oh la la glassblowing

recently, thanks to livingsocial, i got the chance to go glassblowing at the seattle glassblowing studio. it's a bit expensive usually but with the deal, husband and i both got to go for $40 instead of $170 (also thanks to our friends david and rebecca and livingsocials buy three get one free policy). it was a really fun experience and i definitely recommend it if you ever get the chance! with the class we took we got to make our own ornament or seafloat. we chose seafloats so we can enjoy them all year long.

the process is very guided. they give you a lengthy (but necessary) safety talk. but you get to chose your colors and take part in each step. like coloring the glass and holding it in the furnace which burns at nearly 2000°F.

you also get to actually blow the glass. your breath gets trapped in the glass forever! which is really cool if you think about it. my sunglasses are for safety and not fashion - as cool as they make me seem. 

the outside layer of the glass hardens almost instantly, but the glass actually takes about 48 hours to completely cool. it goes in this cooling cabinet called an annealer which slowly lowers the temperature and allows the glass to cool slowly so that the glass doesn't crack.

and finally, the finished products! mine is all the way on the right and husband's is the second to the right. apparently we went with a fire and ice theme. which somehow suits us.

you can read a little bit about the history of glassblowing here and how the pacific northwest plays into that.

Happy (Belated) Holidays

I hope your holidays with friends and family were filled with smiles and wonderful memories. 

We spent 10 days visiting our families on the east coast:

As per annual tradition, my best friend Katie, my sister Robin, Katie's sister Marianne, and Jon had our gingerbread making contest. And as per usual, it got a little messy. 

Although, I think our house-making skills have come a long way in the past few years. 

My friend Michelle gave me a brilliant present - a polaroid camera! Thanks, Michelle! 

Some of the best pictures from our trip were captured on polaroid film.

 We had a lovely dinner at a Japanese restaurant with our friend Beatrix.

We spent some time in Pennsylvania visiting Kristin.

We celebrated my Mom's birthday by going out to dinner with the whole family.

And we went to lunch with my former bosses, both of whom I miss so much! 

We enjoyed a lovely evening in the company of two close friends, Michelle and Chardon.

We got to spend NYE with my birthday twin Gina and her boyfriend Zach!

Happy 2013! 

Sharing the Love

One of my favorite things about living in Seattle is being able to go to the market and get flowers for our apartment. The stands are now selling dried flowers which means they will last for an extremely long time and still look incredibly beautiful.

Happy 12/12/12!

Wintertime in Seattle

Seattle in the winter hasn't been too traumatizing yet. Mostly in the upper 30s - lower 40s with sun and rain pretty much everyday. The weather can change at the drop of a hat so it's best just to wear a rain jacket and hope for the best.

Lately things have been slowing down. I'm finished all of my Christmas shopping and all of our presents are wrapped under the tree! And Christmas is still 20 days away. I'm choosing to take this as a win and not that I'm going to miss out on any last minute deals.

I've recently decided that Pike's Place Market at Christmastime is one of my favorite places in the world. It's so festive. There are lights everywhere (just like the rest of the city) and they even pieces of fruit lit up near the entrance.

We also at this place called Lowell's Restaurant inside the market. And it was amazing. Even the vegetarian sandwich. So if you are ever in the city and want to eat at the market with an amazing view, this is the place.

Holiday Festivities

Just some highlights from the past week:

An absolutely gorgeous day on Lake Union. 

Usually when we head that way, it pours rain. 

But the sky looked nice so we decided to risk it. I'm glad we did. 

Walking around and enjoying all of Seattle's lights and holiday decorations. Including a 

Charlie Brown-esque tree. 

Some fun pictures from Chihuly Garden and Glass. Really a spectacular thing to see. 

Maybe we will try to visit all of his exhibits around the world.

Bucket list, anyone?

I'll leave you with this picture of the Space Needle.

Thanksgiving 2012

I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving filled with family, friends and fun. We were lucky enough to have my mother-in-law in town for the holiday. It was really nice to have some family around for our first real holiday so far away from "home." I also got to enjoy some cooking lessons and learning about some old family traditions. For only 3 people, we took on a fairly expansive, but simple menu. We started off nibbling on cheese and crackers with wine while we were preparing dinner. We began with Butternut Squash and Apple soup for an appetizer. Our main course featured turkey breast, cranberry sauce, mashed cauliflower, candied sweet potatoes, broccoli, corn, stuffing and gravy, of course.  A few hours later (because there was absolutely no way we were going to be able to eat anymore after that feast) we indulged in homemade chocolate chip cookies and gelato for dessert.

Thanksgiving Dinner

Our First Thanksgiving!

Manic Monday

It's a very rainy and grey Monday here in Seattle. Not that it's stopping me from my normal activities, but it does put a bit of a damper on things. And by very rainy, I mean more than the usual mist that floats through the sky and hangs in the air. There are actual raindrops on my balcony. I might have to break out my umbrella. And risk being deemed a tourist? No way.

Over the past few weekends we've finally gotten around to doing a bit of decorating and picture hanging in our apartment. I'm kind of a little bit in love with the chalkboard sticker that is on our fridge now. And the colorful wall decal that my mom and I hung in a quilt-like pattern. I'm also really excited about the little treasures we found when we visited the Japanese market with Michelle: a magnetic meal planning guide & recipe notecards!

We also found a collage frame that we had fun deciding what pictures and memories to highlight. Clockwise: (1) Jon and I at Mt Rainier National Park (2) Leyla, Michelle, Chardon and I in Downtown Annapolis before dinner (3) Michelle and I when she visited Seattle at Purple Cafe and Wine Bar (4) Katie and I last Christmas in my college apartment (5) Gina and I at my graduation (6) Jon and I at my cousins rehearsal dinner (7) Gina and I with Taylor Swift at Madame Toussads Wax Museum in NYC (8) Kristin and I ice skating junior year (9) Beatrix and I at Chevys for $3 margarita night (10) Jon and I before Wicked and (11) Gina and I in front of the True Blood billboard in NYC.

My mom and I also decorated some magazine holders I found at Ikea with fun vintage and summer themed prints to brighten up my bookshelf:

I hope everyone has a good (hopefully 3 day) week! And enjoys Thanksgiving with friends/family. We're lucky enough to have my mother-in-law for the holiday, which is truly a blessing because we haven't been able to spend time with her in a while and, between us, I have no idea how to actually cook a turkey.