inspiredbyeverything™

Finding Gifts: A Jackalope

2011-08-21T16:15:00.001-07:00

I just started using an old camera of mine (here‘s why) and I found these pics of a crazy Christmas gift I made my brother this past year.

We have a thing for the mythical, magical Jackalope, thanks to a memorable wild west roadtrip we took in our 20s, and our love of the movie Watership Down. It seemed only natural to carve him a Hazelesque Jackalope complete with Christmas Flair. Maybe I'll inspire some folks for the holidays this year. Ha.

The Summer of Sweeping Changes: Stella

2011-07-04T13:36:00.000-07:00

My love and I decided in May that it was going to be The Summer of Sweeping Changes. So this Independence Day, we bought our new baby, Stella—a 1968 Shasta LoFlyte. Giggity. Thanks to my dear friend, Sage for sending me the Craigslist link just in the nick of time.

It’s bright.

2011-07-04T08:22:00.000-07:00

I made a window shade for the patio door out of an old sack.

The Polaroid Project: Bedroom Wall

2011-04-14T08:32:00.001-07:00

So much of my time lately has gone to my plant-based recipes and resources website, YumUniverse and a new online publication called YEP. It’s an exciting time, but a busy one.

This last month, I have been making a big effort to organize, spring clean and take care of projects I’ve been wanting to get through, like setting up my Windowfarm (still in progress). What’s great about making time to organize and catch up is that projects create themselves along the way. Purging the office closet can sometimes lead to a whole new bedroom wall made out of treasured polaroids. They deserve to be on the wall, not stacked in a box.

Kentucky

2010-12-07T14:51:00.000-08:00

My talented friend, Marta and I collaborated on these shots taken on a recent roadtrip to Nashville. I made the headress and she took the shots. Fun.

Cleaning the Closet

2010-07-16T10:04:00.001-07:00

Cleaning the closet out can be fun. Look what I found today. Yes, I’ve painted a mini velvet Elvis or two in my life.

YumUniverse™: Soft Launch

2010-05-24T21:49:00.000-07:00

Psst! This is where I have been spending most of my time the past eight months—the YumUniverse. Last Tuesday, I soft-launched my new website resource for dairy-free, meat-free, soy-free and mostly gluten-free livin’. What a colossal amount of work. We are now planning our launch party, which should be locked down any day now and once that date/locale are determined, we will make the official launch announcement. Until then friends, come by and say “hello”.

We have 50+ recipes so far, tons of resources, a shop, glossaries—everything to make a healthy diet that much easier.

Read about why I started this site. And also read about our talented and varied group of contributors.

Try some of our recipes...

and learn how to prepare unique ingredients...

Whatever you dive into, let us know what you think and what you’d like to see on YumUniverse. That’s what it’s there for!

California II

2010-03-28T21:55:00.001-07:00

You can really see a lot in 5 days.

View the entire Flickr set here.

California I

2010-03-28T21:49:00.001-07:00

Just got back from a quick trip to California—LA > Ventura > Big Sur > Sequoia National Forest > Palm Springs > LA again. All in 5 days. One of the best was when we went from this...

to this...

View the entire Flickr set here.

Zoom

2010-01-15T22:43:00.000-08:00

My old cat Zoom (21.5 years old) is the coolest. She likes to be vacuumed.

Exploring the YumUniverse

2009-12-27T19:30:00.000-08:00

Raw Apple Cake

Starting in the beginning of October this year, I had a pretty significant realization about the next chapter of, well, my life. I had just come back from an incredible roadtrip (my heart still aches for it really) and it simply was powerful how free and joyful I felt. While I have been lucky enough to structure my life so I get to collaborate on a contract-basis with seriously talented people creating relevant work in the graphic design industry—inhale—it isn't all that I want to do.

I have found such healing and happiness in learning about and experimenting with the raw and vegan lifestyle. It really is a creative outlet with infinite possibilities and those include valuable connections. I have noticed how much easier it is to stay on track with a supportive network of folks who are on the same page. A community. Hmm....

Raw Spinach Ravioli with Walnut Filling

So, in a few months, I will officially launch YumUniverse.com. It is my home of the recipes I adapt, discover and create, the restaurants I enjoy, the tips and tricks that I find invaluable, the people who help me and that is just the beginning. YumUniverse is going to be a place chock full of infinite possibilities for a yummy, healthy life. I'd like to share what I've found and what I will continue to discover on my journey. The continuation of which, as I mentioned above, will take me all over the country sharing through workshops, exploration and more.

Dairy-Free & Gluten-Free Cacao Cardamom Muffins

Have ideas for anything you’d like to see in the YumUniverse? Don’t be shy, let me know. In the meantime, get a sneak peek of some of the photos from recipes you’ll find at YumUniverse.

So for those of you who have been sweet enough to ask me where I’ve been, see the title of this post and receive a playful wink from me.

Sketchbook: Shark

2009-12-07T21:47:00.000-08:00

My friend Mike introduced me to an iPhone app yesterday called Sketchbook Mobile. He is currently teaching a class about iPhone art and will be showing the student work in February at his gallery, The Chicago Art Department. I am having a ball with this app and my skepticism about its capabilities is out the window now that I officially have 24hrs of exploration and play behind me. I absolutely prefer the intimacy of drawing and painting with actual tools, but I am pretty happy with tonight’s electronic exploration created entirely with my fingers interacting with my iPhone screen. Neat.

The Atlantic Ocean

2009-12-04T16:38:00.000-08:00

It felt as cold that day in June as it did today.

Chicago: Halsted Street

2009-12-04T16:36:00.001-08:00

I have only lived on Halsted Street my entire 11 years in Chicago. As north as 3000 and as south as 1800.

Isn't she lovely.

Giving Thanks 2009

2009-12-04T16:32:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving this year was, well, “Legendary”. I put the most into my hosting.

We ate, drank, ate some more...

Then we jammed...

Photos from the Feast. Photos from the after-party.

The Unobvious

2009-12-04T16:12:00.001-08:00

Next time you are watching an indoor soccer game, remember to look up...

and down.

Regular things can look really lovely.

Chicago Love: Skyline

2009-11-01T19:00:00.000-08:00

I love my town. Even when it rains for 21 out of 27 days.

Thank you Chicagoist for posting this pic and many others from my Chicago Flickr set.

The Fauxlaroid Project: Destination Story Inn

2009-11-01T18:57:00.001-08:00

I ventured to Story, Indiana this Halloween weekend for a visit to one of my favorite hideaways, the supposedly haunted Story Inn. Great time as always. See the entire to and from here.

HooperPower: Warrior

2009-10-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

Warrior from Heather Crosby on Vimeo.

Had a lil’ time before I taught class today. I love this song. Nothin’ fancy practice-wise, but thought I’d share. Enjoy.

The Fun Theory

2009-10-12T07:42:00.000-07:00

The Fauxlaroid Project: Harvest Fest

2009-10-11T09:06:00.001-07:00

My brother, his wife Shayda, my boyfriend and I went out to this adorable Harvest Fest in Michigan at the Wild Raspberry Apple Orchard. We ate homemade apple pies, clay oven pizzas, drank hot cider, listened to a jug band, learned about bee keeping, went on a nature walk and picked bags of our own organic apples. Heaven!

More photos here.

The Power of Time Off

2009-10-06T14:21:00.000-07:00

Right on, brother.

(Thanks SwissMiss)

The Fauxlaroid Project: Green City Market

2009-10-04T16:27:00.000-07:00

This Saturday I went to the lovely Green City Market in Chicago.

There is something invigorating about walking around the park through the colorful, hard-work of local farmers and foodies.

I picked up some Empire apples and baked a pie with them today. Also picked up the most beautiful, handcrafted curry squash pasta from Pasta Puttana. Tonight’s dinner.

Fall is here.

The Fauxlaroid Project: Opening Doors

2009-09-28T22:01:00.001-07:00

A co-worker of mine clued me in to this incredible iPhone app called ShakeItPhoto and I am completely hooked, for obvious reasons. Years worth of photos that have been sitting and waiting for upload have now been “polaroidized” and posted to my Flickr site. A new door has been opened. A fresh, oh-so-2009 variation on an existing obsession is born!

It’s Official. I’m a Wild West Junkie.

2009-09-26T09:28:00.001-07:00

I cannot stop thinking about my recent roadtrip.

The west is so very raw.

The colors pretty much take the breath out of your body. There is something new to be seen every step you take and every mile you drive. The majority of the trip I would find myself looking up and out and thinking “I can't capture this on camera” and so, surrender I did. Those times are my little secrets. The moments I did capture on film have made me very very very happy. I want to share them.

The entire Flickr set is here.

The Polaroid Project: Wild West

2009-09-14T13:58:00.000-07:00

Just returned from a 17-day roadtrip extravaganza. Drove out to Nevada to spend a dusty week at Burning Man with dear friends and took a spontaneous week to drive back to Chicago via Yellowstone, The Black Hills, Grand Tetons, Bighorns, Badlands and everything in between. One of the first thoughts I had last night when I reached the Chicago skyline was “Wow, it looks so small compared to the 7,000-13,000ft mountain ranges I've been driving through.” It was pretty shocking.

View the entire Flickr Polaroid set, and selected spreads from the Roadtrip Journal I kept here.

Raw Style: Blueberry Hemp Milk

2009-08-19T21:42:00.000-07:00

The other day I came home to a package with 4 beautiful milk bottles in it and a lovely note from the kind person who sent them to me (because they appreciated my Raw Almond Milk post). Sadly, I couldn't read the signature and the label I had set on the counter to send a thankyouthankyouthankyou note to was thrown out by accident by my boyfriend. Silly boyfriend. I am touched and grateful for the generosity of this kind person and since I have no way to reach them, I must post my new favorite beverage using one of these lovely bottles. Please contact me if you see this post!

I had been feeling sluggish and “brittle” sometimes during my workouts this spring, so in June I ordered Brendan Brazier’s Vegan Nutrition Guide. I have to say that for me, this book has made an incredible difference. I have been boxing training all summer and the strength and stamina I have has greatly improved. I am now a Hemp fanatic. I have been using plain hemp milk all summer on my homemade cereals and yesterday I had a lovely box of blueberries in the fridge from the Pilsen Community Market so I thought, “Hey, I bet this is yummy with hemp milk.” I had the berries, the seeds and the beautiful bottle to store it in. Voilà! A new post for you and a proper thank you to my new friend who helped me showcase my new creation.

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serving size: about 4 cups
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Tools needed:
Blender

What you need:
2/3 cup of Hemp seeds
3 cups coconut water (can use plain water too, but coco water is the yummiest and super hydrating)
1 cup organic blueberries
2 tbsp raw agave nectar
dash pink Himalayan sea salt (can use regular Sea Salt instead)

Let’s get started:
Place all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth. Pour in an adorable glass and store the rest in a beautiful bottle in your fridge. Enjoy!

It is Beautiful Here: Video II

2009-08-17T23:44:00.000-07:00

My love has been writing so many incredible songs lately. Powerful, lovely music is swirling around constantly. I just had to make him a treat today. So now I officially have a second video to add to my “it is beautiful here™” series.

Home: Summer

2009-08-16T21:29:00.000-07:00

I redesigned my office in July. Of course, I had to color coordinate my books on my new fancy bookshelf.

Creating a comfy space to live is important to me.

I love my home.

More pics here.

The Polaroid Project: Old Skool

2009-08-09T12:22:00.001-07:00

It’s fun what you find when you purge your closets.

Pieces of a Senior project that helped me get a great job in Chicago.

Thank you Polaroid.

The OC

2009-06-25T23:00:00.001-07:00

Yashica Super D and I had alot of fun in Ocean City Maryland...

View the juicy Flickr set here. Let me know what you think.

Chicago Love: Antique Market

2009-06-25T21:31:00.001-07:00

My pal Kathy and I went table hunting at the Chicago Antique Market and I must say it was incredible. I will be going back. You can check out a few other pics from the day here.

The Polaroid Project: OC09

2009-06-23T21:22:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a much needed 20-day vacation that began with 2 weeks in Ocean City, Maryland. A place ripe with Polaroid possibilities.

You can see all 22 of them here.

Hoop Path 2009

2009-06-23T20:58:00.000-07:00

I just returned from the 2009 HoopPath Retreat in Carrboro, NC. My pal Rich made this fancypants vintage-style lens box for his camera and these are some pics that we took with it.
Me and Miss Rosie Masters (top: taken by Rich) and Rich shredding it up (bottom: taken by moi).

See more of the lens-box HoopPath Retreat photos here.

New Buffalo, Michigan

2009-05-20T21:35:00.000-07:00

My pal Alex and I took a spontaneous roadtrip to New Buffalo, Michigan a few weeks back and it was just what the doctor ordered.

More photos here.

Laying in Fresh Grass

2009-05-19T22:01:00.001-07:00

If I could only share how good this smelled...imagine.

Morla

2009-05-19T21:51:00.001-07:00

So on a nice spring walk in Virginia last month, I came across this:

And without question, it made me think of this:

Which of course made me smile...

Raw Style: Bacon, Bacon, Bacon

2009-05-11T18:35:00.000-07:00

I grew up on meats and the one that I miss most, only flavor-wise, is bacon. I enjoy creating recipes that taste as close to my old unhealthy loves as much as possible. After researching this recipe and making my own adjustments and additions, I have been able to bring that salty crunch back into my life. My new obsession is the raw BLT, and I do intend to share that recipe with you all soon too, so stay tuned.

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serving size: makes a casserole dish full o’ bacon
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Tools needed:
Juicer
Dehydrator
Mandoline Slicer

What you need:
3/4-1 cup fresh beet juice (2-3 medium beets or 1-2 large beets)
1 large eggplant
2/3 cup olive oil
2 tbsp raw honey (can use raw agave nectar instead)
4 tbsp Ume Plum Vinegar
1/2 tsp pink Himalayan sea salt (can use regular Sea Salt instead)

Let’s get started:
Wash your eggplant and beets well. Run your beets through the juicer and set the juice aside. Don’t forget to admire the amazing color.

Slice your eggplant lengthwise to create 4 long wedges. Then carefully take those wedges and slice your eggplant into long strips with you Mandoline slicer. Achtung! The Mandoline blade is extremely sharp and wants to eat your fingers. Be very careful.

Let’s create the marinade. Place your fresh beet juice, olive oil, sea salt, vinegar and honey into a casserole dish and stir until completely mixed. Please note that the marinade will not look uniform in color because of the oil. Just mix all of the ingredients until they are blended to the best of your ability. You can always add a step if you wish, and blend your marinade on low speed in the blender too.

Now, I have not tried this yet, but I bet if you add a tsp or two of Liquid Smoke to the marinade, you may get somethin' reeeeal special. Of course, Liquid Smoke is not raw, so if you are super strict with your rawness, skip this suggestion.

Pour a little bit of your marinade into a bowl. Dip a slice of eggplant into this bowl, coating both sides with the marinade, and then place your dipped slice eggplant into the casserole dish. Repeat with all strips of eggplant, creating layers of coated eggplant until all slices are nestling in marinade in your casserole dish. Pour the marinade from your dipping bowl on top of the eggplant. Cover the casserole dish with plastic wrap, or a cloth and place in the fridge. Marinate for 8 hours. Every 2-4 hours re-coat the strips with marinade by spooning the marinade from the bottom of the dish onto your strips. You could also flip the pieces in the dish with a spatula as well. Whatever works. Just coat.

After the slices have marinated, place your “bacon” flat on Teflex sheets on your dehydrator trays.

Dehydrate for 4 hours anywhere from 95-110 degrees. After 4 hours, you will want to transfer your “bacon” from the Teflex sheets to the dehydrator screens so the air can get to both sides of the “bacon”. To do this, simply place a dehydrator tray with the screen (shown bottom left) on top of your “bacon” that is already on the teflex sheet and dehydrator tray. Place one hand underneath the Teflex tray and one on top of the screen tray. Quickly flip (see post-flipped position bottom right). Remove the top tray and then peel back the Teflex and your “bacon” should be resting proudly on the screen. Pop the tray back in the dehydrator for another 4 hours.

Keep checking on your “bacon” and when it is super crispy, you are good to go and you can turn off your dehydrator. If you reach the 8-hour mark and your “bacon” is still not crispy enough, keep dehydrating until you reach the crunch-factor that will make you happy. You can keep your “bacon” in a covered glass dish on the counter or in your pantry since it is dried. You can also keep it in the fridge.

Crumble your “bacon” on salads, spread some almond butter on manna bread and top with “bacon”, munch on it plain, make a BLT with your “bacon” (inspiredbyeverything BLT recipe coming soon)...

Please improvise with this recipe if you wish. Try adding the Liquid Smoke. Try raw maple syrup instead of honey or agave. Use less olive oil. Just have fun with it, make it tasty and share your improvisation findings with me!

Virginia

2009-05-10T22:28:00.001-07:00

Look how beautiful Virginia can be in the springtime. Entire Flickr set here.

Quiet

2009-05-10T22:21:00.000-07:00

If you listen carefully you can hear the monstrous purring...

Raw Style: Cinnamon Bun Ice Cream

2009-05-10T19:57:00.000-07:00

This raw, non-dairy ice cream recipe tastes just like a cinnamon bun with vanilla icing. It is so yummy, that didn't last two days in my freezer and I'm not ashamed about that. Why? Because it is super hydrating and full of live, nutrient-rich fats and sugars that my body wants and needs. Plus, no ice cream maker is necessary for this super creamy recipe.

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makes approx. 4 cups
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Tools needed:
Blender

What you need:
4 cups of raw unfrozen Vanilla Ice Cream mixture (recipe is here)
4 tbsp raw maple syrup (can use raw dark agave nectar instead)
1/4 tsp pink Himalayan sea salt (can use regular Sea Salt instead)
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Let’s get started:
Prepare your cinnamon swirl sauce by mixing maple syrup, sea salt and cinnamon in a bowl. Transfer the sauce to a container or tiny pitcher (a container for creamer works well) that makes it easy to pour. Pour your vanilla ice cream mixture into a bowl and carefully pour cinnamon swirl sauce in a—you guessed it—swirly pattern into your vanilla ice cream mixture.

Cover your container, place in freezer and once your creation is frozen, go to town. And be kind, share this recipe with others!

Note: Because there is nothing creepy in this recipe (like monosodiumglutomomaterednofive), depending on your freezer temp, the ice cream could become very hard. Take your container out of the freezer and let it sit on the counter for 5-10 minutes and then get to scooping. After a little time outside of the freezer, that creamy, scoopable consistency that we all love will arrive.

It is Beautiful Here

2009-05-08T00:20:00.000-07:00

A video I made last week. Le sigh.

Spring

2009-04-27T16:22:00.001-07:00

I had a superlovely weekend and these polaroids pretty much sum it up.

Happy Birthday to You

2009-04-19T18:37:00.000-07:00

(Here's a YouTube link)
Someone I have tremendous love for wrote a song for me a few months ago. It is his birthday today. Chicago is rainy and emotional outside and the light in my home is calming. History and future swirling around. It felt natural to play “the” song over and over and over on itunes today and hoop for hours. This is tape of the last 7 1/2 minutes of my session. Usually I'd edit it down to make it shorter, but I can't bring myself to do it to this one...

I captured the video on my lil' Polaroid HD Camcorder that I recently purchased, but it isn't MAC compatible quite yet...I need some additional crap to transfer files, but I taped the HD monitor of the Polaroid with my trusty Canon Elph and I absolutely love the artistic quality of the footage that came out. It matches the richness and affection of my practice pretty damned accurately.

Enjoy.

Here's a better quality vid on YouTube.

Oregon

2009-04-16T14:13:00.000-07:00

I traveled out to Bend, Oregon with my pal Marta for an intense hoop training this past weekend. The roadtrip part of the journey offered up many “my future’s so bright...” photo opportunities. We had a blast. Here's all the proof.

Chicago: M. Henry

2009-04-16T14:12:00.000-07:00

Frosty...

Me + Home 4eva

2009-04-02T12:19:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine took this pic of me just being in my home, one of my favorite places ever.

There’s a certain ZZTop track buzzing around in my brain

2009-04-01T20:35:00.000-07:00

BOW Challenge: The day before

2009-03-31T18:55:00.001-07:00

Cue the Rocky theme song because this girl loves a challenge.

13 days ago I was indulging in one of my daily must-reads, Apartment Therapy and saw the announcement for the launch of SocialWorkout.com. Oh, that looks real good I thought—click. 5 minutes in and I was all hearts and rainbows, so I set up my profile and committed myself to the April Body of Work Challenge. This is a community I'd like to be a part of. Badasses galore.

I wouldn't say that I signed up in an effort to win any of the fab prizes, but I'm no fool, I'd gladly accept them and their fabulousness if I somehow make it to the top. I am mostly pumped up (pun shamelessly intended) about the excuse to do something that I have never done before—30 days is alotta days in a row.

I currently work out 3-4 days a week with one of workouts being a weekly hoopdance class that I teach on Sundays. I'm not a treadmill gal. I like variety. I kickbox, work with my trainer Sari Weis, take trapeze here and there, have a love/hate relationship with Bikram yoga and have been having a 5yr romance with hoopdance.

Over 2yrs ago I made some dramatic changes in my diet (went raw) and while it's been a transition, definitely for the past year I have been eating a primarily raw diet. 85% raw is a pretty good estimate. I am still learning what foods jive best with me pre-workout and I am going to use this opportunity to actually document what I eat and what my energy level is that day. I will also be sharing some of my favorite raw recipes here throughout the month.

I have decided, like most of my BOW peers, to establish some goals, all "setting-an-intention" style:
~ I WILL use this month as an opportunity to spend more time with friends and family by partnering with them for workouts.
~ I WILL gain more muscle tone, flexibility, creativity in movement and strength.
~ I WILL figure out what raw foods and what combination of those foods will support me for the optimum workout.
~ I WILL make the time to blog to the best of my ability every day so that others may benefit from my experiences.
~I WILL make working out a top priority.

and last but definitely not least,

~I WILL make myself and SocialWorkout.com proud.

See ya'll tomorrow. Best of luck to everyone with their Challenge!

Keep Austin Weird

2009-03-25T13:26:00.000-07:00

Austin, Texas was a great ole time. Cupcakes, TexMex, parties, old friends and new friends all under the umbrella of beyond unusual weather (40F and rain, no joke). Austin is home to unbeatable live music, vintage shopping galore and truckloads of cowboy boots. I was in heaven and here are the photos to prove it. I'll be back Austin...arms open wide.

Chicago Love: Rainy Day

2009-03-24T23:12:00.001-07:00

Oh, Chicago. I love you.

Austinsauce

2009-03-19T18:30:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a much needed getaway to Austin, Texas. I shot about 6 rolls of film while I was there and until I get them developed and can share, I thought I'd post my favorite photo (taken by my friend Matt) from that weekend. My good pal Matt lives in Dallas now (we used to work together at VSA) and he drove to meet me in Austin with his adorable gal, Angela (center). This is us having a horrible time at the Frog Design Interactive SXSW party.

More of Matt's pics from that weekend riiiight here. And stay tuned for mine...

Sockets

2009-03-19T18:23:00.000-07:00

I am digging this color combination.
More! More! More!

Social Workout “Body of Work Challenge”

2009-03-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

This girl loves a challenge.

Staring April 1 I will be working out every single day and blogging about it here and on Social Workout’s new site (which is a genius site BTW) as a participant in their Body of Work Challenge.

Why am I doing this? I wouldn't say that it is in an effort to win the yearlong membership to Crunch gym or any of the other fab prizes, even though I'd gladly accept them. I am mostly excited about the excuse to do something that I have never done before--30 days is alotta days in a row. I currently get some workout time in 3-4x a week and I eat a diet of about 80% raw foods. I wonder what patterns I will find between food and certain exercises like high intensity Bikram Yoga or a meditative hooping session. What new workouts will I discover to keep it interesting? How strong can I become? How focused? How flexible? How tired? Will I sleep better? Will I be superultra obnoxiously happy? All I know for sure is that “Fun Fitness” isn't an oxymoron so I'm pretty jazzed to see where this goes...

Join me! I would love the support whether you participate in the Challenge as well or if you just want to comment on my progress, offer suggestions or try out the workouts I'm incorporating into my plan. Support feels all warm and fuzzy, and I encourage it.

So. Read all about the Social Workout Body of Work Challenge and look for my daily BOWC posts here (with video and pics) and on the Social Workout site starting April 1.

High five!

The Polaroid Project: So close

2009-03-18T23:45:00.001-07:00

I cannot wait until I can wear little dresses again because it is warm and sunny outside.

Busy Beaver Button Company

2009-03-10T11:17:00.000-07:00

My pal Kathy and I participated in the sMACdown Mac n' Cheese competition and fundraiser benefitting The Organic School Project last month. I shared hooping with the attendees and she made it into the TOP 5 (beating out a Top Chef winner and Chicago’s fanciest chefs) with her Peanut Butter n' Jelly Mac n’ Cheese recipe. Yeah, that’s right. It was beyond delicious. One of my favorite Chicago businesses was kind enough to post about us and the event today—Busy Beaver Button Company! Read the blog post and visit their site...they are a really solid biz and we love them. You will too.

Raw Style: Vanilla Strawberry Swirl Ice Cream

2009-03-08T15:11:00.000-07:00

I was inspired to create this raw, non-dairy Strawberry Swirl ice cream recipe on a rare and beautiful 60° day this March. I drove to Stanley’s with the windows down and tunes blazing on the stereo. Magicalness indeed. In typical ChiTown style, the next few days were cold and rainy (oh, Chicago, I still love you). So, for the next few months I will have the memories of making this Strawberry Swirl ice cream with the breeze blowing through an open balcony door with sun dancing around the kitchen...you’ll be able to taste the sunshine in this recipe, promise. Bonus: You don’t need an ice cream maker!

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makes approx. 4 cups
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Tools needed:
Blender

What you need for: Vanilla Ice Cream
2 cups fresh raw vanilla almond milk
1/3 cup raw agave nectar (light color if available)
1 tbsp raw honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp raw coconut oil
1/4 tsp pink Himalayan sea salt (can use regular Sea Salt instead)
2 1/2 cups of fresh young coconut meat (approx 3 young coconuts. How do I open them?)

What you need for: Strawberry Swirl Sauce
15-20 organic strawberries
A pinch of pink Himalayan sea salt (can use regular Sea Salt instead)
3 tbsp raw honey

Let’s get started: Vanilla Ice Cream
Put all vanilla ice cream ingredients in the blender and blend for 3 minutes. You want to blend it for a while to bring it to the creamy consistency that an ice cream maker would create.

Once properly blended, pour mixture into a deep dish, cover it and place in the freezer while you make your strawberry swirl sauce (Don’t let ice cream freeze yet. You just want to chill it).

Strawberry Swirl Sauce
Rinse your berries.

Select 3-4 of the prettiest strawberries and chop them into small pieces and set aside. Take remaining berries and strawberry swirl sauce ingredients and blend until liquified. Spoon chopped strawberry pieces into blended strawberry liquid and gently stir with a spoon.

Viola! You now have strawberry swirl sauce. Transfer the sauce to a container or tiny pitcher (a container for creamer works well) that makes it easy to pour.

Remove vanilla ice cream from freezer and carefully pour strawberry swirl sauce in a—you guessed it—swirly pattern into your vanilla ice cream mixture. Cover your container, place in freezer and once your creation is frozen, go to town.

Psst! Share with friends, they will love you for it.

Raw Style: Vanilla Almond Milk

2009-03-08T10:46:00.001-07:00

If you are looking for alternatives to dairy milk, you will love this recipe for fresh vanilla almond milk using soaked almonds (why soak?). Enjoy it straight from the glass, on your favorite cereal and look for future recipe posts that use this vanilla almond milk. Raw vanilla almond milk is enzyme-rich, very hydrating and you can store it in the fridge for about 5-7days. It may separate, so shake it up before using/drinking. I tend to make a bunch on Sunday and use it throughout the week.

Feel free to experiment with this recipe. Want it less sweet? Don't use agave. Want a plain almond milk? Nix the vanilla. Add raw cacao powder for chocolate milk or fresh organic strawberries for strawberry milk. Bananas, mint...have fun.

“This is amazing. It tastes like melty ice cream” a friend once told me as they polished off two glasses. Bingo.

- - - - - - - - -
makes 3 cups
- - - - - - - - -
Tools needed:
Blender
Nut milk bag or cheesecloth

What you need:
1 cup raw soaked almonds (start with 3/4 cup raw unsoaked—they expand)
1 tbsp raw agave nectar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp lecithin granules
1/4 tsp pink Himalayan sea salt (can use regular Sea Salt instead)
3 cups of fresh young coconut water or store bought (ex: VitaCoco, O.N.E or Zico)

Let’s get started:
Soak your almonds in filtered water for 6-8hrs. I usually get them soaking the night before, hit the hay and they are ready in the morning. Try not to soak longer than 12hrs. No time to soak? Skip it, but here is why soaking is optimal.

After your almonds have finished soaking, drain and rinse them with filtered water.
Put almonds and all other ingredients in the blender.

Blend on high speed for about 1 minute, until all ingredients are liquified.
Set out a large bowl and place the nut milk bag or cheesecloth in it and pour the liquid from the blender through the bag or cheescloth and squeeze until all you are left with is almond meal. Save the almond meal in the fridge. You can make delicious pie and tart crusts, desserts and cookies out of it and it keeps for a few weeks.

Transfer the milk into a glass and/or storage container and enjoy!

Byron’s

2009-03-07T22:50:00.001-08:00

It was a rainy day here in Chicago, but my pal Kathy and I ran around snapping photos of our beloved Chicago (for an upcoming project) anyway. I'm glad we did. We picked up tasty polenta cookies at the Bleeding Heart Bakery and stopped and took time to appreciate many places that we probably would drive right by on any other day.

Stanley's Fruits & Vegetables

2009-03-07T22:36:00.000-08:00

Stanley’s Fruit & Vegetable Market is one of my favorite places in Chicago. They play great music, the colors are unbeatable and you walk out of there with 4 bags of produce for under $30. The place is almost magical. If you are sneaky, you can document some of it. Check it.

Onion & Celery

2009-03-07T19:52:00.001-08:00

I made some veggie juice last night and some very lovely things popped up and said “hello”.

Maudie’s Teacups

2009-03-07T19:47:00.000-08:00

My grandmother's teacups...

The lost roll: Purge day at Renee's

2009-03-07T17:25:00.001-08:00

Aaaah, the delight of finding the lost roll of film. You wake up one morning thinking “now, why didn’t that shot I take of Renee in the pink blouse show up in the rolls I had processed?” It bums you out a bit because you knew it was a lovely shot, but you get over it and assume that it must have been shot #25 on a roll of 24 exposures. THEN. You find a roll of unprocessed film in the bottom of your Freitag bag and “Score! I wonder what this is...” turns out to be all the shots that you knew you took at Renee's that day. Sometimes, it's real nice to know that you aren’t a crazy.

View all the newbies and oldies here.

The Polaroid Project: Stampede

2009-03-05T05:59:00.001-08:00

You will find what you need. Just go!

Home: Bull and Owl

2009-03-03T19:27:00.000-08:00

A few friends from my home.

Chicago Love: Driving around town

2009-03-01T15:17:00.001-08:00

Two of my favorite shots from driving around this weekend.

More Chicago shots here.

The Unsinkable Molly Brown

2009-03-01T14:29:00.000-08:00

These are shots from the musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown. “Belly up to the bar boys...”

Candy

2009-03-01T08:22:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite gifts this past Christmas was a box of beautiful ribbon candy. The second I opened it I thought "photoshoot". View the entire Flickr set here.

Color!

2009-02-28T20:40:00.000-08:00

Rows of bears at Walgreens...

My beautiful friend Kathy...

and the fanciest candy I have seen in a loooong time.

Check out more random photos here.

Home

2009-02-28T20:37:00.000-08:00

More photos of home here.

Everyday: Tub

2009-02-28T20:35:00.000-08:00

More photos from the Everyday life set here.

Chicago Love: Pilsen factory

2009-02-28T20:33:00.000-08:00

My neighborhood in Chicago has so many beauteous buildings. This one is so graphic.
More of my pics of Chicago and Pilsen here.

I surrender

2009-02-28T20:29:00.000-08:00

I can't fight it anymore. I must post adorable photos of my cats without guilt and just own the "cat lady" crown with pride.

The Polaroid Project: Sweaters

2009-02-28T07:00:00.000-08:00

The Polaroid Project: Citrus

2009-02-27T07:40:00.001-08:00

I'm going to go to Stanley's today...

The Polaroid Project: Leaves & Light

2009-02-27T07:34:00.001-08:00

Purge Day at Renee's

2009-02-24T19:06:00.000-08:00

My pal Renee needed to purge her clothes and organize her closet last Friday and requested my help. We started the day off with a proper Tea lunch at Julius Meinl and then went to work. Renee has an incredible apartment with gadgets and goodies everywhere. I just got my Yashica so I turned the whole thing into a photoshoot. Fun times.

View the entire Flickr set for more pics from our day. Renee has the junior-high-school-boy-sprinkled-with-girl-mad-scientist-apartment-thing on lockdown. Nobody does it better.

Chicago: Feelin' it

2009-02-23T18:30:00.001-08:00

I drove by this street art on Elston Ave. and it made me so happy I turned around and drove back.

Yashica: Cats

2009-02-23T18:20:00.000-08:00

I have longed for a Yashica T4 Super D for a while now and I finally treated myself and got one a few weeks ago. It has been a non-stop photoshoot of pretty much everything since then. Including, yes, you guessed it, my cats. The Yashica makes them look like they've been out partying all night with the band or better yet, like apathetic models after traveling for 6 months straight.

View more Yashica Zoom & Bones photos on my Flickr set here.

Shoes

2009-02-23T18:10:00.000-08:00

I woke up Thursday morning with the random idea to take pics of my shoes in various places in my home. I have no idea where it came from, but I enjoyed it. Here are three selected photos from the entire Flickr set.

The Polaroid Project: Tracks

2009-02-20T09:06:00.000-08:00

Bones and Zoom

2009-02-18T22:24:00.000-08:00

I have a zillion pics of my pals Bones (18yrs left) and his mom Zoom (20yrs right). In an effort to avoid the inevitable "Cat Lady" title, I try very hard not to post one every day. Today, I lost the battle. Cuteness 1, Heather 0.

The Polaroid Project: Blue Ridge Parkway

2009-02-18T22:19:00.000-08:00

Red is my color today. My power color.

The Polaroid Project: MG

2009-02-18T22:16:00.000-08:00

I am crazy for yellow as well.

The Polaroid Project: Booze Bottles

2009-02-16T21:40:00.000-08:00

Smile

2009-02-13T17:22:00.000-08:00

I was at work a few months ago and was zoomed in on a photo and it looked kinda cool. So I screen-captured it. Me likey.

Elysian Ball: Oleander

2009-02-13T14:31:00.000-08:00

Marta and I showed our line “Oleander” at the Elysian Ball last night. It was an evening filled with performance art, fashion, burlesque, video and sculpture hosted by Angela Eve and Christophe Guaspohl. It was an artistic bonanza and we had a blast.

Photo opps were everywhere and I took many. View the entire Flickr set.

The Polaroid Project: Independence

2009-02-11T19:32:00.001-08:00

I'm feeling this one today.

Raw Style: Banana Pudding Parfait

2009-02-08T10:04:00.000-08:00

I was raised on sweets. My grandparents had a colossal candy cabinet and bowls of colorful sugary goodness all over the house. It's almost part of my DNA, the sweets. So even though I have shifted into a greater awareness of what I put into my body, there is no need to ignore my pal, Mr. Sweet Tooth. I have played around with many recipes and have finally Frankensteined the tastiest Banana Pudding Parfait (cue the lightning bolt). This recipe incorporates all natural, enzyme-rich ingredients that your body wants, including natural sugars, so take any guilt and kick it out the door.

There are three main components to this recipe:
Crumble Topping, Vanilla Whipped Cream and Banana Pudding. The Vanilla Whipped Cream is optional, but super delicious if you are up for opening a young coconut, which is easier than it sounds. Also, I am calling for all raw ingredients in this recipe, but you can improvise as you wish to make it your own. I can usually get all ingredients at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and/or the “healthy” aisle at some regular grocery stores.

- - - - - - - - -
2-3 large servings
- - - - - - - - -
Tools needed:
Food Processor
Blender

What you need for: Vanilla Whipped Cream (optional)
Meat from 1 young coconut
2 tbsp raw agave nectar
1/2 cup soaked raw cashews (soak for 2hrs)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp raw coconut butter
(preferably coconut butter with flesh, substitute 2 tbsp raw coconut oil if no coconut butter)
Pinch of pink Himalayan sea salt (can use regular Sea Salt instead)
4 tbsp of fresh young coconut water (psst...it is already inside your young coconut)

What you need for: Crumble Topping
I soaked and then dehydrated the walnuts and pecans ahead of time. This is an extra step you can take (if you have a dehydrator) that will help your body optimally digest the nuts. It is NOT necessary, however.
1/2 cup raw pecans
1/2 cup raw walnuts
4 Medjool dates
3 tbsp ground golden flaxseed
1 tbsp raw agave nectar
1 tsp pink Himalayan sea salt
Pinch of cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg

What you need for: Banana Pudding
4 organic bananas (almost over-ripe)
1/2 cup of fresh young coconut water, filtered water or store-bought coconut water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup of soaked raw cashews
1 tbsp raw agave nectar (optional)

Let’s get started: Vanilla Whipped Cream (optional)
Jump down to the Crumble Topping if you won’t be making this part of the Banana Parfait.

Lay out a Large knife (cleaver-style) and a serrated knife. We are going to open a young coconut, folks.

With your serrated knife, shave off the husk around the top of the coconut until you hit the shell. Then take the heel of the large knife and tap into the shell until you break through. Continue cutting into the shell 3/4 way around the top of the coconut. There is water in the coconut so you may want to do this over a large bowl. Peel back the newly-made “lid” from the coconut.

Pour the water from inside the coconut into a bowl. You can then strain the water through a cheesecloth, tight strainer or nut milk bag (shown here, right) if pieces of the husk made their way into the water. Set water aside, you will eventually use some for the Whipped Cream and the Banana Pudding. Feel free to take a sip of it too, it's delicious.

Use a spoon to scoop out all the coconut meat. This is an immature coconut, so the flesh should easily separate from the coconut shell. It's texture is very similar to the white of a hard-boiled egg.

Now assemble all of your Whipped Cream ingredients...

and dump into the blender.

Blend until super creamy and set aside.

Crumble Topping
Remove the pits from the Medjool dates by slicing lengthwise into the date. If you don't have dates you can substitute a cup of sundried raisins for the dates. Just soaked the raisins for 1 hr in filtered water, then drain them.

Place dates and remaining ingredients into the food processor.

Pulse until crumbly (see bottom right). Do not over-process.

Transfer Crumble Topping to a bowl and set aside.

Banana Pudding
Easy-peasy. Put all ingredients in the blender minus one of the bananas and mix until creamy. Pour into a bowl and set aside.

Assembly Time:
Slice the one remaining banana and arrange slices, Crumble Topping, Whipped Cream and Banana Pudding for assembly. Find a nice glass or dish that you can create your masterpiece in. I started with a wine glass.

Spoon some Crumble Topping into the bottom of the glass and press lightly.

Add a layer of Banana Pudding and then a layer of banana slices.

Add a layer of Whipped Cream and repeat process until the glass is full.

Spoon some Whipped Cream into a plastic bag and squeeze down into the corner. Snip off the corner and “voila”, you have a piping bag! If you have a proper piping bag, you can of course use that instead of the homemade version pictured here.

Get fancy and swirl some Whipped Cream on top, add a banana slice and spinkle some Crumble topping on it all.

You can use small votive glasses to make tiny servings of Parfait too. My co-workers will be getting treats on Monday. There you have it. Enjoy!

Outtakes/Bloopers:

This drip that missed the glass looked really pretty.

And this is the cold, hard truth to makin’ Raw Banana Parfait, folks. It just doesn't look as purty as the photos above. But then it kinda does, eh?

My vibrant Chicago: Love

2009-02-07T21:06:00.001-08:00

The view from my home last Saturday evening...

and the view from a warm passenger seat...

inspiredbyeverything on Facebook!

2009-02-07T17:04:00.001-08:00

Join the inspiredbyeverything Facebook group! Stay up to date on posts, events and all things inspiring and lovely.

The Polaroid Project: Moose Skull

2009-02-07T15:32:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, there's nothing you can do to make it all ok no matter how much you care about someone.

The Polaroid Project: My Closet

2009-02-05T21:44:00.000-08:00

Any skeletons in there?

Homemade Christmas 2008: Birds on a Wire Pillow

2009-02-05T20:42:00.000-08:00

More Homemade Christmas! This time, it's a pillow I made for my bird-crazy brother and his wife. I stitched the design right into some fabric I had leftover from a fashion show costume I made this past Fall.

Homemade Christmas 2008: Crosbandary

2009-02-05T20:25:00.000-08:00

This past holiday, my family and I decided to make eachother Christmas gifts. My brother Chad is incredibly creative and thoughtful and he solicited my help to create a surprise sign for the Christmas Village that he is building/collecting with his wife. The town name is a mash-up of Crosby and Eskandary—their last names. We put on Vince Guaraldi’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas” album (the best ever in my opinion) and started to make magic out of various colors of sculpy and Xacto knives. The result:

We were having so much fun that we decided to make a pair of owls in a nest too. We thought they’d make suitable, lovable guardians for the town.

So, Chad ended up getting the “Husband of the Year” award and I got some great QT with my lil’ bro. Win-Win.

Hilarity: The Lawrence Welk Show

2009-02-04T22:42:00.000-08:00

I can't get enough of this video. Thank you Marta for bringing it into my life.

The Polaroid Project: Timing

2009-02-04T22:24:00.000-08:00

I know I posted a polaroid pic similar to this one in November, but they are both great examples of fantastic timing. Today, I am wrapped up in the power of good timing and it reminded me of this pic that I snapped this Fall. It is a great representation of how I feel right now. My life is soso good and I am very grateful for it all.

Raw Style: Sweet Potato Chips

2009-02-02T19:40:00.000-08:00

I started eating primarily raw foods two years ago this week. So, as an anniversary gift to all the lovers of raw food (and the skeptics as well), I give you one of my favorite recipes. I have done the trial and error to a point where I've got it on lockdown and the idea of not sharing my success feels close to criminal. So behold, it's true. Guilt-free, enzyme-rich, Raw Sweet Potato Chips are here.

You will need:
Blender (I recommend a VitaMix if you are going to be eating alot of raw)
Mandoline slicer
Dehydrator* (I recommend an Excalibur if you are going to be eating alot of raw)
3 sweet potatoes
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp fine Pink Himalayan or regular sea salt
1/4 tsp cayenne (optional)
1 tsp raw agave nectar

*Now, I bet that you can make this recipe and bake it in the oven at a low temperature if you don't have a dehydrator. You will lose the enzymes this way and it will no longer be considered raw, but it will still be better for you than kettle cooked chips from a bag. If you try out the oven route, let me know if it works!

Let’s get started.
After thoroughly rinsing your sweet potatoes with water, set the Mandoline on the thinnest slicing option. Carefully slice all potatoes. Achtung! The Mandoline blade is extremely sharp and wants to eat your fingers. You should have a big, beautiful pile of paper-thin sweet potato slices sans fingers when finished. Place all potatoes in a large bowl and set aside.

In the blender, pour all oil, salt, agave and cayenne (watch out for the cayenne...it can cause a sneezing fit). Mix for 30 seconds on low speed.

Pour oil mixture over potatoes and massage oil thoroughly into potato slices.

Place the sliced potatoes on the Teflex sheets on the dehydrator trays. The slices can overlap a bit. Slide trays into the dehydrator, set temperature to 95-100°F and let slices dehydrate for 4-6 hours. Transfer the chips to the dehydrator screens so the air can come in on all sides. Dehydrate for a few more hours until desired crispiness is achieved. I like to leave my chips in til they are super crunchily.

When chips are to your liking, place them in a pretty bowl and admire your beautiful creation because they won't last long.

Feel good about eating chips again.
Olive oil is a healing oil that nourishes skin and aids digestion and systemic health. Cayenne warms you from the inside out, sea salts adds necessary trace minerals to your body that also strengthen digestion and sweet potatoes are full of vitamins and fiber. They are your friends. Enjoy.

*Heather Crosby and inspiredbyeverything™ will continue to share recipes that they develop or discover to replace the cooked foods that they miss. They are not trying to convert you or claim that they are scientists or nutritionists. Heather is a big fan of the healing power of raw foods and she is offering her discoveries as an alternative way to feed and heal the body. Research the raw lifestyle if you are interested in more information. Google!

The Polaroid Project: Summer Light

2009-02-01T23:48:00.001-08:00

I am posting a polaroid that was taken this summer because I am imagining this day again. I used to have a tan. I sure do miss it.

Savannah, GA

2009-02-01T23:26:00.001-08:00

Colors in Savannah, Georgia

View the entire Savannah, GA Flickr set.