Tuesday, January 1, 2008

The Basics

Coffee Tables That Will Save You a Trip to the ER
Ever since my son Jack required eight stitches after hitting his head on our coffee table, I've been on the lookout for a coffee table that can peacefully coexist with a family like mine in a house like mine...
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Just Like a Restaurant, But Without the Waiters
I've been hearing some complaints from moms like myself lately about the durability of the plates and glasses in their kitchen. For them, and everyone else who has high traffic in the kitchen, I have some helpful advice: pretend your kitchen is a restaurant and stock it accordingly...
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Art in the Everyday
My friend Brian Andriola just did a great article for Country Livingmagazine all about his collection of white bowls...
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Life in the White House
My friend Sheryl stopped by the other night to pick up her son after a playdate with Jack and we were discussing the new slipcovers I had just bought for my family room sofas. When I told her they were white, she said "WHAT?!"...
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Get the Hose!
My husband and I have always said our ideal flooring would be cement with a drain in the middle...
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In Praise of Slipcovers
Slipcovers are the best! Until my kids are grown up and moved out, I will never have a sofa that's not slipcovered or leather...
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Organic Bedding Survival Guide
Yesterday's post on the health benefits of houseplants got me thinking about the healthy home in general. ..
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For more posts on decorating basics, search keyword "basics"

Decorating Ideas

25 Days of Christmas Spirit
Every year on December 1st, we get out our Advent calendar to kick off the season...
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All the Romance without the Trip to the ER
I love candlelight, especially at Christmas. I prefer beeswax candles, tapers and votives, but until my little Katie is old enough that I don't have to worry she'll set her sleeves on fire, I keep the ambiance to a minimum for now...
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Save the Ghosts! by Guest Blogger Jack Furber
My Mom's right. I don't like change at all. When she moves stuff around the house, I always put it back. When she throws stuff away, I get it back out (don't ask.) All this talk about changing the candles on the kitchen table makes me feel sick...
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T Minus Six Weeks to Halloween. Time to Decorate!
Because I'm in the mail order business, I tend to start shopping and planning early for holidays. Halloween is still six weeks away, but feels like it's right around the corner to me...
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The Easiest Centerpiece You'll Ever Make
As all regular Zen readers know, the centerpiece on my dining table is a never ending creative project in my house. This year, my centerpiece came together in five minutes and required only five elements...
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Just Call Me Charles Darwin

Survival of the fittest is my philosophy when it comes to choosing decorative things for my house. Anything that breaks, chips, hurts when it's dropped on a foot, or doesn't look better when enhanced with crayon or marker is out...
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Everything Eventually Comes into Fashion if You Wait Long Enough
I've been in the catalog business for most of my career, and many hours on location have made me a fan of a product known to photo crew members as "goop"...
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Art in the Everyday
My friend Brian Andriola just did a great article for Country Livingmagazine all about his collection of white bowls...
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Why Wait for Someone to Send You Flowers?
Like most women, I love flowers. Like most women with a house, a husband, a job, and three kids, I don't have time to spend arranging them...
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For more posts on decorating ideas, search keyword "decorating idea"

Parties and Entertaining

Party Time!
2009 has been a big year at the Furber house for parties. Birthday parties, end of the year parties, study parties, sleepovers. You name it, we've hosted it this year...
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Five Boys or 50 Boys. Same Thing.
I've always prided myself in having a house that goes back together very quickly after a party. My husband and I have a place for everything, and very easy care surfaces and materials in all the rooms. We usually can clean up in about 20 minutes after all our guests leave, even the 13 and under set...
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Cupcakes for 40
Slightly off my usual topic of interior design for people with kids, but the subject of baking for a small army is very topical at the Furber house lately, as I have three kids with birthdays all clumped together...
Click here for more

Like a Restaurant, but Without the Waiters
I've been hearing some complaints from moms like myself lately about the durability of the plates and glasses in their kitchen. For them, and everyone else who has high traffic in the kitchen, I have some helpful advice: pretend your kitchen is a restaurant and stock it accordingly...
Click here for more

Welcome to Casa de los Furbers. Checkout is at Noon
My littlest is about to start Kindergarten in 15 days (she's been counting down all summer). Along with all the obvious stuff that comes with your baby going to Kindergarten, there's also another milestone -- sleepovers...
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For more posts on parties and entertaining, search keyword "parties" or keyword "entertaining"

Gallery Wall and Memories


Read Me.
I love typography. I always have. Maybe it's the years of writing thank you notes when I was a child, maybe it's my years of art training, maybe it's that I secretly hope having letters and type everywhere around the house is a subliminal reminder to my family that they should be reading...
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Resolution #1: Update the Family Gallery Wall
The last time I did my family gallery wall, I was still pregnant with Katie, who's now six. My children are suspended in time, and anyone visiting my house would think they're 8, 5, and a newborn...
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#23 Update the Gallery Wall for the Season
Like all families, we generate lots of art. I especially like the Christmas art that comes home each year...
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That's Going in the Scrapbook
Since we bought our condo in Sun Valley five years ago, we've had a most fabulous wall-mount scrapbook in the family room there...
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One More Thing Your Children Will Thank You For
I'm a huge fan of displaying photos. I think they add life and personality to my house, especially the candid shots of the kids...
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Everything Eventually Comes into Fashion if You Wait Long Enough
I've been in the catalog business for most of my career, and many hours on location have made me a fan of a product known to photo crew members as "goop"...
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Only the Boring are Bored by Guest Blogger Andie Furber
A kid's bedroom can often seem, well, boring to them after a while. To make it more interesting, add a picture wall! I have one in my room, and whenever I look at it, it cheers me up...
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My Digital Camera Ate My Pictures
I had a party at my house yesterday for my son Jack's 4th grade class and I heard two things consistently from the Moms in attendance:...
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Art Schmart
It's funny that my last post contained so many references to art. The truth is, I have no art in my house. When my husband and I bought our first house, we thought we'd collect some art when we got more established, but we started collecting kids instead...
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For more posts on Gallery Walls and Memories, search keyword "family gallery"

Pet Posts

Jasper, Put that Down!

JP and I have nearly mastered the art of decorating a house with kids in it. We follow a fairly consistent philosophy:

Only buy things that are easy to care for and look better with use
Pass on the fancy decorative objects for now and work it out with the family mementos...
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Welcome to the Family, Jasper. Please Keep Your Feet off the Table
We've added a new member to the Furber family: Jasper, a 10 month old yellow lab. Since we had our last dog Shelby put down at the ripe old age of 13, I'd forgotten about many of the quirky habits of big dogs:

Jumping on the furniture
Eating off the kitchen counter
Running through the house with muddy feet
Crashing into things and breaking them
Eating things that aren't food...
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Inspiration Posts

I'm Still Working on That
There are many projects in my life that are unfinished. In fact, I'd say most of them are in various stages of completion because real life often interferes with my plans to complete something from start to finish.
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Real Life Social Networking
Now and then I veer off my chosen topic of decorating a casual, comfortable, low maintenance house for families. This is one of those times.

I am well known for the love/hate relationship I have with technology.
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My Summer Stay-cation
Seeing that I had just returned from a 12 day trip around the world, the Furbers weren't too anxious to go away for the holiday weekend. Instead, we decided to stay home and pretend our house was a resort.
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Maria Callas Is My Soulmate
I'm lucky to have one of those jobs that lists "getting inspired" as part of the job description, and occasionally I just hand an entire day over to the idea of inspiration. Friday was one of those days...
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Let the Inspiration Begin
As I mentioned last week, I've decided to make only New Year's resolutions that will make my family happy, or will make my home a happier place. My family joined in this weekend and staged a fun surprise for me...
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I Want to be India Hicks
I've always been inspired by India Hicks. She seems to me to be the ultimate working mother who always looks great, always has her house together, and has a balanced view of how work, family and interior design come together to make a happy life...
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World Design
Living in Alamo, California, my children aren't exposed to a diversity of culture. However, JP and I make an effort to introduce them to world influences with different types of food, music, books about different cultures. ..
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Cookies in Bed
My post on March 24th "You Can't Curl Up with a Cup of Coffee and a Mac" got me thinking about the magazines that I really love and rely on for good ideas and inspiration...
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Where Does a Busy Mom Find Inspiration?
I believe that inspiration is an essential component to creativity, and I believe that creativity is an essential component to creating a happy and fun home for my family. ..
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You Can't Curl Up with a Cup of Coffee and a Mac
I love the web for all it's obvious great qualities, but I am starting to worry that magazines and newspapers will become obsolete sooner that I ever thought...
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Sit Loose in the Saddle of Life
My lovely daughter, Laurie, has asked me to write about how to keep a home flexible enough for grownups, and still be family friendly when the grandchildren come to visit. Whew, what a relief, one of my main goals these days is to have a home that the whole family “feels at home in”….maybe it is working...
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Design Trends That Are Great for a Family Home
Those of us decorating family homes can sometimes find that we pass on many design trends either because they're impractical for our lifestyle, or because we just don't have the time to pay attention to them. There are a few current design trends that I think are perfect for the busy family lifestyle...
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Everything Eventually Comes into Fashion If You Wait Long Enough
I've been in the catalog business for most of my career, and many hours on location have made me a fan of a product known to photo crew members as "goop"...
Click here to read more

Art in the Everyday
My friend Brian Andriola just did a great article for Country Livingmagazine all about his collection of white bowls...
Click here to read more

Design Trends I'm Happy to See Emerging from the Recession
As much as my job requires me to embrace capitalism, I've always struggled with the blind desire for acquisition that seems to have defined the last 20 years or so. The current recession carries with it a lot of baggage, but there are a few good things that will come out of it for the design world...
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Occasion and Gift Posts

Party Time!

2009 has been a big year at the Furber house for parties. Birthday parties, end of the year parties, study parties, sleepovers. You name it, we've hosted it this year...
Click here to read more

Happy Birthday Jack
Friday was Jack's 12th birthday and we have reached a new phase of acquisition in the Furber house. We've transitioned from birthday gifts that are big and hard to store (think bikes, razors, train sets) to birthday gifts that are small and hard to keep track of (a green cell phone, a set of SkullCandy headphones, and a Larry Bird Celtics jersey.)...
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Five Boys or 50 Boys. Same Thing
I've always prided myself in having a house that goes back together very quickly after a party. My husband and I have a place for everything, and very easy care surfaces and materials in all the rooms. We usually can clean up in about 20 minutes after all our guests leave, even the 13 and under set.

However, we threw a party last night that presented new and interesting cleanup challenges -- some that we're still scratching our heads over...
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Cupcakes for 40
Slightly off my usual topic of interior design for people with kids, but the subject of baking for a small army is very topical at the Furber house lately, as I have three kids with birthdays all clumped together...
Click here to read more

Burlap. Who Knew?
I'm trying to get into the Christmas spirit, but somehow it's late in coming this year. Don't get me wrong -- I'm happy and joyful -- just not feeling like doing the the all out shopping, decorating or wrapping yet...
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I Need a Birthday Present, Stat!
It seems like someone's always having a birthday or a baby. That presents two challenges: coming up with a present and wrapping it...
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Pass it On
It's coming upon the gift giving season. Mother's Day, Father's Day, graduations and weddings loom and each beg for the perfectly selected gift...
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Why Wait for Someone to Send You Flowers?
Like most women, I love flowers. Like most women with a house, a husband, a job, and three kids, I don't have time to spend arranging them...
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Hostess Gifts Everyone Loves
My Mom taught me never to show up at someone's house empty handed. Most of the year that's not a problem, since we don't go anywhere...
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Save the Ghosts by Guest Blogger Jack Furber
My Mom's right. I don't like change at all. When she moves stuff around the house, I always put it back. When she throws stuff away, I get it back out (don't ask.) All this talk about changing the candles on the kitchen table makes me feel sick...
Click here to read more

T Minus Six Weeks to Halloween. Time to Decorate!
Because I'm in the mail order business, I tend to start shopping and planning early for holidays. Halloween is still six weeks away, but feels like it's right around the corner to me...
Click here to read more

School of Mom
In honor of Mother's Day, I thought I'd do a few more posts on the subject. My Mom, for example. She was ahead of her time in lots of ways, and much more mellow than I realized when I was young and living in her house...
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Happy Mother's Day
I've noticed that many of the articles I read about what to do for your Mom on Mother's Day have to do with cleaning the house:
Pick up your toys
Clean your room
Make breakfast for Mom and then do the dishes...
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There Is a Method to My Madness
In spite of all evidence to the contrary, there is a system of organization that holds the Furber house together, and it's about to be put to the ultimate test. We're looking forward to the arrival of eleven relatives for Thanksgiving. During the week of November 23rd, the occupancy of my house will range anywhere from 0 to 16 people, depending on time and day...
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Is It November Already?
Halloween is over, and now the freight train of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's starts rolling. Most of my girlfriends are appalled to see Christmas in the stores before Thanksgiving is even here.
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Earth Friendly Posts

Tips for a Healthy Family Home #5
To keep your momentum going, and as Jack Furber says "don't say you're going to help the earth and then totally blow it off,"...
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Tips for a Healthy Family Home #4
It's never too late to make a list of green resolutions. And the day after Earth Day is like Green New Year. Perfect. ..
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Tips for a Healthy Family Home #3
A lightbulb is going on over my head -- a CFL bulb that is. CFL bulbs last up to ten times longer, use only about 25% of the energy, and generate 90% less heat than regular lightbulbs....
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Tips for a Healthy Family Home #2
Recycling is certainly more work than just throwing everything in the trash, but it pays off in all the obvious ways...
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Tips for a Healthy Family Home #1
Whether you like Al Gore or not, you have to admit, it's getting hotter every summer. My husband can no longer stand the 100 degree + temperature in Alamo, and for the past several years has sought refuge and cool wind in Olympia every summer...
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Where Can I Get a Cute Gasmask that Goes with my Decor?
The EPA has stated that indoor air can be up to three times more polluted than outdoor air because of emissions from paint, building materials, furniture, carpet, adhesives, among other things. Seriously?! As if I wasn't tossing and turning enough already....
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My Mom Was Ahead of Her Time
I'm always looking for ways to keep my house healthy for my family. It turns out my Mom had one of the secrets all along -- houseplants...
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Resolution #4 Compost

Sounds easy, right? Not always.

The behavior modification required to save our compostable items dictated that the composter we chose would have to be easy to install and use because all of our energy would have to be funneled into learning how to and remembering to compost...

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Simple Steps to a Greener Home

I'm always looking for good advice on making my home healthier for my family. In that pursuit, I recently purchased and viewed Danny Seo'sSimple Steps to a Greener Home...

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Bringing My Own Bags to the Grocery Store is the Least of My Worries

How have I never noticed this before? It's not just the grocery stores -- everyone gives you a bag when you shop...

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Extreme Recycling
With Earth Day on the horizon, we always give a little extra thought to how we can reduce waste and improve our energy efficiency in our house.
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For more earth friendly posts, including ideas on how to give vintage finds a new life in a new home, search keyword "green"

Work Space Posts

Like Mother, Like Daughter
As I wrote a few weeks ago, (see "Let the Inspiration Begin!" posted January 12th) my family responded to some complaining I had been doing by building a little workspace of my own for me...
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Let the Inspiration Begin
As I mentioned last week, I've decided to make only New Year's resolutions that will make my family happy, or will make my home a happier place...
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Thanks Santa. and Zoe
Santa brought me the best present this year: a Royal manual typewriter...
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You Can Have Your Table Back. We Have Some Better Ideas. by Guest Bloggers the Furber Kids
Being an almost-8th Grader, I know I'm going to have A LOT of homework, projects, and tests to study for, so I'm going to want the best possible place to do it all...
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Can I Have My Kitchen Table Back, Please?
School is approaching, and I have to say I'm looking forward to getting back into our school year routine...
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For more workspace posts, search keyword "home office"

Storage and Organization Posts

Galvi Envy
I've noticed in the last year or so a modern rural decorating trend spreading itself across America. It could be that the recession makes simple design more appealing to Americans, it could be the popularity of The Carneros Inn in Sonoma County, CA or it could be that Martha Stewart made the trend hot 20 years ago and it's never quite died down. Either way, I like it...
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Tell Me What You're Missing and I'll Tell You If I Gave it Away
Last week's post made me want to organize something, so I sent JP, Katie and Jasper to the dog park this morning and attacked Katie's room while they were gone...
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No Girls Allowed
Jack will be 12 on Friday, and he's needing his mother less and less to manage his room and his stuff...
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The Return of Suburban Zen. And the Daily Shower
As you may have noticed, I have been neglecting Suburban Zen lately...
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Another school year is over, and this was a big one for the Furbers:...
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For more posts on storage and organization, search keyword "organizing"

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