Makely

I woke up the other morning and realized that I had a crazy dream. I dreamt that we moved to another house, one that I chose solely on the fact that it had smooth, plaster walls and big trees in the backyard. I guess it was a way for my subconscious to let me know the things about our home that I really don’t like.

As hard as I try, I can’t make our trees grow faster than they were destined to grow. And until I have the energy and stamina of my friend Sandra, I’m not going to retexture my walls to make them smooth like she did. I’ll just have to keep fertilizing my trees and painting my walls with flat paint so that the shine doesn’t highlight the knockdown texture.

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This post brought to you by TIKI Brand®. All opinions are 100% mine.

We’ve reached that season here in Austin that falls in between being slightly chilly and hotter than Hades. Before the temps soar to 100+ degrees, my family and I have been enjoying spending some time outside. The kids have been playing like crazy on our backyard playscape and Tom and I have been enjoying an adult beverage in the evenings sitting next to our old BBQ grill turned diy planter. It’s been very nice!

This year, I wanted to add a little more fun to the backyard. I’ve always been a big fan of kitschy tiki torches, but Tom has never agreed to let me get some since an open flame doesn’t mix well with kids and dogs. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

But y’all, we finally found a compromise.

TIKI Brand has introduced some good alternatives to an open flame. My favorite is this flameless TIKI Brand Glowing Table Torch. By day, it looks like a blue, hand blown glass object d’art. By night, you can either light the torch flame or simply turn on the LED light. It has a fun glow, with either a solid white light or a rotating red/green/blue light. It comes in a TIKI Brand Glowing Torch, too.

The other option we’ve been enjoying is the TIKI Brand Flame & Solar Torch. Like the Glowing Table Torch, you can light this one like you do a traditional tiki. Or, you can use the solar cell on the top of it to charge the battery during the day and a flickering flame-like light automatically turns on at night. It’s the ambiance of a tiki torch without the fear of someone burning themselves. Win-win!

I shot a little time lapse video of nightfall in my backyard so that you can see the transition of both of these fun accessories from day to night. Love it!

Both are available at Wal-mart or Target – or you can hop on TikiBrand.com and order some to be delivered to you. If you are looking to use them with a traditional torch light, the new Off/BiteFighter torch fuel might be a good way to fight off those pesky summertime mosquitos – I swear they grow as big as birds here in Texas!

What do you think? Do you enjoy the kitschy fun of a tiki torch as much as I do?

Looking for more inspiration photos? Visit TIKI Brand on Facebook.

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