Always looking for sunshine, figuratively and lite Always looking for sunshine, figuratively and literally. Sometimes we don’t have to look very far and it finds us. ☀️
It didn’t take much to get me to @mikespastasand It didn’t take much to get me to @mikespastasandwichshoppe when a friend texted me a screenshot of their cheese butter. Up until last week I had never even heard of cheese butter but just two days later, I’m driving an hour round trip to get some. 😂 I was never one to succumb to peer pressure (I didn’t have my first drink until I was 21!), but when it comes to food finds, I am very easily intrigued. After all, that’s how I’ve discovered some of my favorite bites over the years … lardo from @butlerandtheboard, a spicy Italian sausage, and my love of chicharron. If you haven’t visited Mike’s in Nutley, it’s worth a visit. While there, I also got a small tray of meatballs (a bargain at $10!) and a delicious mortadella sandwich that is worth a round trip. ✨
The long, dreary and grey months of the Winter nee The long, dreary and grey months of the Winter need a little bit of color, so here you go. 😍 Love this chest of drawers. Discovered it buried in a local shop and bought it specifically for the green color (one of my favorites). Vintage Coke crate was a $10 score from a garage sale place on Facebook some ten years ago. And the assorted markers in Roy G Biv order (natch) that aren’t used anymore because my kids have sadly left that phase. 🙃
Weekend Photos in Review, old school still photo s Weekend Photos in Review, old school still photo style, hope you had a good one! ✨
A friend was taking a trip to Ireland and asked if A friend was taking a trip to Ireland and asked if I wanted her to bring me back anything. Would you believe me if I told you I asked for salt? I love picking up different varieties, whether we’re traveling or I’m just visiting a new shop. Maddie grabbed me a super cute one from her trip to Paris last year, and the Magic Unicorn Salt I get locally is another favorite. What’s yours?
One of us hops like a bunny down the steps, has a One of us hops like a bunny down the steps, has a serious case of FOMO on the daily, gets hiccups more than anyone we know and has perpetual bed head. She’s quite the unique roommate but may be exactly what our home needed. 💛
I haven’t had a bagel in ages, but when I saw th I haven’t had a bagel in ages, but when I saw that @njdotcom had picked six bagel shops at the “best in the state,” and one was reasonably local, all the sudden I needed one. I was never one to fall prey to peer pressure, but I’m very definitely a marketer’s dream. 😂 Alfa Bagels is on Route 10 in Randolph and has a good assortment of bagels, including all the usual suspects, but with a few others like rainbow, Asiago and French Toast throw in for good measure. Their bagels always seem to have a nice chew, which I appreciate and I love their sesame one. My go-to order lately is a double toasted flagel with lox spread and tomato. Their lox spread is a little ho hum, but the bagel is delish. Check them out next time you’ve got a craving (or get motivated by a local news story 😝). What’s your bagel order?
✌🏻 ✌🏻
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Sweetnicks

Food and Life

Crafty and Creative – Who Me?

January 8, 2009 · Narrative

Sophie Bookmark (Front)Many years ago (read: before kids), I liked to do craft projects, and was big into rubber stamping.  So much so that I headed up to Boston every year for an annual rubber stamp convention.  Yes, such things exist.  Hey, any excuse to visit Boston … I still like doing craft projects and stamping, but now it’s more just a lack of time.

This past Christmas, I decided it was time to get some of the creative juices going again, and I made a few things for our family.   Truth be told, I actually had a list of things I was going to make, and then that darn Christmas flu took hold and I actually only got to complete two things, but I was pretty pleased with myself nonetheless.

Much like cooking and baking, it’s nice to have a hobby or project that quiets your mind Sophie Bookmark (Back)and just lets you breathe, you know?  I waited until everyone was asleep, which isn’t hard since I’m always the last one to bed anyway, headed downstairs to my office and started work.

I ended up making a personal bookmark for everyone in the family.  I didn’t have a plan going in on how I was going to do it, but as I made each one, I learned what worked and what didn’t and made changes along the way.  I used scrapbooking paper for the fronts and backs of the actual bookmarks, and assorted stickers and supplies for decoration.  Once they were done, I laminated them, sticking a coordinating ribbon at the top of each one.  I was pretty happy with the way they came out (the pink one I made for my sister with Sophie was my favorite), and since everyone in our family reads pretty voraciously, I thought they would be a perfect small gift.

Nick's ArtworkA few months before Christmas, Nick was busy coloring and I took a peek to see what he was drawing.  He was making freehand cupcakes.  He definitely gets that artistic bent from my mom and grandmother (even my sister), but definitely not me.  I was so impressed with how well he was drawing them that they became the inspiration for another gift, hand-drawn framed cupcake prints.  Once we finish renovating our kitchen, I’m going to put his artistic abilities to work again and have him make me a series of the cupcake art to put on the wall.  A boy after my own heart.

Dad's BookmarkIt felt good to get the creative juices flowing again, but in a very different way than cooking or baking does.  I recently reconnected with an old friend from grammar school, and she’s very immersed in the world of scrapbooking, something that I would love to get in to, if only to finally get all our pictures put in photo albums, once and for all.

So now that the crafting bug is back, I plan to drag everyone with me to this year’s rubber stamp show in June.   I figure I can bribe The Husband with a meal at The Union Oyster House, one of our favorite restaurants in Boston and a frequent stop of John F. Kennedy on his way to and from Washington DC in his politicking days, and Nick is easy … mention a road trip and he is in.

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Posted In: Narrative

Comments

  1. claire says

    January 8, 2009 at 11:56 pm

    These are so cute! I never would have thought of this…apparently your creative juices ARE flowing!

    claires last blog post..Soup’s On Call

    Reply
  2. Sarah says

    January 9, 2009 at 9:56 pm

    What exactly does one do at a rubber stamp convention?

    I love, love, love Nicholas’s cupcakes! They would be awesome for a kitchen series!

    Sarahs last blog post..The Food Blog Awards Are On!

    Reply
  3. Sara says

    January 10, 2009 at 12:13 pm

    These are great! I have no artistic ability whatsoever.

    Saras last blog post..Fennel and orange salad

    Reply
  4. maris says

    January 10, 2009 at 12:28 pm

    I used to love craft projects too! (Except for me, it’s read: before blog). I like to knit because you can do something you enjoy and at the end you have a new product!

    mariss last blog post..Spicy Chicken Cornbread Chili

    Reply
  5. Cate says

    January 11, 2009 at 11:50 pm

    Claire – LOL, ebbs and flows, Claire, ebbs and flows.

    Maris – I would love to be able to knit, but I know that I am in no way coordinated enough to do it. So for now, I’m going to live vicariously through you. ;)

    Sara – thanks. :)

    Sarah – visit all the vendors and see the latest products and supplies to buy, take classes on the latest techniques and projects, talk with other likeminded people, discover new craft ideas … you name it. ;)

    Reply
  6. embellishments says

    May 26, 2009 at 2:17 pm

    The cupcakes are really great and what a wonderful idea to decorate a kitchen with a series of these. I may have to steal the inspiration from you and have my own little artist do some for my kitchen!

    Reply

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Always looking for sunshine, figuratively and lite Always looking for sunshine, figuratively and literally. Sometimes we don’t have to look very far and it finds us. ☀️
It didn’t take much to get me to @mikespastasand It didn’t take much to get me to @mikespastasandwichshoppe when a friend texted me a screenshot of their cheese butter. Up until last week I had never even heard of cheese butter but just two days later, I’m driving an hour round trip to get some. 😂 I was never one to succumb to peer pressure (I didn’t have my first drink until I was 21!), but when it comes to food finds, I am very easily intrigued. After all, that’s how I’ve discovered some of my favorite bites over the years … lardo from @butlerandtheboard, a spicy Italian sausage, and my love of chicharron. If you haven’t visited Mike’s in Nutley, it’s worth a visit. While there, I also got a small tray of meatballs (a bargain at $10!) and a delicious mortadella sandwich that is worth a round trip. ✨
The long, dreary and grey months of the Winter nee The long, dreary and grey months of the Winter need a little bit of color, so here you go. 😍 Love this chest of drawers. Discovered it buried in a local shop and bought it specifically for the green color (one of my favorites). Vintage Coke crate was a $10 score from a garage sale place on Facebook some ten years ago. And the assorted markers in Roy G Biv order (natch) that aren’t used anymore because my kids have sadly left that phase. 🙃
Weekend Photos in Review, old school still photo s Weekend Photos in Review, old school still photo style, hope you had a good one! ✨

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Always looking for sunshine, figuratively and lite Always looking for sunshine, figuratively and literally. Sometimes we don’t have to look very far and it finds us. ☀️
It didn’t take much to get me to @mikespastasand It didn’t take much to get me to @mikespastasandwichshoppe when a friend texted me a screenshot of their cheese butter. Up until last week I had never even heard of cheese butter but just two days later, I’m driving an hour round trip to get some. 😂 I was never one to succumb to peer pressure (I didn’t have my first drink until I was 21!), but when it comes to food finds, I am very easily intrigued. After all, that’s how I’ve discovered some of my favorite bites over the years … lardo from @butlerandtheboard, a spicy Italian sausage, and my love of chicharron. If you haven’t visited Mike’s in Nutley, it’s worth a visit. While there, I also got a small tray of meatballs (a bargain at $10!) and a delicious mortadella sandwich that is worth a round trip. ✨
The long, dreary and grey months of the Winter nee The long, dreary and grey months of the Winter need a little bit of color, so here you go. 😍 Love this chest of drawers. Discovered it buried in a local shop and bought it specifically for the green color (one of my favorites). Vintage Coke crate was a $10 score from a garage sale place on Facebook some ten years ago. And the assorted markers in Roy G Biv order (natch) that aren’t used anymore because my kids have sadly left that phase. 🙃
Weekend Photos in Review, old school still photo s Weekend Photos in Review, old school still photo style, hope you had a good one! ✨
A friend was taking a trip to Ireland and asked if A friend was taking a trip to Ireland and asked if I wanted her to bring me back anything. Would you believe me if I told you I asked for salt? I love picking up different varieties, whether we’re traveling or I’m just visiting a new shop. Maddie grabbed me a super cute one from her trip to Paris last year, and the Magic Unicorn Salt I get locally is another favorite. What’s yours?
One of us hops like a bunny down the steps, has a One of us hops like a bunny down the steps, has a serious case of FOMO on the daily, gets hiccups more than anyone we know and has perpetual bed head. She’s quite the unique roommate but may be exactly what our home needed. 💛
I haven’t had a bagel in ages, but when I saw th I haven’t had a bagel in ages, but when I saw that @njdotcom had picked six bagel shops at the “best in the state,” and one was reasonably local, all the sudden I needed one. I was never one to fall prey to peer pressure, but I’m very definitely a marketer’s dream. 😂 Alfa Bagels is on Route 10 in Randolph and has a good assortment of bagels, including all the usual suspects, but with a few others like rainbow, Asiago and French Toast throw in for good measure. Their bagels always seem to have a nice chew, which I appreciate and I love their sesame one. My go-to order lately is a double toasted flagel with lox spread and tomato. Their lox spread is a little ho hum, but the bagel is delish. Check them out next time you’ve got a craving (or get motivated by a local news story 😝). What’s your bagel order?
✌🏻 ✌🏻

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