Thursday, January 31, 2013

pineapple sorbet *recipe*

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It's not exactly sorbet season, but I think any time is prime for fruity frozen goodness. This stuff is seriously amazing and completely scratches my sweetness craving, which means that I have found another way to eat healthier without compromising on taste. Enjoy!

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You need:
  • 1/2 cup milk (skim worked fine, but the original recommends coconut milk)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3 1/4-inch-thick slices peeled fresh ginger, crushed ( I used about a teaspoon of ground ginger)
  • 1 pineapple, (about 3 1/2 pounds), peeled, cored and cut into chunks
  • 2 teaspoons lime juice
  1. Combine milk, sugar and ginger in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer for 1 1/2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 20 minutes. Strain into a large bowl if you used fresh ginger.
  2. Place pineapple in a food processor and process until smooth. Add the pineapple puree to the coconut milk mixture and whisk until blended. Whisk in lime juice. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.
  3. Pour the pineapple mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's directions. (Alternatively, freeze mixture in a shallow metal pan until solid, about 6 hours. Break into chunks and process in a food processor until smooth.)
  4. Serve immediately or transfer to a storage container and let harden in the freezer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Serve in chilled dishes.
Original recipe from EatingWell.


Wednesday, January 30, 2013

twenty-five little ways to be creative

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January can get a little *blah* and so here's a quick list of ways to make your days brighter- and more creative!
  1. Write a haiku every night before bed.
  2. Research what herbs go best with different meats and veggies so that you can work some kitchen magic without just following the recipe.
  3. Doodle while you're on the phone.
  4. Put unexpected colors together in your outfits like blue and orange, purple and green, or coral and yellow.
  5. Refresh your space and do a quick decorating facelift with new curtains or throw pillows.
  6. Listen to a radio show instead of watching TV so that you can imagine the pictures.
  7. Learn a fun new hobby like crochet, painting, or knitting. 
  8. Play dress up.
  9. Repaint your work space in a bright and fun new color.
  10. Go to a local museum for inspiration.
  11. Tell a child a bedtime story.
  12. Make a collage of photos family and friends sent with their Christmas cards to display on the fridge or a bulletin board.
  13. Reread a favorite book and use it to inspire a piece of art. It will hold an even more significance for you. 
  14. Buy some inexpensive and fun accessories  like belts and earrings, you can use to expand your wardrobe.
  15. Experiment with fun cocktails at home so you can wow guests while you're entertaining in the future!
  16. Have a girl's night out to a painting or pottery studio. It's the perfect opportunity to branch out artistically without buying a lot of supplies!
  17. Go to a home remodeling workshop at a local hardware store and learn a new technique for home beautification.
  18. Make a Pinterest board of things you want to do in the next 3 months. Make it realistic. Do one pin each week.
  19. Learn calligraphy and use it address any envelopes you send - even the bills!
  20. Buy a beautiful journal and use it for writing or sketching, whatever you like to do best.
  21. Make lovely and colorful arrangement of fruit for your kitchen such as apples, bananas, mangoes, oranges, and pomegranates - the color is inspiring!
  22. Buy something unexpected off the sales rack - and challenge yourself to wear it 4 times in a month.
  23. Try to journal with your opposite hand - it can help put you in touch with the other half of your brain, and for rightys that can mean more creativity!
  24. Take fun and crazy pictures with friends or family members.
  25. Mess around with photo editing software, just for fun.

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Go forth and be creative!

peace&love,
Jill

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

illustrations: maya angelou

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I have always loved to draw with words and so I have decided to challenge myself to share at least one illustration of a quote by a famous poet each week with you, my dear readers. Our first gem is courtesy of Maya Angelou, and features the quote "Life loves the liver of it." 

All of my illustrations will be free for your personal use. To download the full size picture you can visit this link. Please attribute where you got them from if you share.

Hope you have an inspired Tuesday!

Monday, January 28, 2013

january summer

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I was surprisingly uncold taking these pictures last weekend. It was the perfect time to break in this beautiful dress I recieved from Eshakti. I love this dress for many reasons - it has a great full skirt, it is the perfect mix of modern and vintage styling, and, of course, it has pockets! If you're looking to try Eshakti out, they're having a 30% off sale right now that you don't want to miss!

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Linking up with Weekend Update, Yolo Monday,
Monday Meetup, Miscellany Monday, Love my Online Friends 

Thursday, January 24, 2013

50 states of brave introduces: ms. north carolina!


We are proud to introduce Ms. North Carolina...



Kenyé of Glow Kouture!

Kenyé is modeling the Pearly Collar Necklace by Favoring Brave.

If you're just joining us, 50 States of Brave is a blogging project that celebrates the little opportunities we have to be brave everyday and the women who make these habits a way of life. As part of the project, everyone blogger is sending in a story of the bravest thing they've ever done for all of us to get to read, which makes us pretty excited. 

The whole project is sponsored by Favoring Brave, my Etsy store. Each lady gets to pick an item from the store to model in her post and keep as a souvenir of her bravery!

Wanna see all of the brave ladies already featured? 
Visit our lovely archives or Pinterest page of bloggers and their Favoring Brave picks!

Wanna join in the fun and represent your state? 
There's more info about that at the bottom of this post.


Alright here's the good stuff from Kenyé:

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Bravery to me is stepping outside of your comfort zone, overcoming a fear or sharing personal secrets. When Jill asked me to be apart of this series, I was totally thrilled and nervous at the same time! I would describe myself as a quiet keep things to myself kind of girl and usually don’t write about things I consider personal or things dealing with my life. However, I began to think about the brave things I’ve done in life and a few things came to mind like learning how to drive a car and getting my license in high school, graduating and going off to college, going into the career world after graduating from college, getting married after dating my husband for five years! With all those things stated I consider brave, I have to say those are by far not the bravest things I done.

The bravest thing I’ve done is starting my own business. I didn’t know if the items I was making would actually sell, I feared putting myself out there to the world and I’m kind of an introvert so I feared talking to people about my business but I’m a very crafty and creative girl and in my head I knew I had an awesome product to make and sell but it was just something about having a business that made me cringe. After much pushing to get out there and do it from family and friends I started my business in 2008.

I no longer fear being a business owner I actually embrace it! Everything is not always peachy keen, I have ups and downs and I put in long working hours to keep it going. I can say that I’m glad that I did start my own business because I’ve met so many wonderful and interesting people. I am very thankful for the people that support my business and I am even more proud of myself for being brave enough to step out into the world and doing what I’m passionate about and selling a handmade item that will bring joy to others. 


Think you have what it takes to represent your state? Awesome! Here's what you have to do to apply:

1. Follow Favor the Brave through GFC or Bloglovin.
2. Send me an email at favoringbrave@gmail.com with your name, you blog address, what state you're from (Don't forget this!), and why you should get to represent your state as it's resident brave lady!
3. For a complete description of project requirements or to visit our past honorees gallery please visit the 50 States of Brave Blogger Search page.

Some states are filled already, but there are lots of openings left!

All opinions in this post are the opinions of the blogger featured, and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of this blog. This is a forum for openness and acceptance, so please be kind. Any derogatory comments will be removed at the discretion of the blog editor.

peace&love,
Jill

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

winter blues

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Although these are not exactly the winter blues I'm accustomed to. This outfit make me feel like it's the best part of all seasons - I can wear boots and leggings, but there's still a place for a great strapless tunic. It's an outfit that's permanently in between, which is exactly how I've been feeling lately. Life is a waiting game as I try to forget about the fact that I applied to grad school while I am waiting to hear from them. 

So the task is this: to remember that everyday is a chance to live, even if the big things aren't happening yet. There are no throw-away days in life, but sometimes we treat it like there are. 

So I'm going to think about what I can do, everyday, to make it the best it can be. I think that's when the magic happens.

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Tuesday, January 22, 2013

rusty teal

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Something about rust colored clothing has been attracting me so much lately. I know it's more of a fall color, but I just can't seem to let it go! These pants are corduroy and slim cut, but they are stretchy and flexible enough to teach musical theater in... total win/win situation.

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How are your new years resolutions going? Props to you if you've kept up - almost at the month mark! I am plodding along towards my weight loss goals - but they say if you lose it right and lose it (healthfully) slowly (2 pounds or so/week) it is more likely to stay off and that's what I want!


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Enjoy your Tuesday!


Monday, January 21, 2013

50 states of brave introduces: ms. alaska!

We're proud to introduce our very special Ms. Alaska...
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Elizabeth of Delightfully Tacky!

If you're just joining us, 50 States of Brave is a blogging project that celebrates the little opportunities we have to be brave everyday and the women who make these habits a way of life. As part of the project, everyone blogger is sending in a story of the bravest thing they've ever done for all of us to get to read, which makes us pretty excited. 

The whole project is sponsored by Favoring Brave, my Etsy store. Each lady gets to pick an item from the store to model in her post and keep as a souvenir of her bravery!

Wanna see all of the brave ladies already featured? 
Visit our lovely archives or Pinterest page of bloggers and their Favoring Brave picks!

Wanna join in the fun and represent your state? 
There's more info about that at the bottom of this post.

Alright here's the good stuff from Elizabeth!
And - quick disclaimer - I totally got a perm to try and get her hair because I love it THAT much. True story.

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Elizabeth is modeling the Lattice Wear Turquoise Necklace by Favoring Brave.


I've been thinking about this question for about a month, "what is the bravest thing you've ever done?"  There are a lot of things that I have done about which people say, "oh man, that's so brave!" or "I could never do that! You're so brave!"  But really, bravery is such an individual thing and what would be an incredibly brave act for others might be rather ordinary for myself.  In thinking about this question of bravery, I found myself seeing many of the things I've done haven't actually required too much bravery on my part.  Driving in a 1973 Winnebago across the country alone?  Didn't really require much bravery.  Putting photos of myself on the internet on a daily basis for the world to see?  After four years of blogging even that seems pretty normal now!  Moving to a new city?  Just a new adventure.  Becoming a homeowner?  Exciting!  Being self-employed? Love it.  

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What I consider bravery is when you have that huge fear well up in you just thinking about taking whatever leap it is that you're about to take.  But then, you steel yourself and close your eyes and jump. And, for me, I think that the closest thing to that feeling that I've had in my life has been allowing myself to fall in love with my husband.  

I had actually fallen in love with him years before, when we first met as freshmen in college.  I had finally broken up with my boyfriend from high school and was enjoying the freedom of being able to really invest myself in my new college life, new friends, and the idea of pursuing new relationships.  I had met Dan before briefly, but we started hanging out more and, despite my best efforts, I soon fell hard for him.  We were still both teenagers, though, and he wasn't ready for a relationship at the time ("I like you, but I don't like you like you..." haha), and while I knew I couldn't fall out of love, he was one of my best friends and I was content with being able to hang out and enjoy his company and friendship.  Time passed, he moved away at the end of our freshman year, and I eventually met someone new a couple years later and started dating him, though Dan & I always remained great long-distance friends.  

This new relationship took me by storm and I believed it would be one that ended up in marriage.  I was head over heels and he consistently told me that I was the only girl he could ever love, that our love was forever, and that the sun could rise without his darling.  When our relationship ended I was devastated, though I tried not to be.  I had given him everything.  I couldn't imagine loving again.  He had told me that our love was forever.  That I was the only one he could love.  And while I knew that he meant those things 100% when he said them, ultimately they ended up to be false.  So how could I allow myself to love again, knowing that someone could mean things like that at one time, but at a later time they could prove to be false?  How could I allow my heart to trust in love?  

It took a long time for my heart to heal from that relationship.  After a year it was feeling stronger and I was talking to Dan more and more and discovering some little flutters of feelings for him again.  I was reluctant to acknowledge them, and ignored them for a bit.  I told myself that I'd already been down that road before and that it had ended in, "well, I mean, I like you, but I don't like you like you."  My feelings grew, though, and I started to get reciprocal vibes from him in our talks.  We still lived about 2,000 miles about, but I was about to come through Tacoma, where Dan lived, on my cross-country RV trip, so I figured I'd find out if he had feelings for me when I saw him in person.  Well, he did, and when I got back in my Winnebago to continue my journeys around the country, he told me that he would be saving his heart for me until I came back.  

Trusting him and his love is one of the bravest things I think I've ever done.  In my mind, facing vulnerability is the bravest thing one can do, especially the vulnerability of the human heart.  C.S. Lewis says in The Four Loves,  “To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.”  So in many ways, I believe that loving is one of the bravest things a person can do.  I am absolutely certain that the bravest thing I've ever done has yet to happen, but so far allowing my heart to love my husband has been the bravest thing I have done.  They say with great risk, comes great reward, and the risk of love has given me the greatest reward of getting to spend my life with him.

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Think you have what it takes to represent your state? Awesome! Here's what you have to do to apply:

1. Follow Favor the Brave through GFC or Bloglovin.
2. Send me an email at favoringbrave@gmail.com with your name, you blog address, what state you're from (Don't forget this!), and why you should get to represent your state as it's resident brave lady!
3. For a complete description of project requirements or to visit our past honorees gallery please visit the 50 States of Brave Blogger Search page.

Some states are filled already, but there are lots of openings left!

All opinions in this post are the opinions of the blogger featured, and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of this blog. This is a forum for openness and acceptance, so please be kind. Any derogatory comments will be removed at the discretion of the blog editor.


Friday, January 18, 2013

i'm really this tall

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Hello to all my new readers! So nice to have you with us!

I just love long pants and high heels together because they make me feel so tall, and since the heel is mostly covered up it looks completely natural. And when the pants are vintage mustard beauties, well, it doesn't get much better than that.

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Happy Friday!

peace&love,
Jill

Thursday, January 17, 2013

50 states of brave introduces: ms. california!

We are pleased to announce Ms. California...

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Aarean of The Color Issue!

If you're just joining us, 50 States of Brave is a blogging project that celebrates the little opportunities we have to be brave everyday and the women who make these habits a way of life. As part of the project, everyone blogger is sending in a story of the bravest thing they've ever done for all of us to get to read, which makes us pretty excited. 

The whole project is sponsored by Favoring Brave, my Etsy store. Each lady gets to pick an item from the store to model in her post and keep as a souvenir of her bravery!

Wanna see all of the brave ladies already featured? 
Visit our lovely archives or Pinterest page of bloggers and their Favoring Brave picks!

Wanna join in the fun and represent your state? 
There's more info about that at the bottom of this post.

Alright here's the good stuff from Aarean:

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Aarean is modeling the Sea Green and Bronze Earrings by Favoring Brave.

Throughout my life, I have always considered myself to be pretty brave. I've gone scuba diving with sharks, spear fishing at night, sky diving...I've even attempted motorcycle stunts (thanks go my dad) that usually ended up badly ha...I feel like I had the whole brave thing down. However, that was until I got pregnant with my first baby girl. I was petrified in every sense of the word. So many doubts and questions came flowing into my mind on a daily basis. What if I wasn't a good mom? How was I going to take care of this little baby that God entrusted me with? What will I do when she gets hurt or sick? Oh my gosh, how am I going to give birth?! Well my friends, she is now two years old and I have another little four month old. It was the greatest thing I've ever done. My husband and I always talk about how our life really wasn't complete until these little ones came into it. It was the bravest thing I have ever done. It will be forever the bravest thing I've ever done. It made me a better person. It made me realize what this life is truly about. It's about family, love and making your life worth something so that when you grow old you have others to share it with and who will carry on your legacy of these same values.


Life is to precious to not be brave. Being brave makes you go out of your comfort zone and explore things you never would have had you not taken a step out. I love color, which is why I started my Color Issue blog. To me, being brave adds color to your life! It makes it so not everything is so black and white. Come on over and visit...


xoxo
Aarean


Think you have what it takes to represent your state? Awesome! Here's what you have to do to apply:

1. Follow Favor the Brave through GFC or Bloglovin.
2. Send me an email at favoringbrave@gmail.com with your name, you blog address, what state you're from (Don't forget this!), and why you should get to represent your state as it's resident brave lady!
3. For a complete description of project requirements or to visit our past honorees gallery please visit the 50 States of Brave Blogger Search page.

Some states are filled already, but there are lots of openings left!

All opinions in this post are the opinions of the blogger featured, and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of this blog. This is a forum for openness and acceptance, so please be kind. Any derogatory comments will be removed at the discretion of the blog editor.

Monday, January 14, 2013

in the meantime

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Jacket: Penny's (Ireland), Sweater, Skirt, Leggings: thrifted, Booties: Charlotte Russe, Earrings: Color Diamond Earrings

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Last Monday I wrote about my goal to lose weight and I received so much supportive feedback. Thank you for reading and thank you for your support. It's gotten me through some workouts in the last week already! 

It has been tempting for me not to style blog while I am trying to lose weight because I don't feel like I'm at my best, but I am trying to remember that feeling comfortable with myself is a choice not dictated to me by a scale. Do I want to lose some and will I work to do it? Yes. But is the day I reach my goal going to be some mythical day of perfect self esteem fulfillment? No. That day can be any day I chose for it to be.

So long story short, I'm still going to be style blogging. Hoo-rah.

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