Bohemian Cottage | Sharing the Artistic Lifestyle...Take a Peek Inside

Persian Love Cake

Spice infused chiffon cake with a light saffron and rose frosting. Divine.

Exotic, romantic, beautiful. Persian Love Cake. My good friend Kristi requested I make this cake for our friend Autumn’s bridal/bachelorette party we hosted. I thought it was stunning and couldn’t wait to try the worldly flavors. Cardamom, saffron, pistachios, rose…So bohemian and a feast for the senses.

I don’t exactly consider myself a baker. I usually bake a cake or two a year, rarely do I bake cookies, maybe around Christmas. When I do bake, I tend to challenge myself, thinking how hard can it be right? This cake was not simple, and I think perhaps the altitude of Colorado might have been working against me on this one. My cake was not as fluffy as I was hoping, but the flavor. Wow. It was light and not too sweet, full of perfumed mystery. This cake screams Valentines Day if you’re so inclined. I thought Kristi was right on point with choosing this cake as a send off into marriage for our friend. The recipe made 2 small heart shaped pans. I think I will double it next time, cause there will be a next time… (read more)

Outdoor Chair Makeover

Chair makeover. Before picture of our metal chairs before painting.

These metal outdoor chairs were in sore need of some TLC.

These outdoor metal chairs were rusting and a greyish color as you can see from the picture above. When we were getting ready to host a bachelorette party for my friend Autumn, we needed lots of seating quick. We were short on time and budget, so we decided to paint the chairs we already had. We used a Rustoleum spray paint that said it worked on metal in a gloss finish for 3 of the 4 colors and a satin finish in one. We wanted them to look colorful and bohemian to go with the bright southwestern tie dyed table cloth I had. We chose a lime green, turquoise blue, and coral in the gloss and a purple in the satin finish. To do this project, we just had to clean the chairs, sand down any rust spots and spray paint a light coat or 2 of the Rustoleum paint. We laid drop cloths right outside and worked on a day that had minimal wind. Check out the results! (read more)

Lemonies! Sweet Lemon Bar Alternative

Lemon Yellowies are more firm like a brownie or dense cake.

We went to a potluck in the Cherry Creek district of Denver this weekend. What a beautiful home! The hosts were so gracious and generous with tons of food and drinks. They even organized a canned food drive. They had an artist doing charcoal portraits, and we had one done of Makayla. I met some really interesting people too, some of them artists as well.

The hosts requested that we bring either a dessert or a side dish, so we opted for dessert. Makayla made these Lemonies on her own with no help from me at all. We named these delicious treats Lemonies since they are like a brownie, but obviously not brown! They are different than a traditional lemon bar in that they are firm and more dense, which I happen to love. They have a great lemon flavor, but are not too sweet either. They are not gluten free or vegan or low carb or anything else as far as being friendly to any particular diet. But! They are totally delish for those who may stray from time to time or don’t really have to restrict their diets. I have ambition and goals of including treats for other restricted diets here, as I have been having to go more low carb for health reasons lately and have other friends that have other issues and choices as well. (read more)

Bohemian Nail Art~Kiss Nail Stickers Review

Today we did manicures and I tried nail polish stickers from Kiss. The nails were very easy to apply and they had a lot of lovely designs. I picked this classy black and gold one. It also comes with little shapes and such you can add to customize it. You can see a few of the designs above. I was really sad to see, hours later, the stickers peeling off. I’m sure they will work fine with some nail glue or something to make them a little more permanent.

These nails were so edgy and bohemian and really classy looking on.

I tried Kiss Gel Dress, gel polish solution stickers in Royal Flush. (read more)

The Art of the Vignette. Styling Decorative Displays

I don’t have a big home improvement budget at this time in my life, (working on changing that!) but I do have a voracious appetite for beautifying our home. One of the cheapest and easiest ways to change up your decor and to really add a personal and bohemian flair, is to style a vignette of favorite and collected objects, or still life. Vignettes can be as simple as grouping several heights of candles together in front of a mirror, to a carefully curated cluster of gathered pieces, thoughtfully placed using the following principles… (read more)

Decorating the Outdoor Room

With my recent project of painting our tiny front deck, I got inspired to make it feel like an outdoor room that we can enjoy as an extension of our home. My imagination starts dreaming of rugs, moroccan style lanterns, colorful pottery and furniture, plants and pillows…The space is small, but could be so cozy. I thought I would share with you some of the outdoor rooms that are inspiring our little deck “room” makeover and the pictures of the progress of the space taking shape. I have also included some Amazon affiliate links for some of the items I am considering getting for our deck too. (we get a little commission if you decide to purchase something through the link, it helps keep the blog going, and we thank you!) (read more)