I am looking anywhere and everywhere for a little peek of warmth and spring these days, it seems like winter is never ending this year! I ran into this image and it was just the dose of freshness I needed. Don’t you love the bright and airy lavender wall color and the little pop of cheery gingham?
Image via The NeoTraditionalist
What a fun weekend I had. I spent Saturday hosting a DIY workshop at West Elm, which was a total blast — I promise to share pictures soon! And Sunday was of course reserved for some Super Bowl partying. I made Rice Krispy treats with cocoa krispies and molded them to look like little footballs, they flew off the plate. And my friend Lisa who was hosting had the cutest bar set up, complete with instructions for how to help yourself during the game, isn’t that such a cute idea? Hope your Sunday was filled with as many snacks as mine was!
Bar photo via @taslimsidi; Measuring spoons c/o RedEnvelope
I’m excited to share a fun pieces I’ve worked on this week… first up, I’m super excited to have been interviewed by the DIY Boston Blog on Boston.com about all of my crafty endeavors, check it out here.
And I’m sharing some SuperBowl snack ideas for the big game this weekend over on Wayfair’s blog. I’m most certainly recreating these football rice krispy treats for the SuperBowl viewing party I’m going to on Sunday.
Last but not least, don’t forget to check out the fun giveaway I have going on with Brim Papery, enter this weekend to win $50 to her shop!
I am not feeling so hot this week, I’ve come down with a pretty terrible cold and just can’t seem to bounce back! So I made it my mission last night to get on the road to recovery with a pot of homemade soup. I took a stab at a tortellini soup I saw in the most recent issue of Food Network magazine and made a few modification like adding in chopped onions and extra garlic to the recipe (and omitting the water they suggested). And it was just want the doctor ordered, a totally delicious soup can do wonders. Find the full recipe here.
The new CB2 catalog landed in my mailbox last week and I can’t stop thinking about the pops of pink in their new products. I’m making a mental note, when I someday have more space for it, I will be purchasing a pink settee. And I love the bold stripes on the tablecloth and punchy neon pillows — they’re just so cheery!
A few weeks ago I was having brunch in the South End with a friend, and we made it a point to stop into the a new shop that I had been hearing about called Farm & Fable. It’s kind of like dying and going to vintage kitchen heaven. The store specializes in vintage cookbooks and serveware, and has an awesome collection of new heirloom kitchenwares — and it is some kind of miracle that I didn’t buy every single item in the shop on our visit. Oh also, they are starting a Cookbook Book Club where all of the attendees make a recipe from one cookbook and bring it for a potluck to chat about the recipes, how cute is that? I’m sad I can’t make the first meeting, but am definitely signing up in the future — that’s a book club I can get behind. If you’re in the neighborhood you must check it out!
Big update here people, it’s my birthday tomorrow! The nice thing about having your birthday right after Christmas, is you don’t feel guilty lusting over cute new products after the holiday rush — it’s totally allowed. So I’m sharing an updated ‘caught my eye’ list today with a few things I have on my radar. On the top of the list? Some new bedding — I have been scoping out Biscuit bedding for a possible bedroom refresh! And a cute water bottle to help me keep those new years resolutions… and the Mast Brothers chocolate cookbook for when I inevitably break them, right?
Tufted bench, Biscuit bedding sham, Anchor doormat, Chocolate cookbook, Heart water bottle, Gold dipped spoons, Belvoir cordials
Guys, it’s hump day — and no one likes hump day — let alone the first one after the holidays, so I saved this recipe from a few weeks ago that’s completely focused on butter to make you feel better. One of the nicest presents I received for Christmas this year was from my grandparents and uncle; they got me a bunch of artisanal pasta and olive oils from a local pasta shop in my hometown. Clearly my family knows me well, carbs are my first love.
When it came time to test out one of those pastas I wanted to make it a super special dinner, so in addition to working on a nice sauce and some homemade meatballs, I got a fresh loaf of Italian bread and decided to whip up a special herbed butter to go with it. I roasted a whole head of garlic for about an hour in a small dish with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then once the garlic was cooked and soft, I used the food processor to combine the cloves with a 3 tablespoons of butter, a tablespoon of fresh grated parmesan cheese, a teaspoon of chopped rosemary, and a teaspoon of chopped thyme, plus a little more salt and pepper. The result was a sweet roasted garlic and herb-y butter spread that went perfectly with the little Italian feast I prepared!
In all of the holiday hustle and bustle I totally forgot to share pictures of little pre-Christmas adventure up to Quebec City! The trip has become a bit of a tradition for us, this marked our 4th year going, and the first time since we got engaged there two years ago. It was a winter wonderland to say the least, we tromped through a fresh foot of snow to do window shopping, warmed up in cute cafes and restaurants with tasty soups and treats (macarons, of course!), and admired the holiday decorations on the old city’s streets. It’s always such a perfect little retreat to get in the holiday spirit.
I thought I’d share a few snaps of our New Years Eve party before heading off for the weekend. I will be honest, I was a little frazzled getting ready for our annual party this year, I was nursing a cold, my balloons were deflating from the super-cold weather, and I forgot to bake a few of my appetizers! So when I realized guests would be arriving in just a few minutes, I zoomed around and snapped a few quick phone pictures and called it a day. But I don’t think anyone seemed to notice, we popped champagne, ate lots of snacks (I made homemade soft pretzels that were a hit), and even danced to a little Ke$ha in the living room after the ball dropped — a success in my book! Hope you had a fabulous New Year, can’t wait to see what 2014 has in store! 
