My brother-in-law is getting married in T-minus 11 days and I'm helping them with different aspects of the wedding, which I'm having so much fun with. One thing we are doing is stamping cocktail napkins to have at the bar. They are so elegant and inexpensive to make! I bought the stamps at a local stamp store and the napkins at a party supply store. The total cost of the project for 300 napkins was $20.



You could do this easily for any occasion - a birthday, luncheon, dinner party...whatever event you are throwing!

Devonly, yours

A new love

Lately I have been contemplating purchasing a Lomography camera. The basic idea behind a lomography camera is that it produces "happy accidents" by letting a little more light in, over-exposing, bluring the edges, etc. I use a website to treat my photographs before uploading them here and really like the "lomo" treatment. My friend let me borrow his Dianna to play around with. I am so desperate to see how my photos turn out - you actually have to have them developed! How much I have come to rely on the instant gratification of digital cameras. How did anyone ever know they took a good photo!?! But alas, I will wait...

I don't think that I actually used the camera properly for the first few frames - I couldn't quite tell if the film was advancing (or I was unwinding it, which was quite a pain in the keaster to wind!), and how far to advance it. So, I'll be curious to see what they look like.



I took her for a walk on Queen Ann. I went to school in that neighborhood and spend so many a hour walking those streets and lusting after those gorgeous homes. Here's a few snaps I took with my digital - can't resist the wait! But I'll definitely share the others with you once they're developed.

Cobblestone streets

Vines creeping along a curved wall


This is moss growing on top of a stone rail, so fuzzy!

Devonly, yours

Nature walks, sisters, and sunshine

My sister has been visiting me this past week from California, and we've been enjoying all the beauty and oddly enough the sunshine of Seattle.

We were enjoying a walk through Lincoln Park in West Seattle, and there are these trees there - forgive me, I do not know what kind they are - but they reminded me of the manzenita in Northern California where I grew up and I love the way their bark peels off in these curls. Arent' they lovely?

The ocean was so peaceful and inviting (mostly because it was really hot and we wanted to go swimming!). Next time you go for a walk, take a camera and pay attention to the smaller things you might not normally notice.

Devonly, yours

Blackberry Cobbler

My dear friends, do not let the humble appearance of this quaint looking cobbler fool you. I promise this is one of THE BEST cobblers you will ever have (move over mothers, there's a new kid in town!). My mom and I have been making this recipe every summer since I can remember. We would spend the warm summer evenings picking berries, our fingers dyed purple within minutes and scrapes up and down our arms reaching for the bigger, juicier berries just out of reach. It's one of the two recipes I actually have memorized and never skip a chance to make it. We even eat it for breakfast the next day it's so good. And dare I say it's a little bit healthy? You can of course use any fruit you like, but blackberries are by far the best. And perhaps you will want to make a double batch, it won't last long, I promise you that! Just see if you want to dilute it with ice cream!

You will need:

3-4 cups berries
1/3 cup sugar
1 TB flour
Dash of Cinnamon and Nutmeg
1 box Krusteaz Oat Bran Muffin Mix
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled butter

Step 1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Step 2: Combine the berries, sugar, flour, and dash of cinnamon and nutmeg in an 8x8 dish.

Step 3: Pour muffin mix and the 1/4 tsp. nutmeg into a large bowl and cut in butter. Spread evenly over the berries.

Step 4: Bake for 40-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

This dish says summer to me like nothing else. And brings me back to those warm summer evening sitting on my parent's back porch swing watching the sky turn gray. This is so easy and delicious, I hope you enjoy it!

Devonly, yours