Tag Archives: gifts

Midweek Craft: DIY Mirror Glass

Posted on March 12, 2025 | Leave a comment

You know what’s super annoying? When every damned thing on a blog is something that would take your whole weekend/all your vacation days/the rest of your life and a degree in fiber arts to complete. Chronderlust is not about that. Chronderlust is about coming home from the gym and deciding to make something kinda pretty on Wednesday before you reheat curry and watch The Sopranos (actual description of today). Behold: Mercury glass, the ultimate stupidly easy craft that also looks awesome.

Oh, look, both of these are pretty, but only one is expensive.

Oh, look, both of these are pretty, but only one is expensive.

You have three of the four things you need for this in your house right now. After the jump, I’ll show you how to do this, and then you, too, will have a bunch of nice hostess gifts in your present closet that you can stuff full of Publix flowers if you get invited to a dinner party last second. Stop looking at me like that; that is a totally normal thing to stock for and I resent the accusation that it isn’t.

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Tea Party Tuesday: Glitter and Gold

Posted on May 7, 2025 | 2 comments

Fair warning: I know little-to-nothing about this week’s tea. My little sister picked it up at David’s Tea when she was there this fall and brought it home to share.

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THE SPARKLE IS COMING FROM INSIDE THE TEA

Here’s what I know: It’s a Chinese black tea, but exactly what kind, I’m not sure. It’s a souchong, I’m almost certain, but beyond that, I’m just guessing. It has a little bit of orange peel, clove, and vanilla, too. The sparkle comes from little gold balls that look like dragees! In the heat of the water, they melt down and make the tea shimmer. I wish the photo did it justice- it’s dazzling. I don’t usually like gimmicks like this, but I do like shiny stuff, and this is just the right twinkle to quality ratio.

This tea isn’t a slouch- it’s a high-quality black tea, as is evidenced by the uniform-ish size and shape of the leaves and the consistency of the color throughout. It’s rich and bold in the cup, and the added spices and such add just enough zing to make themselves known but not overpower the leaves themselves.

It’s a fun beverage, for sure, but would be best for the winter. It has a flavor profile that reminds me of winter. I’m going to save the rest of the baggie for December, when I can listen to the Nutcracker and sip this by a fire.

If this sounds appealing to you, you can pick up 1.6 ounces/$7.5 at David’s Tea.

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Fantasy Life Update: I Can’t Even

Posted on May 2, 2025 | Leave a comment
Sorry, hands shaking.

Sorry, hands shaking.

This is my ticket for the Kentucky Derby. Finish line, under the awning, in a box gifted to my amazing friend (who is bringing my lucky bones) by Kentucky Fried Chicken. I will never, ever sit in seats this good again. These are ungettably good seats. Can you tell I’m so excited I want to explode? BRING IT ON, OUT-OF-TOWNERS. Kentucky’ll show you how it’s done.

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The Most Duh

Posted on April 13, 2025 | Leave a comment

[Ed. Note: I accidentally scheduled this for the wrong day! It was supposed to be an accompaniment to this post. Mea culpa.]

I was over on Fab the other morning, and they had this pretty slate cheese board for sale, marked down to $20 (originally $30).

Look how fancy!

Look how fancy!

What a nice housewarming gift! Except that that took less than 1 minute to make, and well under a dollar. Continue reading →

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Fantasy Life Update: Terrariums

Posted on February 22, 2025 | 2 comments

Once upon a time in Mississippi, there lived a woman with approximately ten terrariums scattered about her pretty adorable home.

This is her. Look at her, giggling about the terrariums back at her house.

This is her. Look at her, giggling about the terrariums back at her house.

Unfortunately, the terrariums did not survive the move to Kentucky, and her current living situation does not allow for further terrarium creation. Also, this woman is me, so I’m going to go ahead and give up this conceit right now.

The good news is that people heard me mention the lost, self-sustaining ecosystems I had fostered (or maybe heard me crying about them late at night [not that I did that]), and it has become the default present to give me in the last few months. Below are the the two non-me-made terrariums I have been gifted.

Surprisingly hard to take compelling photos of these compelling little worlds.

Surprisingly hard to take compelling photos of these compelling little worlds.

The one on the right is from The Terrarium Lady here in town. Unfortunately, the Terrarium Lady does not have a webpage, but if you’re ever in town, you can purchase one from her at the Flea Off Market. The other is from Twig Terrariums in Brooklyn, and yes, they ship!

The reason I love these so is that hey, I’m a busy lady, and I can’t be made to make a watering schedule in Excel and then hire a plant sitter and leave her with lots of instructions when I go to conferences or whatever. The other is that they make your house look really…lush? Verdant? These both seem like slightly slick words to employ, but a couple well-placed jars full of succulents (also a little slimy) make your home look alive and well for almost no effort.

Once I’m back in a larger space with a garage, I’ll make a how-to-make-your-own-terrarium tutorial. Would you like that? Learning how to make your own tiny world inside a cookie jar?

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