Nika Pereira e Carvalho

Check out my sister Ana who is featured in the Bicyclette Boutique short film/lookbook entitled “90 Days”. It’s a take on that 3 month mark where new relationships either get serious or drop off. All of Ana’s clothes are available at Bicyclette and the song is by Toronto based band, Twist. Enjoy!

Bicyclette Boutique Presents 90 DAYS from Bicyclette Boutique on Vimeo.

NOTICE: I have closed down my website at bryannaclarkgrogan.com and am moving the informational pages I kept there to pages on this blog in the next week or two.  If there's a page you need right away, contact me via my contact page and  I'll send it to you. Thanks for your patience! -



If you read my last post, and the one before, you'll know that I developed a wholewheat no-knead dough that can be kept refrigerated for weeks and with which you can make all sorts of flatbreads, pizza dough, and some fabulous hamburger buns that are not heavy -- in fact, as I wrote before, I don't like heavy buns and these were just light and tasty enough (with a slightly crispy bottom) to compliment the burger rather than dominate it."

While I was finishing the trials on that recipe, I decided to make a new homemade vegan burger-- one made from inexpensive, simple, healthful ingredients, and suitable for soy-free and gluten-free diets, too.  That meant, no gluten powder, TVP/TSP, xanthan or guar gum, etc. (though I have nothing against any of those ingredients!).

Well, who knew that it would take me 5 tries!  But it did-- I've been obsessed with these burgers for over a week!  (Good thing my husband likes burgers any ol' time.)  I got the basic ingredients pretty much nailed right at the beginning, but there was some fooling around with amounts and trying, then discarding, extra grains as an addition.  I wanted the burgers to not be too "squishy", as I find many bean burgers, and I wanted more flavor than most I've tasted.  

I concentrated on umami-carrying ingredients for the seasoning (umami is also called the "fifth flavor" and foods that contain umami compounds are powerful flavor enhancers-- read about it here and here) and finally found the combination that carried enough flavor for my taste.  Adding small amounts of  mushrooms, onions, soy sauce (or my Soy-Free Sauce), miso, nutritional yeast, tomato ketchup, wine and dark sesame oil contributes umami and synergizing umami for full flavor.

Play around with the herbs and spices, if you like!



The buns are made with my No-Knead 100% Whole Wheat Flatbread, Pizza and Bun Dough 



NOTE ON OATMEAL FOR GLUTEN-FREE COOKING: 


Printable Recipe

One of my favorite things about summer are the outdoor parties. Warm weather is the perfect excuse to get everyone outdoors for lovely gatherings: cold beer, twinkle lights, sundresses, upbeat music, and ice cream a must.

Sources (from top to bottom): Samm Blake, Eat Drink Chic, Vintage Home, Bash Please, Feather Love, Our Labor of Love, Gayle Brooker, Brandon Kidd, Alec Vanderboom, and Kate Headley.

In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book.

Previous contributors include Bret Easton Ellis, Kate Christensen, Kevin Brockmeier, George Pelecanos, Dana Spiotta, Amy Bloom, Aimee Bender, Myla Goldberg, Heidi Julavits, Hari Kunzru, and many others.

Joshua Isard's novel Conquistador of the Useless is a clever slacker novel filled with magnificently unforgettable flawed characters.

Small Press reviews wrote of the book:

"Anyone who grew up at the tail-end of Generation X will find something to love in this book — the protagonist's angst over drifting, however late, into adulthood, his taste in music, or even his fraught-if-only-because-it's-so-damn-pleasant relationship with his parents. All told, a fine novel about settling down without settling."

Stream a Spotify playlist of these tunes. If you don't have Spotify yet, sign up for the free service.

In his own words, here is Joshua Isard's Book Notes music playlist for his novel, Conquistador of the Useless:

Music is central to my debut novel, Conquistador of the Useless, but more specifically it's music fandom. Nathan, the protagonist, went to high school in the mid 1990s, and is a grunge aficionado who never let go of that culture even into his 30s. When he and his wife buy a house in the suburbs, he befriends the teenage girl next door and is shocked to find that he likes some of the newer bands she listens to. This is one of the catalysts for Nathan's somewhat belated maturation through the novel, wherein he discovers how the world weariness of his youth helps him discover what he really values as an adult.

The music I've chosen here is a combination of the songs important to my characters, and those important to me. I'm a big fan, and always write with music on. I’ve made a playlist for every major project I’ve ever attempted, and that list has always developed along with the writing. For Conquistador, it began with some of my favorite alternative tracks that would get me into the mood I felt my initial pages should have—but then as the story grew I began adding songs that, for me, represented the characters, and even the book as a whole. The result is 54 songs, each of which has a subtly different meaning for me in the production of this novel. I still remember adding each one over the three years I wrote and edited it, and the reasons, however vague, that I did so.

Below are the best, and most interesting examples.

"Debaser" by Pixies

This is the seminal song of the novel. Pixies arguably spawned 90s alternative and grunge rock as we know it, and for Nathan they kick off his obsession with the genre. On a ride home from school someone plays "Debaser," and Nathan, who’d never connected with the classic rock his parents love, gets addicted to this new sound, which then dominates his high school years. Later on, when he’s married and Pixies get back together, Nathan and his wife go to the reunion tour where they end up spending a lot of time looking at the others in the audience who now have receding hairlines, crows feet, and even toddlers in tow. The music hasn’t changed for him, but he starts to realize that everything else has.

"Son of a Gun" by Nirvana

I really like Nirvana, obviously, but mostly their B-sides and covers. Yes, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is an essential song, but Incesticide has my favorite singles, especially their two covers of The Vaselines: "Molly’s Lips" and "Son of a Gun." I’ve heard various people say that "Teen Spirit" sort of changed their lives, but that always seemed a little ridiculous to me. So I wrote a character, Nathan’s neighbor, Tom, who says just that, and even has a guitar signed by all the members of Nirvana hanging in his home office to remind him. As Tom recounts how the song validated him, Nathan’s not quite sure what to say, so he tells the story of how Kurt Cobain came up with the title of the song because Teen Spirit was a brand of girls deodorant. Tom did not know this, and seems a little gutted. The exchange helps to establish Nathan’s real reason for moving to the suburbs: so he can be alone.

"Let Me In" by R.E.M.

This was the song that always focused me for writing, and stayed at the top of my playlist during the whole composition and editorial process. It’s intense right from the start, pensive, and put me in the mood to write something that is at once accessible and thoughtful (I hope…). The fact that it was written as a tribute to Kurt Cobain, and is part of one of the best albums of the 90s, doesn’t hurt, but I never thought about that when it came on. I thought about my characters and their story. Every single time. I hope I find another song like this for my next project.

"Suburban Home" by Descendents

I always wanted a bit of humor in Nathan’s story, and this song helped me to keep that in mind through the writing process. A satirical piece of punk that says, "I want to be stereotyped, I want to be classified," it reminded me of the irony Nathan and his wife feel as they move into a neighborhood about fifteen minutes away from the ones where they grey up. It could seem like a failure, and their instinct is that it should, but at the core their move is genuinely what they want.

"Titus Andronicus" by Titus Andronicus

If there is a contemporary band that I think those who grew up in the grunge culture would like, it’s Titus Andronicus. With their lo-fi, guitar driven sound, not to mention the humorous audacity of an eponymous name for their first single, they fall right into the style of the best bands of the early 90s. In the novel, the teenage girl Nathan befriends introduces him to bands like this. It helps him to realize that there’s some good music which was produced after his high school years, and that he might be able to handle growing up without losing every value from his youth—only the ones he probably should lose.

"Roots Radical" by Rancid

This is the band that Rayanne, the teenage girl, and Lisa, Nathan’s wife, find they have in common when they first meet. Rancid seems to be one of the bands that's had the most longevity, and I've seen more current teenagers at their shows than those of almost any other 90s band. When I saw them at the Electric Factory in Philly I stood on the balcony—you have to be 21 to get up there—and on the floor were teenagers, looking just like my friends and I must have ten or fifteen years ago when we came here. This seemed like one of the best ways to establish a connection between generations in the novel.

"Schaffino" by At The Drive-In

Jim Ward, the lead singer of At The Drive-In, used to work for Cinco Puntos Press. One of the first email exchanges I had with Lee Byrd, my editor and Cinco Puntos' CEO, was about how the novel made her think about Jim, his band, and how he cut a CD with the poet Bobby Byrd, Lee's husband and co-owner of Cinco Puntos. I hadn't thought of At The Drive-In for years, but once I got involved with CPP I went and downloaded the albums I used to own on CD back in high school. Their first album, Acrobatic Tenement, is incredible, especially "Schaffino," my favorite single, and this reinforced for me that I'd found the right place for my novel.

"All My Friends Are Insects" by Weezer

You know it's a good time to have kids when your favorite bands are appearing on children's programs to promote their new album. This track from the deluxe version of Hurley, released in 2010, was first played by Weezer on Yo Gabba Gabba, a performance I presume was as much for their kids as for them. Three of the four current members of Weezer have kids, and much of their original fan base does as well (and were probably thrilled to see Weezer on their children's favorite show), so this is a nice song to show where we've all come after the 90s. It's a good song, too, and is first on the playlist I made for my baby daughter.

Joshua Isard and Conquistador of the Useless links:

the author's website

Small Press Reviews review

Lit Bridge essay by the author

also at Largehearted Boy:

Book Notes (2012 - ) (authors create music playlists for their book)
Book Notes (2005 - 2011) (authors create music playlists for their book)
my 11 favorite Book Notes playlist essays

100 Online Sources for Free and Legal Music Downloads
Antiheroines (interviews with up and coming female comics artists)
Atomic Books Comics Preview (weekly comics highlights)
Daily Downloads (free and legal daily mp3 downloads)
guest book reviews
Largehearted Word (weekly new book highlights)
musician/author interviews
Note Books (musicians discuss literature)
Shorties (daily music, literature, and pop culture links)
Soundtracked (composers and directors discuss their film's soundtracks)
Try It Before You Buy It (mp3s and full album streams from the week's CD releases)
weekly music & DVD release lists

 

 

_{Posted in Fashion / Fashion blog / Fashion pictures / Look books}

Orla Kiely’s world is forever alive with prints, abundant, diverse and immediately recognizable ones. For resort 2014, the London-based designer set her mind on pretty hearts that were thoroughly explored both in small scale patterns, and in delicate heart-shaped appliques, adorning everything in between Kiely’s signature dresses, pastel colored cardigans and lightweight button-downs.

Article continues. To read it in full visit 'Orla Kiely Resort ’14 look book' at Fashionising.com »

Picture gallery

The other day, my fiancé and I had a serious talk about our eating habits. For a bit of time, he’s felt tired and rather lack luster. While we talked about what it could be, we came to the conclusion that part of it was diet. He’s the type of person who gets so enthralled with his work that he forgets to eat and when he does, it tends to be overloaded with bad carbs and starches. I also have a tendency to shy away from cooking most of my vegetarian main meals because I think he wouldn’t like them and instead stick with pizza, pasta, and whatever other carb-y thing I can think of. Our “everything in moderation” was becoming “everything in moderation with carbs for every meal.”

He started researching about his body type and what he talked to me about was adding healthy, lean protein into our diet through fish and chicken. (while I try and convince him beans and nuts are awesome too.)

And so, our evening meals are sort of a “his and hers” meal most of the time because even though I eat meat, I don’t eat it every day (reason why I still leave this site vegetarian). However, I thought it might be useful to some to show meals that could easy be meat free or not together, in the same meal.

I’ve been wanting a grill since I moved in and settled on going back to charcoal. I love the action of getting the coals lit, having a fire that isn’t controlled by gas, and having food that gets that perfect grill char. This marinade is wonderful for both chicken and veggies. I marinated the chicken separate from the veggies and then skewered everything right before grilling. (I have these skewers and I love them- no soaking wood ones, worrying about catching fire, or loosing your veggies)

 

The limited color palette in this kitchen — white, black, grey, wood tones — keep it modern and minimal. Love the look? Want to emulate some of it in your own kitchen? Here are sources to help you get the look. If you recognize other elements in the kitchen, please fill in the blanks in the comments! See another photo below:

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Ostrich and Flower Photograph No. 88243 by Kari Herer

Previous On the Wall print

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Pairing peanut brittle with cheese seems obvious with a bit of analyzation. It's sweet, nutty, salty, caramelized, and addictive: all adjectives used so frequently for cheese. If you're into switching up the things you eat alongside your cheese wedges, consider some chards of peanut brittle. But which cheeses match it best? 

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thanks to Marize for introducing me to niko and … another cool looking Japanese mail order fashion company that (a) i can’t understand and (b) will probably never actually order from. well, like many things on the internet i shall just sit back and admire. especially their cute 30 days coordinate project (they are on day 17 now, so check back for more.)

Dirty Cathy

Our four-legged friends may be happy to eat whatever food falls on the floor, but we know they deserve something a little better! Have you ever made homemade dog biscuits or pet treats? You may be perfectly happy baking them in the oven, but if not, you could always try this Pet Treat Maker from Holstein. It looks like a panini press or sandwich maker, but it presses out dog biscuits instead. (And yes, they're bone- and- paw-shaped!) 

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Camera Obscura have revealed further details of their fifth studio album, Desire Lines, set for release on June 3rd/4th via 4AD.

Desire Lines started life in 2011 - shortly after the release of their 4AD debut My Maudlin Career – as demos put together in singer Tracyanne Campbell’s flat. Revisiting those songs a couple of years later, the band made the decision to decamp from their native Glasgow to Portland, Oregon to work with GRAMMY-nominated producer Tucker Martine (R.E.M., Spoon, My Morning Jacket), enlisting Neko Case and My Morning Jacket’s Jim James to contribute vocals along the way.

The first morsel of music to be revealed from Desire Lines is the bold and beautiful ‘Do It Again’. Listen ‘Do It Again’ here or below.

The album is available to pre-order on iTunes as of today, and album track ‘Do It Again’ will be available as an instant download. Pre-order here.

Desire Lines tracklisting
1. Intro
2. This Is Love (Feels Alright)
3. Troublemaker
4. William’s Heart
5. New Year’s Resolution
6. Do It Again
7. Cri Du Coeur
8. Every Weekday
9. Fifth In Line To The Throne
10. I Missed Your Party
11. Break It To Me Gently
12. Desire Lines

Camera Obscura make their official live return at the Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona before embarking on a UK tour this summer, their first for three years.

March
10th – 35 Denton Music Festival, Denton, TX
12th – The Mohawk (Queue Day Party @ SXSW), Austin, TX
13th – Latitude 30 (Showcasing Scotland @ SXSW), Austin, TX
15th – Flamingo Cantina (Under The Radar @ SXSW), Austin, TX
19th – Le Poisson Rouge, New York, NY *
May
25th – Primavera Sound, Barcelona, Spain
June
4th – Liquid Rooms, Edinburgh, UK
5th – Academy 2, Manchester, UK
6th – Heaven, London, UK
7th – Cockpit, Leeds, UK
8th – Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK
9th – Rock Ness, Loch Ness, UK
16th – SOhO, Santa Barbara, CA
18th – The Wiltern, Los Angeles, CA
19th – The Regency Ballroom, San Francisco, CA
21st – Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR
22nd – Showbox at the Market, Seattle, WA
23rd – Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC
26th – Urban Lounge, Salt Lake City, UT
27th – Gothic Theatre, Englewood, CO
29th – Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, IL **
July
1st – Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, MI **
3rd – Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, Montréal, QC **
4th – Toronto Urban Roots Festival, Toronto, ON **
5th – Ottawa Bluesfest, Ottawa, ON **
6th – Summerstage, Central Park, New York, NY **
9th – Mann Center for Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA **
10th – Bank of America Pavilion, Boston, MA **
11th – Wolf Trap Filene Center, Vienna, VA **
12th – Haw River Ballroom, Saxapahaw, NC
13th – Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA
14th – Bunbury Music Festival, Cincinnati, OH

*w/ Marissa Nadler
**w/ She & Him