Hidden Treasures

Well, I have reached the worst part of moving......  PACKING!

Filled with excitement I dove into this adventure head first. I have been antsy since the idea was first mentioned and I am constantly plotting and planning for the new house.  Paint colors, furniture, DIY projects have all been meticulously plotted.  We have thought everything through all the way down to the way we will organize everything.  The only thing that has been pushed aside day after day is dealing with all of the junk i have amassed over the past few years.  Never before had i realized the extent of my impulsive buying habits until i started sorting through closets and totes of pure crap! 

Hours and hours have been spent poured over piles of my so called great deals trying to  decide what to keep and what to trash.  Within the first 30 minutes of this task i quickly realized the purchases i thought were absolute musts were nothing more mass produced, poorly made junk.  Five big trash bags later and only half way through a collection of possessions that represent not a single stitch of my own character or style i began to really resent buying any of it! 

Taking one last look into one of my many closets filled with my things before i went to bed a skinny black box caught my eye.  Tucked in far back corner of my top shelf i couldnt remember what in the world it had inside.  Dreading what i was going to find I opened it to discover these:

I know very little about them so far, but cant wait to find out something.  There are about 15 of the photos total and all of them are in bright colors with their original mattes stamped 1982.  I found the case of photos buried in the cabinets at my old office a couple years ago and no one wanted them or knew what they were and i fell in love with them from the first glimpse.  I cant wait to frame them to hang in our living room.  If anyone knows anything about this type of photography let me know!  I would love to find out more about them.

 

Weekend Finds!

With our move in date just days away, Alexa and I have been on the hunt for amazing pieces for our new home!  After spending weeks buried in Elle Decor and Dwell magazines we have a wealth of inspiration on what we want our new bungalow to look like but lack the funds to have the real thing.  Being told numerous times our tastes are far too expensive, we have decided to prove that you can create that fab look on a budget! 

Craigslist, garage sales, estate sales, and antique stores are typically our go to places to find great stuff on the cheap.  With a little tlc and elbow grease you can turn other peoples trash into your new treasures.  Every once in awhile though you luck out and find that one thing you've been dying to have but just cant justify buying it new.

 After finding this photo awhile back i have been obsessed with the desire to have a cowhide rug for our house, but the $300 + price tag was not justifiable and defiantly not in our budget.  The hunt was on for a used one!!  The issue with used hides is they wear easily and are typically gross! Luck had not been on my side up to this point in the cowhide search and i was about to give up hope and splurge (because apparently Santa thinks my xmas list is a little extravagant this year and nixed the request), then i received a text from Alexa. 

While out running errands with her mom she found my rug!!!! :)

Ecstatic i was dying to know how much it was and where she had found it! Drum roll please.............

$99 at Sam's Club! Yes Sam's Club!! Who would have thought that tucked in between 70 pack rolls of Charmin ultra we would ever find my must have item!  Whats even better about this deal was we didn't have to buy them in bulk to save money.

No Bake Cookies & French Quarter Sandwiches

Last night, Kaily and I went out and had a blast watching our friends play some music at a local venue called The Conservatory. Here's a picture to document the experience!

Today, I made No Bake Cookies. They are my favorites and they're probably the easiest things to make! Here's the recipe for you!

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

stick of butter

4 tbsp. Hershey's cocoa

1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter

1/4 cup regular peanut butter

3 cups oats

1 tbsp. vanilla

Directions: Heat all till butter is melted; remove from heat and add peanut butter, 1 tbsp. vanilla and 3 cups uncooked oats. Add coconut or nuts, if desired. Drop on wax paper by teaspoonful and enjoy!

Tonight, my Mom made French Quarter Sandwiches which make wonderful appetizers. They're perfect  for the holiday parties you'll host. (Which is right around the corner!! CHRISTMAS!) Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
24 Sister Schubert's Dinner Yeast Rolls
1 lb. thinly sliced ham
1 lb. sliced Swiss cheese
1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp poppy seeds
2 tsp onion flakes

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut rolls in half (like you're making a sandwich out of them.) Place rolls on large baking sheet, and put a couple layers of ham and one slice of cheese between the pieces of bread. In a sauce pan, or in microwave, mix remaining ingredients and bring to a boil for 2 minutes (just until warm and bubbly, so sugar is melted.) Pour sauce evenly over sandwiches. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Serve warm. Tips: I never use this much cheese, but seem to use almost all the ham. It's good to have both on hand, anyway, because once you make them, people always seem to want more!!

XOXO - Alexa

Halloween Cupcakes

I've been in such a big baking/cooking mood lately. Today, I made Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing. Here's the recipe for you to enjoy!

Raspberry Sauce: 

1 cup washed raspberries

4 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. lemon juice

Combine ingredients in a sauce pan and place over medium heat. Stir frequently until juices from berries boil. Let ingredients boil for 2 minutes until sauce is dense. Put in food processor until smooth. Cool in refrigerator. (Yes, you need to put sauce in refrigerator! If you put it directly in icing, your icing will be too runny to put on top of cupcakes!!)

Icing:

8 oz. cream cheese

5 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

3 cups confectioners' sugar

1 tbsp. lemon juice

Zest of 1 lemon

raspberry sauce (see recipe above)

Cupcake Ingredients: 

3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour, divided

3/4 cup cake flour (I like Softasilk Cake Flour best)

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

8 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. sugar

Zest of 1 lemon

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. milk

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with liners. In a medium bowl, combine 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, the cake flour, baking powder and salt; whisk together and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, sugar and lemon zest. Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, blending well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and lemon juice. With the mixer on low speed, mix in half of the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Blend in the milk. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients, beating just until incorporated. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared liners, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pans 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

For the icing, combine cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on medium-high speed until well combined and smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Mix in the lemon juice and lemon zest. Gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar until totally incorporated, increase the speed and then beat until smooth. Fold in raspberry sauce until mixed throughly. Frost cooled cupcakes as desired. (Tip: You can put icing in a gallon-sized baggie then cut a small portion off the corner. It squeezes out easily to frost the cupcakes!) Garnish with fresh raspberries and an adorable topper - THEN ENJOYYYY!! We'd love to see pictures of your precious cupcakes if you make them! Please share your comments. :]

P.S. - I got these cutteee Danny Brito cupcake toppers off of Elsie's Blog. You can find them here.

XOXO - Alexa

Our New Adventure

Kaily and I met a couple months ago, mutual friends introduced us and we instantly hit it off.  (It's weird that two people can have so much in common!!) I have been wanting to move out for a while and Kaily has to drive several miles everyday to work.. So, WE ARE MOVING INTO A CUTE HOUSE TOGETHER NEXT WEEK!! It's an adorable little bungalow in the Paseo. The house needs a little TLC but together, Kaily and I are going to make it our adorable little eclectic home. We are so excited about this new adventure together so we're starting this blog to document our times and adventures together. Look forward to yummy recipes, D.I.Y.'s, decoration how-to's, etc. Please don't hesitate to ask us questions and let us know what you'd like to see in the future. Most of all, have fun and be safe!!

XOXO - Alexa