7 Design Mistakes To Avoid (Or Correct) In Your Home

3 unexpected ways to use your turkey baster, an easy and crowd-pleasing dip recipe, and more. December 11, 2021 [View Online]( Good morning! If you’ve ever felt frustrated (or completely out of your depth) when arranging your furniture, you’re not alone! But you don’t have to be a professional to create a beautiful and functional space. In fact, simply avoiding the 7 common design errors in Today’s Good Thing can make a big difference. Also in today’s newsletter, I’m sharing 3 tips that will change the way you look at your turkey baster. Despite what its name suggests, you can actually do a lot more with it than just baste a turkey! Jillee DAYS UNTIL 🎄 Christmas: 14 🎊 New Year's Day: 21 TODAY'S GOOD THING 7 Design Mistakes To Avoid (Or Correct) In Your Home [A photo of Jillee's living room.]( These are the most common mistakes us amateurs make when arranging furniture, but they’re easy to fix. We expect a lot of ourselves when we attempt to take on the role of interior designer in our own homes. Because arranging furniture, along with the other aspects of interior design, is an artistic and creative endeavor that takes time and practice to master. Expecting yourself to be able to replicate the sorts of designs you've seen in magazines or on design websites is like expecting an amateur to be able to look at a drawing made by an experienced artist and then recreate it perfectly on their own. We all know that drawing isn't nearly as easy as it looks, and the same goes for interior design. As laymen, we struggle to recreate great design on our own because we don't have the same knowledge of design fundamentals as experienced professionals. But on the bright side, we don't need any special training to learn what not to do, so that's what we're focusing on today. I’ve rounded up 7 common mistakes we make when arranging furniture in our homes, which can help you identify what to avoid (or what can be corrected) in your own home. Check out the list at the link below. [7 Design Mistakes To Avoid (Or Correct) In Your Home ➜]( Related • [How To Make Your Home Look Brand New For Zero Money]( • [This Is The Biggest Decor Mistake Everyone Makes (But It’s Easy To Fix!)]( ⚡️QUICK TIPS⚡️ • Candles, condiments, dish soap, sponges—these 16 tips will help you make all these (and more) last as long as possible. [Read more ➜]( • Dusting isn’t anyone’s idea of a good time, but at least these 14 creative dusting hacks make the job quicker and easier. [Read more ➜]( • This deliciously tart lemon jam is not only surprisingly easy to make, but it would make a thoughtful homemade gift too. [Read more ➜]( COOKING Easy And Crowd-Pleasing Chili Cheese Dip [Photos of chili cheese dip.]( Chips and dip make a perfect snack or appetizer, and this one is as simple as they come. This particular dip was introduced to us by my daughter-in-law Kaitlyn, who learned how to make it in college. We call it “chili cheese dip” simply because it features both chili and (cream) cheese, and it’s so tasty that no one really cares if that's the best name for it. It’s turned into something of a Christmas Day tradition for us, partly because we all enjoy having it as a savory snack to balance out the abundance of sweet treats. Whether you heat it on your stove and keep it warm in your slow cooker, or heat it in your slow cooker from the start, it's sure to keep everyone coming back for more. Here’s how to make it: To a pot or the crock of a slow cooker, add 2 cans of chili with beans (about 28 ounces), 1 package of cream cheese (8 ounces), and 1 cup of your favorite jarred salsa. (It's not an exact science, so feel free to adjust the amounts to suit your tastes. For instance, if you like your dips to be on the thinner or more liquid-y side, you could always add some more salsa.) Heat until the cream cheese is melted, stirring occasionally, then serve warm with salty tortilla chips (or corn chips, if you prefer). Oh, and be sure to double the recipe if you’re feeding a crowd! [See The Full Recipe ➜]( UNUSUAL USES 3 Unexpected Ways To Use Your Turkey Baster [Photos of various uses for turkey basters.]( If you only break out your turkey baster during the holidays, you’ve been missing out on these other useful applications. 1. "Drain" Ground Meat. Draining off the excess fat after cooking ground meats can be tricky, and even potentially hazardous. Luckily, a turkey baster makes it easy—just push the meat to one side of the pan, tilt the pan slightly so the fat pools on the opposite side, and draw the fat out of the pan with the baster. Easy! 2. Separate Eggs. The bulb of your turkey baster can be a helpful tool for separating eggs for a baking project. Crack an egg into a bowl, then squeeze the bulb and hold it over the yolk. Release the bulb to suck the yolk up into the bulb, then carefully squeeze the bulb again to drop the yolk into a separate bowl. 3. Make Pancake Art. Take your Saturday morning pancakes to the next level by making pancake art with your turkey baster. Use it to dispense pancake batter onto the hot griddle in a shape or design, let it cook for a minute or so, then surround the design with more batter to form the rest of the pancake and cook until done. JILLEE'S PICK My Favorite Christmas Movies: Elf [A GIF from the movie ]( We have watched 2003’s [Elf]( together as a family every Christmas Eve since it came out on DVD nearly 20 years ago. It's a tradition we look forward to every year, so it would have been a crime not to highlight it here as one of my all-time favorite Christmas movies. From his obsession with everything Christmas to his childlike wonder at life in the big city, Buddy the Elf’s enthusiasm is utterly charming. The “humans” he meets are preoccupied by everyday problems, but Buddy’s belief in the magic of Christmas and desire to make people happy reminds them that anyone can choose to live more joyfully. Elf is also very funny and highly quotable—we quote it more as a family than almost any other movie! Whether it's Buddy approaching a feral raccoon (“Does someone need a hug?”) or penning an Etch-A-Sketch apology (“I'm sorry I ruined your lives, and crammed 11 cookies into the VCR.”), there's an Elf quote for every occasion. Elf does an excellent job of capturing the spirit of Christmas, both the youthful excitement it inspires in us, and the simple pleasure of celebrating it with the people you love. Every time we watch it, I'm reminded of the child—and elf—in all of us. REMEMBER WHEN Christmas Wishing With The Sears "Wish Book" [A photo of the cover of the Sears Christmas Wish Book from 1968.]( When I think about what I wanted for Christmas as a kid, I can’t help but reminisce about the Sears Wish Book catalogs that would come out in the fall. The ones from my youth had hundreds of pages, and while many them were devoted to “boring adult stuff,” there were plenty that were packed with every toy a kid could want! I remember the competition over those catalogs being quite fierce. There were 6 of us kids and only one catalog, so naturally there were always arguments over whose turn it was to look through it. When I finally got my hands on it, I would always flip straight to the pages that featured art supplies, play sets, and that sort of thing. It’s probably for the best that Sears and other major retailers don’t print 600-page Christmas catalogs anymore, but they were certainly a significant part of the holiday experience for us! Did you eagerly peruse the pages of the Sears Wish Book too? A FEW MORE THINGS... The Mountains Are Calling: It’s [International Mountain Day]( put on by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization to promote action to protect our world’s mountains and the communities who live there. Mountains are a huge part of my life, as I’m lucky enough to have both the [Uinta]( and [Wasatch]( ranges in my backyard! Share your mountain memories and photos today on social media using the #MountainsMatter hashtag. Words Of Wisdom: “This mountain, the arched back of the earth risen before us, it made me feel humble, like a beggar, just lucky to be here at all, even briefly.” - Bridget Asher, The Provence Cure for the Brokenhearted What did you think of today's email? [Not good]( | [Just okay]( | [Loved it!]( 🏠[Visit the By Jillee Shop]( 🤗 [Join OGT Free]( Let's connect! 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