Creative Inspiration: Things to Buy and Make

I'm feeling a bit under the weather creatively speaking.

It's a combination of things working together to sap my creative energy.

Crazy heat = no baking.

Crazy diet = cooking is rather dull

Crazy heat = kids have a hard time sleeping = I'm a crazy tired lady

Crazy tired lady = no energy for creative projects

Crazy busy days and evenings with 4 little kids = not a lot of alone time for me at present

Taken individually, these things could easily be dealt with, but cumulatively, they're just a bit much.

For me, life feels stale if all I am doing is getting through the day, watching something on Netflix at night and starting it all over again the next day.

I need more than that.

Whenever I feel that my creative juices are running low, I look elsewhere for inspiration.

A half hour spent surfing the web helped a lot.

Here are a few of my favorite finds.

Maybe they'll inspire you too.

First up, this shop.

Take a look at their wares.  I love almost everything.

Creative ideas for decorating my home abound.

This mid century shelf is one of my favorites.

Design inspiration.

And while you are there, look at their prints page.
I fancy them all.  (it's a British shop, so a perfect time to use that phrase)


Speaking of prints, here is another one I am taken with.

You can see more art from the design team Bee Things, here. 
I love much of their work.
You can find lots more fabulous art from this site.
Artistic inspiration.


I am always on the lookout for creative projects I can do. (read, no sewing)
This one involves a vintage school desk, spray paint and the color orange.
Really, what more can I ask for?

Not that I have room for this, but it gets my mind going in the direction of, "what else can I spray paint.....?"
Makeover inspiration.
See post here.


And, since a big painting project can sometimes feel overwhelming, this little one has got me going too.
Spray painting soda bottles and their carrying case.
Turning them into perfect little vases.

Party decorations, gift for a friend, something for the kitchen windowsill, the possibilities are endless.
Re-purposing inspiration.
To see the original post, go here.


Ahhhh.  I feel better already.
And, wonder of wonders, I have some time to myself tomorrow afternoon. (well, little Davy will be with me)
I will try to resist the temptation to clean the house or run errands.
Perhaps all this creative inspiration will help me get out of my rut.
Maybe spray paint will be involved?


What's inspiring you these days?
Love from,
Greta

Farm to Table Dinner at Patchwork Square Farms

You may remember last summer when I wrote about my first farm to table dinner at Pocket Square Farm.

It was truly amazing.

I, and the rest of my book club, eagerly awaited this year's dinner.

Cassie did not disappoint.

We met up last month for another meal right out of her garden.

This year we didn't even pretend we were meeting to talk about a book.

We were there for the food.

It was another night of magic.

It's one of my most favorite nights of the year.

Come see why.

Farm to Table Dinner at Pocket Square Farm

The table is set in the garden, under lights and later, as we linger quite a while, under the stars.

Cassie sets the table herself with a burlap cloth, mismatched napkins, tea lights, flowers and the menu.
It's lovely.

Overhead, grapevines crawl along the strings of lights that cast a soft glow on our meal.

The roses, of course, are also from Cassie's garden.

This year, in addition to the chatter of the book club girls, there was the chatter of these girls.

Cassie's talented husband Ross built them this incredible house so that Cassie could have fresh eggs, and a barn for her farm.
The girls graciously contributed their eggs to our dinner.

Speaking of dinner.

Oh that dinner.

Here's the menu.

All the vegetables in the meal came right from Pocket Square Farm.

Even the beans for the bean soup.  (you have to read about her beans on her blog.  love this post)

The eggs were from her chickens.

She made the breads herself.

And she made the cheese.

This was the first course.
It was so delicious I could have eaten several helpings of just this and been incredibly happy.
The dinner was before I went on my crazy diet, so I was able to partake in most of it.
I had gone dairy free at that point and Cassie graciously made separate portions for me without dairy.
I did, however, have to sample just a bit of her homemade ricotta cheese.
It was utterly amazing.
As soon as I am on dairy again (a year from now at best) I am going to try homemade ricotta.
This might be my recipe.

These are the pole beans from the main course.
They're purple until you cook them.
Aren't they beautiful?

Everyone got a frittata made from the girls' eggs and more of Cassie's homemade cheese.
Mozzarella this time.
I didn't want to push my luck, so I opted out on that one and just had a farm fresh egg baked in a ramekin.
The color of those eggs was intense.
So was the flavor.
I am growing more and more fond of this backyard chicken coop idea.


Sadly, I do not have more photos of the food.
It was dark and I had a baby in my arms.
But I can assure you that, just like the rest, it was perfectly delicious.


Cassie put a tremendous amount of work in making a full meal for the 10 of us.
We all told her she didn't have to do it again next year.  (but I don't think any of us meant it)
Maybe next year she'll let us help her a bit.
Because being a part of this is just too good of an experience to pass up.
And it isn't just the food.
I love the food, but it's so much more than that.


It's about Cassie and her passion.
She loves to grow things.
She has taken her little, suburban yard and turned it into a farm.
Her raised beds produce enough to make a meal for us.
And to feed her family fresh vegetables all summer long.
She is such an inspiration to me.
It's that lesson again--if you wait for everything to be perfect, it might never happen.
Cassie doesn't have 5 acres in Oregon for her farm. (although she'd like to)
She has a pocket square patch in the city.
And she's making the most of it!


Thank you Cassie for a wonderful, inspiring evening.
If you'd like to see more of the adventures at Pocket Square Farm, be sure to visit Cassie's blog.
Hoping you find something to inspire you today--perfect or not.
Love from,
Greta

A Big Roll of Drawing Paper

My boys love to draw.

They spend hours at it every day.

That is not an exaggeration.

It's wonderful.

It makes me happy to watch them create whole worlds on a piece of paper.

That, in fact, is one of their favorite kinds of drawing to do.

As they sit side by side, they fill the page with ships, planes, sky scrapers, the Eiffel Tower, construction vehicles and knights in bloody battles.

They narrate as they draw, telling each other the stories that go along with the picture.

All of this art work takes its toll on our paper supply.  

We go through a lot of paper.

They draw on both sides and use scrap paper when we can get it, but still, it's a lot.

Besides, what they really like best is a big piece of paper.

Even bigger than those large pieces of construction paper sold in rainbow colored packs at Target.

I'm talking big enough to fill up all the floor space in our schoolroom, sized paper.

What they want is a big roll of drawing paper.

We've gotten a big roll once before.  
You know those rolls you'll find in schools.
Teachers use huge sheets of it to cover their bulletin boards and ASB uses them to make posters to hang around campus.
The boys loved that paper.
They made life sized drawings of themselves, and filled the long sheets with elaborate renderings.
But those paper rolls are not cheap.
So when I saw this idea on Ohdeedoh, I jumped.
Sturdy, brown builders paper is just right for those big drawings they love.
We headed right down to Loews and bought a roll.
It was in the painting section.
It was $9.99.
They came home and set right to work.

And the next morning they rolled out of bed and got right back to work.
One of life's simple pleasures: a big roll of drawing paper.


Happy Friday to you.
Hope your weekend finds you enjoying some of life's simple pleasures.
Love from,
Greta

Taco Salad Gets a Makeover

Taco Salad.
To me, taco salad conjures up a host of foods that I never took part in.
Things like Hamburger Helper, Velveta Shells and Cheese with sliced hot dogs mixed in, Rice a Roni , Bisquick casseroles and anything made with canned, cream of mushroom soup.
Am I a food snob?
I'm afraid so.


You can blame my mother.
She would never let Hamburger Helper pass her lips, or sit on her shelves.
My mom is a great cook.
She makes amazing meals and that was the food I grew up eating.
We ate lots of fresh, real food and very little pre-packaged.
In fact, when my dad was away on business trips, we'd beg mom to let us get a tv dinner.
Beg.
She'd give in those times but the rest of the time we ate real food.


It is this food heritage that forces me to pop my own corn rather than eat microwaved popcorn.
Because of her, I take food seriously.
And if you think I'm picky, you should meet my brothers.
My sister however, likes Hamburger Helper.
We don't know where she came from.


Back to the taco salad.
You know the kind; greasy meat, pasty kidney beans, stale chips, tasteless iceberg lettuce and watery tomatoes.
The only reason you liked it when you were a kid was because of the chips.
I thought taco salad could use a makeover.
It worked.

Because of my current dietary restrictions, there isn't a lot I can eat.
But tacos, made with corn tortillas, are on the list.
We had tacos for dinner Sunday night and I wanted to use up the leftovers today.
In order to keep myself from consuming more fried tortilla shells, I decided to give taco salad a try.
Here's what I came up with.


Taco Salad Face Lift
Romaine Lettuce (no iceberg lettuce!)
Ground beef seasoned with a spice mixture such as this  (homemade is easy and so much better than that packaged stuff.  its full of sodium and chemicals)
Pinto beans (i don't like kidney beans which are the bean of choice for old school taco salad.  i used my pinto beans instead and they were wonderful.  here's my recipe for pinto beans)
Grated carrot (i'm telling you, grated carrot is wonderful with Mexican food)
Fresh cherry tomatoes
Fresh, sweet corn (sliced right off the cob--i put fresh corn in all my salads all summer long.)
Crispy corn tortilla chips


Of course, if you have no dietary restrictions, you can add more traditional items like grated cheese, avocado, salsa and even a bit of sour cream.
But even without these treats, the salad still tasted amazing.

If you use fresh, quality ingredients, you don't have to try to make your taco salad taste better by adding things like Doritos.
Ewww.
Although, I admit, I did have some taco flavored Doritos while pregnant.  
Do you remember that flavor?
I can't be held accountable for anything I eat while pregnant.
Obviously.
Because I thought the Doritos tasted good.
Right now, the thought of them makes me sick to my stomach.
So instead of Doritos, I'm going to go polish off my second bowl of watermelon of the day.
Love from,
Greta

Collecting: Vintage Enamel Ware

My recent discovery of vintage, enamel ware had me wanting to start yet another collection.

I collect a lot of things: cuckoo clocks, birds, heart shaped rocks, vintage state glasses, vintage books and   brightly colored vintage pottery, to name a few.

But this collection would have a purpose.

I would cook with these beautiful pieces.

And after discovering many of the pieces on Ebay were pretty affordable, I couldn't wait to start my collection.

I didn't have to wait long!

I got my first 2 pieces for my birthday. (thanks big sis and Papa John!)

They're red! and they're baking dishes.

I love them, don't you?

These ones are Dansk and have that gorgeous, modern handle design.
I have already baked with them more times than I can count on one hand.
So I can tell you with authority that these really are great pieces for collecting and for using.
My chicken breasts and potatoes roasted beautifully.
The pans cleaned up like a dream.
And, like my friend said, they are waaay better looking than a glass Pyrex dish.

Best part?  
These babies are at least as old as I am, probably older, and are still in great condition.
They are well made and made to last.
The new (4 years) enameled cast iron, dutch oven I got from Martha Stewart started chipping almost as soon as I got it.
And I don't mean those little worn spots like you see on the handle of my baking dish there.
I mean on the inside.  
Big holes in the enamel after less than a year of use.
Not so the Dansk enamel ware.
They used to make things to last.  Ahh, the good old days.


So if you are looking for some great new cookware or bake ware, I recommend the vintage enamel ware.
Or, you could just pick some up for me.
Like my friend Jen, who picked up this little guy for me at a garage sale.

I love his shape and orangey-red color.
But what do you think he's used for?

Right now he just looks cute perched atop my stove.
Thanks Jen!


What are your favorite things to collect?  
I am always open to new ideas.
Love from,
Greta


Linking up to Life Made Lovely today.  Head over for lots of inspiration.

Asian Inspired Noodle Salad

I am still on the starvation diet. (see here for explanation)

Apparently for a while.

I tried half and half in my coffee on Sunday.

I thought I'd bring back dairy first because I'd really, really like some chocolate.

No go.

Baby Davy has been suffering since Sunday afternoon

No amount of chocolate in the world is worth that.

I really appreciate the suggestions and tips that so many of you offered me in regards to the diet.

Lots advised against drinking coffee.

I was loathe to give that up, but willing to try it if I didn't see a difference with the starvation diet.

After continuing to drink coffee for the past 3 weeks while cutting out everything else, and seeing such a great improvement in Davy, I know it isn't the coffee.

(thank you Lord!)

It is dairy.  

And what else, I don't know yet.

But I'll continue on this crazy diet until I narrow it all down.

I think I'll try gluten next, because I'd really, really love to have a piece of bread with olive oil.

Or pizza with no cheese.

Or an Oreo cookie. 

Yeah.  Seriously.

Do you know those things have no dairy in them.

They are chock full of chemicals, but no dairy to be found.

And right now, an Oreo would taste so dang good.

I don't even like Oreos.

I think the cream filling tastes like Crisco.

But after 3 weeks of having watermelon for dessert, I could down half a bag of Oreos in a sitting.

Anyway.

The salad.

Eating is a chore right now.

I am trying to find the joy in it.

But, I'll be honest, it's hard.

I've been wanting pasta something fierce.

I found rice noodles at the store.

Rice noodles......what could I do with those?

I thought about it and came up with this.

It's a cold noodle salad, full of fresh vegetables and herbs.
It is easy to make.
Refreshing.
Good for you.
And a perfect summer salad if you are tired of the same old traditional pasta salads.
Oh, and it tastes really, really good.


Let's get started.
You'll need a bag of rice noodles.
I wanted to make a lot of salad, so I used the whole bag.
The salad makes great leftovers, so I think making extra is a good idea.

As I was dreaming up this salad, I thought of ingredients of other Asian salads and soups I like, as well as the things I can eat right now.
I am sure the combination ingredients are not new, but they work really well together.
I used:
carrots  (i actually used 6 because I really like a lot of veggies)
cucumbers -- use Persian cucumbers if you can find them.  The taste and texture difference is so worth the extra price.  (i used 4 for the above reason)
green onions (3 if you want it more mild, 4 or 5 if you'd like to taste the onions more)
cilantro (again, to taste.  I used quite a bit--half a cup at least)
sesame seeds (1/4 to 1/2 a cup)
sesame oil
rice wine vinegar
sugar
salt to taste

Making the salad is easy.
Cook the noodles according to package directions.
Drain noodles and rinse them.
*Rinsing the noodles is very important. If you don't get that starch off, the noodles will stick together in one big, gelatinous clump and be really gross.
Transfer rinsed noodles to a large bowl and drizzle with some sesame oil to further aid in the non-stick noodle process.
Using a food processor, grate the carrots.
Add to noodles.
*If you do not have a food processor, you can use the large holes on a box grater for this.  It will just take a lot longer and you'll only use 3 carrots because you will be sick of grating.
Peel the cucumbers (i like to leave some skin on for more color) and cut in half and then half again.  Dice.
Add to noodles.
*If you are using a big cucumber instead of the smaller, Persian cucumber, you may need to cut them even smaller before you dice.
Trim the ends of the onions and slice white ends thinly.  Include some of the green ends for color.
Add to noodles.
Roughly chop cilantro, taking care to leave out the stems.
Add to noodles.
In a large frying pan, toast the sesame seeds.
*Watch the seeds carefully as they can quickly burn.  just stay there to stir, or toss the seeds until they become a golden brown and fragrant.
Add seeds to noodles.
Mix all the ingredients with the noodles.
*You can use a big spoon for this, but I find it easier to use my hands.
The cucumbers want to sink to the bottom of the bowl.
And, as weird as it sounds, you can use your fingers to separate the noodles so that the other ingredients can spread out through the salad.
In a small measuring cup, mix together some sesame oil, rice wine vinegar and sugar.
*I, of course, did not measure when I made the dressing.  But I think it is best for you to play around with it until you find the right combination for you.
That's why I said use a measuring cup.  Add some sesame oil first.  Then add some vinegar.  Add a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and mix.  Taste.  Then you can adjust according to your preference. If you want it sweeter, add more sugar.  More vinegary, add more.  Too tart, add more oil.  
Once you've found the perfect balance, pour the dressing over your salad.
*I used about a half cup of dressing for the whole salad because I don't like it too oily.  Add more or less according to taste.
Then add salt to taste as well.

Fix yourself a bowl.
Enjoy.

This salad is so good, Lilly pulled a chair up to the counter while I was taking pictures and helped herself. 
In my house, you could not ask for a better endorsement.
The 3 year old crowd can be very hard to please.

If you want to make this a more substantial meal, you can simply add some chicken breast.
I baked a bone-in, skin-on breast and shredded some of the meat into the salad.
It is phenomenal.
And, since I'm on the subject, don't use boneless, skinless chicken breast.
If that is what you normally do, try it my way just one time.
The flavor difference is unbelievable.
Mostly because a bone-in, skin=on piece of breast actually has flavor.
And you know a boneless, skinless breast does not.
So trust me, go bake a real chicken breast, not a naked one, and taste the difference.
You'll thank me.


Also, there are lots of ways you could customize this salad with other favorite ingredients.
I thought baked or fried won ton wrappers, crumbled up in the salad would give it a nice crunch.
I couldn't do that because of the gluten, but you could.
Slivered almonds would be good.
Sliced cabbage.
You could add a little soy sauce to the dressing.
Want it spicy?  Add some sliced or diced chili peppers.
Or....what else would you add?


So there you have it, folks.
A no dairy, no soy, no nuts, no egg, no gluten, meal.
And, it actually tastes good.

It's going to be a hot weekend.
We'll be taking this to the beach.
Hope you have something just as good to look forward to.
Love from,
Greta

I Love Fair Photos

We took our annual trip to the Orange County Fair last week.

It was the best trip yet.

Pig races, a crash-up derby and about 5 pounds of french fries were just part of the fun.

But the best part, of course, was the photo booth session.

Go over to Lilly and the Brothers to see how they came out.

Besides the photo booth, I took heaps of pictures.
There are just so many great things to take pictures of at the fair.
I am especially in love with all the lights.
Here are a few of my favorites.

I took these letter Es with the intention of blowing up one of the photos and hanging it in our house.
(Our last name starts with E)
They are all a bit different.
Which one do you like best?

While we were walking around the fair, I thought how much fun it would be to do a family photo shoot there.
For one thing, we all love the fair.  (even Aaron loves it now--I've converted him)
And for another, there are just so many great photo opportunities.
Well, someone beat me to the idea.
My friend, Kristin, posted an engagement photo shoot she did at the OC fair.
Go look at it.
Amazing.
Kristin's work blows me away.
Every single time she posts a new session, I alternate between insane admiration and jealousy.
She's so good.
Go spend some time at her site and if you are in need of an amazing photographer, choose her.


In other news, I'm still on the crazy diet and I have a new recipe to share with you: Asian inspired rice noodle salad.  
Necessity is the mother of invention and I invented a great salad!
Can't wait to share it with you.
Love from,
Greta

Little Bitty Vintage Bird Books and a Surprise Treasure: Vintage Bird Stamps

I think it's pretty clear by now that I love birds.

I have liked them for decorating purposes since high school, but it is a more recent thing that I actually like to study them, know their habits, observe them in nature and identify them.

Yeah, I'm a bird nerd.

Don't hate.

I am also a lover of vintage books.

And when my bird nerding and vintage book loving cross paths, well, it is pretty much one of the best things ever.

Like half in half in coffee instead of non dairy creamer.  Man I miss half and half.

Anyway.

Thanks to my mother-in-law, I now have a complete collection of these sweet little bird books.

Check them out.

I found the yellow and blue one on our Palm Springs get away last year.

For my birthday this year, my mother -in-law tracked down the red and green ones.

She used this website.  I'm going to be on that a lot.

I found the yellow one first and was instantly smitten by the end paper and this darling inscription.
(which is why I always inscribe books given as gifts.  it makes books even more friend-like)

That end paper is truly to die for, right?

The books are actually little field guides with a picture and description of each bird.
I collect vintage field guides too.
I collect a lot of things.

I think the illustrations are lovely and I like the writing too.
When an author can use the phrase , "in good repute" when describing a bird, I'm surely going to be reading that to my kids as we learn about tree swallows.

My mother-in-law noticed I had the yellow and blue book siting next to the couch and decided it would be just the thing to complete my collection.
Thoughtful?
Yes!  I was so excited when I opened them.

I was even more excited when I opened the red book and found these.

A whole bunch of vintage bird stamps!
It was 2 gifts in one!
There are about 35 of them.
All from the 1950s, beautifully illustrated and in almost perfect condition.
They are from the National Wildlife Federation.
Here are a few of my favorite ones.

(i know--it would be better if I had laid them out straight before photographing them.  it bugs me each time i look at these pictures.  i couldn't re-shoot.  just go with it)
I really love all the stamps, but these 2 are my absolute favorites.

They are the biggest ones and the illustrations are gorgeous.
The illustrator, Jack Murray, did covers for the Saturday Evening Post as well as many other wildlife illustrations for various magazines.
He also designed a stamp for the duck stamp series by the US Postal Service.
(ps--i collected stamps in elementary school.  and worked at the library.  see how things come full circle.)
These stamps he designed for the King Arthur Flour Company.

It looks like it was a give away of sorts--a stamp in each bag of flour.
How stinking cool is this?!?!
Yeah, I am obviously a complete nerd: birds, and stamps.
That's OK, I can take the nerd status and go with it.
I'd love to find this whole series of stamps, but I'm not quite up to the lengthy Internet research session it would probably take.
So until then, I'll just enjoy the 2 that I have.


Which brings me to the question I have for you: what should I do with these stamps?
I want to display them somehow.
I am thinking labeling them with a cool typewriter font and putting them up on paper somehow as a piece of art.
Shower me with your creative ideas.
Can't wait to hear them.


Wishing you a happy weekend!
Love from,
Greta


PS. For those of you interested in wildlife art from the 50s, (or is it just me?) you'll find lots of illustrators did work for companies and the government of birds and animals.  
Charlie Harper, an incredibly popular artist right now, did a serious of his famous bird illustrations for the Ford Motor Company.
What I wouldn't give for some companies to bring back this idea.  All they'd have to do is hit up etsy for some fabulous artists and create some art for their product like these stamps or those prints by Charlie Harper.
I'd buy a bag of flour for that, wouldn't you?