| September 2009 |
The Design Diva Dishes!
Design Trends and Lifestyle Tips |
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Dear ,
Can you believe summer is almost over? I hope you all took time out to do something special and make memories for you and your family. Now that children are back at school, extra-curricular activities are in full gear, and schedules are as crazy as ever, it may not be as easy to find time for yourself. However, I believe in the saying "Your date book is your creed. What you believe in, you have time for." So make sure during these busy days, you schedule time for what gives meaning to your days. Your life depends on it!
This issue of The Design Diva Dishes will share ideas for updating your decor for fall. The Trend Report will present bountiful decorations from the garden, the color of the month is Red-Orange, and Green Design encourages you to address your home's energy efficiency before the cold weather sets in. Our recipe of the month is Buffalo Chicken Dip, a great appetizer to serve for hungry football fans.
Have an awesome month, and please feel free to contact me at senisblychic4u@aol.com with any questions or comments.
Barbara Green |
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Fall Decorating |
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Autumn is a great time to go outdoors and enjoy the cooler temperatures and Mother Nature's incredible display of color. Wouldn't it be nice to bring her color palette indoors to breath new life into your home? The Design Diva is totally opposed to the commercialization of Autumn. The stores are filled with gaudy, plastic decorations celebrating Halloween. I ask you to back away from the plastic, and decorate for fall in a more natural, organic fashion. Not only is it less expensive, it is also more enduring. When you decorate for fall, rather than Halloween, the decorations can remain until you are ready to bring out your Christmas decor.
Starting at your home's entrance, hang a twig wreath with vibrantly colored leaves and berries. I really love the topiary made from pumpkins below. It is super easy to make. Add pots of mums and lots of pumpkins for a festive look. As long as you have no hoodlums in your neighborhood to smash them, this display should last all season.
Moving inside to your foyer, this attractive arrangement of wheat stalks will welcome your visitors and go well with any color decor. It would also make a nice accent for your dining room sideboard.
In your living room, all you need to do is put a warm colored area rug in your seating area, some autumn-hued pillows and throws on your sofa, and you have a cozy retreat for the chilly evenings to come. The Design Diva always advises homeowners to invest in neutral colored sofas so they have flexibility when changing your look for the seasons. Additionally, some homeowners like to add heavier drapes to the windows to add more visual warmth and insulation to the room. If it isn't already, you will want your seating arrangement to be centered around the fireplace and away from the windows.
Finally, it is time to change out your lightweight summer throw on your bed for a warm, fluffy comforter or duvet. Think about incorporating the rich shades of gold, copper, burgundy, brown, or orange into the decor. Doesn't this bed look so inviting with its elegant fabrics and autumnal colors?
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Trend Report |
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This month's decorating trend piggybacks on the current lifestyle trend of "Recession Gardens." If you aren't familiar with the term, it refers to the increasing number of Americans who have ventured back outside during the recession to cultivate the earth for their gardening and eating pleasure. It has become an affordable hobby that also helps put food on the table and encourages healthier eating. CNN reports that gardening is up 19 percent compared with last year, with the stated motive most often being a way to reduce food bills during the recession.
Even if you haven't been toiling around in the garden all summer, you can still add organic beauty to your home by choosing produce from your local farmer's market or grocery store. Liberal use of pumpkins, apples, gourds, squash, indian corn, and mums will add an abundance of autumnal colors to your home interior.
Decorations can be as simple as a basket full of apples, or a pumpkin surrounded by fall leaves and indian corn.
Mini pumpkins look great lined up on the mantle with candles and leaves.
To make the colorful vegetable centerpiece, below, begin by covering a platter with kale, parsley, and rosemary. Next top with mini pumpkins, onions, peppers, potatoes, and squash. Surround with a few candlesticks and your table is set to impress. With the generous use of herbs, the table not only looks good, but it smells good, too!
There is even an organic solution for those of you who either dislike orange or want a more sophisticated look for your home. The new variety of white pumpkins add an elegant look to your home when detailed with a simple black design painted with a fine-tipped paintbrush. If you can't find a white pumpkin locally, you can always paint an orange one white (or any other color), but once it is painted, please don't eat it.
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Color of the Month |
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The color of the month is Red-Orange. It is a color associated with fun, energy, excitement, and stimulation. According to color expert Dewey Sadka, red-orange gives you the respect to honor your individuality. He says respecting yourself starts with respecting those around you. When you honor those who love and respect you, you will gain the power to honor yourself.
Some people might not have the color confidence to paint an entire room red-orange, as shown below, but you can see that by adding the generous use of white, it becomes a truly beautiful room:
Another option might be to add red-orange accents to gain the energy and excitement the color brings, without overpowering your senses:
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Green Design |
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Green Design is more than just picking sustainable or organic items for your home. It is also about making sure your home is in its best possible working order to operate and function efficiently. What good is having an eco-friendly design if you are wasting energy each month trying to heat or cool it? Before the weather turns too cold, I encourage you to have an energy audit prepared for your home. We all work hard for our money, so why would we want to be wasting it by having cold air sneak into our home uknowingly? Once we address the leaks, we will save money and reduce our home's energy usage and wasteful consumption of fossil fuels. The average American family can cut its CO2 emissions by 1,000 pounds each year.
What is an energy audit? It is a diagnostic process performed by a certified energy consultant that will identify areas in your home that are wasting energy. Tests include the blower-door test (finding leaks in heating and cooling ductwork), the smoke-stick test (to find air leaks in doors, windows, and other openings), and the infrared thermograph (measures heat loss or gain). The infrared thermograph is considered to be one of the best scientific tools used in the audit, as it can also identify moisture problems and leaky pipes behind the walls.
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Quote of the Month |
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Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower. ~Albert Camus |
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Recipe of the Month |
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Believe it or not, The Design Diva is a HUGE football fan. This is my favorite season, as the teams begin their quest for their place in Superbowl history. Sadly, the Carolina Panthers haven't been looking strong in the preseason. However, I am an original Panthers fan and will not give up hope yet. I will stand by them just as I stood by them in that dreadful 1 and 15 season of 2001.
Buffalo wings are traditional football watching food. This dip has all the great taste of the original, with the added benefit of keeping your hands much cleaner. It shouldn't surprise anybody out there that The Design Diva does NOT like to get her hands messy. It is quick and easy to throw together, and can be prepared in advance and put in the oven before your guests arrive. It is also low-carb if served without crackers, should that be of interest to you. I have tried other buffalo chicken dip recipes and found them to bake up too greasy. This one is perfect. Try it for your next hungry crowd.
Buffalo Chicken Dip
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
2 cans (11 oz each) Chunked Chicken Breast, drained
1/2 cup Franks Redhot Sauce
1/2 cup blue cheese salad dressing
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1. In a deep baking dish, stir cream cheese until smooth. Stir in remaining
ingredients.
2. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, until hot and bubbling.
Serve with vegetables and/or crackers. (I prefer it with celery sticks) |
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Community Outreach |
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Most people say there are only two things guaranteed in life: death and taxes. Well I would like to submit to you a third guarantee: No matter how bad your life is, there is always someone worse off than you. I believe that it is more important to give than to receive. Additionally, it has been my personal experience that when I give generously, whether it be of time or money, the rewards I get are exponentially greater than anything I might have given. In this spirit, I am going to share with you each month opportunities available for us all to give back, for we are all greatly blessed, even in these times of struggle.
United Way - For the past year the United Way has been an embattled organization due to the debacle involving Gloria Pace King. However, so many of our local charities depend on the support of the United Way that we have to move forward and recommit to this worthwhile organization. Under the new leadership of Jane McIntyre, they have announced a $22.7 million goal for its Community Care Fund, a pool of money that the agency controls and spends on local needs. My philanthropy idols, Leon and Sandra Levine, have presented a one million dollar matching grant. The Leon Levine Foundation Grant will match, dollar for dollar, the first million given above the goal. Please help the United Way surpass that goal and become the beneficiaries of Leon and Sandra's generosity. You can donate through workplace initiatives, or directly online at www.uwcentralcarolinas.org.
The Charlotte Symphony - Another struggling Charlotte organization is the Charlotte Symphony. Since the Arts & Science Council has threatened to drastically reduce funding, the symphony has been in overdrive trying to get their financial house in order. Challenge grants seem to be the order of the day, as an anonymous donor has pledged $500,000 to the symphony if they can raise another $500,000 from other donations. So many of us have enjoyed the concerts in the park in addition to the performances at the Blumenthal. What a tragic loss it would be if the Charlotte Symphony was no longer part of our community. To donate to the Charlotte Symphony, go to www.charlottesymphony.org. | |
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| 15%
off |
Fall Decorating Sale!!!
Order any pillows, throws, bedding or rugs and save 15%. Mention code DDD0909.
Feel free to share this offer with friends, family, or associates.
Not applicable to orders placed before 9/1/09. |
| Offer Expires: September 30, 2009 | |
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Thanks for reading The Design Diva Dishes. I hope you enjoyed this issue and will forward it to your friends using the link below. All past issues of The Design Diva Dishes are now archived and available though a link at my website: sensiblychic.biz Have a great month, and I'll see you again October 1. Call me at: 704-987-0277 or Email me at: sensiblychic4u@aol.com |
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