resolutions

there will be a time when you believe everything is finished. that will be the beginning. ~ louis a'mour

beginnings are hopeful. there is an amazing feeling that happens inside when you feel you can start over and begin again. i love to ponder about all the possibilities the new year can bring. this is where new year resolutions come in!


~take sewing classes.
~sew at least one piece of clothing i can wear. a sundress would be nice.
~eat more vegetables.
~cook often, so i can use all those pretty aprons i got from mike's grandmother.
~start saving money for that rainy day.
~dress my living room windows in curtains.
~have more patience.
~work on my relationships with others.
~stop and smell the roses sometime, which i what this blog has helped me to do.

i hope you all have a wonderful and safe new years eve and the new year is even better than the last! xo, heather

a comforting holiday treat

last night i finally remade our favorite "magic cookie bars" or "seven layer bars", i never know what to call them. the first time i made these treats i used all vegan ingredients. they really needed the sweetened condensed milk to have the right consistency. soy milk made them soggy, but people were nice enough to eat them anyway. i think we did it right this time, because they were yummy.


if you want to make them here's what you'll need:
1/2 cup butter
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 14oz. can of sweetened condensed milk
1 6oz. package of semi sweet chocolate morsels
3 1/2 oz. of flaked coconut
1 cup chopped nuts
1 6oz. package of butterscotch chips


here's what to do:
preheat your oven to 350 degrees
in 13 x 9 inch baking pan, melt the butter
sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs over the butter
pour the condensed milk evenly over the crumbs
top evenly with chocolate chips, coconut, crushed nuts (we used walnuts), and butterscotch
press down gently
bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned
cool thoroughly before cutting


the chopping and cutting took a while, but it was worth it. any recipes you'd like to share?

last year's countdown

here are a few more pictures of new years 2007. we rang the new year in at home with cocktails and yummy finger foods. one cab ride later...

we ended up at the beautiful crystal tea room.

mike kept the drinks coming!

this is what can happen when you take silly people to a really nice place...



i loved my 2007, feathered headpiece. i wish i saved it.



if you haven't been there for new years, i recommend it. the live music, food, and drink stations were perfectly done.

i hope they let me back in. you never know, i may want to have my tea party there.

holiday hours and a little bit more

ok, so here's a picture from new year's eve 2007. i know it's not the most flattering picture, but i have always wanted to dive into a fluffy, mushy, pile of faux snow. i saw an opportunity right before it was time to say goodbye and i took it. as you can see i loved every second of it and managed to surprise a few party goers in the mean time.

this year we have decided to take it easy, but i'm still hoping for an opportunity to act a little silly! hmmm... must think of new year's resolutions.


holiday hours:

monday: 11 - 7
tuesday: 11 - 7
wednesday: 11 - 7
new years day: closed
friday: closed

regular store hours begin saturday.

what i love of 2008... and hope stays a while longer.

i adore what fashion has had to offer in 2008, while some trends i am ready to see fade away. here are a few i still can't live without.

chiffon and

sequins

studs and fringe

suspenders and lolita glasses photo courtesy of lullie

headpieces

large bows to wear anywhere photo courtesy of lou lou loves you

florals

bowler hats

head turner

pretty headbands i need that may just complete my life!

little doe

ban.do

loulou

ban.do

loulou

a merry little christmas

twas the night before christmas,

when all through the house,

not a creature was stirring,

not even a mouse,

oops! how'd this get in here?

merry, merry christmas! love, love, xoxo



holiday hours:
wednesday: 11 - 7 pm
thursday: closed
friday: closed

ooh la la

holiday season is here! stop in for the most amazing selection of cocktail dresses and accessories!!

a little bit country

every now and then we get the craving for boiled peanuts. boiled peanuts is a folk culture practice of the south. it is the southern tradition of buying raw peanuts, adding salt and boiling them until they are soft and tender. they become a salty, addicting snack that i love sharing over an icy beer.


if you would like to try boiled peanuts here's what you'll need:
1 pound of fresh raw peanuts
1/4 cup kosher salt
4 cups water

here's what to do:
rinse shelled peanuts in water
place water, salt and peanuts in a pot
bring the peanuts to a boil for 3 to 5 hours until desired softness
drain, unshell and eat

they taste the best when warm. yum!

we heart it

inspiration: a divine influence directly and immediately exerted among the mind and soul. visual inspiration is the most influential to me. we heart it is a website that one can pull visual inspirations from the web and bookmark them into one place. here are a few pictures i found from the website that are simply beautiful.

making me happy

my favorite... pink peonies

a girls gotta make a living

what could make a 7 year old girl fall in love with a movie that she still immortalizes as an adult? could it have been all those years of dance lessons i took? could it have been the character's beauty and pretty costumes? as i got older i realized it was all of those things and so much more that i now understood as an adult. it was the first time i had seen break dancing, tuxedo shirts without sleeves, and a movie way above my maturity level. if you haven't seen the movie it's the story of a welder by day and a dancer by night who semi takes her clothes off for her admirers. she dreams of becoming a ballerina, reads french vogue and eats lobster with her hands. her clothes were effortlessly chic that no picture from google images could clearly translate. you truly must see the movie to understand. i now have a boyfriend who shares the last name of the small club alex dances. we think this is coincidentally funny!








happy birthday, jennifer beals!