Buffet Hutch Makeover - Before

So here's how it happened.  DH had some dry cleaning that needed to be put in, and since I am the resident PA around here, I found myself at the local shopping centre, pants surrendered (his, not mine) and craving a caramellatte.  I tried to round up stray friends to partake in the joy that is a freshly roasted brew, but they were all busy.  I got my coffee anyway - a new addiction, by the way - and wandered around for a bit.  It was too soon to go home, and I was in the mood for some window shopping.

Eventually I found myself at a fabric superstore, buying a couple of odds and ends, and then made my way to a local thrift store.  This particular thrift store (and most in the area) are mainly clothing-based, but they always have a few pieces of furniture in the back.  To be honest, there's rarely anything decent to be found (unless, of course, you actually want to decorate with chipped laminate furniture) but very rarely, they have a piece or two worth a second look.  That's when I saw it.

A little buffet hutch stood out from the crowd.  It had a pleasant appearance, but it needed some work.  I made an executive decision (after checking for soundness, of course) and bought it on the spot for $64.  After arranging for delivery (we don't own a trailer), I'd spent $104.  About fourteen seconds after spying it, my mind was already ticking over - specifically toward blogs the likes of this one, this one, this one and this one.  I knew I could make it over into something pretty and functional.

The panelled backing will be perfect.  The piece itself will most likely end up white or some shade of it, but the panelling and shelves will either stay a light pine stain (like the range shown here - love that look!) or the back of the hutch section will be painted a muted shade of pale blue or green (kinda like here - so beautiful!)  Also, if you look closely at the shelves in the above picture, you'll see grooves cut to display plates - so that's an option for later.

The hutch section is in better nick than the buffet section.  I love the scalloped edge at the top.

I doubt very much the unit would have been terribly expensive even new, but this is my first 'makeover' piece so for $64, I think it's a good piece to learn on.  I'll have to do something about those doors though.  They're too plain, and just chipboard panels.  I'll want to jazz them up a bit, but I have no idea where to start!  If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them!

It's also not a huge piece - about 32 cm (12 ½ inches) deep by 120 cm (around 4 ft) wide.  It's 'shallowness' might actually work for us rather than against us, depending on what we use it for.  It could turn into a table/unit for our (limited space) entryway.  But the allure of a new craft cabinet is pulling me hard and fast in another direction!

The inside of the buffet isn't very good, but fixable, I think.  I'm still undecided what to do in here - line the shelves (after sanding the crud away, of course) or paint them in a similar fashion to the hutch shelves.  It might depend on what we do with those ugly plain doors.

Didn't notice this until it was delivered today - oops!  While the backing of the hutch section is a nice panelling, the back of the buffet part is just ordinary chipboard.  This hole was covered over with duct tape!  The back should be easy enough to replace.

So there you have it - not an expensive wooden piece, that's for sure, but it will be fun to have a bit of a play around with!

The Easiest Oven-Baked Frittata You'll Ever Make

(click for image credit)

I don't know about you, but if I can work out an easier way to do something, I'm all over it.  This frittata recipe falls right into that category - easy, wholesome and kid friendly.  And best of all, it doesn't require a two-step cooking process.  Everything is thrown into a large lasagna baking dish and forgotten.  You can use any combination of vegetables and meat you like - we like semi dried tomatoes, spring onions and ham, with some capsicum (peppers) to give it a Mexican kick.  Here's the original recipe (but really, it's just a guide.  Mix it up!)

Oven Baked Frittata

Ingredients

2 medium potatoes

1 red onion, chopped

70g (2 ½ oz) pancetta, chopped (or bacon / ham)

100g (3 ½ oz) baby spinach

200g (7 oz) red grape tomatoes, halved

1 red capsicum (pepper), chopped

8 eggs

½ cup thickened cream

½ cup parmesan cheese, shredded

¼ cup tasty cheese, shredded

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200ºC (395ºF).  Lightly grease a 5cm (2 in) deep, 26cm (10 in) x 16.5cm (6 ½ in) ovenproof dish.
   
   
2. Pierce each potato a few times and microwave on high until tender (alternatively, you could boil them, but slice first otherwise they'll take forever).  No need to peel first, just scrub.  Allow to cool, then thinly slice.  Set aside.
   
   
3. Prepare all of your vegetables, any kind you like.  If you have small kids, you might find a very fine dice of everything goes down better than big chunks of, say, broccoli or spinach leaves.
   
   
4. Place the slices of potato along the bottom of the prepared dish.  Don't get fancy - overlaps and gaps are fine! (If you have leftover slices you could include them in another layer too).
   
   
5. Sprinkle with your choice of meat or vegetables (instead of the suggested pancetta, we usually use ham or bacon).  You can totally eyeball this (for us, it changes every time we make it, according to what we have in the fridge.  Load up the vegies or not.  Half a capsicum (pepper) one time and a full capsicum the next.  Pass on the meat.  Totally your choice!  About the only thing that stays consistent for us each time are the semi dried tomatoes and the potatoes.  I don't even bother to measure anything).
   
   
6. Beat the eggs and cream together in a separate bowl and pour over everything in the pan.  Don't stress if it doesn't look like enough egg mixture - quite often we have to crack an extra couple of eggs on the fly as the amount of vegies can change so much from one time to the next.  You want the egg mixture to come to just level with the vegie/meat mix.
   
   
7. Sprinkle with cheeses (I rarely bother with both types - I just use the tasty) and bake until the egg mixture is set (dig at it a little - the egg should be the consistency of firm scrambled eggs, or quiche) and the cheese is browned on top (if the cheese is getting too dark, foil that baby up).
   
   
8. Serve with a great big healthy green salad.

Notes:
As you can see, we have many amendments to the original recipe!  This really is 'slap it all together' cooking and as such, cooking times can vary greatly.  It can take as much as 1 hr, 20 mins to set in the oven, so get it started early.  But the best thing about this meal is that it is awesome both hot and cold (slight greying of the potatoes is normal).  The only superpower it doesn't have is freezability.  The egg just doesn't hold up well enough.  But it will keep in the fridge for a good 2-3 days, perfect for lunches and leftovers.  Enjoy :)

Check out Life As Mom for more nommy egg dishes!

A Blogging Examination

Why do you blog?

Did you begin your blog as a public journal? To keep in touch with family and friends? Because there was a writer inside you screaming to get out?

And then, six to twelve months down the track, why did you keep going? Did you become addicted to every-man-and-his-dog's social networking system of choice? Burned a feed? Started subscribing to other feeds? Categorized your Google Reader page to reflect your sixteen neatly segmented 'blogging genres'? (Ahem).

Did you join forums to learn more about blogging? Have you ever moderated a forum specifically geared toward blogging?

Do you sign every email - even those to co-workers - with your blog's URL? Make up funny names for your kids to protect their safety online?

Were you hesitant to tell any 'real life' people about your deep, dark, blogging secret? Ever keep a folder in your Favourites entitled Stuff To Blog About? Ever have other folders called Interesting Stuff To Read Later, Link Love and Pending Comments/Tags/Memes?

Ever dream in HTML code?

Ever accidentally type in <br/> instead of hitting the return key when you're typing a letter in Word?

Have you ever tried to explain the appeal of blogging to a non-blogging spouse? Had them roll their eyes or make funny gagging sounds?

Have you ever spent more than twelve seconds looking for a blog template?

Have you stopped being surprised when you learn the other classroom mums have blogs as well? Have you ever asked for their URLs? Ever given yours out?

Have you ever agonized over the issue of blog advertising? Set up a review blog so it wouldn't clash with advertising you have on your main blog?

Ever come across a purist who is dead-against advertising?

Ever gone through a massive feed reader clean out? And felt guilty doing it?

Ever come across a situation online where you've felt bullied? 'Outed' from the clique?

Ever secretly wished you could nail a spot on a Top 100 list? Ever wondered how on earth the current top bloggers managed to get their spots?

Ever had unrealistic BFF daydreams about a Big Name Blogger? Ever idolized her/him?

Ever had to ask what an Alexa rank is?

Have you ever not done a '100 Things About Me' post?

Ever hosted a meme? Posted a Mr Linky?

Ever hosted a giveaway? Ever given yourself RSI? Ever cleaned out your bank account posting four pound books airmail clear across the globe?

Do you harbour covetous thoughts about a blogging neighbour's fantastically-groovy custom made template?

Do you turn on the computer even before the coffee is made in the mornings?

Does your heart sink when you notice your Feedburner widget thingamy indicates your subcribers dropped by more than a quarter overnight?

Do you check your page stats every single day, including chasing up unknown 'came froms' and keeping an eye on your 'popular posts'?

Ever decided the whole shebang has gotten out of hand? Ever contemplated removing your stat counter?

Ever contemplated a blog move? Ever registered your domain name? Ever decided that blogging is leisure and therefore the cost of web hosting should technically come out of the Leisure section of the household budget?

Do you get anxious when you can't be near a computer?

Ever worked out that there are better things in life to be worried about than how many comments your post did, or didn't get?

Ever felt that freedom?

Blogging is a nifty little activity. You make friends. You might even meet some fellow bloggers. You've probably got at least twenty fellow bloggers on your blog roll, right?

But blogging isn't the be-all and end-all. Take me, for example. I haven't got a clue what an Alexa rank is. I'm only very vaguely aware of how Technorati works. And while I'd like to be in a Top 100 list, I'm not holding my breath. I'd like to think folks come on over to Lizzie's Home to visit without pressure. Lots of flashy widgets in the sidebars distract me (okay, so I have a small flash thing linking to DH's photography, but hey - if we can't plug our own husbands, what's the point in blogging at all, LOL). And to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of blog advertising. Most of the time, I have no idea what I'm doing.

And that's plenty okay with me.

* originally posted February 24th, 2008