Lifestyles category, Page 208
Options abound in flooring today
A stunning sofa or a beautiful wall color might catch your eye when you enter someone’s home. But flooring is the key to any room, says interior designer Elina Cardet. As the visual base for every other design choice, “flooring is the most important decision,” says Cardet, interior design director...
Valentine’s chocolate bars may hold ‘golden tickets’ for Westmoreland Cultural Trust partyVideo
The Westmoreland Cultural Trust and McFeely’s Gourmet Chocolate in Greensburg are partnering for a Valentine’s sweet treat, offering milk and dark chocolate replicas of the Palace Theatre’s marquee. The bars’ edible gold dusting emulates the downtown Greensburg theater’s glowing lights. Bars are priced at $6, with $2 from each purchase...
Monterey Bay, Altius among Open Table’s most romantic spots for Valentine’s Day dinner
If you were hoping to snag a table at one of Pittsburgh’s most romantic restaurants for Valentine’s Day, you might have to pick another day. Altius and Monterey Bay Fish Grotto, both located on Mt. Washington, were just named among the 100 Most Romantic Restaurants by Open Table, the popular...
Collaboration gives Valentine’s Day truffles a Pittsburgh flavor
A collaboration between Good Food Pittsburgh and Millvale’s a519 Chocolate makes for a “hometown” Valentine’s Day chocolate box of truffles featuring some flavorful Pittsburgh businesses. The 15-piece edition includes the following flavors, among what might best be described as decadent: • Burnt Almond Torte, inspired by Pittsburgh’s (and Greensburg’s) Prantl’s...
Don your dancing shoes for Community Kitchen Pittsburgh benefit
Get a head start on Valentine’s Day and support Community Kitchen Pittsburgh’s mission at “Dance With Me” from 6:30-9:30 p.m. Feb. 9 at Pittsburgh’s Graeme House. The evening of dancing, dining, and cocktails will help support Community Kitchen Pittsburgh programs and students. The nonprofit’s website states it supports the region’s...
Laurel Highlands 2019 guide has new magazine format
The Laurel Highlands 2019 Destination Guide is being released this week with a new size and a new style. Produced by the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau, this year’s annual tourism publication for Westmoreland, Fayette and Somerset counties has arrived with smaller dimensions than past versions and with a shift in...
Kids cooking up mid-century treats in Heinz History Center
Kids in Mariruth Leftwich’s upcoming “Cooking Up History: Mid-Century Treats” class at Senator John Heinz History Center weren’t born yet when foods like Spam and Swanson’s frozen TV dinners first appeared on supermarket shelves. They missed the heyday of mom’s tuna noodle casserole, the peak of popularity of Strawberry Jello...
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra announces 2019-20 season offerings
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s 2019-20 season will include 20 classical weekends and seven Pops weekends. The programming includes not only new music and repertoire favorites, but also features stimulating juxtapositions. For example, three of the world’s top violinists will play violin concertos by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, contrasting them with more...
A sweet opening for new Oakmont Bakery
For everyone else, the opening of Oakmont Bakery’s new home sandwiched between Oakmont’s Third and Sweet streets was, well, sweet. For Marc Serrao, the bakery’s owner, the emotions ran a bit deeper as he fought back tears before cutting the ceremonial ribbon to start a new chapter. “This is all...
Bonfire Food & Drink is heating up the South Side
The South Side has added another restaurant to its stacked roster: Bonfire Food & Drink, a much- anticipated new culinary concept by Chris Bonfili, the chef and owner of Shadyside’s former Avenue B and Sewickley’s B Gourmet. After closing Avenue B last year, Bonfili scoured the city for a location to...
Hold up! Candy hearts will be available for Valentine’s Day after all
If you’ve been holding out for a hero to save your Valentine’s Day from being devoid of those candy conversation hearts … well, your hero has arrived. Recently it was revealed that the iconic SweetHearts candy with phrases like “Be Mine” and “Let’s Kiss” wouldn’t be available this season because...
Husband pressures introvert into another uncomfortable vacation with the in-laws
Adapted from a recent online discussion. Dear Carolyn: About three years ago my husband and I (no kids) went on a big vacation with my husband’s family. I REALLY wasn’t interested in going but his mother had pushed for a family trip for a long time, his father had just...
How long is the airport security wait? These apps will tell you
Airport security lines can behave like curly hair: One small change in the atmosphere and everything can go out of whack. Weather, holidays and most recently the partial government shutdown have turned a routine procedure into a panicky production. The Transportation Security Administration and airlines advise domestic passengers to arrive...
Out & About: Country stars bring ‘Roots & Boots Tour’ to The Palace
Who needs the Grand Ole Opry when you’ve got the Palace Theatre and the Roots & Boots Tour? Greensburg’s grand dame of entertainment venues had a honky-tonk feel Feb. 2 as country music icons Sammy Kershaw, Aaron Tippin and Collin Raye shared the stage for an acoustic evening of classic...
Kitchen islands evolve to meet today’s needs
Prep surface. Gathering spot. Storage solution. The kitchen island is one of those home elements that seems to have known its purpose from its inception: a utilitarian divider between kitchen and family zones, the heart of the home. Over the years, the kitchen island has come to offer far more...
Regional artistic, maker opportunities abound
From sipping while painting to sketching with charcoal, molding hot glass, dyeing fabric or woodworking, opportunities exist for crafts people from novice to advanced to practice their artistic and making skills. Throughout the region, children and adults can find places to let their creative juices flow, with minimal or step-by-step...
Travel tip: Go batty at Lincoln Caverns’ 12th annual Batfest
What’s the only mammal capable of sustained flight? The bat. Learn more about the much-feared furry flier at the 12th annual Batfest from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 9 at Lincoln Caverns in Huntingdon County. Visitors will have a chance to view tri-colored bats in their natural habitat and learn about...
Living with Children: Parenting vs. childrearing
There is “parenting” and then there is bringing up, rearing, or raising children. The difference is night and day; so are the outcomes, short- and long-term, to all concerned, meaning every single one of us. Parenting is what the vast majority of American parents have been doing since the early...
Brother’s marital strife is beginning to affect his young children
Dear Carolyn: My brother and sister-in-law have two little girls, 5 and 2, and I love the four of them very much. My brother is a doctor and works many irregular and overnight shifts; my sister-in-law must necessarily manage the girls by herself a lot. My brother and sister-in-law fight...
Visiting Alaska in wintertime is a travelers’ badge of honor
Bundled in the warmest clothing I own, at least I’m snug while speeding across snow-covered trails and onto the Chena River, covered with a layer of 2-foot-thick ice. The old sofa cushion on which I’m seated helps smooth the ride. Ice crystals, kicked up by the 40 paws of 10...
Turn a plain brown paper bag into the perfect popcorn maker
Microwave popcorn is a great idea—in theory. But most packaged options have a long list of unnatural ingredients and don’t taste very good. This fun recipe turns a plain old brown paper bag—the kind you might use to hold your lunch—into a microwave-safe package for popping corn kernels. Make sure...
Passion fruit is a tart, tropical MVP ingredient
I’ve gone on record here as an avowed Anglophile who thinks there are plenty of things that Brits do better than us. Scones. Tea. Cooking competition shows. I have something else to thank them for: Introducing me to the wonders of passion fruit. In the few weeks I’ve spent across...
Politics burnout craves a newsbreak
Adapted from a recent online discussion. Hi, Carolyn! I try to keep informed with politics and the state of the world, but I’m getting so, so tired. I have depression and anxiety and struggle to deal with my daily first-world issues — how do people deal with watching the world...
Mother abandons fulfilling volunteer gig at the soup kitchen
Dear Carolyn: For the holidays this year, my mother was torn about her regular “gig” — volunteering at a local community center serving as a “soup kitchen.” She has volunteered there for many years for the less fortunate. My mother ultimately decided never to return to the soup kitchen. She...
Level Green furniture builder wins customer service award
Penn Rustics, a Level Green company that offers hand-built furniture made from solid wood, has been awarded a “Best of Customer Service” badge from Houzz, an online forum for architecture, interior design and decorating, landscape design and home improvement. The custom rustic furniture company was chosen by the more than...
