Mamma’s Pumpkin & Pear Curried Soup

Going home for a visit, I always look forward to some of my mother’s home cooking. There’s nothing like it anywhere else in the world. Everything coming out of “Mamma’s” kitchen is a unique invention that combines unexpected ingredients into something miraculous. I don’t know how she does it, but I thought I’d feature a sample of one for you all to get a taste (literally). This Pumpkin & Pear Curried Soup was the opener to our Thanksgiving meal this year. The recipe is delicately spiced, perfectly creamy, and just enough sweet. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did. :)

Ingredients:

1 Medium Sweet Onion – Chopped

1/2 Lb Carrots – Chopped

1 Large Yukon Gold Potato – Cut into 1/2″ cubes

1 Tbsp Sesame Oil

1/8 Cup Olive Oil

1/2 Liter of Vegetable Stock

2 Ripe Pears

16oz Pear Nectar

2 – 29oz Cans of Pureed Pumpkin

3/4 Cup Dark Brown Sugar

3 Cups of Nonfat Greek Yogurt

3 Tsp Curry Powder

3/4 Tsp Gara Masala

Salt to taste

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds/Sesame oil for garnish

Directions:

Place onions into a large pot with sesame and olive oils to saute.

As they begin to turn translucent, add in carrots & potato.

IMG_1169

IMG_1170

When the carrots and potatoes are soft, remove from heat.

IMG_1312

Slice pear, and add into sauteed vegetable mix.

IMG_1327

Using a blender, puree mixture in batches. For each batch you’ll want to add a bit of vegetable stock and pear nectar to cool it down.

IMG_1313

Return pureed mixture to heat on the stove. Stir in pumpkin, brown sugar, spices, and any remaining vegetable stock/pear nectar. Let cook until mixture is heated through.

IMG_1342

Pour into a serving bowl, and stir in yogurt.

IMG_1385

Garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds and sesame oil, then serve!

IMG_1387

Moving Mountains

Have you guys seen these amazing installations in Iceland by artist Theresa Himmer? The Mountain series consists of these large-scale sequin street art installations, “Glacier,” “Volcano” and “Waterfall.” The use of sequins allows them to reflect light, making them sparkle and appear to come alive like actual ripples of water or molten lava. I would love to see them in person!

theresa-himmer

theresa-himmer

theresa-himmer

theresa-himmer

Source.

Trend Spotting: Abbey Lee

Abbey Lee is running through our minds a bit too much lately and with the launch of our Baroque trend, which is full of rich velvets, clashing textures, and beautiful jewel tones, we thought why not experiment with some looks up in the studio. We printed out some inspiration tears and got styling; here are our Abbey Lee looks!

We love Abbey Lee, and we love our new trend Baroque!

Items Pictured: Provincial Embroidered Maxi Skirt, New Romantics Chiffon Capelet, Slouchy Velvet Blazer, Roaring Bead Collar, Large Amulet Necklace, Ramsey Oxford, Jenny Floppy Hat.

Velvet Burnout Bodycon, Boucle Jacket, Opaque Tights, Platform Ankle Boot, Seville Pendant, Deco Choker.

Pillowtalk Romper, Josephine Ruffle Slip, Seville Pendant, Cord Buttondown, Opaque Tights, Painted Distress Boot.

Metallic Lace Bell Bottom, New Romantics Chiffon Capelet, Printed Kimono, Seville Pendant, Deco Choker, Ramsey Oxford, Jenny Floppy Hat.

Shop the Baroque Trend.

DIY Holiday Ornaments Turned Accessories: Headband

DIY Ornament turned into Headband

For this DIY we used the beautiful jewel encrusted ornament designed by Chan Luu. Our clever team used this ornament to create an adorable headband in just a few easy steps! All you need is a plain old headband and some fabric glue.

Untie the ornament from its hook, and then bit by bit, use the fabric glue to adhere it to the headband. We used clips (pictured below) to hold the ribbon in place as it dried.

headband

That’s it! I love how the hanging chains give this a delicate feel:

holiday-ornament-headband

Jewel Encrusted Ornament by Chan Luu

DIY Holiday Ornaments turned Accessories: Keychain

Due to the power outage, I didn’t get to post this week’s DIY on Wednesday, so here it is – part two of our tutorial for turning our holiday ornaments into accessories you can wear all year long!

DIY Holiday Ornaments turned into Keychain

For this tutorial we used the Aziza Golden Feather Ornament by Serafina and the Dakota Feather Ornament by Alkemie – but, like the earrings and necklace, this DIY would work with any or all of our holiday ornaments! All you need are some pliers and a keyring and hook (pictured above left).

We removed the hook from the small gold feather ornament using the pliers, and then untied the red string from the larger feather. We used the string to tie the smaller feather to the ring of the larger feather.

keychain3

To add a decorative touch, we wrapped the red string around the gold ring, finishing it with a knot. Now just attach the ring with the two feathers to the keyring, and you’ve got an awesome new keychain!

diy-keychain

Aziza Golden Feather Ornament by Serafina; Dakota Feather Ornament by Alkemie.

Thursday Poll: Holiday Lookbook

We’ve been gearing up for holidays for quite some time now, and the release of our November lookbook (staring models Linda Vojtova and Ruby Aldridge) confirms that the festive season is finally upon us. It’s a magical time of year that inspires a uniform of glitter and glitz. Everywhere you look ladies have out their best eye-twinkling sequins. Parties are lined with shining gems in head-to-toe metallics – catching the light and bouncing back an elegant glimmer. The world, for two months or so, becomes spectacularly hypnotizing exactly like this book. Which look whisks you off into the twinkling dreamland?

Look 1

Look 2

Look 3

23568298_062_0

Look 4

23581838_011_0

Look 5

23694680_011_0

Look 6

23892987_024_0

[polldaddy poll=5699687]

Details: Layering Basics

Our adorable beach designer – love the batman tee! A colorful scarf is a nice touch :)

There’s a lot going on here, but it works so well!

office-style-details

Keep cozy by throwing the textured shrug over a layering top like the striped burnout!

office-style-details

One of our designers just got this beautiful vintage bracelet.

office-style-details

Headphones = awesome accessory :)

office-style-details

Love this look!! Denim overalls over the dotted lace tee. Super cute.

office-style-details

I love this delicate bracelet – I feel like it would be easy to make something similar!

office-style-details

You can never have too many layers :) pair a slip with a long tank and a cute printed tunic!

office-style-details

Cute camis add pretty, delicate layers :) And the amazing eclipse necklace.

office-style-details

Cozy layering – with the ruffle leggings, slouchy socks and ankle boots.

office-style-details

Cute pin :)

office-style-detail

Lastly, Mista French keeps cozy in his little plaid coat :)

Two New Stores Opening Tomorrow!

First up, Free People is coming to Michigan! Troy, MI, to be exact, and we’re celebrating with a grand opening party all day long tomorrow (10AM – 9PM)!

They will have cookies and coffee and a beautiful new store to shop! For more info and to RSVP check out their facebook event.

free-people-water-tower

free-people-water-tower

Also opening tomorrow, Free People Water Tower Place! They will be celebrating with a holiday party and treats from 6pm-9pm!

Plus, with the purchase of any holiday sweater or dress, you’ll be entered in a raffle to win a $50 FP gift card!
Fore more info and to RSVP click here.