Living for Pretty

Celebrating all things pretty, happy and inspiring. From renovation stories, to recipes, decorating, parties and little life lessons, you’ll find a little bit of everything here.

ombre pink bridal shower

One of my biggest joys in life is bringing loved ones together for an intimate affair. I love pulling out my serving pieces and creating an atmosphere for celebration. A few weekends ago I was honored to host my sister-in-law-to-be’s bridal shower. Her wedding is seashore inspired (the ceremony will be at a local lighthouse) and I wanted to do something distinctly feminine that alluded to the wedding inspiration without infringing on the wedding theme. I thought an ombre / watercolor effect would be the perfect nod to the wedding palette. I then interspersed gold and mint elements to tone down the pink.

We have a pass-through from our dining room to our kitchen, but I knew the kitchen would be a mess with prep work for the party. To hide it and create a focal point, we crafted a crepe paper backdrop with layers of crepe paper streamers, died linen strips and a gold fringe. I think it turned out dynamite, although a little more pink than I had anticipated!

gifts for the most amazing people in the world, moms

If there’s one holiday we should all celebrate and ring the bells for, it’s Mother’s Day. Moms work the hardest out of anyone, and most of their life is about being selfless. They give a lot, and this is one day we should work extra hard to make sure we’re giving in return. Uncommon Goods has an amazing selection of gifts that would make any women jump for joy. They have a specific Mother’s Day collection (here) that makes finding a gift super easy, and with spring blooming around us, their garden collection (here) has a lot of great gifts to get moms ready for the season.

one/robe | two/wine glass | three/succulent box | four/tulip tree | five/agate coasters | six/life story | seven/wine pairing tea towel | eight/herb garden
This post was sponsored by UnCommon Goods 

basic whole wheat biscuits

In college Billy was famous for his biscuits and gravy. After a night on the town, or, even just in bed, his biscuits and gravy were pleasant morning ritual. All my life I had been disgusted by biscuits and gravy. Soggy bread just wasn’t appealing. Then I had his and I’ve been changed ever since. Now, this is not his recipe for biscuits and gravy, just a mere explanation of the power of comfort food done right. His college biscuits and gravy were loaded with bacon fat, and as vegetarians, that’s a no-go. These biscuits do the trick paired with vegetarian gravy (flour and milk) or slathered with butter.

Adapted from Budget Bytes 

Ingredients

  • 1 cup soy milk 
  • 2.5 cups whole wheat flour
  • 4 tsp baking powder
  • ¼ tsp baking soda 
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • 4 Tbsp cold butter
  1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. 
  2. Combine dry ingredients.
  3. Using your hands, mush the butter into the flour mixture until you get a dry sandy texture.
  4. Stir in the cold milk, the dough will be very wet and sticky at this point.
  5. Liberally flour the counter top and place dough and pat down until it is about ¾ inch thick. Using a cookie/biscuit cutter or, in my case a glass, cut the biscuits out of the dough. Place the cut biscuits onto a baking sheet lined with foil. 
  6. Bake for 15 minutes. 
  7. Drizzle with honey, slather with butter, or slop on some gravy and enjoy!

delicious crepes and a confession

This recipe is for when you wake up feeling a little frenchie. Which, I hope is often. I can’t get enough of crepes; they’re so versatile. I love doubling the recipe and don’t mind eating these for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a few days.

Recipe

  • 2 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup soy milk
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 cup wheat flour
  • 3 tablespoons coconut oil
  • oil for coating the pan
Combine ingredients in a blender or food processor.  Heat a small non-stick pan and oil. Pour a small amount of batter into the center, swirl to spread evenly. Cook until you can easily get a spatula under the crepe. (Approximately 30 seconds) and flip. Cook for another 10 seconds and remove. Wait a couple minutes to cool and dress as you’d like! 

My favorite crepe combos:

  • Trader Jo’s cookie butter
  • Fresh fruit (or frozen, warmed up with some sugar)
  • Peanut butter and banana 
  • Jam
  • Nutella and banana
  • Any fruit + whipped cream

A side note and confession: You may notice the addition of eggs in this recipe. You might say, “Wait! Aren’t you Vegan?!”. And, well, not any longer. We were going strong for a year; we had started veganisim the day after Christmas in 2012.  With the festivities of our wedding and the holidays this year, we started to crumble. I like to say we’re 80% vegan and 100% vegetarian. When we do buy dairy products we try to do so as conscious consumers. Checking labeling and buying local. (I’d like to say that labeling has a long ways to go in this country!). We still cook with our arsenal of vegan recipes and focus on being healthy. Someday we’ll renew our personal pledge, but until then we are enjoying eggs and the occasional artisan cheese.

mint condition kitchen and my color anxiety

Apparently I was a good girl last year, because for Christmas I got a Kitchenaid mixer, in pistachio no less! I’ve been dreaming about this for a long time. In fact, I’ve boycotted all hand held mixers, opting to mix batters and dough with an archaic device: a wooden spoon. I was determined to call one of these my own. 
I’m a huge fan of white in the kitchen, and always assumed I would end up with a white Kitchenaid. Then I saw the pistachio one and I fell head over heels. For me, it was an identity crisis. My standard has always been go classic with the things that will last and accessorize with color. My parents have had their Kitchenaid since I was small, so for me, these mixers are family heirloom material. While I love the minty green now, will I love it in 20 years? What if I want to change my kitchen colors dramatically and I’m stuck with a mint green, dated-looking Kitchenaid? I never knew I would have such color anxiety! These kitchens below helped soothe my fears; you can have a bright, white airy kitchen with color. And white kitchens can be so pretty with dashes of a pale green, mint. 

the sun shines // maui

A month ago Billy, and I took a quick vacation to Maui to visit the sun and family.  My brother lives upcountry with a few acres and a bi-coastal view (that’s two shorelines in one!). His horses, Ben and Sweetpea, were one of my favorite parts of the trip. It’s so lovely to be around these magnificent animals again. 

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