Ship Kites by Haptic Lab

Last year we sold out of these delightful kites so quickly, I got more this time! These are the perfect spring kite or if you are going on a destination Spring holiday there is no better activity than this great ship kite sailing on the beach or meadow!

white ship kite

And hey, if you are staying home, well this is a great 3-D art piece to but in a kids room or office. They are super easy to put together and made of bamboo and soft kite textile, it's a fun project to put together as a family. The kite comes with string and everything you need to fly your kite. You can also purchase additional kite string if needed.

LOTS OF IDEAS!

And here is how you put it together.

get the ship kite at Nonchalantmom here

Martha McQuade :: scarf-shop

this is the giant-size cotton gauze scarf

I have been following Martha McQuade since I have been on Instagram, her posts are some of my favorites. I found her through my curated group of talented Minneapolis folk that I follow and use for inspiration! I am lucky that I am from Minnesota so it's on my radar, it may not be on everyones radar but if you have spent any time in there you would know it's a special place. And right now it's a hot-bed of talented people who stick close together and help each other cross-pollinate their creativity. If you want to follow Martha on Instagram you can at @mwmmpls and you will be inspired too!

For now, you can shop her scarf-shop... just found it today and I spent, well let's say way too much time, deciding what color to get. She takes simple, beautiful, cotton gauze (in various sizes) and even organic cotton and hand dyes them in 28 glorious shades. What could be more desirable in the doldrums of this in-between seasons than a simple scarf... sometimes it's all you need!

What color did YOU get?

www.scarf-shop.com

recipe: pesto (Happy St. Patty's day!)

It happens often in our house that everything on the table is GREEN so I thought I would share one of our favorite recipes with you today because it is GREEN! (pesto! haha)

My kids love pesto, I think they like it more than mac and cheese (possibly a toss-up). The fun thing about pesto is that it tastes different all the time and almost everyone I know has a different recipe. This is one of my favorites and I almost always have a jar in my freezer for those nights when you just don't want to cook anything! PRESTO PESTO!

I got this recipe by typing kale and mint pesto into google and out came tons of answers, then I did what I usually do and look at who has the best photos, I came up with The Dreaming Foodie - her photos are AMAZING! and her recipe is equally GREAT! - click to follow her recipe on her blog.

see! aren't her photos amazing!

Kale, Mint and Cashew Pesto
As you use this recipe you will come up with your own proportions depending on how you and your family like it.

one bunch of kale
2 small handfuls of spearmint (I like the taste of spearmint better than peppermint in cooking)
1/2 cup cashews (I think I use a bit more)
1-2 garlic cloves
3/4 cup olive oil
juice from 1/2 a lemon
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
salt + pepper
red pepper flakes (my kids are used to these but you may get the 'spicy' comment from your kids)

Jess (The Dreaming Foodie) blanches the kale first - I just saw this now and have never done it for this recipe but I will certainly try next time! Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend. I use the water from the pasta to help it if it comes out too dry or it's not processing. You can also use some pasta water when you are mixing your pesto into your pasta - it will help it stick to your pasta better.

This pesto is delicious on lot's of things; salmon, I made a lobster pasta with it the other night that was delicious! brown rice as a side dish, anything really...

When I lived in Italy I was macrobiotic and we obviously made lots of pesto (its the kind of thing you make when you have nothing left in your pantry) - we made it without cheese and it was delicious - just used pine nuts and a touch more salt (and lots of red pepper flakes). This was the first time I've made it with Kale though, it's just as good, if not better than with Basil.

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Spring is coming! isn't it?

saying good-bye to our Matunuck Hills home

I don't know about you but I keep seeing photos on Instagram of places that are starting to de-thaw, I have seen daffodils and other spring flowers, warm weather and people eating outside. We are still shoveling out of an almost daily snow. A record snowfall winter in which we moved our home and the store, it was mind-blowing... one day at the beginning of the move we were actually moving DURING the snowstorm, I SO wish I had taken a photo of my husbands car in front of mine, both loaded down with our things, he had shelves on top of his car which made him drive with the window open so that he could hold on with one hand and I am telling you it was a wind-tunnel of sideways blistering snow, it's funny now (I can't stop laughing to myself about that day), but not at the time. Don't ask me why we insisted on moving everything by ourselves, everyone asked if they could help, but we did it alone. We had eight pieces of furniture that movers moved for us but otherwise we hauled about 1,000 loads over to our new place, of which I am sure you will see photos soon.

Our new temporary home, until we figure out where we are going to move, is a 70's time capsule. I've hauled out all of my orange and yellow and we are reveling in it! All of my Moroccan rugs are perfect, as are my candles, way too many pillows and my collection of ceramics. It's a terrific cozy beach house that we are going to enjoy thoroughly. But for now we are collapsing! I have been to all the new shows for the upcoming Fall 2015 collections - so now I need to decided what the store will look like, what will be new and which collections we still can't do without. Spring is arriving, a bit slowly if you ask me but we have so many new things on the way for you and you are going to love it all!! I am sticking with collections that live with you day to day, things that quietly make you happy, and things you simply can't do without!

I will say that after moving all the store, our home, my husbands painting studio I have a new affection for all things essential and simple, what do I REALLY need is my new motto! I am always a fan of small frivolous things and even large crazy pieces - but what's important is that they are meaningful and worth hauling all over the planet because you love them!

I am sorry for not communicating better during the move but it was mayhem, I assure you - I hardly found time to ship everyone, which we did - without pause, except for that one customer (you know who you are) I can't find that scarf... I think it's gone! Everyone else was shipping quickly and efficiently as usual :)

and if anyone has an idea of a good place for us to move to.. please do drop us a line!