decorative gourd season!

it’s decorative gourd season!!!

over the past few weeks i’ve been obsessing over every autumnal detail, from pumpkin spiced coffee to capes. when we were at whole foods last weekend i fawned over the gourds display for an enormously long amount of time. this same situation occurred at the local farmers market. BARRELS OF GOURDS!

and so, the seasonal decorating, which will not commence until the end of january has begun. here’s my little pumpkin & gourd centerpiece on the side table in our living room.

hey, whatever makes your day. this most definitely makes mine.

i’m wishing i had a lamp-post to tie some cornstalks to…

…or a front gate on which to hang spooky cobwebs, as spotted in lincoln park.

any decorating tips for this seasonally obsessed girl?

happy feet.

i’m working from home for a majority of october (more on that craziness later), which means that i get to wear my awesome CHIMP SLIPPERS around during the work day. basically it’s the most awesome perk, along with the 5-minute-break dance parties, turkey bacon accompanied breakfasts, and italo disco playing out loud in the home office. i’m even getting used to (and actually liking) the 18-hour work days i’m putting in. you read right. 18 hours. all in the name of obsessive perfectionism.

here’s to working hard & adorable slippers!

have a wonderful evening!

and yes, this post is absolutely going in the blog’s ‘style’ section. thank you, target dollar isle.

color block.

spotted on the patio at work, gorgeous yellow-orange leaved trees.

seeing these trees changing on the patio has been a delight.

fall forward, with style.

fall forward? i think i shall.

this colorful interpretation of the New York Times’ icon by their own T Magazine, is wonderfully seasonal. each issue’s cover is thoughtfully curated by artists and designers; this month’s cover is owed to landscape designer judy kameon and photographer erik otsea.

a wonderful showcase of seasonal texture, nature, and autumnal hues.

fall is for brooches and blazers.

you don’t need to know me well to know that i love accessories. this goes decades back to when i was 5 years old playing dress up with the neighbors. even then i knew it all started with the basics.

{wool tailored blazer, uniqlo}

a fitted black blazer which highlights the curves and waistline is the backbone of my fall wardrobe. i have the most difficult time finding jackets (petite with curves), so when i find one that fits, it is a hallelujah moment. this blazer was purchased as part of my uniqlo binge (i’ve a soft spot for japanese basics) while in london this summer. i couldn’t have gotten to the cash wrap sooner.

i love blazers because they are tailored and can dress up any outfit immediately. it’s so simple to go from day-to-night or from office-to-bar, as i so often would like. sleek, sexy, & sophisticated–that’s how i feel when i’m wearing one. they are the high heels of the upper body.

and like any fabulous basic, there are endless ways to personalize. with that, we come to another one of my favorites for fall–brooches.

i’m not sure when this fascination started (perhaps in high-school?), but over the years i’ve slowly been collecting brooches both old and new. in high school i was gifted my first vintage brooch which i still adore. these days my collection has more vintage pieces but i still keep an eye out contemporaries.

for example, this guy purchased via etsy from depapea’s shop. it came to me all the way from spain last week.

put a bird on it!!!

…or these guys, from my vintage brooch collection. i cannot stop wearing the red & orange starbusrt. pairing it with dark green has become an obsession.

currently lusting after this sophisticated gent brooch from depapea’s shop.

anyone else out there as emotionally invested in this style combo as i am?

chicago kids, any great vintage spots you recommend for treasure hunting?

jan’s homemade apple sauce.

no one makes better apple sauce than my mother.

and nothing says fall like walking into a kitchen full of the sweet smell of spiced apples cooking. it was always my favorite treat growing up and a sure sign that autumn was under way. my mom never told us she was going to whip up a batch, it was always the most wonderful surprise we’d stumble upon.

now that i’m on my own and creating some of my own seasonal traditions, i’m taking my first stab at recreating a classic from the autumns of my youth in our (somewhat) adult household.

delightfully, it turns out that jan’s recipe is super low fuss. (though, i’ll admit i called my mom twice during the preparation.)

ingredients

• 8-10 apples. (i choose  2-3 varieties)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 cup water

method

1. wash & peel apples.
2. core apples and slice apples. i quartered each apple and then halved.
3. combine apples, cinnamon, lemon juice, water, & brown sugar in the crock pot
4. cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours

et voilà!

feeling indulgent?

sprinkle some brown sugar over the top and dunk with light nilla wafers.

seeking: hardboiled perfection.

this girl is an eggs addict.

after 22 years of claiming to hate them, i’ve jumped on the bandwagon. now its eggs for lunch, for dinner, for snack-time. i really owe this new found love to my friend beth, who when i moved to chicago got me to try poached eggs. nowadays i’ll eat them almost anyway. the most convenient (and favorite at the moment) is hardboiled.

when i started cooking hard boiled eggs, i felt like a lost puppy. there is SO much literature on how to cook the perfect hardboiled egg. i can’t claim to have achieved this ‘perfection’, yet i’ve found 2 ways, one simple & quick and the other fool-proof and a little longer, that are doing the trick. the boy can be credited for the latter version.

some tips i’ve learned, before we start:

• hard-boiling works best when using eggs near their expiration date. new eggs will be harder to peel
• hard-cooked eggs can be stored (in shell) for a week in the refrigerator

method 1:  quick & easy hard boiled eggs
preparation & cook time: ~15 Minutes

1. fill a small pot with cold water (such that when you place the eggs in they will be covered)
2. set stove to high & heat water to boiling
3. use a spoon to lower eggs into the boiling water & let cook for 10 minutes
4. on the side, fill a bowl with ice water
5. after ten minutes remove eggs from boiling water
6. submerge eggs into the ice water (this prevents the eggs from having that dark grey-ish icky color around the yolk)
7. let stand in cool water for 5 minutes. peel & eat

method 2: fool-proof method hardboiling 
preparation & cook time: ~25 Minutes

1. place eggs in a small pot
2. fill with cold water such that the eggs are covered by an inch of water
3. set stove to high & heat water to boiling
4. one at a boil, remove pot from the burner & turn heat to low
5. place pot back on burner & boil on low hear for 1 minute
6. turn off stove completely after 1 minute
7. place pot on a cool burner & cover
8. let sit for 12 minutes
9. on the side, fill a bowl with ice water
10. after 12 minutes, submerge eggs into the ice water
11. let stand in cool water for 5 minutes. peel & eat

{excuse my poor peeling.}

both of these methods work great. it’s really what you have time for. if you’re already preparing a breakfast full of pancakes & bacon, then the longer method doesn’t hold you up. but there are SO many mornings where i’m racing against the clock & the quick and easy method has come through in the clutch.

happy hardboiling!

hollywood sweethearts.

it’s no secret that i’m in love with everything about joanne woodward.

her style, grace, and classic elegance are genuine and unaffected. in addition to her iconic femininity, she’s light-hearted and carefree. can i be like that when i grow up?

the cherry on top — her seriously adorable relationship with leading man paul newman. couple for the win.

this trombone picture makes me melt.

Sexiness wears thin after a while and beauty fades, but to be married to a man who makes you laugh every day, ah, now that’s a real treat…

–Joanne Woodward

this quote and these photos made me weak in the knees.

pumpkin brews!

yestreday evening, while picking up dinner at whole foods the boy suggested we grab some “seasonal brews”.

by golly, this man knows me well. SEASONAL EXCITEMENT OVERLOAD ensued. i knocked over at least six patrons busting it to the microbrew ailse. yup, a whole dedicated aisle.

i grabbed Post Road’s Pumpkin Ale and the boy selected what can only be described as a perfect expression of his tomfollery, a beer called Pranqster. our selection took us at least 15 minutes since Whole Foods takes autumnal consumption very seriously. so. many. choices.

check out some of the contenders, which we’re sure to sample over the coming months:

{dogfish head pumpkin ale, samuel adam harvest pumpkin ale, schlafly pumpkin ale, sixpoint autumnation pumpkin beer, shipyard pumpkinhead ale}

feeling a little lost by the variety & recent take-over of your local microbrewery section by these seasonal specialties? esquire posted a highly educational review of the best & worst of the pumpkin brews available this fall.

do you have a favorite fall beer? i’d love to hear suggestions!

cheer up, tuesday.

tuesdays can be a drag.

here’s something to brighten up my least favorite of weekdays.

the boy recently pointed me to clark goolsby’s extremely fun & textual mixed media pieces. these are so precise and intricate that they almost look digital. don’t be fooled, it’s all done by hand. incredible!

goolsby paints the picture of a universe full of 24 hour dance parties, bright-colored everything, and rainbows.

i’d go there.