Colleen Jeffers

It’s the first time in years that getting home won’t require a cross country flight, which means it’s the first time in years all three of us can be together. The only rooms in the entire place that aren’t torn apart practically to the studs are the living room and one small bedroom, so I’m not kidding when I say we spend almost all of our time there. There’s simply no way to guarantee that construction dust doesn’t travel from an active work zone into the living room, so we made the big leap from fabric to leather, and chose the Timber Sofa in Charme Tan from Article. This is a also huge advantage to dog parents like us, who still want to make our living space friendly for guests (especially those with allergies) by making sure our couch isn’t absorbing pet dander and stray hair.

Just wanted to check in with a pretty major announcement that has nothing to do with cocktails (well, kinda, I’ll get to that later), but which you’ll be seeing a whole lot of in my social channels moving forward. It’s a city we’ve always loved (Pat’s family even lived there for a few years), and  we wanted to experience a west coast lifestyle firsthand before having kids. I’ll be sharing our renovation stories as they happen, because the mission of this blog has always been to create welcoming spaces for good drinks, friends, and conversation, through the connective and creative force of home. Since we have a million decisions to make in the coming months (and probably years) of renovation, I’ll be checking in on social for opinions and expertise.

This simple spring recipe is perfect for porch sipping, party throwing, shower hosting, or any old day that calls for a drink as beautiful as it is delicious. My Coconut Rosewater Blackberry Smash is cool and creamy, with floral notes and a definite hint of summer to come (so kind of one big metaphor for spring in a glass). Rose water, dried culinary lavender, hibiscus tea, and elderflower liqueur are get-able any old season, though I rarely start craving them in earnest until right about now. I get my rose water and dried lavender online (affiliate links to Amazon where I actually buy these products), but dried hibiscus flower — AKA hibiscus tea

Which leads me to a little secret – you don’t need a fancy studio with expensive lights or backgrounds to take great food photos. With food (and drink) photography, you can create immediate, powerful content and reach new people – and new clients – all over the world. I signed up for Broma Bakery’s Foodtography School, a 4-week online food photography course. I’d been following Sarah Fennel (AKA Broma Bakery AKA food world rockstar) for a long time, and using her free resources to learn everything I could about food photography.