Unexpected Chivalry

I’ve been reading a lot of comments this week about chivalrous husbands and boyfriends. The kind who open doors and buy flowers and write notes.

My husband does not do any of these things. Little romantic gestures are just not in his genetic makeup. But he is a gentleman. He does give me unexpected gifts right when I need them. Like yesterday, for instance:
him: what are you up to today?
me: the usual. work. lots of work.

him: you know, you need to be careful that you don’t burn yourself out.
me: it’s too late--I’m already burned out.
him: why don’t you just take a sick day.
me: I can’t do that.

him: why not? everyone needs to take a day off every now and then.
me: well...that would be nice.
him: i know. just stay in bed. take it easy.
me: really? you think that would be okay?

him: yes. you need it. it’s okay.

And then he left for work. Three episodes of Big Love, four of Mad Men, one Project Runway, stacks of Oreo cookies, piles of lime Tostidos and two beers later...I was admittedly feeling quite refreshed.
And this morning I’m a new woman.

So thank you, Craig, for being a gentlemen in unexpected ways. Because though open doors and flowers are definitely nice, what I really needed this week was permission to take a break.

I love you--

What do you prefer for a special treat: jewelry or really tasty food? Share your thoughts here!

Glossary of treats and pretty things from Etsy:
1. Himalayan pink salt truffles - 15 pc. by vintage confections
2. humble heart earrings by charm du jour
3. white chocolate covered peppermint joe-joe's sandwich cookies valentine's by sweet tooth sweetie
4. little poppy bowl by prince design uk
5. Hand Decorated Valentines Day Heart Swirl Cookies // 1 Dozen // Individually wrapped and and packaged for gifting by bees knees creative

Little Luxuries

This past weekend, while enjoying a leisurely Saturday, I encountered an old article I had stashed away featuring a select handful of fashion industry leaders. The article, titled "Women in Luxury," was something I had clipped out years ago because I found it inspiring. The women, I felt, possessed a unique blend of business savvy, strength, and femininity.
Upon reading through the article again, I was struck by one particular statement made by Valerie Hermann at Yves Saint Laurent. She said that though she grew up in the midst of a culture of science and medicine (many of her family members are physicians), she was always attracted to an atmosphere of "quality and beauty."

That's it! I thought. That is precisely what I'm attracted to! The latter part, beauty, is of course easy. I've always gravitated toward lovely places and pretty things. As for quality...well that has taken me a bit longer to appreciate.
Quality, I've come to realize, is not as easy to spot. Something can indeed be beautiful but of poor quality (think of cheap cashmere and vapid runway queens). This, I fear, is especially true in our modern world of mass-produced fashionable, convenient and "affordable" goods. "Affordable," of course, meaning "cheap"--both in price and in quality.

Now I'm not suggesting that in order to be a lady we must all start spending oodles of cash on only the finest things. Because although that would be simply wonderful, most of us can't stomach the expense. But I am saying that beauty and quality should go hand-in-hand as often as possible.
For me, this involves creating more of my own clothing, gifts, food, and home accessories using materials that are special. Like the soft yarn you see below. Or the pencil skirt I sewed last week. Or the farm-fresh milk we drink every morning from cold glass jugs. They are luxuries--little ones--that make up that "atmosphere" Hermann was referring to.
Of course, additionally it also involves combining my outside appearance with my internal character (both are always evolving and...frankly...requiring constant maintenance). I don't just want to be a beautiful person--I want to be a quality person, too. Someone who is generous and kind and patient and persevering. Someone who is not wasteful or crude.

Because good character, I suppose, is one of the best luxuries a lady can have...

What is your favorite little luxury this week? Mine is definitely the super soft merino and baby alpaca yarn that I purchased last Friday. And also perhaps those chocolates you see above, too. A girl needs her chocolate... How about you? What are you enjoying?

Chocolate AND Coffee??

It simply isn't the holiday season without some homemade cookies, right?

Four...five...six batches of homemade cookies. Plus cookie parties. And cookie exchanges. And bottles of Pepto.

So in the spirit of things, I thought I'd bake these little beauties this week.

I started where all good things begin: with chocolate. Dark, Ghiradelli chocolate to be exact. I always keep some on hand, just in case.
Just in case I need to melt it down into creamy perfection using my version of a double boiler.
And then whip it into a batter of cocoa, brown sugar, butter, eggs, and coffee. That's right--coffee. Four teaspoons of instant to be precise. Good enough to lick right off of the beater, I tell you.

Now, I've never made this chocolate coffee cookie recipe before, so I was a bit surprised to find that after the usual cookie-making steps, I was instructed to flatten out the dough and freeze it until firm. Fortunately it was about 20 degrees outside, so I had no problems with the freezing part. I just put the dough right out on the patio table for about 20 minutes, and Presto! Firm as my backside was before I ate these cookies.

Then came the rolling and sugar-ing. Isn't that a pretty mountain of treats?

And aren't they nice little soldiers, all lined up and ready for the oven?

Twelve minutes or so and here they are, all warm and petite, looking so cozy on my plate next to a tall glass of ice-cold milk. With the bittersweet and dark chocolates, plus the coffee, they are rich but not too sweet, which makes them a great grown-up cookie.

Not that I eat them like a responsible grown-up, of course. I've already had 5.

Try them for yourself this season (click here)!

Happy Friday!