Etsy Favorites

Just a few of my never-ending list of Etsy favorites. Seriously. I need this dress!

{Evelyn Dress - esaro1820}

 {Medium Larch Bag - valhallabrooklyn}

 

{The Great Lakes papercut art - Crafterall}

Freebie Friday: Summer Pudding Recipe

{recipe + illustration by Johnathan Hawker via They Draw and Cook}

 The first time I had a traditional English summer pudding, I was visiting my husband's aunts, uncles, and cousins for the very first time. I was 20 and it was my first trip to England. This simple, fresh, and amazing dessert has lingered in my mind for the last ten years. This will be the summer I make one. I hope you'll try it yourself!

{recipe and photo courtesy BBC Good Food}

Here's the BBC Good Food recipe, with some changes, courtesy moi.
Ingredients:

• 300g (10.5oz) strawberries
• 250g (9oz) blackberries
• 100g (3.5oz) redcurrants (if you can't find them, blueberries would be a good replacement)
• 500g (1lb 2oz) raspberries
• OR 2lb 12oz mixed berries and currants of your choice
• 175g (6oz) golden caster sugar (replacements: caster sugar or regular white sugar)
• 7 slices day-old white bread 

Directions: 

1. Bring out the juices: Wash fruit and gently dry on paper towel - keep strawberries separate. Put sugar and 3 tbsp water into a large pan. Gently heat until sugar dissolves - stir a few times. Bring to a boil for 1 min, then tip in the fruit (not strawberries). Cook for 3 mins over a low heat, stirring 2-3 times. The fruit will be softened, mostly intact and surrounded by dark red juice. Put a sieve over a bowl and tip in the fruit and juice.

2. Prepare the bread: Line the basin with cling film (plastic wrap) as this will help you to turn out the pudding. overlap two pieces in the middle of the bowl as it's easier than trying to get one sheet to stick to all of the curves. Let the edges overhang by about 15cm (6 in). Cut the crusts off the bread. Cut 4 pieces of bread in half, a little on an angle, to give 2 lopsided rectangles per piece. Cut 2 slices into 4 triangles each and leave the final piece whole.

3. Build the pudding: Dip the whole piece of bread into the juice for a few secondss just to coat. Push this into the bottom of the basin. Now dip the wonky (I swear it really says 'wonky' in the recipe) rectangular pieces one at a time and press around the basin's sides so that they fit together neatly, alternately placing wide and narrow ends up. If you can't quite fit the last piece of bread in it doesn't matter, just trim into a triangle, dip in juice and slot in. Now spoon in the softened fruit, adding the strawberries here and there as you go.

4. Let flavours mingle then serve: Dip the bread triangles in juice and place on top - trim off overhang with scissors. Keep leftover juice for later. Bring cling film up and loosely seal. Put a side plate on top and weight down with cans. Chill for 6 hrs or overnight. To serve, open out cling film then put a serving plate upside-down on top and flip over. serve with leftover juice, any extra berries and cream.

Tips:

Berries over cooked or white patches?
The best thing to do is add more berries, strawberries are best. If your bread is patchy, take the spare juice and spoon it over - people will never know.

The sugar in the pan won't dissolve?
It takes a lot longer than you might think to dissolve caster sugar. Be patient and keep the heat low. It's ready when there's no grittiness at the bottom when you stir.

 

A Beautiful Life

{flickr}

Today's pretty special for me, as you get to take a peek at my beautiful life over at Behind the Red Door. Toni was kind enough to share a few very special photos of mine with the whole world, as part of her Beautiful Life photo mash-up. I implore you to take a few minutes out of  your day to visit the series photos, read their notes, and see beauty through the eyes of strangers.

"Design is art that makes itself useful."

Die Neue Sammlung poster.  Mendell & Oberer, 1984. + "Morse Alphabet". Konst & Teknik, 2006.

{images via Konst & Teknik}

Sea Creatures.

Loving these plush sea creatures by Tamar Mogendorff.

Plate Wall + Cathrineholm

{Lisa Congdon, Lena Corwin, Cathrineholm -- oh my! all via Dwell.}

"I owe my color sense to crayons." - Angelo Rafael Donghia

Work Hard + Be Nice to People

{via Tasty Suite}

Trying to make today more productive than the last few + using this as my mantra. Happy Tuesday!

{Etsy Love} Cocopunkz

{courtesy: sole classics}

Oh Etsy, you've done it again. You've brought to light yet another amazing talent. Cocopunkz, you make me swoon. Just look at these shoes?! Ah. Maze. Ing. They remind me a bit of the works by once-local, gone-West-Coast artist Jeremy Nichols (Raskoe). Sole Classics is still one of my favorite stores to visit because of his murals (top).

{My faves. Infatuation is right.}

{Obsession}

{Kamikaze}

{Dancing Cranes}

art's cool/ART SCHOOL

Now here's some real stuff to dress up those drab dorm room walls, kiddies.

Trust me. I know these things. I went to art school.

Buy these and lots more at The Little Friends of Printmaking Ye Olde Shoppe.

{all images: The Little Friends of Printmaking}

What a Cute Pear.

Crocheted Copper Pears

{Courtesy Yoola's etsy}

So I know that the pear theme was le hot for some weddings awhile back and, honestly, I have always really liked it. Pears are delicious, cheap and make for a nice, simple theme to play from. Not to mention the tongue-in-cheek pair/pear. C'mon, word plays are a gimme for me!

Felted Wool Pear Pair
{Courtesy Cozycottagecreation's etsy}

Generally, I love faux fruit in surprising materials. Like wood, metal, cloth, ceramic..you get the idea. I think it began with my grandma's wooden fruit (of which I will have to find so I may snap a photo.) This old thing is so completely kitch, it's fantastic - solid wood banana, peapod, grapes and a gaggle of other fruit not so easily deciphered. I love it. We all do. It was always on the huge kitchen table at her house and anyone on that side of the family would most likely recognize it by sight. Though kept for strictly sentimental reasons initially, I have found that I now gravitate towards really cool fake fruit. Go fig :) (har har)

Handpainted Ceramic Pear Trio
{Courtesy Station 1528's etsy}

There is Always Hope

{Courtesy Banksy}

When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle.
Then I realised God doesn’t work that way, so I stole
one and prayed for forgiveness.

-- Emo Phillips

One For One & A Cool Local Event

Mine: Natural Canvas. {Courtesy: TOMS Shoes}

I did it. I finally got some TOMS. Perfect addition to the summer wardrobe, I can wear them in Jamaica for our honeymoon in November, not to mention a rockin' company philosophy that is hard not to subscribe to - for every pair purchased, a pair is donated to a child in need. One for one. That's just way cool.

Yay, TOMS!

White Canvas, Yellow University, Burlap {Courtesy: TOMS Shoes}

For all you hep townies, here's an upcoming event not to be missed. Break out those TOMS and hit the pavement:

{Checki-Check It Out}

Way to represent, Tigertree. BIG fan.

TWIGGY & JOHN

I thought I'd share a little of our own, personal eye candy with you all for a change :)

Twiggy lives in our 2-story stairwell, leading up to the 2nd floor of our home. Cool, isn't she? This is a one-of-a-kind custom painting done by D's mom...my future mother-in-law, that was given to D. a few Christmases ago. She is a crazy-good painter and this painting just rocks my world.

We've been planning a whole series of these black & white paintings...the 2nd we have is of John Lennon. He lives in the stairwell going downstairs. Do you detect a theme? No one lets me forget that that my future family-in-law is English :)

What are some other good ideas? So far...one supermodel and one musician...perhaps a poet? A writer? Winston Churchill? (That was my idea, of course, but I'm not sure he'd look so nice up on the wall!)