Editor's note: For our last week at Food Lush, I've asked the writers to share both a favorite post by another writer, from over the last three years, and a favorite post of their own. You'll see these posts linked to at the top of their new post for the week. Enjoy a stroll down Lush memory lane! by Christina Well, here we are, our last day. I'm so sad to go, and I really wish there was a big party tonight with all of us and all of you. We could all wear our sparkly shoes, lets do that,... Continue reading

Editor's note: Here it is! Our last Style Lush giveaway (for a while, at least). Good luck! by Christina If one thing I've mentioned here a million times, it's that I don't like my kitchen. Our home was built in 1992 and it we got the builder grade deluxe! Formica counters, orange oak cabinets, bone appliances. It's not hideous but it's not attractive either. Here it is before: The folks at Ace Hardware offered to help me with this project and sponsored the paint. I used Clark+Kensingtion in two colors and in two coats (three if you count the stain-blocking... Continue reading

by Christina I'm home, in the middle of a labor intensive (read DIY) kitchen reno and I'm out of my under-eye concealer. There's no way I'm stopping what I'm into and dragging two kids out to the mall so I hit the internet, sure if I ordered that day I'd have it in time for the weekend. and lo, all I "need" to do is spend $50 for free shipping. Well, twist my arm! Wouldn't want to spend $4.95 on shipping when I could add $30 to my cart to save FIVE DOLLARS. How do they do that? I don't... Continue reading

by Christina I hate shoes in winter. They are clunky and stupid and winter is stupid espicially if you are a shoe lover, which I am, I also live in the midwest. So I'm grumbly about winter boots. Lets just skip ahead, shall we? It's April and the trees are blooming and it's time for cute shoes! I think these are just the pair. I just love these. I can see them going with everything from skinny jeans to skirts. Cute for running errands or lunch with friends. They seem to be the perfect casual day shoe. The metalic means... Continue reading

by Christina Something happened to me today that doesn't often. I saw a woman, minding her own business (as was I, shopping for sports bras) that was so put together from head to toe I stopped to tell her so. Does this happen to you? You see something out in the wild that moves you? Her look was just so complete, from her long tousled pixie to her boots. All of it just worked. This is what she was wearing. A great, simple frame. A coat similar to this (which is painfully small, I'm sorry) These tops, layered. Fox sweater... Continue reading

by Christina I've been toying with the idea of painting my dining room and Ace Hardware contacted me about their Merry Paint Makeover contest and a new line of paint. Clark+Kensington paint and primer in one. I wanted to paint my room pretty dark so the idea of a dual purpose paint was very appealing and they hooked me up. Here is my room before: And after! The paint is terrific. I've painted a lot and used many brands and this one was at the top of my favorites list. It went on wonderfully, smooth, not too thick, not too... Continue reading

by Christina I hate to be a copy-cat, I really do. But once in a while something crosses me that is so great I can't help myself. Enter, Harpers Happenings animal menagerie. I've had an empty frame on a shelf in my boys bathroom for years,. I've been trying to get the perfect photo of the two of them in the tub for the frame but they never stop moving and they have a lot of "bits" so, empty frame, years. I saw this and not only did I die laughing but I new instantly this was to go in... Continue reading

by Christina I've been working on some tweaks for my dining room lately and I have the perfect corner for a bar cart. Seriously, this corner is begging for it. Nestled in the corner with my curtains as a backdrop, I can picture it. It would be perfect. But, I have kids, two boys, 2.5 and 5 years old. Putting my wedding crystal and booze on a cart, with wheels, is probably one of my dumbest ideas this week. But I want one, and I can dream, there are no shards of Waterford floating in a pool of gin on... Continue reading

by Christina Life is exhausting and expensive. That could have easily been the title of this post. It's true. I stay home with two very crazy puppy-like boys and my husband works, a lot. We are about to celebrate 14 years together and man, that's a lot of years. At this point in our life it's really easy to throw on your pj's, grab a carton of ice cream and veg out in front of the tv together at the end of a normal day. We've heard all of each others stories, know all of the family drama so coasting... Continue reading

by Christina Last week I copped to hoarding accessories. After writing that post I realized that I needed to revisit my system for keeping them organized. I asked Twitter for ideas for storing my big rings and one of the tips was the ceramic egg holder from Anthropologie (similar), which I have, but I was using it poorly. It was full of earrings that didn't quite fit along with rings and really it was a heap. I don't have a lot of space so I knew I needed something a little unconventional so I looked through closet organization and then... Continue reading

by Christina To hear the story told, kitchens and bathrooms sell houses. Neither of these rooms sold me my house, its price tag and the desired number of bedrooms did. It was the best house we could afford at the time, and that meant a house with bathrooms and a kitchen that need a gut job. Because sadly, good taste doesnt automatically come with a matching trust fund, am I right? What I'm getting at here, is my bathrooms are short on luxury and feeling homey. They feel a little more like the builder basic special circa 1992. I was... Continue reading

by Christina I posted a photo of myself on instagram this week of me in a top I love and lo, this post was born. I graduated high school in the Pacific North West in the 90's so plaid seemed a bit grungy and masculine to me, in theory. It's big this season so I did what middle aged slaves to the junior section at Target do, I tried it on. I liked it. I brought it home and while it has pink in it, it still felt a little manish. So I added a necklace, wore dark wash skinny... Continue reading

by Christina My kitchen is the heart of my home and it is stuck in the 90's. A gut would be our dream but it's not going to happen for a while. We've lived in this house with this ugly kitchen for 6 years, and that's long enough! I have it all planned out! That's the easy part, there's no sanding or fumes when you're planning. Here's a shot of my kitchen as is, today. And this is my plan! The island will be painted Mediterranean by Sherwin Williams and the rest of the cabinetry will be Creamy, also by... Continue reading

by Christina I was in the market for two new shades for fall and winter. A perfect nude and a light berry. I found both by Maybelline. I was hunting for colors, not long wear, but it seems that most lip color come with a long last promise. I brought home a Super Stay 10 hour Stain Gloss #180 and a Super Stay 14 hour lipstick # 25. First, the colors are perfect. Exactly what I was needing. The nude (#25) is perfect for a dark eye, pale lip face. I love it, but it promises 14 hours of wear.... Continue reading

by Christina I was just made aware that coveted little blue box has grown, to a box large enough to hold even more of our dreams! I don't spend a lot on my clothes but I do on shoes, bags and accessories so when I found out about this line my browser could not keep up with my smokin fingers. I was not dissapointed. I'd like these two. There are pages and pages of bags to covet. Sadly, they are all one zillion dollars. But it sure is fun to look. (Photos via tiffany dot com) Continue reading

by Christina For some reason I've been wondering about my own mop. I think, at 35, I've found the do for life, the right length for my hair type and full bangs that I love both down or side swept. It's straight and flat but not too thin and I'm pretty happy with it. When I get bored, I adjust the all-over length or add in some layers. But, I'm wondering about the life of this look. Not me, but my bangs look this way. My hope is that since my color is a warm brown (okay, fine, it's gray)... Continue reading

by Christina Painting doors is an idea as old as paint. You see front doors in every color of the rainbow, but have you put any thought into painting your interior doors? This week I painted two in my home. The backside of my front door and the same in my oldest son's room. Please, enjoy these super high quality ipod photos. I'm hooked! I want to paint more, I want the inside of my powder room door, and maybe my laundry room door, and for sure the backside of the door in my other boys room, too. I LOVE... Continue reading

by Christina I have this little end table that while cheap, I quite like. Perfect size and cute, but then I sourced this for a client and couldn't get it out of my mind. That vintage mirrored top, amazing. So I started looking around to see if I could find maybe a mercury glass treatment, which I did, but it is for glass, not painted wood. I wasn't satisfied so I then turned to a plain mirror idea, no good. in the end I decided to go for the chrome color by Rust-Oleum A $6 can of spray paint so... Continue reading

by Christina As a mother of boys I have bathroom issues. The kind that have a tiny bit of an odor and leave little spots on the floors (both hard wood and linoleum) and these little dribbles don't come up easily. Regular mopping doesn't touch them and a magic eraser doesn't work very well either. I came across a "recipe" on pinterest and I immediately made it and got to work. I had hoped it would be a dream for my entire house but truth be told, the tile felt like it had a bit of a soda film. But... Continue reading

by Christina Awe, Columbus. If you've never been here you're thinking, ehh, it's the mid-west, big deal. Yeah, me too. But I was so wrong. I grew up in Washington State (Tacoma) and then lived in North Carolina (Chapel Hill) so when we decided to come here, I was a little worried. Land locked and all that. Well, after being here for six years I absolutely love it. So much in fact, it's hard for me to choose just one area to feature because there are so many surprise pockets in this city. Incredible thrift and antique shops, great boutiques... Continue reading

by Christina I love Design Star and just finished up the kitchen episode and it got me thinking about my home and if I have anything that would be viewed as completely nuts. And, I guess I'm more boring than I thought becuase I can't come up with anything shocking. I'll have to work on that. The reason I ask is this ....... These seriously horrifying hand pulls that are, well, hands. I mean, okay, sort of cool in theory but after installing them? Not really working. A conversation starter, to be sure. Functional, no. Fun, yes. So it's a... Continue reading

by Christina I have a pretty small and unattractive kitchen. I've been in this home for six years now and have decorated it to try and hide it's flaws and now it's pretty stripped down to basics (which is much better) Having this kitchen not only hurts my eyeballs it also makes my life a little harder since I stay home with two small animal children, I'm in there cooking a lot. It needs to be organized and things need to be handy. I came across a little tray in the dollar spot around easter, it was pink with a... Continue reading

by Christina I love houseplants and I LOVE flowers. My house may not have seen the business end of a mop this week but I still have fresh flowers on my table. I need blooms, I don't know why but I do. I love african violets. They bloom all year long, one month of flowers one month off. And if you follow these tips they will live forever. I've killed so many plants, so many but never one of these. I keep them until I move, give them away and start over. In fact, my mom still has the ones... Continue reading

by Christina I tried to do this. It did not go well. I even used these little french manicure stickers and still, disaster. So here I am, 34 years old with a bottle of glitter nail polish, I could either give it to my baby sitter or figure something else out. I found this. So I tried it. Easier! And age appropriate'ish. I love it. It was easy, it looks awesome and it's just a little surprise glitter, not in your face blamo glittah! You should totally try it, you'd be amazed at what a tiny bit of sparkle can... Continue reading