Interestingly, my favorite dishes changed once we started making them at home. I almost never ordered Kung Pao Chicken at restaurants, but I could eat gobs of my homemade variety. I think I particularly like it made at home because I like to have veggies on the side, and Kung Pao at restaurants typically does not come with many. When we make it at home I can make a side of steamed broccoli, or we can just toss some veggies right in the stir fry. Stir fry dishes are so easy to customize to your liking.

We typically shop at our local Asian/International grocery store for all of our stir fry ingredients, but if you don’t have one nearby you should be able to get by with the International section of your local grocery store for this recipe.

This recipe has been adapted from the Rasa Malaysia version.

Kung Pao Chicken Recipe

Servings: 2

Ingredients:

1 1/2 boneless & skinless chicken breasts sliced very thin
1/4 cup roasted peanuts
2-4 dried red chilies sliced in half and remove seeds*
3 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil
5 slices peeled fresh ginger or 1/2 teaspoon of minced ginger
2 gloves garlic, minced
1 small can sliced water chestnuts (optional)
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms (optional)
1 stalk green onion, chopped

Marinade

1 tablespoon corn starch
2 teaspoons soy sauce**
1 tablespoon Shaoxing (rice cooking) wine
1 teaspoon vegetable or peanut oil

Sauce:

1 1/2 tablespoon light soy sauce***
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon black vinegar (I use Chinkiang brand. Can substitute balsamic vinegar)
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon corn starch

*Add additional red chilies if you prefer more spice. Wash hands well after handling chilies.

**I use Kimlan brand soy sauce. Brands such as Kikkoman are widely available, but I find the flavor of Kimlan to be superior and better for stir fries. If you are using Kikkoman, I would use half low sodium as the sodium content is higher.

***Light soy sauce can be found at many Asian supermarkets, which is different from low-sodium soy sauce. If not available, use regular soy sauce.

Directions:

1. Mix together Marinade ingredients in a large bowl
2. Cut the chicken into thin strips and add to marinade for 30 minutes.
3. Mix the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
4. Heat up a wok or large skillet with one tablespoon of  oil and stir-fry the marinated chicken 70% cooked. Dish out and set aside.
5. Clean the wok and add in the remaining 2 tablespoons of cooking oil until it smokes.
6. Add in the ginger and garlic slices and stir fry for 30 seconds
7. Add mushrooms and stir fry until browned (optional)
8. Add water chestnuts (optional) and red chilies and stir fry until chilies are aromatic
9. Stir in sliced chicken
10. Add the roasted peanuts  and continue to stir
11. Add in the sauce and stir continuously until the chicken meat is nicely coated and the sauce begins to thicken.
12. Stir in the green onion
13. Dish out and serve hot with steamed rice.

This recipe also doubles well. I typically double this recipe and use my largest cast iron skillet to make enough to last us a couple days.

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Silestone Corner Shelves in Shower

A few of you asked how the Silestone Lagoon corner shelves are installed in the shower. They are installed while tiling. The shelf is set on a row of tile, then cut the next row to fit around them. The thinset on the wall and the grout locks them in.

We put the shelves in that location because I didn’t want the first thing you see when you walk into the bathroom to be our shampoo bottles. While the shelves are one of my favorite features of the bathroom, the doorway to the shower is right at the top of the stairs and you can see into the shower and the other corner, so I wanted to keep that corner looking clean and tidy.

The Hand Shower

I’ve also received some questions about how we like using a hand shower on a sliding bar as our main shower head. I looove it.

I’ve seen tons of pictures of bathrooms with the regular shower head and then a hand shower on a bar off to the side, which seems to be the thing to do these days, but it’s more expensive to have the plumbing done for this configuration, and I’m guessing that second hand shower gets mostly ignored if it’s off to the side like that. A hand shower was important to us because I like it for cleaning, and I just think they are super functional. Also, our alcove tub isn’t as deep as, say, a luxurious master shower you see in BH&G, so to fit in a hand shower would have been tight, especially with the corner shelves up by the plumbing.

For a tight space or budget conscious I’d highly recommend going with just a hand shower on a bar.  I particularly like having the style on a bar, as opposed to the kind you can just screw into your regular shower head arm, because I’m 5’1, so it’s much more comfortable to have the shower head at my height. You taller folk might be wondering why :). Down where I am, I end up getting the widest part of the spray, so if I’m rinsing out my hair, half the water is going around my head. It’s nice to have the more concentrated part of the spray closer by lowering it down. Not that big of a deal, and I could certainly live with it if we had a different setup, but it was an easy enough fix while we were renovating the bathroom. Marty still uses our other shower mostly (it’s kinda nice that we each have our “own” showers!) but when he does use this one he can easily raise it up. I also think for a hand shower, the kind on a bar look nicer than the kind you screw into the regular shower head arm. The kind you can use with the arm are great if you are working with an existing shower, but since we were renovating, we figured we’d design it for the way we planned to use it.

Cleaning Beveled Subway Tile

I’ve also had some questions about cleaning the beveled subway tile in the shower and if the bevels attract extra soap scum and grime. It doesn’t seem to…but I’ve also been actively preventing that, which I’ll get to in a sec. Our beveled tile isn’t as deep of a bevel as some. I would definitely recommend a shallower bevel for a shower and save the deeper bevels for backsplashes and other decorative areas. I could see a deeper bevel being an issue.

I have actually gotten in the habit of wiping down the shower with a towel after getting out, and I’m experimenting with this to see if this will keep us from needing to clean and scrub it as often. So far so good. It’s been over a month that we have had the shower, and not a single bit of mold, mildew, or soap scum, and I haven’t cleaned it except for wiping it out daily. I have a special towel that I wash regularly that hangs on its own hook for this purpose, and we had a bathroom fan installed which I make sure to run. This might seem kind of gross at first, since we’re all so in the habit of spraying bleach, chemicals, or even vinegar to disinfect, but what makes showers a germ-fest is  the standing water, day after day, which allows bacteria, mold, and mildew to grow. We started from day 1, so a clean slate, literally.  I’m still going to disinfect it sometimes, just because I’ll probably start to imagine these things are crawling around and I just can tell, but drying it out seems to be keeping the shower clean and sparkly. I’ll keep up with this experiment and let you guys know how it goes!

I also realized I didn’t show a good picture of our mirror and vanity together, and I LOVE how this area turned out.

If you haven’t already, check out my hallway bath “done” post for all of the sources and to see the rest of the bathroom!

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So anyway, I’ve gotten a ton of great reader questions about the roman shade and thought I’d post some of the more frequently asked ones.

Is it possible to add a liner?

A number of readers have reported back that they have added a liner. Some have said they have doubled up the fabric for blackout purposes, and others have used a separate white (or other fabric) to cover up the slats. If anyone has done this and has a tutorial, please send me a link!

Would this work with wood blinds?

I haven’t personally tried it, but I think it would.

How much fabric do I need?

This will vary depending on your window. You need a piece of fabric that is a couple inches larger on each side than your blind.

What type of glue did you use?

I used Liquid Stitch Fabric Glue.  Make sure to use some kind of fabric glue since it is designed to not show through the fabric or yellow.

Can you see the slats when it is down?

When the sun shines through, yes, I can see the shadow of the slats. Check out the comments in my original post for lots of ideas from readers on how to avoid this.

How do you clean it?

I just vacuum it. I would not recommend trying to wash it. An indoor/outdoor fabric might be a better choice if you are concerned about cleaning since it could be more easily wiped down. Some readers have suggested using velcro on the back of the fabric instead of glue so that you can remove the fabric for washing. While I haven’t tried this, I think that also might be a good option.

How do you mount it?

The blinds I purchased for this project mounted from behind. In the picture below you can see one of the clips holding the blind. If you are buying new blinds, I would recommend purchasing this style. I don’t have experience using the style with the cube type mounting bracket that wraps around either end of the top metal bar, but if this is what you are working with you could try not gluing just the top corners of the fabric down, so they lay on top and hide the cube mounting bracket when you hang the blind. If it flips out at the corners when you do this, velcro might work to hold it down. I haven’t tried this, so if you do, please report back in the comments!

Could you sew it instead of gluing?

Sure! If you are more comfortable sewing the edges, then by all means do so. I would still recommend fabric glue for attaching the fabric to the slats.

Where are the cords?

The cords to raise and lower the shade just run down the side of the window when the shade is up, and when it is down, the cords are behind the shade. To get t to them, I just reach behind the shade. This might vary depending on your blinds.

Will the fabric glue hold the weight of the blinds?

I’ve gotten this question a lot. The fabric glue doesn’t hold anything but the weight of the fabric. The blinds are held by the ladder cord which is part of the raising/lowering mechanism of the blind. When you raise and lower the shade, the blinds go up and down on the ladder cord, and the fabric is just along for the ride.  Because of this, I don’t have any worries about the durability. Even if the fabric comes off one day, I would just glue it back :). So far so good, though.

If you have any other questions, post them here in the comments or in my original how to make a roman shade from a mini blind post, and I’ll try to answer them!

Linking up to: Funky Junk Interiors, Savvy Southern Style, Remodelaholic,The DIY Show Off, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Home Stories A2Z, House of Hepworths, House of Rose, Jennifer Rizzo

I tried it myself, and it worked on our glasses too. And bonus? If you have a stainless steel dishwasher, it keeps the inside looking brand new. Ours had started getting a whitish residue, and that is mostly all gone now. This goes for any dishwasher, but it also keeps it smelling fresh. Ours had started to get a little musty smelling, and adding vinegar each cycle cleared that right up.

What to do:

Buy a BIG container of vinegar, and then each time you run a cycle, just pour what looks like about a cup into the bottom. You’ll still want to use dishwasher detergent (I use Cascade Complete). You don’t have to mess with putting it in the rinse aid slot, or any slot, just pour it right in the dishwasher and start it up. If your glasses are really cloudy, it may take a few cycles to get them completely clear.

Cheers to sparkling glassware!

And P.S. – check out my Easy Stainless Steel Cleaning tip to see how I keep my stainless steel appliances so shiny.

Linking up to: Funky Junk Interiors, Savvy Southern Style, Remodelaholic,The DIY Show Off, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Home Stories A2Z, House of Hepworths, House of Rose

First (and most necessary) step was painting it Sherwin Williams Useful Gray.

This room was one of the more…jarring…rooms in the house when we bought it (and that’s saying something, since we had some interesting paint colors initially). I’m assuming it was a kids room.

I think that’s why I went the complete opposite route using soft and soothing color. Sherwin Williams Useful gray fit the bill perfectly. You can also see the bathroom peeking out through the doorway :). I always enjoy seeing how rooms flow in other blogger’s homes, so I’m going to try to do that more.

The Sheepskin rug is from Amazon. I absolutely love it. It is so soft and easy to clean. It doesn’t shed like a lot of wool rugs since it’s real sheepskin, and it is naturally non-slip since it is basically suede on the back. This is considered a 4 pelt.  All sheepskin rugs are unique with some bigger, some smaller, some whiter, some a little more yellow, but you are limited to certain shapes, since there are only so many ways they can sew together the pelts. It’s a bit of a gamble ordering online since you can’t choose your specific rug, but I’m very pleased with the one we got.

See that storage cube under the desk? We use it as a foot rest. I can’t tell you how much more comfy it is to put your feet up under your desk. Try it. You’ll love it.

A part of me always wants to make a room perfect before posting, but I figure we all have rooms in our homes where we feel we could make some improvements, and this is definitely one of them for me. Like I said this is mostly stuff we already had, and I won’t list out all the things I’d like to change and add since I’m just so glad to finally have a calming, comfortable office space. Even as is, both Marty and I have been getting a lot of use out of this room – me during the day when I work from home sometimes, and at night it is Marty’s man cave.

So how about you? Any work in progress rooms that you love anyway?

The cost to repair was finally getting to be more expensive than the cost to replace, so we decided to replace.

How did we decide? Well, it’s kind of a sinking ship, for one thing. Fix one part, there are 10 more that could break anytime. A few hundred spent here and there to fix a part was worth it for awhile, but when we started getting quotes for things that are $1000+ to repair, it was time to consider replacing it. These expensive repairs were not DIYable, either, since they required removing and replacing freon which can only be done by a pro.

Nowadays from what we’ve been told, it seems like heat pumps last 10-15 years. Since heat pumps get used for both heating and cooling, they run year round, and therefore break faster than if you have a separate furnace and A/C. If you figure worst case scenario, your heat pump lasts only 10 years, and you get a super fancy $10,000 unit, that’s $1000/year of ownership. If you are paying more than $1000 per year on repairs, I think it makes sense to just get a new one. We were at that point.

The decision to replace even more obvious once we started getting quotes. We found we really liked some options that cost about half what we were originally thinking. And they came with a full 10 year parts and 2 year labor warranty. So a $5000 unit is really only about $500/year to own for the first 10 years.  Some sales people tried to tell us that the better efficiency would totally negate the cost of the unit because of energy savings, although I’m skeptical we will see such extreme savings. Our electric bills average around $150/month. If they all of a sudden slash in half, I’ll let you guys know! I’m doubtful this will happen, but hopefully they will go down some.

The unit we decided on was a Bryant 2.5 ton, variable speed air handler, 13 SEER system.

Bryant is made by Carrier, and from what we have researched, they are essentially the same, except a little less expensive because of the name. The air handler actually says Carrier even though we paid for a Bryant system.

The final price was about $4,600 which included an insulated return box and wrapping some of the ductwork with noise reducing material, and he also included a media filter slot. Media filters are those big 4 inch filters that you only change every 6 months, and from what we researched they are better for your system than the typical 1 inch filter that comes standard.

We decided on a 13 SEER system (which is the minimum you can buy nowadays) because our home is already pretty efficient being only 1660 sq. ft. and having newer windows and doors. Everyone who came out said they usually recommend at least 15 SEER, but in our case since our energy bills were already low, we would likely not see enough savings to justify the extra cost for a higher SEER rating. Since we got a variable speed air handler, our SEER rating is actually going to be about 14.

The new unit is so much quieter. Our air handler is right smack in the middle of the first floor, and our 10 year old Rheem really roared. The tech adjusted the blower speed for our new Bryant to be on the lowest setting possible to still move enough air around our house. Most of the noise from our Rheem was from too much air being pushed into the ducts. Using a lower setting really really helped. You can still hear it running (this is practically unavoidable when the closet is right next to you) but the noise isn’t nearly as obtrusive anymore. The Bryant is a quieter system as well and using an insulated return box and wrapping the exposed ducts also helped.

So, while not quite as fun as making something pretty, I sure am happy to be able to hear the TV at the same time the heat is running :).

I last left off with a little sneak peek  of our new tub, tile surround, and tile floor and also how we solved a little looks vs. durability dilemma. We have since painted the walls, re-installed and painted the baseboards, installed the vanity and sink, hung a new mirror, split out the single light fixture into two sconces (with the help of my dad), and added additional towel hooks. We did all this while painting the laundry room and patio doors, so we’ve been busy around here!

And just as a reminder, here’s where we started.

I am so smitten over the color we chose. It is Sherwin Williams Mega Greige. The mirror is by Allen+Roth from Lowe’s and the sconces are by Martha Stewart from Home Depot (and a total steal!).

Every time I find a new color I really like, I get the urge to paint my whole house that color. But, I’m sure that will pass. I really do like it a lot though.

The vanity is so so so functional. Vanities in general often seem less than efficient with storage to me, but this one by St. Paul has the perfect sized drawers and the perfect combo of drawers and cabinet. I wish all vanities came with a pullout bottom drawer. It is exactly the right height for extra TP, and there is still room to spare for more storage of stuff. The side drawers are deep enough to still be functional, and the cabinet part is just the right size for all of our taller bottles. And it was only $289!

The counters are Silestone Lagoon and the sink is a Kohler Archer. Check out my durable bathroom materials post for all the deets on why we chose Silestone.

The floors are Florim Stratos Avorio, a porcelain 12×24 tile.

The beveled white subway tiles are are classic and functional. I’ve started wiping down the shower each time I get out to keep our grout fresh and new, and it really keeps the shower so much cleaner overall.

The hand shower is amazing. It’s set low right now to accommodate my 5’1 height. Marty raises it up when he gets in. It really is so much more comfortable to have showerhead at your own custom height.

And these Silestone corner shelves make me so happy to be done with our old grungy shower caddy.

I also hung a couple hooks right outside the shower for extra towels.

We went with larger hooks made by Martha Stewart from Home Depot because I find that they help with drying out the towels better. I think these are technically called robe hooks if you are searching for something similar.

Sources:

• Wall Paint: Sherwin Williams Mega Greige
• Trim Paint: Benjamin Moore Simply White (leftover from painting our kitchen crown molding)
• Vanity: St. Paul Manchester from Home Depot
• Vanity Top: Silestone Lagoon
• Vanity Faucet: Moen
• Vanity Sink: Kohler Archer
• Mirror: Allen+Roth from Lowe’s
• Sconces: Martha Stewart from Home Depot
• Tub: Kohler Archer
• Hand Shower: Moen
• Tub Faucet and Handle: Moen
• Toilet: Old American Standard
• Shower corner shelves: Silestone Lagoon (same as vanity)
• Floor Tile: Florim Stratos Avorio
• Towel Hooks: Martha Stewart from Home Depot

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I gave laundry room and the door leading to it a little paint makeover, and wow what a difference paint can make. This space had been completely ignored since the day we moved in, and let’s just say laundry rooms get…icky. We vacuum and dust and wipe down stuff in there, but when I was prepping the walls I realized just how much dust and grime (think splatters of laundry detergent) get all over the walls. I have no idea how. I blame the previous owners :). Really, I do kinda because I think they used to keep their dog in there…can I still blame unexplained grime on them almost four years after moving in?

Well, in any case, the fresh coat of paint took care of it.

Here’s what we were dealing with before. I like white rooms, but this was definitely not white done right. Too much of a good thing.

Much better. I painted the breaker panel the same color to help blend it in better. We already had the green baskets which were a Homegoods find. Hoping someday to replace the wire shelves with cabinets.

This color looks really good with bright accents.

I wanted to make this room a little fun so I snagged an extra piece of fabric from my no sew table runner and framed it.

I also painted the exterior doors right outside with Clark + Kensington Spanish Eyes.

Before it was…bad. Very bad. Plastic trim turns yellow if it isn’t painted.

But once painted, it’s all good.

And since it’s only barely becoming spring outside, our patio landscaping is looking a little barren. So I’m going to cheat and use a pretty summer picture of our patio to show how nice this color looks with the whole thing :)

Have you had a chance to try out Clark+Kensington paint yet? You can read my full review over on Involving Color and also see my super fast method of painting doors!

Charlie and Co. Design

Unfortunately, if they were in one of our bathrooms I just know I would fret and worry over etching and scratching those “soft” stones while driving my husband crazy in the process. So instead I used those bathrooms as inspiration and set out on a mission to find nice looking, durable tile and counter materials.

But let me back up first. Before I came to that realization, I was at the Tile Shop one day and fell in love (like seriously) with a silver travertine they have called Legno Luce. It would have made a stunning floor tile. It came in  6×24 tiles (these were just 4×16 samples), so minimal grout, and it had subtle veining with tan and gray. I was blinded by the pretty tile.

I was so sure this was it, then I started reading up on people’s experiences with marble and travertine floors, and my confidence slowly faded away. I went back to the store to look at their porcelain floor tiles and came out empty handed.

I made an appointment with a large local tile store nearby (I’ll be honest, with little hope of finding anything I really liked) and met with the most awesome lady. I showed her my inspiration pictures, and I explained that I liked the stone in these pictures, but I don’t want stone. I just want the look and feel and colors of stone. She got me immediately. Then she mentioned how much she likes to browse around Houzz.

She had me at Houzz.

We were like kindred spirits I tell you. The first tile she showed me was the one. Of course that didn’t mean I was done. No. I had to bring home a bunch of samples and agonize over them for a couple of weeks. But in the end, that first tile was the one we went with.

They had a display of this in the store, and I had to bend down and take a close look to even tell it was porcelain. Yes, I’m the girl in the store petting the floor.

Please excuse my iphone picture quality.

It was called Florim Stratos Avorio, and it has a lot of similarities to the silver travertine I initially wanted. For a porcelain tile, it has a lot of depth and is very realistic in person. Fast forward to now, and here are our Tile Shop Legno Luce silver travertine samples on top of the Florim Stratos Avorio porcelain that we used in the bathroom. I think the Stratos Avorio is a pretty good lookalike!

I knew going in that we wanted white subway tile for the shower surround, so I mentioned that. She was all let me show you this beveled subway tile! Then I was all but…er…um…our budget…? It actually wasn’t much more than the cheapo white subway tile at Home Depot. Score. I do certainly enjoy showering in here now.

The corner shelves for the shower were another story.  Nice looking and durable and at least somewhat budget friendly were not as easy as I thought to find in corner shelves. The only options I was able to readily find were white ceramic shelves that were a bit too chunky looking for the look I was going for, and marble shelves, which I didn’t want to have to worry about. I’d seen granite shelves you can order online, but that wouldn’t go with our look either.

Then I had a light bulb moment! Our stone fabricator can probably make quartz corner shelves to match our counters. Quartz can withstand just about anything you can throw at in (within reason, of course). We wanted three shelves, and got some quotes and they came to about $135 for all three. Not the cheapest option, but not as bad as I thought it would be. Score again.

The counters were actually an easy choice. We knew early on we wanted quartz, with only a fleeting thought of maybe doing a light granite, but we kept coming back to a marble look alike quartz. I had seen a lot of pictures of Caesarstone Misty Carrara and was pretty sure that would be the one, but then I saw Silestone Lagoon in person which is a fairly new offering. Oh, it’s pretty. It’s a lot like Misty Carrara, but I’d say just a tad more realistic looking. Either are good choices for a marble looking quartz.

Here they are side-by-side. I took this in the store with my phone of their big samples. Caesarstone Misty Carrara is on the left and is a little bit creamier with less marbling. Silestone Lagoon is on the right and is a little bit lighter and grayer with more “veining”.

I had to call around to a bunch of fabricators to find a Silestone Lagoon remnant, and actually the only two fabricators that had it were the ones that do the stone counter fabrication for our local Home Depot and Lowe’s. If you are looking for lots of quartz remnants at a good price, maybe try and find out who your local big box stores use to fabricate. They will probably have a good selection.

So I guess the point of all my rambling here is that I think manufacturers have come a long way with their fakes, and it’s totally possible to do a nice looking bathroom with materials that will hopefully stand up to some wear and tear, scrubbing, and occasional harsh cleaning.

We’re just finishing up the final touches in here, and should be back for the full reveal soon. I’ve been posting some other sneak peeks over on my Facebook page if you want to check them out :).

Linking up to: Funky Junk Interiors, Savvy Southern Style, Remodelaholic, The DIY Show Off, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Home Stories A2Z

This was for a complete kitchen remodel that included everything but the floors. Previous owners had installed laminate which we decided to keep for the time being. We replaced everything else – cabinets, counters, appliances, backsplash, and added some custom trim. All was DIY’d!

Ikea Lidingo Cabinets – $2,700

Kashmir White Granite Counters – $1,400

Appliances (range, fridge, dishwasher, hood) – $3,000

Tile Shop Hampton Carrara Marble Backsplash – $300

Restoration Hardware Cabinet Pulls/Knobs – $200

Restoration Hardware Heath Flushmount – $200

Trim – ~$100 (I don’t remember exactly…might be overestimating)

Kingston Brass Faucet – $200

Huuuge 32″ Kraus Sink – $300

GE 0.7 cu ft Microwave that tucks away perfectly in the micro cabinet – $75

Final Rundown:

• Ikea Lidingo Cabinets – $2,700
• Kashmir White Granite Counters – $1,400
• Appliances (range, fridge, dishwasher, hood) – $3,000
• Tile Shop Hampton Carrara Marble Backsplash – $300
• Restoration Hardware Cabinet Pulls/Knobs – $200
• Restoration Hardware Heath Flushmount – $200
• Custom Trim – ~$100 (I don’t remember exactly…might be overestimating)
• Kingston Brass Faucet – $200
• 32″ Kraus Sink – $300
• GE 0.7 cu ft Microwave – $75

Grand Total – $8,475

Also, I just want to let you guys know I’m now on Twitter and Instagram! Or rather, I’m trying to figure out Twitter and Instagram :). Come over and say hi!

Linking up to: Funky Junk Interiors, Savvy Southern Style, Remodelaholic, The DIY Show Off, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Home Stories A2Z, Thrifty Decor Chick