The Green

Last minute plans always work out well especially when hanging out with Lydia and Megan.  We had some delicious pizza and you know, a few outfit photos at the green since the sun was still out.  After pizza, we did some window shopping (and maybe picked up a few little things) and some ice cream!

[I'm not sure if you know how much I love Modern Apizza.  A lot....ever since I had one of my birthdays there in high school.  We go way back.  I am excited anytime I have a chance to have some eggplant pizza, even though the parking in the area is just painful.  Just a little note: Adam Richman of Man vs. Food did a segment there when he aired a show about New Haven, and he tweeted back to me!]

shirt: zac & rachel / jeans: vigoss / watch: fossil / necklace: elizajaycharm

leather cuff: tjmaxx

studded heels: steve madden

bag: plato's closet

Photos courtesy of Lydia

Week In Pictures 52.0

1  Found this magazine with an owl cake on the cover!  Such a great idea for an event.  I will be making a mental note and hopefully I'll have a chance to recreate this.

2  Ordered new glasses from Firmoo, and I can't wait to get them!

3  Feeling very animalistic in this snake print shirt.

4  Snuggle time with furry Happy.  Definitely time for a haircut.  

5  Had some eggplant pizza at my favorite pizza place with some of my favorite bloggers.

6  Megan checking out the menu at a restaurant.  She approved.

7  I totally agree with this mug.

8  Steve Madden loafers that I saw at Nordstrom.  I will get a pair one day.

9  New dress weekend.  Just in time for a special occasion coming up.

How was your week?

Week In Pictures 51.0

1  The Boston Marathon poster from Union Jack Creative

2  Even though it has been a while, I ran for Boston.

3  Seems like it's been a while since I posted a photo of Happy.  

4  My friend ordered a hat from me, and this is what I made.

5  I've been in search for a leather bag.  This was a possible purchase, but after thinking about it 

and asking for opinions from a few people I left it at the store.

6  After an emotional week, I couldn't find myself to cook on Friday so pizza was the best option.

7  Went to Massachusetts for the weekend, or should I say 24 hours.  It was a great day for a road trip.

8  I love when my friends have as much fun planning for their children's birthday parties.

This party was a Pokemon theme.

9  I love Boston.  

How was your week?

Branching Out Centerpieces

I take every chance to get creative at work.  These budget friendly centerpieces were made for a Chamber of Commerce event.  They were made from some branches, paper rosettes, plaster of paris, some decorative swirly things from the craft store, and fake grass.  I must say that they were perfect for the event.  I am hoping that there will be another time I can make these because rolling all of the paper flowers were actually relaxing, really.  I love that each one is unique and not two of them came out the same.  The lovely power of nature and a little bit of paper and glue.  These would be great for a wedding, shower, or for the home.  

Do something crafty, do something for others, do something positive.
Have a great weekend!

Stop! Grommet Time!

I recently purchased grommet pliers and some eyelets because I wanted to make something.  Mind you, this is the first time I have ever used this fancy tool.  Then, I was searching for some deals in the clearance section at a store and found a place mat that had a leather/knit/herringbone look to it.  Then, the perfect project came to mind!  A clutch!  I can't seem to get away from making more bags.  At least hubby approves of this one.

Materials:
place mat preferably with two layers
grommet pliers
eyelets
magnetic buttons
marker
scissors
ruler
felt not pictured
hole punch not pictured
clip not pictured

I measured 7 inches for the bottom part of the clutch.

Marked half an inch from the edge and one inch apart for the holes.  The clip is to keep the place mat folded.

Punched the holes with the grommet tool.

Since the holes were too small for the grommets to go through, I found that using a hole punch also worked better.

Once one side is done, do the same for the other side of the clutch.

I also punched holes for the front flap, using the holes on the other side as markers.

Once the flap is closed, the grommets will match up.

Find the middle part of the flap and mark it with a pen.

I cut a slit between the two parts of the place mat and attached the flat part of the magnetic button.

I used some super duper glue to close up the slit.

I matched up the bigger button part with the flat part, marked it, and attached it on the body of the clutch.

I covered the metal parts that went through the clutch with a piece of felt to prevent it from scratching what I
will be putting inside.

I also made a brown clutch with gold grommets.

I'm pretty pleased with my place mat grommet clutch that I can't wait to make more!  

Boston

It's only been several days since the horrific explosions during the Boston Marathon happened and I am still in disbelief how something so tragic could happen during one of the most celebrated days in the city.  It's been a long time since I lived there, but it still holds a special place in my heart.  My thoughts and prayers goes out to those affected by the event and to the city and residents of Boston.

My friend Haley of The Zen of Making made this special badge to support Boston.

If you'd like to show you love you can get the badge here.

Beetle Derby Hat

It's that time of the year again.  My work had their yearly fundraising event last week.  There was a fake horse race, fake money, and fake bets...and derby hats.  I wasn't planning on making one at all this year because it was a very busy week.  At the very last minute (the day before) I decided to make this Volkswagon Beetle hat for someone who loves it so much that their office is has anything and everything Volkswagen.  

My hat was a crowd favorite again this year, and won the prize for best women's hat.

I'm not sure which one I like better; this year or last year's hat.

Week in Pictures 50.0

1  Love trying new and different things.  My husband found these Jeju Mandarin orange slices from Trader Joe's...he particularly wanted to try them since he's actually been to Jeju Island.  They were pretty good.

2  Another no sock week...kind of.  It got pretty chilly toward the end of the week, but I refuse to go back to wearing socks!

3  Ok, I usually like almost everything I find at Trader Joe's and this dried kimchi was definitely something I did not like at all.  

4  Since it was pretty warm mid-week, it was time to break out the sleeveless shirt.

5  Had dinner with the in-laws and my mother in law made some Korean food.  She turned me into a roasted seaweed addict.  I seriously love these.

6  My aunt is back, so Darling is now back home.  We'll miss that fluffy face.

7  Went thrifting after being on a thrift hiatus and found this red travel bag.  I couldn't seem to put this $7 bargain down.

8  Went to TJmaxx and saw these mustard colored beauties.

9  I'm hoping a bag of clementines will make my sinus issues go away!!

How was your week?

Six Hours of Traffic

You heard that right.  I was in six hours of traffic; three hours to and from NYC last week.  Six hours of crawling down the  highway, stop and go, and dodging crazy drivers.  It was worth it though since I had the chance to go to the Rachael Ray Show with my cousin.  With hopes of getting a great giveaway from the show, we practically ran to the studio a few minutes before they closed the doors.  We barely made it.  Then, we were there...waiting to get in with other audience members.  Unfortunately no photos were allowed at all once we were in the studio.

The "new" Rachael Ray Show studio is the former Martha Stewart Show studio.

The golden ticket.

The book given to the studio audience.

Photo from The Rachael Ray Show Facebook Page

Being part of a studio audience is hard work.  There's a lot of cues to follow: applaud enthusiastically,  oohs,  awwws, ahhhs, chuckle, and of course smile since we never know when the camera will be scanning the crowd.  Plus, seeing Dr. Ian Smith show how much sugar is in a lot of our favorite drinks was interesting.  Christina Krumsick was on and showed two different no bake desserts...and we were all given her newly published book as well!  Can't wait to try some of the sweet treats from the book.

Well, after the show and visiting my cousin's little ones, I drove back to Connecticut a little after rush hour began.  Yay me.  Three hours of traffic, "why did I drive today" and "I should've taken the train". Next time, I will probably listen to those who advise me to take Metro North.  

Week In Pictures 49.0

1  Hello Panda family size?  I don't think I've ever seen this ever since college.  I know a few people who would love a box of these goodies.

2  My new crafty tool that I had to get ASAP.  Can you guess what it is?

3  Finally the paper rosettes have been put to use!  Full details soon.

4  Yep!! Went to NYC for a few hours to go see The Rachael Ray Show!

5  Besides seeing Rachael Ray, I also visited my cousin and her family.  This little one just stole

my heart because she is so crafty - see how she loves glitter?

6  Happy had a visit to the vet because of a broken nail that they had to cut..... I will spare

the gruesome details but right now her paw is uneven with the rest of the fur on her body.  Poor girl.

7  No socks started and is staying for good I hope!!  

8  My grommet craft....post to come soon.

9  Was out and about and saw this owl mug.  Since I already have two I have to refrain from buying any more, right?

How was your week?

Opa!

Last week I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a Yelp International Supper Club event held at Cavos Tavern and Pizzeria.  It was such a great time had by all who attended.  All of the Yelpers who dined had a great time chatting and tasting each and every morsel that was brought out by the wonderful and courteous waitstaff and made fresh by the owner.   Everything was served family style, and the amount of food that came out was definitely more than enough to serve a whole village.


The Greek feast started off with a choice of house wines and an array of the mezedes/appetizers.
There were yummy dips (tzatziki, hommos, skordalia, and tyrokafteri) for the fresh warm pita and garlic bread.

The flaky spanikopita was served with creamy tzatziki sauce.


Fried calamari with tomato sauce.

Dolmathes or stuffed grape leaves homemade and never ever from a can!


Shrimp Santorini: broiled shrimp with lots of garlic and tomatoes, sprinkled with Feta cheese.


Delightfullly, crispy fried zucchini.


Grilled octopus perfection.


Mixed grill plate: pork souvlaki, chicken souvlaki, gyro, and horiatiko sausage.
Each and every bite was delicious.


Lamb Youvetsi: roasted lamb with tomatoes.
Not much of a lamb eater, but I had to try this one.  It was fall-off-the-bone good, and
tasted like delicious pot roast!


Rice and more fresh warm pita bread (not pictured) were brought out to the diners to eat with the dishes.


Saved room for dessert: Galaktoboureko (Greek custard pie) and Baklava (not pictured)
were perfect for the end of the meal.

Well that was not exactly the end of the meal since the owner let us try some ouzo, which is a Greek liquor that has a smooth anise taste.  He was truly passionate about the food that he makes which showed on the many plates on the table.  Each one delicious one after the other.  Emily C. our hostess with the mostest who organized the dinner did such a great job picking the restaurant, and I look forward to the next International Supper Club meeting.  Are you an adventurous eater?  Do you like to try different kinds of foods?