cloth, canvas, craft…art.

A good friend is having her second child in July. I was unable to go to her baby shower a few weeks ago due to having my swim meet also scheduled that morning. We met with her and her husband this afternoon for lunch at a great restaurant in East Austin called Casa Colombia. The food was great, according to her husband, “it’s soul food for South Americans.” There I was finally able to give her the gift I’d been working on since returning from our Western Roadtrip. I saw similar pieces like this in an adorable baby store in Boulder called Poppy. Upon inspection I figured I’d be able to go home and make my own.

In mine I decided to depict a mermaid holding a ruby instead of a pearl…Ruby is a name they’ve been throwing around for possible baby names, so I thought it was fitting. She loved it and I was so glad she did as artwork is so personal and a risky gift to give.

Since this one was such a success I’ve decided that I’ll start making some more. My mom and her friend are planning a craft/art event in Central Austin around Christmas and I figured these would be great things to sell.

Some firsts

This past three day long/holiday weekend was glorious. We were busy busy with a wedding, a birthday party, hanging out with friends, and lots of other stuff. It was also a weekend of firsts…

It was the first time I’d ever been to a Hindu wedding at an amazing temple called Barsana Dham.

The first time I went to a wine tasting.

and finally, the first time I actually enjoyed sushi. If you’re in Austin go try Imperia on Colorado St. Great rolls and lots of other yummy, non-sushi choices!

Austin Eats – La Condesa

Austin Monthly just did a piece on this new Austin hot spot…I’m so glad they did because at first glance I knew we had to try it out! The owners take Mexican street food and give it a fancy twist.

This past Thursday evening Alex had a two day video shoot at the Omni Hotel in Downtown Austin, and instead of him driving home Thursday evening just to wake up Friday morning and drive all the way back, they set him up with a great room at the hotel. So I decided to join him and pretend what it would be like to live in downtown Austin. We made reservations at La Condesa and walked there. It’s located in Austin’s trendy 2nd Street District right across the street from Lambert’s.

The scene was delectable, great music, decor, and ambiance. I’ve been joking with friends that I wanted to lick the walls of this place, it was so well put together, my favorite combination of modern/eclectic…and did I mention that there were succulents everywhere?

I started my meal with a pineapple ague fresca that was infused with mint and tropical flavors. To start I tried their elotas, which is fire grilled corn with contija cheese and cabbage sprinkled on top. And for our main courses I had the carnitas because they’re my fav while Alex sampled the chorizo and camarones tacos. The presentations were beautiful and the food was top notch quality.

We would love to go back and try more on the menu!

After dinner we walked back to the hotel and soaked in the rooftop pool and hot tub….blissss!

I’m going to let you in on a little secret!

There is a cereal out there that is so incredibly fabulous that you all must go out and buy it. It however, is only found in Target stores, so if you don’t have access to one of those, punch me for mentioning this.

It’s by Archer Farms (which I love so much) and is of the granola variety. I know I’ve mentioned on this blog that cereal is one of my all-time, hands down favorite things. But did I mention that granola is my favorite type of cereal…so woah! Just listen to this, the only flavor I’ve tried of their many varieties is called “Chocolate Chunk Hazelnut Biscotti.” When I saw it on the shelf I almost started crying at the brilliant word play. Upon getting it home and adding milk, bowl, and spoon there were alligator tears of joy and excitement…I had finally found THE American version.

Let me explain that…while studying abroad in Florence I came across a brand of granola that had chocolate chunks in it (much like the Archer Farms granola) and it was just the best thing since sliced bread. Besides the fact that the box was the size of my pinky toe and I could get only three full bowls out of it for a whopping 4 euro a box. On our return to trip to Italy last year I bought and consumed no less than 5 boxes of the stuff. I would pass up cannoli in the morning for a bowl of this magic. But after returning to the states with oat crumbs still sticking to my upper lip I could never find an American equivalent…until NOW!

This stuff too is also on the pricey side, it’s $4.99 per box (but before you stop reading) just give it a try, there are multiple flavors like French Vanilla and Sticky Bun. And the packaging is so fun and eco-friendly!

uh…you’re welcome!

It’s about that time…

…soon there will be a new header on Cappuccino Chit Chat. Remember, with each new season comes a new blog header. In any case, the month of May has been incredibly inspiring, as far as art goes.

Of course it all started with our Western Roadtrip that began May 1st and brought us to cities with great art scenes, i.e. Denver, Boulder, and of course SANTA FE! While on that trip I saw so many shapes, patterns, and compositions that I tried to tuck as tidily as possible into my brain. I think I fared quite well, sketching a few ideas proved to be helpful too. So within the next few days I will be drawing from those inspirations as well as others that I of course see mostly via the internet. Below are some yummy tidbits to munch on!

MY SWIM MEET, oh yeah and the rest of my weekend…

So the swim meet went well. Not great, but good. We got there about 25 minutes into the warm up which caused me to freak out repeatedly on the way up there. Especially when we had to stop and get directions.

“WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DOOOOO?”

was my reaction when we made a wrong turn and had to turn around. Frantic Eryn was in full swing. You could tell especially when we parked the car as I was 28948503 steps ahead of both my mom and Alex ready to plunge into the warm up pool the first chance I got.

Turns out, I was worried for nothing. I had more than enough time to warm up and do a few practice starts off the blocks. To my surprise our friends Kearney and Robin showed up as well to cheer me on. I was really touched by the gesture, especially since they had to wake up at 7am on their Saturday morning.

I was signed up for five events and had no clue that Masters meets run A LOT quicker than the meets I was used to in high school. Instead of 87 heats separating my events from each other I only had one heat separating my first two events. EEK. Especially since my first two events were my hardest. You can see me swimming the 200 free in the below video that Alex took. (You can’t miss me, I’m the blinding white spot in lane 2). You can also hear my mom exclaim during the first 50 yards, “Pick up the pace.” Yayyy. Unfortunately, I listed my best high school time as my seed time and was thus put into a heat with people who could still swim that time…I on the other hand cannot. And in this video it shows….so yes, I do come in last in this event, and to save me misery Alex said he stopped taping when he realized that. AWWW how sweet of him.

Despite the pain and overall fatigue that came around with each event I really had a great time. It was nice to be back in the meet atmosphere and there were a handful of NITRO swimmers present that cheered me on.

Someday I’ll swim at another Masters meet, but first I want to get a wee bit stronger in the water…and next time I’ll learn from my mistakes and won’t sign up for more than 3-4 events in one day.

After the meet on Saturday I spent the rest of the day primarily in a horizontal position on a bed or sofa or floor. Drooling was involved as well as Saci snuggles. It’s as if she knew how bad my body was hurting.

Today I had a spotting. A celebrity spotting on South Congress!!!! Let’s just say that I was sitting at a crepe trailer while Alex retrieved the nutella and strawberries crepe from the window. I then peered a great pair of sandals walking by with a great dog attached as well. “What cute sandals!” I exclaimed to myself, although I heard myself gasp. Then I gazed up at the owner of cute footwear and exchanged a lip pursed smile with Drew Barrymore. It was pretty coo!

Big day tomorrow…

…or big morning at least! Tomorrow morning at 8:30am my first swim meet in seven years begins! EEK. I’ve been a little anxious all week leading up to it…mostly because I signed up for five events and really want to do well in the majority of them.

I have no idea where my times will be in comparison to where they were in high school. My coach has been timing me sprint at practice lately, and they seem to be right on. So we’ll see!

This morning I got my yearly physical…and ladies, we all know what a yearly physical entails. All of that plus a tetanus shot (mine had expired), urine sample, and getting blood drawn before 8am is more productive than I’ve been in months. Many many months. And I want to give a big shout out to Ben, the lab tech that drew my blood. He was a rock star and was in and out of my vein within seconds. I was very very impressed…and so very thankful!

Now I’m just hoping that the achiness in my left shoulder caused by the tetanus shot subsides before the meet tomorrow!

Pure Elation

I bought a brownie yesterday at the work deli but vowed not to eat it after consuming a pastry mid day. I carefully placed it in my desk drawer and tried to forget about it. I guess I did, because today when I opened the drawer to get my iPod I was reunited with said brownie and was rocked with glee. I literally shook with mouth agape. Best find EVER!

Santa Fe was great…and now we’re back.

Santa Fe… awww Santa Fe. When we first arrived I couldn’t help but realize how very much like Phoenix it was. Except for the absence saguaro cacti…I half expected to be on my way to my grandmother’s house.

We rented an exceptionally adorable adobe styled casita 8 blocks from the famous Plaza. It was so cute and fully stocked with anything we may need. Tin foil, ice, batteries, and washer/dryer were in full abundance and we took advantage of it all! And for $115 including tax per night…it really couldn’t be beat. Next time you’re traveling ANYWHERE check out homeaway.com. It’s based here in Austin and so far we’ve used them for European and American accommodations and have been so pleased each and every time!

We jogged into the Plaza of Santa Fe on the first day and immediately met friendly locals that directed us to their favorite hot spots. It was incredible how helpful these locals were. Giving us directions to churches, restaurants, and parks. We were so grateful for their hospitality and willingness to talk art and culture.

There were many high points to this three and half day stop. But my favorites included perusing dozens of art galleries (there are over 200 in the city), eating local Santa Fe fare, visiting the Georgia O’Keefe Museum, and window shopping. We even saw the oldest church and house in the U.S.

And now, we’re back. It was nice that we came back on a Friday so that we had an extra two days to settle in. Our yard was a lush, green jungle that resembled FernGully. Guess my dad’s secret fertilizer recipe worked…it’s a highly protected mix of manure, oregano, and the sweat from a mature bison.

And because of all the refreshing inspiration I gathered throughout the entire trip I’m elbow deep in two craft/art projects. It’s totally Martha Stewart-ville on our dining room table at the moment!

Boulder and Colorado Springs

Yesteray we perused Boulder and absolutely fell in love. It was a very progressive city with great culture, a beautiful University, and nestled into mountains majesty. The shopping on Pearl Street was incredible with great organic restaurants, street performers and hella-cute boutiques!

I really wouldn’t mind living there.

Today we left our good friend Kaitlin in Denver and drove an hour and 15 minutes south to Colorado Springs where we frolicked in the Garden of the Gods…google it. I don’t have time right now to link it. But it has to be one of the most beautiful places either of us have ever seen.

We just found an indoor pool and hot tub in our hotel. Could this day get any better? UM YES IT COULD. Dancing with the Stars comes on tonight and we’re ordering pizza. schwing!