caprese bites!

these cute little guys are way easy to make. or assemble, rather. no baking involved! they're way more fun to eat than a salad and the best part is that they're healthy!! such a tasty appetizer.

all you need:

one container (pint) of cherry or grape tomatoes
fresh basil leaves
one 8 oz package of "bocconcini" mozzarella balls (they come in a round plastic container)
balsamic glaze (i use modenaceti - its delicious)
toothpicks!

to assemble:

1. cut the tomatoes in half so they sit flat on the plate.
2. rip up the basil leaves into smaller pieces and lay a piece on top of each tomato half. (of course, you could leave the leaves [HA!] whole and just fold them up if your heart so desires large amounts of basil)
3. stick a toothpick through a mozz ball and stick that in each tomato.
4. drizzle balsamic glaze over top!

ENJOY :)

my babies.

just a few beings that make my life more lovely to live. they have the biggest hearts. they're the best cuddle buddies. and they ALWAYS know how to cheer me up. too adorable not to share.

birthday.

monday was my birthday. it was a lovely, hot summer day. i had off work and spent the day with my four favorite people. lauren took me to get coffee and then we hopped over to atlanta bread co. to get bagels. mine with strawberry cream cheese, of course. there is no better flavor of cream cheese in existence. after that, we took a trip to a wonderful local antique store and browsed away a few hours. i love antique stores. it was glorious.

so i have a small obsession with mason jars. i've actually purchased 4 different jars in the past week. they're too adorable! i'm planning on painting the inside of the clear ones i bought and putting some flowers in them. fresh flowers always make for lovely decorative accents.

later, i went to yoga with my mom, sister, and V. for anyone who's never tried it, yoga honestly does amazing things to the body and spirit if you let it. my mind has become much more open and i feel as if i have more control over my own body. my mind certainly is more powerful than my body and i'm learning how to use that newly acquired knowledge and awareness. a hibachi dinner followed yoga which was so satisfying and delicious! filet and shrimp is my go-to combo. heaven on my tongue! overall it was a very happy day and i am so thankful to have celebrated my personal holiday with the people who mean the most to me. 

i've recently finished a painting project for my new apartment and it was one of the most simple pieces of art i've ever made! piece of cake. step by step diy will be up soon!

rachael.

catching up!

hellooooo all! i'm back. i've been doing a little work on the blog lately, hope you've noticed. it's nothing flashy yet but i have extremely amateur html & css skills soooo... it'll have to do for now. anyway! i've been busy lately. doing a lot of home improvement projects, one of which i am particularly proud of. i refinished a dresser!

now, i can't take all the credit for this. my wonderful boyfriend, (let's just call him V on here), was an angel, as always, and spent a very long night chipping layer after layer of caked-on paint off of the dresser with a measly chisel out in the garage on a very humid night. i would have completely given up on the project (okay, i sort of did) if it weren't for him! and i am so happy he convinced me to finish the job. after some sanding, priming, a fresh two coats of "tropical coral" paint and some dark brown glaze antiquing done by me, (and only me!), i think it is quite a piece in my bedroom. i've learned to really appreciate the character old furniture brings to a space. i'm planning on furnishing my next few apartments with refinished vintage finds. so exciting! speaking of which, i discovered an amazing antique store very near my home and spent about an hour there two days ago, browsing through years of history and beauty. i left with two items: an adorable little green clock and a good old polaroid camera to add to the collection. the clock now sits charmingly on my bright dresser. he's too cute. i couldn't leave the store without it!

how perfect is that clock?! i am in love. anyway!

to anyone considering refinishing furniture: YOU CAN DO IT! it takes some sweat and hard work but the end result is extremely worth it. time and love can do amazing things to something old and forgotten. and all the credit goes to you! what a sense of accomplishment :)

in other news, i finally got my canon EOS 7D! its my baby, honestly. complete with a 50mm f/1.4 lens. i even bought a pretty little strap for it from iMo on etsy! couldn't be more thrilled. all i want to do is take pictures. i'm obsessed.

i hope everyone is enjoying the weekend! more soon.

Rachael