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Who’s been loving this season of Home Town? We can’t get enough of the fifth season to raise our spirits amid the coronavirus pandemic and the most recent episode, “Clean Lines, Open Spaces,” was no exception. In fact, it gave us such design inspiration for revamping a small kitchen, that we’re practically ready to start “demo day” in our own cooking space. The secret to boosting the look of a small kitchen may very well be in the backsplash, as Erin Napier revealed to us in the midst of revamping the new home for Laurel resident Jeff, a nurse practitioner who lost his home during a local tornado last year....

National Candy Cane Day takes places on December 26, but if you ask us, it takes places just about every day from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve. And who knows candy canes better than the confectionery wizards at Ferrara? Last year, the candy company sold enough candy canes to completely fill over 1,300 semi-trucks. And if you’ve ever wondered what kind of candy canes are flying off the shelves, the folks at Ferrara were kind enough to share all the sweet deets....

The city of Austin and H-E-B joined forces to honor a treasured frontline worker for her lifetime of commitment to her community last week. Ofelia Garcia, better known as “Ophie,” holds the record as the longest-running retail employee in the history of the grocery chain. The 84-year-old worked at H-E-B for 56 years, most of them at the original Oak Hill location. Her tenure with the company is second to only CEO Charles Butt, whose family founded the beloved chain....

Cobbler may be one of the homiest-looking desserts, but it’s actually a delicate balancing act between the tender topping and cooked fruit. Overdo it on the filling, and you’re digging into a soupy pie; add too much topping, and you’re eating biscuits with fruit sauce. But get the ratio just right, and it’s pure comfort in a bowl. How you decide to top a cobbler is a matter of personal preference....

Even the most casual of football fans (read: in it for the chips and salsa) have likely heard the name Drew Brees. Now, after 20 years as an NFL player, with 15 of those being for the New Orleans Saints, the record-smashing quarterback has announced his retirement from the NFL. Former NOLA resident and Saints superfan Hoda Kotb, host of NBC’s The TODAY Show, is not about to let this occasion go without sharing some heartfelt words....

There’s something about sunflowers that just make you want to bust into a giant smile. Whether sprouting in the garden or brightening up a credenza, we love these peppy flowers. That’s why we were intrigued to see this piece from SimpleMost on Burpee’s Coconut Ice Hybrid Sunflower, a stunning white sunflower we’re eager to add to our garden. Eager to learn more, we reached out to Valerie Ghitelman, Vice President, Product Development & Design, 1-800-Flowers....

I’ve gone to war with the squirrels over my Jack-o-Lantern. Today, I present a cautionary tale. I know that I carved my pumpkin too early. I knew it was too much to hope that in the deep South and our not so mild fall temps, my adorable Cheshire Cat gorgeous gourd wouldn’t stand a chance against the bugs and the mold and the general yuck. But I carved my pumpkin while visiting my nieces and nephews last Friday....

As we’ve discussed before, it can be difficult to choose an avocado at the exact stage of ripeness you need. But the next time you cut an avocado open and find that it’s too soft inside, consider yourself lucky. Because it’s time to make an avocado smoothie! That’s right—avocados are great in smoothies. When whipped up in a blender, their smooth, creamy texture adds body to smoothies, making them taste extra rich, even though avocado is full of healthy, good-for-you fats....

Many Southern cooks enjoy making everything from scratch, from simple salad dressings to elaborate cakes to pans of hot cornbread. Sometimes it’s best to use a convenience store-bought product rather than making something from scratch when you’re short on time. There is no shame in making cakes or brownies from a box mix. I love to bake from scratch, but I have often used packaged cornbread mix, adding a little extra something to the ingredients and making the finished product taste more homemade....

Ah, Thanksgiving—our national day of gratitude and gravy. Even when a Southern holiday table is a groaning board, it depends upon more than just the turkey. If the entire meal is stellar, excellent gravy is the crowning glory. And if things go wrong in the kitchen, it’s the balm that can soothe (not to mention moisten and camouflage) any shortcomings in the rest of the menu. Gravy isn’t difficult to prepare, but it has a reputation for being intimidating, perhaps because it’s often the last thing made and is rushed to the table moments before everyone gathers to eat....

Even if I tried, I couldn’t count how many times as a kid that I would watch my grandmother get ready in her bathroom. She’d be wearing a breezy cotton house dress while sitting at the mirror, “putting on her face,” or doing her makeup. She’d still be donning the puffy cap she’d wear in the shower to keep water droplets from piercing her hair with unwanted humidity. Because Southern grandmothers, as an unspoken rule, do not wash their hair every day....

If you’re planning your next vacation to Palm Beach and want to fit in with the locals, there’s only one designer to even consider wearing—Lilly Pulitzer. Since the mid-1950s the designer has been putting out brightly-colored clothing, which have made her the go-to designer for Palm Beach socialites, Hilton Head housewives, and Gulf Coast fashionistas alike. Now, Town & Country has put together an incredible story looking back at the Southern designer’s early days....

It’s about to become a lot easier to support veteran-owned businesses in Louisiana. The Associated Press reports that the state will create a new program that certifies businesses that are owned by veterans or spouses of veterans killed while on duty. House Bill 391, by Baton Rouge Republican Representative Franklin Foil, won final passage Sunday with a 98-0 House vote. The measure will form the Veterans First Business Initiative in the state’s economic development agency....

When you’re on the hunt for a new home, what do you covet? Giant closets? A chef’s kitchen? Wood flooring? Or is it something else? According to a survey from Engine’s CARAVAN Omnibus on behalf of National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP), many of us are all about the green — in the form of a backyard that is — when it comes to our home search. Per a statement on NALP’s site, LoveYourLandscape....

If your home needs some greenery, you’ll be in the market for a houseplant or two. Contrary to popular belief, if you’re low on light, it doesn’t mean you have to forgo houseplants altogether. You can still enjoy them as long as you choose species that are suited to your space. How much light, water, and care, can you provide? If your home struggles with light, try out prayer plants (Maranta leuconeura), which are suited to dim environs and can even thrive in low-light circumstances....

A homemade lasagna is a window into a person’s soul. Okay, I’m being a bit dramatic. But if you ask a group of people how they like to make (or eat) a pan of lasagna, you might be surprised by all of the different variations. The basic elements are the same: sauce, cheese, noodles. But after that, lasagna is open to interpretation. Jarred sauce or homemade? Ricotta cheese, béchamel sauce, or both?...

Much like a roast chicken or pasta carbonara, when you have a classic properly prepared, you know it, and all past iterations you’ve consumed in the past pale in comparison. A Mint Julep is no exception despite its perceived simplicity. Even though it only requires three or four ingredients, each component of this Southern staple needs to be carefully hosen and balanced with each other. We’ve all been to that derby party where the Juleps are closer to spiked sweet tea and others where one sip knocks you off the porch swing....

Even though summer hasn’t officially started yet, I’m already noticing a distinct trend in my warm-weather style: I cannot stop buying (and wearing) dresses. Shorts have historically been the staple of my summer wardrobe. That is, until I discovered comfortable T-shirt dresses while working from home during the pandemic, and my collection of fashionable frocks has only grown since. It recently got one dress larger, when I stumbled upon this easy-to-wear linen dress from J....

A tiny owl is recovering nicely after his perch in upstate New York made a surprise 170-mile trip to New York City. The owl, of course, had no way of knowing that he had taken up residence in the 75-foot Norway spruce destined for Christmas greatness in Rockefeller Center. So, he held fast to the tree for what turned out to be an epic holiday journey. Fortunately, after three days on the road without food or water, the scared little stowaway was discovered by one of the workers who helped transport and secure the tree....

During these unsettling times amid the coronavirus pandemic, there’s still one thing we can count on to always cheer us up: Sharing a meal with loved ones. And even though how we do that may have changed dramatically in recent weeks, technologies like FaceTime and Zoom allow us to “gather” with friends and family from afar. One of our favorite ways to get the party started? Order a meal kit or pre-made meal delivery service with your loved ones, so everyone can cook the same meal—thanks to pre-portioned ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes....