May 16, 2012
by lisa
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decision made!

I’ve been dragging my feet on making a decision on reupholstering our wing chairs that we received from my in-laws.  First, we didn’t pick them up for a long time.  Then, they sat in the garage.  As it started to get hotter, I was worried about the chairs getting ruined, so that finally lit a fire.

I was dragging my feet because I didn’t know what I wanted.  As I mentioned here, I have been looking for inspiration since October.  I’m not typically one to shy away from patterns, but I was hesitant because I wanted to pick something that would stay with us for awhile.  I shopped at the local chain craft stores, looked through a million magazines, Pinterest and Houzz for picture inspiration, and I just wasn’t finding anything.  I went to a local fabric store (P.S. Fabrics, for those in Jacksonville), and it all clicked.

While the chairs are at the upholsterer, I thought I would share our choices.  I was drawn to fabrics by Kravet, Duralee and Robert Allen.  Robert Allen won out in the end.  I can’t wait to share the results with you!

May 14, 2012
by lisa
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the webster & golf

I’m not sure how many of you follow golf, but THE PLAYERS Championship was this weekend in Ponte Vedra, FL.  There are not that many exciting events that happen here, and I consider TPC weekend one of the two best weekends of the year in Northeast Florida.  While it’s great to get out and watch the golf, the Saturday of TPC is notoriously the busiest day and most definitely the most fashionable day for the ladies in attendance.  There are cute sundresses, hats and accessories everywhere you look.

I saw the dress below at Target last week – it’s part of the limited edition Shops concept that they have in-store and online right now (see the entire collection here).  The dress is from the collection by The Webster, a Miami boutique.  I loved this dress in-store, mostly due to the cute eyelet and the open, crossed back.  The best part – it’s only $39.99!!  I’m glad I didn’t wear it this weekend, as I saw it on a great deal of girls.  But, had I bought it, I would have accessorized like this for the event:

 the webster at target dress / eugenia kim fedora / target earrings / fossil crossbody bag / sigerson morrison sandals / amrita singh bangles

May 11, 2012
by lisa
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all about druzy

I’ve been a fan of druzy jewelry for awhile.  What’s druzy?  Think of the inside of a geode…  and how it sparkles a bit.  My sisters and I loved when we traveled to places and they had drawers of geodes (with druzy inside) to dig through, and I guess that fascination never subsided.

My first run-in with druzy jewelry that I truly adored was with Dara Ettinger found at Cusp in LA last year.  What’s funny is that 95% of the time when I see a piece I like these days, it’s Dara Ettinger.  There are a lot of other great jewelry designers that have druzy pieces (some featured below), but I can’t help but establish her line as my favorite.

coralia leets earrings / dara ettinger earrings / panacea earrings

dara ettinger ring / marcia moran rings / dara ettinger stack rings

zariin necklace / peppina pendant / marcia moran pendant

There are many ways to wear druzy jewerly – they are pieces that you can use to help dress an outfit up or down, and they are great for day or night.  It may also satisfy the inner 7th grade scientist in you!

May 7, 2012
by lisa
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seriously, the best chocolate chip cookies ever

I’m not a huge cookie junkie, but I can easily be swayed by comments about the deliciousness of a dessert.  I saw this recipe on Cupcakes and Cashmere, who found the recipe on For Me, For You.  The descriptions of this cookie on both blogs made me realize that I NEEDED to try this recipe.

This recipe is not for the faint of heart when it comes to baking – you have to make the dough and let it chill for 36 hours before you bake it.  I can’t lie though, I did taste a bit of the dough while it was “chilling.”  Just a note – the recipe calls for unsalted butter, but I used half salted and half unsalted butter.

The suggestion was to use an ice cream scoop in order to have the perfect sized cookies, and they were so right.  We have a scoop that is made to be frozen to help with scoops, so that was even better.

I’m convinced that the key to these cookies is the sea salt that you sprinkle on top before baking.  The slight taste of salt makes these cookies irresistable.

The other key to these cookies is making sure you don’t overcook them.  I baked at 350 for 16 minutes for the first batch and lessened the time after that.  They came out gooey in the center and perfectly crisp on the outside.

I did cool on the sheet (on top of a cooling rack) and then I transferred on the parchment paper to the rack directly.  They were so easy to remove.

The cookies won overwhelming approval from all that tried.  I actually bought more chocolate chips this weekend to make them again…  I do have more cake flour leftover, so why not?  Try them!

 

May 3, 2012
by laurie
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thursday tunes – special edition

Why, hello there. I wanted to pop in really quick and say hi and tell you that I’m finally, after 2.5 years of living in California, going to visit San Francisco tomorrow for 5 days! I’ve heard so many amazing things about it, and I’ll finally get to add my adventures in with everyone I know who’s been there. I’m also arming myself with multiple cameras to capture it all – I can’t wait to post them, and I’m not even there yet. Mai Ling, my hairstylist here in San Diego, is amazing and sent me a ton of places to eat and see. She knows what’s up, so I’m confident my boy and I will get to see the real San Francisco!

So, with that, here’s my video for the week. It may be a bit cheesy, but I’ve been humming it all day. Enjoy!

May 2, 2012
by lisa
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initial door hanger

“When the boy’s away, the girl will play.”  That was true for me this past weekend…  but, not only did I flip the saying, the meaning was definitely different for me.

I had a wonderful weekend.  My mom and youngest sister – Christie – came up to visit.  We went to the beach, had a great happy hour/dinner and then did some shopping.  After they left, I had time for a weekend “crafternoon.”  Nerdy, I know, but I don’t get to do it that often.

I saw this project on Pinterest last week, and couldn’t wait to complete it.

I changed it up a little bit from the picture…  I bought some jewelry findings, instead of the flowers.  The base that I used was a cardboard letter, found at my local craft store.

Using some craft glue, I just started wrapping the twine in circles around the letter.  The first half was slow, but then I got the pace down and it went a lot quicker.

I’m a bit of a perfectionist, so I wanted to make sure that all visible areas were covered with twine.  To ensure the ribbons stayed on the top, I glued those on first, and then I glued the twine over them.

The curves were a bit difficult, so I wrapped the entire upper portion and then cut away the twine in the middle.  But cutting it in the middle on the front, I was able to fold those pieces in and glue them inside the hole in the “R.”  I also glued the findings on with the same craft glue.

The finished product actually exceeded my expectations.  It was a fairly easy project that will stick with us for awhile…  at least until football season and another project wreath!

 

May 1, 2012
by lisa
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may day, may day!

Each year when May 1st rolls around, I can’t help but think of the May Pole that we would build each year in elementary school.  There is something so inspirational about the mix of colors of the ribbons, woven into a beautiful pattern.

Why not meld all of these colors together into a beautiful outfit, filled with all of the whimsy of the May Pole?  This skirt from J.Crew and the top from Asos obviously create the base of the look.  But, I think the accessories make the outfit…  and I think this is true in most cases.  How beautiful is the Lanvin bag?  Stunning.

top/skirt/earrings/bracelet/bag/wedge

may pole image courtesy of outside eye 

April 30, 2012
by lisa
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mozzarella stuffed turkey burger

I love to try new recipes, but I really hate to cook during the week.  I am totally fine with eating at home, it just seems like I’m exhausted by the time I get there and I don’t feel like making anything.

I was inspired the other night, however, by this recipe.  I was intrigued by the stuffed burger and the Italian flavors.  Side note:  when I lived in Minneapolis, we would often venture to Tugg’s in the summer to get strawberry lemonade and stuffed burgers, so there was also some nostalgia involved.

I love the fresh flavors involved – scallions, garlic, basil and lemon zest.  The flavor meld was perfect.

After mixing the seasonings with the turkey meat (I used the 99% fat free variety), I mixed together the fresh chopped basil and mozzarella cheese.  You make 8 smaller patties, put the mix on top of one of them, and then cover with another.

Once you pile one on top of the other and the fillings, then you squeeze the edges together to ensure a melty cheese center.

The recipe called for a skillet or grilling, but I just combined those and used the grill pan.  It was perfect!

The finished product exceeded expectations.  I didn’t want to use foccacia, so I used french bread.  Also, in the spirit of week-night cooking, I used store bought sauce.  But, it was still phenomenal and fairly quick/painless.