s o u l i z b l o g

click to enlarge.

words by GN.

I’m falling in love…with this flyer. It’s so cute! (thanks, D).  and I can’t wait until this event. Woo!, Derek Lieu, The Media Maid and yours truly will be hosting a Terrarium Workshop this Saturday in my little Larchmont backyard. It’s going to be loads of fun! Our Succulent Specialist, as I will call him, is the amaaaayyyjingly talented Kit Kan from Branch of Life. He’ll be there to guide us in making little terrarium arrangements that we can take home! awww

This project is really special to me because it’s the first of a series of craft projects that the four of us plan to present to our community. Also, succulents are so in right now. Workshops go for as much as $120(!), so we wanted to offer an affordable way to learn the art from a professional. Only $30, and refreshments will be served, ya’ll.

Space is limited, so hurry up and email me to rsvp!

The weather is creeping up to be almost unbearably hot these days. Summer is definitely catching up with us.

The weekend brought along some Donut Man, a few movies, lots of flat champagne (which i found out is just like white wine but i still love because i get to drink it out of pretty flutes), some flea market finds and lots of sleep. Basically I spent a lot of quality time at home since I rarely get to see sun in the apartment on the weekdays. It was relaxing.

Did you know that i bought a grill at the beginning of the summer and only used it once? Somebody needs to come over and make some use of it for me. Labor day party anyone?

Happy Monday.

so…. i bought this whole rotisserie chicken earlier in the week, and it’s taking forever for me to finish it! im putting chicken in all of my meals. and today, i made chicken udon… but it wasnt really udon because i dont know how to make the base for that soup….. so i just made it with whatever i had in my fridge.

base was made with half vegetable broth and half water (didnt want to use all of the veg broth… so cheap)
udon, chicken, chili peppers, onions went in…

after everything cooked i tasted the soup and it was sooo gross and bland!!! so i added whatever salty i could find in my pantry… garlic salt, pepper, ponzu sauce..thought about putting in some taco seasoning but resisted….and it turned out alright!

on top of THAT, i added a dollop of creme fraiche, which im in love with right now. im obsessed about putting it over everything…. fruit, veggies, meat… it just magically turns everything delicious..

and that is how i had a very good lunch.

bell pepper egg in a hole. easy, simple and everyday recipes from martha stewart. i love.

a handful of hot sauces on the side. displayed on my new condiment tray i got on sale from crate and barrel. only $4.95!

with cucumbers, peppers, chicken, basil.

i deviated from the recipe a bit and added honey and ponzu to the sauce. it was SO GOOD!
thanks martha!

This is my crafting area… it hasn’t been getting much action lately. Perhaps I should get started on making Christmas gifts right now, since I always regret not getting an early start every year. The only problem is that I’m not feeling too crafty or creative… hopefully i dont get stuck making gift baskets with items from the 99cent store! jkjk… good idea though, huh?!

I haven’t found a book shelf that I love or the space to store them neatly in a designated space, so my books are scattered are all over the apartment for now. Under my faux fireplace, stacked high on my desk, propped under stereo speakers, scattered near the bedside table, they’re everywhere. It contributes to my “messy bohemian” look, haha.

I studied Art History in college, so a lot of my books are about art, film, food, culture trends, and other random topics that interest me. Very few fiction, nothing too deep.

Most of my books are used or leftover text i saved from college. I love thinking about the journey these books went through before it came to my possession, and the owners its had in the past who had similar taste to mine.  Who first picked it up? Where, when and for how much? Like this crazy old Gone With the Wind hardback. This one was a find at the PCC flea market. I love the illustrated cover. Is that supposed to look like Clark Gable and Vivian Leigh?

I’ve recently found a few cool magazines too. That LOOK magazine with Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn is interesting. I’m guessing it was to promote Charades.

This LACMA magazine was a gem. There are tons of beautiful photographs of people in the 60s walking through the same halls we walk through and looking at the same paintings we look at today.

This is how Miracle Mile looked in the sixties! You can distinguish the different buildings at LACMA that are still there. No gates all around, no Japanese Pavilion, no BCAM, and definitely NO URBAN LIGHT! And the fountain in the middle is not there anymore… and you can see Park La Brea in the background!

Coffee table books. I love Elizabeth Taylor, I think I’ve watched Giant at least ten times in my life. She’s always beautiful, demanding attention, fierce…

Last night’s post about the turntable i bought at the flea market was fun. I’ll start writing more about my finds and give you mini-tours of my apartment as I go along to furnish it. Today, I’ll show you my mirrors.

I found this at the Melrose Trading Post, the same place I found my turntable. I never have any expectations when going there since it’s smaller, occurs more frequently than other markets and is generally more expensive than other places. But it’s close by and a cool place to hang out on Sunday mornings. Like yesterday, we just went there to munch on some empanadas and jarritos and people watch.

And oddly I always find a few things to take home. This mirror is the first thing I see when I enter my apartment and the last thing I see when I leave. I’m not vain, it’s just my way of checking whether there’s spinach in my teeth before going out.

This is my vanity. I got the desk (for FREE!) from a guy whose business was closing down. He says it used to be his dad’s who used to work at Sears! Cool huh… its size is what makes it perfect to be used as a vanity. Real vanities are not made so wide so I like how this one has lots of space for me to put my crap on (excuse the mess, i like to keep it real haha) and enough drawers for me to store more stuff. And because the desk is narrow in depth it’s easy for me to lean over and apply makeup. I also got this mirror at the Melrose Trading Post. There’s no wiring or hooks on the back so I can’t hang it, but it looks cute enough just leaning against the wall…

Spent the morning at the flea today and found some great stuff! My favorite was this refurbished technics turntable. I can finally listen to my vinyls now. It plays beautifully.

mini entertaining area=music+drinks

sweet tea and beer. we listened to music all afternoon.