Citrus Dress --> Citrus Cake

The inspiration:

stella mccartney citrus fruit print dress (s/s 2011)

The cake:

citrus cake with lemon curd filling and orange lemon icing (a.k.a the stella cake)

cake by apollinas

for cake recipe and more images click here

Cuff It

These cuffs add a sophisticated edge to the clean lines of these minimalist looks:

polo match accessorizing (source)

celine clutch, multi-chain cuff (source)

lanvin crystal cuff (source) 

cuffs at the love ball (source)

celine bow cuff

horn cuff, club monaco (source)

rose gold-plated cutout pyramid cuff, eddie borgo (source)

That Sweater

On the Rack: Ritchi Sweater by Etoile Isabel Marant

On the Runway:

On the Street:

street images: the sartorialist, fashion toast

On A Stick

I really love this photo from food photographer/blogger Matt Armendariz's cookbook On A Stick. Those mojito melon skewers look like the perfect post-beach treat, and the frozen bananas (which I've only had twice in my life, the first time was when I was very young on Canada Day someone was selling them in our little town park - this left a big impression on me) I will always associate with the Frozen Banana stand in Arrested Development. They look like they require some prep, but surely they can't be that hard to assemble?

A year or so ago I discovered his blog Matt Bites and found a link to his photography portfolio. It has since been updated so my all-time favourite dessert photo guaranteed to induce salivation and sweet cravings has disappeared forever. It was a rustic baking tin filled with what looked like a home-made twix bar in cake form: biscuit base, caramel centre, and dark chocolate layer on top. 

Sweet Paul

Paul Lowe (of the blog Sweet Paul) is a food and prop stylist who not only writes a very crafty and stylish blog, but also puts out a seasonal online magazine that boasts a winning combination of beautiful photography and innovative but simple recipes, design concepts, and diy projects.

Amongst the many articles that caught my eye (see: homemade sodas) was this one on summer salads. I love how the photos have captured the vibrant colours of the vegetables.

greek salad

orange and fennel salad with pistachio

radish salad with basil oil

roasted beet and carrot salad

Mini - Midi - Maxi

After seeing skirt hems rise for the last few seasons, there was really only one direction for them to go.  Now that lengthier hems are being celebrated across the board, there are (thankfully) more options than ever for summer dressing:

lee print silk-georgette skirt, elizabeth and james; yellow leaf print button-front, topshop; staircase maxi skirt, madewell

   

blue printed silk mini, tibi; two-tone pleated skirt, dries van noten; desert skirt, rag and bone

crochet knit mini, missoni;vintage navajo print, rokit; carmel skirt, rag and bone

floral skirt, zara; draped washed-silk, thakoon addition; shannon printed maxi, alice + olivia

images: neutral prints, dark palette, navajo-inspired, brights via polyvore

Summer Reading List

image via flickr

For me, summer is as synonymous with reading as it is with backyard drinks, bbqs, and beach sand in my flip flops. Nothing beats a warm, lazy afternoon spent supine in a hammock engrossed in a good story. Last year at this time I was spellbound and deep into Brooklyn by Irish author Colm Toibin. I've heard from several people that they moped around in a fog after they had finished it; it's the kind of story that you wish would never end, and it was no different for me. 

Last week I went to hear Colm Toibin deliver the keynote address at a conference and am beyond elated to have gotten my well-thumbed copy of Brooklyn signed (even though everyone else in line all seemed to have purchased his new collection of short stories). 

On the subject of good summer reads, I'm in the midst of culling a list of books for every possible summer reading scenario or book craving (not entirely necessary, but kind of a fun way to think of it). Here, so far, are my top 8 picks:

At the Beach - Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, Helen Simonson

Brainy Rainy Day Reading - The Sea, by John Banville
The Great American Novel - Freedom, Jonathan Franzen

Road Trip Read-Aloud - Bossypants, Tina Fey
















Armchair Travel (Nonfiction) - The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris, David McCullough
Armchair Travel (Fiction) - The Paris Wife, Paula McLain
Southern Epic - Silver Sparrow,  Tayari Jones
Young Adult Indulgence - Beauty Queens, Libba Bray

Tartelette

Tartelette (fr): tartlet

Tartlet: a small pastry tart

Strawberries and rhubarb. Such a perfect combination of tart and sweetness. 

I have been salivating over this stop-motion video by My Little Fabric that demonstrates how to make the most perfect mini tarts filled with almond cream, rhubarb compote, and fresh strawberries. As soon as the first strawberries of the season appear, this will be number one on my baking agenda. ( Although I hear that most produce is about 2 weeks behind schedule due to all the rain...) 

Find the video here and scroll down a touch

(all images are film stills from the video by my little fabric)

Summer Essential: Backyard Planter

This cheeky little planter is designed to look like...a generic box townhouse in the projects?...streamlined modern urban residence?....whatever was behind the inspiration, this mansion planter by Japanese architect Nobuhiro Sato is sort of perfect. Each one is individually made, so no two will be exactly alike. I would plant something really bright and tall in it - like colourful pansies or zinnias next to some lavender or rosemary. Or strawberry plants.

He has some other clever little designs on the market, as well, like this incense burner:

Summer Essential: The Tote

i. the original flea by fleabags 

ii. w.m.j. mills classic tote 

 iii. angela adams and sea bags, j. crew  

iv. bamboula ltd market tote, madewell

v. biarrtiz linen tote, theodora & callum

Pizza Perfection c/o Gwyneth Paltrow

I first started making pizza about a year ago, relying first on Mark Bittman's recipe in How To Cook Everything and then this past winter I started using the pizza recipe found in Baking Illustrated. Both books had really clear instructions that were perfect for a beginner, and, as they are essentially the same recipe (the only difference is in the measurements; one yields more dough than the other), I wouldn't necessarily recommend one over the other.

But in the dozen or so times I've made pizza, there was always something missing. I knew that whatever was missing could take the pizza from really good to fantastico, and I was pretty sure that it was in the crust, but I just couldn't put my finger on it. That is, until I came across Gwyneth's Goop newsletter on making pizza. All this time I thought maybe it just needed more garlic or different herbs. Nope. What's been missing? Sugar.

So last night, after adding 1.5 tbsp of organic cane sugar to my regular recipe and using Gwyneth's recipe for tomato sauce, I made the perfect margarita pizza.

You can always tell if a pizza is good if even the simplest of toppings makes for a transformative eating experience. With some good mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce and fresh basil, this pizza brought me back to Italy. Now all I need is to get my hands on an ice cream maker and make this - it will almost be as good as a trip to Italy...

For G.P.'s pizza sauce and instructions visit GOOP's Newsletter on Pizza