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a slice of life

Favorite Things

a secret to savings & air fryer zucchini recipe

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by eBay.  As always, I only partner with brands I use, love, and enjoy and all words are honest and my own. I am pretty sure that the first thing I ever bought online was an antique piece listed on eBay.  Whether it was the first or not, what I vividly remember is feeling nervous about the entire idea of buying something online.  Clearly, I’ve gotten over that!  Not only has my confidence grown in buying online, but eBay continues to grow, evolve, and find ways to bring the best products to their customers in the most secure way.  One of their latest programs is eBay Refurbished, which is the most trusted way to purchase certified refurbished products from vetted sellers online. There was a time when I was skeptical about buying refurbished products, but when a couple of professional photographers shared with me that

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Favorite Things

time to refresh your bedding

Disclosure: This blog post is sponsored by Brooklinen.  As always, all opinions and words are honest and my own. I’ve shared about Brooklinen many times over the years and I continue to partner with them because their bedding and towels are just that awesome.  I started using their towels five years ago and have been hooked on their oversized bath sheets that are so luxurious and sinkable soft that other towels feel inferior.  I’ve used their lightweight feather comforter for that same amount of time and it is a go-to when I need an extra layer.  And I’ve used their linen and cotton sheets and linen quilt on my bed for a couple of years and they are beautiful, comfortable, and just keep getting better with age. I’m highlighting them this week because they are running their biggest sale of the year, so it’s the perfect time to refresh, upgrade,

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Favorite Things

September & October 2022 favorites

We moved into our house in mid-September, which feels like just a couple of weeks ago, but here we are in mid-November.  There are seasons of life when time ticks by slowly, like when waiting for a broken foot to heal, and seasons when the days and weeks fly by, like when you’re in the frenzied weeks after moving into a new house.  In all of the activity, projects, and busyness, I forgot to share my favorites not only for September but for October as well!  Fortunately, I do make notes of things I enjoy, so I can share them with you.  Here are my favorites from September and October 2022. home, of course, and everything that came with that Well, this had to be at the top of the list!  After a few uncertain months, we were finally able to unpack our suitcases in a 1970s brick rancher in

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a slice of life

books from friends

One of my favorite things about the online world is that we have the chance to meet and connect with people we would never meet otherwise.  I have gotten to know people who love the things I love and even those who write about the things I love.  There are certainly many things I can and have bemoaned about social media, but I do love this aspect of it.  As a result of some of these connections, I’m occasionally sent something a fellow creative and author has put out in the world.  Over the summer and into the fall, I received a bunch!  Some were temporarily lost in the shuffle of the move and some were mailed to temporary addresses until we were settled or sat on top of a pile of boxes until I could get things opened and organized.  While I haven’t had time to thoroughly read each

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a slice of life

a pillow you can customize

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Marlow, a brand-new company from the founders of Brooklinen.  I’ve partnered with Brooklinen for over five years, so I was happy to partner with them on their newest brand created to help me sleep more comfortably.  As always, all opinions and words expressed are honest and my own. When moving into a new home, there are a lot of good moments.  Some good moments that come to mind are eating the first meal in the house (ours was pizza, picnic-style), getting the kitchen set up, and the first time the family snuggles on the sofa for a movie night.  But, I think the best moment in a new house is when you finally sleep in your own bed, especially if it’s been almost five months! I seriously could’ve cried tears of joy when our bed was set up and made with freshly-washed linen sheets

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a slice of life

what you share matters

As I shared yesterday, I purchased a twenty-drawer antique cabinet from Ekster antiques and, when I drove to the barn to pick it up, I bought another large piece.  I bought this gorgeous European glass front cabinet that was way too big to fit in my van.  The wheels in my head were turning as I contemplated how I was going to get the piece home. Our truck bed was too small, but maybe we could strap it in?  No…too risky.  I was going to have my dad drive a truck to Lucketts in case I needed it for a large purchase and maybe he could pick it up for me?  Could we have it delivered? Every scenario I went to was about having someone else drive a vehicle that would be large enough to pick it up.  That’s just not something I do. With all of the furniture I

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a slice of life

settling into a new home

Crying seems to be inevitable in the early days of a move.  You’re tired.  You’re emotional.  You’re feeling raw.  You’re relieved to be settled yet you feel entirely unsettled, upended.  The familiarity of your things clashes with the unfamiliarity of a new place.  It’s the biggest purchase of your life and you have only spent a few hours walking through empty rooms.  This house that you filled a truckload of paperwork for and dreamed about is now an overwhelming reality. It’s your home, but it doesn’t feel like home.  It will, but not yet. We’ve been doing all of the usual moving-in things.  Having a washer & dryer delivered, opening boxes, putting things away, and then moving them a second and third time until it feels like they might be in the right place.  A steady stream of tradesmen has been coming through to give us estimates on new windows,

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a slice of life

where we are landing…

Yesterday, it became official.  The Parsons family will be moving to Washington County, MD!  (Cue, Maryland, My Maryland…) Oh man, there is so much to tell you! So much has been going on in the background as I’ve been writing about visiting family, taking care of my broken foot, hitting used bookstores, and buying antiques for our future home.  It all started with a phone call in June in response to a resume Jeff submitted.  When Jeff finished that initial call, we sat together on the porch of the Airbnb in Rochester, MN and he told me about it.  We both felt like this might be “the one” and we were excited about returning to an area that was somewhat familiar (it’s about an hour from where we used to live in PA), but there was a long way to go, a lot of interviews, questionnaires, meetings, and a lot

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I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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