Sometimes you gotta make gooey bacon-y, breadcrumb-covered minnesota mac & cheese.
minnesota mac & cheese
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Tag Archives: how-to
diy: travel jewelry pouch
A while ago I ordered Kathleen Whitaker’s staple earring from Pretty Mommy. It came in the most adorable little bag. I used the bag constantly to store my jewels while traveling, or working out or showering at the gym. I sort of ran it into the ground so I made some DIY replacements.
Materials:
muslin
red, black thread
needle
pins
scissorsblack cord
(optional) embroidery hoop
diy: guestbook (expat necessities)
Like expats everywhere we are lucky to get many visitors- our house is like a hotel with friends and family coming and going constantly, complete with busy seasons and once in a while double (or triple!) bookings. Sometimes it makes us sad to be far away but the adventures had with visitors more than makes up for it. I’ve been meaning to make a guest book to keep track of it all for years and I finally got around to it last week.
To make up for all the friends who came pre-book and didn’t get to write a note, we went back through P’s Google calendar and wrote a list of all the people who have visited us through the years. Going through the calendar was the best part of this project, we got to re-live memories like when we went to India for the holidays, met friends in London the next weekend, Minneapolis the weekend after that for a wedding, and then two weeks later a girl’s trip to Turkey. Living in Berlin was a wannabe jet setter’s dream. Also, I am a new evangelist for Google Calendars because without P’s use of it there is no easy way we would have been able to recall all of our past guests.
Materials:
1 blank book (there are lots of blank scrapbooking type books but scrapbooking makes me barfy-faced, so I found this at my favorite stationer’s)
alphabet stamps, ink
wax seal, sealing wax, candle
guestbook pen (optional)
packing.
This weekend I am headed to Durban with P to be the official photographer for an article he is writing. Woootl! We go away for the quick weekend a lot and so I’ve become pretty efficient at throwing together a bag. One thing that I can say about myself is that while I generally love the excess, I’m good at keeping my luggage to a minimum (I have gone on three week trips with only a rollie carry on).
My strategy, whether I’m going away for 2 days or 2 weeks, is to write up a list on my iPhone in the Notes app. I’m a pretty last minute person but if I have a big trip coming up then I can add things to my packing list as I think of them in the days leading up to it. This way, when I’m inevitably throwing things into a bag hours before my flight I don’t miss anything important.
Weekend Away Checklist:
diy: baby slippers (people be reproducing)
For reasons unknown to me, our friends have begun reproducing. This is a scary fact that must be dealt with with a clear head and iron stomach. I am nearing the age of reproduction (WITH A GOOD DOSE OF DENIAL -and also not for about 3-4 years) and when that happens I will forgo wine and sushi and rare steak and unpasteurized cheese for close to a year in the service of a bunch of cells that will literally suck nutrients out of my body and then become an ungrateful child that will suck money out of my bank account for extravagant things like ‘food’ and ‘college’ and ‘winter coats.’
Until I must face my own child-filled reality I can enjoy other people’s babies from the safe distance of NOT MY WOMB and send them cute clothes and stuffed animals and felt baby slippers that I have been diligently manufacturing. Because obviously.
DIY: folding chair makeover
I always need extra seating for dinner parties or braais. Folding chairs are ugly. I don’t like ugly things taking up space in my home. Here’s a solution!
I used some cheeky Shwe Shwe fabric with Madiba’s face since we live in South Africa for one and some old scrap I had laying around for the other.
Things you’ll need:
folding chair
screwdriver
drop cloth
spray paint
fabric
scissors
staple gun
staples
DIY Navajo inspired shoe laces
Winter is coming (I know we’re in denial but fall is officially March 21st!) and when I was in the States for Christmas I bought some Minnetonka Moccasins to keep my feet warm. The brown suede laces were sort of blah, so I bought some red ones which were cute enough and then saw these. Snappy! And thought I could make a pair. You’ll need: 
Use the masking tape to tape up the laces at a regular interval. I used 1.5 inches. Paint using fabric paint in your preferred color/pattern. Let dry overnight. Take off the masking tape et voila:
And that didn’t cost 30usd plus shipping. And Minnetonka Moccs are comfortable as clouds on your feet. You’re welcome.
ombre effects via pugly pixel
diy: industrial concrete notepad
In Berlin my bank (Deutsche Bank) had a branch called “Bank der Zukunft” which means Bank of the Future. I loved it there as much as one can love going to the bank (which is a lot). There was everything from a champagne bar and coffe bar, to a rotating display of goods by different German designers which you could peruse and buy. That is where I got introduced to Betonware and purchased this skinny concrete note pad. Everybody who sees it thinks it’s so clever and more importantly I love staring at it on my desk. And I love concrete. One day when we return to the United States to Settle Down and Buy Something Permanent I hope it’s an industrial loft made of concrete. Until then I created my own version of the concrete notepad and you can too. I got the idea to spray paint the sides of the paper from this pin.
I love it so much I kind of want to start selling them!
diy: chevron tray
To corral all of the COFFEE RELATED CRAP in the kitchen I made a gold chevron tray. I wanted something simple so made oversized zig-zags. The other reason I want something pretty for the coffee stuff is that thanks to my friend Anna I bought an electric milk froth-er. I’m going to make thousands of espresso drinks on our trip to St. Lucia (the milk froth-er is coming with us). Pre-safari latte is where it’s at.
Materials:
1 white tray
gold spray paint
over sized masking tape
diy: alexander mcqueen-inspired flats
1 pair of black pointy {faux} suede flats
34-50 pointy studs (depending on how many you want)
gold spray paint (if your studs aren’t the right color)
glue gun
I had to spray paint my pointy studs because they were not gold, and I couldn’t find any gold ones. Then I simply glued them on to the back of my shoes in a similar pattern as the McQ shoes. I meant to do 25 on each but I think my studs were too big.
Going to wear these all around town, smugly.
