Come Gather 'Round People

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Come Gather 'Round People

It's pretty up here in Sonoma County right now.  The seasons are so much more vivid than by the bay, and it's chilly. With an unexpected weekend with no plans, we busied ourselves with some fun fall projects.  After 2 years of sitting idle in the box, we opened up our grinding attachment for our Kitchen Aid mixer and made our first attempt at a handmade whisky-fennel sausage. More on that later.  We also played a mean game of family mud football, complete with a bloody lip, I refinished some campaign chests I found at a thrift store (upcoming feature), and Jasper and I made some wreaths from the shrubs and trees in our back yard.

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Refrigerator Art

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Refrigerator Art

I love to get the mail in December. Nestled in between the bills and the catalogs are pretty handwritten envelopes with cheerful stamps. Inside are the smiling, familiar faces of my friends and more often than not, their silly, happy kids. These cards live on my refrigerator long after the tree comes down. I've already started pouring through the hundreds of photos I've taken of my boys this year for our card.  I always choose candid shots, and I like understated designs to really showcase the picture. I'm particularly smitten with the holiday photo card collection offered on Minted, and I'm really leaning towards this card and the snazzy black-striped envelope lining and backing. Maybe it's the cute little boys in oxford shirts... 

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DIY Friday: Cheap Thrills

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DIY Friday: Cheap Thrills

This time of year can get hectic, and of course, quite costly.  Today I'm going to share a recipe for my signature party treat: Rosemary and Truffle Oil Popcorn.  It's such a crowd pleaser, and with a small investment in some decent white truffle oil (on sale right now at Whole Foods for $13) this stovetop treat is perfect for Thanksgiving football or a holiday party.  I'm also doing a quick tutorial for a fancy pants way to serve it, inspired by a ornament display at Anthro.  Read on and have a beautiful weekend!

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Drop It Like It's Hot

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Drop It Like It's Hot

This time of year can get hectic, and of course, quite costly.  Today I'm going to share a recipe for my signature party treat: Rosemary and Truffle Oil Popcorn.  It's such a crowd pleaser, and with a small investment in some decent white truffle oil (on sale right now at Whole Foods for $13) this stovetop treat is perfect for Thanksgiving football or a holiday party.  I'm also doing a quick tutorial for a fancy pants way to serve it, inspired by a ornament display at Anthro.  Read on and have a beautiful weekend!

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Hope and Change

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Hope and Change

Last week I really started to notice the flutter of gratitude posts on Facebook. November has become a month of giving thanks, which I think is actually very lovely. I am too lazy to think of a unique thing to say every day, which extends to writing my blog. Last week I started several projects, and prepared a few posts, but nothing felt authentic or all that interesting to me.  I don't want to write something unfinished or uninteresting just to put it out there, and I don't want my children to watch 4 hours of television to make myself appear perfectly crafty.  So, I think I'm going to slow it down and tidy it up. Stay tuned for some pretty holiday projects that you can work on now, make-it-yourself gift ideas, and some more recipes from our kitchen.  

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