Macaron not Macaroon

These have been on my to-bake list for quite some time. I used to have these occasionally at a patisserie in Union Square and goodness knows they have been popular on the internet for awhile now. These are dark chocolate and the recipe was found online. I have no idea where, but a simple google search for a recipe will provide thousands of results.

Macarons were easier than expected. I don't know why I placed them in the "too complicated" category because honestly, with the right steps, know-how and ingredients these can be whipped up quicker than you might think.

Well, they weren't as easy as a batch of chocolate chip cookies. For starters I did not follow a couple of important rules: use blanched almonds and use parchment paper. I used almond slivers with the skin still on and wax paper. I don't know what got into me, except for making it work with what I had. I had to make them, right. that. second.

I'm convinced that this is the reason for my somewhat bumpy texture on the finished cookie. They stuck to the wax paper, so again, will use parchment next time. I made a goat cheese filling, which needed help, it was too much. Next time, something more sublet and less sweet.

My tips? Use old egg whites, let them sit out for as long as you are comfortable or at least until they are room temperature. Do not use fresh eggs. Use blanched almonds and pulverize in your processor until you have a fine flour, then add your powdered sugar and other ingredients for the final pulverizing.

Don't over beat the egg white and dry mixture. But, make sure everything is well blended together. This is hard to explain, but you'll just know.

Do not open the oven door!

I'm ready to try out a second batch with more success. I had trouble with my make-shift pastry bag (I used a ziplock) as the mixture had a steady flow out making it hard to control. I am happy with the "feet" and the taste of the cookie. It was exactly as I remember, a thin crackable outside crust with a chewy inside.

the 3/50 project

I'm pretty excited about the 3/50 project: http://www.the350project.net the premise being that every $100 you spend in locally owned independent stores $68 of it returns to the community in payroll, taxes and other expenditures. For me, having the option of buying groceries from local farmers and workers is invaluable. You do not get the same quality or experience shopping at large chains. The food is often better quality, local, seasonal and sometimes organic.

I thought about the three local stores that I would be most sad if they went away and without much surprise realized that they are all local food stores that I've started buying from exclusively. What I find is, is that even though the food is slightly more expensive, there is less waste. I buy smaller quantities for the week and eat that food, when I shop at places like Food Lion or Wal-Mart I tend to buy more food than we need and it goes to waste.

I also like knowing that I can buy food that isn't processed, it has heart and thought put into it. The food is better and is better for you. Win, win.

This is what I picked up yesterday:

and lunch from groceries

Excited, again

Excitement about projects comes and goes for me, but I defiantly know when I'm heading in the zone about something. How do I know I'm in the zone over this? I can't think of anything else and I have this surge of energy to keep working on it even until very late.I've finally opened an etsy shop that is dedicated to thrift shop finds.

I've opened the shop and have listed only two items so far. By the end of today I will have listed many more. It's so encouraging to have people on etsy placing my items in their favorite boxes and even cooler that I was placed in a Treasury West: click here to see.

Thank you to ThePeachTree for picking the Emily, Just Emily skirt. This skirt truly is lovely.

I feel like I'm working on some sort of fast motion today as I have a lot to get done this week.

There is so much to share and even more to do:

*Finish designing and printing out wedding invitations: aiming to have these out by Wednesday
* Find someone to play ceremony music preferably a cello, harp or even a violin
* Arrange hair appointments for myself and bridesmaids
* Photograph details on vintage clothing, such as tags
* Finish uploading new items that have been photographed
* create business cards/packaging ideas (use recycled items)
* photograph new sprouts from seedlings
* work on seeds, garden layout/planning, buy new seedling trays (i love the word seedling)
* clean out chicken coop
* work on music play list for the wedding
* inventory wedding decorations and supplies

okay, that's it for today. oh! find phone charger. I have not charged my phone in two weeks.

Coming (very) Soon

I've been spending some time this week putting together a new etsy shop idea solely for vintage, handmade, upcycled clothing and accessories. Yesterday was spent photographing my finds in a creative way. Today, editing. Now, I just need a name for my shop.



This skirt is vintage and the tag reads "emily, just emily" how cute is that?

hello, it's me!

wow, you should read this blog if you don't like reading blogs. har har. I don't know what it is, but I have not felt like blogging here for some time now and I feel ready to share again (I think, we'll see.) So where do you start? Oh man, so much to say.

We've been planning a wedding which is in like 9 weeks (and two days!) from today and that's pretty crazy! I'll be a wife, he'll be "my husband". Those are good things. The shower was this past weekend and it was a good time. If you ever question how much you are loved, have a shower and appreciate those who surround you. Or a birthday party, or something :)

I have a lot of creativity in my life now, so I feel good about blogging again. I have a lot of ideas and there is so much good stuff going on in the world right now amongst the bad. I think its easy to watch the news and listen to NPR and get into the cycle of feeling overwhelmed and helpless if that's what you're seeking. And then you open your eyes to the little pockets of joy that really do exist all the time, all of the creativity and happiness is there if you want to see it.

It's true, I'm not a child or have children, but I will be seeing this one:


sigh.

figure drawing 101

It's been a long time again, hasn't it? I've been wanting to blog about this for a week or so now, so here it is now. I joined a (non-instructional) figure drawing class here in Floyd and yesterday was my third class. My first class, I was really nervous and didn't know what to expect and my second class I felt like I should slip out the back door and never show my face in public again and then my third class I stopped worrying and enjoyed myself.


I should say after my first class I felt a huge tension release, focusing for three hours on anything is like therapy to the mind. The second class I was too worried about "being good" that I couldn't relax. But yesterday I just didn't care anymore and I felt proud of my work regardless.

I haven't taken a figure drawing class since I was a junior in college and even then I wasn't really good. My proportions were always wrong, one arm longer than the leg, one eye dropped etc. but now even after letting my drawing supplies collect dust for so long its as if I've channeled new techniques and a better eye. Not that my drawings have accurate perspective (they don't) or are particularly realistic (far from it) but they have a quality in them that I like, especially the second one. I have a tendency to dwell in the details. My drawings tend to have a surreal quality to them and I can see potential in them. I can see growth happening and seeing my world more artistically with colors and lines, something I haven't done in a very long time.


Creating art, for me, is like putting a puzzle together.

Hitting the reset button

Oh my, it's been too long. Even before the last time I blogged it was way too long. I have two blogs and this one has been neglected for a very long time. And we all know there is nothing more entertaining than blogging about not blogging, so moving on...



It's now 2009 and I'm entering the age where time is getting so weird. I yelled to Josh the other night "it was 2003 six years ago!" six years seems like an eternity to me sometimes. If you ask me what I was doing in 2003 or the whole of the 2000's I really have to think about it going all the way to the post high school years.

If you ask me about 1993 I'm like "oh yeah, 4th grade! teacher: mrs. mc Clanahan, crush: jeremy, no wait, charlie?" and then the rest of the year somehow effortlessly unfolds.

And thats how it goes. So I did make some goals for the new years which if you're curious (is anyone still reading??) the2009project.net a blog I started with my long time lady friend ashley.

I a lot of people think that resolutions are so cliche' and they are, I just can't help myself. I evaluate the previous year and so much has happened and then I look forward and want to be better. And that's all I can continually hope for.

*******
This past weekend I finally went out to see the curious case of benjamin button which I talked about in the previous post. I loved it. It was thoughtful, hypnotic, and beautiful. It was my favorite of 2008 even though I saw it in 2009. I felt like I was injected with emotions and thoughts that sometimes get buried into everyday life.

Speaking of other favorites. I really started listening to the fleet foxes and sia right at the end of the year and I love them both. I can't stop myself from listening to them continuously which I know sometime in the future I will randomly here one of these songs on my playlist and automatically think "winter 2008". Thats how it goes with me. I can listen to a really dumb pop song like the jimmy ray one that came out in '97 and think about being on the internet for the first time and chatting with strangers until the wee hours of the night, or my obsession with Hanson. I probably shouldn't admit to that haha.







Oh! Christmas! I had a wonderful holiday, I decorated our little house with christmas decorations passed down to me from my mom, my aunt and my moms friends. Everyone was incredibly generous and it made me feel so good to decorate with things from christmases past.

My mom also started a new bingo tradition this year which was a hit. We had a really hilarious time especially when my aunt opened up a huge tube of lotion and Erick (my brother in low) said (loudly) "did you get a big tube of caulk?!" which of course me and Josh heard differently and fell off of the couch laughing.

Happy New Years! I will be more frequent with posting, I just needed a break and a chance to hit the "reset" button.

the curious case

I haven't blogged in way too long. So long that my mom is telling me she tired of seeing my present tags post every time she checks in on me. Sorry mom!

I have a huge post in pictures that I will update late on today once I get them edited, but for now I'm super excited to see this movie:

Recycled gift tags

This idea came to me when I was putting our seemingly endless empty boxes of oatmeal in the recycling pile. What could I make with these? Gift tags, of course.
Here are the tools I used:

* Glue Stick
* Scissors
* Empty box (i like the kind with brown cardboard on the inside)
*sturdy hole punch
*holiday catalogs or magazines
* 1.5 inch hole punch
*string

Optional: stamps, photographs and markers

This was really easy. You just take your 1 1/2 inch hole punch (or tag punch) and cut out circles from your empty boxes. Then do the same to pictures you like from holiday catalogs. I really liked using my paper source catalog for this.

Glue your circle catalog cut-outs to the print side of your cardboard cut out. Punch a hole in the top and voila, gift tag!

Put your -to and from- on the back and then put a string or ribbon through the hole. The ideas are endless, you can use photographs or even get other hole punching shapes for your tags. I like the idea of stringing them and making garland.

Buy craft punches: here and here

the countdown begins

This year I am a little nervous about thanksgiving. I'm in charge of making the desserts for both meals I'm going to. One on the actual day here in Floyd and another on Saturday in WV. I requested to make something this year, but I'm nervous.

For starters, I'm making recipes I've never made before: sour cream apple pie, pumpkin cake with brown butter icing and caramelized walnuts, gooey pumpkin cake and something else I haven't decided on yet. I am nervous about them being good, or two sweet for folks who don't like too sweet sweets and just in general not a flop. I don't want anyone saying "let's have lorrie make the stuffing next year".

I'm still working on some out of the box christmas gift ideas that are pending to post. I still need to gather some more supplies, which is going to happen today. I've started putting away the fall decor, which has been up since September and was starting to depress me. I won't lie, I put the stockings out.

Also need to freshen up on my clarinet playing for a thanksgiving day jam session.

What else? oh, I read this and was a little sad that I no longer live in nyc. An underground cooking club, seriously? The lengths they went to. How awesome would that experience be? I've always wanted to be in or start a cooking club, but alas I would be transported to my childhood club starting days (hello, earth club) with occupancy of one.