What I Wore: Friday / Instagram Friday! 9/21/12

WOWZAS!!! It's Friday already?!?

I scored this sweet shirt from Craftsy while at the Craftcation Conference. Craftsy is a site for online craft classes from the best instructors from around the world. I have had the pleasure to meet a handful of the instructors while at Craftcation but haven't had the opportunity to take a class for myself yet.  I would really love to try out one of the crochet classes since that is one crafting technique I am absolutely horrid at. The goodies like this shirt are reason enough to hit up the conference, but seriously shirts aside - the conference is a super great place to learn from, and with amazing craft business leaders.  Don't miss the fun, check out the details and get your tickets here.

I haven't taken a ton of pictures on my Instagram this week but here are the highlights-

Sharon and I traveled down to The OC Mart Mix on Monday to see some of our CRAFTED Friends and their pop-up shop:

Always a fan of Grace's Boozey Treats! You can find her at CRAFTED Market Stall #A162

The lovely ladies of Hammer + Stitch can be found across the way in market stall #A153

My kitty stopped tearing up the house long enough to cuddle with Kevin...

Such a scoundrel!!! She knows just how to butter him up & make him forget how big of a terror  to our carpet she has been!

I celebrated National Cheeseburger Day on Tuesday at Father's Office:

I don't really indulge in meat, especially burgers. But if I do have a burger this is my favorite spot in LA to hit up!

The big excitement for the week is yesterday Kevin and I had a late breakfast at our favorite spot in Culver City and Adam Sandler was a table over!! No pictures because I didn't want to be a total creeper - but I still always geek out over celebrities.  Definitely love the perks of living in a city with Celeb spotting ;)

We might be a bit late to our store at CRAFTED tomorrow thanks to a massive yard sale event in Santa Monica - After the sale, if you are free this weekend you should come down to #A200 at CRAFTED and say hi!

XOXO, KC

Food Finds: Paradise Preserves

We are happy to start the first section of our Food Finds with the talented ladies Karen and Bridget of Paradise Preserves. The mother daughter duo who make the yummiest jams and amazing pickled treats!!!

1. Make. Shop. Live.:What do you make?
Artisan jam, jellies, marmalades and more.


2.Is there a green or Eco component to your business? 
Yes. we are a company that strives to maintain the 'locavore' ideal in regards to food cultivation and consumption . Bridget and I work along side small family farmers and organic backyard growers to get the freshest produce for our signature flavors.

3. Where (If anywhere) do you sell your goods/wares in-person?
We are a proud vendor of Crafted at the Port. Booth A199. Also a featured local product at the Corner Store in San Pedro where we do tastings quarterly. We participate in the Sugar Plum Festivals at the Orange County Fair Grounds and the Buena park downtown mall. I do the Lions Club Flea Market in Malibu every September. This year for the first time we are vendors at the three Patchwork shows in Los Angeles and Light at the Lighthouse at Point Fermin Park in San Pedro on September 22.

4. What is your favorite thing to make? 
Jelly and chutney. Jelly because you can get such gorgeous colors and flavors from fruit and chutney because it is so fun. Bridget is working on chutney recipes right now. We will roll out our chutney product line in October. I usually keep them as Fall product.

5. If you make food, Do you focus on Organic or Locally Sourced ingredients? 
Without a doubt. I need to add this comment however, we use certified organic if and when we can. Unfortunatley for the consumer and the small family farmer, to be a 'certified oraganic' farm the farmer must let farmland lay fallow for a number of years and submit to soil testing by the USDA. Small farms are not able to afford that and thus steps in (or continues to dominate) our recently traditional food sorces, the corporate farm. Consequently, Bridget and I are committed to finding fruits an vegetables that may best be designated as 'home grown or non-industrailly grown'. One of the farms we work with uses beneficial insects, chickens and guinea hens as varmint control. has his farmhands keep rows clean by removing over ripe or bad fruit and keeping the area as clean as possible so as to keep from using chemical insectisides. He also has assess to his horse for manure and neighbors' horses as well. His strawberries are sooo good that the are mostly juice!

6. What are your favorite blogs or source of cool information? 
Oddly enough the USDA. most of the information on preserving food is as old as the hills and this United States Federal Organization has been stellar at keeping the basic cooking standars high and the information available to all who ask. I also am a fan of really old cookbooks. These women (no offence to the other sex, but males were rarely involved unless they were pre-teens and charged with keeping the water boiling for the jars).

7. What are your favorite materials to work with?
Spices, herbs and alcohols. Using one or more of these can completely change the flavor profile of a fruit.

One of the strawberry farms. 

8. What is your favorite or most used technique in your art? 
I use basic science on a daily basis. Ph levels are important in food preservation as is the condition of the produce being used. My VERY favorite thing is going to farms to pick or pick up produce, and share.

9. If you could work with anyone, or learn from anyone (living or dead) who would it be? 
Julia Childs, the first person to ever eat an artichoke or a pomegranate and Jesus Christ. Not necessarily in that order.

Fresh Strawberries - These will soon be tasty jelly!

10. Lastly, if you want to talk about anything that may have been missed - feel free to rant here :)
I can not stress this enough. We ALL need to know where our food comes from. We ALL need to know what it looks like before it get to our grocer/farmers market. Environmental Impact reports are the norm when it comes to building new roads, tunnels, housing deveolpments, parks etc. but not when a corporation buys millions of acres of our prime farmland to experiment with genetically modified seed. seed that is putting the lifeblood of our beautiful country, family farms, out of busines. Seed that grows food that we use to put in our childrens mouths. I am all for technical improvements, America has that in her soul, I just want to know when I am eating them.

We are so glad we can enjoy the fruits of these ladies labor! Hope you can get some for yourself and try them all out - you won't be disappointed.

XOXO, KC & Kevin

If you go to Vancouver, go to Granville Market

Kevin here,

Recently I took a trip to Vancouver, British Columbia for a few days.  I was tipped off by previous Canadian travellers to make it a point of checking out Granville Island.  This is just a quick overview of some fun stuff anyone can enjoy there, especially people who love art and food!

Granville Island is across False Creek from downtown Vancouver.  It is an entire island of art, food, galleries, fresh markets, aquatic rentals, and it's only joined to the main land by a park!  Also, the topography is peppered by the Emily Carr University of Art and Design, which is a perfect location near artistic galleries and an active creative environment.  Seemingly more than just a tourist trap, I decided to spend much of my free time there.

Public Market
This building features the Organic Market and Food Vendors.  This is the reason you could spend a whole week on the island.  I arrived for breakfast and was overwhelmed with options.

all independent businesses, no big chains

hmmm fresh bagels, tomatoes, or chocolates....

I went for an authentic Canadian maple donut.  Ok.....2.

Shops
When I walked through the various craft businesses, I really got excited about the future of CRAFTED at the Port of Los Angeles.  There's range of unique mediums and a great sense of community here.  The mix of workshops and stores really made the whole atmosphere feel creative and involving.

It's like you are in Disneyland and every one of the facades actually had people in the windows creating.

I peaked in and saw various architecture models.  I totally geek'd out!

This shop lets you customize your own purchases.

After all my stories, KC is now daydreaming of an alternate Canadian life; studying at an Art and Design University a few steps from great breakfast options and future opportunities like these places:

If you ever want to take a sweet trip to Vancouver, I'm now one of the people telling everyone about awesome Granville Island.  If you have any suggestions or hot spots that I forgot, comment below!

Kevin Sears

Meatless Mondays

As serious droughts across America threaten the nation's crops and future grocery prices, it's nice when an organization involved in such products can briefly be truthful and honest.  It's rare to contribute to healthy society and environment.  This is what the USDA did when an internal newsletter encouraged staff to skip meat on Mondays to better their environmental impact.  Let's see what the actual internal newsletter said:

"How will going meatless one day of the week help the environment? The production of meat, especially beef (and dairy as well), has a large environmental impact. According to the U.N., animal agriculture is a major source of greenhouse gases and climate change. It also wastes resources. It takes 7,000 kg of grain to make 1,000 kg of beef. In addition, beef production requires a lot of water, fertilizer, fossil fuels, and pesticides. In addition there are many health concerns related to the excessive consumption of meat."

That leaked earlier last week and The New York Times reported, Tuesday,  they retracted that statement and wrote, the agency "does not endorse Meatless Monday".  I'm a frequent eater of meat and even I can see the logic behind encouraging anyone to offset the demand of a few thousand animals a week to better supply and pricing in the future.

I haven't been this betrayed by misrepresented meat info since KC tricked me with the Chicken-Less Nuggets from Trader Joe's.

Anyways, as usual, I get my news from Stephen Colbert's Report.  I'll let him tell you the rest:

 

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive

Try to be healthy today, folks!
--Kevin Sears

Spicy Refrigerator Pickles

I love pickles! They are seriously one of my favorite things to eat and I crave them 99% of my waking time. I thought I would try a very, very simple take on Refrigerator Pickles to see if it is something I can make myself instead of buying them.

Spicy Refrigerator Pickles: (This recipe fills a Vlasic/ regular pickle jar)

4 Thinly sliced Organic Persian cucumbers
1/3 cup Thinly sliced red onions
1 Jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
2 cups of white balsamic vinegar
3/4 cup organic granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon celery seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cloves (light sprinkling works since the measurement is tiny)

Place cucumber in the jar of your choice; we love reusing "upcycled" pickle jars.  Since this recipe doesn't need to be "canned" by cooking on the stove top, cleaned and sterilized jars are perfect to make your own pickles in.

After adding the first layer of cucumbers to your jar top with 1 cup onion; then add jalapenos.  Repeat this process until the jar is full and layered with all the vegetables.

Combine vinegar and remaining ingredients in a small saucepan; stir. Bring to a boil; cook for 1 minute.

Pour over cucumber mixture; let cool.

Cover, chill and let reach full flavor in 4 days.
*Pickles can remain in the refrigerator for up to one month.

I hope you enjoy & that this will curb all of your pickle cravings ;) Yummy!

XOXO, KC

How-To's Day: Crafting Cocktails - Lavender Love

Today's How-To's Day post is in preparation for celebrating CRAFTED at the Port of Los Angeles and the big Grand Opening this weekend!!! What better way to celebrate than with a signature cocktail after a hard day's work! I picked up some culinary grade lavender when Sharon and I made our day trip down to Keys Creek Lavender Farm.  I will be using it in this recipe for Lavender-Infused Vodka and a Lavender Simple Syrup.
The vodka needs to sit for ~4days so this recipe will be ready just in time for celebrating Friday night after the big day :)

This is a great project to use upcycled bottles that you my have saved because you like the shape or style of the bottle. Here we have saved an old Kracken bottle and a maple syrup bottle since they both have the fancy handles.

Lavender Infused Vodka

You will need:
1/3 cup of fresh or dried lavender flowers
Enough Vodka to fill your container. This container can accomidate 750 ml of vodka 

To Make:
Drop 1/3 cup of fresh or dried lavender flowers into your cleaned and sterilized bottle using a funnel. 
Pour in vodka.
Cap tightly and shake/mix thoroughly. 
Place in freezer for up to 4 days.
Strain out lavender leaving the infused vodka behind.

Note: Leaving the vodka and lavender flowers in the freezer for less than 4 days will result in a more delicate infusion. Infusing it for longer than 4 days may make the infusion too strong to consume. If you aren't sure whether you will enjoy a stronger infusion, start off with a 15-minute infusion and taste as you go.

Lavender Simple Syrup

You will need:
1 cup water
3 Tbsp fresh or dried lavender flowers
2 cups sugar

To Make:
Bring water and lavender to a boil.
Stir in sugar until fully dissolved.
Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Strain out the lavender using a funnel lined with a mesh produce bag shown.
*I used cheesecloth because it is reusable.
Pour the mixture into a bottle and keep in the refrigerator.
**Note:It will store well for about 1 week.**

If you need some more inspiration and recipes to use your Lavender Infused Vodka or your Lavender Simple Syrup check here for more ideas.  Let me know what you come up with.

Enjoy!
XOXO, KC

Cinco De Mayo Recipe

Looks like once I finish this post I am ordering Miss Gypsy an outfit for the upcoming holiday!!!

This Cat Hat Sombrero from ToScarboroughFair on Etsy - in Black Mariachi is FAB!

Now that you know what one of the guests will be wearing at our Cinco De Mayo party, here's what I am trying my hand at in the kitchen.  On the menu:

Sparkling Margaritas and Spicy Roasted Jalapeno Guacamole. 

~The recipes are for a party of 6 guests~

Have you seen the new West Elm catalog? It is pretty amazing! Flipping through the catalog feels like getting to read my favorite magazine.  It has great inspiration for interior design projects but it also includes a handful of really tasty looking recipes.  This Roasted Jalapeno Guacamole has been calling to me ever since last week when we had a fun night at West Elm. I am going to put my spin on the featured jalapeno guacamole pictured.

Roasted Jalapeno Guacamole 

- 2 limes, juiced

- 1 tsp coarse salt

- 1/3 cup chopped red onion

- 2 large jalapeno

- 2 avocados

- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

- black pepper to taste

Combine lime juice, salt, pepper and red onion in a medium bowl. On a grill blister a jalapeno turning frequently as it roasts. Once blackened to desired char, remove from heat and let cool. Using a knife completely peel and seed the peppers. Dice into strips and combine with onion mixture. Slice and dice avocados into medium-sized chunks leaving the pit in with the mixture to keep it from browning - Secret tip ;) Folding in chopped cilantro and avocados into the marinating onion and pepper mixture. Mash slightly as you stir the mixture completely.

What is Cinco De Mayo without a signature cocktail? Definitely a party foul I aim to avoid with a sparkling margarita! Yes please!

Sparkling Margarita

- 1 1/2 cups blanco tequila (Suggestion - Cabo Wabo Tequila Blanco)

- 1 cup lime juice

- 1/2 cup agave nectar

- 1 1/2 cups sparkling wine or champagne (I always like a good Prosecco)

For garnish:

- Lime peel strips or lime slices

- Salt for rim

Depending on the size of your cocktail shaker you should be able to make ~ 3 glasses at a time. With this in mind, mix half of the tequila, lime juice, and agave with plenty of ice. Shake and strain into 3 glasses. If using the salt, rim the glasses before pouring in the shaken mixture. Repeat for the remaining guests. Top the glasses off with the sparkling wine and add the lime peel or strip to garnish.

We hope you have a super fun Cinco De Mayo!!!

Cheers! XOXO, KC, Kevin, and Gypsy

St. Patty's Day -Sham ROCK your socks off!

St. Patty's Is Almost Here!!! Yay! One of my favorite Holidays is fast approaching and I am ecstatic!

Here are some Shamrocks you can make as stand alone decorations or make a handful to make a Shamrock Garland.  If you followed the post we did on paper heart garlands the process is similar. You can modify this project here to make these fun paper shamrocks.

These Green Straws (found at Whole Foods or online here) are made from plants not petroleum, and are fully compostable.  I like that they are already bright green and perfect already for St. Patty's Day!

  
When Kevin and I were in school down in Savannah, GA we were spoiled to have the biggest celebration for  St. Patty's Day just down the street from us.  IT WAS CRAZY! The fountains would be tinted green at the beginning of March. All the bars that had a 365 Countdown 'till St. Pats would finally drop down to single digits getting us all excited :) In fact our favorite bar would do a free breakfast buffet out back with the purchase of a drink (from 7-11AM- super classy!Lol) The city would be so crazy that you would love it and hate it at the same time- Prepping for dealing with all the tourists would make sane people want to hunker down at home, staying out of the party scene. 

The idea of having a fun Beer & Pizza Night is definitely how I chose to celebrate the fun :)
It is great to  have a reason to eat Corned Beef and Cabbage, but as someone who doesn't eat beef... Cabbage and Potatoes only go so far on the fun meter to me. 
However a night of celebrating including beer & pizza is just about my favorite thing ever!!! Seriously- EVER!

MAKE these shamrock stamps from Green Peppers-

When shopping for these projects- Make sure to pick up an extra pepper to stamp with as well as some for eating.  All you need to do for these wonderful stamped accents is to slice the top off a pepper and dip the whole thing into paint :) Super easy and fun to get the kids to help with too! We have a stack of saved napkins that were just waiting for a theme stamp and a pizza party to go to.

Speaking of Pizza Party- We will be having a St. Patty's Beer & Pizza Party :) Here is a sweet Beer Pizza Crust Recipe that makes a hearty pie fit for a night of fun with the gang:
         

 (Sorry- it's not gfree! You can swap out Redbridge Beer &amp Gfree flour and see how that works out.)

2 Cups white flour

1 Cup whole wheat flour 

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 12oz. beer

1 teaspoon garlic powder

Combine Ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Spread onto a greased 9X13 baking pan or pizza pan. Sprinkle with your favorite toppings including: sauce, cheese and veggies. Here is our ode to St. Patty's the Shamrock Beer Pizza is topped with green peppers a top a mixture of cheeses. Bake at 425 for 25 to 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Let stand about 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Hope y'all  have a SUPER St. Patty's Day and enjoy yourself responsibly on a heavy drinking night- It's never cool to drink and drive so host a pizza party and keep your friends off the road ;)
XOXO, KC

How-To's Day: Rock Candy (In Progress)

My friend Annette who is a super talented pastry chef had some rock candy she made on the counter when I was visiting last week and I had to try out making it! I like thinks that bring me back to being a kid- and rock candy was one of my favorite indulgences to get on school field trips to the museum.  It is also a really fun project that is sciency for the kids!

The main trick to making rock candy is that you need to let it sit for at least 7 days to form the crystals. If you start now you can have the rock candy in time for Valentine's Day. Instantly once I saw Annette's rock candy I wanted to have some to decorate our Local Love table this weekend.  Fingers crossed that it gets big by this weekend!

Supplies Needed:

Wooden Sticks or Cotton String (I am using coffee stir sticks)

Tall containers that are large enough to cover the sticks or strings

First you need to make Sugar Solution (Sugar Syrup):

4 cups granulated sugar plus 

2 cups water

Also you need ½ cup granulated sugar to start the crystals on the sticks.

Combine sugar and water in a saucepan. Stir. Heat on medium and bring to a full boil. Immediately turn off heat and let cool completely to room temperature. This take several hours. We are making 24 pieces of candy and for that many pieces I ended up using a 10lb. bag of sugar and two pots to cook it all.

As it was cooling I colored the sugar solution and put it into pitchers to distribute the liquid as easy as possible.

You can do this before or after the sticks are coated, I slit 3 small cuts across the lids to these plastic containers Annette rescued from work and shoved sticks in them to make them the right size:

By filling a glass with the cooled sugar solution I could coat the sticks with the initial layer of sugar easiest.  Soak the sticks or string for a hott minute before spooning the sugar over the wet stick coating it. Put the extra sugar solution in the refrigerator.

Once you get the stick coated set them out to dry overnight. 

It is really easy to pick out the parts of the sugar where the sugar liquid beads up in it and save the sugar for things like coffee. Don't let it go to waste, it is perfectly good- just sayin'.

The Next Day:

Suspend the sugary sticks (or stings) in the container with sugar solution high enough to completely cover the sugar on the sticks. Do leave some room for there to be some air for the solution to work.

Store your container (s) in a cool, dark place for at least 7 days.  

Annette's tip- if the sugar crystals don't start to form within 3 days, they probably won't start.

I am getting nervous about my candy sticks... I started the batch Saturday, so I still have  a bit of time within Annette's 3 day rule- but some of them are looking puny :( Getting nervous over here...

When it is the size you want/ feel its ready let it drip dry and it's done. 

Enjoy! (remember to tell the adult in you it is pretty much 100% pure sugar- so like all good things, eat in moderation.)

Get on this now and you'll have some amazing candy come Valentine's Day!

XOXO, KC

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What I Wore: Friday 2/3/12

I found this sweet dress thrifting in my neighborhood a couple of weeks ago and I am really loving how bright and colorful it is:

These past few days have rushed past me! Multitasking on projects- seed paper for my EcoEtsy Team, rock candy, address books, and other Valentine's Day goodies has kept me so wrapped up. Between working on multiple tasks and a ton of errands I feel like I look at the time and a huge chunk of my day has vanished. It is wonderful and frustrating at the same time :) It has been so exciting working more and I appreciate everyone's patience while I figure out my working schedule and what works relaying info on the blog.  

Recently I have been getting a ton of new tutorials in line for February and I am really excited to be working on some new ideas. Since rock candy take at least 7 days to make, a tutorial with pictures is going to be a must on Tuesday.  Plus, in the spirit of Super Bowl Sunday- I hope to have some fun ways to upcycle chip bags for all those reminders of a diet breaking day in front of the TV.  Speaking of a diet breaking day in front of the TV... Head over to our Yummy board on Pinterest to see some last minute ideas to feed the gang at your Super Bowl Party tomorrow!

Yeah.... so I definitely got sucked into Pinterest for over an hour when I went to get the link to the Yummy! Board. Dang! That wasn't good of me :( That's what happens when you find yourself working late on a Saturday. 

I guess that's all for tonight. Time for bed! 
XOXO, KC

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all!

Happy Thanksgiving from (a portion of) Our Family to Yours!

We had a late Thanksgiving lunch with part of my Dad's family earlier today.

Thankfully my Grandma was feeling up to coming! She and my Grandpa, my Uncle, his Wife, and her Brother's Family, my Dad, Kevin and I went to the North Carolina State University Club where they had an awesome buffet.  I only got one plate in preparation for our second Thanksgiving dinner with my Mother, her Sister (My Aunt is coming down from VA and spending the night) my step-dad and Brother at The Irregardless Cafe.  

My mom is picking us up in a few minutes and I wanted to shoot off a quick post wishing everyone a Wonderful Thanksgiving!

Best Wishes and Blessings for you and your family this Holiday Season.

XOXO, KC & Kevin