Phantom Tree

This is the mystery tree growing out of the side of our apartment.
It's kindof lovely, so good thing we don't have earthquakes here!

Blueberry Hand Pies

I made these yesterday and they were so easy and delicious! This is also a great simple dough recipe for making any kind of galette. You could substitute any fruit - I adapted this recipe from one using rhubarb - just adjust the sugar in your filling accordingly.
{Blueberry Hand Pies Recipe}

With Love from Baltimore

Dear Seattle,

I got you this giant pizza. Enjoy.

xoxo,
Baltimore.

The Truth About Smart

Check out this cool interactive web site for Smart Car explaining the "truth". {via SM}

Fab Home Offices

15 Best-Looking Home Offices from Apartment Therapy.

Empire Poster Quiz

"Can you guess the movie from just one letter?" {via SM}

Stemware Brush

Anyone else hate cleaning wine glasses? I always feel like they don't get clean. This brush is cool from Amazon - small and gentle enough to clean stemware. {via AT}

The Root Beer Float

Root Beer Floats are so totally awesome, but I always forget about them! Note to self: make more root beer floats. So simple and good. I love the root beer ice-crystal-ey parts.

Bar Essentials

All the essential mixers, liquors, glasses and gadgets for your bar cart according to RealSimple (just add wine and beer!)...Also check out Domino's beautiful Bar Cart Gallery for ideas.

Liquor

Bourbon

Cointreau or Triple Sec (some people swear Cointreau is worth the money even if you mix it)

Gin

Rum (light)

Scotch (blended)

Tequila (white)

Vermouth (dry)

Vermouth (sweet)

Vodka

Mixers

Cola, ginger ale, club soda, sparkling water, tonic water

Lemons

Limes

Cranberry juice

Orange juice

Angostura bitters

Simple syrup. Heat 1 part sugar and 1 part water in a saucepan. Simmer until the sugar dissolves. Simple syrup keeps at room temperature for a couple of weeks; eventually it will crystallize. In a pinch, superfine sugar can be substituted.

Garnishes

Green olives (pitted)

Lemons

Limes

Kosher salt

Maraschino cherries

Gadgets

Long cocktail spoon

Paring knife

Peeler

Cutting board

Corkscrew

Bottle opener

Juice squeezer

Standard shaker (metal bottom, metal lid with a strainer). If you don't want to invest in a shaker, use a jar with a cap, a piece of Tupperware, or anything that seals, Dale DeGroff says.

Jigger (usually with a 1-ounce measure on one side, 1 1/2 ounces on the other). Most recipes call for 1 1/2 ounces of alcohol (a jigger, or a shot), but some call for 1 ounce (a pony). If you don't have a jigger, 3 tablespoons are about equal to 1 1/2 ounces.

Bartending handbook

Cocktail napkins

Cocktail toothpicks

Glasses

Martini glasses — must-haves for every bar because they say "cocktail"

Highball glasses

All-purpose wineglasses

AOTD: Yeondoo Jung

Photography by Yeondoo Jung, who re-creates kids drawings in her photos - kinda sweet, kinda weird and creepy, all good. {via ST}

Happy Birthday Mogulling!

Mogulling is officially 2 years old today! I thought I'd post Real Simple's list of "9 Things You Can Do to Be Happy in the Next 30 Minutes" to celebrate. And also because it's Saturday.

Image courtesy Conde Nast Store.

1. Raise your activity level to pump up your energy. If you’re on the phone, stand up and pace. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Put more energy into your voice. Take a brisk 10-minute walk. Even better…

2. Take a walk outside. Research suggests that light stimulates brain chemicals that improve mood. For an extra boost, get your sunlight first thing in the morning.

3. Reach out. Send an e-mail to a friend you haven’t seen in a while, or reach out to someone new. Having close bonds with other people is one of the most important keys to happiness. When you act in a friendly way, not only will others feel more friendly toward you, but you’ll also strengthen your feelings of friendliness for other people.

4. Rid yourself of a nagging task. Deal with that insurance problem, purchase something you need, or make that long-postponed appointment with the dentist. Crossing an irksome chore off your to-do list will give you a big rush of elation.

5. Create a more serene environment. Outer order contributes to inner peace, so spend some time cleaning off your desk and tackling the piles in the kitchen. A large stack of little tasks can feel overwhelming, but often just a few minutes of work can make a sizable dent. Set the timer for 10 minutes and see what you can do.

6. Do a good deed. Introduce two people by e-mail, take a minute to pass along useful information, or deliver some gratifying praise. In fact, you can also…

7. Save someone’s life. Sign up to be an organ donor, and remember to tell your family about your decision. “Do good, feel good” — it really works!

8. Act happy. Fake it 'til you feel it. Research shows that even an artificially induced smile boosts your mood. And if you’re smiling, other people will perceive you as being friendlier and more approachable.

9. Learn something new. Think of a subject that you wish you knew more about and spend 15 minutes on the Internet reading about it, or go to a bookstore and buy a book about it. But be honest! Pick a topic that really interests you, not something you think you "should" or "need" to learn about.

Our New Home!

We found our DC apartment! What a relief. It's real cute and has a deck and lots of natural light and it's in a good neighborhood. Ours is on the top right. Also: we found this one on the first day of looking. Crazy.

Bad Cakes

"Special" Cake.

Check out Bad Cakes for a gallery of some messed-up, really bad cakes. {via ST}

Google Food Blog

An employee at the New York Google office has a flickr page dedicated to documenting his daily eats from the "much talked about" Google Cafeteria. {via Shelterrific}

AOTD: Water Sculptures

Vortex water sculptures? Cool? Kinda. See more water vortex sculptures at Trendhunter. {via shelterrific}

AOTD: The Fun-O-Meter

The Fun-O-Meter, via swissmiss.

DC or Bust!

Here we go...! Everything is finally jam-packed into my moving crate. Every last inch of space was filled with my crap. Just when you think you "don't have that much stuf"..uh-huh, yeah, try packing a wood box with all of it! Well, y'all know I love getting rid of stuff and cleaning, so it feels pretty good. My whole life, in a box. Bound for Washington, DC.

For my one - maybe two - blog readers who don't know me personally: I am moving across the country to join my smarty-pants boyfriend in DC. He's starting his 2nd year of law school, and I'm really excited to finally be in the same city with him. I've never lived anywhere but the Northwest (Except for a brief summer in Germany during college), and couldn't have ever imagined leaving. Then I met THIS GUY and things shook up a bit. I'm very excited that I get to share this adventure with him and I think lots of opportunities will happen there for me as well.

Wish us luck! We fly out on the red-eye tonight, for a 3-week stop-off in Baltimore with our very hospitable friends while we search for our new home in the DC area :)

Christmas List: Isak Products

Their web site says they are a "world of beautiful happy things", and it's true! Isak has all kinds of adorable serveware for your hostessing needs :) {ISAK Products}

AOTD: Western Spaghetti

Check out this cool video by PES. via swissmiss.

ATOD: 15 Shapes

Fun illustrations from 15shapes.