Slow Motion Goodness

Slow Motion Goodness

The bf and I often find ourselves reminiscing about our youth gone by.
Ok, obviously our youth has not completely passed us, but we really miss
that sweet, carefree feeling that comes with an insane amount of freedom
combined with a total lack of responsibility.
A.K.A. college.

So we try our best to catch every last fleeting moment of it.
By moving in slow-motion. By abandoning responsibility and stress, even if just for a day.
Today we spent a leisurely afternoon at the park.
Santa Barbara has some really great ones.
Eating cheese, munching on strawberries.
Watching people with their kids play catch. Tracking a Boston Terrier run back and forth after a bouncy blue ball.
You know, just kicking off our shoes and doing nothing

 

 

 

oh, and did I mention I bought a new painting a bit ago? I just love it :)

A Little Guide to Romantic Santa Barbara

A Little Guide to Romantic Santa Barbara

So recently I have been scouring the net looking for every single  "native" guide to Paris.
Obviously, I'm not a native. But I am also not an idiot.
I do not need to be told to see the Eiffel Tower. Believe me, it's on the list.
So I gather my strength, order an iced coffee (oh--sweet lattes, how I will miss you for the next few months, you are so pricey) and sit down with my old frenemy Google

This is my process when I plan a trip. I am obsessive, unruly, unconventional and utterly unstoppable.
But I normally find some pretty cool, off-the-beaten path things! (See Joshua Tree)

For all this work I do, I realized the other day that I suck. Why?
Because I have never shared with you, what I would do as a native in Santa Barbara! Jeesh I live in the American Riviera, what have I been doing?
Ms. Taj over @ Gorgeous Glam asked for some advice for an upcoming Valentine's retreat, so I decided to make a  "Little Guide to Romantic Santa Barbara"

1. Breakfast @ Renaud's
Could just be the upcoming Paris trip in me, but I would suggest a sweet breakfast at Renaud's Patisserie.
Located in an unassuming shopping center away from the tourist-trap of lower State St. Renaud's has some to-die-for pastries and yummy breakfast in a cute little corner spot with outdoor seating. The prices are fair (if I remember correctly around $12-15 for a full breakfast) and if you are a bibliophile like myself you can head over to Chaucer's Bookstore, which, according to my Google Mapping (used to provide you precise info) is a 1 minute walk from Renaud's!

2. A relaxing mid-morning @ Ellwood Butterfly Preserve
Ok, so the Butterfly Preserve it technically in Ellwood, not Santa Barbara, but if you can handle the 10 minute drive you could be in for a treat. Apparently the best time to catch butterflies is winter, so for V-Day you could be in luck. Ellwood is close to the resort Bacara, where many celebs like to stay, so you might catch a different kind of treat if you are into that!

If you are more a beach person head to Butterfly Beach in Montecito and spend your star-searching hours lounging on the beach.

3. Conquer the Urban Wine Trail
Santa Barbara has many opportunities to taste good wine,  and you don't even have to trek out to the vineyards. The heart of downtown has many options, which are listed on the Urban Wine Trail. If you are heading back from the beach, there are many great places within a few blocks of each other and walking or biking would be  fun. I particularly love Oreana  (Pinot Noir is super good) & Kalyra.
If you can drag yourself away from the heart of the urban wine trail, it's about a 5 minute drive to Jaffurs
If you like Syrah you MUST go there. It's a bit rough looking on the outside (just looks like a warehouse) but the wine is great & was even served at Obama's inauguration dinner. *Don't quote me on that, but I'm pretty sure I heard that*, besides winning many awards. This activity is very affordable. Tastings are normally around $10 per person to taste 3+ wines. You will spend a reasonable amount of time at each location, and can probably only fit in 2-3 stops before you are feeling loopy!

4.  Shop Shop Shop
After you've gotten your honey sufficiently buzzed so that he won't notice the amount of money hes spending on you, head over to State Street for some shopping. While there are a lot of chain shops (good ones too like Anthropologie & Urban Outfitters) there are also little treasures to be found only in SB. Check out Punch Interieurs where you can find anything from a vintage fur coat to amazing Hollywood Regency furniture pieces. Its like a treasure trove, with different sellers items located in different nooks of the store. So there's huge variety! Another favorite of mine is The Closet, a consignment shop that specializes in trendy, higher end items for young ladies. It is sweet & the prices are good.

5.  Wine & Dine @ Bouchon
Behind a  "Secret Garden"-esque entrance & outdoor patio lies the deliciousness of Bouchon. Be prepared, it is pricey. But with very good reason. We had a wonderful anniversary evening here a bit ago and wow--amazing. Get the escargot and a bottle of good wine and relax in this beautiful setting. 

 

6. Finish the night of with a bit of Blush & Burlesque 

For after-dinner fun, Santa Barbara has many options. The night scene is interesting here, with mostly a mixture of college bars, & high end lounges. But don't worry, there is hope.

I would stop by Blush for an after dinner drink on their patio with outdoor fireplaces, or their intimate indoor lounge. If you are of a more adventurous nature check out The Savoy with its burlesque shows & cirque du soleil type entertainment in a historic Santa Barbara building originating from the 1800's. Tickets seem to cost $15 for entertainment, and I'm sure you will want to buy drinks. But even that is a reasonable price! This is on my personal list of things to check out as I have never been before and it looks amazing!

Blush Lounge

Performer at the Savoy

 

That's it. After some indulging at The Savoy, it would definitely be time for this lady to get some sleep. Or not **wink, wink** if you know what I mean. And if you are looking for some fun products in that department check out the Santa Barbara Adult Store. Sorry, no linking here. This is a respectable blog!

Parisian Dreams

Parisian Dreams

I was drunkenly stumbling around the blogosphere the other day, when I discovered what I consider to be a buried treasure.

I was over at Oh, So Darling and I came across the Etsy shop Oxford is Heaven, described as custom Marie Antoinette shoes. I gasped. My own unique pair of Marie Antoinette inspired shoes? Well I need them to trek around Paris right?

Then I remembered that since this Paris trip was a last minute decision, and much savings was spent on just the plane & studio, I will be living on mere pennies a day until we leave. This is so I will save money to be able to spend, spend, spend there.

So downtrodden, I looked at the pricing. To my shock her designs range from $20-40!
But again, mere pennies here. So I will have to wait.
But you don't! Please go check her store out.
Or her Flickr, as since she does custom designs her store doesn't display all her beautiful work!
And if you love me, buy me something & ship it to Santa Barbara (mom, are you reading this?)

Little Girl, Shiny World in Paris!

Little Girl, Shiny World in Paris!

The cute French Toast guy is by artist Natalia Arungen!

 Bonjour!

A little free giveaway, another postcard.  I know.
You are like jeez Rachel stop giving me postcards. Who uses those anymore anyway huh?

Well this is a special free giveaway to announce some big news.
I. AM. GOING. TO PARIS!

Yep finally taking that big plunge. And the date is quickly approaching!

If you've been I would appreciate any advice on cool places to go.
I'm going to try hitting up all amazing food shops, markets etc etc etc.

I am staying in the cutest little studio overlooking a really lovely little square with trees.
Above a bakery.
Next door to a few restaurants.
Heaven

Anyway enough day dreaming. Just wanted to share, the news & the card that is!
Download Here

Oh & check out the artist who made the French Toast, he's so cute!

If You're Ever in Joshua Tree. . .

If You're Ever in Joshua Tree. . .

You should visit Hicksville Trailer Palace. A themed compound that can be rented out by groups, it is filled with kitschy themed trailers to sleep in, bb guns to shoot your eye out with, bbq's, hot tub, archery, outdoor showers, old soda/beer machines, ping-pong, darts, horseshoes, and just general super-fun-ness.

The BF took the big plunge of turning 25 and I wanted to plan something really special. So we took a group of 13 friends,  and trekked out to Joshua Tree to celebrate my man getting just a wee bit older.
It. Was. So. Fun!
We rented the whole place and just relaxed, drank beer, made tacos, and had a good time.

We ate breakfast at a little country kitchen and dinner at Pappy and Harriet's, a honky tonk bar with good food & good music.
We watched sunsets while soaking in the hot tub and took a look around Joshua Tree National Park.

It was so nice to see old friends and to celebrate a person whose life is worthy of celebrating!

The End As We Know It; A Yummy Beef Stifatho Recipe

The End As We Know It; A Yummy Beef Stifatho Recipe

Something I swore I would never happened. . . has happened.

I. Own. A. Crock pot.

I have cooked with said crock pot.
I liked it.

I know, I'm so embarrassed. I am so old.

Would it be less mortifying if I explained that the crock pot was a Christmas gift? Along with five or six cookbooks, some copper pans (yes, yes yes, totally compensates for the fact that I am a crock-potter now), an electric mixer, salad bowls & accessories, etc etc so on and so forth.

I basically have a completely restocked kitchen as of December 25th 2010.

So get ready for a whirlwind of recipes, food porn posts, and just general yummy goodness from Little Girl, Shiny World.  Blame the people in my life who think I'm a budding Julia Childs.

Ok no one thinks that. But whatever lol. For my first act of crock-pottery I made a Greek dish called Beef Stifatho for the bf's big 25th bday dinner.
Red wine, nutmeg, cinnamon, garlic, sugar.
Tell me that doesn't sound delicious.

Below is a variation of the recipe I used.  I threw everything together in the pot the night before & refrigerated it, then started the cooking the next morning before work. So easy, so good. The way it should be.

• 1 3/4-2 lbs beef top round steak, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 large onions, halved and cut into 8 thin wedges
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar  

Directions:

In a 3 1/2 quart slow cooker, toss the beef with the flour until evenly coated. Mix in the onions. In a small bowl, stir together the tomato paste, red wine, cumin, cinnamon, lemon juice, and water until well blended. Stir into the beef mixture in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat setting 6-7 hours or until meat is tender, but not falling apart. Stir in the sugar.