Count Down To Mexico

       Got my boots!

 

Got my pictures from one of my scouts ( a friend currently in Mexico doing volunteer work).

        

Look at these gorgeous embroideries.

I am so excited to explore , discover and bring back beautiful new pieces for The Loaded Trunk.

Spending the weekend in Mexico City hitting the flea markets and after that I am on the loose.  I  haven't firmed up my itinerary yet.  I would love suggestions.  I leave next Friday. 

Spain and the Wine Road

Longing...Yearning...I Miss You...in Portuguese.  "The famous saudade of the Portuguese is a vague and constant desire for something that does not and probably cannot exist, for something other than the present, a turning towards the past or towards the future; not an active discontent or poignant sadness but an indolent dreaming wistfulness". A.F.G. Bell
This sounds way heavier then It should for a Monday but yesterday I was organizing my photos on my computer.  I think I have 3000 shots still on my hard drive.  I have backed them up 5 times but can not seem to hit delete! None of this has anything to do with Portugal.  In my past life I spent many years in the wine industry.  I usually don't miss a bit of it!  I still drink wine and eat well. While finally cleaning up my photos I came across my last wine trip that I took across Spain with my good friend and wine importer extraordinaire Steve Miles that gave me the feeling of dreamy wistfulness.

Old Vines

Gathering for a feast in NW Spain on the river bank drinking Albarino.

Our main course! Not your everyday Octopus on US menus. Amazing, I think this may have been breakfast?

This crazy Frankensteinish wine tasting lab in Rioja. Me hard at work.

OMG..Amazing Jamon, after the hard work of tasting wine all day.

Fast forward to Eastern Spain in the Penedes region..Oysters, Cava, and hammocks.

Last leg of our trip, Cheers.

An Artist's Space

Starting a new business on a small budget and sustaining it as it grows requires lots of creativity, resourcefulness and a little help from your friends.  On a recent trip to Santa Fe Folk Art Market I stayed with an old friend, Pauline Ziegen, an artist, who I had not seen in at least 10 years. We had recently re-connected through facebook and she generously opened her home to me.  I knew that she was still painting, but had no idea how honed her craft had become.

The first night we had dinner and then she was off to Houston for an opening of her work at Laura Rathe Gallery.

Each evening after the Folk Art Market I would head back to her place with a bottle of wine and some goodies from Trader Joes (we have no trader joes in KC)  and sit on the deck and look over the tracks at the peaceful New Mexico horizon.  Like a voyeur, I took these shots during my stay.

Paulines work space

works in progress

A trip tic by Pauline works to create a feminine yet bold space with the Kantha coverlet I brought for her.

A signature of Pauline's; some of her hats and a finished painting of hers.

Painting in progress

A terrific collection of jackets

Travel Fever and Mexico City

I have been home all summer planning my next trips, getting my "ducks" in a row.  Collaborating with wonderful women on how to take my business to the next level.  So, I haven't done much of what I am the best at doing "Woman Shops Globe". Whenever I start feeling restless I look at pictures of where I have been, my favorite markets, meals, foods and dream of where I am going next!  I am planning a quick jaunt to Mexico City, a place that provides me with constant inspiration!

A lovely weekend flea market in Roma District in Mexico City.  Roma probably has more 19th-century mansions per square meter than anywhere else in the city.

Xochimilco, on the outskirts of Mexcico City, is originally known for the canal system built by the Aztecs.  Today it is more like bumper boats(trajineras) as it gets crowded with boats filled with locals making a family day of it, partying and often eating from the many floating kitchens called chalupas.

This old Milagro necklace from a Museum in Mexico City inspired the necklace below available at The Loaded Trunk.

Milagro and turquoise necklace from The Loaded Trunk

 

 

 

Wedding Season?

Is there a wedding season?  I actually have no idea. I can't believe it would be August though.  In the mid-west it has been grueling, with temperatures well above 100% with heat index's of 116%. I guess if I could be assured of a controlled COOL environment...Who knows.

I have been thinking about weddings for a few days.  Friday evening I unsealed myself from my hermetically sealed COOL environment to go see a couple of friends who had set up their wedding wares in a local Salon for 1st Friday, a free art stroll in the Crossroads District, where there is a concentration of art galleries. The event was "Something Borrowed Something Blue" at BeSpoke Salon and was styled artfully by Linh Trieu.

Vintage wares table settings by Vintage Vessels flowers by Rebecca Thao with a petite Balinese umbrella as the center piece available at the loaded trunk

Jeanne Rohner greeted us at the door, in her fantastic vintage gown, Va va va voom! The "brides" were having their hair done, there were several artist/vendors showing off their talents, and then there was the baker! No matter what time of year a wedding is, I realized that for me it is all about the food. This is the part I still remember after a short marriage a long time ago! Hmmm!

This modest but fabulous wedding cake is just perfect, by Rachel Feldkamp, I love the Tibetan Prayer like flags above the Bride and Groom

OMG, I so wanted to cut into this grooms cake by Rachel Feldkamp

Cookies by Rachel Feldkamp

SOOO cute, cookies by Rachel Feldkamp(all photo's from above by Jeanne Rohner and Roni Jaco)

So to finish it off the dress's for the bride and her bridesmaids.  Vera Wang gets my pick for gowns.

Vera Wang 'Estelle' Fall 2010 (photo from Vera Wang) Stunning

The perfect versatile bridesmaids dress by Cynthia Rowley, your friends will love you,  it's under $200.00 (photo from House of Brides)

So I hear that the cakes and cookies taste as good as they looked.  I bought a piece in Chaing Mai, Thailand by a well known pewter artist that would showcase one of these cakes brilliantly.

from the loaded trunk

Maybe I will get to use it for one of Rachel's cakes.

Calm

The City Sage did a post yesterday, and the pallet from the Canadian House and Home September 2010 edition was so calming.  My world is one of vibrant color 24/7; so the almost grey and white with a splash of minimal color really resonated with me. The last picture in the piece is this fantastic personal primping space below and offers those lovers of the beautiful Otami Indian Mexican embroidery one more decorating option.

Image courtesy of Canadian House and Home magazine.

Style Court recently included an Otami Indian Mexican coverlet from The Loaded Trunk in a story board called Michael joins Keith.  Lucky me to be included with such design royalty!

Mexican textile via The Loaded Trunk. Shown on the left, Mexican flag and church; on the right, Michael Smith's assistant Maya sits on a sofa in Casamidy -- both scenes from Man Shops Globe, episode seven, season two, from Sundance Channel.]

These beautiful pieces are so versatile, as headboards, hangings, table clothes or bed spreads. I love the smaller ones also for the end of the bed or across a chest!

Photo from the loaded trunk

Stop by and take advantage of our 25% Off the large coverlets through Friday the 13th.

Highs and Lows

Earlier this summer I was in NYC and did some comparative pricing, and with my trusty pocket Cannon elf took a few shots!  The particular store I stopped in is a favorite of mine, but frankly more for their marketing then their good value.  So I usually leave empty handed with a few ideas. Delightfully reminded that without brick and mortar I am able to keep my costs down and this translates to VERY competitive pricing from The Loaded Trunk.

Brand X from same dealer in Jaipur ($250.)

We are running a sale on our cotton kanthas from Jaipur in several gorgeous colors and all other Quilts and Coverlets, so take advantage of us as the sale will extend Through Friday the 13th!

the loaded trunk ($175. less 25%)

These soft and lightweight colorful Kantha are from Jaipur. All are hand-sewn with running stitches that vary in color and have a complementary solid color on the reverse side. The desert region of Rajasthan is filled with forts and is breathtaking yet monochromatic. It offers most of it's color through it's people.  They dress themselves, their animals and their rides with the color that seems to be missing in the landscape.

 Color of the Rajasthani landscape (photo by Ryan Jaco)

Colorful sari's(photo by Ryan Jaco)

Colorful footwear from Jodphur, Rajasthan-available at the loaded trunk (photo by Ryan Jaco)

Colorful friend of the desert (photo by Ryan Jaco)

Goods Carrier- typical truck (photo by Ryan Jaco)

Fresh figs, KitchenAid, Turkish Ceramics

My daughter is working her way across the USA for a visit to Kansas City.  For the past year she has been hurling hints about wanting a KitchenAid.  This morning we spoke and she told me her boyfriend James had gotten her one for her birthday next week, Aahhhh!

Ryan working her way across country

This week I have had all kinds of action on these fabulous Turkish bowls on my site and found out that one of my favorite blogs, Apartment Therapy's the Kitchn, mentioned them in the context of ice cream, figs and KitchenAids. Three of my favorite things.  I want to share this fantastic recipe and the new blog I discovered.

Turkish bowls from the loaded trunk

   Fresh Fig Ice Cream – The New Taste of Summer (from Tastespotting the blog)

This feature is sponsored by KitchenAid, who is letting us play every day in the TasteSpotting kitchen with a stand mixer and a full suite of stand mixer attachments.

Figs.




Fresh Fig Ice Cream Recipe

From David Lebovitz’s The Perfect Scoop

Ingredients

2 lbs fresh figs (about 20)
½ cup of water
1 lemon, preferably unsprayed
¾ cup of sugar
1 cup of heavy cream
½ teaspoon of freshly squeezed, lemon juice, or more to taste

Directions

Remove the hard stem ends from the figs, then cut each fig into 8 pieces. Put the figs in a medium, nonreactive sauce pan with the water, and zest the lemon directly into the saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 8-10 minutes until the figs are tender.

Remove the lid, add the sugar and continue to cook until it reaches a jam-like consistency. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Blend together with cream and lemon juice, chill in the fridge and then put in your ice cream maker per the manufacturer’s instructions.

Here you have it Ryan.  The bowls we hunted for in Turkey,  the Kitchen Aid you have been dreaming of and a perfect 1st recipe to make in it.

Aha Moments

I was filmed earlier this week by the Mutual of Omaha.  They are traveling to 20 some cities around the USA talking to people about what their Aha moment in life was. A quote from their sight, "Aha moments are powerful. More than an idea, or an epiphany, aha moments demand attention and action. Deciding on a new career. Jumping out of an airplane. Launching an international philanthropy, or becoming a fire dancer. "
We were was asked to bring a prop.  I brought my tinned copper Turkish pitcher with me, sort of like my blankie, and a group of my travel postcards that I use as marketing pieces for my website the loaded trunk.  

Tinned Copper Pitcher from the loaded trunk

Travel cards created in collaboration with Linh Trieu

The pitcher represented a defining moment in my life.  The travel cards are photographs that have captured some of my Aha moments.

The end result of this tour for the Mutual of Omaha is to pick 7 or so people from this large group to represent them in a commercial.  It is an interesting idea so I thought it would be fun to be a part of this piece of Americana they are trying to capture.

When they started filming and asking specific questions about what my Aha moment was, what the pitcher represented etc. I realized that there was not just one Aha moment for me: life is a chain of Aha moments, and I am always thinking of ways to get to next one.

Mutual of Omaha Take 1-Aha Moment

After exhausting myself thinking of life changing moments for the interview, I came home and spent the weekend relaxing and thought I would share a few of my mini Aha drinks!

Spinach, cucumber, lime, honey smoothie....YUM
Large handful of organic spinach
1 medium(peeled) cucumber from the Austins garden(any peeled fresh will do)
Juice of a juicy lime
Tablespoon of organic honey
1 cup of ice
I have a blender not a fancy juicer like many of my friends and this worked like a charm.

Inspired by Kelli Austin (photographed on Ikat runner from the loaded trunk)

Watermelon, white peaches, pomegranate juice smoothie
1-2 cups of watermelon, I just chunk and toss it in with seeds and all
1-2 ripe white flesh peaches( it is what I had on hand)
Splash of unsweetened pomegranate juice
1 cup of ice
Toss all in blender (or your fancy vita mix) and drink
I have been drinking these alcohol free but a few friends has suggested a nice rum might just mellow your evening.

Watermelon and peach smoothie (photographed on Ikat runner from the loaded trunk))