i <3 etsy

I just wanted to highlight, very quickly, a great etsy seller, branchhandmade. They screenprint clothes and homestuffs with nice images. I've bought two items from them, these pillowcases (with ships!) and a cardigan with a bi-plane on it, which has quickly become a wardrobe staple for me.


Best part? Their prices are relatively affordable and the quality of the fabric of both the pillowcases and the cardigan is very good. I'm pretty sure they use all organic materials. Anyway, check em out! I've been eyeing some other items from them for holiday gifts (is it that time of year already??). I love their whale and giraffe print t-shirts!

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*** this totally sounds like an ad. how embarrassing. I just really like em, ok? :\

(in)disposable

Inspired by my friend Annie's recent tryst with disposable cameras, I decided to have a go at it and purchased a 24-exposure Kodak disposable camera at Target. I took it with me on my recent trip to New York, which included one day at the U.S. Open. Most of the photos didn't turn out well -- still trying to get the hang of this thing. Some lessons learned: a disposable camera is not a digital SLR (duh!), colorful busy backgrounds are best, action shots of tennis players will not come out the way you hoped, pay attention to the entire field of view, not just the object you are focused on. In short, think landscape, not macro.

I love the nostalgic feel of the color saturation of the photos and I had almost forgotten the thrill you get when you go to pick up your film and open the envelope to view your photographs for the first time. It makes me want to get a film camera now!

Here are some of the best photos from the roll:

Chris in front of his lovely brownstone in Ft. Greene

Dinner at The General Greene (so yummers!)

Being silly in the subway station

After lunch at Grimaldi's, in front of the Brooklyn Bridge

I think Chris is a better photographer than me. Sad.

Chris at the U.S. Open!

My favorite player, Olivier Rochus, in action! He was stunning!

Chip Tuesday: Boulder Canyon Balsamic Vinegar & Rosemary

**this blog was originally posted on The Spatula Underground.

This weekend I ventured up to New York to take in the sights, eat the food, and attend one day of the U.S. Open. On Sunday night, in preparation for the tennis festivities of the next day, le boyfriend and I went to his local corner market in Ft. Greene, Brooklyn to pick up some sustenance. Being the tennis nut that he is, Christopher has attended too many U.S. Opens to count, so he knew all the tricks to having the best experience. One key step? Packing your own food. The food on the grounds is insanely overpriced, not that good for you, and not worth waiting in long lines for, so instead, we opted for ham and cheddar sandwiches, fresh melons, peaches, granola, and, of course, chips.

There's one corner market in Ft. Greene that I love. Not only is it run by Koreans (gotta support my peeps!), but it is insanely clean, has one of the best tea collections I've ever seen, and also carries an impressive selection of chips. Knowing Chip Tuesday was approaching, Chris and I carefully scoured the bags to find the next contender for our running tradition. As soon as I saw this bag, I knew it was the one.

Now having been burned by exotic flavored chips before (sweet maui onion, anyone?), I was a little nervous about these. Frankly, one little potato discus can only handle so much flavoring, you know?

Willing to take the risk, we decided to pay the $2.79 and try them. We got home, quickly ripped open the bag, and popped the first chip.

It - was - delicious.

The scent of rosemary hits you first. It's strong, but not overpowering. The chips are surprisingly light in flavor. You let the rosemary and salt, oil and potato impress you for a little bit. And then you realize that this is also a frou frou kind of salt & vinegar chip, but the balsamic is just a little more refined than the aforementioned low-brow, absolutely delicious guilty pleasure that leaves your nose and eyes watering for its strong flavor. Instead, the balsamic is mild with a slight kick at the end.

All in all, the chips made for a complex, tasty, pungent addition to our ham sandwiches, which we ate before watching a rousing match with my new favorite tennis player, the 5'5" Belgian pro, Olivier Rochus. He may be short but he packs quite a lot of punch and heart in that frame of his. And the same could be said of a Boulder Canyon Balsamic Vinegar & Rosemary chip.

15-Love

My first U.S. Open! It was great. The weather was perfect, we saw Nadal, Murray, and others on the practice courts, watched some really fun matches, and ate most of the food we packed, thereby foregoing all the overpriced food on the grounds.

I'm still learning the ins and outs of tennis, but thankfully I have a superb teacher.

More photos and an opus to my new favorite player, Olivier Rochus, to come.


**also, check out my new pink pearl necklace that I got for $10 at the Brooklyn Flea! Chris thinks it's scary how "they get bigger." lol.