DIY: Marbled Paper

The past couple months have involved a lot of stationary related things starting with designing Zack & I's wedding invitations. And designing one of my best friend Megan's wedding invitations. And the beginning stages of addressing wedding invitations. And creating one-of-a-kind marbled paper (and of course coordinating envelopes) for good old snail mail (which also happens to be today's DIY). Plus the holiday season will be here before we know it, and these will most definitely be making an appearance in mailboxes near and far.

The best part about this project is it's pretty much impossible to mess up (and also impossible to predict). You never know exactly how your design is going to turn out. Sure, once you get the hang of it, you will get better ideas of how to achieve certain "looks"  and you'll make up your own techniques, but no two will ever be the same. It may seem like a long list of supplies and a lengthy set of instructions, but I think you'll find it to be fun and easy...but also pretty messy...have a roll of paper towels handy and maybe don't wear your favorite white shirt since you'll be playing with food coloring. 

So roll up your sleeves, read on, and make yourself some marblelous paper (see what i did there?)

SUPPLIES

• Foam Shaving Cream

• Food Coloring

• Heavy Weight Paper

• Baking Dish

• Plastic Spatula

• Paper Towels

• Metal or Plastic Ruler

• Painters Tape

• Toothpicks (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Grab the tape and mask off the back of your paper and/or envelopes. This will ensure you have one pretty and marbled side of the paper, but the other side will stay nice and clean. I would also suggest covering your work area in newspaper as well.

2. In the baking dish, spray a thick layer of shaving cream , and add a few drops of food coloring. Using the rubber spatula, fold the shaving cream to incorporate the color, but DO NOT over mix or you will lose the swirl/marbled pattern.

3. You could start marbling with the paper here, OR add an additional color (or colors) and swirl with a toothpick. There's no right or wrong way to do this, and don't worry about what the shaving cream looks like...the magic happens when you add the paper!

4. With paper tape side up, place it onto the shaving cream.

5. Gently press the paper down so that as much of it comes in contact with the shaving cream, but don't let it sit for too long or the paper will get too wet.

6. Carefully lift the paper off the shaving cream from one corner. Place the paper on a paper towel (shaving cream side up.) Use your ruler to scrape the shaving cream off from one corner to the other. 

7. MAGIC! If there is any extra shaving cream, wipe with a clean paper towel. Now just set the paper aside to dry. 

8. And repeat. You can add more food coloring to the shaving cream if needed, but this isn't necessary every time. If the colors get too muddled, simply add more shaving cream. There's no science behind it...it's all up to you!

9. When the papers are dry, place them under a stack of heavy books to help flatten them out. 

XO – Courtney

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Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice

Did you think you were going to escape the pumpkin flavored madness with me? Sorry to disappoint...although I'm sure this recipe will be anything but disappointing. Embrace the flavor of pumpkin!

Currently, in my kitchen I have: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins, Pumpkin Chai Tea, and this week's recipe: Pumpkin Frozen Yogurt (topped with Homemade Salted Caramel). All this yet I'm not crazy abut pumpkin pie. A little weird, yes, but give me an apple pie...or chocolate chess...yum. Ok, back to today's recipe. I don't think you will come across a much easier recipe, so no excuses for not trying this one! Too cold for ice cream? Make yourself a mug of hot cocoa or hot cider (or hey, keep with the pumpkin theme and make some pumpkin spice tea!), sit back, and enjoy!

XO – Courtney

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Pumpkin Frozen Yogurt

INGREDIENTS

· 1 cup Vanilla Greek Yogurt

· 1 cup Pumpkin Puree

· 1 T Sugar

· 1 t Pumpkin Pie Spice

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl.

2. Place the bowl in the freezer and stir ever 30 minutes until it reaches the desired consistency OR churn in an ice cream maker for a few minutes. 

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Salted Caramel Sauce

INGREDIENTS

· 1 cup Sugar

· 1/4 cup Water

· 2 oz Salted Butter

· 1/2 cup Heavy Cream

DIRECTIONS

1. IMPORTANT: Have all your ingredients measured out and nearby before you start.

2. In a medium saucepan, stir together sugar and water. Bring to a boil and stir constantly until the sugar is completely dissolved.

3. One it begins to boil, stop stirring and let it boil until it turns a deep amber color. Don't let it burn or you will have to start over!

4. As soon as the mixture has turn color, add the butter and whisk until the butter is combined. It will bubble up, so be careful. 

5. Let it boil for 1 minute, remove from heat, and add the cream. It will bubble up again. Stir until combined.

6. Transfer the sauce into a glass jar or other heat-safe container and allow to cool at room temperature. The sauce will keep for up to 4 weeks in the fridge!

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Sky's the Limit: New York City

The first time I ever went to New York City was in high school. My family took my brother and I to see the sights and do all the touristy things (the Empire State building, a broadway show, Times Square, Chinatown, etc.). I've been back a couple other times for business (but of course some fun was thrown in the mix on those trips too). As I mentioned here, I went back a few weeks ago to visit my baby brother (and check a few more touristy things off the bucket list).

One ridiculously overpriced uber ride and a red-eye later, and I had made it. It may have been 5:30am (2:30am to my body that was still on west coast time), but our day was starting NOW. First things first, we stopped for caffeine. Coffee for Luke and a chai tea latte for me. And of course a bagel. So New York of us. Caffeine & carbs in hand, we hopped on the subway and headed to our first stop: One World Trade Center. When my family visited New York while I was in high school, we walked through the museum and peeked through the fences where there was only a hole in the ground from where the Trade Towers once stood. This time, I got to see the memorials and the unbelievably tall tower that is the new World Trade Center. I had gotten us tickets to take the elevator up to the One World Observatory on the 102nd floor of the 104-story skyscraper. The tickets are a little on the pricey side, but in my opinion well worth the incredible 360-view of the city you get at the top. Not only that, but the elevator ride up plays an awesome time-lapse of the city being developed from the 1500s until now (and fun fact: the studio that Zack is working with had a big part in developing!). Still need convincing? Well, it is the tallest building in the United States (and western hemisphere for that matter), so that's pretty cool. And it is an emotional experience, especially if you spend time at the museum and memorial, but a great way to pay tribute to those who were lost in the tragedy of 9-11. 

The rest of the afternoon consisted of two enormous slices of NY style pizza, more wandering around, and finally a stroll across the Brooklyn Bridge. By late afternoon, I was exhausted. I know they call it "the city that never sleeps," but I needed to sleep (especially since I was running on maybe an hour of sleep from the plane...which doesn't really even count). We went back to my brother's place in Brooklyn, watched some Netflix, and called it an early night. I slept like a rock.

Sunday morning, brunch is calling. You don't do a weekend in the city without brunch, am i right? Oh but I forgot, this isn't Los Angeles where you can get alcohol at any time of the day, so no mimosas at 10am. The french toast & bacon & eggs made up for it. 

Up next, the Statue of Liberty. A pretty signature landmark of New York City, and something I definitely wanted the check out. Tip: buy your tickets ahead of time because the lines get long and can even sell out. If you're trying to climb up to the crown, you'll need to buy those tickets months in advance. Seriously. I bought our tickets to climb up to the pedestal about a month out and those were almost sold out. The crown tickets were sold out through December. As cool as it would have been to climb all the way up into the crown, climbing to the pedestal was worth it. You can easily get a great view of the statue without climbing it, but you do get some unique and up-close angles if you decide to upgrade your basic ticket. After wandering around Liberty Island (still regret not buying a foam statue of liberty hat for a picture), we hopped on the boat and headed back to Battery Park, NY.

From there we headed towards Times Square where we had tickets to see Aladdin on Broadway. So fun and so excellent. I mean, Aladdin is my favorite Disney animated movie  (which, by they way, was just released from the Disney vault yesterday and YES, I went an bought it on the first day it came out), so I might be a little biased, but I give it two thumbs up. 

After the show, Luke and I grabbed dinner and drinks and just caught up. It had been over a year since we had seen each other, so there was plenty to catch up on. Monday was my final day in the city, so we took a stroll through the Chelsea Market and walked along the High Line. Then we grabbed sushi in Williamsburg and my brother showed me around that area before I had to hop on the subway and head back to the airport. 

I've gotta say, I had a blast getting to hang out with my brother, and New York City is such a fun place to visit, but I don't think I could ever live there. First of all, it gets way to cold  in the winter (says the girl now living in Los Angeles). Second of all, it wears. me. out. Evertime I visit, I leave feeling completely exhausted. Exhausted from having too much fun? Or maybe I'm just out of shape and you have to do a lot of walking there. Or maybe I just need to live in "a city that gets some sleep." 

XO – Courtney

Taste of Autumn

In mid-September, I took a little trip to the Big Apple to visit my brother (more on that trip coming soon!) and had my first taste of autumn, so naturally, I broke out the flannel. And I believe this little flannel number will be one of my favorite purchases this season. It works as a super comfortable dress (belted or unbelted) + looks pretty cool kept unbuttoned and paired with jeans and a tank (extra points if you layer a denim vest over it too). Plus, I think you can pull it off no matter what type of fall you're living. To my friends on the east coast, grab an umbrella and some rainboots because all I'm hearing about is the crazy amount of rain you guys are getting (send some our way please?!), and to everyone in the west, well, it's a tank top so when the temperatures are rising you can get away with wearing flannel without melting. 

XO – Courtney

dress [target] // belt [old-loving this] // boots [shop here] // sunnies [rayban]

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