Cuckoo for Coconuts

MAUI NO KA 'OI

2011-11-13T14:23:00.001-10:00

After quite the dry spell of no blog entries, it's time to get back to it. We can now tell you what has kept us so busy the last few months.

In June we got word that our favorite publication was hiring a new Art Director.
In July, John filled that role at Maui No Ka 'Oi magazine and he now has 2 issues under his belt.

The September/October cover.

The current November/December 2011 issue on stands now.

John has been working feverishly on the complete re-design for the January/February 2012 issue which goes to press in 2 1/2 short weeks. That includes a new logo, testing new fonts, interviewing illustrators and photographers, and looking into new paper alternatives.

He is a one man Art Department and for the last 2 issues has has been re-introduced to the world of magazine design. The last time he worked at a magazine (SPIN and DETAILS) he had a full Art Department to rely on. Now he finds himself wearing many hats - photo editor, graphic designer, production manager, location scout and so on. He has also been able to visit some incredible homes here on Maui for possible use in the home features. At these home shoots, he also acts as prop stylist and pet wrangler.

On a recent scouting trip to Keokea, John got to venture inside the Kwock Hing Society Building, which is otherwise locked. It is featured in the current issue.

On a recent scouting trip to Keokea, John got to go inside the Kwock Hing Society Building, which is always locked up, the inside is not open to the pubic. It is featured in the current issue.

October found him traveling off island for a 2-day visit to the printer in Waseca, Minnesota.

I stayed busy during August and September compiling the 7 page Holiday Gift Guide for the November/December 2011 issue which is on stands now. (see attached pages below)

Not only did I compile the products in the Guide, but I photographed about half of them. What I did not photograph, I tracked the images down from merchants, which was no small production. John says I basically acted as photographer and photo editor for the entire guide which was a big help to him.

It was a huge undertaking to get products for the gift guide because I basically had to start from scratch with the stores and vendors. I did not have a single contact. It's been great fun for me to get to explore the island and meet new people. Kind of rejuvenating actually. I mean, I get to shop days on end and not spend any money. In some cases, companies did not have images for me to use and they asked me to shoot products for trade. We have quite the supple of salt and honey.

A behind the scenes look at shooting the book "Surfing Jaws" for the Holiday Gift Guide here in the studio.

At present, along with my other freelance work, I am also compiling two Great Finds pages for the January/February issue. One on Luxury items and the other for Golf Items. Great Finds is basically a page of "must have" products that I locate around the island. This is also a recurring gig for each issue!

Most of you know that we left our office once a week at best when we worked from home. Now John is on the road to Wailuku most days and I have can be found cruising around the island in search of items to feature in the magazine. While we loved being home all the time, it's fun to get out and see behind the scenes of Maui.

In January I will be getting back to my fashion roots as I will be styling a 6-8 page fashion story for the March/April issue. Booking models, hair, make-up, and pulling all of the clothing to be featured. I can't wait for that project.

Mahalo for bearing with us... and we hope to be posting more now that things are a bit more established with our roles at Maui No Ka 'Oi.

A hui hou.

SUNSET SUNDAY 100211

2011-10-02T22:57:00.000-10:00

Link to larger image

JANE LOUISE BRATTAIN - A LOOK BACK

2011-09-26T22:06:00.000-10:00

ALOHA…

Yes, we're still here. We have had quite a spring and summer full of changes and lots of work. It's kept us quite busy and away from updating CFC.

Some of you know that my grandma was here in March and returned back to Indiana in early April. She passed away April 26th, 3 weeks after returning from a 3 month trip in Florida and 3 weeks here on Maui.

This post is in remembrance of her in pictures from her early days at 9 years old to her 3 trips to Maui through March 2011. Of course there are many more, but these are some of my favorites.

More updates on our changes to come.

A hui hou grandma -
September 18, 1921 - April 26, 2011
xoc

9 years old

Smoking in the pool.

Smoking and drinking somewhere on the beach in Florida.

The following images were from her 3 trips to Maui: 2007, 2008, 2011.

2007

2008

2011

TUESDAYS TEXTURE 081611

2011-08-16T09:34:00.002-10:00

Moss growing on a palm tree trunk.

SUNSET SUNDAY 081411

2011-08-14T18:46:00.001-10:00

TUESDAYS TEXTURE 080211

2011-08-02T23:30:00.002-10:00

Fishtail Palm

TUESDAYS TEXTURE 072611

2011-07-26T12:02:00.001-10:00

Begonia

SUNSET SUNDAY 072411

2011-07-24T21:24:00.005-10:00

TUESDAY TEXTURE 071911

2011-07-19T00:01:00.003-10:00

LETTUCE AND ARUGULA

SUNSET SUNDAY 071711

2011-07-17T21:09:00.000-10:00

TUESDAYS TEXTURE 071211

2011-07-17T00:01:00.000-10:00

Variegated Fern

SUNSET SUNDAY 071011

2011-07-10T22:23:00.001-10:00

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 070511

2011-07-05T00:01:00.000-10:00

Here is a texture image I thought was appropriate for today...what with it being the Fourth of July holiday and all. Thy kind of resemble fireworks don't they?

Dill Seeds

SPICED RIGHT

2011-07-04T10:24:00.000-10:00

A few weeks ago I realized we had no good spices to make a curry, so I went on a major spice shopping spree. John and I always loved getting the banana chicken curry from RICE in NY and since we had plenty bananas on hand I decided to try a banana curry of my own. I found a few recipes I combined and came up with this. The only thing that I think was wrong with it was the brand of coconut milk we get… CHAOKOH. We buy a case of it from Costco and it has a bit of a strange flavor to me. It tends to not stay as creamy as the brand I prefer… THAI KITCHEN and I will start buying that from now on.

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 carrots, peeled and sliced,
2 mini red peppers
2 mini yellow peppers
2 mini orange peppers
(you can use all one color if you cannot find mini's.)
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup diced pineapple
1 medium onion cut into 1/2 wedges
1 sliced banana
2 boneless chicken breasts
2 cardamom seeds

For the sauce:
2 bananas
3/4 cup coconut milk
2 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
coarse salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Basmati or Jasmine rice

- In a food processor or blender, add banana, coconut milk, curry powder, garam masala, cinnamon, cayenne pepper and ginger and process until smooth.

- Preheat oven to 425ºF. Lay 4 large pieces of aluminum foil on a work surface, placing 2 on top of each other in a + pattern. Place one sheet of parchment paper on top of each

- Toss vegetables in olive oil and place half of the vegetables in center of each parchment paper Smash the cardamom seeds and place one on top of each vegetable pile. Top with 1 chicken breast. Season chicken with salt and black pepper.

You can see the smashed cardamom seed in the center on the bottom image.

The sauce mixture in the food processor.

- Pour banana-coconut milk mixture over each chicken breast, dividing evenly.

- Seal foil/parchment packets by bringing together 2 opposite edges and folding them down together. Place packets on a rimmed baking sheet and cook in oven for 30 to 40 minutes.

- Let cool a few minutes before opening.

- Carefully open foil packets. Place rice in bottom of serving bowl and spoon packet contents on top. Garnish with cilantro.

SUNSET SUNDAY 070411

2011-07-04T08:34:00.000-10:00

Today my not be Sunday, but it is a holiday which makes it feel like a Sunday. Here are some sunsets from the last 2 weeks. Sorry we have been missing in action, but we have a really good excuse... we promise. More on that later.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 062111

2011-06-21T00:01:00.003-10:00

White marble tombstone covered with black lichen.

INK TO PAPER

2011-06-14T09:43:00.001-10:00

I was gathering up printed materials for clients over the passed year and decided to post it all as one. After working in the digital ether for most of my days, it's a welcome change when a client comes to me with a print project. Seeing the ink on paper and holding the finished product in our hands lets us experience how our designs fit in the physical world.

I have more print jobs happening at the moment, but hopefully it won't be another year before they see themselves featured in the halls of CFC.

Client: Green Room
Project: Thank You Cards
Printer: GreenerPrinter
Dimensions: 2.5 x 2.5 inches

Client: Reverend Catherine Paretti
Project: Business Card
Printer: PrintingForLess
Dimensions: 2.5 x 3 inches

Client: M. Sutherland Fine Arts, Ltd
Project: Gallery show and opening invite
Printer: PrintingForLess
Dimensions: 5 x 7 inches

Client: Island Endodontics
Project: Log design, stationary and business cards
Printer: GreenerPrinter
Dimensions: 3 x 2.5 inches, 8.5 x 11 inches, #10 envelope

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 061411

2011-06-14T00:01:00.000-10:00

CYMBIDIUM ORCHID PETAL

GRAYSCALE

2011-06-10T10:45:00.001-10:00

The business card.

I recently had the pleasure and opportunity to work with a former colleague again, Josh Geurtsen, on his new logo, website and business cards. Josh, a licensed Interior Designer, and I worked together at TODD OLDHAM STUDIO for about 11 years. Although we shared the same office space for several years, we never really got to collaborate much until Todd had his Todd Oldham by La-Z-Boy collection. Josh would work on the actual furniture frames and styles while I myself focused on the textiles and accessories.

In early 2010, Josh and his family bid a fond farewell to NYC and relocated to the San Francisco Bay area. The formation of JOSH GEURTSEN DESIGN in May 2010 marked the beginning of a new phase in his lifelong pursuit of creating and transforming spaces that are unique in character and harmonious with the world around them.

Now that Josh has several of his own design projects completed and several in the works, it was time to put together the website we had been discussing for the past year. In our initial discussions, Josh mentioned he wanted something clean, black, white and gray using the font Futura.

With that in mind, I developed this site with clean, gray blocks of "color" which were to represent steel beams that intersected at certain points. I also wanted it to look somewhat like, but not entirely like a blueprint or plan view of a room. When you look at the galleries, the images sit on a white background with white blocks identifying the name of the section and gallery you are in. It was my intention to make these white blocks look like hallways or corridors that lead you to the next space. It was a great and seamless collaboration that took less than 40 hours to complete on my end. I made a template for Josh to put his images in so that they would all be the same size and would be guaranteed to fit in the site. By doing so it saved time and $$ on the production. It's always nice to get to collaborate with the client who has a specific vision of what they want to see as with Josh, who created his own collages for the ABOUT and CONNECT pages.

Up next is another gallery site for a good friend and several new logos... stay tuned.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 060711

2011-06-07T00:01:00.000-10:00

GRASS IN SIDEWALK CRACK

SUNSET SUNDAY 060411

2011-06-05T00:01:00.001-10:00

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 053111

2011-05-30T00:01:00.000-10:00

DANDELION SEED POUF

SUNSET SUNDAY 052611

2011-05-29T21:54:00.001-10:00

SUNSET SUNDAY 052311

2011-05-22T20:54:00.002-10:00

Thanks for sticking with us as we know it's been over a month since our last post. A few things came up that have kept us from keeping on track... but we're back and ready to go. So sit back and enjoy a bit of aloha with these sunset images from the past week.

WAKE AND BAKE

2011-04-20T10:48:00.038-10:00

Busy days here at CFC headquarters and we are a bit behind in our Tuesday Texture posts. Back to that soon.

Yesterday found me awake at 6:30AM and baking my first ever loaf of Artisan Bread and a deliciously sweet Orange Yogurt Cake with Candied Orange Peel Syrup... by 7:00AM. I needed to start early to get it out of the way so I could do my design work without having to keep an eye on rising dough and a baking cake.

Pretty but not all I expected as to the flavor.

Served with Honey Butter.

The Artisan Bread recipe came with our Cuisanart and I'd like to find another that is just as easy. While I enjoyed this bread, It did not make the amount stated in the recipe nor did it rise as much as I anticipated. It said I was to get 2 9" balls of dough... enough to make 2 loaves... yet I only got one. It was also a bit denser than expected rather than light and airy not to mention a bit too salty and a tad on the yeasty side... BUT... still quite tasty. I'm not even going to bother with the recipe here. I did make a whipped honey butter to serve with it which was a nice balance to the salty flavor of the bread.

Serve with a dollop of yogurt, or with whipped cream and lemon grass leaves as pictured here.

Let the syrup sink into the cake and let stand in the pan about half an hour. The candied orange peel will stick nicely to the top. Slide a thin spatula around the edge of the pan and gently lift out and slide onto a serving stand. You could also serve directly from the pan.

The cake simply came about because I was flipping through and old cookbook looking for a bread recipe. I saw the recipe for Lemon Yogurt cake in my MARIE CLAIRE COOKING with Donna Hay and thought... that would be good to use the last cup of yogurt and some of our oranges. Of course I tweaked the recipe a bit... I substituted oranges for lemons... why not. Lime or grapefruit would work just as well. I also added the chopped candied orange rind to the top. She says to simply toss in the rind in thick strips and remove before pouring on the cake. Those extra bits really amp up the flavor.

For the cake
1 stick butter (4oz)
1 cup caster (superfine) sugar
2 eggs
1 cup thick plain yogurt
3 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon orange zest
2 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For the orange syrup
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons orange juice
1/2 an orange rind cut into 1/8" strips then diced into small pieces

1. Preheat the oven to 350.

2. Butter a 9" cake pan.

3. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs and beat well.
Stir in the orange juice and zest and half the flour. Then add the yogurt, the remaining flour, and the baking soda, and mix to combine.

4. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, and smooth the top well. Bake for approximately 45 minutes, or until the cake starts to come away from the sides of the tin, and a skewer inserted comes out clean.

5. A few minutes before the cake is ready to come out of the oven, prepare the syrup. Place the sugar, water, orange juice, and strips of orange rind in a small saucepan. Cook, stirring, over low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Allow the syrup to simmer gently for 6-8 minutes. Immediately pour the syrup over the top of the cake, while it is still hot and in the tin. Evenly distribute the candied orange rind across the top of the cake.

Let the cake sit for at least 30 minutes before turning out of the tin and serving. Serve plain or with a dollop of yogurt. We ran out of yogurt so I whipped up 1/2 cup heavy cream with 1 tablespoon honey and 1/4 cup powdered sugar to put on top. Orange and Honey!!! YES PLEASE.

SUNSET SUNDAY 041711

2011-04-17T23:06:00.000-10:00

SATURDAY 04.16.2011

SUNDAY 04.17.2011 SAME VANTAGE POINT AS SATURDAY SHOT

FULL MOON 04.17.2011

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 040511

2011-04-05T00:01:00.001-10:00

Lauhala Leaves

SUNSET SUNDAY 040311

2011-04-03T23:55:00.000-10:00

THE GRASS ISN'T ALWAYS GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE

2011-03-30T09:11:00.001-10:00

Top: April 6, 2010
Bottom: March 12, 2011

During mom and grandma's recent visit, we took a drive around the back/south flank of Haleakala via Kula, `Ulupalakua and Kaupo then Kipahulu, Hana, Ke`Anae then back home. This is usually the opposite direction to travel when making this drive... but I enjoy this route a little more. You never know what the scenery might look like at various times of year or if we have had a wet or dry season.

This past winter (2010) the island experienced much wetter conditions than last winter (2009). As you can see from the image above, April 6, 2010 was very brown and crispy whereas this past March 12, 2011 was vibrant green… just about a month shy of a year to the day.

Brighter than bright greens and blues.

John standing on the cliffs edge taking in the view of the snow capped peaks on the Big Island. You can just make out the peaks in upper left of the the top part of this image… in the line of clouds just above the horizon. Detail of snow capped Mauna Kea (above cloud line) and the lower peak of Kohala.

WE GOT MAIL…

2011-03-29T21:28:00.000-10:00

We recently got a goodie box FILLED with an assortment of cards from our friend Kate Lydon of SATURATE. Her hand silkscreened cards are small works of art ... in fact the APPLE print she sent us is signed and numbered. Our kitchen is soon the be the proud recipient of that piece along side the scallions and lettuce we already have framed from Kate.

Her clever cards and notebooks are not only beautiful, but clever. I love how she achieves many colors in one card with careful placement of inks in specific areas of just one screen or how she makes vintage florals modern by screening a grid polka dots on top of them. We love them so much, it's kind of hard to part with them... but we do our part and share the them. We find it very important to send proper thank you notes, birthday cards and cheerful hellos rather than a quick e-mail. There really is nothing like a beautiful and thoughtful card waiting for us in our mailbox.

Mahalo for this box of beauty Kate.

Apple Print.

The Lettuce and Scallions already in the kitchen Gallery.

Her clever cards and notebooks are not only beautiful, but clever. I also love how she achieves many colors in one card with careful placement of inks in specific areas of just one screen or how she makes vintage florals modern by screening a grid polka dots on top of them. We love them so much, it's kind of hard to part with them... but we do our part and share the them. We find it very important to send proper thank you notes, birthday cards and cheerful hellos rather than a quick e-mail. There really is nothing like a beautiful and thoughtful card waiting for us in our mailbox. Mahalo for this box of happiness Kate.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 032911

2011-03-29T08:44:00.000-10:00

Coleus and Stone

SUNSET SUNDAY 032711

2011-03-27T11:39:00.001-10:00

This week we bring you a sunset of a different nature, one of our favorite paintings from ART MAUI 2011. We'll be posting more of our favorite pieces from that show shortly.

Sunset at Wailea (detail)
Oil on Linen
23″x27″
by
Judith Whitman-Small

INTOXICAKING

2011-03-23T11:23:00.001-10:00

Friday I made an orange pound cake and had the intention of pouring a Mai Tai over the top instead of simple syrup usually called for in the recipe. Something told me it may not soak all the way through so I devised a new plan. Since we had a dinner party to attend on Saturday night… I needed a dessert and put my thinking cap on. The result? This Mai Tai Trifle. I like making the cake the day before as it give it a chance to set and dry a bit before soaking up the booze.

Make sure your designated driver gets a small serving... or a to go serving.

Hipahipa, cheers or bottom's up!

Orange Pound Cake

1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 extra-large eggs at room temperature
1/4 cup grated orange zest (from 4 large oranges)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
3/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup heavy cream, half and half or milk (I used heavy cream)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a loaf pan.

2. Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the orange zest.

3. Sift together 3 cups flour, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl, combine the orange juice, sour cream, heavy cream and vanilla. Add the flour and dairy mixtures alternately in thirds to the creamed butter, beginning and ending with the flour. Toss the chocolate chunks with 2 tablespoons flour and add to the batter. Pour into the pan, smooth the top, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack about 15 minutes then immediately run a knife around edge to loosen and remove from pan. Allow the cake to cool completely.

For the Mai Tai
I used the Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai Recipe and tweaked it a tiny bit.

A Mai Tai is a tropical drink made with dark and light rum, orange liqueur, orange juice, and lime juice. This is the original Mai Tai recipe that was created and made famous by the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Waikiki, which is also known as the "Pink Palace".

Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai Ingredients for 1 Mai Tai
1 ounce Dark Rum
*1 oz Light Rum (I used Coconut Rum since that is what I had)
1 oz Orange Curacao
2 oz Orange Juice
*1 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Lime Juice (half of a lime)
1/2 oz Orgeat
*1/2 oz Simple Syrup (I used 1 teaspoon Raw Sugar in place of syrup)
* teaspoon of Grenadine for color

* denotes what I added or tweaked in this recipe.
Make 3, 4 or 5 servings of Mai Tai listed above. I made 4. Depends on how boozy you want to be.

Mix all ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer just until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat. You can also use 1/2 oz simple syrup in place of the sugar. Set aside until ready to soak cake.

Fruit Mixture:
3/4 cup fresh or canned chopped Pineapple. Cut into about 1/4" pieces
3 Small Oranges
1/2 cup diced Surinam Cherries (Marchino would be ok too)
1 Medium Banana
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon packed brown sugar

1.Dice pineapple and reserve juice. Saute with butter and brown sugar until slightly golden.

2. Peel oranges over a bowl to catch juice. Remove all of the membrane on the orange sections so all you have are big pieces of pulp.

3. Chop cherries and add any juice to pineapple and orange juice.

4. Dice banana and add with all the fruit and juices in one bowl. Let sit about 15 minutes. Drain and reserve fruit juices. In a separate bowl add fruit and 1/4 cup Mai Tai mixture and let macerate 30 minutes.

5. Drain fruit and set aside. Reserve Mai Tai mixture.

Whipped Topping
2 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream
1 Cup sifted Powdered Sugar
2 Tablespoons Orange Curacao

1. In an electric mixer with a chilled bowl and whisk attachment, whisk the 2 cups of cream until slight peaks form.

2. Add Orange Curacao and sift in powdered sugar. Whisk until firm peaks form on medium speed. Do not over whisk or you will end up with butter.

Let cake cool. Preferably 1 day. Slice pound cake into 3/4 inch slices.

Dice sliced pound cake into 3/4 inch cubes and place in a cookie sheet.
I only used about 1/2 of the pound cake. To determine how much you need, fill the bowl in which you are going to make it in 1/2 to 3/4 way full with diced cake. A little extra is fine since it will take up less room once wet.

Spoon the Mai Tai over the cake making sure to hit every piece. Don't make it too wet or you will end up with mush. You can always add more if needed. Reserve about 1/4 cup for fruit mixture. You will be able to use this later.

Saute diced pineapple in 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon brown sugar.
Mix with diced orange sections and cherries. This will make a lot of juice which you want to keep.

Toss into fruit mixture, 1 diced banana and drain.
Place into a bowl and pour 1 Mai Tai over the fruit and let macerate 30 minutes or longer. Drain and pour the remaining juice from the fruit and the Mai Tai used to soak the fruit in over the diced cake. Make sure to flip the cake pieces around in the pan before this last soak. If it feels too wet.. use your judgement as to how much more liquid to add.
Make the whipped topping and chill until ready to use.

Press half of the diced cake into the bowl then top with all of the fruit mixture. It won't seem like there is enough fruit, but there is. Of course if you made this in a larger bowl… you could add more.

Add half of the whipped cream and another layer of diced cake. Start by placing a ring off cake along the outside of the bowl then filling in... using all of the cake. Don't press to firmly on this layer as you do not want to squeeze the liquid out on top of the whipped cream. That would make it too wet.

Top with remaining whipped cream mixture and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Just before serving add an assortment of cocktail umbrellas.

...And don't forget... keep those orange rinds. Place in a ziplock bag and freeze. You can always pull them out of the freezer when you have a recipe that calls for orange zest.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 032211

2011-03-22T09:17:00.001-10:00

Bird footprints in the sand

OLD LAHAINA LUAU

2011-03-21T10:38:00.000-10:00

While mom and grandma were here, they talked John and I into going to our first ever luau at the Old Lahaina Luau. We have been told that if you go to one, this is the one to go to. It was a beautiful setting and a nice production. The food was really good, especially the pelehu steak...although the kalua pork from the imu pit had a bit of a propane taste to it. It was really the only thing none of us finished on our plates. The waiters were shirtless and quite the distraction, drinks were plentiful and dessert was perfect. It was actually a fun night.

The MINUTE you enter the luau they put a Mai Tai in your hand then whisk you off to your seat.
Grandma was of course in her glory at this custom.

Once you have been escorted to your table, you can stroll the grounds...

... while listening to the live band play songs of old Hawai'i. I had my eye on this red shirt all night. The placement and amount of the pattern is just right.

With an open bar... who could say no? The designated driver... that's who! I started of with a few Mai Tai's then went in for the Green Passion.

Our designated driver... Trying to keep his eyes on the "road" and not get too distracted by the sights along the journey.

Mom and grandma after a few...

Pre-dinner and show.

A few of the scenes from the show.

The opening performance.

SUNSET SUNDAY 032011

2011-03-20T12:00:00.038-10:00

For mom and grandma's last night here, we drove up to Kula (which means golden) for a sunset dinner

Another angle.

SUPER FULL MOON

WATER ROCKETS

2011-03-10T12:43:00.002-10:00

This past Tuesday we set sail on a whale watch with Pacific Whale Foundation. I was a little worried that we would not see much activity because from the shore we saw NOTHING. But once we set sail... we were treated to the best whale watch we have ever been on. Mom had already been on a watch last year, but this trip was grandma's first whale watching experience. The boat gets pretty crowded and I was worried she would not really be able to see much from her seat. It's really hard for her to stand for long, but she gave it her all and made it to the railing several times. Other passengers were quite polite and tried hard not to block her view. She was indeed treated to an amazing show of over 20 whale sitings... maybe more. I'm ready to go on another watch before the season ends.

Our chariot awaits.

Before you board they honswaggle you into posing for a picture that they want you to purchase for $10 when you leave the boat. Guess who fell for it hook, line and sinker. Well, it is a really good shot.

Getting situated on the lower deck. The view from here is actually just as good if not better than the upper deck if you ask me.

The railing right in front of our seats. Standing here you get an unobstructed view as the boat takes you out into the deep blue.

Not long after heading out we spot our first pod. A mother and baby and two male suitors.

This is the baby whale. While the 2 males were vying for mothers attention, the baby was not having any of it. It was on it;s back, flapping that tail about constantly for 15 minutes. This is a form of communication between the mother and baby.You can just see its flippers sticking out of the water.

More baby "talk".

Not sure if this might be mother or a male suitor.

A classic tail descending the water on a dive.

Here you can see all 3 adults. 2 going opposite directions and one right in the middle of them facing away from the camera. That may be the female being harassed by the 2 males. At this point The captain had stopped the engines because the whales had actually gotten too close.

Pacific Whale Foundation's vessels are required to follow "Be Whale Aware" guidelines for minimizing disturbances and preventing collisions in areas where whales and dolphins are present. These "Be Whale Aware" guidelines set vessel speed limits and limit the amount of time that can be spent around whale pods. In addition, Pacific Whale Foundation captains strictly adhere to all Federal and State laws which prohibit approaches to humpback whales within 100 yards. To eliminate any guesswork about the 100 yard distance, Pacific Whale Foundation's vessels are outfitted with Laser Range Finders.

After about 15 minutes of just floating and waiting for the whales to resurface... This guy shot out of the water like a rocket about 40-50 yards from the boat. RIGHT THERE! I kept the heads of the spectators in this shot so you could see just how close we really were. This guy actually breached 4 times in less than 2 minutes. It was absolutely mind boggling.

Detail of above breach.

Even closer detail.

2nd breach.

2nd breach as the whale rotated itself counterclockwise mid-air.

Detail of above shot. This is the under side showing the outline of the mouth.

SPLASHDOWN!

This is a sequence showing a fin slap which is another form of communication.

A whale doing what is called a "spy hop". That's when a whale sticks it's head up out of the water to have a look around.

Not only did we see whales, but many flying fish. Can you spot it in the upper part of this image?
Detail on the bottom is a little blurry. Buggers are fast.

The whales are not the only thing worth viewing. This is a shot of Lanai.

And a shot of West Maui and Lahaina Town to the left.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 030811

2011-03-08T00:30:00.001-10:00

Waterfall splashing on rocks. Twin Falls, Maui.

SUNSET SUNDAY 030611

2011-03-06T15:42:00.000-10:00

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 030111

2011-03-01T01:00:00.000-10:00

Kiawe fence post at Ho'okipa lookout

I'M A WHALE WATCHER...

2011-02-28T09:51:00.000-10:00

Well, mom and grandma made it in Thursday night and we have actually ventured out a few times already. Saturday we stopped by the SWAP MEET then headed over to the Pali to try and catch a glimpse of a whale or two. It was a rather hazy day which makes it a bit difficult to spot them in the distance. But as luck would have it there were a few pods near the shore.

Trying to capture a full breach is like trying to find a needle in a haystack at times... but I kept my eye on one whale that was giving a few tail slaps when all of a sudden it shot out of the water like a rocket. The parking lot faces right out towards the ocean so grandma didn't even have to get out of the car. Armed with binoculars she got to see her very first whale breach... her very first whale for that matter. We are actually heading out on a whale watch in the next week or two. Yes.. we are getting grandma on a boat.

Top image is a mother and her calf. The bottom image is the same whale that I caught breaching. This was what it kept doing so I had a feeling it would pay off to stay focused on this one.

Learn more about Whale Behavior here.

SUNSET SUNDAY 022711

2011-02-27T08:50:00.004-10:00

SUNSET SUNDAY 022011

2011-02-20T13:35:00.000-10:00

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2011-02-15T08:24:00.000-10:00

Things are a bit slow moving her eat CFC for the moment as we have our hands full with a few projects. We failed to get you the weekly TT + SS posts last week due to our lack of free time. We will be better in the coming weeks and actually have a few DIY and Designer Spotlight posts coming up. Conn's mom and Grandma arrive on February 24th for 3 weeks so we may have a few sightseeing adventures to post as well. Until then, please enjoy todays TT.

Detail

I thought this would be a perfect post for today... albeit one day after, since this Epidendrum orchid is labeled -
Epi. Pcific Sunset 'Valley Isle Valentine' xEpi. Pacific Sunset 'Cotton Candy'

SUNSET SUNDAY 020611

2011-02-06T22:15:00.000-10:00

Sunrise

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2011-02-01T10:01:00.000-10:00

Looking down inside an empty champagne bottle.

SUNSET SUNDAY 0123011

2011-01-30T09:55:00.000-10:00

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2011-01-25T22:06:00.000-10:00

Palm frond and sun.

SUPER SAVINGS

2011-01-24T12:25:00.001-10:00

The end of December we went shopping to our local SAVERS... sister store to Value Village... which I practically lived in back in Indianapolis. John had a coupon with 12 stamps on it that offered up a 30% discount as well as a coupon for $3.00 off any $10.00 purchase and he suggested we go shopping. I was rather shocked at this suggestion and took the offer to go shopping on December 30th, the day before they expired. Man am I glad we did?! We spent what seemed like hours perusing the shelves and when I came across a David Weidman print I rummaged the store one more time in hopes of uncovering another print or something just as fab. As luck would have it, I did find the Denby plate on that second scouring. We bought a few other things we have not pictured here, and nothing of real interest. John took $10.00 worth of merchandise and used his $3.00 off coupon while I took the "high ticket items" and used the 30% off coupon. I love saving money, but I love saving beautiful pieces of art even more.

Not exactly who this piece was made by or when. With the honeycomb texture, matte finish and color we couldn't pass it up at $10 with the discount. If anyone knows anything about this piece I'd love to find out more.

This plate is by Denby and is from the ECHO collection which was produced between 1963 + 1974.
It is listed on replacements.com for $39.99 and we got it for $3.50 with the discount.

This David Weidman print - Flamingos Feeding - almost sent me over the edge. I knew what it was right away as I had been looking at the prints for sale on the artists website. I had also recently been in contact with his daughter Lenna about shipping pieces to Maui. It was $10.50 with the discount and goes for $250 on Weidman's Art website. As exciting as that was, I almost felt I was stealing it... committing some sort of crime if you will. This frame is not the best choice for the print, but maybe if we take the outer gold part off we might be able to reuse the wood portion. Perhaps a new coat of stain or paint might save it. I also sent images in an e-mail to Lenna the minute I got home... and she was delighted we had found the piece and gave it a loving home.

It is signed and numbered 38/400, but had been mounted with double sided tape that was leaving a nasty discolored mark along the top.

I took the print out of the frame and carefully removed the tape and residue by using a bit of steam and an X-acto knife. Now it's just waiting to be reframed... in something better than what it came in... maybe the old re-worked frame?

We had know about David Weidman for sometime but last summer our friend Parnell sent me a link to an article in the LA times about a resurgence in his work. In fact Urban Outfitters had a few pieces they were selling, so when john was in NY I had him pick up these 2 pillows. David Weidman also has a book of his work out that we hope to be adding to our collection soon.

Where do I begin with this piece? At first we picked it up for the obvious reason... the orange and white frame. We didn't really have a love for the charcoal drawing of the poodles by Richard Priest and were going to get rid of it, but it's growing on us. I love his signature and the frame shop label on the back of the frame.

Then there is this prize. We couldn't pass it up at $1.99 plus the discount. John really wanted it for the packaging, but the caddy really is quite useful.

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2011-01-23T10:15:00.000-10:00

The full moon setting to the west over Molokini as the sun rises in the east.

Sunrise

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2011-01-18T12:27:00.000-10:00

Detail

Shell Ginger

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2011-01-15T23:59:00.000-10:00

Our week here started out a bit gray and grim with storms and flooding across the entire state for 2 days. The above image is actually 2 color images – not a black and white and color image. The top image was taken on Monday evening and the lower image was the sunrise on Tuesday morning. The following images are a range of details from throughout the week. As you can see, it was a colorful week with all of the storm clouds that lingered all week.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 011111

2011-01-11T18:06:00.000-10:00

In honor of today being the first day of the new PLASTIC BAG BAN here on maui, I thought it might be appropriate to show shredded brown paper that is going into our compost pile. I was pleasantly surprised to see that even Lowes had brown bags.

SUNSET SUNDAY 010911

2011-01-09T21:40:00.000-10:00

Rothko Sky - Sunset

As hinted in the Cuckoo Revue, we'd like to introduce our latest weekly post showcasing our spectacular Maui sunrises and sunsets. Since we stop to enjoy and photograph them just about everyday, we got the bright idea why not share them with all of you weekly rather than stockpile them until the Cuckoo Revue. I am already having anxiety over not having a colorful sunset or too many. Sometimes we can go days and days without a vivid orange colored sky, but the heavy gray storm clouds and frosty blue skies are just as alluring. It's like having a living art gallery with a new exhibit daily. Who knows how many we will post on a weekly basis but it's safe to say between 1 - 7... sometimes a cropped image and other times the whole shebang - every Sunday. This one is a bit late, but it is still Sunday here. Until next week...

CUCKOO REVUE 2010

2011-01-07T21:55:00.003-10:00

Hand crafted ribbon lettering, coconut crafts, hand knit golf club covers and handmade ribbons for Simple Times, John;s parents enjoying the warm January temperatures and new year plantings.

January started out with John's mom and dad coming for a 7 week visit filled with days fishing, sightseeing, and relaxing while I spent the month making projects for Amy Sedaris' new book "Simple Times - Crafts for Poor People".

Visiting the buddha in Lahaina, in the kitchen making fried cinnamon tortilla strips and homemade pata for lasagna and whale watching in Kapalua.

February we were still entertaining John's parents while his mom cooked almost every day. This was the first time they had seen the Humpback Whales which winter here in Hawai'i.

Swiss chard ravioli, a last dinner on Maui at Sansei, staining concrete, Mom, Nick, Heather and Brandon, Whale wtach and a bamboo birthday hike.

March brought the Giordani's 7 week visit to an end and we had about 2 weeks to recoup and take care of a few home improvements before Conn's family came for a 4 week visit. Lots of whale sightings and bamboo forest hike for John's birthday.

Touring Haleakala's backside and a stop at Kaupo Store and a wall of waterfalls. Waimea Canyon, Glass Beach, Nick conquering his fear of caves and the Kilauea Lighthouse on the 2 day whistle stop tour of Kaua'i.

We were able to introduce Conn's family to new parts of the island like the back side of Haleakala and we even crammed a 2 day trip to Kaua'i right before they departed Maui.

Ideal Bookshelf book submission, sealing the tiles and tile installation on the office lanai, Kekoa's dad "Big Daddy", and the new kitchen tools.

Mid-April found us putting together the "Ideal Bookshelf" for our book collection that was painted for the Curiosity Shoppe / Jane Mount show. We finally got our office lanai tiled, Kekoa's dad became a regular visitor and we have now become quite close to him. The kitchen faired really well this month with the addition of the long desired KitchenAid mixer and the so hard to find scraper. We were also interviewed and featured on the blog Seeds and Fruit by Kathy Epperson... which led to the design of her new book series - Field Trip.

The view from the office window facing East to Hana. The Java Plum and Christmas Berry trees were getting extremely tall so we cut about 15-20 feet off the tops to reveal what we call Hana Twin Peaks.

May found us tending to the yard and garden area that had suffered for almost a year and a half since we started construction on the new office.

Vanilla ice cream in the making and the new book shelves.

May continued to be full of catching up on home related projects. We finally found some bookshelves and had them shipped from IKEA. Then there was the KitchenAid ice cream maker that needed to be tested.

Yard work, gardening, concrete staining, wore yard work and the actual painting from Jane Mount for the Ideal Book Shelf project.

June saw the purchase of our new and MUCH need laptops. Our old ones were 7 years old and while they still worked... they were slooooooooooow. More attention to the yard and house this month.

Building a better berm, John visits his family in upstate NY and celebrates his parent's 50th anniversary at the Mohonk Mountain House.

July saw John heading back to NY for his parent's 50th Anniversary as well as visiting old friends in the city.. But before he left we had some landscaping work done, traded in the old... ok not old... the other car for a new gray model that better suits our personalities. Conn's high school friend Jenny and her son Brian, who now lives on Kaua'i, visited on their way to and from Indiana.

Breaking ground on the shed, nursing a Japanese White Eye after it hit the window, building and planting.

August ushered in the building of the new garden shed from the leftovers of the old garden shed we tore down over a year and a half ago. Conn's obsession with birds is never ending and of course there is always something to plant.

Raising walls and the roof ad finishing touches to the shed, The Hawaiian stilts at Kanaha Pond, Big swells hitting Ho'okipa Beach.

September we were still working on the new shed. We finally made a visit to Kanaha Ponds to view the wintering birds and the big waves starting showing their faces on the north shore.

Maui County Fair, a Kapalua hike and Star Noodle Birthday dinner, Guri Guri, fresh coat of paint on the shed, the end of the tent and THE NOBLE CHEF EVENT at the Fairmont Kealani.

October found us at the Maui County Fair and doing a hike in Kapalua on Conn's Birthday finished off with a fantastic dinner at Star Noodle. We finally tried Guri Guri, finished the construction of the shed... with a few bits to add on like shelving and a rain catchment system (which will be detailed in an upcoming post). The Winter winds rolled in and finally helped in dismantling the construction tent. The vent for THE NOBLE CHEF / Maui Culinary Academy that Conn designed all the printed collateral and new logo for took place at the end of October and we were lucky enough to be able to attend and partake in the delicious food from around the islands.

Leonard's Bakery and Diamond HEad on Oahu, Simple Times, John on the "set", charred pine tree in Poli Poli Spring State Recreation Area , international treats and Thanksgiving dinner at Hali'imaile General Store.

November took us to Oahu for 2 days to do some work with several clients including Leonard's Bakery and more importantly - shopping. Simple Times - Crafts for Poor People hits the stands, John landed a set assisting gig for a Lands End catalog shoot, we got a sweet treat delivery fresh from Paris full of chocolates and sugars from dear Deb and her ohana. Thanksgiving was spent hiking Poli Poli Spring State Recreation Area and going out to eat for the easiest Thanksgiving day dinner ever at Hali'imaile General Store.

Mama's Fish House, The first proof of FILED TRIP, a temporary gate in the attempt to keep out wild pigs, more planting, holiday parties, the new troff to be used as water catchment on the shed, sotting the first whales of the season on the north shore and our bamboo and garland holiday "tree"... the other one did not make it's way out of the box in the garage.

December saw our 10 year anniversary and we celebrated by going to Mama's Fish House. We had wild pigs invading the yard and making a few messes, yard work, parties, whale watching and sad holiday decor.

Conn's Design work for 2010: New Logo for Gurman Container + Supply Corporation, The design of the new book, FILED TRIP, The cover design and hand ribbon lettering for SIMPLE TIMES as well as some very fun crafts inside, A new Logo for a new Floral Wholesaler, New + updated Identity for Melissa Foster Cook of Brilliant Life Design, Art Announcements for Parnell Corder, A CV for hair and make-up stylist Giorgio Baroni, and THE NOBLE CHEF 2010 Logo and printed materials ... just to name a few.

John's Design work for 2010: The new logo and blog design for hapa | hale, Logo re-work and in-store signage for Leonard's Bakery on Oahu, A new blog design for Grace Supports, Identity for Island Endodontics on Oahu, Logo and Flyer design for an iPhone app called BUCKET LINK, the Website Design for a new Recipe site called Asian Supper and Icons for FIT LIFE a division of Rodale... to name a few.

We somehow managed to keep ourselves very busy with new and continuing clients to whom we are very thankful for their business. MAHALO!

Again, we ate really well and enjoyed the adventure of finding new ways to use the fruit and vegetables from our yard...

...despite being so busy, we always take time to stop and enjoy the tropical flowers...

...Conn obsesses over the birds, especially with the purchase of a new telephoto lens and...

...we introduced you to TUESDAY'S TEXTURE, and we plan on bringing you a new weekly post starting next week.

...we broke for rainbows and...

...we always try to stop and enjoy the vibrant light shows from sunrise to sunset.

Please visit us often in 2011. We will continue to chronicle our adventures and discoveries, food and friends, textures and more. And who know what critters will be showing up here next. That's always fun.

To those of you who visited... we loved hearing from you and hope you enjoyed your visits.

Mahalo and Hau'oli Makahiki Hou!

A hui hou,

c+j

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2011-01-04T08:35:00.000-10:00

Bananas

HAVE A HAP-HAP-HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2010-12-31T20:49:00.000-10:00

HE'S GOT IT COVERED

2010-12-27T12:20:00.000-10:00

More covers from the magazine archive. Here we have some of my favorite things, collage, typography, and christmas, all directed by the very talented Henry Wolf.

In an essay by Milton Glaser for AIGA, Glaser describes his first impressions of Wolf, "When I first met Henry Wolf in the fifties, he seemed to be the most sophisticated person I had ever known. He owned a Jaguar, was always in the company of beautiful women and was already clearly the best editorial designer in the world."

And here's a good article by Steven Heller about Wolf called Remembering: HENRY WOLF, 1925-2005 wherein Heller describes Wolf as "outspoken on the state of magazines in general, and quick to note that good content was neutralized when editorial material and design were not in sync."

I especially like the simplicity of his work. But in the simplicity is a lot of meaning, richness, and, in most cases, very clever graphic solutions.

This December cover of Esquire from 1955 has the magazine's mascot "Esky" integrated into the grid of ornaments. This was a conceit that Wolf himself had started and tried to do in all his Esquire covers. If you look close, you can see the reflection of a man in in the ornaments, especially the gold ones. My guess is it's the photographer Dan Wynn.

Another December cover of Esquire. This one featuring antique toys. Photo by Ben Somoroff.

After reinventing Esquire in the mid-fifties and Harper's Bazaar in from 1958-1961, Wolf had the chance to totally invent the look and influence the direction of the modern and progressive arts magazine called Show in the 60s. This is his very first cover for that publication.

In my research, I found another cover that he did for Show from April 1963 that reminded me of the cover I designed for Imagining America.

Related post: Stripe Tease

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2010-12-21T16:30:00.000-10:00

A little late, but hey, it's still Tuesday here... and the shortest day of the year!

Bottle palm frond

A. Warhol Christmas

2010-12-19T01:00:00.001-10:00

Many moons ago, I acquired these unusual Warhol Christmas cards. And no, this post is not tropical or home-oriented, it's just seasonal. I'm cuckoo for mid-century illustration, and Christmas, and well, Warhol too. So you're basically looking at a trifecta of aesthetic yuletide proportions here. Plus it has the universally gleeful greeting of "Happy Happy Everything" that works in a pinch every time.

I know very little about these cards. I say "cards" because they are printed on card paper but they aren't folded like a traditional greeting card. They could be the dismembered fronts of folded cards or they could have been a grouping, made as a portfolio of printed pieces. The backs are completely blank. My best guess is this: Back in the late 50s early 60s, Fritzie Miller was a cool, modern-thinking artist representative with a roster full of hip young designers and illustrators for whom she found work at the chic magazines of the day like Harper's, Vogue, Esquire, etc. So being that these cards are "signed" from Fritzie and Max Miller, I'm thinking she had her artists take a piece from their portfolio and repurpose it as a card. I say this because I'm pretty sure I've seen some of these illustrations in their original settings. If anyone has any more info about these, please do let me know.

There are a number of books that have good compilations of Warhol's commercial illustrations (which half the time were not even drawn by him as he employed people like Nathan Gluck and others to do the physical drawing based on his style) We have a few of these books, my favorites are Pre-Pop Warhol and Andy Warhol: Illustrations and Drawings of the 1950's.

TIKI TOME TWO

2010-12-15T02:00:00.001-10:00

When author Everett Peacock contacted me about designing a cover for his latest book, I was happy to extend the graphic language I created for his previous work, the Parrot Talks in Chocolate: The Life and Times of a Hawaiian Tiki Bar. His new one, In The Middle of the Third Planet's Most Wonderful of Oceans, is a continuation of the stories and characters introduced in that first book. Island life's natural wonders and modern conundrums is lovingly examined from a local's point-of-view. Throw in some magical spirits and a talking parrot and you have an excellent and relaxing beach read. And there's even some recipes for tasty tropical cocktails you can make yourself for the full sensory experience!

Related post: Tiki Tome

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2010-12-14T08:46:00.000-10:00

Fern

ALL CLEAR

2010-12-11T12:39:00.000-10:00

West maui and the Island of Moloka'i (to the right with the 2 peaks).

Since yesterday was such a rainy wet and cold day, I went to town to run errands. I think everyone else on Maui had the same idea, because it took about 2 hours longer than it usually would. But as luck would have it, that delay allowed me to stop at Ho'okipa Beach Park and take in the beauty of the sunset. It's rare we are ever in town at sunset and even rarer to see West Maui and Moloka'i so clear, especially since the entire day was gray. By just sitting here for 10 minutes taking in this beauty... it literally cleared my mind after spending a rainy Friday afternoon battling the crowds in town.

The view of West Maui approaching Ho'okipa on the way into town.

MAMA MAUI!

2010-12-07T12:03:00.000-10:00

Last night John and I went to Mama's Fish House to celebrate the 10th anniversary of our blind date. Yep... 10 years. Anyway we won't bore you with that... let's talk about the food!

Mama's is by far one of our top 5 favorite place to eat here on Maui. The atmosphere from the minute you step out of the car at the valet stand is one of serenity and calm and sort of feels like you are stepping back in time. The views are really spectacular. Once you have checked in you can have a seat in the bar, out in the garden area or out by the beach. The open wall design of the building just what you hope for when dining out in Maui... right on the beach no less... why would you want to be trapped inside 4 walls with no view outside? The beach is packed with coconut palms for that extra tropical punch.

The sunsets from here are some of the best... but a little hard to catch in the winter months when the sun sets way to early for us to have dinner. If you happen to make it here, do try to check sunset times and get a table for sunset dining. A few minutes before the sun sets and the sky starts it's colorful transformation, the wait staff stops serving so that everyone can enjoy the show.

The flower arrangements are always dramatic, yet understated. I mean look at the giant column of Pink Ginger, which stood about 4 feet tall. Not a blemish on a single flower.

The mood of this place is unparalleled as far as we are concerned. Usually packed to the thatched roof, this is one of the quiets place we have ever eaten in... it always is. With the open air dining, it was quite chilly last night and we kept wishing we had worn socks. (Maui is experiencing record lows.. just 2 nights ago Kahului was a record low of 55 degrees.... brrrr).

To start we ordered drinks. John opted for a glass of wine while I went for a Relaxer, which is a frozen drink of Creme de Cocoa, Pineapple Juice, Coconut Milk and Vodka. It certainly lives up to it's name.

Uku Ceviche – marinated in lime, cilantro and Maui chili pepper.

Served with sweet potato and breadfruit (ulu) chips.

Wasabi Crusted Calamari with Kula vegetables and edamame.

We usually end up getting the same thing every time we make it to MFH, but tonight we broke free of our wickedly delicious ways and tried all new dishes.

John had the Uku Cheviche to start, which is a grey snapper served Tahitian Style in a half coconut. I had the Wasabi Crusted Calamari which is a good 1/4" squid steak rolled in bread crumbs serves on sauteed cabbage, onions and edemame. Both were so soft and tender you really didn't even need to chew.

Poi and John's entree of Deep-water Ahi caught by Leonard Huddy off the east end of Maui served on a sugar cane skewer with Peppercorn, grilled with Hamakua mushroom sauce, sweet-potato mash and asparagus spears.

I had the Onaga caught by Layne Nakagawa over deep reefs near Olowalu Sautéed with Haiku tomatoes, garlic butter, white wine and capers. Served with chili zucchini medley and saffron rice.

The last time we went to MFH, I requested a side order of poi and was told that the poi was reserved only for the Luau Plate. I had the Luau Plate once before and really enjoyed the super clean tasting poi. So last night I was overjoyed to see the word "Complimentary Mama’s fresh Poi upon request." Doused with their homemdae chili water... so ONO!

John said his Ahi was extremely tender and a wonderful grilled flavor. Other than the fact it tasted like super-clean-fresh tuna. The potato mash was very subtle as we believe it was a mix-mash of sweet and regular white potatoes.

My Onaga - a was quite simply the best fish I have ever eaten. EVER. It was moist, tender and for lack of a better description, completely flavorless... meaning no fishiness at all. I could have eaten another piece. I was not too jazzed to see the zucchini turn up on the plate, but once I tasted it I was pleasantly surprised and loved the chili pepper spiciness they cooked it in.

The portions as you can see are very substantial. None of this tiny-food-on-a-giant-pate-with-high-prices crap. You really get your money's worth here.

For dessert we split the Creme Brulee with fresh Liliko’i. We have had all of the desserts here and they are are equally delicious, but we don't make creme brulee at home... soooooooo. It's the perfect size to share at about 5" across.

Too bad the meal had to end. See you next year Mama.

Here are 3 excellent links describing the fish from last night:
Uku
Ahi
Onaga or here

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2010-12-06T22:56:00.000-10:00

The electric blue coating that surrounds the dark brown almost black seeds of the Travellers Palm Seeds. We have heard that this is the only true blue that any plant produces. It's almost like a plastic coating around the seed

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 113010

2010-11-30T19:29:00.000-10:00

Better late than never... but it IS still Tuesday here in Maui.

Immature manila palm seed rack.

Immature seed rack and another about a month older.
These will eventually be about the size of crapes and turn a fiery red.

Two of our 5 manila palms that are just starting to put off seed racks.

STRIPE TEASE

2010-11-30T11:06:00.002-10:00

Stripes, stripes and more stripes. Each cover in this latest post has it's own visual language based on stripes. Two of these, Harper's Bazaar and Esquire, were designed by one of my favorite art directors Henry Wolf. The Holiday cover was art directed by Frank Zachary. Interesting note, the caption for the cover credits begins with, "The tasty dish in candy stripes on our cover is Mara Lane..."

I also love how Henry Wolf signed his cover creations. In doing research on Henry Wolf I found that he was only at Bazaar for a few years before joining Show for their launch in October 1961. The Bazaar cover from June of that year (in this post) was one of his last for that publication. I think I sense a future post of all my Henry Wolf covers.

Art Director: Frank Zachary / Photographer: Slim Aarons

Art Director: Henry Wolf / Photographer: Bassman

Art Director: Henry Wolf / Photographer: Ben Somoroff

THANKFUL DAY OFF

2010-11-27T00:31:00.001-10:00

Just above Ali'i Kula Lavender with the central valley below and West Maui behind us.

Thanksgiving was a bit different around here this year. No brining of a turkey. No wrapping one in bacon. No drying bread for dressing or mashing potatoes. Nope. This year we took the day off. Off from commissioned work, yard work, house work, cooking and dishes.

We woke up, lounged about and finally headed up to Polipoli Spring Recreation Area for a short hike about 5300 - 6000 feet above sea level. It's just above the Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm... about a 30 minute drive on a on lane pot hole filled and sometimes muddy road. It's one of our favorite places on the island, but we have not been back since 2006 after it was subject to a massive fire in January 2007, which consumed over 4500 acres of this beautiful redwood and eucalyptus forest. It's slowly coming back and we saw tons of new 4-5 trees sprouting up by the thousands.

After a short hike where we got to see some amazing views of the West Maui Mountains and of the Big Island, we headed down to Hali'imaile General Store where we had dinner reservations.

They had a Thanksgiving buffet for $36 per person that we just couldn't resist. The menu consisted of:
Mixed baby greens with wasabi peas, caramelized pineapple and goat cheese wontons to start. Roast turkey and gravy, prime rib with horseradish sauce, fresh corn chip and salsa crusted monchong (fish), savory chicken and pine nut stuffing, bread pudding with chestnuts and dried cherries, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, roasted vegetable medley, truffle mac and cheese, cranberry sauce, biscuits and pumpkin pie.

After we piled our plates and consumed the massive amounts of food that sat before us, we could not even think about the pie, so they boxed up 2 slices with fresh whipped cream for us to take home. We can't tell you how great it was to not have to do all that cooking and most importantly... the cleaning up. Coming home to a spotless kitchen on a full stomach was a joy.

It's really important to take the time and enjoy your surroundings no matter where you live. We all know to well how easy it is to get caught up in day to day chores and projects. We hope you had as great a day as we did. Here are some pics from a really gorgeous and completely relaxing, carefree Maui day.

ps. Many mahalo's to the staff at Hali'imaille for turning it out for those of us that didn't want to bother.

Top: Rainbow over Kula.
Bottom: View of Ma'alaea Bay, West Maui and the island of Lana'i in the distance... not to mention those enormously heavy clouds.

Top: Charred remains of a majestic pine with a few survivors in the distance and a slew of new trees making their way out of the charred forrest floor.
Bottom: A little higher up is the eucalyptus forest shrouded in fog and cool air which is scented with eucalyptus.

A magical moment as we were walking through the eucalyptus forest.
Step into the light.

A very Tim Burton or Dr. Suess skeleton of a charred pine tree.

A detail of the above pine shows gnarled branches still clinging to a few last pinecones, that look as though they are about to grab you as you pass by.

Top: Stellar views of The Big Island.
Bottom: A few more charred trees and West Maui.

Top: Me with my new phone trying to find our coordinates high above Maui's last lava flow some 500 years ago. It's that black patch of lava down along the shore.
Bottom:A cinder cone from where lava once flowed and views of Maui's central valley. All the bright green way down there are the sugar cane fields.

Um.... John... Did you happen to see that sign back there?

As the day draws to a close over a dormant cinder cone, we make our way back down the mountain through open fields of cattle and a painted sky.

Plate is loaded... then it's not. I ate it all... and managed to go back for a second helping of truffle mac and cheese.

Do we look content or what?

TWINKLE, TWINKLE LITTLE STARS

2010-11-23T11:42:00.004-10:00

Star Fruit (carambola) season is in full swing here and I am trying to use them up as quickly as they ripen — which is no easy task.

The loaded star fruit tree.

I swear there are over 1000 on this tree. The sad part is when the ground is littered with rotting fruit.
But the birds and geckos are happy... not to mention the gnats.

Saturday night I made a full size star fruit - upside-down cake for our friend Abraham and last night I made these Mini Shooting Star Fruit Upside - Down Cakes to take to our friend Liz's house for dinner. These mini cakes were inspired by the Hali’imaile Pineapple Upside-Down Cake at Hali'imaile General Store.... Where we will be having Thanksgiving dinner this year. NO COOKING HERE.

Mini Shooting Star Fruit Upside - Down Cakes.
Arrange on a serving platter in a star pattern.
This one is perfect for the holidays as it looks like a snowflake.

Topping
3-6 medium star fruit

1 teaspoon pure almond extract

4 tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) butter

12 teaspoons dark brown sugar

Cake
1 1/2 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon orange, lemon or lime zest

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

2 large egg yolks, at room temperature

2 egg whites

1/2 cup sour cream

1. Wash and trim the outer ribs on your star fruit then slice 3/8" thick. Remove any seeds.

2. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Divide the butter into 12 pieces and place in the bottom of each muffin cup.

3. Place the tins in the oven while it is pre-heating to melt the butter. KEEP AN EYE ON IT AS NOT TO BURN THE BUTTER.

4. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and citrus zest in a small bowl. At this point you should be able to remove muffin tin(s) from oven

5. Beat one-half cup softened butter and 1/2 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in egg yolks one at a time. Next beat in half the flour mixture, then half of the sour cream,repeat with the remaining flour mixture and sour cream. Beat until smooth. If you are using a stand mixer like a KitchenAid, then transfer this batter to a new bowl. Clean your stand mixer bowl and beat egg whites until stiff. Fold egg whites into batter.

6. Place 1 teaspoon of the brown sugar into each muffin cup and top with one slice of starfruit.

7. Pour approximately 1 heaping tablespoon of the batter into each cup.

7. Place muffin tins on a cookie sheet to prevent any over bubbling from hitting the bottom of your oven. Bake 30 to 40 minutes, until the a toothpick comes out clean. I like to let them go just a tad longer to make the visible tops a bit crispy.

8. Remove from oven and slide a cake icing knife around the edges to loosen them. Place a cookie sheet on top of the muffin tins and Immediately turn out onto the cookie sheet. Serve warm or room temperature.

* You can also reheat in the oven on on the stovetop in a cover skillet with a little butter for 5 minutes on low flame.

** You can also use just about any fruit for this you like: apple, mango, pineapple, peaches, berries, banana, pear, even orange slices with the rind removed...hmmm// now i want to try the orange version.

Melted butter and brown sugar in tins. I thought I took a pic of the star fruit on the brown sugar — but iI didn't.

Pour batter over star fruit, butter and brown sugar. Bake and remove when golden bubbly and crisp.

Slice a cake icing knife around the edges. I like this knife because it's thin and flexible enough to get under the cakes as well as the sides.

Golden crispy goodness.

Turn out onto cookie sheet and cool.

Place on serving platter and garnish with sliced star fruit and banana leaf sections with the ends cut into dovetails. If you don't have banana leaves, use paper or wired ribbon. Any color will do.
Also, allow the star fruit slices to drain a few minutes on a paper towel before placing on platter to avoid starfruit juice puddles under your crispy cakes.

ON KANAHA POND

2010-11-21T09:14:00.001-10:00

A few weeks back we finally stopped by the Kanaha Pond Wildlife Sanctuary. Once a royal fishpond, this bird sanctuary is home to two endangered Hawaiian species of waterfowl, the black-necked stilt (ae'o) and the Hawaiian coot ('alae ke'oke'o) and is only open to the public from August to May.

I love these beautiful tufts of grass amongst the cracked almost claylike silt.

Here you can see the viewing platform. There is also another entrance on the back side of the pond near Kanaha Beach Park. The 143-acre preserve has looping paths that circle the perimeter of the wetland sanctuary through a shaded forest with native plants. There are numerous abandoned concrete World War II bunkers along the trails. Click here for more in depth reading on the ponds and how they came to be and how one was filled in and destroyed.

Due to the continued destruction of many of Hawai'i's wetland areas Kanaha Pond was designated a registered natural landmark in late 1971 by the Department of the Interior, one of only two such sites registered at the time.

(here is the text taken from one of the signs at the sanctuary.)

Naturally occurring freshwater marshes, ponds, and other wetlands may have always been supply on the Hawaiian Island. Wetlands such as fishponds and taro fields were created by the early Hawaiians, and wetland birds utilized these habitats. But in recent history, many wetlands were filed for land development or degraded by agricultural practices. Many remaining wetlands are vulnerable to water diversions, pollution, and invasive species.

Today, five native waterbirds breed on most of the main Hawaiian Islands. The Hawaiian coot ('alae ke'oke'o), common moorhen ('alae 'ula), black-necked stilt (ae'o), and Hawaiian duck (koloa) are in serious trouble and have been listed as endangered. These waterbirds nest on the ground, making them vulnerable to introduced predators such as mongoose, dogs, cats, and rats. The tree-nesting black-crowned night-herron ('auku'u) is holding it's own.

A number of watrefowl and shorebirds over-winter in Hawai'i or pas through on their annual migrations. The best known and most commonly seen in grassy fields is the Pacific golden-plover (kōlea). Individual birds return to the same areas every year. Along the shoreline, ruddy turnstones ('akekeke), wandering tattlers ('ulili), and sanderlings (hunakai) are a common winter sight. The pond is sometimes filled with canadian geese in the winter.

I'll be posting more about the Pacific golden-plover (kōlea) that makes our yard it's winter home. I've been taming pics of it over that last few months so that I can hopefully share it's change in color from light golden tan to almost black by the end of the season.

Black-necked stilt (ae'o)

Look at those gams will ya!

Another close up detail of the black-necked stilt (ae'o)

We sat and watched them wade through the water quite slowly, then all of a sudden they would flap their wings in an apparent attempt to get the small fish to dart about so they could feed on then. It must be pretty tough to find food in this murky pond.

Black-necked stilt (ae'o) in flight and rustling up some grub. You can actually see where a fish jumped out of the water and made a small splash only to be devoured a second later. I guess the wing flapping system works.

Looking east towards Haleakala.

The Hawaiian coot ('alae ke'oke'o)

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 111610

2010-11-16T07:56:00.000-10:00

Fading Traveller Palm Leaf

HOW TO STUFF A HAWAIIAN BIKINI

2010-11-13T23:00:00.001-10:00

On the eve of a week long gig assisting on a swimsuit photo shoot, I thought this post might be appropriate.

The process of setting up the office means restacking all my old magazines. Some of which are just too good not to post... take this issue of Holiday from June 1955. The model on the cover was photographed at the legendary Kalapana black sand beach on the Big Island. In 1990, a lava flow from Kilauea, slowly wiped out the majestic, coco-palm lined beach and the nearby village. I found a good photo of it here showing the vapor and steam as the lava hit the water. The photo spread inside the magazine featured resident beauties modeling the latest in swimwear from all over the state. I love the saturated color of these old magazines. Holiday was especially great because of all the sunny, richly colored places they'd feature. Also, notice how spare and clean the cover is. The coverlines don't need to scream out at you when the photo is this stunning.

June, 1955 Kalapana Beach, Big Island.

Opening spread shows a model on Kauai, left, and the cover girl on the very exotic Kalapana beach, right.

This spread was shot on Maui, Kaanapali Resort on the left, and Oheo Gulch (7 Sacred Pools) on the right

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 110910

2010-11-09T23:42:00.003-10:00

Where has the time gone? It's been pretty busy here at CFC headquarters these last few weeks and we short business threw a trip to Oahu in last week as well. In lieu of missing 2 TT post, here are 2 textures today. We look to be back in full swing next week.

Sprinkle cookies from Leonard's Bakery on our recent trip to Oahu.

Moss on the North East side of the trunk of our Royal Palm. Most trees and structures collect moss/mold on the NE side due to trade winds and lack of sun, especially in the winter.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 102610

2010-10-26T10:19:00.001-10:00

Today I came across an article on NPR about photographer Cedric Pollet and thought it would be a perfect post for Tuesday's Texture. Cedric has been traveling the globe photographing bark and has a 190 page coffee table book with over 220 species in over 400 photo's. Does this guy have MY DREAM JOB or what?

This type of manzanita grows in the San Luis Obispo region of California. Its reddish-purple bark starts to peel in early summer. Photo from Cedric Pollet's upcoming book - BARK.

We actually have a few of the Rainbow Eucalyptus trees here in the yard and they really are a favorite for their peeling and ever changing colored bark.

A detail of our very own Rainbow Eucalyptus.

SPRAY IT DON'T SAY IT

2010-10-25T19:01:00.000-10:00

We're finally done painting the bulk of the shed. Here's a pic showing how it looked all primed.

At first I thought we'd save the time and primer by just priming the parts that had bare wood, which was about one third of the surface area. The rest was painted already since we reused wood from the old shed. But then I feared that I'd encounter problems putting on the final colors. Trying to get even coverage over those two disparate tones didn't seem like a good plan, so I went ahead and primed the whole thing, only doing a light spay over the old painted parts.

I have a love/hate relationship with our paint sprayer. I love it because it was cheap, I hate it because it's cheap! Actually, it's ok. It has served us well, but there are drawbacks--the gun doesn't swivel so I end up wrangling with the hose a lot trying to get the right position from which to spray. And it's a pain to clean and keep the spray nozzle clear of hardened paint bits. But it makes up for these shortcomings by maximizing time and effort, especially in the under roof areas that would be laborious and time-consuming to paint with a brush and roller.

This is our paint sprayer. Costco purchase with a coupon. It's airless so the motor only kicks in when you are spraying. Also, it's not very loud. There is only one spray nozzle though and you can't vary the width of coverage.

Done with the top layer of Green Grove. The bottom layer was sprayed with a color called Loam (seen in the next pic). This type of siding (known as T1-11) presents problems when using a sprayer. It has a very rough texture which means I had to hit it twice as many times as the pre-painted areas, especially when those two differently textured surfaces are side-by-side. Also, it's hard to get the paint sprayed into the grooves at the same coverage rate as the flat surfaces which means going in afterwards with a brush and just jamming the paint in there. Finally, I had to ease up on my distance and spray strength when I came close to the smooth-surfaced trim, otherwise it would glob on whereas on the heavily textured surface of the siding, that wasn't a concern.

Here is the outside finished. I don't know why I didn't just prime over the orange. The doors will ultimately be some shade of orange so I guess I thought there was no need.

There I am spray painting the first coat for the interior. The paint droplets look like snow in the blast of camera flash.

For the interior paint, we headed over to Community Work Day to see what they had in the way of free paint. They accept unopened and opened containers of paint and offer them to anyone in the community who can make use of it. We picked up two slightly-less-than-five-gallon buckets of white and mixed them together. It resulted in an off-white, vanilla color. No primer for the inside, just two coats of the free stuff.

SWELL TIME

2010-10-21T22:42:00.001-10:00

A week or so ago we stopped by Ho'okipa Beach Park to take in the surfing frenzy from the first real swell of the season. Here are few pics.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 101910

2010-10-20T22:33:00.000-10:00

Rock in a pond that has layers and layers of pond scum covering it which gives it the scalloped edge.

WE WAS POOR BUT WE WAS LOVED...

2010-10-15T09:26:00.000-10:00

Late last year Amy Sedaris began work on her newest book - Simple Times - Crafts for Poor People - and asked me to do a few projects for it. You might remember I did paintings for her last book back in 2006 - I Like You - Hospitality Under The Influence.

She thought I would be the perfect person to make the coconut crafts and I jumped at the chance. I also knitted golf club covers, made award ribbons, and some "native" jewelry.

As the book progressed Amy began talking to me about lettering options for the cover. We have an old lettering book from the 40's that has great examples of novelty lettering and I thought she would really like the the title spelled out in ribbons.

One day I just whipped up this sample to show her what it could look like and next thing I know I was designing the cover layout. Megan Whitmarsh and Vickie Farrell embroidered the subtitle an author name. After playing with a few color versions... it would seem as this is the cover they are going with. The thing I love about working with Amy is that she is so over the top yet loves to pull back when needed. This cover is spare yet chock full of information... She has a great eye for when things are too much... or for when she needs it to be too much.

Our friend Jason Frank Rothenberg shot all the photo's including the cover and our friend Lauren Smith of The Curiosity Shoppe made the cute little dog as well as a few other amazing crafts featured in the book like felt fruit jewelry and sugar skulls.

I got to see the first draft of the book recently and can tell you it is brilliant. Hold onto your hats... it's gonna be another HIT! Due out November 2, 2010.

I'll post some of the projects I did for Amy once the book is released.

DESIGN PERCUSSION

2010-10-14T02:20:00.000-10:00

Many of you know about my love of album cover designs from the mid 20th-century. Also, that I sometimes repurpose them. Occasionally I run into one though that is too beautiful to even consider dismantling. Such as those designed by Sam Suliman, which I've blogged before. Here I bring to your attention the wonderful work of S. Neil Fugita. I've had "Big, Bold and Brassy" for a while now, transferring it hither and dither, office to home, home to office. Then, routing through a pile of LP's in a resale shop here on Maui, I think I may have let out an audible gasp when I found "Percussion Italiano" One, it's orange! Two, it's italian! eh, oh, fuggedaboudit! It's replaced "Big Bold and Brassy" as my favorite. Much to BBB's dismay no doubt. And I've always preferred the Grand Award record label logo over the Command Records anyway. Sorry BBB. Can you tell, I go cuckoo for these things? Also included here is a book cover by Neil with a similar illustration style as Italiano.

Here's a link to a good interview with Neil by Steven Heller for the AIGA.

Also, Neil is a talented abstract painter who used his paintings in many of his designs as shown here for some advertising designs and here in this album cover work (scroll to the bottom for the Mingus and Brubeck covers)

Random Hawaii connection, Neil was born in Waimea in 1921.

Finally, Ruder-Finn has published his autobiography, Mouth of Reddish Water: A Japanese American Story.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 101210

2010-10-12T08:00:00.000-10:00

Field of grass.

DRINK PINK

2010-10-10T23:15:00.001-10:00

The past few weeks we have been inundated with guava. They are everywhere. The trees and ground are full of yellow polka dots. A few days I decided to take a new approach to using these delicious pink fruit by making something other than cheesecake or jam. JUICE. Little did I know I would spend 6 hours peeling, cooking, pulping, straining, boiling, straining and enjoying. I cooked about 25 quarts of guava and ended up with about 10 quarts of juice. If you cooked down about 45--50 guava it might take about 1-1/2 hours. Jam is quicker and lasts longer but this juice is delicious... not to mention nutritious.

Check out this link to see all the great health benefits guava has.

Hundreds of fresh guava. 5 tote bags full in total.

Peel and chop. Cook until soft.
I prefer to use the firmer, immature guava and not ones that are too soft or over ripe.

Remove seeds from cooked guava with a food mill. Guava pulp.

Run the guava pulp through a mesh strainer to remove the fibers and any small seeds that made it through the food mill. Add the thinned juice to a 5 quart pot and add water and sugar. 3 quarts of pulp, 1-1/2 quarts water and 1 cup of sugar. Boil about 10 minutes until sugar is dissolved. Adjust to taste.

Run the water/pulp/sugar mixture through cheesecloth. You have to stir it in the cheesecloth until all the liquid runs through. Small batches work best. And there you have your guava juice.
Refrigerate and serve.

TUESDAY'S TEXTURE 100510

2010-10-04T23:59:00.001-10:00

Cycad leaves.

FAIR PLAY

2010-10-04T12:08:00.000-10:00

Friday night we made our way to the Maui County Fair where we enjoyed some really good food, got to people watch and check out crafts and Orchidland. My main reason for going was the food and to take some pics of the rides all lit up.

Most important part of the fair is the food. John had the smoked meat plate while I had a the orange chicken pork lumpia and a corndog...
YOU HAVE TO HAVE A CORNDOG AT THE FAIR!
After that we shared a bag of sugary malasadas. These were not from Leonard's, but still good.

Ferris Wheel

LIGHTS!

Prizes.

Crafts were a bit odd. I did love the lei made form an old cut up dress. The miniature Christmas trees were rather peculiar… especially under that plastic shield.

We did admire the origami tree.

My favorite piece of art by a 4th grader.

2 beauties from Orchidland.

How does one judge mac nuts and sad wilted lettuce?

Juicy fruits.

Bamboo shoots and hot peppers. Still wondering how they come to a decision on best in show.

Fanciful feathered and furred friends. I fell so sorry for all the poor animals cooped up in tiny pens and cages.
So many people taking pics with the blinding flash right in the poor things faces was a bit upsetting. i used no flash and all was just fine. Why don't people think about this sort of thing?

After I saw these cute donkey's I begged for one. Not gonna happen I'm afraid. This cow was such a beautiful color.

Our last stop before heading home was for a bag of cotton candy and sugared nuts.
Oh the headache that followed.

WAX NOSTALGIC

2010-10-03T09:36:00.000-10:00

I figured it was about time I blogged about my friend BJ's bright new venture called Relight Candles.

Back in the day, I could not go thrift shopping with BJ and her sister Denise without being egged on to buy more than expected. They're very persuasive with a good eye for vintage finds. Every once in a while, I'll get a surprise "I-saw-this-amazing-thing-and-had-to-buy-it-for-you" package from either of them. Once, a very hurried Denise did a "drive-by" She deposited an awesome vintage lamp in the lobby of our apartment building in New York with instructions to the doorman to ring us up. No time for a note, or a handshake or a big thank-you hug. I only found out later who it was that actually dropped it off!

BJ has a special knack for the thrift store vintage score. On one occasion, she sent me these amazing Thermos bowls with pointy little Jetson's-style feet. We still have them and use them regularly.

So it's no surprise that she turned her shopping spidey senses into a business with an green side. Using all manner of nostalgic vessels—planters, glasses, vases—to make soy-wax candles, she upcycles what might be easily discarded into something to be admired and illuminated.

You can catch her selling her wares at some of the upcoming holiday craft fairs:

Patchwork, Santa Ana and Long Beach (see ad for dates)
Unique LA, downtown LA December 11 and 12 (see add below)