Finding Inspiration for Home Decor

Have you ever been stuck in a rut with your home decor?  Maybe you still have a plaid couch, hello 1990?!!  Or  a room that you've been meaning to paint for years, but you keep putting it off.  I know it's hard to believe, but I'm guilty of this too.  And there are may reasons for why this is so common.  Time, budget, lack of inspiration, indecisiveness, fear...

But, some of my very favorite home projects were very affordable (hello, one income family of five!) and pretty easy to accomplish myself.  So, here is my suggestion of the day, because, you know, obviously a self proclaimed expert here (insert eye-roll).  Find your inspiration!

It seems simple, but with so much decor and so many different styles out there, it can be super overwhelming.  So, here's my suggestion.  Pinterest, magazines, bloggers, tv shows... What are you drawn to?  What makes you feel good?  Comfortable, happy?  Is it costal decor, farmhouse style, rustic, modern...  What are you most drawn towards.  Don't think about what's popular or what other people are doing.  What do YOU like?  Start a Pinterest board, or cut out pictures you love and keep them in a folder.  Do this for a few days, weeks, months, then look at what you were drawn to the most.  There's your starting point!

Now, what next?  Pick a room.  And preferably not a huge room, like your kitchen or main living space.  A bedroom, office or bathroom are a great place to start.  People tell me all the time, "I just don't know where to start." or "You are so good at decor, I wish you would do my house."  My biggest suggestion is start small and work towards bigger spaces as you gain confidence.

If you start with a bedroom, look at what you're drawn to in the pictures you've collected.  Is the paint light or dark?  Paint is a perfect start!  Get samples, most hardware stores sell them for $3-5 so grab a few and pain the wall in a few spots and see what you like most.  What bedding do you love?  A duvet, a quilt, solid colors, patterns? 

Now, here's my favorite part.  The shopping!  I know spending money can be intimidating.  My best advice here is set a budget and consider one splurge item.  For example, paint is reasonable, accessories can be collected over time and don't have to cost an arm and a leg, but bedding might be the one place where you want to spend the majority of your budget.

This advice can be applied in pretty much any room makeover.  For example, your living space.  Consider what you want out of this room.  Is a comfy couch your priority, do you love a big TV?  Pick your splurge item and then build around it.  For me, the couch was our splurge.  At about $900 is was the most expensive item in the living room.  That meant I had to make compromises on the other furniture items.  For example, the media cabinet was a $25 GoodWill find that I painted with black chalk paint.  The rug came from Costco.  The chair was a Craigslist find.  The books and accessories were collected over time and mostly came from thrift stores, TJ Maxx, Homegoods... And I didn't buy everything at once.  It takes time to find what you love.  Also, shop your home.  You'd be amazed how moving a picture or plant from one room to another can change the feel of a space.

My two cents for the day...

Favorite Weeknight Meals

Here we are, half way through April, with less than two months of the school year to go. Of course, it feels like the year has flown by, and at the same time, I'm like the kid in the back seat on a road trip going "is it over yet??" Anyone else with me??

Of course our busy schedule doesn't help... Lily Claire- choir & band Mondy, Choir Tuesday, Band Wednesday, Orthodontist Thursdays... Ella, gymnastics Monday and Track Tuesdays. Plus, we've had non-stop colds and Camille is on her THIRD ear infection in a month! I'm currently waiting on the ENT to call with a consult for tubes.

So, I don't know about you, but I could use all the help I can get with planning quick, healthy meals for the family. If you follow me on Instagram @lilyseclaires, I frequently feature recipes on my stories. But, I thought, for convenience sake, I'd just post a few favorites in one place to give you inspiration. I hope these make meal planning a little easier for you this week!

French Dip Sliders

Ingredients:

1 pkg of hawaiian sweet dinner rolls
thinly sliced deli roast beef
6 slices of provolone cheese
1 sweet onion thinly sliced
6 tbs of butter divided
1 tbs ppoppy seeds
1 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp seasoning salt

Instructions:
Sautee thinly sliced onion in 2 tbs of butter over medium heat until caramelized. This takes about 10 minutes, but while they are cooking you can start prepping the bread and other ingredients.

Remove the rolls from the package and slice completely in half with a serrated knife while still stuck together. You should have one half with bottoms and one half with tops. Place bottom half of rolls in a buttered or sprayed baking dish. Add a layer of thinly sliced roast beef and a layer of cheese. When the onions are done spread them over the layer of cheese and top with another layer of roast beef. Place the top half of rolls. In an oven safe bowl melt 4tbs of butter for 30 seconds, then add worcestershire sauce and seasonings and stir well. Pour butter sauce over the top of the rolls and then cover with aluminum foil. Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes covered, then remove the foil and bake for 5 minutes uncovered.

Sesame Chicken

1 large egg
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken leg/thigh portions
2 Tbsp vegetable oil (for frying)
Ingredients for the Sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp water
½ Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1½ Tbsp brown sugar
1½ Tbsp rice vinegar
1 inch fresh ginger, grated
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
1 Tbsp cornstarch

Instructions for the Chicken:
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg and 2 tbsp cornstarch.. Trim any excess fat from the chicken leg/thighs, then cut them into small 1 inch pieces. Toss the chicken in the egg and cornstarch mixture.
Heat a large skillet with 2 Tbsp of vegetable oil over very high heat. When the oil is very hot (it should look wavy on the surface), add the chicken and all of the egg mixture. Cook the chicken, stirring only occasionally, until it is golden brown and cooked through (about 7-10 minutes). Drain off the excess oil, if desired. (If you double this recipe you may want to brown the chicken in batches so it all gets golden brown instead of just steaming.)
Instructions for the Sauce:
While the chicken is cooking, prepare the sauce. In a small bowl stir together the soy sauce, water, sesame oil, brown sugar, rice vinegar, fresh ginger, minced garlic, cornstarch, and sesame seeds.
Once the chicken is cooked through and golden brown, pour the sauce over top. Toss the chicken to coat in the sauce. The sauce will begin to thicken as soon as it hits the hot skillet. Once the chicken is coated and the sauce thickened, turn off the heat.
Serve the chicken over a bed of rice and sprinkle the sliced green onions over top.

Broccolini & Sausage Penne

Ingredients:
1 bunch of broccolini
1 lb. penne or pasta of choice
olive oil
garlic sliced thinly (use as much as you like, I use a lot!)
red pepper flake
reserved pasta cooking water
1 pkg of cooked turkey sausage with artichoke & spinach (or any protein you like!)

Directions:
Cook the pasta just shy of al dente and reserve a mug full of the cooking water.  While pasta is cooking, in a heavy bottomed skillet, I always use cast iron, heat olive oil on medium heat and add garlic and pepper flake. Make sure it doesn't burn, just toasts lightly and turns golden.  When the pasta is done, drain, but don't toss out the water, and add to the garlic. Add the broccolini to the boiling water and cook 2-3 minutes, then drain and add to the skillet with pasta and garlic.  If needed add a little of your reserved cooking water to make a lose sauce. Taste for seasoning and add salt and more pepper if desired. Remove from heat and serve with parmesan or cheese of choice.

Enjoy!

Mediterranean Sheet Pan Dinner

Ingredients:

4 regular sized chicken breast portions or 8-10 breast tenders
1 can of artichoke hearts drained and patted as dry as you can get them
1 can of pitted green olives
1 small can of black or kalamata olives pitted
1 red bell pepper seeded and cut into large strips
2 red potatoes sliced 1/2" thick
1/2 a red onion cut into thick slices
olive oil
fresh thyme
salt & pepper
granulated garlic
balsamic glaze (bought at Trader Joe's) (you don't need this but it makes it pretty and give it extra flavor)
fresh basil for garnish

Directions:
Spray a large sheet pan with non-stick spray and pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees. Pat chicken dry with a paper towel, place on a plate and season with salt, pepper, garlic and a little olive oil.  Place potatoes, peppers and onion on the sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic. Toss until everything is evenly coated.  Sprinkle with the fresh thyme.  Place the chicken on the pan and put in pre-heated oven for 15 minutes.  After 15 minutes add the artichokes and olives and place back in oven for 10 more minutes.  Remove from oven and let rest for about 5 minutes before drizzling with glaze and garnishing with basil. Enjoy!

Social Media & What I Share

I've received several messages lately and I want to take a minute to address the questions and comments I keep getting here on my blog.  First off, this is MY blog.  I get quite a few comments or questions about it sticking to one type of Blog/Instagram Account/Facebook account.  While I realize that my blog name is Lily's E'Claires, I want to be clear that my blog is not all about making pastries.  Lily Claire is my oldest daughter.  I love to cook and I wanted to share recipes with people who may enjoy them.  I also love home decor and my family.  I don't want to have separate accounts for all of these things, because I would drive myself crazy switching back and forth from site to site and I feel it's a waste of my time and just not what I'm all about.

I have had comments made about my page that I should "stick to food" or "Why do you share so many pictures of people?" or "you'd be more successful if you stick to one color palate."  Let's be clear here.  Yes, I do make a small amount of money off my blog, but I have no intention of changing it in any way to make other people happy.

I want to share recipes.  I want to share my home.  I want to share my family.  Sometimes I want to share my garden or an honest review of a product, or a story that made me laugh.  If you are somehow offended that I don't share enough of one thing, please don't worry about following me.  It won't hurt my feelings if you don't want to be friends on Instagram.

And no, I won't be switching to sharing only interior design, or open a separate account to share pics of my kids.  This is MY life, my creative outlet and I will choose what I wish to share.  And if you like what I share, thanks!  I appreciate the love! 💙

Hot Mess Mom Diary - Vol. 2

Sleep

Let's take a moment to talk about sleep, shall we??  Do you sleep?  I don't.  I mean, I do, but I don't.  You see, I have kids.  If you're a mom, you know what I mean.  (Maybe some dads know too, maybe...) But let's be honest here, after the newborn phase is over, my husband doesn't get up.  I pretty much have to shove him out of the bed to wake him up and by that time, baby is in a full tantrum and it's pretty much pointless to ask him to help because, she wants momma, not daddy, anyway. 

My baby is 14 months now.  She just transitioned from formula a few weeks ago.  From about 6 months to probably 10 months she slept through the night like an angel.  I joked that she was my favorite because she was my best sleeper.  There may be some truth to that... But, then around 11 months something changed.  What?  I can only guess.  She got a pretty bad virus and it turned out to be RSV.  She also started getting teeth, one after the other.  She hit a growth spurt.  All the things.  All at once.  And she started waking up.  Once, twice, sometimes three times.  I tried co-sleeping, but she just tossed and turned and she barely slept, I barely slept.  We tried letting her cry it out, but my momma heart just couldn't take it.  I'm a wimp like that.  I felt like we tried everything.

From day one with her, I kept hearing about the Dock a Tot.  I really thought about buying one in the beginning, but Camille had hip dysplasia and I didn't think she would be able to sleep in the abducted position with her harness on comfortably due to the narrowness of the bed.  That's what makes baby feel so cozy, but it just wouldn't work on my baby.  But, now that she has graduated out of wearing the harness and her hips are developing properly, I started rethinking my position on the Dock a Tot.

At nearly $300 I really hesitated.  It's a lot of money.  But, on Buy, Sell, Trade sites they are a hot comodity so I thought I'd just resell it if it didn't work for us.  I actually didn't have much of a hope that it would, as she was so set in her ways, and I thought waking up several times was probably just a habit more than anything at this point.

Friends, I'm happy to report I was wrong.  Dead WRONG.  It worked.  She slept.  I slept.  I slept!!!!  Now, let's be realistic, I still wake up to check the monitor, use the bathroom, let the cat out.  I wake up because I hear 87 noises that might be her.  I wake up hot or cold.  Seriously, after being a parent for almost 10 years now, I probably will always wake up.  But, most nights, it's nothing, and I go back to sleep.  Thank the gods!! 

I was not paid by Dock a Tot to write this review.  I paid out of my own pocket for this item.  It was not cheap.  It may not work for your baby,  But, I'm so happy to say it seems to be working for mine! And, as a mom, anything that might help another mom get some sleep is something worth sharing with you!

So, Dock That Tot!

xoxo

Spring Living

I've been working on a spring home tour for a while, but of course, keeping all the rooms clean enough to photograph all at once is impossible with kids.

Instead of sharing the whole house, I'm sharing a couple of pictures of the main room in our house.  We don't have a separate family room or den in our house.  Just this one main room.  It's our dining room and where we all hang out as a family and watch tv together.  I love this room, but constantly struggle with keeping the space light and bright.  The dark ceilings can be hard to work with.  And, although I love our performance leather sofa for the convenience of being able to literally wipe it off with a clorox wipe, it is a large dark piece of furniture.  Throw pillows and a soft plush ivory rug are really important to lighten things up in here.

These shoe bins from IKEA were one of the best organizational pieces we've ever incorporated into our home.  The kids each have two drawers, which makes getting ready for school in the morning so much easier when no one has to scramble to search for a missing shoe.  I'm also loving this new runner we found at Target for the entry way.  We have a smaller matching rug in front of the back door as well.

A gallery wall with family photos and art lines the entry wall and welcomes people into our cozy home.

We are still loving this new dining table we had made for the space.  I know that a rug under it would be a good choice, design wise, but we have three kids and between spills and crumbs, I just can't bring myself to put down a rug. 

Moving the credenza, pictured above, to the wall behind the dining table and placing the old hutch cabinet on top was one of my favorite changes I've made to this space recently.  It opened up this side of the room and allows a lot more light in through this window.  Some low stools and a plant add some extra seating when we have company and the plant brings life to the room.  I am a really big fan of adding plants, even faux, or fresh flowers to a space.  I feel like they bring life to a room, plus they make me happy.

I hope these pictures inspire you to incorporate some fresh spring touches around your home this weekend!

xoxo

House Plants - Faux vs. Real

If you follow along on any home decor blogs or Instagram accounts, you may have noticed the house plant trend.  Specifically, the Fiddle Leaf Fig trend.  This plant has so much popularity, I decided to write a blog post about it.  Specifically whether to buy real or faux.  Let me start by telling you that I have both, so I am sharing my personal opinion with you and will break down why one may be better than the other based on your lifestyle.

I have three kids and I can hardly keep up with how many pets we have! (Currently 3 cats and 1 dog.) I had been wanting a Fiddle Leaf Fig for a while, but they aren't the easiest plant to find in Northern California for some reason.  I had been watching bloggers talk about finding them at Walmart, Costco and Home Depot, but I have never seen them at any of those stores.  We do have some specialty nurseries and plant shops, but $$$...  I finally was able to find one at Emigh Hardware, for about $40 dollars.  It was about 2 1/2 feet tall and looked very healthy, so I brought it home.  I had done my research, and they are fairly low maintenance.  Water in the shower about once a week, let dry completely before watering again.

What I didn't take into account was how the plant would hold up with my busy family.  For some reason, my 14 month old daughter was obsessed with this plant.  She ripped the leaves up pretty badly and the poor plant started to look pretty pathetic.  I tried to find a fiddle leaf fig tree, that didn't have leaves down low, but they were well over $200 and I couldn't justify spending that on a house plant.

So, I started looking around for a faux plant.  I found one at World Market for $129, but I had 2 $10 off coupons and one 15% off my entire purchase coupon, so I went ahead and bought it.  Of course, about a month later I saw a faux one at IKEA for around $40... But, the truth is, it's not as full and I think the one from World Market is a little better quality.

If you decide you want to incorporate real plants, you may want to start off small.  Trader Joe's usually has a small selection of house plants in the $5-7 range that are nice looking.  If you kill it, you won't be that upset.  And if real house plants aren't your thing at all, IKEA has a pretty decent selection of faux small plants as well that are very cheap.  I happen to have both in my house and I'm a fan of both, equally.

Best advice, remember the type of household you have before you incorporate real house plants.  Especially ones that are expensive.  A faux plant may be a better investment for you.  For now, my real Fiddle Leaf has a nice home on a dresser in the spare bedroom, and the faux plant is the star of the show in the dining room.

What We Keep

This post might be a sort of weird concept for some people.  And, I'm okay with that.  If it's not your thing, move on and come back later for a recipe or design tip!  But, I think it's something that is important to talk about, so I'm going to!  Sometimes it's okay to keep things that don't bring us joy.  That's right, I said it.  For all of you out there reading books on organization, simplifying your life, purging your space.  Hold up!  Don't get me wrong, I love an organized home!  And, I'm not suggesting you become a hoarder, please don't!  But, there are times that holding onto something that does not bring you joy, is okay!

I was cleaning up my room today and I ran across a tiny piece of purple velcro I had tucked away under my jewelry box.  Seems like a silly thing to keep, right?  Did it bring me joy?  No, obviously I don't plan to use it for anything, I mean what could you use a small piece of one sided purple velcro for anyway??  But as I went to throw it out, something in my soul hesitated and I decided it was okay to hold onto that velcro.  Because that small scrap reminded me of a time when I had to be tougher than I had ever been.  Let me tell you what I mean...

I have three daughters, but the road to get there wasn't easy.  I was not the person who planned, went off the pill and two months later was pregnant.  My first pregnancy ended in miscarriage almost the same time I realized I was pregnant.  After I had my first baby, when we were ready to try for a second, it took almost a year to get pregnant.  I miscarried again when my second daughter was 10 months old, and then had a missed miscarriage four years later.  So when my third daughter was born, I knew she was my last and my biggest blessing.  Finding out she had hip dysplasia, was really hard for me.  I had all these plans of breast feeding, cloth diapering, and dressing her in the sweetest clothes.  We had a swing and a bumbo, a bouncy seat and a bassinet...

Letting go of expectations was hard, but what was harder was the actual process of correcting the dysplasia.  She was fitted for a Pavlik harness at 5 1/2 weeks old.  At first, I thought she would only be in it for 6 weeks, but that was just a misunderstanding and lack of proper explanation on the doctor's part.  The truth was, she was in the harness for almost 7 months.  For the first six weeks, I could not take it off to bathe her, and had to change her diaper around it.  I lived in fear of poop leaking out of her diaper and getting the harness dirty.  My baby also had reflux issues, so I used bibs and went through so many burp cloths... Cloth diapers leaked occasionally, so I couldn't even use them.  Her sweet newborn skin became raw from the straps and the velcro scratched my chest every I breast fed her from the one breast she would take, in a sitting up position.  That one small scrap of purple velcro was something my best friend gave to me to put over one of her exposed velcro straps so my raw skin wasn't being scratched off any more.

That one small piece of velcro.  Does it bring me joy to look at?  Not really.  But you know what?  It makes me proud of myself.  It makes me think about giving up cloth diapers, living with one saggy deflated boob and one giant leaky boob.  It makes me remember selling a swing we never used, and ultrasounds on hips.  It makes me think of sleepless nights, spit up, tears and frustration. And, it makes me think about how tough I had to be and how strong I was.  It makes me proud of myself.

So when you are purging and organizing and you come across something you have a hard time giving up, it's okay to own that.  To feel a connection to something.  To keep a memento that my not bring you joy, but may bring you something even more powerful.

Just my two cents...