It’s spring, it’s spring! (Kind of.) Chicago has felt a string of 70-degree days, although lest we get too excited, there was also a mini blizzard this past weekend. Even still, it’s so close. Thisclose. Can you feel it? Every year, Scott and I joke that Chicagoans have winter amnesia, us included. We’re so ridiculously […]
Tag Archives: outdoor
A Night In
This post is in collaboration with Article. On a good day, 60-degree weather in the city can feel a good ten degrees warmer when the sun’s hitting you. It’s during times like these that we like to eat lunch on our east-facing back patio, where the cool air is mixed with hot sun. For the better […]
Fence Day!
When we were first introduced to our home at the showing, we were immediately greeted by our neighbor’s dog – but it wasn’t, um, the friendliest hello. It scared the pants right off of me (well, not really!), and it has continued to do so for every friend (and passerby) that walks up to our […]
Let There Be (Outdoor) Light!
If it hasn’t been incredibly obvious over the last handful of updates, we’ve really been focusing on our house’s exterior – and my goodness, the power of paint! And new concrete! And well made stairs! (Can you tell we’re thrilled to nix the baseboard talk; if only for a little while?) After all of those […]
A Perked Up Patio
First things first; you guys are beyond amazing! Thank you for the Small Cool love yesterday. Voting runs through Friday, so there’s still time to ‘Favorite’ our little home. Jack sends his (slobbery) kisses! Scott and I spent the past holiday weekend back home in Cincinnati with family. We came home Sunday afternoon exhausted and […]
Penguin Planter (or, Penguin Gets a Hairdo)
This is one of those weird projects that, while not the most beautiful, has sentimental meaning. Years ago, I sculpted a giant penguin in my college ceramics class. My penguin is slightly crooked (maker’s error), not exactly proportional to the actual penguin anatomy, and as a result of moving him from home to home, one […]
Bring On Spring
Despite the fluke-of-a-weekend warm up, it’s still really flipping cold here in Chicago (too cold for our liking at this time of year) – but that hasn’t kept us from daydreaming of more sunny days, long walks with Jack (sans bubble coats) and after-work drinks on the patio – our patio, your patio, the bar’s […]
Pillow Peek
Last week, I took it upon myself to enjoy the warmth on our patio and read a book. But as I tried to treat myself to a chill down, I kept noticing our stack of unfinished outdoor pillows – stuffed in a garbage bag and stashed under a bench. Perhaps we’d been too busy to […]
Boxed In: Part 1
Our patio will be awesome this year. There – we said it. We will step our game up like never before and disallow the hail storms, late starts, or basement floods (God forbid) of yore to slow us down. Our ambitious goal for the year involves a complete makeover, including the construction of custom flower boxes […]