Sunday, October 31, 2010

The Big Reveal! Part I: The Bathroom and Foyer

Well folks, its been a few months since my last inspiration board post and now sweet hubs and I have pretty much finished decorating! We're very excited!

I'm going to reveal in several posts again... just to keep you waiting with bated breath. Aren't I sweet? Haha.

Without further adieu, here's part 1: The Bathroom!

First off, if you'd like to read back on the inspiration board and our decorating plans, check that out here.

And now for the before photos:











































































And the inspiration board:





































And the final product!!






Saturday, October 30, 2010

Just in Case You Weren't Aware...

I love Bill Murray.  Just thought I'd let the world know.








Thursday, October 28, 2010

Leica Love?

Wow. For somewhere in the price range of $7000 to $8000 you too can own this beautiful Leica M8 Special Edition White Version camera.









Gorgeous, right?

You might be able to purchase it from somewhere here, if it's still available, that is.

All images courtesy of Hypebeast.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

This Made Me Smile Today

I logged into Facebook this morning and this was on the right column of my homepage:










Yay!

Monday, October 25, 2010

127 Hours

Yay! A new Danny Boyle movie! Can't wait to see this!


127 Hours Full Trailer from TheSouthSider on Vimeo.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Fall Fun and Tex-Mex Pizza

Yesterday, sweet hubs and I took advantage of the beautiful weather and the fact that the leaves are now beginning to peak in color and drove out to Suffolk County on Long Island to spend a few hours at Fink's Country Farm.



It was a beautiful drive out and we got to have some fall fun since the farm had lots of festivities going on, including a piggy race, a barn "zoo" where you got to feed horses, goats, cows, etc, a band from Long Island that played lots of southern rock, such as "Sweet Home Alabama", a corn maze and hayrides. Oh yeah, and pumpkin slingshots!








































They also had a farm stand (it would have been odd had they not, considering its a farm) with some great fresh produce which we indulged in.

We ended the evening after driving home with sweet hubs getting a cute little halloween tattoo of a zombie girl at Hand of Glory from Zoe (great shop with awesome people - sweet hubs has several pieces from there - go check them out if you're in Brooklyn).



































We tried our hands at a new Weight Watchers recipe for Tex-Mex pizza. Quite delish if I do say so myself.

Tex-Mex Pizza
(Recipe courtesy of www.weightwatchers.com)
Serves 4
POINTS® Value: 7

Preparation Time: 5 min
Cooking Time: 15 min
Level of Difficulty: Easy

INGREDIENTS:

10 oz pizza dough, or 1 prebaked thin pizza crust
1/2 cup(s) salsa
15 oz canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup(s) low-fat shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 medium onion(s), chopped
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 cup(s) fat-free sour cream, (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven according to the directions for the crust you are using.

Spread the salsa over the crust. Top with the beans, cheese, and onion; sprinkle with the chili powder. Bake until the crust is golden, the cheese is bubbling, and the onion has started to brown, 10–15 minutes.

Top with dollops of the sour cream, if using, and serve at once. Yields 1/4 pizza per serving.

Friday, October 22, 2010

And Now for Something New

It's been a crazy week. Some personal events have occurred which are not so pleasant, but are being taken care of. One of those personal events is that I've decided its time to do something for myself. On Tuesday night, I joined Weight Watchers. It's been something I've been thinking about for quite some time, but now the time is right.

Anyhow, that being said, this will not be turning into a weight loss blog. I will be posting recipes as I do occasionally to keep track of them, but aside from that, there won't be daily posts about food / weight / etc. since that isn't something I'd like to really share with the interwebs. I guess I just wanted to bring that to my readers' attention so that you aren't wondering why I've randomly started posting weight watchers recipes. ;)

Another reason for mentioning it, is that I enjoy food. A lot. And I enjoy food that tastes good. And if I find a recipe that is WW friendly as well as tasty, I figure, why not share it with everyone else so you can enjoy it if you're looking for something healthy.

So without further adieu, here's the first recipe that sweet hubs and I tried last night. It was really tasty! I absolutely recommend it.

Turkey Sloppy Joes
(Recipe courtesy of www.weightwatchers.com)
Serves 4
POINTS® Value: 8

Preparation Time: 8 min
Cooking Time: 11 min
Level of Difficulty: Easy

INGREDIENTS:

1 Tbsp canola oil
1 medium onion(s), finely chopped
1 medium green pepper(s), finely chopped
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 pound(s) uncooked ground turkey breast
1 cup(s) barbecue sauce
4 item(s) mixed-grain hamburger roll(s)

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Swirl in the oil, then add the onion, pepper, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chili powder, oregano, and mustard; let cool 1 minute.

Add the turkey and cook, stirring to break up the meat, until no longer pink, 3–4 minutes. Stir in the barbecue sauce and cook until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and serve on the hamburger rolls. Yields 1 roll with 3⁄4 cup meat.

Monday, October 18, 2010

Weekend Recap: Lots of Cake

This past weekend was sweet hubs' 30th birthday celebration. It was a great weekend. Our friend Bobby flew up from Atlanta for the festivities and a good time was had by all.










Every year for sweet hubs' birthday I bake him whatever kind of cake he requests - this year I made a strawberry milkshake cake with cream cheese buttercream. I wasn't too sure about that combination, but it turned out super delish.  I also made Guinness cupcakes with Irish Cream whipped frosting, which were yummy as always.



Here's the recipe for anyone interested:

Strawberry Milkshake Cake

Ingredients

* 2/3 cup whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed
* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
* 1/4 cup whole milk, room temperature
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 large egg, room temperature
* 2 large egg whites, room temperature

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease your baking pan (I like to do a layer cake with two 9" round pans).

2. Place strawberries in a small food processor; process until pureed. You should have about 1/3 cup of puree, add a few more strawberries if necessary (this is a personal preference on how strawberry-ish you want it to taste) set aside. *NOTE* I also chopped up a few extra strawberries because I liked having chunks of it in the cake.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla, and strawberry puree; set aside.

4. Use an electric mixer to cream butter on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until well combined and fluffy. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add egg and egg whites until just blended.

5. With the mixer on low, slowly add half the flour mixture; mix until just blended. Add the milk mixture; mix until just blended. Slowly add remaining flour mixture, scraping down sides of the bowl with a spatula, as necessary, until just blended.

6. Using the rubber spatula, swirl in extra strawberry chunks (if you chose to do this step).

7. Divide batter evenly between baking pans. Bake until a knife comes out clean, 22 to 25 minutes. Allow cakes to cool before icing.


Cream Cheese Buttercream

Ingredients

* 3 oz. cream cheese
* 2 "triangles" of Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss
* 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold
* Pinch of coarse salt
* 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 1/3 pack of vanilla instant pudding (dry)

1. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat together butter and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy.

2. Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined.

3. Add vanilla and instant pudding mix until just blended.

4. Blend in cream cheese and Laughing Cow Swiss triangles till smooth.

*NOTE* You don't have to use the Laughing Cow Cheese - if you choose not to, just add in an additional ounce of cream cheese to make up the difference. I liked the little bit more of a tang that came from using the Laughing Cow.

Print recipe here.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

A Beautiful Mine

If you know me, you know I love AMC's Mad Men. I simply love everything about it - the acting, the writing, the cinematography, costuming, and set design. It is a complete package of awesome.

Included in that package of awesome is the beautifully animated title sequence with the theme song by RJD2 "A Beautiful Mine".

Mad Men Title Sequence from Caleb Woods on Vimeo.


Today I found a video on YouTube by A Video Recorded Live which is a twist on the theme song.  I thought it was really cool.

From their description of the project on YouTube:

We loved the song "A Beautiful Mine" by RJD2 that plays during the opening credits of "Mad Men." We wanted to put lyrics to it and realized that "Nature Boy" made famous by Nat King Cole, and written by eden ahbez, was the perfect fit. This was filmed in one take (this one, specifically, happened to be take 29 of the day)...no cuts, dubbing, lip-syncing or auto-tuning. More videos coming soon...This is a Video Recorded Live.



Credits:
Vocalist: Allison Williams
Director: Ralph Arend
DP: Vincent Peone
Editor: Ralph Arend
Composer: Jay Wadley
Sound Mixer: Raphael
Producer: Josh Ruben
Producer: Erika Hampson
Line-Producer: Nick Uhas
Gaffer: Corey Fontana
Grip: Jason Beasley
Grip: Leo Schott
AC: Andrew Brinkman
DIT: Kali Riley
PA: Roland Da Rold
PA: Suzie Jozkowski
PM: Jordan Hall/Elefant Films
Art Director: Andy Myers
Flute: Roberta Michel
Celeste: Trevor Gureckis
Violin 1: Pauline Kim
Violin 2: Marissa Licata
Viola: Meena Bhasin
Cello: Jessie Marino
Bass: Zack Lober
Drums: Colin Stranahan
Bongos: Jay Wadley

    

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Today is a Special Day...

Today is a very special day - it's sweet hubs' 30th birthday!

I hope your day is amazing as well as your celebratory birthday weekend, Jess. You're my one and only forever and hope I get to spend every birthday with you till you're at least 100 (which is likely considering your genes)!



And some notable photos from Jesse's past three birthdays...

2009: Jesse's 29th birthday in Vegas getting tattooed by our good buddy, Rob.  See more photos here.































2008: Jesse's 28th birthday in Philadelphia touring Eastern State Penitentiary.   See more photos here.





























2007: Jesse's 27th birthday was a weekend in Cooperstown, NY at the Baseball Hall of Fame.  See more photos here.






























Courtesy of Apartment Therapy: Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola's Swingin' Stella Ad

I am so in love with Stella Artois' new ad campaign by Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola! Apartment Therapy recently did a blog post on it with more in-depth coverage. You can read their full post here.











Watch the video:

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Very Cool: Chillout Sessions XII

I came across an album cover art project for the Ministry of Sound Australia's Chillout Sessions XII designed by Andrew van der Westhuyzen of Collider a few days ago. Not only is it a very clever concept, but I love the way that its shot and the design of the model (very california 1960's modern).

Project statement from the Collider's website:

A homage to Frank Lloyd Wright and Neutra and the lifestyles their buildings accommodated, Chillout Sessions XII takes us to a fusion of time periods somewhere between the 50s and the 80s in the filtered light of California.

All images courtesy of Collider.





Sunday, October 10, 2010

Lazy Sunday

Looks like I'm not the only one having a lazy Sunday afternoon.

My sweet girls, Little Abigail and Madame Martha having a nap.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Bombardment!

And apparently now that I was in hiding the last week or so, I've decided to bombard you all with awesomeness.

This video, called "Bottle" by Kirsten Lepore is adorable.  Watch it. Now.

Bottle from Kirsten Lepore on Vimeo.

October is here!

It's officially one of my favorite months of the year. So many wonderful things about October: sweet hubs' birthday, beautiful crisp weather, leaves changing, wonderful smells of wood burning and earth in the air, visiting my favorite parks (Bryant Park in Manhattan and Prospect Park in Brooklyn) and getting to wear sweaters - I simply adore fall and especially October.

I've been a little out for the count lately - I managed to catch that nasty cold that's been going around, but I'm back to the real world now and playing catch-up.

I need to post my October mix - It's been finished since last week, but being under the weather, I just haven't had the concentration to post it. Sorry folks! It'll be up soon, I promise.

Lots to look forward to in the next few months: birthday celebrations, mine and sweet hubs 2 year wedding anniversary and our anniversary trip (a cruise!), Thanksgiving, and then its the holiday season! (I love the time of year from September through February!)

That's all for now, just wanted to let everyone know I wasn't dead.