Back in July when I ordered these awesome wooden planters from Target, I also picked up some geometric ceramic planters and trays. To be honest, I didn't really know what I was going to do with them (more plants? kitchen utensil storage? pen holder?) but at $5 and $4 apiece, they went into my cart with no reservations.

Does anyone else buy supplies for non-existent projects and then never use them? Guilty. I'm trying to stop because the last thing we need is clutter, but sometimes you just see something you can't pass up. Since these planters have been collecting dust for a few months, I finally decided this weekend that we were going to put them to use.


One of my favorite things about our house is that we have way more natural light than we did in our former cave apartment. Of course, you know what this means... more plants! What better to put in a cool planter, right? If you want to make your own...

Here's what you need!
- Ceramic Geometric Planter
- Ceramic Hexagon Tray (not pictured, but we put the planters on them)
- Black paint pen or Sharpie marker
- Clear spray paint or sealer (optional)


Here's what you do!
- Decide on a design and draw away! (For the planter with the concentric pentagons, I used a black paint pen. For the other planter with the connecting lines, I used a black Sharpie. Both worked great!)
- Spray your planters with a coat of clear spray paint, if you so choose. The Sharpie should hold up well to water, but the paint pen may not. We did not spray ours, so we'll be careful when watering the plants.
- Finally, fill them up with some cute succulents or cacti and display them!


Just a super quick weekend project that turned out pretty beautifully. We whipped these up in a couple hours, start to finish. The Home Depot has a surprisingly large number of succulents and other small plants for late fall, but I'm not complaining!

We're excited to get these on display in our basement - hopefully our curious kitties can keep their paws off. If you decide to decorate your own planters, be sure to send us photos or tag us on Instagram! Have a great week!
Sarah & Nick

When Sarah and I first set out to make this recipe, we had "homemade vegan pop tarts" in mind. Well, anyone with eyes and a mouth can tell that these are no pop tarts. Maybe there is a perfect way to re-create the pop tart taste, texture and look, but these aren't it. However, through the process of exploring this recipe I discovered one thing: who cares? So these don't look or feel like pop tarts, who cares? They're flat out delicious, easy to make, and customizable.




These are best fresh out of the oven, but they're pretty decadent so you'll likely have leftovers. I'm pretty sure Sarah put her personal tastes aside when she suggested that we make these peanut butter and chocolate flavor (a Nick must) but you could easily fill these with anything! Fruit pie fillings, savory fillings like cream cheese and chives, spinach and artichoke, spinach and feta, pizza fillings (wwwhhaaaa????...) the possibilities are endless.


I hope you all enjoy this idea, and are able to make something delicious with it! Enjoy your weekend, and hopefully a few extra days off of work!

Sarah & Nick

When people think of iconic Pittsburgh foods, their first thought is usually a Primanti Brothers sandwich, but second is almost always pierogies. Pittsburgh is home to an annual pierogi festival and even the Pirates have a pierogi race during their games!

If you're unfamiliar, a pierogi is a Polish dumpling, most often stuffed with mashed potatoes and served with onions. They're perfect and delicious, and we figured our Pittsburgh born and bred kittens needed some pierogies of their own - stuffed with catnip!


Want to make your kitties some too? Here's what you need!
- 9x12" sheet of light-colored felt
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun
- Catnip


Here's what you do!
- Cut approximately a 4.5x6" piece of felt (I was able to cut 4 perfectly from my sheet.)
- Fold each sheet in half width-wise and hot glue the sides in a half-circle shape (like a pierogi.) Leave a small hole in the top.
- Stuff the pierogi with catnip and then seal closed with more hot glue.
- Use scissors to cut a scalloped edge, giving them a pierogi look.
- Give them to your kitties for play time!

Hope your kitties like them as much as ours do! How stinkin' cute are Poppy and Weasley?

Sarah & Nick

Swapping out light fixtures is one of the quickest ways to make a huge impact in your home. When we moved into our house, we had ceiling fans in nearly every room (some had two!) and we've been changing them up as we work in each space. Today we're rounding up the different light fixtures we've installed in our house, along with some that we want to add down the road!

In Our House
9 Bulb Brass Light - This was the first light we added to our house. We actually had an electrician install it (there wasn't a spot for a light.) It's currently unavailable, but there's tons of similar styles online.
5 Bulb Brass Light - We installed this fixture in Nick's music room. It's handmade by a shop we found on Amazon. The quality is great and we love how it looks.
Globe Wall Sconces - These are actually made to be outdoors, but we needed four and couldn't find something similar we liked that wasn't out of our budget. We spray painted the bases gold and now they hang in our basement.
Bell Ceiling Light - We just got these in but haven't installed them yet! They will hang in our basement soon. We're working on updating our basement ceiling, so once that's finished, these beauts are going in.
Swag Light - This isn't the exact fixture we have, but I'd rather not link the one we bought. Our fixture is above our dining room table. The wires are white and tight against the ceiling (not so droopy.) We really love the way it looks, but we've having some issues with the sockets so I don't want to recommend the exact same thing. All in all, I think we purchased a cheap, poorly made fixture. If you like this look, the one I linked is from a custom shop on Etsy that has great reviews!


We still need to swap out the lights and ceiling fans in the bathroom, bedroom, guest bedroom, and kitchen - whew! I always make sure to pin fixtures that I love so I have them at the ready when it's time to get a new one. Below are some of my favorites right now!

On Our Wish List

Odyssey 4 Chandelier - I'd basically die for anything from Schoolhouse Electric. A little out of our price range now, but maybe someday!
Wall Lamp - These lamps from IKEA are only $20. I think they'd be great next to the bed, instead of a traditional lamp on a nightstand.
Bathroom Vanity Light - Right now this is the frontrunner for our bathroom. Hopefully soon we'll be yanking our the old (and awful) fixture that it's in there. I'd love to replace it with this!
Sputnik Chandelier - This one has been on my Amazon Wish List for months. It's my favorite for our kitchen right now. So pretty!
Spotlight Ceiling Light - This was the original light we wanted for the music room, but decided on the 5 bulb fixture instead. I still really like this one - not sure where I'd want to put it but it's a contender!


Can you tell we have a thing for brass? Have you swapped out light fixtures in your house? Which is your favorite from our house? Share with us below!

Sarah & Nick

One of the recipes that we make the most around here is our Mac & Not Cheese. What can I say? Sometimes nothing in the world sounds better than a huge bowl of mac & cheese (even when there's actually no cheese in it!) The vegan cheese sauce is the nectar of the gods - we've even used it in our vegan loaded nachos and we're using it again today in this cheesy chorizo dip!


In addition to the vegan cheesy goodness, this recipe also uses our favorite Trader Joe's soy chorizo and salsa of your choice. It's easy to make and so dang delicious (I think you'll be surprised that it's vegan-friendly!) Make it for your next party, game-day snack, or weeknight dinner (hey, why not!?)