I know I've been awful about posting. The pregnancy had me busy and then Charlie got very, very sick, but my hope is that I can post more regularly now! Enjoy the weekend, everyone!

Comfy Street Style on LA Cool & Chic/ Dining Room Dresser Makeover Inspo at House & Home Canada/ Pastel Assortment of Donuts on Tumblr/ Dining Room Rug Inspiration at Design Sponge/ Doubled-up Braid on Pinterest/ Gorgeous Bathtub Caddy on Scout Mob/ Geometric Art on Design Inspiration

An elegant take on Halloween via Daniella Marie/ Baked Sweet Potato Chips from Sweet Pea's Kitchen/ Bowtie Manicure at Makeup.com/ Denim-on-denim shoe inspiration on They All Hate Us/ Metal Chair Makeover via Whipperberry/ DIY Hair Accessory Inspo at Ban.do/ Oatmeal Recipes on Babble

Easy Fall Updo via Refinery 29/ Feminine Leather Gloves from Kate Spade/ Gold Painted Tree Stumps on Shelterness/ Skinny Raspberry Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins from Sally's Baking Addiction/ Hitchcock Heroine Eyes via Makeup.com/ Chunky Jewels from Bauble Bar/ Industrial Lighting Inspiration on Apartment Therapy

DIY confetti dipped balloons from Studio DIY/ Kitchen table makeover inspo at Design Milk/ Mirrored pink glasses at Need Supply Co./ How-to DIY gold dot decals by Lauren Conrad/ DIY art inspo at Simply Seductive/ Gluten free bruschetta cheat from Savoring the Thyme/ Metallic Midi Skirt by Proenza Schouler via Style

Fab cashmere cape on Gal Meets Glam/Amaze colorblock look at the Monique Lhuillier S/S 2013 show at MBFW via Women's Wear Daily/ Skinny Mini Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins at Skinny Taste/ Vinyl Anchors + Gold tub inspo from Etsy/ Midi Pencil Skirt + Tee on Pinterest/  Green Shadow via Keiko Lynn/ B&W Kitchen on Tumblr

Rachel Comey booties on Oh Mai Darling/ Kitchen redo inspiration from Chatelaine/ Frozen Strawberry Crunch Cake at tablespoon/ Helpful hints on baking pies from Cupcakes and Cashmere/ Oversized flag in a hallway from tumblr/ Baby North West is absolutely beautiful on E! Online/ House of Harlow Safety pin earrings on Shopbop

Lots of updates queued up for next week! Fall fashion and room remodels and vacations, oh my!

Spring has sprung, folks! Here are seven more reasons that this week can be awesome!

I am loving this credenza found in LonAnne's house tour at Design Sponge. I think I'll be buying some spray paint this week and getting some pops of color of my own.

This sleek and modern guest house is actually a converted storage container. Oh, the things I could do with unlimited funds.

Artist Jillian Tamaki was commissioned to make these amazing Penguin Classics covers. Hand-embroidered, they capture the style of each of the texts perfectly. Do. Need.

It makes me happier than I can tell you that flare jeans are coming back. So much more flattering than skinnies. Here's a collection of celebs wearing the style, found on WhoWhatWear.

This table I found at Little Green Notebook is exactly what I want for our dining room table. We're thinking maybe next weekend will be the big supply-shopping day.

Basically, my dream house. Ever since I was a little girl I've wanted to live in an English cottage, covered in ivy. Here's a whole post of similar digs.

Trying to eat healthy is hard. Thank goodness for blueberries. I've been obsessed with the super food lately, and am more than interested in testing out this Blueberry Oatmeal Grape-Nuts Cookies over at Serious Eats.

Where: Toast (3157 Broadway -- between 125 and LaSalle)
Fare: American Traditional

Photo courtesy of Toast

Located just down the street from our apartment on Broadway, Toast drew us in immediately with its open floor plan and casual decor. It's the kind of place where you feel comfortable having a hungover brunch in a t-shirt or on a casual date with your boo.

Photo courtesy of Toast

The decor is casual and inviting, with lofted ceilings, plenty of inviting seating and a large bar. We've gone here a number of times since we moved into the neighborhood and it's quickly become a favorite. The menu is familiar American fare -- burgers, salads, hot sandwiches and pastas. You can also get breakfast anytime, and the eggs are always on point. The drinks are also a draw. There are 16 beers on tap, about that many in bottles and a score of mixed drinks. Our favorite is the Planter's Punch, a tropical, refreshing, rum-based drink that packs a lot of punch--especially for $7.

This past weekend, Grant, my friend Jonathan and I stopped in for brunch and were impressed again.

I got the Grilled Salmon and Three Eggs, which comes with home fries, toast and homemade tartar sauce. The salmon was flaky and moist, the home fries are the perfect distance between crispy and I'm-actually-just-eating-a-potato and the eggs are AH-MAZ-ING. The whole thing was $9.95. Pretty freaking great.


Jonathan got the Toast Burger. It was pretty good. The bun was a highlight and he couldn't get enough of the chipotle mayo dipping sauce for the fries. At $8.95 he was more than pleased with what he got for his money.

I also recommend the Salmon Burger and the Grilled Shrimp Salad. The service here is always personable and prompt, too. My only negative would be that sometimes the tables are tightly packed together.

God knows I need these little pick-me-ups today more than I have in a good while. It's been a doozy of a week, folks. I apologize for the radio silence, but sometimes life gets in the way of my little online adventures. Thankfully, pretty things and good eats are always there to give a helping hand. Here are some to help get us all through the following seven days.

Water for Elephants is coming to a theater near you soon! I cannot tell you how much I love the book, everything about it (the fated love story that could easily have turned cheesy but always veered toward romantic, the historical setting, the pitch-perfect villain) made me want to read and write and research and go see an elephant. And the film looks absolutely breathtaking. Remember that part in Big Fish that was set at the circus? One of the most beautiful film scenes I've ever viewed--and this movie looks to be like that throughout! So excited!

This little girl's room at Decor8 is would have pretty much been my dream room, except with a bulldog instead of a poodle. Man, I would have promised a lot of good deeds and given up plenty of weekends for that headboard.

I've been meaning to make some homemade granola for more than a year now. Ever since I told Grant how much sugar was in the store-bought stuff I haven't had any--but all of the recipes I've seen weren't chunky enough. Until now. I'm dying to try this Cluster Granola recipe by Melissa from The Traveler's Lunchbox, found at The Kitchn.

A little bit Katharine Hepburn, a little bit Carrie Bradshaw, a little bit Vanessa Hudgens (STOP JUDGING MY DISNEY STYLE ICONS!!!). I'm loving the outfit I found on Beth at B.Jones Style.

Design Sponge did a post about the four-legged companions of design professionals and bloggers, and I cannot get enough of Judah. Perfect name. Perfect mug. I want to snuggle him.

This IKEA hack at Design Sponge. Just two IKEA Rast Dressers, some new hardware and a few pieces of wood, and bingo! A cheap and easy console! I hate to be a copycat but I kind of want one.

Elizabeth Taylor passed away last week. I've got to say, as far as celebrity deaths go, this one hit me harder than most. I've said it time and again, Elizabeth was the most beautiful woman to ever grace this planet. Tirelessly devoted to AIDS research efforts, always fabulously draped in diamonds, constantly marrying different men--the Dame was one-of-a-kind. I mean, she had a Twitter account. But what I loved most about her were her talents as an actress. Her performance in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? both inspired and terrified me when I, too, wanted to act. How could I ever be that committed and freaking amazing. The world lost a good one, but thank god for the invention of the camera. We'll be able to look at that beautiful face forever.

Grant turned 27 and his only request was carrot cake. I chose this recipe because he loves pineapple. If you want to make it yourself, know that it's more the consistency of a zucchini bread. That said, it's  pretty yummy. Drier than a traditional cake, but perfect for a Sunday brunch or for nom-ing on at breakfast throughout the week.

Ingredients (cake and frosting):

1. Cover carrots in water and bring to boil for 10 minutes. 2. Cool (perhaps on a window ledge, like myself). 3.  Mash carrots to a pulp. 4. Cool mashed carrots (try not to drop onto the heads of your neighbors below).

1. Beat eggs. Add vegetable oil, buttermilk, 2 cups white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. 2.  Add flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, All Spice, nutmeg and salt. 3. Add pineapple. 4. Mix in pineapple and carrots. 5. Mix in walnuts.

1. Cover 9"x13" baking pan in butter, then a sprinkle with flour. Shake pan to spread flour evenly. Cover bottom of pan in wax paper, cut to size. 2. Pour batter into pan evenly. 3. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes or until cake is baked through. Cool thoroughly. 4. Flip cake over onto flat surface, then remove wax paper.

 
 

1. Cut cake in even halves. 2. Combine powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, cream cheese and melted butter to make frosting. 3. Spread along top and sides of cake. 4. Place second cake layer on top of frosting. Evenly spread remaining frosting on top and sides of cake.

Happy Birthday, Grant!

 Refrigerate and serve! Decorate however you like!

Where: Café Bagutta (1241 Amsterdam Ave -- between 121 St. & Morningside Dr.) 
Fare:  French-American Bistro 

The first weekend that we lived in the apartment, and had enough free time to actually venture outside of our walls, we decided it was a perfect time to check out brunch spots. Our first try was Café Bagutta, just a few short blocks from our apartment. The decor is inviting enough, with cushy pillow-backed benches and wood chairs that creak just enough to make you feel relaxed.



I ordered the waffles with berries and cream and Grant got one of the sign-board specials -- pancakes, eggs and chorizo. The food itself was pretty good. The waffles were homemade and, delightfully, so was the cream. Honestly, there are few better combos than waffles, berries and cream.



Grant liked his, too. Chorizo is a favorite of ours, but the links were a bit overcooked. The pancakes were nothing to write home about. And, unfortunately, the eggs were a bit runnier than he'd have preferred. That's probably due to the fact that the server forgot to put in the egg order and had to rush to get them out to Grant before we left.

That's where the problems with Café Bagutta come in. The service has been pretty awful both times that we went in (yes, I liked the waffles enough that I went back for more!). We've only been in for Sunday brunch and both times there was only one server working. The place is equipped for probably 20 tables. That's just too much for any one server to give great service to.

So the service wasn't all that great, but if you have a lazy afternoon to spend, I'd recommend grabbing some of those waffles!


Food: 8
Atmosphere: 6
Service: 4

Dreading the week ahead? I have some solace for you!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles found at Our Little Behive. Do. Want.

I'm dying at this Gotham City ring from the Noir Jewelry DC Comics line. I love gunmetal. I love gaudy rings. I love Batman.

Last week's Design Sponge post about Constance Spry, featuring this adorable and inspiring illustration by Julia Rothman.

I have variations on every piece in this outfit found at The Clothes Horse. As soon as the rain stops, I will try the combo out!

This pirate ship room by Kuhl Design Build found on Ohdeedoh.

This wedding favor idea at Once Wed. Free sunglasses AND a caricature without sitting on a nasty stool outside of Central Park? Sweet.

This room I found posted on Wicker & Stitch. Yellow and gray color scheme, tufted velvet couch, Noguchi coffee table, a ridiculous amount of chairs. Lurve.