Watermelon Ice Cubes

This is a great one my mom taught me. For super summery drinks bring out watermelon ice cubes. So easy!


Scoop out a watermelon and put chunks in blender.
Blend until liquefied (only takes a few seconds).
Optional step: pour through wire strainer to get any chunks.
Pour juice into ice cube trays and freeze.
Once frozen, transfer to freezer bags and store for up to a few months.

Throw a couple of cubes into a glass of lemonade, or in your favorite combination of fruit juice and seltzer. Here's a great summer drink that's both pretty and yummy.

In a glass:
3 watermelon ice cubes
1 oz. light rum
1 oz. coconut rum
fill glass with equal parts orange juice and lime (or plain) seltzer
Garnish with a lime round or a wedge of watermelon.

Enjoy the last bits of a great summer!

Fresh Salsa

I've been so lucky this August because every time I see my parents they hand me a big bag of fresh tomatoes from their garden. They're great simply drizzled with balsamic dressing.

But my favorite thing to do is make salsa. I live for salsa. I dream about it. All of my favorite restaurants are Mexican because they serve chips and salsa. Because of this I know what I like. Also, I used both red and yellow tomatoes, which look fancy.


Lesley's Fresh Salsa

2 large tomatoes or 3 medium size ones diced
6 or so cherry tomatoes quartered
1/4 cup red onion chopped
1 jalapeno chopped
1 habanero finely chopped (try half first, if it's not too spicy, add the rest)
1 clove garlic finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
juice from half of one lime
a little salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit in the fridge for about an hour. Great with chips. Obvi.

Outfit for Early Fall

One of my favorite blogs is The Sartorialist. It's all gorgeous photographs of fashionable people. It's a great place for men's fashion and to see people who have true style and not just trendy clothes.

Photograph: The Sartorialist

Early fall is a funny time of year, fashionwise. It's warm enough to wear the same clothes as in August but the pull of fall clothes and new combinations is hard to resist. I usually end up wearing my favorite summer pieces that I'm not ready to put away, and cold weather outfits that are too inspiring to stay in the closet. One summer "trend" that I love is nautical. I like how the above outfit shows how it can transition into fall. I have some high-waisted wide-legged jeans that I think will look great with a striped shirt like that. Layers can be added depending on how cold it is. Some long chained necklaces will top it off beautifully.

In the meantime I'm wearing as many of my fun summer outfits as possible!

Tomato Fest

Eric and I went to visit my parents this weekend on Cape Cod. They grow great tomatoes which are perfectly ripe right now. My mom made the most beautiful platter of green, yellow and red tomatoes, red onion, basil, and goat cheese. She covered it in plastic wrap and let it sit for about an hour to let the flavors really mingle. It was fantastic.


They also grow different kinds of hot peppers which we dared each other to eat. It, inevitably, ended with us all giggling and wincing in pain. I always have the best time when we visit.

Pink wristlet project

This is a fun little pink wristlet I made from some silk fabric I had:



The blue lining is silk too. I got about 2 yards of it for $10 at a flea market and use it ALL THE TIME.


I made it on the machine and even played with pleats to make the bottom have more volume than the top. It's (again) kind of Lily Pulitzer looking. I just couldn't resist using the green zipper with the pink. It's like a watermelon on a clear blue day. What could be better?!

Before and After: Painted Box

This was the old box I bought at a yard sale:


And here it is now:


I love goooooold.....
The design is a zoomed in view of a modern take on classic brocade. Or, as I call it, a doodle.

The box sat unfinished for a few weeks because I couldn't decided what to do for the lid. I was going to finish it with a glossy coat all over, but I like the way the gold shines against the matte turquoise. Pretty pretty pretty.

Button Collection Avalanche!

I have more than this, but it's the bulk of my button collection. I love to dump them out like this because I always find ones I never remember seeing before.