If you have been wondering why it has been a little quiet around the blog lately, I have had a head cold that turned into a sinus infection that has been making me dizzy and my head pound for the past week. It has drained my energy, but I am finally feeling better. While I was feeling awful, I tried to think on the bright side… at least I didn’t have the flu. :-)
While I was staying snuggled and warm with tissues and hot tea by my side I did go online to try to keep up on answering reader questions and emails. I also came upon a few interesting articles online that I found inspiring, clever, delish and one eye-opening that I think you will, too.
If you have been decorating your home for many years you may enjoy this…“Old Fashioned” Decor Ideas That Are Actually Super Chic
Dislike having to wait for your car windshield to defrost before being able to drive in the winter? This easy windshield defrosting hack will have you driving off in no time.
This looks like a fun and creative way to spend an afternoon with your girlfriends onValentine’s Day… or anytime of the year.
I want to make this healthy dessert.
More reasons to eat your greens.
If you use Google and Facebook, this NYTIMES article about big tech companies is eye opening.
My must have beauty item. It makes my skin look its best, especially when I spray it on after applying my makeup.
Did you know Amazon sells pretty furniture, decor and… well, just about everything? I like this headboard ($126.00) and have been thinking about buying it since it would be cheaper to buy it then to DIY it. I now have an Amazon Shop. I will add to it on an ongoing basis with all the great deals I find along with items I own and use myself.
And lastly…
I want to make these Candy Place Cards for Valentine’s Day. I clipped this photo from an issue of Martha Stewart Magazine many years ago. I think it is time I make them, even if it is just Ed and myself around the table on Valentine’s Day. I love the mix of the colors and the striped ribbon.
They are really simple to make: Cut out three-inch ovals from colorful card stock. Using a hole punch, make a hole at each end, and then neatly write your guests’ names on the ovals with black ink. Thread ribbon scraps, each about six inches long and one and one-half inches wide, through the backs of the place cards. Notch the ribbon ends, and set a card at each place setting. SWEET!
The weekend is almost here…
Joanne B. says
Happy to hear you are feeling better now1 I wanted to drop a quick comment to let you know how much I really enjoyed all your little snippets of interesting things! It was sort of a “buffet” of odds and ends and since I like your style and sensibilities so much I was quite interested in seeing what excites you. I have been folowing you long enough to know that you don’t just follow along with every “flash in the pan” and are quite select in what you bring into your home and your life in general. At 62 I feel the same way- – I’ve “been there/done that” and now I am discerning with what gets my attention. Truly, youth IS wasted on the young! I just ordered the rose water on your recommendation, because at 62 we need all the help we can get, right?
Diane Henkler says
Hi Joanne – I am trying to mix it up on my blog a little since there are literally thousands of DIY and Decor blogs all doing the same thing, I wanted to start creating more personal posts that will share a wide range of my life. I love love love the Rosewater and I have found out, only The Heritage Store brand. I recently bought another brand thinking all Rosewater facial sprays were the same, they are not. The new brand left a shiny sticky residue on my face. I threw it out and ordered the one I have always used by The Heritage Store. It leaves no residue. I spray it on after applying my makeup, it gives my skin a nice finish and makes it look better….plus it smells wonderful. In the summer, I keep a bottle in my fridge and spray my face and neck when I am hot. A nice simple treat on a hot day. :-) I think you will love it. I have used it for over 10 years.
Wendy says
Hi Dianne,
I also love Rosewater to spritz on my face, and I also keep mine in the fridge. I use it before & after hyaluronic acid as it’s wonderful for holding the moisture in the skin. Lavender water is also lovely to spray on your pillows about an hour before going to bed! I buy all of my ‘beauty/skin products’ & vitamins, etc from Piping Rock in the USA & they send it via DHL.
My friends also love their products, especially as their quality is first class & the prices are amazing! Every month, and sometimes 2 weekly, they also have buy one, get 2 Sales, etc. I only discovered last week that even my doctor buys all his vitamins, etc. from them and his wife also uses their products when we were talking about botox, etc.! I’d been getting a lot of comments from friends asking what nw make-up I was using on my face because it looked so fresh! I’ve never been told that before, especially as one friend is a beauty therapist! She now also buys their products instead of the other expensive ones she was buying. She said that they are at least as good as the French brands (Ella Bache) & others that she had always used. She’s really fussy about her beauty products & even makes up her own tooth cleaner, etc. I make up my own ‘concoctions’ for day & night cream, masks, body scrubs, facial cleansers, toners, etc. New people I meet are even surprised that I’m almost 66 … & have been on heaps of very strong meds. all my life. I also use their oils in my vaporizer & in the bath products that I make up using their oils, etc.
I only put inn my first order after spending a long time researching oils, etc online & after reading all the reviews for so many of their products. I just didn’t want to keep using things with contents that I didn’t know. I decided they were definitely worth a try & I even bought products that I wouldn’t have thought of, but that I read so many good reviews about them, Even though postage to Australia is quite expensive, I love their products enough not to worry about that even though I’m on a tight budget. Besides, they are still cheaper than the other ‘well known’ oils, etc. They also use a fast shipping company so my order is usually here in about a week to 10 days & very well packed.
I especially love their combo of Frankincense & Myrrh, and I add a few drops of lavender with it in my diffuser at night.
I especially love that I know exactly what’s going into the products I make & use, including their collagen, snail gel?, vitamin creams, wrinkle creams, as well as using their serums. Trust me, if you try it, you’ll never go back to whatever you use now! I’m not saying it for any other reason than if I find something that’s great in quality & price (not just ‘good’) then I share it with my friends.
I also use the roll-on Lavender & Camomile oil on my Bess. She gets so excited when my Carers come that she barks & barks until she gets her cuddles & undivided attention. However I’ve misplaced my Camomile & Lavender roll-on, so have just been using the lavender roll-on oil on her head (just a couple of rolls of the roller bottle) she still calms down in less than a minute! I just did it as a last resort with her one time when she was extra excited …. & neither of us could believe how quickly she calmed down. My friends who have seen it in action, now use it on their dogs. One friend whose dog used to cry all the time when she went out … to the point where her neighbours would ring her & she’d have to go home to settle her dog down … Well, she now uses it on her pooch before going out & she doesn’t get the phone calls!!
However, they also have a type of link whereby if you buy from them & give my name (Wendy Maxwell) they will give you a $10 discount off your first order and will also give me a discount (or credit) on my purchases. But, I’m not recommending them for that reason, so no obligation to mention my name if you buy from them, I just like to share info about good products as there are so many others out there that are either very expensive, or poor quality. I haven’t ever received any even though all my friends now buy their products because they just get me to order their items with mine, so I don’t receive any affiliate whatever, but they also Love the products as they also see that the quality is a lot better than the expensive ones that they had been buying before they discovered Piping Rock.
This has reminded me that I need to place another order asap as I want to give rosewater spray to my g’friends for Christmas to add to the facial moisturizers, etc. that I usually for myself, but want to give as gifts to a few other people as well … and I want to make up some bath & shower bombs for my grandchildren, especially for their night-time baths as I know it will settle them down well for a good nights sleep.
I also use the Lavender water or Rosewater on my sheets when I change the bed, and spray it onto my linens while they are in the linen closet. It’s probably better to spray them before I fold them, but I always forget! lol I’ve also been told by the gardener that he can smell ‘the nice perfume’ when he walks past my bedroom window to put the watering system on! Ha Ha! Maybe I should tell him to get some for his wife!
I hope this is of use to both you & Joanne B.
I hope this is of use to you
Judy h. says
Hi Dear Diane! I haven’t written you since last Fall! Forgive me, I never miss a post. Lots of stuff going on. I’m so sorry you’ve been ill, please take excellent care of yourself! I’m excited to hear about your Amazon shop, hurray! I’ll never have to wonder about the quality of any item I find there, thank you! I thoroughly enjoyed the “Old Fashioned” Decorating Ideas… I read through it many times.. I’m having our daughter, son-in-law and 3 grandsons over Wednesday evening for a fun Valentine’s Day supper, your cute Candy Place cards will be the perfect touch!
Feel better, take it slow, keep drinking lots of fluids and pamper yourself to the ultimate.
My best, Judy
Diane Henkler says
Hi Judy –
So nice to hear from you. I took it easy over the weekend and am feeling back to normal. I am even going to to my Zumba class tonight so I know I am feeling better. :-) Enjoy your family on Valentine’s Day. It sounds like you are going to have a sweet time. XO
Teri says
Thank you for the Amazon shop–I can trust you to find good quality items for good prices, and save me from the hunt (the headboard!). Just an FYI- I rarely go to a “furniture store”, but stopped in at Macy’s today because we are looking to replace worn dining room chairs and they had some terrific rugs for unbelievable prices. Will you be showing us anything from any other sources?
Diane Henkler says
Hi Teri – I will continue to share items from everywhere. The Amazon Shop concept for bloggers is new and I just wanted to put it out there. They don’t have everything. I am looking for a rug for my bedroom. I will have to check Macy’s. Thanks for telling me. I love stumbling on beautiful items at unbelievable prices, too. :-)
Mary says
Sorry to hear you’ve been sick. I’m recovering from the flu so I “feel your pain” so to speak. I agree with Roxanne above that said you should decorate with what speaks to your heart. We are getting ready to remodel a very old house to be our final home and I struggle with how I want it to look and wonder how people seem to be able to “re-decorate” every 3 or 4 years when curtains and pillows alone will start to run into the 4 figures!! Not to mention new furniture etc. One of the reasons I love your blog Diane, you help us stay current without breaking the bank all the time and encourage us with DIY’s. Thanks, and hope you’re all better soon!!
Diane Henkler says
Hi Mary – Thanks for the get-well wishes. I am feeling much better today…back to normal. Now I have lots of catch-up do to. Exciting that you are planning how to remodel that old house. My advice on how to remodel… Since it is going to be your final house, don’t rush it and try to only put things in it that you love and will make you and your family comfortable.
Pat M. says
So glad you’re feeling better. I was sick between Thanksgiving and Christmas for 2 weeks. Not the flu, thank goodness, but bronchitis and a sinus infection. Knocked me right out. It took me quite a while to bounce back because as my mother used to tell me, “You’re not 25 anymore.” (I’m currently 75 and she admonished me in this way from my 40s on.) Lol
Last month I tried the water/rubbing alcohol trick and found that while it will dissipate frost and snow, it didn’t do anything for the freezing rain that turns to solid ice on my windshield. Maybe it will work on icy frost like in the photo, but not on Indiana freezing rain that then gets hit with single digit temps. It’s worth giving it a try, depending on what type of “ice” you have in your area.
Naomi says
Glad you didn’t have the flu! So far my husband and I have avoided it. Richland county here in Columbia has been hit hard. Hope you are feeling better. That jar of hot buttered rum sounds good, especially on a cold night! It probably helps you feel better too! :)
Roxanne says
So sorry you have been sick. This flu outbreak is especially scary this year. I loved the article on old fashion decor that is chic…especially since I collect blue and white and love ornate gold mirrors! It’s a perfect example of why we should decorate with what speaks to our own heart instead of feeling miserable when we can’t/don’t follow every trend. Hope you will rapidly be on the mend.
Mary Ann Howat says
Well I had the flu and it was awful. I am still fatigued. I enjoy your blogs. I think I will make the oval candy with stripe ribbon. But I will make into a little Valentines card for hubby. He loves truffles so your idea would fit right in.
Nancy says
Diane! Those sinus infections are the worst!!!! Happy you are feeling better!!
Thanks for all of these great ideas!
I am going to make the Chia desert too!
Happy Friday!
Susan says
Diane, I really love these “miscellaneous” posts with the random ideas! So nice to be made aware of good finds that I otherwise would not discover. Thank you!!