Permission to Intermission

I'm taking a hiatus from blogging! The below may or may not be the reasons for my lack of posts:

 

• Writer’s block
• Time*
• I’m washing my hair
• Lack of inspiration
• Laziness*
• I’m busy thinking of ways to save the world
• I have stage fright (à la Meg White)
• I have moved to the country and I’m eating a lot of peaches

I’ll be back one day!

Flirty 3-0 Tea Party

Here are a few pictures of the Tea Party I helped throw for our lovely friend Lauren who turns the big 3-0 this week! I thought everything came together very well! Great job Dana, Karen, and Courtney! Also a big Thanks to Mai for her great photos!

I'll be posting more pictures with recipes and tips soon!

 Invites by my Karen

Hand beaded and embellished flutes by Dana

Happy Birthday Lauren!  

Out of commision

Greetings! I finally get a break but I'm also getting my wisdom teeth taken out. Don't fret, I've stockpiled a few things for nourishment.

Muse

This is a two for one post.

I've been really inspired lately by other people's blogs (I'm down with OPB?). I think it's so great that there is a medium in which we can share our creativity with everyone. Here is the latest craft I made using a tutorial posted at OnceWed. It's an adorable way to add color to any space. I'm planning to hang it up in my office/craft room!

Tip: To cut the circles I opted to go a bit high tech, I purchased the Olfa Circle Cutter (at Joann's Fabrics with a 50% off coupon). It works fabulously and saves time! Check out the demo video below to see how it works!
  
On another note, I saw the band Muse last night! We had great seats and the show was AWESOME.

Ocean View

As the weather (very slowly) gets a bit warmer I start longing for pool lounging. I know it's more romantic to dream of the beach, but realistically there are no warm beaches in the area. So pool it is! Below are some images (from Anthropologie) that don't involve water, sun, or sand; but still make me want reach for the sunblock.

I love blue!

 

Baking tools under $5

The following tools are not necessary but are all under five dollars and worth every penny!

Parchment Paper: Will always get you out of a sticky situation. I myself have jumped on the silpat bandwagon, but I do enough baking to justify the price tag. Parchment paper is tied and true and easier to clean too! 

Egg separator: Separate egg yolk from whites in a jiffy! No tricky handling or waste and can hang on the rim of a bowl.

Non stick cooking spray: Aka Pam. Yes there are times you'll need both parchment paper and non stick cooking spray. Plus its always good to have in the kitchen even if you're not a baker.

I fried a burger, and I liked it

Yes people ground meat (get the 80/20), salt, and pepper on a cast iron pan. Served with caramelized onion, smoked Gouda (Rob's niece from Amsterdam would say "yawda") on a buttery brioche bun! 

Easy Like Sunday Morning

Happy Easter! Nothing like a Dim Sum lunch after church! Check out our plate of Snow Mountain buns!

I have been busy working on a few creative projects that lead to a big reveal at the end of the month (exciting n'est pas?!). More interesting tidbits to come!

Puff Pastry Remix

I had this package of puff pastry in my freezer for a month or two. I know *gasp* I have a form of boxed food in my kitchen! Its from Trader Joe's so it's not too bad, right?! 

I actually found a great savory way to use it; thanks to this recipe. I didn't have all of the ingredients on hand (I only used pork, fish sauce, onions, and the bean thread), but it still turned out great (says Rob).

Next time I may add shrimp and hard boiled egg, just like a steamed pork bun! 

But you can't be any geek off the street...

I totally need to regulate myself and really learn how to schedule time to write blog posts!

Today was a very domestic Sunday, I only left the house once! The rest of the time was spent cleaning, putting away clothes (I have a bad habit of letting my clothes pile up and then putting them away all at once). I also spent some more time working on my office/craft space. Its great to have my own space where I can just be by myself, and it can be as girly as I want!

Sneak peak:

Love the lemon icing colored walls?

Hopefully everyone else had a great weekend too!

Under the sea

Last week, Jenn and I made a big batch of sea creatures (fish and starfish) in sugar cookie form. They were for a themed baby shower. Check out the little fondant hearts I gave them!

I want your everything, as long as it's free

Happy Thursday!

I have to admit that I do a lot of web surfing during my work day (tsk tsk!), and last week we moved into a new building with new clear cubes. So now, looking at my favorite blogs in a tiny resized browser window has been nothing short of cumbersome. I mean how do I explain fashion blogs being relevant to my boss during our 1:1? Well maybe my old boss, but the new one? Not so easy.
So I created a rough draft of this post in MS word. No pictures, but below I give you links to a few of my favorite websites that also give you something free (how’s that for cheap thrills?).

Girly: The Brightside Project
What: Giveaways to up and coming artists and businesses.
How: The creators of the website wanted to bring a bit of sunshine to their visitors everyday by offering a featured product (for free to win) and the story behind its creator. In order to win you must answer their daily question.
Plus: You get information on fabulous products you ordinarily would not hear about from small business owners (most of them women).

Brainy: Free Rice
What: Vocabulary/geography/ language lessons (for you) and Rice (for the hungry)
How: You are quizzed on topics such as vocabulary and geography and for every one you get right; 10 grains of rice are donated to the UN World Food Programme.
Plus: It’s a game, it’s a charity, and it’s just plain fun!

B-a-n-a-n-a-s

Yum I love banana bread (without nuts)! 

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar (set 1 tablespoon aside for topping)

1/3 cup butter softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (set 1 teaspoon aside for topping)

2 eggs

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 super ripe bananas (store in fridge for about 2 weeks)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a loaf pan with nonstick spray
2. Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg)
3. Beat sugar and butter together until fluffy. Added eggs, vanilla, and butter milk and mix until incorporated
4. Mix in dry ingredient until incorporated
5. Pour batter into loaf pan. Sprinkle reserved sugar and cinnamon on top of batter and bake until cake tester comes out clean, about 1 hour.

Best ever comfort food

The children are bored on Sundays

Check out this very quirky short film/mini movie starring Shirley Manson (love her) and Elijah Wood (go Frodo!) for Oliver Peoples sunglasses. It has a total Wes Anderson a la Royal Tenenbaum's feel. I love it!

Patterns and Texture

Happy almost Friday! Great deals at UO! They have a pretty good selection of items $9.99 and under. 
Kimchi Blue Pleated Satin Skimmer $9.99(Was $28.00): The pleats make this shoe more interesting than a plain flat, and the satin is great for dressier occasions.

Kimchi Blue Zip Front Terry Silken Two-in-One Dress $29.99 (Was $58.00): This price point is great for taking a risk on mixing patterns. The colors are muted and soft but the exposed zipper makes it more grown up, and it has pockets!!

Liberty of London for Target

While everyone else is waiting for Zac Posen's line for Target, I'm ready for color and patterns! Liberty of London is the UK's version of Lily Pulitzer (in my opinion). Patterns, short dresses, and home decor (and more)! Find more info at Target. Launch date: March 14th. I want the cute teapot below!

 

Picture: Simply Stated Blog by Real Simple Magazine

Pucker Up

A week ago I had a great conversation with a very sweet friend. It was going so well then we somehow stumbled on the fact that she does not enjoy sour treats. Dude - what.is.up.with.that? It's ok, we're still friends but I didn't bake these for her.

Lemon cupcakes with raspberry cream cheese frosting. You are missing out Dana Chau!

 

 

Forals and Stripes

Hello! After a stint of hardcore concentration on work, I'm back! It's Thursday, so let us go to our cheap finds. We're visiting where else but Forever21. This spring expect to see a LOT of nautical stripes and floral patterns.

Water color floral dress:$24.80. This dress has potential. At first I thought that it was a bit too 80's, but I decided if it was styled correctly, (jewelry, belt, etc) we can bring this sweet dress up to date (and date worthy)!

Vivid floral tunic: $19.80. This is labeled as a tunic, but its long enough to be a dress. The colors offer dramatic impact and the floral print is not too saccharin. 

Striped Slub Cardigan: $11.50. I'm glad that open cardigans are here to stay. This nautical stripe short sleeve cardigan will be great over a simple tank and shorts. Add pop with colorful flip flops!

Striped Boyfriend Shirt: $10.50. I own this shirt, and I love the boyfriend fit. Very casual yet you can dress it up with jewelry. $10.50!!!

Rah-rah-ah-ah-ah

I'm totally feeling like I'm in a Bad Romance... with work!

I'm here on a Staurday! Need retail therapy...STAT!!!

Prosciutto for breakfast and dinner

 

For breakfast: A few slices on bagel with cream cheese and on a spinach and mushroom frittata.

 

For dinner: Served crispy on the side of portobello risotto

Too bad I'm not that into meat these days! Eat up Rob.