Weekly Want: Yelapita Polka Dot Bag by Scout & Catalogue

Like most women, I'm obsessed with handbags. I've been a fan of Scout & Catalogue for a couple years now and own one of their denim galaxy clutches. But with their recent collection, they're expanding upon their leather offerings that we got a taste of last season. What I love most about their leather collection is there's an understated cool about it that I absolutely love. I've been into smaller bags lately as a way to force myself to only carry the essentials. When I was carrying a tote bag (or a larger purse), I had this bad habit of carrying two cameras, a sketchbook, art supplies…it just got way out of hand. Now I only carry those things with me when I'm *really* doing work. This bag is just the right size to carry a wallet, phone, keys…the only things I really need. And what I also love about it is the strap is detachable so it can be carried like a clutch, although the straps are so beautiful I would part with them for a second.

*image from Scout & Catalogue

Available from Scout & Catalogue for $180

Recap: LA Cake Club April Meetup

This past Saturday, I went to my first ever LA Cake Club at littlemeatsLA. LA Cake Club is a monthly meetup started by my gal pal, Sara Tso of Matchbox Kitchen, where a bunch of dessert lovers get together and just eat a bunch of deliciousness. The only criteria for attending is that you must bring a homemade dessert (no store-bought here!). For me, it was a super fun reason to try out new recipes.

Kevin's mom recently bought a puff pancake pan from her coworker for a fundraiser, so I took this as an opportunity to put it to work. I found this recipe for ebleskivers (Danish puff pancakes) with lingonberry jam from Serious Eats that totally did the trick.

Everything looked so good that this little dude wanted to join us.

Licorice

This tres leches cake showed up late and I knew I was in trouble. I LOVE TRES LECHES!!! I went back for multiple servings and took quite a bit of it home.

Loquat Cake

A few more cakes at shown up but I was too busy stuffing my face to continue taking photos. I had lots of fun and I'm looking forward to next month's meetup.

Weekly Want: Tiger Scarf by Leah Goren

A little over two weeks ago, Leah Goren announced her new Fall/Winter 2014 scarf collection and it's absolutely gorgeous! There's six different beautifully illustrated scarves to choose from, so there's bound to be one for everyone! Of course, being a tiger lover, I naturally want the Tiger Scarf.

image from Leah Goren

The entire collection is currently available for pre-order (with early September delivery) in her shop.

Lady in the Water

I've just been drawing a lot, trying to create some new work. It's been very challenging for me to just get past the sketching phase and commit to an actual piece. I think a lot of it for me is the fear of failure and the other part is just feeling completely out of practice. It's been a really long time since I've drawn for "art" if that makes any sense. I usually just sketch out ideas for client work, then most of a project will be done and finished on a computer. It's been a very long time since I've created work with analog media. And although I have a digital drawing tablet and a great set of Photoshop preset brushes, I still prefer to work with the physical materials. For me, they're much easier to control but I know for others it's just much faster, easier, and less messy. 

So I honestly don't know where all this is going yet, but you'll just have to keep following along to see where it goes.

Hello Sunshine!

Today, I added a new card in the shop. The weather has been super hot and super summery and spring just barely started! I don't even want to think about how hot it will be when summer finally comes. I've been drawing lots of summery things, since I'm not really into a lot of spring things other than fruit. So here's a happy little sun.

Get it here!

What I Ate: Fusion Burgers

On York Blvd. in Highland Park, there's an unassuming little burger joint serving up some mighty tasty burgers. Some have referred to it as an Umami Burger knock-off, but I would say Fusion Burgers has its own character. For starters, most of their burgers are $2-3 cheaper than Umami. Second, at least half of the burgers on the menu are "fusion" in that they don't use a traditional hamburger patty. They have burgers with patties made of al pastor, turkey, pork…just to name a few.

Cheese Tosos

Dan's Inferno - Turkey Patty, Dan’s Inferno Sauce, 1000 island, pepper cheese, roasted peppers, and onion ringlets

So if you're ever in Highland Park and craving burgers, head over to Fusion Burgers. And if you just go a little further down York Blvd., you can stop by Donut Friend or Scoops for dessert.

New in the Shop: Calico Button

Now available in the shop!

Food Envy: White Castle Chicken & Waffle Sandwich

If you've been following along, then you know that I LOVE sandwiches. My favorite being fried chicken sandwiches. White Castle just announced that they will be serving this Chicken & Waffle sandwich as part of their breakfast menu.

Chicken & Waffle Sandwich with Gravy (image from LA Times)

We don't have White Castle in LA, so the only time I've been able to get some is when I'm in Minneapolis visiting my brother. Otherwise, the only way we can get our hands on them is in the grocer's freezer. Too bad, I'll just have to keep imagining that it's as good as it looks. For those of you lucky enough to live in a state with White Castle, tell me how it goes!

Moon Face

Here's the final image of my piece for Q Pop's upcoming Magical Girl Heroines show. Check out the Facebook event for more info. If you're in the area, stop by April 5th 7PM – 10PM.