Showing posts with label Flowers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Flowers. Show all posts

Foodie Friday

Rachel Ray's Fiery Chicken Chili

I shared this a few years ago, but it is worth the repeat.  
I had never heard of 'chipotle in adobo' before I came across this recipe, 
now I make sure it's always in the pantry.

ingredients:
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 onions, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 4 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 large chipotle chile in adobo sauce, finely chopped, sauce reserved
  • 3 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, thinly sliced
  • 2 28 ounce cans diced tomatoes with their juice
  • 3 15 1/2 ounce cans  pinto beans, rinsed
  • Chopped avocados, cilantro leaves, grated cheddar cheese, chopped scallions and sour cream, for serving
****I use 1 can petite diced and one can crushed tomatoes, and black beans (no pinto)

directions:
  1. In a large, heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, oregano, cumin, salt and paprika and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and the spices are fragrant, about 7 minutes. Stir in the chipotle and 1 tablespoon adobo sauce. Add the chicken and cook, stirring, until the meat begins to turn opaque, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and beans and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover, increase the heat and simmer the chili briskly, stirring often, until thickened, 25 to 30 minutes.
  2. Add more adobo sauce to taste, serve with avocados, cilantro, cheese, scallions and sour cream - I know this will become one of your favorites too!

I recently picked up several stems of pussy-willow at Whole Foods - they and Trader Joe's have the bestest flowers! These are sweet arrangements, I know you can do it!


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Lifestyle and Living Beautifully


Flower Power!

Creating a beautiful life doesn't mean one has to spend a lot of money!  Through this series I want to encourage us - remind us - to live our lives in a beautiful way, not to show off at all, but to treat ourselves and our families kindly...graciously. Our children are never too young to learn, they will remember it one day!

Today we are going to start with bringing life into our homes with flowers!  I bought a simple bouquet of sunflowers ($4) which happen to be one of my all time favorites.

Go out into your yard and see what you can find. I cut some juniper and foliage from a gardenia bush and gathered some baby's breath and heather that I had left over from last week.  That stuff never seems to die!

Be sure and trim off the foliage from the lower end of the stems, that left on is what makes the water stinky!

I start with the flowers varying their height...

 I usually like odd numbers but today I made one taller than the rest as the center and started adding the foliage.

Make sure it looks pretty from all angles. I like sort of a 'wild' look with little branches coming out on all sides.

Now on my coffee table for all to enjoy!

$4 and a little bit of time.  You can do it too!


It's a new year, Moore Designs is ready to help you with your projects large or small Don't live in Atlanta?  No problem, online design services available! Contact MD today!


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Floral Arrangements: Real or Fake

What is your take on real vs fake foliage in your home?

I used to do commercial display in retail stores and the fake stuff is great to work in for interesting spaces.  However, (in my opinion) in one's home, natural is best. 
This image is from a real estate listing. 
I see 4 fake arrangements and it looks cluttered.
  If your cabinets are dropped it's better to leave them bare than 'decorated'.
This kitchen is in another home just on the market.  
Here you can see the cabinets left clean on top. 
Much better visual.
This kitchen has natural live plants.  
Did you know certain live plants help with cleaner air quality? See here.
Branches in the chandy and a simple arrangement on the counter.
In my own home, I sort of go nuts with dried hydrangeas and branches. 
I have  a few live plants as well but not so great at keeping up with the watering. Usually find them 'hung over'.

I would love to hear your views, what do you think?


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Garden

I enjoy the beauty of beautiful gardens but am really not much of a gardner and playing in the dirt is more of a chore than enjoyment.
I love how the birdies share the feeder!
Because I am a 'visual' person I do what I can to make it easy on myself and plant as many perennials as possible. Last year we planted a ground cover in this bed and this year it really took off.  The fist pic is early spring and you can see the transition of blooming which unfortunately is a short window of time and the last pic I took today.  Since I'm not a gardner I can't tell you the names of everything.  :( Behind the bird bath, something is coming back that I know has yellow flowers! And in the foreground will be dwarf butterfly plants with purple blossoms. Ladyslipper Nursery is extremely knowledgeable and so helpful and they directed us on plants that bloom at different times so there will always be something colorful blossoming in the yard.
Love how this single jasmine plant has taken over!  Helps hide the Big Green Egg that has made its way onto the deck. A few years back I got Mr. MD to get the grills (yes plural, and a smoker) off the deck.  Remember to get your grills out of the line of sight from the windows where you look out onto your garden. They are not a pretty visual.
Early spring until now!  Like I said I can't remember the names of plants and this silver one has taken over and gotten taller than the daisies that will be blooming soon.  These have a tall shooting stalk with a small cluster of yellow buds, they are super hearty and can be chopped, which I will need to do after they have bloomed.  I like varying heights in the garden but the front should not be taller than what's behind!
I love when the azaleas bloom but again they are pretty for just a couple of weeks.
My hydrangeas are on their way!  I love to watch the transition in color.  They start off blue and then turn that apple green which I really like.  I have found too, that if you wait until the end of season just as they start drying on the vine, you can cut them and bring them in and put in a vase with barely any water and let them finish drying and they will stay pretty.  If you like to cut them during the season, they will last a few days for inside enjoyment.
I hope one day to have some land around me and not be encased in a subdivision. I really wanted to put some fun string lights along the deck railing but the location of the electrical outlet makes it impossible.
I know a funny picture.  
I bought solar lanterns at Target and after being in the sun all day they illuminate the deck at night...love it!
How are things shaping up around your casa?


One of the easiest and most refreshing ways to update your space is by changing the wall color.  How long has it been for you? 5 or 10 years? 
Don't let distance be a barrier, we can design for you via the web!


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Spring Tables

I am in the middle of designing some fun tables for a birthday bash for one of my girlfriend's at the beach.
Over time I have collected some interesting table ideas on my Pinterest boards.
You know I am flower girl because on all of my 'Foodie Friday's' I include flowers for your tables!

This is my take on the burlap runner...
...which was the base for a lovely brunch for a group of women.
Aren't these barrels a creative base for a table top?
Remember when your flowers center your table to make them tall enough to see through and not block the person across the table.  For a buffet, be sure and vary the heights as shown!
This is a great idea for outdoors.  
These types of glass vases are reasonable at WalMart, TJMaxx, IKEA, etc.
 I like these lanterns and plan on incorporating some at the beach.
I adore tulips, these look so good in the silver!
I'm fairly certain this was created in the fall but can easily be adapted for spring/summer.

One thing I did for our party is make a banner.
First I used a sea sponge with green paint on craft paper.  Then with a flower stencil I worked pink and orange paint and then with black paint wrote 'happy birthday' for the birthday girl.  Simple.



Visit my Pinterest page to find all of these and more table designs.

Do you need help updating or creating new spaces in your home?  Call MD, we'll pull it together for you. Don't let distance be a barrier, we can design for you via the web!

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Mixed Musings

Thought today was Wednesday...but it's Tuesday.
It's been a wee bit busy around Casa de Moore.

This morning we were blessed with some rain and I love looking out and seeing the gardens after they've been refreshed.
This spring we finally planted this bed.
I can see this from my kitchen window.  Erma (the dog) loves looking out to see if she can see 'Mr. Chippy'.
Just got these little gems from a friend, stripping them down and putting some pretty finish on them, not sure what just yet and have some yummy fabric in mind.   

Wondering WHAT is behind that blue tarp?  
1971 Corvette Stingray, English Green
Mr. MD is out of town...taking the highest bidder!  hehe

My neighbor has the most beautiful yard and gardens.  She calls me to go over and cut her hydrangea...am I lucky or what?  I'm addicted to them, have probably too many around the casa  and always add to client's homes.  
Gonna go get some more!  

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Monday

It's Monday and after having a house full of 'adult kids' for a weekend of wake-boarding (the young ones) and water-skiing (the old folks), and lots of eating, it's back on track to healthy eating and getting the washing machine fired up!
I was noticing over the weekend my hydrangea bushes.  The blossoms start out blue which I know has to do with whichever way the soil is...alkaline or acidic.  Don't know which is which or what produces what! 
But then at some point, the blossoms start turning my favorite shade of green. I'm not much of a blue girl, so I am thrilled when they turn.
 Do you know the way to dry them so they don't shrivel?
I have all these drying right now...keep the stems submerged in water until all of the petals have dried, then you can arrange them out of the water. My neighbor knows I have a 'thing' for these lovely gems and I went over and cut some today.  You'll notice a couple of pink ones!


Do you need help turning you house into a lovely home?
Contact MD for design services.

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Flower Power

It's a dreary day here in north Georgia.
I adore allysum and geraniums and was happy to see this morning the baskets starting to spill over.
Happy day to you!
It's Sunday....

...enjoy your day.


Do you want to make your house a lovely home?
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