Table for 1 and Cauliflower Soup !

What.... you say blech to cauliflowers? Do you like potato soup? Would you like a less starchy version?
Search no more.... you have found a healthy home-made delicious potato soup substitute!
INGREDIENTS:
2 large heads of cauliflower
3 or 4 onions (per your taste)
Chicken or Veggie stock 2 to 3 cups(and if you don't make your own,splurge for the kind with no MSG)
1-2 cups fat free half and half
Shredded cheddar per your taste
and salt and pepper
Ya know how on Top Chef they tell you it takes time for the soup flavors to "develop"? Well...I think its true. Which is why I make my soups mostly in crock-pots!
I use this gorg crock-pot from Target. Super cheap, lots of cook room ,and oh so sleek !

Honestly... I change up the recipe every time. Just remember to add lots of the veggies and let it cook all day!
Also...keep in mind that soup thickens after it has been cooked...so no real need to add flour.
After it has cooked most of the morning and afternoon,I get a slotted spoon and put the cooked veggies in the blender and puree everything till smooth. I put it back in the pot with the broth and add fat free half and half ,a couple of cups of shredded cheddar ,salt and pepper,and let it warm for another 30 minutes to an hour.

So... I got a little freaky with the pepper. If you follow a low carb diet this is absolutely perfect! This soup is quite dee-lish.... healthy or not!


...and it yields plenty of leftovers for the rest of the week!


At my table for 1, I even got to use my newly thrifted danish modern candle holders...and new to me milk glass/juice glass for my grapefruit juice!

A Peek Into My Petals World.......and the "Tub of Wonder"

My sweet "not so wee(anymore)"...Petal is easily the most colorful of the family. At a just newly turned age 8 ....her tangerine room suits her perfectly!
I had to show off her newly thrifted "tablecloth". Costing under a dollar this Old Navy scarf gets the job done perfectly ...AND with a mod vintage feel...AND pom-pom fringe to boot!

Instead of junk drawers at my house we each have a "Tub of Wonder".This perfect pink tub was found at the Target "dollar spot" (though I recall it cost 2$'s). It houses any stray odds and ends at the end of the day...I-Coffin's,Squinky's,Hello Kitty eraser's ,or lone dolly shoes!

A place for everything and everything in its place (hah!).

The story under the "Trixie ,Dixie, and Dell" painting.
Happy Monday!

Thriftventuring...A List to Thrift by: Item #1 L.P. Cover Art

Soooooo....if I intend to start
"A list to thrift by". I thought it would be big fun to do a post on EACH item!!!!
Lets start with ...L.P. cover art.....which has always been a favorite around Pagoda-ville!
Each unique sleeve is as eclectic as the day is long and has a little something for everyone!
The above pic is a few I left behind at a special Thrift that has a spectacular GIANT record section. I am beginning to regret leaving behind "Actual Business Letters" and Ethel Smith's organ tunes!

Well why the heck not elevate L.P. cover art as "real" art in your home? I have always been drawn to those rather generic orchestral covers with amazing art direction and have collected them for some time...but until I moved into my new home and inspiration eventually struck for filling my odd little architectural nook above the big screen....
I never really knew what to do with them.
I am now simply AGOG over my ever changing L.P. cover gallery!
So what did I come home with?
How about Disney's Chilling,Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House?This album has actually been on my "to be thrifted" list for a long while.....and let us not forget the yummy ear candy center!


Have a little taste!

Little did I know that this truly tropical treat by Lani Royal was going to become the new sound track to my life!

Delicious and refreshing!


My former soundtrack?.....Mr Martin Denny and his orchestra ...natch!

Could there be better cover art? I have even used this image as my screen saver.

I suspect there has never been a more clever vessel for the elevation of L.P. art to Fine art than this aaahhhhhhmazing screen from Able and Baker Design. Perhaps I shall treat myself to this yummy-osity one day when I turn my dining room into my design studio...a little pretty something to hide away the eventual mess.

Kate Bush's ,"The Dreaming"
is probably my super nova ,all time ,favorite album cover. The image is referencing the song "Houdini" and how the key would be "passed" to Houdini.
This could certainly warm up a boudoir frame.

So what about you....could L.P. cover art be the panacea for your own artless walls? If I were a bit braver I think I might permanently affix an entire wall with covers. But how to choose which ones to use with so many lovelies?
Atleast at the thrift we shall never run out of possible candidates !

The Decorating War Within and Playing with Knick-Knacks and STUFF!!!

My inner decorator is forever warring within itself!!!
I like knick-knacks and STUFF!
Crazy kitschy witty winked at STUFF!!!

As evidenced here in this picture of me and my STUFF in the Fiesta Kitchen of my single days! You may click to enlarge this image and glimpse my lucite bag collection housed behind glass doors just above the taxidermied(oh yeah...) instrument playin' frogs!

....ahhhhh....but the hubs was not such a STUFF lovin' man and your lovely blog-hostess had to change her evil STUFF-hoardin' ways.



As evidenced in this pic of the Cliff May home.

....and this one. When un-encumbered by STUFF there is an amazing sense of being able to breathe in a space...and I LOVE this look.
Sigh...missing that sweet little home.


Same furniture-STUFF but now filling our new beloved home......and its even airier!

You walk in and immediately get the minimalist vibe.





Once upon a time my donkeys roamed freely about the windowsill.

Now they must contain themselves in an eclectic chest.

At the Cliff May home my STUFF filled "Magic Closet" looked more like a booth at an antique mall.


Here at the new Pagoda my "props" are bit pared down!

Lately I have been feeling the urge to decorate with knick-knacky STUFF , but employing my "minimalist within" editor.


It has been fun to just play a bit with my good STUFF.


I am craving a little area to just go kitschy crazy with some good STUFF. What the heck why not go a bit wild....its just wall space!



So what do you think are all of us bloggy vintage kitschy chickadees moments away from an invitation to be on Hoarders?
I continue to be thankful for my minimalist lovin' Hubs...and oddly I think he has developed an interesting appreciation for all my STUFF over the years!
Happy Tuesday !

Valentine Candy Buffet and Etsy Taste Test

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!!
This is the second year I have created a candy buffet for my little fam to celebrate Valentines season with.It makes them feel positively spoiled and any left-overs get trashed tomorrow!
Note to self:Never buy pretzel filled M and M's again...this is a treat for everyone ELSE in your household not a nutrition spoiler for you!


....and here is last years buffet. A much better idea is to fill the buffet with candy necklaces and pixie stix and ring pops...all the stuff that Mommy's do not crave!


Speaking of tasty bits....have you played with the Etsy Taste Test yet?
Grab a spare 30-60 minutes and prepare to be tempted by treats beyond the caloric intake of chocolate !
Items on my final list included this adorable wooden "log" box bag!

...and this modern telly console much like the one I already own.


....and another version of a fave style of embroidered sweater that I also already own.
It may take a couple of plays but the Etsy Taste Test might actually "get" your individual taste!!!
Be good to those you love AND yourself today!

New Years Resolutons,Inspirations and Goals 2011

So.....on this last day of this first month of the year...I am feeling compelled to set a few goals and resolves. I am sharing with the hopes that everything I list becomes a real and tangible part of 2011.
Here goes......
*Building terrariums
I really want to create a magical little fairy garden with my Wee Petal( who is not that wee anymore!).


*Herb Gardening
While I am coaxing green things to grow I think I would like to try my hand at herb gardening to enhance the flavor of everyday meals and perhaps make these clever and eco friendly "pots".



*Commit to make homemade soup once a month
The hubs and I especially love soup and I received a new beautiful crock-pot with which to cook up some savory comfort.




*Continued health and fitness
Leading up to 2010 I had several months of personal sadness and challenges.
I lost my father ...and had my house on the market ....and moved to a new home right after I lost him. When my life has chaos I lose my grip on fitness and nutrition. I spent 2010 regaining my dedication to one of these pursuits.I discovered the good ol' stair-master was no longer working for me at the gym and added hour long cardio classes each day of the work week to cross train and challenge myself.The good news is I lost about 15 pounds in the process...the bad news.... I tend to be very hard on myself body-wise and would STILL like to be 5-10 pounds less.In 2011 I want to continue my NOW cardio addiction....and regain my good nutrition habits that were once almost 2nd nature.


*More time in Bloglandia
Hangin' in my little cyber corner of the world has been so fulfilling to me....I am uncertain why I have had such a polka-dotted existence these past couple of years...then again see explanation in above goal.

*Participating in inspiring online challenges such as Elsie's, Project Restyle!
This sort of restyle thang seems to be the sort of crafty fun I tend to relish anyway...I think I need to just jump on in on this one.


*Sewing... at Make Studio
I would like to have a groovy little spot to go and refresh my meager sewing skills.
This Bishop Arts District studio may be the perfect place.




*Re-launching my Etsy shop
It is long overdue for a re-launch on my kids clothing shop...and I have so many fun ideas brewing!

*Maybe opening a new Etsy shop.
While 1st things 1st .....re-open my original shop.....I am envisioning an on-line boutique for the grownup girls...rooted firmly in my own crazy aesthetic.
I'm thinking of naming it "Tooled Leather and Lace".




*Thrift with a purpose:
I always try to have a mental "to be thrifted list" in my head...but this year I think I will actually WRITE OUT that list and do my best to stick to it!
Who am I kidding? It is impossible to limit myself at the thrift store,but maybe it might be fun to challenge myself for a couple of months to stick to a list!
*buy above thrift print here*

I already know milk glass is on that list....yeah I m totally late to the game on the luscious-ness of milk glass...but hey...I've always been a late bloomer...that's just how I roll!




*Paper Snowfalkes!
Next holiday season....I wish to craft with my girls a bit more....I think the three of us could handle some paper snowflake curtains.Just a little somethin' to get all three of us to sit down and spend creative time together. My girls are almost 7 years apart...and getting them on the same page can be challenging. I saw this at the end of the holiday season and thought maybe if I have a whole year to plan for it....it MIGHT happen!


So there you have it!!! My big plans for the cyber pagoda here in 2011. I shall devote a post to conquering each goal
and wish for the new year!
Happiest of 2011 to ya!