Café Design

Throw pillows are like a fabulous pair of shoes – you can’t have too many and they dress up even the blandest of outfits, or sofas. One of the easiest ways to refresh your decor is to switch out your throw pillows with the seasons, or when the mood strikes. This is not breaking news, I know, but having an abundant stash of timeless prints and coordinating solids to choose from will allow you to experience your home in new and exciting ways without having to break the bank. And who doesn’t want that? 

It’s been months since I last shared updates on our family room’s builtin bookshelves but with the unexpected & long-lasting effects of the pandemic, finding carpenters available for the job in our area has been a challenge and everything took longer than we had originally planned. Ten months and thousands of phone calls later, we’re grateful that the builtin bookshelves are done and the job is 90% completed. We just finished painting the room so I thought I’d share with you where we are with this project. 

To say that this has been a whirlwind week would be an understatement… We wrapped up another school year with our little one graduating third grade this Friday, and it felt like such an accomplishment. (Most days, getting dressed feels like an accomplishment around here. )  We’re so proud of her and the grace & sweetness she displayed during this incredibly difficult year for us all. A year that has paradoxically felt like a minute and a century, depending on the time of day and the amount of caffeine in my system. I missed Friday’s post where I wanted to share with you a few of our favorite pandemic projects (those projects that kept us sane while the world around us was crumbling) so I thought I’d blend two posts into one. Our rose-covered trellis has been a lesson in and of itself. Patience is not my strength but in later years I’ve learnt to wait for the good things, and gardening truly is a waiting game. We planted these roses on my husband’s birthday, mid-May last year, and waited and waited for the bushes to grow and cover the trellis. We got baby plants last Spring and this is one year’s growth. I don’t know if it’s a lot or a little but novice gardeners that we are, we’re impressed! My husband snapped this photo a couple of weeks ago when the New Dawn roses were just beginning to open…