Final day of sale!

Just a little reminder, today is the last day of the sales in the Habit and Pravina shops. Shops close tomorrow!

Meteor Shower

The Perseid meteor shower was at its peak last night and luckily we had a beautifully clear summer night to enjoy it. I took my camera down to the lake to try capturing a few photos of meteors and I did get a couple of faint ones, but not too many. There were definitely about 100 mosquitoes for every 1 meteor, so I didn't last too long outside. One thing that I was reminded of though is how much I LOVE night photography. Clearly though, I need some practice at capturing good night photos. So I've vowed to take more photos of our neighborhood at night in the next week before we have to leave!

Just a reminder...check back next week for the unveiling of what's next for Heartland...

MOVING SALE!!!

Thank you everyone for the well wishes!

The big move is coming up quickly... and we have to get to packing! Help us out by clearing out some inventory! I've reduced everything in the Pravina and Habit shops, some items are up to 50% off.

The sale lasts until Tuesday August 17th. After that date, both shops will be closed until September 1st for the move.

The Big News!!

We are moving to Boston!! After being a Midwestern girl my entire life, I am now going to try out living on the east coast. We'll be arriving just in time for Fall, and I am so looking forward to many beautiful drives through New England. It is a very exciting change and I can't wait to get started. I've dreamt of living in New England ever since I grew up watching Who's the Boss. Yes, it's true! I mean, didn't everybody wish they were Samantha Micelli?

The downside of moving is that we have to leave behind beloved family and friends. It will be very hard being so far away, but we will definitely be back to visit very very often. I doubt anywhere else could ever truly feel like home.

Heartland will also have to go through some changes, since it really is all about life in the Midwest and I don't want to change that focus. But, don't you worry, I have something new in store for all of you! Just putting the final touches on it though, so check back in a few days!

Northern Lights

Photo by Shawn Malone. Marquette, Michigan.

I am obsessed with the northern lights, or Aurora Borealis. I'm not sure if my fascination started when I wrote a paper for my Astronomy class in college. More likely it's just because they are truly amazing and surreal. This week there have been solar storms strong enough to make the northern lights visible as far south as the Midwest. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten to see them. But others did...


Photo by Derek Weston. St. Germain, Wisconsin.


Photo by Mike Hollingshead. Little Sioux, IA.


Photo by Tom Pinkerton. Babbitt, Minnesota.

All photos courtesy of www.spaceweather.com

Ironworks Cafe

I was just trying to think of where I wanted to go for dinner tonight when I realized I hadn't yet posted about The Ironworks Cafe in Madison. I had actually taken these photos pretty soon after Ironworks opened over a year (maybe even two years?) ago, but I never posted them. Better late than never, eh?

The food at Ironworks is inventive, almost always local, and most importantly, delicious. What's even more likable is the premise behind the cafe. It exists as part of the Goodman Community Center, which recently moved into a beautifully renovated historic building on the near east side. Fitting with the community service ideals of the center, the cafe is run entirely by teenagers under the guidance of restaurant professionals. The Ironworks Cafe is part of a teen employment program helping teens learn basic job skills, food and customer service skills, while seeing the ins and outs of managing a business.

Potters Artisan Crackers

Nancy Potter and her son Peter truly are cracker artisans. I recently got a bag of Potters Crackers (toasted sesame seed, in case you're wondering) and finished them off almost immediately. These divine little crackers are baked just up the road from me and they are made from locally milled whole-wheat flour, sweet Wisconsin butter and farmstead milk. How much more fresh and local can they get?

I usually find Potters Crackers at the Madison farmers markets. They are also available at a good amount of stores in the Midwest and for those of you outside of the area, order some online, you'll love them!

Elsie Marley

Congrats to Meg who had her adorable Madison WI home featured on Etsy's Storque! It's a great showcase of a family living efficiently (and beautifully) in a small space. PS, also check out her great little shop, Elsie Marley.

Spring PARA pouches

The spring line of PARA pouches have arrived in the Pravina shop!! And now featuring a lovely dark cocoa brown!

Of Salads and Sundays

It's a chilly, rain-soaked day here in Madison. The perfect Sunday to stay inside in my studio, working with the new machine. It has been a little frustrating at times but I'm hoping to make some more progress this afternoon. Maybe after a cup of tea.

During a little lunch break, I made a salad with the hopes of making up for a decadent dinner at Eldorado last night. I tried this dressing for the first time today and liked it, so I thought I'd share it with all of you.

Grapefruit vinaigrette
1/4 cup pink grapefruit juice
1 TB rice vingear (I bet a fruity one would be tasty too)
1 tsp minced shallots (I actually used freeze dried ones from Penzeys)
2 TB olive oil
Salt

Shake it all up, add salt to taste.

Hamilton Wood Type Font Fund

The Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum in Two Rivers WI is the only museum dedicated to the preservation, study, production and printing of wood type. Existing since 1880 and housing 1.5 million pieces of wood type, Hamilton's collection is one of the premier wood type collections in the world. About 3 hours from Chicago, the museum is well worth a visit. Admission is even free!

The museum is run only by two volunteers of the Two Rivers Historical Society and really needs your support in obtaining important grant funding. Please consider contributing to the Hamilton Font Fund, every dollar makes a difference.

From the Hamilton Font Fund Facebook page:
Help protect a Printing Treasure: Hamilton Urgently Needs Your Help.

Dear friends of wood type,
Hamilton has an unprecedented opportunity to qualify for a dollar-for-dollar matching grant from the "Save America's Treasures" program which has a deadline of May 20th, 2010.

This gives Hamilton 30 days to raise enough money to apply for a $25,000 matching grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. We're excited to have already raised over $5000 for this vital program that will help us archive, preserve and digitally document our collection of over 2000 vintage advertising plates and our 1.5 million-piece type collection.

But we can’t do it without you.

What can you do? We have 3 ways for you to give:

1. Become a member of the Hamilton Wood Type Museum online today (http://www.woodtype.org/museum_information_membership.shtml). There are 4 levels to choose from with sweet incentives that let you take a little slice of Two Rivers back to your home or office wall. Your membership dollars go a long way toward helping the museum fulfill its mission of preserving this amazing piece of printing history. All new membership dollars generated between now and the grant deadline will go directly to our matching funds effort.

2. If you're already a member you can simply donate at a level that suits your budget! Our recommended donation base is $50 and every dollar you give goes to protecting this typographic gem. (http://www.woodtype.org/museum_information_membership.shtml)

3. Shop at our Etsy Store! All proceeds for the next 30 days go directly to Hamilton’s “Save America’s Treasures” efforts and we'll be adding more merchandise soon. (http://www.etsy.com/shop/HamiltonWoodType)

Finally, we ask that you pass this message along to at least 2 people you think might become friends of Hamilton. Time is of the essence. We'll be keeping you updated with our progress in the coming month. Thanks for supporting wood type.

Sincerely Jim and Bill Moran

Batch Bakehouse

Looking for the ham and cheese croissant that will revolutionize your morning? Well, my friends, here it is.

There are a lot of food options in Madison. And a lot of them are good. Some of them are even very good. Then there's everything coming out of the kitchen of Batch Bakehouse. I can't say enough great things about this place. I've definitely tried enough flaky, buttery, delicious baked goods to proclaim this my favorite bakery in Madison. The staff is always so sweet, the food is fantastic, the coffee is from Intelligentsia and it's in my neighborhood. How could it get better? I can't wait until summer morning walks up to the bakery to get treats for eating outside in the sunshine on my front steps.

Wisconsin Film Festival

The Wisconsin Film Festival has descended on Madison! From April 14th-18th, the film festival screens hundreds of independent films at eight downtown Madison theaters. It's a huge event that brings out crowds from near and far.

What would I like to go see, you ask?
Sweetgrass (thanks to Yancy!)
Last Train Home
Typeface
The Bug Trainer
Feed the Fish
Just to name a few. And I'm so sad to see I missed Cooking History!

Pizza night

Sunday has unofficially evolved into pizza night. Do you have any little meal traditions like that?

Pizza night used to be delivery but lately I've started making pizzas at home. I'm definitely still tweaking things, but the pizzas are getting better the more I practice. So I have to keep making them every weekend, right? In the name of perfection? Let's go with that.

At the moment, my favorite recipes are this dough and this sauce. I usually make a couple of small, thin and crispy pizzas with different toppings because I like options. And once I've got the dough going, I figure I might as well make the full batch.

Tonight's pizzas
1. red sauce topped with shredded mozzarella and fresh tomatoes
2. white pizza with olive oil, fresh garlic, parmesan, prosciutto and arugula





Recently I went to a pizza party where the cook was a chef from one of my favorite restaurants. He was nice enough to share some tips: set your oven to the highest heat possible (in my case 550 degrees) and always use a pizza stone (which are a lot more affordable than I thought). Combine the high heat with a thin crust and these pizzas cook within 5-7 minutes. You may have to experiment to find which rack in your oven gets you the perfectly crisp but not burnt pizza. Maybe you should try making a couple of pizzas every weekend. You know, for practice ;)

National Mustard Museum

Wisconsin is home to all sorts of unique things, and one of them is...the National Mustard Museum! The museum recently relocated from Mount Horeb to Middleton, maybe to be closer to the action of mustard loving Madison? Yeah, that's a lot of M's.

The museum is having a grand opening this weekend with all sorts of mustard-y events. Including a 25 mile relay race with a jar of Grey Poupon and a presentation of "Wisconsin Cheeses and the Mustards That Love Them." If by chance you can't make it to the museum, you can still get in on all the mustard by joining their mustard of the month club!

Weekend

Hope you all have a great weekend!

The edge of spring

I really enjoy this time between winter and spring, when the seasons collide. There's still ice thawing but there's also plants and vegetation. From bare branches, the birds seem to be chirping louder than ever. I'm starting to daydream of planting a little bit of greenery in the backyard. Soon!

Clydes Rebirth

I was browsing at one of my favorites little shops in Madison, Atticus, when I was first spotted jewelry by Clydes Rebirth. Inspired by a love of everything gold, glittery, and over the top, Clydes Rebirth is about revamping old into new and it does so beautifully.

I was also excited to learn that the designer is right here in Madison. Merl just published her first lookbook and you should go check it out. While you're at it, stop by her shop and her blog too!