Napa Style

Napa Style

So did you know, that I am officially an independent fashion blogger?

I know shocking.

Not many of my posts are specifically about fashion, but I think a lot deal with style.

So I suppose it's deserved. lol

Anyway I thought in order to properly maintain my title

I should do a little post about some outfits that I wore

this time the phtoshoots were taken 

in Napa.

By a reluctant bf of an awkward little blogger. lol I try.

 I did suggest a mani/pedi to all traveling ladies.

The color I'm wearing is called "Tickle Me French-y" It just charmed itself off the shelf and onto my nails.  On the drive up I wore a floral skirt & tank with ankle boots.

I needed the ultimate comfort to survive such a long drive.

On our casual wine tasting day, I wore a white blazer with my Forever 21 tank and shorts.

and finally for the Wine Train adventure I wore a sheer white dress with knitted details

and a navy blue blazer.

Add red lipstick & wedges (no falling allowed)

and I felt like a Betty indeed.

Hope you enjoyed my little (& first) outfit post!

I actually do love fashion a lot more then I let on. . .

The Reason I am a Creepy Wedding Blog Stalker

The Reason I am a Creepy Wedding Blog Stalker

Is because I'm engaged! Just kidding. Oh that was a bad one. See what I mean. Creepy Wedding Blog Stalker here, and apparently the creepiness is spreading into the realm of inappropriate and uncomfortable jokes. Hehe hopefully my mom doesn't read this and call me up "why didn't you teeell mee, I'm your moootherr". Yes, I know you are my mother. And if I were ever to have amnesia, the one fact I would remember is that you are my mother, because I am sure you wouldn't allow me to forget that. You would conquer amnesia.

Anyway nope not engaged and if we could keep my creepy jokes just between us, I don't want to scare the bf. lol. I love blog stalking wedding sites because they provide a wealth of entertaining & hostessing ideas, projects, downloads etc. Somehow people just feel like being really generous around weddings. Apparently being single means you don't deserve excessive amounts of freebies. Well I say boo. Did I say boo? I meant to say F-that.

So in my bitter browsing, while grinding my teeth at all the downloads that are personalized & uneditable & say "You're invited to my awesome --insert ridiculous theme here-- wedding" I sometimes come across downloads that can be used for just general good times. Even better sometimes they are left open enough for you to insert your own info!

And so I apologize to the download gods for my lack of faith. Then I share my finds with you on this blog.

Today it is some goodies for having a wine & cheese party (which is what I think heaven may be, but I'm not sure)

So please check these out & put them to use. I know I will if I can wrangle together some of my classier friends . . .

Head over HERE, to the Wedding Style Guide to download the invites, notecards, & labels. . .

Daydream, I Fell Asleep Amid the Flowers

Daydream, I Fell Asleep Amid the Flowers

It's yet another summer day in Santa Barbara, which means a dense fog is rolling along the terracotta rooftops & it is nearly impossible to drag your bones out of bed. Especially when you find a warm body next to you that says "skip work today". 

While your body must refuse this request, it lingers. Your mind rebels and you come to find that it has in fact, decided to skip work. 

And so you daydream.

Of soft whites

of different times

of sweet sparkles

and of course

of true romance!

Thank you Little Blue Deer

This is Glamorous

and Dustjacket Attic

for indulging my daydreams.

Funnel Cakes & Fun Times

Funnel Cakes & Fun Times

This weekend was my one and only nephew's first birthday!

Ok, just a secret FYI, he's not my real nephew lol

He is my best friends son and I was lucky enough to adopt the moniker of Auntie Rachel.

I take this title very seriously.

So I decided that for the awesome Carnival themed birthday his super creative mama planned for him

I had to contribute in the only way I really know how

by cooking!

So I scrounged around and dug up a delicious recipe for Classic Funnel Cake

the kind a young boy could enjoy at any local carnival. 

I also tried out a recipe I've been hanging on to for Cherry Compote to be used as a tasty fruit topping.

So yummy.

I enjoyed a trial run of the recipes myself on Thursday.

Before sharing the goodness again on Saturday
This is a great recipe for a special occasion.
And super easy as well.
Just be careful, its addictive and I'm pretty sure
it's not too good for you. . .

Classic Funnel Cake 

by Food Network

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 cup milk, plus more if needed
• Canola oil, for frying
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Whipped cream and/or fruit sauce, for serving (optional)

Directions

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk the egg with the granulated sugar until pale. Whisk the milk into the egg mixture, then gently fold into the flour mixture. It should be a bit thicker than pancake batter but thin enough to pour. Add up to 3 tablespoons milk to loosen the batter, if needed.

Heat about 2 inches of canola oil in a large high-sided skillet or pot over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 375. Meanwhile, mix the confectioners' sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Hold a funnel in one hand with your finger plugging the hole at the bottom. Pour 1 cup batter into the funnel. Hold the funnel over the hot oil and remove your finger from the hole, letting the batter drop in a spiral pattern all over the surface of the oil. It will look like lots of individual pieces at first, but as you continue to add batter, the pieces will fuse together. Cook until the batter floats and the underside is golden brown, about 30 seconds. Flip with tongs and cook until golden brown on the other side, about 30 more seconds. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate and repeat to make 5 more funnel cakes. Dust with the cinnamon-sugar and serve with whipped cream and/or fruit sauce, if desired

Cherry Compote

by Yumsugar

Ingredients
1 pound halved and pitted fresh sweet cherries (4 cups)
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Coarse salt and ground pepper
Directions

1. In a small saucepan, combine cherries, sugar, fresh rosemary, and 1 tablespoon water.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until cherries are nice and tender and liquid is slightly thickened, 12 to 15 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and stir in vinegar; season lightly with salt and pepper. Let stand at room temperature until cool. Serve or store.

A Little Tidbit + Reading List Below!

A Little Tidbit + Reading List Below!

K, just had to post something awesome. It's funny how you put things out there on the net & forget about them and sometimes they just find their way back to you!

I posted a DIY Wine Shelf on this here bloggy quite a bit ago, and also shared it on Casasugar in one of the groups. They liked it enough to post it on their main page at the time, and not it has made it's way into a new little post called "How to decorate with wine crates"

Unexpected and fun! 

Check it out. Don't forget to check the first book of the reading list posted below if you'd like to participate!

hey, it's my kitchen!

The product of my DIY work.

A Little Summer Reading List, Book One

A Little Summer Reading List, Book One

So if you read my blog on an anywhere-near-regular basis you know that I have grand ideas that many times may or may not come to fruition 

I blame this on  my mom.

I don't know how yet, but I know it's.her fault. She probably didn't feed me enough leafy greens or something.

Damn that woman. lol I kid, I kid. Obviously she did something right because here I am living and breathing.

Ok back to the point ( sorry it's Friday or as I call it "Everyone has ADD Day"), I had a little project in mind that you probably thought I had forgotten, given-up on, danced-around or burned at the stake with all my other failed projects.

If you thought that, you were wrong!

In the time you spent eating your daily meals, getting your nails did, and thinking I was a flake, I have been scouring the earth for a good read or two.

I'm sorry that's a lie. Do you want to know how I found the first book in the Little Girls Summer Reading List?

I will tell you my secret if you promise not to think less of me.

I found the book that you (some of you) agreed to join me in reading, on one of my favorite celebrity gossip sites.

I know, how embarrassing!

Anyways I was reading somewhere that HBO was coming up with a new series based of yet another book. Now since I am a fan of almost all things HBO I thought, great I can finally get a chance to read the inspiration before they produce the show!

And if any of you watch True Blood you know that HBO series can be full of cheese & great subject matter for a lite summer read. 

So my first book that I will be reading and you will be pretending to read following along with, is 

The Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death

"With a style that is razor sharp, an eye that never shies from the gritty details, and a taste for stories that simultaneously shock, disturb, and entertain, Charlie Huston is one of a kind. And The Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death is the type of story–swift, twisted, hilarious, somehow hopeful–that only he could dream up.

The fact is, whether it’s a dog hit by a train or an old lady who had a heart attack on the can, someone has to clean up the nasty mess. And that someone is Webster Fillmore Goodhue, who just may be the least likely person in Los Angeles County to hold down such a gig. With his teaching career derailed by tragedy, Web hasn’t done much for the last year except some heavy slacking. But when his only friend in the world lets him know that his freeloading days are over, and he tires of taking cash from his spaced-out mom and refuses to take any more from his embittered father, Web joins Clean Team–and soon finds himself sponging a Malibu suicide’s brains from a bathroom mirror, and flirting with the man’s bereaved and beautiful daughter"

Read the entire synopsis here

So ladies, it's your challenge if you are willing to accept it. lol. It sounds a bit outrageous and macabre, but that's my fancy. Did any of you like Six Feet Under? I read somewhere that Charlie Huston uses black humor & I said to myself, sign me up! I love postmodernist absurdity. I'm hoping this will read something like a John Irving novel but it may be wishful thinking. Oops don't want to give too much away because book number two might be a John Irving classic. ..

P.S. I am only sharing one book at a time because I'm coming up with them as I go along lol.

So is life.

I will have the participants posted on my sidebar ASAP since the reading list is officially starting!