Archive for the 'PATIO & GARDEN' Category

Page 3 of 4

All-American Summer

Published on June 25, 2010 in HAYNEEDLE, HOMEACCESSORIES, PATIO & GARDEN and SPORTS & GAMES. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

I won’t say variety is exclusively American, but Americans may be the best at embracing it. The dill-covered salmon curing in my refrigerator is what brings this to mind. Our melting pot of cultures makes for a stew rich with traditions, and one of them- a Swedish Midsummer celebration- is what’s dominated my household this week. But like any week in this fair country, it could be any of 10,000 other things worthy of celebration.

Speaking of celebrations, you’re invited to save up to 50% at Hayneedle’s July 4th Sale!

I can hardly wait to watch the fun unfold in my backyard tomorrow. American barbecue alongside the undeniably Swedish lutefisk. Bocce and ladder golf while waiting for my turn in the next game of kubb. Kids caroming in and out of the bouncehouse. What better way to work off all that pickled fish and make room for strawberries and cream? Or, if my guests prefer something more definitively American, they can always hold out for fire pit s’mores.

Whatever you’re celebrating, be it a wedding or the World Cup, a cookout or the College World Series, these June weekends are loaded with options. Heck, if you’re looking for a reason to get together tonight, just remind your friends that today is Log Cabin Day. For real. It’s Log Cabin Day.

For the fest of the season, or just the happy hour of the day, Hayneedle has all the essentials you need to entertain. From grills to canopies, from conversation sets to outdoor lighting, it’s all here. And in every one of these categories you’ll find an abundance of options, along with a powerful filtering system that lets you narrow your choices based on what you want. That’s true variety, and that’s how we know you’ll find what you love and love what you find.

Making the Best of Awkward Spaces – by Eduardo Xol

Published on June 18, 2010 in HAYNEEDLE and PATIO & GARDEN. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

We are well into Summer!  Here in California, we’re experiencing a bit of “June Gloom”, as they call it when the fog rolls inland during the morning hours.  Generally this keeps the temperature really nice once the fog burns off.  As I speak to my friends around the country though, I can tell it’s already really warming up everywhere else.

I recently completed shooting my third webisode, “Hayneedle Your Home with Eduardo Xol”.  For this webisode I focused on awkward and uncommon spaces.  I have one of these spaces- a long, narrow one right outside my dining room- so I thought it would be a perfect place to practice my philosophy.  Notice the concrete pavers I set into the gravel to create the “room”. Once I did that, I placed the Sandstone Akro Hose Pot/Planter next to the water faucet.  This would dictate where everything else would go.

Next you can see me shooting the “10 Second Tip” as we get ready to place all of the furniture.  You can’t tell by this picture , but there were a LOT of people filling that small space to shoot the webisode.  To see the video and get more information on the great products I used to transform it into a functional space, click here.

I’ve also been preparing for future webisodes, including one I will shoot in my sister’s backyard, since I’m already giving her a bit of a makeover.  Many of you might know that my sister was diagnosed with lupus several years ago.  It’s a very mysterious condition.  An important element in maintaining the symptoms at bay is relaxation.  On Extreme Makeover Home Edition, I help people in need all of the time all over the country, so when I’m home, I really do my best to help my own family out when I can.  My sister is a busy, young mom who works as a teacher, so I want to give her a space where she can relax and find personal health and balance.  Here’s a picture of the space I have to work with. Stay tuned for this webisode to see the makeover!

Speaking of personal health and balance…I’m doing my best to do the same as I manage a very busy summer schedule.  If I’m not committed to attend a public event, I tend to my plants and garden almost every day before dinner.   It really does keep me in check!

On the nights I have an event, and there seems to be many these days, I have to get myself cleaned up.

The next webisode coming up will be about poolside living.  I hope everyone continues to enjoy the summer!

They Grow Up So Fast

Published on June 11, 2010 in HAYNEEDLE and PATIO & GARDEN. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

I started writing for Hayneedle over 5 years ago, well before we changed our name from “NetShops” and launched the Hayneedle brand. In fact, we weren’t even yet NetShops during my first months on the job. We were just a modest but ambitious handful of outdoor specialty stores, like PorchSwings.com, PatioUmbrellas.com, and Hammocks.com.

Hammocks.com on my first day… like the perm I had in college- pretty bad even at the time:

Hammocks.com today… more of an oh-so-pretty Justin Bieber flop:

When I see what Hayneedle has become, and the attention we’ve received over the past few months, I allow myself to indulge in a few morsels of pride. Here’s what I’m talking about:

  • Kathy Lee Gifford has partnered with us to raise funds for Childhelp, a leading national non-profit dedicated to the prevention and treatment of child abuse. When you buy a hammock from Hayneedle, a portion of your purchase goes directly to Childhelp. And the timing is nothing short of perfect- is there anything that says summer (or Happy Father’s Day) better than a hammock? That it’s for a good cause makes it even easier to relax.
  • You may have seen Eduardo Xol’s outdoor design posts here on HayneedleBlog. As part of our summer campaign, Eduardo is taking timeout from ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition to help Hayneedle customers create their own backyard paradise. The Backyard at Hayneedle is the place to start.
  • Hayneedle was recently featured on The Ellen Show in what turned out to be a, well, let’s just say “memorable” version of Blindfolded Musical Haystacks.
  • More and more people are doing the Hayneedle Hustle for their chance to win a $15,000 shopping spree. Radio and TV stations across the country are talking about how Hayneedle is bringing variety to America, one backyard at a time.

Heady stuff aside, one of the most satisfying aspects of all of all this is when I get to answer those unavoidable so-what-do-you-do questions at gatherings this summer. Instead of the “What’s that?” response I heard for 4+ years, it feels pretty good to finally hear, “Oh, yeah! Love your stuff.”

Excuse me while I grab one more taste of pride before going back to work. Gotta look good for next year’s pictures.

Outdoor Living Rooms- by Eduardo Xol

Published on June 9, 2010 in HAYNEEDLE and PATIO & GARDEN. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

My Memorial Day weekend was really nice.  I guess someone told Mother Nature to help us kick the summer off right because the weather in Southern California could not have been better.  I spent Saturday in my with friends.  We cooked out, ate, drank and caught up on life.  I try to do a bigger party about two to three times per year, usually during the summer months.  Memorial Day usually marks the first one.  Around thirty people from different points in my life showed up to say hello.  Here is a picture of my friends Dinah and Rob enjoying the holiday with me:

Everyone loved my outdoor furniture, but I did run out of seating.  If you’re planning a large party, a simple solution to this problem is to have extra pillows on hand in case you run out of chairs!

I hope that by now you have all seen the webisodes I’ve been working on.  If not, you can catch up here.  Planning and production has kept my team and me very busy.  Since the webisodes are about outdoor living, we have our production meetings outside in the area where we are going to shoot.  Here I am with my executive producer, Andy McEntee and the crew discussing the second webisode we produced in my backyard:

And here is the same area staged for the shoot.  Shown is the Cabos Collection conversation set.  It’s one of my favorites and apparently my dog, Hazel, likes it as well!

Combine colors to create your custom designed outdoor area.  That’s what I did by mixing the khaki upholstery that comes with the Cabos set and the accent pillows in sienna.  I completed the look by coordinating the colors of the flowers in the vase to match the colors in the furniture.

This outdoor room inspired me to create a drink I call the Cabos Cocktail using the same color scheme! I’m pleased to say it was good enough to share the recipe:

Eduardo’s Cabos Cocktail

  • 1 oz. vodka or tequila (spirits optional)
  • 2 parts of your favorite Bloody Mary Mix
  • 1 part fresh limejuice
  • 5 drops Worcestershire sauce
  • 3-5 drops habanero hot sauce
  • Sprinkle salt and fresh black pepper to taste
  • Serve in a martini glass with a salted rim
  • Garnish with an olive, pepper and onion
  • Enjoy the summer!

The Green Experience

Published on April 23, 2010 in HAYNEEDLE and PATIO & GARDEN. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , .

Now that Earth Day is officially over the hill (Happy 40th, Earth Day!), we think it’s time to make every day a little eco-friendlier.  Our country actually has a green-minded resume that predates Earth Day by 100 years- it started with Arbor Day in 1879. With humble beginnings in Nebraska, Arbor Day gained observance in every state by the 1920s, and our country is a greener, shadier place for it. Once a wind-swept expanse of Sandhills and prairie grass, Nebraska today has three National Forests to prove it. Seriously. There’s are three National Forest in Nebraska. Cool, huh?

Nebraska National Forest

At Hayneedle, we’re trying to rekindle some of that pioneer spirit with something we’re calling “The Green Experience.” Think of it as a little slice of reality Internet where anyone can follow one of Hayneedle’s own, Cayden, as she chronicles her transition to a greener lifetstyle on Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook. Her endeavor began a  few weeks ago with a compost bin and 2,500 worms in her formerly worm-free living space. Follow the “HayneedleGreen” handle on Twitter and check back here for her blog posts.  It’s bound to be messy for her, but ultimately a planet that’s a little cleaner for the rest of us.

Check out what Hayneedle employees are doing to tread a little more lightly.

<!–[if !mso]> <! st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } –> to keep people thinking about our great ball of rock and water beyond April 22, we’re rolling out a little reality Internet that we’ve dubbed “The Green Experience.” Cayden Biddle has volunteered for this voyeuristic social media experiment, which will chronicle her change to a greener lifestyle. It started with a compost bin and 5,000 worms… it’s gonna get messy, folks. Follow the “HayneedleGreen” handle on Twitter and look for features on YouTube and Facebook soon.