Silver Pencils

To the Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:30:00 +0000

This weekend: My little brother's stopping by one last time on his way home to California. And if the weather stays good we're hoping to get in some cross country skiing- I've never tried it so I'm super excited. I also will be going grocery shopping (sticking to the outside of the store to avoid an sublimely, sweet goodness). And... then I have some orders that need to go out earlier than usual that I need to finish... but I love my job- so I don't mind in the least.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend full of adventure, relaxation, and super good food. See you back here on Monday!

Source: theamericanlegacy.tumblr.com via Megan on Pinterest

Red Velvet Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting... Got That?

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:55:00 +0000

I want you to know that posting this recipe while I'm on my 'No Sweets for 40 Days' is pure torture... and a testament to how much I really love all of you.

A while ago I came upon Stephanie's recipe for Cake Batter Cookies and stashed it away for a rainy (err... snowy in my case) day. Then, when I got the craving for cookies and didn't have yellow cake mix on hand- I decided to tweak her recipe just a bit to incorporate the ingredients I did have... and that my friends was when Red Velvet Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting was born. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

red velvet cake mix
1 tspn baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chocolate chips
cream cheese frosting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, stir together cake mix and baking powder. Add eggs and oil and mix until well blended. Can get a bit crumbly if doing by hand so I beat mine on low in my mixer. Stir in chocolate chips. Doesn't it look like blackberry gelato? Yum...

Drop by rounded spoonful onto cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes.

Transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Spread on cream cheese frosting and Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Stephanie Cooks

Good- bye my Sweet

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:05:00 +0000

Today marks the beginning of Lent. And even though I'm not Catholic, I still participate every year. I think it's good to give up something that's difficult for 40 days, and for God. Last year I gave up biting my nails. Years past I've given up fast food, bread, chocolate, soda, credit cards, etc...

This year- I'm giving up ALL sweets. And seeing that I just made Red Velvet Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies yesterday... yah you read that correctly- it's already been a difficult morning. Off to the neighbors they go. Thankfully I indulged a bit yesterday. I'll also be posting the recipe tomorrow for those of you wondering about their decadent deliciousness.

Anybody else giving up something for Lent?

Source: stylishcorrespondence.com via Heather on Pinterest

Movie Review: The Artist

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:57:00 +0000

Gah! We finally saw The Artist last night and it was sooooooo good! As someone who loves old movies I was pretty sure I was going to like it- but I was a little uneasy about bringing my husband with me. We're both movie nerds... but he usually draws the line at b&w movies... and then add in that it was a silent movie- I just didn't know what to expect with him.

The theater was pretty empty when we arrived. Seeing that it was a Monday night showing in a small town at 9:15pm , I wasn't surprised. And the people that were there were young teenagers roiding out on popcorn and candy getting ready to see Ghostrider. So we bypassed the youngens and headed over to our movie... which was empty save a few older women. Things were not looking promising for my husband. But once the movie started, none of it mattered anymore. My husband loved it.

The acting was phenomenal. The music: fantastic. And oh goodness the wardrobe- can I please go back to the 1920's? I LOVED The Artist- and I very highly recommend seeing it.

Chocolate Coconut Bars

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 14:26:00 +0000

I've said it before and I'll say it again- My husband L-O-V-E-S coconut. So on Valentine's Day, I decided to make him the homemade version of one of his favorite candy bars- Mounds Bars. The only difference is that I used milk chocolate instead of dark, but you can use either.

Ingredients:

2/3 cup (150ml) sweetened condensed milk
1.5 cups (375ml) shredded coconut
7 ounces (200g) milk or dark chocolate
1/4 cup (60ml) canola or grapeseed oil

Mix the condensed milk and coconut.Shape into bite- sized pieces and place them on a piece of parchment paper. I used a melon scooper to make little balls. But you can shape into bars to resemble a Mounds bar as well. Let your imagination run wild with shapes :)

Once done, freeze for 2 hours.
Melt the chocolate and oil in the microwave.

Using a fork, dip the coconut pieces into chocolate to coat. Yum...

Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Once cooled, I cut around the bars with a pizza cutter to give the bars a more rounded (instead of splattered!) shape... which in turn gave me the respectable job of eating the leftover chocolate scraps. It's a hard job but someone's gotta do it.

Recipe from Guillaumont and Nikolcic

To the Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:33:00 +0000

Today my darling love gets home from Big Sky, Montana. He's spent the last 3 days snowboarding and hucking himself off booters... so I'm glad to have him back where I don't have to constantly be worrying if he and the rest of the guys are being more dangerous than normal. And plus I just miss him... so I'm definitely a happy girl that he's finally on his way home.

Happy Weekend!

Source: nowandthan.tumblr.com via Roy on Pinterest

Slow Cooker Cranberry Roast Beef

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 17:15:00 +0000

4 ingredients is all you need- And then just throw them in a crock pot and Bam! You have dinner! I actually liked it even more the next day too. Eat alone or use as a filling for pulled beef sandwiches or tacos. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2-3 pounds beef or pork roast or stew chunks
1 tablespoon dried onion flakes, or 1 medium yellow onion, diced (I used both)
2 tablespoons soy sauce (La Choy and Tamari wheat-free are gluten free)
1 (16-ounce) whole berry cranberry sauce (mine wasn't whole berry and it tasted just fine)

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Plop in the meat (mine was partially frozen), and add the onion and soy sauce. Pour in the entire can of cranberry sauce over the top. Do not add water. Cover and cook on low for 7-9 hours, or on high for 5-6 (mine was fine between 4.5 and 5). If you are cooking on high, you may need to "help" the meat break apart by taking it out an hour or so before serving by cutting it into chunks, then returning to the sauce.

Recipe from Stephanie O'Dea

Office Love

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 19:15:00 +0000

Image sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

Happy Valentine's Day!!

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:14:00 +0000

Happy Valentine's Day lovelies! I'm on my way to a massage- courtesy of my amazing husband. I hope you have one fantastic day as well!

xoxo

Source: oprah.com via Laurie on Pinterest

DIY: Brown Paper Flowers for Your Home

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 14:32:00 +0000

Happy Monday! Today I have one crazy awesome and easy diy project to share: Brown Paper Flowers. I used mine to decorate the large empty wall next to our bed, but you can use them anywhere.

I was watching an episode of the Nate Berkus show (love him and totally up for being his best friend when he asks... which I'm assuming will be very soon). and Destiny from A Place for Us was on with this fantastic project. It's super easy. And the fact that I could make all the flowers while watching a show on tv just made it all the more better.

I love how it livened up our empty wall!

Materials needed:

Brown paper lunch bags (I used 29, but use as little or as many as you need)
Scissors
Glue Stick
Adhesive for attaching to wall (I used scrapbook glue dots)

Instructions:

Cut a petal out of the brown paper bag. Cut from the end with the opening (You'll use the bottom portion of the bag later). I also started cutting from more than one paper bag at a time to speed up the process.

You will end up with petals like ones on the left, as well as folded pieces like the ones on the right.

Get your glue stick and begin gluing the petal ends together. Make a cross shape with the first four leaves. Then repeat with four more covering the diagonals. Finally, repeat with creased petals.

And pretty soon you'll have a bunch of these pretty things...

I was able to cover the top corner of our wall with the flowers.

I wanted them to come a little further down though so I repeated the above steps with the bottom portion of the brown paper bags (the folded part). And got this!

I love it! Our room looks so much happier now... and since I already had all the materials on hand- this little upgrade was totally free.

To the Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:33:00 +0000

It's official. My husband are I are officially mountain driving, Jacksonites... we bought a Subaru Outback this week. I actually can't believe we've lasted almost 2 years driving our 2 wheel, rear wheel drive truck this long on our crazy icy roads. But no more! Now I can drive freely and with reckless abandon! Or at least wherever I want... I feel it's a weekend for exploring. Happy Weekend everyone! See you back here next week!

Source: nowandthan.tumblr.com via Halli on Pinterest

Taking off the Layers...

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:37:00 +0000

Oh my goodness warm weather is a comin! It's 25 degrees today! Hooray!

It has been soooooo cold lately. Negative 11, Negative 9, Negative 7. I mean really- when the temp is below zero... and there's a wind chill that says, "Feels like negative 20" I am not amused.

So since I'd boarded myself inside the past week... my pictures have all been from the inside looking out. I'm like a sad cat... or something.

But now that it's above zero. I'm ready to get outside... and take pictures of things that aren't balls of yarn...

Real Wedding: Rachael and Jay Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:11:00 +0000

If you thought the photos from Rachael & Jay's wedding post yesterday were gorgeous- brace yourselves for today's.

The couple, venue, details, and these two little girls below are just going to steal your heart away...

Love it!! Every bride and groom should have a photo like this at the end of their wedding.

Thanks for sharing your special day with us Rachael! I wish you and Jay all the best!!

Rachael is wearing the Audrey hair flower fascinator

All images by Sarah DeShaw Photography

Real Wedding: Rachael and Jay

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:25:00 +0000

Get ready because I have one gorgeous Real Wedding for you today!

Rachael and Jay were married on November 5th in St. Simon's Island, Georgia. And each of these photos are beautifully shot by the incredibly talented Sarah DeShaw Photography. It doesn't hurt when the wedding party is stunning too.

The beautiful bride...

I desperately want this bath tub.

The handsome groom

Each one of these family portraits are priceless...

I mean seriously- could these girls be any more gorgeous?!

Rachael is wearing the Audrey hair flower fascinator. And I love, love, love how she did her hair. The incorporated side braid is so pretty

My favorite:

Stay tuned for Part 2 tomorrow!!

Rachael is wearing the Audrey hair flower fascinator

All images by Sarah DeShaw Photography

New Products in Shop!

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:21:00 +0000

Over the past couple of weeks, a few new designs have entered the Silver Pencils shop. Check them out below:

Tigris (I really, really, really, like this one- and it looks great on):Scarlet:Mademoiselle:Pemberley:

Lacey Gracie

Countess:

Carlotta

To the Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:39:00 +0000

Happy Friday! This weekend my little brother is out visiting so we're hopefully going to get in some fun activities, as well as some relaxing and hanging out. I hope you have an awesome weekend surrounded by family and friends as well. See you back here next week!

Source: ohpioneer.com via Erika on Pinterest

Balsamic- Garlic Crusted Pork Tenderloin

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:31:00 +0000

I love me some Pork Tenderloin. Mmmmm Hmmmmm... I also love recipes where the ingredients are already in my house. It just makes me so happy not having to run to the store for extra ingredients. And then the fact that this pork tenderloin tastes super good- Well this recipe's just fantastic all the way around. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced or crushed
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 pork tenderloins (about 1¼ pounds each)
2 tablespoons canola oil (if preparing in oven)

Stir together garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a small bowl. Rub the paste all over pork. If you like or have the time, marinate overnight. If not, it will still taste great- I only marinated mine for about an hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat canola oil in a large, heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary, add pork, and brown all over, about 4 minutes.

Transfer pan to oven. Roast pork, turning occasionally, until the internal temperature is 160 degrees. This process was supposed to take 20 minutes but my oven was acting up- so the meat thermometer came in very handy.

Transfer pork to a cutting board, and try to let it rest 10 minutes before slicing. And enjoy!

Recipe via Kitchen Confidante

So, So Thankful

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:04:00 +0000

The past few days ended up being not at all what I expected. Saying they were stressful and life changing is a HUGE understatement.

And now- everything is Amazing. Better than amazing. And I wouldn't trade those 36 hours for anything. Because now my family is much, much healthier and happier. And I know that I am so incredibly blessed.

Source: restartmyheart.tumblr.com via Cindy on Pinterest

Rustic Interiors

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:13:00 +0000

Family Room:

Source: homedesigndecorating.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: houzz.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: cococozy.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: architecturaldesigns.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: crushculdesac.tumblr.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: creative-geisslein.blogspot.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: highcamphome.com via Brandi on Pinterest

Source: homedesigndecorating.com via Brandi on Pinterest

To the Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:26:00 +0000

I predict a productive weekend ahead. One full of projects, and reading, and baking- of course baking. Maybe I need to predict me working out as well... we shall see about that. But for now- I see a good and happy weekend ahead. I wish you the same as well. See you back here next week!

Source: therusticarchives.tumblr.com via Megan on Pinterest

Clouds in Kauai

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:10:00 +0000

Buenos Dias! Let's talk about clouds today! I love clouds. Sometimes they're thick and puffy. Other times they're thin and straight. And sometimes they look like giant alligators. Pure awesomeness.

As of late- we haven't really had a bunch of clouds here in Jackson. We've had crazy snowstorms where the sky is so gray you can't see anything. And we've had days where it's bright and sunny with not a cloud in sight... but those days tend to be negative 15- and I just stay inside.

So when I was looking for which photo to submit for my "word of the week" over at 3 Letter Words I came across all of these photos of clouds I had taken in Kauai. And I was instantly taken back to tropical sunsets, gorgeous clouds, and much, much warmer weather.

Pulling up to our spot on the desolate beach...

AFRICA! No... still Kauai. But this tree reminds me of Lion King

Hello moon...

Alright I'm ready. Who's taking me back?

Japanese Style One- Pot Supper

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:35:00 +0000

Ingredients:

1-2 bundles of Somen noodles (found in the Asian aisle of the grocery store)
5 cups reduced- sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup mirin or cream sherry
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp. sugar
3-5 thin slices of peeled ginger (I was out of ginger and it still tasted great)
12oz stir fry beef
1 small red bell pepper, seeded, stemmed, and cut into thin slices
4oz sugar snap or snow peas
4 oz. button mushrooms, sliced
8 oz. firm tofu, drained and cut into 1 in. cubes
3 green onions (green and white parts), cut into 1 inch lengths
Sriracha for added heat (my husband puts Sriracha on everything from typical Asian dishes to tuna sandwiches... I put in on nothing... because I'm a wimp)

Boil water and soak somen noodles until soft (about 5 minutes). Drain and cut into smaller pieces (I normally just cut in half).

In a 5- to- 6-qt. pot or a 12-in. frying pan (with sides at least 2 in. high), bring broth, sherry, soy sauce, sugar, and ginger to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 5 minutes.

Arrange noodles, beef, bell pepper, peas, mushrooms, tofu, and green onions in separate piles in the pot. Cover and simmer, without stirring, until beef is cooked to your preference (I cooked mine for about 9 minutes).

Set pot on the table so people can serve themselves, with Sriracha on the side.

Recipe adapted from Marlene Kawahata in Sunset Magazine

Listening to...

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:16:00 +0000

I've had 2 albums on repeat a lot lately. Andrew Belle and The Civil Wars. Both albums are so fantastic that I can just put them on and go- never having to worry about skipping to the next song. Aren't those the best?

Andrew Belle:

The Civil Wars:

Homemade Meatballs

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:47:00 +0000

These meatballs are cheap, quick, and easy- my kind of meal. They also taste soooooo good! I ate the leftovers for lunch the following day... cold... they were that good. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 whole egg
1.5 teaspoons dried basil
1.5 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs, divided

In a large mixing bowl, combine the meat, cheese, egg...

Basil, parsley, garlic powder...

Salt, red pepper flakes...

And 1/4 cup of bread crumbs. Using your hands, mix all ingredients until well incorporated. Use immediately or place in refrigerator for up to 24 hours.

Place the remaining 1/2 cup of bread crumbs into a small bowl. Using a scale, weigh meatballs into 1.5-ounce portions and place on a sheet pan. (I just eyed it and placed on a piece of wax paper... the lesser amount of dishes to do the better).

Using your hands, shape the meatballs into rounds, roll in the breadcrumbs, and place the meatballs in individual, miniature muffin tin cups.

Bake for 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through.

Enjoy!

Adapted from Alton Brown

To the Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (Brandi) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:47:00 +0000

It's snowing like CRAZY here in Jackson! I love it. Every time I look out the window or I walk out the door, all I see is falling snow. I think it's going to be one fantastically, relaxing weekend... I can't wait.

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