If you live near Bangor, Maine not only are we super jealous because Maine is amazing- but now you can also nab our cards in person! Thats right, Pearl & Marmalade cards are now available at The Rock and Art Shop, a delightful store brimming with curious natural treasures, interesting oddities and wonderful goods. And when you stop by you can also enjoy their nature trails and changing exhibitions. Art, Nature, Shopping, Maine. Ummm, how perfect is that combination? Find directions, details and hours here. (Pic by Amber Waterman/Sun Journal).

What could be better than a partner that constantly bakes fresh “everything” pretzels?? How about one who decides his font-geek wife needs a batch of ampersand shaped ones! James saw the idea a few places online & decided to try it. Scrumptious. He’s used a variation of this Gourmet recipe for years. Viva la ampersand.

I love a classic Aviation cocktail and it’s ghostly purple moonstone hue. On soft grey rainy days the complex flavors of herb & floral bite is perfect for sipping while window staring. These vintage glasses are a recent thrift jackpot, they have seen heavy rotation in the cocktail queue lately!

Fill a cocktail shaker three-fourths full of ice, combine 1/3 ounce lemon juice, 1/2 ounce Luxardo maraschino liqueur, 2 ounces gin, and 1/4 ounce Crème de Violette liqueur. Shake well and strain into a cocktail glass.

If you celebrate Easter hope it’s a happy holiday! (sweet wooden rabbit brooch from pannikin’s etsy shop).

My “meanwhile ring” from James arrived today! It was nice to finally get a placeholder on my bare finger since our dog’s costly supper . I adore the daintiness of my new ring. James found it thru my Pinterest wishlist- so I suppose it’s a small victory for the way too many hours I’ve spent on the site. He hoped it would be bigger (is this just a common male ring buying mentality?)- but I was SO happy that it was in fact tiny, simple, delicate & effortless. It’s a gentle c’est la vie sigh that feels like a good summary. The subtle heart shape to remind me that dazzling sparkly rings that showcase a couple’s betrothal are certainly delightful, but having a real and thriving bond with my loved one is the true heirloom. And the teensiest speck of black diamond as a little ghost of my old ring perhaps? It is from Brooklyn based designer Scosha and came sweetly packaged. Not to mention in the wake of my lost ring it has an entirely refreshing pricetag!

For some weekend color inspiration, a picture from our trip to Portugal a few years back. A combination of some of my current faves- lovely tiled patterns, an unapologetic red & an old true love- Mr. Contemplating Bear himself. (photo- Char Lee Dickerson)

Last week my dear friend Rose of The Great Lakes came to visit us in our neck of NYS. She is an old school classy lady who always brings a hostess gift- thoughtful trinkets, or fresh flowers or sweets (or in my case all of the above- ha!). This visit she also brought me the best of treats- some goods she developed for Chronicle Books! I’ve been impatiently waiting the completion of these for awhile now- and man was it worth the wait. Her Stay Golden journal is so thoughtful and well done it makes me want to get stories of positivity and cheer out of my head and onto it’s pages. And her Color-Me-In notecard set is amazing- the packaging, the concept- her artwork…all of it! You can’t see it from the pics online- but the backs of the cards also have a “feeling color wheel” to add that extra personal touch specifically for your recipient. SO good!

A few weeks ago was our 1 year anniversary of being in our home so I baked James favorite treat that I make- a yogurt cake. Long ago I found this recipe from  Bon Apetit & every time I make it I tend to adapt it differently. This time I made mini bundts instead of a loaf and altered the recipe for a multi citrus taste. Mostly I wanted an excuse to use a blood orange olive oil James has.

• Ingredients
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon (packed) finely grated lime peel
• 1 teaspoon (packed) finely grated lemon peel
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup oil (i used orange infused olive but reg. olive oil would be fine)
• 1/2 tablespoon lime juice

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. I used a well greased 6 cake mini bundt pan while the original suggests an 8 1/2×4 1/2×2 1/2-inch metal loaf pan. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl. Combine yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon & lime peel, and vanilla in large bowl; whisk until well blended. Gradually whisk in dry ingredients. Using rubber spatula, fold in oil. Transfer batter to prepared pan. Place pan on baking sheet.

Place in oven and bake until cake begins to pull away from sides of pan and tester inserted into center comes out clean. My minis took 25-30 min. but a larger pan might take about 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack 5 minutes.

Instead of a glaze I just dusted with confectioners. For the little dallop on top I mixed equal parts cream cheese & vanilla yogurt with a touch of agave syrup, dashed some sprinkles and added a lemon drop candy.

Last nite’s pancakes for dinner! A la mode with blueberry frozen yogurt, James’ homemade whip cream, fresh strawberries and agave nectar. Our home’s best once a season ritual according to popular opinion.

Our new letterpress tags. Ok, so I can’t afford the kilim inspired rug of my dreams right now… but I sure can adorn all the Valentines Day baked gifts I’ll be giving out with these.