Mark Your Calendar - Sale at Wren House in Worthington!

This blog has helped me create so many amazing connections with dear people, like my friend Nancy of Buckeye Brittle (yes, the same brittle I can eat an entire bag of in one sitting...lol!)

Nancy sent me some great info about a super duper sale this week at the (utterly adorable) Wren House Gifts in Worthington that she asked that I share with you dolls. (How could I refuse?!)

So here you are folks, mark your calendars...the deets on the superfantabulous January Open House sale, starting this Thursday! I don't know about you, but I'm planning on a trip with my momma. I'm crossing my fingers for some darling little addition to my office and maybe a few festive things for the holidays (it's never too early to stock up!) I love Wren House because you get a nice mix of local artists, classic farmhouse-meets-country craftiness, and super awesome little tchotchkes...cuz who doesn't love tchotchkes?!

{wren house gifts via yelp}

January Sale – 10% to 75% Off 
Get ready for Wren House Gifts January sale!  Everything in the store will be at least 10% off (excluding Pandora jewelry).  Savings will be up to 75% off. The sale runs January 6 through January 9 (See below for store hours.)
 
Thurs, 1/6: 6pm –9pm (we will close 3pm – 6pm to prepare for the sale)
Fri & Sat, 1/7: 10am –  5pm
Sunday, 1/9: 11am –  5pm

Wren House Gifts is located in beautiful, Historic Worthington, Ohio at 695 N. High Street. (614) 848-8442.  www.wrenhousegifts.com -- if you can't make the sale, check them out online! ♥

list eighteen: what my weekend looked like.

Let's just say that Bubs and I hit the ground running this past weekend...

1. Had lunch with my best friend.
2. Bought & installed a PUR water filter on my kitchen tap.
3. Finished crocheting a mesh tote bag.
4. Slept in Saturday morning.
5. Went to Plain City Heritage Days uptown, took some photos & played a "Guess this vintage object" game...I think I did pretty well, actually.
6.  Drove over to Der Dutchman for continued Heritage Days fun.
7. Pet a pony.
8. Ate a doughnut.
9. Met great folks at the Etsy Columbus Craftacular.
10. Bought some Ohio-made preserves at North Market.
11. Worked on a second crochet tote.
12. More friendly faces at the Agora art show.
13. Bought a screen printed art poster from Will Ruocco.
14. Read three chapters of No Impact Man (which I love & wish everyone would read.)
15. Listened to the birds chirp in my back yard.
16. Did some urban gardening...Planted our veggie garden, herb garden, and flowers in 4 containers.
17. Ate a delish dinner of grilled teriyaki pork chops, hericots verts, asparagus, an organic potato, and spinach salad. Yum.
18. Then ate a coconut popsicle (thanks Tony for the idea!)
19. And then ate a bowl of Amish granola and bananas. I don't like bananas.
20. Got an email from an old friend I haven't heard from in ages.

One of the best weekends in memory. How was yours? What did you do?

Drive, Drive on Down the Field...

{source}

GO BUCKS!!!

The Ohio Statehouse

We had a little bit of stress about where to have our wedding photos taken. The sun will be setting around 5:15pm. Our ceremony starts at 5:30pm. We're traditional and didn't want to do a reveal prior to the walk down the aisle. (Actually, it was one of the few things D. was very set upon. He didn't want to see me until I was walking down the aisle. Sounds good to me!)

So that brings me back to the picture pickle we found ourselves in...where can we go that will provide enough light AND work with our aesthetic preferences? We asked friends, message boards, our photographer and colleagues. We came up with a few really good ideas and some decent backup plans, but it wasn't until Dan made a particular suggestion that everything felt right...And that suggestion was the Ohio Statehouse. Who knew for $50 and an application, you can get specially-granted access for your wedding photos at this stunning, historical site? I AM SO EXCITED I COULD BURST!

Snow Schmo. Rain? No tears here. No sunlight? No problem. We've got the beautiful Statehouse as our backdrop. Seriously... gorgeous. At nearly 150 years old, I can't think of a more appropriate place. Thank you, my love, and thank you, Ohio!

{1 courtesy: discover ohio}

{2 & 3 courtesy: Ohiochannel.org}

Just Plain Ol' Cool: Loving Local

Have you peeped Written Bliss lately? Loving the all-new makeover! But what I find especially cool is the local Etsy love shout-out contests she's been doing lately. Love those who love local!

Right now, she has a great 100th Post-Meets-Local-Etsy contest going to win big from Columbus' own Space Dog Studios -- either a pack of bookmark books or a recycled pages journal. Pop over and show some love for our locals.

{courtesy Space Dog Studios via Written Bliss}

I'll miss the turkey salad.

Though I had only visited the Broadmoor Market a couple times in my life, it reminded me so much of the teeny tiny local Catawba Market grocery store of my youth that I am sad to see another local, family-owned, historic business close. I will forever miss their turkey salad, which was second to none. If anyone happens to know the misters Lombardi, please let me know. I'd love to add that recipe to my cherished collection.

Dirty Franks for Mr. M

He started it by bringing up hot dogs in an ice cream post. It only seemed right that I follow up with the tour de force that is our first trip to Dirty Franks. Now I know this isn't as interesting for those folks not in the general vicinity, but srsly. They put some weird stuff on hot dogs. Just stay with me here.

That green thing is mine -- lime slushie + sprite. They were out of cherry slushie, otherwise I would've been all over a Cowboy Curtis (aka cherry slush+ RS Cola). Goo!
I can't wait to try some alcoholic slushies. That's just brilliant.

The man. Looking ready for some franks. Or possibly he's nervous. Hmm..

Mmm. Ambiance.

Oh yes. 4 hot dots with toppings PLUS tots. We immersed ourselves in Dirty Franks. That's mine at the top, with the tots. I was a fan. Now. Onto the meat.

I got two hot dots. One Razzle Dazzle (top) and one Classy Lady (above the tots.) D.'s is the other basket -- he got a Dog From Hell (top, basket 2) and a Whoa Nellie (below)!

Here's the digs:

Razzle Dazzle = hot dog on bun with cream cheese, grilled peppers and fresh onions. [B-]

What I say: "A little more bland than I'd hoped for. The cream cheese was just weird."

What D. says: "Cream cheese on hot dogs is just weird."

The Classy Lady = Cheese sauce and crushed potato chips [A-]

What I say: "Out of my 2, I liked this much better. The cheese sauce was very cheesy but the chips added a nice crunch. Reminded me of being a kid and smashing chips onto sandwiches (which I didn't ever do as a kid, actually.)"

What D. says: "I don't remember this as being memorable."

Dog From Hell = Spicy Giardiniera pepper mix & soothing cream cheese [D]

What D. says: "Not a fan. Weird cauliflouer/carrot/vinegar topping."

What I say: "It smells."

Whoa Nellie! = Topped with pulled beef brisket & a drizzle of BBQ sauce [B]

What D. says: "Tasted like Bob Evans pot roast on a hot dog. Which I like Bob Evans pot roast, so..."

What I say: "My favorite. I liked the sweet BBQ sauce. I'd get this one for myself."

Verdict: I think I'd go back for another try. I really want that Cowboy Curtis and maybe even try my hand at making up my own hot dog (goodness only knows how many options I have to choose from!) However, it doesn't usurp the taco cart. Not even close. Good venture, though. Another taste is in order very soon.

How To Make Ice Cream Like an Artisan

{Courtesy Food & Wine, Lisa Fjeld & Frances Janisch}

Must read for foodies everywhere: How To Make Ice Cream Like an Artisan

Jeni's rockstar ice cream genius is being shared with us all...in the form of recipes for the home ice cream maker. I'm literally swooning...and resisting to put an ice cream machine on the registry to make these recipes alone. Instead, I'm going to bribe Mr. M. (or beg & plead) for his ice cream maker. Oh joy for homemade Jeni's at my birthday party! That might be all we eat, come to think of it...

I can has flavors:
Vanilla Bean
Pistachio
Mint
Strawberry Fro Yo
Lemon-Blueberry Fro Yo
Melon Sorbet
Sour-Cherry Lambic Sorbet
Sugar Syrup

Snakes, Sparklers & Other Good Stuff

{Courtesy: Flickr}

Yet another reason it's grand to live near downtown...nothing but a bit of foot traffic to see the Midwest's largest fireworks display. I can't lie, I 'ooh' and 'ahh' and clap and squeal for nearly the entire show, but especially at two kinds...the ones that twinkle like faerie dust as they fall and the others that fall in almost fuzzy looking lines. They remind me of caterpillars and I love them.

Happy Red, White & Boom :)

Uncool in the very coolest way possible.

"The only true currency in this bankrupt world is
what you share with someone else when you're uncool."
-- Almost Famous

P.S. If you're local to Columbus and could give some old vinyl a new home or purpose, please let me know. I have about 100 records that need to go (mostly organ music, thanks to an auction lot I won a few weeks ago.)

Memorial Weekend Recap

Sorry for the delay in posting all about how are Memorial Weekend went, but I had a print deadline at work that kept me away from the fun stuff :)

Without further ado...the weekend.

I finished putting together my new Expedit shelves from Ikea...and all my records now have happy little cubbies to live in! Now that I have so much room for records and books, I'm going to have to be veeeery careful not to go crazy buying more (though that will be a big challenge, coming into auction season!)

We hit the track (harness horse racing) and I won $8.40! Lost another $15, but still...

We poked around our favorite garden center and bought lots of flowers and veggies to plant.

We planted bi-colored marigolds in the front flower boxes, green bell peppers, orange bell peppers and pumpkins (even though the squirrels *always* dig them up, D. insists on pumpkins) in our edible garden area and three little orange impatiens in blue ceramic jars for my office. Alas, no tomatoes this year...after two years of squirrels pilfering every last one, we decided it made more sense to stick with peppers and trade Mr. & Mrs. for tomatoes!

Hit the Asian Festival at Franklin Park for the very first time. Though the heat was sweltering, the food was tasty! We were even interviewed -- I think they liked my chopsticks skills :)

There's so much more, but those were the big highlights. Oh, we ate well, too...dined on everything from Okinawan noodles to Future Bro-in-law's smoked pork shoulder, pistacio Jeni's ice cream and Tastefully Simple trail mix bars with Damson Plum jam.

Here's a big THANK YOU to all the veterans out there for your honor, hard work, courage and dedication. My hat will always be off to you all and my hand outstretched to thank you and welcome you home.

Chocolate Strawberries and Dirt

Leave it to The Small Object to perfect perfection. Chocolate-dipped strawberries with a bit of chocolate shavings "dirt" may have to make an appearance in my world very shortly.

I've always wanted to visit Circle S Farm to pick strawberries...

Leave it to chocolate and a great photo to become my motivation to make it happen :)

{Courtesy: The Small Object}

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.

Recipe: Chicken Fajitas

We love some authentic Mexican cuisine in our house. For 5 weeks straight, D. and I had Saturday lunch over at our fav spot Cuco's. Not exactly good for the weight loss OR the wallet, right? So when D. found this recipe and it's so easy and amazingly delicious I've developed an almost unhealthy obsession with eating these fajitas.

Don't look for any degree of authenticity here, kids. It's just a palette pleaser. Trust me.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Ingredients:
1 green pepper - sliced julienne
1 red pepper - slieced julienne
1 white onion - sliced julienne
1 sm. package mushrooms - sliced
chicken breast - cut into strips
1 package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
10 12" tortillas
shredded cheddar cheese (optional)
sour cream (optional)
salsa (optional)

Directions:

Cut peppers and onion into long, thin strips. Cut mushrooms into slices. Saute peppers and onion in a little oil until tender. Add mushrooms and chicken. Continue to cook on low-med heat until cooked through. Stir in dry salad dressing mix until thoroughly blended. Warm tortillas and roll mixture inside. Very good with a little sour cream and shredded sharp cheddar!

An Ode to Jeni and Her Splendid Ice Creams

{Courtesy Salty Caramel - Jeni's Splendid Blog}

Jeni, oh Jeni, the queen of ice cream
always worthy of rave.
From Kona to cardamom, all flavors a dream,
though Salty Caramel's my fave.
Thai Chili, vanilla or Strawberry Rose,
It doesn't stop there.
Brioche with butter and black currant, too.
Something only your craving knows
or if your taste buds will dare.
"Ice Cream!," they scream, we all scream for you.


{Courtesy cnn.com}

My Friday Night Fun-ness

Sometimes it's really fun living in our trendy urban Columbus neighborhood. On Friday, we took a stroll down to the brand-spanking-new Huntington Park baseball stadium, watched the Clippers play at a sold-out game, ate a tasty bratwurst, enjoyed the most perfect weather imaginable, walked to the Short North, grabbed a beer and a bite at a fantastically mellow local pub with a great eclectic mix of music playing (MGMT to the Rolling Stones) and took our time strolling home. People were out and about, enjoying the night, shaking off the chill of winter. Patios were filled everywhere. I was wearing a shirt I haven't worn since the summer and felt pretty. It was one great date :)

Not bad for iPhone shots!
{Huntington Park Stadium, Columbus}

The Candle Lab: Party Spot?

My mom happened upon The Candle Lab in Worthington last year and got for D.'s birthday one of the best-smelling and cleanest-burning candles I've ever seen. We tend to be candle snobs, so you can imagine our excitement! She had a glowing review of the entire operation -- from service to product, selection, price, everything. Their M.O. is all about "gourmet" soy candles, offering over 120 unique smells.

So when the big fire hit Grandview and their Grandview location was destroyed, along with so many other stores, I was really sad for them. It's a young company and I was worried that it would take a long time to bounce back from the fire. Boy, was I wrong! The Candle Lab jumped onto a primo spot adjacent to Grandview Theater, just a few steps away from Stauf's. Woot!

What's more? They offer "pour your own candle" parties at all 3 locations (Worthington, Gahanna and Grandview), giving everyone an opportunity to mix and match any of the 120 scents to create a custom-blended candle AND you can bring your own food & drinks. Shut up! How much fun would that be for a bachelorette party, as opposed to a "suck for a buck" obnoxious drunkfest? I'm digging The Candle Lab idea tres mucho.

Paying the store a visit is on my agenda for the week. Goodness knows the last thing I need is another candle, but who knows? Maybe I'll come across something I can't live without ;)

I'm Ready For My Close-Up...

I'm so excited! We signed the contract today for our wedding photographer! This was of uber importance to us so I am delighted that the choice has been made official.

After looking at so many photographers' websites and seeing portfolios at wedding shows, D. and I both knew we wanted something that captured more than staged, formal shots. We're just not staged, formal shots kind of people. Trying to keep our photo snobbery in check was challenging, too. Trust me, when you know photography and the magic that goes into photo retouching, color balancing and composition, your standards can skyrocket quickly. We both knew we wanted someone we could jive with on a personal level, someone with mad skills and vision and someone willing to try to capture the feeling of our day and turn it into something visually beautiful.

Enter Kitty Maer.

Ah, Kitty. She's a photo rockstar through and through. After wrapping up our initial meeting-turned-2-hour-hang-out, we knew we really, really liked Kitty. She was even was enthused at the idea of our wedding falling on a Friday the 13th and said that she's had good luck with Friday the 13th weddings. Yep. I'm a fan.

Alas, Kitty's personal photography commissions were outside even our budget's chunky photography allotment, but the most amazing news is that she has a sister studio called *Print and has two seriously wicked good associate photographers who deliver the similar photojournalistic, artistic style. What's more? Our amazing, newly-appointed photographer Christa is a graduate of my alma mater CCAD! I can understand her training on a personal level. CCAD is NOT a walk in the park, so she already has my utmost respect for that feat alone.

I considered pirating some images off of their website, but honestly, I just respect them too much. So, please visit their websites at the above links or from The Good Stuff over there on the right. It's worth it, I promise!!

I know it's silly to say this, but I already can't wait to see the photographs. Today is a happy day.

Recipe: Banana Bean's Bananas Foster French Toast

{Recipe courtesy Capital Style & Banana Bean Cafe. Photo: Columbus Foodie}

For the French Toast
1 French baguette, stale
1/4 c. unsalted butter (1/2 stick)
4 eggs, large
1 c. heavy cream
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. vanilla or Madagascar bourbon

For the Bananas Foster
1/4 c. unsalted butter (1/2 stick)
1 c. brown sugar or turbinado sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 c. dark rum
1/4 c. bourbon
4 bananas, peeled and cut into 1-in. pieces

Combine the eggs, heavy cream, cinnamon and vanilla; whisk well. Slice baguette on a bias into slices approximately 3/4 in. thick. This should create 12/-16 slices. Dip baguette slices into custard mixture and saute in melted butter on both sides until golden. Reserve warm.

Combine butter, brown sugar and cinnamon in a large skillet or saute pan over low heat. When sugar has melted, add bananas and saute briefly until they soften and begin to caramelize. Using extreme caution, flame the pan with the dark rum and bourbon over medium heat. Allow flames to die down and sauce to reduce slightly.

Divide French toast slices on four plates; spoon bananas foster equally over all. Garnish with seasonal fresh berries and mint, if desired.

(I haven't made this yet, so if you make it, let me know how it goes! I'll post any amendments or notes to the recipe if you find it needs any adjusting. Thx!)

New C-Bus Magazine: Capital Style & More Food Adventures

So...who else has feasted their eyes on the debut issue of Capital Style? My mom gave me hers and let me just say "Wow!" I love it! Not only do they feature some of my fav-o spots around town (Hello Betty's & Jeni's), they give nods to Rue de Lily in Powell (kick butt store owned by a super cool lady) and so so many more.

And are you ready for the kicker?

Banana Bean Cafe's Bananas Foster French Toast recipe is in the back *squee*

I was literally just gushing about how out-of-this-world it is with some dear friends, over dinner at Betty's this past Monday. It is Shut Your Mouth kinda good. Rumor has it they're still running into some wonky hours, though...but it's worth it if you can catch them open!

For three days in a row, D. and I dined out...isn't that fantastic? First Betty's, then my amazing "home chef" sister had us over for a Mardi Gras feast of bourbon chicken, dirty rice, sausage stuffed mushrooms and key lime pie. Did I mention it was all from scratch? She amazes me.

Then last night, we met up with my foodie uncle for an outstanding dinner at Diaspora Korean restaurant on campus. Let me just say...the Sexy Cowboy roll may have been the finest tempura sushi roll I've ever had. And it was BEAUTIFUL! Of course, I had no camera (boo) so all of the food porn shots were missed, but seriously. If you can, go. It was hella hella yum.