Keeping Roses Fresh in a Vase
Fourteen. I counted them properly on a Sunday afternoon that I will not be getting back, standing in front of the cabinet under my kitchen sink pulling out vase after…
Wide Mouth Vase Ideas
I counted last week. Got the little step stool out, pulled everything down off the top closet shelf where I apparently store vases like other people store Tupperware they’re afraid…
Baskets Under a Console Table: What Goes Inside
I used to think baskets under a console table were basically furniture jewelry. You put them there, they look woven and warm and instantly your entryway photographs like it belongs…
Bird Bath Algae: Simple Fixes
I own six bird baths right now. Six. On a lot in Milwaukee that’s a shade over a quarter acre, which means if you stood in the middle of my…
Bird Bath Water Habits Worth Changing
Denise stood at my kitchen window last April, coffee in hand, looking out at the bird bath in a way that meant she had something to say and was building…
What Goes in a Bowl on a Coffee Table
Renata walked into my apartment two weekends ago, stopped dead in front of the coffee table, and said, “Chloe. Is that a bowl of rocks.” Not a question really. More…
Fire Pit on Concrete: What Goes in the Bottom
My dad stood on my patio in Charlotte, coffee in hand, looked down at the fire pit I’d just assembled on the bare concrete, and said, “You’re gonna crack that…
What Fills a Clear Vase Well
A friend of mine, Marla, walked into my kitchen last October, looked at the vase on the counter, and said, “Helen. That water looks like pond water. Actual pond water.…
Decorative Bowl Fillers for a Coffee Table, Season by Season
I dropped my keys into the bowl on my coffee table last Tuesday and heard them land on top of a receipt from CVS, a hair tie, one AirPod that…
Filling a Display Cabinet Without Cluttering It
I counted eleven times last Tuesday. Eleven times I walked past my own display cabinet and adjusted something by maybe half an inch, then walked past it again ten minutes…