Styled and Savored #011
Your weekly curated guide to great finds that make your home life easier, fuller, richer, and happier.
This week we’re walking a tightrope of content selected carefully selected for both men and women. I always try to include a little something for both sexes, but a lot of the content I ran across this week skewed a little more towards the ladies. Don’t let that bother you, fellas, because I’m going to fold in a healthy dose of items that will likely appeal to you as well.
Kicking things of with a DIY summer wreath project
I’ve been seeing a lot of DIY craft projects for Summer wreaths. Social media can be funny that way as trends go viral and more content creators put their spin on whatever’s the hottest trend.
The Craftberry Bush blog has a post from way back in 2020 that shows you how to put together a gorgeous hydrangea wreath for Summer. I wanted to share this one with you because a lot of the current crop of wreath projects are emphasizing daisies, and while there’s nothing at all wrong with daisies, it’s nice to have a finished product that’s not like everything else out there at the moment.
© Craftberry Bush
I’m also including a Youtube video that provides a step-by-step tutorial on how to construct a wreath. That video is for a fall wreath, but the principles are the same, and you can recreate the Summer wreath above by selecting the appropriate florals.
Sherwin-Williams’ best neutral paint colors
On the home decor front, the City Farmhouse blog has a great post on the best neutral paint colors from Sherwin-Williams. We’re big fans of Sherwin-Williams here, and we use their products in all our new construction projects.
The selections from Jennifer at the City Farmhouse are all very sophisticated and versatile. They’ll work in just about any space or style of decor. Check out her selections below as well as an example of the end result.
© City Farmhouse
© City Farmhouse
Summer reading
Sticking with the City Farmhouse blog, there’s also a Summer beach reading list. The books on the list appear to be mostly in the romance category, so this item leans a little more towards the ladies, but I’ll have a few book recommendations of my own the our gentlemen readers in a minute.
© City Farmouse
Take a peek at the full list, complete with a brief synopsis of each book. Additionally, Jennifer (the author of the blog), Has a complete reading list on Amazon and Goodreads if you’re a real book nerd who loves to spend some time perusing the reading habits of others.
A witty twist on classic whodunits
For the fellas, (or anyone who loves a good, entertaining mystery), I’m currently reading a quirky/cheeky mystery from Australian author Benjamin Stevenson entitle “Everyone in My Family has Killed Someone”.
It’s a humorous, off-beat story of a dysfunctional family that’s gathered at a ski lodge for a bizarre kind of family reunion just as the main character’s brother is released from prison for, you guessed it, murdering someone.
Here’s the summary posted at Amazon: “Everyone in my family has killed someone. Some of us, the high achievers, have killed more than once. I’m not trying to be dramatic, but it is the truth. Some of us are good, others are bad, and some just unfortunate.
I’m Ernest Cunningham. Call me Ern or Ernie. I wish I’d killed whoever decided our family reunion should be at a ski resort, but it’s a little more complicated than that.
Have I killed someone? Yes. I have.
Who was it?
Let’s get started.”
It’s my first novel from this author, and so far, I’m really enjoying it. If you’re looking for a lighthearted story filled with offbeat characters, you could do a lot worse. Use the link above to pick up a copy for yourself.
A timeless guide to Stoic philosophy
The other book I’m currently reading is “Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius, the Roman emperor and prominent Stoic philosopher.
The book offers fantastic insights into his thoughts on Stoic philosophy and his personal ethics. Here’s how Amazon describes the book: “A timeless guide to Stoic philosophy, Meditations by Marcus Aurelius offers invaluable insights into life, virtue, and resilience. This influential work offers a window into the mind of a Stoic philosopher-king as he reflects on the nature of the universe, the meaning of life, and the virtues that lead to a fulfilling existence.
Offers practical advice on navigating life’s challenges and embracing the present moment.
Serves as a source of inspiration for those seeking a more purposeful and meaningful existence.
Includes teachings that encourage self-reflection and the art of mindfulness for a more balanced and fulfilling life.
Provides practical insights on resilience, self-discipline, and finding inner peace.
A must-read for those on a journey of self-discovery.”
This inspirational read is a must-have for anyone seeking personal growth and enlightenment. Get your copy by clicking the link above.
Meal prep in a can
© The Art of Manliness
This item comes to us from The Art of Manliness blog, and it’s really more of a novelty item just for fun. However, I do think it offers some value in that it provides some solid meal-prep ideas if you’re in a pinch and need something quick and inexpensive.
The post focuses on how to eat healthy on a budget using only canned food, and the criteria for measuring the success of the experiment was that the lunchtime meals had to be high-protein, low-calorie, and budget-friendly.
I don’t want to spoil the findings before you have a chance to read the post for yourself, but I’ll tease you with a couple of insights gleaned from the experiment.
The meals were very budget-friendly
They were macro-friendly
They were easy to prepare
Because the food is canned, the meals pack a sodium-heavy wallup
If you want more details, go check out the blog post, and give the canned food meal prep recipes a try. They’re certainly convenient, easy, and affordable.
Save money by purchasing larger cuts of meat
Maybe it’s the fact that my dad, and one of my business partners have a background in the meat business with both of them being former meat men for Florida’s favorite grocery store chain, Publix, but I’ve always been fascinated with how large cuts of meat get broken down and trimmed for the dinner table. I remember fondly the days when my dad would take me into the meat department at one of the stores he worked at early in his career for a peek behind the scenes. Back then, stores would receive whole sides of beef that would hang on meat hooks in the store’s freezers, waiting for the butchers to break down the beef into delectable, consumer-friendly cuts, and ultimately place them into the meat case for a customer to purchase, take home, and prepare.
Those days are long gone with most meat arriving at the grocery store already broken down, and for the most part already prepped for the meat case. It’s about efficiency and convenience, but those benefits come with a cost for the consumer in the form of higher prices per pound.
Fortunately, there are a host of social media content creators out there whose channels are filled with instructional videos on how you can save a little money by purchasing some larger cuts of meat yourself and breaking them down into more manageable portions to prepare and serve.
One of my favorite creators in this genre is a guy who calls himself MeatDad. He’s got a couple of million followers spread across multiple social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and his own website) where he shows you how to save money on and prepare everything from beef, to chicken, to lamb, and even some exotic meats upon occasion.
I’m going to embed some examples from his Instagram feed below to give you an idea of what you can learn from him. I’ll warn you that sometimes his language can be a little salty – just in case that offends you – but he makes learning about different cuts of meat a blast, and who doesn’t want to save a little money on their grocery bill, especially when it comes to the protein you buy?
Carrot cake cupcakes
Last but certainly not least for this edition of S&S, we’ve got a wonderful Springtime cupcake recipe, particularly if you’re a fan of carrot cake.
This cupcake recipe from the Pinch of Yum blog features a decadent cream cheese frosting that you can even crown with a fun, edible carrot topper.
© Pinch of Yum
My favorite thing about this recipe is the ginger that goes into the batter for a surprising zing. It calls for ground ginger, but if you’re going to shred some carrots for this recipe, it might also be fun to swap the powdered ginger for fresh and shred some of that for the recipe while you do the carrots.
That’s it for this week. Let us know your thoughts about any or all of the featured posts in this edition of Styled & Savored, and tell us what you’d like to see us cover in future editions as well.
