Loving this Week 5

We have a new addition to our kitchen this week, a beautiful riddling wine rack displaying air plants! The Pottery Barn catalogue inspired me to create it.

Typically, when I receive a store’s catalogue in the mail, I throw it straight in the recycle bin, as I prefer to shop online. But about a month ago, I received a Pottery Barn catalogue in the mail and although it’s typically a little too country for me, this time, I flipped it open and browsed through it while I ate my lunch.

And of course, this one time I decide to browse a catalogue, I find something I just had to have — a riddling wine rack. Which was decked out in the catalogue with a bunch of air plants, not wine. I know, the horror! A wine rack filled with PLANTS instead of wine?

This oversized plant holder looked gorgeous on the wall in the PB photos but the price point just wasn’t cutting it for me and the wine rack was actually too wide for where I wanted to hang it in our kitchen.

So, I hopped on Etsy (Wood4Decor created the custom rack for me) and had one custom ordered to fit our wall at half the price of PB’s. When it came, I hung it on our wall and a coworker hooked me up with a budget-friendly air plant site and I recreated the Pottery Barn riddling wine rack & plant look in my own kitchen.

I absolutely love how it turned out! I mentioned before that I wanted to add a bit of nature and green to our kitchen and this definitely did the trick. Every time I walk into our kitchen the site of this wine rack and air plants makes me instantly happy. Totally worth the extra DIY effort!

Although the wine rack was the highlight of my week, here’s a few other little things I’m loving —

High Brew Coffee – If you need a quick jolt of espresso, I highly recommend checking out these slim coffee cans. They’re super delicious and they come in a few different flavors including – double espresso, vanilla, caramel and dark chocolate mocha. They’re also low-cal ranging from 20-60 calories a piece. Find them. Love them. Then thank me.

Viniagrette – This is a new salad-centric restaurant in Austin and I absolutely adore it. <3M and I treated ourselves last Saturday afternoon for lunch out on Congress and both of us loved our meals. We enjoyed a few soups, a couple tea-based mocktails and two humongous salads. Although their salads seem a bit expensive, these salads are well worth their price and are much better than the $15 salad I make myself at the Whole Foods’ salad bar.

I enjoyed the Tuan Nicoise Salad and it was loaded with tuna, chopped kalamata olives and artichoke hearts! I loved the saltiness of the salad and it kept me full for hours without feeling weighed down.

Vinaigrette is also beautifully decorated. It’s light, airy and earthy with lots of simple decorations. I especially love their patio which is shaded by a huge flowy, green tree. It made for a very relaxed dining experience. I can’t wait to go back later this Spring and Summer to enjoy it again.

Happiness Ted Talk – I truly love Ted Talks. In fact, one of my favorite podcasts is the TEDTalks Health but this video on Happiness, appropriately titled, “Want to be Happier? Stay in the Moment,” is especially inspiring.

I don’t know about all of you, but I often find myself analyzing my past actions or conversations, thinking about how I should have done X or responded with Y. All this ‘reflection’ truly only makes us regret our previous actions. You often hear the saying  ‘Stop living in the past!’ and this TEDTalk proves that if you start being more mindful and living in the present, you’ll not only be happier but also MORE productive.

If you’re happier because you’re getting stuff done and no longer have negative self-talk by dwelling on the past then I view that as a win-win in my book!  This talk is only 10 minutes long and most definitely life changing.

That wraps my week, hope you all have a fabulous weekend and if you’re looking for something delicious to bring to Easter brunch or dinner on Sunday, may I suggest checking out my recipes for Ginger Spiced Cookies, Lemon Pound Cake, or Biscoff Cookie Butter Pie!