The Doughnut Plant

I was SO excited when I found out about The Doughnut Plant, a little shop in the East Village/Bowery area that has...yep, homemade doughnuts. I immediately took a trip downtown for a taste test, and all I can say is WOW. The first thing that popped into my head was that I will never eat another Dunkin Donut again after tasting these! They use no artificial flavorings or preservatives, and let me tell you, you can REALLY taste the difference that comes from the fresh, quality ingredients. With mouthwatering flavors such as tres leche (three milk), creme brulee, Meyer lemon, and more, these doughnuts are creative as well as delicious! The tres leche had the most delectable hint of creamy filling inside the cake, and the creme brulee had the actual hard, crunchy sugar shell on the outside. They're substantial, cakey, and so full of flavor-whereas with a Dunkin Donut all I taste is a one-dimensional sweetness, these boast a complexity of flavor and moist texture that satisfies your appetite without leaving you feeling too full/in a sugar coma. Not gonna lie, the neighborhood is a little sketchy, BUT I quickly found out that they have another location in Chelsea. Homemade, high quality doughnuts-just another reason why I love New York!

Vanilla glaze and the tres leche-my personal favorite.

The creme brulee, with a crunchy sugar shell! Also a triple chocolate-mmm.

Tres leche (three milk), with just the right amount of creamy filling laced through the cake. Subtle, and delicious.

PS-more sweet spots: Afternoon tea and the prettiest macarons in NYC!

All photos by Jackie

Spotted Sheets

I'm kind of super psyched for these new sheets I got from Target after seeing them in this month's issue of Matchbook. A-they're adorable. B-they were so cheap! And I'm the WORST at finding good deals, so when I actually do, I get giddy. They're black and white polka dots, they look totally Kate Spade to me, and they only cost around 40 bucks (with the shipping and handling). I love how new sheets are a quick way of changing up the look of your bed with very little effort.

Fits right in with yesterday's post! Well, I'm nothing if not consistent.

Dots for Days

When it comes to patterns I love, dots are right at the top of the list. Here are a few spotted pieces I'm loving recently!

Anthropologie Entwined Dots Blouse

Madewell Polka Dot Sidewalk Skimmer

Marc by Marc Jacobs Hot Dot Bangle

Oasis Spots Sweater (Asos)

I REALLY WANT THOSE FLATS! But I'm trying to control myself. And I just love the pockets on the Asos sweater-such a fun, graphic detail. I did pick up this adorable dotted scarf at the Ann Taylor outlet a little while back:

That'll have to satisfy my dot craving for a little while!

Dessert First

How adorable is Anne Thornton? She has a show on Food Network called Dessert First, and she makes the most delectable goodies, like Salted Caramel Banana Macarons, Nutella Banana Brioche Bread Pudding, and Mini Cherry Pies. She takes some complicated pastry techniques and makes them very accessible for the home cook. Plus, she just seems really fun and passionate about what she does.

She also wears VERY cute outfits on the show, and has the nicest collection of pastel colored dishes and cookware on her set. In addition to all THAT, she is besties with Nate Berkus!

RIP, Nate Berkus show.

Fabulous fudge via Anne's FB page



Cookie dough truffles Anne made on the Nate Berkus show-I tried my hand at these and they came out delish!



Adorable, pastry chef, friends with Nate Berkus. Um, could I love her any more? Hers is the only show I'm actually aware of on Food Network that focuses exclusively on delectable desserts-why aren't there more, I wonder? I'd be happy to see a whole channel devoted to the stuff! Unfortunately, her show seems to have been on hiatus for a disturbingly long time, and I'm getting a little nervous it might not be coming back. Come back, Anne!

Is anyone else a fan of the delightful Anne Thornton? Anyone know of any great pastry/dessert TV shows?

Sources: 1, 2, 4 

Shopping in Soho

My sister and I took advantage of the gorgeous (50 degree!) weather the other day to take a stroll around the Nolita/Soho area. There's tons of great shops around there, both independent and large. We stolled through McNally Jackson books, the most gorgeous bookstore (I LOVE indepedent bookstores), and Steven Alan, which was the size of my studio apartment's kitchen (there's a bigger one in Tribeca). Then we headed to Madewell, J. Crew, and Kate Spade. I tried on the J. Crew Tippi Sweater in a primary blue:

I liked the color, but I wound up buying the Double Stripe sweater instead:

This one just seemed longer and more flattering, plus it's 100% cotton, which I like. AND I used a gift card, so no guilt! Then I couldn't resist getting a charming hot pink notebook (sans gift card. Dang):

How cute is that though? Here's the one I considered buying:

J. Crew Archie Grand notebook

Seemed apropos! But I couldn't resist the neon pink of the first one.

After J. Crew we wandered into the Kate Spade Soho store. It was full of stripes and more primary colors (I'm sensing a trend). Apparently it's the "Year of Pattern" for Kate:

Baubles.

The best gallery wall.

Some absolutely gorgeous shoes, on a metallic striped wall.

Primary colors!

Stripes everywhere.

Look at the glitter wall! Wish I had that in my apartment. Love the striped floor too.

I LOVE this tote! I kind of wish I had gotten it. Reminded me of this old post.

The whole store is gorgeous (obvi), and totally got me in the mood for spring! Soho is one of the best places to shop if you're in NYC. Nolita (the adjacent neighborhood) has tons of cute little independent shops, and then Soho itself has all the heavy hitters-right down the street from Kate Spade are Topshop and C. Wonder, and probably others that I didn't even get to. So if you're visiting NYC and in need of a little retail therapy, Soho is definitely the place to be! And now I might have to be going back for that tote...

Head and Shoulders

You know how there are certain interior design items or elements that you just love? Every time you see it, no matter what the type or style of room you spot it in, you love it. Well, mine is busts. They make me think of Europe, big, meandering English gardens, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and old mansions. They're dramatic and unexpected, and they add a perfect touch of austerity and charm to pretty much any decor. I LOVE a bust mixed in with modern decor and bright, saturated elements for the perfect juxtaposition of old and new.

original source?

Cupcakes and Cashmere

via from Sam's Pinboard

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Domino

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Nautical Stripes

Two striped pieces snagged my attention at J. Crew recently:

Stripe sweater-skirt



Evie striped peep toe pumps

Unfortunately, neither one is to be mine. That skirt looks a little tough to wear, and at 5'10", heels are  (sadly enough) not my friend! Still, I can't help loving the nautical stripes, the fantastic pockets on the skirt, and the adorable peep toe/bow combo of the shoes. I'll just have to continue loving these beauties from afar!

A Vintage Dresser

This is the companion piece to my vintage vanity-a long dresser with lots 'o drawers (and LOTS 'o knobs!)  I'm not very good at making decisions, so knob-wise, I went through many options. 5, to be exact. Everyone goes through trial and error when it comes to design, so I thought I'd share the evolution of this piece. My Mom picked this set up at a thrift store many years back-consisting of the dresser, the vanity and mirror, a headboard, and a bookcase. Here's how it all started (in my parent's house), with it's original green color and knobs I really did not enjoy:

It was even missing a knob on the side there. Nice.

So I painted it white and moved it to my apartment in the city. Following my first instinct, I put the same white Rosy Knob on it that I have on my vanity:

This was when I first moved in-still working out the decor situation!

 Then I thought, hmm, maybe a pop of color would be better. Maybe the white is boring. And Anthro had the knobs in a few fun colors, so I tried teal:

Then pink:

I didn't like the shades of the teal or the pink, so I went to Anthro and fell in love with a few of their black and white options. I chose this one:

I actually kept that for a few months. But I never really loved it, then I got totally bored of it. I felt like it needed a touch of metallic, so I went back again and got this:

I thought I would like the gold hardware in the middle, but for some reason it didn't look right to me. Keep in mind this dresser has (count 'em) 17 knobs-versus other pieces of furniture, which usually have about two to six. So changing them out a million times was a bit of a project. But when it comes to design, I know when something's right and when it's not, and I just never felt any of these options were right. Until I came to my current decision, which I am totally and completely happy with:

Surprise, surprise! After ALL that, I went back to the original white. I thought I needed a pop of color in the knobs, but as it turns out, there are so very many knobs on this piece that the colored ones looked overwhelming and just off. The white knobs have impact  by virtue of their large size, but the fact that they're white allows them to blend in and just lend a textural quality to the piece. I'm glad I tried all the different hardware though, so that way I know I'm happy with what I have. Also, Anthropologie is awesome because they have no time limit on returns, so I never had any problem returning the hardware I changed my mind about! Lucky for me. 

An aside: I totally wanted to do handles on the bottom drawers, but unfortunately there's a non-standard distance between the two holes, so I couldn't easily find handles that fit. And I was not interested in whippin' out the drill and spackle (neither of which I have) to drill new holes and fill the old ones. So knobs it is, and I love the neutral look!

Annotated Classics

Annotated versions of books are classics with notes in the margins that provide historical context, vocabulary definitions, explanations of something that's happening in the text, and more. I have an annotated version of Pride and Prejudice, and I love it! A lot about Jane Austen's time period was so different from ours, and reading the annotations illuminates a lot of societal norms and conventions that help the reader more fully understand why certain things are happening. When you read the annotations you just gain a different insight and a deeper understanding of what's happening in the story. It's sort of like reading with an English teacher or historical expert next to you, giving you little bits of information that make you go "Ohhhh, so that's why!"  My annotated Pride and Prejudice also contains biographical details about Jane Austen that help the reader to see how things from her life played into her writing.

Here are a few others I'm looking forward to checking out:

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I think it's nice to read a book un-annotated once, so you can just enjoy the story, then go back and page through the annotated version to add an extra layer of understanding to it. This way the annotations don't feel like interruptions, because you're already familiar with the story. And yes, I am aware of how big a nerd that just made me sound.