Monthly Archives: August 2012

Highlights

Posted in Explore, Film, Food, Fun by

This week the days of summer hit hard on the weather front, but that’s the price you pay living in Los Angeles. It was a bit unbearable at times, but it put a smile on my face to grab a dress, some sandals and head out into the sunshine!

A few other things that brought a smile to my face and some sparkle to my week:

{FILM}.

I went to a screening of Hope Springs, a film I highly recommend for anyone in a relationship, married or not. Meryl Streep (this lady can do no wrong) and Tommy Lee Jones completely go there in this intimate portrait and character study of a 30 year marriage, 30 years later. Director David Frankel manages to maintain a steady sense of humor around a very serious subject: how to rebuild and preserve the chemistry in a long-term relationship. I admit some scenes can be pretty uncomfortable to watch as the couple, along with their well-acted counselor in Steve Carell, share how the deterioration and re-connection between two people can be the most difficult and rewarding aspects to life. I walked away from this film feeling like I actually learned something about physical and emotional intimacy. In a nutshell: you both have to want it and you both have to be willing to work at it. This will be DVD purchase to add to my collection in the fall.

{FOOD}.

I stopped to sit outside and enjoy the simplicity of a Rice Krispies Treat. I’d forgotten how much I loved these things and what a small pleasure it was to snack and gaze out at the LA skyline (the moment captured in the photo above).

{FUN}.
I’m getting such lovely feedback from you all about my new passion project, my blog, All That Glitters. Thank you for the comments, the likes, and taking the time to read it. I passed the 100 views mark this week!

 

 

Pita Pizza

Posted in Dinner, DIY, Food, Treats by

Summer nights. Summer cooking. I’ve been afraid to turn on the oven over the last few nights because my apartment has been so H.O.T. You can only use the “let’s eat out because I don’t want to turn on the oven” excuse maybe once a week (and I used mine already). When the hummus I bought at the farmer’s market expired and I still had an entire pack of pita bread left over, I threw it in the freezer until I could figure out what to do with all the leftovers. So I took advantage of a little treat that my boyfriend will sometimes make while we’re hanging out on the weekends, tailored it to my taste buds, and turned it into a quick dinner item. The best news? The oven only needs to be on 20 minutes max.

You’ll need pita bread and toppings of your choice. I went with pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, monterey jack cheese, black olives, tomatoes, pineapple and olive oil.

Spread olive oil over pita bread and assemble toppings to your liking.

Place directly on the oven rack at 425º. I like to line the bottom of my stove with foil to catch any toppings that fall off during baking (and it always happens).

In 10-15 minutes you’ll have:

Grab yourself a glass of ice tea and some parmesan cheese and you’re good to go! YUM!

In Her Shoes

Posted in Fashion, Shoes by

A sweet and unexpected surprise came my way recently. A colleague of mine and I were chit-chatting away and somehow got on the topic of shoes. She looked at me and said, “What size do you wear? I have a pair of gray patent leather pumps that I can’t wear anymore.”

Now, I’m a size 10 (huge feet, I know) by trade, so when she mentioned they were a 9.5 it didn’t stop me one iota when she told me she’d bring them in for me to try on to see if I liked them. Note: I can wear a 9.5 when the shoe is designed slightly too big or they’re cute enough (and free) to deal with a bit of a snug fit!

Say hello to my new gray, patent leather, mary-jane, peep-toe pumps (whew!) What I love about these shoes is that yes, they actually do fit (who-hoo!) and typically, this is a shoe that if I saw sitting on a display, I wouldn’t even consider wearing. When I got home and tried these guys on with a few looks, I was pleased that I actually had something different from the heels that are my closet. Ironically, I’ve been itching for a bit of a tweak to my look and I know these shoes will carry me from the office to any plans I might have after work. A win on all fronts and a lesson learned about being more open with your style! Maybe my tastes are simply changing.  A huge thanks to the kind fellow shoe-lover that passed them on rather than let them collect dust in her closet.

Weekend Cocktails

Posted in DIY, Food, Treats by

While I like cocktails as much as the next girl, it turns out I’m not a big drinker on the day-to-day. Sure, I’ll have a glass of wine with dinner every once and awhile, sip a midori sour during girls night out, or grab a margarita over Mexican food; but ice tea is my liquid of choice (passion-fruit iced tea if I’m feeling especially feisty).

Fun fact: this past weekend is the first weekend I can recall in quite some time having a cocktail on Friday, Saturday AND Sunday.  What a lush I’m turning into! Perhaps it’s the vibe of the season and cradling a sweet drink in your hand makes the days of summer all the more sweeter.

It all started at happy hour with the gang from work on Friday evening. Followed by two super delicious and well-presented homemade concoctions that I can’t take credit for (thanks Ryan!) other than the bellini peach-raspberry syrup that I buy by the bottle every time I hit the Olive Garden to add to my iced tea because I’m obsessed with it. Don’t laugh,  I admit I have a very strong affinity for the Olive Garden.

If you’re looking for a good summer cocktail,  I just had to share the deliciousness I experienced every single day of the weekend with you. Try it at home yourself! While you do, I’ll be seriously rethinking the frequency of my cocktail intake!

Friday Night 
White Tea Cooler

Ingredients: wild tea vodka, st. germain, mint, fresh lime juice, luxardo maraschino cherries, soda water.

Saturday Evening

Homemade Concoction #1

Ingredients: Olive Garden’s bellini peach-raspberry syrup, vodka, club soda

Sunday Afternoon
Homemade Concoction #2

Ingredients: Olive Garden’s bellini peach-raspberry syrup, vodka, 7-UP, sugar-coated rimmed glass

Beaches

Posted in Explore, Fun by

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Where: Point Dume Beach

Location: Westward Beach Road, off Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu

Far from being the sappy experience of the 1988 film starring Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey (I could almost drop a tear right now just thinking about that movie), you can’t write a blog about all that glitters in Los Angeles without dedicating some much deserved web time to what makes LA, LA. The beach!

This weekend, “the wind beneath my wing”  (remember THAT song?) and I hit Point Dume to enjoy the Malibu sunshine, cool down after the hottest week of the summer so far, and R.E.L.A.X. I was beyond excited to spend some time playing in the sand, using the new beach umbrella I got recently, and taking my new straw hat I bought at the flea market last weekend out for a spin.

It was the epitome of how to spend 5 hours on a lazy Saturday and I don’t need to brag about what a beautiful day it was. The proof is in the spiffy collage I made above. I will say that the dolphin (yes, dolphin) sighting pretty close to shore and the sound of the crashing waves while laying out on a blanket staring at the water were the highlights.

The not so highlights?

Halfway through Glamour and nearly done with my iced latte, a woman plopped right in front of me with her newborn, blocking my perfect view of the ocean. Also a child’s birthday party set-up around us and we were slowly being swarmed by 5 year olds as more and more families showed up. This necessitated a change of venue by moving down a few feet from where we originally set-up camp. Problem solved, perfect view intact, and relaxation continued.

Other than a slight wardrobe malfunction, that thankfully wasn’t a disaster, but means that I’ll have to buy a new bikini (and you know how a majority of women just LOVE bathing suit shopping – NOT!) I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day!

Get out of the house and live it up at the beach (or a park if one isn’t nearby) at least a few times this summer. There’s something so special and soothing about a change of scenery that resets your clock after sitting in an office all week.

My essentials: magazines, Aveeno sunscreen, Raybans, and an iced latte! Happy beach day!

Cupcakes (no Cashmere)

Posted in Food, Treats by

In celebration of tiny cakes everywhere and one of my favorite blogs, after having spent lots of time researching my passion for carbs topped with icing and taste testing my behind off; here are my thoughts based on my quest to uncover some of LA’s best cupcakes. Clearly, I haven’t tried every single cupcake in this great land, so I’m basing this list off of the places I’ve personally frequented.

Cupcakes Couture
Location: 916 Manhattan Avenue, Manhattan Beach
BY FAR the most delicious and best dressed cupcakes in LA!  I stumbled into
this oasis of sweetness when hanging out on the Manhattan Beach Strand one Saturday afternoon nearly a year ago. It’s a trek to get down to the South bay for me, but MY GOODNESS, it’s worth every traffic light and hassle to get there. The shop is well designed, the girls that work the counter are sweet, and the concoctions are the best. Nearly every cupcake has a sweet filling in the center, always tastes fresh, and NEVER disappoints. This place also has THE BEST gluten-free selection (which makes my boyfriend very happy) that I’ve come across if you struggle with an intolerance to wheat. My favorites are the Cupcake Wars reality TV show winning Lemon Blueberry, Strawberry Cheesecake, and the Sunday Mimosa (only served on Sundays, get it!?!) 
Sprinkles
Location: 9635 Santa Monica Boulevard, Beverly Hills

THE place that started it all, well, at least in my opinion. This is what I think of as the originator of the cupcake craze in Los Angeles – like how Pinkberry spawned the frozen yogurt movement. I can’t recall how I first heard of this place, but it remains an oldie but a goodie in my book. Sprinkles’ forte has always been location, location, location; oh and the cupcakes are moist and delicious! They have one the largest selections of flavors but rotate them out depending on the day, as seems to be the case with all places. Beware the place is small and the line LONG. Their best invention yet? The cupcake ATM if you want to grab a cupcake at 2:00am. Great ones to try: Lemon Coconut, Red Velvet, Strawberry, and Pumpkin.

Frosted Cupcakery
Location: 1200 North Highland Avenue, Hollywood

If I can’t make the trip to Manhattan Beach or Beverly Hills, Frosted comes in a close third. The cupcakes more than cover it in a pinch, but I so desperately wish that Frosted would catch up on the flavor selections! They stick with pretty safe choices. Their shop seems to run of cupcakes quicker in my experience than with other places, and the treats themselves are very good, but I find they don’t have quite the same punch. The best thing about this place? The price! These guys run under $3.00 each, which is a steal! What scores additional brownie points? Their awesome ice cream cupcakes. I’m a huge fan of their red velvet and cream cheese cupcake filled with vanilla bean ice cream!

Vanilla Bake Shop
Location: 10250 Santa Monica Boulevard, Century City

My latest taste test on the cupcake front comes from Vanilla Bake Shop. I’ve noticed the shop for a while now when checking out a movie or shopping at the Westfield center; and have been in before a few times to check out the place, but had never purchased anything (which is so unlike me.) I have to say this place is aptly named, it was a very “vanilla” experience. I hate to call this out, but the person working the counter was pretty dismissive (coloring in fact) when I walked-in recently. Further to that, they only have 6 flavors to choose from on any given day. I went with a safe Vanilla Bean and did enjoy the cupcake. It satisfied my sweet tooth but they lose points for not much variety on any given day and poor service. Perhaps it was an off day. I was also told that a gluten-free selection was in the works and would debut in May of this year, but nothing yet.

Crumbs
Location: 6801 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood

Love the name, pretty blah when it comes to the cupcakes. I do like how decorative these guys are, but for some reason, I get a “straight out of a box” taste from them. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes you just want sugar, and you don’t really care how or in what format, so these will more than handle your needs, but the fresh taste wasn’t quite there for me. Dare I say they were a bit too sweet as well?  I love that they have multiple locations around the city. I count 6! Then again, because they have so many locations, maybe this alludes to why quality lacks in their cupcakes. It seems they’re more into design, which is super important, but I’m also about my tongue doing the happy dance on contact.

With that, I’m now seriously craving a cupcake and I don’t care which location it comes from! If you have a hidden treasure on the tiny cake front that is missing from my list, please do let me know! I’m always looking to gain 5 pounds (said no one ever!)

Making Arrangements

Posted in DIY, Fun by

The older and wiser (fingers crossed on the wiser aspect) I get, the more I appreciate real-live natural beauty. One of the smallest pleasures I like to give myself are a quick homemade vase of flowers. I truly share the sentiment that having a simple bouquet can instantly change your mood every time you walk into a space or even glance in its direction. It’s a great way to energize your home or your desk at work as you scowl at all those urgent-marked (but not really that urgent in reality) emails.

I recently found a new web series from Lauren Conrad, who seems to be trying to dethrone Martha Stewart herself with these DIY craft-based videos. Goodness, has she come a long way from “The Hills.” This girl is in the thrust of building an empire. More power to her!

As much as I LOVE flowers, they can get pretty expensive. Especially, if you hit a flower shop and buy them piecemeal, which I have yet to do personally so it’s on my “to-do list.” While doing my weekly Trader Joe’s run, I stopped and grabbed a small bundle of yellow roses ($4.99) and purple mums ($3.99) to try out this trick I learned from Lauren:

My Results?

My home not only looked and smelled better; but I got to entertain my crafty side by using a different object as a vase, which I usually use in my pantry to store packets of tea bags. It took a good 10 minutes to tape the grid, then cut and rearrange the flowers to my liking.

The beauty of making arrangements is that you can use any type of flower or any object as a vase. I’ve been seeing lots of creativity with using teacups, pitchers, and mason jars as a holder for a blooming bouquet.The sky really is the limit. More posts to come as I continue to explore my floral making side.

Bagging It

Posted in Fashion, Handbags by

Thanks to my blossoming Pinterest addiction, I’ve been able to fantasize about my dream closet stocked full of the latest and greatest on the fashion front. Unfortunately, every time I get excited about a wardrobe themed pin and click the image that takes you back to the original website for purchase, the item is usually already sold out (damn!) or it’s $500.00 (double damn!)

Being a girl on a budget, I was beyond excited when I found Kaela Designs and their California chic handbags while killing some time updating my pin boards.

Cheryl Katch Hobo Bag w/ Acrylic Ring Handle

After some research, I discovered that the bags originate from a small mother-daughter business and all bags are handmade in their San Diego studio. I instantly loved this bag so much I actually paid $12.95 for shipping and I usually refuse to pay such outrageous shipping costs!

The treasure arrived 4 seemingly long days later, well packaged, very well made, and even had a beautiful hand-written note from Rita, one the designers. Talk about classy!

I get compliments every time I stroll the city streets with it on my arm!

Urth Caffé on a Saturday

Posted in Brunch, Food by

Location: 8565 Melrose Avenue, West Hollywood

I’m one of those people who doesn’t mind being alone. Don’t get me wrong, I can be quite the social butterfly when I want to be, but I do like my own company where I can just be. I frequent movies by myself, love to window shop solo so that I can go at my own pace without feeling like I’m dragging anyone around, and sometimes I’ll even take a book and sit at a restaurant.

Over the weekend, I took advantage of a little stag time and headed over to Urth Caffé in West Hollywood. I grabbed (or rather fought) for a seat outside to enjoy the gorgeous day and ordered myself a delicious and well-presented Spinach & Mushroom Quiche (proof below).

Major Pro: You pay before your meal is served. No fighting/terse conversations over who spent more or threw $15 on the table when they clearly don’t understand the concept of tax and tip in addition to the cost of the meal when the check comes. (Ugh. These people are so annoying by the way). Also, they serve their own organic coffee for all you pesticide conscious nuts out there!

Major Con: This place can get crowded and beware that the venue isn’t very large so the tables are pretty close together. I can almost tell you the entire conversation of two aspiring actresses sitting next to me, and trust me it was as cliché as it can get. So keep this in mind if you’re into a more private dining experience and don’t want to whisper over your lunch. As such, I’d strongly advise against meeting an ex here to have that deep closure conversation to your relationship.

Overall, definitely a great place to come solo to grab lunch or a latte; or to meet up with a friend in a casual, yet trendy atmosphere. The Hollyood Tour bus even drives by with tourists snapping pictures of you while you’re mid-chew, making all who sit there a bit more confident in their choice of eatery.

“Flea-ing” It on Melrose

Posted in Explore, Fashion, Fun by

Location: 7850 Melrose Avenue

Deets: 9:00am-5:00pm every Sunday, free parking, $2.00 admission

Typically, anything with the word flea in it is usually a turn-off avoided at all costs on my part. Unless it involves a day in the warm sunshine, sipping a fresh squeezed lemonade (with a hint of mint) as you peruse the Melrose Trading Post; one of LA’s most popular flea markets. I spent hours this past Sunday strolling aisles of vintage jewelry, handmade artwork, furniture, handbags, shoes, and clothes galore! Let’s be honest there was some junk too, but I’ve come to love the saying, “another man’s trash is another man’s treasure” since moving into my own apartment a few months ago and needing to fully furnish it. Not looking for anything in particular and flying solo turned out to be best recipe for truly savoring this first experience. It’s like the universe knew exactly what I needed and boy, did I SCORE: a little something for my new place, a little something for my jewelry box, and a little something for my accessories collection. Check it out!

Rare Marilyn Monroe 24”x36″ poster, $15.
(frame purchased separately at Aaron Brothers)

Faux vintage long necklace, $10

Straw Hat and me in it, $15 (For the hat, not me)