something lovely and frosting-covered

After a night of birthday festivities—and days upon days spent preparing for said festivities—I am far too exhausted to fully divulge all the fantastic happenings of the evening just yet. In light of this, I leave you with a preview of sorts—a photo of the cake that I still can’t believe actually made it to the big event in one piece, especially considering the fact that I’d never attempted a tiered cake before (which, after my experience with this one, leads me to the question why the heck not?!). I have to admit that hammering a chopstick through the center of the whole thing to stabilize the layers was even more fun than I’d imagined it would be.

It’s a bit insane looking (you can’t tell from the photo but there are actually giant chocolate-backed rhinestones circling top tier), but it was completely perfect for the birthday girl and our ragtag group of friends. It was inspired by LA-based Sweet Lady Jane’s white chocolate lemon cake, in that I read the description of that cake and then found recipes for each of the components, hoping they’d all work together. Fortunately they did, and I received the all requisite oohs and ahhs that every baker secretly relishes (oh, you know it’s true—it just doesn’t feel right unless a wide-eyed someone marvels at your culinary skill and fantastic ability to whip things up from scratch).

The recipe I found for the frosting has to be one of the absolute best I’ve ever tried—I don’t always trust buttercreams (in my experience they always have the potential too be too runny, too buttery, too sugary, etc), but this one was wonderfully light and fluffy and the buttery sweetness was balanced perfectly by a bit of orange zest. Yum! Also, the white chocolate mousse that I used to fill the layers was disproportionately fantastic in relation to the amount of skill and time required to make it. I don’t even really care for white chocolate for the most part, but I would absolutely serve the mousse by itself for a dinner party—or, let’s face it, just for myself. The cake itself was rich, moist and sturdy—the perfect vehicle for piles of frostings and fillings. . . and the lemon curd was wonderfully tart, of course!

Anyway, I feel myself quickly fading and may decide to head back to bed to sleep off the many hours of standing and stirring, so I will leave you with the recipes I used in the cake in case you’d like to try any of them—or all of them!

yellow butter cake
white chocolate buttercream (scroll down past the cake recipe)
lemon curd
white chocolate mousse

Sweet dreams!!

a brief interlude . . .

Has it really been two months since I’ve posted anything here? So it would appear.

I walk around with such a constant flurry of ideas and inspirations I’d like to share floating around in my head at all times that it seems impossible that it’s really been that long. Apparently the amount of time I spend thinking about writing is distressingly disproportionate to the amount of time I spend actually writing.

Anyway, this entry is the beginning of my attempt to remedy the situation, if for nothing else than to strengthen my own sense of discipline (which, it can be said, is a bit lacking at times).

Perhaps it’s the idea that I don’t know where to begin that’s kept me tied up—a sentiment that’s currently an all-too-fitting metaphor for the state of my life as a whole. I will begin, I suppose, with a look at where I am and where I am (hopefully) going . . .

Right now I’m working on a number of small projects that all add up to a lot of occupied (though not entirely focused) time. Among these are a soft teal cashmere scarf for a friend’s birthday gift (presented all wrapped up as a work-in-progress, knitting needles and all, and then quickly taken back lest it begin to unravel in the midst of the celebrations), a possible scheme of things to sell involving gift bags and magazine-page collages, and the planning of the scarf recipient’s large-scale fête this coming Saturday—a process which has led to the furious scouring of the internet for new (or at least exciting) cake possibilities. I think I’ve settled on attempting to recreate a yellow butter cake/lemon curd/white chocolate mousse confection from Sweet Lady Jane in LA for the candle & song routine, plus a gingerbread cake with creme anglaise and perhaps some crackly, chewy brownies for good measure. But then again, I may just be taking on a bit more than I rationally should. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time.

All that to say that right now I am in process—in my life as well as in my projects. It all seems a bit disconnected and overwhelming at the moment, a bit like making a mistake in a intricate scarf pattern and having to endure the frustration of ripping out row upon row with even more care than it took to create the stitches in the first place, only to have to go back and repeat what you’ve just done to get back to the place where you were before, which didn’t seem nearly close enough to the finish line the first time you were there. But hopefully sometime in the not too distant future there will be something lovely and frosting-covered to show for all of this. When that time comes, I will be sure to plaster it all over the page.

tivoli träume

Last summer I took a trip to Germany, Sweden and Denmark, and though it’s been over a year since my return, I think back to those two weeks it almost every day. The candy-colored houses, the cobblestone streets, the juxtaposition of old and new—all the wonderful, enchanting little details that sat waiting to be discovered around every corner have stayed with me, and opened up a world of new potential and inspiration. I felt like I understood the visual language that was being spoken there—dark and light, soft and harsh—seemingly disparate elements existing in harmony and coming together to create something far greater than the sum of its parts.

I still haven’t been able to find quite the right words to describe my experience and how a simple vacation seems to have changed the course of my life—or at least my approach to the creative pursuits in my life—so for now I will share a few of my favorite images from the holiday and hope that they will communicate what I cannot. If you’d like to continue the pictorial journey through Germany and Scandinavia, click here to access my flickr site.

 

And just in case anyone is wondering, träume means “dreams” auf Deutsch!

*ka-why?

The gap between expectation (slices, dices, chops, allows you to lose 25 pounds in your sleep, contains the key to eternal happiness) and reality (sort of cuts butter if you press really hard, tastes so awful you’d rather die of starvation than suffer another sip, brilliantly collects dust on top of pile of other self-fulfillment products) can be disappointingly vast in this age of over-promise and under-delivery. Once in a very short while, however, one may be lucky enough to stumble upon something that not only meets but refreshingly exceeds the bite-sized message of its tag line.

Behold Exhibit A:
 


I was searching for a bento box online to no avail (why I was doing that on a day when my list of must-dos is approaching critical length is another issue altogether), when I stumbled upon the work of Japanese artist Shinzi Katoh, imprinted on an array of glasses, sticky tape, notebooks and other living essentials. The wonderful vintage-style illustrations were so charming that I knew I had to share them, but I could barely think of a way to capture their simple yet brilliant magic in words or communicate exactly why I was so taken by a few little mugs emblazoned with cartoon bunnies.

Then I noticed Mr. Katoh’s declaration on the upper left-hand corner of his home page (as seen in the image above) and my mind jumped at the sight of the words I’d been searching for all along: “Joy & Delight.” Exactly. Absolutely. Unequivocally.

So, if it please you, take a moment to peruse the joyfully delightful work of Shinzi Katoh (online shop at shinzikatoh.co.uk).

Très delightful, n’est-ce pas?

Oh, and after all that I am happy to report that I did find my bento box. It’s there in the top row, second square from the left.

*I am not always so great when it comes to thinking up titles and yes, today I’ve resorted to a ridiculous pun. If you’re confused, click here.

seeing stars

I’ve spent way too long staring at my computer today. Like sixteen hours too long. I did take a break a little while ago, which was good, but it was to watch the VMAs, which was not so good. *Did anyone else think that that stupid backlot they kept cutting to looked a whole lot like Sesame Street after hours? I kept waiting for Prairie Dawn to show up in a halter top and ask one of the Jo Bros for a light.

And is there nowhere we can look these days without being subjected to one of those boring idiots from The Hills? If that show is on for much longer I really do think I’m going to lose my will to live. I mean even I can’t watch that fake crap for more than three seconds without wanting to throw a hatchet through my tv, and I used to religiously tivo Rock of Love and I Love New York. Wait, did I just admit that publicly?

Anyway, the point is that my time away from the computer was clearly not well spent. My time at the computer, however, was slightly more productive (it would have to have been, unless I’d literally just dumped battery acid on my keyboard and then thrown the whole thing out the window). In between the usual emails and bill paying, I took some time today to design a few signs for the fall kickoff of the Haven—an artist’s group that I work with here in New York. The signs are kind of quick & dirty (thank you, live trace), but I think they turned out pretty cute for a project that I just needed to finish as quickly as possible. They’re for a state fair-themed event, so I wanted them to look kind of kitschy; after basically trying every single layer blending option available in endless combination (well do you know the exact difference between pin light and hard mix?), this is what I ended up with:

 

 

I don’t really like the cotton candy sign very much but I don’t care enough to change it at this point. I’m trying to let go of things a little more easily these days—by, for example, not letting myself worry that a sign that I’m not getting paid to design and will only be used for one night in a room full of people who probably don’t even know the difference between Arial and Avenir looks too much like a creepy faceless Kirby, everyone’s favorite “small, pink, spherical creature“:

 

 

Well, I think it’s high time I peeled myself away from my macbook, lest I get some kind of radiation poisoning or something and find myself too blind to watch Project Runway or 90210 2.0 or One Tree Hill or all those Sex & The City reruns I’ve already seen seventeen times or . . .

*A quick google search tells me plenty of people thought the same thing. Maybe next year they can broadcast from the Big Blue House and have Dora the Explorer host the whole thing . . . say what you will about Britney, but at least whenever she was a focal point of the VMAs there was always something more interesting to talk about than some crappy set.

take 57 . . .

 
It’s my new blog!

Yes, again. Don’t be gettin’ all judgy on me or I’ll have to come over there and slap you with a fish. Anyway, it’s not that I grew tired of the last blog, it’s just that I like the flexibility here a bit more than my old home at Vox, and my friend Armistead who knows much more about these things than I ever will told me that I absolutely needed to be on WordPress. And Martha Stewart (YAY) is doing a show all about blogging with an audience full of bloggers and guess who got tickets!!?? Oui, that would be me! I’ve been meaning to overhaul this thing for ages now anyway, so this certainly seemed as good a time as any to do it.

I originally intended to change the name of the blog (you know, fresh start and all), but then I decided—after attempting to write something charming and sweet and realizing that was not me at all—that “apple pie & arsenic” actually suits me quite well. Back when I started over at Vox, I wanted to choose a name that would reflect my perspective without being too limiting because, let’s face it, I don’t think I’ll ever write a blog that’s entirely dedicated to one topic. And it just wouldn’t be appropriate to post about my *new favorite Belgian singer-songwriter on a blog entitled “Hooked on Rug Hooking” or “Pies, Pies, Pies!!” Right? Anyway, I’m still quite fond of the name, so it stays.

I’m planning to use what was going to be my new blog name—”Yume et Tivoli”—as the moniker for an as as-yet undetermined range of things to sell. See? I’m already plugging my brand and I don’t even know what I’m marketing, which could be genius except for the fact that right now about all I’ve got to offer is a pile of dirty clothes, a bunch of unopened cable bills and a half-eaten piece of chocolate mousse cake. Not too promising, but maybe if I say it’s an “ironic” half-eaten piece of chocolate mousse cake, someone in Williamsburg will buy it.

Anyway, I digress.

Aside from the whole Martha thing, I’m also excited to revamp at this particular point in time because with any luck I’m going to have a steady stream of material in the coming months; I’m starting three new classes next week—a techniques & materials of painting class and a drawing workshop at the School of Visual Arts, and a scene study class at Stella Adler—and I’ll be posting my progress here (lucky you)! Plus there will be the usual music recommendations, recipes and general griping about my life (hey, I stick to what I know).

I’m also planning to transfer over a good chunk of the content from my old blog at some point soon, so you better comment on this damn thing after I’ve gone through all the trouble of moving everything just so you’ll have the opportunity to tell me how much you love my stupid blog. See how much I do for you?

Anyway, exciting things are afoot. Come back soon to see what I’m up to! Or else.

*I really do have a new favorite Belgian singer-songwriter. His name is Milow. You can hear him performing a fantastic acoustic cover of 50 Cent’s Ayo Technology here (wait for the chorus—it’s the best part)! Stick around for his other tunes and find out why he’s one of the most popular things happening in Belgium right now.