baking with metropolitan market holiday pears

the holidays are around the corner,

and while i have yet to begin shopping,

decorating, cooking and baking, and other festive 

holiday activities are on my mind.

what are some of your favorite ways

to get into the holiday spirit?

i have to admit, cooking and baking

are not my greatest skills; i do enough to get 

by (when in doubt, make a smoothie (or order
takeout)), but i am determined to experiment with
a few new recipes this year!

disclosure: metropolitan market graciously gifted me the pears photographed
in today's post. as per usual, all opinions are my own!

metropolitan market generously sent

a flat of pears my way just before thanksgiving.

grown in medford, oregon, metropolitan market's 

(exclusive) holiday pears are delicious!

picked at their peak, the pears are cold-

conditioned and shipped to your local market.

after two days at home, the pears were deliciously
 ripe and ready to snack on and bake with.

quick aside, metropolitan market's biggest fan? my 
family's dachshund, bailey. she is a fruit-lover, 
and pears are among her favorite treats!

photos by karya schanilec photography

i have to admit, my family and i ate a few
more pears than originally planned (leaving less
than we anticipated for food preparation
purposes). another trip to metropolitan market,
before the holidays are over, is in our future.

two recipes we did try, however, were the
pear and fennel salad and cinnamon baked pears.
both were quick, easy, and tasty.
many of the ingredients are likely in your
pantry, so pick up a flat of holiday pears, and
let's get baking!

pear and fennel salad
dressing: 
2 tbsp sherry vinegar or lemon juice
1 tsp dijon mustard (to taste)
1 tsp honey
1 tsp salt (to taste)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

salad:
6 cups arugula or other baby salad greens
1 and 1/2 cups thinly sliced fresh fennel bulb
2 ripe holiday pears (sliced)
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/2 cup feta or gorgonzola cheese

preparation:
in a medium bowl, toss arugula, pear slices,
walnuts, and dressing. drizzle with
remaining dressing, and enjoy!

cinnamon baked pears
ingredients:
4 ripe holiday pears
1/2 cup melted butter
1 tbsp cinnamon sugar
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp kosher salt (to taste)

preparation:
preheat oven to 400 degrees,
halve pears and scoop out center to fit oatmeal crumble,
brush pears with melted butter and sprinkle
with cinnamon sugar,
combine oats, almonds, brown sugar,
cinnamon, and a pinch of salt,
pour remaining melted butter
into mixture and spoon into pear halves,
bake until pears are soft (approximately
30-40 minutes), enjoy!

have you begun holiday baking?
what are your favorite recipes?
xoxo.

house of style

last week i had the pleasure of attending 'house of style,' a fashion and DIY

inspired event, hosted by sydney mintle of gossip & glamour and seattle goodwill. 

the event featured thrift shopping (my favorite!), crafting and DIY galore,

and delicious eats alongside fellow bloggers. 

i can't think of anything more perfect, can you?!

^^^ designer jordan christianson of jonquil & mr. black (middle)

and sydney mintle of gossip & glamour (right) ^^^

^^^ with summer vacation right around the corner, i'm trying to load up

on smoothies and juices. i loved trying suja's 'green delight' juice! ^^^

^^^ two of my favorite bloggers -

jenn from hello rigby and katrina from the demure muse!

we sat next to one another and had a great time digging through

pins, earrings, and other accessories to embellish our thrifted items. ^^^

^^^ 'so, jordan, what should i do with this?' 

gaining insight and inspiration from the design expert himself! ^^^

seattle goodwill graciously provided each of us with a gift card to 

purchase clothing and/or accessories to decorate, embellish and repurpose.

i bought a chambray top and grey hooded sweatshirt (of course, 

i also purchased a striped peplum top and printed dress because i have no 

self-restraint when it comes to thrift shopping. these items aren't for 

repurposing, but simply to enjoy and share with you!).

additionally, jordan highlighted his incredible design skills by showing 

the bloggers a few items he had redone. 

^^^ jordan added rhinestones and lace to the hem of these floral shorts ^^^

^^^ he also added the lace detail to this vintage denim vest ^^^

^^^ jordan turned this pair of jeans into cut-off shorts. he cut

a heart out of the extra fabric and added silver studs. the hem of the shorts

and heart frayed after washing ^^^

photos by elizabeth kathryn photography

i had a wonderful time attending the 'house of style' event last week -

any excuse to shop at goodwill and catch up with fellow bloggers is a win in my book.

and although i am not the most creative DIY-er (goal: must learn to sew!), 

i am excited to share my newly decorated chambray top on my blog soon!

xoxo.

musical bedrooms

next week, our little house is playing musical bedrooms.

we are having two new girls move in,

and shifting spaces.

i will be moving upstairs, 

and look forward to completely reorganizing

and redesigning my bedroom.

my dream bedroom?

combining my closet and bedroom into one open space.

here are a few ideas and bits of inspiration i have found:

source

source

source

source

source

source

alas, a girl can dream.

realistically, however, i need to complete this project

in a timely manner, while adhering to a stringent budget.

is it possible? i think so.

also on my bedroom to do list: ordering new bedding!

time to get to work.

xoxo.

craft night at madewell

last week, i had the pleasure of visiting madewell (my first time there!)

for a diy craft night with fellow bloggers l, from lindsay living, s, from sarah hubert style,
and l, from vegas fashion stylist.

i have to admit that i was literally drooling while walking around the store.

such gorgeous clothing and the layout of the store is incredible! 

 

i brought my girlfriend, c, with me to the event;

we had the opportunity to "bedazzle" a particular clothing item.

i brought a denim vest, and she a white, denim skirt.

we had a blast using studs, buttons, and other decorative pieces to alter our items. 

me (trying to sew)

our finished pieces

madewell, thank you again for hosting this event! 

i cannot wait to wear my newly bedazzled denim vest

(picture to come).

xoxo. 

diy fringe necklace scarf

i would like to preface this diy post by stating:

my scarf did not turn out perfectly.

in fact, i think it looks rather silly, 

but i am still slightly proud of it :) 

in addition, i recommend buying a t-shirt without any seams on the sides.

i attempted to cover the seam of the shirt i used,

but need to find a better remedy.

anyways, here you go - 

1. materials:

XL men's t-shirt & fabric scissors

2. cut off bottom hem of t-shirt

3. cut long strips across t-shirt (from one armpit to the other)

4. stretch strips of fabric

5. watch out for your pup as she might like to join you

6. cut varying length pieces from your strips and lay out as you would like for them to hang

**the strips should be double the length of how long you wish the fringe to hang;

we will be folding them in half when they are incorporated into the scarf

7. cut and set aside three long strips to use as the base of your scarf

stretch the fabric, and tie together pieces to braid

8. begin braiding the fabric

9. after braiding 6-8 inches of the fabric, begin to incorporate the fringe

you will simply fold the fringe in half, and add it to the braid

the scarf will begin to look like this

i added the fringe randomly, so my scarf turned out a bit fluffy-looking

10. after you have added the fringe pieces, complete your braid

11. tie both ends of the scarf together

12. enjoy :) 

have you tried making a fringe scarf?

how did you best incorporate the fringe pieces into the braid?

i think i will be trying this diy again. 

xoxo.

diy fringe curtains

i have seen several fringe banners and curtains online recently

and wanted to make a set for my bedroom.

this is honestly the easiest diy ever.

the only partially time-consuming part is tying the fabric onto to the rope. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

to get started:

1. materials:

the fabric of your choice (i chose 8-9 designs and got 1/4 of a yard of each)

**next time i will get 1/2 a yard of each; my curtains are not as long as i would have liked

fabric scissors

rope (of the desired length)

2. cut the fabric into 1-1.5 inch strips

3. cut each strip to the desired length

(my strips were just under a foot long)

4. tie the fabric onto the rope in a knot

as you add more fabric, you can push the strips closer together so you have a layered look

5. repeat

soon, the rope will look like this

and voila - fringe curtains!

i am hoping to make another set to hang on my wall above my bed.

the best parts about this project? how easy and inexpensive it was to do. 

i spent twenty-five dollars at the fabric store,

 and the entire process took less than two hours :)

**a side note - the rope will become heavy due to how much fabric you use

be sure to hang securely.

have you tried making fringe curtains?

where did you hang them?

xoxo.