Odds & Ends

/ Ally Bean

::  We started putting together pots of flowers and herbs and vegetables this past weekend.  The project turned out to be more difficult than I thought that it’d be.  With our revised backyard [2 summers ago we added a lower level terrace at the back of the yard], we have fewer trees near the deck and more deer in the backyard.  So I’m looking for sun-loving flowers that deer won’t eat.  Not so many of those around.

Hence, the pot project has been postponed until next weekend when I hope that I will be more clear about what plants I want to put where. Hello Google.  Time to research.

::  We like coffee cake.  Once upon a time there was a product for sale in our grocery store called Aunt Jemima Easy Mix Coffee Cake.  In the box there was a small cardboard baking pan.  The dry coffee cake mix came with a small plastic bag that you could use, instead of a bowl, to mix the batter with water and an egg.  Then there was a small packet of streusel topping.  We liked this small coffee cake, but it is no longer available.

So, I decided to try Martha White Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake Mix instead.  It isn’t as small nor as fun to make as the Aunt Jemima Coffee Cake, but the results were good.  We’ll use it again, but with much less streusel topping on it.  Oy vey!  It was way too sweet for us.

That being as it may, Martha White has gifted us with a new family saying:  all streusel, no cake.  [Think “all foam, no beer” OR “all hat, no cattle.”  That kind of saying.]  Clearly, we are a simple people who are easily amused– or maybe it was the sugar talking.

::  Over the weekend our new loveseat arrived.  We ordered it a few weeks ago from Arhaus, but because it was a standard style + fabric there was hardly any wait time before it got here.  It is gorgeous and looks perfect in the living room– very grown-up, but not at all stuffy.  Plus it’s a mid-century modern frame which I find comfortable to sit on.

Now, I need to get going and find a rug to put under it.  It’s been over 3 years since I started this living room make-over, but I promise when it is complete I’ll post some before & after photos.  Well, definitely the after photos.  I don’t know if I have any before photos to share.  Huh.  Bad planning, that.

[Hello FTC!  Blah, blah, blah.  Not getting any kind of compensation for my personal opinions here.  Blah, blah, blah.  Disclaimer written.  Blah, blah, blah.] 

27 thoughts on “Odds & Ends”

    • No affair. Just cautious. Of course, because I so often add links to my posts, I feel the need to do the disclaimer. If I linked less… well– I wouldn’t be me!

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  2. Love the loveseat. That color would last about 5 minutes in my house, as we traded in the now adult kids for 2 ridiculously oversized dogs. Way easier than kids, but much droolier. They aren’t allowed on the furniture, but they’re not allowed on top of the refrigerator either, and I still find hair and spit up there.

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    • Rachal, I can understand your prob. This loveseat wouldn’t be for you. If the doggy drool + fur didn’t get it dirty, their claws would snag the textured loveseat fabric to bits. Perhaps you need something made of vinyl!

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  4. Ha, I thought we were the only ones that bought that particular Aunt Jemima coffee cake! It was delicious and just perfect for kids who liked to “bake” on the weekends when we were still asleep – and it came out perfect every single time even if there was over mixing, overbaking or what have you when a bunch of kids are involved. I can’t believe they don’t make it anymore (the kids have now graduated to cinnamon rolls)….Oh I love that deck project (how did I miss that post)?? So pretty and peaceful. I would sit there all day drinking coffee staring at the trees…Oh and that love seat is something special. I’ve often wondered about Arhaus (I’ve never bought anything from them). Have you used them before?

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    • Kristen, I am especially bummed about the Aunt Jemima Coffee Cake being off the shelf. I have fond memories of making it with my daddy when I was a little girl. He died when I was a teenager, so I treasure memories with him.

      We’ve bought a sofa from Arhaus and some dining room chairs. The sofa is in the TV room; it is largish, comfortable, indestructible– and very homey. The dining chairs are sturdy and fit the dimensions of our slightly smaller dining room. I also use a different one of their dining room chairs as my desk chair in our home office; in this case the color is perfect.

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  5. Ally, it looks as if you can buy the Aunt Jemima coffee cake mix from the link you posted, under “buy our products” at the bottom – assuming you don’t mind your cake mixes coming by mail order…?

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    • Polly, you’re right! I knew that it was still available in some parts of the USA, but not in our part. I am such a creature of habit: if it’s not on the grocery shelf, then it doesn’t exist. Never thought to look into ordering it. I think that is what we’ll do– just for the fun/memories of it. Thanks.

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  6. If you can’t mail order it, you might try Krusteaz Crumb Cake mix. IIRC, it was pretty good.

    I’m doing a pot garden on the patio this year. Going to have a landscape company hopefully clean out the beds and my mint/oregano/thyme bed will probably go – that’s all that’s left of the herb garden but gosh darn the oregano is pretty. Having everything in pots is just going to be far easier for me to deal with.

    And that is a pretty couch! Everything seems to be mid-century modern lately and it is not a design style I love (based solely on the DIY shows I’ve watched with the orange scoop chairs and sundial clocks) but I love your loveseat.

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    • Zazzy, will look for Krusteaz brand. It’s new to me.

      We’re putting some herbs and tomatoes and peppers in pots on the deck. It’s the only way that we can keep the deer away from them. Plus, like you said, it’s easier.

      Okay, trust me when I say that there will be NO orange scoop chairs or sundial clocks for us. However, some of the mid-century modern sofas and occasional chairs have straight lines/simple fabrics that appeal to me. Their scale mixes nicely with the antiques that we have already. We are nothing if not eclectic. 😉

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  7. Aunt Jemima Coffee Cake! We used to make that – YUM – and that little pan. (note to self: look for it at store)
    Good luck with the deer and yard. No deer here, just big dog feet.
    That’s a great love seat – looking forward to the pictures

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    • philosophermouse, YUM is right. Now that Polly has turned me on to the idea of looking elsewhere for it, I wonder if some of the specialty grocery stores might stock it. Must make the effort to find out.

      You & me both are looking forward to the photos of the re-decorated living room! This has been one slow slog getting it put together.

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  8. I had completely forgotten about the Aunt Jemima coffee cake. Maybe we need to start an online petition to resurrect it.

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    • winsomebella, from what I can tell some areas of the USA still have it on their shelves. So, the trick, I guess, is to live in those parts of the US! All of this conversation has given me the idea to check out a couple of our speciality groceries to see if, by chance, the product is there.

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  9. That’s a beautiful loveseat, but oy, the price! (I think that’s how much I paid for all my living room furniture) And by the way, there can never be too much streusel in my opinion. 😉

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    • Margaret, yes the loveseat was pricey, but it is so comfy– just the right size. If you like steusel, then may I suggest that you use Martha White mix. You’ll love it.

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      • Comfort is worth a lot and if you’re like me, you don’t change out your furniture very often. You buy it to keep! I will look for that coffee cake. 🙂

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