What would Coco do?

So if clothes make the Woman, than imagine my shock at realizing that lately, I have been dressing like a Hobbit... Now, before I am spammed by the People for Ethical Treatment of Hobbits, let me go on record saying "There is nothing wrong with looking like a Hobbit, it is just not for me!" To be honest, I saw it coming.

• The crop pants were just so damn comfortable and never needed hemming, than why not buy 5 pairs.
• If one white t-shirt is great than 10 must be awesome and really so what if they are stained you where shirts over them anyway...
• A summer vest professionalizes any outfit, even a stained white t-shirt and cropped pants
• Mixing patterns and textures is a sign of your refusal to conform and thus a good thing
• A boldly colored scarf is a whimsical nod to my heritage... even if it is 80's floral

and thus... the transformation to Hobbit is complete...







(Not actual picture of the blogger, but pretty damn close!)





Solution... (Not admitting to actually watching Lifetime TV, but maybe absorbing over acted Coco Chanel Biopic as I cruised channels *being fair.. it was not so bad*) I have decide to look to Coco Chanel as my design inspiration... With a little modification... I will not be chain smoking until I can fit into a size 4, nor will I be wearing any clothing with gold chains or ostrich feathers... and double stranded pearls aren't my thing.... Really, imagine if Coco Chanel shopped at Target and Lands End and lived in Seattle ... yup that is the look... classy, stylish comfort (hold the Hobbit)..

So what would Coco do when faced with my closet? After vomiting, she would promptly throw most of it out (donating such fashion don't is cruel to people in need) and then she would click her way over to Land's End (who have rocked the basics with their Fall collection) and order these....

Thank you Land's End and Coco for rescuing me from the Shire...

Fall is for food

For me, September starts off 4 months of truly inspired cooking. As the temperature cools, a warm kitchen becomes a cozy and relaxing place to spend an afternoon. Fall produce is rich with soft, starchy comfort foods, just think potatoes, pumpkins, squash, yams and apples; and cooking becomes an acceptable alternative to gardening.

If summer food is about simple and basic, such as the sweet and subtle acidity of a ripe tomato, than fall food is about complexity: layers of texture, flavor and smoky undertones. As a cook, in the Fall I feel like an artist, my paints are whatever ingredients I can get my hands on and my brushes are my Le Cruset pots and wooden spoons.

Every fall I pick a signature dish, I’ll cook it several times, tweaking it and making it my own before I release it on to family and friends. Last year, I settled on this chicken pot pie with lots of vegetables, dark meat chicken and a really creamy sauce; all covered with puffed pastry. It’s pretty damn good if I do say so myself. This year, I am toying with several ideas, so far I am thinking about these:

Sweet Potato Pie
I am in awe of the concept of vegetables in a pie. Sweet potato is my absolute favorite pie followed closely by pumpkin. Good sweet potato pie has a creaminess to it that I think would benefit from marshmallow and perhaps a little chocolate. hmmm?

Mashed potatoes
Mashed potatoes make me swoon, particularly when they have other notes like horseradish, leeks and bleu cheese.

Poutine
A Quebec comfort food consisting of French fries covered with gravy and cheese curds. I think I can make this slightly healthier with baked fries, and really light gravy.

Stay tuned, I'll keep you posted...

Dreams, Pet Projects and Burning Obsessions...

Confession... for almost 18 months I have been wanting to start a blog devoted to crafting a better life. There are many different types of crafters out there, but I rarely saw the type of crafter I wanted to be.... You see, some call it delusion... I call it divine insight, but I believe that with patience persistence and a little information, you can make anything you want. So why not focus on making things that bring you joy and improve your life...

My goal was to launch on September 1st and I am happy to say that I met it head on... (This required a 5 hour marathon session with Word Press... apparently building with CSS is not like riding a bike) So it is up, it is live and it is in progress... check it out at http://livingwithscissors.com

My first post is about my struggles in relearning penmanship and features a free template for Handwriting Practice Cards (as if anyone would pay money for what is essentially the alphabet). Enjoy...

Happy September

Okay, this barely counts as a post, but my goal this month is to post something everyday for the month of September.

Today marks the end of a 4 day weekend and the beginning of my favorite time of the year.