cherry

Besides the mandatory watering, I've been neglecting my little balcony garden for a while now. So cherry tomtoes are about the only thing happening right now. However, with fall on the horizon I'm getting reinspired. Maybe doing some herbs or a legit salsa garden? 
Photo from here

and the beast

After a lot of hard work and late nights I finally got the stained glass window panel for the Beauty & the Beast play done. Phew!

yes please

I want a huge box of yummy popsicles! From here

food photography

Photographing food is kind of a challenge. Without the right light or arrangement, a delicious treat can look gross. Raceytay has some lovely food photos that actually do justice to their subjects, like this fabulous bowl of figs.

a sneak peek

of what's new in the etsy shop. Check 'em out!

down under

These interior design shots caught my eye over at DesignSponge. They are of a lovely home above Bettenay's at the Prince Albert Hotel in Australia. It's actually the home of Jessica and Ash Bettenay, the owners. I love the clean light walls and eclectic mix of old and new styles-if I ever get to Australia I'm checking it out for sure.

Beauty...

and the Beast! A side project I'm working on for a set design :)

building blocks

A couple of shots of what I get to start the jewelry making process with: pieces that are unwanted or are missing a stone or a bead, an earring that's lost it's match...yet they still have so much to offer. I love seeing the random pieces, imagining what they used to be or look like or who wore them or the places they've been. 

anthropologie

I don't know what it is about anthro but they kill me every time. I got their latest catalog a while back and am in love with their new items and more so their photography. As usual a bunch of inspiring images full of color and quirky settings-gosh I love them!

want this dress pretty bad

 who doesn't need this huge flower ball chandelier?

 fabulous turquoise shoes and love the clutter of books

clean and simple

Isn't this beautiful? I would love to turn my piles of crud and clothes strewn across the bed into this clean, simple style and the stacks and stack of books! I've got a start on the book collection at least...Found here

to do list

Finish reading this. Only 541 pages to go

Paint this for Eighth Ply Show

Finish making these

Pick a new quote for this

blueberry muffins

Some yummy blueberry muffins I made this morning for my husband's Girls Surf Clinic.

mission complete...kind of

The lamp wiring challenge has been completed! With the help of my wonderful dad & brother, I finally figured out how to get this guy going again. It took me about a hundred tries, but now I really won't forget how to do it. It definitely didn't come out quite as well as I had hoped...it's a bit wobbly and come to find out the base is a little wonky to begin with, the hole in the middle isn't actually in the middle...etc. I had hoped to make some sort of cool lampshade for it but at this point I'm about ready to send it back to the thrift store where it came from. Some projects just don't seem to be worth all the time that you put into them. If nothing else it has been a great learning experience.

beach day!

Now, doesn't that look nice? Found here

the best laid plans

Over the weekend we tried to go camping in Big Bear, however, my car overheated (or something like that) coming up the grade. We pulled off to let it cool down and happened upon Duane's place. Tucked away on a side road, Duane and his wife live in a beautiful house on the edge of a creek, edged with wild berry bushes and hollyhocks. He offered wonderful hospitality (sodas, tools, stories & wild blackberries). It quite an enjoyable way to wait for the car to cool down. Sadly, the check engine light indicated that the camping trip was not going to pan out. We limped the car home, but each of us grateful for our time at Duane's place.

weekend wear

So cute! From here. Happy 4th of July weekend everyone!

cookie of the month club: peanut butter

I got a good scare the other day because my husband texted me: "Think there is a mouse in the house."   Now I'm not afraid of mice, they just are gross especially in your house, so I told him to kill it. The next text said: "I think it got into the cookies." Which means that my husband was trying to blame shift why he had eaten half the batch of cookies I had just made. I was just relieved we didn't have a rodent infestation.

The cookie of the month for June is chewy peanut butter. This recipe comes again from my trusty old Pillsbury Family Cookbook-with my own variations of course. I really like the texture they came out with. Not too dense and pretty moist & chewy.

Ingredients:

2/3 c shortening or margarine, softened (I use 1/3 c butter & 1/3 c oil)

1/2 c peanut butter

1 c firmly packed brown sugar

1 egg

2 T milk

1 t vanilla extract (I did 3 t vanilla)

1 1/2 c unsifted Pillsbury flour

1 t soda

1/2 t salt

Preheat oven to 375. In mixing bowl, cream shortening, peanut butter and brown sugar. Beat in egg, milk and vanilla. Blend in remaining ingredients until well mixed. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Flatten balls with fork, forming crisscross pattern. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Makes about 36 cookies.