oh blog. we are neglecting you so.
i am so sorry.

i don't even have time to make the needed amends now. i just came to post this...


and then realized how long it's been since i've seen you.
~a tear~

owl bathmat from target.

Sand, not just for making castles anymore

This video has been making the rounds in my facebook circle. Have you seen it yet? Just so lovely.

another nail in the coffin on my childhood

RIP John Hughes

i'm calling it.

i am a freaking trendsetter.
so i was just looking for some cute pillows. innocently looking are on the internet...and i came across this... at urban outfitters of course.

which reminded me of this post.

read it and weep at my genius.

in which the internet reads my mind

the other day courtney and i were talking about how difficult it can be mix and match patterns. you don't want everything to be the same but think about it too much and it's a failure. it feels like it can be simpler just to throw a bunch of fabric into the air and whatever you catch, you go with.

i guess better homes and gardens was spying on us, because this morning i got an email from them titled 'how to mix patterns." amazing!



check it out!

Tawdry Hepburn

What do you think? It's my (pretend) roller derby name. The runners up were Kitty Switchblade and Ripper Phoenix. I'm way too busy (read chicken) to really go out and be a roller derby girl, but I have a big fat crush on every bad ass lady who straps on a pair of skates and runs other girls down for fun and sport. As you can guess, I am supper excited to go see this movie when it comes out.

What's your roller derby name? You can find out here. Any real derby girls out there? Don't you think Lauren should go try out? Me too. Man. Let's all go roller skating friends.

Sorry, can't help it

Yeah, I admit this is completely off topic. Completely. I can't help it, it's Monday, I had a bad start to the morning, and this little kid just made it all so much better.

lllll

The missing link

Here are some of the things I have been interested in this week. Enjoy!

• Ever felt the need to have a pear in a bottle? This video will show you how. Personally, I'd probably have the same issues w/ sacrificing the many for the few as the guy who sold him the bottles. What do you think? Found here.

• Love make-up? Me too, but you might want to read this before putting on another coat of mascara.

• That was a little upsetting huh? Here, make these muffins, you'll forget all your troubles. I just made a batch with strawberries AND blueberries and they were blow your mind good.

• Kitchn fan? Chicago native? Then maybe you already saw this brand new food lovers tour of our very own windy city. Think they forgot something? Let them know. I already told them all about Stanley's.

• I don't care how cynical you are about romance, this post from Joana over at Cup of Joe will have even the hardest of hearts thinking about wedding bells.

• Loving this silhouette art by Wilhelm Staehle. Thanks whorange.

• Scared of the dentist? This won't help, but it might make you laugh right after you finish screaming.

• And finally, check out this fantastic vintage store in Wicker Park. I have it on good authority that their costume jewelry and selection of vintage ties are reason enough to make the trek.

Ok, that's enough. Have a happy weekend everyone.

Gather round friends

Hey. So, you have probably noticed by now...the homebodies have been big time blog slackers lately.

It's just that it's summer, and we've all been travelling, and busy with our other artsy endeavors. I keep meaning to post about the ravioli I made from scratch, and the bread I've been baking, and about a million other things...but somehow it hasn't happened. I haven't even downloaded the pictures yet.

So to make it up to you, I'm gonna let you in on a wonderful little secret. Gather round now, it's gonna be good. See this dress?

It's by a brand called Tulle. I see this brand at places like anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, and all kinds of little boutiques. I just saw this one being sold for 82 bucks in Lincoln Square.

I lust after Tulle clothes. They are always so cute. But they are usually not cheap, and I usually don't buy. Until now--because I just found out I can buy them online, straight from the source, at ridiculous "I feel like I am somehow committing a crime" sale prices. That 82 dollar dress up there? Oh, it costs 17 dollars and 20 cents online. WHAT?

I mean, how about a brand new jacket for under 30 bucks?

Or an adorably affordable tulip skirt? Or a cute little cardigan? Done, done, and done.

Now you know, and knowing is half the battle. Happy shopping everyone.

Swans, bones

Loving the artwork over at Swanbonestheatre by Kelly Louise Judd. Her work reminds me of fairytales; not the polished up Disney kind, but the ones with blood and vengeance and less then happy endings.

They Spoke of The Night

Thorns and Thistles

A Small Occurence

You can buy prints of her work at her etsy shop, Like this copy of her original illustration Hush.

I Found Kelly's artwork here.

that new potato salad smell.

get ready for the most ridiculous phrase you've ever heard.
"amazing potato salad... from a car dealership."

wtf you may say. that's what i said.
but my mother and sister each swear that the potato salad you can get at priority toyota in norfolk virginia is delightful. (granted, this is no normal car dealership. it's a freakshow of a dealership. they have a movie theatre. and a salon. i mean, come on. )

anyway, my sister did her best to re-create the recipe. looks might tasty.

check out her post...here.

defense against the dark arts

bottle cutting! my mortal enemy! so tempting. so (seemingly) easy.
but remember this?

tragedy.

now here comes apartment therapy to tempt me again with cute recycled glass wares and simple directions.

do i dare attempt this again?

Marimekko!

Alwaysmod is having their "huge semi-annual" Marimekko sale! They have over a hundred different products on sale.

Everything here is on sale for under 30 bucks...

And for my fantasy fabric collection, how about these?

I mean, I still can't afford most of it really...but maybe you can? The sale lasts through July 15th, but you should probably get it now while the getting is good.

via craftzine

Just say no...to harem pants

Ok. Listen. I get it, the late 80's/early 90's have come back. And I admit, many of the updated trends are actually pretty cute. But people. PEOPLE. Please, can't we leave some of these trends in the past where they belong? I mean, grandma's couch floral leggings; acid washed, ripped up, taper legged jeans; and for the love of god, the harem pant???

I mean, what about these pants makes you want to pay 50 dollars for them, put them onto your body, and then go out into public? I will assume your answer is "nothing, nothing about these pants makes me want to do any of those things."

So - in rebellion against this trend I do not, can not, support - here are some romantic Great Gatsby inspired clothes and accessories for a warm summer afternoon. Note the complete absence of lycra, neon colors, and harem pants.

Go here for the details on where the items above come from. And remember ya'll, friends don't let friends look like this....

(If you insist upon the harem/ugly pant trend, you can find the above specimens here, and here.)

a key!

on an unrelated note...i got a tattoo yesterday!

i've wanted it for a few years and i figured it was about time to toughen up and take the plunge!

BEFORE

AFTER

AFTER AFTER

Babushka Couture

I love Russian nesting dolls. They have such vintage, kitchsy appeal. So I was delighted when Istumbled upon this gallery of Babushka's created by over thirty haute designers to celebrateRussian Vogue's 10th birthday.

Alena Akhmadullina's reminds me of little red riding hood...and I love the weird little birds feet that peek from under the kerchief...

A few more favorites...

Konstantin Gayday

Marni

Emile Pucci

I love the way the fresh designs make these feel at once modern and nostalgic, vintage but brand new. The dolls will all be sold at auction. I'd love to buy several and display them on a series of shelves, unnested...but with an estimated price of 5000 euros a piece, I might settle for enjoying them in these photographs.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

breakfast salad.

all this computing is making me feel less than healthy.  i sit.  all.  day.  long.  but i hate exercising so much!  so in my efforts to feel a bit more human, i made this.

in the blender:

a handful of grapes

4 strawberries

2 BIG handfuls of spinach

a cup-ish of soymilk

a couple of ice cubes

1/2 an apple

hit liquefy.

it's delicious.  super frothy like a milkshake, and you can't taste the spinach, although it does affect the color quite a bit.  don't let that throw you.

as you can see, i've already downed 1/2 of it.  i'm gonna keep experimenting, but i'm imagining it's pretty foolproof, as long as you don't add banana.  i hate banana.

cozy boho.

loving this sofa.

but would i love it next year?
maybe a little too whimsical for a big investment piece.

not necessary, but lovely

can't wait until the toilet overflows.

found here via pam.

Drunken Strawberry and Mango (sort of) sorbet

I made the best damn dinner the other night. Soba noodles with tofu, avocado, and snow peas. It was a Martha recipe...relatively easy on the Martha scale, but still, sort of work intensive.

I wanted to have a great dessert to go with it (we were having a stay at home date night, you know, I wanted to go all out.) But after making a simple syrup infused with ginger and jalapeno, julienning heaps of cucumber and snow peas, making a marinade and then marinating my tofu in it, and cooking up the soba...it had to be easy and no fuss.

I was well into my first glass of perseco by the time dinner was done. And hungry. That meant no more Martha for me. I had a bag of frozen mango on hand. I also had fresh strawberries. So, I decided to make drunken strawberry and Mango (sort of) sorbet. Sooooo easy folks. And oh so good.

Here's how to make it:

Ingredients:

-Handful fresh strawberries

-Tbsp sugar

-frozen mango chunks

-generous glug perseco (or any chilled sparkling wine you may have handy.)

1. Pour mango chunks and perseco into food processor (I used my magic bullet) and blend until smooth. I put the cap on my magic bullet container and popped it into the freezer after this photo was snapped to keep it from melting too much. This takes all of five minutes.

2. Hull and slice your berries (they are a garnish, so I only used 3-4 berries for 2 servings.)

3. Sprinkle a tbsp sugar over the berries and let them macerate. I left mine to get nice and juicy while we ate dinner, but you could just let them sit for 5-10 mins if your feeling impatient.

4. Portion out mango "sorbet" in glass tumblers, and top with macerated berries. Presenting this in a glass vessel is really pretty, because the dessert is so colorful. Serve with a glass of chilled perseco.

hump day inspiration

that title sounded a lot more tawdry than necessary...
it's just mid-week...i'm feeling a little blah and could use some creative zing.

fancier than my doodles

by illustrator cristina sitja rubio

gimme plastic!

i was pulling things for a different post when i came across these melamine plates at fred flare.

my grilled cheese would look excellent on these.
so pretty.

birdcage plate

birdcage dessert plate

****

******

love the eye makeup.

flickr friday: be afraid...

when we work with clients, we find ourselves saying over and over...'don't be afraid of color. don't be afraid of color." we walk into these homes that are big beige blobs or total brown town, and we're like wtf! well, i think we figured it out. those people have all been scarred by their childhood decor experiences...they all grew up in homes like these....

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blerg.

my eyes are actually in pain. i have to stop.

from my fave flickr group 1970's Interior Design and Residential Architecture

feeling girly

i wear black every single day. not all black but majority black...black with accents.
it's easy. it makes me feel cool (well...cooler) and it let's me blend into the background when i feel socially awkward.

this is so not me. i can't get away with anything this delicate and flowey. and i don't have anywhere fancy to go...but if i did...

oh man. i'd be all over this.

if only it came in black.

from christopher kane's spring 2009 collection.

via ma frangine

(ohh...also, i would need a few thousand dollars.)

Chicago craft social

Modern Homebody was present at the first (of many we hope) Chicago Craft Social that took place this past May 22nd.  

I seem to be busy carving my stamp...so what is Courtney laughing at?  Perhaps this was right around the time I accidently shaved off one of my tree's branches. 

We enjoyed sampling all the baked goods people brought, perusing the different craft tables (projects ranged from paper embellished paper clips to Polaroid transfers and everything in between) and learning to carve our own linoleum block stamps for print making.  

I carved a tree stamp,  Courtney made one with cute little abstract flowers.  This craft took a lot of focus, so when we were done we hit up the baked goods section and decided to call it a night. 

Thanks to all the lovely Chicago ladies who dreamed up this wonderful idea.  I can't wait for the next one (especially since Lauren couldn't make it to this one.  She was home meeting her new neice).   Maybe one day modern homebody can lead a craft table at the social...probably not bottle cutting though. 

To see more photos of the social, go here.

global modern prints urban outfitters

thai village quilt

bedouin stripe embroidered rug

tribal lace tapestry

improvised blueberry peach cobbler

in an effort to make bag lunches more exciting, i've started a weekend cooking regime to supply myself with tasty meals throughout the upcoming week. i figure, i'll be more likely to eat my lunch if it's not the same old turkey sandwich and baby carrots. this past sunday i made chicken salad with grapes, dried cranberries, candied walnuts and green onions in a mustard-y sauce, my favorite asparagus tart...and then i needed something for dessert. something pseudo-healthy, maybe involving a fruit? so i rummaged through the kitchen and came up with this easy fake cobbler. it's quick and easy for sure! and you can use almost any fruit you have laying around!

i happened to have fresh blueberries and frozen peaches...so i threw them in a pot.

then i added about half a cup of sugar, half a cup of water, a tablespoon or so of cornstarch and lemon juice (sorry, i'm not a good measurer. it was about half a lemon i think?) and brought the whole thing to a boil.

once it was at a rolling boil, i turned it down and let it simmer for a few minutes.

meanwhile, i preheated the oven to 400 degrees and took my tube of biscuits out of the fridge. that's right...don't judge. i didn't feel like making a dough. plus biscuits from a tube are awesome. the food of the pudgy white gods. i cut each biscuit into 2 pieces (half moon shapes) and lay them aside. then i poured the hot fruit ('we're having hot fruit' name that tv show) into a round pyrex dish. the stuff was like freaking hot lava. be careful.

ooh steamy.

then add your biscuits!

add some egg wash, sprinkle with sugar, and pop in the oven!
i have no idea how long it cooked...just until the biscuits were brown and the fruit was bubbly!

beautiful! and tasty! with ice cream? yes, please.

it wasn't perfect. next time i will add more cornstarch, less water or boil the fruit longer. it came out a little thin and soupy. and think maybe fewer biscuits..spaced further apart and pushed further down? the biscuits that had been submerged in the berry goo were soft and tasty while the parts on top...tasted like plain old biscuits. but that's what you get with improvised cooking...

i guess i'll have to keep trying until i get it right! yummy!

how much fun are they having!!!

"betty brooks and patty mccartney motorboating at catalina island."

from the life magazine archives.

browse through these pics. these ladies are amazing.

fabulous.

monday morning time wasters

monday monday...it's hard to get going.
if you're looking for a way to ease into the workday, why not browse my new favorite site...eatsleepdraw.com.

"eatsleepdraw is an online art community. We post 100% original content, submitted by contributors across the globe."

anyone can submit! get inspired and share your work with the world.

the beautiful positive by definatalie, graphic designer from brisbane australia.