Fresh Fashion Friday - Hepburn Girl

I love my Hepburns. Audrey and Katharine are two of my favorite leadings ladies. Today’s outfit is Katharine inspired. I love how she played fast talking, pants wearing, smart women. I love that wide leg pants with a higher waist are coming back, because they remind me of the style she wore.

Sorry in advance for the crummy pictures, the weather has not been cooperating for outdoor photo sessions. I paired my grey wool trousers (side note: I love the word ‘trousers’ it is so fun to say. Try it! Trouuuuuserrrrrrssss) with this bow tie blouse to give the menswear look a feminine punch.

I feel like an old fashioned girl Friday.

Now for the breakdown:
- Dark green blouse from h&m
- Patent leather belt from h&m
- Grey wide leg trousers from h&m
- Black patent flats from Old Navy
Have a great weekend!

<3
Hattie

Applelicious

Today I was craving two of my favorite fall drinks, Starbuck’s caramel apple cider and Aroma’s hot apple pie. Since I’d just picked up some fresh apple cider at the grocery store, I decided to try my hand at recreating a similar drink.

It came out pretty delicious!

Here’s what you’ll need:

Apple cider
Apple pie spice or any other combo of fall spices
Caramel syrup
Whipped cream.

For an individual serving, heat up an almost full mug of cider. Throw in a pinch or two of spice – about ½ teaspoon. Stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons of caramel syrup to taste. Top with whipped cream and an extra sprinkle of cinnamon – if you’re feeling fancy.

Enjoy!

<3
Hattie

A walk in the fall

During the summer, I took all you lovely readers along for a walk to my mailbox. I think the fall leaves have hit their peak, so I thought it was time for us to go on another walk. This time, let’s start at the end of the driveway and head towards home.

I don’t think I will ever get tired of this beautiful view.

At the half way point, I turned and looked back at where our dream house will one day stand.

Since Halloween is almost here, I thought y’all might want to take a peak at the old cemetery. I’ve never really found it that creepy.

I love the twisty vines crawling up this tree.

The barn and pond look just like a postcard.

The leaves are gorgeous, but I really hate to rake them!

I hope you enjoyed another tour of the farm! If we have any snow this winter, I’ll have to take you on an icy wonderland tour!

<3
Hattie

I pine for you

For this week’s DIY Day, I kept things super simple. If you can answer yes to the next three questions, you too can make this easy and uber cute (if I do say so myself!) Thanksgiving wreath.

1. Do you have pinecones?

2. Do you have hot glue?

3. Do you have scrap paper?
Everybody with me? Here we go!

Step one: turn on hot glue gun and gather pinecones.

Step two: arrange pine cones in a pleasing shape, I chose a square.

Step three: hot glue like crazy! I found that if I applied the glue really generously and sort of squished the pinecones together until they interlocked a bit, they stayed glued just fine. It helps to glue one cone at a time and hold in place until the glue has hardened. If you wanted to make a really big wreath, I would suggest making a frame from a metal clothes hanger and wiring the cones to the frame. However, for a small wreath, hot glue works just fine.

Step four: up the cuteness factor with some embellishments. I created a mini banner out of some scrap paper. I just freehanded the letters, glued them to brown construction paper squares, and taped the squares to some twine. If a banner isn’t your thing, you could add pretty ribbon, some of those fall berry floral sticks, or anything else that strikes your fancy.

I love how my wreath looks just propped up on the buffet, but it would also look very sweet hung by some ribbon on a door or window.

This seriously took about 20 minutes from start to finish and cost me zero dollars. That is my kind of project!

Anyone have other fun pinecone ideas?

<3
Hattie

Weekend Re-cap

Brad and I had a lovely weekend bumming around the house and tooling around town. I thought I’d share some of the highlights.

1. I spent some quality craft time with these pinecones. Check back tomorrow to see how I used them to create a cute and free decoration.

2. Brad always says, “Pumpkin pie is my favorite cake.” So, I took a little time to make a pumpkin pie just for him. I just used the recipe on the Libby’s Pumpkin can. You can’t go wrong!

3. He went to Jared! Well, Brad did. All of my real jewelry, including engagement and wedding rings, are from this store. October is the month we have to get everything inspected, so we stopped by after church to get my rings all cleaned and checked over. I love how they sparkle after a cleaning! I also love how Brad and I both feel completely weird after we hand our rings over for the cleaning, and have to walk around with naked hands for awhile.

3. Sunday was the grand opening of our HomeGoods Store. Along with the rest of Richmond, we checked it out. Craziness! They even had the local police directing traffic. It was too crowded to look at everything, but we did find two things we’ve needed for awhile.

I pretty much single handedly broke every dinner glass we received for our wedding (I blame this on not having a dishwasher), so we replaced them with these much thicker glasses. I like the stripes!

Our fluffy white IKEA bathroom rug has slowly been falling apart in the dryer each week, so we also picked up this much sturdier, but still white and fluffy, rug.

What did you do this weekend? Any fellow Richmond kids venture to HomeGoods?

<3
Hattie

Fresh Fashion Friday - The Vintage Librarian

I have always loved vintage and vintage inspired fashion – especially with a little twist. I’ve really gotten into reading What I Wore, and Jessica’s amazing outfits constantly challenge me to look at my wardrobe more creatively. So, Wednesday I put together this little number.

I only took about a million pictures, so just stick with me.

I heart this tweed skirt so much. It’s both cute and comfy.

This is the first time I’ve worn this belt with anything other than the pants it came with. I think it really makes the outfit.

I love how the boots add a little fun kick (pun totally intended).

Here’s the break down:

- cream ¾ length cardigan from h&m

- orange short sleeved sweater from Target

- brown belt from h&m

- tweed pencil skirt from h&m

- brown tights from Target

- brown boots from Aerosoles – most comfortable boots ever!

Anybody else loving the vintage inspired look this season? Oh, and just for fun, what are your top three must have pieces for fall? I think I’d have to go with boots, tights, and cardigans. Is it any wonder I liked this outfit so much?

<3
Hattie

New Blog Crush

Don't you just love it when you find a new blog that knocks your socks off? Bonus points if the blog features a house you'd like to move into ASAP. A few weeks ago I found A Beach cottage via Kimba's DIY Day.




If you love the cottage look, or the beach house look, or the layers of textured white look, you will love this blog. If you love all three of these things, you may spend several hours looking through every single post. Just promise you'll come back and visit me too! 'K ?

<3
Hattie

p.s. please share your own blog crushes, I love to find new fun sites to visit!

Let's go to the movies!

Brad and I woke up Saturday to gloom and drizzle, so when he suggested we get brunch at Baker’s Crust (one of our favorite restaurants) and then see Where the Wild Things are, I was more than game.

I had to share how much I loved this movie, because I bet a lot of childless adults are on the fence about going to see a kid’s movie. To you I say, “Go! Now! Watch!” All of the classic elements of the story are still there. Max wears his wolf suit and chases the dog with a fork. He sails to the island where the wild things live. There is a wild rumpus. Max goes home, and his dinner is still hot. Layered around the basic children’s story is a deeper story of disappointment, loneliness, and love. Max, the wild things, and his mother all want to believe that when you build a true home, only things you want to happen, can happen. Of course, they all discover that no matter how hard you work, people you love will still disappoint you. The story doesn’t end here, though. By the end of the movie, every character has discovered that forgiveness and love can restore broken relationships. That while families and homes may not always be perfect, or go just the way you would like them to, they are still something to cherish. It’s a beautiful movie, with a magical set and the perfect music. While I doubt the message will sink in for most kids watching the movie (as one little girl said, “Mommy, I need to go home. I have a movie I need to watch. I don’t like this one!”), older kids will still like the fort building and wild rumpus.
Be sure to check out One Pretty Thing today, Rachel posted a great round up of Where the Wild Things are craft and party ideas. I love the wild thing tote bag!
What’s the best movie you’ve seen lately?

<3
Hattie

A little Tweet!

Let’s hear it for Kimba and DIY Day!

Remember when I told you I was going to do some more tweaking to turn my lovely spring birdies into something a little more fall like? Well, here are the results!

This is what they looked like before. I still love the vintage bird images, but the idea of nest building seemed a little too spring like to me. So, I got it into my head that a tree silhouette would be just the thing. I also knew I wanted the background to be the same great graphic fabric I used on this wreath.

I spent a little while fooling around grouping and ungrouping and re-coloring clip art until I hit on the perfect silhouette (if you don’t know how to do this, read the Word help section on grouping – it will change your crafting life!), then I just printed it, cut it out, and popped it in the frame with the pretty modern fabric.

I love it! I feel like the colors were exactly the look I had in mind!

To keep each frame unique but with a cohesive look, I created a whole tree for one frame,

And this simple, single branch for the other frame.

A few more pictures because I’m so excited about how this turned out!

If you missed the post where I explained how to make the twig frames, just pop over here.

Happy DIY Day!

<3
Hattie

The last few days have been unseasonably cold, windy, and dreary. This kind of weather calls for some cheery comfort, so today I made my favorite comfort food lunch.

If you don’t live in Virginia or Georgia, you might not have had the pleasure of tasting Brunswick Stew. Trust me; you should remedy this ASAP, as Brunswick stew is amazing. Homemade is best, but Mrs. Fearnow’s, in the yellow can is almost as good. No other food is as warm and comforting on a miserable day. Perhaps it’s the cheerful yellow label, or the mix of spices - just spicy enough to unstuff a stuffy nose, but probably this stew is so comforting because of the memories I have of it. My family used to go to the state fair every year. Every year it rained. Every year found us huddled in the Virginia’s Finest agriculture barn, looking like drowned animals, gratefully slurping piping hot samples of Mrs. Fearnow’s. Eating that stew always seemed like the first time I'd felt warm and dry all day!

Today I paired my hot bowl of stew with a grilled cheese sandwich and a tall glass of apple cider. It made the perfect lunch for a gloomy fall day!
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My mom also cheered me up with some cute little goodies she gave Brad and I for Halloween. Even the wrapping was cute and cheerful!

I don’t think I need to tell you how much I love this little pumpkin with the owl carving! The mulled cider diffuser smells wonderful and makes the whole house smell like hot apple pie!

It really only take a few simple things to add some cheer and comfort to overcast days! What’s your favorite fall comfort food?

<3
Hattie

Fresh Fashion Friday - So long Summer!

This week is ending on a cold and rainy note, so I’m glad I got Brad to take these pictures on Sunday, when the weather was still semi warm and sunny! This is probably my last post about making summer clothes last into fall, because it looks like chilly weather is here to stay!

I love this green dress so much – probably because I wore it on our Honeymoon the day I put my hands in Audrey Hepburn’s handprints and they fit perfectly. So what if they only thing my style icon and I have in common is abnormally small hands? I’ll take what I can get!

To bring the dress into fall, I paired it with my trusty brown sweater, bronze sash (this time wrapped twice around my waist and tied), and brown satin flats.

From head to toe:
- Yellow seed necklace from Brazil

- Brown cardigan from h&m
- Green jersey knit dress from Forever 21
- Bronze sash from hm
- Brown satin flats from Payless

Have a wonderful weekend!

<3
Hattie

A little tweaking...

“I’m in the middle of a project that needs some….tweaking.” You’ve Got Mail

Aside: it is somewhat amazing that this is only the fourth time I’ve referenced You’ve Got Mail on this blog, as Brad and I quote this movie almost daily! Best. Movie. Ever.
Moving right along… If you read Little Red Roost though a feed reader, you might not have noticed anything new around here, so let me clue you in – I’ve been tweaking the look of the blog. I created a brand new header that I’m pretty pleased with. I feel like it’s a better representation of my own style, less cluttered, more classic, and a little whimsical. I’ve been playing around with the idea of a background so that area still needs some tweaking. Does anyone make free Blogger backgrounds that aren’t super fluffy? I really want a simple solid colored texture, not layers of pattern and bows. Any ideas on where to look?
I’ve also been tweaking a few little things around the roost.

Remember how I couldn’t settle on a kitchen table centerpiece? Well, I think I’ve finally found the look I was after. A vintage tablecloth, a red plate, a red and white bowl, and fresh apples. Simple. Classic. Me. It only took at least four tries to get this right!

I little bow created from a strip of plaid fabric, turned out to be the perfect way to tweak this bucket from summer fun to autumn harvest.

If I can get my hands on some burlap, I’m going to tweak the look of the living room by creating some pillow slipcovers. I think they’d look great for fall and winter!

Later this week/end I plan on tweaking these frames by switching out the art with something new for fall.
It’s not always the big things. Often, little tweaks can make a huge difference in the feel of a room. Go do some tweaking of your own!

<3
Hattie

Pumpkin Bars

It’s time for some DIY, and this week I’m heading to the kitchen! Stop by Kimba’s for more recipes and project ideas!

Now that fall is officially in the air, I’ve been looking forward to baking some yummy goodies. My mom passed this recipe for pumpkin bars on to me, and it’s one of my absolute favorites. Even though it’s a from scratch recipe, it’s really pretty simple.

You will need:
4 eggs (I know! But that’s why these are soooo good!)
1 & 2/3 cup sugar
1 cup cooking oil
1 16 ounce can plain pumpkin
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixer bowl, beat eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin until fluffy.

In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda. Slowly add to pumpkin mixture and mix until thoroughly combined.

Spread batter in an ungreased jelly roll pan. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes. Cool well.

Frost with icing, and cut into bars.

Cream cheese icing:

1 3- ounce package cream cheese, softened ( you can use the 1/3 less fat kind, which I realize is sort of like ordering a diet soda to go with your big mac, but hey, it makes me feel better.)
½ cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar

Mix cream cheese and butter. Stir in vanilla. Add powdered sugar a little at a time until well-mixed.

YUM!

Warning: these are really addictive! What's your favorite fall treat?

<3
Hattie