Spring Cleaning Tips and Tricks

Posted in Home by meganandeggs

A few months ago, I moved into a new apartment. At the time I had a bunch of boxes I hadn’t seen since I moved back from Southern California. So since I haven’t seen a lot of my stuff for the past year and a half, it seemed like the perfect time to go through my clothes, shoes, and just stuff in general. I cleaned out my makeup, skincare products and it felt great. But now it’s been five months and spring is finally upon us in the northeast so I am back into full spring cleaning mode.

The past week I’ve really enjoyed coming home from work, opening all the windows in my apartment, and cleaning my life up. (Old lady excitement.) But if I’m being honest, sometimes staying motivated and on track and be a little rough. Here are some tips on how I get through my spring cleaning list:

Make a list: Lists work for me. I use them every day: at home, at work, it’s how I get my shit together. I write down everything. Like everything. Do laundry, fold laundry, put laundry away. I know this could all be covered in one line (laundry) but the more steps I cross off the more motivated I feel.

Take away distractions: Instead of having the TV on I play my Amazon Echo and blast some fun music. Or lately I’ve been listening to podcasts to keep me moving. If the TV is on I cant help but sit down and start watching whatever show is on, so I eliminate that possibility all together. And to avoid the phone distractions, I keep in on it’s charger, in my room, where I can’t be distracted by group messages or Instagram. (Both of which I was scrolling through a few minutes ago.)

Think outside the box: Your house isn’t the only part of your life that needs some spring cleaning. This is a good time to once a year go through your finances, take a look at your insurance, make doctors appointments and all of that other stuff no one ever looks forward to. Here I made a list of all of my “spring cleaning” to-dos.

15Sep2018

Trader Joe’s Fall Finds

Posted in Home, Recipes Reel by meganandeggs

It’s here!!! Some people count down until the day Starbucks releases their Pumpkin Spice Lattes, or the holiday menu in November. I count down until Trader Joe’s bring out their harvest treats. I love pumpkin. I am a believe that you can add pumpkin to anything and I t will taste good. So, this year I super stalked my local Trader Joe’s until someone would give me the release date on all of the pumpkin products.

Last year I thought I did good on stocking up on some of these products but I was all out by the new year so this year. With the long winters we have here in Connecticut. I need my pumpkin coffee 5 months out of the year, but damn is it hard to come by. When I went to my local TJ’s there was only ONE pumpkin coffee left in the tin. I always try to get coffee grounds rather than pods just because it goes so much further. But in this case I had to grab some boxes of pods for back up. Someone behind me even got upset that I took the last one… sorry about it.

The pumpkin bread and muffin mix is another awesome go to. Actually I’m a big fan of their corn muffin mix too. I am not a baker so this is the perfect, easy mix to have one hand for a quick breakfast or to bring to a brunch when you’re in a pinch. And you can always add chocolate chips to the pumpkin mix to make it a little more of a dessert.

Trader Joe’s Greek Yogurts are by far my favorites. Again another quick breakfast idea so I had to pick up a few of these along with some new tries. I’m not sure if this Pumpkin Soup is new or if I’ve just never seen it before but I can’t wait to try that. Something else that I saw for the first time was this Harvest Spice Trek Mix. It looked perfect for my flight tomorrow. I am off to Canada and with a whole day of travel, you know I like to have something in my back pocket to snack on. What are your favorite fall finds at TJ’s?

1Dec2017

Holiday Tablescape

Posted in Entertaining, Home, the Holidays by meganandeggs

Through out most of the year I am pretty minimalistic in my home décor. I like whites, and greys, and pretty much anything neutral just like my clothing. If you’re lucky, I may throw some gold in there, but that’s the closest to a color you’re going to get out of me. (Okay, last spring I threw in peach, call me crazy.) My sister says I’m sterile. She’s a nurse and white reminders her of a hospital, and for me, color is complete chaos. But for me, mid-September through January 1 I want the holidays to be plastered throughout my home.

Give me reds, golds, sparkles, ribbons, bows and all of the holiday goodness.

This year my sister and I are hosting our family of 45 cousins, aunts, uncles, and kiddos on Christmas Eve so I feel like I’ve been on Christmas prep since early October. While our table for 45 is going to be a little simpler than this, I set up this table for a much more intimate dinner last week.

Layers and fabrics

Different textures is the easiest way to add dimension and holiday spirit to your table. I started with a gold table cloth and layered on these placemats that have a little sparkle. I have a small addiction to napkins – Beverage napkins are my favorite but they’re more for cocktail hour. These cotton napkins from Home Goods are super cute and casual which is perfect for a small group of close friends or everyday dinner.

Add a little sparkle

The placemats already had a little sparkle but I love me some gold during the holidays. And these Nicole Miller gold bow napkin rings from Home Goods jumped out at me. (Once a cheerleader, always a cheerleader.) Also these can be used all year round for girls nights or other casual dinner parties. Change up the napkin and you have a new, cute piece to use for the rest of the year.

Bring the outdoors inside

While most of the plants are heading into hibernation here in New England, my mom’s holly bush is #goals right now. So I snuck over to her house and pulled off a few branches. While I was there I grabbed a few pine cones and added them to the table top. The easiest way to make your table feel super seasonal. In the summer, go outside, clip some flowers and stick them in a vase. Centerpiece done!

Keep it low

One thing I hate while at dinner is having to lean over to talk to the person sitting across from you. Especially in an intimate setting, keep your center piece low so all of your guests can talk across the table from each other. When you are at someone’s home, especially for a smaller, more intimate meal, the lower centerpiece the better. It encourages conversation. Wine helps also.

14Apr2017

Spring Home Decor

Posted in Blogging, Home by meganandeggs

Hellooo Friday! Who is excited for the weekend. Well spring has sprung in most of the country, and especially here in So Cal. I was able to spend a day last week down in beautiful San Diego touring a cruise ship, and I spent the beautiful drive home to Orange County in awe of the beautiful poppy fields that line the freeway. This weekend we are being super So Cal kids and heading back down to SD with a few friends to visit the flower fields in Carlsbad. This is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time so I am super excited.

At the start of each season I bring out new decorations or run to the store to do a little make over on the house. Last month I had my eyes peeled. I already have a lot of neutrals that can really be used all year round, but I wanted a little brightness to our living area. This peach color is one of my favorites right now and I knew I wanted it splattered around the house this season. So I found some pillows, pulled out a few blankets and picked up a few fresh flowers.

Fresh flowers

Fresh flowers are the easiest ways to bring life to a space. I am obsessed with these orchids that Chris picked up for me for Valentine’s Day. I am shocked that they are still kicking. I notoriously have a black thumb so I am so proud that these are still bright and alive. (True life they may be fake and Chris could be lying to me just to keep me happy. I once killed two Christmas trees in one year.)

Lighter textiles

Pack up those heavy blankets and pull out the light stuff. Fabrics like cottons are light and beathable which I love for the spring and summer. Some of my favorite memories growing up were at one of my girlfriend’s house where they always set the AC at like 58. I swear. And we would bundle up in blankets and watch movies all summer long. Now my cheap ass barely turns the AC to 72 but it doesn’t stop me from having cuddly blankets close.

Earth tones

Okay, you’re right, I have these all year round but I love me some wood tones, green leaves and natural fabrics. I love this map Chris made me for Christmas this year. The handmade art is amazing and I love that it is on the two by fours.

Bright Pillows and Blanket

Details like pillows and blankets are so easy to switch out season after season to recreate your space. Whether you are reusing holiday decor or getting the newest trend, like my metalic pillows that I am still using since Christmas, this is such a small detail that adds so much character to a space.

Fresh scents

Uhg CANDLES! I am obsessed with candles. There is at least one candle burning at all times in my house. Whether it’s scented or just simple tea lights. I love them and this Tullips candle by Yankee Candle is my favorite this season.

10Oct2016

Making an Apartment a Home with New Living Room Decor

Posted in Entertaining, Home by meganandeggs

Happy Monday everyone. Did everyone have an absolutely fabulous weekend?! We were kind of all over the place but Sunday we got to setting down & clean up shop to get ready for a crazy busy week. Bu today, we are talking about something that I couldn’t be more excited about: our new living room decor.

A couch was the last thing that we were really needing after we moved in the spring. We were still hanging onto my first couch I got from IKEA when I moved to LA 6 years ago. Not cute. After years of wear & tear, it got to the point that I actually hated sitting on it & would spend a lot of the time sitting on the floor.

We’ve had our eyes peeled but with saving for a wedding we decided we would hold off until February when the new furniture designs are usually placed in stores. Then Chris stumbled upon this set at a great price & we decided all of our planning was going to go out the window & we were going to buy it right then & there. (By the way…. I was pretty much jumping for joy in the store that we were finally getting a new couch!!)

I felt like our living room finally made sense. I tied in the gold throughout the room with these decorative accent balls to add a pop of color on our burlap runner & this ornamental lamp we picked up from Target. I painted the pot to place our Jade plant in so that it matched the monogrammed burlap letters on the wall across the room. Add these plush pillows, blankets, & a little life with our flowers & there you have it. Our new living room.

This table was an amazing gift Chris made for me for Valentine’s Day this year. By putting together these six unfinished apple boxes from Home Depot or Lowes, he was able to make a little space between all of the boxes. Sometimes we leave the box empty & it makes for a great place to store remotes. But right now we have some little fall decorations to make our room a little more festive. We go back & forth with deciding if we want to paint the table or leave it as is. What do you think?

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