Top Five Movies: 2012

C: Out of twenty-eight new movies seen this year, five reigned supreme.* In no order of preference:

1. Jiro Dreams of Sushi: Jiro is sweet. Jiro is kind. Jiro is an old man who loves to make sushi in Tokyo. He's the only winner of the Michelin award in a restaurant that doesn't have a bathroom. His apprentice spends over forty-five minutes massaging an octopus for a dish. He's totally devoted to his craft, which is why this is so good.

2. Cabin in the Woods: For one, it's Whedon. And who doesn't love Whedon? And compared to The Avengers, which also came out this year, this is more classic Whedon. Quirky idea, centered on archetypal characters in a comedy-horror genre-bending mash-up.

3. Moonrise Kingdom: I haven't really loved any Wes Anderson film since The Royal Tenenbaums. But this film I loved. What kind of bird are YOU? Also, have you seen our Halloween costumes? Yes, we loved this movie. 

4. Silver Linings Playbook: I was surprised at how emotional this funny and dark film was. Not gloomy. Edgy. A lot of life. Compelling love story.

5. Safety Not Guaranteed: We saw four Mark Duplass movies this year, and this was by far our favorite. Guy posts classified ad that he needs someone to time travel with him. Newspaper reporters decide to investigate. That should be enough for you to see this film.

(*Note, we have not seen Les Miserables, Django Unchained, Beasts of the Southern Wild, and many other films that might have been contenders.)

Color Me Rad 5k

S: Rad. That word has definitely made a comeback this year, right? I remember in the 80s when all the older kids would use it, but by the time I teenaged in the 90s, it was a throwback to those past neon, hairspray-full years, and sweet, very, and cool were in. I hope it doesn't make the rounds like deck did in the aughts and then disappear (or maybe that wasn't such a bad thing...). Basically because I adore this old photo I found on Pinterest:

Maybe the resurgence is in small part to the Color Me Rad 5k charity run that's been slowly making its way around the states this year and was finally in Austin this past weekend. My sister and I ran it as part of her birthday weekend celebrations. At different intervals throughout the course, all the runners are bombarded with dyed cornstarch and colored water. I got kapowed with a bunch of blue, which explains my Smurfette-like face below.

 My sister's rad hands

 

Generally a bit radder post-race (note the RAD temporary tattoo)

Sisterly radness

Some words of advice for those considering the run: Keep running at the end! So many color bombs start flying, it's hard to see a few inches in front of your shades. But if you keep moving, everything will be fine.

This and That

Happy Holladays doormat.

Who has the best books covers? (UK versus US edition)

Yoda earflap hat.

Cute hedgehog measuring cups.

Free holiday card printables from Love Vs. Design.

And tags here.

Custom wood recipe box.

Nice thermos.

Gorgeous turquoise chair.

(Image by Alexander Girard)

Christmas Tree Ornaments

S: In years past (due to mostly space issues), we have had a tiny, pathetic, but well-loved Charlie Brown tree. But this year we decided to economize our space and get an actual human-sized green beaut to adore. So, of course, we needed to buy more ornaments because the dozen we had before were not going to do the yuletide trick anymore. Cheery acquisitions:
 

Polka-dot big cat

 Ceramic white whale

 Cozy scarfed snowman

I also love these holiday ornament cards.

And these felt polar bears.

And this love block ornament.

And I still have my eye on this too cute Pollyanna bunny.

Marc Johns: Ampersand Prints

S: Love these ampersand prints by Marc Johns.

(Images via Marc Johns)

Safety Not Guaranteed

S: See it. We loved it. Perfectly awesome indie sci-fi.

Animal Wallpaper Silhouettes

S: Love this lion wallpaper silhouette by Romp. More animals (elephants, ostriches, horses, giraffes!) at the link.

(Image via Romp)

Nasher Sculpture Center

S: Chris and I took a quick detour on our trip to visit family in Dallas on Saturday to visit the Nasher Sculpture Center and play a lightning round of I'm a Statue.

Such a pretty roofless museum.

The Dallas Art Museum is across the street, too, and they have a Posters of Paris exhibit running right now that is quite lovely. (Also, I found out a Cindy Sherman exhibit is running there next March, and I am SUPER stoked. I adore her. When I lived in NYC, I almost splurged on an original print of hers once but decided that it was way too expensive for my grad school budget...but I still regret not buying it! These are the things that haunt you, people.)

Instagram Magnets

S:  Perfect stocking stuffer: StickyGrams (magnets made with Instagram photos).

(Image via StickyGram)

This and That

I made these amazingly simple Nutella cookies last week. (Also, I am loving the Ambitious Kitchen blog in general. So many good treats.)

Ampersand bottle opener.

Cute rabbit holiday card.

This chili looks delicous.

Love these peach polka-dot oxfords.

Excited about this new Thai restaurant opening.

(Image via Pinterest)

Happy Halloween!: This Year and Last

S: Happy Halloween, everyone! This past weekend = awesome. We ended up attending the Texas Book Festival Lit Crawl in East Austin Saturday night with a couple of friends. The best: I loved the Dear Teen Me panel at Pine Street Station where YA authors read letters to their teenage selves, foretelling future awesomeness and mistakes. Sweet and hilarious. Then we trampled through the Texas State Cemetery on the moonlight tour with an estimate 400 other people. (!!!) Our costumes were definitely a hit—I have never received so many compliments before. (Update: Our Suzy Bishop and Sam Shakusky get-ups were featured on both the Huffington Post and Brit + Co. Love it!)

 

Sam Shakusky and Suzy Bishop

 

Suzy Bishop

Obligatory mirror shot

InstaMax fun

Also, here are a couple of us from last year, dorking out as board game pieces from Settlers of Catan. Nerds.

 Wood hexagon

Sheep hexagon

Moonrise Kingdom Costume: Sam Shakusky

S: Here it is in all its glory! Chris's Sam costume turned out so well.

 

 What kind of bird are you?

Tips on where to find similar parts of the costume (shirt, raccoon patch, coonskin cap) can be found here and here.

He purchased the yellow handkerchief from Amazon, and it's currently on sale for 64 cents.  (!!!) Seriously. How can that even be possible?

The eyeglasses are retro Clark Kent Wayfarers that were also purchased on Amazon.

Put it all together and you get one brilliant-looking Sam Shakusky.

Happy Halloween weekend, everyone!

Moonrise Kingdom Costumes: Suzy and Sam

S: Chris and I are thisclose to getting our Suzy and Sam outfits finished for Halloween. Yay! I am so excited about these costumes. A breakdown of some main components and where you can purchase similar items online is below.

Chris's Sam shirt:

Chris got his shirt at Target. He went with a dark green military-style long-sleeved shirt, but a light brown or light green shirt would work just as well if that's all you can find. How I made the raccoon patch is here. You can purchase similar raccoon patches on Etsy, although they are SUPER easy to make yourself. It took me about ten minutes. The other patches we got at a local craft store, and we had the pins at home. Similar T-shirts can be found here and here.

My Suzy dress:

I purchased the dress on ASOS a few months ago, and unfortunately it's sold out now. This is the closest I could find online. This dress is also kind of similar.

Suzy and Sam hats:

Chris found his coonskin cap on Etsy, and I bought my maroon beret on Amazon. The exact beret I got is still available (and it looks perfect!), and there are tons more caps on Etsy (not the same, but similar).

Happy costuming, everyone!

Birchbox + goop

S: I started a Birchbox subscription a few months ago and, as a woman who is hopeless with all things makeup, I am loving it. It's like I get a monthly tutorial complete with products in the mail each month. Basically, you pay ten dollars and get a little goodie box full of beauty and lifestyle treats every four weeks. (Learn more about Birchbox subscriptions here.)

This month Birchbox teamed up with Gwyneth Paltrow's goop site, and I really love all the products included. The Essie color (Lady Like) was so pretty, I took it with me to my pedicure yesterday afternoon.

The box.

 The products.

Newly colored toes!

This and That

In the mood for this pumpkin cider beertail today.

Also these pumpkin cinnamon rolls.

And this pumpkin cheesecake trifle. Did I mention I love pumpkin anything?

Periodic Table for Childhood. Love.

Tinybop, a blog about children's media.

Would love to make this no-noodle zucchini lasagna soon.

Wine cooler corkcicle!

(Image via Pinterest)

Brunch: Savory Bread Pudding

S: Yesterday, Chris bought all the ingredients for me to make the savory bread pudding recipe from my Food52 Cookbook for the Sunday brunch we were planning on having with friends on the downstairs deck this morning. It turned out to be amazing and awesome and all of those other super positive a-words that you can think of. More than highly recommended for brunch. (Also note: I have a fiancé who volunteers to go grocery shopping for me when I am busy running around town with my maid of honor searching for the perfect wedding dress. Have I mentioned he's awesome? Also, finally found a dress! More on that later.)

For the chevre, I went with a firm goat cheese called Pantaleo from Sardinia that Chris bought at Antonelli’s Cheese Shop. (He purchased two different kinds of cheese, so that I could pick which one I thought would work best. That's an indicator of how much he loves me and also of how much we both love cheese.) The cheese is aged a minimum of one hundred days and is ridiculously delicious.

From the Food52 website.

Savory Bread Pudding

3 cups diced bread (I used whole wheat.)

4 large eggs

1 egg yolk

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup whole milk

4 ounces chevre, finely crumbled (Pantaleo)

3 ounces prosciutto, diced

1 teaspoon fresh thyme (Used dried thyme, half the amount.)

2 shallots, minced

4 crimini mushrooms, sliced

Cracked pepper, to taste

1/4 cup shredded gruyere or parmesan (Parmesan for the win!)

Toast bread cubes in 350 degree oven for 10 minutes, stirring halfway through. Leave oven on at 350. In a bowl, mix together eggs, milk, and cream until thoroughly blended. In a 9x9 square baking pan, toss together bread cubes, prosciutto, shallots, mushrooms, thyme, and pepper. Gently stir in chevre. Pour egg mixture over bread cubes. If desired, garnish with a shredded cheese, such as parmesan or gruyere, for a golden crust. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes.

 Not as perfect looking as the Food52 photo, but delicious nonetheless. 

(Recipe and top photo via Food52; other photos by Sandra)

DIY Monogrammed Wedding Vase

S: I saw these painted mason jars recently on Pinterest and decided to do something similar for our upcoming wedding next year.

I used white spray-paint, a Central Market Organics spaghetti sauce glass jar, and a free font from Lost Type. Print and cut out the initials and ampersand you want to use, then use double-sided tape to affix them to the clean jar. Then spray-paint two or three coats. Peel off the letters and let dry. I also accented the top with some blueberry Divine Twine. Perfect for flowers, straws, or pens by the guestbook.

Materials:
-White spray-paint
-Glass jar
-Neat font
-Double-sided tape
-Divine Twine

Junot Diaz at BookPeople

S: We met Junot Diaz the other night! He's a funny, intelligent, witty, cool guy all rolled into one awesome writer. And he curses a lot. You definitely would not be getting the full picture if I failed to mention that.

When Chris and I walked up to him, he told us we were "young cuties" and asked about our lives. I kind of fell in love with him, and actually squealed with delight when we were back in the car and I realized he had signed our book with: "For Sandra & Chris / love supreme / Junot Diaz." SQUEAL. Amazing night. Thanks, Junot!

The squeal-inducing signature page of This Is How You Lose Her

Us and Junot

Fujifilm Instax MINI 25 Instant Camera

S: For my birthday a few weeks ago (which was epic, by the way. We basically celebrated for two weeks straight, including a bar crawl in our eastside neighborhood, seeing Casa Blanca on the big screen for the first time at the Paramount, and then, of course, zip-lining in the rain near Lake Travis. Why not?), Chris got me this AMAZING instant camera. I have really been loving the way it captures light and also the more obvious instant-ness of it.

More info on the camera here. More about the awesomeness of Humphrey Bogart here.

This and That

Do Your Best banner. That's the kind of motivation I like to see.

The Internet map. Neat!

Cute custom dolls.

Fox letter opener.

Love the color of these yearly planners. Pretty!

Need?

Or want?

Man apologizes to cat by building him a cardboard box palace. So sweet!

Cassette wallets! 

(Image via tumblr)

Moonrise Kingdom: Raccoon Patch

S: Chris and I decided a while back that we are going to be Suzy and Sam from Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom this October 31. We both loved the movie, love getting dressed up for Halloween, and so why not, right? (I made a Pinterest board for inspiration here.)

I already got a pink dress with a Peter Pan collar and a pair of binoculars for my get-up, and Chris bought a coonskin cap from Etsy a few weeks ago. Now: patches! We bought some star and number patches (55) from a craft store on South Lamar, but didn't really find anything as sweet and adorable as the raccoon patch Sam has on one pocket. So with the help of this awesome London blog Me and My Polar Bear, I made this earlier today:

So cute I'm dying!

(Top image via Wes Anderson tumblr)

This and That

Wood iPhone covers.

Made these fried avocado tacos the other day. Delicious.

Umbrella street in Portugal.

Owl spaghetti holder.

Petitor jewelry. So pretty.

Banana, walnut, and chocolate cookie cake from Joy the Baker.

Neat idea.

(Image via Pinterest)