Come in and stay a while.

Sit back, relax, and enjoy a cup of coffee or tea

amongst good friends and great home design.

Welcome to my new blog!

Ideas, tips, recipes and sometimes just stuff

from Willow House, friends and me!

Do you have ideas that you would love to share?

Please pass them on to me.

Enjoy!

The Dandelion Cafe ~ dreams and wishes do come true!

Give me a little lemon and I just say HELLO YELLOW!
Nothing beats a burst of SUNSHINE especially a bowl full of lemons!

Yellow is such a soothing color to have in your home to freshen up any place.

I love keeping them in my Cinnabar Footed Server on my kitchen island ~ it's

the first place I go in the morning and seeing these are a bright wake up call

along with the smell of a fresh pot of coffee!

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!

Here are just a few other uses for this yellow burst of sunshine:

1. Sanitize a chopping block. Run a slice of lemon over the surface to disinfect.

2. Eliminate the browning that occurs when food sits out too long. Sprinkle apple or pear slices with lemon juice before serving, or squeeze a bit into guacamole and give it a stir.

3. Remove tough food stains from plastic and light-colored wooden cutting boards. Slice a lemon in half, squeeze the juice onto the soiled surface, rub, and let sit for 20 minutes. Rinse with water.

4. Fade tea stains on cloth. Dilute lemon juice with an equal amount of water. Use an eyedropper or a Q-tip to make sure the juice targets the stain. Thoroughly flush with cool water.

5. Decorate on the cheap. Fill a glass bowl with lemons for a sunny centerpiece. Or display a row of them along a windowsill.

6. Relieve a sore throat. Cut a lemon in half. Skewer one half over a medium flame on a gas stove or an electric burner set on high and roast until the peel turns golden brown. Let cool slightly, then mix the juice with 1 teaspoon of honey. Swallow the mixture.

7. Whiten fingernails. Rub a wedge on the surface of your nails.

8. Shine the interior of copper cookware. Sprinkle a lemon wedge with salt, then scrub.

9. Brighten laundry whites. Add 1/2 cup lemon juice to the wash cycle of a normal-size load.

10. Remove soft cheese or other sticky foods from a grater. Rub both sides of the grater with the pulp side of a cut lemon.

Take a look at Willow House has to offer!

Compare the difference:

and now look what is one of our favorites! :

....and better yet when you have a party you can get these for

FREE or Half Price!

I am now booking parties for April and May so let me know if you

would like to have a fun girl's night out!

Great uses for PEROXIDE!

I recently came across these great ideas for the different uses

of PEROXIDE!

The cost is less than $1 a bottle so go pick up a few bottles to have around your house

especially if you are getting ready to do some SPRING CLEANING!

Heal wounds and infections by soaking the affected area in peroxide from five to ten minutes. Do this several times a day for better and faster results.

Kill fungus on your feet by spraying a mixture (fifty percent peroxide and fifty percent water) of peroxide and water on them everyday. Don’t wipe with cloth, just let it dry.

Rather than keeping your toothbrush in your bathroom cabinets, soak it in a cup of peroxide. This will kill bacteria and germs that may have accumulated due to residues from your teeth.

Use peroxide as mouthwash. Take one capful and gargle for about five to ten minutes. You’ll be surprised to see whiter teeth and sore-less gums.

Following the same idea as with your toothbrush, peroxide can also be used as a spray cleaner for countertops and tabletops. You may also put a small amount on a dishrag and wipe it on the surfaces to kill bacteria and germs.

Spray a 50/50 mixture of peroxide and water into your nostrils whenever you have colds or blocked sinus. Hold it for a few minutes and then blow your nose into a tissue. Peroxide kills the bacteria that cause colds, coughs, flu, and sinus infections.

Use peroxide as a pain-reliever! If you’re suffering from toothache and the dentist is still several miles away, gargle peroxide for about ten minutes several times. This shall lessen the pain and give you ample time to get to the dentist without having to suffer more.

Half a bottle of peroxide mixed with your bath can cure mild and recurring skin infections such as rashes, boils and fungus

Use peroxide as a substitute for bleach. Apply a small amount on stains or mix with your laundry to whiten clothes.

Clean your mirrors with peroxide! You’ll love the smudge and smear-free surface!

Easy Weeknight Enchiladas

Here is a simple recipe to try that comes from the
Easy Weeknight Favorites from Southern Living.

Easy Weeknight Enchiladas:
1 pound ground chuck 1 small onion, chopped
1 (10 oz) can tomato soup 1 (10 oz) can mild enchilada sauce
8 (7 or 8 inch) flour tortillas 2 cups (8 oz) shredded cheddar cheese, divided
Sour cream, optional Sliced olives, optional

Cook beef and onion in a large skillet over medium high heat; drain. Stir soup and enchilada into meat.Spread ¼ cup meat mixture onto each tortilla; sprinkle tortillas evenly with 1 cup of cheese. Roll up tortillas; place seam side down in greased 13 x9 x 2 baking dish. Pour remaining meat mixture over tortillas. Cover and bake at 350* for 20 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with remaining 1 cup of cheese; bake 5 more minutes or until cheese melts. Serve with sour cream and olives, if desired. ENJOY !

Making your home cozy during February!

Are you ready for SPRING? These recent days with the sunshine really have me thinking of being outside and working in the yard. It isn’t too early to start your spring planning now. If you planted those bulbs back in the late fall you are lucky to soon have a burst of color in your yard. Some of my favorites are tulips, forsythia and daffodils. I love daffodils and hate that they don’t last long enough. To me they are a burst of sunshine! Years ago when visiting my grandparents I would walk down to the local market and along the way I would sneak and pick one of the neighbor’s daffodils. I think from that spring on these have been my favorite. If you do have some of these flowers blooming soon make sure to pick a few and put them in every room of your house. It will brighten anyone’s mood. If you don’t have these flowers to put a pop color in your home Wal Mart and the Fresh Market already have tulips for a very reasonable price, if not use fruit. If you have a special bowl take it out and just keep oranges, apples and pomegranates in it for a fresh look. If you need to liven up that mantle, keep white or cream colored candles on it.
Keep your home warm and cozy for February and start planning your spring chores, planting and decorating ideas for spring.

Be sure to check out the latest with Willow House - http://mystyleshare.com/ See tons of decorating ideas! You can even put things on this! What fun and at Willow House things are so exciting these days!

Simple Inspirations for SPRING!

I love simplicity but also adding special little touches to things.

Here I have taken a simple candle and just wrapped it

with burlap ribbon and secured it with a magnet adding

a little bit of texture and style to a boring candle!

A simple spring mantle design with

a lot of green and a pop of color with

the red tulips!

Like what you see?

Many of these mantle what-nots come from

Willow House so let me know if I can help with

any decorating ideas.

Baked Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip

Great for the Super Bowl Party from Southern Living!

Total: 35 minutes Yield: Makes about 4 cups
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1/2 (12-oz.) jar roasted red bell peppers, drained and chopped
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 (8-oz.) block extra-sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
1 (8-oz.) block pepper Jack cheese, shredded
Garnish: fresh cilantro leaves
Serve with: French bread cubes
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Stir together first 4 ingredients in a large bowl; stir in cheeses. Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 2-qt. baking dish.
2. Bake at 350° for 20 to 25 minutes or until dip is golden and bubbly. Garnish, if desired. Serve with French bread cubes.

ENJOY and SHARE!

Happy February from The Dandelion Cafe!

I can't believe that February is already here and it won't be long before we are all out buying those Valentine cards for the ones that are special to us. This month I wanted to highlight one of my favorite collections ~ CINNABAR from Willow House! The beautiful red gives any room that extra POP of COLOR! Not only is our canister set a great piece for your kitchen, I also use one canister as a flower vase for a bunch of white tulips to accent my coffee table. Cinnabar Collection consists of bakers, platters, plates, tidbits, a canister set and vase. This collection is easy to bring a neutral room to life with its color.