sneak peek: loftacular.

i used to live in a pretty rad loft downtown, during my single, bud light-and-twizzler days, and it was supes sads to leave the space behind (but i moved in with b-rad, so SILVER LINING). fortunately, i've gotten to design several great loft spaces of late, like this one you've seen previously and also one that got photographed on valentimes day, featuring custom wing chairs that are totally the cat's meeeeooooow. just kidding; that cat is glaring, but only because these chairs up 'n stole her catthunder. stay tuned FO MO.

baked: a kitchen story.

let's get one thing straight-i don't do a whole lot of cooking and certainly never thought i'd be writing a blog post about foods i'd made with my bare hands. that said, when i do chef it up, i'm actually fairly good at it (to the surprise of EVERYONE, including me). until recently, the kitchen has really been sugarbear's domain, but with my new funemployed schedule*, i have all sorts of time to work on my campaign for Wife of the Year, starting with going to the grocery store** and cooking actual meals. it is certainly no secret that prior to meeting and marrying Husband, i consisted on a healthy diet of bud light and twizzlers (see: here and here), but b-radical is more of a "foodie" and he enjoys eating things like "meals" that require "ingredients" and include things like "side dishes" and sometimes utilize things like an "oven" or a "recipe", so i've been taking advantage of the new flexibility in my schedule to blow his mind and tastebuds with culinary concoctions such as

LAMB AND POLENTA "LASAGNE" (the lasagne part is in quotations, i swear).

technically, i whipped this up for an impromptu girls night, but sugarbear insisted that 1. i make lots of extras so he could savor the flavor later and 2. none of my girlfriends were to be allowed thirds. AND I MADE IT AND IT WAS SO DELICIOUS. i was super nervous that it would not be tasty, but manoman, was i wrong. so without further ado, from the archives of gourmet magazine (RIP), here it is, including my sarcastic commentary and modifications (noted in parentheses).

LAMB AND POLENTA "LASAGNE" (gourmet magazine, circa february 2005)

yield: Makes 4 servings (i doubled this. way too few servings for the amount of work involved.)

active time: 25 min

total time: 1 1/4hr (includes standing time) (uh, this was NOT NOTED in my gourmet recipe and i totally started cooking way too late.)

ingredients
-2 (14- to 15-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes (i totally think diced tomatoes would have been just fine, and easier.)
-1/2 plus 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice (i used un-ground allspice (it kind of looks like peppercorns), and i mashed it up in a mortar and pestle LIKE A BOSS because i thought the chunkier spice would be cooler, and it was.)
-1 pound ground lamb (not lean) (not lean my ass, lamb doesn't come in a not lean version, right?) (also, i think you need more like 1.5 pounds of lamb, not kidding.)
-1 pound ready-made plain polenta (in a plastic-wrapped roll) (you can find this shit next in the organic section, next to the quinoa and couscous, or probably somewhere else.)
-1/2 pound whole-milk mozzarella, coarsely grated (about 1 cup) (whole milk? what the fuck. none of the mozzarella options available noted that they were whole milk so i just picked the one with the coolest label.)

preparation

-Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400°F. 

-Drain 1 can tomatoes, reserving juice, then roughly break up tomatoes into 1/2-inch pieces with a spoon if necessary. (this is why you should just use diced tomatoes, duh, but maybe they were not available in the olden days of 2005, but i had a really fun time cutting up whole tomatoes with a knife, not a spoon. who uses a spoon to cut things? come on, gourmet.)

-Purée second can of tomatoes, including juice, with reserved juice (from other can), 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon allspice in a blender until smooth. (BLENDER. use a blender, not the fancy food processor that you got for a wedding gift and don't know how to use, plus that shit has like 12 pieces that all have to be hand washed.) Transfer tomato sauce to a 2-quart heavy saucepan and boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

-Heat a dry 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until hot (i don't get how that is important, but whatever, meat in a cold pan would have been fine too.), then brown lamb with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon allspice, stirring and breaking up lumps (but leaving meat slightly chunky), about 5 minutes. (i totally drained all the lamb fats out of the meat at this junction and then returned that shit to the pan.) Add drained tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until juices are absorbed, about 1 minute. (at this point, i went ROGUE and added like two cups of chopped spinach, plus ANOTHER ROUND OF THE ALLSPICE because i like some flavor in my foods, bitches, and these moves totally paid off later.)

-Cut polenta into 1/4-inch-thick slices with a sharp knife and cover bottom of a 9-inch ceramic or glass pie plate with half of polenta slices (overlapping slightly) (that shit does not need to overlap,btw) (also, GOURMET FAIL. i used a glass pie pan for the first lasagne (don't forget, i doubled it) and that shit was not nearly deep enough for these future steps, so just use a 9" square casserole dish.). Scatter half of lamb mixture over polenta, then top with half of mozzarella, then remaining polenta. Scatter remaining lamb on top and spread tomato sauce over meat, then top with remaining mozzarella. (so the layers are as follows: polenta, lamb mixture, cheese, polenta, lamb mixture, TOMATO SAUCE, cheese. it is tricky.)

-Bake, uncovered, until bubbling and beginning to brown, about 20 minutes. (or like 30 minutes, you want that shit to be browned on top.) Let stand, loosely covered with foil, 15 minutes before serving.

The End. trust when i say, this meal was tasty and i look forward to leftovers. please know that in the future, when i cook dinner, you are INVITED.

*more on MY NEW JOB VENTURES soon, i promise promise. cross my heart and hope to die of happiness.

**prior to quitting my previous job, i was working such insane hours that i had not been to the grocery store in like, six months, possibly nine months. brad had been doing all the grocery shopping and i am a jerk bag wife.

sneak peek: it's epic (ceiling edition).

hey y'all heeeeeyy! so week one of self-employment has been pretty fab. for starters, my new boss is amazing. two, instagram launched web profiles for users (thanks, zuckerberg) so even if you don't have an iphone or instagram, you can still spend hours looking at my #photosofsteve RIGHT HERE. three, i've got a lot of really wonderful things in the works and i'm so excited i can hardly stand it. in the meantime, i wanted to share a glimpse of a lilsomesome i've been working on for awhiiiiiile. this house, aka the EPIC house, is not yet photographed (except by the sensational lens of my iphone), but check out this custom-painted ceiling and stay tuned for more:

big news if you like magazines.

HEY GIRL HEY. so as i mentioned yesterday, i've got big news to share, but sugarbears and his giant brain of wisdom insist i wait AT LEAST until tomorrow to crack that egg of knowledge over your heads. sometimes he's such a party pooper just looking out for my best interests, y'all! check back tomorrow, i suppose (and then every single day after that).

instead i'll share some other big news: i've got a project in this month's houston magazine! you can pick up a copy starting today, or check out the preview online HERE.

it's a screen cap, yo.

it's a moroccan house i've shared before and you also may have seen before and after shots on (my hero) raina's blog, if the lampshade fits. i'll try to round up a BnA m'self at some point, but know that this house makes me insanely happy. not only was the home a complete transformation from start to finish, i gained a friend in the process and am delighted liara participated in the article (thank you times a million, snap snap). the photos (and i think there will be many more in the magazine?) are amazing-the work of incredibly talented photographer julie soefer (another great friend!) who makes what i do look so much better. i'm so excited houston decided to run the story and can't wait to get my meathooks on like 400 copies. 

OH BUT THAT'S NOT ALL. the 2012 ASID design awards were a few weeks ago and my firm walked away with four, one of which was best in show (which is kind of a huge deal, but mainly makes me laugh because of that christopher guest dog show movie). for those of you not privy to the wonders of interior design, these awards are kind of like the daytime emmys (i was going to say the oscars, but NO. they are nothing like that.) houston design resources (the magazine providing coverage of the event) put one of our projects on the cover, too. BOOM. it was a pretty big night, and i got to wear my sequin dress from gay paree, so win-win (win-win-win). here are some amazing iphone pictures to help you visualize the evening's splendor.

the laura u team. (carolyn wins best pose.)

that girl throwing shade in the top left was actually smiling most of the night and very pretty.

personal projects: solange's neighbor.

recently i hit you with the earth-shattering news that a good friend of mine lives in the same loft building as THE solange knowles (but solange be movin', y'all); however, i failed to mention that she (not solange) and i became friends while i was designing her home (which was really the cherry on top because i love making new friends, girl).

it's tough not to envy my friend's loft. for starters, the balcony views of houston's skyline are stunning. lofts in general are a fairly rare type of space in houston and this also doubles as her photography studio (uh, super hip). in addition to having a great sense of style, she shares my love of wallpaper and was open to some pretty crazy concepts. speaking of walls, we had loads and loads of stunning images from her portfolio to hang, as well as her fancy collection of photography from colleagues and mentors. she's into vintage, which is uncommon amongst my clients, so we even got to go on some flea marketing adventures. it. was. a. blast. and the best part is, i get to hang out there whenever i want.

when it rains, it pours: a PR story.

Y'ALL. after what seems like ages and ages of working my spindle-y fingers to the fingerbones, two articles have come out in less than a week featuring my interior design projects. for a little farm girl from vinland, kansas, i feel RILL FANCY DOT COM. (backslash: your mom.)

actually, the articles, both extremely well-written, are super humbling in a way i could never imagine, because they are open for comments. i had forgotten there are commenters who are just. not. nice., but that is okay, jerks! it was very eye-opening to read some of the feedback, some of which was mean; some of which very constructive and helpful and some of which was kind, thoughtful and defensive of this very hard profession. thank you, kind people like jan moyer, for getting how hard it really is to do this job.

so here are those articles, girl. read 'em and weep.

CULTUREMAP : 
Houston designers head for the Hollywood Hills to freshen up 1920s home

HOUZZ : 
Playful Luxury Infuses a 1929 Houston House

and because i am fan of keeping it real and because i do not like posts without pictures, here are some photos of me sitting on a pink toilet in a temporary outhouse in kansas with my uncle larry, wearing sequins and holding a feral kitten. uncle larry constructed the outhouse on his farm for his 30th wedding anniversary party (SHOUT OUT TO AUNT LADONNA), and that thing had hand sanitizer and running water flushes from a garden hose, making it the fanciest non-fancy thing ever. my aunt and uncle also figured out a way to make a soda machine serve rum and cokes. they are amazing.

personal projects: moroccan modern.

the great white buffalo of the design world (at least mine) is the moroccan interior. moroccan style is easily recognizable: beautifully layered, wonderfully detailed and extremely colorful. it's a style so specific that it's really best suited on moroccan soil. encountering clients who are interested in a full-on moroccan interior is rare, and (i find) most are either scared to commit or don't want to get into the construction involved to give an existing structure a mauretanian facelift. it's really a lot of work, y'all.

my clients had traveled extensively and wanted to infuse their residence with moroccan flavor, so for the first time in as long as i can remember, i got to flex my moroccan design muscles. the first major challenge was that their new home, purchased for it's fantastic location, had been a french country townhouse chateau in a former life. LE YEEPS, y'all--the 'before' pictures would blow.your.mind. the end result - massive renovations and all - is a fun, colorful retreat where morocco meets modern.

personal projects: modern and contemporary.

if you're new-ish to this blog, please know that when i'm not buying junk at thrift stores or hoarding craft projects at my house or writing posts that say FUCK FUCK BALLS FUCK Y'ALL*, i have a full-time career as a legitimate interior designer and on occasion, i get to prove those claims with actual photos. it doesn't happen that often, but we just had quite a few homes photographed, which i'll post weekly until i run out, either of pictures or energy; STAY TUNED.

it's fun for me to share these projects, because as i've mentioned, my own personal style is MORE IS MORE / PACKRAT CHIC / HOT ASS MESS OF CLUTTER, and this house, as are most of the homes i design, is not that. not at all, not even kind of. i'm a fucking design chameleon, y'all!

this home is across the street from memorial park and you might recall preview shots from this post way back when aka 2011. it is probably the most contemporary residential project i've worked on in houston, and has stunning views of the surrounding area. our client had purchased a modern home that was beautiful, yet in dire need of some serious updates, so after heavy remodeling, palettes of marble tiles and slabs, wood veneer wallpaper, tom dixon pendant lights and truckloads of entirely new furnishings, this happened. the clean lines of the minimal furnishings really let the gorgeous architecture stand out. exterior photos to follow (hopefully).

*sorry mom, for all the swearing, that occurs 100% of the time when i am not in kansas.