i stumbled on this amazing duo recently and am obsessed! i love how they came up with their name and i love every single thing they do. great story, great branding and amazing talent.
a little bit about them:
“Jersey Ice Cream Co was founded in the summer of 2010. Two kids in love found an old embossing stamp at a flea market, dreamed up a design empire, and then set to work trying to create it. Today Tara Mangini and Percy Bright spend their time moving house to house, job to job, leaving beautiful homes in their wake. They believe in craftsmanship, timelessness, and leaving things better than they found them. They do not make ice cream, but will happily have some if you’re offering.”
so I’m going to join the masses and try out this whole gift guide thing. i’m so unique! but hey, my stepdad (hi swan!), told me that he just bought a christmas present for me, based on my blog. so, i mean, if that’s all the good that comes out of these types of posts, that just kinda means i get to not-so secretly tell everyone what to get me 😉
some of my favorite shops just happen to be located in charleston- thank god they have the option of online shopping although i sure do miss popping in! also, i tried to round up some stores in charlottesville but as i haven’t lived there in over ten years, i’m a little out of the loop- would love recommendations!
the new bohemians: cool and collected homes- justina blakeney
while this isn’t a design book i’d normally pick up, i’m always open to getting out of my comfort zone. and i’m glad i did- i really enjoyed this book.
justina blakeney did such a beautiful job putting this book together- the pictures are gorgeous and the spaces are so cool. i love the color, the collected aspect, textile mixing and the organic touches.
i feel that sometimes these sort of books can be a little word heavy (let’s be real- pictures > words, in this case) but she includes short and sweet little blurbs about each space. sprinkled throughout are a series of “adopt an idea”s- which helps translate each style into your own home- and “diy”s that are totally doable and inexpensive.
i can just hear my sister laughing right now but i love the word ‘curated’. to me it means the perfect balance of everything you love with great layering and looking gathered, all while feeling easy. there are so many great designers out there right now who just get it. i feel like sometimes things can look so forced and stiff but it takes the right amount of all of the ingredients listed above to make a room perfect.
here are some images i just can’t stop thinking about.
via pencil and papervia studio mcgeeidha lindhag via sf girl by the bayvia studio mcgeedomino magazine via ispirato designvia pinterestmichael s. smithvia pinterest
*if anyone knows the missing sources, please let me know!
two elements that inspire me to cook/ bake are easy access and being pretty. when we moved into this house, we had to get creative due to lack of a pantry so we decided to use this cool 1850’s heart pine cabinet that we used to use as book storage in our old house. it now houses baby stuff, cookbooks, pantry items and baking supplies. but with all of the different flours, sugars and other baking ingredients, they were looking super cluttered = no cooking/baking for me. i found a bunch of glass canisters on amazon, some labels (similar here. these are cute- so are these!) and got organizing. this simple fix has made such a huge difference.
while i was on my organizing/ prettifying the pantry spree, i decided to take it a step further and made my own pancake mix to put in a leftover canister. i don’t know about y’all but it seems so much better (and cheaper!) than buying a box of mix.
weekend pancakes recipe:
6 cups of flour
1 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons of baking powder
1 tablespoon of salt
-keep mix in a sealed container. this recipe will make three batches of 18-4 inch pancakes (pheww that was a mouthful!)
-when ready to use:
pour 2 1/4 cup of mix into large mixing bowl. make a well in the dry ingredients and add 2 beaten eggs, 2 cups milk and 1/4 cup canola oil and mix. (there will be a few lumps in the batter.) lightly oil griddle and heat over medium heat. pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. cook until bubbles form on surface, about three minutes. flip and cook an additional one- two minutes.
(i put a label with instructions on the back.)how great would this be for a housewarming, hostess gift or included in an engagement gift basket?
luxe & staple 