Project Clutch

My latest obsession is the clutch purse and trying to figure out how I can make leather ones. I've been wanting to sew with leather for awhile and I think a clutch purse is a good project to start on. I am super pumped about this project and trying to do all my research. I even found a Tandy Leather factory in Indianapolis and am dying to go there and look around. Hopefully I can make it there this week. I am going to Chicago on Friday to a few fabric stores so surely I can find some leather and advice to get this project started.

I'm planning to use the same pattern I used for this purse, which I previously promised a tutorial on. In case you were waiting on pins and needles I plan to post instructions within the next week!

 

 

Wish me luck on this little leather adventure, I SO hope it works out!

Phillip Lim for Target

Did you guys see Phillip Lim has a line for Target?!?! I'm really excited about this because I have been searching for a new fall bag and I love the pashli style. The bags in the line are very close to that style. I also really like the navy and black leather dress! I'm looking forward to hitting Target on Sept. 15th with hopefully more luck than I had with the Prabal Gurung line.

Some of my favorites! You can see the whole line here. 

Mood Fabrics

While we were in New York I made a stop at Mood Fabrics. Mood is a 3 story fabric store located in the Garment District. Mood is where Project Runway contestants choose their fabric. The store is almost overwhelming with more bolts of designer fabric than I have ever seen!

 

 

 Dan and our friend Cory left me to peruse the 3 levels of gorgeous designer fabric and notions

 

 

I really wanted this yellow Marc Jacobs, but didn't end up purchasing. I loved the retro feel of the yellow and gold shimmer.

I really liked the leather and fur section. I looked into buying leather, but felt like I didn't have enough experience to make anything quite yet. I am now doing some research and hope to experiment soon!

 I ended up buying two brocades. The pink is Marc Jacobs and the Blue and Black is Carolina Herrera. I'm not sure what I will make with them. That was the hardest part about shopping at Mood, trying to decide what to buy and what I would make. You have to at least have an idea in order to purchase the amount of yardage. I am thinking about making a mini skirt with the blue fabric for the fall and holidays. I'm not sure what to make with the pink. I'll keep you posted!

 

 

Fiesta Chicken Salad

Original Recipe

 

I made this recipe last week and took it to work all week for lunch. So good! And pretty good for you! This is a very versatile recipe that you can eat in a variety of ways. You could eat it on top of a bed of lettuce, heated up in tacos, on chips for nachos, or just by itself. Make this a day before your want to eat it. The flavors mix so well and it gets better and better every day.

 

Fiesta Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

2-3 chicken breasts

salt to taste

1 Tbsp Cumin

2 fresh squeezed limes.

1 can mexicorn

3/4 can of black beans

1 tub of pre-made pico de gallo

1/2 chopped red pepper

1/2 chopped green pepper

1 chopped fresh jalapeno

cilantro to taste

 

 

Directions:

Boil your chicken breasts. Once they are done shred the chicken while it is hot. Mix chicken with cumin, salt, and fresh squeezed lime juice. Add all other ingredients and toss to mix.

 

Enjoy!

 

Nachos we made for dinner.

Busy week

We have been go, go, go since we returned from NYC last weekend. We celebrated our anniversary last Tuesday with a cake from One Eleven Cakery. It was excellent! I highly recommend the orange cake!

 Thursday we met up with friends for the Dr. Dog/Houndmouth show at the Rathskeller. Good show! Great weather.

 

On Friday we had about 10 people over to a cookout on our deck. We had make your own pizza and ice cream bar. I chopped up all kinds of fresh ingredients and Dan grilled all the pizzas. So good! For instructions on grilling pizza click here.

 

 

Saturday was the 9th Annual Friends Forever golf outing in memorial of our friends that passed away in a fire 9 years ago. It's always a good time to see people and catch up. Dan plays every year and I drive a beer cart with some other girls.

I'm actually ready for an uneventful week this week. The weather has been perfect in Indiana the last few days. I'm ready to soak up the rest of summer relaxing!

The Big Apple

Last week Dan and I went to New York City to celebrate our anniversary and see our friend Cory. I had never been to NYC before and loved every minute of it! Cory was an excellent host and gave us a full itinerary including all the hot spots and attractions we needed to see prior to coming.

Thursday we spent much of the day at the 9/11 memorial and site of the new world trade center. It was miserably cold for a summer day and we were not dressed for the weather, but it was a nice experience to see the memorial and construction for the new site.  

 

At the 9/11 Memorial

 

We stayed at The Standard hotel in the meatpacking district Thursday night. When asked about our favorite part of the trip, we both agreed the hotel. The Standard was amazing! Our room was upgraded to a corner room with windows floor to ceiling and a great view. We loved the biergarten on the first floor for German beers and pretzels and the Boom Boom Room bar for cocktails on the top floor.

 

The Standard

Room Views



We at dinner at Catch on Thursday, which was a really great seafood dinner. I wish more than anything we took pictures, but I suppose we were enjoying ourselves too much! 

 

On Friday we walked. And walked and walked and walked. Seriously, I had to change shoes and we calculated that we walked a full day from 9:30-5:30. Whew! But we saw everything!

First we started on The Highline a linear park that started under our hotel. Then we hit Times Square, Mood Fabrics in the Garment District, Central Park, 5th Avenue shops and the MOMA Design and Book Store.

 

Times Square

 

Central Park

 

Stop at Mood Fabrics. Full blog post coming soon!

 

Met up with my sorority sister and roommate Dana.

 

Saturday we spent in Brooklyn where Cory lives brunching, shopping the flea market and drinking the afternoon away. It was such a fun day!

Pizza dinner with the crew.

We stopped for a drink at the Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn. Great drinks and great view! One of my favorite views of the city from the trip.

Overall we had a wonderful vacation and anniversary! Definitely a trip to remember. I am looking forward to visiting NYC again. I think I would really enjoy going during Christmas time for our next visit!

H&M Online

H&M has updated their website and now you can shop online! Yay! I like H&M, but their sizing is never consistent for me, so I don't know how much I will actually buy online. It's nice that they finally offer it! Bout time. I found a few things I like, particularly this purse. Love it!