Monthly Archives: October 2012

Thinking Orange & Black Today … We’re Still Thinking Pink (WellChick)!

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Happy Halloween!

My family and I will be celebrating Halloween this evening, replete with costumes and Trick O’ Treating. However, I am keenly aware that it is still Breast Cancer Awareness Month. NOTE: Pretty Domestic will be advocating and educating all year-long. That said, our favorite Doll, PinkWellChick (Barb) recently shot a video for MayoTV about her journey fighting breast cancer. The video is honest, revealing and “must see reality TV” (the good kind)! Expect to see a series of videos from Barb that will serve as warm and informational resources for women, and their families and friends, as they face breast cancer. Thank you Barb for keeping this on our radar, and for saving lives one post, tweet and video at a time!

Also, check out Susan G. Komen’s Facts for Life ~ Breast Cancer Facts.

Until Then, Happy Haunting,

~ L.

~ The Pretty Domestic

Trick & Treat! (Why Can’t It Be Both!)

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Halloween is right around the corner; and many of us will be attending parties this weekend, including yours truly. But, for those of you hosting Halloween parties, here are several great cocktail recipes to ensure your guests have a ghoulishly good time.

Dracula’s Kiss (Top Left)

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz. SKYY Infusions Blood Orange
  • 1 oz. Blood Orange Puree
  • 1.5 oz. Blueberry Pomegranate Juice
  • .5 oz. Lemon Juice
  • .5 oz. Simple Syrup

Preparation. Combine all ingredients, shake hard, strain into a martini glass. Garnish with an orange.

The Creepy Crawler (Top Right)

Ingredients

  • 2 oz. SKYY Infusions Blood Orange
  • 1 tsp of passion fruit syrup
  • .5 oz. of orange juice
  • .5 oz. of pineapple juice

Preparation. Shake all ingredients, pour into a low-ball glass, and fill with ice. Top with a hibiscus flower and a teaspoon of hibiscus flower syrup.

Midori’s Spider Kiss (Bottom Left)

Ingredients

  • 1 part Midori Melon Liqueur
  • 1 part SKYY Vodka
  • Juice from half lemon
  • Chocolate syrup
  • Grenadine
  • Chocolate dipped orange slice for garnish

Preparation. Draw a chocolate web into a martini glass. Place in freezer and chill for a ghostly effect. Shake all ingredients and strain into glass. For a blood effect, drizzle grenadine down the side of the glass. Garnish with a chocolate dipped orange slice.

The Itsy Bitsy (Bottom Right)

Ingredients

  • 1 oz. X-Rated Fusion Liqueur
  • .5 oz. SKYY Vodka
  • 1.5 oz. Black Raspberry Liqueur
  • 3 blackberries

Preparation. Muddle 2-3 blackberries in a shaker. Place remaining ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a chilled martini glass rimmed with black rimming sugar. Garnish with blackberries on a cocktail pick.

Cocktail Recipes and Images: Uptown Magazine

Now that your Halloween party bar will be stocked with chillingly delicious cocktails. Serve your guests a tasty Pie a la Apple dessert.

Image: The Pretty Domestic Kitchen (Smile!)

Pie a la Apple

Ingredients

  • 5-6 Granny Smith apples that can stand on their own
  • 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • Pie Crust (homemade or pre-made)

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Preparation. Cut the top of 4 apples off and discard. Remove the inside of each apple with a spoon or melon baller very carefully. Remove skin from remaining apple(s) and slice very thinly. These apple pieces will give you the additional filling needed to fill the four apples you are baking.

Mix sliced apples with sugars and cinnamon in a bowl. If you prefer more or less cinnamon make adjustments as desired. Same goes for the sugar. Scoop sliced apples into hollow apples.

Roll out pie crust and slice into 1/4 inch strips. I added a strip inside the top of the apple, which can be seen in the photo above.

Cover the top of the apple in a lattice pattern with pie crust strips. Place apples in an 8×8 pan. If your apples are big you may need a bigger pan. Add just enough water to the cover the bottom of the pan. Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and sliced apples are soft. Serves 4.

We are big on holidays at Maison Pretty Domestic; and never miss an opportuntiy to decorate with the appropriate theme. Check out our carved pumpkins from last year and this weekend.

You can pick up a Pumpkin Masters carving kit from Ace Hardware or your local grocery store. We’ve used the same set each year. Here’s a hint, purchase two kits, the tools are a little flimsy.

I hope that I’ve given you some fun ideas for your Halloween celebration. Leave me a comment and share your favorite Halloween cocktail recipes and decoration ideas.

Until Then, Trick & Treat … It really can be both!

~ L.

The Pretty Domestic

Think Pink (WellChick)!

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Hi Dolls!

As you are more than aware, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Many of us are raising money and participating in “Race for the Cure” events in support of our mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, friends, and even ourselves. There are numerous ways to help raise awareness and funds in support of finding a cure for this insidious disease.

Image Source: MPress

Many businesses are donating proceeds raised from the sale of their products to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc., the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and others. Here are a few of my favorite products that support research and funding for breast cancer eradication, and to show you’re aware and that you care.

What better way to show you care than by penning a note to a family member or friend battling breast cancer or celebrating survival. These fab “Fight Like a Girl” note cards from Effie’s Paper are sure to put a smile on any Doll’s face. 50% of the proceeds from the sale of each set of notecards will go to Girls Love Mail to support their MILE OF MAIL campaign.

 

Essie Nail Polish has been my “go to” nail polish for years. I became more of a fan when they introduced their “31 Days of Pink” Collection. When you purchase a bottle of polish from the collection, a charitable contribution will be made to Living Beyond Breast Cancer. My favorite ~ “I am Strong.”

I fell in love with the Save Lids to Save Lives campaign several years ago. Beginning in September of each year, for each Yoplait Yogurt lid received and each code redeemed online by June 30, 2013, General Mills will donate 10 cents to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. What an awesome and tasty idea!

You should know however, that today’s post is more than just an arbitrary post recognizing another “theme month” on the calendar. It’s about saving lives. It’s also about honoring one of my favorite Dolls, Barbra (Barb).

“My Name is PinkWellChick … And I AM the CURE!”

Barb was diagnosed with breast cancer in September 2011; and to put it simply she has been the picture of strength, grace, honesty and fabulousness through it all. Barb launch her blog, inkwellchicks, after being diagnosed to chronicle the story of her journey, and that of her über supportive best friend, as she confronted this disease. (They coined the names PinkInk and RedInk for themselves.) I’ve read every word of every post and always walk away inspired, and even more importantly educated. Some posts have been harder to read than others, and some had me LMBO! Barb has since launched another blog PinkwellChick, a broader advocacy site.

After I launched Pretty Domestic I knew right away that one of my posts would be about Barb. So here we are ~ Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I reached out to Barb and asked her could I mention her on my blog and reference her PinkWellChick blog. Her response, “Of course!”

Suprisingly, I only had one question for her ~ “What does Breast Cancer Awareness Month mean to you?” Why that question? “Theme months,” as I call them tend to become commercialized, but for the person walking through breast cancer, domestic violence, or child abuse, these are more than days on the calendar that roll around to be recognized once every 12 months.

Barb’s answer:

“Breast Cancer Awareness is no longer just a month for me! It’s a lifestyle! I just celebrated 1 year of Survival! So now October is 31 days of concentrated effort to talking to others about the recipe for breast cancer health: 12 self exams, mammograms (if over 40), and clinical exams! Whatever I can do to continue the dialogue. I’m there!”

I told you she was FABULOUS!

Thank you Barb for allowing me to tell just a small portion of your story and for giving me an opportunity, through you, to educate women about the importance of conducting monthly self exams, not skipping our annual mammograms (WE ARE NOT THAT BUSY!), and encouraging family and friends to do the same. You are a “DOLL!”

For more tips on breast cancer awareness and advocacy, follow Barb on Twitter at @pinkwellchick.

Until Then,

~ L.

The Pretty Domestic