stinkerpants design

My husband and friends all seem to think I’m a total freak of nature, just because of my slightly abnormal water receptacle.  Yes, it’s true: it’s not your average water bottle, but it is superior in so many ways, people.  Seriously.

So here’s the deal: I have a tendency to be a bit of a klutz.   I am constantly knocking things over, which is why it’s good for me to drink out of a water bottle–otherwise, I end up with water all over my desk, the couch, or myself.

I used to use a Nalgene or simply refill old bottles.  Bad idea–we’ve all heard about the risks of BPA (although Nalgene now makes BPA-free bottles).  Because Y is pretty aware of environmental and health risks associated with chemicals (we’re both hippies, but he also happens to frequent digg.com), he knew a long time ago that we shouldn’t be using plastic bottles.

So he ran out and bought us some BPA-free metal bottles from Klean Kanteen.  I hated them, though.  I know I’m going to sound like a lazy SOB, but I hate how long it takes to unscrew the cap!  Plus, I am convinced that the water tastes kind of like tin (Y insists that I made that up, but what does he know?!  He adds three drops of mint extract to his water, which would mask the tin taste anyway!).

My solution was to find a glass water bottle.  Glass is safe to drink out of, and I’m absolutely convinced that water tastes better out of glass than any other type of container.  So I did some research.

I fell in love with these beautiful glass water bottles, made by an Italian company.  They look plastic, but they’re actually glass!

Unfortunately, I’ve seen these in person, and the glass is pretty thin.  I was paranoid that I’d break it–after all, these ain’t cheap.

Then I discovered the Love Bottle, made here in San Francisco.  At first I wasn’t too wild about these because they aren’t exactly my style, but they’ve been coming out with more styles recently.  They also have plain bottles.

I found the bottle of my dreams, though, in a surprising place: Ikea!  These glass water bottles are big (meaning I don’t have to refill it five times a day) and they’re thick (meaning I’m more likely to break the tile in the kitchen than the bottle itself–not that I’ve tried it).  And on top of that, they are cheap.  At $2.99 each, I bought four, just in case one of my family members wanted one.

Unfortunately they all think I’m crazy.  They claim my bottle is “too heavy” and “breakable.”  I say they’re jealous.  My water tastes way better than theirs.

Prior to our wedding, Y and I had two vacuums: one was a 20 year old hand-me-down canister from his parents, and the other was a cheap upright vacuum from Target that I bought and loved.  I am the vacuumer (is that a word?  If not, it totally should be!) in our family, and I refused to use the canister because it was such a pain in the neck and it spit dust out the back.  I’d heard wonderful things about the Dyson, but I wasn’t about to give up my vacuum.  It was two years old and perfectly fine, thankyouverymuch.

Until it broke.

Well, technically, it caught on fire and I was terrified to plug it in again, so I’m not entirely sure it was broken.

In any event, I wanted a new vacuum.  We did some research and added Dyson’s “the Animal” to our wedding registry, hoping someone would get it for us in the next week (with four cats and a dog, I have to vacuum a lot).  Obviously, no one wanted to buy us a $400 vacuum 6 months before our wedding (or ever, as it turned out).  So we bought it ourselves, hoping some super rich member of our extended family would take pity on us and eventually get it for us.

This vacuum is so much better than I ever thought it would be.

It. is. amazing.

It seriously sucks up a TON of dust and cat hair.  The dust is actually what amazes me most, because most vacuums can clean up cat hair.  After I vacuum each week, there’s about an inch of dust at the bottom of the canister thing.  It’s both fabulous and disgusting.  Here I am with my vacuum on our first day together:

The vacuum is also really easy to empty: I just take it right outside, hold it over the garbage can, and push one button.

I love it.  It’s definitely one of my favorite things!

Whoo, it’s been awhile since I did a “Favorite Things,” hasn’t it?!  Well, here is another one of my favorite things, courtesy (once again) of my friend Sarah.

When I first started cooking, Sarah told me about this magazine and let me borrow a few of her old copies.  HOLY MOLY.  The recipes in here are fantabulous.  Furthermore, every issue teaches you about a different type of food and a different type of kitchenware.  I feel my brains expanding everytime I read one, let me tell you.  Most of the recipes are healthy (with the exception of the dessert section), and I haven’t had one yet that was less than 90% tasty.

I got a free subscription for reviewing a few of my vendors on WeddingWire (which I happily would have done anyway!), but I will definitely renew my subscription when the free one ends.  Highly recommended!

What?  You didn’t know I was gone?  That’s because I packed in a frenzy and didn’t have time to blog.  I was so busy before I left!

Where did I go?  I went to Oregon for five days.

Why did I go to Oregon?  I went to Oregon because I bought this:

(photo source)

It goes without saying that this is my new Favorite Thing.

In theory, I didn’t need to go to Oregon to buy the brand-spanking-new Mac Pro with a 27″ Dell monitor.  However, I sold my old computer to my dad, so it made the most sense to transfer data at their house and not spend an arm and a leg shipping everything.  Plus, I got to see my parents!

So, about my new computer.

I. am. thrilled.  This computer goes above and beyond anything I could have hoped for.  And I can’t even tell you how much easier my life is now that I have 27″ to spread my work across, versus the 20″ iMac I was using before.  Love. It.

The only thing I had a problem with was the monitor.  I can’t afford an Apple cinema display (I paid $544 for the Dell monitor, which was a major deal Y found on slickdeals.net).  A comparable cinema display (30″) would be $1799.  Uh, yeah.  No.

I have been a Mac girl since birth, basically (at least, if they’d had them when I was born, I totally would have had one).  My family’s first computer was the Mac LCII.  In high school I got a used Mac Classic (ie, the first Mac ever born).  We replaced the LCII with a Quadra 604.  Since then I’ve had three iMacs, an iBook, a Powerbook and a Macbook.  Needless to say, I am faithful to Apple.

So when I decided to buy the Dell monitor, I felt like kind of a traitor.  Especially when I set it up and saw a big, unfriendly black monitor staring back at me.  And the Dell logo?  Don’t even get me started.  It was just so…unhappy!  I’m used to staring at this all day:

Crisp, clean, and…happy.

So I decided to do something about my unfriendly monitor.  I created a frame for it using plexiglass and patterned paper.  So now, this is what I look at all day:

Happy, right?!  And thus, I am happy.

After the wedding, my skin started to break out.  Badly.  When I got off birth control pills to help my migraines, it got even worse.  I went to the dermatologist, who prescribed me antibiotics and a bunch of topical stuff.  Then she told me not to get pregnant, because my child would be so horrifically deformed I’d need an abortion.

Yikes.

I am of the opinion that if something that could do that to a fetus, it probably isn’t good for me, either.  And what happens if I accidentally get pregnant?  I don’t want to abort it!  I would like to keep that child (even though I don’t really want kids right now), thankyouverymuch.  So I didn’t fill any of the prescriptions and continued to be depressed by my acne.

About a month and a half ago, I finally decided I needed a major intervention and I didn’t care how much it cost me (well–within reason).  I went to a skin care clinic called Trio Skincare, which was recommended in an online forum.  They put me on a line of natural skincare products (Rhonda Allison), which was something I’ve been wanting to do anyway after learning that there are a lot of nasty chemicals in skincare products.

One of the other things they recommended was the Clarisonic brush.  At first I thought it might be a gimmick, but it’s one of the Best of Sephora products, one of Oprah’s favorite things, and has tons of positive reviews on both Amazon and Sephora.com.  I decided that it probably wasn’t a gimmick, but I didn’t have a bunch of extra money lying around to spend on something that washes my face for me, when my hands are perfectly capable.

I used the Rhonda Allison products for about three weeks without the brush.  My skin started to improve, but not super dramatically.  I hadn’t stopped thinking about the brush.  I started researching it a bit more thoroughly, trying to decide if it was worth the money (it retails for $195).

Once I saw that it has a satisfaction guarantee, I decided to fork over the money and get it (I got it on Amazon through a third-party seller for about $20 less–just look at their marketplace).  Besides, 257 5 star reviews on Sephora can’t be wrong, right?  I figured it was worth a shot.

I have to say, I am very impressed.  I love it.  I use it twice a day, and my skin has improved at a much faster rate since I got it.  I use it with the skincare line I was already using (in an effort to avoid those chemicals), and my skin is much softer.   The acne is going away, too.  According to Trio Skincare, the brush sloughs off all the extra dead cells, so the products you use absorb a lot better and work a lot better.

I love it so much, I recommended it to my mom–she just went out and bought one herself!

I know this is an expensive item, but I really love it.  It was worth every penny.

I would most definitely create a teapot to match our wedding china.  It’s the “Gwinnett Lane Crème” Collection from Lenox, designed by Kate Spade.  I adore it.  As a matter of fact, it’s one of my Favorite Things.

Can you imagine the magnificence that would be a matching teapot?

Maybe one day Kate will google herself (come on, everybody does it!) and come across this post.  Surely she hasn’t thought to make such a teapot, or she would have already done it.  Right?

 Wow, I am having a really hard time focusing today.  I feel like I had too much caffeine or something!  I have a list of about 10 things I’m really excited to, but I keep jumping from one thing to the next.  I must have said, “I should update my blog!” to myself about five times by now, but I keep getting distracted.

I know my Favorite Things has been dominated by kitchen-related items, but it’s because we’re having the kitchen done and I’m really loving kitchens right now (I swear I do like other things!).  Besides, maybe this will help some of you with your registries?  :)

Once again thanks to Sarah, I have something I use almost every day:

It’s Cuisinart’s Mini Prep.  I also have the big 11-cup food processor, but I don’t use that one as often because there are more parts to clean.  This baby is $50 (but I got it on sale for $24!) and is very easy to clean.  It’s perfect for chopping onions, garlic, parsley, etc.  I heart it!

I have been cooking a lot of soup recently.  Partly, it’s because it’s been soup weather.  I’m also not quite sure what to do with some of the items in our CSA box except make soup.  I intend to get more creative when the kitchen is done.

But I digress.

I’ve been using this wonderful piece of kitchen equipment at least 3 times a week since I got it:

It’s the le Creuset 4 Quart French oven (in Kiwi).

I did a lot of research before we decided to get the le Creuset (that is, register for it).  Martha Stewart makes one that looks very similar, and it’s basically a quarter of the price.  I just looked it up on macys.com and it’s on closeout!  So if you want to buy a Martha Stewart one, now’s a good time.  I decided against the Martha Stewart dutch oven for two reasons:

1. It just didn’t seem quite as nice.  The le Creuset would last forever, but the Martha Stewart one?  Probably not.  I’m all for creating less waste, so I’d rather spend the extra money now on something I’m not going to replace.  Plus I like the idea of an heirloom pot.  Yes, I know this is weird.
2. The le Creuset makes me feel special.  I love it.

I’m not going to lie: this sucker is expensive.  It has a lifetime guarantee, though.  Also, I’ve heard you can sometimes find them at TJ Maxx for much cheaper.  I’ve looked around periodically to add to my collection, but I haven’t had much luck.

Thanks to Y’s Aunt Linda for getting us the le Creuset off our registry!

My friend Sarah tells me about many things.  Especially cooking related things, because I’m still pretty much clueless in that arena.  I asked my friends to share their favorite cooking gadgets, and Sarah responded with this gem:

It’s the Microplane!  Image from here.

It’s a zester, it’s a grater…it’s wonderful.   It grates parmesan fluffier and faster than anything I’ve ever experienced.  I tell you, people, get one.  I thought, “what the heck am I going to use that for?!”  But I use it all the time.

I got mine from Macy’s online, but I’ve also seen them at Cost Plus World Market and Crate and Barrel.

Happy New Year, everybody!!

This time of year, I really like tea.  Like, a lot.  I like to make drinking it special, with pretty teacups, loose tea and my favorite personal-size tea pot.  I really, really love this tea pot:

image from here

It’s made by Bee House, and I got it from a place online called the Tea Table. I bought it well over a year ago (maybe even two years ago!) and I still haven’t forgotten the excellent customer service I received from Lori, the owner.  I’d order from her again in a heartbeat, and I really loved the tea samples I got there, too.  I’m still opening and enjoying new packets.  I have a LOT of tea (Y used to work for Cost Plus’ corporate office, and we got a great discount and a lot of samples), so I haven’t had a need to go back…but I digress.

Back to the tea pot.

There are a lot of imitations of Bee House design now.  I find myself feeling pretty protective of the real Bee House, especially considering the imitations aren’t as good of quality and they’re the same price.  Buy Bee House, people.  They come in all different sizes, and I want a bigger one so I can have my girlfriends over for tea.  Not that I ever do that, but if I had the tea pot, I totally would.  Right?  ;)

When I bought my tea pot, I also bought this adorable cup (it says “tea” on the side!):

image from here

I didn’t just run across Bee House in a store.  A few years ago, Y and I took a cross-country roadtrip, and we stayed at an awesome bed and breakfast in New Hampshire called the Silver Fountain Inn.  It was the best B&B either of us had ever stayed in, and the owner had Bee House teapots for each room.  I fell in love and googled “Bee House” as soon as we got back to California.

In other news, I’m looking for a fancy tea pot to match our wedding china.  Anybody seen anything to match this:

?? It’s Kate Spade’s Gwinnett Lane in Creme.

Who else loves tea?