Category: Miscellaneous

A while back, I teamed up with The Helpful Host to create a beautiful yet informative cooking lesson. Christina, from, The Helpful Host, curated the design and paid close attention to details which swooned all of the classmates (including me too!). The moment I walked in, the kitchen was set up with a place for each person, it was so adorable. Not only did she lay a nice wooden cutting board down but she had a little basket that had all of the gadgets they needed.

Her help allowed me to focus on what I’m good at, the food! This particular class was about the basics, enhancing knife skills, seasoning to perfection, and piping. We made a fresh Greek salad, French onion soup topped with crusty French bread and gruyere, mini vanilla cupcakes and a whipped cream cheese frosting. We had such a great time cooking and learning while sipping on some champagne :).

On a side note, I want to express how much I love teaching classes. I honestly never thought I would enjoy it but coming from 2 teachers in my family, I should have realized it sooner. I love to share my joy for cooking and help my customers hone in on their skills. If you want your very own personalized cooking class with me/us, contact me!

Photos Courtesy of Smith House Photography

I know this post is off topic for my blog but I wanted to share where the magic happens. Besides, who doesn’t like to see a good before and after? My weakness is watching the home makeover shows on HGTV so I’ll assume you love them too!

My husband and I recently moved into our first home together. The kitchen was great and had been previously redone over 15 years ago but we wanted to give it a breathe of new life. I also wanted to make it really functional for the amount of cooking and entertaining would like to do.

We had many ideas but some things were up in the air. Have you heard of the saying “you never know what’s behind the walls?” Well, this is such a true statement. We didn’t do a complete kitchen renovation because we were trying to keep the cost at a minimum. The HGTV shows are ridiculous in the sense that time and money are completely skewed. It’s never a couple thousand and it’s never a weekend. With that being said, our contractor was amazing and completed the project in 26 days.

We kept all of the cabinetry except for 2 walls and the walkway to make the island. Next, a lot of paint, subway tiled backsplash & poles, new countertops, sink, faucet, handles, air vent and lights did the trick!

*I know the window isn’t painted…. Lot’s of credit to my husband who wanted to get rid of the bar sink and put tiles on the poles, he really has the designer eye.

I’m incredibly happy and couldn’t ask for better!

Before

After

Before

After

Before

After

I always have a hard time planning for Valentines day. This year, a few friends and I (Julie and Lindsy) put on a girls brunch and invited a few local bloggers. I have never done anything like this before and really loved getting to know the local bloggers (and cooking for them)!

We put together a menu, table setting and a cute little primp area. I made the food and enjoyed being creative with the valentines theme. Who doesn’t love pink and sweet things?The three of us gave the food items super cute names like “love potion smoothie” (see below). A Fine Flourish did an amazing job at writing the labels and name tags. I love her modern calligraphy style. If only I knew about her for my wedding…..

Lindsy did an outstanding job at styling the whole room. It was so fitting and just perfect. Julie did a great job communicating, organizing and hosting. I loved working with these two, it was so much fun!

After we ate our meal, I gave a little cupcake piping and decorating tutorial. I loved sharing my ideas and enjoyed watching everyone make their masterpiece! I decided on angel food cupcakes since they’re so light and airy, a perfect dainty dessert. I topped it with my favorite, whipped cream cheese (so heavenly).

Please feel free to use our ideas at your galentines brunch 🙂

The menu included sprinkle popcorn, candied bacon, strawberry banana smoothie, donut and berry skewers, french toast bake, yogurt parfaits, spinach and onion eggs with gruyere,  and angel food cupcakes.

A huge thank you to our fabulous vendors! They were really wonderful to work with and would definately work with them again.

Event planning and design: Lindsey Steinberg Events

Linen and Decor Rentals: What’s the Occasion Linens

Macaron Favors: Bite Macaron

Photography: Kay Bryan

Calligraphy and Invitations: A Fine Flourish

Pillows, Screen Prints, and Party Favors: Manor Blog

Bloggers: Classy and Fabulous, Greetings from Texas, Sugar & Cloth, Manor Blog, Cuteheads, From Prosecco to Plaid, LizzyW