St. Patrick's Day Rossipe

St. Patrick's Day is Saturday. Do you cook a traditional Irish meal once a year? My Italian mother married an Irish man. She was the only one of the five Rossi sisters who did not marry another Italian. My dad loved her family recipes, but he missed the Irish fare his mother served. So, my mom learned how to make corned beef early in her marriage and it became a staple on St. Patrick's Day in our home.

A New England Boiled Dinner is another term my mom used for "Corned Beef and Cabbage." But my favorite part of the meal is using the leftover meat the next day in a Reuben Sandwich.

My mom and dad on their wedding day in the late 30s

In Rossipes (along with how to make corned beef) is my recipe for a simple 1000 Island Dressing,
a must-have for a good reuben.

1000 Island Salad Dressing

1 cup good-quality mayonnaise
1/2 cup bottled chili sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish
salt and freshly ground black pepper – to taste

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, chili sauce, ketchup and relish until combined. Season with salt and pepper. Use now or store covered in the refrigerator for several days.

To make a reuben sandwich:

corned beef slices

Swiss cheese

good sauerkraut

1000 dressing

rye bread: seeded, seedless, or marble* (I prefer seedless)

Butter two slices of bread, add dressing, swiss cheese, corned beef, and sauerkraut - Grill and Enjoy!

*Speaking of marble rye - one of the funniest episodes ever of Seinfeld was called "The Rye" - do you remember that one?  Good Stuff!

Created on Polyvore . . . 

Don't Lose Any Sleep . . .

We all value our sleep and the quality is important. Although it is almost spring, nights will be cool for months to come - and that poses a unique problem in our house. I do not like the heat on at night, so it gets very chilly. On a cold morning a few months ago when my husband complained to me, “I can’t take it any more,” I knew I had a problem to solve.

I am a restless sleeper, tossing and turning all night. My husband pretty much stays in one spot, with maybe a turn or two. I kick up the duvet when I toss about - It lets in cold air and my husband wakes up from the chill. He basically told me he couldn’t handle it one night more and after 32 winters together, he has taken it long enough.

My Valentine's Day card kind of sums it up . . .

Flea Markets & Spring Baby Shower

Sunday morning I went to the Great Park Antique Market in Irvine, CA. They call it an "antique" market, but it is really more of a vintage flea market. Lots of old stuff, some new stuff, but all kinds of fun stuff to be found. It is held the first Sunday of each month.


I was on the hunt for items to use for a spring-time baby shower. The mommy-to-be is artsy and a bit edgy, but with a super soft side too. She is having a girl and I am so excited to be designing this shower for her. She knows some of my ideas, but not every design detail, and she could peek-in here, so I am just sharing a few of the items I have collected. I want her to be somewhat surprised.

I will be making something special with all of the doilies I am collecting for the shower.  I've found several baby baskets to use and will paint them. Old time clothes pins were a fun thrift find as well. Everything in this photo was found except the burlap, which is new.

This pile was from one vendor at the market that had great prices - I had a hard time stopping. This big pile was just $5. - which was nice compared to a single small doily I saw at a thrift store the other day for $3.50 (which I did not purchase!)

Some of the pieces in this pile were thrifted from an Orange County store called SAVERS. Their prices are very fair compared to some stores in San Diego.

These pieces have already been tea-stained. To do this I make a strong brew of black tea in a large pot on the stove (then turn off heat) and let the doilies soak for as long as it takes to get the color I want - maybe an hour or two. Some of them were white and some other shades of ecru, but they all came out the same after their tea bath. I saved the tea solution and will warm it up and soak all the new pieces.

My daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter Olive, came along with me to the market.  See that big orange ball in the photo? That is a helium balloon that you can take a ride in. It stays tethered and holds 25-30 people at one time. We wanted to go up and see the great view, but Olive needed a nap, so we decided to do it another time. Can't wait for that.

1st Birthday Parties

Oh My! Who knew having 1st birthday parties for little ones could be so much fun. I have two granddaughters born seven weeks apart, so we had two parties in two months. I will share the decoration and crafting ideas in another blog soon. This time I wanted to show the girls in their special birthday outfits and how cute they looked with their cakes.

Olive in a pile of balloons

Olive in her top, pants and t-shirt

Olive (in orange and fuchsia) is wearing an outfit I made mainly with recycled fabrics from other clothing. Baby and toddler clothes do not require too much fabric, so it is the perfect option. I like to start with a pattern and take it from there to customize. I also deconstructed a cotton baby nightgown to for the shirt and part of the pants. My cousin Joanne crocheted three cute little flowers for the dress.

Do you Polyvore?

Yesterday was one of the few rainy days we've had this winter in southern California. It stormed for most of the day . . . it was perfect for staying indoors. After doing some closet cleaning, I spent several hours playing on Polyvore. 

Polyvore is a website where you can pull items, like clothing or furniture from a list and create a look, or what they call, a "set." You can be really creative . . . when I started (just a month ago!) I tried to be realistic in creating a fashion look - something I might actually wear,  but I quickly realized that I would have a lot more fun with looks that I would never, or could never, really wear (like high-heels.)

You can settle for the items already on the site, or "clip"other things you like from blogs, Pinterest (do you Pinterest?) or from a retail site.

I found these art prints via Pinterest and clipped them to Polyvore, so I could create these sets with clothing, jewelry, and other accessories. The colors and city themes in the art were fabulous.


This is so fun and relaxing for me. Sometimes I can spend too much time there, but I can be spontaneous, spend a lot of virtual money, and just enjoy being creative.

Wabisabi Green Gallery Opening

Last night I ventured down the coast to attend a gallery opening. Well-known local artist, Jolee Pink, launched her newest venture in Encinitas. She opened a pop-up gallery (with several other artists) to showcase her modern, eco friendly home decor collection and turned a ho-hum commercial space into an aquatic wonderland for the event.

A ceramic sculpture by Jolee Pink

I first noticed Jolee's work many years ago when it was featured at the Encinitas Library. I loved her pillow designs and decided to sell them in my retail shop. She is multi-talented and works with lots of mediums, including fabric, paint, and ceramic.

Hugo, Gears, and Steampunk

My husband and I have been wanting to see the movie HUGO for months and finally got the chance yesterday . . . just days before the Academy Awards. The movie is up for ten awards and worth a few wins in our book. It was visually stunning, entertaining, and enchanting. Big players in the film were the gears. Many, many gears, in many forms, some of them larger than life. Taking place mainly in a Paris train station in the 30s - it is about a young boy who lives in the station and keeps the clocks set to run on time. Go see it soon!

Before my visual encounter with gears in the film today, I had been noticing that they are everywhere right now. I've seen them in TV and print advertising, in jewelry, and in home decor. It started a few months ago when my daughter was experimenting with gears for a business logo for her marketing company. She wasn't able to find a combination she liked at the time and never created a logo using the motif. Since gears are being used over and over again now, I am kind of happy she didn't end up with a gear logo. When something gets too popular I tend to not want to use it much. 

Here is an interesting mix of gears I found in a simple search on Google Images.
It's from an online gallery: fubiz.net