I love you for your puffed sleeves. For your black jersey bodice. For your leotard-esque neckline. For your elastic waist. And for your patchwork skirt. Oh my, that patchwork skirt.
through other loops. Crochet differs from knitting in that only one loop is active at one time and that a crochet hook is used instead of knitting needles." I guess it must be a pretty unknown craft because I'm teaching a class on how to crochet a scarf this week and the headline said, "Learn how to 'crochet'!" However, the art of crocheting isn't unknown on our favorite craft website, Etsy. On Etsy you can search for thousands upon thousands of crocheted items, from jewelry to scarves to housewares.
This weekend, following instructions by my grandmother, I made a giant, delicious meal consisting of brisket, soup, and baby carrots, among other delicious Autumn foods. As I was cooking I realized that a) I don't cook enough, and b) I need to start learning new recipes because I want a plethora of go-to-meals to cook on crazy school nights when I can't think of anything new. I love looking up recipes, writing down recipes on cards, and collecting recipes from my loved ones, but often times I'm stuck with a drawer full of disorganized recipes and when it comes time to really cook something, I can never find the recipe I want. This is why, when I came upon the Primitive Mustard Yellow Recipe Box from Creek Side Crafting, I knew it would be perfect for my kitchen. I love the country style of the box; it is a very non-obtrusive style which would look great in any country kitchen without detracting from the subtle style of the kitchen. This is a wooden recipe box, with the phrase, "Olde Time Recipes" written on the top. I love that it is homemade and every box is one-of-a-kind, almost like it was made just for your kitchen! I adore the sweet checkerboard and the stars add a very Americana look to the box. I would love to use this as my recipe box and collect all my most loved recipes in it; what a great family heirloom to pass down to your children and grandchildren!
| Crust: 1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs 1/4 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated 3 tablespoons butter, melted | Filling: 2 (8 ounce) packages regular cream cheese 1 (8 ounce) package fat-free cream cheese 1 1/4 cups SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated 4 eggs 1 1/2 tablespoons lime juice (I used vanilla instead) 1 pinch salt |
| 1 | Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside. |
| 2 | Combine graham cracker crumbs, SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener and melted butter in a small bowl. Press on bottom and up sides of prepared pan. |
| 3 | Bake 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. |
| 4 | Beat regular and fat free cream cheese together at high speed with a mixer until creamy; gradually add SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, mixing well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until each one is incorporated. Add lime juice and a pinch of salt, beat until smooth. Pour into prepared crust. |
| 5 | Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until mixture is almost set, and slightly firm to the touch. Run a knife around edge of pan to release sides, and help prevent cracking. Cool to room temperature on a wire rack; cover and chill at least 8 hours. |
Lovelies, I know it's usually Jenny who does the Lovely Dress of the Day, but we sometimes have different styles, and therefore, I'm simply just sharing this amazing find with you and not labeling it "The Dress of the Day." Sometimes, in between grading papers, making up quizzes, and writing homework on the board, my mind starts to wander. Today it wandered over to J. Peterman; I happened to get an email from them about their gorgeous one-0f-a-kind pieces that they sell, but as always, my cursor made it's way over to the dress section. J. Peterman makes and sells a dress called "The 1947 Dress." I've always been a little too nervous to buy and try it (it's a tad out of my price range), but there is something so feminine, yet powerful, about the dress that always intrigued me. Usually the dress comes in solid colors, you know, the usual blacks, browns, and reds, but today, I came across something magnificent.
I love when our Lovely Readers hook us up with amazing stores to check out; one of our devoted readers, and the daughter of Someday Designs owner was the little birdie who told me to check out JJEvensen Art. Boy, was I blown away, not only by their one-of-a-kind items, but by their effort to use reclaimed items and stay very green. I love when people use their imagination to create items that are totally unique from other items, which may not have ever been used in those possible ways. I fell in love with the hooks made from reclaimed utensils, especially the Artsy Red Cedar Silverware Hook. This adorable and lovely hook panel would look perfect in a front hall, kitchen, pantry, or art studio. I love it's subtle color and folk-art look; it's made from "Three tablespoons, 1 fork and one fork handle were bent with a special technique to give you an upcycled coatrack! Can be used for coats, backpacks, pots n' pans, towels, hats, keys, etc..The solid Red cedar coat rack measures 24 inches X 6 inches . There are two predrilled holes for easy mounting."
room is which in a house, or the beautiful signs which state lovely sayings and can be hung on the wall to spruce up a room. Signs always get my head spinning and thinking; technically, a sign is the simplest form of art: a piece of wood with some lettering on it, so why am I so moved by signs? I happen to collect signs. Someday in my (future) house, I want a whole wall of signs detailing all the adventures and places I've been in my life. Signs point the direction of where you have been, where you are, and where you will be going, whether you know it at the time or not.
watching; we could all use a good laugh." It made me laugh so hard that I had to buy it!). Curved Noodles, an original sign shop, sells a sign which made me smile wide and let out a good giggle; the sign says, "Remember, as far as anyone knows, we're a nice normal family." Wouldn't this be a perfect sign to put in the front hall, kitchen, or foyer of a house? Any guest that enters the house would see it and inevitably smile and laugh. What a great way to greet your house guests!
For more information, pictures and to buy the Floral Sweetheart Dress, click here.
There's nothing lovelier than taking care of the world around us, which is why today's Lovely Etsy Find of the Day isn't just a great gift idea, but a novel approach to help save the world we live in. Little Sapling Toys creates simple, gorgeous, and classic wooden toys and games for young children. They work mostly with organic materials, even their wood finish is made from a "local beeswax and organic jojoba oil finish." I honestly don't see why people wouldn't only buy their children toys from here! Why would you want your precious baby to be using teething rings made of vinyl and plastic when they could be teething on natural products which don't have chemicals in them!? I absolutely adore this set, "Organic World Building" blocks which can be used alone or as an addition to other building blocks. I love the irony in the blocks; they are natural wooden toys for children shaped like some of the most intricate and manufactured edifices in the world.
The dress runs $22.80. That's right, $22.80 for a wardrobe, game changing dress-- this dress could honestly and literally change your life, lovelies. This dress can be worn countless different ways. Dress it fun and fall with my autumn essentials of cowboy boots and a jean jacket, and pair the look with some funky, clunky gold earrings.
The pattern makes me crave that small space between watermelon and apple pie- summer-fall. When you layer for the morning, but by noon you've shed two layers and require an iced coffee to get you through the afternoon. Good thing the dress has pockets so you can ditch your purse in the car, and tote around your cardigan and jean jacket and still have a hand for iced tea and a hot dog. Carnival rides, music, independent sellers and most importantly food make for a great weekend festival, so maybe we'll see you there. How about it, Lovelies?
Hi all, I'm stealing the thunder today on Jenny's usual Lovely Dress of the Day. You ever have one of those moments where you have to find an outfit for something and you're thinking about it in your head, you go to your favorite website and it's like your dream outfit manifested itself right before your eyes? That's exactly what happened to me today while browsing ModCloth. I was really just looking for school clothes that were versatile and non-seasonal, but somehow (shocker) I ended up in the dress section and came upon something wonderful: The Bluegrass Festival Dress! I have some festivals coming up in the future which I'm looking forward to actually going to and this dress would be a perfect addition to my travels. As the website says, I'm all ready to "Kick [my] heels into the ground and throw [my] head to the sky as [I] dance to the lively tinker of bluegrass in this pretty plaid dress." Why do I think this is a perfect Bluegrass Festival dress? Okay, I know it's not the most feminine, form fitting dress, but lovelies, you're at a Bluegrass Festival! This isn't the time to worry about form and figure, this is the time to kick around in cowgirl boots, throw those wild curls in some loose braids, roll those 3/4 length sleeves up and if you aren't strumming on your own guitar, than you're shaking a tambourine and singing along with the music under the stars. Bluegrass festivals go all night long, so this dress is perfect for curling up and listening to music, slowly falling asleep on a flannel blanket while the banjos twinkle, the dobros hum, and the cowboys whistle. This dress would be perfect with your boots, or barefoot, or even with adorable black flats; the pockets in the dress are the perfect size for holding your picks, harmonicas, or that rare wildflower you find hidden under your guitar case.
I love my friends. I don't love when it's their birthday and I'm not close by enough to celebrate with them. This is why, when I saw the Lemon Poppy Seed Jumbo Vegan Cupcakes with Buttercream on Etsy today I knew it would be the perfect resolution to being far away from the friends on their special days. How does this help their celebration, you may wonder? Well, The Cupcake Mint has a genius idea and I think that any flavored cupcake from their store would make a perfect in-the-mail-surprise-birthday-treat! The Cupcake Mint is a totally one-of-a-kind store; first of all, all their recipes and treats are Vegan (making this a perfect little gift-treat for your vegan lovelies!); second of all, when they ship your treats, they don't ship them with the icing and decorations on them. At first glance, when I saw this, I was sort of bummed. The idea of getting a plain cupcake in the mail was sort of sad to me; however, when I saw their reason why: "Due to the nature of shipping these cakes will be shipped with the icing on the side for you or your recipient to decorate with themselves...Our cupcake experience is interactive & there is lots of room for creativity!" I knew that they were onto something brilliant.
Happy Monday, Lovelies! Is it me or does it seem like everyone and their girlfriend is having a baby this month? In just this last week I've heard of three babies being born (what was going on nine months ago?!). With this baby explosion in mind, today's Etsy Find of the Day is dedicated to finding a great present for all these new babies. Presents for new babies can be difficult to obtain because some parents can be picky about what comes into the house, babies change sizes practically by the day, and you want to get them something original, something that the baby will wear/use and the parents will think of your relationship with the babe. As I was looking through pictures of a new baby on Facebook (yes, on Facebook) I couldn't help but oooh and awe at the pictures of the baby in a teeny-tiny hat. For babies, hats aren't just a fashion trend, but a necessary item; hats keep babies' little heads warm, keeping their temperature healthy and strong. But, as the amazing Dorothy Parker said, "Take care of the luxuries and the necessities will take care of themselves," therefore, why not dress the baby in style, all the while keeping them cozy?
and daddy think she's a little princess; no one will every mistake your bald baby for a little boy in this sweet little hat!
I love the holiday season; I love singing songs, buying presents, going to see the tree in Rockefeller Center. I love it all. I especially love Christmas stockings. There's something so sweetly reminiscent of running down the stairs on Christmas morning, and like a good appetizer to a meal, we always ran to the overstuffed stockings first. Stockings set the tone for the holidays; in olden times, if a child was naughty, their stocking was filled with coal, and thus they had a grumpy Christmas morning...but if a child was a good egg, they would get a stocking filled with oranges. The sweet fruit would set the cheerful tone to the whole holiday, the whole year, and thus, their whole life, pretty much. Ha. So, when I saw this gorgeous Christmas stocking from Mo Jackson, I knew I had to share it with you. This beautiful vintage quilt 'n chenille stocking is made from an old quilt, topped with vintage chenille and topped, like a cherry on a sundae, with a satin rose. I absolutely love the loveliness that this stocking entails. It's feminine, but not girly; it's Christmas-y, but not over the top. I think the color and size are perfect for an adult Christmas stocking; this would be a great present for a holiday-lover. It's hardly a simple Christmas stocking, it's more like a lovely piece of art that could easily be hung on the mantle all year long!
This adorable, hand drawn set of 8 cards features the Long Champ bag, Le Pliage. Each card features a different colored bag. This is a great gift for someone who loves style! Send one of these as a thank you, congratulations, happy birthday, or a "just because card" today!
Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda; mix well. Add oats, chips and coconut; mix well.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets covered in parchment.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.
humans crave the acknowledgment of time and wax poetic on the passing of time. And, with teaching or cooking, a clock face has to be big enough to catch a quick glimpse of from across the room. This is why I adore the lovely style of the Antique Style Tuscan Roman wall clock from S.W. Clock Company. Each clock of theirs is handpainted, styled, and made to look antique. The clock is wooden and detailed to look like it is framed; I love the subtle tones of the gold and black. This clock is 30 inches, works with one double-A battery and is able to be hung on just one nail. Sounds lovely and perfect for any room in a house, school, place of worship, barn, shop, or even greenhouse. S.W. Clock Company "is known for their superior craftsmanship in making truly unique and one of a kind wall clocks. Each clock is hand crafted and intricately detailed, as it goes through a series of aging treatments, to achieve a one-of-kind antique work of art that is unique as the person it is intended for. Incomparable in workmanship and quality, S. W. Clock Company assures perfection. That quality is reflected both in the wall clocks they create, and in the people whose artistic talents they rely on to hand craft them. S. W. Clock Company’s timepieces inspire antique elegance while accentuating today’s home décor." What a lovely way to tell the time all the while remaining a beautiful piece of art, ready to be hung on any wall!
so not a hat person, so the fact that I wore a hat all over Virginia definitely made it to the top ten list of "Things Olivia Does Not Do." However, I adore this hat. The straw was light to wear, easy to hold when not on my head, and totally jived with every one of my outfits. Either with my loose white top and white jeans, or with my dress and jean jacket, even with my cowboy boots, the hat went perfectly. I was more than pleasantly surprised that it didn't bother me to wear it, the brim didn't hinder my eyesight, and it looked good with my hair up or down. Sounds like the perfect hat to me.
Looking down Main street towards the water in Northport.
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