Just a reminder...

Foodie: Gourmet Grilled Cheese

I love a good grilled cheese sandwich.  Love it.  If I want a not-so-healthy sandwich, then I fry one of these babies right up.  Lately, there has been a food-truck renaissance in Hamilton and one of the most popular is the Gorilla Cheese truck.  I have never had one of their sandwiches.  I don't wait in line for hours for foods.  I've never done it.  Especially when I'm a capable cook myself. 

ANYWAYS, we walked by this truck, and I wanted a grilled cheese.  But there was like an hour wait.  So I said, "No thanks," and went home to make one of these babies.

I did not make up this recipe.  The idea comes from a great blog called Closet Cooking, which is about cooking in small kitchens.  I have a tiny kitchen, so I like that this guy can make the most amazing food with the basic kitchen set up. 

I did adjust the recipe.  The original recipe takes a while, and well, I wanted my grilled cheese NOW.  So, I changed some of the ingredients, and this sandwich still turned out awesome.  D says its like his favorite grilled cheese.  And because he is such a connoisseur of all things grilled cheese, I take his praise to mean that this is a pretty great sammie.

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich 
(Adapted from Closet Cooking)

Ingredients:
2 slices of bread (I used French bread for the sandwich pictured)
1-2 tablespoons butter, room temperature (or spreadable margarine)
2-3 tablespoons of spreadable cream cheese
1/2 cup or less of shredded sharp cheddar and Monterrey jack cheese
8-12 slices of pickled jalapeno peppers, drained and chopped.

Directions:
Butter the bread, put buttered sides of the bread together to assemble your sandwich. 

Spread cream cheese, sprinkle with peppers and cheddar and jack cheeses.

Grill in a dry frying pan until outsides are nicely toasted and insides are melted.

We eat these with some guacamole and tortilla chips.

The Versatile Blogger Award: Thank you!

I'm so thankful that SimplyyMarya over at Ponder Wonders has nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award.  It is so nice to be thought of, in the big, wide internet by some lovely bloggers.  It makes me feel all fuzzy inside.  Truly.  Especially when you know that blogger is busy with a cross-country move.  Thank you, Mayra!

Okay,  here are the rules for accepting the award: 

Rules for The Versatile Blogger Award:  

(I broke some of the rules.  What can I say?  I'm a born revolutionary.)

1. Thank the Blogger who nominated you. (Of course!)
2. Include a link to their site. 
3. Include the award image in your post. 
4. Give 7 random facts about yourself. (The random-er the better, I hope)
5. Nominate 15 other Bloggers for the award. (Um, how about 8?)
6. When nominating, include a link to their site.
7. Let other Bloggers know they have been nominated.

Seven Random Facts about myself:

•  My love of DIY stems from the fact that I am incredibly cheap.  Incredibly cheap.
• I have a deep-seeded love for the cities of New Orleans and Las Vegas.
• I prefer the sun to the rain.
• I love jazz music.
• I hate cats. 
• I play the ukulele.  My favorite thing to play: Coldplay songs.
• I like grocery shopping.  A lot.

The nominees are:

Lesley Jean at Yesiree Petunia- Oh I wish here cute little store would come to Canada.  For now, I just lust after the things in her etsy store, and read about her fabulous life.  I think if we lived a little closer together, we would be really good friends, we have that much in common.  For realskies.

Jes at The Militant Baker- This lady is it.  I stalk her blog everyday for inspiration, and to read her thoughts.  I have considered flying down to meet her and have a serious feminista chat with her; that's how much I dig her. 

Steph at Stephanie Alena- Jealous of her beach-side, creative life style.  Love her artwork, her cute doggie and her thoughts. 

Panda at Lampas and Llamas- This bloggers going to be my new thrifting friend, I can feel it.  She has a keen style, and she's a fellow Canadian blogger! Holla!

Kim at Fox You (Very Much)- Funny lady, super supportive blog buddy, who has a blog with tons (!) of concert and book reviews.  She likes Nickleback, which I won't hold against her (joke). 

Velouria at Definitely Maybe-  A very fashionable blogger with impeccable taste.   I love lusting over her shopping finds.  Also,  I appreciate that she doesn't have too many pictures of her cat on her blog. 

C.L. at Curvy Lady- New to my blog roll; I'm sad I hadn't discovered her blog sooner.  I love the recipes she posts;  I love island food.

Sierra at C'mon Fatso- Such good writing.  My favorite post (so far) is here.

Happy Saturday, peoples!

I scream, you scream...

I don't have to finish that rhyme do I?

It has been hot here, y'all.  I mean Alabama hot, in the high 30s (that's over 100 for you Fahrenheit people) and that is entirely too hot for Canada.  So what do we do on hot evenings?  We go and eat ice cream!  Now, I am sure that ice cream doesn't cool you down any, that's what driving in the air conditioned car does.  But it tastes really good.  And we are lucky to have one of the best dairy bars not too far from where we live.

I'm lactose intolerant, so an ice cream trip is a pretty special occasion.  I usually have to take 4 Lactaid capsules before I have some ice cream.  I threw caution to the wind, and ate this ice cream without a net.  And I was fine!  My body worked with me for once!

I love that every year there is usually a new ice cream flavor.  I like to try the new ones, cause I'm courageous like that.  So I tried the Boston Cream Donut.  It includes one of my favorite things- donuts!  A Boston Cream Donut is like a mini Boston Cream Pie in your hand. 

I got the small.  I know, right?  And this was after I already ate some.  It was so good.  There were little pieces of cake, and ribbons of chocolate and cream through the ice cream.  The vanilla ice cream was a little sweeter than regular vanilla.  I made a great choice with this one.

 
D likes to mix his flavors, he is not as much of an ice cream purist as I am. So, he got 2 scoops, chocolate peanut butter and mocha almond fudge.  He said the best part was when he was eating both flavors together.  Weirdo. 

M got a dipped cone, and it was a little messy.  This is to be expected with a chocolate layer holding in all that ice cream.  It looked yummy.  But as he was eating it, M was losing his mind!  He hates a mess, and this was making one.  After he washed his hands, so said he still felt sticky.  He's a little crazy about the hygiene, which is a good thing to be I guess.

What else I like about Stoney Creek Dairy is its pretty much the same as it was in the 1960s.  Inside they great old pictures of the place in the 50s and 60s, and not much has changed save the lighting and electronics.

You know what is better than getting ice cream?  Getting a dose of nostalgia and ice cream.

Love it or Leave it: May First

So I want to try something new to curb the amount of spending I do at the thrift stores.  I don't spend that much (any more) but I always have this insane need to pick up everything I want.  Then I agonize over whether or not to get it.  So I take pictures of the things I love.

I thought it would be fun blog about if I loved it enough to buy it, or left it where it was.  So here we go!

A painting of a side-show starring "Nellie the Dog Child."  Weird.  Funny.  And in a cute blue frame.
Did I buy it? No, I had to let this one go.  It was great and I love it, but I didn't really have anywhere for it.

The sweetest red polka dot tin cups.  They are cute, and unbreakable; which a klutz like me values in dishes.
Did I buy it?: No, the owner of the stall wasn't there, so I couldn't haggle.  And I didn't want to pay 20 bucks for them.

:
Um, the cutest sugar bowl and creamer I've ever seen.  Looka them squirrels!  And the acorns!  And they say Canada!
Did I buy them?: Ah! No! But I should have.  I am deeply regretting not picking these up.  I may have to go back tomorrow and see if they are still there...

Isn't this the most perfect kitchen table you have ever seen?  I love the punchy yellow chairs, and the table!  It was in pretty good shape too.
Did I buy it?: Nope.  Too expensive.  I love it, but it was 300 bucks.  And the guy would go down in the price either.  I'm sad that I won't be able to eat my cereal at it in the mornings.   But it is better to have loved and lost... You know the saying.

Any good finds that you had to leave behind lately?

The Big Chop

My hair can be tough to handle.  At night I have a very involved routine to set it for the next day.  As any curly-headed person will tell you, getting our hair to co-operate can be a battle.  Sometimes I say, "Ah, forget it." and wear a pony tail for weeks at a time, pulled back so tight I would have to sleep with my eyes open.  

But this weekend, I got fed up with my fear!  I'm always afraid to get a haircut.  Not many people know how to, or are comfortable with curly hair.  And mine is curlier than most.  But the 4 inches of split ends were making my frizzy fro into a frizzer nightmare.  And its starting to get hot outside, and my hair is like insulation for my head.  

So I did it.  I took the plunge.  I went to the hairdresser.  I got a haircut.  This may not seem life altering to you, but let's talk about my personal history of haircuts.  There has only been a handful of them done professionally.  Yes, in my life.  Yes, I am in my 30s.  If I were to make a list of my bottom 3 worst hairdressing experiences, it would look something like this:

Haircut 1: Sometime in 1986.  I had waist long curly hair.  It was beautiful from what I've been told.  My mom got fed up with trying to wash, brush and braid it.  No one could really tame it, so I got a haircut.  My waist length hair buzzed (!) off with clippers.  I don't know if this was supposed to be a punishment, but there are pictures out there where I look like my brother's brother.

Haircut 2: Around 1997. In high school I wanted my hair straightened sooo bad.  So I went and had it relaxed.  But, the woman who did it burned my hair so bad, that it was coming out in clumps. We had to cut all the damaged parts out, and this left my hair un-even and unmanageable.

Haircut 3: 2002. In university to celebrate the end of exams, I thought I would get my hair trimmed.  However, after pulling an all-nighter to write my last exam, I was tired and dozed off in the chair.  I asked for a trim, and the woman cut off 6 inches of hair.  I only had 8 inches of hair to start with.  

None of these experiences have left me with a deep desire to get my hair cut again.  Ever.  So for the last few years, I have been cutting my hair myself, like an incredibly cheap person.  It didn't look so bad, but I do wear a lot of ponytails, so no one had to know.  But this last time, I messed up.  And I had to go and get it fixed.  

So I did.  And it changed my life.  Voila:

I went from big, curly (shoulder length) hair with 5 inches of split ends (!) to a chin bob.  And while it may not look like much to some people, it was a very big deal for me.  A ponytail is difficult with my hair this short.  And I'm most comfortable in a ponytail. 

But I think it is totally cute.  And now my earrings don't get lost in it.  It's bouncy and fun.  And a co-worker called it "chic."

No one ever called my hair "chic" before!  I'm glad that I took the chance on a hairdresser again and went for the big chop.  I'm back to my natural hair color, with no leftovers from the chemical straightening I had done years ago.  I'm back to the natural state of my hair.  And I'm so happy with it. 

Print-y Nice!

On my walk yesterday, I picked up a print by Dave Kuruc from Mixed Media. I love that store.  I wanted something funny, and quirky for my living room.  When I showed it to D, he tought it was great.  So we framed it, and it is hanging in the front room.

I live in Hamilton, and I met D in Hamilton, so I have a place in my heart for this city.  I love that Dave made some prints about Hamilton.  They are super cheap too, only 20 dollars!  A steal. 

It makes me giggle whenever I look at it.

Signs of Spring

Aren't these flowers beautiful?  D got them for me for the opening night of my play.  I love them.  He must have some some research, because these flowers don't cause my to sneeze or itch or anything that flowers usually cause me to do.  And they are my favorite color orange.  They make the living room so cheerful.

I love the power that plants and flowers have to change a space and make it more colorful, and happy.

Just looking at them makes me happy.  I will have to make sure that when I get myself flowers every once and a while, I will have to get some gerbera daisies.  Oh, I can see all the colors I can get!  I love bringing a little piece of spring inside. 

Continuing on with spring things, I made a business card holder using some leftover sock yarn that I had.  The yarn is Socks That Rock, and the color is Waterlilies.  I love this yarn!  It is hard wearing, and the colors are so bright.  If you would like a card holder for yourself; or you can use this pattern for a gift card holder.  I thought it looked nice than the elastic band I was using to hold my cards together.

Here's a pattern:

Card Holder

Yarn: Sock That Rocks, less than one skein
Knitting needle: 3.25mm

CO 24 Sts.

Knit 6 rows in rev st st
Knit 15 rows
Knit 12 rows in rev st st
Knit 15 rows more
Knit 6 rows in rev st st then Cast off loosely.

Finishing: Fold holder in half inside out and whip stitch the sides.  The rev st st section is the gusset of the holder.  Turn right side in and add a crochet chain measuring about 3 inches.  Attach to the back of holder, and a button to the front.  Put some cards inside of it!

 The return of the warm weather means the return of ice cream for me!  I can't eat a lot of it because I'm lactose intolerant.  But every once and a while, I like a little treat, so I made a banana milkshake.  Want one? 

Ingredients:

1 banana
1/3 cup of vanilla ice cream
1 cup of milk

Blend. Drink. Yum.

A Star Bunting and the best invitation ever

I forgot that I crocheted all these stars.  I couldn't remember why I made them, so I decided to do something with them.  I made a bunting!  I'm a little obsessed with buntings lately; there are so many beautiful fabric ones to buy on Etsy.  I've been meaning to make one, but I haven't got around to it yet.  So when I saw these stars, I had to turn them into something I could hang in my room!

I love it hanging under the window, but I'm not sure how to stick it up.  It is being held on with tape which is kind of tacky (pun intended!) and really temporary.  I could put some nails in the wall, but I have a hangup about holes in the wall.  Even most of our pictures hare hung on sticky hooks.

The little stars are cute!  I have a thing for stars.  Last year my classroom was decorated in stars (I had a theme for the year and it was space travel).  I love the shape of them, and I love the colors of these.

Do you want to make a star bunting?  Well, it so happens that I wrote out the pattern!

Little Crochet Stars

I used worsted weight wool with an H/ 5.00mm hook

Make a magic ring (adjustable loop) and chain 4

First round: in the ring ch 1, 3 dc *ch 2 3 dc. Repeat * 3 more times, ch 2 and join to the first ch 1.  You should have 5 groups of dc clusters separated by ch 2 spaces.

Second round:  sl st in the next dc. *In ch 2 space work 3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc. Skip the next dc and sl st in the middle dc of the cluster. Repeat * around.

Third Round: sc into each st of round 2.  In the ch 2 spaces work 2 sc, ch 3 sc. End the round with a sl st.

Make as many stars as you would like in the bunting.  I used 9 (4+1+4) so that it would be symmetrical.  Attach stars together in the ch 3 points using coordinating yarn.  On each end, attach a length of yarn, and crochet a chain for as long as you need to attach bunting.  I chained 10 on each side.

After the bunting is attached, on a medium iron, iron your stars flat.  I used a little bit of laundry starch, but you could use watered down white glue using this technique (link) too.  After the stars are dry and flat, your bunting is ready to hang!

Find somewhere that needs a little cheering, and set it up! 

 In other news, I got the greatest wedding invitation in the mail today.  My lovely friends Kate and Ian are getting married!  And this was what they sent out:

Isn't that so funny?  I got the card, and you pull off the mustache for the date!  I love it.  And Kate and Ian are two of the funniest people I know, so this card is completely suitable for their event.  This invite really made my day.

The guy on the card kind of reminds me of a face from the game "Guess Who?" Remember that one?

Vintage Loves: My scarf collection

I used to wear a lot of vintage clothing.  I loved it!  It was cheap, and original, and fun!  My jam was clothing from the 70s.  I had a long leather jacket, and cool hats to match my afro.  Much to my mother's chagrin, I had some awesome shirts.  I think my dad just found it amusing, and on a couple of occasions, he loved some of my stuff.  As I moved through my career, some of my workplaces were more formal than other places, so I had to give up my polyester and cords, and get some grown up clothes.

One thing I could never get rid of were my scarves.  I love 'em.

The cool thing about vintage scarves is that you can still wear them dressed up or down.

The other cool thing is that in the past, they made scarves to commemorate anything.

Like in the top picture, I have a VOTE scarf which I bust out for every American election.  (My family is American so I always watch the elections with a keen interest in the outcome. ) Or in the picture above, I have a scarf from the Dominican Republic in the 1960s.

These are my two favorite scarves; the ones I wear the most.  One is from the 70s in San Fransisco, and the other is a cotton scarf from the 1940s.

I must have 50 or so scarves.  And I can't wear them all.  I need to find ideas on what I can make with them to use them.  I would like to keep them around, but how?  Maybe pillows?  What else can you make with old scarves?

Maybe I need to get this book (link).

Little things I love

While I was out last night, completely on a whim, I bought this cute jar.  I love the punchy red and the polka dots.  Polka dots may be in the "love mosaic" this month because I have been really drawn to them lately.

Because we live in such a small space, everything has to do double-duty around here.  So this jar is a new holder for my kitchen utensils.  I stored the lid just in case I change my mind, and want to use it as a cookie jar.  But it was the perfect size to all all my spoons and such.  This way it gets to stay on the counter all the time and I get to look at it whenever I'm cooking.

I love the flowers on this mug.  I've been drinking tea out of it almost everyday.  I have a thing for mugs and get stuck on one when I just get it.  This one is a great big size, and the colors help my mood during the recent gray days.

The grocery store was having a sale on plants, so I bought some ivy for our living room.  Flowers are so hit and miss with me because sometimes I have allergic reactions to them, and sometimes I don't.  The hyacinth we had was making feel nauseous when I was ill, so I asked D to take it to his new boss.  I know it has a good home at his office.  Instead I picked up some non-flowering plants to green up the place. I love watching them grow from small 4-inch pots like this to big hanging plants.  This ivy is pretty hearty, so that should be sooner than later.

Making me happy

There are a few things making me happy today:

I made this brooch out of a necklace I found at a thrift store.  I didn't care for it much as a necklace, a little big for my neck, but I love the tree and the bird!  I knew I had to make something out of it, so a pin it was going to be.  I love it because it makes a plain sweater nice.  So I wore it to work today.

I love these earrings.  I got them at a the All Sorts Gallery (link), which is a great spot for handmade goodies.  I love to go in there and wander.  These were made by a favorite of mine, Tracey Brailsford (link).  She makes the most beautiful stuff.  I have 3 pairs of her earrings!  These little ones are perfect for wearing to work everyday.  And I wear them almost everyday.  I have some large ones for nights out.

A coffee date with one of my oldest friends and her cutie baby!  He was so sweet and happy.  And we had a good chat.  I'm so busy all the time, that it seems sometimes I forget to make time for just sitting and talking and catching up.  Thanks goodness for my friends, they remind me to chill.  

I stopped by my favorite fabric store (link), completely unplanned, and looked around.  I was looking for buttons, and I was excited when Kate (link)  told me that they got a bunch of vintage buttons that they have to price, but that are beautiful!  There were some antler ones I had my eyes on.  As I was looking around, I saw these great quarters, and had to get them.  Look!  They have birds!  Had to get them.  I think these might become patchwork pillows...

I made a decision a while ago to do something nice for myself on Fridays.  This week, while I was out with a friend, I saw these sprouted bulbs in little galvanized pails.  They were so cute; so I bought myself one.  I bought this Hyacinth, and its already starting to open. I love the color, and the smell!  Its starting to smell so nice.  It is brightening up our space and driving away some winter blues.

Prison Break on TV.  I'm almost done Season 2.  What can I say?  I'm a woman obsessed.

The last thing making my happy is the velour "Flava Flav" track suit I'm wearing.  I made fun of it, but... its really cozy.

Thoughts on Valentine's Day

When I was younger, I never recognized Valentine's Day as anything special.  As a child, something tragic happened to a friend of mine on this day, and for years, it seemed almost wrong to celebrate this day.

As I grew up, I never had anyone special on Valentine's Day, so it seemed fitting for rebellious me to shrug this day off as "something-corporations-created-to-get-us to-buy-things-so-soon-after- Christmas" type of thing.  I was such a romantic as an undergrad.

Yet again, my idea of Valentine's Day has changed.  After spending this time with my partner D, I've come to see Valentine's Day as something new.  There is still a part of me that regrets what happened to my friend all those years ago.  And there is still a part of me that thinks buying stuff is not the best way to show someone you care.  I believe that Valentine's Day can be a good reminder to show the person you love that you value them.  Yes, we should do this everyday, but sometimes life gets in the way.  D knows I love him all the time, but if there are a few days a year, that I can take the time and do something special for D, then that can't be a bad day in my books.  It can be a day of complex feelings, and it is.

I chose the above quote, because at this point in my life, I feel that my reality is better than I dreamed.  I have a career I love, a partner I adore and a home with him.  Who could ask for anything more?

As I was ruminating on my feelings about Valentine's Day, I did a little crochet.  These little hearts.

Aren't they so cute?

Would you like to make some?  I should warn you, they are so fast and cute they are a little addictive.

Tiny Cute Hearts

Gauge doesn't matter, just use an appropriate size hook for the yarn.  I used an E hook with light worsted weight yarn.

(The whole heart is one round)

Make a magic circle (crochet all stitches into the circle)
Chain 3
3 treble crochet
3 doubles crochet
chain 1
1 treble crochet
chain 1
3 double crochet
3 treble crochet
chain 2
slip stitch into circle and fasten off.

I also made the three dimensional ones in the top pic.  That pattern is here (link).

For D's present, I didn't make it.  But I did make the wrapping paper:

He's a writer, so I thought punctuation would be cute.  I stamped all over some white paper, and made a little card.

D knows me so well, he got me a handmade gift from my favorite store, White Elephant!

Isn't it sweet?  It was made by Maudstitch (link).  I can't wait to wear it on my cardigan tomorrow!

And we made sure that everyone in this house got a little love today:

There's nothing Shiloh loves better than a good neck scratch.

Hope your Valentine's Day was happy!