Liz Morrow Liz Morrow

chard feta + roasted beet salad


We've been getting beets and chard in our CSA regularly.  Usually I just sauté the chard or put it in a quiche, but I was interested in trying it raw in a salad.  At first I used just chard, but I prefer the chard mixed with some other greens like arugula, spinach, and romaine.  Roasted beets have been one of my new favorite things.  I've had beets that were pickled and beets that have been marinated, and I think the roasted ones are my favorite way I've had them prepared so far.  
Now that we've been getting our CSA for a few months I'm going to be doing a post about that more in depth, but I just had to say how wonderful it is meeting face to face with the people who grow your food.  It's something I never experienced before.  We do have local farms in the Matanuska Valley up in Alaska, though the growing season is shorter due to the harsh winters, but my family always just shopped at grocery stores.  I didn't know what it meant to eat seasonally (when I started hearing about how everyone was excited for spring because it was Asparagus season, I was so confused!).  Almost all of the produce in Alaska is imported from down south, especially in the winter, so the concept of a certain food having a harvest season never entered my mind.  Other than the obvious exception of like, say, pumpkins for fall.  We always ate wild Alaskan fish, and I understood the concept that fish had seasons, especially after commercial fishing for a couple summers, but for some reason the connection to seasonal plants wasn't made.  My family had a little garden for a couple summers that I remember quite enjoying, but it wasn't a lifestyle we had.  Now that we've been getting a CSA and growing our own food in our little garden, it's a new and interesting idea to eat seasonally!




Ingredients
 
Chard (plus other mixed greens such as Arugula and Romaine lettuce if you prefer)
Feta cheese
2 small/med roasted beets (for two servings, add more if you are making a family sized amount)
Sliced almonds
1/2 tomato, diced

Instructions

1. Prepare the beets by wrapping them in foil with a bit of canola or olive oil and roasting in a 350º oven for appx 1 hour, or until a fork easily slides into the beets. Once cooked, cool completely in the fridge.

2. While your beet is preparing you can get all your other fixin's ready.  Chop the greens, dice the tomatoes and I think that this salad would also taste great with a red onion diced, and some radishes, either sliced raw, or roasted like the beets.  

3.  Once your beet is cooled, peel it and chop it up. Now you can mix everything together and enjoy!  I drizzled some raspberry vinaigrette on top and paired it with a nice Sofia Rosé wine, mostly because I loved the color pairing of the beets and the Rosé color, but they actually went nicely together taste-wise as well!


Read More
Liz Morrow Liz Morrow

industrial


On Friday Moorea drove down from Seattle to do a little photo shoot for a collaboration with Madewell Denim, so we went downtown to some of my favorite industrial Tacoma spots to take photos.  She offered to snap a few photos of my outfit while we were shooting and I happily agreed.  It's always fun to have a human being behind the camera for a change.  I absolutely love shooting in the downtown Tacoma industrial areas.  Downtown isn't too far away from where I live, but for some reason I just don't get down there very frequently.  
One of the wardrobe items I've been on the lookout for, for over a year, is high waisted black jeans.  I have two pairs of my regular highwaisted blue jeans, but I love black denim even more.  I tried a pair about a year ago, but they didn't fit and I returned them, so when I saw these ones I was excited to give them a shot.  Well, they fit perfectly and I'm tempted to get a second pair of these ones as well.  This fall/winter I'm pretty sure they're gonna be on my body at least 75% of the time.  



 

top/courtesy of wolf mama vintage :: lace jacket (similar)/courtesy of lulu's
jeans/courtesy of modcloth :: necklace/courtesy of one ten zero seven
 shoes (similar)/payless :: bag/courtesy of hearts :: photos taken by moorea

I haven't worn this lace jacket in over a year, and was about to add it to my shop, but I had a moment where I felt like I wasn't quite ready to let it go.  I figured if I wasn't going to let it go, then I'd better start wearing it.  So far I've worn it twice since then, so I'm glad to give it some wear!  I love rediscovering things in my own closet.  I'm a pretty big pack rat, but I've been trying my best to not hold on to things that I haven't worn in a long time.  Some things, though, I just can't bear to give up.  I'm getting better at figuring out which things I probably won't want to wear again, and which things are just having a "down-time" and I'll get excited about again later.  


Read More
Liz Morrow Liz Morrow

remix archives // floral blazer


We're slowly moving towards the time of year when wearing blazers isn't insane, and I'm starting to think more about layers again.  I snagged this blazer from ModCloth last year and instantly fell in love with the fun floral print, plus the fabric is really comfortable and casual, which makes this blazer feel less formal and more wearable.  I just lent this blazer to Kristi for one of her job interviews and she styled it in a cute, casual way.  It's funny to have a girlfriend in town who borrows clothes.  I've never had a sister or friend who borrowed from my closet, so it's kind of fun.  My style has evolved a bit since I last styled this blazer myself, but this piece still resonates with me.  I'm excited to style it in some new ways once fall shows up!



Read More
Liz Morrow Liz Morrow

a delightful giveaway with panasonic + pictureline

Hi guys!  Today I'm partnering with Panasonic and Pictureline to giveaway a Lumix DMC-LF1 camera, worth $500! The LUMIX LF1 is a pocket-sized camera that takes great photos in low light with a powerful zoom and built-in WiFi so you can share your photos to your smart phone or tablet. With a compact, pocket-sized body and a 7.1x zoom and viewfinder, you'll get more creative control than what you'd get from your iPhone. The lens has a bright and beautiful maximum aperture of  f/2.0, and combined with the big sensor, which is bigger than most point and shoot sensors, the LF1 is awesome in low light. The LUMIX LF1 is easy to use for beginners, but also offers full manual controls and RAW capability for advanced users looking for more control over their photos.  If you're not ready to make the leap to a DSLR yet, this is a great upgrade from your phone camera.  Enter below!


Want to know more about Pictureline?  Of course you do, they're awesome! 
Pictureline is a locally owned and operated, top-of-the-line camera store that caters not only to the professionals, but also to anyone who loves photography! Since opening in 1989 as a one-man shop, we have grown into the premier camera store in Utah, dedicated to extending our exemplary service we're known for to our friends on the web. We carry all of the big photography brands (Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm, Lowepro, and more!) and are crazy passionate about helping photographers get the gear and know-how they need to succeed. 
They not only carry cameras, but great accessories too.  They've got Ona bags, including the one I've had for a couple years and love!

Pictureline is blogger-friendly too.  They've got an affiliate program and are looking for bloggers to join, so if you're into that, go for it!  You can earn commission on any sales made through your links.  If you blog about photography, or photo accessories at all, it'd be a great idea to join.

Read More
Liz Morrow Liz Morrow

all that glitters is gold

On Sunday evening I hosted a party in honor of my best friend, Kristi, moving to Tacoma!  It was actually exactly a month from the day she officially moved to Tacoma, and in that month she's gotten jobs at two of my most favorite local businesses and moved into the most pin-worthy, cutest apartment ever.  She's an introvert like me, so I wanted to create an opportunity for her to meet our Tacoma friends and hopefully make some new connections in her new city.  She's been loving Tacoma (yay!), and I'm so excited to be able to share one of my favorite places with one of my favorite people.  I decided that a gold theme would go nicely, as I was inspired by this old rhyme:

Make new friends, but keep the old; Those are silver, these are gold. New-made friendships, like new wine, Age will mellow and refine. Friendships that have stood the test- Time and change-are surely best; Brow may wrinkle, hair grow gray; Friendship never knows decay. For 'mid old friends, tried and true, Once more we our youth renew. But old friends, alas! may die; New friends must their place supply. Cherish friendship in your breast- New is good, but old is best; Make new friends, but keep the old; Those are silver, these are gold.

Plus, we enjoyed lots of delicious

Sofia wine from Francis Ford Coppola Winery

, to encourage "new-made friendships."  Kristi and I are certainly golden friends. It's been over a decade of being best friends.  We haven't lived in the same town since high school, so it's been a nice change to actually get to hang out, rather than just text and Facebook one another.  I hope that perhaps some new "silver" friendships were formed at the party, too.  It's hard moving to a totally new place, but it's a bit easier knowing someone with an established friend base.  When I moved to Tacoma, I met all of Dan's friends, so it wasn't quite as difficult as moving to a new place knowing no one.  Since I was the one who encouraged Kristi to move to Tacoma, I wanted to facilitate a meet-and-greet type of fun, casual party where she'd have a chance to meet some of my friends.  I'm still in the process of making friends, over two years after moving here, so I know how hard it can be!

Since we had lots of wine, plus some bubbly, I decided it'd be great to do a mimosa bar.  We had

cans of the bubbly

, so if people wanted

just

bubs they could grab a can.  The full bottles were set up next to the juice for mimosas, and we had guava, mango, and the standard OJ as options, plus some raspberries to toss in for good measure.  And, of course, cute straws and sparkly swizzle sticks.  The mimosa bar was a

huge

hit.  I mixed guava and mango juice for my mimosa.  I could probably drink a hundred of them, but I didn't.  Because responsibility.  The light wines were perfect for summer evening.  I think Sofia 

Ros

é

 is my new favorite summer wine, but I also love the crispness of the

Riesling

and

Chardonnay

.  On a hot day I almost want to chug a chilled wine, but that's not lady-like... it's just

so

refreshing!

I held the party in our backyard, and it was nice to finally make use of our backyard.  Plus, it was a great excuse to actually clean it up.  Our backyard is rather small, but it's the perfect size for a fun little party.  I have all our wedding decor still, since it was all DIY, and it's fun to pull it out from time to time for parties.  I still have the bunting up in my living room from our housewarming party in January!

We made all of the food, except for the cupcakes, which were from

Corina

(who did my wedding cake and cupcakes!).  The menu included a cheese plate with lots of yummy cheeses and fruits,

caprese quinoa stuffed mushrooms with balsamic reduction

,

strawberry honey brie crostinis

,

antipasto skewers

,

zucchini rolls

, and

macarons

!  It took quite a few hours to prep everything, and I sliced my hand so bad with the mandoline making the zucchini rolls that I almost had to go get stitches and I nearly passed out.  But, you know, no pain no gain.  Actually it ended up not being too bad of a cut, thank goodness!

Seriously though, you guys, if you're looking for a great party beverage these little

mini Sofia cans

are so much fun.  Even the most macho, bearded dudes thought they were fun.  Because they are.  So fun.  They come with little extend-o bendy straws.  I can't believe no one else makes these because it's brilliant.  I think they'd be perfect for a Bachelorette party, ladies night/sleepover, blogger meet-up, bridal shower... okay really I think they're perfect for most anything.

more after the jump!

The night concluded, rather epically, with witnessing.... slug sex.  Yes.  And it was one of the most incredible things I think I've ever seen.  I have a 18 minute long iPhone video to prove it, too.  Yes, we sat on the ground for 20 minutes watching slugs have sex.  But you would've too, because it was seriously unbelievably cool.  Voyeuristic, perhaps.  I like to think of it as National Geographic, Discovery Channel type stuff though.  If slug sex isn't on the Planet Earth series, it needs to be, because whoa.  Fascinating and oddly beautiful.  I hope you're all googling slug sex now.  Maybe I'll put up my video on YouTube.  The background commentary alone is probably rather amusing.  

*post sponsored and wine provided by Francis Ford Coppola Wines.  Thank you for supporting those companies who keep Delightfully Tacky alive and kicking!*

Read More

Hi, I’m Liz

I'm an artist, writer, designer, DIY renovator, and … well basically I like to do all the things. If it’s creative I’m probably doing it. I’ve spent over 30 years voraciously pursuing a life steeped in creativity and I wholeheartedly believe creativity and joy are inextricably linked.
Read more…



Explore The Archive

VISIT THE SHOP

PRIVACY POLICY & DISCLOSURE

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Read our privacy policy and disclosures →