Weekend Basics

Hi there! We're checking in this morning from Brooklyn, where we'll be spending the majority of this week. From the looks of our various news-feeds, it seems as if everyone spent the weekend selecting and decorating Christmas trees. If we didn't have travel plans, our weekend may have looked very similar, alas it was still filled with a good mix of treasure hunting, good eats and travel.

First up, treasure hunting! Saturday morning we went on a mission to find the perfect piece of reclaimed wood to use in an upcoming project post we're working on (spoiler — you'll get to see the final result this week!). We decided to stop into our local Habitat ReStore to see what they had on hand and luckily found what we needed pretty quickly.

Our local Restore is a pretty amazing place. If you haven't heard of it, the Habitat ReStore is a retail outlet specializing in donated building and home improvement supplies that are for sale to the general public at greatly reduced prices. If that weren't full of enough awesomeness, all profits the ReStore receives go right back into building affordable housing in the Greater Richmond area.

The store is a bit of an adventure — you'll find a mix of building supplies, architectural salvage, large appliances, decorating pieces and interesting odds and ends. It's a bit hit or miss and the inventory changes frequently since it's donation-based, but for projects that have room for a little creativity and flexibility this place can be a goldmine.

If we weren't in a hurry, I might have successfully convinced Tim to leave with these oversized glass light fixtures:

To the naked eye, they may come across as outdated lighting, but they reminded me of the geometric brass and glass faceted boxes that are so popular right now. In fact, I'd just recently stumbled across these oversized lanterns in that same style on Anthropologie:

See what I'm saying? I had grand DIY visions of removing the lighting components from those giant fixtures, creating a handle for the top opening and filling the bases with pillar candles to make big statement lanterns. So! If you're in Richmond, feel free to head on over to ReStore to save me from these giant beauties — otherwise, no promises when we return, ha.

Saturday evening we stopped in on the soft opening for Cooper Hawk Winery and Restaurant's newest location in the West End of Richmond:

We're excited about this new spot and had a blast getting an early-access chance to check it out before heading out of town. Although the location itself is not a winery, they exclusively serve Cooper's Hawk handcrafted wine blends and all food items are made in-house except the ketchup and mayonnaise (which Matt Foody, General Manager, will tell you with a smile). We'll look forward going back to enjoy a tasting and full meal over the holidays.

In the wee hours of Sunday morning, we hit the road heading up to NYC, where we'll be spending the majority of the week ahead. The 6 hour drive provided the perfect seclusion to start Serial, a 10-part podcast from the creators of This American Life that Tim's been eager to listen to and one I quickly became hooked on. We hope to power-listen through the full series on the drive back home (you know, like power-watching a Netflix season) — have you heard of Serial? We realize we're probably late to the party on this one.

This is our last trip to the city before the end of the year and always a favorite season to be in town since all the holiday decorations are in full swing, making everything seem so picturesque.

When rolling into Brooklyn early, we have a favorite breakfast spot — Marlow & Sons. They're open early, and always seem to have seasonal comforts that welcome us back to our home away from home. We'll plan to share some snaps from the city this week over on Instagram if you want to follow along — for instance, I couldn't help but post a shot of this beauty:

Believe it or not, these are the types of discarded finds you'll find out on the curb, headed for the landfill unless someone rescues them for a new life. Only in New York!

P.S. There's still time to enter our latest giveaway for $50 toward all-natural dog treats from Pup In The City. Find all the details and enter here.