Change.

Exciting news friends... New Girl Old Town is about to become New Girl Fulton River District/River North. Read = I'm moving!  After a lovely 5 years in my beloved neighborhood, it's time for change. It's seems as though in Chicago, as people get older, they move a little closer to downtown.  That is certainly the case for me!  While I love everything about my 'hood, I'm upgrading to 23 floors up in the sky to live in my bf's building.  I'm pretty excited!  However, upgrading to shiny new appliances and my own washer and dryer means downsizing - to a studio apartment.  I'm spending the next few weeks packing and doing some design planning on making the most of my new {smaller} space.  Expect to see my chronicles documented here.  Until then, happy packing for me!

DIY Mexican

{Source}

Lately I've been craving Mexican food and margaritas.  Ok, who am I kidding.  Change that to ALL the time.  I just can't get enough of a good margarita and chips and salsa.  I decided to try my hands at making some homemade hot queso - a personal fave and a tall order considering I've had some excellent queso at restaurants lately.  After a little recipe research, I ended up concocting a delicious batch that turned out just as good, if not better, than anything you could order.  I rarely measure when I cook, so note that everything is approximate.

:: Hot Queso Dip ::

1/2 lb White American cheese (from the deli counter)
1/2 10 oz can of Rotel Diced tomatos (I used the lime and cilantro version)
1/2 4 oz can of diced green chiles
~1/4 cup milk

Simply melt all the ingredients in a sauce pan on medium low heat and voila!  Add more milk to thin it out, or vice versa.

Naturally, what's queso without margaritas?  I took a little help from the store, and churned out one delicious modified skinny margarita.  Take some Skinny Girl Margarita from the bottle, add the juice of one fresh squeezed lime, and a splash of club soda.  Cheers!

Design On A Discount Dime

Why hello there 2013!  Blogging radio silence has ended!  This past month or so has been crazy busy (complete with some international traveling), hence the blatant lack of posting.  I'm finally beginning to feel re-energized, inspired, and ready to roll.  Speaking of inspired, I went on a recent browsing trip to Marshall's, and that's what has inspired this post.  TJ's, Homegoods, Marshall's - all pretty much the same thing, yet there are some differences in inventory.  I was so pleasantly surprised on the plethora of pieces I saw, I wish I could have snapped them all up!  Who says decorating needs to break the bank?  I love Room+Board and Jonathan Adler as much as the next, but when it comes to adding a few key design pieces to add a punch at discount prices - Marshall's certainly can foot the bill.

This little beauty stopped me dead in my tracks.  

Why hello there coral chevron throw.
I would have purchased you if not for risk of clashing with my chevron pillows.

WHAT?! In every color?!  Ah temptation.

I love a good ampersand.

How chic is this wooden martini shaker?  I need you for my non-existent bar area.

My love for mercury glass is unwavering. 

Ok, I had to take ONE thing home.  $6.99 folks.  Done and done!

Let the Decorating Begin!

December is here tomorrow and I'm determined to enjoy the holidays even with my crazy busy schedule.  I've managed to chip away at my goal of Christmas decorating, and have begun to tackle a few DIY projects!  This year, I'll be spending Christmas Eve and Christmas day here in Chicago with the bf, so naturally I've been tasked with adding some Christmas cheer to his place too - including the tree! {cannot wait to post}.  Until then, here are some snapshots that have been brightening my days thus far.  Happy Friday!

Holiday coffee table makeover c/o Marshall's with a runner from Target

Simmering cranberry relish at Thanksgiving - one of my contributions to dinner!

My first ever attempt at a wreath. Very pleased with the result.

Mini Christmas trees at Whole Foods

Saturday morning stroll through my hood, coffee in hand.

Getting in the Holiday spirit!

We witnessed the first (ever so slight) snowfall the other night in Chicago, and that's all it took to get me into the holiday spirit.  I'm making a point to carve out some spare time this season to revamp my holiday decor and tackle some DIY projects... with so many cute ideas, how does one choose just a few?

Source: blog.1800flowers.com via Krystal on Pinterest

Source: media-cache6.pinterest.com via Krystal on Pinterest

Source: notsorandomstuff.blogspot.com via Krystal on Pinterest

Source: homeyhomedesign.blogspot.com via Krystal on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Krystal on Pinterest

Pumpkin Soup

As much as I love all things fall, I've never been a huge soup person.  However, I once had a pumpkin soup that was so creamy and decadent it tasted like molten pumpkin pie, and this weekend I had the ambition to attempt my own version.  I loosely followed this recipe, but modified and added in a few ingredients.  It turned out SO good - creamy, slightly sweet, and savory - it was once of my favorite dishes I've made as of late.

:: Creamy Pumpkin Soup ::

1/4 butter

1/3 cup chopped sweet onion

1 clove finely chopped garlic

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 can low sodium chicken broth

1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 (15 oz) can Libby's Pure Pumpkin 

1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/4 cup heavy cream

Melt the butter in a 3 quart size saucepan, add in onion, garlic, and brown sugar and saute for 2 minutes.  Add in chicken broth, water, salt, and pepper, bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer on low for 10 minutes.  Add in pumpkin, evaporated milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cream, and cook on medium for 5 minutes.  Transfer soup (you'll probably have to do it in batches) to a food processor and pulse a few times to combine evenly.  Transfer all the soup back to your saucepan, and cook for 5 more minutes.  Finish with a dollop of creme fresh, some chopped fresh sage, and a few chopped hazelnuts.

Perfect Sunday night of fall cooking

Stick it to me

Source: coutureandcupcakes.wordpress.com via Krystal on Pinterest

I was gifted a very cool set of flower wall "stickers" for my birthday.  I'll admit, I've always been skeptical of these.  Some can look too trendy, and seemed very intimidating to apply. But I'm very pleased on how it turned out, and made my entryway wall a real statement piece in my apartment.  I had to play around a bit with the layout to make it fit, and it was a happy accident that it came together the way it did. 

 

 

Here are a few of my favs I've found...

 



{via}

{via}

{via}

{via}