TOWN | CHINESE NEW YEAR

this weekend we went to the chinese new year parade in flushing, queens, which is home to one of the largest chinese and east asian populations in nyc. just a short subway ride away, 2012 is the year of the dragon and the parade was great with lots of color, traditional costume, marching bands and fireworks.

but, the parade was not the best part of the visit. the seafood markets & ethnic food there are incredible! it's like going to a different world as most things are not in english and we found an enormous supermarket with all kinds of asian food products like pocky. we will definitely be going back to try and figure out what's what very soon.

the steamed pork dumplings in the new world mall food court were delicious and we brought home a dozen crabs to cook for charlie for his superbowl celebration and a celebration it was, indeed. thank you new york giants for winning the big one. make 2012 the year of the giant dragon :).

xo, cindy

ps love this new song from kathleen edwards and her sweet, sweet voice.

life | bits & bobs

it's a nice day when i take a few minutes to make a proper cup of tea in the spirit of downton abbey (are you watching?). my favorite these days is the little dickens blend from bellocq with milk & honey.

i think my dentist & his wife are lonely because they keep having me come back for the slightest thing. it's trouble because on the way home i always stop to get something at a bakery like this chocolate peppermint cupcake from sprinkles.

brooklyn art library is so tempting for a collector who loves office supplies like this irresistible scotch tape dispenser, which seems right at home with our collection of red & white smalls.

enjoy the day!

xo, cindy

ps i've been meeting so many people who have known scott's father charlie for years and they all tell me what a great man he is. it's been tough going with him lately, so that's pretty awesome.

pics | 365 at home

kiki and polly print.

breakfast of champions in our place.

a freebie flower from kate spade.

scott's new (fancy) slippers from ll bean. charlie got a pair, too.

green tea ice cream with whipped cream, chocolate sauce and a cherry - ok.

today is the 277th day of the year, leaving just 88 days remaining and in my 365-project. hur-ray! if anyone would like to try this kind of project, my advice would address the most challenging part of it for me - numbering. i number the photos sequentially and somehow have missed count on two occasions, which is not a walk in the park to correct. so, i would suggest using the date, instead. today is 10-4, ok.

xo, cindy

fun | brooklyn flea+

we went to brooklyn flea in williamsburg last sunday to check out the vintage & handmade sellers, and although super-windy & chilly, it was a lot of fun. it's located on the east river and has such a great view of the city and really good food to boot - best lobster roll ever w/butter vs. mayo from red hook lobster.


isn't this portable desk cool? the flea market will be at this outdoor location throughout the summer and i'm sure we'll go back, often.


we didn't buy much (this time), but took home the letter Q and a hankie to replace the one i recently lost.


while there, we lounged around with our posse for an impromptu photo shoot. not.


and, saw some chalk board art in the neighborhood. i was tempted to erase clara in put in cindy, but i'm not bad in that way.

i've definitely fallen off my three-day a week posting schedule, but i'm not going to apologize because i don't like when bloggers feel they should do so. it's supposed to be fun, just like the weekend. i wouldn't mind a repeat of the last one. enjoy yours!

xo, cindy

life | happy valentine's day

hello, hello! we have a special food for flowers program this year for valentine's day. scott brings flowers by nicolette camille, i provide the food and then i eat it. no, i'm kidding about the last part, although i did eat that cookie. i'm supposed to make dinner, but i did that last night, so reservations sound better. enjoy your valentine's day, hope it's a happy one!

xo, cindy

ps we watched the grammy's last night and had a play by play going on twitter. there were some unexpected winners, but it would have been better if more of my favorites were nominated like jason spooner. he's terrific and you can have a listen here.

fun | plan b

hello, hello! sometimes, you have to go with plan b. scott really wanted to visit the new italian market called eataly on labor day, but it was closed. so, we went to shake shack across the street and there was no line, which is rare.

cheeseburger, french fries and a chocolate shake - yum.

saw some tennis on the big screen in madison square park, which reminded us of michelle & her husband who were in town to actually go to the open and were nice enough to let us drag them around the day before.

headed down to union square we noticed a tag reminding us of where we were.

flowers at the farmer's market - yeah!

so many to choose from.

nice fruit and an almost really nice photo, but the arm got in the way. my bad.

some fresh veggies make a nice dinner by scott with my favorite maine root soda. yes, plan b was pretty good. hope you had a nice weekend!

xo, cindy

life : morning time

album : normal as blueberry pie from nellie mckay
her charming tribute album to the charming doris day

hello, hello! they say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. with an italian orange from charlie combined with creamy ricotta cheese & honey on an english muffin you can't go wrong. well, when it comes to taste - not sure it's healthy. pretty easter flowers from my brother made it even better. this was my first attempt at photo-styling in almost a month. i thought i might have lost my mojo for good. i guess it is true about having a good breakfast. what about you? quick coffee on the go or a proper breakfast?

xo, cindy

ps although charlie was born in nyc 87 years ago, he took the subway for the first time, yesterday. never too late to try something new, but i think he got lost. oy!

fun : scott likes it!

songs : jet airliner by steve miller band - awesome!
true by spandau ballet - i love him anyway & at least their british!

hello, hello! i thought it was time to create a post full of things scott likes. now, simon cowell might say this post is 'self-indulgent,' but i certainly hope it won't be 'utterly forgettable.' can you imagine someone saying that to you in front of millions of people? scott was born and raised in new york city, so lets see some things he likes about it here. when i took the photo of his shadow above he was like 'look at me, i'm a giant, take my picture.' i did, but he's 6' tall and a giant to many as it is. enjoy your week. can you believe it's almost easter? happy passover to those who celebrate.

xo, cindy


yums.


picking up sweets for his sweetie, me!


great landmarks ;).


cool cars and his own in the reflection on the right.


flowers in unusual places.


and other interesting things if you notice.


family traditions. scott's family has been working with lore decorators for years through their furniture business and he would go to papaya king (hot dogs) with his grandpa for breakfast. we still go to both places.


free things, especially if they make me super-happy. the windows of kate spade were recently covered in pinwheels. so cool. i saw some little girls with them around and realized the next day you could take one home. i did and it's pink!


indoors at the movies and outdoors in the park, where they also show movies in the summer. i've missed a few things like coffee, coffee, coffee, but there's always another post!

life : ode to my dentist

video : crooked teeth by death cab for cutie

hi all! i feel like i've been mia this week as it's been blah to put it nicely. there were a few highlights starting out with an inquiry from someone interested in purchasing a butterfly garland and a mention as inspiration in rashida's i love patchwork book for the fabric flowers i made last year.

the photo is dedicated to my dentist. i went to see him on tuesday with what i thought was going to be a simple issue. turns out, he thinks i should have a tooth pulled and was ready to send me right over to the oral surgeon. just like that! it takes me a month to prepare for a haircut! after some tears, i said no way and let's try some meds to see if it will feel better, especially those pretty pink & blue antibiotics. his wife is the office manager and i asked her if she ever had a tooth pulled. she told me yes, 1-2-3-4-5! whoa, she needs a new dentist. can you imagine the conversation if she got one -

dr. h: 'your teeth look different'.
mrs. h: ''i'm sorry, but i've been seeing another dentist. i love you dearly, but couldn't loose one more tooth!"

combined with an extended period of analysis paralysis at work, hormonal tidal waves, rain and who knows what else, i've had no energy. but, i do have energy to enjoy some candy with thoughts of my dentist running through my head. don't those red flowers look like bristles? enjoy your weekend and don't forget to brush!

xo, cindy

ps i missed out on the liberty for target pop-up shop, which sold out in two days. snap!

fun : saturday in the city

video : paris nights/new york mornings by corinne bailey rae

the beautiful weather lately is perfect for wandering around the city. on saturday, we went to soho to pick-up a marble pastry board that turned out to be too heavy to take home on the train, but there were plenty of other things to keep us busy.


looking up to see structures that seem to fit together like puzzles.



a favorite local spot for lunch/coffee across the street from purl patchwork, which is where scott usually waits for me. that's not him, but some other dude.

noticing natural elements creatively used, especially the cork heart.



a shop called dosa was the highlight. wow. the handmade clothes are beautiful and delicate. i loved this wall of hearts, which is about 12' high x 20' long completely covered in strands of handmade hearts suspended on wires. incredible.


duct tape in kate spade and handball through a chain link fence create two types of barriers. i hope you had a nice weekend. did you watch the oscars? i thought steve and alec were great and i loved all those ruffly dresses. i was surprised the hurt locker won best picture, but it was very good. intense to say the least. enjoy your week!

xo, cindy

fun : i won!

video(s) : winter winds by mumford & sons.
i love country winston (brown coat) who plays a mean banjo.

hope you all had a nice weekend! cassie of clementine bestowed upon me the kreativ blogger award last week and it's pretty great. so, here are seven things you might not know about me, although it was hard as i'm such an open book ;) -

1. we don't own a microwave or dishwasher. there's just no room for them in our kitchen, so we are patient and wash the dishes ourselves.
2. sometimes, i listen to my i-pod while watching tv, including american idol.
   
3. i have a really hard time making a decision. i blame it on being a libra, but it's probably more to do with a fear of making the wrong one.
4. when our fish rocky died a couple of years ago, we couldn't stand the idea of flushing him down the toilet. burying him in the ground seemed bizarre. instead, we put him in a small container with some water and froze him (less bizarre?). we thought we were so crazy, but apparently many people do the same thing.
5. even if i'm in my pjs all day, i'll be sure to shower and get fixed up before scott gets home.
   
6. until i get to know you, i'm very shy in person. email and the internet have definitely been my saviors when it comes to meeting new people.
7. i'm determined (stubborn) when i set my mind to doing something like getting that darn egg to look like a darn heart and taste darn good - see here.
   

ok, enough about me. how about seven unknown things from krissy, jamie, ms. line, meg, michelle, pascale & shari? you are now at least one time kreative blog award winners, so come on up and keep in mind that the band is warming up to take us to a commercial. enjoy your week!

xo, cindy

ps we made shrimp and corn chowder with fennel from a recipe in real simple magazine this weekend and it was delicious. the fennel adds such a nice flavor.