Sorry ... I Missed You! Carnitas, anyone?

Hello again ... did you think I forgot about you?  I didn't!  The past weeks have been crazy busy.  My husband returned from two months working overseas ... we visited Disneyland(!)... and now are on the downhill slide to the Big Event this weekend:  My daughter's First Communion!  

On a fashion note, I have been bad, bad, bad and have some shopping haul to share.  In light of my badness, I have joined Anthroholic's shopping ban/shop your closet challenge and hope to succeed in using the things that I have.  Thank to Kim for motivating me to do this!  I hope to actually post my OOTD, which I have never done ... but was fun to put together this morning. 

Today, however, I must wish everyone Happy Cinco de Mayo!  I love today because I love me a good margarita!  And ... carnitas!  so, in the spirit of today, I leave you with the easiest and fantastically good recipe for Carnitas that I have run across.  I make these several times a year for the family and for parties and everyone raves about them.  I make sure I cook mine a little longer as my family likes them a little crispy!  This recipe is adapted from Epicurious. 

Crispy Pork Carnitas

• 4 pounds boneless country-style pork ribs
• 2 cups (or more) water
• 1 1/2 cups fresh orange juice
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled
• 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
• 1/4 cup brandy

• Warm corn or flour tortillas
• Salsa
• Guacamole

Cut pork pieces crosswise into thirds. Cut off any big chunks of fat from pork and reserve; leave small pieces of fat attached to pork. Combine pork, reserved fat, 2 cups water, and next 4 ingredients in deep 12-inch skillet. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until pork is tender, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour 45 minutes, adding more water by 1/4 cupfuls if necessary to keep pork partially submerged.

Uncover; boil pork mixture until liquid is reduced by half, about 15 minutes. Stir in brandy; boil until liquid evaporates and meat browns and begins to get crisp, stirring often and shredding meat to the consistency that you prefer, about 20 - 30 minutes. Discard any loose pieces of fat. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)

If re-warming:  Add 2 tablespoons water to skillet. Cover and rewarm pork over medium-low heat, stirring, about 5 minutes. Season with more salt, if desired. Transfer to bowl.

Serve with tortillas, salsa, guacamole and cheese ... and a Margarita or two!  I also like mine on top of a crunchy salad. 

Enjoy and thanks for stopping by!

Spring Cleaning! Time for a BLOG SALE!

Hello and WELCOME SPRING!


I have finished cleaning and reorganizing my closet ... time for Blog Sale, Part 1!  This sale will focus on shoes and handbags.  


ALL of my items are 100% authentic.  I ship with delivery confirmation.  Payment is by paypal only; please contact me by email if you are interested in an item.  My items are kept in my own closet and well cared for.  I can no longer use these items and am hopeful that someone else will give them some love!  Thank you for looking!


ellemarie2010@gmail.com


Here goes!

Calvin Klein Kupid, Size 6
Black Patent (Sorry, picture is showing blue!)
NEW IN BOX
$40 shipped

Classiques Entier Cornelia, Sz. 6
Worn Once - EUC
$45 shipped

Guess Genovieve, Sz. 6
Pewter
NEW IN BOX
$40 shipped

Cole Haan Portia, Sz. 6
Nougat (nude) color
NEW IN BOX
$75

Sundance Angelique - Sz. 36
Taupe
NEW IN BOX
$50 shipped

Marc Fisher Clover, Sz. 6
Black Suede
Worn Twice - EUC
$35 shipped

Burberry, Sz. 36
Slides with Pink Tassel
Bought at Saks for $455
Worn once - EUC
$75 shipped with box and dust cover

Banana Republic Julia, Sz. 6.5
Pink
NEW IN BOX
$40 shipped

Beverly Feldman Lady Li, Sz. 6
Black with Crystals
Bought at Saks for $220
NEW IN BOX
$60 shipped

Lulu Guiness Paper Doll Handbag
NEW
$60 shipped

Handmade Purse
Brown and Blues Brocade with Fur
Beautiful Vintage Broach as Clasp
NEW
$60 shipped

Kate Spade Straw Bag
GUC
Small ding in the straw as noted in photo.  Hard to see but
I wanted to point it out.
$60 shipped

Coach Flower and Bee Purse
EUC
$70 shipped

A Few Reviews: Ackee Pencil Skirt and Tepore Sweater

Hello and happy Thursday!  The sun is out!  The heat is on!  Here comes summer! 

I stopped by Anthro last week hoping for me pick-me-up during one of the worst rainfalls of the year here ... I did try on a few things and have some reviews of the best.  Most things aren't really doing it for me this Spring, but I am hopeful since each new month brings a new catalog my way!

Here goes ... (excuse the pink socks ...)

TEPORE SWEATER - $98 - XS - I did not like this sweater online, but in person it caught my interest.  It is a beautiful Ivory color and the weave is very pretty.  It is an open sweater, no claps and the fit is TTS.  I have it on with jeans and a t-shirt (sorry..) and it was great.  It would also be a nice piece over a dress or skirt and is entirely work appropriate.  LOVE.  Not loving the price, but I may splurge and pick this up at full price.  A definite YES at sale time.

ACKEE PENCIL SKIRT - $138 - SZ. 2 - Again, I was not wowed by this online, but in the store it caught my eye for the amazing, bright color and the beautiful look of the fabric.  Oh, and I LOVE a good pencil skirt!  I ended up liking this much more than I thought I would.  The skirt hit at my natural waist and was TTS, but you might want to size up if you want the skirt to fall lower on you.  I am short (5'3") and the skirt was a tiny bit long on me ... I would definitely have it hemmed an inch or two.  The fabric has a linen-like feel and I do wonder if it will wrinkle, but the fabric is sturdy enough where I don't think it would be a huge problem.  The price of this is a bit high, IMO, so wishlisted for sale.

Have a great day!

And, thanks for stopping by!

I'm Back and a Shoe Review!

Hello All!  So nice to be back after an abrupt hiatus to deal with some family issues ... We all have that now and then, don't we?! 

While I was Out, I did find time to order and try on a few pairs of shoes ... so here goes!

Seychelles Aquamarine

This shoe is available at Anthropologie as the Diamond Weave Slingbacks for $90.  I found it on several other sites including Zappos, Piperlime and the Seychelles site under its alter ego:  Aquamarine.  It comes in nude and wedgewood blue on the Anthro site, but also black and mustard on the other sites listed above.  Zappos currently has this shoe on sale for $72 and 6pm.com has it for $63 ... Shop around!

I ordered the size 6, my usual size, and the fit was perfect.  I do have a somewhat narrow foot, so if your feet run wide, I would size up.  The blue (seafoam in reality) is beautiful for Spring and Summer and I know I will get a lot of use out of these.  They are super comfortable too. 

Seychelles Eye to Eye

These are also sold on the Anthropologie website, under the name Bonneville Wedges, for $118.  They were sold out in my size, but I found them under their true name, Eye to Eye, at Piperlime.com for $110.  Most sizes are still in stock.  They also come in black at Piperlime.

This is a sky-high wedge with a platform front.  I was worried about the height, but was happily surprised at their comfort and wearability.  These will be a great go-to shoe for wide leg pants, trouser jeans, dresses and skirts this Spring and Summer.  Love them.  I bought the nude color and, I'm a short girl so I LOVE the leg lengthening of them. 

That's all for now.  I have been doing a major closet remodel and clean out and will be posting some items for sale ... Coach, Cole Haan, Kate Spade, Anthropologie, Lululemon and Burberry ... to name a few.  Stay tuned for that!

Thanks for stopping by!

Looky, Looky!

Hello!  Well, it's Monday ... the start of another work week.  Ugh.  As I have blogged before, I spend a little time on Mondays cruising the blogs and, of course, by favorite websites.  Looky, looky what I saw today on the Anthropologie webiste! 

Ardennes Skirt

$128



Hey!  I know that pattern!  It's the Kingston Road Dress without the low, low, low top!  Genius!  This skirt will be mine and I cannot wait!

Commodore Striped Chemise

$68

This is another new arrival on the anthro site that I am loving.  I'm wondering about the length, but this looks like another dress-disguised-as-a-chemise to me.  Can't wait to try this on!

Forgot-Me-Know Heels

$98

Nude sandals with a sturdy, high heel?!  I'm all over these!  Nice price point, too!  These are at the top of my wishlist for summer. 

Have a great Monday and thanks for stopping by!

Dresses and Dresses and Dresses! Oh My!

Hello and happy Wednesday - we are half-way through the week!  Did anyone partake of the Anthropologie sale this morning?  Although I did wake up at 2 am to check it out, I was disappointed; there were a few items that I had been interested in, but with Spring on the horizon, I decided to pass.  I hope all of you found some lovlies, though.

Yesterday I stopped by my local Anthropologie to pick up a gift card and lo and behold, they had many, many of the new dresses in!  Since I am officially on the hunt for a dress for my daughter's First Communion, I tried some of them on...  Again, excuse the horrible photography and lighting, but since these dresses are new, I thought you'd might like some IRL photos.

First up:  First Blush Dress, XS, $168

This dress is a pale, pale pink color and is a poly blend, making it silky and sheer.  It comes with a "slip" of the same color underneath.  The skirt is small pleats from the waist.  I found the top sheer, so sheer that I could really notice my nude bra - I would go with a strapless bra with this dress or perhaps those bras with clear straps (which I don't own)...  I love this dress but it is pricey.  The fit was TTS, I am wearing and XS and it fit perfectly.  I will say, however, that I am a bit curvy and have a small waist and the waist was a little snug.  You might want to size up if that is generally a problem for you.  I like that I can wear this dress to work with a cardigan, or out to dinner.  It is timeless and classic.  Wishlisted as I ponder the price...

Kingston Road Dress, Size 0 and 2, $228:

This dress did not captivate me on the website as I thought the colors were too bright, however, when I saw it hanging in the store, I had to try it on.  The colors are muted and beautiful; the material is a sturdy linen-like weave; it is beautifully put together.  There are two problems for me with this dress:  The first is that it ties in the back ... you see, IMO for women my age, you need to be careful about the tie-in-the-back dress.  Those are dresses our daughters wear.  However, this is not a big BOW and I did do a double knot instead, which I could have lived with.  What I could not live with was the plunging neckline.  The size 2 was too big all over, and when I tried on the 0 (pictured above) the result was the same... low, low, low.  The SA told me I'd need to pin it (uh, yeah).  Clearly not a dress for work or First Communion.  The SA suggested a cami, etc., but for $228, I did not want to make this dress work.  So, sadly, this was a no-go for me. 

Land of Springs Dress, XS, $118

I loved this dress as soon as I saw it on the website.  It is a cotton blend and is lined!  The bottom is a close-fitting skirt and the top is flowy and comfy.  I had some static cling issues with this, but I think that was thanks to the tights and all of the things I tried on.  This dress was so comfortable ... I can see myself wearing it all summer long.  Not a work dress, but definitely something I would wear a lot either dressed up with wedges or dressed down with cute flat sandals or keds.  Cute, cute, cute!  May have to pay full-price for this one!

I also tried on a few other dresses that have been around a while and thus reviewed quite a bit; I will spare you those details.  I still have not found my dress for First Communion, but the search continues!  My daughter thinks she has found her dress ... but the over $200 price tag has her parents frantically looking for an alternative!

Lastly, a shout out to Lululemon.  I ran this morning in my run crops and Run Dash longsleeve and was reminded how much I LOVE this brand of workout gear.  Now that I seem to have my asthma back under control, I will be blogging about running ventures and my half-marathon coming up. 

Thanks for stopping by!

At Anthropologie, Wishes Do Come True!

Happy Monday!  (If there is such a thing!).  No snow for us ... a lot of hype but just sunny skies and cold temperatures.  Mondays are great for me as I finally get time to catch up on the blogs that I love.  Of course, this is done at work in the privacy of my office; everyone thinks I am quite diligent on Monday mornings!

Anyway, last week I tried on the Tied Down Dress, which I love, but wished that it came in other colors... Ask and ye shall receive ... Guess what was up on the Anthropologie website this morning!



Tied Down Dress
Red
$98



Thanks, Anthropologie!  I am looking forward to seeing this dress in person!  With the free shipping on orders over $150 (for Anthro members) I might have to place an order soon ... especially if there are markdowns tomorrow on some of the things on my wishlist!

Thanks for stopping by!