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I found this adorable asymmetric dress at Banana Republic this weekend, which is available in black or pink. Sadly, I can’t seem to locate it in my size. (Size 6, in case you find it and would like to buy me a present.) Hopefully I can track one down, because it would be the perfect cure for my post-Irene, no power blahs.
If I had it, I would pair it with my Kathrine earrings and an armful of Mia and Grete bracelets.
Urban Outfitters has partnered with Levi’s to create mobile Bike Shop events across the US. Sadly, I’ve missed all the ones on the East coast, but that doesn’t mean I can’t grab one of these great Ts that Pedal Pusher Club created to commemorate the occasion.
This summer I did two trade shows – the Buyers Market of American Craft (where I shared a booth with students, faculty, and alumni from Towson Univeristy, where I teach) and the New York International Gift Fair. Both shows went really well. I picked up some great new stores and had a great time showing off the new line.
Buyers Market:
New York Gift:
After doing five shows this year, I can’t believe I’m done with trade shows for 2011!
But I’ve got at least one more show to go. I’m excited to announce that I’ll be returning to Crafty Bastards this year! If you’re in the DC area, stop by and say hi on October 1st!
I have a lot of cookbooks. (What can I say, it’s a symptom of my book addiction!) But I’m not always great at getting around to following the recipes from those cookbooks.
What I do love is thumbing through my cookbooks for inspiration.
Which is how I can up with last’s night easy (but delicious) dinner of salmon and quinoa with sauteed asparagus and mushrooms.
Looking at an omelette recipe in Quinoa 365
How about you? Do you follow recipes exactly, or do you use your cookbooks more for inspiration?
Recipe below:
Quinoa:
Bring 3/4 cup quinoa and 1 1/2 cups water to boil in a medium saucepan. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed. (Mine usually doesn’t take the full 20 minutes.) Add fresh ground pepper and sea salt to taste.
Sauteed asparagus and mushrooms:
I used two big hand fulls of Cremini mushrooms and a bunch of asparagus.
Heat olive oil in pan over medium high heat. Rinse and slice mushrooms and add to pan. Rinse asparagus, break off woody ends, and then break each stalk in half for more manageable pieces. Add to pan. Saute for 10 to 12 minutes (I put a lid on mine) stirring occasionally until asparagus reaches desired tenderness. Salt and pepper to taste.
I served mine alongside baked salmon, but the protein in quinoa would make this a perfect vegetarian or vegan dinner by itself.
I’ve had a soft spot for wire furniture ever since my graduate thesis, so I was excited to discover Bend at the New York Gift Fair. I contemplated getting a set of Lucy chairs for my dining room, but decided to hold off. I think it might be more fun to make my own chairs using some of my patterns.
While at New York Gift, I was lucky enough to be down the aisle from Carga, who makes the most beautiful bags from Argentina. I was even more lucky to leave the show with this gorgeous bag. As one of my other show neighbors put it, “It’s a lifetime bag.”
I saw this beautiful mixte by Masi while I was in San Diego, and now I’m dreaming of owning one.
{Image via baudman on Flickr)
In the expo hall at BlogHer (a strange and bizarre place that’s worthy of it’s own blog post), there was a company giving away fake eyelashes. And by giving away, I mean there were two makeup artists who would apply fake eyelashes on the spot.
While Tara was enthusiastic about the prospect, I was more than a little nervous. You see – I’ve never worn fake eyelashes before.
Now, before you judge, understand that I’ve never been a girly girl.
Yes, I happily wear dresses and skirts. And of course, I love to wear jewelry.
But that whole hair and makeup thing. Well, let’s just say that was my sister’s territory. It’s only been in the last six months that I’ve even begun to wear makeup on a somewhat regular basis. (And even then, it’s pretty minimal.)
So the whole concept of fake eyelashes was pretty foreign to me. I bombarded Tara with ridiculous questions. How are they attached? How long do they stay on? How do you get them off?
And even after hearing all of her perfectly rational answers, my thought was that I didn’t want them.
But ultimately, it was the fact that the whole thing made me completely uncomfortable that made me choose to do it.
There used to be a time when I would shy away from uncomfortable situations.
But now I try to push myself into them.
Every opportunity to push yourself out of your comfort zone is a chance to grow.
We all have things that make us uncomfortable. We all have experiences that are new or different than what we currently know. But if we always turn down experiences that are uncomfortable or even a little (perhaps irrationally) scary, we miss out on potentially amazing opportunities.
It took me a while to warm up to the fake eyelashes, but eventually I got used to the strange sensation. And after having lots of people tell me they looked amazing, I’m really glad I did it.
I realize that fake eyelashes are not as scary or earth shattering as many of the opportunities that are presented to us. But often, our resistance to what’s new and different really is as silly as my hesitation over fake eyelashes.
The next time you find yourself passing up an opportunity because it makes you uncomfortable or nervous, I challenge you to embrace that uncomfortableness. Make a commitment to try something new because it makes you uncomfortable.
Because those experiences, like my eyelashes, can often turn into something truly beautiful.
On Friday, I’m speaking at a conference in San Diego. I had planned on flying out Thursday with Tara and her family. I say had because when I got my confirmation email this week, I realized I had booked my flight for Wednesday, not Thursday! After learning that a change in flight would cost me $900, I resigned myself to the fact that I would be flying to San Diego a day early.
Turns out, it was the best mistake ever!
Yesterday was one of those rare lovely days where I just walked around, enjoying the sunshine, culture, and food of a different city!
For lunch, I went to Burger Lounge. I love that California “fast food” equals a vegetarian burger made with quinoa and lots of yummy veggies:
After returning to my hotel room for a little bit, I set off to explore downtown, eventually wandering around the waterfront:
Then, I stumbled onto this cute little shop called Frosted Robin:
How could I resist?
Then, I plopped down on the grass in a park by the water to lounge in the sun, read, people watch, and sip iced tea:
Dinner was fish tacos and Fat Tire (one of my favorite beers that is difficult to get on the East Coast):
All in all, one of the best mistakes I’ve ever made!
As you probably know by now, I’ve been busy putting the finishing touches on my new jewelry collection and I can’t wait to share it with you!
It’s not quite ready for my online shop yet, but I wanted to give you an opportunity to be one of the first to shop the collection in person. I’m having a trunk show at Heidi Lowe Gallery in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware on July 8th and 9th.
The trunk show will take place Friday, July 8th from 4-9 PM and Saturday, July 9th from 1-9 PM. Heidi Lowe Gallery is located at 328 Rehoboth Ave – the little yellow cottage on the avenue right next to Dogfish Head Brewery.
So why not head to the beach, grab a beer, and come shop for some great jewelry?
I hope to see you there!
PS. If you can’t make it to the beach, I’ll also be showing my new collection at a special preview day for the Buyer’s Market of American Craft on Sunday July 10th at the Baltimore Convention Center. The show will be open from 1-5 PM. Stop by and see me in booth 2109 as part of the Towson Design Collective!