Muffin Tops

I've been baking lots of muffins lately.  Perhaps I just want to think of muffin tops other than the one forming around my waistline.  Perhaps my pregnancy cravings are in full carb mode.  Either way, our kitchen counter is starting to look like a bakery display case.  

These yummy blueberry banana muffins are the recent favorites around here. 

Feeling Presidential

"I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce, and agriculture, in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain." -John Adams

Nigella's Cozy Kitchen

Today the Wall Street Journal offers us a tasty little morsel of Nigella Lawson's kitchen.  In the essay, Nigella takes the reader through the attributes of her intimate kitchen.

 

With her gift for writing, Nigella begins the article, "kitchen is probably one of the most evocative words in the English language....it conjures up warmth and welcome, safety and security, in short, the very notion of home."  Nigella and I are in complete agreement here.  The kitchen most be cozy. 

Words to Live by

Trend"spotting"

For me, polka dots have always been in vogue.  Like classic leopard or a Glen plaid, polka dots are a welcome print in my wardrobe.  But, according to recent fashion news, these whimsical, cheerful dots are making a big come-back. 

The Best Chocolate Cake Ever

It is morning here in SoCal, so naturally, my thoughts have turned to cake (if you are not pregnant like moi, you must forgive my craving-dominated food posts until August). 

Love Letters

Remember the first Sex and the City movie (i.e., the good one)?  Remember when Carrie pulls out her old, smelly New York Public Library book called Love Letters of Great Men, Volume 1? I declare we need more old fashioned love letters.  

Pink Week: Painter's Palette

Sir Joshua Reynolds, Lady in Pink, 1781

Being able to spend hours immersed in color is one of the most wonderful aspects of my career as an art historian.  Though I appreciate the compositional qualities of black and white photography and the technical aspects of a marble sculpture, I've always been most attracted to the array of shades in an oil on canvas. 

Pink Week: Beauty Queen

One of the first things women purchase when having a bad day is a new tube of lipstick.  There is something about the transformative power of a little makeup to make me feel like a new woman.  I tend to get stuck in a beauty routine, using the same products and colors day after day; but, occasionally, I browse through Sephora or a department store to spice up my makeup palette.

 

Pink makeup may conjure up too many thoughts of Elle Woods in Legally Blond or Shelby in Steel Magnolias, but a touch of rose or petal or even fuchsia on your face can make you look fresh and gorgeous. Now there are such an array of pink hues that anyone can find the perfect shade.  

Pink Week: Edible Delights

I have a theory that I may have voiced in this very spot before: pink food inevitably tastes delicious.  For me, pink is one of the most attractive culinary shades. It invites nibbling and suggests sweetness and tartness and general scrumptiousness. When I indulge in a perfect pink cupcake or frosted cookie, the carefree four-year-old in me is released for a few brief moments.

Pink Week: Uber-Feminine Fashion

“Pink is the color of romance and a friend tells me that the girl with the pink dress at the party is the one who is selected for each dance.” -Alfred Hottes, author and botanist

Sometimes a girl just needs a pink dress pick-me-up, courtesy of Audrey, Marilyn, Jackie, and Grace.  As these style icons show us, pink can be demure and refined or sassy and bold.  In my humble opinion, every woman can and should wear pink.  Pink in its myriad hues and values can compliment the palest porcelain or the darkest olive skin. 

Pink Week: Design Dreams

For our Wednesday touch of pink, let's move into one of the loveliest home's House Beautiful has ever featured, that of designer and artist Ruthie Sommers in L.A..

In this splendid and whimsical space, pink is used fearlessly, but with utmost elegance and refinement. I shall dream for a moment that I live here:

Pink Week: Flower Power

"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles."
-Audrey Hepburn   

As a build-up to the pinkest of all holidays (ahem, Valentine's Day), this week I'm celebrating some of my favorite pinkalicious goodies.  

For today, a few pink posies to peak your passion for Valentine's Day. 

Saint Valentine

Valentine's Day is a very polarizing holiday.  Some of us adore the flowers, the hearts, the candy and the celebration of all of the lovey dovey stuff.  But, conversely, others just hate those little conversation hearts and forced date nights.

Flowers for Friday

When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other.  ~Chinese Proverb

In recent Fridays, I've been forgoing my usual bunch of flowers at the market, buying loafs (of bread) instead of lilies.  But today, I indulged in this little bouquet of pink daisies, white hydrangea and little bright green berries.  These eclectic springy flowers bring a little sunshine to the apartment.  I never regret the pennies spent on fresh flowers for my home.

An Architecture of Joy

"I was constantly thinking as if I was asking each building I love so much in Venice whether they would accept me in their company" -Louis Kahn, Italy, 1951

I've praised Louis Kahn before in my review of My Architect.  He is among the handful of architects I know best.  Of course I don't have Frank Gehry or I.M. Pei in my address book, but I believe I've gained a personal connection to these architects by merely being in their spaces.

Happy Chinese New Year

We have entered the Year of the Rabbit. According to the Chinese zodiac, this year shall bring us domestic serenity and professional prosperity.  I'll toast to that...

A Kiss to Build a Dream on

“Once I got in an argument with a girlfriend inside of a tent. That's a bad place for an argument, because I tried to walk out, and had to slam the flap.” -Mitch Hedberg, Comedian

No marriage is perfect.  June and Ward Cleaver do not exist beyond the tube.  Let's face it, in every relationship, there will be contention.  And, in most marriages, those fights tend to be circular and cyclical.  I don't know about you, but hubby and I have the same arguments every 3.5 weeks.  Most of those arguments are about the most mundane, daily tasks.  

Paris vs. New York

One of my favorite blogs is Paris vs New York: A Tally of Two Cities.  In a quick-witted, simple visual manner, the blog compares the two great cities. With their irreverence and chic style, these images delight lovers of either city.

Ladies who Brunch

Confession: I am jealous of Gwyneth Paltrow.  Big time.  Not because her hair always looks perfectly blond (the woman never has roots).  Not because her ensembles seem effortlessly chic (who cares if she has a stylist).  Not because she speaks perfect Spanish.  Not even because she gets to listen to Chris Martin sing whenever she wants....

I'm way jealous of GP because she got to cook brunch with Ina Garten! 

Words to Live by

Joyeux anniversaire à moi

Today is my 29th birthday.  The last one before the big 3-0. So, for a present to myself, today, I shall eat cupcakes (and take the day off from blogging something more substantial than this). 

Piece of Cake

Some evenings, when the tedium of the week has just begun, I crave the warmth and simplicity of a homemade baked good.  Baking allows me to focus on sifting flour or measuring vanilla or whisking eggs rather than to-do lists and work projects.  Baking stills my racing mind with tasty tangible results.

Monday Morning Pastry Pause

What is more simply decadent than a perfectly warm croissant?  Of course the pleasure of this pastry treat is exponentially enhanced by dining on a wobbly little Parisian table while sipping on café crème.   

Just because you're miles away from lovely Paris, you need not starve yourself of pleasure and indulgence. So, why don't you have a little bit of Paris on your plate this Monday morning? How about you forgo your usual, boring oatmeal in a bag or drive-through latte and steer your way over to the local pastry shop?  

Flowers for Friday

Not one of Flora's brilliant race
  A form more perfect can display;
    Art could not feign more simple grace
      Nor Nature take a line away.

      - James Montgomery, On Planting a Tulip

Nothing adds more elegance to a room than a large clear vase of tulips. Whether you fancy the pinkest pink or a creamy ivory, tulips gracefully bend and arc on their green stems.  They delight us with their simplicity and amaze us with their beauty.

This Friday, indulge in a bunch of fresh tulips and you'll be cheerful all weekend long.