Author: Monarch Way

Spring Rolls Experiment

Click HERE For Printable Recipe I love making Asian dishes. My favorites to make and eat are yakisoba, ramen, beef bulgogi, miso soup, onigiri, tamagoyaki, and sushi (kappa maki). I kept seeing different recipes using rice paper and so I thought I’d give spring rolls a go. After a few YouTube videos (this one in particular), I gathered the ingredients and quickly realized a few things. There is an art to using rice paper properly, too much water, too little water can complicate the rolling process. I would either overfill or underfill and I am definitely not skilled in the wrapping. But, no matter how ugly, they were still delicious. I was too lazy to make any dipping sauces, using what I had in my fridge, House of Tsang Bangkok Peanut Sauce and this Sweet Chili Sauce. We also tried frying them, which created an interesting texture and nice greasy flavor (if you’re into that sort of thing). But I think I’ll use egg roll wrappers for frying next time. The non-fried rolls were great …

Decorating Plans

I really like making design boards. I cannot imagine trying to pick flooring, lighting, and paint without creating a design board to hash out all the ideas my head is constantly filled with (mostly due to Pinterest). Working with what I already have, and wanting to keep costs low, I opted for inexpensive lighting and flooring. I kept paint colors to a minimum. I did spend money on things like quality plumbing fixtures. I also need to move in soon, so I tried to choose things that were easy to install. ENTRYWAY, LIVING ROOM, HALLWAY To completely understand what I was initially working with, I have to share the photos of the house originally (when still occupied by the previous owners). There was no way I was moving in here as it was. To keep things simple and easy I chose two paint colors, Benjamin Moore’s White Dove for the north side of the house, and Benjamin Moore’s Chantilly Lace for the south side of the house. The flooring is Pergo Outlast in Vintage Tobacco. …

New House- Progress

After the initial demolition, our friend Anthony, who owns a construction company, helped with some additional demolition. The guys removed damaged sheetrock, popcorn ceiling, the shower in the master bathroom, and the tub in the hallway bathroom. Then they started replacing the sheetrock and constructing a walk-in shower.