What a memory you have mercurygirl! “Break out the sherbet dishes and fill them with custard” Oh, if only, bragu... if I only I had a kitchen! This will be the first year I’ve not made DH’s beloved cheesecake. In the interest of ‘adding’… I see above that I abhorred chocolate pot de crème due to the grainy texture, but since then I’ve acquired a sous vide, and as Islay wisely said, no better (or easier) way to make the perfect pots de crème, even non-grainy chocolate. Here’s my recipe: Sous Vide Chocolate Pots De Crème Ingredients: 4 cups of heavy cream 1, 9.7-ounce bar of Schaeffer bittersweet chocolate (or your favorite brand) 3 t espresso powder, divided 6 T sugar plus 1 t sugar, divided 2 pinches kosher salt 8 egg yolks Directions: Heat the cream in a pan over medium-high heat until the cream around the edges of the pan just starts to bubble. Do not let the cream come to a full boil. Remove from heat. While the cream is heating, coarsely chop the chocolate. While the cream is hot, whisk in the chopped chocolate, espresso powder, sugar, kosher salt. Whisk until smooth. Whisk in egg yolks one or two at a time, whisking completely after each addition. Pour the mixture into a large measuring cup suitable for pouring. Pour 6 ounces of the cream and chocolate mixture into 8, 8-ounce mason jars, leaving about 3/4" of air space in each jar. Do not fill to the top. Screw the lids on using your fingers only until the lids are finger tight. Do not overly tighten as air needs to escape from the jars during the cooking process. Fill a large pot or a 12-quart storage container with room temperature water and secure your sous vide circulator onto the vessel. Place the jars in the pot or container. Turn the sous vide circulator on and set it to 176 degrees Fahrenheit. When the water reaches 176 degrees set the timer for one hour. The water should cover the lidded jars. When the timer goes off, turn off the circulator and remove the mason jars from the circulator with a pair of tongs. Set the jars on a dry kitchen towel and allow to cool for a few minutes and then store in the fridge for at least two hours and up to several days. Top with sweetened crème fraiche, fresh raspberries, shaved chocolate, chopped toasted almonds, or best of all, serve plain : ) I hope others will chime in and add some of their recipes to this!

As a mild disclaimer, Retrorenovation originates from Massachusetts which has very strict guidelines about lead and asbestos abatement. While both hazards are genuine, the body of evidence for lead exposure is from pediatric ingestion of degraded paint surfaces, or chronic inhalation of dust from degraded paint surfaces; and asbestos from chronic occupational exposure. (Much of the lead date from kids also relates to the development of the Pica eating disorder, in which the individual develops a taste for the lead paint and actually seeks it out). Just something to keep in mind. ------- If you want to stay with something which is more historically appropriate, (Which is not necessary, but is also something that will always look "correct" with what you have, as opposed to newer trends like above which will come and go...Your bathroom has already come and gone, so renovating in something that is already gone as well kinda makes sense) Daltile Coastal Keystones Mediterranean Mist. The last would esp. be appropriate for the floor Tropical Thunder comes in all formats. A bit darker mix.

This is a view that includes all off the current colors in my space. Cabinets that likely have orange in them, sw simplify beige on the walls and ceiling with simple white trim, columbia Hayden rustic amber hickory engineered wood flooring, mocha sectional, cream/beige tile as well as the hearth with beige/brown/cream rock and light grey mortar. I would love some ideas for painting the walls and ceiling in this space. The kitchen on the left has the brick backsplash all around the wall and under cabinets. The kitchen will have new ceiling paint. I will not paint cabinets, just walls and ceiling. I have bedrooms done in sw sleepy blue/ sw crème ceiling, sw crème on walls and ceiling and bm hale navy/ light grey ceiling. I love all 3 bedrooms but do not want dark (like hale navy) in my living room. I am looking at a grey blue for living/dining area in the picture as well as the hall not pictured to the left of the living area. Maybe replicate the bedroom’s sleepy blue/crème ceiling (crème has yellow undertones), or sw mountain air with Navajo white ceiling, or maybe sw misty with dover white on the ceiling. originally I planned on the crème on the walls and crème ceiling which would be slightly different than the current beige but then I got the idea to try for a different route that may include that grey blue color I love. any thoughts are welcome!

Ok. No blue then. Tan countertops. to me, kinda take away a possibility of very light gray(or very dark off white lol), that might have worked with the flooring in the kitchen.. of course we all picture a bit different color when we say "tan", so.. that's a bit of a guessing game. then tan needs to work with the tile flooring too. but if you're into more colorful intense space..it can be done. Would be harder to pull off though..the big space, corners, vaulted ceiling.. Easier to use with furnishings etc, than with wall paint. So. I propose to start with the right white ..at least until you know your cabinets and countertops. Also., Can you do that first, paint later? As most of it is white already. And looks not bad at all. I know it's harder when one's already in the house, but easier in terms of picking colors. One always moves, or tries to, from less color variety (as in countertop surfaces -a lot to choose from yet there's a limit on what they can be) to one that can be virtually anything, as in paint. But if you paint now-whites will work. It needs to be right white/off-white, that would work nicely allover..that can be easy or not to pick, depending on the lighting different places get, etc. But it's probably still the safest way to go while you're figuring out the rest. And you might love it enough to stay. You didn't ask me, but i like stain on your cabinets..:) Again, wishing you smooth process of closure, and having fun making it yours.