Sunny Yellow

Some of you may know that I like to keep cut flowers in the apartment.  I feel a bit refreshed looking at their colors and watching them bloom out as far as their petals will take them.

So on a hard day, like today, this view helps, even if only a little.

That, and being with family and loved ones during a time of grief.

Juicing: Day 2

Breakfast was tasty, although truth be told, I could have used less sweet stuff.  Next time I'll try less fruit (maybe one cup of grapes and half a cup of blueberries) and more veggies (more kale, and add carrots).

Breakfast:
2 apples
1 cucumber
1 c. blueberries
2 c. grapes
2 kale leaves
1" ginger


Here's hoping lunch is good!


Lunch:
1 beet
1 cucumber
2 carrots
1 apple
4 kale leaves
1/4 lemon (peeled)
1/4 lime (peeled)

Lunch is in container; breakfast in the glass cup.  Isn't the separation pretty cool?  There was way more breakfast juice than just that cup.  It probably totaled 20 ounces all together, which was great!

Day 1 of Juicing...

I decided to do a bit of a juice cleanse.  It's about time I started actually taking care of my body. 

The past 15 years has pretty much been a "I can do, eat, consume, have whatever I want" time, which is just gross and unacceptable.  Not that I ever really ate poorly -- I am fortunate (or spoiled) enough to have the capability to eat good food all the time -- but this really marks the first time I'll have eaten nothing processed for days.  And while I've heard it is not without some minor complications (headaches, mostly), I am super excited to experience that great feeling everyone says they have after putting only natural foods in their bodies.

So...here's what I had for breakfast:

First have a mug of hot water and lemon, and then this juice.

I gotta tell ya....It was really tasty.  And it was a substantial amount of juice.

I'm a little bit more nervous for the apple, cucumber, celery, kale, ginger and lemon juice for lunch, but it smells great, so I have faith!

So long, Uncle Al

Dear Uncle Al will be dearly missed.

Upon hearing of his death, Mami said to me "I'm just sad.  I really thought he was superman." And he really kind of was.

Kickin' Butt and Taking Names

You know those nights when you just steamroll through the "to get done at some point" list?

Yeah, I don't have too many either.  But Monday night was just that, and it was incredible.  I'll post pictures of all the projects done (in time -- I need to get the cord to connect the camera to the computer from Dad this weekend), but it was just one of those walk-by something-that-needs-to-be-fixed-and-just-do-it.

Take, for example, this guy:

Lovely as she may be, the drawer and solid door compartments were sort of a pain to open and close. I probably should have taken care of this when I painted her blue this past winter, but I was in a hurry to just get it done, as December 1st was approaching and that meant all the Christmas decor would be out and taking over the apartment (no space for big furniture projects in my <530 sf studio apartment).

So... probably back in January, Pops gave me some silicone spray to make these bad boys slide no problem (yes, I know I could have also used soap among other things, but clearly as I've had the spray for months, it wasn't because I didn't have the materials -- I just didn't do it.)

Fast forward to Monday night when I was takin' care of business all around this little apartment and....wah lah!  These guys now slide and open without a hiccup.

And since it was a night of productivity, this success meant I went around like a crazy lady spraying anything that has a drawer or hinge.   Now all most systems are a "go" here on Swann Street.

Geegers Deemers

Happy birthday, Geeg!!

Love this photo of your cute family!!

(And yes, I know both names are spelled incorrectly!)

Pops

Today marks a new decade for dear, old Dad.

I am very lucky to have a dad like mine.  We get to be parent and daughter,  but also good pals that can talk about virtually anything.  During the rough months of this last year, Dad always made time to meet up with me to talk, or to calm me down over the phone or help me think through all the wild, crazy things running through my head.

But it's actually not all serious stuff -- it's mostly fun!!

We travel and go sailing together.

Last year he taught me to play golf.

He was my finish-line supporter for the 13.1, braving the cold morning, waiting in the car for hours for me to finish (and I am now seriously kicking myself for not getting a picture with him at the race.  ?!?!?)

He's very generous with his time (now that he has some!) and his tools.  He is most certainly the son of a surgeon, as Dad likes things to be precise and clean.  You know the saying "measure twice, cut once" but how most people just ignore that?  Yeah.  He doesn't.

But the man knows how to get down.  There is no better wedding date than my Dad.  He's the best swing dancer I know, and luckily I get to dance with him while Mami is off giving lessons to those not yet able to "One...two...quick step.  One.. two..."  But the best part is when the single-leg jig comes out.

Legit, my friends email this picture around when we are getting amped for an upcoming wedding.  Great stuff.

And the guy cleans up nice too.  Black-tie Christmas Eve means after dinner Christmas Carols in my Grandparents' living room. 

But maybe the best part is that he makes me feel like he actually likes me.  As if he really wants to be around me and hear my thoughts and stories.  And share his own, which I love to hear, because I actually like him!

No single blog post could do justice to all that he does or all that he means to me.  I hope and think he knows based on how great our every day relationship is -- because it's awesome.  I love him and love hanging out with him and love that he's my Dad.

Happy Birthday, Pops!

 

Makes me think of the old man...

Happy Morther's Day Weekend!

Over the last twelve months, my mom has been a tremendous help to and supporter of me.*  And this past year, I needed it.

I can feel her unconditional love and generosity constantly.  It comes in so many forms.  One example is her generosity to watch Dixie.  Whether it was for a month when I was moving or for two weeks when I just couldn’t handle it, or the various times I skipped town for a few days to be with friends, Mami would always take her in with a smile, even if it was a small burden.  

Mami has calmed my thoughts and concerns.  She’s never questioned my capability to persevere.  She’s intuitive and smart.  I love how she appreciates clever designs or gadgets, and she loves a good play on words.  She knows my strengths and my weaknesses, and despite it all, still likes to hang out with me!

I am so looking forward to spending Sunday with the three matriarchs in my life: my Mami, Abuelin, and Mimi.

Me, Abuelin and Mami from Christmas2011.

Old timer photo of Mimi, some baby I am related to (anyone?), Uncle Pete and Aunt Alice

Hope you enjoy either spending the day with or celebrating the moms in your lives.

Cheers, also to all you other mothers who mean the world to me, especially: Mari, Margot, Gigi, all my aunties and great aunties, and cousins.  You have no idea how much I have learned from each of you – both the triumphs and the mistakes (seriously!!).

*I’m sure Mami will say something like “I’ve always been a help and a supporter, not just in the past twelve months.”  Yes, Mami, I agree.  I am just trying to isolate the past year, OK?

Krispy Kale?

Guys, guys....

Did you have any idea that kale was SO delicious?  I mean, yes, I know it is super good for you and that it can be tasty, but this was SUPER easy and very yum.

Literally got home late after some drinks with close gal pals.  I hadn't really eaten dinner, only a late lunch of leftover soup (maybe even better the next few days) so I was hungry but not in the mood for a meal, per say, as bedtime was coming up and I am really hoping to drop some lbs.

So I cut up some cherry tomatoes drenched in EVOO and s+p, two slices of baguette and broke up two or three leaves of kale and put them on a baking sheet.  Drizzled a bit of extra EVOO on the kale and thew in the oven for less than ten minutes.  The tomatoes were not yet wrinkly...just warmed and sweet.

I took tongs and put the kale on a plate and squeezed some fresh lemon juice on it.  Then the baguette and all the sliced tomatoes, and let. me. tell. you.  It is delicious!  Seriously.  The kale was my favorite part, and I actually cannot wait to have it again.

I'm not the first to know how good this is, but legit try it yourself.

Picture found here.

P.S. Did you notice the updated "spring" cover photo?

The Best Thank You Gift Ever?

Aren't thank you notes, gifts, whatever the best?!

I truly love writing thank you notes and getting the perfect gift to match.  Not that it has to be expensive to be fabulous.  

Some of my favorite thank you gifts have been to friends' parents for letting me stay at their vacation homes (hey, I like to travel, but a 20-somethings budget usually only gets you the flight!)  After a Fourth of July at a friend's aunt and uncle's house in Cape Cod, I got a cute little notepad personalized with a nautical image and the name of the house on the top of each page.  I also got a kick out of giving miniature Adirondack chairs (doll house sized) to Patrick's parents after standing on (and breaking) their real-life sized one around their fire pit in Southwest Virginia.  I also added the name of their house to the arm rest, which made it even more personal.  It probably didn't make up for the fact that I broke one of their chairs, but still, I thought they'd laugh -- half the battle.

But isn't it fun to be on the receiving end of it too?!

That said, I wanted and expected absolutely nothing from Gigi after her wedding.  She thinks I was "a huge help" but what she refuses to hear is that it was not work at all for me.  I wanted to help!  It was fun and therapeutic and I loved that I was able to spend time and become even closer to her, her amazing now-husband, Kevin, and both her girls.  Seeing those two at Emma's First Communion and them just jumping up to give me a hug felt wonderful.  Before they had always been a little shy around me, polite, but shy.  And now?!  We're buds!  And I love it!  And it wouldn't have happened if Gigi hadn't allowed me to help.  Really, I am the one that owes her a thank you!

INSTEAD, she got me the most amazing thank you ever!

Ask any fashionista what the color of the moment is, and I guarantee they will tell you "mint!"  (OK, maybe some will start with emerald, but that was soooooo March.  I kid.)

But seriously, mint is such a great color, and not just because it's trendy.  Because it's gorgeous, universally flattering and fun!

So when she presented me with these....Ahh!

What's that, you ask?  Is there something more to them than just being amazingly mint and white cap toe flats?

Why yes....yes there is.  They are also adorable bunny faces.

Le Bunny Bleu's

They are just perfect!!  Can't wait to wear them!

White Bean, Chicken Sausage and Kale Soup

Yes, it is early May, but the weather just does not want to warm up fully.  A week of sunny, 75 degree weather followed by one with wet and chilly conditions has been the norm in Washington, DC.  And while I am anxious for summer, I am glad to have a few more weeks to shed some of these winter lbs that have crept up on me -- what happened, ugh!?!?!

But its not all bad news.  The produce is starting to look awesome and I am happier eating lighter things (it's the sweets I need to stay away from!).

Then, on Sunday at brunch with the family after Emma's First Communion mass, Mimi said she's trying a new diet and that one of the recipes was for a good white bean and zucchini soup.  Since I don't have the recipes for this diet, I took to the internet to find a good recipe to make this week, as it was one of those cold, wet ones.

Per usual, here are all the ingredients you'll need.

Perhaps the most interesting from this recipe was the parmesan rind, which I've never cooked with (or done anything else for that matter) before.

Also per usual, I just mixed things I bought with things I already had on hand (i.e. chicken or vegetable broth -- or both!)  Navy beans and Great Northern Bean -- why not!?

Cook the sausage, out of the casing, in a pan on medium heat.  Remove from pan and set aside.

Add olive oil and a chopped onion until mostly wilted.  Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for another minute or two.

Drop in pretty much everything else -- broth, beans, parmesan rind, bay leaf(ves), oregano and bring to a boil.

Once at a boil, simmer for an additional 15 minutes, which is when I added the zucchini -- next time I would probably wait until the 10 minute simmer mark to add the zuch, but it was not mushy at 15 minutes, so really it's your preference.

Meanwhile, inspired by the amazing crostini I had at my uncle's friends' home after Gold Cup on Saturday, I sliced some baguette...

And brushed on some red pepper flake "infused" olive oil.

Drop that in a 350 oven and go do whatever you want for ten minutes -- in my case, pour yourself a glass of wine and get to blogging!

Check in every once in a while to smell the deliciousness and make sure your kitchen isn't burning down.  Kidding, kidding...

After the 15 minute simmer has completed, add a whole bunch of roughly chopped up kale.

Too much?

Nah...

Take your crostini out of the oven and rub with a just-sliced garlic clove.  No need to go overboard here -- just a once over and that will be plenty.

I made tons, mostly so I could take it to work for lunch.  So glad I did.

Serve, enjoy and feel good about eating a hearty, healthy, homemade meal you completed in less than an hour.

DIY horse bit necklace

Sometimes ideas hit you at the right moment.  And Saturday morning was no exception.

A few months ago, a good gal pal handed me down some clothing she was just tired of wearing.  Included in the set were some dark wash jeans with gold, horse bit-type buckle detailing on the front and back pockets (a la gucci).

So when the jeans didn't fit quite right, I decided to take off the buckles and save them for something -- what, I did not know just yet, but something.

Alas, my uncle invited me to join him and his friends at their amazing plot for the Gold Cup horse races in Virginia this past weekend, and I knew those buckles could be used for something.

The initial idea was to use two buckles and create a bracelet, but it proved to be a bigger challenge and time was running out (i.e. I was getting picked up in twenty minutes).  So I took an old F21 necklace that I never seemed to wear, opened the jump rings to remove the faux tortoise shell medallions, slipped on one of the horse bit buckles.  And what do you know...

A one-of-a-kind necklace was the perfect accessory for a horse race event!

We had so much fun!

It's (almost) the Freakin' Weekend and Baby I'm About to Have Me Some Fun

Looking forward to a sunny, 70-degree weekend with horses, family (especially Emma on her First Communion), old friends and I'm sure what will become new friends!

I need to pop into F21 or Targ or somewhere to find a hat for the races on Saturday, but here's what I'll be wearing, likely with my Jack Rogers, a spring jacket and rocking an arm party.

Although I sort of wish I were wearing something like this...

Just decided this will be the next dress I'll make -- maybe in navy or grey though.

One final, happy thing to leave you with before the weekend: THESE.

Ugh...why, oh why are they so pricey.

For now, I'll just drool and dream.

The First Cut of Fabric is the Hardest

After years of a lot of talk, I finally decided to do something about my interest in clothes -- I actually started sewing.

I've been volunteering at a sewing studio in DC since October of last year and every time I go, I am just thrilled to be around people interested in being creative and productive.  It is really remarkable to think that you start with a piece of fabric, and create something -- anything really.  I love the feeling it gives you and I am determined to make (at least some) clothing.

So after literally three hours at the fabric store with Mami and Alina, we walked out with a pattern, all the related fabric and notions.  I was so anxious to get started!

Here's the pattern we decided to go with.

It is a fairly straight forward dress, but it has pockets and is lined, and given that the skirt is pencil, it needs to be more precise than a full skirt -- something I am actually looking forward to working on rather than it looking right, but being sewn incorrectly, as can happen when you add volume.

So I took the fabric home, washed it and was ready to go for the Working with Patterns class at Bits of Thread, which gave me the confidence to get started.

There were a few hiccups, aka the pattern listed too small an amount of fabric, I had to go buy more fabric which I then forgot to wash (and more importantly pre-shrink) but was too hasty to stop working so am just never going to be able to dry the damn dress...but at this stage, all the fabric is cut and I am ready to start sewing!

 Start here.  And remember to just keep breathing...

Lay all the pieces out according to the directions.  Of course this isn't as "simple" as it sounds.  You have to ensure you are cutting on the correct size line, that you marked/noted where all the dart or other indicators are, that the grain line is straight--which is important because it affects the way your fabric (and therefore garment) can stretch, that things are pinned (or not) to your satisfaction.  It's not difficult by any means, but it is important to remember all these small items (and to know how to read them -- thank you Working with Patterns class!)

Like I said, the first cut is the hardest (at least it was for me), so I was too busy just trying to stay calm to remember to take a photo.  But here are both top pieces and one of the skirt pieces pinned to the folded fabric.  (Of note, I was also so hasty to get started that I actually laid out of the fabric wrong sides together, which is not what the pattern calls for.  Not good.  But I asked the instructor to check, and all was fine so long as I marked on the wrong side of the fabric with the chalk.  Whoops.

Here are all the external pieces cut out.

Here's a close up which shows you all the little markings/details to watch out for.  There are various ways in which to mark them, but I wanted to use tailor tacks, as it is the most traditional way.

So you find some thread that is colorful/different than your fabric so you can see it...

Then you sew through the markings you need to remember, leaving four loops.

Once they are all done, you take scissors and cut the tops of the loops.

Here is what is looks like with all of the loops cut.  Note: I used a good amount of thread for each loop on the tailor tack so that the next step would be easier.

Then you carefully/slowly start to pull apart the fabric, just enough so that you can stick some scissors in there and cut the thread in between the folded fabric.  That way, thread remains on both sides once it is unfolded.

After the outer pieces were ready to go, I cut all the lining and contrast pieces so that once I started sewing, I wouldn't have to stop to cut fabric again.

And that's where I am at this stage!

Given that the dress is red, white and blue, I decided to try and finish this dress by the Fourth of July so I can wear it then.  Always good to have a deadline!  In the meantime, I'll be working on fixing or reconstructing existing clothing items, but this is will be the first piece of clothing I'll have ever made from scratch!  Exciting!!