all points bulletin!

Strut is having a huge 2-day sale. And when I say huge I mean it! EVERYTHING in the store is 80% off. Day one was today so you're too late for that but you've still got tomorrow to hit up your local Strut store for some cheap clothes, accessories, and shoes. I will warn you, pickens are slim...but I managed to find a few staples for myself of course.

 I spent a whopping $47.00 on all of these things. Although I really tend to shop at Strut only when they have sales since I feel like their clothes are a tad overpriced for what they are, these pieces were totally worth it. 

you can call me Martha Stuart

I am going to my boss' house tomorrow night for a dinner with the coworkers, and we were each asked to bring something along. I decided this was a perfect excuse for round deux of bread making 101...obvs. Round one did not go so well, something Ike and his family can attest to unfortunately. well this time, as it were, I believe that I might've mastered this baked enigma. actually, homemade bread recipes seem very simple. maybe I just suck at baking...something I've suspected  for awhile now. anyhoo, I give you my homemade rosemary olive oil bread + the recipe for all you bakers out there.

What you'll need

* 1 cup warm water (between 100 and 110 degrees)

* 1 package yeast 

* 1 cup fresh rosemary

* 1 tablespoon olive oil

* 1 tablespoon salt

* 1 tablespoon sugar

* 2 cups flour

* butter/shortening for greasing bowl

Start by mixing together the flour, salt, and rosemary in a bowl. In another bowl put the warm water (2 cups) and sprinkle yeast and sugar on top. Mix together and it should become a milky color. Let sit for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes the yeast mixture should have doubled in size-this means the yeast has been activated*. Pour the yeast and water into the flour mixture. Add the olive oil. Cover the bowl with a hand towel and let sit for 30 minutes. After thirty minutes put bread on a floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, wash out your mixing bowl and then butter and flour it to keep bread from sticking. Allow dough to rise in the bowl (again covered with a towel) for an hour. The bread should triple in size during this time. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Take bread out of the bowl and put onto a baking sheet that has been either greased or covered with cornmeal (again to keep from sticking). Put bread in oven for 1 hour. To check whether the bread is done take it out of the oven, flip it over and tap it hard with your thumb. It should sound hollow. You can also use a meat thermometer to measure the internal temperature, which should be right around 200 degrees. 

As a side note...I also made this gem. It didn't look like it rose the way a cake is supposed to, but it was damn good. You can find the recipe for this Reine de Saba avec Glaçage au Chocolat (aka chocolate almond cake with chocolate butter icing) in Julia Child's book, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking".

* The warm water is crucial. Use cold or room temperature water and you'll end up like me...wasting 3 packages of yeast trying to figure out what went wrong.

currently obsessing over

huggable hangers. this closet reorganization has turned me into a huggable hanger-aholic. I'll be posting pics (finally!) this weekend of a MUCH more put together closet. my biggest closet problem is lack of space (duh) and these things are miracle workers! fortunately now I have more than enough room to add to the clothing collection, which is a major accomplishment. being a lady on a budget, I had to buy them in phases because buying 200 of them (yes 200) got a little expensive. so worth it though. A+++++

 

it's award season (belated edition)

I'm a day late, but the Golden Globes kicked off award season with a bang so I definitely had to share some of my favorite hits and misses of the night. I know ruffles were clearly the star of the show (and I'll get to those later) but my favorite was Olivia Wilde. she really can do no wrong in  my book. her Gucci dress was fitted perfectly and the hair pulled it all together. 

Emily Blunt was a very close second in my book, only because of the hair. she wore a Dolce and Gabbana dress with a fitted bodice and asymmetrical ruffles. pale pink was one of the most popular colors of the night and she certainly wore it well. I get that it was raining but...come on, get the girl an umbrella!

Maggie Gyllenhaal wore an oragami Roland Mouret gown, and stuck to pastels. so gorgeous!

 I kind of died over this Stella McCartney gown that Anna Paquin wore. I love that the sequins are all different shapes and sizes, and unlike so many woman this night, she showed just enough cleavage. but, and this is a big BUT, her shoes were just awful. while you can't see them in this picture, I can guarantee they were a mess. black chunky heels + gorgeous sequin gown= disaster. it's basic math.

WORST DRESSED

from what I understand, this is a Kauffman Franco dress that Mariah Carey was wearing to the Golden Globes, to which I have no idea how she got an invite. aside from the ill-fitted (too tight per her usual routine) mid section, the woman has far too much boob for this dress. night umbrella holder though. seriously, what was she doing there?!

ok. I am crying about this dress for two reasons: 1. it just looks awful and 2. I love, I mean LOVE, Zac Posen. also known as the designer of this dress. what were you thinking Zac? this may have been appropriate to a tea party, but never to the Golden Globes. the fact that it was raining was completely unfortunate for Tina Fey, who closely resembles Mary Poppins carrying the umbrella. where was Mariah's husband Nick Cannon?

I don't know who Kristen Bell is wearing. I kind of don't care. her dress was terribly boring, and sort of looked like she threw some heels on with her beach dress/bath towel and headed to the red carpet. fail.

the celebs wear Elie Saab all the time. and with good reason. usually, USUALLY, he makes gorgeous go-to dresses. this however, looks like the dress I wore to prom my junior year. I mean I had crystals in my cool curly updo, but same idea with the gown.

annd lastly, my little peanut, Amy Adams. I usually love pregnant ladies at award shows. what with their flowing goddess dresses and gorgeous glow. this Carolina Herrera dress looks like she grabbed it out of grandma's closet, and the hair doesn't help. matronly to the max. I still love the girl though.

oh how I love award season!

DIY madness

it's diy week here on haute potato. why? because I'm still, yes STILL, making over the closet. it's not like my closet was disorganized to begin with but I decided I needed a completely overhaul for some reason (smart Kim). anyhoo! I've been storing my earrings on chains that I nailed to the wall (really not as bad as it sounds), but I ran out of room completely, and thus the picture frame earring holder was born. I've seen this done a lot of different ways but I tried to keep mine cheap and chic. 

I bought a super cheap frame from Ross to start with:

some people use mesh wire for doors or windows for this next step, but I used a fabric that had large holes. I took the glass out (duh), along with the cardboard backing. I flipped the frame around and used a staple gun to secure the white fabric with holes, and then a patterned fabric behind that.

I've never used a staple gun before...but I kind of loved it!

once I finished stapling both fabrics to the back I used picture hanging wire (it came with the frame) and attached that to the back of the frame. I threw a very small nail into the wall and....

VOILA! earring holder!

I'm still working on getting all of my earrings onto this thing, but I'm loving how much space it's saving compared to the chains I used to use. total cost of this project: $11.00!

next on the agenda is a necklace holder. I have big plans for this one. we'll see if it actually works. I'm giving myself until this weekend to be done with the closet once and for all. fingers crossed!

is this weird?

I kind of feel like I need these...

Forever 21

think jeans, white t-shirt, and a great pair of heels. 

there's always an up side

I'm making major headway on this closet clean out, and I've decided this is gonna be a great thing. besides, not only will my closet be neat and tidy, but I've now got room for more clothes! 

concrete jungle where dreams are made of

New York trip for fashion week is officially booked! Bergdorf, Henri Bendel, Prada, Il Cortile, Times Square, thin crust pizza*, and chilly weather here I come!! planning to begin immediately. 

*healthy eating goals obviously do not apply when you're in the Big Apple. 

and it begins!

so thinking of 50 goals for the first 100 days of the year has been difficult for me. that being said, I'm still not done with the list but I've decided to go ahead and share what I do have, lest you think me a liar.  I've broken them up into categories (because duh, I like to be organized).

Organization/Cleaning

1. Total closet makeover

2. Completely clean out my car and more importantly, keep it that way (for real this time)

3. Clean out and organize bathroom cabinets and laundry room aka my catch all areas

4. Vacuum every week-I mean I have a Roomba so really this shouldn't be so hard right?!

5. Get rid of (at least) 25 items from my closet*

Health Etc

6.Whiten my teeth 

7.Get haircuts every 3 months like I am supposed to 

8. Take vitamins...every day

9. Get a massage 

10.Get into shape (yes I know, standard resolution that no one ever follows through with)

11. Run (walk?) a 5K with my mom---preferably one that serves free donuts or Thundercloud sandwiches at the end

12. Eat less pizza, french fries, and Taco Bell burritos

Career

13. Update my resume

14. Finally read the rest of the 7 career books my mom bought for me last year

15. Blog at least 4 times a week (this doesn't really fit into career, but I didn't really have a place for it)

Good Deeds and Such

16. Donate my time to some sort of good cause 

17. Actually use my reusable shopping bags, of which I have about 12

17 down 33 to go...

I'm pleased to inform you that although I have not come up with all 50 goals, I have indeed gotten a running start on the closet reorganization. I'm really hoping to be done with this project by the end of next weekend, but we shall see. well on my way to completing # 1 AND #5. major pat on the back for Kim.

*pray for me on this one folks

resolutions and such

I've seen a ton of bloggers do 101 goals on 1001 days and I rather like the idea...however...I'm a pretty impatient person. that being said, I've decided that instead of making 1 or 2 resolutions this year that I am going to give myself 5o goals to complete in 100 days. that's about 3 months, and seemingly ample time to complete everything on my list. so far I've come up with about 25 goals (who knew it was this difficult to come up with a few things to accomplish!). 

it's a new year people!

welcome to 2010! hope everyone had a fabulous New Year's Eve. after contemplating the parties filled with people we don't know, cab rides all over Austin, and possible hangovers ensuing after said parties, Ike and I decided to have a cozy New Year's Eve at home. after an amazing meal and lots of wine, we played a couple of games of Scrabble and watched the ball drop on tv. I'll be honest, it felt damn good to wake up on this morning NOT hugging the toilet, but hungry and ready for some first of the year pancakes.

 I would also like to point out that I beat Ike at Scrabble. please see photos below*.

*photos of Ike beating the Scrabble snot out of me are not pictured for obvious reasons.