[RECIPE] Simple Date Night Dinner

Maybe it's the cold weather, maybe it's my need to decompress after a long week, but lately on Friday nights instead of going out after work I've been coming home and unwinding with a nice homemade meal and glass of wine. Usually, the weekend includes the coveted date night out and the opportunity to try some new restaurants in town. But I've been so drawn to the relaxing comfort of home that date night has started to take place in our apartment instead of a newly opened bodega or corner cafe. 

While on the hunt for a perfect date night dinner, I came across this New York Times recipe for a pasta with fresh mint, cherry tomatoes and pancetta. It looked amazing but felt too much like a fresh, summer dish than a warm and hearty winter recipe. So, I swapped out the mint for basil and voila! The most easy, delicious date night dish was created.

This dish can be prepared in a million ways, using whatever you have on hand or to your dietary needs. The original NYT recipe calls for fusilli pasta, but I had whole wheat shells on hand and used that instead. Also, the NYT version says the ricotta is optional, but I would NOT leave it out. It melts instantly on top of the warm dish and makes it so creamy while the scallions provide a nice crisp bite to finish.

Head over to the link above for a full list of ingredients and a great video on how to prepare. I promise you will love this simple and quick recipe.

What else are you cooking at home? Let me know in the comments below!

A Gallery Wall for Renters

Check out any Pinterest home board and chances are, a gallery wall photo (or 5) will be pinned to it. I love a good gallery wall. I think it's a great way to tell your story and showcase your taste through personal photos, prints and art. But, if you don't own your home (like me), these can be tough to execute as it requires drilling or nailing multiple holes in your wall.

I bring you: the gallery wall for renters. While it still requires some drilling - putting the shelf into the wall - it has a lot less holes than if you were to hang each photo individually. Plus, I love that I can rearrange the order of these photos or the images within them to give my room a whole new look and feel whenever I want.

All you need is a collection of frames, a picture ledge (I used the IKEA Ribba, which I've talked about before here), and a series of prints and pictures. Many of the images on my gallery wall feature some of my travel photos that I've had printed off using an online printing service or at the local convenience store. 

Picture frames can get expensive fast, so whenever I see a frame that I like, I purchase it to avoid having to buy 10-20 frames at once to create a gallery wall. I've gathered the frames pictured below over the past couple of years from places like IKEA, Home Goods, Marshalls or TJ Maxx. I have a habit of picking up cheap frames and good candles wherever I go because I know in my house they will always get put to use!

Shelves, Lady Prints, Gold Frames: Ikea// Comparison is the thief of Joy: Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co.// Photos from Barcelona, Berlin, DC

DIY SPA Experience

I love creating little luxuries at home because even though I'd enjoy spending every weekend in a spa, my bank account assures me that is not realistic. To bring the zen home, I recreate a spa like atmosphere in by pouring myself a glass of wine, turning the lights low, putting on a relaxing Spotify playlist, lighting some candles and drawing myself a hot bath. These are some of my most calming moments when I can really be still and clear my mind.

So when it came time to do a little gift swap with some girl friends, I wanted to literally box up my at home spa experience and share it with them. I put all of my favorite little luxuries into one adorable white and gold box from Paper Source with fun little instructions for each. 

Keep scrolling for details and let me know in the comments how you create your little moments of luxury at home!

I always keep mason jars around the house for situations like this. Whether I'm whipping up a new smoothie or creating a DIY beauty product, they are my storage go-to. Also, if you haven't tried a lush bath bomb, stop everything you are doing and immediately try it out. Two words: GAME CHANGER.

When I give a gift I like to stick to themes. Both a color theme for the wrapping and packaging and a theme for the gift. Obviously here I am channeling zen, white and gold (before it was an internet meme). 

#WhiteandGold

The flip side of this cheeky label says Drink Me! 

This lemon sugar scrub comes from another blog I follow, One Good Thing by Jillee (link below). The recipe is so simple and uses ingredients everyone has around the house. Best of all... it totally works.

Spa Contents

Aura Cacia Lavender Essential Oil // Lush Bath Bomb // Lemon Sugar Scrub Recipe // Champagne Candle similar here // Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco

Supplies & Packaging

Gold Dot Gift Box // Burlap Wine Bag // Chalkboard Labels // Mason Jar // Chalk Marker // White & Gold Shredded Paper Filler // Gold Tissue Paper

Reverse IKEA Hack

Happy Wednesday, all! This past weekend my sister and I took on some major DIY/home reno projects at her place. One of our favorite final pieces was this chest of drawers below. The piece was a gorgeous oak with minimal finish, but didn't fit the rest of the furniture in the room, which was all IKEA in the brown black color.  So, with a can of paint and some tools we took the following steps below to make it match. To take on this project you'll need the following materials:

- Plastic paint tarp
- Paint Trays, brushes, and and old t-shirts
- Putty knife
- Strypeeze paint remover
- Paint thinner
- Medium grit sand paper (100-220) and hand scrubber
- Quart of interior paint and primer (we used Benjamin Moore interior paint and primer in Taupe)

Step 1: We prepped our outside space with a paint tarp, and removed the drawers from the base and began the process to strip it from its current finish. We placed some of the Strypeeze in the pant tray and brushed it on the drawers and base, letting it set for 15-20 minutes. Note: I worked all weekend in my Kate Spade Keds. Who said Kate Spade can't go with home renovations? :)

Step 2: After the time was up we took a putty knife to begin peeling away the current finish. Be sure to press very lightly with the putty knife as to not damage the wood. After the finish had been removed we began hand sanding with squares of 100 grit sandpaper. This is the most laborious part of the process and the most critical step. The key to making sure that the refinished piece looks nice is making sure all of the old finish gets removed.

Step 3: After sanding is complete take your hand scrubber and can of paint thinner and apply it to all the sanded areas. I just pour a bit on the wood and used the hand scrubber to buff it out. Once the wood has been buffed take one of your old t-shirts and wipe off any remaining debris left from sanding and wipe down. Let dry completely before beginning the painting process.

Step 4: Next is the fun part - time to paint! For this specific project I choose paint over wood stain. Wood stain can be tricky to work with and you really have to sand down the piece to ensure the stain sticks. Since I am still a novice at these projects, I did not think I was ready to to take on the wood stain. For this project the goal was to have the furniture match the color of existing IKEA furniture in the room. We chose Benjamin Moore's interior paint and primer in Taupe. Picking a paint with a build in primer also helped eliminate a step.

Step 5:  To begin the painting process I poured some paint into a tray and took an old t-shirt (the softer, the better) and dipped it in the paint to apply the coat. The lighter and less paint you use the better. The goal is to really build up to the color you desire by applying light layers and letting them dry in between coats before applying another.

To finish the piece I took an angled paint brush and and some artist paint brushes to touch up the small crevices, and voila! Piece complete. Wait until piece is completely dry before reassembling the furniture. 

And there you have it, a 5 step process for refinishing a piece of wood furniture. Questions? Ask away in the comments below!