Martha, Martha, blah blah blah

I never intended for my blog to become an "I LOVE MARTHA STEWART" site, but when I found out that my sister Sally's friend Macon was featured on "My Martha's" website, I had to share!!

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I've known Macon for a few years since she and Sally went to college together. She used to work for Ms. Stewart, but has since started her own Etsy shop selling her letterpress creations, Macon York.
Each card costs $4 - which is a steal of a deal considering Macon makes these herself.

{via Etsy}

She also created all the invitations and programs for my little sister, Laura's wedding - featured on this post.

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Isn't Macon talented?

She's got some great cards for Valentine's Day....might have to buy one (or two) for A.
I guess I just spoiled that surprise - HEY A!!

Till next time-
M

Chalkboard

A and I are (broadly) talking about buying a home...Not that its going to happen tomorrow, but we're discussing what our wants/needs are for the future.

My wants/needs have gone into over drive after happening upon this completely inspired idea - a chalkboard wall! Look at all the amazing things you can do with it:

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The creative possibilities are endless!



Till next time-

M

Favorite time of year

Its my favorite time of year....The Bachelor has returned!

I will be the first one to admit that I get sucked in by this completely ridiculous, "1 hour of my life that I will never get back" kind-of show, but it's websites like this one that make it all worth it.

May I present to you:

Faces of Rejected Bachelorettes

You better believe I'll be checking this website every Tuesday morning for more laughs!

Till next time-
M

My heart, be still

My twin sister emailed (and facebooked) the good news to me.....COLDPLAY IS COMING TO DC!

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Merry Christmas to ME! Now comes the hard part of convincing A that Coldplay is totally worth the $200/person seats that I want.

Hurry up, July 8th!!

We're headed to Raleigh this weekend to watch A's sister graduate from NC State.
Wishing you a happy weekend!

Till next time-
M

Martha's Magazine Christmas Trees

A few weeks ago, I was perusing my girl, Martha's website and came across a crafty (and cheap) Christmas decoration.

If you're like me, you have a lot of magazines laying around and even more so now due to the holidays, so this is a perfect way to recycle something that you'd eventually end up tossing.

Magazine Christmas Trees

{via MarthaStewart.com}

Tools and Materials

Old Magazines of any size

Gold, Silver, or Clear spray paint

Glitter in desired colors

Bone Folder (optional)

Magazine Trees How-to

1. Open magazine and bend to break spine.

2. Fold individual page from top right corner to inside seam. Fold same page from bottom right edge to gutter.

3. Fold bottom triangle of each additional magazine page up, making the bottom of the tree flat. Then, fold top of all pages down to form tree shape.

4. Spray-paint folded tree desired color. Immediately sprinkle glitter over wet pain. Let dry.

I ended up not spray painting my tree because 1. I didn't have any paint and/or glitter handy and 2. A and his friend both agreed they liked the look of it without it. We all agreed it looked more "festive" our way.

Here is an example of before, during, and after (mine looks like the middle picture):

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Happy Crafting!

Till next time-

M

Name that candy bar

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I've got candy on the brain today due to my work colleagues. We always seem to have some sweet treat floating around the office - sometimes due to me (oops)!

Can you name the candy bars in this picture? I'm pretty sure I see Almond Joy, Charleston Chew (my Mom's absolute favorite), Butterfinger, and Snickers....what about you?

Till next time-
M

Back to the start

The other night, before going to sleep, A showed me a video. He prefaced it by stating that this video included three of our favorite things and asked me to guess what they were.

Coldplay, Willie Nelson, and see if you can spot the third....



Till next time,

M

Rabbit, Rabbit

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Can't believe its Decemember already!

I'll be in Charlotte for work through tomorrow night...Wishing you all a very Merry weekend!

Till next time-
M

Pre-Black Friday

No Black Friday, Small Business Saturday or Cyber Monday shopping for me this year, but I did manage to do a little shopping before the holiday weekend hit!

I went to an Erin McDermott jewelry party with some friends a few weeks back and found the most beautiful bracelet...

{Gold and Tortoiseshell Bracelet}

I knew when I saw her, she was going to be mine!

She was so beautiful, in fact, that both of my friends bought her too!

Check out Erin's website and blog - she seriously has the BEST stuff. Everytime I visit, I find something new I want to buy! (cough, A take note - Christmas IS only 25 days away, cough)

For the meantime, I'll be anxiously awaiting my bracelets arrival on my doorstop!

Till next time-

M



4 words

This isn't much of a "catch up" post, but I liked this so much I just had to share:

{Thoughtful, Restless, Elegant and Sentimental}

What are your four words?

Till next time-
M

Super surprise

Why do I have the best boyfriend ever?

Because on a night that I think I'm home alone (he was out of town for work), I get a phone call from A that our neighbor had left something for us on the front porch. I go to the door and tell him I only see the paper, and then guess who pops up on the front stairs??
....A!

{via Pintrest}

Oh boy, I just love that kid...I think I went to sleep smiling.

What a super surprise!

Till next time-
M

No longer neglected

My poor kitchen. Its been so neglected for the past few weeks - the only items that have seen ANY action were the coffee pot and the toaster oven (for my morning Bagel Thin).

Last night, I decided to break back-in the kitchen - my only Terms and Conditions were to make something healthy (mine) and it must include Chicken (A's).

I went to my go-to website, Foodgawker.com and found a recipe that immediately sparked my interest:

Healthier General Tso's Chicken

from the blog, Kitchen Simplicity

When I found this recipe, I quickly noticed that it had originally come from the one and only, Martha Stewart - BINGO! This was what I was making for dinner!

It was pretty easy to make and it came out wonderfully. I doubled the recipe, so we could take it for lunch  and also added Onions and Sriracha to the sauce.

Healthier General Tso’s Chicken

Sauce

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups snow peas, trimmed and halved diagonally
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
• 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Chicken and Coating

• 2 large egg whites
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 pound chicken, cut into bite-size pieces

1. For sauce: Mix together water and cornstarch until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients. Set aside.
2. For chicken: Whisk together egg whites, cornstarch, salt and pepper. Stir in chicken.
3. To cook: Heat skillet over medium-high heat. Add a small amount of oil. Add half of chicken to pan, dripping off excess coating. Cook, stirring occasionally until golden brown and cooked through. Remove from pan, add more oil if necessary and repeat with remaining chicken. Set the chicken aside.
4. Add sauce to skillet and cook until snow peas are tender and sauce is thickened. Add chicken (and any collected juices) to skillet.Toss to coat.
5. Serve with rice.

Serves: 4

Enjoy!

Till next time-

M

I'm baaaaaaaaack.

I'm thankful to be back in the regular swing of things - hopefully my posts will get back to normal as well.

My trip to NYC was mighty successful - I got to see most of my awesome customers, eat really amazing food and even do a little sightseeing & celebrity spotting!

My sales rep Julie and I had about 3 hours to kill on Monday afternoon and decided to walk around the city.

We breezed into Tiffany's where I got an awkward photo with the World Series Trophy:

And also popped into Bergdorf Goodman's to do a little drooling (hello, Louboutins!!). On our way out, we saw a Paparazzi in the window taking photos. Before I knew it, I was shoulder to shoulder with Jessica and Ashlee Simpson!! No photos to prove it, but this is a photo of them walking out of the store (Jessica is totally pregnant, btw):

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Unlike many New Yorkers, I was actively celebrity watching the whole time I was in the city and managed to also see Anthony Weiner and his wife, Huma walking down the street. They are a hard-to-miss couple due to how beautiful (and pregnant) Huma is, and well....you know what Anthony looks like...

All in all - a great trip but I'm so happy to be back with A!

We took advantage of Richmond's restaurant week on Friday night by going to Bistro 27.

I'd never been there before and frankly, never really paid much attention to the place but I really enjoyed it! Smaller atmosphere, great service and awesome food...doesn't get much better than that!

If you get the chance to go - definitely take advantage of it!

Tonight, some friends and I are planing to walk up and down Hanover Ave. Hanover is a well known street in the Fan district (where I live) that has become known for it's "Halloween block party." Most of the homeowners go above and beyond decorating their house for this one day event and thousands of people come to the area to experience all the fun.

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No costumes for me this year, but I'll leave you with the cutest Rockette Toy Soldier I've ever seen - my little sister, Eliza (costume made by my amazingly crafty Mother):

Happy Halloween!!

Till next time-

M

Excuses, excuses

Excuse my absence from blogging for the next 2 weeks. This week, I've got a Regional Sales meeting here in Richmond, and then I'm off to NYC for customer visits next week.

{image via Pintrest}

Hopefully I'll find some time in between to do a little catching up.

Till next time-
M

On repeat

Can't get enough of this song.

Whiskeytown - Don't Wanna Know Why

Till next time -
M

Yes, please.

{via}

Till next time-

M

Highlights...and a haircut

Lets see...where shall I start?...

Friday night, A and I (once again) went to Cinebistro and saw:

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It wasn't the best or the worst movie we've seen, but we walked away agreeing that it wasn't as exciting as we thought it would be. Don't get me wrong though - I'd gladly sit through a boring movie if Ryan Gosling was in it!

Saturday morning, I chopped 4-1/2 inches off my hair - I was ready for something new (mentioned here). I'm pretty happy with it, and surprisingly A is too (he wasn't so keen on the change).

After an afternoon spent cleaning up the apartment, this pretty lady came to visit from NC:

We ended up sitting outside for most of the day/night with our neighbors, watching football and laughing around the fire.

Sunday, A and I drove up to the VA State Fair. We rode the ferris wheel, ate some funnel cake and got to see The Band Perry!

All in all - a great weekend!

Till next time-

M

On Repeat

Happy Friday!

Till next time-
M

Governor's Cup

Last night, A and I attended the kickoff for October Wine Month at the VMFA (Virginia Museum of Fine Arts) - which is one of my favorite places here in Richmond.

A is a big supporter of VA wine, so it was exciting to see and meet the difference vineyards.

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During the event, the winner of the 2011 Governor's Cup of White Wine was annouced - which was New Kent winery.

I was holding out hope that Barrenridge Winery would win - but, I guess I'm a little biased. Barrenridge was where A and I had our first "official" date while I was living in Roanoke. We couldn't wait to see each other so we met half-way in Staunton, VA. A planned the date - wine tasting and then dinner downtown at Staunton Grocery.

He did pretty well, wouldn't you say?

Cheers!

Till next time-

M

If you haven't, you should

If you haven't, you should rent the movie: Bill Cunningham New York.

I had the house to myself last night and happen upon this documentary on Netflix. Ever since watching The September Issue, a documentary about Vogue's Editor in Chief, Anna Wintour - I've been fasinated with the folks behind the scenes in fashion.

The documentary follows the life of New York Times fashion photographer, Bill Cunningham:



At the age of 82, Bill still writes, photographs and narrates his pages, "On the Streets and "Evening Hours" for the New York Times. Pretty darn impressive, right?

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Throughout the movie, many people are interviewed about the influence Bill has on fashion - including Michael Kors, Patrick McDonald, Iris Apfel, and Anna Wintour.

Even though his work involves society and fashion, he is often times seen riding his 29th Schwinn bike (the other 28 were stolen) on the streets of New York and takes "the cheaper, the better" approach for his personal life. Examples of this shown in the movie are when he repairs his ripped up rain poncho with black tape rather than buy a replacement and the fact that he prefers to wear $20 street cleaner shirts when photographing people on the street, events and fashion shows.

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As a deeply religous man, Bill goes to church every single Sunday and has a life deeply rooted in morals - seen as he tears up when questioned about his faith, when he refused a sizeable check from Conde Nast after Details magazine was bought out, and when he turned away a plate of salmon at a swanky event. In fact, he makes a point to eat before events and won't even take a glass of water when working.

Bill Cunningham New York was an excellent portrayal of an iconic artist who refers to everyone as a "child" and whom has an outstanding work ethic - he accepts nothing that might damage his reputation.

We truely need more people like him in this world.

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"He who seeks beauty ...will find it"

-Bill Cunningham

Till next time-

M