Posted by JodiAt parties, I’m not content simply to drink some punch and chat with guests. I find myself taking mental notes of genius ideas I intend to “borrow” for my own parties.
Case in point: A brilliant and flavorful baby-shower brunch that was a feast for the eyes as much as it was for the stomach.
A feast to behold
Posted by BluelinesAs promised, Bluelines has undergone a facelift (the fun kind). It might seem subtle but we've made some big additions. Here's a rundown of what's new.
If they're not already drawn there immediately, direct your eyes upward and you'll see six cool new banners by the incredibly talented artist Keith Shore. (More about him later.) We'll be rotating the artist behind our banners every month so if you'd like to be considered or want to suggest someone, please email us.
We've got a new list of contributors who'll be blogging about what inspires them, makes them laugh, and generally makes them weak in the knees. There are a few familiar faces, and a couple of new ones sprinkled in. We hope you come to like them all.
On the top left, we've tweaked our navigation, so play around with it and discover the archived treasures that lie within. Here, you'll find all of the previous Bluelines posts archived.
Navigation button No. 10 deserves a paragraph of its own. We've created a source book full of our favorite websites, blogs, artists, and resources. Here you'll also find all of Blueprint's beloved 100 Reasons To... -- which contain a bevy of links, facts, and inspiration. We'll be adding to that list constantly, so check back often.
You'll also notice that we've created home tours of our favorite Blueprint features. Take a virtual tour of Suzanna Bierwith's Chicago row house, and watch as Sarah Humphreys's tiny Manhattan apartment goes from claustrophobic to chic. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but they are also rife with great decorating tips and ideas to steal. And, of course, we'll be adding more of them.
New ideas, a new look, and new contributors -- we hope that's what you've been hankering for.
Just some of what's to come
Posted by BlueprintWhile we're looking forward to our retooled blog, we've also been looking back at the posts over the past year. Here are just a few of our favorite posts:
Do you have any favorite posts?
Posted by BlueprintTake a peek at home ideas -- great and small with a Blueprint twist.
Also don't miss our Organizing Tip of the Day
You'll find great DIY jewelry (a la Katie), Page's flat-screen tv cozy, and our Craft of the Day (which includes many Blueprint ideas)
Find all of the Blueprint party menus, to-do lists, playlists and prep stuff here
Blueprint recipes -- from soup to well nuts (...like Blueprint's roasted almonds)
Need ideas for a healthy & quick breakfast? Want to take up jogging? Need a new makeup palette? Look no further.
and lastly...
Simply type "Blueprint" in our SEARCH box on MarthaStewart.com or any page to be directed to those great blue ideas in the sky.
Posted by Blueprint
Tommy Lee Jones in No Country for Old Men
Posted by Kerstin, Online Editor
I recently came across an amazing party essential tucked away amid my mom’s many cookbooks. Hidden between Mario Batali’s Simple Italian Food and The Joy of Cooking was the Esquire Party Book.
Because Mom didn't remember where it came from or making one thing from it, I quickly stashed it in my suitcase and flipped through it on the train ride home. The first thing that struck me? Dozens of genius, quirky illustrations by Seymour Chwast -- a founding member of Pushpin Studios.
Posted by BlueprintOur drink of the month is the Lychee Orange Blossom Saketini. Sure, it's a mouthful to say, but it goes down easy enough. Trust us, we tested.
Lychee Orange Blossom Saketini
*For those of you in search of the inside-out martini glasses shown above, they are by AlissiaMT and can be purchased here.
Read on for the recipe...
Posted by Kerstin, Online Editor
Do you desperately want to escape the blisteringly cold, windy, and mundane days of January for a sunny Brazilian beach town -- but can't? Me too. So instead, I am soothing my southern hemisphere wanderlust with a nightly Caipirinha (the national cocktail of Brazil).
Brazil!
Luckily, I was given a first-class lesson in making one by Gary Regan, one of the country's leading spirits experts, who talked through some of the finer points of Cachaca -- Brazilian rum made from sugarcane juice, not molasses (the common ingredient in most rums made outside Brazil). This distinction is what gives Cachaca -- as Gary so aptly put it -- “a *@$&%$*% of character.” After the eye-opening intro, he showed us how to whip up the perfect Caipirinha.
Read on for the recipe >>
Posted by Blueprint
Posted by Sarah, Associate Fashion EditorOne for them, one for me:
iPod Karaoke, $60, Fred Flare
This system comes with a converter, microphone, and cables to hook your iPod up to a TV and turn it into a karaoke machine. You will be a traveling karaoke party in waiting! Need I say more?
'Forget me knot' rings by Kiel Mead, $150 (gold) or $50 (silver) at Uncommon Goods and The Future Perfect
The perfect gift for a
special someone you want to remember you. In my case, it's the ring I've
been admiring for far too long and am going to buy myself this year.
We'd like to thank you for being an inspiration to us. If you can't think of one reason to be thankful, fear not: you might agree with one of our 100 reasons.
By the way, what are you doing on the computer? Go eat something. Anything. May we suggest something really delicious from "The Grateful Spread?" Dessert is always a good place to start...
Posted by Shira, Editorial Assistant, Art
Without further ado, we'd like to give a big welcome to Laslo Spica. Our deputy art director, Cybele, gave birth to him last night. We were so excited for his arrival that, back in mid-October, we threw her a baby shower (our staff's second, the first having been well documented).
"Operation Baby Shower" began when the art department (senior art director Lisa Thé, associate art director Jamie Prokell, design director Deb Bishop, and me) settled on a color palette. As visually driven creatures, we do not take these things lightly: We broke out the Pantone color chips and decided on baby blue, orange, and chocolate brown.
Since the lady of honor is not fond of cupcakes (confirmed through top-secret communication with her husband, Robert), we served cookies and chocolates. We stocked up on buttery cookies from City Bakery and chocolate treats stuffed with almonds, mint, malt balls, blueberries, and raisins. To clue the attending staffers in to the multitude of flavors inside, I taped little blue labels to the candy dishes. We also picked up baby blue and orange M&Ms from Dylan’s Candy Bar to match our color scheme.
Chocolates!
The table was set with cake stands and candy dishes from an old Martha Stewart Everyday collection at Kmart. Deb picked out gorgeous paper from Kate’s Paperie (the style name was “Japonesque Orange,” but is no longer on the website) that we taped together to make a table runner, and the rest of the trimmings came from our supply closets. Over the table we hung intricate felt place mats -- called in for an upcoming story (stay tuned!) -- and tacked Deb’s “Boy” banner to a bulletin board.
Jamie’s custom-made wrapping paper, created from scans of our Pantone color chips
Everyone oohed and aahed over the gifts, including baby clothes from Makié, Roam, and Oilily. Cybele and our executive editor, Tim Moss, exchanged due dates; Tim and his wife are expecting their third child any day now. And Cybele told us that Ellis, her 5-year-old son, had his heart set on naming his baby brother "Huckle." He thinks it has a nice ring to it.
Cybele opening her gifts
Posted by Sydney, Design Production Associate
Not until you see someone in bowling shoes do you really know them. At least that was the supposed sentiment behind a recent staff bowling outing to welcome some new Blueprint-ers. Here are the highlights.
A sassy pose is key! From left to right: Mary (aka Winner) had a stance that was just as awesome as her follow-through; Malikah was a switch-hitter -- equally talented with her right and left hand; Shira's pre-bowl pose left the competition dumbstruck.
"I have those shoes, too." Rachel and Milano (left), sitting pretty while waiting their turn to show those pins who's boss. Synchronized bowling from Shane, in foreground, and Jamie.
Rebecca, whose bowling alias was "Reba," won the best-dressed and cutest bowler awards for the evening. To be fair, there wasn't really a contest -- she just looked great.
Apparently I got the highest scores of the night. I am such a bowling dork. (blush)
Posted by Valerie, Senior EditorThere's little that's more gratifying than hearing about how people pull ideas from Blueprint and adapt them to fit their own homes, lifestyles, and dinner tables. (Well, there's also payday, but still, sometimes this is better.) Here are a few outstanding examples of our readers' creative reuse.
The first comes to us from Maria at Port2Port Press. She took inspiration from the beaker-turned-water-decanter in "Company Perks," our office-organizing story from the September/October 2007 issue, and set up her own stylish rehydration station in her letterpress studio.
Maria and her new Erlenmeyer flask for water
(Maria happily reports that all her workday dry spells have subsequently been doused.)
Then we heard from Lori Cannava of New York City: "I wanted to thank Blueprint for the awesome "100 Reasons to Hit the Road" July/August suggestion for staying at the Shady Dell in Bisbee, AZ. I went on a cross-country trip from Orlando, FL, to Los Angeles, CA, and made a detour to stay at the Shady Dell, and I could not have been happier! The owner is lovely, the site is precious, and the town of Bisbee could not have been cuter. My friend and I had way too much fun taking pictures in front of our tiny 1952 Airstream trailer."
"Other places that we found and love: The Austin Motel is a vintage motel with themed rooms and a great pool. Hotel Brunswick, in Kingman, AZ, off Route 66, offers a $35 cowgirl room that has no frills, but is a major deal on a legendary road. Supposedly, the restaurant inside the hotel is terrific -- it's just not open on Saturdays! However, Mr. D's diner is open, and only one block away. It's a classic throwback with Elvis and Marilyn strewn over every surface. They serve great eggs and even whip up a mean chocolate shake at 9 in the morning."
Meanwhile, in Baltimore, Anne Ditmeyer went back to our Fall 2006 wine-tasting party story for ideas on throwing her own. She dished about the bash on her blog, Pret A Voyager: "Last year Blueprint magazine had a great article on throwing your own wine-tasting party -- it's really much easier than it looks. The article had lots of great suggestions (like using a craft paper tablecloth and making wine-stain place markers) and provided wonderful inspiration for my very own wine tasting -- with a twist. I'm a travel nut, so my well-traveled guests were assigned to bring a bottle from a country or region they had visited, instead of a particular type of wine. And besides the hodgepodge of thrift store glassware, most of the other dishes I used had been picked up on various travels. We found that it's possible to travel vicariously through wine."
Anne's picture-perfect party spread.
Next, Adelaide Fives of New York's In Good Company used a trick from our May/June cover story, "It Takes 2", in her office. She says: "My partner and I recently launched a flexible workspace for women business owners in New York. We had never decorated an office before, but knew how important the décor and feel of the space would be for our clients. We really wanted to have an open work space, but also give people some sense of privacy. We looked forever and hated every cube/traditional desk that we saw. Then you published the issue of Blueprint with the white desks and plexiglas divider, and my partner and I instantly thought, 'That's it!'"
The desks in situ at In Good Company
"Everyone who comes through the space asks who our interior designer was and tells us how gorgeous it all looks! The plexiglas is turning out to be the perfect look and solution," Fives says.
Also in New York, Gabrielle at DesignMom took on an extensive porch makeover inspired by our May/June version, and the results are breathtaking.
The porch, before
The porch, after
With the help of her husband, Ben, she -- deep breath! -- removed the screen; painted the door green and the handle and knocker silver; replaced the overgrown shrubs with plants from other parts of the yard that needed more room to breathe; swapped the old porch light for a modern fixture from Ikea ("It hangs lower and adds more welcoming light as you approach the house," she says); bought a shiny, red Swedish mailbox to add a little more pop; installed a new doorbell and house numbers; and added some terra cotta pots with warm, colorful flowers. Nice work, Gabrielle!
Finally, we picked our favorite submission from the "What's the most inventive thing you've ever framed?" contest, and here's the winner:
Caroline Duke of Oklahoma City used a wire in her frame to clip up some images, and rested other objects on the frame's ledge. She says: "I've got a tendency to snatch up old frames from my grandma's garage but never know quite what to do with them. I figured this was a nice alternative to a bulletin board and a pretty way to display the things that inspire me. I just tacked some wire to the back and used alligator clips to hang the pretty stuff."
Caroline's frame
Thanks, Caroline! And thanks to all the others who sent in beautiful framing ideas!
If you've been inspired by Blueprint, don't be shy! Please share your tips, travels, and projects by e-mailing us.
Posted by Valerie, Senior EditorWhat's better than a holiday devoted exclusively and explicitly to not working? Perhaps sipping an easier-than-it-looks deluxe martini while celebrating said holiday. Click, mix, sip, and meet us back here tomorrow.
Dill-Vodka Martini
The approach of Labor Day weekend can be kind of a bummer -- the symbolic time to set summer aside and get serious. But for most of us, there's plenty of warm weather left, and, of course, one last glorious long weekend to make the most of. Here are some ideas cribbed from my own adventures that may spark a little late-season inspiration.
1) Rent a boat.
Over Memorial Day weekend, I chartered a boat off the coast of Maine with a few pals. We cruised in and around this breathtaking archipelago (all considered part of magical Roque Island), and saw seals from afar.
Unfortunately, every time we even thought about getting a closer look, they bolted. If you happen to be in Maine, check out the boat rentals at Mansells and see if you have better luck than we did.
[For those of you who will be in New York City, head straight to Loeb Boathouse in Central Park: It’s amazing to gaze up at skyscrapers while rowing a boat in the middle of a lake (and was my favorite pastime growing up in the Big Apple). When your triceps start trembling, paddle in and treat yourself to a gourmet bite overlooking the lake at the restaurant next door.]
2) Hang out with farm animals.
Roque Island also features an operating farm full of fluffy, muddy, and smelly characters. We city slickers spent quality time with some robust pigs, a whole village of sheep, and handsome horses that would walk right up to the porch for petting sessions.
Look for a family farm near you on the Local Harvest site.
3) Feast on lobster.
Trips to coastal towns seem incomplete without a little shell-cracking, butter-dipping, and lip-licking.
Nowhere near a coast this weekend (or ever)? Not to worry -- many seafood sources, like Trenton Bridge Lobster, ship overnight to anywhere in the U. S. And they do it year-round!
4) Be a beach bum.
Enough said. If you get hot, build a shaded sand hut for secret convos and gatherings.
5) Host a badminton tournament in your backyard.
I participated in one in Westport, Connecticut, a few weeks ago, although ours was a bit of a spoof. Sure, there were birdies, rackets and nets, and some serious players who showed up to win, but most of us just sipped on Pimms' cups and gawked at everyone else's "uniforms." Naturally, there was a costume contest, and the winners got trophies. (My partner and I ran with Kung Fu Badminton -- can you believe we didn't win?)
What about the rest of you? Any big plans for the holiday weekend? And when do you start packing up your bikinis and flip-flops?
Posted by Petra, Staff WriterBecause this is my final (bittersweet) Bluelines post before I depart for a new job, I wanted to take the opportunity to celebrate one of the things I love most about the people here: Their enthusiasm for birthdays. You'll find no chalky supermaket cakes and crepe-paper streamers in the Blueprint offices. To show you what you will find, I dug up some old photos from parties past. Sadly, they're not even close to comprehensive (how could nobody shoot Page's perfect gray-yellow party?!).
I'll start with my own birthday (of course). There was a monsoon-scale rainstorm outside, so I announced that all I wanted was some sunshine. Thus, Milano, our editorial assistant, spearheaded the transformation of the conference room into a tropical beach, complete with "waves" and a strip of "sand". She accomplished this using only materials laying around the office. (We think the blue netting is the patio privacy curtain we showed in our July/August issue ... but this has not been confirmed.) Amidst the excitement over the beach and two enormous vats of ice cream, there were a few requests that I lay on the "sand" and pose for photos. In the end, I chose not to file a sexual harassment claim with HR.
Also held in the conference room, the party for Deb, our design director, centered around a basket of guilty goodies from City Bakery.
Naturally, we needed milk for all those cookies. We swiped these containers from the office pantry and jazzed 'em up with some paper products from the home closet. I think they're from Target's summer collection? The home editors can comment and correct me if I'm wrong!
Shira, our art department assistant, attempted to duplicate the signature Blueprint font on Deb's birthday-card envelope. It was a rushed but valiant effort.
Sydney -- our production associate, who may or may not begin blogging here soon -- enjoyed a particularly ambitious theme for her birthday: pirates. Apparently, she was obsessed with Talk Like a Pirate Day at the time. Also, she is a fan of eye patches. The result was this table covering:
Of course, for our editor in chief, things were taken up an additional notch. That's right, there was booze. A giant bucket of beers, to be exact. Don't tell HR!
Appropriately, Elizabeth Graves, our beauty, health, and fitness editor, baked Sarah's favorite (beautiful but unhealthy) coconut cake.
Senior home editor Rebecca's birthday involved the creative use of Post-Its and the re-emergence of the ice-cream vats. The centerpiece was a gorgeous rose vase from Global Table that the home department bought. (You can see it better on the website than in our photos.) From left to right, that's Milano, Elizabeth, Sarah, Sydney, Ian, and Rebecca.
I think this is just how Rebecca looks when excited ... ?
Of course, with all these sweets-centric parties, our clothes sometimes stop fitting. That's when we bust out with a healthy theme, as we did for Scott, our contributing home editor. He got a Greek yogurt bar complete with lots of yummy toppings. In this shot, senior production associate Duane appears prepared to lunge across the table at them.
This photo is a must-include because of the touching birthday moment happening between Scott and Milano. I had planned to crop myself out, since I look like a huge dork, but my coworker Valerie informed me that doing so would make me an even bigger dork. So there you have me.
I only hope the parties at future workplaces can live up.
Well hello there. We're glad you stopped by to see us, but did you forget it's the Fourth of July? Back away from the computer, call a few friends, and make a batch of these. We'll catch up tomorrow.
Posted by Sarah, Editor-In-ChiefA few weeks ago, my brother Tom turned the ripe old age of 30. So naturally we had to throw him a blowout, and naturally the party had to be Rhode Island-themed. We were born and bred there, and Tom recently moved back with his lovely wife, O’rya. He now serves as an unofficial Ocean State ambassador -- searching out secluded beaches, taking the whaler out after work to fish for stripers, and supporting (read: eating, drinking, and buying his way through) local businesses like Farmstead Cheese (try the Piave Vecchio), Clover (try the Steven Alan reverse-seam shirt), and Narragansett Beer (try the beer).
Here are some highlights from The Ocean State: Where It All Began.
We didn’t go overboard with decorations, but we made some strong statements.
Rhode Islanders will know in a second what this is, but for the rest of the nation: It’s a replica of Nibbles Woodaway, the giant blue termite that sits atop the New England Pest Control building on I-95. My mother papier-machéd an inflatable deer head (left over from my dad’s 60th birthday, don’t ask) into its likeness. (Bonus: Look for a mention of Nibbles in Blueprint’s upcoming July/August issue.)
Then, to honor Rhode Island’s motley crew of local heroes and villains, and my brother’s place among them, we framed portraits of our favorites -- reputed mob boss Raymond Patriarca, dearly departed weatherman Salty Brine, beloved-but-corrupted former Mayor Buddy Cianci, and, yep, Nibbles Woodaway -- to create a Hall of Fame.
Costumes were required to gain entrance, which left the out-of-towners scrambling for ideas (and subsequently scratching their heads at ours). My mother went as the Johnston, RI, landfill. Note the requisite circling seagull.
And then there was the food. We started out with homemade clamcakes -- essentially a ball of fried dough that has a clam inside, if you’re lucky. Some of us like to eat them with a splash of Tabasco.
Then we moved on to stuffies. Clams again, this time chopped and mixed with breadcrumbs, onions, peppers, and other mysterious-yet-delicious bits.
I am sorry to say my camera ran out of batteries before we made it to the third course: New York system wieners. Don’t ask me why New York system wieners are a Rhode Island specialty (I’ve never seen them anywhere else), but they are delicious and we love them. Small dogs, topped with meat sauce and raw onions, sprinkled with celery salt and served on a basic bun. Average serving per person: at least two. O’rya is an editor at Rhode Island Monthly and wrote a very funny story about her transformation from Colorado-born vegetarian to Rhode Island-living wienertarian.
And for the grand finale? A giant clam called a quahog. Actually, a giant doughnut shaped like a quahog, from Allie’s Donuts in North Kingstown, RI. Allie’s is the best doughnut shop in the state, and they agreed to create this bedazzled bivalve especially for Tom. Not a light menu, to be sure, but a fitting tribute to my “wicked cool” brother.
Posted by Meryl, Market EditorOscar de la Renta's tableware for Lunt Silversmiths is often very beautiful, and very expensive. So I was thrilled when my favorite introduction at last week's tabletop market (more on that later) was totally within my price range. These vibrant Caftan canape plates are made from ikat-patterned fabric laminated between acrylic sheets, and they retail for just $10 each at Saks. I love their graphic square shape and the visible texture of the embedded textiles. They would be such a lively addition to any cocktail party or backyard gathering. And for the celeb-watchers among us, I heard Iman has already picked up a set.
Posted by Rebecca, Senior Home EditorI had so much fun a couple of weeks ago playing scopa, a card game from Italy whose name means "broom" or "sweep." It's a pastime frequently associated with old men sitting in cafes and drinking grappa (otherwise known as "firewater"). But my husband Marco decided he wasn't going to let the Italian grandfathers have all the fun and organized a similar event at our wine store's enoteca.
From regular customers to complete strangers (who read about the event on our website), most of the people who showed up seemed to have a sentimental connection to the game -- their grandparents played, or they learned it one night during a visit to Italy -- and were looking to reconnect with great memories. We cobbled together our knowledge of the rules, which, in typical Italian fashion, can change depending on who the dealer is.
While we played, we tasted a series of amazing grappas from Marolo: the Moscato and Barolo flavors, and my favorite, a chamomile-blossom version (there's nothing "firewater" about it).
Given these circumstances, it's no surprise that all of us became fast friends, and now we're planning to start a monthly scopa group! You can try playing the 40-card game using ordinary playing cards by removing the 8s, 9s, and 10s. But it's worth buying a scopa deck (ours are from E. Rossi & Co. in Little Italy, 212-966-6640, and you can find a variety of regional designs online). Because in typical Italian fashion, they're as beautiful to look at as they are entertaining.
Posted by Shane, Senior Home EditorA few weeks ago, my friends Philip (who was visiting from Paris) and Emmanuelle (who lives here in New York) asked me to decorate their dual birthday celebration for roughly 100 people. The theme, we decided, would be "imaginative Versailles," and everybody would wear a mask. I immediately knew how I wanted it to look: gluttonous, fluffy, and, of course, pretty.
To accomplish this, I enlisted the help of my good friends and fellow crafters Katie Hatch (Blueprint's fashion editor) and Marcie McGoldrick (the holiday/crafts editor of Martha Stewart Living). We threw the party in a raw, white, lofty space with plenty of room for dancing and for the big ball gowns that many women showed up in. The pièce de résistance was an enormous cloud of cotton candy, which I ordered from Dylan's Candy Bar, in smaller quantities, and whooped up into a crazy mound. This three-foot tower of saccharine fluff served as our centerpiece, alongside a big pile of roasted ham. Behind the buffet, I hung a 4"-by-6" portrait of Marie Antoinette, made using the Rasterbator.
I built the buffet itself from two sets of white-painted sawhorses and some 3"-by-6" painted MDF boards; for the bar, I used two folding wooden tables that already existed in the space. We covered these with pink construction paper, the kind you can buy in giant rolls at the hardware store (it's used to protect areas of your home during renovations). Katie artfully styled a black ribbon across the table, letting it cascade around the 30 glittered pigs Marcie and I had made a week prior, using plastic pigs from the dollar store -- a nod to the spirit of gluttony.
Most of our other supplies came inexpensively from Party City. I stacked clear plastic wine glasses and plates in giant piles for grand impact. All over the floor, we sprinkled white paper confetti. You may think, "What a freakin' mess to clean up!" But it was worth it. It created a wonderful veil all over the floor and really transformed the space, somehow helping people feel comfortable letting go.
The large gold vessels are from Jamali Garden. We made the tiered displays by turning bowls we already owned upside-down and stacking plates in between, securing each layer with sticky tack. To add to the drama, we drizzled white strands of faux pearls around and over some of the food. Colorful confection classics like Necco wafers, two-foot-long pink Pixie Stix, and luscious swirls of ribbon candy dripped over the edges of their containers. Metallic jewel-toned eggs filled with chocolate overflowed from gilded vases.
Of course, the day of the party, I had a minor meltdown when thinking about everything I had to accomplish. Thankfully, Marcie and Katie offered their eleventh-hour assistance. The three of us, along with Philip, worked furiously, finishing just before the first guest arrived.
(there's Katie, in disguise)
Posted by Petra, Staff WriterBlueprint has just moved to a new building. More on that soon -- but in the meantime, here are some shots from the goodbye party we threw yesterday for Jen Merrill, our associate art director (she is moving on, and we're trying not to be bitter about it). To send her off in style, our deputy art director, Cybele, transformed our conference room, which a few days ago looked like this ...
... into a delicious burst of citrusy happiness (Jen's a connoisseur of obscure citrus fruits). The big green fruits are pomelos, which many of us had never tried. Yum! They're sort of like grapefruit, only sweeter and with thicker skin.
You might recognize the pattern used for this sign: It comes from the story in our current issue about photographer Tosca Radigonda's home in Texas, and it intermittently appears as our blog banner.
Of course, one can't party on citrus alone. There was also some cupcake action, from Billy's Bakery (another Jen-fatuation).
Cybele covered the blah bulletin board with festive stripes by tacking up rows of yellow and orange tickets, which were props for our May/June issue (that's where you'll also find out more about those cool yellow stools).
Posted by Sarah, Editor-In-ChiefIt is precisely at this time every year, when my skin is the color of pizza dough and S.A.D. symptoms sound strikingly familiar, that I get the urge to head south. I usually do, but this job (which I love! really! I promise!) has kept me here in my office, for many hours and counting, while we close our next issue. And so I am turning to the next best thing to a vacation: the Dark and Stormy. Here is a picture of one that I sipped on a dock in Chappaquiddick, Massachusetts, in the summer of '05. Sublime.
The recipe is ridiculously easy -- one-third Goslings Black Seal rum to two-thirds ginger beer (I like 'em strong), with a generous squeeze of lime. And for the spiciest blend around, use Blenheim HOT HOT Ginger Ale. I've only seen it at the Piggly Wiggly in Charleston, South Carolina, but you can order it online. Here's to weathering the storm.
Posted by Shane, Senior Home EditorA Valentine’s party featuring heart-shaped burgers—it was my boyfriend Addy’s idea. I bought a stove-top cast-iron griddle with ridges at the local hardware store, and it worked beautifully (and is very slim for storage).
The only problem: The smoke from the burgers kept setting off the fire alarm. It wasn’t crazy smoky, but our alarms are sensitive. So we just suffocated the grill with a plastic shopping bag ‘til it shut up. It added good drama to the preparation. At our square table, which seats two on each side, we offered mixed greens, blue cheese, vine-ripe tomatoes, and home fries as sides/toppings, and we finished five bottles of wine among six people.
Posted by Blueprint