious curtains:

Yet even on sale I think this option is WAY over budget. Unless, someone has a cheaper idea??

2. Putting up some sort of bamboo curtain or window shade and then placing shear curtains (from Ikea that we already own) over it to create an ethereal, earthy feel.

3. Or a surprise option- a shade that not only blocks out 90% of all light, it's also eco-friendly so it is also suppose to make the windows more energy efficient. And it's affordable.

The blackout roller shade option from Bed, Bath and Beyond:



Ok, so three options so far, that's all I got. I need ideas!! Help.

So are you a white bright window, outdoor person, or more of a black out the room, moving watching type?