Most of the time they are ignored, unappreciated, used as eye-candy on my hutch…

But every now and then I remember they exist, and I will read one… like a novel, seriously, start to finish… my eyes glazing over when I get to the end (hello dessert section!!)…

This particular day I was reading one of my favs “mediterranean: food of the sun” by Jacqueline Clark and Joanna Farrow.

And on the front it has this description:

… a culinary tour of sun-drenched shores with evocative dishes from southern Europe” GAH!!! drooooool…. yes, I do want to go on this culinary tour with you Jacqueline & Joanna!

And I have done just that many times!  I have read this cookbook start to finish at least 10 times… and I have only made one recipe from it.. shame…

But it was a perfect storm (extra time and all ingredients on hand)  that inspired me to make one of their appetizers…

If you are even the tiny-est bit interested in cheese,  this one’s gonna make you weak in the knees!

Yogurt Cheese:

The process starts with drying out your yogurt for 2-3 days in cheesecloth… I used non-fat plain yogurt for my first batch….
I think Greek yogurt will work better because it has a lower water content and will give you more cheese…

Then you roll the cheese into balls…. and place in sterilized jars (I used a jelly jar) along with rosemary, thyme, red pepper flakes and garlic- flavored olive oil.

Isn't it a sight?!

Then you spread on bread..

drizzle extra olive oil and watch it slowly drip onto the bread………. oh my……

take a BIG bite! creamy, tangy, garlicky… ohhhh

Have for breakfast, lunch and dinner! (do not let hubby know about this… blame the half-empty jar on cheese-loving baby)
p.s. would also make GREAT gifts for hostess or friends.. or heck, the cheese alone is an occasion!

…here’s a peek at the recipe….

Inside this beautiful cookbook

Aren't the pictures fabulous?!

I thought so too…

Until I saw Prada’s Resort 2012 collection…

esp this one…  (she looks a little scared too, doesn’t she?)

Wowzers!

I guess you CAN mix lipstick print + crazy 60′s floral + beret + slinky sandal + denim purse + tan cardigan…

But SHOULD you?!!??

No.

Well my friends, I am happy to say that I am free from those rules!

Because I think that white looks fabulous in a winter wool coat or pant, and I happen to like a crazy combo of patterns sometimes…

It’s kinda scary, this matching patterns business… but it makes for some fun and interesting looks!

And life is too short to follow unnecessary rules anyway – my 2 cents, try it on and if you like it, wear it!

I found this Fossil dress a few weeks ago (who knew Fossil made clothes?). It’s a little short, so I only feel comfortable wearing it with flats.. why not with my newly thrifted Guess leopard flats?! (why would someone get rid of these??)

Dress: Thrifted, Shoes: Thrifted, Earrings: Thrifted

And I found these beautiful earrings while visiting my sister Tabi in Washington state at her local Salvation Army store.

I’m going to start chronicling my C-List finds and where they end up in my home.

I’m currently on the hunt for dining chairs…

and in the search I found this classic wingback… it had me at “orange” …

At $45 it was a steal!

In the night-light of the seller’s storage unit, it looked like a faded burnt-orange… and in the daylight that’s exactly what it is!

I’m hoping to do the minimal amount needed to freshen it up… starting with some steam-cleaning.

Maybe I’ll paint the legs a crazy color and add a fun throw pillow?

or just paint the legs white to freshen it up?

or maybe some nailhead on the side?

Now to find an extra 40 hours in my week to work on it..

He basically said the way I can show him love is by putting out doing manual labor! around the house..

wah, wah, wah…

and he didn’t mean routine cleaning… he was referring to something we are in the process of hiring a skilled professional for…

but I know what he really meant…

If I did the labor, it would save money, a substantial amount of money!

and there is nothing sexier to this man than a frugal woman!

While I will NOT be shoveling any concrete today, I will do my best to be his most frugal valentine!

I will make him dinner…(frugal)

and make him a card… (frugal)

and wear this 100% thrifted outfit (frugal and fun)

xoxo

This is what if looked like at the store…

…and this is what I came up with!

Last year I made a decision to send every person in my immediate family a thoughtful birthday gift.
The goal is for the gifts to be personal and not just store-bought afterthoughts.

My sister Nomers has a fun, bright, modern-with-retro twist, sense of style. I knew she would be the one that could appreciate some thrifting finds..

Of course I went crazy – I hit up the 50% off sale at The Salvation Army store, and came back with several fabulous finds!

But since I am nowhere near my sewing machine this week, all the modifications/alterations they need will have to wait.

Here’s a sneak-peek of the finds! (no surprises spoiled here, Nomers has already seen these.. but there are more!!!)

My sisters and I used to frequent our local thrift stores all through our high school years.

When I went off to college I thrifted a little, but mostly to find pieces for costumes.

Then I graduated, found a job, became a working professional, and spent all my extra money at the mall, trying to make up for all I had been “deprived” of because I was 1 of 9 siblings (boy I wish I still had that $$!).

So fast-forward 5 years or so….
and my friend Sarah became preganant! And I was hosting her “tea-party” baby shower at my house. And I needed to find cheap tea cups.

So I hit the thrift stores hard to find tea cups!
And as I was rushing out of one particular store, I happened to glance over at a rack of clothes.

I saw this green number, and within 30seconds I was back into thrifting mode!
“I like the color”
“This cut would disguise my post-baby hips”
“I could wear a cute belt with it”
“It’s modest so I can wear it to church”
“ok, it’s mine”

I don’t remember exactly, but I think I only spent $3-4 on it.
So glad Sarah got pregnant :)

Although the Texas heat can sometimes be brutal, it’s a small price to pay for the abundance of sunshine we enjoy here!

So bring on the heat! I’m ready to wear some sundresses!

I found this lovely lady at a local consignment store. I couldn’t pass up the color or the cut. I like the almost-tribal print, and the color makes my hazel eyes turn green.

Wear it with flats for a beach-capade or with wedges for a mid-summer’s night dream :) and don’t forget some cute dangly earrings!

I’ll start with my latest and most favor-it-est one.

This lucky green number was found a couple of weeks ago at my local Goodwill store. Unfortunately, they were not running any specials, so I had to dish out $5.99 for this baby… kinda steep for thrifting, but I had to have it! The dress is not perfect.. it has a couple of faded spots which I hope to remedy by dyeing.

It’s a cotton knit made by Talbots.

Ladies, you can never go wrong with a classic cut and a classic color. You can always use your accessories to modernize the look.

I tried a couple different things with it.

My favorite is the black belt look, (cuz it’s 100% thrifted!).
Which one do you like best?

As blue as this dress!

So, on my birthday, I resolved that I would take a good chunk of time to do what I really enjoy doing, crafting & sewing!
Luckily, Hilldale baby took a 3 hour nap and I worked on this beast..

When I saw this treasure at a local thrift store, I knew I could rescue it.

Some treasures just need a little TLC and polishing… as was the case with this blue beast.

I have never done this before, but figured I would try it on a $5.00 thrifting find… and if I bombed, no big loss!

Luckily it turned out good, almost great!

Frumpy, dumpy thrifted polyester beast…..

turned into bright,blue beauty…

DIY: refashion a dress into a skirt, my (non-scientific, not-by-the-book) method