Retro Revival

Showing posts with label storytelling. Show all posts

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Homemade Apple Pie & Pie Aprons

My BFF Melanie does so many things so wonderfully. In fact, I think she's perfectly wonderful, the truest of all friends!

Our mutual love of pie goes way back. This was us eating chocolate pie for breakfast in Vegas almost 20 years ago!

Despite her perfection, she struggles with making pie crusts and recently asked me to help her.

I'd never used a mechanical peeler before so this was fun.

We used Beth Howard's recipe and followed her proven techniques. Click here for one of my prior posts about Beth (she's the true expert on pie making!).

I think where Melanie had been going wrong may have been that she'd been handling the crust too much, trying to make it perfect.

The quicker you can throw the ingredients in the bowl and fluff them together with your hands, the better. I've found that my most flaky, buttery crusts have come from handling the pastry for less than 4 minutes ~ that's from the time I toss the ingredients together, roll the crust, and place it in the pie dish. Fast. Gotta be really fast!

Walah! Melanie made a beautiful pie!

The crust was deliciously buttery and very flaky!

If you're looking for more pie baking inspiration, check out my Retro Revival pie aprons:

They're available in my Etsy shop...

...or message me for details. I ship for free to my friends and family!

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Thank you, Mood

I'm a huge fan of "Project Runway" and the spin-off series, "Under the Gunn." Are you? Now that Daughterlypoo lives in NYC, and within walking distance from the Garment District, I had a chance to visit Mood.

If you watch the show, you know that the designers shop for their fabrics at Mood. It's fabric heaven!

Aisles upon aisles of fabric bolts.

Beautiful rainbows of colors.

Swatch, Mood's mascot, paused a moment to say hello.

Very cool place! I'm so happy I had the opportunity to experience it in person.

Thank you, Mood! As I type this, I'm doing my best to sound like Tim Gunn. (That's the Empire State Building behind/above us.)

Mood inspiration (framed t-shirt) in my studio:

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Quiet Morning in Central Park

I spent last weekend in NYC visiting Daughterlypoo and Daniel. As always, we had a wonderful time together! On Sunday morning we walked through part of Central Park...

First we crossed through Columbus Circle ~ the statuary is spectacular!

We entered the Park near Umpire Rock, an enormous, exposed bedrock, with amazing views of the towering city.

Mid-Park, along 5th Avenue is a distinguished grove of Elm trees:

There are over 8,000 benches throughout the park, but these are my favorite:

Even prettier with Daughterlypoo posing.

We made our way toward Bethesda Terrace to see the intricate sandstone carvings...

...And the crown jewel of the Terrace, the Angel of the Waters statue. In 1873, sculptor Emma Stebbins was the first woman to receive a public art commission in NYC. The Angel carries a lily in her left hand, and is said to reference the Pool of Bethesda and celebrate New York's first aqueduct.

There's an overwhelming number of things to see and do in Central Park. We walked and explored for about two hours and barely scratched the surface!

We exited the Park through the Grand Army Plaza where the magnificent gold leaf statue of General Sherman stands.

On my next visit to NYC I think I need to book a guided tour of Central Park so that I can be sure to learn even more about its history. It's so fascinating and beautiful!

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Nothin' But Hound Dogs

On Sunday we went to the 67th Annual Foxhound Show at Morven Park.

Beautiful creatures!

The 1,000+ acre property was once the home of Westmoreland Davis, governor of Virginia from 1918-1922.

A picturesque day spent lounging beneath the giant oak trees, watching the show, and wandering the gardens. All while the foxhounds (hundreds of them!) serenaded us with their baying. There is no sound quite like that of a hound!