My favorite Memorial Day...

Memorial Day is a time of remembrance.   What originally started as a way to honor those who died in the Civil War has expanded to include remembrance and honor of all those who serve in our Armed Forces – past and present. 

For many, this long weekend has become a time to spend with family, entertain, catch up on yard work or even shop at one of the many sales that will take place.   All some of my favorite activities, but a few years ago, I was on a trip to the DC area and had the honor of attending the National Memorial Day Concert.  This is truly a memorable experience that I recommend highly if you are in the DC area on Memorial Day weekend.  Since then, I have made it a point to watch the concert on my local PBS and this Sunday evening will be no exception.  What a wonderful tribute to those who have served – and died – for our country!

Looking back from our sidewalk seat!

A peak at the stage as they set up

If you look closley you can see the soldier playing "Taps" at the end

In the midst of your weekend, how will you take time to remember those who have so faithfully served the people of the United States?

Recipe Review - I think I'm Italian now!

I love to cook – I think that’s why I love to design kitchens… it’s more than making it a beautiful space, but a well functioning place to BE that encourages good food and fosters those relationships in our lives that takes a structure we call a house and makes it a home.

I’m also a big fan of Bon Appetit, and this weekend I took on a new recipe in the May issue “The Italy Issue” and was not disappointed!  The recipe was the “Classic Ragu’ Bolognese” – can you say the ultimate Italian comfort food?  This recipe is easy but it does take time for it all to come together, so while I do think any cooking level could do it, it cannot (and should not) be rushed!  The layers of flavor are smooth, comforting and just get better with each step of the process.

In addition to the sauce, I made my pasta noodles (a recipe I’ve sort of developed on my own from several tries using a multitude of pasta recipes that didn’t work quite right for me – this one was perfect, although it did make a little more pasta than I needed for this recipe – here’s a few pictures of my recipe adventure!

drying the cut pasta

Fresh pasta added to the classic ragu bolognese

A quick peek at the finished product, ready for good friends and conversation!  We served it with a simple caesar salad and garlic bread and then paired it with Washington State wine from Long Shadows Wineries  called “Saggi” - a velvety, smooth super tuscan that was the perfect pairing for this dish.   Dessert was a homemade (not by me) Lemon Basil sorbet and the perfect end to the meal!

Whether you tackle the homemade pasta or not, I hope you will gather some friends and try out this keeper from Bon Appetit!

edited to include the link to the recipe on the Bon Appetit site!  click here  "Classic Ragu' Bolognese"

A Simple Solution

A guest room can often be a place that you don't want to spend alot of your decorating budget... but you still want it to look welcoming and "put together".  Last week I made a headboard with just a few supplies... they almost didn't fit in the car!!

Along with a large space and a stable gun...

carefully glued the 2" foam to the board and the wrapped it in batting - pulling it tight....

so that it would create a nice soft place to land.

Then wrapped it in the suede like black fabric from Robert Allen - again pulling it tight and finishing it off with some covered buttons (they are hard to see in this picture!).

Here it is all installed... it's a trundle bed and can be converted to a king bed.

Stay tuned for new portfolio pictures of the completed space!!