It's the thought that counts

I have always been pretty big on making gifts for people in my life for the holidays and I hope people enjoy receiving them. I put time, effort and lots of thought into every gift because I think that the homemade touch is just so much more personal. That's the whole point of gift giving anyway right? I am thinking of you, love you or thought you would enjoy this. Well at least that is what I think it should be.

Throughout the year I am constantly on the look out for great ideas that look like they would be fun to do and receive. This year these are the items that have caught my eye and have been tested for approval.

Sweet Tea Vodka
I know this is more of a summer type booze, but I say sweet tea is all year round. When it's 15 degrees out and you're desperately wanting to be anywhere but there, you can turn up the thermostat and party like you are on the beach with this easy and yummy concoction. It's all in the imagination. This is easy to whip up and people love it when you infuse your own booze. It's like they think you know magic or are Susie homemaker and they will thank you. Only you will know that it takes very little effort and time.

Ingredients

1 bottle (750ml) of decent, but not expensive vodka 

4  tea bags

1 cup water & 1 cup of sugar to make a simple syrup

Directions

Pour vodka into a pitcher or jar and add tea bags. Steep for 30 minutes to 1 hour or until it is nice caramel brown.

While vodka is doing its thing with the tea make the simple syrup by heating water to a boil. Add sugar and stir until fully dissolved. Remove from heat and cool.

Once vodka and tea are properly mixes add simple syrup to vodka to taste. If you want you can always make more simple syrup to make it sweeter!

You can even get a little crazy and add
some hazelnut syrup to it. YUM!

Irish Cream Liqueur 
I think alcohol is a great gift (for those that do drink) and this one is absolutely so yummy you may not even get around to giving it away. The recipe and directions are so incredibly easy it's ridiculous not to try it. The recipe can be found here, but after trying it a few times I have come to add a little more whiskey and only use really good dark chocolate syrup to give it that rich and decadent taste. It blows the commercial liqueurs out of the water. You will not regret whipping this up.

Peppermint Candy Sugar Scrub
I am a sucker for scrubs. I have made my own in the past and really love them. I found the idea and recipe here and it is an excellent one if I do say so myself. I used coconut oil since I had it in the house and I love it. I think I may like it better than almond oil. Next time I am going to try a coconut lime scrub. I am sure it will smell heavenly!

Rosemary infused Olive Oil
I have done this one for the last few years and always make sure I have enough left over for me. This is a great oil to use in everyday cooking to give it just a little added hint of rosemary to your dinner table. Plus it looks pretty when presented as a gift.

Heat olive oil over medium heat with the ratio of 5 sprigs of rosemary to each cup of oil until warm (5-10 minutes). Remove from heat and cool. Add sprigs to bottle and pour olive oil in. Keeps up to 1 month in the refrigerator.

I would show you what they look like, but
they are gone.

Fluer de Sel Caramels
While I suggest every single one of the items above, if you only do one, do this. Holy cow, these are the best caramels that I have ever made. They are so good that when my mother and I first did them we went back out to the store to get more supplies to make another batch. I don't even think that first year I actually gave anyone more than one or two. They are addictive in the best way possible. Recipe is courtesy of Ina Garten and can be found here. I suggest doing this with two people, because things can go wrong if you aren't paying attention. There is one crucial step where you have to do two things at once and if you are busy tending to one the other will burn.

Love Lines

Ever have a friend call you up and ask if you can call the Vivid telephone number that she gives you to cancel the membership that her son decided to sign up for with her credit card number? No? Well apparently I am that friend you can call that will call to take care of that kind of business. If you have no idea what I am talking about, enjoy that corner of the world you live in. Me apparently I have no shame about porn stars and such and had a very good laugh with the lady on the phone about the situation. Given her reaction I am thinking that this kind of call happens a lot. Boys and porn seem to go hand in hand.

Beyond porn the other highlight of my week was finding one of my new favorite shopping sites Terrain. It has so much stuff that I want that I don't even know where to start. How about the things I didn't even know I needed until I went to that site? I think that is a very good place to start.

Fresh Pumpkin Crate
Like you don't want this. Please. It's fabulous.

Verdant Terrarium
Maybe it's my thing with jars, but if I was going to have a terrarium this
would be what I would want it in.

St. Helena Martini Olive Juice
My friend J and I will need to be checking this out when she rolls
into town. Dirty Martini's here we come!

Ceramic Salt and Pepper Set
I would use the crap out of these.

ElderFlower Presse
I don't event know if I like this, but the bottle
is adorable and you can add it to vodka.
Always worth a try.

I should actually just cut and paste the entire site on here to make it easier, because I could go on and on. Check it out and let me know your favorite pieces! I would love to hear what you think.

Have a great weekend and if you can, avoid carmageddon II. I hear it's going to be a bit nuts.

All images via Terrain

Popsicle Stand

It's summer here in North Orange County. The sun is out, the temperature is up and everyone is wearing shorts and dresses. All this adds up to me wanting a popsicle. Then add to that everyone seems to be making booze laden, fruity tasting frozen treats on Pinterest that look absolutely delicious. Booze on a stick? Count me in. So I started doing some research on popsicle makers, because really who wants to do it the old fashioned way and wait hours when you can make them in 7 minutes. That's right, 7 minutes. Check out the Zoku:

Of course they have tons of accessories that you have to get as well.

I ordered it yesterday and it's on it's way. Now that it's coming I needed to start locking down recipes so I can get it working as soon as it arrives. I wanted to look for both boozy and non-boozy recipes, because I don't think a vodka filled frozen goodness is appropriate at noon on a work day or for kids. My search landed so many results that I really had to narrow it down otherwise this post would be going on forever! It appears that popsicles are the latest food craze to be hitting the net so the recipes are fun and gourmet. I feel sad for you if you don't have a Zoku and have to wait hours to try these out.

5 o'clock pops

White and Black Russian Pop - It's got calories, but would be fun to try at least once.
Mojito Pop - This just sounds super refreshing.
Bourbon Peaches and Cream Pop - I want one now!
Wine Pop - My favorite drink now with more freeze.
Cucumber Honeydew Margarita Pop - How delicious does this sound on a hot summer day?
Blueberry Moonshine Pop - Oh my!

Anytime pops

Mint Melon Pop - I love mint and with the melon this should be awesome.
Coconut Chai Pop - Perfect afternoon pick up.
Nutella Fudgesicles - For that chocolate craving.
Honeydew Lime Pop - With fresh melon and lime.
Strawberry Basil Pop - I love basil and fruit and this sounds so good.
Lemonade Pop - These recipes are not necessarily for popsicles, but I think they would be delicious!

Have a great weekend and I hope you get to make at least one of these lovelies!

Cupcake Mania

I have had the urge for cupcakes ever since I made these a few weeks back. After fighting it for a week or so I decided to indulge when I found this recipe for fresh strawberry buttercream frosting. Never having made a buttercream frosting before I had assumed it was difficult. Not only was it fairly easy, but it was so good that I almost made myself sick taste testing the frosting. I did totally cheat on the batter and used a cake mix to save a little time, but the frosting definitely takes the overall flavor to a homemade taste. Sandra Lee would be proud.

Cow full of cream

Mix

Enjoy!

Have a great weekend!

Mail Stop Whoa

You know what happens when you have your mail on hold for three weeks? This.

So yeah.

It is so fantastic to be home. I missed the warm air, sunshine and my rock star mattress of pure goodness and love these last few weeks. While I would love to say that this weekend will be filled with time zone adjustments and margarita’s, it instead will be jam packed with cleaning, grocery shopping and working so that next week I can head to the Pacific NW for a few days. With the jet lag, which results in me waking up at 4:00am, I have an early start on the day to get it done. Then there is the crash around 7pm, but we will deal with that later. We also have company coming on Saturday which means I need to clean the guest bathroom. I had hoped that this would be a chore that I could avoid for awhile, but living in Southern California people like to visit. I think to console myself I am going to buy these.

Image via kate spade

I totally deserve them. It’s a big bathroom. Maybe I should get this too.

Image via Ann Taylor

Have a great weekend & Happy Mother's Day to all you Mothers!

Balance

This may shock all of you, but when I am stressed, sad, upset or just feeling down I turn to shopping for relaxing. If I buy something, it is a bonus for sure, but definitely not the intention. The actual browsing, trying on and walking around my favorite stores is the actual therapeutic part for me. It is my time to be alone (I do prefer to shop alone) and let my mind stray from the daily crap we all deal with. This week in particular has been a long one for me, we have had so many things going on that it has been going in 5th gear all week. To try and re balance myself last night, instead of working or spending time with the family (I know this sounds bad, but really it was for the best), I did some online retail therapy. While it doesn't have the same feel as doing it in person it definitely satisfied that bit of me that loves looking for that special piece that my closet, kitchen or house is missing. Here are some of my favorite pieces that I may or may not have purchased.

J.Crew Linen V-neck Cable-Knit Sweater 
This mint sweater is perfect for those chilly spring
and summer nights.
image via J.Crew

Elizabeth and James Milo Crop Pant
A total splurge I know, but this is the only pant that
I have found that is pale pink and not super skinny.
Image via Piperlime

Old Navy Chambray shirt
This will help balance out the total
costs don't you think?
Image via Old Navy

Annie Asymmetrical Ballet Flat Sole Society
These are so perfect and Sole Society is my new
favorite shoe store. I will let you know more once my
first order arrives before I give a final stamp of approval.
Image via Sole Society

Love.
Image via Zara

Do you see an outfit too or is it just me? Maybe I do need to purchase it all...

Have a great weekend!

Fryeday! Fryeday!

While we were in transition between Seattle and our new house my stuff was in storage, in the dark and all alone for months. In the last two weeks we have opened every box, shook off the dust and put everything in it's place. We are still missing a few things around the house and the walls are still a little bare, but every room is set and can be used for it's intended purpose (including this room, thankyouverymuch I got it done). The next few weeks (or months) we will fill in the missing pieces and hang some pictures, but frankly I am all good with it for now and not to mention tired of decorating. Seriously it sounds fun in the beginning, but it is a lot of work and no one is paying me for it so I am over it. So to celebrate all of my things being let out into the light I decided to highlight a few of my favorite things that I am so happy to see again after such a long time apart.

I love my Frye boots and they are happy to be out!

My mason jars are all here and accounted for.
This one is currently being used to make
 strawberry vodka. Click here for the recipe.

Last weekend I received a bulb
for the camera. So excited to try it out.

Hat boxes and purses! Yay! Love all my hats
and purses, but you can only take so many
on the road.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Are You Ready?

Going to the Hunger Games movie this weekend? I have been prepping the BF for weeks, since most everyone else I know here in Holland is not even a little bit interested in it. One of the great things about the Netherlands is that they do subtitles on almost all foreign movies so I can enjoy the movie with the actors real voices. I feel this way about movies the other way around too. Watching a German movie dubbed in English is a little freaky. So in honor of the Hunger Games opening weekend here are two choices for you. You can watch the trailer for the movie:

Or if that is not your speed head over to Funny or Die to watch the trailer for The Hungover Games. No sunglasses, no water and no Advil. Let the games begin.

So this happened

If you follow me on Pinterest, twitter, Facebook or even if you glanced at the blog the last few weeks you may have noticed that I have been canvasing the web for stuff for the new house that we are moving into at the end of the month. I have lots of things for the house from my old condo of course, but there is something about moving into a new place that justifies a few new items. While I have shared the cake stand and bedroom pieces there are a few other items that I just couldn't say no to. No matter how hard I tried (which was not super hard).

I need another glass set almost as badly as I need another pair of shoes,
but these adorable "Jus de Fruits" glasses are so perfect.
Image via One Kings Lane

Then of course you need the bottle that goes with them
 and at 3 for $12 I just had to have them!
Image via One Kings Lane

These candles and this scented oval are truly an indulgence, but oh so worth it.
If you click on the picture, try not to freak out at the price. This is why I said indulgence.
Image via Nordstrom

Jars to put stuff in for the bathroom.
I have stuff so it only makes sense I need to put it in something.
Image via Crate and Barrel

Glass bathroom accessories. Do you know how hard it is to find glass
and not acrylic? Good thing there is Pottery Barn.
Image via Pottery Barn

I am not sure how that got in here. It must be the elves that
order online with my credit card when I am sleeping.
Image via Zara

I get to do this all over again when we find a house in the Netherlands, but on a much bigger scale since I have no idea what my boyfriend has been keeping in storage. His tastes used to run much different than mine so we may need quite a few new pieces. I can't wait. Now I just need to win the lottery.

Don't Look Down

This video is insane and so are the two guys doing it. It is a little long, but really quite fascinating and scary all at once. I am not afraid of heights, but this is just nuts considering how little there is to support them. I wouldn't make it out of the elevator.

Happy Friday!!

Loving me some Crew

It's official, I am addicted to J.Crew. It simply comes down to they happen to be killing it this season. In the good way. I didn't even fully realize I had a J.Crew problem until it was pointed out to me on Pinterest by someone who works for J.Crew (coincidence I think not). Of course I know said person and have known her since middle school, but upon reflection I think I may have spent way too much time on their site. I think I have this under control since I bought only a few key pieces (believe it or not I have restraint).  I do however have my fingers crossed that a few others will go on sale in my size (like MAJOR sale). I just can't spend money willy nilly when I still need to buy a Louboutin mattress ya know.

Here are some of the highlights of my Crew obsession.

They have this in several colors, but this is my favorite.

Love this and it will go with everything.

No. 2 Pencil Skirt in Ultra Eyelet. They also have this in sequins
and it's awesome, but waaaay out of my price range.

Love the color

I have no idea why I don't have these yet in this color.

So when my boyfriend wonders why we are sleeping on shoe and J.Crew shipping boxes no one will mention J.Crew OK?

All Images via J.Crew

Full of Sugar

I may have mentioned earlier that my mom has been crafting up baby shoes. I may even have posted a few pictures about it and now you can view, share and buy all on your own. Sugar Cookie Baby Shoes is officially live and available on Etsy. I dare you to look at these cuties and not rack your brain for someone you know who is having a baby. I have already ordered some and may need to place another order since people are having babies all over the place. Even though it's my mothers product I really do think they are a unique and the perfect baby shower, baby arrival or just because baby gift. No two shoes are alike and each is handmade and adorned with buttons, bows or ribbons. You are guaranteed to not have brought the same item as anyone else and that my friend makes you stand out from the crowd. Maybe we should have awards given out for best gift given at showers. I know it would sure make them a lot more awesome to go to. Not that I am saying I didn't enjoy your shower or future shower or whatever. Because I totally did, but if there are gifts involved for me let's just say it ups the awesome factor. Oh and if you have a taco station that works too. Just saying. Here's some pictures and be sure to check out her store for more.

Happy Friday!

Simple Pleasures

This week has been filled with good things and a few not so good, but I am so lucky to be spending this time with my grandparents and great Uncle Jean. Yesterday we all needed a little pick me up after a particularly trying day on Wednesday and I wanted to make a little sweet comfort in the kitchen. I started going through the cupboards and came across a package of chocolate chips. Perfect. Sometimes I feel like everything I make needs to be made with at least 24 ingredients, infused with some exotic liquid or sprinkled with salt found off the coast of El Salvador and smoked with orchids. It was nice to simply put together a few ordinary ingredients and fill the house up with the amazing smell of chocolate chips cookies. I used the standard Betty Crocker recipe I know by heart and churned out 4 dozen cookies to fill the cookie jar and then some! Everyone here is telling me I am spoiling them, but I keep trying to convince them that it's nice just to relax and enjoy retirement with them. Even if it is only for one week.

Spoonful by spoonful

Fresh from the oven it's hard to resist

Two things I think you need to know

This week I happened across two things on the Internet that made me ridiculously happy. I know I get excited a little to easily, but I really love both of these things and am so excited to share them.

1. So remember when I wrote about how reading the Hunger Games doesn't necessarily make you stupid (being stupid makes you stupid or thinking that Kim Kardashian is relevant makes you stupid, but I am getting off track)? Well as you may (or may not know) Hunger Games is coming to a theater near you in March. As part of the promotion for the film they have come up with a site called Capital Couture that currently has several Capital style (if you read the books you will understand) features on it including a nail tutorial and a close up of Effie's gold shoes (I super heart them). I believe that they will to continue to update it with more items and I for one am super excited. I wonder if they will try to sell Effie's shoes...

2. Speaking of shoes, OMG. TOMS is finally making shoes that I will wear. No really check these babies out.

They are starting pre-orders February 1st at Nordstrom and I will be getting on that band wagon my friend. TOMS does a One for One, which means for every pair of shoes purchased TOMS gives a pair of shoes to a child in need and I have wanted to buy them strictly for that reason. The problem is that the current type of shoes are just too homely for me (Yes, even the wedges. You can send your hate mail to shannonin30 at gmail dot com). Every time I try to purchase them my brain goes into an inner dialogue with itself and tells me that I am not supposed to look that granola EVER so I have never successfully purchased a pair. Well now I can feel good about purchasing a pair of shoes and looking good in the process. Everybody wins.

As a side note I made it to the grandparents in one piece with a few pics (I will post a few of them next week) and no major drama. Not too bad for a 7 hour trip all by myself.  Yay!

Happy Friday and have a great weekend!!

Smile

I was listening to my iPod while driving from my parents house to La Jolla the other day and 'Smile' came on by  Michael Buble . This is a song that was written by Charlie Chaplin (musically, lyrics were added by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons) and is quite beautiful and sad all at the same time. Instantly it made me want to rent the movie Chaplin and see it for the 100th time (someday I will just buy it) and relive Robert Downey Jr. when I first appreciated his genius (although in the midst of his drug struggles although he swears he was sober at the time) and then it made me go to the internet to find Judy Garland singing it. It is my favorite by her, only behind 'Somewhere over the Rainbow'. Lastly it made me remember my Auntie Tante hated Judy Garland (I will not divulge what he said she sounded like), however he did concede to this particular song being brilliant (not his exact words, but we are just going to go with it) by her. Read into that sentence what you will, pronouns are correct. So for Friday's favorites I present a song that I dare you not to smile at. Pretty sure Auntie Tante is smiling from wherever he may be, but also probably telling me not to click the other links in YouTube for her other songs.

Happy Friday!! 

Making the Mini Donuts

Last night I celebrated a belated Christmas with my Seattle family which included a great dinner and a gift exchange. I received some really lovely gifts, however my favorite item was the mini donut maker. It took everything I had to not mix up a donut recipe and try it out immediately. Self restraint won out and I decided that waiting until morning was the right thing to do. The last few days I have been feeling like I am trying to come down with some sort of sickness, but did that stop the donut shop from opening this morning. Not even a little. I used the basic donut recipe that was included with the maker for my first time out (which surprisingly was super delicious) and because these are baked not fried I figure I can eat twice as many. No? Well at any rate they were quick and easy to prepare and to make a few of them a little different I just melted a few chocolate chips to use as a glaze. While these may not be an everyday thing they can certainly be a way to make the morning a little extra special. Next up is to try some of the other recipes I have seen on the web.

Happy Friday!