Hanging By A Thread

Lazy Girl's Cobbler

2009-05-25T17:43:00.010-05:00

This is always a hit anywhere I take it, but I've kicked it up a notch - the basic recipe is below, but read my adjustment remarks!

First, you can use just about any fruit. Typically, I use peaches, but recently the only fruit I had was pineapple and pear. I love pear and apple pie, so why not pineAPPLE and pear cobbler - for breakfast (with coffee), dessert (with a glass of vino), mid-morning snack, afternoon snack - take your pick and enjoy (just watch the wine intake please).

Lazy Cobbler Basic Recipe
1 stick butter, melted

1 C flour

1 C sugar

fruit (large can 29 oz. WITH juice) (can use two 15 oz. cans)

Mix flour and sugar; add melted butter and milk and wisk together well. Pour the batter into a greased 8x11 pan. Pour fruit AND juice on top of the batter. DO NOT MIX. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.

Bake at 350 til brown, about 30 minutes.

MY ADJUSTMENTS:

I add a pinch of soda, pinch of salt, and 1 t. baking power to the flour mixture, and a good splash of vanilla flavoring to the milk.

Here is how I mix my batter for the pineapple upside cobbler: cream your butter and sugar (do not melt the butter) well, alternately add flour, milk, until all is incorporated (this produces more of a "cake-like" texture). Place about 3/4 of a 15 oz. can crushed pineapple on the bottom of the pan, sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon, add some batter. Add remaining crushed

pineapple with some of the juice, add 1/2 of a 15 oz. can pears or cubed pineapple (I use my fingers so I am putting a bit more juice into the mixture, and cut up the pears into small pieces), sprinkle with sugar/cinnamon, add remaining batter. Again, DO NOT MIX.

Bake and enjoy.

Please send me your comments and your concoctions - go ahead and try something crazy.

You really can't mess up this cobbler! (Opps, my timer just went off, gotta go check the cobbler...

and here is my finished Pineapple Upside Down Cobbler.........can't wait to dig in...)

Vacation in the Backyard!

2009-05-23T13:40:00.016-05:00

Sometimes we focus all our attention on the interior of our home, but if you are like me, you also enjoy spending some quality time outdoors.

So why not dress up the patio!!

Sunbrella® is the leading name in outdoor materials. The collections now include exquisite jacquards, textures and patterns - soft chenilles, crisp double-cloths, rich stripes, plush velvets, elegant damasks - and all just as durable, fade-free and bleach-cleanable as the forest green canvas that made them famous. Oh, and a 5 year warranty.

Make your patio an extension of your home. You spend far too much time on your patio, in the pool, having a cookout with family and friends. Customize your new vacation spot!

Add new life to your patio furniture with cushions and some throw pillows, add a fabulous table cover! Separate the eating area from the pool area with sheer panels.

Yikes! White cushions – are you crazy? Remember, Sunbrella® is stain resistant, and you can clean it with bleach!

What about your weekends at the lake? Boat cushions look a bit rough, like the afternoon water on Memorial Day!? Sunbrella® fabric is the boating world's choice for cushions and other cabin needs – the fabrics now provide even greater water repellency. There are options for any kind of boat - from cruisers to ski boats. You love being on the water – now add some pizzaz and love it even more! No fear - no mildew, no fading.

We are your source for fabric AND fabrication. We use ONLY Sunbrella® fabric and mildew resistant cushion inserts for your enjoyment as well as health. Check us out FIRST for your Backyard Vacation needs! Hurry – you don’t want to miss the summer and your new “home”!

Green Green, it's green they say.....

2009-04-23T09:16:00.010-05:00

Green. Remember when it was the name of a color. Today, the word has a more powerful implication. Waste management, soil contamination, sustainability....what do these words have to do with interior decor?

Traditional screen printing uses thousands of gallons of water per day, the water/dye solution is discarded into the sewer system. Foam and plastics are by-products of crude…….wonder why prices are going up? Paint is mostly plastic (crude!) stretched over your wall, and contains extremely harmful chemicals. Many of our fabrics are now “made in China”.

So, how can you protect your health and your home?

•Organic fibers and highly sustainable fibers – naturally grown cottons, sustainable silk, Tencil, bamboo, seaweed, and soy-based textiles.....why, there is even recycled cotton!

•Organic paints https://www.annasova.com/main.asp \ 90% food ingredients (just look at their gorgeous colors!) “Isn't breathing it the same as eating it? Just consider a gallon of our healthy paint as twelve pounds of vanilla truffles, and it's a bargain!”
•recycled plastics used in pillow forms, indoor/outdoor with no worries of mildew!
•digital print-on-demand fabrics, true custom fabric and no production waste

Green products are a bit more costly, but you truly get what you pay for. Safety and health must be considered in our home decorating projects, particularly for those with respiratory issues and diseases. When you consider the wonderful options available in organics, sustainable products, healthy paints, clean fabrics, the cost is really just a minimal investment.

If you are redecorating your home, consider the healthy side! At Deb Dunlap Designs, we offer the organic and all natural linings, sustainable USA grown silk fabrics, and much more. Visit our website to see how we can help you!

Welcome Spring!

2009-04-07T21:38:00.000-05:00

Spring has a way of making us "itch" - clean up, spruce up, change up. Paint, of course, is the first thing that comes to mind. There are some techniques for creating space that you may not be aware of. To enlarge the room and to keep from "chopping up" your wall space:

paint your window trim the SAME color as the wall
paint your baseboard to match your flooring

Notice the difference in the photos!

Imagine having numerous "breaks", i.e. windows, closet doors, entry doors..... Your room will appear much larger and your eye will flow evenly around the room when you coordinate your trim to your wall.

Can't afford new draperies, furniture, rugs? How about moving items from one room to another. Taking a rug from the living room to the bedroom, add a new coat of paint, and you have created an entire new look! Change the heavy drapery for puddled wraps of sheer fabric, gathered together at the top and tied onto a single medallion on each side of the window. Make some quick change pillows - wrap pillows like a package and secure with ribbon, a trim, tassels, etc. Add some beaded trim to the lamp shade.

There are so many quick-change options - go ahead. Do something new for yourself!

Who We Are - DD Designs

2009-03-22T23:16:00.001-05:00

Or new blog is set up to assist you in creating your
♥ nest ♥ haven ♥ castle ♥ man-cave! ♥ retreat

But, we're not just about drapery and bedding. You will find some great content each week - from design, to garden, to community involvement; we want to be your place for inspiration. Check back every week for new posts, photos, links, and whatever great finds we can show you.

For the first few weeks, posts will be shown in descending order of date - that's just for you to get to know us better. As content grows, the order will be switched to show newest posts first.

Thanks for checking in. See you again soon!