looklet.com = sooooo cool (and lots of "where did the time go?")

looklet.com is a website created by ollie hemmendorff (from yesterday's post) in which you can create "looks" with different models, clothes, and backgrounds. it's super super super cool. so far i've only made two "looks," and i haven't tried to be creative. it's mostly stuff i would wear myself on a daily basis, but there are an infinite amount of things you can do with it!

here are my two looks so far



these are looks from other users

from nirvana

from fitrisaras

so cool, huh?!?!?

register and share with us your looks!

memorial day wonderfulness!

memorial day weekend is upon us which means the summer foods are here and we're happy about it!

i get better homes and gardens updates (because while i won't fork out the $10 or something a year for the magazine, i WILL sign up for their free newsletters!), and the latest one was 84 all-american recipes! now, i don't think of myself as a dessert person. i almost never get dessert in a restaurant (sometimes i'm just so disappointed...) but the desserts on this email were to-die-for! something i really enjoy is richness. i'm not a huge fan of crust on things, and
bread (kind of at all...) because i feel like it's a filler. i don't want bread with my soup--i want to taste SOUP. so, i was fanTASTically excited about the first picture--a black raspberry cream pie! it just looks like pure rich, divine, taste! click here for more recipes, decorating ideas, etc.

don't forget the cook-out! i'm not a veg-anything, but i try to get as many veggies in my little one, so i LOVED the idea of these black bean burgers! combined with unfried tomatoes, what more could we ask for!? (both recipes via svelte gourmet)

Black Bean Burgers
Serves 4-6

2 cans black beans (14.5 ounces each), drained and rinsed
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (using whole wheat earns you bonus points!) 1/2 cup wheat bran
2 eggs

That's it! Roughly mash the beans with the back of a fork or potato masher, incorporate the rest of the ingredients and the flavorings of your choice! Grill over medium heat for about 20 minutes, flipping halfway through and misting with olive oil or butter spray so they don't dry out or burn.

Unfried Green Tomatoes
Serves 4

2 large green tomatoes
1 egg
1 cup Parmesan cheese (shredded, NOT grated)
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Pinch cayenne pepper
Olive oil or cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mist a baking sheet with olive oil or cooking spray. Slice tomatoes between 1/8 and 1/4 inch thick. Beat egg. Combine Parmesan cheese, panko and spices. Dip each tomato slice in the egg, then into the breading mixture, pressing to coat both sides. Place breaded slices in a single layer on the baking sheet. Mist tops with olive oil or cooking spray and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. No need to flip them.

don't forget your patriotic attire!

via anthro (of course...)

happy memorial day!

food in fashion

from sarajevo designer belma arnautović via chichi

i know--i just want a pair so people will ask what's going on with my shoes!

 swedish designer/illustrator ollie hemmendorff

who was commissioned by nike to interpret their sneakers

found at bp fashion board

should food and fashion be combined?

SIlhouette Tutorial

I wrote this for a girl in the blogging community but it didn't make it, so I'm sharing it with you! (click on picture to view in its entirety and full size)

Silhouettes are such a great way to put a personal touch on absolutely anything (pillows, mugs, baby announcements, t-shirts, necklaces, etc...), so here's a tutorial on how to make a silhouette digitally with Photoshop so you can make all those things yourself! (You can do it in other photo editing software such as Picnik or Picasa--just follow the same instructions.)

First take a picture of whoever it is you want the silhouette of (here's my boy in the bathtub...). Make sure the background contrasts the skin color.

You need to have the picture black and white, so put the image in Grayscale. Image>Mode>Grayscale



You then increase the contrast (put it to maximum contrast) in order to get a crisp outline of the person. You'll need to repeat this step a few times in order to get the person to be absolutely black. Image>Adjustments>Brightness/Contrast





You then need to click the Quick Selection Tool (looks like a magic wand on the left) so you can delete the background. You just hold down the mouse over the areas you want to delete and it'll select the areas that are similar (with a dotted line). Then click Delete. If you think you're going to delete the whole part, never fear, Ctrl-Z or Alt-Ctrl-Z will save you!





You could stop there and show the whole body, or you could edit it into the standard silhouette bottom.



Voila! Here is your silhouette to print onto transfer paper to put on a t-shirt or cut out and use as a template for anything!

i made these...(kind of...)

it would be my dream to run a b&b that had an entire book theme. i love, love, love, love books. i saw these images and idea at down and out chic who found them on forever is today, and decided to make them for a few friends for their birthday. i'm really bad at birthdays--i love birthdays...it doesn't make any sense that i'm bad at them. have the best intentions but that doesn't get anyone anywhere, and it's no excuse.

i went to a used bookstore and was looking for pretty books (like in the picture) that i could make into a clock (with a clock kit i got at michael's) but they were so expensive! instead i got less-pretty looking books and will hopefully make them look great.

i'll post pictures when i finish them!

recipe for the weekend!

fun food is great for the weekend--here's some mediterranean food!

hummus

1 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans
1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas
3-5 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on taste)
1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt

puree all together, and enjoy!

roasted red peppers
preheat oven to 400 degrees F
slice peppers
put aluminum foil on cookie sheet
put peppers and some oil (olive or canola or veggie--it doesn' t matter) on the cookies sheet
cook for 15 minutes, flip or stir around
cook for another 15 minutes until really soft

pita bread
cut into 6 pieces (i use kitchen scissors)
throw on cookie sheet while cooking roasted red peppers until crisp (10-20 minutes?)

enjoy!

3 things from tonight's google reader

i died.



team coco


if you're worried about square footage, this is the answer.



all found on swissmiss

um, are you obsessed with winco?

i had never been.

my man said i'd love it, and that i didn't have any idea what was in store for me.



he was absolutely right.




winco is divine...wait.

word: divine
definition: sanctified
synonyms: adored, among the angels, beautified, blessed, consecrated, enthroned, exalted, glorified, hallowed, holy, inviolable, redeemed, revered, rewarded, sacred, sacrosanct, saved, unprofane.

yep. all of those things.


winco has bulk candy. this is not the best section of the bulk. they have bulk quinoa, whole flax, stone cut oats, soy protein powder, brownie mix, and the list goes ON AND ON AND ON. everything is 10,000x cheaper than in all other stores, which means i got to buy 4 mangos, 2 butternut squashes (squash? squashes?), 3 lbs of yams, 1 jicama (did NOT think i'd find that one...), and SO MANY OTHER THINGS!

they also have a bakery section. this means that their wheat bread had 6 ingredients, and none of them included enriched whole wheat flour (i HATE trixy advertising...this means white flour). they also had black bread which we almost bought, but didn't. next time.

we spent $91 and we might not need to go to the store for 3 weeks (this is not an exaggeration). which cuts our grocery bill almost in half.

i heart winco.

milton glaser - 10 things i have learned

i found this website through the blue hour that has beautiful photographs. it's on milton glaser's 10 things i have learned - the secret of art. you can find all 10 here, but i really liked #7.

7
HOW YOU LIVE CHANGES YOUR BRAIN.
The brain is the most responsive organ of the body. Actually it is the organ that is most susceptible to change and regeneration of all the organs in the body. I have a friend named Gerald Edelman who was a great scholar of brain studies and he says that the analogy of the brain to a computer is pathetic. The brain is actually more like an overgrown garden that is constantly growing and throwing off seeds, regenerating and so on. And he believes that the brain is susceptible, in a way that we are not fully conscious of, to almost every experience of our life and every encounter we have. I was fascinated by a story in a newspaper a few years ago about the search for perfect pitch. A group of scientists decided that they were going to find out why certain people have perfect pitch. You know certain people hear a note precisely and are able to replicate it at exactly the right pitch. Some people have relevant pitch; perfect pitch is rare even among musicians. The scientists discovered – I don’t know how - that among people with perfect pitch the brain was different. Certain lobes of the brain had undergone some change or deformation that was always present with those who had perfect pitch. This was interesting enough in itself. But then they discovered something even more fascinating. If you took a bunch of kids and taught them to play the violin at the age of 4 or 5 after a couple of years some of them developed perfect pitch, and in all of those cases their brain structure had changed. Well what could that mean for the rest of us? We tend to believe that the mind affects the body and the body affects the mind, although we do not generally believe that everything we do affects the brain. I am convinced that if someone was to yell at me from across the street my brain could be affected and my life might changed. That is why your mother always said, ‘Don’t hang out with those bad kids.’ Mama was right. Thought changes our life and our behaviour. I also believe that drawing works in the same way. I am a great advocate of drawing, not in order to become an illustrator, but because I believe drawing changes the brain in the same way as the search to create the right note changes the brain of a violinist. Drawing also makes you attentive. It makes you pay attention to what you are looking at, which is not so easy.

running out the door

i'm about the run out the door, so here are couple quick things to enjoy!

land of punctutation.

there's a lot of swearing, but here's a really funny writing assignment...

so cute.

jealousy is oozing out of me...

happy friday!

inspired for pesto...

sometimes i feel like 70% of my day is spent figuring out what my little one's going to eat and how to get 5 fruits, 5 veggies, only whole grains, and enough protein in his system without giving him an ounce of milk. sometimes sister-in-laws are just the answer. she made spinach pesto for her family, and even though i couldn't use her recipe (which incidentally came from one of my friends!) it inspired me to make some of my own! i used pasta that has veggies in them (i don't know if it's even enough to count--i might have been suckered...), and started with this recipe but tweaked it. i used peanuts because we have an all-but-peanuts nut allergy living in the house. something i appreciated is that there is no cheese in it. i also deleted the chilis and amchoor powder...i didn't want to experiment today.

spinach pesto pasta
serves 3-4 (...or 1)

ingredients
3 cups frozen spinach
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
~1/3 cup olive oil
4 tbsp peanuts (smash them up beforehand)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp dried basil
freshly ground black pepper

pasta for 3-4

directions

1. throw it all in your blender or food processor until it's to the consistency you want it.
2. boil pasta
3. put pesto in microwave for 2 minutes (i had to microwave it because i used frozen spinach)
4. combine
5. experience divinity in a bowl.
   

my little one was licking the pesto off the spatula--i couldn't have been more happy at that moment...i think i got all his veggies in for the day.

maybe we'll get lucky with fruit tomorrow (i tried a smoothie this morning...no go. i've gotta get more yummy fruit and see if he goes for that).

eat pray love...yourself

i really enjoyed eat pray love (which i'm really excited to see as a movie with julia roberts), and the woman who wrote that book wrote an article (i found it on the elements of style blog) on how we as women need to lighten up and appreciate the wonderfulness of all that we do, even if we don't feel that we do that much. the only thing i don't really like about it is that all the women she refers to DO have big careers and big accomplishments, so i don't really feel like it helps those of us who DON'T feel any better, but other than that, i really like the article. enjoy!

continue...

irish music

i have a secret spot in my heart for irish music. it doesn't matter if it's fast or slow (i have a bigger spot for the slow kind...), i love them both. i don't watch brothers and sisters, but someone else in my house does, so i was sucked in for a few minutes while listening to this man's beautiful voice sing the parting glass.



i might not have a loyalty to irish music though, because loch lomond is a scottish song and my love for that song is located in the same place as the parting glass.

sooo cute fabric dolls

there's a blog that i follow (i know...another blog i follow. i get like, 100 feeds a day...it's tough to keep up with them) called made by joel. i've stopped bookmarking individual posts of his in my "kids" bookmark tab because every single thing could be bookmarked, so anytime i need ideas for what to do with my little one, i have a tendency to scan his site.

this post on vintage fabric dolls is to DIE for. i like how simple the concept is, and how really, dolls can be any shape and size--it's whether your child loves it is what matters. i haven't made these yet, but i certainly plan to!

i want you back

i cannot listen to this enough times. i don't think i've ever gotten sick of this song, even though it was on a mix cd that i listened to at LEAST 500 times, and while this isn't by the genius, original performers, i still love love love love love love it. you'd think i was in a crowd of dancing people by the way i've been freely dancing around the room on this thursday evening at 11:03 pm.



hope it puts you in good spirits for the weekend!

i know i wouldn't wear them....

i have over and over bought heels--i desire to be someone who wears heels on a regular basis...it just isn't happening. i bought a pair of boots with a 2" heel--thank heavens i could take them back because while i loved every second of wearing them, i just couldn't get over how awkward i felt wearing them. i just can't do it. this doesn't halt the fact that i luuuuuuuurve them...

therefore, without further adieu, presenting:

found at april in paris

and while we're in the subject of animal prints...what about these?

found at polyvore

oh yeah...and again with the animal prints but not as glamorous...

found at wellie-boots

but again with the first ones....oh how they take my breath away...

i may have found the solution...

it's $25...it might just be worth it. i'm going to see if fry's has something like this i could get. i can't really find anything on their website, but i'll ask someone when i get there.

this does not have to do with electronics, but thanks to a wonderful, fellow, thai loving, friend, i have been introduced to this recipe called chicken curry in a hurry (which can be found here). it looks great, even though i haven't tried it yet--but it WILL happen soon!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (optional)
• 1 rotisserie chicken
• 2 cups cooked white rice (optional)
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes. Sprinkle with the curry powder and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
2. Add the yogurt and cream and simmer gently for 3 minutes. Stir in the salt, pepper, and tomatoes (if using). Remove from heat.
3. Slice or shred the chicken, discarding the skin and bones. Divide the rice (if using) and chicken among individual bowls, spoon the sauce over the top, and sprinkle with the cilantro.