Home & Garden Blog » evette

When we’re in transitional weather, we need to be prepared for whatever footwear is necessary for the day. In those unusually humid and sweaty days of September and October, you might still want to pull out the gladiator sandals left over from the summer. But when it gets too cold, or wet, or rainy, you want to have those knee-high rain boots or fur-lined clogs to keep you feeling your best. Before your closet or mudroom floor becomes a chaos of shoes and laces, check out some of these affordable shoe racks:

Mudroom Shoe Rack : $98.00

Metal Shoe Rack: $29.99

Small Cherry Shoe Rack: $106.99

Find more affordable shoe racks at Smarter.com.

For today’s Deal of the Day, I bring you special sales and discounts on coffee makers! The weather is cooling down and it’s time to wake up to a fresh, warm brew while the shower heats up and the kids roll out of bed. You’ll need the energy without the hassle of driving to Starbucks, so here’s some top quality picks for you to add to your own home collection of kitchenware:

Chef Pepin Digital Coffee Maker: $36.95

BonJour Manual Caffe Froth Maximus, Brushed Stainless Steel: $16.95

Chambord Chrome 8-cup French Coffee Maker Press: $26.60

Shop through a variety of affordable coffee makers.

Image Source: yeswecanracine.ning.com

BlindSaver.com:  Get $75 Instant Rebate on $1500 - SAVE75 (Exp: 09/30/09)

Brookstone.com:  $5 off orders of $75 or more - AF6AUG (Exp: 09/15/09)

BrylaneHome.com:  $15 off $75, or $20 off $100 or more - BHASUMMER1 (Exp: 09/30/09)

Cooking.com:  Free shipping with $59 purchase - C98346 (Exp: 09/09/09)

Kegerator.com:  Additional $30 off Cruzin Coolers - 30CRUZINSEPT (Exp: 09/30/09)

LampsPlus.com: $40 off $450 - 70AFF (Exp: 09/30/09)

LillianVernon:  Free shipping on orders of $65 - 749850100 (Exp: 09/30/09)

Oneida: Take 11% off all orders - CMOUNT11 (Exp: 09/30/09)

ShopTasteofHome.com:  Save 12% on your next purchase of $25 or more - LST06 (Exp: 09/25/09)

SlipCoverStop.com:  Get a free 20″ matching pillow - PFSL (Exp: 09/30/09)

TheCompanyStore.com:  Free organic soap with a $50 organic purchase - AFF9GRN (Exp: 09/16/09)

HomeMarketPlace.com:  Free shipping on orders over $55 - 50619101008 (Exp: 09/20/09)

UrbanOutfitters.com: 10% off orders over $100 - luckybreaks09 (Exp: 09/30/09)

Well, they are known for their hurricanes!  It’s nice to see that someone’s trying to make the best of the crappy real-estate market (crappy for sellers, that is).  I stumbled upon this article from the Miami Herold that explains that recently foreclosed homes in Florida might be put to use as temporary hurricane relief shelters.  After conducting a drill of a Category 4 storm, they realized that not looking into this as an option would be foolish.  From the article:

“The drill’s scenario: a Category 4 storm nearly bankrupts the state, displaces one million residents, destroys homes and schools, and even frees zoo monkeys that terrorize Floridians.

During the weeklong exercise, Almaguer said, it didn’t take long for the 250 state, federal and local officials to figure out that neither Florida nor FEMA has enough shelter space to house the newly homeless.”

I think after the fiasco in February of this year with that Connecticut “domesticated” chimp, we wouldn’t any zoo monkeys to roam the streets freely.  We all know what monkeys are capable of! Lol!

Read the full article here.

Image Source:  AP Photo

I know a lot of people that are just in love with sushi.  It’s pretty darn good.  If you love sushi so much that you would marry it, you should get these fun pillows found on PerpetualKid.com.  You can sleep and dream about your next sushi feast on them.

Flat California Roll Sushi Pillow: $34.99

Ikura Roll Sushi Pillow: $44.99

Ebi Nigiri Sushi Pillow: $44.99

Mmmm.  Comfortably delicious.

Find at Smarter.com:  Shop for more decorative pillows.

While browsing around the web for something else completely unrelated, I stumbled upon these unique door stoppers that look like pumps.  I think it’s a cute idea vs your typical door stopper.  It comes in red or black.

Foot in the Door Decorative Door Stop: $9.99

This inspired me to look around for some more unique decorative door stops.  Here are some of my faves:

Golfer’s Door Stop: $14.99

For The Wizard of Oz fanatics - Oz Ruby Slippers Door Stop: $24

Let this little guy hold the door open for you.

James the Doorman: $20

Shopping Bag Door Stop: £14.99

Flux Door Stop: $10

Find at Smarter.com:  Shop for more door stops.

I love people who have such creative ideas for ways to save money!  You can look like you spent a lot without actually spending a lot.  Elizabeth Mayhew was on The Today Show on NBC to give tips on the best ways to make your dining room the most practical and functional.  She sort of gives a preview on what her new book Flip! for Decorating covers:  how to transform your home without spending a ton of money.  Check out the video below.

Get the book online at Barnsandnoble.com for $19.20.

Nothing is more romantic than sitting on your porch (if you’re lucky, right on the beach) right after the sun sets while gazing into each others eyes by candlelight.  Ahhh.  Relaxing and romantic.  You can achieve this effect on your patio, balcony, or porch by purchasing a set of lanterns like the two below on sale at PotteryBarn.com.

These are awesome for the beach.

Bristol Lanterns: $39-$79 Now: $29-$59 on sale!

These would work at the beach, or at your cabin in the mountains by the lake.

Grayson Lanterns: $19.50-$179 Now: $15.00-$139 on sale!

Find at Smarter.com:  Shop for more lanterns.
Discounts on outdoor lighting.

Have you been interested in starting your own garden?  Not sure where to start?  Here are some of my favorite garden starter kits found around the web:

This Accelerated Propagation System seedstarting kit includes self watering seedstarters, “greenhouse covers” for faster germination, Germinating Mix, wooden seed markers and more.  Looks pretty organized and easy to start.

APS Starter Kit:  $49.95

This kit contains all you need for your first year of growing.

AeroGrow Master Gardener Deluxe Kit: $36.32

This kit comes with all the seeds you need to grow your own fresh herbs to add to your tasty creations.  Grow parsley, cilantro, basil, oregano, garlic chives and more.

Indoor Culinary Herb Garden Starter Kit: $28.95

This one is awesome!  Who doesn’t like salsa?  Making it from scratch is fun! Grow jalapenos, Anaheim chili, white sweet Spanish onions and more!

Indoor Mexican Salsa Garden Starter Kit: $25.95

Find at Smarter.com:  Shop for more indoor garden kits.

Brookstone:  Take $5 off orders $75 or more - AF5APR (Exp: 05/15/09)

Find at Brookstone.com - Mobile Laptop Desk: $129.95 $99.95 on sale!

Compact Appliance:  12% off freestanding beverage fidges - BEVFRG12 (Exp: 05/31/09)

Find at CompactAppliance.com - Avanti Commercial Beverage Refrigerator: $286.56 after coupon  code is applied 

Designer Linens Outlet:  Free shipping on orders of $69+ - ShipAF69 (Exp: 05/31/09)

Find at DesignerLinensOutlet.com: Castle Hill of London 200 Thread Count 100% Egyptain Sheet Set: $49.99 $29.99 on sale!

Living  Direct: Take an additional 5% off all patio furniture - 5PATIO (Exp: 05/31/09)

Find at LivingDirect.com - Vifah Luxany Caffe Bench Patio Set: $749.00 $551.65 on sale! $524.07 after code is applied.

Tool King: Free shipping on all orders over $149 - SPRING (Exp: 05/31/09)

Find at ToolKing.com -Makita Cordless Hammer Drill/Driver: $269.99

Click here to find more coupons for home and garden stores.