CS Thrift Store Review: DAV

Disabled American Veterans Thrift Store
2444 East Platte Avenue, Colorado Springs

Notes from 8/2010 visit:
- large building with clean, well organized sections
- half-off tags change daily, sometimes more than one color is on sale
- fun flashback clothing scores
- tricky to get to if going east on Platte (median) and parking lot entrance is close to intersection
{men/women/kids clothing and shoes, jewelry, furniture, housewares (linens, lamps, frames, knickknacks) kitchen items, some electronics, videos, cds, books, craft corner and holiday section - Halloween costumes were already out}

Celebrating my 101st Post with a Giveaway!

Post a comment below about your favorite pair of earrings and you'll be entered to win this pair! I will randomly choose the winner after 11:59pm on September 4th, so make sure you comment before then. Good luck!

Happy Birthday Sam & Pippin!

2005 (born in 2004, NYC)

2010 Colorado

Healthy Lunch

Ms. K came over for a lovely afternoon of crafting on Saturday. She made a cute little felted sheep and I worked on jewelry. To feed our creativity, I checked out some books from the library. To feed our tummies, I made hummus, avocado veggie sandwiches and cannelloni, tuna and veggy (from my garden, of course) salad. Blueberries on the side to snack on and Ms. K brought some wine which was the perfect addition.

Happy Friday!!!!

My Fort Collins trip was a delight! Great to see so many lovely people (I miss you all!) and now so many exciting projects on my plate! I have a busy weekend ahead of me...

Cherry cheesecake with a twist

TOP
organic cherries cooked with balsamic vinegar,
a cinnamon stick, little sugar
MIDDLE
(all organic) cream cheese, mascarpone cheese,
goat cheese, whipped cream, sugar
BOTTOM
crushed vanilla wafers with chopped walnuts and butter

absolutely rich, decadent and too easy to make
(it's a no-bake)

Breakfast & Lunch

My attempt this morning to cook an omelette would make Julia and Martha cringe.... but practice makes perfect. I added red pepper, organic chicken andouille sausage and goat cheese. It was quite tasty with a side of WF olive bread.

Yesterday's lunch was better -- cheese quesadilla with green chile tortillas, poached organic egg, slices of a Palisade Peach, a pimento stuffed with goat cheese and my homemade refrigerator pickles with a tomato from my garden.

My Studio and Jewelry Cabinet

Inspired by Etsy Open Studios on flickr, I decided to share my studio with you. Well ... half of it. Dare I admit that I moved all the clutter from one half to the other so that you don't see what my "working" studio really looks like? At some point soon I'll take photos of my jewelry/crafting/painting table on the other side. But for now you get the design desk and jewelry cabinet (with Pippin sleeping on my chair, as usual).

An old medicine cabinet, I found at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore for $7, serves as my jewelry cabinet. I cleaned and painted it; bought new hinges and re-attached the doors. I painted the inside in 'seaglass' and inserted small dowel rods into the holes meant to hold shelves.

Vintage finds and gifts, along with a cheap clock sit on top of the cabinet. The clock was clear so you could see the wall behind it... trying to be trendy? I added some pretty paper to the back -- now I am much happier with it.

Notice only earrings and bracelets in the cabinet and wonder where the necklaces are? To the right of my desk hangs a framed metal tree by a local artisan in Ohio. There are small hooks all over it - perfect for my necklaces.

(thanks PC)

A combination of necklaces I made with some I found in thrift shops... or H&M.

Pippin has gotten tired of me photographing my space and has moved to the window. A much better location -- now I can sit at my desk again.

New listing on my etsy shop

front

back

I found these laser-cut wood beads from my enjoyable, yet expensive trip to the Denver Bead Show.

Porcini mushrooms from the mountains

C & B shared their find from their "camping" trip to the mountains: delicious mushrooms!



I made a mozzarella tomato basil salad (from my garden) and poured a glass of wine to go with these fragrant meaty rich porcini mushrooms.




Cooked in butter and olive oil, sprinkle some salt - perfection!

Thanks C & B!

noshers and an opening

An amazing display of hardened garlic sugar glaze on braised scallops - delicious and beautiful! I love the small portion sizes and interesting eclectic dishes at Nosh. I hope we go there again tonight before William Wylie's opening at GOCA.

Summer Delights

We hope to plant an apricot tree (or two) next Spring near my garden.
I can't wait!

just for you, Shinysides