July 2009

♥ Happy Anniversary ♥

hiii all i am back again.
sorry for the lack of the post, i have been really busy. xD

so yesterday was my anniversary with my BF. heheee. i am so very happy!.
it's actually our 4 years anniversary but i count it as our first anniversary.

well, the first year we dated, we were in highschool in China, we both have totally forgotten when was the exact date we got together. so we never celebrated it.
the next 2 years, i had to moved to Indonesia & we suffered with the long distance relationship.
on the 3rd year, i finally moved to malaysia to study & to be together with him again.
we made a pact that we would meet again in malaysia since malaysia it's the closest country from Indonesia & Thailand where he came from.
on this 3rd year, he officially asked me again to be his GF although we never really did broke up.
i said YES.
it was on the 31st July 2008.
now we have the exact date to celebrate it. hahaa.

the sad part is that he was away on our anniversary.
he was in Thailand doing his off-college days.
1 minute after midnight to 31st July, we were on the phone & just talked.
i thought it was just as far as how it goes. but it wasn't. hehee.

on 21.50, somebody was at my door.
it was a delivery guy, he delivered me a BIG bucket of pink roses (my fav color) along with a teddy bear, chocolates, & glitters love shaped.
the letter says ..

"To: Risya Ayu Destyana

Life's greatest happiness is to be convinced we are loved.
Happy Anniversary.

Sincerely, Stinkyfeet."

baldie is my nickname from him because i used to have a hair-fall problems so he used to mocked me that i would be bald someday. hahaa.
stinkyfeet is his nickname from him because he has a stinky feet. hahahahaa.

i cried that night.
he's such a sweet boyfriend. i'm such a lucky girl. he's the best BF a girl could ever have.
:)

" Happy Anniversary, hney.

May our love stay pure in eternity & may our life would be blessed everyday.
AMIN.
Thank you for being such a good husband.
Being with you are the most happiest time in my entire life.
I love you forever.

♥ Risya."

your well wishes for us would be much appreciated. :)
love.love ♥♥

background song:
Screaming Infidelities - Dashboard Confessional
(our song)

♛ HOMEWORK

homework dari Echa, thanks ya akhirnya blog'ku ada kerja juga gara2 loe. hahaa.

Rules:
It's harder than it looks!! Copy to your own note, erase my answers, enter yours, and tag to 10 people. Use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following questions. They have to be real, nothing made up! If the person before you had the same first initial, you must use different answers. You can not use any word twice and you can't use your name for the boy/ girl name question.

What is your name: Risya
A four letter word: Rock
A boy's name: Raouf (my BF.. hehee)
A girl's name: Raysha
An occupation: Reporter
A color: Red
Something you wear: Retro Shirt
A food: Rice
Something found in the bathroom: -
A place: Rome, Italy
A reason for being late: Raining

Something you shout: Rock Onn!!

A movie title: Revolutionary Road
Something you drink: Rootbeer
A musical group: Radiohead!
An animal: Rabbits
A street name: -
A tipe of car: Renault
A song title : Red Lights Indicates Doors Are Secured (by Arctic Monkeys)

hahaa a bit easy actually. :)
good luck with the rest of you, i tagged this for you ALL. xD

New piece in the Etsy shop

I just created a new piece for the etsy shop and photographed it with my camera... before shipping my camera off for repairs (I know I said I was going to do that weeks ago). So sadly... pictures may not be as *pretty* until the camera is back.
I hope everyone has a lovely weekend!!

Neutral Retreat

There is something soothing about clean, neutral spaces, like the ones below, and, while I am not sure I could live with such an absence of color on a daily basis, these rooms seem like perfect places for some rest and recuperation.

Anna G. Tufvesson via Desire to Inspire

House Beautiful

Phoebe Howard

The white clapboard walls, in the rooms above, convey a sense of a slower-paced life, a feeling that practically begs you to breathe easier. The bedroom below feels more urban than the other spaces, but it still has the same relaxing appearance.

Paul Whicheloe Photography

What do you think of these very neutral rooms? Could you live in one all the time or would you prefer such a space only for a temporary escape?

Kate Moss

Oh, Hello Kate!

Model: Kate Moss

Photographers: Mert & Marcus

Flavor of the Month...Texas Peach Pie

There is something about making a fruit pie that makes me feel like my grandmother and a domestic goddess all rolled into one. Fruit pies are so homey and comforting, but since they've been surpassed by the cupcake, the cake truffle, the cookie...they also feel a bit exotic.

Peaches are probably my favorite part of Texas summers. (Actually, they might be one of the only redeeming things about Texas summers!) This year I decided to try a pie that I've wanted to make for 12 years. And, let me tell you, I won't wait 12 more to make another one. It was delicious!!!

We received a Williams-Sonoma Pies & Tarts cookbook for our wedding over 12 years ago. I always get seduced by the cherry and pumpkin pies....but not this time.

For the crust, I decided to give a new recipe a try and it was a winner. It comes from The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion. It was THE BEST piecrust I've ever made...and I was pretty happy with the one I had been using, so that's saying something! :)

Texas Peach Pie
(modified from my old William-Sonoma's Pies & Tarts cookbook)

pie pastry for a double crust pie (recipe follows)
6 cups peeled, pitted and sliced Texas peaches (ok...or another state's peaches if you must)
2 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
2 TBSP unsalted butter
beaten egg
sparkling sugar

Preheat oven to 425. Roll out dough for bottom crust and line a 9" pie pan. (Optional: brush bottom crust with lightly beaten egg white...it works to prevent a soggy crust!) Roll out dough and cut into strips for a lattice top and set aside.

Place peaches in a bowl. Sprinkle with lemon juice and toss to coat. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, salt and nutmeg. Add to the peaches and stir gently to combine.

Pile the fruit into the dough-lined pan. Dot with bits of butter.

Use the strips to make a lattice top. Brush beaten egg on top of lattice and sprinkle with sparkling sugar.

Bake for 25 minutes, the reduce heat to 350 and bake about 25 minutes longer, until bubbly and top is browned. You may need to cover the edges during baking...I did.

{See that marble pastry board? A gift from my dad...perfect for rolling piecrusts!}

For the crust:
(modified from The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion)

2 & 1/2 c. unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 c. cold shortening (Crisco)
1 stick unsalted butter
1/4 to 1/2 c. ice water

Reserve a few tablespoons of flour, set aside. Whisk together remaining flour and salt. Cut in the shortening until it is crumbly.

Place the reserved flour on work surface and coat butter in it. Use a rolling pin or your hand to flatten the butter until it is about 1/2 inch thick. Break the flour-coated butter into 1 inch pieces and mix into the dough until it is evenly distributed.

Sprinkle water over the dough while tossing with a fork just until it is easily squeezed into a ball. Flatten into 2 disks, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes.

On a floured surface, roll each disk into a 12 x 9" rectangle (approx). Fold into thirds, like a letter, then fold again in thirds to form a square. Wrap both pieces again and refrigerate 30 more minutes.

After 30 minutes, let rest at room temperature for 5 minutes, then roll out to the size needed.

{One small side note...that ice cream is Haagen Dazs 5 Ingredient Vanilla...AMAZING!}

I can't wait to see what you all came up with!!! Please take some time and go check out the others participating in FOTM. :)

August's Flavor-of-the-Month theme: Pucker Up! Lemon, Lime or a combination...oh, the possibilities! Anyone can join in, please do!

Thank you so much for participating....or even if you didn't, thanks for visiting!

Here's where you link up...
(I'm new at this, too...here's hoping it works!)
The list will close in the wee hours of August 1st to discourage spammers.

Romantic new garter in the Etsy shop

I am waiting for some more supplies (coming from France) for the Blue Bird garter. I've received a bunch of inquiries about it... I will try to have it relisted soon! In the meantime, I created another garter for the Etsy shop and you can view it HERE.

I'm slowly taking custom garter requests if you are interested and are not seeing the perfect piece. Email or convo me for details.

Ani and Steve at the Four Seasons, Boston Part One

Posted by Mariah:

A little rest ... and Trish and I are ready to roll again...

this time Ani and Steve's venue is the beautiful 4 Seasons Hotel in Boston, directly across from the Boston Public Gardens... one of my favorite places in the city. The forecast looks great and we are ready for another fun day.

Winstons created this lovely bouquet of orchids for Ani.

Trish was on details for the day, so this is her pretty shot.

Are these amazing or what?! They are for the after-party, but I couldn't resist snapping them when Ani showed them to me.

More beautiful bouquets from Winstons.

Ani has the most beautiful silky brown hair. It's super shiny. I asked her what the secret is, but she says she doesn't have one... hmmmm....

Trish getting a nice ring detail... it's one of her specialties.

Ani slips into her dress, a summery light floaty dress from Vera Wang. It's perfect on her.

So pretty.

Time for a few portraits of our bride. We found this spot in the foyer near the elevators and I was insane for this wallpaper. Also, the hotel was nice enough to provide us with a giant window covered in white fabric... voila! homemade soft box! LOVE IT!

Of course having such a beautiful little model helps matters. This one is my fav.

Right?!

Ani was so excited and happy...

Ani and her cousins.

...and of course with dad.

Meanwhile, Trish is photographing Steve and company...he looks pretty happy too I'd say.

Here's the "company" congregating for their formals.

Lovely photo of Steve's family.

This is Donna, Steve's sister... she was a force of organization for this big day! Not only did she plan and orchestrate much of the event, she also preformed the ceremony! The day truly could not have happened without her. Hooray for Donna!

P.S. She also managed to do all this looking quite fetching I might add...

Steve and his best men...

A little clowning around... it's oneof Steve's specialties...

It's that time...

Isn't this amazing? It's South beach in Boston! Fitting because Ani is from Cuba originally and her family settled in Miami and that is where she met Steve.

This vases and blooms are suspended from the chuppa and form it's ceiling. This really knocked my socks off.

The big moment...

So exciting!

Isn't this gorgeous?! The beachy-ness is complete with a wooden boardwalk leading to the chuppa.

Ani's brother does a reading...

Ani had very sweet vows that she prepared for Steve. She talked about how she admires his commitment to his family.

The family all agrees...

Steve's vows were also sweet... and funny! He prepared them in Spanish which was a surprise for Ani and a treat for her family. He did a great job reading them and even invented a new word... "caliente-ness" which is a reference to Ani's um, beauty. :)