Posted: January 27th, 2012 | Author: Sarah | Filed under: Faire Play | Tags: Alewyfe, Anna Todaro, Bonnie, Broad Street, Chicago, craft fair, Empty Bottle, handmade, Handmade Market, market, Pajaro Negro, Rar Rar Press, spock, virtual market, virtual shopping | No Comments »

Earlier this month, B-bops and I braved the cold and snow venturing to the Handmade Market in Chicago, which is hosted every second saturday at The Empty Bottle. What a fine city we live in! So many craftastic opportunities. We were not disappointed with our little trip, and I discovered some fun new craftspeople! But I don’t mean to rub this in your face, seeing as how you probably couldn’t come. Luckily for you, I’m about to take you on a virtual visit to the Handmade Market by introducing you to my 6 favorite booths!
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Posted: January 25th, 2012 | Author: Brian | Filed under: Fine Fixin's | Tags: black bean, cuban, pork, splendid table, stew | No Comments »

Let me ask you a question. Do you like flavor? Of course you do. You have a mouth. (Hopefully.) Second question. Are you a vegetarian? Yes? Ok, you may want to leave the room. The rest of you, come with me . . .
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Posted: January 23rd, 2012 | Author: Sarah | Filed under: Giveaway | Tags: Giveaway, handmande, sweepstakes, tassel, turquoise, vintage | 20 Comments »

GIVEAWAY TIMEZ!!! I’m giving away THREE (count ‘em) necklaces made by my own little hands! Why? Well…. responses to our Reader Survey aren’t coming in quite as quickly as we’d like, so we thought we’d give you some incentive.
What you’ll win:
One of the three necklaces above. You pick your favorite!
Please note: the winning necklaces will be made-to-order, so to speak, so they may differ slightly from those pictured above.
Posted: January 19th, 2012 | Author: Brian and Sarah | Filed under: Blog News | Tags: birthday, candles, reader survey, two years | 3 Comments »

{ Beeswax Birthday Candles from Mile-End Soap & Candle Supply }
Have you heard?! Westervin is 2 years old. That’s quite a feat, if we may say so! What’s that? You don’t have a present? Well, that’s ok. Turns out you can wish us well by completing a little reader survey. It’ll help us get a better idea of what you like about Westervin, so we can be even better friends this year. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: January 17th, 2012 | Author: Brian | Filed under: Fine Fixin's | Tags: alton brown, brownies, chocolate, dessert | No Comments »

The other night we had a brownie craving, so we thought that we could put a few aging boxes of cocoa powder to use! We really liked how dense and choclately these particular brownies were. They definitely hit the spot. We used a combination of regular Hershey’s cocoa powder and the Dutch processed cocoa powder, since that’s what we had on hand. If you’re in the mood for a real brownie, and not just any pansy, pre-boxed, pre-made brownie, put your stretch pants on and try this variation from Alton Brown.
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Posted: January 16th, 2012 | Author: Sarah | Filed under: A Pretty Pair | Tags: 2012, Amy Poehler, Cobalt123, Dianna Agron, Elsa Mora, Evan Rachel Wood, Genadii Berёzkin, Golden Globes, Julianna Margulies, Kelly Macdonald, Kristen Wiig, Lab Partners, Mari Andrews, Mathilde Aubier, Mia Tarducci Henry, Michelle Williams, Miss Pompadour, Raw Color, red carpet, Rooney Mara, Salma Hayek, Selflesh, Siri Hol, Zooey Deschanel | 6 Comments »

{ Untitled by Genadii Berёzkin } { Zooey Deschanel }
I thought we’d do today’s pairing a little differently—inspired by my 10 favorite red carpet dresses from last night’s Golden Globes. See them all below!
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