The Queen’s Grocery

On a trip to London last week, I spent some time sourcing the delicate rows of Fortnum & Mason. With so many beautiful jars, tins and bottles waiting to be plucked up and brought home for the holidays, I made sure to bring a few sweets home with me.

Sugar crystals too pretty to eat

Champagne fit for the New Year

Chocolate Squares

Pop in for a sweet

Sugar stars to top your cupcakes

Color coat your spreads

Save the tin once the tea is gone

Shop with gold

Pretend you’re at Hermes

Fancy yourself a Brit

Look back when you walk out

Traverse City Maple Glazed Salmon

Last week I was appointed head chef of the Haus of Spitzer. With Lake Michigan being our bath water, fish is a must and we had it almost every night. One item on the menu was Maple Glazed Salmon. We found the recipe in Traverse Magazine and it was juicy, crunchy and just delicious. I highly recommend you making this TONIGHT.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons maple syrup | 2 tablespoons soy sauce | 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger | 1.5 teaspoons cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water | 4 salmon fillets | 1 tablespoon sliced pecans

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together syrup and cornstarch/water solution until smooth

2. Place fillets skin-side-down in baking pan (I placed them on tin foil to prevent a messy clean up)

3. Pour half of syrup mixture over salmon

4. Bake about 15-18 minutes at 450 degrees until the fish begins to flake. Baste with another 1/4 of glaze halfway through cooking.

5. Finish off with the final 1/4 of maple glaze and top with pecans. ENJOY!

Ready for Summer

The above image and last weekend’s girls weekend have me so ready for a fun and stylish summer. let’s get colorful and inspired and make the most of these sunny days!

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Round Up: Chicago [to eat]

I just returned from a long weekend in Chicago, a place that afforded me my first interior design internship and sparked the desire that has gotten me to where I am today. One of Chicago’s most intriguing aspects, however, is that the very lake that you can see from almost any apartment building in the city, is the very lake I dip my toes into every summer, despite being in two different states. Here’s a round up of what I did while in Chicago and recommendations for future visits, starting with the most important aspect: what I ate.

Lincoln Park Whole Foods- sip wine as you shop the expansive space

Taylor Gourmet Deli

Came across this restaurant in DC and couldn’t help but stare at the bucket lights on the ceiling. Restaurant design is always such a great way to incorporate innovative and new ideas that in a home would otherwise seem ill fitting.

Taylor Gourmet Deli

Currently…

inspired by song of style and the man repeller and working on my bracelet collection by way of this:

Gorjana Parker Leather Wrap

working on my wall collage by way of this $3 frame:

obsessed with bruschetta with fresh mozarella

infatuated with circular homes in the Back Bay

Sealed with a Kiss

Trendir

Happy Valentines Day! I hope it’s filled with lots of chocolate and love.

Personal Shopper: Open Sky

While an inbox filled with junk mail is never a good feeling to wake up to, an inbox filled with personally selected items you may be interested in, is always a good feeling. Enter Open Sky, an online retail outlet that lets you select which categories and which celebrities you are interested in. Each day you get an email from your selected celebs with a product of their choice. Be it cooking oil, a handbag, or a journal, it’s up to you. And just in time for the holidays, it has something for everyone. Happy shopping!

Jason Phillips Metallic Log Stool via Cynthia Rowley

Jane Marvel Double Cosmetic Case via Ali Fedotowsky

Zoku Quick Pop Maker via Andrew Zimmern

LNA long sleeve angle tunic via Stacy Keibler

Pillo1 via Valerie Waters

DIY glitter glam

Glittered camera strap

Glitter polish

Selena Gomez glittered lips

glitter cupcakes

Black and White Brownie Cupcakes

It’s no secret that I love chocolate. I usually give up chocolate for lent every year and one year I actually got the shakes the first month because I went from multiple servings a day to quiting cold turkey. I’m a lover of brownies, cookies, cake… I don’t discriminate. So this Ghiradelli Black and White Brownie Cupcake recipe was perfect for me.

ingredients

gooey yumminess

cream cheese topping that made the cupcake extra rich

luckily my boyfriend was ready to do some taste testing