Kitchen Gadgets I Love

One of my favorite parts of the house is the kitchen. I enjoy cooking and baking but not what comes before and after. Haha. The post-cooking scenario involves tons of cleaning, and I hate washing the dishes. Good thing I have a handy helper already. I suck at prepping the ingredients though. It's not that I don't like doing them, it's just that I'm too lazy. So, I take as much shortcuts as possible.

Enter kitchen gadgets. I don't have every single kitchen gadget out there -- just a handful of what I think is useful for me and my family. I got most of them when I got married -- a blender for smoothies, food processor for chopping lots of veggies, slow cooker for cooking tender stews and a set of pots and pans. Every so often I get gifted with them -- the most amazing rice cooker a few years ago, and a really cool ice cream maker the year after. A few were purchases -- my beloved mixer and my oven for baking. I would love to get an espresso machine for my forever kitchen, but I know it's going to be just for decoration since I am not a regular coffee drinker. Haha.

I never pass up an opportunity to look at what's out there. I love stores like Crate & Barrel, Williams-Sonoma and Gourdo's. I always, always make sure to visit them. Some time ago, my friend, Michelle, invited me to her place for a crepe soiree. She had me at crepes. She also said a friend of hers can show us how to make crepes using the Severin Crepe Maker. All I could think of was, be still my heart. I was so excited that I was probably the earliest one there. Needless to say, I bought a crepe maker the first chance I got.

The soiree was such a hit that Michelle helped organized a more formal event featuring the brands that Colombo Merchant Philippines carries, Severin, and a brand I know so well, Braun. Braun was the brand of my very first gadget, the hand blender. But I gave it to my friend when we moved. Hmm, come to think of it, I do miss the convenience of using it. I shouldn't have given it away. Hah!

The event was an afternoon to remember as we had merienda that Chef Redj Baron made using the Severin and Braun kitchen tools. Every dish was created using one or more of the Severin/Braun kitchen tools featured and the food was plated perfectly.

Photo by Momma 'N Manila

I even got to try the Citrus Juicer myself when Chef Redj was showing us how to make the lemonade basil refresher. I'm too easy to convince and after trying it out, I just had to get the juicer. It's perfect for this terrible summer heat. So far, I've been using it to make fresh lemonade and orange juice with lots and lots of ice. It's so easy to operate that Allie even helps me out. The juicer is electric so just imagine how quick and easy it is to squeeze lemons. You don't even have to worry about the seeds getting into your juice because this tool keeps them out.

As part of the invitation, Colombo sent a jar of homemade mango pineapple jam, which was a hit in our household.

It came as a surprise when I learned that a bread machine made it. I always get intimidated by people who know how to make breads. But I am eager to learn. I am beyond ecstatic I got to bring the Severin Bread Maker home. I will purchase the ingredients tomorrow to make my very first bread, so pretty soon, my friends, I'll share with you the action.

I got my eye on you next, Raclette Party Grill!

It was a pleasure trying out these great kitchen tools and they surely make my domestic life easy. Thank you Colombo Merchant Philippines for sharing with us these wonderful toys, and the yummy food too!


=====

Colombo Merchant Philippines
Unit 303, Richville Corporate Center, 
Commercial Avenue, 1780, Muntinlupa, 1780 Metro Manila
+63 2 879 4060

Facebook: /Colombophils

Crafts/DIY: Upcycling Binder Clips

One of my nieces had a birthday party, and I helped out with creating dish names for the buffet table, as well as the thank you tags for the party favors. I used my trusty old Nikko G nib, McCaffery's black ink and some Avery two-side printable clean cut business card paper. The paper was great for calligraphy. The ink didn't bleed, and I didn't have to worry about fibers being stuck to my nib.

The Avery paper was the perfect size for the favor gift tags and the dish names. I added some blush pink border to the dish names below to make it prettier. I also played around with my new stock of Italian crepe paper to make the paper flowers below.

I asked my sister-in-law if she had any place card holders on hand. It was the most adorable gold chair place card holder, and she only had one. Bummer.

I came up with using binder clips. But we know how binder clips come in the most plain, boring colors right? The party was very pink and we had to transform these clips into pretty colors quickly. My other niece has a collection of Duck Tape (yep, that is the brand name, so you know I'm not just barok. I am, most of the time. Haha!) that's printed. We covered the binder clips with it and they looked nicer in just minutes. By the way, washi tape will definitely work too.

There you go. Instant place card holders.

Crafts/DIY: Chalkboard Party Decor

This is another party craft that you can do on your own. These awesome chalkboards were made by my sister for the birthday of her friend's son. Read on how she did it and be inspired with the photos.

-----

My officemate was on a budget for her son's chef-themed first birthday party and she asked me to help her create centerpieces similar to those menu chalkboards we see in restaurants. Instead of writing the party menu, we leaned towards writing quotes. I looked up quotes on Pinterest about food, baking and cooking.

For the design, I restrained myself from my usual girly lettering. I had a hard time staying away from pinks and curls. I first tried it with ordinary chalk but it was a craft fail. The result was too dull.

Luckily,  I have crafty siblings and it just so happened that I came across these perfect chalk in pens. I used them for the chalkboards and the effect was solid and less messy. My favorite part was mixing the colors together while the ink was still wet to get a watercolor effect.

-----

Our chalk ink pens were from Amazon, and these chalkboards were supplied by her officemate. But you can DIY your own by using some chalkboard spray paint from Rust-Oleum on cheap frames.

-----

Baby: Of Birth Announcements and Family Pictures

I recently posted about Design vs. Love's Baby Collection, and the prints are gorgeous. They reminded me of the time when I had some birth announcements made when Allie was born. Personally, I love giving old-fashioned cards instead of e-cards and emails. I love having to hold something tangible.

Allie was just a few days old when I took photos of her sleeping, smiling while sleeping, awake, and all other states of lying down. I chose a few for the birth announcement folded card.

It seemed just yesterday when I had this made. Time really flies. My baby is now two and a half, and she loves to run, crawl, hide under tables, go up the slide, climb the stairs, try to jump (she can't yet haha), and do everything to test your patience. People say that my little girl is like a little boy in terms of kalikutan. Don't get me wrong, I love watching her do and try things on her own. She's very active.

When she turned one, she was just trying to walk then and it was easy for us to take photos with her. This was taken during her birthday party by a professional photographer.

A few months after, we took a trip to Seattle, and there she enjoyed the grassy parts of Chittenden Locks. Family pictures were getting rarer by that time because she can walk and run alone. But my nephew took this nice shot of us.

Our most recent one is this one taken from a phone (hahaha), by my sister. Allie now knows how to smile when asked. Before, each smile was purely coincidental.

I really should have our family pictures taken more often. I only have a handful, and I think it's not going to be enough. Allie is growing up too fast, and I want to capture moments when we're all together.

Related articles

• Love: The Day I Got Something from Love vs. Design

Event: The Design Deets of the Halo Event at Pink Me Up

Pink Me Up Beauty Nail and Dry Bar is a cute little nail spa in Shaw Boulevard at Mandaluyong City. The color theme is pink, grey and white. It's very girly and very dainty (it kind of reminded me of Dainty Mom, whom I met during the Halo event too).

Halo Philippines, the distributor of Halo Sleep Sacks in the country, hosted a sparty event for mommies to spread the Safe Sleep advocacy. Pink Me up is a great place to have intimate private gatherings, like birthday and bridal shower sparties.

I know you want to see the design deets now, so here you go...

The furniture are from Heima. There is also this diyable chandelier that I really want to try. 

That's Ives of Halo Philippines telling us about Safe Sleep. I posted information I learned from Ives on my blog here. Way to go Ives! I loved the way you presented. 

You can spruce up the Pink Me Up space with your own stuff to make the space custom.

You can put up a buffet area too for your guests so they won't go hungry.

I really love the place. I will surely be back!

Pink Me Up Beauty Nail and Dry Bar

2D Lee Gardens Condominium,

Shaw Boulevard corner Lee Street

Mandaluyong City, MM

0915-139-2234 * 0947-965-0507 * 02-3582412

Drink: Make Your Own Lemon-Lime Mojito

Fairly recently, we hosted a small gathering, and I was designated to make cocktail drinks. I decided to serve mojitos. We went to the nearest supermarket the morning of the get-together. Rustan's Supermarket was the nearest one, and I'm thankful they carried liquor on their shelves so I didn't need to go to a specialty liquor store. Not all ingredients for mojitos were there though, but we were already out of time, so I just got possible replacements for some of the ingredients.

It is my first time making this cocktail drink, and I just winged on deciding which alternate ingredients I should get. I hoped for the best. Of course I did my research and went online first to search for the best mojito recipe. I found one from Allrecipes.

Mint leaves were available at the supermarket, but there were no limes. Bummer. So, I got lemons instead, and went to the liquor area and found some lime concentrate. Yay! For white rum, I chose the brand I know, and got Bacardi. Pardon me for not knowing this, but I could never find club soda in my local supermarket. My brother was the one who told me that I should have gotten tonic water instead because it's just a sweetened version of club soda. He told this to me way after I left the supermarket. Oh well. I knew though that club soda is carbonated water. What I bought instead was Sprite -- a lemon-lime carbonate soda, so I know that would work.

If you've been using Allrecipes, you know that you can input the serving size on your computer and the quantity of the ingredients will automatically adjust for you right? This way, you are not stuck with a recipe for 10 people when you only need one for three. I set the servings on the recipe to 4, because this was the only one that will fit in my pitcher, and there were other drinks my friends can choose from.

Here's how I made mojitos:

Party: Easy DIY Comic Callouts

My cousin had a videoke party a few weeks ago as a bridal shower. It was a videoke place where you can get a private room for you and your friends to sing your hearts out and order food as well. It was a fun night, and my sister's 10-minute DIY callouts made it more fun.

All you need are thick card stock, scissors and a thick black marker.

[1] & [2] Draw a callout on a piece of card stock, and cut it.

[3] Write down your selected phrase.

[4] Color the edges using the same market.

 You can always use other colored markers to decorate it. Have fun!

Drink: Mimosa Recipes

Back in the corporate world, the ad agency I used to worked for always served mimosas during special occasions. That's 10 o'clock on a Friday morning. Haha.

Mimosas are bubbly drinks that have two basic ingredients: bubbly base (sparkling wine or champagne) and orange juice. That's to us ordinary people. But for the pros, mimosas have one more ingredient, and that is the triple sec.

I read somewhere that mimosas are not about how expensive your champagne is, but it's the kind of orange juice (or any fruit juice) you have. If you ask me, my favorite orange juice is Tropicana, and I always use that or go fresh. I figured mimosas would be a good addition to any party. Here's a collection of mimosa recipes that I'm sure you'll like. Enjoy!

Photo via wine.about.com

[1] Basic Mimosa from wine.about.com -- half champagne, sparkling wine, cava or prosecco + half orange juice + a splash of triple sec

[2] Rachael Ray's Mimosa from The Food Network -- 1 part orange juice + 3 parts champagne + splash of triple sec + orange peel garnish

[3] Pineapple Mimosa from That's the Spirit -- 2 parts pineapple juice + 3 parts champagne + pineapple spear for garnish

[4] The Perfect Mimosa from Esquire -- 2 parts orange juice + 3 parts Brut champagne
   * For a 5 oz drink -- add 1/2 tsp grenadine for Buck's Fizz; or add 1 tsp of Grand Marnier for a true mimosa

[5] Mango Mimosa adapted from Country Living -- 2 parts mango puree + 3 parts champagne (Mumm Napa or Brut Prestige) + skewered mango cubes for garnish

For mocktails, replace alcohol with sparkling white grape juice or ginger ale.

Crafts/DIY: Dressing Up Wooden Utensils

I got this pack of wooden spoons and forks. You know, just for fun. I wanted to decorate some of them.

Last August, I went to this rubber stamping crafternoon party hosted by Alessa and Mansy. They decorated this wooden fork with stamps. Dang, they beat me to it! Haha, no, I'm just kidding. They are the most creative people I know.

I decided I've procrastinated long enough. I decorated my utensils two-way. One, with an accessory attachment, and another without. I can't wait to have another party. Haha!

{1} Plain wooden utensils, accessorized with a graphic napkin tied together with baker's twine.

Graphic table napkin from Privet House by Target;
Baker's twine from Divine Twine

{2} Wooden utensils decorated with washi tape.

Washi tape from Saizen

How did you decorate yours?

Crafts/DIY: Stripey Labels Template

Wow, I can't believe I haven't shared this with you yet. If you remember my post about Allie's party dessert table, you probably remember my stripey labels.

Oh my gosh, I get soooo hungry by just looking at this picture. Those cake pops were made by my sister's friend. They are super yummy. Hmm, this reminds me, we are going to collaborate with her on our pop-up store Project Happy, so watch out.

Anyhoo, I made the stripey label template in Photoshop, printed them out on thick card stock, and then cut to size using an X-acto knife (cutter to other folks).

I just taped a one-inch pink ribbon at the back then finally attached it to the serving dish.

To make it simpler for you, here is a download link for blank stripey labels that you can just print out and cut. Enjoy!

Party: Allie's DIY Dessert Table

It was my first attempt to create a dessert table. On Allie's 1st birthday, no less. I channelled my inner Amy Atlas / Martha Stewart. It was scary. But I think it turned out quite alright.

All photos were taken by Resonance Photography

The DIY dessert table

White-washed bird cage. Borrowed cake stand and easel. Custom table runner. DIY cupcake flags. DIY Lilly Pulitzer paper-covered name. Easy paper flowers. Paper tassels. It was a DIY extravaganza.

I had an all-natural lemon cake done by a professional pastry chef. I think she's the pastry chef of Brasserie CiÇou, a cool French cafe in Greenhills that I have yet to write about. Soon.

The pretty flower topping.

She created the cupcakes as well. The cake was like pound cake. Yummy. I made the cupcake flags, which I shared the how-to earlier.

I bought striped wafer straws from the grocery. They came in various colors and flavors.

-- and got some marshmallow twist pops and some marshmallow bites.

We also bought donut holes from the donut store.

My sister had these cake pops made by her friend.

I also had food-grade polybags with personalized stickers for the guests to put in their dessert loots. At the end of the party, the table was unrecognizable. It was empty.

The dessert table was a success. Thank you Amy Atlas for the inspiration.

Party: Jiggles the Balloon Lady

Getting Jiggles the Balloon Lady as the party host/entertainer for Allie's birthday was one of the first things I did to prepare for Allie's party. I haven't seen her act before the party, but I heard so many good things. I wasn't disappointed.

She came in wearing her trademark red and white striped pique polo, with jeans. After the his and hellos, she started preparing her props for her act. The balloons! She brought her very quiet air compressor, which I really appreciated, and started filling her prop balloons with air. She came with her assistant, who also was in charge with the sounds. Yes, she brought her own music, which was cool, because music was a big part of the games.

[all photos by Resonance Photography]

She made the balloons fresh, so everything was shiny and still full of air. Oh, and if you're wondering, she made the balloon hat on the spot too.

There were only a few kids, so each one took home a balloon art. Jiggles the Balloon Lady made a rainbow,

a ballerina,

even Elmo! Elmo was only borrowed in this picture. It was actually owned by a kid, just fyi.

Another cool thing about her was that she had awesome and fun games for both kids and adults. Everyone had so much fun!

You can never go wrong with Jiggles the Balloon Lady. Just make sure you bring tons of small prizes. I think I prepared about 50 small prizes for everyone.

Her rates are very affordable and competitive. She's great with both kids and adults. She speaks well, and she's very approachable.

Heck, I would get her for my own party!



Jiggles the Balloon Lady
Facebook | Multiply
C: 0920-924-6022 | T: 807-8009 / 807-8040 | email: jigglesballoonlady@yahoo.com
Rates: P7,500 - P9,200 within Metro Manila