Ivory Living Blog

Making a Splash this Summer

2011-07-07T17:51:00.001-06:00

Summer is here and it is HOT!

Here are some fun Summer activities you can do in your backyard to make sure your summer is COOL!

SLIP AND SLIDE

Break out a slip in slide if you have one but if not do not worry, a camping tarp will work just as great!

WATER BALLOON TOSS

have your family pair up and toss a water balloon back and forth. Every five throws take a step back. Make a fun bracket and hang it on your back porch when you are done. Have fun prizes for the winner!

SPRINKLER TAG!

Turn on the Sprinklers and get ready for some fun! Play a round of Sprinkler tag where the kids once tagged have to stay frozen until some one un-freezes them.

A cool sweet treat your family will LOVE!

Classic Chocolate Chippers Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup margarine, softened

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 1/4 cups flour

1 (11 1/2-ounce) package semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 carton of ice cream of your choosing

Cream butter, margarine and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla, mix well, then add dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips. scoop into balls with a cookie scoop, bake on un-greased cookie sheet for 9 to 11 minutes at 375 degrees.

Once the cookies have cooled melt chocolate and spread on the bottom of the cookie, so that the ice cream wont make the cookie soggy. Place cookies upside down with the spreaded melted chocolate on the bottom in the refrigerator to harden for thirty minutes or until hard. Once the chocolate at the bottom of the cookie has hardened put your ice cream of choice in the middle of two of the cookies. Place sprinkles or tiny chocolate chips around the ice cream if desired! Keep in the freezer till ready to serve!

Mixing Things Up in your Home for a Design You will Love

2011-06-21T14:04:00.001-06:00

When moving into our new home we often times contemplate traditional design or modern. It is time to break the rules! You can complement two design styles and have the best of both world if you do it right!

How to Mix Traditional and Modern Furniture Styles
Create a Home in Your Own Style
By Abe Abbas, About.com Guide

When you mix traditional and modern furniture styles you can create an individualized, multilayered living space. Furnishing your home should be more about developing your own personal style rather than adhering to any single style unless you are truly passionate about it.

That said, combining modern furniture and accessories with traditional ones can result in chaos if not planned in advance. There are three major considerations to make before you decide to mix modern and traditional styles.

1.Modern or Traditional?

First of all you need to figure out if you want your space to be primarily modern or primarily traditional.

Figure out which style should dominate. It can be a modern space with antique accents or a traditional space with contemporary accents. Letting one style dominate is crucial, because you don’t want to create a space where everything is fighting for equal attention.

2.Why You Love it

Once you’ve figured out where your loyalties lie, find out why either style appeals to you. Look at the visual attributes of a piece of furniture. When you find yourself attracted to a piece is it because of its shape and lines, or do you admire it for its color and texture?

There is no wrong answer, so spend as much time as you need to. Whenever you see some furniture you like, note it down. Notice how you describe it to some one else. Do you talk about its sleek lines or rich texture? If you collect pictures of furniture you like, you will begin to see a pattern.

You can then begin to tie in pieces of different styles through their shapes, or material or color and texture.

3.Harmony or Contrast?

After figuring out what you like and why you like it, it is time to settle another important question. What kind of a look are you going for: harmony or contrast?

If you want to create harmony and a restful look, select furniture pieces that are more alike, or just a few degrees apart. For instance, for a harmonized look you may want to pair Hans Wegner chairs with a more traditional wood table. Although these chairs have a very modern sensibility, they are made of wood, which can harmonize with the table.

To create contrast and excitement, juxtapose colors and textures, such as Eames molded plywood chairs in different colorful stains, or the Tolix chaise in steel or colored metal with your traditional table.

4.Mix it Up

Now that you've figured out which elements are important to you, go ahead and start mixing it up.

Let one style dominate, and use the other one for accents.

Tie different styles together with the same color, texture, or shape.

Get different nuances by creating harmony or contrast when you mix different styles.

Sometimes all we need to have the home of our dreams is a little courage. Courage in buying the home, and courage in decorating to what ever our hearts content. Follow your interior instinct and don't hold back, your home will be all you, and oh so beautiful!

Catch up in the Kitchen: Designing your Perfect Kitchen

2011-06-14T12:22:00.000-06:00

This is not your grandmother's kitchen. This is your kitchen, a place that screams out you and your family. A kitchen filled with life and your stories!

Have you ever noticed that no matter how hard you try, when you have guests over everyone ends up in the kitchen. Everyone is gathering around the kitchen island talking about life munching down on grapes and close enough to the fridge and pantry for extra snacks.

When it comes to designing your kitchen think:

Lighting

Space

Color

Appliances and Accessories

Lighting: A kitchen is a great place to use natural light. Take advantage of the windows in your kitchen. Also look into under the cabinet lighting, which looks fantastic when all you need is a few lights on when you are no cooking. The natural light brightens and will warm the feeling of your kitchen. Use windows as focus points and use lighting that eliminates the kitchen in a natural lighting effect. Stay away from fluorescent and dull lighting.

Spacing: Whether you have a large kitchen to work with or a small kitchen utilizing your space is a smart way is key to a great design. Kitchens are best when there is space to socialize, sit and chat while cooking and entertaining.

Color: Color your kitchen with fun wall paper prints and bright painted walls. For a bigger project, use bright tile squares and place in the nooks of your kitchen. Take advantage of your blank canvas of a kitchen if your kitchen is white and add dashes of reds with kitchen towels, vases, appliances, etc. Colors that pop with a white kitchen are reds, bright or dark blues, oranges, black, greens.

Appliances and Accessories: Your kitchen can become all your own with fun appliances and accessories! A colorful kitchen aide, chalkboard, brightly decorated canisters for your spoons and spatulas will add character to your kitchen.

Your kitchen will be a success! But the best accessory to a Kitchen is good people and good food!
Everyone will be in your kitchen when you make:

Tollhouse Pie!

19" unbaked pie shell

2 eggs

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup butter, melted and cooled

1 cup semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Beat eggs until foamy. Beat in flour and sugars until well blended. Add butter and blend. Stir in chips and nuts. Pour into unbaked pie shell. Bake 1 hour at 325 degrees. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Good Food, Good Friends, Good Company

Details Make the Difference

2011-06-07T13:58:00.000-06:00

A house can be truly beautiful. Perfect floors, amazing use of paint and color. But what is it that when you walk into a home really make it stand out. It is the details. It is the wall of family photos, it is the use of your favorite colors, it is the tiny trinkets that you have gathered from your travels.

The details of you that are in your home, are what make your home the most amazing home of all! The best piece of advice when decorating your home, put yourself and your families personality in your house.

Recently we were in a darling home where the families love of travel and the father's passion for flying was present on the walls and in the home. There were old fashioned photographs of air planes and family photos of the the family's travels.

Vases and trinkets that have been in your family for years can be a great vocal point of your room! The best way to make a house a home. Make the details personal and special to you.

Making your Home the Destination for Summer Memories

2011-06-02T17:56:00.000-06:00

Your home is the new destination for summer memories! Clean up the back yard and break out the fire pit for s'mores and roasted starbusts. Starbursts?! Yes! Just as you would roast a marshmallow, put the starburst flavor of your choice on the roasting tool. Hold over fire and roast for three minutes or so. They are a treat your kids will love!

Have an outdoor concert in your backyard staring your talented musical friends. Set up a small stage and have blankets and treats for your guests.

All the neighborhood will be loving your home with your very own outdoor movie night. Set up a projector and a white sheet or screen. Project your favorite summer time movie. Sand Lot is a favorite for the summer and filmed right here in Utah!

Set up a hammock for your family to catch up on all their summer reading.

Put up a couple tents in your back yard and have a sleep over for your family under the stars. Play cards and take photos for when your family has grown they can remember one of their favorite camping trips.

Ultimate Charades

Have every one write three names of people on tree separate pieces of paper. It can be anyone your brother's name, Justin Bieber, Oparh for example.

Put every ones folded pieces of paper into a bowl.

Split into two teams.

Have each person from the team be take turns acting out the names in the bowl, while being timed for two minutes.

first round the "actor" can talk and use actions.

second round can say one word

third round no words.

(The rounds end when you have gotten through everyone in the bowl. Then you put all the names back in the bowl and start again.)

How ever many people their group can guess gets that many points.

Take advantage of your backyard this summer, and before you know it your home will be a special place not just for your family but for your neighborhood and your friends.

Sweet Summer Dinner Party

2011-05-31T13:05:00.000-06:00

Celebrate Summer at your home by having an under the stars dinner party. Break out your patio furniture and your BBQ, and invite family and friends over to celebrate those warm summer nights!

Ivoy's

"Favorite"

Wild Rice Salad

2 quarts plus 1 cup water

3 cups wild rice

1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, chopped

1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas

1 green pepper, chopped

1 pint Cherry tomatoes, halved

1 (4-ounce) package slivered almonds toasted

Dressing:

1 1/3 cups vegetable oil

1/2 cup vinegar

1/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon celery salt

1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon paprika

2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine all dressing ingredients in jar and shake well. Refrigerate until ready to use. In large saucepan, heat water and rice to boiling. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 45 minutes. Drain any excess liquid from rice. Mix together rice, artichokes, peas, green pepper, green onions, tomatoes and half the dressing. Toss well. Cover and chill. Just before serving, toss again and taste. Add more dressing, if desired. Sprinkle with toasted almonds and serve.

Ivory's "Favorite"

Easy Barbequed Salmon

3 pounds of salmon fillets

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Place salmon, skin side down on grill-or place on sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil on grill. Mix remaining ingredients and use to baste salmon frequently. Cook until salmon changes color. Turn over and peel of skin. Baste frequently and cook until done, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Salmon should be cooked through, but just barely. As soon as the juices of the fish turn white, test salmon by poking it with a knife and peeking inside.

Celebrate Summer - Sun drenched days and starlit nights...--Gooseberry Patch

A Parade of Patterns!

2011-05-26T13:02:00.000-06:00

Refresh your home with patterns and bright colors this summer season. A room can easily be awakened with patterned pillows, rugs, bedding, and furniture. Don't be afraid to mix patters and colors.

“Every room needs a slap in the face.”

—Dransfield and Ross co-owner Geoffrey Ross, Jan/Feb 06

Start with one thing you adore such as a color or pattern and then build off that. Patterns will draw attention to the room and bring out the colors present in the room as well.

I don’t think people have enough fun with decorating. It doesn’t always have to be so serious. Design isn’t like marriage. You don’t have to commit for life.”

—Designer Ross Cassidy, June 10

Matchy-matchy is not for me. I don’t want things to be too perfect. I want there to be relationships with texture and color, and sometimes it’s more about the contrast that chimes."

—Fashion designer Peter Som, September 05

A House Party for your Great Graduate!

2011-05-16T12:59:00.001-06:00

Graduation is a fantastic reason to bring everyone to your home to celebrate all the hard work and accomplishments of those in your family who are graduating!

Have a celebration in honor of your graduate and their friends! Have pictures of your graduate from their educational experience around the house. Have their diploma on display!

Have Polaroid camera with cap and gown, other fun props, and costumes to take pictures of your guests and place the picture in a notebook with a good luck/ congrats message to leave for your graduate.

decorate your house with balloons and take jam jars and fill with tea lights to make your very own lanterns!

Chocolate Graduation Caps!

Turn Reese's Peanut Butter Cups upside down. Take a little frosting and attach a small chocolate square to the bottom of the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. Take frosting and attach a Sour Punch Straw for the tassel. Put chocolate graduation hat on a a white straw or stick for serving.

Serve your party delicious Mexican Layer Dip

2 large avocados

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 package taco seasoning mix

1 (16-ounce) can refried beans

1/4 cup taco sauce
8 green onions, chopped

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

1 (4 1/2-ounce) black olives, drained and chopped

2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

tortilla chips

Peel, pit and mash avocados with lemon juice, salt and pepper; set aside. Combine sour cream and taco seasoning mix; set aside. Mix refriend beans and taco sauce.

To assemble, spread refried bean mixture on a large, shallow serving platter. Spread avocado mixture over beans. Spread sour cream mixture over avocado. Sprinkle chopped onion, tomatoes and olives over all. Cover with cheese. Serve chilled or at room temperature with tortilla chips.

Ivory Homes would Like to Congratulate all the graduates of the class of 2011!

Easter Morning Elegant Brunch Strata and Berry Patch Lemonade

2011-04-22T10:00:00.001-06:00

Elegant Brunch Strata

1 cup milk

1/4 cup white whine or white grape juice

3/4 loaf day-old French Bread, sliced thick

1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 pound Gouda cheese, thinly sliced

4 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

1/2 cup purchased pesto sauce

4 eggs

salt and fresh ground pepper

1/2 cup whipping cream

Grease baking dish (8"x12" or 10" round.) Combine milk and wine in a bowl and dip bread slices in mixture. Gently squeeze liquid from bread and place wet slices in prepared dish. Cover bread with chopped cilantro and drizzle with olive oil. Layer half the cheese and tomato and slices over the bread. Daub half the pesto on top and repeat layers of cheese, tomato and pesto. Beat eggs and season with salt and pepper. Pour evenly over layered mixture. Pour whipping cream over top and cover with plastic wrap.Chill overnight.

Take strata out of fridge about 3 hours before serving, to bring to room temperature. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake, uncovered, until puffy and browned, 50 minutes to 1 hour.

Berry Patch Lemonade

1 pound berries, fresh or frozen (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries)

1 (12-ounce) can frozen lemonade concentrate

4 (12-ounce) cans cold water

ice cubes

mint leaves

Puree berries in a blender. Mix lemonade with water in a pitcher. Add pureed berries; blend and chill. pour over ice in tall glasses and garnish with mint.

Happy Easter Weekend!

Your Home is the First stop for the Easter Bunny this Year

2011-04-18T11:59:00.000-06:00

Easter is at the end of this week, and what better way to prepare for the fluffy tale, long ear Easter Bunny than decorating your home.

A New Twist on Decorating Easter Eggs
After you dye your eggs with food coloring or a take home kit from the grocery store let them dry. Once dry take your Easter Eggs to new levels. Poor different colors of glitter on to plates. Poor glue into a bowl and use a paint brush to gently cover the egg in glue. Elmer's has a great spray glue that works the best. Then gently roll your eggs in glitter covering the entire egg. Put your glitter eggs in a clear jar, on top or a desert or in egg holders as a great addition to any centerpiece.

Easter Flowers
Get creative with your flowers for your Easter day party. Before you decorate your eggs poke a small hole with a Bobbie pin and drain out the egg. Then dye and decorate your eggs. Take your decorated eggs and using an exacto knife cut a bit off the top. Then fill the egg with a little bit of water. Place the eggs in egg holders and stuff eggs with wheat grass, and small flowers and buds.

Decorate your door with fresh spring flowers. Take a bright colored spring umbrella and tie a spring colored ribbon around the mid section of the umbrella. Take a large zip-lock-bag and tie around tulips and the rest of the flowers. Stuff the surrounding space with cellophane or newspaper. Fill the top with moss to fill in the showing top space. Hot glue eggs, and and a birds nest if desired. Hang the umbrella on your door for a great welcome home!

Show Your Decorated Eggs off with and Easter Egg Tree

After coloring your eggs use paint pens to add detail. Then glue ribbon around the egg for an extra decorative look. Loop the ribbon and attach to top of egg. Hang your eggs in a tree inside your house or outside.

A Holiday Twist to an Old Tradition

2011-04-11T12:40:00.002-06:00

We all love the Favorite Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies! But make your cookies extra festive by adding Cadburry chocolate mini eggs or Easter m&m's. We promise these cookies are hit!

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup margarine, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoons baking powder

2 1/4 cup flour

2 cups old fashioned oats

1 large bag of Cadburry chocolate eggs, or 1 large bag Easter m&m's

OPEN HOUSE THIS SATURDAY April 9, 12-5pm at RED LEDGES

2011-04-07T17:18:00.001-06:00

Whether you are looking for your second home in a place that will have generation of memories, or a new home in one of the most beautiful settings, as homeowners we approve love what Red Ledges has to offer our family.

Check out these Red Ledges Pictures, and come this Saturday April 9, for an OPEN HOUSE12-5pm at RED LEDGES. Ivory is offering luxury mountain villas in this prestigious golf community nestled against the foothills starting along the 6th fairway.

If your family loves tennis, riding horses, skiing, golf, swimming, hiking, you wont want to miss what Red Ledges has to offer!

When you are the family with the home in Red Ledges all your kids will want to take their friends to your house to show them all the fun your family has from boating near by, to golfing right in your backyard! Your kids will be thanking you for generations to come!

It is a stunning Western landscape that inspires the imagination, where shimmering mountains beckon, blue skies abound, and red rock cliffs define your sense of place.

Imagine life lived against a backdrop that has the power to leave you speechless. Yet, here, it isn't the scenery you'll come to cherish most, but the endless sense of adventure that awaits you with each dawning day. Welcome to Red Ledges.

Red Ledges is a private, four-season mountain golf community in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, minutes outside of Park City, with a Jack Nicklaus Signature Course and nine-hole Nicklaus Design short course, a Cliff Drysdale Tennis Academy, Jim McLean Golf School, spacious equestrian center, and vibrant village center with heated pools, spa, kids club, adventure cabin, and much more.

Outside the gates, the celebrated ski resorts of Deer Valley Resort® and Park City Mountain Resort are only minutes away. On the slopes of Deer Valley Resort®, a private ski-in/ski-out lodge awaits our owners. Blue-ribbon fly fishing abounds on the many area rivers. Lakes offer waterskiing, boating, and fishing. And all this adventure is an easy 45-minute drive from Salt Lake City International Airport.

A collection of estate homesites and well-appointed luxury cottages will offer a select few the unique opportunity to call Red Ledges home.

Make the Most out of your Neighborhood

2011-04-04T15:00:00.003-06:00

We often don't truly feel at home until we know our neighbors and our neighborhood. Home buyers take into account parks, schools, and churches near by. When getting to know the neighborhood encourage your kids to ask other kids in your neighborhood to play night games such as capture the flag and kick the can. Night games is a fun way to enjoy the warm spring/summer nights and for your kids to make new friends. Game night can be about making new friends, break out the games and start a new neighborhood tradition.

As we approach summer and warmer weather invite your neighbors over for a BBQ or open house. People love to see others homes and their decorative approach to things. Once you have an opportunity to get to your neighbors start a carpool for the kids, a book club, or a neighborhood community service activity. A great neighborhood will grow the love of your home!

Recognizing those who Make a Difference: Habitat for Humanity

2011-04-02T10:46:00.001-06:00

As homeowners we realize how special a home is and how it is not just about the color on the walls and type of carpet beneath our feet, but it is about how we feel safe and loved at home. We believe along with the organization Habitat for Humanity that every family needs a place to call home. But for many families, no matter how hard they work and try, having a home of their own will always be out of reach. That is why Habitat for Humanity is essential.

•Since its founding in 1976, Habitat for Humanity has built over 400,000 houses, providing shelter for more than 2 million people in over 90 countries around the world.
•This innovative program offers a hand up not a hand out. Habitat for Humanity does not give away homes. It provides a way for hard-working, medium and lower income families to own homes in a market where housing is beyond their financial reach.
•Salt Lake Valley Habitat for Humanity partners with the community to provide affordable housing and no-profit, zero-percent interest mortgages to our partner families. New homeowners and volunteers build homes under the supervision of trained home builders. Individuals, corporations and many others provide much needed financial support.

Check out Habitat for Humanities website http://www.habitatsaltlake.com/ to see how you can donate and get involved!

We would like to recognize Habitat for Humanity for there to help give others a home, because Ivory Homeowners know how important and special a home is! Thanks for all you do!

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world. ~Anne Frank

Start of Spring with Blueberry Muffins!

2011-04-01T10:00:00.001-06:00

Happy April Fools! Before you break out the saran wrap and the toothpaste to play a trick, treat your family to this fresh breakfast and fill your home with the most delicious smells of spring!

Blueberry Muffins

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

pinch of salt

1cup sugar

1/4 cup butter

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk
1 cup frozen blueberries

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat until fluffy. Using a wooden spoon, alternate stirring in a dry ingredients and milk until combined. Stir in frozen berries and bake in greased or paper-lined muffin tins at 400 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. Makes a dozen muffins.

Fruit Delight

Combination of fresh and/ or frozen fruit (depending on what's in season)

strawberries

peaches

blueberries

raspberries

grapes

blackberries

brown sugar, to taste

almond extract, to taste
2 to three bananas

2 to 3 kiwis
In a large serving bowl, combine fruits of choice. Sprinkle on brown sugar and almond flavoring and toss. Before serving, slice bananas and kiwis on top.

Spring is a great time to crack open those windows and let the fresh air fill your home. Let the natural light fill up the rooms of your home and give your favorite room a natural feeling. We are so excited for Spring!

Spring Gardening Tips!

2011-03-29T12:06:00.000-06:00

Spring is here, and what better way to make your home feel like spring time than planting a garden! It doesn't matter the size, potted plants or shrubs will help give your home a refreshing feeling with the beginning of a new season!

Follow the 10 tips outlined below from Martha Stewart for a welcoming garden that's filled with color and fragrance!

Survey the Yard

Make note of tree limbs that should be removed or cabled, especially those that overhang structures. Hire an arborist to maintain large trees.Cut down last year's perennial foliage, and toss it into the compost pile. Rake mulch from beds planted with bulbs before foliage appears, and refresh mulch in other planting areas after soil warms. Check fences, steps, and pathways for disrepair caused by freezing and thawing.

Order Tools and Plants

Tune up tools so everything is ready when things start growing. Make note of what is missing, and order tools for the new growing season. Choose new plants for the garden. Order perennials, trees, and shrubs for spring planting.

Get Ready to Mow

Send the mower and leaf blower for servicing, or if you have the right tools, sharpen the mower blades yourself. Refill your mower with oil, install fresh spark plugs, and lubricate moving parts if necessary. Clear the lawn of winter debris, and look for areas that need reseeding before mowing.

Prune Trees and Shrubs
Remove dead, damaged, and diseased branches from woody plants. Thin and trim summer-blooming shrubs such as butterfly bush, hydrangea, and most roses, except for old-fashioned once bloomers. Prune cold-damaged wood after plants resume spring growth. Prune spring-blooming shrubs and trees after flowering.

Take a Soil Test

Check soil pH with a home soil- test kit, taking several samples from different planting areas for an accurate reading. Enrich soil as necessary: Add dolomitic lime to raise the pH or elemental sulfur to lower the pH.

Prepare New Beds

Clear the planting area as soon as soil can be worked, removing sod or weeds and debris. Spread a 4-inch layer of compost or well-rotted manure and any amendments over soil, and cultivate it to a depth of 10 to 12 inches with a spading fork.

Plant
Plant bare-root trees, shrubs, and perennials such as hostas and daylilies by early spring. Choose a cool, cloudy day if possible. Transplant container-grown plants anytime during the growing season except midsummer; be sure to water them thoroughly. Sow seeds of cool-season flowers like sweet peas, poppies, and calendula, and vegetables such as lettuce, parsley, and spinach.

Fertilize

Apply balanced fertilizer (6-6-6 or 8-8-8), fish emulsion, or other soil amendments recommended by soil-test results around trees and shrubs when new growth appears. Spread high-acid fertilizer and pine-needle mulch around acid-loving shrubs like azaleas and camellias. Begin fertilizing perennials when active growth resumes.

Start a Compost Pile

Start a compost pile, or use a compost bin, if you don't have one already. Begin by collecting plant debris and leaves raked up from the garden. Chop these up first to speed decomposition. Add equal amounts "brown" (carbon-rich) materials like dried leaves and straw and "green" (nitrogen-rich) materials like grass clippings and weeds in even layers with water and a compost bioactivator. Turn regularly. Continue adding to the pile throughout the season for rich, homemade compost next spring.

Clean Bird Feeders and Baths

Disinfect the feeders by scrubbing with weak bleach solution (1/4 cup bleach: 2 gallons warm water). Rinse and dry the feeders thoroughly before refilling them.Scrub birdbaths with bleach solution, then rinse them thoroughly and refill, changing water weekly. Clean birdbaths and feeders regularly throughout the season.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Spring Gardening Tips - Martha Stewart Home and Garden http://www.marthastewart.com/article/spring-gardening-tips

Ivory Favorites of the Week

2011-03-24T10:00:00.001-06:00

Here are our Favorites of the week!

BBQ Chicken Pizza

1 pizza crust (homemade or Boboli)

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 1/3 cups barbecue sauce, divided
6 ounces Provolone cheese, grated
6 ounces Gouda cheese, grated
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

In a large Ziploc bag, combine chicken and 2/3 cup of the barbecue sauce. Marinate in fridge for 4 hours or overnight.
To cook, place chicken and marinade in small baking dish and bake for 30 minutes at 325 degrees. Let chicken cool, then slice into thin pieces.
Sprinkle half of the grated cheese over

Our Favorite Charity of the Week: The Utah Food Bank

Utah Food Bank is a proud steward of the generous donations provided by individuals, corporations, foundations and government entities.

•Utah Food Bank can turn every $1 donation into $7 worth of food and services due to the incredible support of volunteers and in-kind donors.
•From every $1 donation, 98 cents goes directly to food and services; only 2 cents of every dollar goes to administration and overhead.
Hunger in Utah
•1 in 10 Utahns, and 1 in 8 Utah children, lives in poverty.
•Utah is ranked fourth in the nation for the highest rate of very low food security in the nation. About 350,000 Utahns risk missing one meal every day.
Click Here to Donate to the Utah Food Bank!

Tulips!

With Spring upon us, tulips are in season!

We are loving all the tulip in the valley right now!

Fun Fact about tulips: Tulips are one of the only flowers that when cut at an angle and put in water continue to grow.

Our Favorite Model of the week!

Villa Carlotta Model Home
Rambler4855 Total Sq Ft
4327 Finished Sq Ft
4 Bedrooms
3.5 Bathrooms

Pepperwood Creek Villas
11000 South Wasatch Blvd
Sandy, UT 84092
(801) 523-2200 Phone

Hours Open: Mon: 12pm-7pm;
Tue-Fri: 11am-7pm; Sat: 10am-7pm

We love this floral decorative kitchen aide!

Our Favorite Family Game of the Week: Catch phrase!

The guessing game that is the life of the party! Our home owners love this game!

We Love this Comment from one of our home owners!

"Fantastic experience from beginning to end!!! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! Love the neighborhood and everything about it!!!"
- Michele Hudson, Princeton Park Towns

Spring Cleaning plus Happy Saint Patrick's Day Recipie for Your Family!

2011-03-17T18:02:00.000-06:00

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!Oh the luck of the home owner! As a home owner we feel very lucky for all that we have but sometimes we find ourselves having all that we have cluttering up our home! Unfortunately there is not a little leprechaun to come save the day but there are ways to make the most our of your spring cleaning!

Use decorative boxes and get the most out of your shelves.
Magnets can be a great way to organize an office. take metal strips and attach to your wall. Then take small sealable boxes and hot glue heavy duty magnets to the back and line on the metal strip.
Glass Jars can be a decorative way to store small items for the office or the bathroom
Attach hooks to the back of closet doors for extra hanging space.
Label what you can! Make it decorative or attach a small piece of tape somewhere that only you can see. Labels help you committed to keeping things in a specific and certain place.
Throw away or donate what you truly don't need. If you have something in your closet or storage that has not seen the light of day in a year or more it is time to say goodbye.

Celebrate Saint Patrick's Day with a green treat!

Lime Vanilla Freeze!

1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream

1/2 gallon lime sherbet

Take ice cream and sherbet out of freezer one half hour before serving. When softened a little, mix together and serve with a sprig of fresh mint.

Kids Sharing a Room

2011-03-10T16:57:00.000-07:00

You have found the house of your dreams but the only catch is that your children will have to share a room. Sharing a room can be a very positive experience for siblings and can bring them closer together. Before you move in and design their room sit down with them and discuss what they want there room to be like. Make sure that each child's personality is placed in the design of the room. Make sure that your children feel like they have a space all theirs in their room that belongs only to them.

Lynne Reeves Griffin, RN, MEd says "The most obvious benefit to putting siblings together is that sharing a bedroom encourages them to learn to negotiate a relationship both can be happy with. How to share or decorate the room teaches your children to co-operate towards a common goal. It may not always be peaceful negotiation, nontheless they are learning to combine forces to accomplish a task. You can play a key role in supervising how this partnership is fostered by creating the ground rules that your children use to make decisions."

Sharing a room can a great opportunity to bring your children's imaginations together to create a space that they have always dreamed of!

Favorite Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

2011-03-08T11:09:00.003-07:00

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup margarine, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 1/4 cup flour
2 cups oats
1 package (11.5 oz) milk chocolate chips

Cream together butter, margarine and sugars. Add vanilla and eggs and mix well. Add salt, soda, powder and flour and mix until combined. Stir in oats and chocolate chips. Roll into balls with a cookie scoop and bake on ungreased Cookie sheet for 10 to 12 minutes at 350 degrees.

What to do with that Extra Room?

2011-03-03T17:40:00.000-07:00

Do you have an extra room that you don't know what to do with? here are some ideas to make your home personal and unique!

A Music Room

Feed your family's musical Passion. A music room is a great way to bring the family together as well. Frame old record covers and hang them on the wall, and make sure to have a place for people to sit and have home concerts! A piano, drums, a harp, guitars, whatever instruments your family plays have a room to show case your families talents!

A Game Room

Need a place to store your board games? A Game room is a great fun addition to any home, especially if you want to be the home where all the kids want to hang out! Fill it with a pool table, air hokey, poker table, Foosball table, and board games. Have a chalk board to keep score and frame score sheets and hang them on the wall for all the glory! a sound system to play back ground music could also be fun way to bring in the party!

A Place to Learn and Work
A Home office/ study area for your family can be beneficial toward making your home a place of accomplishment and of leisure. Have a work table for group projects, a desk for personal tasks, and bookshelves filled with favorite books. A comfortable chair for personal reading would also be a nice addition. Hang a large map on the wall for geography, and have a chalk board for group study groups. Hang your kids A+ papers on a bulletin board or frame them and hang them on the wall.

Make your extra room all about your family, celebrate what is unique about your family and showcase it in your home!

Excited for Spring!

2011-03-01T10:56:00.000-07:00

Happy March! Welcome Spring with a Spring wreath on your front door this season! Tie ribbons that complement your door color, or hang the first letter of your last name to add a personal touch to your home.

Zesty Spring Salad

1/3 cup pecan pieces

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 head green leaf lettuce, torn into pieces

1/2 head iceberg lettuce, torn into pieces

2 kiwis, peeled and sliced

1 cup strawberries, halved

1 avocado, chopped

Dressing

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 tablespoons sugar

zest and juice of 1 orange

zest and juice of 2 limes

Caramelize pecans by mixing with sugar in small skillet over low heat until sugar melts. Spread on foil and cool, then break into pieces.

Combine dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well.

Toss salad ingredients together with pecan pieces, add dressing to coat and serve.

Turn Your Home into Your Own Personal Movie Theater

2011-02-24T16:55:00.000-07:00

This weekend save the $8.50 you would spend at the movie theater and turn your home into your very own movie premiere! Invite friends and family over to watch a movie you all love. Arrange your furniture so everyone has the best seat in the house. Depending how elaborate you decide to go you can make your own movie tickets to pass out to everyone. Hang silver stars from the ceiling and have a red carpet where everyone can take photos to remember the night! Decorate brown paper bags with the kids before and use them as treat sacks for the night. Fill colorful bowls with varieties candy and have everyone fill their treat bags before the movie starts. When everyone's ready sit back and enjoy the show!

10 Movies recommended by home owners like you:

Disney's Lion King

What about Bob

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Chronicles of Narnia

Hook

Mrs. Doubtfire

Toy Story 3

Back to the Future

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Shrek

Some treats for your movie night that everyone will give four stars!

BOYERS' CHEX TREAT

1 (12- ounce) box Corn Chex

1 (13-ounce) box Golden Grams

2 cups flaked coconut

mix together cereal and coconut in a large bowl.

1 cup sugar

1 cup corn syrup

3/4 cup butter

1 (4-ounce) package slivered almonds

Mix sugar, corn syrup and butter in saucepan and boil 3 to 4 minutes. Pour over cereal mixture and coconut and toss to coat. Then add slivered almonds and toss again. (If almonds are added first, they stay on the bottom of the bowl.) Spread out on wax paper to cool.

BEST POPCORN BALLS

3 quarts of popcorn

1/4 cup butter

40 large marshmallows

pinch of salt

Melt butter slowly and add marshmallows and salt. Stir until marshmallows are melted. Mix with popcorn. Dip hands in cold water and shape popcorn balls. Makes 16 large balls.

Framing Up Your Life

2011-02-22T11:37:00.000-07:00

You have unpacked the boxes, the furniture is all in place, but you long to feel like your home knows you. You long to have a feeling that your home knows your family recipes, your family secrets, and that your home will be the safe for your family memories.
What better way to make your house feel like a home then putting your memories up for all to see! Do not fear the hammer and the nail, because there are wonderful design possibilities to hang your photos and make your home a one of a kind with your family photographs!

Whether you hang a whole wall filled with photographs or just a couple to balance the wall you will need:

Measuring tape
A pencil
An honest friend who will tell you if your frame is straight or crooked

Before you start using your hammer map out your design. Hold frames up to where you desire them to hang and make small dots on the center of of the top, bottom, and sides. Then hang to your hearts content!

Ideas for designing a family photo wall:

Install thin shelves and lean photos of all sizes against wall.
Hang ribbon, fishing line, wire, rope along the wall or across a room and hang pictures.
Take a large framed photograph and frame it with smaller framed photos
Secure a metal bar on the wall and create a hook on your frames. Then hang photos with other framed photos hooked all the way down
the wall.

Once your frames are hung, have your loved ones over to show off your very own unique personalized home!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T12:27:00.001-07:00

Valentine's Day is a great reason to bring everyone home to celebrate the love in your life!

Home Ideas for Valentine's Day:

Fill glass vases with different red and pink candy, such as red hots, Swedish fish, red and pink bubble gum, red vines, red and pink taffy, and red and pink lollypops.
Frost cookies with your family
Have and 8x11 red or pink piece of paper for everyone in your family. Hang them on your fridge and throughout the day have the members of your family write "what they love about that person". Frame the pages or make a book for next year.
Make valentines for primary children's hospital
Have a Valentine's Day Party with 90's boy band pop hits
Watch classic old movies like Breakfest at Tiffany's and Sabrina
Have a dinner that is filled with everyone's favorite foods!

Tonight make something your family will love!

Heart shaped Macaroni and Cheese

from Ivory Favorites cook book:

1 pound heart shaped macaroni

1/4 cup butter

4 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

3 cups grated Cheddar cheese (medium or sharp)

Cook macaroni in boiling, salted water according to package directions and drain. In large saucepan, melt butter. Add flour and stir. Pour in milk and cook, stirring constantly, until thick. Add salt, pepper and dry mustard, and then add 2 1/2 cups of cheese and stir until cheese is melted. Remove from heat and add cooked macaroni and mix together. Pour into 9" x 13" square baking pan, sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

From our Home to yours Happy Valentine's Day!