Things I Loved This Week (And Last!)

Sneak peak: Next week's multigrain cocoa-cinnamon buns!

What I'm Reading

All Roads Lead to Home (Bellingwood Series): I started reading this book series, and I absolutely love the characters! But Diane Greenwood Muir doesn't let the plot suffer either. There is mystery and intrigue, and I am totally hooked! Here's a quick plot description to draw you in: "Polly Giller returns to small-town Iowa from Boston ready to start a new life. She is renovating an old school building and while getting to know new friends, two sets of bones fall out of the ceiling."

Around the Web

When I see the phrase "Amazon bestselling author," I assume your book hit #1 in some obscure category like Underwater Locked Room Mysteries.
— Chuck Wendig (@ChuckWendig) January 27, 2015

A backlit Belgian Trippel, follow me on Instagram for more!

#TheWriteParty: I joined my first Twitter chat this week and it was awesome! I met some fantastic writers, and learned some new points of view about the creative process. Are you a writer too? Join in Thursday at 7, hosted by TheWriteWoman

I write by pen and paper. Tedious, yes. Old school, yes. But, oh the catharsis. #TheWriteParty
— amber thomas (@mrthomasandme) January 30, 2015

This article from Business Insider uses Richard Feynman as an example to show that having more mental models can make unsolvable problems solvable: "If you only have one framework for thinking about the world, then you'll try to fit every problem you face into that framework."

An extremely interesting story by Zachary McDermott, where he discusses his mental illness from a first person perspective: "I could tell the people on the sidewalk were actors, but just barely. They resembled the normal East Village lot, but they were archetypes"

Awesome Instagrams

• This shelf office set-up is basically my dream. Loving the vertical space use!
• This hippo is so happy! I hope everyone has a day like this.
• Food52 regrammed this delectable looking salted hot chocolate. Yum!
• The hot air balloons just make these rock formations even more stunning.
• Beautiful watercolor and good advice all in one gram? Love it.
• Take me to New Orleans please! I can't resist the French Quarter arhcitecture.
• These gorgeous drinks are making me consider some day cocktails
• Canyonlands is definitely on my list. I need to get to traveling!
• Can everyday be National Peanut Butter Day if we get these cookies?

The whiskey is downstairs. I am upstairs. This is #thestruggle.
— Jessica Stapf (@jstapfinator) January 24, 2015

Bedroom + Repurposed Dinette Set

When I moved in with my boyfriend, we tried to have very few redundancies. I wouldn't let him buy a bed, because I knew that once I got there we'd be using mine (because it's amazing, and nearly brand new). He was totally fine with sleeping on a futon mattress on the floor for three months, but he wouldn't budge on a dining set.

I didn't fight too hard, my tiny table and two chairs weren't exactly a major purchase for me. I got them at Target for just over $100. My mother and I built them in my old living room. However, when I got here, that meant we had an extra table and two chairs and no real use for them.

The place is too small for multiple eating areas. It's a tiny two-bedroom apartment, after all. So a breakfast nook, while adorable, was out of the question. For awhile, the table sat as a placeholder for the boy's desk in the spare bedroom/office, but as encouragement for him to actually get a desk, I wanted to get it out of there.

So here are what I came up with:

In the bedroom, we had a little extra space. One thing we needed was a place to throw extra pillows and blankets from the bed while sleeping. In the warm evening hours, the boy doesn't like having the heavy comforter on the bed, but I need it once the temperature drops. The floor wasn't working. So I took the two chairs, and placed them sideways beside the bed, covered them with an old curtain, and some throws and we had a bench. It's now a perfect place to pull on socks, helps the pup hop off our extremely tall bed, and serves as a resting spot for the comforter.

The table was still a little trouble. Back in Arizona, though, I was spoiled with an overabundance of bathroom storage. Here, we have a tiny linen closet, almost no counter space next to the sink, and no medicine cabinet at all. So, I decided to turn the table into a makeshift vanity. It's missing a mirror, but works really well as a place for me to store my make-up, necklaces, and hair ribbons. My little ottoman (an impulse purchase back when I got my couch) makes a perfect stool, especially trimmed with an otherwise underused pashmina scarf.

Steal my look with similar pieces: Custom photo to canvas print | Teal and brown floral bedspread | Teal patterned blackout curtains | Turtle candle holder | Wreck This Journal

My Disney Decorated Living Room

Well, Christmas is super over. Last weekend we took down the tree and then today I finally took down the stockings hanging over the fireplace. Without the little festive details all over the living room, there was room to decorate with some of the gifts I received for Christmas.

On the mantle, I've put some of my new commemorative Adventureland dishware on display, including an Enchanted Tiki Room plate and glass, and cloth napkins from both the Tiki Room and Jungle Cruise. The line on the chalkboard is part of an old Neil Gaiman new year sentiment. Here's the full quote:

I hope you will have a wonderful year, that you'll dream dangerously and outrageously, that you'll make something that didn't exist before you made it, that you will be loved and that you will be liked, and that you will have people to love and to like in return. And, most importantly (because I think there should be more kindness and more wisdom in the world right now), that you will, when you need to be,  be wise, and that you will always be kind. -- Neil Gaiman

Mickey also sits atop the mantle in his cute Mickey mug, which is currently housing the last sign of December - some candy canes we took off the tree. I see a lot of peppermint hot cocoa in the future.

My last Adventureland piece is draped over the couch - a gorgeous woven throw from The Boy. This is the centerpiece of the couch, but it's surrounded by other things I love: my Sleeping Beauty and Chip 'n Dale pillows, and of course, my Chihuahua, Tessa, snuggled up and cozy.

My favorite part of the room, however, is The Boy's comfy recliner, which I turned into a castle corner. I absolutely love the castle line of merchandise, and couldn't help but display the gorgeous scarf and matching mugs on the end table. Draped over the chair is a Cinderella Castle throw, accented by a Sleeping Beauty's Castle pillow. The final detail is a Disney picture book, of course open to the castle page.

I love the whole room, even though The Boy isn't a huge fan of his chair having been taken over by my girly castle comforts. It makes me feel like I'm home at Old Key West on a Disney vacation every day.

I'd love to see your living room: does it have a theme, or just pieces you've collected? Post in the comments.

Steal my style with similar products: Chalkboard | Disney Tapestry Throw | Disney Castle Fleece | Adventureland Decor | Walt Disney World: Then, Now, and Forever book

Friday Five Things: 10/04/13

Welcome back to Friday Five Things, and my first edition brought to you from the great state of Arizona. You already know a lot about me moving across the country, so I'll try not to talk too much about the actual moving process or decorating, since there will be plenty of posts dedicated to those topics.