Fabric Shopping in LA's Fashion District

This past weekend I dragged Mandy downtown in search of some great fabric finds in LA's fashion district. Being a "planner," I read reviews of places on Yelp, and read about people's experiences on other blogs so I'd know what to expect, but it was still a bit overwhelming.

Here's a link to the official webpage for the Fashion District: www.fashiondistrict.org. As you can see, there are simply TONS of stores selling fabric! I have a few projects in mind that I needed large pieces of fabric for and thought I'd be able to find better deals by going to these places than ordering it online, and hopefully better selection than at Joann's.




I parked towards the south / east end of 9th street, on San Julian in a kind of sketchy looking lot with unclear information about when it closed.



Mandy and I then started walking up 9th street, where we were immediately inundated with dozens of small store fronts overrunning with fabric. Right away we started noticing a problem - even the ones that had cute-looking patterns did not have anything "useable" for anything we were doing / making, as the fabrics were all polyester or something stretchy and weird feeling - Here are some examples:

A little ways down, we reached Maple Street, home of Michael Levine, Inc., a "mega-store" of fabrics that I had read all about before we came. One one side of Maple was their regular store, while the other side of the street was the upholstery fabric and the "Loft" upstairs. (we did not make it to the Loft on this trip, but apparently the fabric in there is in giant bins already cut, and you have to dig through to find what you want, and then it is sold by the pound - like $2.50 / lb!).

In Michael Levine, we found LOTS of great fabrics! The selection of good quality choices was really amazing! So even though the prices weren't dirt-cheap by any means, it was still slightly less expensive than what I usually pay online - and I could see and touch the fabrics before choosing! Here's what we found:

clockwise: Me picking out striped fabric (see below); Mandy with her stack, waiting in line at the cutting table; my stack of choices waiting to be cut

After Michael Levine, we were pretty much done. The combination of the heat (why is there NO breeze downtown?!), and the overwhelming effect of all of the fabric options was exhausting! So even we only made it like 2 blocks, we were ready to go. I would say the adventure was a success, and lots of fun, even though ultimately I only found 1/3 of what I actually went in search of!


Of all of the fabrics I found that I just had-to-have, this was the only one that allowed me to check something off my list - I'm going to use this striped fabric to make a fabric covered wall in my bathroom! The little piece is a sample of fabric I'm using to make a skirt for the sink, which I brought along to coordinate.

From the Woods to Your Table

One fabulous thing about our house in NC: The Woods Behind Us Is FULL of BLACKBERRIES!!!

I picked a few tonight and made a cobbler for two! It was delicious!

It ended up being about 1 1/2 cups :)

Melt 2-4 table spoons of butter in the bottom of an oven safe pan.

Add berries and sprinkle with sugar.

Combine in small bowl: 2/3-3/4 cup of four, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tsp. baking powder, and 1/2 milk. Mix until smooth.

Pour batter over the top of the berries.

Sprinkle with a little brown sugar or cinnamon (optional).

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until browned to your liking!

Pour yourself a glass of milk and eat while it's still hot ;)

Easy, Breezy, Nice and Cheesy

When my friend Erin Powell first moved to Athens to start Pharmacy School (yes, she's a smarty-pants), she invited me over to hang out with her and her awesome son Maddox! She cooked me a yummy dinner (yeah, crazy I know, she's brilliant and a good cook) that has since become a stable in the my cooking menu. It's so simple and SO GOOOOD! Erin has been my friend for a long time and I'm so glad I have her!

Me, Sally, and Erin at a UGA Game

Me and Erin on my wedding day!

I hope you enjoy her yummy recipe just as much as I do!

Fast, Easy, Creamy, Chicken Enchiladas:
4 oz Cream Cheese
2 Chicken Breast
1/4-1/3 of White Onion
4 Flour Tortillas
1 8oz can of Enchilada Sauce
Heavy Whipping Cream (probably about a third of carton?)
Shredded Mexican Cheese (a hand full)
Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder, Cayenne Pepper (Optional)

Cut Chicken Breast into small pieces.

Cook with butter and seasoning of your choice. (I usually sprinkle a little of everything listed above.)

Sliver 1/3 to 1/4 of a white onion, cook with a little butter or oil.

Combine onions, chicken, and cream cheese in bowl.

Spoon out mixture on to your four tortillas.

Roll up the tortillas and place them side by side in an oven safe dish.

Alternate, drizzling with enchilada sauce, then heavy whipping cream, until all the sauce is used up.

Top with shredded cheese and bake for 30 minutes (or until all cheese is melted) at 350.

I like to serve them with these:

Why? Because they are also simple and delicious. If you would like instructions, they are as follows: Open can, dump contents in pan, place pan over medium heat, when contents are warmed, they are ready, now eat them :)

Yep, I like a lot of sour cream, you can blame my mama for that one ;)

Until next time, happy cooking and even happier eating!

BLT Macaroni Salad

Last summer my old office had several lunch time cookouts. At one of these, my co-worker, Stephanie Ivey, brought this delicious macaroni salad dish that I fell in love with, BLT Macaroni Salad!
It's a great dish to bring to a cook out or picnic. It taste different than just your regular old church potluck macaroni salad, it's summery and delicious!
I know you're gonna love it!

A couple of weeks ago we were invited to a cookout to celebrate the end of the Southeastern semester. It was great! We got to meet lots of new friends and get to know our new church small group a little better. We each brought a side dish, so I, of course, brought BLT Macaroni Salad :)

I usually make a pretty big patch because I'm almost always taking it somewhere, so you may have to reduce this recipe a good bit to get it down to the right size for your family.

This recipe makes 24 hefty servings.

* 4 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
* 10 green onions (about 1 bunch)
* 3 large tomatoes
* 2 & 1/2 cups celery
* 2 & 1/2 cups mayonnaise
* 4-5 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 3 3oz. bags of Oscar Mayer already cooked bacon pieces or bits

Cook macaroni according to the package directions; drain and rinse in cold water. Set aside.
Finely chop your tomato, onion, and celery. Place in a large bowl.

In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, salt and pepper. Wisk until smooth like a salad dressing. (Taste and texture test for yourself how much more or less vinegar you want to add.)

Add macaroni to the large bowl with your diced vegetables. Then pour dressing over macaroni mixture and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Just before serving, add two bags of bacon to the salad and stir it in. Transfer macaroni salad to serving bowl, top with remaining bag of bacon and serve!