Four things Friday: Catalog Living

Have you heard of Catalog Living?  It's been providing my family and I with endless giggles for about a year now.  The Web site follows fictional couple Gary and Elaine, the people who live in the homes depicted in your decor and home furnishing catalogs.  You know, those immaculately-kept, no-one-could-possibly-live-there rooms in the pages of Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, and Anthropologie?  The rooms in these catalogs are something I've always wanted for my own home, but the decor is also often impractical, if not absurd, as creator Molly Erdman has taken it upon herself to point out.  The result is a witty combination of the sophisticated home decor we all covet alongside Molly's mockery of the unlivable conditions in these imaginary homes.

For today's "Four Things Friday," I bring you my four all-time favorite Gary and Elaine Catalog Living moments.  I hope you enjoy these as much as I do!  Warning: it's entirely possible to kill HOURS of your day perusing these posts, so consider blocking out some time to get your laugh on.

I guess I have two questions, Gary: 

Why do you think you need to save your seat 

when you go to the kitchen, and who do you think 

will be deterred by a small plant stem?

Elaine was thrilled to witness first hand 

that she had finally solved that age-old problem of butterflies 

trying to pollinate her baked goods.

It may have seemed unnecessary to label the flatware, 

but having witnessed Gary’s embarrassing attempt to 

scoop guacamole with a wine glass at last year’s picnic, 

Elaine wasn’t taking any chances.

Elaine, can you bring me something to drink, 

preferably something that matches the chaise cushion?

For more Catalog Living, check out Molly's daily blog of Gary and Elaine's adventures, as well as the newly-released book: Catalog Living at its Most Absurd: Decorating Takes (Wicker) Balls.