DIY Bistro-lighting Tips and Tricks

I always love outdoor lights, and have been thinking long and hard about how to incorporate them into the outdoor space at our house. I'd like to spend the great spring, summer, and fall evenings al fresco with some friends, but we didn't know exactly how or where. Then it dawned on me-- we have the perfect driveway for this project!

Since everyone's space varies, I'll just show you a handful of tools and tricks to help you get the desired effect with little cost and big payoff-- all in an afternoon and for under $150!

• Use as much of your natural environment as you can! You can add anchor points to fences, trees, your house, etc. , just make sure all surfaces are protected from weather. If they move in wind, make sure you have enough slack in your line and on your anchor points.
• Get commercial-grade outdoor lights like these suspended base ones from 1000Bulbs based in Texas. They are industrial, built for outdoors, and the suspended base helps take load away from the wire string itself. The 1000Bulbs website also has great options for the bulbs themselves, of course. 
• If affixing anchor points to trees, use plastic-coated wire and soft tubing to not damage your plants. We bought a garden soaker hose to cut into lengths, and it was really cheap. 

• Create your own wire loops with cable ferrules that can be crimped around the ends. You can use these to attach around trees, fence posts, etc, without damaging the surfaces. They can be unclipped very easily if you need to remove or replace your lights. These loops with tubing in between is what we used to secure the lights to our trees.
• Quick Links or even S-Clips create clean attachment to your anchor points without stressing either the anchor or your lighted wire. Make sure the links you purchase can fit around your wire or eyelets you may use!
• If using an outdoor outlet or electrical extension, protect the light outlet from weather by covering thoroughly in waterproof electrical tape or encapsulating the join with an all-weather extension cover made for Christmas lights. It's imperative to keep all electrical terminals away from the elements, even when unplugged to resist corrosion.
• Lastly, be sure to measure, measure, measure again before cutting, installing any anchor points, or even buying the light string. Use trigonometry to calculate how much lighted footage you'll need, inclusive of the swagging in between points! 

The Master Piece

Throughout the clean-out stages of our home renovation, we have been storing and sifting through our things in the biggest-offending room of them all: the master bedroom.

This room is one of three rooms in the house with wallpaper, and the only one with carpet. As such, the propensity of the room to collect dirt and grime has been the greatest. We're having to tackle a few major issues in this room-- damage to sheet rock and surfaces due to chain-smoking and cat urine. There also exist the regular '70s Reno pitfalls such as crunchy popcorn ceilings and ancient wallpaper glue as well as the ever-disintegrating shag carpet.

The room in its original state

The room after completion

Needless to say, this room was intimidating for me to start on, but I vowed to have it ready for Christmas!

Detail of wallpaper (1x2 feet)

The obvious first step was to clean the room itself out. It had been our "distillate" room of sorts when cleaning out the stuff from other rooms, meaning as tough decisions arose, or we came across things we were unsure whether we should keep, they ended up in this room. That made the process of cleaning this room out a very difficult one.

The next steps were:

1. Removing and assessing usability of crown moulding
2. Removing, cleaning, restoring ceiling fan
3. Removing the wallpaper
4. Removing the popcorn ceiling
5. Patching and caulking any holes, cracks, or flaws
6. Sanding all surfaces
7. Cleaning and vacuuming all surfaces
8. Priming, sanding, and painting all surfaces
9. Painting, cutting, installing new crown moulding
10. Removing carpet, assessing the floor underneath
11. Cinderella-style scrubbing of the floor followed by sanding, then more Cinderella-style scrubbing.
12. Cleaning, staining, sealing the floor
13. CLOSETS!

We decided to leave the disgusting goldenrod carpet in place as a perfectly-fitted drop-cloth, and we'll tossed it when the paint was done, waiting until the end to assess the condition of the floor underneath.

The wallpaper--

For starters, we removed any nails or screws in the wall itself, taking as much care as possible to not destroy the sheet rock/drywall. We then removed the crown moulding. It was splitting, so we won't be using it again.

Our best friends were a flat paint trim guard  and the Paper Tiger Wallpaper Scoring Tool. We also devised a solution of 2oz liquid laundry detergent and 16oz water in a spray bottle to help loosen the glue (as well as improve the smell in the room).

The method:
Score a 5-foot section of wall, douse completely with the laundry detergent/water solution, and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Continue to score and soak again as you wish. After the 5 minutes have elapsed, use your putty knife or your paint guard to begin scraping big chunks of paper off. Be sure not to gouge your drywall, but also be sure to remove as much glue as you can. Don't kill yourself, as you'll need to go back over the wall with a sander in any case.

The Ceiling--
Get ready for serious fallout of the nuclear variety, but also prepare to get some sweet, sweet, triceps at the end of this deal! The tools for the popcorn ceiling removal process are remarkably similar to those used in the wallpaper removal process with one serious addition-- the Shop Vac. The Shop Vac pulled double duty keeping as much dust out of the air as possible and removing some larger chunks of popcorn.

I'm a cruel, cruel wife.

 The first step was to use the Shop Vac directly on the bare ceiling to remove as many chunky bits of popcorn as possible. These bits absorb our laundry detergent/water mixture and keep it from getting to work on the glue. After vacuuming, spray a 5x5 foot section of ceiling with our magical mixture, and allow to steep for 5 minutes. Proceed to get showered in dust as you scrape the ceiling away. Beware again of gouging, and of scraping unevenly on the floated patches if you have them. You want to leave the ceiling as level as possible.

It's snowing inside!

Sealing, Caulking, Spackling--
Definitely took a bit longer than I was expecting. I had to clean, remove excess falling caulk, and make sure the surfaces were ready for adhesive. I used Dap 3.0 white window, door, and trim sealant for the windows, doors, and baseboards. I cut the tip of the applicator tube at an angle so that I could apply evenly, then ran my index finger over the joint to seal it off completely. We did this to all wooden trim that sat away from the drywall.

PAINTING!
Since the original wood trim in the room was coated in oil-based paint, we had to prime it with Kilz Oil-Based primer. Once primed thoroughly, latex paint can go directly on top of the primer and never will we need to return to that wretched oil-based paint! For the drywall and ceiling, we just went straight for Kilz2 Latex Primer.

I painted the wooden trim first, as I needed to thoroughly cover edges before painting the color on, and the color was easier to control. The white we used is what we used in the other parts of the house-- Sherwin Williams's HGTV Satin Finish in Roman Column. For the walls themselves, we used the same brand and finish of paint in Recycled Glass. We did two coats on each surface.

Details--
We also had to uninstall, clean, and reinstall the transom window and window hardware. We also had to reinstall the corresponding hardware for window locks and door rimlocks. Oh, and reinstall that 60-lb cast iron ceiling fan from the 1930's. It's an old hunter variety that if oiled, will run like a champ way past my lifetime.

The Floor--

Finally came the time to remove the carpet!! It was really gross, and I ended up cutting it into 4 large sections to roll up and dispose of in contractor bags. I also had fun using the pry-bar to remove the floor tack tracks along the wall's edges.

Sassy reno-cat

We were really hoping to get by without refinishing the floor, and so we gave it a thorough cleaning job, but it became evident that we had to take that on. The boards were splintering in spots, and there was just some gunk that would not come up. We sanded, sanded, and sanded, and then we cleaned, cleaned cleaned. Afterward we used Minwax High Performance putty to fill in the splintered parts and got ready for staining. As it dried, we also installed curtain rods, curtains, new electrical outlets and light switches.

The condition of the floor before cleaning

The following morning we cut, painted, and installed the new crown moulding. I did not get any pictures of that process, but let me tell you, it was incredibly frustrating and very, VERY educational. That was probably one of the toughest parts about this whole room renovation-- between cutting the exact angle on two planes, to getting the measurements pristinely correct (and having them still be wrong), the whole thing was painstaking. Also, newsflash... old houses's walls are NOT completely even and straight. That can cause some serious problems upon installing 16-foot sections of crown moulding. Tread carefully when taking on that project for the first time!

After a few bourbons and a few cat cuddles...

Our thoughts expressed after crown moudling

...we were ready to stain. We used Minwax Polyshades in Walnut, as we just wanted to richen and seal the current floor color. I would not recommend if you have untreated or bright wood and are looking for a dark stain. I would instead stain the wood itself before applying polyurethane. We applied it with cheap old natural bristle brushes that were 4" and worked in a team for two hours to make sure we got it on evenly.

Waiting for the floors to dry!

The next morning-- surveying the damage!

We had done it! The floor was a bit sticky the next morning, but after walking on it for a bit, the sheen died down. Technically, you are supposed to sand this layer, but just some gentle wear got it perfectly ready for us to install the bed, nightstands, and all the other things. Overstock.com's holiday sales were our best friend in that regard.

We did it!!! 

Our official dates from start to completion of this room were 10/31/2015 to 11/23/2015, not counting the closets finished on 1/16/16. That was a whole other ordeal, and the lesson learned there was, "1970's cheap parts and hasty, messy labor contractors are the enemies of today's renovation projects." 

Mama's Creamy Artichoke Soup

Every holiday feast when I was growing up started the same way-- the first thing in people's mouths was my Mama's Cream of Artichoke Soup. It began as an adaptation from The Plantation Cookbook, and eventually ended as her own recipe. My mother is no longer with us, and so this holiday season, I've taken up the Artichoke Soup and am now reinventing it as my very own. Consider this recipe a translation of a translation.

Mama's Creamy Artichoke Soup

Ingredients

1 (14oz) can artichoke hearts, mashed(I use Reese)

6T butter

1 cup diced onion

1 cup diced celery

6T flour

5.5 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup lemon juice

salt 

pepper

1/4 tbsp fresh Thyme

1/4 tbsp fresh Rosemary

1/4 tbsp Worcestershire

2 eggs

2 cups evaporated milk

1/4 cup dry sherry (I recommend Lustau Palo Cortado)

Method

In a stock pot, melt butter and saute onion and celery until translucent. Add flour, stir to coat, and cook for one minute. Add stock, artichokes, lemon juice, Rosemary, Thyme, and Worcestershire as well as salt and pepper to taste (appx 1tsp each). Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, beat two eggs, then combine with evaporated milk. Take soup off heat, and puree either in food processor or with immersion blender until smooth. If necessary, strain with a slotted spoon to make sure all chunks have been removed. Working carefully to temper your egg/milk mixture, take a ladle-full of pureed soup and incorporate it into your egg/milk mixture. Continue slowly until egg/milk mixture has been brought up in temperature and eggs have not scrambled (approximately 5-6 ladle-fulls of soup). Then, pour egg/milk mixture into the remaining soup puree and stir to combine. Return to heat, add sherry, salt, and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes. 

Tradition is to serve it in coffee mugs and consume lazily standing around the kitchen getting in people's way while they cook.

Easy One-Hour Cable-Knit Headband

Everyone appreciates something homemade for the holidays, and when cold weather hits, soft knits are always in fashion. A scarf is always nice, but the gals in your life will really adore you for a cozy knit headband that keeps their ears warm and also looks super cute.

In addition, what's better than a stylish headband that you can make in an hour?!

Cable-Knit Headband Knitting Pattern

• Size 8 knitting needles
• 3 buttons (1 inch)
• Cable knit hook
• 1 skein yarn (4 weight) I used Vanna's Choice.

Cast on 24 stitches. 

First row knit all, second row purl all. Repeat 3 more times until you have 8 rows on your needles. 

Working pattern:

Row 9:   K4, P6, K4, P6, K4

Row 10: P4, K6, P4, K6, P4

Row 11: K4, P6, K4, P6, K4

Row 12: P4, K6, P4, K6, P4

Row 13:K4, P6, K4, P6, K4

Row 14: P4, K6, P4, K6, P4

Row 15:K4, P6, K4, P6, K4

Row 16: TURN ROW

Turn Row:

P4, slip 3 stitches onto cable knit hook, and be sure to hold stitches in front of work. Knit the following 3 stitches not on the hook. Taking care not to twist the stitches, knit the 3 stitches on the cable knit hook. This becomes your first cable. P4. Repeat slipping 3 stitches onto cable knit hook, knit the following 3 stitches off needle, knit 3 stitches off cable knit hook (again, making sure not to twist work), P4.

Repeat working pattern until work equal 20in.

K entire row, P entire row, K entire row.

Now to create your button holes:

P3, bind off 4 stitches, slip final bound off stitch loop back onto left needle, P3, bind off 4 stitches, slip final bound off stitch loop back onto left needle, P3, bind off 4 stitches, slip final bound off stitch loop back onto left needle, P3. 

K3, cast on 4 stitches in work (see below for video), K3, cast on 4 stitches, K3, cast on 4 stitches, K3.

See above for casting on while in the middle of working

P entire row, K entire row, P entire row. Bind off.

Using quilting thread, sew on your center button first, making sure it aligns with your buttonhole, and is on the right (cable) side of the headband. Using this first button as a guide, center and sew the two other buttons on either side.

Ta-Da! Your very own comfy, cozy, hand-made head warmer that you can make yourself in the span of a Disney movie!

The Satsuma Sidecar

Recipe makes two cocktails!

sat·su·ma

satˈso͞omə,ˈsatsəmə/

noun.    a tangerine of a hardy loose-skinned variety, originally grown in Japan. Also grown commonly in the American Southeast.

Satsuma Syrup 

*A modification of Ina Garten's Marmalade Recipe

Yield: 8 (10oz) jars

2lb ripe Satsumas

2 lemons

8 cups water

8 cups sugar

Special Equipment:
8 (10oz) Mason Jars with lids (sterilized)
Jar Funnel and Tongs (sterilized)

Method:
Cut satsumas and lemons in half crosswise, then into very thin half moon slices. Discard any seeds as you go. Place the sliced fruit and their juices into a stainless-steel pot. Add 8 cups water and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring often. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar until it dissolves. Cover and allow to stand overnight at room temperature.

The next day, bring the mixture back to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for about 2 hours. Turn heat up to medium and boil gently, stirring often for 30 minutes, and skimming off any foam that forms on top.

Remove from heat, and ladle into sterilized jars and seal. The heat from the syrup should cause the lids to seal, but if not, boil completely sealed and submerged for 5 minutes. Once sealed the syrup is shelf-stable for up to one year.