And for those concerned about Mr. Raphael Plant, you can see him on the table there.. with a new sprout standing tall and proud!
Our Dining Room is Complete!
We've finally picked out a chandelier, ordered it... and it came in! Kel had it installed last night and I finally got the chance to post it!
The Last Mile (for our railings!)
For the last while now, whenever anyone asked us, "How's the house? What are you working on now?", our reply has been "the staircase railings..." It's gotten to the point where we're starting to get "Still?" Well, it'll soon be something else, because we're on the last mile! The truth of the matter is, Kel had to look for a woodshop that does railings, buy the posts, stain & varnish them, work out the technicalities of installing them, etc etc. So why do I say we're on the last mile now? Because the glass panels we ordered came in today and they're in! We spent the latter part of tonight attaching all the bubbles to our foyer chandelier. (We've bought the light for more than half a year now, and it's been sitting in the basement waiting for this day.) The only thing left now, is for Kel to finish the top railing and install it. Can't wait!
Talk about efficiency! (Part 2 of "The painting came in")
We received the painting misprint Monday afternoon. I chatted with their online support not long after it's arrival and got confirmation within the hour. Today is Friday, and the reprint arrived! Who would've thought I'd be able to get the reprint the same week? I have to say I'm quite pleasantly surprised and would definitely recommend CanvasPop to anyone else looking for similar service. Although they messed up the first print, but I seriously don't think you'd find any other company with such efficient customer service and follow up. Definitely two thumbs up!
The painting came in! (sort of)
I just realized that I've taken a whole month off blogging. What's happened since then... hmm..
-> We've finally put down a deposit for our bed and sofa. That'll take six to eight weeks to deliver. We're estimating mid-September?
-> We've been waiting for the mattress we like to go on sale, and it finally did! That got delivered two weeks ago and we were so excited, we immediately took out the old one, dismantled the bed frame and laid out the new king-size on the floor. We get much better sleep now, and I no longer grunt at Kel when he comes into bed late and wakes me up. :)
-> We're still having endless bbqs with different friends at the house, as that's the easiest and fastest, ending off with ice cream for dessert of course!
-> For those who've been worried about Mr. Plant, don't worry, my black thumb hasn't killed him yet. He's still alive and doing quite well. The new shoot has grown quite tall and we can see tiny nubs on him about to unravel to become full leaves. Kel has also decided that Mr. Plant needs a first name, and so he is now Mr. Raphael Plant.
-> Kel is still battling with the weeds out in the lawn. He's making progress, but the battle is still not over!
And now, on with the post..
I got this discount coupon for an online photo printing place last month, and I've been working with their designers to turn one of our photos from Shanghai into a triptych to put in our bedroom. Kel and I figured it'd be easier to print a picture we like for wall art, then to spend endless hours shopping for one we can both agree on. What's great with dealing with online vendors (as I've discussed with Flo), is you don't feel so bad asking for more proofs. I had never intended to print photos any bigger than the regular 4x6, so setting 5x7 as a maximum seemed to make sense. (That's the equivalent of setting my camera to the three megapixel setting even though it had the capacity of shooting at ten. It also didn't help that for some reason I thought a three megapixel photo equated to a three megabyte file, but that's a different story.) Anyhow, so I was working with their designer (and Flo) and contemplated the possibility of printing the picture itself, versus one with the digital paint effect, black and white, and colour isolation. This took quite a bit of time, as everytime I asked for a new proof, it'd take the designer a few days to get back to me. In the end, we decided to go with just the picture itself with no effects as the slight blur would work with printing on canvas. It wasn't another two weeks before I got another email with the UPS tracking number saying it would be delivered today! I was so excited, I stayed home (worked from home that is,) to wait for it and of course it had to come during a meeting, but after that I went to open the box and...
... it was our picture with the digital paint filter! They printed the wrong proof! After chatting online briefly with their support person, they admit the designer had a misunderstanding, and will be reprinting our picture as soon as possible. The down side is, it'll be another week or two before it gets here, but when it does arrive, we'll have both copies right in front of us to decide which we'd want to hang. As well, it's not like we can hang it before the bed comes anyways, so it's a win-win for us!
Oh, and of course with both of us being in the picture, I'd have to thank Sunny for helping us frame the setting and taking multiple shots. I actually have a series of photos from when Kel and I were getting onto the rock, and having random people in the background, to this, and of course, one where Sunny insisted we pointed at something. :P
-> We've finally put down a deposit for our bed and sofa. That'll take six to eight weeks to deliver. We're estimating mid-September?
-> We've been waiting for the mattress we like to go on sale, and it finally did! That got delivered two weeks ago and we were so excited, we immediately took out the old one, dismantled the bed frame and laid out the new king-size on the floor. We get much better sleep now, and I no longer grunt at Kel when he comes into bed late and wakes me up. :)
-> We're still having endless bbqs with different friends at the house, as that's the easiest and fastest, ending off with ice cream for dessert of course!
-> For those who've been worried about Mr. Plant, don't worry, my black thumb hasn't killed him yet. He's still alive and doing quite well. The new shoot has grown quite tall and we can see tiny nubs on him about to unravel to become full leaves. Kel has also decided that Mr. Plant needs a first name, and so he is now Mr. Raphael Plant.
-> Kel is still battling with the weeds out in the lawn. He's making progress, but the battle is still not over!
And now, on with the post..
I got this discount coupon for an online photo printing place last month, and I've been working with their designers to turn one of our photos from Shanghai into a triptych to put in our bedroom. Kel and I figured it'd be easier to print a picture we like for wall art, then to spend endless hours shopping for one we can both agree on. What's great with dealing with online vendors (as I've discussed with Flo), is you don't feel so bad asking for more proofs. I had never intended to print photos any bigger than the regular 4x6, so setting 5x7 as a maximum seemed to make sense. (That's the equivalent of setting my camera to the three megapixel setting even though it had the capacity of shooting at ten. It also didn't help that for some reason I thought a three megapixel photo equated to a three megabyte file, but that's a different story.) Anyhow, so I was working with their designer (and Flo) and contemplated the possibility of printing the picture itself, versus one with the digital paint effect, black and white, and colour isolation. This took quite a bit of time, as everytime I asked for a new proof, it'd take the designer a few days to get back to me. In the end, we decided to go with just the picture itself with no effects as the slight blur would work with printing on canvas. It wasn't another two weeks before I got another email with the UPS tracking number saying it would be delivered today! I was so excited, I stayed home (worked from home that is,) to wait for it and of course it had to come during a meeting, but after that I went to open the box and...
... it was our picture with the digital paint filter! They printed the wrong proof! After chatting online briefly with their support person, they admit the designer had a misunderstanding, and will be reprinting our picture as soon as possible. The down side is, it'll be another week or two before it gets here, but when it does arrive, we'll have both copies right in front of us to decide which we'd want to hang. As well, it's not like we can hang it before the bed comes anyways, so it's a win-win for us!
Oh, and of course with both of us being in the picture, I'd have to thank Sunny for helping us frame the setting and taking multiple shots. I actually have a series of photos from when Kel and I were getting onto the rock, and having random people in the background, to this, and of course, one where Sunny insisted we pointed at something. :P
Our latest member..
Those who know me well, (or have been down south with me,) would know how much I love palm trees. Why? Because the simple sight of palms would instantly relax me, as they carry the connotation that I must be someplace tropical and therefore on vacation. And who doesn't like vacations? :)So where was I going with this? Ah, yes, Kel and I were in a store one day and saw these mini palms called "Sago Palm". Now, I've been on the lookout to adopt some greenery for the house. The only problem is, I don't exactly have a green thumb. In fact, it's more like a black thumb. (I've killed a number of plants in the past.. not really knowing why..) So we decided to do some research before going ahead with the purchase. What we found out was that it's not really a palm but a "Cycad", a group of plants that lived back in the prehistoric times. It's a hardy plant that has no temperature or humidity preference, and extremely low maintenance, perfect as a beginner plant! Heck, it survived and outlived the dinosaurs, so hopefully it'll survive me, as well. :) Now, I just have to remember to leave it alone, and not over water him...
On a side note for anyone else who's thinking of adopting one of these cuties, they are poisonous to humans and animals if ingested, and unfortunately almost never properly noted at the store. So you may want to think twice if you have pets or kids in the house.
What's that bubbling in my oven?
We went to the farmer's market up in Waterloo on Canada's Day.... and I ended up bringing home a lot of berries! So what better to do with them, than make a pie? :) With guidance from Moj over at Something Lemon, I proceeded to make my very own pie crust. It was quite the adventure I tell you, not as hard as it looks, but definitely quite an experience! Next time, I've got to learn to seal off the edges properly... midway the pie was bubbling over!
And here we have it, my first blueberry pie!
Yumm.. so much juicier when it's homemade!
Yumm.. so much juicier when it's homemade!
Happy Canada Day!
One of the perks of working from home? Saving time on commute equates time to make breakfast! Make no mistake, there's another slice of melted havarti cheese hiding under the egg. :)
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