Okay, I know I've mentioned these before - but they're insanely delicious enough to share properly!! Head directly over to Smitten Kitchen for the detailed recipe and enjoy these latkes of the garden variety!!
Also, don't forget about these intensely satisfying Root Latkes, and these party-perfect Vodka Latkes!!
Happy Holiday Fressing!! :)
Looking for something fun and useful to gift a special friend this Chanukah? My Brooklyn Slate Co. cheese board just arrived last week (thank you Fab.com!!), and can't wait to put it to some party-hard use!! I couldn't even resist trying it out right after opening, and whipped out some soft cheese from the fridge to experiment the chalk use on the well-oiled slate. The effect was positively lovely, and it even brought about some Camembert taste-testing from my cheese-loving 3 year old!
Check out the Brooklyn Slate Co. lookbook for serious slate inspiration. Their boards lend just the right amount of rustic warmth to liven up any festivities via cheese, fruit, or anything at all! Perfect addition to a Chanukah latke layout - nothing like some specialty cheeses to really get the party started!
P.S. It's still available on Fab from $16 - $20!! Check it here.
Now I just need some of this to care for it, and one of these to really have fun with it. :)
While majority of my time over the past few weeks has been spent on either settling into our new home, or planning and working on my newest project, Babyccino, it dawned on me recently that Freida's birthday is in just a few little days!! The big 3 totally and completely snuck up on me!! And though I feel guilty about it now, I've really been working on convincing myself that I had every reason in the world to neglect planning her special day: a new place, a new job, a new city, a new and final trimester in my pregnancy (!!), and to top it all off - I've just gotten blood test results that show I am severely anemic! I was low on iron while pregnant with Freida was well, but this time it looks like the deficiency is far greater. I'm just so relieved to know that something is actually wrong with me, and that what's been going on inside of me is not, in fact, normal at all. Grocery shopping takes me falling faintly on the couch upon completion, small tasks look like treacherous mountains, and no matter where I find myself - that spot on the floor looks like an amazing place to curl up for a nap! So grateful to hear that something is off, and that this will not get worse and worse as delivery draws closer...! I'll be getting onto an iron supplement immediately, and I should be seeing results within a few days of medication. Joy!! Which, brings me back to Freida's party - threw a little backyard shin-dig together for the cousins this Sunday afternoon, and looking forward to a lovely few hours spent with family (especially since my mother will be in town - we are going to fetch her at LAX after lunch today!!!) celebrating our little lady and her divine entrance into this world 3 bright and beautiful years ago!
While on my quest for some last-minute-party inspiration, I came upon the realization that balloons can have some serious class!! Not just that, but while balloons have been used as props in fashion photography for quite some time, now they seem to be seriously stealing the spotlight!! Especially the giant round ones, like we had at Freida's first birthday - they are popping up everywhere!!
It seems lots of moms these days are either suffering from balloon-overkill or seem to think the balloon era has faded the way of pin-the-tail on the donkey, in any case these fashion shots are sure a strong shout-out that ballons are very much in the here and now, and proves they can be both chic and childish - providing perfect party pictures!
And for those of you adults who are still feeling a bit balloon-weary... check out Geronimo; not just for kids anymore!! I'd totally love to order one of these babies for a friends birthday - just imagine this being delivered to your doorstep, attached to your favorite cupcake! Magic...
As I've mentioned previously, I'm finally on the lookout for some versatile maternity pieces, and trying to put together a tiny and minimalist maternity collection - mostly things that will last me through pregnancy, into postpartum, and preferably beyond! Have you ladies ever heard of Hatch by Two Birds? Firstly, and foremost - how awesome is that name?! Just the word itself depicts the items in this collection as those functioning well beyond birth! Hatch! Anyways, the main idea is a teeny-tiny collection of the very best pieces an urban girl could live in! While the tags are quite pricey, it's not the very items themselves that could me - it's the idea of the signature and classic pieces that manage to make up a full wardrobe! Check this:
Cardigan, Errands Dress, Button Down, Overcoat, Soiree Dress, Afternoon Dress, T-Shirt, Dinner Party Dress, Wrap. 9 pieces I could live in.
You can start with the basics you should already have in your closet (great leggings, pencil skirts, and blazers), and move on from there, building piece by piece for a versatile, long -lasting "maternity" collection. Plus, buying like this should take you well beyond "hatched"!
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/28726307]
Once you discover Butter, it will become a cosmetic staple - taking up permanent digs in your bathroom credenza. I bought my first bottle when I wanted to paint Freida's nails for the first time, and I've been hooked ever since. As an asthmatic I've come to appreciate when things are really "free" and "clear" (laundry detergents, air fresheners, carpet cleaning etc.), I just never thought I'd actually find a good quality nail laquer that could live up to the tagline of being "free"; painting my nails always involved holding my breathe for extended periods of time! :)
Butter London is free of the "dirty 3": Formaldehyde, Toluene, and DBP (plus free of all parabens)! And toxic-free nail color may not be a novelty to you; the quality of these varnishes are surely something to write home about - I'd take a bottle of this polish over a Chanel nail laquer any day!!
Great for giving even the littlest of divas manis and pedis - sans all that chemical guilt (I previously blogged about Hopscotch Kids toxin-free polish for little fingers and toes). And even more importantly, for mamas-to-be (DBP has been controversially linked to birth defects in animal testing) who should be steering clear of all hazardous chemicals for at least 9 months, and may not necessarily think of a weekly manicure as hazardous. Or may think there's no alternative... here you have it ladies!
Also, for those of you living in the Los Angeles area, a friend of mine (thanks Dini!!) recently tipped me off about a new toxin-free, baby-friendly wax and nail spa on Santa Monica blvd! Plush Beauty Bar was created with moms in mind, featuring a children's play area, stroller parking, low-fume products and services, comfy armchairs for nursing in, bathrooms with changing tables, staff to help out on baby-watch, and fast services for those short attention spans! I never brought Freida with me to salons and spas when she was a baby, and I'm sure my girly glamour suffered as a result. I seriously can't wait to check this place out - so glad to know about this before baby #2 arrives and steals my beauty routine! :)
