Wedding bells are ringing.

My best friend is getting married! Every girl dreams of this day and at one point in her life has spent hours upon hours going through bridal magazines dreaming of what her wedding day will be like.

{Tiffany and Me}

We spent the last weekend together in Los Angeles baking wedding cakes for some good friends of mine. This was just the time we needed to start working out some details of her wedding because we live nearly 900 miles apart.

{lemon poppyseed cake, fig spice cake, campfire cake}

The wedding is planned for this coming September, to be held at her mother's country lawn. There are so many fun things we can do with this location, I know it will be a challenge settling on the theme. Can't wait to start helping Tiffany plan the big day!

Extreme Makeovers, DIY Magazine

If you grabbed the recent DIY magazine you might have noticed my name featured in more than just one article. I was able to work with several extremely crafty bloggers, having them take old pieces of furniture and making them into something new. What fun it was being able to find all the furniture pieces used and seeing their transformation when they came back in the mail. Here are the pages from the article below.

{here's a photo of us all on set}

{cake stand by: style me pretty}

 

{chair by: centsational girl}

{Polar, my sister's dog started his modeling career}

{chair by: hey jen renee}

{planter by: renegade handmade}

{key cubby by: the 10 cent designer}

{stool by: young house love}

Happy New Year!

Another year has snuck up on me and I realized I managed to write the least amount of blog post ever. It is a shame I haven't recorded the year the way I out to, so many things happened. Hopefully I will not be so absent this year. First off I need to make new goals for this year! I do know that many of last year's were met despite all my doubts that they were to far out there. Who would have ever thought I would actually leave my home town and move to Brooklyn?! Now what will this year's goals be? I'll get back to you on that. In the mean time...

xoxo, Leslie

Scrappy Lady, DIY Magazine

Amidst the holiday hustle and bustle I haven't had the chance to share with you my crafty talents have been published in the current issue of Do It Yourself magazine.  Here are are the pages from the story bellow.

 

{here are the directions on how to make your own}

Afternoon DIY

Searching for a place to hang my necklaces, hats and scarfs I decided to pull out the creative genius in me and go to town.  I came up with an accessory clothes line made out of materials I have around my apartment,  2 eyes screws, wire and clothes pins.  Voila!

Now I need to figure out how to fix the leak in our bathroom ceiling but I think that is going to take a professional.

Fall Adventure

Today I took the train up-state to see the fall foliage and to go to the orchard with my roommate. What a breath taking day it was. not only did we pick apples but also found pears, grapes, and tomatoes.

I think my favorite part of the day was seeing the view of the Hudson river from my train window. I took my knitting with to keep my hands busy and listened to my Pandora Washed Out radio station. It was a perfect soundtrack to the trip.

It was such a wonderful day, I am hoping that I get to take another trip before fall is over. In the meantime I will watch this video over and over again and pretend that I am in France or just up-state.

loire valley from Olivia Rae James on Vimeo.

Kitchen Tips: How to Peel a Garlic Clove

Tonight I made garlic mashed potatoes from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking and peeled each garlic glove one by one. Really wished I would have seen this video sooner!


How to Peel a Head of Garlic in Less Than 10 Seconds from SAVEUR.com on Vimeo.

Paper Craft

Birthday month is in full swing so it's time to break out all the crafting tools and make some decorations. Let's get this party started!

Kitchen Time

I have the day off work today and have been day dreaming what I am going to bake today. It's a quiet rainy day and I am enjoying the sound of the raindrops on the window sills. Isn't that a perfect day to spend in the kitchen? My family came to visit last week and brought much of my kitchen to me so I feel like I can go back to baking once again. Woohoo! It's been a summer of no cooking or baking and if you know me that is a tough thing for me to go without.

I wanted to share this video that I found on different ways to frost cupcakes using different tips. Such simple classic looks that anyone should be able to do with just a little practice.



I hope you have a lovely day and get to spend a little time in the kitchen as well.

Need inspiration?

In just a few days you can have this at your fingertips! I am excited for this book... Design Sponge being one of my favorite blogs to read. Also, it's another way for me to continue the adventure in decorating my new apartment. Maybe I will add it to my birthday wishlist blog when that day comes?

Design Sponge at Home (Official Book Trailer) from The Panic Room Videos on Vimeo.