Happy Friday, everyone! How was your week? Hope you have some fun plans for the weekend!
I’m kicking today’s Friday Favorites off right away with my favorite place: our back patio now that we’ve actually got some furniture out there! (Oh, and my favorite person: the L man, of course! Can I please point out his baby flip flops (which he sort of hates)? DYING!)
Anyway, Ben and I bought our home almost two years ago, in large part due to the backyard. The previous owners put in a three level deck complete with an outdoor kitchen and enormous pond (which, any pond people out there?? We have no idea what we’re doing and it’s in desperate need of help!) Pond maintenance aside, the space has been an oasis for us, except we haven’t had any luck finding patio furniture we liked – or rather, agreed on. Determined not to spend another summer sitting in bag chairs though, we set out a few weeks ago to finally find us a set – and a set we did find.
We ended up buying an outdoor dining table for the section on the other side of the outdoor kitchen, and this 5 piece set for the main “living” area – both from Fireplace Superstore. We weren’t having much luck at the big box home stores, so we went small and found exactly what we were looking for. Bonus: both the furniture set and dining table were last year’s models so they were deeply discounted. Love me a good deal! This furniture set is by Erwin and Sons and we just love the quality. Cannot wait to kick up my heels here all summer long.
Now we just need consistently warm weather so I can trade these flats for flip flops! :)
Until then, wherever you are and whatever you do, have a wonderful weekend and in the meantime please enjoy my favorite finds from the web and beyond in this week’s Friday Favorites! Have a great weekend!
Click the light blue link to be taken to the original source.
Favorite sip: Fizzy Grapefruit Margaritas. Speaking of patios, I can’t wait to whip up a batch of these refreshing margs to enjoy outdoors the next chance I get. Seeeriously.
Favorite funny: 32 Pictures That Will Give You Intense Elementary School Flashbacks. DYING over this roundup! Seriously shouted YES to every single one. Especially these stamp markers and especially #14. #2 is gave me instant anxiety.
Favorite bite: Mini Cheese Ball Bites. These bites would be so cute for a party. Easily customizable, too.
Favorite fashion: Nellore Blouse. Love this sweet and flowy blouse, right? Can I please look as cool as this girl does when I wear it too?
Favorite fresh: Peanut Crusted Salmon. I’m partnering back up with the Better Homes and Garden’s Blog Delish Dish this month, sharing tasty 30 minute meals from the BHG.com archives. The first recipe I shared was this simple yet flavor-packed recipe for Peanut Crusted Salmon. The crispy peanut crust is SO yummy, and fresh orange kind of gives it a Thai flavor. Easy yet elegant, too!
Favorite read: 5 Things I Learned From Working in a Test Kitchen. I’ve always wondered what it’d be like to work in a test kitchen so this article was fun to read. I know I’d love it, but would undoubtedly gain 50 pounds! #noselfcontrol
Favorite crunch: Garlicky Kale Salad with Crispy Chickpeas. Does this photo make you want to dive face first into your computer screen or what??? Can’t wait to try this recipe!
Favorite homemade: How To Make an All-Purpose Cleaner Using Citrus Orange Peels. Ben and I are getting more and more into natural cleaners these days as we continue to deal with my Celiac Disease. It has made us hyper aware of not only what we’re eating, but spraying onto surfaces in our home (among other things.) We’ve been using a ton of Honest Company products, but I also want to give this citrus-based all-purpose cleaner a whirl, which is vinegar based. I can smell it now!
Favorite comfort: Ham and Potato Corn Chowder. My brain says move on from soups and stews but gosh darn it my heart could never turn down the creamy combo of ham and potatoes. This chowder looks fantastic!
Favorite fun: Chalkboard Runner Table. How much fun would this be for a girlfriend get together? Wine and cheese tasting, anyone?
Favorite treat: Coconut Flour Blondies. I’ve been experimenting with grain free flours lately like almond flour and coconut flour, with HORRIBLE results. Like, laughable – I have my work cut out for me! That said, it looks like Amanda from Heartbeet Kitchen has done some of the work for me. How yummy and gooey do these bars look??
Favorite snack. Strawberries have been tasting phenomenal lately so I highlighted a couple in my latest snack idea for The Laughing Cow. I used slivered almonds for the ears, mini chocolate chips for the eyes and nose, and the cheese wedge pull tab for the tail. I thought they turned out so cute!
Favorite devour: Garlic Chicken Kale Spaghetti. To. My. Freaking. FACE!!! I cannot wait to try this recipe!
Favorite DIY: Personal S’mores Roasters. Start with a patio project, end with one, too! I think these personal s’more roasters made out of mini terra cotta pots are so adorable – plus, no bon fire required!
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Your deck looks great! Bring on the sunshine!
If you want some ideas for GF flours, go to Danielle Walker’s Against All Grain website. She has some awesome recipes!! Also, Gluten Free On a Shoestring. These ladies have their GF flours mastered! Good luck! Those Blondies look amazing! I might have to try them!
Danielle Walker’s Chocolate Chip Recipe is hands-down gotta be the best GF dessert I’ve had, the only thing I’ve made more than once anyway…
http://againstallgrain.com/2012/08/29/real-deal-chocolate-chip-cookies/
A friend uses some kind of algae eating fish to clean his pond. Then to keep it clear he puts in clear blue the stuff you add to pools. It doesn’t hurt the fish or other pond animals he has a lot of wildlife that we’ve watched in and around the pond. Hope this helps. We are going to try it on the property we just bought last fall.
I love your patio set! It’s beautiful and looks so cozy :) And I love chalkboard everything, so that table runner totally caught my eye. I LOVE your Friday Favorites posts.
We had a smores bar at our wedding and used those terra cotta pots within a small trough. It worked out SO well!
Love love love the patio furniture!!
Apparently I have VERY SPECIFIC memories attached to those stamp markers, because I got this flashback to one summer when we were having our kitchen redone and my cousin and I went buck nutty with those things. Memory is such a strange thing! Also super envious of your fancy-pants deck. We have a screened-in patio (“lanai” is what they call it here, pretentious Floridians), but half the year it’s too disgusting to use and gets so thick with pollen. Blech.
Great post. Can you share a pic of your dining table set? We’re looking for one and I love to check out others.. Thanks!
Sure! We’re patching up a hole in the deck where a hot tub used to be so I’ll post one when that’s done (the table will sit on that portion of the deck.)
That fizzy grapefruit margarita is EVERYTHING!! Cannot wait until June when I can indulge again :) Also that chicken kale spaghetti is calling my name!
Love the new patio furniture! That elementary school flashback post made me laugh especially the wood playground. Oh the memories!
You have the best Friday faves! I saw the elementary school flashback article earlier in the week and it made me so nostalgic! I still have some notes saved from middle school that are written in the erasable jelly pens and folded in crazy ways haha!
Ahh, I absolutely LOVE that article that you posted about reminders of childhood! I could relate to almost every one! Also, I love that blouse; so feminine and classy!
Oh my gosh! I love those baby flip flops! I go into the Havianas store all the time looking at the tiny ones hoping they will fit my son–not yet, but soon!
I always look forward to your Friday posts, they are the BEST! That shirt (die), throwback stamp markers (so there) and the s’more pot (making!!). Earlier this week I pinned your grapefruit margarita because if that doesn’t scream happiness in a glass I don’t know what does. Happy Friday!