Dreaming of Spring

Last week I added two new pieces to my shop that have me seriously longing for warmer weather.  I think it's that gorgeous blue of the Amazonite stone featured in both necklaces that making me a bit impatient for the spring and summer sunshine just lingering over the horizon.  This stone, which at first glance seems to be a Turquoise look alike, is quite lovely and has an interesting lore behind it.  

Ankara Necklace

Capri Bobble Necklace

Amazonite can be traced back to ancient Egypt, where it was employed in jewelry designs, inlays and ornamental carvings.  It is said to have been named after Amazon women warriors and thus is known as the stone of courage.  Some say that the Amazon river itself is reflected in this blue-green stone. Amazonite is also said to enhance creative expression, sooth nerves and improve self-worth.  And perhaps my favorite is that it is also known as the hope stone as it inspires confidence and hope.  Just looking it, I find hope for the warmer days to come.  :)

This stone also has a personal connection to me.  It reminds me of the waters of Capri which is why the Capri Bobble Necklace is named so.  In particular, it recalls a trip Dan and I made a few years back to that gorgeous island in the Tyrrhenian Sea.  We travelled there in the winter, January to be exact, while I was living in Italy.  During these chillier days the island seems barren- we honestly felt as though we were the only two people exploring it.  I really wouldn't have had it any other way- some of our best memories were made on that little island.  

I'm looking forward to being transported to warmer weather on Friday (mentally, any how) when I meet up with my mom for a trip to the Philadelphia International Flower Show.  This year's Hawaiian Islands theme promises a tropical experience.  This will be my first year attending and I'm sure I won't be disappointed.  

I plan to snap lots of photos and I'll be sure to share them with you all next week!  

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Risotto with Leeks, Shiitake Mushrooms, and Truffles

Allow me to introduce you to my favorite new guilty pleasure: Risotto with Leeks, Shiitake Mushrooms, and Truffles.  I was introduced to this dish while perusing the great interwebs for a recipe to make for a little dinner party at our apartment last Thursday.  Dan's boss was our special guest so the dinner was kind of a big deal and I wanted to make something really special.  Dan planned on grilling steaks so my choices were narrowed down from the start.  I knew that this dish was a winner the second I laid eyes on it.  Immediately, my taste buds began to salivate with the thought of the earthy, truffle essence combined with the creamy risotto and the meaty roasted shiitake mushrooms.  There was no doubt in my mind that this was the one.  I muffled out the Chef Ramsey voices in my head screaming out "Who made this risotto?!?! It's raaaaawww!" for I had never made risotto and the thought of it made me a bit nervous.  

But after a bit of research my nerves were quieted when I concluded that making risotto isn't too difficult after all. One writer even described it as meditative and quite relaxing, as you stand at the stove stirring and stirring, adding your liquids a little bit at a time until you reach that perfectly creamy and al dente state signaling that your risotto is complete and ready to be devoured.

I was also head over heals about the fact that this dish required me to purchase white truffle oil- an ingredient we have unfortunately never had the pleasure of owning.  If you can't find truffle oil in your local specialty store or you aren't fortunate enough to have actual truffles at your disposal- like me, I've read reviews where the dish was made without the truffle oil and it was still amazing.  However, for us it was an absolute staple to the dish.  

Allegory of Spring Jewelry

Over the past few weeks I've been busy stocking my shop with new items, mostly earrings.  A design that has received a lot of attention on Etsy are my Allegory of Spring earrings.  They feature raw brass stampings in a floral motif recalling the Art Nouveau movement of the late 1800-1900's. A trio of Czech glass fire polished beads are suspended from stamping.  I stocked them originally in the pale, opaline sage green shown below and also in a blue opal and milky blue and lavender.  They are delicate, feminine, and just lovely.

I was requested by a friend last week to fabricate a necklace that would match the Allegory of Spring earrings.  He was purchasing the earrings in blue opal for his wife as a birthday gift and wanted a matching earring and necklace set.  Luck was on our side as I had the perfect Picasso finish Czech Glass beads in my stash in the right shades of blue and green that would echo the Allegory of Spring's opal blue beads perfectly.

Faceted gold pyrite cubes and a 14 k gold fill chain finished the necklace.  I was rather happy with the way it turned out and how it complemented the earrings so nicely.  It is now one of my favorite designs and I plan to make it in an array of Czech glass and semi-precious stones in the near future.  Like the earrings, the necklace is feminine and subtle.  It will work with so many outfits and occasions, too.  

If you are interested in a custom version of this necklace, I can make it in any shade of the rainbow you can dream of!  Please email for details.  In the meantime, be on the look out for it in my shop.  

 

Poached Eggs with Arugula and Portobellos

Dan was out of town on business yesterday so I took the day off to devote an entire day to catching up of projects I've been working on and running some errands.  I spent the day sewing Anna Maria Horner's Sidewalk Satchel- a pattern I've had for a few years now.  I started the bag shortly before Christmas but had to pack it away until everything settled down after the holidays.  

I'm looking forward to sharing the completed bag with you all.  It's being sewn up in two gorgeous prints from Amy Butler's Lark collection that I got for an absolute steal from Drygoods Design (amazing service and communication, by the way.  I can't wait to shop here again.)  Anyways, I spent nearly the entire day sewing away, interrupting myself only to give Heidi belly rubs and take her on walks, when I realized that I had made a huge error in the construction.  Rather that ripping all of my seams out and growing even more frustrated, I took the higher road and calmly put the bag away and will approach it again when my mind has cleared.  Ah, so frustrating!

By the time the materials were all packed up I was starving but didn't have the patience to make too much for dinner.  I opted for a delicious light meal of two poached eggs atop a bed of arugula and sliced portobello mushrooms.  

The meal was so tasty and was as easy to prepare as it sounds.  Simply poach two eggs in an almost simmering bath of water.  I add about two teaspoons of white vinegar for two eggs.  This addition will assist the egg whites in congealing and makes your life a whole lot easier.  While the eggs were poaching I dressed a bed of arugula and sliced portobello mushrooms with a drizzle of fruity extra virgin olive oil that we purchased in Sonoma a few years ago and an aged balsamic vinegar from a local store in West Chester.  I added a bit of sea salt and cracked pepper to taste and topped the dish with a shaved, nutty cheese (Creamy Toscano Cheese Soaked in Syrah, from Trader Joe's- delicious, by the way).

P.S.

For a great write up on poaching eggs, I suggest a visit to  Smitten Kitchen.  

A belated Happy New Year

fHappy New Year, dear readers- new and old!  I apologize for my disappearance after the holidays.  The day after Christmas I got really, really sick and did nothing but lay in bed for nearly four days.  Then Dan got sick.  And then it was New Years.  It's been a bit crazy ever since, but I'm catching up with my little shop and blog.  It's about time and I've got lots to share.

I wanted to thank all who participated in the Sew Mama Sew giveaway!  I had so much fun reading your comments and thank you for sharing your favorite holiday traditions with me.  I think I might be incorporating some of them into our holiday festivities in the future!  I love your comments so much, that I wanted to share them with you all.  Maybe you'll adopt one or two as your own tradition.

But first, I should officially announce the winner. Heather, comment number 40, was selected via the Random Number Generator.  Heather was notified immediately after the contest was finished, but I figured I should make it official here as well.  (Heather, your necklace in the mail and should be on your doorstep any day now.  Again, thank you for your patience!)

Favorite Holiday Traditions from Helen Ethel Studio readers:

My favorite tradition is our annual Christmas Breakfast! It is a nice time together and always filled with wonderful treats! - Jingle

I love attending the Festival of Lights in Lyon during the holiday season - Sarah

Every Christmas we all go to the midnight church service on Christmas Eve - it's so magical! - Gill

We make fudge - and give bags of it to everyone we know!! - Second Chance Tan

We have one that involves pouring over all the pictures we took during the year and picking the perfect one for our Christmas Card. The discussions are lively!!  - Spontaneous Threads

No idea what my favorite holiday tradition is, but some include our elf Noel that visits us in December and surprises the kids with a new hiding spot or other fun things each day. I also love baking and making goodies to give with gifts. And a personal favorite has been making a move to mostly handmade items for presents.  - Kelli @ Gohn Crazy


Lighting the advent candles every night, and making and decorating cookies! - Kristi

I love putting up the tree and the daily count down on the advent calendar! - Nancy

We love making gingerbread houses every year! - Deserae

Glass + Resin Pendant Giveaway

I am excited to announce that I am participating in the Sew, Mama, Sew Giveaway Day! What is Giveaway Day, you might ask? Well, first off- it's awesome. Second- it's a chance for you to win many, many amazing handcrafted items from some very talented crafters. Bloggers and shop owners are giving away fabric, handmade bags, items for the home, jewelry, and accessories - the list goes on and on!  So be sure to visit from  Sew, Mama, Sew now through December 16th for your chance to win!

I've chosen to give away one of my Glass + Resin Pendants in the Lichen color way.  Each handmade pendant features a microcosm of tiny glass spheres encapsulated beneath multiple layers of glass-like resin and is set in an antique brass bezel. The Lichen color way features a monochromatic selection of green and gold glass spheres perfect for the holidays!  

The pendant includes an 18" hand-oxidized brass chain and will arrive boxed and ready for gift giving!  

To win this lovely necklace all you need to do is comment on this post and tell me what your favorite holiday tradition is.  Do you bake an assortment of cookies for family and friends?  Do you host a party? Is there a particular dish that you make each year?  Tell me- I'd love to know!  Be sure to leave an email address so that I can contact you, too!

There are two more ways to win, and they are in no way mandatory.  I am simply offering these two additional entries as a thanks for my old and new followers.  : )

a.)  If you are a follower of my blog, please leave an additional comment and let me know!

b.)  If you have fanned Helen Ethel Studio on Facebook, be sure to comment that you are a Facebook follower!

You will have until Friday December 16th to enter.  Comments will close at 5pm PCT on December 16th and one winner will be chosen at random (using random.org) on December 17th.  I will announce the winner no later than Sunday, December 18th and will note whom that is in this giveaway post.  If there is no contact info, or if I do not hear back from the winner within a week of my original email, I will select another individual at random.

Finally, I will ship INTERNATIONALLY!

Thank you for stopping by and participating in this great event.  Be sure to visit my my shop, Helen Ethel Studio, as there is still time for holiday shopping!  From now until December 17th,  I will be offering free shipping on all items.  This is open to domestic and international shipping.  Please enter the code FREESHIP2011 at check out.  Thank you!

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Regarding a current cookie obsession

Happy December everyone!  Like many of you, I can hardly believe that we are already trucking our way through December and knee deep in the holidays.  I will not lie- I'm rather excited this year, for many reasons.  One of those reasons just happens to be due to all of my baking plans!  Now that Dan and I have moved and are for the most part settled in to our new place, I finally have a space to dedicate to cooking and baking.  Our last kitchen was a tiny 6'x4' (I'm being generous here) space with next to no counter space.  It was a depressing site for any one with a desire to get serious in the kitchen.  By the end of our 5 years in that apartment I rarely desired to bake as it would only end up in massive bouts of frustration as I strategically created counter space where counter space should not belong and wedged cookie sheets into our tiny little oven. But, one must do what must be done if one wants to enjoy homemade sweet confections.

Thankfully, this year will be different.  We now have a kitchen that is nearly the size of our old apartment's living room and kitchen combined! AND I acquired a dining room table off of craigslist a few weeks ago (a vintage teak Danish Modern piece, I might add!) that will allow me to really spread out and get down and dirty as I bake my way through the month.  I've been thinking a lot about cookies- sugar cookies in particular.  The ones made of rolled buttery dough, formed by quirky holiday themed cookie cutters, and adorned in jewel-toned sanding sugars and sprinkles.  The ones I never would have dared to even consider baking in our old apartment.  THOSE.  Sugar cookies and I have got big plans this holiday season and it all begins with a recipe for Cardamom Sugar Cookies I saw on Etsy a few days ago that I just can't get out of my mind.  I picked up a handful of woodland and elf themed cookie cutters from Ikea last night that I can't wait to use with the recipe.  I also hope to make these Salted Caramel Cups, package them up nicely with the delicious sugar cookies, and take them along to a holiday party later that night.  I will then repeat the process over and over again until I can hardly take it any longer.

In honor of my recent cookie fixation, I've created an Etsy treasury dedicated purely to delicious and beautiful holiday confections.  Warning:  I highly advise having a cookie within arms reach while perusing the list!

What about you?  Do you have any recipes you have been gravitating toward?  What is on your holiday dessert menu? Do share!

'Sweets for the Holidays' by helenethelstudio

...mostly sugar cookies. I just can't seem to get them out of my mind!

Santa Cookies - Hol... thePieceDeResi... $30.00	Jam Rings Vanilla S... justcrumbs $10.50	Candy Cane Peppermi... PerfectlyGoodD... $14.00	Christmas Tree Snow... SugarMeDessert... $15.95
Christmas Cookies -... nadiascookies $42.00	Gingerbread Men Min... SugarMeDessert... $17.95	FAVORS Decorated Co... katieduran $32.50	Assorted Christmas ... KaysSimplyHome... $28.00
Christmas Cookies G... ButterBlossoms $20.00	FAVORS Decorated Co... katieduran $34.50	Snowy Pine Tree Sug... SugarLaneBakeS... $33.20	Coffee Pecan Sablé... Janjoupatisser... $7.99
Snowman in Hat Ging... SugarLaneBakeS... $28.00	Cookies Cranberry D... ButterBlossoms $13.50	ELF Cookies - GNOME... lorisplace $34.99	Candy Cane Cookie P... ButterBlossoms $13.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.