Stash Buster

by Liz

Last night, I FINALLY made the Sew Tessutti Favorite Top that I blogged about back in March. I don't know what took me so long, but it went really well and I think it came out great. In fact, I'm wearing it right now! I'm hoping to whip up a few more of these in different colors. I will probably wear it with leggings or skinny jeans. I think the reason I put it off was because sewing knits makes me kind of nervous. Vertical lines are fine, but the horizontal seams get a little wonky. I decided not to hem the bottom and neckline since the fabric just rolled on its own.



After feeling successful making this top, I decided its time I made some progress with my pattern and fabric stash - especially after seeing the "Frock by Friday" series over on Grosgrain. I have several patterns I'd really like to try, so this is the beginning of my "stash buster" project. Each week I will gradually work on one pattern to help build my summer wardrobe using fabric and patterns I already have.

Here are some of the patterns I am going to try:

McCall's 6084 Cardigan

McCall's 6083 Jumpsuit

Butterick 5357 Top

McCall's 5884 Blouse

Simplicity 3835 Top/Dress

Betsy Ross Raglan Sleeve Top

(Photos by McCall's, Butterick, Simplicity, and Betsy Ross)

The Art of Modern Rock

by Emi


Collecting silkscreened tour posters is one of my hobbies, it’s not quite as labor intensive or as time consuming as restoring beautiful furniture or sewing chic clothes and accessories like Natalie and Liz, but I'm a nerd about it. It all started in 8th grade when I got into Pearl Jam, my all time favorite band ever (this week I get the pleasure of seeing them 4 times! One night is on my birthday, best present!). Pearl jam commissions a unique tour poster for every show, they are all original designs, silkscreened, and are of a limited quantity. I got my first one 12 years ago for I believe $8. Over the years the price has gone up, but I think the quality has too. They now cost $30. The majority of Pearl Jam posters are designed by the awesome Ames Bros, a design duo based out of Seattle. On Tuesday I picked up a new one. It’s very cool.



The figure holding the guitar is Mike McCready, Pearl Jam’s lead guitarist. Definitely one of my new favorites. The colors and details every year get better and better.

On Saturday, I also got a new one this time featuring artist Justin Hampton. It’s very different from the other posters I have. Hampton has a unique style, kind of a more classic comic style. The poster itself is an homage to Norman Rockwell.

If you’re a fan of modern rock poster art then you probably already own The Art of Modern Rock, by Paul Grushkin and Dennis King. It is the bible of poster art. It’s an oversized coffee table book that features an encyclopedia’s worth of today’s prominent poster artists. The book is printed beautifully, and there are 1000s of posters in it. It’s one of those books you could look at every day and find something you never noticed before. I bought it off Amazon I think for around $50 and it is absolutely worth purchasing if you’re a fan like me.



Pearl Jam also has a poster book out called Pearl Jam Vs. Ames Bros. It’s a great companion book featuring all the posters over the years. It also features works by Brad Klausen who is a regular Pearl Jam poster artist.

There are a lot of poster artists that I am a fan of, and the poster art Mecca is Flatstock. Flatstock is an annual/bi annual convention of poster artists. It takes place at SXSW every year in Austin, and I believe at a traveling location as well. I went to SXSW in 2007, and completely geeked out at Flatstock. I came back with probably around ten posters from some of my favorite artists like Jay Ryan aka The Bird Machine, Diana Sudyka, Brian Ewing, etc… If you have a chance to check out Flatstock you have to. It has something for everyone’s tastes, and the artist themselves are there and selling limited printed posters, signed and numbered. The next one is at this year’s Pitchfork Festival in Chicago July 17-18th presented by the American Poster Institute. Check it out! You won’t be sorry.

The Final Countdown

By Natalie

In a mere five days, I will step off a plane, passport in hand, and find myself in Paris, France. It is my first trip abroad, so I've been devoting my days and nights to neglecting any blog-worthy projects in favor of googling Parisian things. Mostly Parisian food-related things. Wine, cheese, baquettes, croque monsieur, ratatouille, omelettes, you name it, I will likely eat it at some point next week! I might even try escargots...

Photo courtesy of Jonah Myer's blog, C'est pas tes Oignons

On second thought, I am not sure if that is going to happen. We shall see. At any rate, I certainly have an appointment with this lady when I get back. Thanks, cheese!

Ryan and I have opted to keep our schedule for our week in Paris rather light, so that we can wander aimlessly and stare up at the Eiffel Tower or stare down at the city from the steps of Sacre-Couer. However, I did want to share some of our planned events, so that you can get an idea of where we'll be and what we'll be eating, ahem, I mean...what we'll be doing.

• Dinner at La Petite Couer, a fancy-pants dinner to kick off the week!
• Day trip to Chateau Versailles to parade around like royalty. Do you think my tourist sneakers will give me away?
• Bike About Paris tour. 3 hours, bicycles, side streets of Paris? I'll take it!
• Possible day trip to London or Brittany. Thoughts anyone?
• And of course, did you really think Ryan and I would go on a trip without one of these? Wish us luck!

Au revoir, mon ami!

A Kitchen Worth Sharing

by Emily

I came across this kitchen on Apartment Therapy today, and couldn't help but feel the need to share. I'm very picky about countertops and backsplashes, but I really love how these selections play off of one another.

All photos courtesy of Apartment Therapy

Furniture Rehab

by Liz

I am so impressed with Natalie's new side table! It is always so inspiring to see what potential can be found in furniture that most people would just walk by. Whenever I'm looking for some eye candy, I head right on over to Knack Studios.

Here is a desk that they refinished that looks AMAZING. What an incredible before and after.

Here are a couple more of my favorites:


And one last before and after that I love...

If I ever find myself in Greenville, SC you can bet I'll be making an appointment to stop by the studio. In the meantime, I'll keep reading their blog.

(All photos courtesy of Knack Studio)

My Cambridge Satchel

by Emi

It would appear from my blog posts so far that my biggest European obsession is France. It's not, it's really England. I've been an Anglophile since middle school. In sixth grade I became obsessed with the Monty Python. I thought England was the holy land because 5 out of 6 Pythons were English. I told everyone I wanted to go to Oxford or Cambridge because that's where the Pythons went. I eventually grew out of my Monty Python mania, though don't get me wrong I still love them, but developed a greater appreciation for the country as a whole and English culture. There is something about the English that is timeless and classic to me. That's probably why I was drawn to the Cambridge Satchel. It's basically an English school bag. Sharp and handsome to carry my daily work life items in. I had been looking at it for months online trying to decide what color. Originally I wanted purple, but in the end decided that as cute as royal purple is. I don't know how long I'll want it for, so I went with vintage brown. With a bag as classic as this, getting it in brown I think will be a smart choice as it will age nicely.

I purchased the 15'' satchel on the website, and two weeks later it arrived from England. When I opened it I was pleasantly surprised to find it simply wrapped in brown paper and white string. It even had a little brown tag that said best wishes. I felt transported in time and place. I loved it so much I had to take a picture.

As you can see it's really a no frills bag. It's handmade in Great Britain, and it looks like what it is, a sturdy English school bag. It's smaller then my current Stussy tote bag that I've been carrying for years now, but I think that will be a good thing. My shoulder will thank me for it. If I had my choice of any bag, I would buy the Mulberry Alexa bag and the Proenza Schouler PS1 bag. Both of them are updated versions of this English school bag look, but because my budget won't currently allow for a $1,000-$2,000 handbag purchase this 78 GBP substitute will do just fine. If your interested in purchasing one, they come in a number of different colors and sizes. All very reasonably priced and good quality.

Krazy Glue is Krazy Kool!

By Natalie

The living room in my apartment is full of "favorites." Painted my favorite color and full of my favorite furniture, it is also the place where many of my favorite past-times take place. Often when we are lounging on the couch with delicious take-out, geeking out during Lost or the Office, or simply curling up with a good book and a glass of wine, I find my attention shifting to the Living Room itself. I love to gaze at the art we have on the walls, study the architectural detail of the decorative molding, and admire the placement of the furniture (I can't believe we actually got it right!).

However, there is one thing about the Living Room that has driven me nuts for over a year. We could not find the perfect side-table for the couch. Until now.

Yeah, yeah, I hear you. The table above is definitely gross and in need of some serious attention. Yes, that's a stain on the upper left corner, and oh, that seam along the top? Totally split into two. You can open the table into halves, kind of like a big, wooden mouth. However, I love the curves and shapes, as well as the second shelf along the bottom. I knew I could fix it up with a little elbow grease.

First up, a major scrub down with some warm water and Murphy's Oil (awesome stuff, guys). Next, I naturally had to leave the table in the middle of the kitchen floor for a week while I got my lazy act together. I came to terms with my unnatural fear of Krazy Glue, and fixed the broken seam on the top shelf. I am telling you, Krazy Glue is awesome. The table was as good as new in thirty seconds, and I managed to not glue my hands to my face. Nice.

We had some leftover paint from when we moved into the apartment, so I chose a nice, neutral yellow that we used for the dining room walls.

It didn't take long at all for the paint to dry, so I had two coats done in no time. The finished product came out great, and I am happy to say that I now have a new "favorite" table in my "favorite" room.

Boeuf and Bread.

by Emily

So I did just as I had promised...I made boeuf bourguignon. And it was spectacular. I used some sort of hybrid/modern-day recipe off of Oprah's website.

The results are as follows:


I added just a few roasted fingerling potatoes to the base, for a little extra heartiness, and it really paid off.

In other news, I tried my hand at baking, a la Natalie's bread recipe from a few weeks back. She is a wonderful baker, and her directions were stellar! There is nothing quite like fresh bread, with some leftover boeuf bourguignon. YUM!

Oh My

by Liz

Amy Butler is coming out with a wallpaper line! Really wish I wasn't renting an apartment right about now...

(Photo courtesy of Apartment Therapy)

Beautiful in Brooklyn

By Liz

Two really talented ladies just posted previews of their upcoming clothing lines.

The first designer is by Shabd Simon-Alexander. She hand dyes all of her fabric and the designs are inspired by photos from the Hubble telescope. Photos from her autumn and winter line started circulating earlier this week and I can't stop looking at them. Here are some of my favorites...

The next is Jenny Gordy of Wikstenmade. I'm a big fan of her blog and an even bigger fan of her designs. If I had to pick one line to be my summer wardrobe, this would be it. That blue top...amazing!!!

I wish I had the guts to pull of that lipstick!

Both women also teach classes at Lena Corwin's studio in Brooklyn. When I move back to New York, I can assure you that I will be the first to sign up. Definitely check out everything Lena has to offer.

(Photos by Shabd and Wikstenmade)

A Beautiful Blog

by Emi

This past week I found out about a blog called a` la mode* by Rick Poons. Designsponge featured a recipe and photographs by him of a chocolate and hazelnut baklava inspired by a recent trip to Turkey. Not only does the recipe sound awesomely delicious, but his photos are beautiful. Rick cooks, styles, and photographs everything himself, and they are truly beautiful to behold. I've read about half of his blog posts now, and he's great. Half of his blog is about recipes he's cooked and the other half is about traveling around and exploring the food of each city. His photography is really gorgeous. I have zero understanding of what it takes to take such beautiful photos and he inspires me to find out how. He has such a crisp style. I just really love it, so please check out Rick Poons' a` la mode* . He's is everything I wish I could be in a blog.

Turkish inspired baklava

Image from Turkey

Risotto with poached egg and bacon

Basil oil

All photo credited to Rick Poons

Green-Eyed Monster

By Natalie

Part of the deal of city-living is coping with backyard-envy. Some people have yards, most do not. Unfortunately, I fall into the have-not category.

With spring upon us, my desire for an outdoor space has flown into full-gear. So, I'd like to pay tribute to those lucky bastards who have a yard to call their own. Below are some of my favorite examples of backyard living, all of which can be found on one of my favorite websites, Apartment Therapy.

All photos courtesy of ApartmentTherapy.com.

Puerto Rico Pictures

by Emily

My boyfriend and I went to Puerto Rico back in February to escape the cold, unforgiving city for a week. We're both terrible at documenting trips with pictures, but here are just a few things that we saw while there. One of my goals in the future is to start taking more pictures, and really hone in on my photography skills...