FURNITURE SHOPPING AT MARY MARGARET'S HOME STORE

 Furniture shopping with your better half as its own charm. You agree on some choice, you disagree on some, and you absolutely fall in love with some choices. If you know me and my husband, you know we love creating our signature style, from the clothes we wear to the accessories we choose or even the furniture we picked out. Over the years, with so many moves, and so many homes, we have a fair idea of how we describe our aesthetic. We love classics, which we intersperse with accent pieces, which speak our style language. In our quest, we came across a family owned furniture store- Mary Margaret's Home Store, in Lee's Summit. Shopping at Mary Margaret's is like going on a treasure hunt, as there are treasures tucked away at every corner of the store.

I found them while browsing on Facebook, at one time. But by that time, we had mostly finished shopping for most furniture pieces. We were on the lookout for something specific. We needed a cabinet, to fit in a space we had in mind, which would become our bar. We do have an active pet and a toddler at home, so an open bar cart with glass bottles, was not an option for us. We wanted something which would speak to us.

Growing up in India, my father took us on a lot of road trips. And I clearly remember the kitschy artwork, which is quintessential on the trucks on the highway. If you haven't ever seen it, then I tell you, its a definite school of art. And I found the most perfect small cabinet which has that kitschy art and became my bar at home.

If you like one of a kind pieces, and noting cookie cutter, then Mary Margaret's Home Store in Lee's Summit, is worth a drive. We drove over on Sunda, to feast our eyes, on the most unique furniture pieces. They have two stores, located in the same strip mall. So park your car, and make sure, you spend time at both stores.

From farmhouse to farmhouse-industrial, from Indian to even Scandinavian, they have a variety of design styles to choose from. Their inventory gets updated every week, so make sure you keep checking for that perfect piece for your home. The handpicked items really speak for themselves.

They are open seven days a week. How cool is that! Check out their Facebook Page linked in this post for specific timings in your day of choice. They do share their new products on Facebook and Instagram, so you could even browse from the comfort of your home, and plan your visit accordingly.

Happy Shopping! Retail therapy is always a good idea!

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SHORTBREAD COOKIES AND MILK

Cookies and Milk! What's more classic than that! I love to bake and all my recipes have to be approved by my toddler. Shortbread is a big favorite in our household now. And the best part of baking these cookies is how simple it is.  I have a confession to make. I could have piped the dough to form rosettes and baked them, like the Danish Cookies, which come in the shinning blue box. But I didn't. I wanted to stick to the simple route. You can go all fancy if you want with a cookie cutter in a fancy shape, or you can go rustic, like me, and just slice your dough log and bake. They might not be the perfect circles, but they make the crunchiest bite. Just cannot miss the butter at every bite either.

 These classic shortbread gifts came for perfect gifts. Be it the Holiday season, or as party favors at your kiddo's birthday party, they are a crowd favorite. Whether you pack them in clear goody bags or a beautiful box, you can add a ribbon, and you are good to go. The  "Thank Yous," don't stop pouring in.

So when Organic Valley, approached me recently to pair their milk, with something from my kitchen, these Shortbread Cookies were a no-brainer. A glass of cold milk, and cookie or two, and my midnight snack is taken care of. I feel like Santa in Spring!  Organic Valley has an entire range of dairy products for you to choose from, ranging from butter to ghee, whatever you might need in your kitchen. And if you wanted to win yourself a glass, like you seein the pictures, then upload your receipts of $4 or more of Organic Valley Milk, to OVPrize.com

When you are making a batch of these cookies, you could dunk them in ganache, if you want, as it pairs really well. My personal favorite is a decadent white chocolate ganache, where I dunk half of each cookie, and let them rest on my wire rack. This time around, I skipped any decorations, as I wanted the cookies to shine by themselves. The richness of the butter, let the lightness of the cookie itself is a great juxtaposition. So if you wanted to try and bake these cookies, here goes the recipe. 

CLASSIC SHORTBREAD COOKIES: 

Recipe Courtesy: 

https://www.fifteenspatulas.com/butter-swirl-shortbread-cookies/  

https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/3-ingredient-shortbread-cookies/

Ingredients: 

Butter(Salted): 1 cup (Room temperature)

All purpose flour: 2 cups

Confectioner's Sugar/Icing Sugar: 1 cup

Milk: 1 Tbsp 

Vanilla extract: 1Tsp 

Procedure: 

Pre-heat oven to 350F. 

 Cream together the butter, confectioner's sugar, and vanilla, till its light and fluffy.

Add in the flour and mix together till they look like you have a bunch of pebbles on the bowl. 

Add in the milk, and mix till the dough comes together(15-20 secs). 

You could pipe using a Star Tip Nozzle on a parchment paper. Pop the piped rosettes in the fridge for half an hour. 

 Or you could form the dough into a log shape,  wrap it in cling film, and refrigerate for 30 mins. After that, take the cookie log out and cut into 3/4th of an inch wide. 

Bake them for around 15 to 16 minutes or till the edges are lightly golden. Let them cool for at least 10 minutes, as they firm up while cooling. 

Disclaimer: This post is in collaboration with Organic Valley and Influenster. I was provided the product for Free, for testing purposes. 

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NEUTRALS FOR SPRING : PANTONE'S SOYBEAN AND SWEETCORN

 

Losing an hour of sleep does not go down well with kids, neither with parents of kids. Glad its Spring Break though, which means, we have a few days to ease out the change. It seemed to be the perfect time to pen down an Outfit for Spring.

We have had a long and grey and dreary winter, with its fair share of snow and ice. While it is pretty common for the Midwest, it does make the yearning for Spring all the more strong. I do have a tropical soul. My previous post was all about channeling the Brights, and this one focuses on the exact opposite. Neutrals for Spring can be so refreshing.

I had picked up this sweater, from a local boutique- Frankie and Jules, as a birthday gift to myself. If you wanted to read about my Shopping trip to Frankie and Jules, then Click Here. Spring seemed to be the perfect time to style it for my Blog. The White Denim came out of hibernation, and for a relatively warmer day, I brought out my new Plaid Mules from Target. It is amazing what you can find on discount on Target, on a random weekday. The Jeans are the Rockstar Skinny Jeans from Old Navy, and for me, I personally wanted a better fitting white denim.

Soybean(Pantone 13-0919) and Sweet Corn(11-01-06) are two neutral picks from Pantone for Spring-Summer 2019. Soybean can be described as Oatmeal/Beige and Soybean can be described as being Ivory. This Outfit, which pairs a slouchy oatmeal sweater, with white denim, is the perfect example of how you can pair two of Spring-Summer's coolest colors.

I love my colors, but I am also obsessed with my neutrals. Go ahead and give neutrals a chance when you plan your next outfit.

SHOP MY LOOK:

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