Quickie Backyard Update

Since I've been super busy at work (and coming down with something as a result), I haven't had much time to write, but I wanted to at least offer up an update on our little backyard...

On the Sunday of the gorgeous Victoria Day long weekend, MLo and I picked up our flowers from Home Depot and got right to work!

Last year I found I really regretted the purple and white geraniums we planted, which were a little on the dull side, so this year I tried to choose hot pink, orange and red flowers, exclusively.

Check it out!

We've got a beautiful hibiscus tree, dahlias for the floating flower boxes on the back fence, and some impatiens with tall grass plants--for the life of me, I can't recall their real name--to add a little height!

What do you think?

The hostas are enormous as ever and the vegetable garden is starting to mature a bit too, with the help of Marc's green thumb, so I'd say we're off to a good start! It's not even June!

How are your gardens coming along? Do you plan a colour scheme for your flowers or just wing it like I normally do?

I'm off work tomorrow for a little R&R, so to the rest of you with still one more day to go, hang in there and have a great weekend!

Cheers!

KLI | NofW

Garage Sale Glory... Guest Post by Nicole Panacci

It's been a while since my last guest post, so I thought I'd invite one of my best friends--construction maven, event planner, and blogger extraordinaire--Nicole Bigioni Panacci of Adding the Finishing Touch to swing by the Nook!

Read on to find out how Nicole and her wonderful husband Michael are making a home of their new house, without breaking the bank!

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Thanks so much for having me Krista, this is such a honour!


When Krista asked me to write a guest post for Nook of Wellington about my garage sale finds I was thrilled.


Being newly-married and a first-time homeowner, we don't have the money to run out and buy everything we need for the house right away. Instead, over the last year or so, I've taken a liking to scoping out garage sales in my area to furnish our new house.


Thankfully, I've been lucky enough to find some great pieces at even greater prices...

This piece has been in my family for a while. My uncle bought it when he was in university and it's been passed down since then. It's going to take a lot for me to give this up!

I bought this trunk for $70.00 last year at the Christie Antique Show. I am in love with it. We're using it as our coffee table. All we need is a fabulous area rug!

I bought this old sewing machine table at a garage sale for $5.00 last year. Definitely a great steal! I'd love to eventually change the hardware.

These jars where super cheap at $1.25 each! We don't actually use the coffee or pasta, they're just for decoration.


Last but not least, the newest addition...

I was out for a walk a couple weeks ago and saw this table at the end of someone's driveway. I gave it a quick inspection and carried it home. It needs a bit of loving but for now it will do!

Now tell me, don't you love a good garage sale? What's your greatest find or favourite 'found' piece in your home?

Thanks for having me, Krista!

- Nicole

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Thanks for sharing, Bigiones! Amazing finds, all around!

I look forward to a solid sleepover or two and garage sale-hopping visits in your neck of the woods sometime soon! :)

Both Nicole and I will be attending the second Blog Podium conference this weekend here in Toronto, and I know I speak for both of us when I say we're so looking forward to it!

Like I said in my post following the inaugural event, Blog Podium is the perfect place to interact with fellow design and lifestyle bloggers--offline, for a change--and I'm sure there will be lots to report by all of us who attend.

Stay tuned!

KLI | NofW

Mother's Day & My Hosting Marathon

Happy Tuesday all!

How's everyone's week shaping up so far?

This past weekend while MLo was in Vegas and I was on my own, I tossed my lengthy mental to do list aside and opted to entertain not once, not twice, but three days in a row!

Friday, I hosted a little pre-drink with the girls before hitting Williams Landing in Liberty Village; Saturday, an impromptu barbeque, which included my first attempt at caramelized onions and bacon bit toppers for the burgers; and finally Sunday, a Mother's Day Brunch for my beautiful Mum and sisters.

Here's the menu I ended up with:

• My first ever homemade quiche with sautéed onions, bacon, broccoli and shredded marble cheese
• A quinoa salad with red and yellow peppers, soya sauce and a little spice
• Spinach salad with diced pear, dried berries, walnuts and a maple balsamic dressing

Add a little champagne, some pink lemonade (Mama's favourite!), and strawberry-banana frozen yogurt popsicles for dessert, and there you have it! Brunch of champions!

Sure I was pooped after all was said and done, but doesn't it feel good to flex that hosting muscle every now and again? I might wait until later in the summer for my next turn--what's your next big event?

KLI | NofW

P.S. Nook of Wellington is in the top three running with two other bloggers for the Blog Podium & EQ3 Mood Board contest!  A big W is in reach, but I need your help to get back in the lead!

Please CLICK HERE to comment on or like my mood board, and please feel free to forward it to anyone who may be interested.

Thanks again for your support!

XOXO

And There Was Light!

As everyone should know by now, our kitchen is tiny and without natural light. Ugh.

For this reason, I've kept my eye out for a stubby but cute little lamp to tuck into the corner of the counter top and beneath the cabinetry to brighten things up.

After what's felt like ages of settling for an old Ikea lamp (that I accidentally cracked months ago), I finally found exactly what I needed at Canadian Tire this past weekend!

Well, almost exactly what I needed...

This little guy was the right height, had a decent shade, and a great base, but for some unknown reason this came in this unfortunate brown colour. Booo!

Since we were in the right place, and the lamp was the right price at $19.99, I thought what the hell--nothing a little spray paint can't fix, right?

Hours later, here's what I ended up with!

Not bad, if I do say so myself!

Unfortunately, the task isn't quite finished yet, as I still need to paint the cord white to blend in better--but I think it turned out pretty well!

What do you think of the Bahama Sea blue? What have you spray painted to suit your taste a little better?

KLI | NofW

P.S. Did you comment or "like" my mood board yet? 

If not, PLEASE CLICK HERE and help Marc and I win an incredible mid-century modern sofa! 

THANK YOU!!!!

Blog Podium Mood Board Contest!

Hello there!

I can't be anywhere near as long-winded as I normally am, as I'm just on my lunch hour, but I have a big favour to ask...

I've entered a mood board into a contest that's being held by our good pals at Blog Podium and EQ3 and I'll need YOUR HELP to win!

As an attendee of the upcoming Blog Podium conference later this month in Toronto, my fellow bloggers and I were asked to create and submit mood boards that included EQ3 products of our choice, which would then be posted to Pinterest.

Now that the organizers have started posting the entries online, I have to rack up a bunch of comments in order to win the item of highest value in my mood board.

So here's where you come in...  

By clicking right here and leaving a comment about my mood board, the colours I chose, or really any thoughts about the pieces I've included, you'll be bringing me one step closer to winning this beautiful EQ3 Reverie Sofa!!!

You can comment today through the contest end on May 17th, 2012 so please please please do me a solid and help the Nook of Wellington get a whole lot prettier!

Thanks a million!

KLI | NofW

Krista Illies, Canadian Picker

Greetings all! Hope everyone is off to a good week!

My weekend ended up being much busier than I thought it would be, but we got to visit lots with our families, which was great.  An unexpected highlight came after dinner with MLo's family on Saturday, when I found what I considered to be buried treasure!

After dinner was over and it was time to head back downtown, Hazel-a close friend of the family-suggested Marc and I swing by to see if he wanted her old sewing machine.

Off we went and within minutes Hazel was giving us the grand tour of her little bungalow.

Everywhere we turned our eyes widened and jaws dropped-the very sight of sideboards, old toys, lamps, clocks, and more made us feel like we were on Canadian Pickers or Cash & Cari!

Seeing all of this and having a glimpse into Hazel's very full life was really interesting, but the one thing that made me stop in my tracks was... wait for it... a vintage telephone table!!!

Isn't she pretty?!

Once I spotted it, I ran right into the next room to share my discovery with she and Marc (who knew the exact degree of my excitement), and God lover her, Hazel immediately told me to take it home!

At first I said I couldn't possibly, but when she told me she had no luck trying to pawn it off on her own family, and that it was literally collecting dust, I seized the opportunity and took her up on this generous offer!

Those who have followed NofW since the beginning know that I've had a major crush on telephone tables, also know as gossip benches, for quite a long time.

Check out my earlier post about them here! 

Sadly, our apartment hasn't magically doubled in size since that post, so we're going to have to do a little shuffling around in both the living room and entry way to see where this piece would fit best.

I'll also have to freshen it up with a light makeover, but nonetheless, I'm absolutely thrilled to have my very own telephone table, years before ever I thought I would, and I owe Hazel a huge THANK YOU!!! XO

Have you ever received a surprise hand-me-down like this? What's your experience been like mixing vintage and modern pieces? Leave a comment and tell me all about it!

KLI | NofW