New ipad case and another batch of macarons

I received a new ipad case a couple of months ago courtesy of caseable (Thanks, caseable!).  I was able to fully customize the case using my own photos.  Their website is easy to use, they use recycled materials for all of their cases, and the final product is great!  They offer customized cases for all sorts of devices (ipads, iphone, e-readers, etc.).  

I decided to use a couple of my favorite photos from our Paris honeymoon for the case. Ben used to work in the design/printing industry and he was very skeptical about how the case would turn out (just because printing photos on items like this usually look really weird or "off").  Once I received it,  we were both very pleasantly surprised.   The quality is fantastic and I love the way it looks.  I've used it for a couple of months now, and I am very happy with it.  I love that there is a pocket on the inside and I appreciated being able to choose the color of the spine.  I definitely recommend caseable and I have my eye on a new iphone case:)  My only complaint is that I wish you could choose a different color for the inside.  I feel like white will get dirty easily.     

Front

Back

 Since my case has macarons all over it, I thought this would be a good time to show off my latest batch of macarons.  I had the day off for the 4th and I decided to do some baking.  I must have been in the mood for lemons because I made lemon cupcakes and lemon macarons.  I think this was my best batch yet.  Maybe I am finally getting it!

2012 Recap #3: Adventures/Experiences

Happy Friday!  We are celebrating this weekend because our home refinance finally closed this week and we got our car back from the shop!  I thought that our refinance would be a fairly simple process, but not so.  It took months and we ended up having to do a few last minute home improvements (like I mentioned in another post - having our house painted the week of Christmas - ack!).  After we completed all of the requested work, we had more problems because the appraiser who needed to come back to do the final inspection was suddenly out of the state on vacation.  I won't drag you all further into this very long and complicated story, but let's just say it was a very sticky situation.  The day that the appraiser returned was the day of our  (now extended) deadline and I had to have a not so nice conversation with him that morning.  Anyways, it's officially done now! Phew!

In looking back at my posts from 2012 to compile my other recap posts (2012 recap #1:  outfits and 2012 recap #2:  Purchases), I decided it would also be fun to reminisce about some non clothing/style happenings of the year.  There is certainly no way for me to compile a list of my absolute favorite moments of the year, but here are 5  adventures/experiences from 2012 that put a smile on my face:)

PARIS

Posts here, here, here, here and here

Ben and I went to Paris  in the spring of 2012 for our honeymoon.  It was such a lovely trip, full of beautiful memories that I will cherish forever.  

 

PLATE AND PITCHFORK

Post here

In July, we experienced an amazing dinner at the Domaine Drouhin winery via plate and pitchfork.  It was a beautiful day, the food was delicious, the wine was flowing, we were surrounded by good friends, and we enjoyed it all outside, right in the middle of the vineyards.    

SUMMER HIKES

Posts here, here, and here 

We enjoyed summer to the fullest, including lots of hikes on the Oregon coast, the Columbia River Gorge, and eastern Oregon.    

I QUIT MY JOB!!!

Post here

In September, I quit my job of 7+ years.  It felt SO GOOD to say goodbye to all of the stress and frustration associated with my old job.  I haven't looked back since.  I am enjoying my new job and I would do it all over again.  

BIRTHDAY WEEKEND

Post here

My birthday weekend was full of magic - my brother came to visit, I got a new pair of Chie's, we consumed lots of good food, we saw the wonderful Sallie Ford in concert, we went on a gorgeous hike at the coast and even spotted a whale.  Wow! Weekends like that only come around every once in a while.  I hold these memories close to my heart.      

Honorable mention:

After quite a few unsuccessful tries, I finally learned how to make french macarons this year (post here)!  I became obsessed with these darling little cookies after our Paris trip.  I haven't mastered them just yet, but I'm having fun practicing:) 

My kind of party!

Last weekend, we attended our friends' annual cookie exchange party.  We had a blast!  We spent the afternoon visiting with good friends, meeting new friends, sipping on cocktails, and eating A LOT of cookies.  I decided to attempt macarons again - this time I went with a mint chocolate flavor.  Although I was feeling a little self-conscious about the cookies not being the perfect shape and the "pied" (the frilly bottoms) not forming just right (silly I know, but I stayed up really late working on them and wanted them to be perfect), they were a huge hit.  They all got eaten and someone even proclaimed them to be the best cookies at the party this year.  Success!

Dress:  Anthropologie Spinning Lace Dress
Cardigan:  J.  Crew Jackie
Tights:  J. Crew
Belt:  J. Crew
Shoes:  Unsure of the brand - I picked these up at a little boutique in London

Adventures in Macaron Making

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that since coming home from Paris, I have been a bit obsessed with learning how to make homemade macarons  (see my Paris macaron post here).  It has been quite the challenge!  After lots of failed attempts, I was finally successful last weekend.  My first few tries resulted in very tasty, but also very ugly, cookies.  I couldn't figure out how to get the texture just right to create the smooth top and the ruffled "feet" (the sides).  Thanks to those of you who gave me tips on instagram and thanks to Dzung, from My Honeysuckle blog, for posting her  macaron youtube video tutorial!  It was very helpful.

While these are certainly not perfect, they actually look like macarons!!!  I was so very excited and proud of them:)  We had some fresh, local raspberries in the fridge, so I decided I would go for raspberry flavored (my first few batches were strawberry). I can't wait to try different flavors and maybe even some combos.  

Let's talk macarons

Macaron - a sweet meringue-based confectionery made with egg whites, icing sugar, granulated sugar, almond powder or ground almond, and food coloring. The macaron is commonly filled with ganache, buttercream or jam filling sandwiched between two cookies.

The confectionery is characterised by its smooth, domed top, ruffled circumference (referred to as the "foot"), and flat base. It is mildly moist and easily melts in the mouth (from Wikipedia).


I decided to go on a bit of a macaron tasting spree while in Paris.  After reading this post on Feather Factor, I knew where to start!  Of course, you have to consume macarons while in Paris, but I wanted to try the best of the best and find out for myself what makes them so wonderful. 

#1  Pierre Herme

The absolute best, in my opinion.  Although I don't have many pictures to show off, these are definitely at the top of my list.  The macarons were delicate, beautiful, and delicious.  The texture was perfect and they offer very creative flavors (jasmine was my favorite).  I don't have much to say - these were simply perfect.   

 #2 Laduree

Although these weren't quite on par with Pierre Herme in terms of texture or creative flavors, they were still wonderful.  I think that what makes Laduree really special, is the presentation/packaging.  Every single item in the store was beautiful - very fancy, very Parisian.  Although it was quite crowded, I did not want to leave!  It was such a lovely place. I wanted to look around and browse, but it was too busy and you end up kind of being herded through the line.  Even so, I loved it.  The cherry blossom and orange blossom were my favorites here. 

At the park, getting ready to dig in!

Candles

Pretty ribbon they use for packaging

lovely box, lovely macarons:)

Current flavors

#3  La Petite Friande

We stumbled upon this little shop in Reims, France.  When I saw the huge macaron tower in the window, I had to go in!  That turned out to be a good choice.  Although the presentation/packaging doesn't hold a candle to Laduree, the macarons sure do.  They had a lot of flavor options; some passion fruit combination turned out to be my favorite here, although I can't quite remember what it was combined with.  This little shops main attraction was homemade chocolate, which made Ben happy.  His rocher was out-of-this-world good.    

 


 Tell me about your macaron experiences!  Favorite flavor?  Favorite shop? Have you ever tried to make macarons? 

Parisian Honeymoon

I'm Back!  We arrived home from our trip to Paris a couple of days ago.  We had a FABULOUS time!  It was an interesting, refreshing, and blissful trip; a perfect honeymoon.  I have so much to show you guys!  I took a ton of photos, and I can't wait to tell you all about it. 

For now, I'll just show off a few pictures.  Jet lag is kicking my butt.  Until last night, I had only gotten a few hours of sleep over a 48-hour period.  All day yesterday I was totally exhausted, but I could not sleep a wink.  So frustrating!  I'm feeling a little better after some restful sleep last night.  I might even tackle my laundry pile today:)