Category Archives: Fun

Farmers For A Day

Posted in DIY, Explore, Fashion, Food, Fun, Shoes, Treats by

Location: 9611 Oak Glen Road, Glen Oak, CA

What I’ve come to love most about the blogosphere is how information moves around so freely. Places you’ve never heard of and ideas that wouldn’t have even been on your radar come your way and your world is changed because of it. This was the case when I learned of Los Rios Rancho in Glen Oak, CA – an apple farm in San Bernadino county. I thought it would be a great mini road trip to spend the day learning about apples, picking them, exploring the property and area; and when I heard they had a pumpkin patch, my boyfriend suggested we grab ours from here this year.

A 2-hour car ride on a Saturday fall morning (unbelievably it was 90 degrees!) was a great way to kick off a memorable day. Random fact about me: I like zoning out and staring out the car window on long trips – it gives you time to think and take in the world from a different perspective. I decided to dress the part and have fun with playing the role of a “semi-farmer” from the city, by breaking out my plaid button down shirt and brown riding boots for effect.

{Dressing the part.}

We arrived around 12 noon and the farm was already busting with activity. We had a quick sample of the day’s available apples in the orchard: rome beauties, double red delicious, and red rome, with a few golden delicious remaining; and after learning how things work (with signs posted everywhere to remind you!), we bought a 5-7 pound peck bag and headed out to the fields. First up, finding the best looking apples we could.

{The rules.}

{Straight from the tree.}

{U-pick and I did!}

After our bag was stuffed with apples, we made our way to the pumpkin patch. It was pretty obvious that we were late in the season, being the weekend before Halloween, so the selection was sparse but we found winners! I got a large one and my guy got a small one (we like to break convention like that!) for our carving session the next day. To see how things turned out, click here.

{The rules.}

{The leftovers.}

From the farm, we went into town for a bit. Oak Tree Village is a small, charming community of quaint shops, places to eat, and activities for the kids. A stroll through the grounds landed me the best glazed almonds and cashews ever, and a taste of Andy’s Mini Donuts that made my tongue dance and my stomach tell me – “stop eating!” Good thing I had all those apples to look forward to, I was going to need lots of fruit in my diet in the near future.

When we made it home late that evening, we took stock of the days’ labor in the fields. 16 apples and 2 great looking pumpkins!

Halloween

Posted in DIY, Film, Food, Fun, Treats, Uncategorized by

Happy Halloween my pretties! Halloween has finally arrived. While I didn’t get to everything on my project list exactly, I got plenty accomplished that put me in the right spirit for the festivities!

1. Bake a gluten-free pumpkin pie. – DONE!
Interestingly, this was one of the first things to be crossed off. A simple pre-made gluten-free crust from Whole Foods and Libby’s Easy Pumpkin Pie Mix was all it took. I added a dash more nutmeg and cinnamon to ensure true sweetness to the mix though it doesn’t call for it. Add a little Cool Whip and you’re ready to pumpkin pie it out!

2. Carve a pumpkin. – DONE!
This year we headed out to Los Rios Rancho in Glen Oak, CA to pick our pumpkins (and some apples). Blog post to come on what turned out to be a very memorable day trip, but here’s a quick collage to capture our pumpkin carving adventure:


3. Decorate my apartment. – DONE!
I decked out my place with simple pumpkin lights I got a few years ago at Target, so admittedly, it wasn’t anything too drastic. They offered the perfect ambiance while watching scary movies all month long, and using my orange pumpkin scented candle created a great final touch and smell for the Halloween season.

4. A scary night out with the girls. – SEMI-FAIL!
The girls and I had a change of plans, while we thought about a night out at Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios, this never seemed to come together (timing was a huge culprit). We did get together last night for an awesome scary movie girl’s night in complete with pizza, treats, and lots of laughs.

5. Scary movie night at least once a week with a big bowl of popcorn and all the lights turned out. – DONE!
This was the one goal that went without a hitch (though popcorn was only present during one flick, there was ALWAYS a sweet treat nearby). I managed to see a lot of scary/suspense films throughout the month. My top 3 likes and 2 hates to not even waste your time on:
Likes:
1) When a Stranger Calls (1979)
2) What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
3) Sinister (2012)
Hates:
1) The Hunger (1983)
2) The Last House on the Left (1972)

6. Read Midnight, by Dean Koontz. – FAIL!
Didn’t finish. I’ve been picking this book up and putting it down all month. Unfortunately, I never found the time to get into it before I moved on when my book club announced the November selection; which has been pretty creepy ironically so I been delving into “Room”, by Emma Donoghue.

Hollywood Farmers’ Market

Posted in Explore, Food, Fun by

Location: Ivar & Selma Avenue, Between Hollywood and Sunset Blvd, Hollywood

Somehow just being at the farmers’ market makes me feel healthier. There’s something so grounding and earthy walking vendor to vendor around organic produce, exotic foods, strawberry lemonade, warm kettle corn, fresh flowers, plants, handmade jewelry, and even live lobsters (yikes!). And of course, because you’ve spent all this money on things that expire rather quickly – you’re forced to get creative and chow down on your healthy purchases all week long.

{P.S. they’re alive!}

The Hollywood Farmers’ Market is a great place to spend a Sunday morning stocking up on produce and fresh flowers for the week ahead. I’ve been there so many times that lately I haven’t been treating it as a savored experience, but more of a “get what you need and get out of there” errand run. This has become my go to place if I’m in the mood for real fresh hot-out-of-the-kettle kettle corn, and the Greek flat bread I use to make mini homemade pizzas.

{My favorite kettle corn.}

While this place can get pretty crowded, it’s not very big. Luckily, once you learn your way around it’s not so bad. Just mentally prepare (as you always should roaming the LA streets) for a little congestion, grab a latte, and relax. I personally like the vibe of fellow semi and full health conscious nuts around me in their Sunday casual best, filling their reusable shopping bags. The Hollywood farmers’ market has such a positive and unique energy strolling, taste testing, people watching, listening to the street performers, and discovering a type of fruit or veggie you’d never even heard of before. Happens EVERY time I’m here.

While the summer season is officially behind us, there’s still much to discover as the seasons change and fruits and vegetables rotate out with it. While I’m a Trader Joe’s gal at heart, and don’t make the farmers’ market a weekly outing as many do, nothing replaces the experience of being at one.

Highlights

Posted in Beauty, Film, Food, Fun by

I can say with confidence that Fall has officially made its way to Los Angeles. Damp, crisp mornings, chilly nights, scarves, and boots have been all the rage in my world lately. Other rages?

{Curling up with some fresh kettle corn from the farmers’ market and watching “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?” was a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon. All I can say is O.M.G! Find a copy of this and “make it a Blockbuster night” if you haven’t seen it. I loved it so much I actually watched all of the bonus materials (over 2 hours!) to learn more about our early divas, Bette Davis and Joan Crawford.}

{Another highlight salad? Yes! This Greek Salad for lunch was heaven. Ingredients: lettuce, garbanzo beans, pepperoncini, tomatoes, black olives, feta cheese; drizzled in a red wine vinaigrette.}

{In LOVE with this new seasonal fragrance mist from Bath and Body Works – Honey Autumn Apple. Don’t be jealous, I smell like Fall and you don’t!}

Have an amazing weekend guys! I plan to! 🙂

Buttercelli Bakeshop, Sherman Oaks

Posted in Explore, Food, Fun, Treats by

Location: 13722 Ventura Boulevard, Sherman Oaks

The search for the best cupcakes around town continues. Buttercelli sits in a sweet little spot on the very busy Ventura Boulevard in “The Oaks” (yep, I came up with that myself!). My second time here puts this place in the “so-so” category. Let me explain…

It was a H.O.T. Sunday afternoon earlier this summer. After spending the morning at the Rose Bowl Flea Market, we made a quick and spontaneous decision to head over to Buttercelli to check out their selection. They have one of the largest gluten free baked goods sections that I’ve come across to date (for the boyfriend) and somehow I always feel better about eating sweet treats when they’re promoted to be of the finest organic ingredients. I went with a simple lemon cupcake and because it was over 100 degrees outside, I didn’t want the frosting to melt while sitting on my kitchen counter and put it in the fridge. A complete no-no, of course, but it was too H.O.T. not to. When I ate the tiny treat later that night, the cake portion was hard. Boo!

Take 2.

Since it was the “weather’s fault” that I didn’t get to experience all the hype from my first time at Buttercelli, I made it a point with the recent cooling temperatures not to make the same intentional mistake twice! I left with an apple pie cupcake and a lemon poppy-seed muffin.

{My treats.}

The apple pie cupcake was delicious, but unfortunately the cake portion was hard on the edges and not as moist as some other places I’ve been in general. I swear, no fridge was involved this time. The next morning, the lemon poppy-seed muffin went well with my coffee for breakfast. This treat was both moist and delicious.

As such, I can’t quite figure out what’s going on with their cupcakes. Their Yelp reviews are positive overall, the other customers I’ve met in-store rave about the place, and the staff have always been very friendly and confident in their goodies. Perhaps the point is to eat the treat right away. The store must have some magical tool in the air to keep their goods fresh and the minute you walk out the door their stock plummets.

Either way, it shouldn’t be this much work on my end to enjoy a cupcake (in decent weather no less). Kudos to them for the gluten free selection and the use of organic ingredients.

Bottom line? I’m not too convinced of this place’s awesomeness. The muffin was good and a bite of my guy’s chocolate thumbprint was yummy, but why is it that the cupcakes can’t seem to float my boat?  I rate Buttercelli “so-so.”

Fall Uniform: Night Out On the Town

Posted in Accessories, DIY, Fashion, Fun, Handbags, Inspiration, Shoes by

Dressing up for a night out on the town is tricky as the climate cools. You want to look sexy chic, but don’t want to freeze your booty off or ruin a cute dress by having to cover up and wear a heavy coat. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve endured chilly temperatures in the name of fashion!

The look below came to me while experimenting on Polyvore.com. One of my favorite tricks when getting ready for a night out on the town during this time of year is to pair a dress with leggings and boots. You maintain great style AND added weather protection during those colder fall nights.

A sparkly dress paired with a blazer to keep warm works perfectly in my book and since the dress is quite “showy” I’d keep accessories very minimal and simplistic. Hoop earrings work best at drawing attention to your face, but not competing with the dress; and a small black clutch to hold your essentials adds the final touch for a polished look.

Here’s your fall uniform for a night out on the town with your best gals or that special guy  with link deets on where to buy (hey that rhymes!):

Sparkling Masquerade Dress, Black Crepe Open Front Blazer, Leggings, Clutch, Hoop Earrings, Boots

 

DIY: Make-Up Brush Holder

Posted in Beauty, DIY by

I. Love. Candles. Trouble is when I’m done burning them, I feel a bit guilty but end up simply tossing the glass jar in the trash. If there’s anything I’ve learned from my Pinterest addiction, it’s that there’s usually a great way to re-purpose something and get crafty with its use, especially when it comes to glass.

I’ve been looking for a way to revamp my bathroom counter and thought the idea of putting my make-up brushes out in a nice presentation would do it and I’d get to clean out my make-up drawer some. Win, win. Why go out and buy a brush holder, when I can take a $4.00 candle jar, clean it out, and reuse it!?!

The trick is to remove the remaining wax from the jar. I found a nifty video (thanks YouTube!) to help with this small annoyance.  Since I don’t want any angry comments, here’s my disclaimer: caution when working with the glass jar over the hot stove (duh!). 🙂

Operation make-up brush holder was under way and done within minutes.

{Dirty jar, cleaning process, clean jar.}

{Taking stock of my collection. Clearly I don’t need any more eyelash curlers.}

{Make-up brush holder = done.}

Sfixio, Beverly Hills

Posted in Dinner, Explore, Food, Fun by

Location: 9737 Santa Monica Boulevard, Beverly Hills

A night out with the girls for dinner. A new dress. An Italian restaurant. Beverly Hills. Free Parking. All the makings for a perfect Saturday night.

To celebrate a friend’s birthday, 9 of us met up at Sfixio located on little Santa Monica Boulevard just past Wilshire. I was elated that parking turned out to be a breeze. After 6:00pm the parking structure no longer uses the meters. Score!

Alternating neon lights over the outside restaurant signage draw you in as you walk into a 2 story dining room dressed completely in white. The ambiance: sexy low lighting, candles on the table, and music at an appropriate level (meaning I didn’t have to yell at my friends over dinner and end up sounding chain-smoking-hoarse the next day).

I went with the Salmone ai 3 pepi con Patate in Crosta. Translation: Grilled salmon topped with a mini potato hash brown looking thing, with a side of asparagus and spinach. Things always sound better in Italian.

While it took forever to get appetizers and then the main course, it allowed us gals plenty to time to catch up. I was slightly disappointed with the speed of service, but learned from my more well-traveled friends that this is likely intentional, attributed to a more European way of dining where it’s supposed to be more of a lengthy experience. I can appreciate that, but it seems to be pushing it to take almost an hour for 3 salads and a serving of calamari to come out – but you live and learn. I did think it was pretty cool that they make all of their pasta in-house from scratch.

You know me, I always L.O.V.E. checking out a new place so I’m glad we got to spend a night in “The Hills” supporting a small privately-owned restaurant run by a husband and wife duo. Unfortunately, this wouldn’t be someplace I would likely ever go again. Since there are too many restaurants in the City of Angels to explore and a new one popping up every 5 minutes, I can’t say it left an impression on me in any special way. The positive experience came more from being with my girlfriends than in the dining itself. The food was delicious, but servings were small (not surprising); and the service (because we’re in L.A., not Italy) could be picked up some. Us L.A. gals have places to go, people to see, and things to do!

{Salmone ai 3 pepi con Patate in Crosta.}

Highlights: Mid-October

Posted in Beauty, Books, Dinner, DIY, Food, Fun, Lunch by

Half-way through October. Someone seems to be hitting the time accelerate button yet again. It’s been a bit stressful this week, but here are some highlights that managed to brighten it:

{The appreciation of a good solid meal. Much pleasure came from some penne pasta with mushrooms lightly sprinkled with parmesan cheese; and the simplicity of steamed broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower on the side.}

{The Halloween project is underway, Midnight by Dean Koontz is in hand.}

{Not to brag, but I have been having the best hair week EVER! There’s nothing you can’t handle when your tresses are acting right. I don’t typically use hairspray, but because of the humidity in the air and some major frizzing, I’ve been looking for a solution. Enter L’Oréal Elnett StrongHold Hairspray (unscented). Worth every dime.}

{A very thoughtful surprise from my boyfriend. This beautiful orchid.}

Food To Die For: El Coyote Mexican Cafe

Posted in Dinner, Explore, Food, Fun by

Location: 7312 Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles, Mid-City

Hands down my favorite Mexican restaurant sits on Beverly Boulevard, down the street from The Grove, 4 blocks before La Brea Avenue. Name: El Coyote. Mission: food to die for.

I first learned about this place years ago while watching all important, heavy-hitting television at the time, The Hills (don’t judge!). Heidi and Spencer’s psycho relationship and MTV’s penchant for filming all over town were good for something!

Fast forward a few years later and it’s my favorite place to indulge occasionally in greasy, highly caloric, but worth every fat cell I get Mexican food! I stick with the tried and true Guacamole Dinner. For $13.50, I have at least four different plates in front of me – a cheese enchilada, a beef taco, refried beans, Mexican style rice, a small bowl of guacamole, and the garden salad (because it’s the only healthy thing in the meal and makes me feel less guilty for downing my stomach in cheese, I had to end on the salad).

{Guacamole Dinner.}

Nothing but the best of things to say about this place. I’ve always had great experiences with the food, the wait staff are super friendly, and the over the top decor of the restaurant is the perfect touch. The point? Get in your car and don’t stop until you’re in front of El Coyote. If you hit La Brea – you clearly didn’t read my post and need to turn around! 🙂

{Interior of the restaurant – a salute to Halloween.}

Don’t, I repeat, DO NOT even waste your time dragging you and your bestie here if you’re on a diet – you gain weight just watching the large amounts of food walk past you. Oh! And expect to be in a total “mexi-coma” after you eat here. Don’t make any other plans, other than to head straight home and veg on your couch or sprawl in bed. It’ll take a full night to recover, but I promise you, your tongue with have enjoyed the experience even if your stomach is a wee bit upset with you.

Hope to see you there!