Outdoor work...

...Back from a weekend conference...

Need to catch up on all of your comings and goings...

we are working on our pool/outside area

this week...

and probably next

This lovely area would not be it ahh, but to dream...

But I'll show you our plans

in the next few days.

Sound good?

Good.

It's Friday...and more often than not it means...

Margaritas in our humble casa...

Join us.

cha cha cha

... add a fresh mexican salsa/salad with avocado,

black olives,

cilantro, black beans, tomatoes, feta

and crema mexicana...

...Salt on the margarita needs to be kosher.

Cointreau is better than triple sec,

Limes fresh from the tree...if possible.

A "real" marg need only three ingredients.

• 
  
  Tequilla (2 parts)


• 
  
  Orange liquor (1 part)


• 
  
  and fresh lime (1 part)

~But~

My husband makes them even better.

Frankly he makes

the worlds best margarita and has perfected his recipe

through the years.

I am happily on the quality control tasting team...

Tough job...but someone's gotta do it.

Check out what everyone else is hooked on at

Julia's Hooked on Houses partay

Cheers!

I'm off for the weekend...so none this week. But next...perhaps.

Ibiza...Quiet enough to think...

A hopping island off the coast of Spain

Known for it's rockin' nightlife

has a quiet side too...

...And on this quiet side, where there are no hotels or beaches... there is a slower pace.

A Mexican pace.

Particularly at the house of Rosa Maria Esteva.

Added to throughout the years,

with terraces and little corners open to the fresh air

and the sea.

The red coloring is made of natural pigments

melding with salt air...and time.

perfect.

The pool in this unique abode is terraced

off of the roof...The view...divine.

On the seaside, a small terrace offers a simple but beautiful view of fishing huts

that were the starting point of this home.

slow, simple, quiet.

The interior is left pure and authentic...

allowing the views to take

center stage.


contemplative...

All photos: Marie Clair

Slow down?

Yes. Please.

Today everybody should...

...Snag

some time

and head to the Beach

Lifeguard chair in Miami beach: Flickr

If only in your dreams...

Okay?


You SOOO deserve it.

Warm and fudgy rich and gooey. Tropical brownies.

Sometimes these trying times call for

chewy fudgy deliciousness with a touch of the tropics.

It'll cure what ails ya.

Homemade...so much better than a box.

Try 'em...You'll be hooked....

~promise~

I like to add 2 TBSP of coffee to the melted butter

It chocolatizes the chocolate like no other...


whisk up the flour cocoa and salt, dash of cinnamon and baking powder in a separate bowl
Just like sifting...but much more fun!



Marry the two together...Use a big ole wooden spoon and stir
wooden spoons love mixing brownie batter


add some chocolate chips
Have you ever tried Ghiradelli double chocolate chips??
amazing!!


...The tropical punch...macadamia nuts
see...on the bag it even mentions a taste of the tropics.
Add some coconut if you really want to feel the palms sway...



Stir until all mixed...Oh heavens to Betsy...
It is luscious at this point...

Bake for 23 minutes at 350...

Pour yourself a glass of

cold leche.

imbibe a little



Or go for the ole' scoop of ice cream trick...

Fudgy Heaven.

Recipe:
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 tablespoons coffee
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Baking Cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup chopped nuts and chocolate chips
powdered sugar

Directions
PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 13x9-inch baking pan.
COMBINE sugar, butter and coffee in large bowl. Stir in eggs and vanilla extract. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl; stir into sugar mixture. Stir in nuts and chocolate chips.
Taste. 'Cause I said so. Raw eggs schmaw eggs. Live dangerously.
Spread into prepared baking pan.
BAKE for 18 to 25 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out slightly sticky. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.
Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Cut into bars.



Dive in.



Head on over to Gollums for even more delicious and nutritious goodies....
It's Foodie Friday for Heaven's sake!!

pain meds and islands...

Giorgio Armani...the man is a true empire...

dress designer, perfumer, and now home furnishings designer:
Giorgio Armani casa

...But it is a sublime and pure house

on a small volcanic island halfway between Sicily and Tunisia

that Giorgio Armani retreats to for holidays

...ahhh just like myholiday house retreat...or not. so much.

The simplicity of rough linen overstuffed pillows and sea grass mats

all enveloped by the changing blues of sea and sky.

Inside, the delicately arched walls do not need any artifice or decoration.

The thick walls and small windows protect from the sun the heat and the wind.

It is a calming place. Perfect for rest. For inspiration.

Adorned in the simplest of materials, wood, fabric of cotton, straw,

and the volcanic rock...which the whole island is made of

Serene.

A newer part of the home is quite modern

fitted with some of his home furnishing line.

square. simple.

well, hello crocodile...

photos: Cote Maison

Oh... to have such peace to retreat to.

I had a stupid accident Sunday

and am dealing with an ankle with torn ankle ligaments.

So as I sit with soft cast leg raised, covered in ice...

I dream...of places on small volcanic Islands between

Sicily and Tunisia.

could be a lot worse, eh?
Have a wonderful Tuesday...

The other side of the tracks.....

We popped in to look at this home in Vero Beach.

It's empty and for sale.

That's good enough for me. Invitation to check it out.

The best part were the views...

gorgeous, private...and water galore.

While over the top, for me, it had some lovely details...Pecky cypress

ceilings in the outdoor balconies and outdoor kitchen.

Where I could happily live...cookin' my beans and wieners...just watchin' the sea...


This would be the hall to the master suite, which had his and her closets
the size of a small house
and
His and her bathrooms.
yes...insert rolling eyes here

...and this is a view from the guesthouse looking back at the Main house.

It has it's own elevator, as it is over the garage...

No worries...The main house had an elevator also behind the curly doors...

Practically a requirement for two or three story

homes in our area.

Think hip and knee replacement, folks. Yeeeeowch. Stairs are not friends to replaced joints. Nope.

The kitchen Island was made of a beautiful maple...or mahogany

I ran my hands over it...and made the realtor believe I could see myself

cooking in here....umm hmm.

Some of the cabinets had a strong chicken wire...

and the coffee bar was workin' for me.

Go ahead...take the 11 million dollar tour here

A cool 11 mill....what'dya think? Takers??

I wonder, however, if this Darlin' is an even better buy...at 39.6 million.

not three million. chump change.

But thirty nine million clams...

In our quaint little town.

Who knew?

But someone NEEDS it. I am sure.

Oooooh, interesting beams...striking!

The quieter, cozier den...

OK...is it me? must be...or is this kitchen not exactly

a thirty mill clam kitchen?

The solarium...because. Just because.

The hallway to said solarium. Oy.

This, folks, would be the bathroom's spa room...not the home spa...but the spa off of THIS bathroom there are 15 baths....not bad...2 mill per.

You would find me here. Yep. Living.

I dunno. The realtor said they are not seeing much change...and that these will be sold, no prob. Hmmmm.

Hope so...for their sake.

Truly.