A Natural Toothbrush Holder

(OR MY EXCUSE TO KEEP RANDOM STUFF)


Much to my dear boyfriend's chagrin, I collect things be it for sentimental, useful or "artistic" reasons. My favorite souvenir from a place that I've been is a stone from that place....

I have a few good projects involving my collected rocks in the works and, in the meantime, I have to invent other clever uses for them. In this post, a toothbrush holder:

Recipe: Easy (and fast) Homemade Marinara

Trevor discovered this delicious recipe and we've since made several renditions of it. It's worth posting here for at least two reasons:

(1) It is a great representation of what we love to cook: simple recipes that utilize fresh ingredients and emphasize how each ingredient contributes to the whole; and

(2) The homemade basil-red-pepper-infused olive oil is a simple, cheap and GENIUS detail that really adds sophistication to the dish.

Please note!
This is an exercise of smells, tastes and textures; we don't have ingredient amounts, cooking times or temperatures. Instead, you'll have to rely on the scent of the olive oil infusion and the texture of the tomato pulp to tell you when it's time to combine them, and you'll have to your own taste preferences of basil, garlic and red pepper to determine the type of olive oil infusion you create.



All Ingredients
*Pasta of choice
*Fresh whole tomatoes, of your favorite variety (we use six or so, so that there will be leftovers for two people)
*Fresh basil
*Crushed red pepper flakes (to taste- depends on how spicy you like it)
*EVOO (a.k.a. Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
*Whole garlic cloves (however many you like)
*Butter  (a "pat")

PHASE ONE:

Ingredients
*Fresh whole tomatoes:
- Blanche tomatoes in boiling water to release the skin
- When tomatoes show cracks in skin, remove & peel
- Cut tomatoes in half and remove seeds
- Place tomato halves in pot with salt & EVOO (not too much, since you'll be adding more olive oil in Phase Two)
- Let cook down until nice & pulpy 

MEANWHILE, PHASE TWO:

Ingredients
*EVOO
*Fresh Basil
*Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
*Whole Garlic Cloves (we usually add two or three)
*Pasta
*Salt

Bring salted water to a boil & cook pasta per package directions.

Infuse basil, red pepper & EVOO as you would a tea:
- Add whole basil leaves, garlic and red pepper to EVOO in small pan
- Bring the EVOO mix to warm (bubbling slightly
 - After a while (i.e. once the infusion starts to become aromatic), strain EVOO into tomatoes & stir to combine.

 
PHASE THREE:

Ingredients
*Pat of butter
*Fresh chopped basil

- Allow tomato pulp & infused EVOO to cook & combine
- Add pasta to pan
- Add a pat of butter to balance tomato acidity. As you combine & melt the butter into the dish, the sauce also develops a beautiful silky texture.


Plate pasta & garnish with fresh basil


Also: Try different olive oil infusions and report back to this post on what you discovered!

Moving!

GOALS AND PROJECTS

Since Trevor and I both work from home (did I mention he is a fantastic musician? www.trevorlarkin.com), Trevor and I made the jump to a two-bedroom. FINALLY! We sacrificed nothing in terms of location, although I do miss my balcony. However, the space is ripe for new projects and new goals.

A couple of goals:

Minimize
 
I discovered that I was almost too good at storing things in a one-bedroom. As we moved, we discovered that we have WAAAAAY more than we ever anticipated- and we didn't even have a storage unit!


- Keep the favorite pieces and let the rest go. Several of my projects reflect the decisions between keeping or donating pieces of furniture.



Ground and Center
The first thing to develop after we moved in all of our big things was my meditation space. I've always put off creating a place designed specifically for being quiet, either because there "wasn't enough room" or it  "wasn't important". This time I didn't want to ignore how important it is to  center oneself daily. This falls in line with my desire to work with "Jackie" and "Jill" in partnership; this space... is for JILL.  As an added bonus, people are almost immediately drawn to the space when they see it, so I've had the chance to observe how much other people crave a quiet space like this. Homes should really build it into their design nowadays...

Matsu, too, enjoys the space for doing Corpse Pose:

Function plus Form

 Forwarding my favorite aspect of design: a thing becomes beautiful in serving a purpose. 

See my:

Kitchen Cork Board

Magnetic Spice Rack

Book Case Crates

Bookcase Crates

IT'S A SMALL SPACE- SOMETIMES YOU CAN KEEP SOMETHING THAT LOOKS COOL

OR KEEP THE BOOKSHELF

As we've moved into our new pad, I've been confronted over and over again with the choice of keeping beloved junk (to some) or keeping actual furniture or clothes.

It may seem like an odd choice, but I spent many hours walking about the neighborhood and dreaming up projects that would put this crate or that bottle cap to use. The items are an external collection of my wanderings, plus I think they look cool (in case it isn't obvious, I passed on collecting the "boring and ugly" items).

So when our Ikea bookcase broke for the SECOND Seattle-area move in a row, I decided not to replace it (again) and set myself the task to come up with something else. (Actually, I was going to leave all of our books in storage except that I noticed Trevor and I were both regularly searching through the various boxes piled in the hallway so something had to be done.)

A solution clicked into place when I realized that I would have to get rid of my wonderful wine crates, on which I lovingly added casters and painted with chalkboard paint, unless I could find a new use for them; like our books, they too were taking up our dwindling space in the hallway.


I decided to use them as bookshelves, of a sort, and placed our most-reached-for books (I keep telling myself I'll study for the GRE's) in the front:

Genius
and SO much cooler than our old Ikea Expedit bookshelf!

Corkboard Tiles For Practical Decor

WHEN POSTED ON A BULLETIN BOARD

 One of my first jobs in the new apartment was to tackle the kitchen and make it look... less cookie-cutter and, if possible, more tailored to us.

I removed the doors on a few cabinets (I really love the sparkle of light shining through clean wine glasses). Next, since I'm a gal who takes pleasure in texture, form, and function, I added cork tiles to the side of one cabinet. I'd call it a budget, tailored effect:

(side view)

(kitchen view)

And yes, future Recipe's of The Week are posted on the board right now!

Magnetic Spice Rack

The organizer in me loves this kind of magnetic spice rack because of the accessibility, industrial look and addition of color to the kitchen. HOWEVER, I don't like the prices; some of them go for over $100 (NOT including the cost of spices)!

The main impediment to this style is price if I want: (1) 20 plus spice jars, and (2) To spend under $50.

On the left is an example of these spice arrangement for that achieves #2. However, it provides for only an assortment of 12 spices. Similarly, for $20 could purchase a set of Kamenstein 6-Canister Magnetic-Strip Spice Rack, but I would still spend $80 if I wanted over 20 spice jars...
 

... Thus, and perhaps not surprisingly, I've decided to make my own...

Although this DIY Wall-Mounted Spice Rack from The Kitchn is cool, I wanted the containers to have clear tops like in the above images. I discovered this Instructables only after I finished my own magnetic spice rack. Here's my own, amateur solution:

Supplies:

- 25 x Tin Flat Containers 2.5 oz w/Clear Top = $15.75 plus shipping
- 25 x Neodymium magnets = $16.25 plus shipping
- Some double-sided 3M tape (I was lazy- I would have used glue, but this is what I had laying around the house.)

- An erasable pen like the kind your teacher used on the whiteboard (again, it's what I had laying around the house and I didn't want to wait until I got around to buying a labeler). I actually like this feature since it means I can use the containers interchangeably.

VOILA! For a total of $32 plus shipping, I managed to get 25 magnetic spice jars. They're currently on my fridge, but I may get a magnetic sheet for them once we're more settled into our new digs.

-

Moving - Del Sol Style

I discovered that I can carry anything in my Honda Del Sol, as long as it's a nice day. Who says my car's not practical?!

Semi-Serious & Rustic-Chic in Waitsburg, WA

A GASTROPUB OVERVIEW - THE JIM GERMAN BAR

Just outside of Walla Walla and nestled among rolling hills of peas, wheat, and wine lies the small (SMALL) town of Waitsburg. Word had reached Walla Walla that a new gastropub had opened on the town's dusty Main Street and was a must-try. So on word-of-mouth alone, we visited the Jim German Bar (named for the bar's owner) for cocktails and appetizers before walking across the street to the old classic, "Whoopemup".


I had a less than stellar experience at our chosen dinner venue: unrelenting air conditioning coming from all angles including at your feet which is cold and distracting if you are wearing shorts; an order for a medium-rare steak presented as "well-done"; but FANTASTIC deserts!

The beverage options and ambiance at the Jim German, on the other hand, left a lasting positive impression. Jim and his wife are aware of the true meaning of aperitif, and the drinks menu pays homage to many alcohols from around the world. I was particularly excited to see a plethora of Pastis beverages as well as various versions of Vermouth. Additionally, the mixed drinks were delightful and deceptively stiff. Trevor ordered a Mint Julep and I ordered a Pineau des Charents blanc, which was served properly chilled.

We also had the chorizo in red wine ($8) and Claire's Cornucopia Antipasto  ($15-25) - Somewhat small portions for 3-4 people, but the "Etruscan Snacks"  were served unpretentiously and tasted delicious.

The fare was fantastic and gave me a rosy demeanor in which to walk around and explore the space. This is the real reason why I decided to write about the Jim German here.

The space has high ceilings and a rustic-chic air. Overall sparsely decorated, the tables and stools were simple constructions from natural, light wood (after my own table-building experience, I tend to notice the dining furniture wherever I go), which provided a nice contrast to the dark wood floors. The natural hues were  humorously punctuated with a bright blue entrance and a goldenrod-yellow slat ceiling.

A few details stood out most of all:

[1]

Jim is growing hops outside to block the evening sun of his west-facing building.

Although they aren't fully grown, it's a beautiful start and I found them to be really pleasant to the eye against the backdrop of his blue door.

[2] 

The clever menu-display which was floor-to-ceiling brown roll-up paper (I can't wait to do something like this in my own house- if anyone knows where to find this sort of thing, let me know!!):

[3]

The long and light-filled communal dining space, called "Heaven" in reference to the Talking Head song, is adjacent to the main room and accessorized by the owners' artwork, a rolling barn door, and a heartbreakingly perfect architectural brick wall at the end of the room (not pictured very well since I was taking pictures with my boyfriend's phone):

 
[4]
 

And, finally, I was beyond giddy with delight to find a tree- a live, large TREE- in the bathroom!

True to the rest of the building's theme, the bathroom was bright and sparse, with classic colors, a few meaningful details and lovely architectural features.

Bengal Cat: Jungle Cat

All exploration was courtesy of Meri and her garden in Walla Walla.

The Animal prowled through the tall grasses:

She climbed trees on the hunt:

And practiced her camouflage: 

Cat Tree - An Update

While visiting Walla Walla, I had the joy of exploring the Meri's near-acre garden. She generously let me run loose about the yard and have access to all of her tools. In my explorations, I found a large, dead willow branch with the most beautiful bends and folds.

This, I decided, is to be the Animal's new cat tree; I finally (not to mention, legally) found an inexpensive solution to a cat tree that she and I can both find attractive!

I stripped and sanded it, and then used some of the steel wool restoration techniques I picked up from an article on Apartment Therapy.

I also rubbed a light finishing oil already prepared by Meri.

1/3 Tung Oil
1/3 Lemon Oil
1/3 Polyurathane



RESULT:

I'm not quite sure how it will ultimately fit in our space, but currently it is acting as a "staircase" up to the Animal's plush spot on top of our bedroom cabinet.