When it comes to rooming with baby, the though of buying a bassinet never really crossed my mind. The though of buying a piece of baby furniture that I can only use for three or four months gives my inner frugal diva morning sickness. That said, I do think that this nest bassinet from Spunky Sprout is pretty cute… and so very Danish! It reminds me of the furniture my European grandparents collected when I was growing up, which may explain some of the affinity I feel toward a rather uncomfortable looking baby bed made of bent plywood and chrome.

At $799, I wouldn’t call this bed a steal — the baby can only sleep in a bassinet for so long, after all — but it does convert into a play table and toy bin, so at least it’s not completely useless.

Also must add: GHOST CHILD LOVES NEST!

Okay, maybe just five gifts. And we’re not exactly going around the world, as the areas of the globe represented in the above furniture and accent decor from Ten Thousand Villages are limited to the Caribbean, Central America, India, Vietnam, and Kenya. So I lied a little in the name of beautiful accessories for the home. Sue me… then buy me a hand-carved kisii soapstone hippo from Kenya and I’ll forgive you for being so easily upset.

I want Drake Design Associates to work their home decor design magic on my little house. Sure, I can’t actually afford to hire an interior designer of that caliber, but that won’t stop me from looking through their design portfolio and pretending I live in the houses the company has created.

This Fifth Ave. loft in New York City pairs velvets and shantungs with antique mirrors and high gloss lacquers for an eclectic look that makes me break whichever commandment that says coveting is a sin.

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And by TV dinners I of course mean dinners eaten in front of the television, which is how most meals in my home are consumed, much to my horror. I’m enjoying it while I can — once my children are old enough to appreciate the whole family thing, dinners will be consumed as a family at the kitchen table. We don’t have a dining room, or else I suppose we’d be eating in it. For now, The Beard and I balance our dinner plates on our knees with our feet on the coffee table in the den. Ah, childfree living…I shall miss you.

Maybe I should get one of these sweet retro TV trays from Koo Koo Bear while I still can? Okay, maybe not in this economy. Like Twistie and I were saying the other day, the houses in our heads are getting upgrades while the houses we actually live in will have to do that much longer. For now, answer me this:

With the Thanksgiving holiday’s imminent arrival, it’s time to think about taking care of house guests by stocking up on toiletries and linens. Here’s an idea: Pamper your mom or sister (or best friend) with delicious handmade soaps from Naiad Soap Arts…just don’t be surprised if they stick around for longer than expected because they can’t get enough. You can get around this predicament by buying a few extra bars of soap so your guests can take some soapy sweetness home with them.

I’m quite the fan of Amy Butler, so when I heard she’d teamed up with Mikasa to produce a line of dishware, my heart was all aflutter. But now that I’ve seen the results, my reaction is basically “meh.” All in all, the line is kind of tame — there are so many wonderfully bold Amy Butler patterns out there that would make smashing dishes. Like this, this, and this, for instance!

That new couch is out of your reach? Switching up little details like throw pillows can give your living spaces a new look without breaking the bank…well, most of the time, anyway.

Cotton twill pillows by Thomas Paul are a notable exception at $50 to $100 per pillow. Yes, it’s still less expensive than buying a sofa, but lord, it ain’t cheap. Limited quantities and exclusive designs contribute to the price, yet it’s the intriguing patterns that make them so drool-worthy.

Selling foreclosures has to be a pain. When The Beard and I were looking at houses, we saw a few foreclosures and all of them had been trashed. I’m not saying that every foreclosed homes everywhere has been given a nasty once over, but I will put forth that houses that sit empty long enough begin to look…well, empty. A house with a rock “lawn” or lots of shrubs may not lose all that much curb appear for lack of care, but lawns can drop dead pretty darned quickly.

Some banks trying to sell empty homes are apparently taking the easy way out when it comes to lawn care. Companies like the Greener Grass Company in California and Tate Turf Painting in South Carolina will paint a lawn green for about $200. The benefits, according to Tate, are multifold:

• Have a green lawn in hours, not weeks or months
• Less expensive than the overall costs of over seeding
• Environmentally safe, no harmful chemicals in our paint
• Lasts up to 3 months
• Protects the lawn from harsh winter temperatures
• No mowing during the winter
• No Spring Transition Period
• Prepares grass to “green up” on its own faster in Spring
• CONSISTENT GREEN THROUGHOUT ENTIRE LAWN!

Apparently, it won’t harm the individual blades of grass or the root system, and the paint itself is applies in such a way that sunlight can still reach each blade. It seems odd, but at the same time, is intriguing. A quarter of my lawn recently died mysteriously, and we’re not quite sure what to do about it.

I recently read a wonderful quote with which I wholeheartedly agree. In Cottage Living, designer Jeffrey French said:

“I never rush clients to completion because if you furnish an entire house at once, it looks like a snapshot of what was available at that time. Instead, houses need to evolve like epic stories with chapters from different time periods.”

The sentiment really resonates with me even though French was talking about furniture and accessories from different era as opposed to furniture and accessories from different styles and sources. My own home is filled with things I’ve found in stores, in thrift shops, in my grandparents’ home, in my travels, and, though I am always somewhat loathe to admit it, on curbs. Some of it is new, some is very old, some is mass produced, and some is handmade.

The homes I like best tend to be those whose decor has evolved over time. A room put together all at once risks looking too much like a catalog or a temporary space created just for a magazine shoot. The only downside to letting one’s home evolve naturally is that there are transitional periods. A room may not seem quite right until you find that perfect piece that pulls it all together. A perfect thrift store find may temporarily throw a room out of balance.

Unless you have scads of money and a personal shopper, you just have to be patient and wait for your personal spaces to blossom. All I can say is that you’ll be glad you did because the eventual result will be so much more YOU than a pre-fab design scheme would have been.

Fall is a great time to look at all of the summery housewares that have gone on sale…or not. In some parts of the world, it’s summertime all year long, but not where I live. Here, for every beautiful cream glass pitcher sitting on a discount table, there’s a whopping big Christmas display. Well, you’re going to have to drag me kicking and screaming into the drab pall of wintertime because I’m just not ready to accept that summer really is over.

Those who, like me, can’t bear to see the leaves changing color should do themselves a favor and fill their homes with brightly colored home accessories from Rosanna, Inc. Rosanna Bowles and her team design beautiful things for the table like ceramic bottle reminiscent of beach glass, recycled glassware in hues inspired by Mother Nature, summery dishware, and updated reproductions of turn-of-the-century English botanical transferware.

…maybe if I turn my thermostat up to 90 I can put on some shorts.