misty & we

This is Misty: the gorgeous, the sweetheart, the possessor of a velvet nose. No, she isn't mine--I wish. I absolutely love horses, if you didn't already know, and I just discovered yesterday how much fun it is to photograph them. Future equine photographer? Oh, wait. Make that equine/wedding/children/family/senior...cough. 

Anyways. 

Misty was a dear, and so were the lovely young ladies I spent yesterday evening with. It was golden hour just as we tramped down to the barn, and hazy sunlight filtered through spring foliage. I knew it had been a good idea to bring the Nik. 

This is Andrea: the beautiful, the lovely, the sweet.  I've known Andrea for a very long time, but over the past few years have enjoyed getting to know her better. She is a very wonderful and encouraging person whom I am blessed to call a friend! Andrea loves beading and makes lovely jewelry.  

This is Anna: a lovely lady who is an avid reader, avid hat-wearer, and has a pretty smile. I've known Anna for a few years, since her family moved to Oregon from the South, and she is genuinely fun to be around. Anna loves music, and plays the flute with excellence!

This is Sarah: the cheerful, the pretty, the animal-lover. She is Andrea's sister, and is also a dear friend of mine. She is always ready to laugh and to give a hug. Sarah is also a pretty amazing soccer-player, and I love her shade of red hair to death. :) 

Oh--and this is apple crunch pie: summer days and cinnamon sugar all rolled together. And which is now in the state of "gone-ness." 

Like this Indian Summer weather soon will be. I love it like I love apple crunch pie, but I'm afraid even that honor will not keep it.

In any case: here's to friendship, horses, and sunlight! 

xo,

lucia 

ps- photographers! never fear, the winner of the march photo challenge will soon be announced. in the meantime, enter your sunlit portraits in april's challenge linky while you can! 

ireland and then some.

It's rainy and green today. Suiting, because today happens to be Saint Paddy's Day. Am I the only blogger in the entire web mentioning this? Perhaps--ah, well. I have always loved Ireland, so I shall dedicate a few lines to its holiday. 

What is there not to love about Ireland? The cliffs, the stone fences, the mossy fields dotted with sheep, the thousand-year-old history still preserved among quaint villagers. 

I'd say I'm pretty lucky (four-leaf clover lucky, maybe?) to live in the one state that is most like Ireland. Oregon is wet, and green, and pretty--without the accents and old villages, perhaps, but still as like it as you can get. 

..Nevertheless, it is on my bucket list to visit Ireland one day; to explore the castles and crags and simply wander as a globetrotter. And I mean, seriously: 

;) 

-lucia

disclaimer: that quote goes for guys and girls, just so ya know--I'll listen to an Irish lass just as long as an Irish lad. And I really never call guys "cute--" I just thought it was a pretty funny quote. :) 

salt & straw. and other random portland things.

 

Do you like ice cream? Mm, me too. Pretty much every single kind out there, with the exceptions of Green Tea (bleh) and Pistachio (meh).

I'm an Oregon girl. More specifically, a Portland-er. (okay, so I don't actually live in Portland, but I'm about 1/2 hour away). If you don't know Portland, it's a beautiful urban city; very 'green,' very hip, and very health-oriented. Seriously, in the City of Roses (because yes, we're known for those, too), if you bike to work and shop at Whole Foods Market, you are majorly awesome.

One of the things I love about Portland are all the small, crazy cool yummy places. Oh, and I forgot to mention: for a foodie business, crafting local + being utterly unique = win. We have tons of little French-ish cafes, cozy bakeries, and, of course, creameries.  Like Salt & Straw.

This is a pretty random post, because for starters, I haven't even been to Salt & Straw.  But I saw an ad for it the other day, and was thinking, "Oh my goodness, this place looks amazing--" and then I realized it was right in my own homecity! So I thought I would post about it and file it under the categories of "filling you in about my home" and "things I love." A.k.a., "Portland," and "ice cream."

  

Salt & Straw is a pretty amazing ice creamery located in uptown Portland, Oregon. As I said above--I've never been there. But listen to this and gaze with me upon these pictures, and I think you will agree that this place should be on mine and your's "places-I-wanna-go" Pinterest boards. 

For starters, the ice cream is crazy, yet delicious--or so I've heard. I mean, here are some of the flavors:

Oregon Kiss

Ocumare Single Origin Chocolate

Catalonian Breakfast

Pear with Blue Cheese (not too sure about this one..)

Arbequina Olive Oil

Sumptown Coffee Cold-Brewed with Cocoa Nibs

Chocolate with Gooey Brownies

Lemon Basil Sorbet

Honey Balsamic Strawberry with Cracked Pepper

Double Fold Singing Dog Vanilla

Sea Salt Ice Cream with Caramel Ribbon 

Melon with Coppa

..and the list goes on. Apparently, Salt & Straw's ice cream is made with 17% Butterfat (helloooo calories!), churned with care "to be sure very little air is let in to ensure a nice bite," and kept low on sweetening "so the flavors can shine through." And listen what they do to ensure the caramel in "Caramel Ribbon" is amazing:

To take the edge off a bit, we've spent hours

over a hot stove perfectly burning caramel

for the sweet + salty combo that

you can't have just one lick of.

Um, yum. 

 

 

I guess all that needs to happen now is me visiting the place of glory. What flavor would you pick--or, more dramatically--what flavor will you pick when you come visit me and we go to Salt & Straw for reals?  ;) I'm thinking Big Hibiscus Sherbet or Grandma Malek's Almond Brittle with Salted Ganache. :] 

So there you have it. A little bit of Portland for ya. And just in the spirit of educating my readers about the places and spaces where I abide (because I am really and truly a real person and not just a blogging robot, in case you wondered), and in case there are some trivia geeks among us, here a few of my personal goods and bads about Portland.

The Good:

The gorgeous gardens. >> We have many--the Rose Garden, which absolutely stunning during rose season, and definitely one of our trademarks, the Japanese Gardens, etc.

The many running/walking/hiking paths. >> Portland is quite literally a city in the woods. There is city, and then, out of the blue, there are...woods. Trails are numerous, and I like that.

The coffee shops. >> I don't spend much time in these, due to lack of funds and the state of being, currently, a non-coffee drinker (though I do like it), but we have tons of cute ones. :)

The Bad:

Portland is the Human Trafficking hotspot of the nation. >> Just found this out this year, and believe me, you will never catch me walking around the city alone at night. Eek.

Portland is insanely weird. >> Yup, I wouldn't blame you for seeing hippies waving peace signs and sporting dreadlocks when you think, "Portland." And you will see numerous bumper stickers saying, "Keep Portland Weird!" ..if you ever travel our way. o.O

Portland is insanely and annoyingly liberal. >> 'Nuff said.

---

So. There's my little random post about Salt & Straw and other random Portland things. :) Come and visit me, whydontcha?

-lucia



ps-on second thought, honey balsamic strawberry with cracked pepper looks pretty sweet. wacky but interesting.  i wonder...

resplendent morning.

The day dawns crisp and cold. A slim blanket of snow covers the ground, and the sun shines gently through a wrap of misty fog.

 I blink awake at the sudden brightness, then snuggle deeper in my blanket and stare out at a glimmering winter world. Little spring buds drip beneath their cold dusting. 

Roo reclines on my bed, washing her silken fur. She looks up at me in alarm, startled by my camera's shutter. Perfect timing, cat. 

A waft of deliciousness arises from the kitchen below; crepes frying on a pan. 

The snow slowly melts as the clock ticks, and soon the first of March is no longer sheathed in white. 

Resplendent morning. How I love you. 

pie pops. just because.

Who can resist a little pie on a stick? Mmmhmm. These little guys are some of the easiest, prettiest gifts/treats you can make. I had a blast creating heart-shaped Pie Pops this year in lieu of fancy Valentine gifts, and will most definitely be making them again in the near future. 

Granted, they take a little extra time (think cutting out shapes + carefully laying and pressing), but everyone loves them as gifts, and they would be amazing wedding or party favors. You can fill them with everything from strawberry jam [pictured here] to applesauce and chocolate pudding--or any other pie filling you can think of. 

Recipe, anyone? :] 

BLUEBERRY PIE POPS

2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts [everyone should have a good recipe--if not, look one up!]

• 1/2 cup white sugar, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 1/4 cups blueberries
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon white sugar, for sprinkling
• 16 sturdy cookie pop or lollipop sticks

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Roll out one of the pie crusts to 1/8-inch thick; cut 16 3-inch circles from the crust. Line 16 mini muffin cups in a 24-cup mini muffin pan with the crust circles. Refrigerate to chill, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, roll out the other crust to 1/8 inch thick, and cut out 16 2 1/2-inch circles; lay the 16 circles onto the prepared baking sheet, and refrigerate.
3. Mix together the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon zest, and cornstarch in a bowl. Stir in the blueberries, and toss lightly to coat with the sugar mixture. Whisk the egg in a small separate bowl. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of blueberry mixture into each crust-lined muffin cup (don't overfill). Place a cookie pop stick horizontally into the filled pop so the end sticks out by several inches. With a pastry brush, dab a little beaten egg evenly around the edge of the filled crust; place a 2 1/2-inch top crust circle onto the filled crust, and pinch edges together to seal in the filling and close the crust around the stick. With a toothpick, poke 3 or 4 steam holes into the top crust. Brush top of each pie pop with beaten egg, and sprinkle with sugar.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the tops are golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before gently removing from muffin tin cups. To help pops release, run a small knife around the edges and under stick.

Enjoy, friends. Yes, I made mine with wooden shish-kabob sticks (only because I didn't have plastic ones on hand) but I would not reccomend doing this. For one, you CANNOT put wood in the oven, so I had to make holes in my pies and stick them in later. This provided for somewhat loose pie pops with their sticks almost slipping out, which wasn't too fun, but I made the best of it. 

Just for future reference. I like it when people can learn from my mistakes. :]

♥♥♥,

lucia 

ps~ want something extra to read? i guest posted yesterday here. 

ich liebe.

I've been a little MIA around here for a few days--can you guess why? Hints: paper, sums, Civil War library books, Moby Dick..

Uh-huh. School + everything else that fills up my life has been doing just that--filling it up. But here I am again, and in the spirit of upcoming Valentine's Day (which is a favorite holiday of mine), and just to be spontaneously random, I thought I would share with you some of the things I love. 

So. Things I'm loving this week? 

>>lowercase letters. i know it's being spoiled, but it's just so easy to forget CAPS and start lovin' lowercase.  iadoreyoulowerletters! 

>>pinterest. umm...can someone say DOUBLE LOVE?! i have been having so much fun on my pinterest--that place is literally a treasure trove of eye candy and inspiration. i think my fingers are getting tired of typing, "LOVE!" "::FAINT::," "GASP," and "WANT." all the time...

>>paris. okay, so i'm far from a globe trotter, but i think i've been bitten by the travel bug (thanks, pinterest). and i am certain as ever that i want the eiffel and cobbled streets to be in my future. 

>>newborn photography. i know from recent experiance that babies = extremely hard to capture. but i am adoring all of the newborn photog ideas i am suddenly discovering all over. how cute is that ^ boots idea? 

>>amazing dresses. okay, with me, this is always a love, but i have discovered tons of utterly incredible fashion masterpieces this week, and I just had to share this ^ one. okay, ladies, gasp, please. THAT. SKIRT. EQUALS. LOVE. 

>>solitude. sometimes it's nice just be quiet. peaceful. stop the chattering--and even the thinking. favorite verse for this week? 

"Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." 

(Psalm 46:10)

>>wedding cakes. okay, i'm a little far from matrimony at this point, but one is never to young to admire wedding cakes, right? this ^ one is gorgeous. 

>>swings. i have always loved them. and always will. speaking of amazing dresses...pardon me while i gasp at the pinkness and fairytale-ish-ness and enchantment. 

>>sunlight. here in the northwest, you lean to treasure the sun. this past week has been a gorgeous indian summer, with skies of azure and weather mild. it's reminded me of how much i love the sunlight, and how much i miss warmth. 

>>plans. i've had some fun plans this week, ranging from dates with friends to movie nights and blog post inspirations. i love lists, so here's a sort of program for what is (hopefully) coming up this week at lucia, etc. 

-two giveaways (yes!)

-february photo challenge (calling all photogs!)

-creative Scarf Tying tutorial (better late than never, right?)

-a valentine photo shoot (mm-hmm..)

-DIY Apple Pie Pops (double yes.) 

So, there you have it. Some of my "Ich Liebe" 's for this week. What are your's?

-lucia

-all images via pinterest-

first snow.

[click for larger view]

Oh, how I love a first snow. Fresh, clean, new, white, crisp--there is nothing more cozy or thrilling than waking in the morning to snowflakes raining from the heavens, gathering on the ground and embellishing the trees.

Snow. One of God's finest, most beautiful creations. And this northwestern girl and her camera aren't taking any of it for granted. Winter just doesn't seem like winter without it.

Have you seen snow yet this year?

-lucia

// all photos copyright 2012 l.m.m. - please do not use without permission. //