Simple Ideas for Better Homes, Gardens & Outdoor Spaces
My kitchen counter looks like a produce stand exploded on it right now. Squash in three colors, a mountain of kale I swore I’d “use up eventually,” and enough sweet potatoes to feed a small army. Sound familiar? If your garden (or your farmers market habit) has gotten a little … Read more
My porch used to be that porch. One sad, unpainted pumpkin sitting next to a doormat, doing absolutely nothing for the season. Then my neighbor set out this gorgeous white pumpkin stuffed with mums and trailing ivy, and I felt a little competitive fire light up in my chest. Twenty … Read more
Every November, I get the same panicked text from at least three neighbors: “Is my fake tree secretly destroying the planet?” It’s a fair question, and honestly, it’s one I used to lose sleep over too. For years I felt this weird guilt every time I hauled my artificial tree … Read more
The first cold snap hits and suddenly your patio turns into a wasteland. The cushions are still out there from July, getting crunchy with frost, and you’re stuck choosing between hibernating indoors for six months or figuring out how to actually use your backyard when it’s 50 degrees out. I … Read more
Your yard turns gorgeous for about six weeks in fall, and then it gets dark at 5:30 p.m. and nobody sees it. That’s the problem I hear about more than almost anything else this time of year. Neighbors walk by in the daylight hours when you’re at work, and by … Read more
My porch used to be a pumpkin graveyard by mid-November. Every year I’d buy the same orange gourds, watch them cave in on themselves after two frosty nights, and then scrape moldy squash guts off my steps with a putty knife. Not exactly the cozy autumn welcome I was going … Read more
Your outdoor dining set has seen better days, the mosquitoes are plotting a coup, and you’ve got ten people coming over for a “relaxed” backyard dinner in three hours. We’ve all been there. I once tried to DIY a floating floral centerpiece using fishing line and sheer willpower, only to … Read more
August is a beast. It’s that glorious, sticky, “why is the air soup?” time of year where everyone is either at the beach or hiding in the AC. If you’re planning a baby shower this month, you’re dealing with a unique set of challenges: melting frosting, wilted flowers, and guests … Read more
Look, I get it. You’re probably tired of your front porch looking like a generic suburban wasteland once December hits. We’ve all been there—usually standing in the middle of a craft store at 9:00 PM, holding a glue gun like a weapon and wondering why we didn’t just buy the … Read more
The end of the year brings that beautiful, frenetic energy we call Christmas, but if you have a kid in the house, you know the real challenge isn’t surviving the holiday party—it’s managing the wait. My little one starts asking, “Is it Christmas yet?” sometime around Labor Day, and I … Read more