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Maybe it’s the rise of the cottagecore trend or the onslaught of peel-and-stick repeats from brands like Tempaper and Chasing Paper, but one thing’s for certain: Wallpaper is making a major comeback. After spending the past few years schlepping paint cans and applying fresh coats for an accent wall, a patterned room feels like a breath of fresh air. The only problem is that it’s been a minute since we’ve used wallpaper—and we’re a little rusty on the do’s and don’ts....

For someone who writes recipes, I’m sometimes terrible at following them. I mean, is there really that much of a difference between an 8- x-12 and a 9- x-13? The recipe writer in me is appalled I’d even ask that question, but the home cook in me just shrugs and grabs the 8- x-12. One day I was following a recipe—sort of—from a cookbook I adore (Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi). It’s a recipe book devoted to vegetables and fruits....

Have hummingbirds visited your feeders this season? Our appreciation for our tiny avian neighbors is well documented, which is why our eyes are always peeled for a glimpse of a hummingbird flitting from flower to flower in the garden. We’re constantly curious about what keeps these little birds flying, which is why we’ve gathered a few facts about hummingbirds to sate your ornithological curiosity. Hummingbirds migrate. According to the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, “When hummingbirds migrate to the United States in the springtime, they cover 500 miles across the Gulf of Mexico, flying for 20 hours without stopping....

When it’s the season for a serious baking marathon, there are some days when we keep the oven running from morning until night, a steady stream of warm cakes and cookies flowing in and out of the kitchen. Different baked goods, however, bake at different temperatures. There are some baking projects, like homemade bread, that can require a seriously hot oven—we’re talking 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Starting bread at such a high temperature kicks off the baking process with what we call “oven spring,” which is the initial burst of heat-propelled rise that helps a baked good gain great height....

In August, Alex Drummond got engaged to Mauricio Scott in a beautiful proposal in Dallas at the Nasher Sculpture Center. Thanks to her mom, Ree Drummond, we got a play-by-play on all the details of the couple’s special day. But we were also left wondering about plenty of questions about the time leading up to the couple’s proposal. Wonder no more: In a new article on ThePioneerWoman.com, we’ve learned more about the backstory to the duo’s engagement....

Blue Bell ice cream, a true Southern favorite, made a major announcement last week: It’s officially bringing back one of its fan-favorite flavors. In a social media post, the beloved ice cream company revealed it’s re-launching its strawberry cheesecake flavor. This flavor was originally introduced in 1977. “Smile and say cheesecake! Our Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream returns to stores beginning today,” the brand revealed. “Strawberry Cheesecake is a rich cheesecake ice cream with cheesecake pieces, succulent strawberries and swirls of delicious strawberry sundae sauce....

If you’re anything like us, you’ve picked up a new hobby or two during quarantine, from knitting to, you know, binge-watching Virgin River on Netflix. But there’s one pastime that millions of Americans have taken to amid the pandemic, and it’s showing no sign of slowing down: Biking. Whether indoor cycling or hitting the road on a conventional bike, many people have discovered a newfound appreciation of the sport, or rekindled a childhood love for it....

“You going to get mull?” asked the woman behind the counter at Hot Thomas Bar-B-Que. “We just made it fresh.” “Yes, ma’am,” I said. I had actually known I was going to order it the minute I spied it on the menuboard, for chicken mull is a rare bird in the world of barbecue. Most barbecue fans are well-acquainted with Brunswick stew, that savory, soupy blend of meat and vegetables that can be found in countless incarnations throughout Georgia, the Carolinas, and eastern Tennessee....

When artist Carolyn Seiler landed in Cocoa, Florida, with her military husband more than 20 years ago, she anticipated mourning the loss of the barefoot island life she had enjoyed farther south. “For a while, I held onto Key West—my cottage and my studio on Duval Street—like a life preserver,” she says. “But sometimes when you think that you’re giving up something, you’re really trading it in for so much more....

Royal Reds are huge crimson shrimp that taste like lobster and scallops, making them the crown jewel of Gulf shrimp. Fishermen must venture wide and far to find the prize shrimp known as Royal Reds, a range stretching from Massachusetts to French Guiana. Still, sweet spots run along the Gulf from the Florida Panhandle to the Mississippi coast, in deep cool waters between 800 and 1,500 feet down.Royal Red season lasts from late summer to late fall, peaking in September....

“I think the best way for us to show our love for people is by cooking up a storm,” says Maryam Ishtiaq (@maryamishtiaq). The new mom and former e-commerce manager moved to Dallas with her husband, Nabeel Shah, in November 2019, just months before the coronavirus made gathering with their loved ones impossible. But she’s hopeful that she’ll be able to play hostess again this spring. Every year, Maryam, whose family moved to Atlanta from Pakistan when she was 12, observes Eid al-Fitr (an Islamic holiday that marks the end of the monthlong fast of Ramadan)....

Hoda Kotb doesn’t know when her postponed wedding will actually take place, but she does know what song she wants for her first dance with fiancé Joel Schiffman. “I love Van Morrison’s ‘Someone Like You,’” Kotb told Jenna Bush Hager on Wednesday morning’s episode of Today. “That is such a beautiful, beautiful song. I think that’ll be our wedding song.” The couple’s Mexico wedding was most recently scheduled for November 2020, but they postponed it indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic....

Cast iron skillets are staples in a Southern kitchen. This versatile tool can withstand extreme heat and cooks food evenly on its highly durable surface. Cooking everything from meat to vegetables maintains an evenly distributed and high temperature, so your food is prepared with the same attention as a professionally trained chef. Unfortunately, if you don’t make the necessary preparations to care for your cast-iron skillet, it will eventually lose its sheen and, as a result, its super non-stick powers....

It’s not every day we come across a recipe that makes our jaws drop, but Ina Garten’s Mocha Chocolate Icebox Cake did just that. It first caught our attention when the Barefoot Contessa posted an Instagram video of the confection being made. Naturally, we dove deeper. The recipe began as expected, with heavy cream, mascarpone cheese, sugar, Kahlúa, and cocoa powder. Everything appeared somewhat run-of-the-mill, until we realized the secret ingredient that takes this otherwise modest cake to a whole new level of fabulous: Inside the cake Garten places layers of Tate’s chocolate chip cookies....

Rarely a day goes by when the sound of my washing machine can’t be heard humming through the mudroom door. There’s a lot of laundry to be done in our household, which I take to be a sign of days well spent. I always say that the best days are the two-bath days. Two bath days mean my kids have romped in the yard, run through the grass barefoot, rubbed peanut-butter-and-jelly-covered hands through their hair, blown too many bubbles to count, and sat on the porch steps as homemade strawberry ice cream drips over their bare legs in a battle between waffle cone and afternoon sun....

This may seem like a silly question easily answered by glancing at the back of the can, but rumor has it canned pumpkin is not quite what it seems. Some say it can contain more than just pumpkin (and we aren’t talking about spices). We’re not ones to gossip, but especially around the holidays, this pantry staple is irreplaceable, as it’s both incredibly convenient and produces consistent results pie after pie....

OFFICIAL RULES NO PURCHASE NECESSARY HOW TO ENTER: This contest begins 12:01 AM CST on March 14, 2016 and ends 11:59 PM CST on March 18, 2016. To enter online, go to The Daily South and follow instructions to submit your “original story” under the comments section of the blog post. Limit one entry per person or email account. Entries become sole property of Sponsor and none will be acknowledged. By entering, Entrant warrants that his or her entry (1) is original and does not infringe the intellectual property rights of any third party, (2) has not been published in any medium or (3) has not won an award....

There’s a new American Idol in town! The long-running reality TV show crowned a new winner during its three-hour finale on Sunday. Noah Thompson not only took home the title as the winner of the show’s 20th season but has the additional honor of being the first winner to call the state of Kentucky home. The 20-year-old country singer from the small town of Louisa was stunned by the win. “Oh, my God,” Thompson said after host Ryan Seacrest told him he won, “My heart is beating out of my chest....

It’s been about a year since I welcomed two cats into my home. One of them is a cuddle bug that’ll snuggle up on any soft surface. The other, however, never cuddled. That is, until the Parachute Home linen bedding entered our lives. The gray sheets quickly became a favorite of my cuddle-avoidant cat. Soon she was spending afternoons lounging on the bed with her sister (a rare occurrence as they’d rather not admit each other’s existence most of the time) and finding her way into the bed late at night to snuggle up against me....

There are very few positive things I will ever say about a species of Euonymus. Burning bush (Euonymus alatus) is a good example. Also called winged euonymus for the corky ridges on its twigs, it sports the most blazing red fall foliage of any shrub I know. That’s why people brought it here from China and Japan in the 1860s. Alas, it liked its new home much too much. It’s now considered an invasive weed in more than 20 states....