Making it up...

I don't wear a lot of makeup.  I work in a very casual office.  Verrrrrrrry casual.  Like shoes are optional kind of casual.  And I live in southern California where things are just a bit more relaxed.  Dressing up is "nice jeans". 

But I'm a girl, and I read fashion mags, so I've been itching to try my hand at some new eye makeup.  On the rare occasion the I do wear eye makeup, I wear some glimmery brown/bronze shadow and some blackish mascara that I have been rocking since the dawn of time.  I have noticed though what a little colored liner can do for a pair of eyes, so I wanted to try my hand at it, but I didn't want to spend a fortune, so I went to the cheapy section at Rite Aid and picked up a few pencils from Wet N' Wild.  Yes, I'm 34, and I make a decent living, but I'm buying makeup from a teeny bopper brand.  And now I'm about to advise that you do the same. 

I love the pencils!  I bought a few colors (and at $.99, who cares?) and tried them out last night.  My favorite for my light green eyes is actually the navy blue.  I also got purple and a sort of emerald green. 

Will be the perfect thing for the hot nights in Mexico on our vaca when heavy makeup is not an option!

Deep Blue

Staples' staples...

Every once in a while, I like to take a trip to the local office supply store.  You never know what cool little item they've cooked up unless you browse the shop.  My favorites from Staples below!

Brass is having its moment in all things design.  Now you can bring it on thru to the office and the endless piles of paper.  I couldn't find them on the Staples website, so they may be in-store only...

I have a thing for clocks.  I'll probably be known as the crazy clock lady when I get older.  Or like next week.  Again, couldn't find a link, but they've got some other good ones online.  I think this one was $19.99.

Cute little bunting invitations.  Yeah, bunting has been done, but I'm okay doing it again.  And again.

Martha has a great line at Staples.  I'm not sure how long it's been in store, but it's smart and inexpensive.  I liked the chalkboard decals.  Pinterest is filled with chalkboard hacks, but these are so cute and inexpensive, so I would save my creative energies for something else.  Looks like they're not available online, but they do have cute dry erase decals too.

Waterproof tags (these came home with me)...

Hey Sugar

I'm in the market for a new sugar bowl.  I put sugar in my coffee tho the husb does not.  We have this little set but I feel like I'm always filling and refilling the sugar bowl.  Kind of a drag.

I like this one:

These are pretty great and come in a few sizes:

This is a salt cellar, but I'm a sucker for cement.  

Pretty Rear View

I'm a sucker for stuff that looks good from the back.  Case in point, my wedding dress.  A wee bit plain from the front with a pretty serious plunge in the back.  It's not exactly the most practical of yearnings for me, since I need a bra, but I can lust just the same.

As we the days get longer, I start to yearn for warm nights to be a bit less covered up.  Here are some pretty options with a nice rear view:

Asos Backless Cami

Limited Two Tone Open Back Top

Alberto Ferretti Chiffon Wrap

Asos Rare Scallop Top

Maddie on Things

I love dogs.  I know - shocking - since I talk about my dog pretty often over here.  But I'm pretty equal opportunity about my love.  Big and small (though slightly preferential towards big), I love dogs.  And I beyond love rescue dogs.  There are just so many great dogs out there that needs home. 

Maddie on Things is a fantastic story about a rescued coonhound.  Her "dad" is a photographer, and discovered her incredible talent to pose.  She's now the face of Why We Rescue, a cause after my own heart.


Maddie Book Tour! from This Wild Idea on Vimeo.

Sunshine on a February Day

I got a gift that I wasn't 100% thrilled with, so I made the guilty return and pocketed a Nordstrom gift card to spend on myself when I had some more time to shop.

With a few minutes to myself, I cruised thru the "fashion jewelry" section, and picked out these buddies:

Kendra Scott "Elle Small Oval Earrings"

They're a bit more grellow (green/yellow, obvi) than they appear on the screen.  Not too big for me (I'm tiny) but still big enough to be a little statement-y. They're something I would probably not have purchased without the gift card, so I think they're still a "gift" like the giver originally intended. 

Gripe

Normally, I wouldn't use this space to complain about something, but I'm hoping maybe there's someone out there who can explain this to me...

WHY IS LIGHTING SO EXPENSIVE?

I have been dying to replace our tacky ceiling lights in the two extra bedrooms, the hall, and the entryway.  I look and I look and I look, and I come up with options that are just way to expensive for what they are, in my opinion.  I just want something semi-plain and not tacky at a good price - something under $50 would be nice since I have so many to replace.  I mean, it's a few wires and a little glass or metal?  Why so pricey?

Because our ceilings are regular height and these are for high traffic areas (versus over the dining table), I need flush mount, semi-flush mount or something that has a very adjustable pendant length and won't look too stupid hung close to the ceiling.

This isn't awful, but it doesn't have very good reviews, and it's a little traditional for our taste:

This is okay, but it's larger than I want, and I feel like it just needs the edison bulb, and I would prefer to use the long-lasting CFLs...

Ohmigosh.

Searching the home improvement and lighting sites is just depressing - there's so many awful options and they're so expensive that I feel like I should stand in the lighting section and just warn people off.

"Stop - that is horribly tacky!  Don't do it! Don't waste your hard-earned money on something that no one under the age of 92 would think looks good!"

Great Pick

I'm always hesitant to buy something online that is sold as "final sale".  I mean, nothing is final because there's always Ebay, but that's just an extra hassle. I decided to take a chance on this little number:

Woolrich John Rich & Bros.™ buffalo-check shirt-jacket c/o J. Crew

Unfortunately (for you), it's no longer available and even if it was, it wouldn't likely fit as it was sold for 'boys'.  Knowing that I'm a pretty reliable J. Crew boys size 12, I ordered it (originally $128, on sale for $99, extra 30% off for $69 plus free shipping), and it is 100% perfect.  One of those kinds of things I almost wish I had paid full price for.  The fit is ideal, and the weight (a heavy wool shirt/jacket) is great for Southern California winter. 

A similar W's version is still available at a very steep $625:

There's a cute LL Bean version of a buffalo plaid available for $179 on sale:

Or this Banana Republic version on sale for $149:

In any case, looks like you could find yourself some buffalo checks for the end of winter...

Wah wah...

Feeling a little sorry for myself.  A few years ago, I tore the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL).  After an exceptionally painful surgery and recovery, I was almost back to normal.  Last weekend, we went skiing with friends in Mammoth, and I re-tore my ACL.  So more surgery.

So we had a pretty quiet Presidents' day weekend with A LOT of cooking.  The menu was pretty sensational...

Saturday
Atlantic lobster, steamed
Clarified butter
Rice Pilaf
Sauteed greens with garlic and bacon

Sunday
Baby back ribs, dry rubbed
Homemade bbq sauce
Mother in Law's potato salad
Leftover greens

Monday
Rush's homemade sausages
Green salad
Leftover potato salad
Homemade Raspberry Hand Pies 

I'll post some recipes, but the take home of the weekend is that homemade ribs are delicious with a little prep.  I dry rubbed them the day before and then cooked them in the oven and finished them on the grill.  Totally worth the effort!

Fancy Breakfast

Breakfast is one of our favorite meals, so we usually make a nice sit-down breakfast/brunch at least once on the weekends.  This is SUPER duper easy, quick, and looks fancy.  And I like to look fancy, even when I'm not actually acting fancy.

Cheddar Grits with Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus and Egg

Grits:
Amounts will depend on servings needed, and Rush is usually in charge (he's Southern).  We do NOT use the instant grits.  There's like instant, 10 minute, and slow cook.  The 10 minute grits are enough better (or better enough? Neither sounds right) than the instant that it's completely worth the extra wait.  Plus they just cook while you're doing the other stuff.

Tips: use chicken or vegetable broth instead of water.  Much more flavor.  When adding cheese (and you really should), use the sharpest, most flavorful cheese because it gets dulled by the plainness of the grits.  We use extra sharp cheddar. Add salt and pepper. 

Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus:
Preheat your broiler. 

Cut the woody ends off the asparagus.  Now lots of people snap 'em off, but I think you lose a lot of stem when you do that.  Take prosciutto and cut a single piece into three, cutting down the length.  This will give you a little prosciutto strip.  Grab a piece of asparagus and lay the prosciutto up against it at a bit of an angle so that as you wrap it, it just twirls up the length of the spear.  Or down.  Direction doesn't matter.

Lay the stems on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with a small amount of salt (don't go nuts here - the prosciutto is salty) and pepper.  Toss under the broiler and keep an eye on it.  Takes about 8 - 10 minutes to get the prosciutto crispy - about the same amount of time it takes to cook the grits.   Perfecto!

Egg:
I have made much ado about the lost art of basted eggs.  I think they're perfect in nearly ever egg scenario.  You could also do a fried egg or a poached egg.  I just find basting to be healthier than a fried egg and less work than a poached egg. 

Now lay down some grits, top with a few spears of asparagus, and top with your egg.  Fancy pants!

So much cuter than the photo...

Picked this up over the weekend.  SO much cuter than the photo!

changing it up

I picked this ring up on sale at Madewell on a recent trip to NYC, and I thought it might be fun to wear it in amongst my wedding and engagement rings.  Cute, no?  Unfortunately, it's not still available, but after my locket-painting success, I think it would be easy enough to make one for yourself...

Weekend Wrap

I had no plans for the weekend but managed to fill it just the same.  Lots of dog park and mundane tasks, but I did a bunch of cooking and a bit of DIY.

In cleaning up the yard, I decided to pull out two decrepit rose bushes next to the driveway.  Don't get me wrong, roses are fine.  But ours always had problems (bug infestations, some kind of mold), and they were just not right.  So I pulled 'em out on a whim and planted a couple dwarf lime trees.  G&T's with homegrown fruit, here we come!

I had seen some cute lockets out there, and was feeling a little gun shy about spending the $, so I went thru my drawer and found an old locket.  I think it was a birthday gift from when I was ten (and why I still have it is a bit of a mystery).  It had this unfortunate etched scroll pattern on it, so I got the idea to "paint" it with nail polish.  I used three coats and a top coat.  Scrolly pattern gone, and now I have a brand new necklace!

I cooked a bunch too... Made these amazing cookies from my friend's recipe and a 2nd attempt at the Bon Appetit cover recipe from Jan 13.  Try it and use the best meat you can afford.  It's worth it.

Salt.

One of the perks of my job is that vendors often gift me items they would like me to try (and then carry in my stores). It's pretty rare that this works, and I'm very upfront about how likely a possibility it is, but they're often generous just the same. 

The guys at Salt. (yes, salt, period) came to chat and gave me these awesome glasses that I likely would not have purchased on my own due to their price tag.  That said, I love them.  I love their enormity and the fact that the lense tint isn't super dark but still protects my eyes.  I beyond love the color (a very androgonous army-type green).  I brought them to Hawaii and wore them all vacation long and have been wearing them nearly every day since. 

I'm convinced they're worth the cold hard cash money. 

Salt. Cambria in Ashford Green