Monday, July 29, 2013

Sunday's Domestic-ness + Recipes

I feel like whenever I have a ton of work to do is when I decide to start baking or making a big meal.  It's like I have all this anxiousness about getting work done, and for some reason decide to focus the energy on domestic conquests instead.

I should have been working all day yesterday (I did work a little), but feeling unmotivated at the sewing machine, somehow got me super motivated to try some new things in the kitchen..

My first culinary challenge was this rosemary olive oil bread.
The bread came out so good!  I Highly recommend this recipe, especially if you love rosemary like I do. We used it to make sandwiches for dinner with some provolone cheese and genoa salami.
Next on my list (to go with the amazing bread) was to recreate the kale salad I had over the weekend at Brooklyn Central.
It's so easy, with simple ingredients, but really really tasty!
Basically it is:
-chopped kale
-grate some lemon zest over the kale
-pour on some extra virgin olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
-mix-
-grate on some parmesan cheese
-mix again-
sprinkle on some nuts of choice*
*Brooklyn Central uses candied pecans which are a great compliment to the salad, I used all the pecans I had for the cobbler below, so I used sunflower seeds on the salad which were really tasty & crunchy.
[If you live in Brooklyn, Brooklyn Central has amazing brick oven pizza].


 Ok, so last on the list was this amazing blueberry cobbler
Any fruit can be used in this recipe making it super versatile. I had blueberries and strawberries in the fridge so I used both, so delicious!
The one change I made to the recipe was to add a little lemon zest and just a dash of sugar to the fruit 
before putting the topping on.
We ate it for dessert with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream (it was still warm, so the addition of the ice cream was heaven!).
This morning I ate some for breakfast with a little greek yogurt. So Good!





Tuesday, July 23, 2013

New and Necessary. What I keep in my purse..


This mini pouch is my new favorite size pouch...

I used to be the type to use the same shoulder bag everyday for months and months.  Now that I make them I am changing bags all the time, usually testing new styles, etc.  So, I end up transferring all my hand bag 'necessities' back and forth almost everyday.

I found the solution.. this mini pouch filled with all necessary items, you know the items that if I don't bring one day, that's the day I'll need a band-aid, or a little mirror, or a hair tie. 

I've also become addicted to the loose pocket concept.  My shoulder bag (currently a tote I've been testing for fall) is filled with different sized 'pockets' and pouches to keep everything organized, which really cuts down on 'rummaging' time. :)

These little pouches are nylon lined so they would also be great to keep extra make up in for an unexpected night out. Speaking of an unexpected night out, should that happen you have a festive little clutch ready to go!

The zipper pull is brass chain loop with a little brass bead detail. I have a very tiny vintage pouch with the zipper pull like this (where I got the idea) and I love it because I can kind of just hang the clutch from my finger when I am carrying it, instead of having a big wrist strap.


The delicate size and sparkles make these even elegant for a wedding, or party. There's just so many options with this one!


Here's what I am always carrying around:


counter clock wise:
1.Band-aids for all my blisters // 2. My rose blush pouch // 3. Mini version of my favorite face lotion (Jurlique balancing day cream is heaven) // 4. My favorite lipstick shade. I try so many different shades to be trendy or festive, but Clinique in heather moon with its silvery violet shade and lightweight texture always works for me // 5. I have lip balm tubes all over my house, and in probably every purse. I am an addict. My two favorites are Burt's Bees with mango butter and Fresh sugar rose // 6. For my dry eyes, if you wear contacts, you're familiar... // 7. Slip proof hair elastic // 8. Shell pill box I got in Florida one year; always filled with aleve, my go to pain reliever // 9. Love these Tums freshers, for indigestion and fresh breath! :) // 10. I use an old eye shadow case for the mirror // 11. Just in case // 12. If you know me, you know my phone dies all the time. (I'm bad about charging, it's annoying for everyone involved). I was so glad to find this back up charger at Jcrew! (I belive they have them for iphone 5 also.) 




Friday, July 19, 2013

You say its your Birthday. A quick look back...

To celebrate our 2nd birthday I decided to look back at my first collection...
 Very colorful! :)




















Happy Birthday GSB!! + Coupon Code!

GIFT SHOP BROOKLYN IS 2 years old today!
And you're getting the gift.. 20% your entire order with off coupon code: HappyBirthday2



Use coupon code HappyBirthday2 at the following shops:

About Me

My photo
All of my items are hand crafted by me in my Brooklyn, NY studio. I believe in USA hand made, supporting local, and supporting quality. All materials I use are sourced and purchased from vendors in the USA. I truly am inspired so much by nature. Just walk outside and there's millions of things to be inspired by, whether city or country. At different points in my life, or year, or day I can look at the same thing and see it in a completely new way. I realize Im not the first person to be inspired by nature, but I find it amazing how we can all be inspired so uniquely by it. I am a pretty practical person; I feel designs should have form AND function. I USE all of my designs to ensure ease of use, aesthetic appeal, and versatility. If at the end of the day I don't love it, it goes back to the drawing board; or on the back burner; or just tossed on the 'prototype' pile. I also make sure all my designs are items I personally would love to give as gifts.