Manic Pop

I know, I know - I missed the year. Tangerine Tango was Pantone's "color of the year" for 2012 and I am just now (again?) using it everywhere. Orange has long been a favorite of mine - since at least middle school - and I see it popping up everywhere in clothing I buy lately.  I'm sure you guys are also sick of seeing my Ikea bookshelf, but too bad! I thought this was a perfect backdrop for my super-70s outfit. I've has this cardigan for a really long time - I'm talking like, 6 years or so. I bought it at Clothes Optional nearby Clark and Belmont (does that place still exist anymore?) and people remark how they thought it was something current. (The 100% scratchy, 70s polyester gives it away though!) This cardigan also makes an appearance in photographer Kyle Lamere's "Visitors" book from 2010. Kyle took photos of everyone that came into his apartment during that year (and I was lucky enough to be included in the project!) then ma...

I've been doing lots of home re-vamping so it was only a matter of time before I got to doing a home tutorial! This one is a quilted pillowcase! For some reason or another, we had this pillow on the couch with this really ugly fabric. I actually don't even know where this pillow really came from either - things just appear in this house and beg me to improve them. The original pillow has the exact size triangles as my version on the right but the fabric is so close you can hardly tell! This pillowcase is also made from all scrap fabric in my sewing room. I guess I tend to really over-buy fabric. The brown was from a pair of menswear pants I made back in 2005 in college, the yellow (I really think I picked it up at a thrift store long ago) will be familiar if you've seen the top of my Mix N Match dress , and the green polyester is from when I constructed my mom's apron . This is my little sketch of the pillowcase before making a triangle pattern and an edging ...

 So yesterday me and Max decided it was a fun idea to go on a little "date" at Ikea . Little did I know, you don't really come back from Ikea empty-handed. We accidentally bought this orange Billy bookshelf! Those of you that have never been to Ikea - it's this giant place full of different "rooms" of furniture and home accessories (about 3 floors) and they even have a food court where you can get Swedish meatballs, salmon lasagna, sandwiches, etc. plus a cafe downstairs with cinnamon buns, hot dogs... it's kind of awesome. We almost bought these hexagonal mirrors but bought so many other things I think we forgot about them. Plus, where would we put them? The house is pretty well-furnished to begin with. I rarely wear this snowflake sweater vest, but perhaps I should more. I bought it during my short run working at Anthropologie in 2006 during college. It's the only thing clothing-wise I bought from there because I had to be soooo caref...

It's 10 degrees outside, so what am I doing? Taking pictures of myself in the sewing room.  The sewing room is really out of season lately... The joys of living in a super-old house. It's pretty cold up there yet not as cold as the room across the way, the "mod guest room". It must be about 40 degrees there. I don't know what it is, but I feel infinitely more creative in an almost entirely blue room like this one. The whole upstairs, really. The sewing room might be moreso around 55 degrees up there and with the help of the space heater (if I don't blow a fuse with it) would probably make it tolerable but on a day like today... not gonna risk blowing a fuse which would knock out a bit of the rest of the house.   I've also almost gotten rid of this red and white printed shirt I can't tell you how many times. I've had it since college - pretty sure I bought it at a TJ Maxx - and only this morning did I ...

Today I'm going to show you a super-easy, super-delicious recipe: Supreme Nachos! This is by far one of the easiest recipes in my repertoire - something I turn to when I'm tired and/or lazy yet still want something substantial. It's actually loosely based on the nacho plate at Rogers Park's Heartland Cafe although upon looking at their current menu, I don't see their nacho plate.   What you need:      One large chicken breast (about 1/2 lb.)  Onion Taco seasoning Tortilla chips (I used Donkey Chips ) Hearty, leafy Mesculin lettuce mix - loose at my grocery store 1 can of beans (I prefer pinto, but black beans are good too) 1 lime for wedges, serving  Taco sauce Olive oil for cooking Pico de gallo Mexican crumbling cheese (or any shredded cheese is fine)   1.) First, slice up the onion, chicken . I tend to dice mine, but any style will work. It's important to cut veggies first since raw meat can infect your vegetables. I ...

So many of these photos came out blurry, but I still wanted to use them. Apologies for lack of posts lately - I had a cold the beginning of the month (I never get sick!), lots of work things going on... Last week me and Max went to the Garfield Park Conservatory since I was dying for some warm, fresh, plant air!   I've also been growing some plants at home to have something green around during the winter - I finally found some basil seeds here! (Harder to find than you might think this time of year.)  Wearing my awesome vintage hat that Max's mom got me for Christmas!  I got this tie scarf in my favorite super-secret thrift store. It has to be early 70s to mid 70s based on the colors and polyester-ness of it. Last time I wore it, some guy in Wicker Park called me "zany". I didn't know if that was a compliment or not.  This might be my favorite room - these glass flower-things! It almost reminds me of that scene in Willy Wonka ...