Allie J's Profile

I thought the scene was hilarious, but I found myself wondering why he needs blankets everywhere if the apartment is always 80 degrees (a temp, btw, that would have me running for the hills--hills that are, hopefully, much cooler) and why on earth you'd keep chocolate-covered almonds out in the open mere inches from the toilet. Food out of the bathroom!

It looks incredibly spacious. Very nice.

The problem with containers that hang on the inside of doors is that you lose the corresponding space inside the cabinet so that your containers won't knock against stuff when you close the doors. It's useful for organizing, but it doesn't really gain you any space.

Wilton has lots of great stuff and you can get it all at Michael's, with those 40% off coupons they always have. I took a cake decorating class at Michael's to learn some basic techniques and it was a lot of fun (although I left each night feeling like I was covered in sugar.)

One tip I would give you: go for the disposable piping bags. You can get a huge box of them for pretty cheap and it's so nice not to have to scrape frosting out of a plastic bag and wash it out. I figure the water I'd waste washing out the bags offsets the plastic waste of the disposables. Plus you always have plenty of bags for making different colors and frosting and switching back and forth.

In that case, I'm buying five copies.

I've tried (I think) every reuseable bag out there. My favorites are Rumes. They hold everything under the sun, are super tough, and I prefer their handle positioning to the Baggus. They're easier to sling over your shoulder, which is my preferred way of lugging groceries.

Hooray for reuseable bags!

I would disagree with the entitlement part of your comment. I think Americans use more space because we're accustomed to it and it's normal for many of us, not because we think we simply deserve more space than others. It's a big country with lots of room to spread out and I don't have to squeeze into a tiny little apartment with three other people. There are plenty of very spacious and affordable apartments available to me. I don't think I deserve more space than, say, a Danish person, but there is more space available to me, so why should I confine myself to a college-dorm-sized fridge when a large one will fit just fine in my apartment kitchen and be far more useful? (And yes, it uses more energy, but I conserve on gas when I’m not running to grocery store every day because my fridge is too small to hold anything.) I think you'd find the same attitude amongst many Australians and Canadians and other residents of countries where space abounds.

I do love the trend of downsizing because it makes us reduce consumerism and energy use, which is a great thing and something many Americans are trying to do. I just hate that people so often frame small-space living as this really virtuous thing that Europeans do because they are such awesome people, when the real story is that they've been forced into because they don't have enough space. I think it’s the rare person who would choose to sleep in a loft bed above his living room if a comparably-priced space with a dedicated bedroom was available to him.

My mom always opened the jar, emptied it into the KitchenAid bowl, gave it a stir with the paddle mixer, and put it back in the jar. Yes, you have to wash the mixer bowl, but it's so worth it to not have to work that oil in by hand.

This makes me so happy.

What a unique, lovely space. I love that the outside wall of the Airstream has become an interior wall in her house. So unusual! And the dropclothes make it look like the inside of Jeannie's bottle. Love everything.