happy tuesday!

random inspiration for this lovely last day of the month! I've loved Roald Dahl since i finished James and the Giant Peach in 3rd grade. Hope you all are having a smooth transition back to the work week!

 -Katie



"Those who don't believe in magic will never find it."



happy thanksgiving

We're both fortunate enough to be in Indiana with our families for this holiday. Hopefully you are all with good company and having a glorious Thanksgiving day! :)

-Libby and Katie

oreo cupcakes

Since we had a considerably rainy weekend in LA I decided it was a good time to bake up a batch of cupcakes I've been wanting to make for a few weeks.  And so what if I had to dust off my running shoes in order to enjoy a few of them. :)

I am weird in that i'm not really a huge chocolate fan; so i initially wanted to make them more because they looked really cool. However, they did turn out to be pretty awesome. The recipe is one of Martha Stewarts and I got it from one of her books. It basically combines a whole oreo cookie and a cheesecake topping. You can find all sorts of her other cupcakes here. They're perfect to bring for upcoming holiday parties or just to make on a rainy weekend. :o)

-Katie

Hair Miracle

As I've previously mentioned, I'm bad at doing hair. This keeps me on the look-out for products that help my cause and make life a little easier. The Goody Spin Pin is a miracle worker. The commercials (which they totally copied from a really awesome music video) say it has the strength of something like 36 bobby-pins and after using it I don't doubt it. I have long, thick hair and 2 of these kept my messy bun in place for an entire day, and I didn't get the rubber band headache either! It's about $7 for the package and totally worth it!

Just thought I'd share my victory with you. And if you ARE naturally good at doing hair I'm sure you'll be able to do much more awesome things with these then I can!

-Libby 

melrose trading post

Last weekend I finally got to check out the melrose trading post! I love flea markets and the random things you can find there! I went trying to find a bookshelf for my new apartment but was unsuccesful; I'm still on the lookout for the perfect trimming for my living room. Cool things i saw in spite of my bookshelf miss...

Save a dollar here.

Happy Friday!

-Katie

Movember Update

Well folks it's day 17 on the Movember moustache growing. Trevor is setting himself up for a win it seems!

What kind of moustache would look good on this handsome mug?

*Click this link---> http://us.movember.com/mospace/968420/  and donate to Trev online using your credit card or PayPal account (or any of his Milwaukee Mo Team Members)

-Libby

where there's smoke, there's fire...

i've been quite obsessed with the 'smokey eye' for the past few months; i think it's spurred by the fall weather.  Chanel, who can do no wrong in my eyes, changed-up quite a bit with their most recent fashion show, and what they gave us with their styling was a completely original twist on the classic 'smokey eye' look.

Photo by Antonio de Moraes Barros/WireImage.com

Photo by Antonio de Moraes Barros/WireImage.com

Check out this amazing "How To" video! 

They have an everyday version as well. She makes it look so easy! I can't wait to try out this look, for the right occasion of course! :)

-Katie

Jimmy's Food Store

For about the last year I've heard people mention this place called Jimmy's and I finally got to go yesterday! Jimmy's Food Store is an old Italian grocery store and deli that has been open since 1966. 
I'm never really over in that area of town when the store is open but fortunately a trip to the bank at lunch yesterday led me there. It totally lived up to all the hype! I got the meatball sandwich and my friend Suzie got the Cuban and we each gushed over how delicious ours was. Suzie and I may have been the last two people in Dallas who hadn't been there, but if you happen to be one of those people too I sincerely recommend making the trip over there!

(above photos From Jimmy's Food Store)

scoping out the wine selection...

-Libby

amoeba music

So i made my first trip to Amoeba Music and loved every second of it. The Hollywood branch boasts the title of the world's largest independent record store. Almost any album ever created is most definitely housed in their one store and i felt like i could have spent 3 days in there browsing through old vinyls, posters and discs. 

music, music everywhere

The history of this store is quite interesting really and you can read about it here.... and even better they regularly have concerts. They also donate a portion of their profits to the Rainforest Action Network.

I'm thinking about getting a part-time job there and telling them i will work for music. :)

  -Katie

Movember part deux.

So I told you I'd update you on my brother's beard to moustache transformation for Movember... Trevor is 10 days into not shaving and here is he..

I'm pretty confident in his hair growing abilities. haha I think he's going to look like a homeless bum in no time. I'm thinking a sophisticated handlebar 'stache at the end of the month would look perfect. Thoughts?

(Print made by the Owls Love Nest. Purchase on Etsy)

*donate to Trevor and his team The Milwaukee Mo's HERE*

Happy Friday! Libby

go forth

Perhaps it's the business school nerd in me, but I'm completely riveted by Levi's most recent advertising campaign. I can't help but wonder what my advertising professor, Dr. Skinner, would have to say about their brand. Levi's, a long established denim company, who recently have been more popular in Europe than the United States, has launched a new campaign called "Go Forth". In my experience, everytime one of these commercials comes on the room goes silent. The copy or words sounded familiar to me and upon further investigation it is actually prose from the celebrated American poet, Walt Whitman.

  America

by Walt Whitman

Centre of equal daughters, equal sons,

all alike, endear'd, grown, ungrown, young or old,

Strong, ample, fair, enduring, capable, rich,

Perennial with the Earth, with Freedom, Law and Love,

A grand, sane, towering seated Mother, 

Chair'd in the adamant of time

Pioneers! O Pioneers!

excerpt

by Walt Whitman

O you youths, western youths,

so impatient, full of action, full of manly pride and friendship,

Plain I see you, western youths, see you tramping with the foremost, Pioneers!

O pioneers!

  

Music by The Dodos

Do they make you want to buy some jeans??

-Katie

Lions, and tigers, and BEARDS.. oh yeahhhh

My awesome brother Trevor, along with several of his friends, is donating his face this month to raise awareness about cancers than affect men.

Trevor said he's doing this because:

- 1 in 2 men will be diagnosed with cancer in his lifetime
- 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime

"How do you donate your face?" you ask. Well, you grow a lovely moustache. Trevor will be growing a stellar 'stache for 'Movember' and I will be  chronicling his efforts here. (i.e. posting facial hair pics.) He's going to grow a full on BEARD this month and then at the end of Movember shave and end with a gloooooooorious stache!! (there are SO many styles of 'staches to choose from. Which one will it be!?)

(Here are pictures of Trevor, squeaky clean shaven, to give you an idea of the blank canvas that is his face.)

Trevor is asking for YOU to support his efforts by making a donation to help support the great work of the Prostate Cancer Foundation and LIVESTRONG.

To help, you can either:

- Click this link http://us.movember.com/mospace/968420/ and donate to Trev online using your credit card or PayPal account (or any of his Milwaukee Mo Team Members)
OR
- Write a check payable to Movember, referencing my name or Registration Number 968420 and mailing it to: Movember, PO Box 2726, Venice, CA 90294-2726

The money raised will help make a tangible difference to the lives of others, through the world's most promising prostate cancer research and LIVESTRONG's programs that support young adults and their families battling and surviving cancer.



For more details on how the funds raised from previous campaigns have been used and the impact Movember is having please visit  http://us.movemberfoundation.com/research-and-programs/.


So PLEASE, help a guy out and donate to Trevor or his team this Movember!!

-Libby



Ra Ra Riot, Janelle Monae, and some other bands...

In the span of seven days I was lucky enough to see two amazing shows. The first was Givers, Villagers, and Ra Ra Riot. We walked in close to the end of the Givers set and I immediately wanted to hit myself for not getting their sooner. Givers were so engaging and energetic, which you can't say about too many opening bands. I wasn't alone in wanting them to continue their set, the audience was won over and couldn't stop talking about their performance all evening. The Villagers, a band from Ireland, had their high points as well but nothing that kept me wanting more.

Ra Ra Riot

The main event, Ra Ra Riot really impressed me. I went to the show with the attitude that the elegant chamber pop portion of their music could get lost in a live performance but I was wrong. They sounded just as melodic and perfected live as they do on their albums. Ra Ra Riot is a must see in concert!

Ra Ra Riot "You And I Know" (Preview) from Barsuk Records on Vimeo.

This video, from their website, was my favorite performance of the evening. Truly breathtaking to hear live.

The second show of the week, Janelle Monae & Of Montreal, was a complete surprise. I went to the show with an OK feeling about Janelle but a fan of Of Montreal and left the show the complete opposite. Janelle Monae put on a show, she didn't just get up on stage and sing her songs, she gave a performance. The audience ate it up, as did I. Her voice was stunning and the energy she alone put into her performance was more than any band could ever give. Check out some of her dance moves below... I was pretty close to the speakers so this video doesn't do her voice justice, at all.

Of Montreal's music is quirky, I knew that, but their show was a little too much so for me on a Tuesday night. Scratch that, maybe a little too much for me any night...from the lead singer acting out sexual acts with someone in a pig costume, to the Greek goddess tied up with ropes while pleading with lust to the singer, along with the giant babies being shot at by fish with arms that were guns the music just got lost on me and I left early.

Of Montreal

-Libby

a mushroom risotto

I probably have too many cook books for a 24 year old girl but cooking is really one of my favorite things to do. Last week, my fabulous friend Carolyn hosted a lovely dinner party. I decided my contribution would be a mushroom risotto dish I've been wanting to make since my trip to Bodega Wine Bar and my post here. I got the recipe from a book by one of my favorite Food Network characters, Sandra Lee. She's the best. I've never made a risotto dish and it was definitely more challenging than I thought it would be! Here is a similar recipe to the one that i used. 

Fresh chopped mushrooms

White wine reductions are the best

Finished product! YUM!

The wonderful spread

It's also relatively easy to make this a vegan recipe by just leaving out the butter and parmesan... although those are kind of my favorite parts.  :)

-Katie  

    

An Upscale Dive

I've wanted to try this little restaurant, Lakewood Landing, out for months now... It could be the dozens of people standing outside on their porch with beers, or it could be their clever sign that reads "An Upscale Dive" that catches my eye when I frequently drive by. I read  up on it and found that they won several Dallas Observer and D Magazine awards back in the day and knew that I had to stop in sometime.

I finally went the other day and am delighted to say it was totally worth it. My friend and I each got a burger and it was hands down, one of the best I've had in such a long time. The bun was perfect, light and fluffy, and whatever seasoning they put on the burger...yum yum. My server warned me that I might have to use a knife and fork for the big guy. At the end of the meal I proudly informed him that I didn't touch my silverware once. haha

Location.. per their website.

If you have a craving for burgers, I suggest giving this place a whirl!

-Libby

shoe of the month/ la chaussure de le mois

I've missed this feature quite a bit so I've decided to bring back the shoe of the moment spotlight. How crazy are these shoes?! I'll admit it took me a moment to come around to the whole rugged/dainty mix on shoes but I think these are kind of awesome. I recently saw Gywneth Paltrow sporting a pair similar to these in a beige color too!

Happy Friday!

-Katie



Camilla Skovgaard





Hair Help

For a while I've been seeing the cutest hair accessories in magazines like Nylon, in online blogs, and on some of my favorite TV shows. They interested me because I don't really ever do a lot with my hair... one; I really don't know how to do much, and two; because I really don't have time to do much. I thought the styles I was seeing would be perfect to pop on my head to give boring outfits, and hair, a little pick-me-up.  I started to investigate where these quirky pieces were coming from and quickly found my answer, ban.do!
Two LA stylists/friends, Jen and Jamie, started making hair accessories for themselves and friends in 2008 and it has now turned into a full fledged business. I mean, one of their models is Alison Monro from A Fine Frenzy, how cool is that?  The pictures of the accessories speak for themselves....

ban.do was also featured in the new online magazine Rue  with an article and one of the most fun/girlie photo spreads I've ever seen. Check out the video below of the party for the photo-shoot if you don't believe me!

ain't no party like a ban.do party from Shark Pig on Vimeo.

-Libby

big band swing!

my halloween weekend surprisingly was filled with big bands as much as costumes! I somehow saw two jazz bands in one weekend. Who else could say they saw two separate washboard players in 2 days!? :) The first I saw was The Dustbowl Revival. They played Friday night at Villain's Tavern. Anytime there is a kazoo and harmonica I'm definitely on board. It's really impressive to see a bunch of kids my age kicking it to the classics; maybe i just think that because sometimes i like to act like i'm 90. :)

a fiddler wearing a panda costume is bound to be my best friend

The second band i was able to see was Vaud and the Villains. The vocals in this band are amazing. These guys have some serious pipes and sing Anderson sister like harmonies. The band is  super talented and the dancers are little vixens. :) 

If you ever get a chance to see these groups in concert you definitely should not miss out!! Check out their schedules and go! 

-Katie