• Beach Style Bedroom
    Living

    Wake Up to Beach Style: A Coastal-Inspired Bedroom

    After a restorative vacation, many of us wonder how to hold onto a relaxed feeling as we settle back into our daily routine. If you’ve vacationed near the coastline yet live farther inland, the contrast can be more than a little jarring. Salty ocean air and wave after wave of every blue imaginable promote calm in a way that many other settings just can’t match. Infusing the bedroom with coastal style goes a long way toward recapturing that vacation feeling, and it doesn’t have to involve a single nautical pattern. Instead of relying on themed accents, focus on updates that play to the senses to bring serenity and beachy vibes…

  • Cloisters Metropolitan Museum of Art NY
    Living

    Creative Tips for a Culinary Herb Garden

    Digital image from The Cloisters Collection, 1925, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Now is the time when a tiny patch of earth seems most full of potential. Among the ruffled blooms and tasty vegetables that may soon fill your yard or community garden, carve a section for culinary herbs, and you might just transform the scent and flavor of your warm weather cooking. Since herbs grow best when snipped often, the more you use your herb garden, the greater the rewards. Plan a Garden Around Favorite Main Dishes When considering which plants to choose, think about the meals that carry you through the spring and summer.…

  • Pineapple Cocktail
    Living

    5 Favorite Specialty Kitchen Tools

    With specialty tools available for almost any cooking need, it can be tempting to pick up new gadgets. Many of these wind up being used once and then relegated to the back of the drawer. Avocado slicer, anyone? When the urge to make a purchase strikes, or you’re seeking a gift for the cook in your life, consider one of these five tools. Though their purposes are specialized, they help you to accomplish kitchen tasks that would otherwise be time-consuming, messy, or downright difficult enough to interfere with the enjoyment of cooking. Cherry Pitter Farmers’ market season is right around the corner, and with it comes hauls of fresh sweet…

  • Kissable Lip Scrub
    Living

    Kissable Lip Scrub

    So many ways of kissing. So many ways of being kissed. Unfortunately, chilly wind and blazing sun wreak havoc on even the plumpest lips. Whether you’ve been on the slopes, relaxing in the sand, or (more often) running errands downtown, treat yourself to a gentle lip scrub to get rid of that dry, chapped feeling. With three simple culinary ingredients, you are on your way to being even more kissable. Lately I’ve been feeling like even natural products have too many ingredients. The lists are long, and I find myself deciphering their purposes. How many botanical extracts really are necessary in one shampoo? I consider this lip scrub to be…

  • Botticelli Birth of Venus
    Living

    Recipe for Romance

    Image: Sandro Botticelli / Birth of Venus Food and love are intertwined in beautiful and surprising ways. Leading up to Valentine’s Day, I’ll be talking about just that in a series of Recipe for Romance classes. Join me in person to learn about historic aphrodisiacs, food myths and facts, and inspiration for intimate gatherings as we explore the art and science of romantic meals. Dates are listed on the Thirsty Radish Facebook page, and if you don’t see a location near you, I can set up a private class for your group or even kitchen coaching for yourself. Please contact me to discuss all the class options that are available.…