bolig

danish magazine bolig has me wishing i knew danish and/or a friend that knows danish so i could find out where to buy the ruler table runner and clock. perhaps i could get crafty this weekend and make my own table runner with my yudu or gocco

the future perfect

i spent some serious time poking around the future perfect last night and i now have a cart full of things i didn't know i needed. i'm thinking my office is in the most desperate need so maybe just the lamp and the shelving...

work lamp

wonderwall shelf

hippo doormat

hippo trophy hanger

buttercase

cafe habana

for months the construction at cafe habana has been haunting me and every time i see it i can just about taste the delicious corn. well, today is my lucky day! cafe habana malibu has finally opened and i can now enjoy their delicious corn anytime i want (they even have a pickup window right on pch, what a dream!).

corn!

happy menocal

i love these happy menocal custom portraits, particularly because the first sample is a dachshund! and they are only $200!!

tart

is this not the cutest lemon tart you have ever seen?

i'm guessing she used some sort of stencil for the polka dots - and of course now i'm in the market for another stencil. just what i need.

chevron

when we moved into our current house we had so many books and tsotskis that we needed extra storage. enter the expedit bookshelf from ikea. i usually find expedit to be quite cute, but in a organizing fit i bought this birch version on craiglist instead of trekking down to ikea. major mistake. the birch has been haunting me ever since. so when my mom found this stencil that i had ordered online from the uk, i knew my birch expedit was destined for greater things. this project took a lot more patience than i usually have when it comes to painting, but it turned out really great and i'm so much happier walking into the house to chevron.

expedit with bin shellac based primer

recipes

the recipe card downloads are up! you can find all of them by clicking the recipes icon in the right side bar and i will post new ones as they come (make sure you click on the link to download for the correct size)

swiss chard crepes

irish pancakes

mosstika

how great are these installations from hungarian artist edina tokodi? i would be so happy to run into one of her pieces on the street

introducing...

after spending some time in the kitchen this week i realized it is much more pleasant to follow a recipe when it is on a cute card. so instead of typing out the recipes i post, i'm going to link to my recipe card files (4x6 pdf files) in printable format. enjoy!

roasted carrots

poor b has been swamped with finals for the last couple of weeks so i have been trying to do more things around the house. last night we had run out of leftovers (made by b, of course) and with no good takeout options, i attempted something rare and dangerous - making dinner. thankfully i had just read a lovely morning's recipe for roasted carrot salad and it seemed easy enough. turns out i'm not entirely toxic in the kitchen (i'm telling b this was a fluke and by no means a valid representation of my cooking skills, i definitely don't want to be cooking dinner often) and the salad was delicious. we ate it with quinoa, which has a really interesting and tasty flavor.

Recipe from A Lovely Morning

Roasted carrot salad with chickpeas and fennel

A LOT of carrots. Like 3 big bunches from the supermarket or a big bag full if you're buying them from the farmer's market

2 or 3 small fennel bulbs, or 1-2 large (save some of the fennel fronds for flavor)

cumin seeds

1 can chickpeas

I bunch cilantro

feta (I'm using sheep's milk at the moment, but the other is fine too)

lime

salt, pepper, olive oil


Heat oven to 375. Peel and slice the carrots on the diagonal, so you have nice oblong pieces, not too thick and not too thin. Trim fennel bulbs, cut in half from top to bottom and then into thin wedges. Toss carrots and fennel with cumin seeds and a nice bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Line a cookie sheet with foil, dump carrots and fennel onto it, and slide into the oven and roast for as long as it takes the edges of the carrots to crisp a bit and the centers to be cooked through. Make sure you let some become nice and done so you get the crispy, caramelly taste every few bites.

While carrots are roasting, chop cilantro roughly. You might not need or want an entire bunch in your salad. I LOVE cilantro and believe it could almost be used as a salad green, which means I like a lot in this dish. But you can adjust the amount as you see fit. And you don't need pick the leaves off the stalks. Cilantro stems are just as delicious as the leaves. Pick a little pile of fennel tips off the fronds and set aside with the cilantro.

When the veggies are done, dump them into a large bowl. I usually heat the chickpeas in a saucepan first so they're nice and soft, but you certainly don't have too. Add chickpeas to the bowl, along with the cilantro and fennel tips. Drizzle a generous bit of olive oil over the top and mix everything up well. Add juice of one lime or so, depending on how limey you like it, and salt & pep to taste. Crumble feta over the top and eat. Out of the bowl is fine, but less civilized than actually heaping it on a plate.

pashley

the weather has been beautiful for the last few days and it has inspired me to get outside more often, which translates into beach trips with the dogs and a sandy, messy car. i'm dreaming of a pashley bike with a basket that i could ride to the beach, but the price is pretty steep (and it's in pounds!) and riding a bike on PCH is pretty much a death wish. perhaps my dad will have to add sandy dog proofing my car to his list of projects...

{ the princess frame in pastel blue }

chalkboard revisited

yes, i still have chalkboards on my mind. i think this might be my favorite use of chalkboard paint that i have seen. if only i had a kitchen so white and beautiful with an island...

goyard

i absolutely love goyard. i want their signature chevron print on everything, particularly a vintage trunk that i can use to store my boots. but until i come into a lot of money and/or find one at an estate sale where they don't know how truly fabulous goyard is, i will satisfy my chevron desires with this stencil. weekend project details coming soon

{ hand painted trunks outside the paris store }

{ brilliant way to shield the chevron }

{ custom goyard monograms... swoon }

glasses

a few years ago, before i had lasix surgery, my eyesight was horrible and i had many pairs of glasses for my many vision problems. while i don't miss poking at my eyes with contacts and stumbling around in the night without my glasses, i do miss the wonderful world of eyeglass accessories. i love warby parker's line of glasses. i loved it even more when i realized they give a pair of glasses to someone in need every time they sell a pair. and so in the spirit of giving i think i will order this pair and have tinted lenses put in.

the cool school

i was watching this great documentary last week about the los angeles art scene in the 1950's when this shot of ed kienholz (who started the ferus gallery) caught my eye. i think it is so silly that he advertised himself as an expert and wonder if he had expert business cards as well! if i ever handed out business cards, i think i might use these cards.