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Wednesday, November 30, 2011

My favorite November posts

Here are the highlights of November. It was a great month for Fashion is Evolution. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!


Pink fashion collage

Mismatched shoes

Punk rock shirt

Flappers

Book clutch

The new length

Sylvia Weiss

Thanksgiving outfit

Tennis outfit

Cranberry sauce recipe

Stay tuned for even more great fun in December! Thanks for reading, lovelies!

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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Holiday recipe: cranberry sauce

Cranberry sauce recipe

The first holiday recipe I have to share with you is for my cranberry sauce. I make this every Thanksgiving, but it would work equally well for Christmas. It goes great with turkey, goose, whatever you're having. And the next day, it also tastes great spread over biscuits for breakfast on a left-over-turkey sandwich for lunch.

My cranberry sauce is my own variation of a Nigella Lawson recipe. But, when I first tried hers years ago, I didn't want to "give it a thrashing" with a fork to keep it from setting. In fact, I wanted to mold it for that lovely, retro, kitschy look. Back then, I also couldn't find the cherry brandy that she suggested I use, so I used a raspberry liquor. In the years since, I've experimented with many kinds of alcohol. I think I prefer triple sec because the orange flavor really goes well with the cranberries, adding an extra fragrance that's just lovely.

So, here's how you do it. It's really quite simple.

Ingredients:
2 12-ounce bags of fresh cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup triple sec
1/3 cup water

Step 1. Put all ingredients into a sauce pan over medium-high heat and cook, stirring often enough to keep from burning until cranberries pop and sauce reduces slightly. It will still look more liquidy than you expect, but don't worry because it will thicken a lot more when it sets.
Step 2. Pour the sauce into a mold. You can use a Jell-O mold, a bunt pan, or any shaped cake pan. I got mine at the thrift store. You will find lots of great, retro cookware there.
Step 3. Refrigerate until set. I usually make it at least the night before, because it's easier, but it doesn't take more than an hour or so to set.
Step 4. Unmold. I do this by loosening the edges all the way around with a rounded butter knife before inverting it on a plate or serving platter.

Cranberry sauce recipe
Cranberry sauce recipe
Cranberry sauce recipe
Cranberry sauce recipe
Cranberry sauce recipe

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Sunday, November 27, 2011

Book clutch tutorial featured on IFB's Linka à la Mode

I'm super honored to be featured again by IFB's Links à la Mode. If you haven't seen the book clutch tutorial I made last week, check it out below, and please check out the other featured blogs while you're at it.


Getting Into The Spirit

Edited by Taylor Davies

Thanksgiving is now officially behind us, so it's time to start looking ahead to the coming holidays and all the fan-fair that comes along with them. From Black Friday shopping to holiday parties to festive DIY projects, there's a lot of inspiration in this week's Links a la Mode selections.

Along with all this inspiration, a few of our bloggers tackled some tough issues, from finding the balance between sexy and frumpy dressing in the workplace, vanity sizing, recession dressing and improving your blog posts. I thought these were important and critical to include for this week's round up, because even as the holiday season gets into full swing, and we're overcome with twinkling lights, festive parties and sequins galore - the same problems and difficulties we face the rest of the year will be here.

THE IFB WEEKLY ROUNDUP: LINKS À LA MODE: NOVEMBER 25TH

  • 33 Avenue Miquelon: Has Black Friday Jumped The Shark?
  • Bon Vivant + A Budget: A Good Sweater Is Hard To Find
  • Clothes: Pepe Jeans To Launch Tru-Blu Jeans To Sustainable Fashion Market
  • Cosmolawlitan: Benetton Ads Spark Controversy but Embody Fashion Spirit
  • Fashion Is Evolution: How To Make A Book Clutch
  • Fish Monkey's Writing Stuff: Not-Sexy Dressing
  • Forever Amber: Size Zero, My Ass
  • In Her Glam: Glam Feature Jill Allison
  • Koi Story: Hair Tutorial v2: Beehive
  • Oh To Be A Muse: Make Up and Muses: The Eyes Have It
  • Oranges & Apples: My Relationship With Make Up
  • Out Of Order: Easy DIY Bow Belt
  • Paperdoll Vintage: My Top Ten Online Vintage Shops
  • Paper + Cloth: 10 Crosby Is Here
  • Roses et Epines: Is The Most Exciting Industry In The World Turning Boring?
  • Semi: DIY Fringe Belt
  • Tansuann: Versace For H&M Timeline
  • The Style Confessions: Fashion For The Recession
  • The Window Shopper: Your Christmas Party Survival Guide
  • Statements in Fashion: How To Write Better Blog Posts
  • SPONSOR:

    PLEASE READ IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE

    If you would like to submit your link for next week’s Links à la Mode, please register first, then post your links HERE. The HTML code for this week will be found in the Links a la Mode group will be published later today. ~Jennine





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    Sans Makeup

    Franka of Oranges and Apples wrote a post recently about why she rarely wears makeup and posted closeups of her beautiful bare face. She invited others to do the same, so here's mine.

    Sans makeup
    Sans makeup Sans makeup

    Like Franka, I don't wear makeup a lot. I do like to experiment with it when I find the time, but it's not a major priority for me. I wear makeup for fun, not as a security blanket -- mostly because I never learned to think of it as something I had to wear. My mom doesn't wear any, so I had to teach myself everything I knew, and I'm still not any good at tricky things like lining eyes or contouring them.

    So, on days when I do wear makeup, I don't wear a lot of it. You can see my morning makeup routine for those days here.

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    Saturday, November 26, 2011

    Thanksgiving in Instagrams

    I hope all my American readers had a lovely Thanksgiving. I hope everyone else did too, even if you didn't know it was Thanksgiving.

    I'll start posting holiday recipes soon; but for now, here's a summary of my Thanksgiving in Instagrams

    Open cookbook and pumpkin candle in my brother's kitchen
    Cranberries just before they became sauceApple strudel
    Cranberry sauce and mold
    Apples just before they became strudelApple strudel
    Candied nuts
    Candied nuts and white wineRyan and I just before sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner
    One roast, one rotisserieTwo turkeys
    My plate
    Thanksgiving leftoversLeftover turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce on rye

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    Friday, November 25, 2011

    What I wore today 11/25/2011 (Versace a game of tennis?)

    In case you're thinking this is just a photo shoot and that I didn't actually wear my new Versace for H&M skirt to play tennis, let me assure you that I totally did.

    Why? For one thing, it arrived (I ordered it from eBay since my local H&M didn't carry the line) just as I was preparing to head to the tennis courts. I tried it on and realized that, with its pleats, it was actually quite perfect for tennis.

    Plus, I'm still the way I was when I was 4 years old: as soon as I buy something new, I want to wear it right way, regardless of whether it suits the occasion.

    Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket
    Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket
    Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket
    Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket
    Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket
    Tennis outfit: Versace for H&M silk pleated skirt, Brooks running shoes, Champion sports bra, vintage Wilson tennis racket


    Silk, pleated skirt - Versace for H&M
    Vintage tennis racket (late 70s, early 80s) - Wilson, hand-me-down from Ryan's mom
    Running shoes - Brooks, The Running Spot
    Sports bra - Champion, Dick's Sporting Goods

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