paddy's pub

i'm back! no explination for my lack of blog posts other than i just wanted a break. wasn't feeling inspired.  maybe i just needed to buy new clothes??  so i bought a few new things, like another pair of those keds for madewell (cause why not?) and an oversized neon green tee that was on major sale - $5 - at madewell.  and then naturally (since i don't own any other green) i wore the neon shirt on st. paddy's day.  and how convenient was it that paddy's pub was just down the street from the bar i went spent st. paddy's day at?  and i just recently watched all of its always sunny on netflix (better late than never).  too perfect.  

gap denim jacket, madewell tee (neon no longer available), free people skirt (similar), keds for madewell sneakers, elizabeth & james sunglasses

in other news - i got a bike.  i'm turning into a crazy exercise person.  re-decorating the house.  going to be at disneyland more than any normal person should.  now have two dogs.  soooo, more good stuff to come!  

holiday dress - pt. 3

happy new year!  i figured i'd better post the last of my holiday dress photos before its too late and holiday outfits are completely irrelevant.  while i had originally planned to do 4 different looks with the madewell dress, i ended up just hanging out at home on new years eve.  getting all dressed up seemed rather pointless when i'm just watching a movie at home.  for christmas dinner i wore my penfield shirt over the dress to change things up a bit, plus i didn't really need a jacket!     

penfield shirt, madewell dress, indigo by clarks booties, free people necklace (old)

holiday dress - pt. 2

i didn't actually take these photos the day of the office holiday party.  i had to take them two days after.  why?  let me tell you.  it all started out with an email from drybar announcing the opening of the newest location in pasadena.  the opening just happened to be the day before the office holiday party.  i then received another email, this time from groupon, for you guessed it - a drybar groupon good only at the new pasadena location.  so naturally i'd rather have someone else do my hair for the party, especially after working all day long.  so i buy the groupon, make my appointment - which is supposed to last 35-45 minutes - leaving me with enough time to go home after the appointment do my make-up and get to where i needed to be at a reasonable time.  the best laid plans.  

i "ordered" the mai tai - loose, beachy waves.  an hour and a half after my appointment my hair was finally done, didn't look like i had expected it too (i told the stylists not to curl my hair with the round brush, as it would fall straight within 15 mintues), and was running late extremely late.  a 10 minute drive back to my house to finish getting ready and my loose, beachy waves looked more like the straight up.  so it looked fine, but it wasn't what i wanted and OH YEAH, why did it take an hour and a half for the "stylist" to blow dry my hair?!?!          

anyway, i am completely inflexible and was so annoyed at the entire situation.  i missed the taco bar at the party.  stupid drybar.  i've given up on drybar, i won't be back and i don't reccommend you go.  seriously, i could do my hair better myself.  and then i had a whole bunch of technology issues and couldn't get the photos edited for like 2 weeks and so now i am finally able to post these photos. 

madewell dress, free people pumps, free people jacket (old), luv aj bracelet and hand chain, marc by marc jacobs clutch (similar)

i could rant and rant about this not-awful but no where near good enough to return experience at drybar.  on the bright side i had a groupon so its not like i paid full price or anything.  now christmas is over and i have two more posts with this dress.  is anyone tired of the dress yet?  i'm not antianticipating anymore tech issues (but does anyone really?) so maybe i'll post more?  who knows. 

holiday dress - pt. 1

i've been soo lazy busy lately!!! that's my excuse for not blogging.  and now onto the post.

i decided to break my no unnecessary shopping streak (a.k.a. no clothes shopping) a few weeks ago and ended up buying that lace madewell dress that was on my fall/winter wish list - and it's going to be my holiday dress.  i'm planning on wearing it for every single holiday related event, which is probably a crime of fashion in someone' book.  don't care.  i know i'm not the only one who bought a dress for a specific event, wore it once and now said dress is hanging in the closet but i can't get rid of it cause i just might wear it again...  i don't want to end up on hoarders one day. 

so one dress, 4 holiday events.  first, was thanksgiving and i dressed the lace dress down because we don't get all fancy and stuff at thanksgiving.  or in california.

madewell dress, gap jacket, frye boots (similar), elizabeth & james sunglasses

sooo what do you think?  am i crazy for wearing the same dress all holiday season?  i'm going to style it differently each time (duh).  let me know in the comments!

lavender-lemon fruit trifle

a while ago one of my bffs went through a trifle phase - she was making fruit trifles all the time, it was kinda awesome! trifles are great to bring to potlucks and dinner parties. you can make the trifle as easy (store bought pound cake, cool whip) or as hard (homemade pound cake & whipped cream), and as cheap (frozen fruit) or expensive (fresh fruit) as you want. i saw a trifle bowl on sale from one kings lane for $15, bought it and decided that i would make a trifle for my family's easter brunch!

i chose to make a mostly homemade trifle - i enlisted my sister (who wants to be a baker) to make me a lavender pound cake.   she used this recipe (without any glaze) and it was AMAZING.  i could eat the cake by its self, it was so delicious.  btw - if you are planning on making anything that requires dried lavender, you should really decide about a week ahead of time.  we went to 4 (yes, 4!) different grocery stores looking for dried lavender for cooking.  even whole foods didn't have it (buy some here or make your own)!  we ended up buying a lavender plant and using fresh lavender.  

lavender-lemon fruit trifle

makes 18-20 servings

ingredients:

1 12 oz package frozen raspberries

1 12 oz package frozen blueberries - the organic wild ones from TJ's are the best!!

1 25 oz jar peach halves, drained & sliced - i used TJ's yellow cling peach halves in white grape juice

1-1 1/2 loaves of pound cake - the amount you need depends on the size of your bowl

2 16 oz cartons of heavy whipping cream

6-8 tablespoons sugar - depends how sweet you want your whipped cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

zest from 1 1/2 lemons

step 1: about an hour and a half before you are going to assemble the trifle, take the frozen fruit out put into a strainer and let thaw.  

step 2: slice the pound cake into 1/2 inch slices, then cut into quarters.

step 3: pour heavy whipping cream into a large bowl.  add sugar, vanilla, lemon juice & zest.  beat with an electric mixer until desired consistency is reached. 

step 4: layer the cake at the bottom of the bowl.  top with fruit, followed by a layer of whipped cream.  repeat the cake - fruit - whipped cream layers until you have a layer of cake at the top of the bowl.  top with more whipped cream.  garnish with some left over fruit, and/or some lavender sprigs.

step 5: scoop out with a spoon.  enjoy!

the trifle was a hit!  the flavors were amazing, and the lavender pound cake and lemon whipped cream really added some great flavors!  the best part about this - no one could even tell that i used frozen fruit!  i will definitely be making trifles all spring and summer long!  whats your favorite spring/summer dessert?

p.s. - i'll pretty much buy anything that says its organic... can't you tell?