Friday Things
1. Puppy face! He might be eight months old and sometimes have the look of a grown-up dog, but there’s no doubt that Duke is still ALL puppy.
2. Let’s talk jeans… do you have a favorite brand? I have the hardest time buying jeans! I’m short (5’1) and pear-shaped and, well, jeans shopping is a total struggle. I’ve worn JCrew jeans for a long time, but it seems that they’ve changed the cut recently. I’m open to suggestions!
3. My Chief Culinary Consultant and I watched all two seasons of House of Cards in 10 days. It totally lived up to all of the hype, and now I can’t wait for the next season to start! If you haven’t checked it out yet, clear your schedule for the next week, because once you start, you won’t be able to stop!
4. Have I ever told you about my favorite, easiest-most-delicious appetizer? It’s this easy… 1 jar of Harry & David Onion & Pepper Relish (original recipe) + 2 blocks of cream cheese. Stir together and dip, dip, dip! I always keep jars in the pantry, and we even packed them for vacation last year for a quick snack. Totally addicting! The flat pretzel crisps are our favorite thing to dip with, but tortilla chips are awesome too.
5. So true:
[via Facebook]
Save This Recipe
Enter your email address, and we'll send it straight to your inbox!
6. Aaaaaand another tear-inducing dog commercial:
I snuggled Einstein so hard after watching that one!
7. My 10-inch cast iron skillet has finally reached rock star status. It is seasoned so well at this point that I can (and do) cook things like eggs and cheesy omelets in it without any greasing whatsoever, and they slide right out on a spatula. A few people have asked how I clean it; I used this tutorial as a starting point. I let the pan cool after using it, then add an equal amount of kosher salt and vegetable oil to the pan. I use this cast iron scrub brush to scrub the pan, ensuring that any stuck-on pieces are pulled up. Once the surface is smooth, I use a couple of paper towels to wipe out the pan, making sure that all of the salt is completely wiped out, then I put it away. That’s it! NO water. NO soap. No drying over heat or brushing on more oil.
8. I’m not planning a garden for this year, but this square foot gardening layout that Shawnda put together is totally inspiring!
9. I’ve been tossing around the idea of taking up knitting. I’ve known how to crochet since I was little (thanks to my grandma!) and I can make a mean blanket, but it seems like you can do a lot more with patterns for things like hats, scarves, etc. with knitting. It’s always intimidated me because of using two needles; how much of a jump is it from crochet?
10. TGIF! We’ve got some brotherly love going on!
Another vote for Gap Curvy jeans in ankle! I have several different washes – they are by far my favorite!
What a great insight! He might only be here for a part of your life but for him you are his whole life. I just gotta hug my lab more and more. Thanks for making me aware.
Im short and have a bigger butt and thighs but i love the DKNY jeans!! Never before have I found jeans that don’t get baggy after a few wears and washes. I highly recommend them!
If you can crochet, you can knit! Just remember when you’re starting off that it may be slow-going, but I’m sure it was that way when you started to crochet too. Also, remember to keep loose! My mother taught me by saying the biggest problem beginning knitters and crocheters make is trying to get the stitches tight and even … and then they’re too tight and it gets frustrating. Youtube videos are a wonderful resource if you don’t have someone close at hand to help you out.
I am 5’4″ and have always had a hard time finding jeans that fit. If they fit in my hips, they were too big in my waist, and vic versa…also they were always way too long. After years of searching I have found Ann Taylor jeans. They have several fits but the curvy fit works the best for me. They have them in a short length too so now my jeans look really nice, I don’t have to go get them hemmed anymore!! I also discovered Old Navy jeans last summer. I got the “Rock Star” (straight leg, skinny jeans) style in a size 6 (usually I am a size 4 in jeans) and these fit so great!! I got them in short and the length is perfect and the price was unbeatable!!!!!
My favorite jeans are Levi’s Short Defined Waist. They are awesome!!
Michelle, Did you know there is a knitting,crochet show coming to the North HIlls next weekend ? It is at the Four Points Sheraton in Mars on March 14, 15, and 16. Will feature workshops,vendors and celebrity crafters. Event featured in todays edition of Tribune Review. Also http://www.pghknitandcrochet.com. I can crochet, quilt, and a seamstress and tailor, but have a mental block with knitting !
Hi Nancy, I didn’t hear, thank you for the heads up!
Personally, I love my 7 jeans (I try to find them on sale so I’m not paying $200 for jeans). Plus their straighter cuts are the perfect length so you don’t have to hem them!
Love to the snuggly dogs. <3 <3 <3
Back when I was skinny :) I wore Ralph Lauren jeans and LOVED them. I am very pear shaped and they fit so well; enough room in the thighs and rear without being too low cut in the back or too high cut in the front. They also held up beautifully, and I wash my jeans every time I wear them (I’ve heard recently that this is unusual, so thought I would mention it). Oh, and the lengths are awesome, too. Good luck in your quest – finding new jean brands is hard!
No.5 and the car ad really resonated with me. My beloved 12 yr old cat died 4 weeks ago tomorrow and I am still grieving…I always thought because he was so trouble free that he would live to the high teens like some do. Number 5 reminded me I was his whole life (and it was a good one) and the car one reminded me of his life as he grew up with me. He got spoiled with prawns (5-6 large ones to himself) occasionally and lots of brushes and hugs and cuddles. Your dogs are gorgeous and I hope they are with you for many years to come…they are obviously much loved and well taken care of.
Love the dog pictures! They are so sweet curled up together. I knit, never really learned to crochet, so I think it is super easy! Jeans are always a challenge for us shorter girls! I just bought a pair at Ann Taylor Loft, and also do Old Navy (Sweetheart and Diva styles) and sometimes, just a good pair of Levis do the trick. I usually pick 8-10 pairs to try on and am lucky to find one. Good Luck!
I love the pics of your goldens, and look forward to seeing new ones every Friday! The Chevy commercial really got to me! It is like my daughter, and her golden, Riley. Rachel was 9 when she picked her puppy, and she was home for summer break, for her senoir year in college when we had to say goodbye to that wonderful dog. We have two goldens now, one is a 6 yr old rescue, the other is 22 months old. Teddy, our pup is enrolled in the Morris Animal Foundation Golden Retriever Cancer Study to help find a cure.
Hi Marcia, I am so sorry that you lost Riley :( Love that you have two more, and that one is helping with research, such a wonderful thing!
Yes, you should try knitting. It’s fun, relaxing, and productive all at the same time. Check out how-to videos at knittinghelp.com. Try continental style knitting (tensioning the yarn in your left hand)–it tends to be more intuitive for crocheters since we already hold the yarn that way (I also crocheted before I learned to knit, and I taught myself to knit a few years ago by watching the videos). Also check out ravelry.com, a community for knitters and crocheters with a huge pattern database.
I love Ann Taylor Loft’s petite curvy fit jeans. Their factory store jeans are great too!
I too use to love J Crew’s jeans but not any longer…sad! I now get Banana Republic or Gap jeans. I really like the gap curvy fit jean.
Michelle,
Great photos of the puppies. Hubby loves them too.
Annamaria
Hi! I’m super picky about jeans and wear 3 brands only – Hudson, Citizens of Humanity, & Seven. I swear, that’s all ever wear. I always buy them at Nordstrom or Nordstrom.com because they do alterations for free (those jeans are always super long). They’re pricey, but definitely worth it.
PS. I’m from Pittsburgh as well & just heard Nordstrom Rack is going into Northway Shoppes in McCandless!! I’m pumped!
I LOVE knitting; I think it’s way more fun than crocheting, although I like crocheting too. If you can read a pattern and learn the basics you’ll do just fine. I’ve knitted everything from mittens to scarves to sweaters, and more; it is a fun hobby.
That Chevy commercial still has me in tears, we lost one of our boys to cancer last year (cancer sucks), dogs are the best.
Yay knitting! Of course, I’m a knitting designer so I’m biased. :P I found learning crochet really easy after having been a knitter first, because I was used to the idea of patterns being full of strange abbreviations (even if they are different from crochet to knitting), the concept of manipulating string with an object, etc. My BFF is a crocheter first and then learned to knit, and she didn’t have any big issues with the switch. Good luck! http://www.ravelry.com is your friend for patterns and advice, if you’re not already on there.