Hot chocolate!

(pie!)

Whata-combo!!

For research purposes only, we did try the pie. Suffer as I am willing for my faithful blog readers! Our findings concluded it is a pretty intense, gooey chocolate.

Yellow and Blue make. . .Red?!

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you into something else is the greatest accomplishment

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Easily bought

I wasn't able to get to Quilt Festival this year, but sweet hubby took me to my favorite Barnes & Noble today and got these magazines for me.

(Even with two of them clocking in at $14.99/pop -- Don't you think he got off way cheaper than an opportunity for me gawking at that new price barrier-busting $12,000 Bernina sewing machine...?! Besides, I'm a loyal Viking/Husqvarna gal - shhhh! With a serious magazine jonesing.)

Chantal Finds! Get thee over there tomorrow, Houston peeps!

First, I found and bought four of these little guys for $5 each. The 2 cup size. They also had two more larger sizes for $10 and $15. I plan to use these to bake my gingerbread in and to give as gifts...and use as a holiday decoration!

If you donated four canned goods to the Houston Food Bank at the Chantal Warehouse entrance, they gave you a 20% off coupon. Which I used on this $10 tea and teapot set, so I paid $8 for tea and a teapot and an infuser! I found this in the back warehouse section, on the shelves -- not in the front of the store. Bloomingdale's is currently selling this set for $50!

Shoot, I'd pay $8 for the tin alone! I love the embossed flowers and the cool yoga girl on the label! Wow! I just checked -- This tea alone is worth $19.50 on the Kusmi website!

The outlet is open tomorrow from 12-5 PM. And also for the next two weekends. Click here for directions and times.

Sandra Betzina's Fashion Forecast - Fall/Winter

Just the other day I was wondering where Sandra's Fashion Forecast was, and today this appears in my email inbox --

So where is the fashion forecast this season? With few exceptions, when I look at women on the street, in shopping malls, attending sewing fairs, I have concluded that most women in the United States over 40 have simply given up. They grab the biggest most comfy items they own and head out for the day. If you are one of the few women who still cares what they look like, have an interest in fashion and love to sew; there is plenty of information out there, in fashion magazines and online. European fashion magazines are great sources for color combinations, details and silhouettes. This season, I am excited about combining leather with knits, woven fabrics with knits. Big chunky bracelets and necklaces are already in my wardrobe, so I will be wearing those. Tall well made boots are always in fashion. Make some tops and dresses with big cowl necks Vogue 1197, tunic length with the best pair of skinny pull on pants I have designed. Dresses and skirts with draped sections still look new: Vogue 1234 and Vogue 1210, blouses and knit tops with sheered sections Vogue 1275 and Vogue 1260. All patterns mentioned were designed by me and are in the Vogue book under the Today’s Fit tab. Take your time when you sew, enjoying every moment of the process. While I continue to design patterns for Vogue and teach classes, this will conclude many years writing the twice yearly fashion forecasts. If we have your e-mail, we will let you know about the just realized Today’s Fit patterns and new WebTV show topics, filmed by Ron Collins and myself. We are in the process of updating our website once again. Fondly, Sandra

Well, pooh! I always looked forward to Sandra's spot-on fashion, fabric and pattern combination advice (I still have her forecasts from the 80's!). Maybe she was just in a bad mood. . .?

Comments?
I know that personally I try to make an honest effort to look good when going out in public, and reasonably well/yet comfy when at home -- you never know when you'll need to make a mad dash out of the house. And isn't that inevitably the time you will run into someone from your past or someone you know? I am also the first to admit the manager and clerks at J.Jill either recognize or know me by name. They do have great sales and clothes, great in a pinch when you don't have time to sew. And sometimes yes, it is cheaper to buy them than to sew them. That helps save me the time and money to sew something really special when I get the chance.

So dear Sandra, please rethink and don't give up on us. I consider you a role model, both fashion and sewing wise.

Friday Flowers

"Vintage Bouquet" from Whole Foods.

Thursday Tea Time

This week - Republic of Tea Pumpkin Ginger Spices of Fall Tea - a World Market Exclusive flavor
Cost: $11.99. Yeah, a little pricey. Fortunately I Googled and found a World Market 10% off coupon and used my smart phone to scan to bring it down to $10.79. Then again you also get 50 teabags as opposed to the usual 36 or even 20.
Number of teabags: 50
Caffeine: Yes
Type of tea: Black
Steeping time: Per label 3-5 minutes, I did 6 minutes
Add ins: A little bit of fat free condensed milk made it taste just like pumpkin pie latte! I also tried it with fat-free evaporated milk and a little bit of honey. Good, but not as creamy as the condensed milk. I'm thinking next time using whipped cream and sprinkling a little pumpkin pie spice on top.
Teabag fragrance: Ginger and pumpkin!
Ingredients: Black tea, ginger, natural flavors, cinnamon, sweet blackberry leaf, cloves, allspice and nutmeg
Opinion: Very smooth, not overwhelmingly "pumpkin-y", but a nice spice/pumpkin pie flavor without a strong bite. Grab this while you can!
I also like the quote they have on the label -- "Tea Mind allows life to live us. It frees us from the hubris of trying to control what cannot be controlled. The life of tea is the life of the moment. We have only Now, and we each sip it in our own cups." "Tea Mind" - I like that!
Rating: 4.50 - definitely worth finding and buying!

Chantal 2011 Warehouse Outlet Sale

Chantal's 2011 Warehouse sale will be the first three weekends of November, Friday through Sunday --
November 4/6, November 11/13, November 18/20
Friday and Saturday -- 9 AM - 6 PM
Sunday -- Noon to 5 PM
5425 North Sam Houston Parkway West (just east of Highway 249/Hollister)
If heading from the West, take the 249 exit and stay on the feeder. I always get off one exit too early by the Racetrack.
281/587-7880

And if you bring in four or more cans of food for the Houston Food Bank, you will get 20% off any one item! (One coupon per visit)

Cooking Light Way To Bake

The latest offering from Cooking Light. It was just published October 4. And Costco's price is $18.99! (listed at $29.95) ISBN 0848734750

424 pages. Lots of tips and recipes, well worth the leap into your shopping cart. While some of the recipes look familiar, others seem new to me. Chai Latte Brownies? How did that escape me till now? And sometimes seeing the others reappear helps remind you to give them another try!
P.S. The pictures are delicious!

It is at the edge of the petal that love waits...

William Carlos Williams

While the Northeast is having "Snowtober," our reward for a punishingly hot summer (how many days in a row of 100+ temperatures?) is the abundant blossoming of our roses right now. I am enjoying the blooms scattered in vases around the house. And the petals from "Scentimental" - alas, pretty as it looks at first, it tends to drop its petals within 24 hours. But I can still enjoy the colors and patterns as petals in a pretty dish!

It's fun to be right!

Click (twice) to read!

Upcoming Jo-Ann's Pattern Sales

October 30/November 5 - McCall's $1.29

Veterans' Day Sale - November 6/12
Simplicity patterns 5/$5

Thursday Tea Time

This week - Celestial Seasonings Blueberry Breeze Green Tea

Cost: Around $2.50 I'm pretty sure I bought it at Super Target. Or Kroger.

Number of teabags: 20

Caffeine: No

Type of tea: Green

Steeping time: 4 minutes

Add ins: A teaspoonful of honey

Teabag fragrance: Blueberry!

Ingredients: Green tea, natural blueberry flavor with other natural flavors, and blueberries.

Opinion: I've been drinking this hot, but I'm certain it would be great iced, too. I bought this awhile back and found the box in the back of my pantry. Have I been missing out! I especially like and appreciate the blueberries' and the green tea's antioxidant boost. A little bit of honey makes it perfect - taste and health-wise. I think the box design is pretty, too

I do miss Celestial Seasonings' sayings on their boxes...when did they stop doing that?

Rating: 4.25

Where There's Love, There's Life

Saks Fifth Avenue "Keys to the Cure" t-shirt by Elie Tahari

Tickled Pink (and purple)!

"Barbeque" Rosemary - Yes, it does smell like BBQ sauce! It will grow to 30"-42" tall

"Super Parfait Strawberry" dianthus. Beautiful blooms!

I was so very, very happy to grab these two "Amazon Neon Duo" dianthus in cherry and purple. Another Place in Time was one of the test nurseries last year. They planted them alongside the front and they were absolute showstoppers. Hopefully mine will also reach over 24" tall.

Family portrait of a happy shopping day -- The center flowers are 21st Century Blue and Salmon Phlox. And upper left corner is Lemon thyme - very lemony!

Make New Things

John Maeda

Sandra Betzina Power Sewing Tips

I was trying to find the her Fall/Winter Fashion Forecast and came across this link on her webpage. There are some helpful and even new to me sewing tips here! Check it out under the What's New tab.

Netflix Stars - Manna From Heaven

3.25 - Not bad, a fun indie. In fact, my husband saw it not too long ago on the IFC channel. Set in Buffalo, NY, this features a star-blingy cast including Shirley Jones, Cloris Leachman, Louise Fletcher, Wendie Malick, Jill Eikenberry, Shelley Duvall...Ursula Burton who was part of the production company with her sisters. Quirky characters, displaying the true human-ness of us all.

Thursday Tea Time

This week - Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf English Rose

Cost: $8.95

Number of teabags: 20

Caffeine: Yes

Type of tea: Ceylon Black
Steeping time: 5 minutes

Add ins: I tried this as a hot latte in the Austin (South Lamar) store. And then at home with a little bit of fat free condensed milk. I'll try it again with my fat-free vanilla powder.

Teabag fragrance: Milk chocolate-rose

Ingredients: Ceylon black tea, rose petals, tea blossoms, natural flavors.

Opinion: Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf 2011 Limited Edition National Breast Cancer Foundation tea (last year's was the Chocolate Rose). I think this one still kept the slight rose scent, but umped up the chocolate - MILK CHOCOLATE! A nice switchup from all the dark chocolate out there. Sweetly smooth and delicious. Even the teabag is pretty!

Rating: 4

Asclepias

I finally got a red milkweed (Asclepia curassavica) I've had the yellow ones for years. Don't the yellow parts look like tiny animal faces?!