House Projects

Two furniture projects I tackled recently.


The first, a stool J found on the side of the road was in terrible shape—and I almost got rid of it calling it a lost cause. It's an odd-bird to begin with but with some primer + yellow paint that I had laying around and fabric I picked up at a flea market months ago I've come to love it! At 5'3" I've desperately needed a kitchen stool for a few years now but couldn't bring myself to purchase a vintage beauty (aka rusty stool found in an abandon garage) for a hot $65 at the local antique shop!

The second was a much greater undertaking. J purchased this arm chair from American Council from the Blind in Lubbock as his desk chair in grad school. It was the ONLY piece of furniture besides our bed and side table that made the move to Brooklyn. It's comfortable, sturdy & not too big. But the unattractive orange vinyl had split and it was looking a little worse-for-the-wear. I really wanted to recover it with a great pattern and I'd been super inspired by Native American or Mexican blankets. Their really durable and a dime-a-dozen... in Texas. After weeks of searching I had seen a few at the Brooklyn Flea but they wanted $40+ for them. (I'm pretty sure my mom has 6 sitting unused in her linen closet at home) We were strolling through our 'hood one weekend and J spotted this one laid out with stoop sale items over the top of it (Brooklyn term for garage sale... we don't have garages here). The seller wasn't intending on selling the blanket but was happy to take $5 for it! After doing some research on how to make my own piping—then ordering the proper foot for my sewing machine I was good to go!


I'm not going to lie. It wasn't easy. But it wasn't too difficult either (I just don't let anyone look too closely!)

Warmbelly Brews: Empire Saison

Warmbelly Brews brewed this beer at the beginning of the summer—possibly my favorite of their beers so far.

I drew the Empire State Building on this label while sitting in the King's County Courthouse looking out the picture window at the Manhattan skyline (and the Empire State Building) while I was serving jury duty. I also hand drew the letters while sitting many long hours there as well.

They have an ESB (currently sitting in my closet...) that will be ready for sampling this weekend. J wrote the ESB recipe himself with some inspiration from the West Coast beers we had on our trip so as he says, "it's gonna be a hoppy boy!" As soon as they taste it and name it I'll be whipping up some new labels!

Stoop-Sale finds

Here in Brooklyn we don't have garages or yards (well, most of us don't) so we don't have yard sales or garage sales. But we do have stoops. So we do have stoop sales. I spotted these little gems at a sale 2 weekends ago and still can't get over that old ink packaging!


The gentleman I bought them from said they were his son's and that I should just tell him what I would pay for them. I got the whole lot for $3. Three. dollars. I've often eyed lino cutting tools at art supply stores but just can't stand buying the plastic kits they make now. Expect to see some lino prints coming soon!

And then there's this beauty... the couch J spotted on his way home from his Saturday morning bike ride. (it's a lot less orange and a lot more yellow in real-life.) Oh, and did I tell you? We moved. yes. again. For the last time in NYC. no more. But our place is bigger, cheaper and in the same 'hood. And quieter. We wake up to the sound of woodpeckers. I'm not kidding. Good-bye honking horns, we've moved to the country! (or at least that's what it feels like...)

Gathering Place

When I was in college I screen printed this coffee table that I picked up at a thrift shop. It was a lot of fun to make and I got a few good years of use out of it before we moved to Brooklyn (unfortunately there's no space for a coffee table in our apt). For those that are having a hard time it says "Gathering Place," which is, of course, what a coffee table is.

This table is currently homeless. My sister took some photos of it for me before she moved to Florida so I could try to find a new owner for it. It's a little rough around the edges (as you can see!) but the design has been sealed on the top and won't scratch off. It is also very sturdy.

If you are in the greater Lubbock area and would like to give this table a good home (for free!) please email me at: kd.mcnamara85@gmail.com

roof: part one of what is likely to be many

Our dear friend Russ came to Brooklyn and stayed with us for a week... among many other things he made me laugh hysterically every day & he figured out how to open the door to get on our roof (which may or may not have an "emergency exit only" alarm on it but it doesn't seem to be that big of a deal...right!?).

One thing that I am learning that I absolutely cannot live without is access to an outdoor space on my home. Be that a roof top, front porch, backyard, decent sized (i.e. not SRO and must hold more than 1 chair) balcony—fire escapes of average size do not count. I could, perhaps live with either a nice park directly across the street or, in my most blissful, if not wildest dreams—a beach. If the weather is decent I just need to be outside but I don't always want to be "out" walking around the 'hood. Don't get me wrong, Prospect Park is a dream come true and a quick 8 min. walk from my door but if I want to have a little aperitivo it's, well, illegal besides the hassle of packing and toting food, drink, cups, blanket, book etc. All of that to say, thank you, dear Russell for giving me what, after 5 months sitting in a 350 square-foot apartment, feels like my freedom!



These shots were taken (while working on our taxes on the roof) with the fancy camera that I'm learning how to use properly... obviously having some issues with the fading evening light but in a weird way all of these look cool even if they aren't remotely representative of the light at the time!

Kendra's Bridal Shower

I got to play hostess just before Christmas at my sister's bridal shower. Of course my main duty was to take care of the invites while the other hostesses did a great job with the food & decorations!


I screen printed (with my yudu, of course!) the doily/snowflake pattern onto grey stock and ran that through my printer for the black text.

I also made some simple recipe cards that people filled out and brought to the shower to help Kendra & Stephen start a good collection of recipes from their loved ones.

Now... to get cracking on those wedding invites!

Gettin' ready

The Holidays are here—the only reason I can get into winter! Now, if only NYC could get some of the snow that everyone else seems to be getting. (Just for a day or two... then we can be finished!)

Canyon Echo

After living our new apartment for 3 1/2 months we've finally decided that we are going to paint the bathroom and in a moment of inspiration (maybe?) we decided on a color in about 4 minutes. I'll be heading to the hardware store first thing tomorrow for a bucket of Canyon Echo. I'm hoping it makes our closet-sized bathroom feel like a canyon... though I'm not holding my breath.

Have an inspired weekend!

Canning Confession

I like pickles.
I know some people that would die of shock if they heard me say that. But let's be clear. I like my pickles. They're pretty delicious and I might have eaten a whole jar by myself for a snack. While I was making dinner.

They took a good 3 weeks before they were ready. The pickled okra are fantastic as well—also a 3 week wait. I tried to eat some okra (just to test them) before the 3 weeks and they were really tough and I couldn't really bite through them.

We're in vinegar heaven.

a photo for this day.

I received an email from Brandi (who I have never met face to face though I'm happy to be getting to know) a few weeks ago requesting a photograph of my shadow during an adventure. This is what I sent to her. I should play with J's tripod more often, it was really fun!

Canning: part 3

I finally had some friends over for a little canning party on Saturday. It was a lot of fun and we ended up meeting at the Greenmarket in Grand Army Plaza to pick up some fresh goods before hand. We made these spicy okra, these spiced pickles and another batch of more traditional pickles via a mix that Caitlin brought. We also ended up with too many okra for what our original mix made so we decided to make some okra with the spicy pickle mix. I'll let you know how everything turns out!

The zucchini pickles from 2 weeks ago are really amazing, by the way. They are very mustardy, which I love. We still have a big jar left but I can't wait to make more.

We had every intention of making jalapeño jelly as well but found fruit pectin to be a little difficult to find that afternoon. I got some and we're all set to try our hand a the jelly later this week. (I'll share the recipe then!)

Back to School!

J gets kids at school today. No more long summer evenings just working on the apartment & hanging out with friends (or reading Moby Dick which still isn't quite finished!). Now the evenings will be spent calling parents & grading papers but that gives me time to work on some of my own side projects!

Good luck J, & to all of the teachers & students this year!

Part 1 of (hopefully more than 1!)

I've been doing my research, scouring the farmer's markets and NYC Greenmarkets... I've been reading and collecting recipes and tips. This year will be my first adventure into canning. My Grandma Decker's basement always had a rack of shelves under the stairs (& I'm sure much more than that when she was raising her 13 kids on a North Dakota farm!) with homemade sweet pickles, jellies, jams, and other delightful preserves that she or my Grandpa had grown.

I'm thinking that I'll be doing some of these summer squash & zucchini pickles (I'm notorious for hating traditional pickles.) Some more traditional spiced kirby pickles for J. Possibly some peaches and this recipe for spicy okra. My Aunt Connie has a Jalapeño jelly recipe that I'm trying to track down at the moment as well.

I've never tried anything like this before and I found the How-to section of Fresh Preserving to be the most helpful resource so far.

If you have any recipes or advice please do share. I need as much help as I can get!

*typography adapted from a recent article on Home Canning that I worked on for my day job.

Summer Fest 2009

1. I love food. I love shopping for it, preparing it, smelling it, eating it!

2. I love finding new seasonal, delicious recipes to make with J and share with our friends and family.

3. I love sharing these ideas with others... like minded or not. Maybe I can help them see that cooking at home doesn't have to suck. Or that eating seasonal isn't really a burden, it's a blessing!

4. I love MattBites. I find Matt to be insightful, hysterical & a real source for inspiration as an at-home cook & especially because I'm a designer for a food magazine! His food photography & his husband's styling skills are some of my all-time favorites.

All of these things said. I'm really excited to keep up with Summer Fest 2009 to learn what other bloggers and foodies are doing with Summer's bounty! (They'll feature herbs, stone-fruits, beans-and-greens, & a whole week dedicated to tomatoes... yes please!)

*Do yourself a favor and read Matt's post on herbs in cocktails. I already bought my rosemary to make a Rosemary Salty Dog. A Greyhound is one of my all time favorite beverages but I rarely drink them anymore having moved on from vodka + juice combos. I can hardly wait to get home and mix things up with a new take on an old friend!

just a peek!

Some "work in progress" shots of the new apartment.

J get's all of the credit for the painting of the grey shelves and 98% of the grunt-work on everything else...including shlepping heavy furniture on his shoulders from across the 'hood all by himself! Thanks J!

Williamsburg Waterfront

We saw the Dirty Projectors play yesterday. Man, those girls can do some crazy things with their voices!

Got some great deals on vintage furniture this weekend but it was so nice to get out of the ever-evolving new apartment yesterday evening for a fun date-night in Williamsburg with J! (excuse my run-on)

Happy Monday, back to the grindstone!

catch up!

26. That's how many days it rained in NYC in June. Portland, eat your heart out. These were taken on the roof our last night at our first Brooklyn apt. I thought the sky was showing off for us, our last sunset with such amazing views of the city!


I'm about a week behind on life since we rushed out of town last week. So even though we've been in the new apartment for a little over a week it only feels like about 3 days...

*these photos lost a lot of color when I uploaded them... if you can believe! Has anyone else experienced this? Any suggestions about how I can avoid that?

moving: part II

We're up to our knees in boxes. J's finishing his last week of his first year as a teacher (I can't believe it!). And I'm releasing another issue of the magazine tomorrow. A little stressed, we are. Here are a few more pretty photos from around the web for my new apartment inspiration...

J loves the art on the wall // I love the table.

Literally cannot get over this fireplace (no fireplace in the new apt, I just love this one!) & love the arrows hanging on the wall.

Have I ever mentioned J's record collection? He's obsessive & as he's out-grown his milk crates I'm trying to think of a better solution that can show them off a little more. again, via d*s.

Lastly, yes, this is a shop in Portland. But I'm obsessed with the utilitarian/clean/functional way the space is laid out.

We're moving!

Next weekend we're moving across the 'hood. No big thing (not like last time!). Ever since we signed on the new place I've been nervous since we weren't supposed to move until August I hadn't mentally prepared myself to move out of our first home together. The small studio that we've grown to love. It took work but it's a totally livable spot and we've both grown and changed a lot in the last year in that one room.



Enough with the sentimental musings...We started boxing a few things last night and I can't wait to get in to the new space and paint, get a couch & have dinner parties!

*shots from around the web in my home inspiration folder on my desktop.