Made these for Allen’s birthday several weekends ago. We spent the afternoon staking our claim at a fire pit at Dockweiler beach. Jen lent me a beach chair so I could park myself with a book in my hands and my feet in the sand for a good three hours (I was pretty toasty) before we built a huge bonfire, to welcome the sunset with S’mores. Since cheesecake is the celebrant’s favorite, I decided to make bite-sized versions for portability and easy munching—no need for plates and forks. (We had to be extra careful because the sand got EVERYWHERE—the pizza was slightly crunchy!)

What’s interesting about these mini cheesecakes was the shortcut in the recipe for the crust. These were baked in mini muffin cups, and instead of filling each individual one with crushed graham crackers, you just pop in a Nilla wafer, dome face down. Neat, huh? And I mean that literally, because you don’t have to futz around with crumbs, so there’s less cleanup.

After filling them 3/4 full of cheesecake mixture, you chuck them into the oven and they come out nice and plump.

They cool down into little treats with a slightly concave center, ready for the filling. I chose strawberry jam and fresh strawberry slices for half the batch, and honey with fresh blueberries, walnuts and orange segments for the other half.

Bite-sized, blissful, beachy birthday treats! Care to make some of your own? HERE you go!

I have plenty of “those dresses”—gowns, outfits and ensembles that all make my breath catch in my throat—filed away in my mind. More than mere frocks, they’re works of art, and all make me wish I were a seamstress.  After seeing a “That Dress” dress, I sometimes go home and have imaginary conversations with my sewing machine: “Hey old pal, old chum, do you think maybe we can try, you and I, to sew something more than circle skirts and aprons?” (Heehee. Fact is, I can’t even sew a decent zipper!)

I’ve already written a post on That Dress in Atonement, and now adding a new one to the list. This one’s the white number that Julia Flyte (played by Hayley Atwell) sashays in at her coming-out party in Brideshead Revisited, which I saw last Saturday.

Look at all this detail—the chiffon creation has hand-beaded swallows on the bodice! Are you drooling? Because I did. I was trying not to squeal out loud in the theater. (Pics from movie’s official site here.)

Julia Flyte’s character hails from a world of sprawling homes, summers in Italy and aristocratic sensibilities, so it’s no surprise that she has gorgeous outfits like these.

It doesn’t hurt the movie that I already have a fondness for vintage wardrobe. The costume designer is Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh, who is a genius in my book.

Brideshead is based on the novel by Evelyn Waugh (who I found out is actually a man—Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh!) I was reeling when I came out from the movie, much for the movie itself as for the beautiful sets, scenery and costumes. Go see it! If the chance to explore a study in human behavior in 1920’s England doesn’t convince you to, be shallow like me and go for the pretty dresses and for scenes of the breathtaking Brideshead estate. And oh yes, for Matthew Goode. I loved him in Chasing Liberty. (No snickers! He’s really cute!)

Official website, with even more juicy tidbits on the props and wardrobe, HERE.

Thank you, Ma!

- for being a big fan of my curls, sometimes even more than I am

- for always telling me, “Don’t say you can’t.”

- for understanding my “artistic outbursts” (that’s code for “pagka-alabuton”)

- for fueling my own creativity with yours (Please teach me how to tat. I know you’re been trying to teach me since I was in sixth grade, but maybe this is the year I’ll finally learn!)

- for saying, “This is my song for you,” each time you hear Lee Ann Womack’s I Hope You Dance on the radio (We both know it’s really corny, but we always sing along to it anyway!)

Happy birthday to the most interesting mother in the world. Your Girl With A Curl loves you!

(Yes, that’s me on her knee, and my brother behind her. Note that my curls are dormant, and will pounce on me like a thief in the night by the time I’m 12. And oh yeah, thanks Ma, for saving my virtue by your, er, creative hand placement!)

I found that quote online and thought it was a hilarious way to start off this post!

Several weekends ago, I was a like a kid in a candy store at the International Quilt Festival in Long Beach, CA. I found out about the event back in January and promptly marked it down in my datebook. Back then, it wouldn’t take place until months later, but I (and Mama) was jumping out of my skin and didn’t want to forget to go.

So, what happens at a quilt festival?

-    There’s usually a gallery of beautiful quilts that showcase the very best handiwork in the country. The ones I saw made me swoon.

-    There’s a fairly large vendor section that should make any craftster keel over. Bits and baubles for all the sewing projects in your head, fabric of every imaginable kind—even vintage ones!

-    There are usually classes as well, to teach you everything from cutting techniques to sewing perfect mitered corners and all that. I would’ve taken some, except I’m quite insecure about my sewing abilities. And I had nightmares about sewing my finger in public. (Don’t laugh, it’s possible, just ask my friend Via!)

Would you like to spy my stash from that crafty weekend?

FAB FABRIC
I found some with the prettiest prints from Japan (which made me think of Caryn) at a bargain bin—most were $1/half yard. I was like a maniac digging through the piles, shoving little old ladies out of the way (Well, not really, but close! They shoved first and they had CANES!) And the fat-quarter* set on the right made my heart flutter—I love those colors. I had the BIGGEST grin after I decided to get those, it was such a high. Cheaper than therapy, I tell you!

* In the quilting lexicon, “fat quarters” are ¼ of a yard, but cut into a square-ish shape that measures 18”x22”. This is a more usable shape for craftsters (especially quilters) than the standard long-ish 9”x44” piece. (Just in case you were wondering, because I would, ha!) Diagram below by Janet Wickell.

BANGIN’ BUTTONS
Ok, so these three tiny things cost more than all my fabric. Before you balk or freak, hear me out. I spent about half an hour at the Susan Clarke button stall. These babies were not the cheapest things because most were one-of-a-kind. In fact, the domed one with the clock image uses an actual print from a vintage postcard. I stared at those buttons and sighed, and stared and sighed some more. I told myself that if I were still thinking of them three stalls over, I would get them. Otherwise, I’d lose sleep and have reverse buyer’s remorse. (Is there such a thing? You know, when you regret not getting something you really wanted?) So, yeah, three stalls over, I had to go back. I think these would be great statement pieces on some purses!

You know what’s one thing you DON’T usually find at a quilt fest? People my age. Ok, so I may not the springiest of chickens, and I AM old enough to remember the heyday of Hall and Oates, Aquanet and Tretorns, but still, the crowd at the show was…how do I put this delicately…further in their years. I’ve been to other quilt shows before and this is always the case. My mom says it’s probably because these ladies have all the time in the world to dedicate to quilt-making.

I’d like to think that in this DIY age, quilting shouldn’t be such an, er, old craft! Many young craftsters out there take to clothes construction, sewing, jewelry, paper crafts and needlework (modern embroidery and knitting) but not a lot are working to keep quilting young and hip. Quilting IS a long-held tradition, but maybe, with modern fabric and designs, it can become a craft that’s loved by all.

Ah, this post was long! The weekend’s coming up, and I can’t wait to get started on a quilt of my own, hopefully something fun and hmm, less octogenarian . I hope your own weekends are happily busy!

Yes, guilty as charged. I stayed up past 1 am to finish reading Breaking Dawn. The Twilight book series is finally over. It was bittersweet, those final moments with the book, with me in bed in a ratty old nightgown (Ross, it’s the white one your Lola made) and a flickering book light. So today finds me prowling the net for a vampiric fix for my fangirling, and these were “exactly my brand of heroin.” All these are on zazzle.com, designed by crazies like me (I’m too chicken to design anything myself!) (Those Twilight cupcakes are from Cupcakes Take The Cake.)

Which one’s your favorite?

I have to say, that last book made me squeamish. All that talk about sipping blood through a straw and half-vampire babies eating themselves out of wombs has cured me of the need to eat anything that breathes. I’ve been eating nothing but Skyflakes crackers, vegetables and fruit for the past three days now. Does this mean I’ll lose weight? Haha. Maybe, MAYBE this means I should go make a vegetarian quiche or something. Or when my stomach can take it, a tart with fresh blood oranges would be OME-lovely.

Hello, all! It feels good to be back. How has everyone been?

I’m jumping back onto the curly blogging highway with these NUTELLA cupcakes. These have a delicious ribbon of hazelnut goodness swirled into heavenly cake batter. When you bite into them, you get all the gooey Nutella scrumptiousness stuck to your teeth! I can’t even begin to describe how much I fell in love with these.

When I made these, I didn’t think I would ever blog about them. That’s because I have a secret: I keep good recipes to myself. (Insert evil laugh.) Especially the REALLY good ones that I’ve spent time kitchen-testing. I’m bad like that, heehee.

But you know, I am thankful for many things today: for writing my first post after three long weeks, for friends who helped me handle the all the overflowing “batter in my mixing bowl” when I was gone, for the fact that I’m racing home after work to finish reading Breaking Dawn (Toni! If you’re reading this, all I can say is, GAWD!!!) and for the month of August (my birthday month!).

I am overflowing with gratitude and can’t help but share the recipe for these yummy things. I first came across these from She Bakes & She Cooks, because I have an unabashed love for Nutella and was trying to find a baked good that used it on the net. These yield WONDERFUL cupcakes: the batter bakes up to a delicate crumb that’s a perfect backdrop for the rich hazelnut cream.

Nutella Cupcakes

10 tbsp butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
Nutella, approximately 1/3 cup (I used a mini cookie-dough scoop for each cupcake)

1) Preheat oven to 325F.

2) Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners.

3) Cream together butter and sugar until light, about 2 minutes.

4) Add in eggs one at a time, until fully incorporated.

5) Add vanilla. Stir in flour, salt and baking powder until batter is uniform and no flour remains.

5) Using an ice cream scoop, fill each muffin liner with batter. They should be 3/4 full, if you’re not using a scoop.

6) Top each cake with 1 1/2 tsp Nutella. Swirl Nutella in with a toothpick, making sure to fold a bit of batter up over the nutella.

7) Bake for 20 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

I hope you make these! They’re the perfect antidote to a blah afternoon–both to cook, and to eat!

I hope to make my way to everyone else’s neck of the world wide woods. Welcome back to me!