Amy Artisan

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A Sunny Sunday…London Style

May 25, 2014 / / 1 Comment
This time last Sunday, I was tourist for a day in London ahead of a meetings at one of our locations outside of London. Meetings started on Monday afternoon – so a Saturday overnight flight & a few hotel points from all my WI travel allowed for a Sunday afternoon and evening in the midst of it all. A colleague flew in early too and was game for some Sunday adventure.
A postcard view from my hotel room

A postcard view from my hotel room

As I opened the door to my hotel room, I was greeted with an incredible view of the London skyline – I think I might have a postcard that looks just about the same. After cleaning up a bit, it was time to set out for some London fun.
In Trafalgar Square

In Trafalgar Square

First, a stroll practically around the corner to Trafalgar Square. On such a warm and sunny afternoon, the square was bustling with people & performance art. We wandered through some of the galleries at the National Gallery – in our tired state, the commentary we had about some of the paintings was quite rich.
The view from the cafe

The view from the cafe

After recharging with an iced latte & a ginger biscuit, it was time for a bit of shopping. A quick taxi ride dropped us in front of Liberty of London.
About to enter Liberty

About to enter Liberty

It was great fun to stroll through the floors at Liberty – the florals truly are amazing. Some purchases were made and ideas for purchases on future trips were filed away.
A glimpse of the red carpet

A glimpse of the red carpet

When our shopping was done (or rather we knew we needed to leave before doing anymore damage), we met up with a colleague for drinks before walking to dinner. As we walked, we passed the theater & red carpet for a BAFTA awards show.
My postcard view - the nighttime edition

My postcard view – the nighttime edition

After dinner, it was time for me to grab a cab back to my hotel & “finally” get some sleep. Upon my return to my room, I stared out the window for a bit watching my iconic skyline view come to life with the night lights. Thanks to the marvel that is FaceTime, I gave the family a touring of the darkening skyline before calling it a night. On Monday morning, a taxi ride to Waterloo Station and then a 45 minute train ride transported us away from being a London tourist to our several days of planning workshops. More trips may be on the horizon…I wonder what tourist adventures I’ll be able to incorporate into them?

One Community: May 2014

May 11, 2014 / / 3 Comments

Connecting with One Community to share unique perspectives on the same words. For May, the words are FIVE | MOTHER | RECIPE | REMEMBER

In the Artisan family, May has always been “Mom” month. In addition to celebrating our Mom through Mother’s Day, her birthday is later in the month. So each year we do our best to appropriately spoil her during the month for all that she does for us every day of the year.

When I saw the One Community words for this month, I had a slight lightbulb moment for capturing the majority of them. Now that spring is here and “good” strawberries are once again in the store it is the perfect time to make Mom’s Strawberry Pie. When I think of this recipe, it is Mom through and through. On Mother’s Day morning, I went through the steps to make a delicious pie that had me remembering Mom from afar.

Making the base

Making the base

REMEMBER…I’ve mentioned that Grandma’s house in California included fabulous gardens…in those gardens were the most delicious strawberries ever…strawberries always make us think of Grandma’s place (in fact, for Christmas my sister gave me a strawberry ‘bead’ for my memory bracelet to remember Grandma)

Assembled & ready to chill

Assembled & ready to chill

RECIPE…this recipe is simple in it’s preparation and stunning in it’s ruby presentation…among the things that Mom has taught throughout the years is that you can’t go wrong with simple, good food.

Ready to enjoy with homemade whipped cream

Ready to enjoy with homemade whipped cream

MOM…as with many Mom recipes, we use it as a guide versus a precise instruction…in making this yesterday, the pie didn’t setup nicely once I added the strawberries…in texting with Mom about it, she commented that as she also adds more berries than called for she has decided that we need to up the cornstarch in the base. So much of my approach to the kitchen is based on what I learned (& continue to learn) from her.

Here is our simple recipe…in FIVE easy steps:

  1. Crush 1 pint of strawberries.
  2. Combine them in a saucepan with 1 c. sugar, 4 T cornstarch and 2 T lemon juice. Stir constantly until thickened and clear.
  3. Cool the mixture.
  4. Slice another pint (or more) of strawberries and fold into the cooled mixture.
  5. Transfer to a graham cracker crust and chill until serving. (Excellent when served with whipped cream!)

It turns out that Mom made Strawberry Pie at home yesterday…while the best scenario would have been to be at home enjoying pie with her, it was almost like being with her to have us both enjoying Strawberry Pie across the miles…

What are some of your favorite Mom Recipe Remembrances?

 

 

 

Mom Teachings

May 5, 2014 / / 3 Comments

Through the different link-ups that I’ve been participating in this year, I’ve been stumbling upon lots of “new to me” blogs. When I saw that Jana was planning to host a Little House book club at the Townhouse Pioneer, I thought it would be fun to join in and re-read some favorite childhood books. Each month, one book in the series will be read and discussed via blog. As I reread “Little House in the Big Woods” I was quickly reminded of why the series has always been a favorite of mine. There are a lot of different thoughts that come to mind as discussion points for the book; however, since we are in Mother’s Day week I’m going to focus on mother as teacher. Throughout the adventures and the mundane that Laura and Mary experienced in that little house, Ma was right there – teaching them every step of the way. Some things were survival skills like putting up food for the lean winter months: in the kitchen; others were life skills like knitting and sewing for clothing; some were life lessons about how to treat others.

Riding the carousel at Greenfield Village with Mom!

Riding the carousel at Greenfield Village with Mom!

That is a theme that runs through every mother/child relationship – I’m pretty sure I’ll never outgrow learning things from my Mom. For this week’s Ten on Tuesday, Carole asked us to share “10 Things Mom Taught Me” – so here is just a small & rather random sampling from the things I’ve learned from Artisan Mom…

  • Simple Hospitality – it doesn’t take much to provide an inviting environment to host friends and family in any situation
  • The best strawberry pie recipe – more on this later this week…
  • A love of reading
  • Meyer lemons really make any dish better
  • While I never picked up Mom’s great sewing skills, I picked up the basic mending basics from her
  • Doing housework is a perfect time to pray for those you love
  • A mug of hot tea can solve almost any problem
  • Puzzles are fun! Jig saw…words…or numbers…
  • You can find wonder in the smallest and simplest things – don’t get so caught up “in it all” that you miss these moments
  • No matter how bad a day seems…it’s really not that bad…tomorrow is a new adventure to be had!

“All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” – Abraham Lincoln

What has your Mom taught you? 

Currently…April

April 30, 2014 / / 2 Comments

April showers…seem to be very prevalent this month…the month is closing today with rains of biblical proportion, to quote the radio announcer on the drive home – it sure seems like it has been a pretty wet month. Although, there was that one weekend of early summertime that yielded some much needed patio time. So what was I into throughout the month?

Reading…quite a bit, as I shared in my twitterature link-up and continue to work through more books. On the nightstand right now, a childhood throw back “Little House in the Big Woods” as I join in a blog-based book club (post coming)

Watching…Sabrina (one of my faves); The Great Gatsby; Heat; enjoying the new Fargo series on FX; the whole family thoroughly enjoyed seeing “God’s Not Dead” while I was home in the ‘Ville.

Listening…I finally downloaded Pink Martini’s new album with The Von Trapps (indeed, from “that” family). As with all Pink Martini albums, it’s a winner! And how can you not help but smile when listening to great arrangements of “Lonely Goatherd” & “Edelweiss” sung by the Von Trapps. It has been way to long since I’ve seen Pink Martini in concert – hopefully one of these days their tour schedule and my schedule will align again.

Crafting…recording the Brewers baseball season in stitches (& contemplating how to use this approach for some other sporting fun); needing to finish up on the baby knit since the baby has arrived

Painting with an Amy Artisan Twist

Painting with an Amy Artisan Twist

Painting…a work team outing to Painting With a Twist was to paint a beach scene with a palm tree & beach chairs – I just wasn’t feeling the palm tree & chairs…so, I googled “Door County Beach Sand Dunes” on my phone, found a couple of pictures for inspiration & instead turned my canvas into an interpretation of my preferred beaches. Thanks to my friend Melissa for being another renegade beach dune painter – we were both very happy with our outcomes.

"Go To" Recipes

“Go To” Recipes

Cooking…Spring Simplicity = Roasting shrimp & asparagus and pairing with homemade citrus curry aioli; Baked oatmeal for breakfast (raspberries in the mix brighten it up for spring!)

Sipping…it’s time to keep a pitcher of iced tea in the fridge all the time again; while I enjoy iced coffee year round it’s time to order more of one of my warmer weather favorites: Blueberry Cobbler from Door County Coffee & Tea Co.

Warm Weather Fireplace Screen

Warm Weather Fireplace Screen

Greening…now that the fireplace is not in use, I’ve picked up a fun plant to provide a bit of color in front if it.

Styling…a long overdue haircut has really brought out the curly in my hair that is now the longest it has been since high school…My 20% off everything at Ulta coupon was a catalyst for a spring makeup refresh – the Pur Minerals CC cream is perfect coverage, a bright new lipstick, a makeup palette inspired by Capri…

Easter Sunday Family Selfie

Easter Sunday Family Selfie

Traveling & Celebrating, Part I…it was great to be home in the ‘Ville for Easter with the family – I’ll never be too old to enjoy wearing an Easter orchid corsage from Dad!

Will's First Communion

Will’s First Communion

Traveling & Celebrating, Part II…a favorite kid’s first communion was the perfect opportunity for a long weekend in Marinette! When he woke up on Sunday morning, his first words to me were “You can call me First Communion Boy today, Miss Amy!” So many fun moments with my WI family during my days back with them – cheering on a cousin as she hit a home run in her final college softball game on a very chilly Saturday afternoon and having some roadtrip fun on our way there & back; lunch at my fave Marinette restaurant where the owner greeted me with “Good to see you again, Amy”; watching the Brewers on TV; prepping all the food for the family party after church; general silliness among us all…and so much more… We are all counting the weeks till they head my way for some summer vacation fun…

Looking Ahead…planning what patio gardening I will do this summer…summer vacation planning…adding to the never ending “to read” list…

Linking up with Leigh Kramer for the monthly “What I’m Into” round-up. What are you into these days?

P.S. A bit late to the game…I’m finally claiming my blog through Bloglovin – so pardon the extra code…Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Batter Up!

April 23, 2014 / / 3 Comments

Another sure sign of spring – the return of baseball! I remember first getting into baseball when we moved to the Kansas City area as I started 6th grade. We arrived there in time to get caught up in the Royals frenzy of the “I-70 Show Me State World Series.” Less than a year later, we became friends with a young player on the Royals team & his wife when they started attending our church – from then on, baseball was a more engaging sport. Even when Mike was traded away & then we moved away from Kansas City, we always enjoyed going to games when his team was playing our local team.

Living in Georgia in the 90s, Braves fever was hot – although I never really became a fan. Most Braves games I saw were “chosen” because our friend Mike and team were in town. While interning in Houston, I was able to see several games at the old Houston AstroDome when Mike’s team was in town – what an odd sensation for your feet to be cold while watching the game on an extremely hot day because of the AC in there. When I moved to Chicago, I became a bit of a Cubs fan – because that’s what you do when you are in your mid 20s and live on the north side of Chicago. Games at Wrigley Field are quite an experience – no matter the outcome of the game.
In the last couple of years, as I was essentially living in Marinette, I became a Brewers fan and have enjoyed a couple of games at Miller Park with my WI family. It has been fun to see the kids run the bases after a game and of course the sausage races are a fun in game entertainment. Last summer, heavy rains moved into the area during the game but the roof was quietly & quickly closed before rain drops descended (now, getting from the stadium to the van in the parking lot was different, soggy story).
Fun times at Miller Park

Fun times at Miller Park

So, why am I rambling about baseball on the blog today? Because this year I’m charting the Milwaukee Brewers season in a scarf – the exact color sequence will be determined by their record: Home Win = Blue; Home Loss = White; Away Win = Yellow; Away Loss = Gray. I stumbled across Stacie’s Crackerjack concept just before opening day so I thought it would be fun to do. Of course, I’m hoping this scarf will be predominately blue & yellow. But, after selecting my colors and sequence I realized that the loss colors are in line with the Brewers adorable new mascot, Hank. No matter the outcome, it will be fun to see how the stripes evolve.
Current progress...

Current progress…

I have my spreadsheet setup to record the wins & losses. And I even formatted it to color code corresponding to my yarn choices. Because, yes, I’m a geek like that.  I’m not going to stress about knitting each game result on a daily basis – my goal will be to never be more than a week behind the schedule. And of course, I hope that my scarf ends up even longer than currently planned because of post season play. (Ravelry Project Details)
Keeping track of their record...er, the knit evolution...

Keeping track of their record…er, the knit evolution…

Later this summer I’ll be seeing my 3rd Brewers game at Miller Park – I’m thinking that I might need to add a metallic thread to the rows that chart that game.

What are your baseball memories? Who do you root for? What sport and craft connections do you have?
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