seven year itch

seven years of marriage already?! where has the time gone? I'm proud to say I haven't felt the slightest itch, nor a need to scratch it. ;) as usual, I stuck with tradition & gave robert the traditional anniversary gift, which was wool (or copper) this year (year four, year five, year six). for the life of me I could not figure what to give him, so on a whim I ordered some wool roving & hoped I could figure out something to do with it. a few days before our anniversary I found this tutorial on how to make a felt ball garland & got to work. it turned out super cute & I tied a card with some tickets to a baseball game to it (you know how much I must love robert to buy baseball tickets). 

robert surprised me by making the most adorable gift - a record (he tried painting it a copper color to go with the theme, but it didn't work out so he nixed it) with a label he designed, titled, "seven year itch" by "ain't gonna happen," from the record label "slim chance." ha! this guy cracks me up. so. thoughtful. 

and then he also purchased the most amazing house gift- 2 vintage hanging lights that I have been talking about for months. leave it to robert to find an amazing deal on ebay! I didn't take pics of those but hopefully they'll be hung soon & I can share them. 

anyway, I'm not gonna lie- I love gifts more than the next person. but in all seriousness, I am so truly grateful to have the most amazing gift of all- a loving, talented, thoughtful, trustworthy, fun-loving husband that I get to share the rest of my life with. that is a gift enough (although I really like the light fixtures....)

{wool roving in it's original state}

{form a loose ball & then keep rolling with soap up hot & cold water until it forms a ball}

{they look super cute once you've made a couple & start stringing them on some thread}

 {after expressing excitement over tickets to a yankees/red sox game, robert sweetly told me, "we don't have to stay for the whole game." god bless that man!}

{gotta love a husband who remembers our anniversary flower!}

{handmade gifts are the best.}

black + gold wrapping

one of my favorite parts of the holiday season is wrapping gifts. I love having a theme (see 2011 theme & 2010 theme) & this year I decided to go with black & gold. I found the gold wrapping paper at target on clearance last year after christmas. I decorated the packages with gold tassels I made from a plastic tablecloth (like I did here), some pom poms (like I made in this post) & then cut out feathers as the gift tags (using this template). this sounds ridiculous & very unlike me, but I think I actually enjoy giving gifts even more than opening them. 

neiman marcus for target

what do you guys think of the neiman marcus collection for target? there are some things I thought were cute, but overall was underwhelmed (unlike when jason wu came to target earlier this year). plus, the price points are a little too high for my preference. anything you plan on purchasing from the collection? 

rag & bone sweater, $70. marc jacobs pouch, $70. alice + olive luggage, $180.  altuzarra shaker, $50. altuzarra tray, $80. diane von furstenberg jewelry box, $50. tory burch lunch box, $20 and beverage container, $25.

happy weekend + sister love

what a week! so glad we've finally made it to the weekend. I got the sweetest surprise yesterday afternoon- a package of love from my sissy! she knows me so well. she stuffed a box full of all my favorite things, including this awesome vintage stamp holder (she overhead me say I loved it when we were at paris on ponce a few months ago), a pair of "boyfriend jeans" (yay!),  some fun gum & the new xx cd (yes, we are still stuck in the days of middle school where we burns cds and then decorate them for each other). kara, you are the best sister on the planet & I love you! 

inspired by pinterest week: felt flower baby hair clips

pinning things on pinterest makes you feel like you're really doing something, am I right? you feel a little rush of accomplishment for finding an awesome idea & adding it to your board. but in reality, the motivation usually ends there. you rarely ever really do anything with these brilliant ideas ("not that there's anything wrong with that").

I have probably completed a mere 1% of the bajillion projects & recipes that I have pinned. I thought I would share those few projects this week, in case you missed them on pinterest.

the first project are these simple little hair clips for baby, from make it and love it. they are easy to make a require only a few things: some felt, hair clips, a needle + thread & a glue gun. download the template here & make your own. they're so adorable that I seriously considered making a set for myself. 

traditional anniversary gift: candy

each year robert & I like to give each other the "traditional" anniversary gift (here is year four and here is year five). year six is candy. robert got me six of my favorite types of chocolates (chocolate covered orange peels, pretzels, popcorn, pringles, oreos & toffee). my thighs kind of hate him for this, because I have almost consumed all of it already. in return I made him some sea salt fudge (which was delicious, by the way- I will post the recipe soon). we also celebrated our anniversary with another couple, our "anniversary twin". the guys signed all of us up for a candy making class this summer. such a clever gift idea.

{our wedding flower- peonies}

burp cloths

I am still a newbie at sewing. I often get frustrated when the needle breaks or when the thread gets all tangled up. and quite frankly, sometimes I just walk away & abandon the project altogether. but I'd been wanting to attempt some burp cloths for a baby shower, so robert was sweet enough to "fix" my machine so that I could start fresh. the first one took awhile, but once I got going, they were really fun & easy to make. it's a great starter project for any of you in the same beginner boat as me. plus there are tons of great tutorials out there (I used this one) to help. now I can't wait to make more of these for gifts. 

a gift for everyone

it's so hard to buy for people who have everything (that's most of us). i hate giving people junk they don't need, just to give it - picture frames, bath beads, candle holders, etc. I'm all about practical gifts... which to me usually means something edible.

I have always loved these ceramic baskets from anthropologie (especially after reading this somewhat ridiculous blog post about having a pretty refrigerator, which I couldn't help but enjoy). I bought a couple of them & filled them with fruit: tangerines from our tree, meyer lemons from a co-worker's tree & some limes. attached a delicious sangria recipe (I used this free mason jar template), coupled with a bottle of wine & this makes the perfect gift, in my opinion. 

and if you're interested in the sangria recipe, here it is:

1 bottle dry red wine
1/2 cup brandy
1/2 cup triple sec
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup frozen lemonade concentrate
1/3 cup orange juice
1 lemon, sliced into rounds
1 orange, sliced into rounds
1 lime, sliced into rounds
2 cups+ ginger ale or sprite

in a large pitcher or bowl, mix together the red wine, brandy, triple sec, lemon juice, lemonade concentrate & orange juice. wash fruit & float slices of lemon, orange & lime (and any other fruit of your choosing) in the mixture. refrigerate overnight. add ginger ale just before serving.

o christmas crack, o christmas crack

obviously I've never done crack (or any other drug for that matter), but I can't image that it could be any more addictive than this christmas toffee (a.k.a. "crack"). I've been making it every year since probably high school. I only allow myself to make it once a year at christmas, or else I'd be about 400 pounds. because once you pop a piece, you can't stop.

it's extremely simple to make & is great for gift-giving. photo below in case you need 'em.

saltines (I use the generic version)
2 sticks butter
1 cup light brown sugar
a bag chocolate chips (I use semi-sweet)
crushed nuts (I like pecans or walnuts)

preheat oven to 350
melt butter & sugar on low in a small pot on the stove until completely blended.
cover a raised-edged cookie sheet with aluminum foil (I used a silpat mat instead).
completely line the cookie sheet with saltine crackers.
pour blended butter & sugar mixture over crackers.
bake at 350 degrees for 7 minutes.
remove from oven. sprinkle chocolate chips over toffee.
put back in the oven for 2 minutes to help melt the chocolate.
remove from the oven & carefully spread the melted chocolate chips with a spatula.
sprinkle some chopped nuts over the toffee.
let cool & then put in refrigerator until hard (do not freeze).
once toffee is hard, remove from foil & break apart.
store in an airtight container in the fridge. I promise it won't last that long, though. 

 

 

 

five year anniversary

on friday, robert & I celebrated our five year anniversary. each year we give each other the traditional wedding gift (see year four here). year five is wood, so I surprised robert with a little indoor tent (thanks to my daddy for building it & to this great post for the instructions). my parents set it up while we were out having dinner at 13 gypsies (and it was an amazing meal!). robert was totally surprised; we camped out in the tent & reminisced over our wedding album, ate cake & drank prosecco. it was a wonderful evening with a wonderful husband. thanks for five incredible years, rh.

 {robert's anniversary gift- a wooden radio}

japan, our hearts are with you

I know everyone is looking for a way to help the people of japan right now. if you haven't made a donation yet, dutch door press is giving 100% of the proceeds from their etsy store today only to the american red cross. very generous; definitely a good incentive to give if you haven't already. 

canisters

and speaking of cute things at west elm, my parents got us these beautiful canisters for our kitchen. they go perfectly & hold all of my pre-sifted flour & powdered sugar (yes, I went ahead & sifted everything because I hate that step in the baking process), regular sugar & organic cane sugar. I love organization.

my new friend

I just received the best gift ever... a sewing machine! given to me by a mother who solely glue-gunned our dance costumes for 15-straight years. yup, I am determined to learn how to sew. even after failing my joanns beginner sewing class (maybe I shouldn't mention that they were forced to offer an extra class for the "special people" who couldn't finish their project in the allotted month).

well take this, joanns! I made this bunting all by myself. ok so it's probably the easiest thing ever to sew. but  for me, it was a great start. I love my new machine! thanks, marmie! 

advent calendar

I know it's a little late & everyone is probably sick of hearing about christmas, but I had to share this great gift that my mom got my sister. she filled this advent calendar with treasures (& because kara doesn't live here, she got to open every door in one day!). my mom had been collecting all kind of vintage jewelry & pins from various estate sales for months. everything she found is so unique & absolutely beautiful (& knowing my bargin-loving mom, she probably didn't pay more than $5 a pair!). what a lovely gift. 

{advent calendar}

{earrings}

christmas morning

it was another beautiful christmas. my sister was able to fly in town for a few days, which was the best gift of all. as usual, my mom totally outdid herself (if you can't tell from the pile 'o presents below). we ate delicious homemade food on her beautiful lenox holly berry china & lounged around in our matching pj's all day & night. I love christmas.

{before we busted out our matching christmas pj onesies}

{santa done good}

{vintage rolling pin}

{santa likes red}

{grammie & pop are trading up. vhs for dvd!}

{robert looking sexy in his new leather jacket}

{my great-grandfather's pocket watch}

{my sweet parents}

"and the angel said unto them, fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. for unto you is born this day in the city of david a saviour, which is christ the lord. and this shall be a sign unto you; ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. and suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising god, and saying, glory to god in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."  

- luke 2:10-14, king james version