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Bringing Pinterest into the classroom

December 19, 2011 By Tori 1 Comment

It’s no secret that we’re completely hooked on Pinterest — and the new Grommet ideas are flowing here. About a month ago we corralled some of you to help out by pinning your favorite finds.  And we’ve really loved hearing about how you’re using Pinterest in your day-to-day lives. In fact, over 50 of you spoke up and  told us what Pinterest means to you. We’re learning so much and loving the conversation.

In fact, we recently heard from one of our community members, Tara, who told us how she’s made Pinterest part of her classroom and is using it as a learning tool:

Tara, tell us a bit about yourself

My name is Tara McCrackin and I’ve been teaching at Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, MI since 2000.  I’ve also been a practicing interior designer with a focus in commercial office design.  I’ve worked on projects for Steelcase, multiple showrooms across the country and their facilities in Grand Rapids — and I completed a LEED Gold project for RackSpace in San Antonio, TX.  You can see some of my work here. I’ve been doing a lot of consulting for Turnstone in the past couple of years on color and space planning tips.  You can see their profile of me at the bottom of the page here.

How were you introduced to Pinterest? Did you bring it into your classroom or was it the other way around?

A former student told me about Pinterest and I joined in early October.  Then I told my students about it and suggested some ways that they could use it for classes (it’s not uncommon for me to share technologies with my classes, and vice versa).  I also suggested that it would be a good organizational tool for inspirational images and for any furniture or accessory information that they collect for projects.

How are you incorporating Pinterest into your instruction?

So far I’ve used Pinterest as a suggested technology to support the class projects.  I haven’t required that my students use it.  My expectations are such that I intend to learn from the students as much as they learn from me  (I am a self identified “Digital Immigrant”).

What’s the most surprising or helpful thing about using Pinterest in your instruction?

What has had the biggest “wow” moment for me has been to see how effective it is for group projects.  That the team can work collaboratively and “like” or “dislike” pieces and then share the images which has been very effective.  They all have on demand access to it, so I don’t hear, “Well, Suzy has it on her hard drive and I don’t know where she got it”.  The student who is working on specific areas can post images, and classmates who are working on the drawings can go to the websites and get dimensions, etc.

Here’s a screen shot of what some of my students (Emily and Claire)  have been pinning for a recent project:

Tara: Thanks for sharing this with us and for giving us a peek inside your classroom. It looks like your students are using Pinterest in a really practical way, and I’ll bet the visual (and convenient) aspect of the platform is making it more exciting for them as well.

We’d love to keep this conversation going — tell us, what are some of the interesting ways you’re using Pinterest? What’s the most exciting aspect of the tool for you?

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A feast for the eyes

November 20, 2011 By Tori 3 Comments

Yesterday, we invited entertaining expert Chris Nease to share  stylish tips for your Thanksgiving table. Today, we’re delighted to have design blogger – Amy Beth Cupp Dragoo here to continue sharing great holiday decor inspiration and ideas.

by Amy Beth Cupp Dragoo

My name is Amy Beth Cupp, and nearly five years ago I married Mr. D. That makes me ABCD! I write a blog about making your house a home which is aptly named ABCDDesign. I am a trained chef, artist and floral designer. I have worked in event planning, floral, stationery and interior design. I am thrilled the Daily Grommet asked me here to talk about decorating for the holiday season.

 

Who is planning to entertain at home in the next few weeks? So much of the holidays are focused on sharing time at the table with close friends and family, so I am going to focus on tabletop decorations today. A huge percentage of pleasure at a meal is about the visual experience. Make it a feast for the eyes!

 

China, Stemware, and Flatware! My motto is simple: Life is short. Eat off the good china! Whether you are throwing an event for two or twenty, I think it is important to make life’s little moments into memorable milestones. Unless your wedding china was handed down from your great, great grandmother chances are that a broken dish is either still in production or can purchased at replacements.com. So don’t be afraid to USE the pretty stuff.

One of the biggest trends we see in tabletop is mix and match china. It’s all about layering, layering, layering. Notice all of the linens are natural color. This makes it easy to repurpose them at other times of the year. Napkins are either folded alongside the plate, placed in the top dish, or slipped between the top and bottom dish – there are no rules.

The mood we have in these images is nostalgic, it’s cozy, mis-matched. We have a combination of materials that help lend an antiqued feel to the space. Do different textures on your tabletop: wood, moss, bark, greenery, combining gold and silver finishes and pine cones add a fabulous foil to the cool, sparkling china and the glimmer of crystal. The use of linen, wood, twine, and mixed metallics compliment the combination of clear and mercury glass.

Speaking of which, mercury glass is everywhere this holiday season. It’s wonderful because it looks as fantastic at the 4th of July as it does at Halloween and Christmas. It doesn’t show fingerprints and it gives an instant feel of history to the table. Other trends we’re seeing a ton of in Holiday ornaments and decorations: crowns, woodland animals and mushrooms.

When decorating your table for the holidays, think about starting with a neutral palette on all the basics (tablecloths, and napkins especially) and then dress it up at the with pops of color that don’t necessarily have to be a predictable fall colors for Thanksgiving or the traditional Christmastime red and green color palette. By mixing in fresh greenery, Christmas bulbs and other wintery elements, we get a decidedly ‘holiday’ feel.

Lighting: Flicker LED candles are all the rage. They won’t blow out during an event and save on clean-up after a party. But personally, I love the soft glow that orange and peach color candles give a room, so I always add them in regardless of whether I am using LED lights or not.

Centerpieces: Be certain not to use highly scented flowers such as lilies. Keep your flower budget low by using only one or two varieties of flowers in your arrangements. Get creative and reach for old family pieces. Soup tureens, galvanized buckets, crystal bowls, water pitchers, coffee pots and tea cups all make interesting containers for floral decorations.

Fill bowls, vessels and pitchers with seasonal fruits; persimmons, apples, oranges, cranberries and pears. I chose to do a mixture of clementines and tangerines. They’re fantastic this time of year, and will be happily snacked upon long after the dinner party is over. I like to carry the mood throughout the house. I put Christmas bulbs in big bowls in nearly every room.

Prizes! Party favors are not just for kids parties any more. We’ve been seeing more and more hostesses giving token gifts out to their party guests. I have designed these letterpress matchboxes that play double duty and act as place card holders at the table. All my guests can go home with a handsome parting gift at the end of the night. They last far longer than any bottle of wine or tin of cookies, they also make a terrific Hostess gift for any Winter party.

Speaking of hostess gifts: one of my favorite finds this year were MyDrap linens on a roll. They’re eco friendly, 100% cotton and linen. They are washable up to six times and come in a myriad of colors. They’re an amazing way to add quick, reasonably priced color to your table for a themed event, or make for a fabulous hostess gift.

Ideas for easy entertaining at the holidays: Highlight what you are good at. Hire out what you do not do or can not do yourself. Throw a Winter Solstice Cookie Party: I bake every cookie and holiday treat I have the recipe for and invite my friends in for dessert. I serve homemade eggnog, champagne, coffee and tea. It is such an easy, fun way to throw a celebration. All the work is done ahead of time and I can truly appreciate my guests without worrying that I am burning something in oven -OR- Consider throwing a New Years Day open house: prepare a pot of soup, serve rolls, a cheese and olive plate on a buffet. Let people come and go and help themselves throughout the afternoon.

Jingle-Jingle! And most of all, ENJOY. xo ABCD

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Would you like more holiday help? ABCD, and several other expert bloggers will be joining us for a fun and festive Twitter party. We’ll be sharing more ideas and tips for holiday food, decor, gifts, plus much more! More info here. We hope you’ll join us!

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Style Tips for a Festive Thanksgiving

November 18, 2011 By Tori 2 Comments

If you’re hosting Thanksgiving dinner, it may be starting to feel a bit like “crunch time.” You probably have your menu in mind and the guest list set, but have you decided what to do for your dining table? Sometimes it’s all of these little details that can make the holiday season a bit stressful. When we’re feeling the pinch, we call in the experts. Thankfully, we know some pretty talented designers and bloggers who are always willing to help us out. Today, we’ve asked entertaining expert Chris Nease from Celebrations At Home, to share some decorating tips and ideas.  Here are some of her favorites:

by Chris Nease

1. Think outside the box for your Thanksgiving decorating. Orange, gold and rust is a beautiful color combination — but why not try something more modern like brown and aqua blue? This color scheme is unexpected yet still earthy and inviting. Other interesting choices might be gold and silver, brown and green, or tan and red.

2. Get creative with your centerpiece. For years we’ve seen pumpkins and gourds used in a Thanksgiving centerpiece which is classic and lovely. However, I love to create an eclectic centerpiece by pulling items from around the house and creating “small vignettes” down the middle of the table. This works particularly well for a long narrow banquette table and you can incorporate things like books, vases of flowers, small statues, and even keys and buttons.

3. Place settings get a whimsical touch with the addition of a Lucky Wishbone on each plate. This way everyone gets to make a wish!

4. Remind guests to save room for dessert by placing individual mini pies at each place. Wrap them up with newspaper, wax paper, or scrapbook paper to add a decorative touch.

5. If you’re like us and eat your meal at dinner time you’ll need something to hold you over until then. We usually serve wine and appetizers while watching football games and socializing. Set up a pretty, coordinating bar and snack area in another room so it doesn’t interfere with traffic flow of the kitchen and dining area.

6. Finally, make sure to have some disposable containers on hand so guests can take home leftovers. Everyone loves those leftover turkey sandwiches!

Would you like more holiday help? Chris, and several other expert bloggers will be joining us for a fun and festive Twitter party. We’ll be sharing ideas and tips for holiday food, decor, gifts, plus much more! More info here. We hope you’ll join us!

Images from CelebrationsAtHomeBlog.com

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Holiday help from our community

November 16, 2011 By Tori Leave a Comment

With Thanksgiving right around the corner and the count-down to Christmas underway, we’re feeling like this year has flown by. Decorating, planning holiday menus, shopping — doesn’t it seem like there is so much to do? We were sure feeling that way, so we decided to gather a few holiday pros to help us gather ideas (and our wits!) to prepare and enjoy this holiday season. Hope you can join us (the more the merrier of course).

Join expert entertaining, design, and food bloggers as we share tips and ideas to make this holiday season more fun, more creative, and of course, stress-free. We’ll be gathering on Twitter for a Twitter Party and giving away some great prizes.

When: Monday, November 21 at 7-8pm EST (4-5pm PST)

Hashtag: #HolidayHelp

Co-Hosts:

  • @CelebrateAtHome – Entertaining expert Chris Nease is bringing creative holiday party ideas
  • @CarissaRogers – Family blogger Carissa Rogers is sharing special holiday traditions
  • @ABCDdesigns – Design blogger Amy Beth Cupp Dragoo is giving up her insider tips for holiday decorating
  • Keep watching … even more experts will be joining us for the event

Prizes: We’ll be giving away four $25 Daily Grommet gift cards live at the party, plus announcing a HUGE giveaway as well – just in time to help out with your holiday shopping.

Hope to tweet ya’ there!

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Operation Shower

September 14, 2011 By Tori Leave a Comment

Every day here at Daily Grommet, we are making new connections and learning the stories of so many people doing impressive things. Our online community is expanding daily, and we enjoy getting to know each new friend. Whenever we get the chance to meet up (in person) with  our virtual community, we jump at the chance.  I recently had a opportunity to meet up with several of our friends from Twitter, Facebook and the blogosphere at an event in San Diego. There, I hit it off with Amy Belle Isle, the Chief Event Planner for Operation Shower. After learning about the amazing work they is doing, I knew I had to report back and help spread the word!

Q&A with Amy Belle Isle

Tell us a bit about Operation Shower, what is it and how did it begin?

Operation Shower started in March 2007 as a simple project, when founder LeAnn Morrissey, was looking for a way to give back to her uncle who was deployed overseas. LeAnn asked her uncle what she could do and he replied that many people send items to the soldiers but what she could do was send a card to four women who were expecting babies while their spouses were deployed. That sparked an idea, so LeAnn got family and friends together to send a “shower in a box” to each mom. After the reception those first boxes got, she knew she was onto something that really made a difference to these women and to their husbands. She teamed up with a friend and held the very first unit-wide shower at Ft. Bragg, NC in June 2007. Since then, Operation Shower has showered more than 450 women on military bases and other locations for the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and National Guard.

How do you organize (and execute!) these wonderful baby showers?

Little sleep!

From a party standpoint, I am fortunate that I have made so many wonderful friends in the event planning, party printables and online party blog world. That helps! Time and time again, these wonderful women volunteer to help design printables, send gorgeous product for our dessert tables, set up if it’s in their neighborhood etc. Once we decide on a theme and I have a general concept in mind, I work with the graphic/printables designer to get a feel for the paperie. Then it’s off to come up with centerpieces, feature areas, locate local vendors…the works!

From a product standpoint, we are working on securing companies to donate to all showers for a year or for multiple showers. We are gaining more success with that, but still often must secure most product for each and every shower we host. See below for ways to help!

What has been the most surprising and/or rewarding part of working for Operation Shower?

Surprising? Maybe that it never, ever gets old being at a shower with the moms. Each one is as special as the other because, for those moms, that is their only Operation Shower experience. That or how much has happened in just this past year alone. While still an extremely small organization we have managed to accomplish some really big things.

One of the special parts about Operation Shower is that we give every event as much love and attention as if you were hosting a shower for your best friend. A recent mom-to-be said our shower was “the one thing during this whole deployment she has been looking forward to.” That is big to us. It is our duty to make sure she, and every other mom that walks into our showers, has the experience of a lifetime.

To that, the single most rewarding part is being in that room with the moms when they open their Showers In A Box and win the amazing raffle prizes. Seeing the smiles and, often, the tears are the biggest joy you can imagine. At our last shower, one mom I spoke to said, “I don’t know how I can ever repay you.” After we hugged and both cried a little I told her that she has already paid tenfold with her family’s service every single day. There is no greater reward than knowing that you made a difference to someone.

How can others get involved?

There are many ways to help! As a non-profit, our biggest need is financial support. We have on-line donation through Paypal and Google Checkout on our website (www.operationshower.org) and also gladly accept checks to the address on our site.

We’ve got an Amazon Wish List where anyone can purchase items and have them sent directly to us to be included in our Showers In A Box. This has been a great new way for people to help without having to head to the post office! Lately, we’ve had some wonderful groups of people around the country get together and host events in their home for Operation Shower. The Wish List is a good way to see what we are most in need of at this time. People can point their guests to our Amazon Wish List or possibly pick a theme from our Shower Kits list. Simply host a party and have every guest brings donations. It’s a great thing to incorporate into all of holiday parties that people might be hosting soon!

Operation Shower event with special guests: First Lady, Michelle Obama and Second Lady, Dr. Jill and Martha Stewart

What’s next for Operation Shower?

Lots of fun things! First of all the continuation of our “Fall Tour” of 4 states. We’ve just completed a shower in Groton, CT and are about to head to Norfolk, VA and Atlanta, GA this month and then off to Ft Campbell, KY in November. It’s a busy Fall full of lots of happy moms!

We are also currently working on planning where we will be able to go in 2012. Our goal for 2012 is eight unit-wide showers. Where we are able to go is dependent upon securing sponsors, so we’re working hard on that to plan our calendar! Sponsors welcome.

As mentioned, we are also starting to work on a program to better utilize those around the country that want to volunteer. So much of what we do cannot be “farmed out” at this point but we know there is a way we can involve others in our mission. We look forward to coming up with the plan that works for everyone and helps us grow and reach more moms!

Oh, and 2012 is the year of “Ellen.” A small non-profit can dream, right? We had a goal of having the First Lady attend one of our showers to honor our moms. Well, earlier this year the White House reached out to us and asked us to help kick off the Joining Forces campaign at Camp Lejeune, NC. First Lady Michelle Obama, Dr. Jill Biden and Martha Stewart were all there! Following that, we were listed in a Parade Magazine article as one of three of Mrs. Obama and Dr. Biden’s “favorite groups that are helping America’s military families.” So, next stop on our “dream list” is is to be a part of Ellen’s Mother’s Day special where she honors military moms. That, or we’ll take any other episode, too! We’d love to come up with an effective social media campaign to get on Ellen!

Thank you Amy for taking the time to share Operation Shower with us. Keep up the amazing work, we know you will continue to grow. Ellen, here they come!

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Fashion executive to digital mom

July 11, 2011 By Tori 12 Comments

We enjoy following the evolving stories of our Grommet friends and love hearing how they are shaking things up, making a difference or following their dreams. In the case of our pal Audrey McClelland, it’s all three! Here to share her new book, we sat down for a little Q&A with Audrey (plus we have a giveaway, details at end of the post!).

Colleen Padilla and Audrey McClelland authors of The Digital Mom

The last time we spoke you were telling us about your fashion vlog and your 365 days of fashion project, tell us — what’s new with you?

Well, I’m excited to announce that my book (that I co-authored with Colleen Padilla) The Digital Mom Handbook is coming out July 26th! This has kind of taken over my life right now.  We started thinking about the idea of this book back in October of 2009… so to know that it’s almost ready to be released, it’s truly a dream come true.

How did you like the process of writing a book? Any surprises?

You know, it’s funny… I’ve written another book before, Preconception Plain & Simple, with my mom, but we self-published, we never actively looked for a publisher.  It was much, much different — we had to do everything (I mean, everything).  This time around with The Digital Mom Handbook was a DREAM.  It was hard work, yes… but it was good hard work.  Colleen and I knew what we wanted to share, so it was just a matter of making sure everything we wanted in the book, made it in the book.  Having an editor helped tremendously because we were guided through the whole process.  We each took a stab at different chapters, and then came together to make it work as one.  The biggest surprise for me throughout the process was seeing the amount of edits that went back and forth… everything is so thorough, and it was incredible to see that.  Not to mention, this is “our” baby, and it was amazing to see people care about it as much as we did.

What has surprised you most about your career transformation from Fashion Executive to Blogger to now published Author?

The journey has been amazing. You know, when I was working at Donna Karan, I always dreamed of doing something on my own.  When I started blogging, I remember actually thinking, “Oh… so this is what I’ve been wanting to do my whole life.” I just LOVED It! I felt like I finally figured it all out in terms of what I was supposed to be doing with my life.  So when the book came along, I just felt very excited.  It’s an extension of myself and I just really felt so much information about the digital mom world needed to be shared.  The digital mom community means so much to me, and I just wanted to be able to support it in the best way possible.

Is there a  book tour in the works? Anything else you want to share with us?

We have a few things in the works.  For anyone who orders our book before July 26th (the day our book will officially be released) we have a special offer for them.  You’ll have access to an exclusive online seminar with me and Colleen. We’ll discuss the book LIVE, share tips and advice and take questions from the readers during our webinar.  I’m very excited about this!!  And we’re going to be doing Digital Mom Handbook seminars throughout the country towards the end of 2011 and into 2012, so stay tuned for cities where we will be.

Audrey, thank you for sharing this update with us – the Daily Grommet gang is enjoying watching your (digital) story evolve!

Want to learn more about The Digital Mom Handbook? Read more and preorder your copy here. We are also giving one away right here on the Daily Grommet blog! Just leave a comment for a chance to win a copy.

For an extra entry, tweet (leave a comment here letting us know you tweeted):

” I entered to win a copy of  #DigitalMomHandbook on @DailyGrommet http://j.mp/mQuqCg “

General contest rules: To enter, you must be a U.S. resident and at least 18 years of age and you must leave a comment or question on today’s post. No purchase necessary. Two entries per person. The winner will be randomly selected and notified via email. Employees, contractors, and the families of employees and contractors of Daily Grommet, Inc. are not eligible to enter. You are not eligible to win if you have received a prize or giveaway from Daily Grommet in the last six months. Void where prohibited. Contest will run from 11 am PST July 11, 2011 to 10 pm PST July 13, 2011.

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July 4th Traditions

July 1, 2011 By Tori Leave a Comment

As I sat around daydreaming about the upcoming long weekend, I decided to poll the team here at Daily Grommet to find out about their traditions, favorite 4th of July eats, and memories from past years. Enjoy their replies and feel free to share your own Independence Day traditions in a comment below.

Do you travel? Stay local? Are fireworks a must in your book? It seems that here at Daily Grommet HQ, there are a mix of long standing traditions and new ones being made.

Jules’ family heads to Casco, Maine, on Pleasant Lake. Her favorite spot is sitting on the dock getting destroyed by mosquitoes while watching the local fireworks randomly going off around the lake (thinking someone should remind her to take a ThermaCell!).

You’ll find Julia watching fireworks with family on the beach (which sounds great to me!), while Danielle heads to Swanton, Vermont, with her entire family to their camp on Lake Champlain. All 17 of them make the four-hour haul up  north to stay in a  quaint, three-bedroom lake house with no tv or internet for several days packed with stuff to do and lots of good food.

Ann shares: “Every July 4th, my dad would drag me and my three brothers to the dock or the beach to take a picture. We’d hold up a sign with the year written on it. In a few of those photos I look like a surly teen who’s mortified at having to take such a hokey picture in public. Now I’m putting my own kids through the same ritual — but they’re still too young to be embarrassed by it!”

Joanne’s crew keeps busy by waterskiing (courtesy of Grampy’s 35-year-old vintage orange “Chrysler Funster”) and tournaments of horseshoes, badminton, and whiffle ball.

For others, like Jesse, traditions are just forming. His young family enjoys a combination of activities like a BBQ, bouncy houses, and pony rides.

Do you stick with old favorites or try new regional recipes? Seems the folks here at Daily Grommet are not going to go hungry this weekend:

Hang out with Jen and Katherine for your typical BBQ fare like hot dogs and potato salad — or visit Leonard out in LA while he’s grilling up steaks for the 4th. Sara, serves up salmon and peas with mashed potatoes which sound delish.

Des spends the fourth in his Maine cabin cooking up a storm from his favorite cookbook, Maine Ingredients (Kennebunk Kabobs or Strawberry and Lettuce Salad anyone?).

But if I had to pick someone to eat with on the 4th, it’s a close call between Jeanne (she brings the cupcakes) and Kate (who whips up a festive strawberry and blueberry tart).

Ah the memories: Fireworks, parades, family and friends.

Hearing about everyone’s July 4th memories was perhaps the most fun for me. I love that Donna’s husband won a lawn mower throwing contest two years ago and that Wendy met her husband at a 4th of July parade in Vermont.

I enjoyed hearing June talk about watching fireworks and catching fireflies with her nieces and nephews; and Jamie’s story about how he met his girlfriend four years ago on a 4th of July sail around Boston Harbor. Jamie also told me that his Mother’s birthday is on the 4th — so a big  ”Happy Birthday” to her!

 As for me (Tori), I also  have a young family whose traditions seem to be forming a bit more every year. I am not exactly sure where we’ll be or what we’ll be doing … but  I do know there will be bright fireworks (oh and definitely homemade strawberry ice cream!).

So now that the long weekend is kicking off, we’d love to know … What are YOUR 4th of July traditions, favorite eats and fond memories? Feel free to share them with us!

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What dads really want

June 15, 2011 By Tori Leave a Comment

With Father’s Day fast approaching, we took to Twitter to see what some of our favorite dads really enjoy doing. In 140 characters or less, they described their ideal Father’s Day.

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dad blogs - @BenSpark @BenSpark: My Ideal Dad’s Day. Breakfast. Drive to the Cape. Family Kayak Trip. Picnic Clambake on the Beach. Movie w/lots of popcorn.

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@backpackingdad - dad blogs @BackpackingDad: It begins with sleeping in, and ends with a visit to a giant statue of me raised in my honour by a grateful nation. The middle is hazy.

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@CuteMonsterDad: Sleep in. Awaken to pancakes. Stroll in the park. Catch a movie. Poolside barbecue. Kids asleep early. Quality time with my wife.

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@dadofdivas: My ideal day as a dad would be taking the kids our Geocaching just the three of us and exploring the world around us, finding treasurer & fun.

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Any surprises here? I’ll be honest I expected at least one mention of golf! What do you have planned for Father’s Day?

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Kodak PlayTouch video camera giveaway!

June 2, 2011 By Tori Leave a Comment
kodak mini video camera review

Jesse filming Eco Touch waterless car wash video

Daily Grommet’s Video Director, Jesse Buckley, recently stepped in front of the camera to share how our daily videos are created. Today, Jesse is sharing details about which camera he uses and why he recommends it.  Be sure to stop by the Kodak: A Thousand Words blog to check out his guest post.

Also, we are thrilled that Kodak has partnered with us to give one of our lucky readers a Kodal PlayTouch video camera of their own! Be sure to stop by our Facebook page and enter to win.

Thanks Kodak!

Filed Under: Contests & Giveaways Tagged With: ,

A passion for delicious photos

May 16, 2011 By Tori 1 Comment

If you are a regular reader here, it comes to no surprise that we love food. From scouting cool places to eat, to sharing our favorite food blogs, and even challenging our own readers to come up with unique (mini!) recipes — if it’s tasty, we’re interested! During our love affair with great foodie resources, we’ve been following an up-and-coming food blogger Lisa Thiele. Her blog, With Style and Grace is equal parts delicious food and delicious food photography. She was gracious enough to do a little Q&A with us, and we would love to help tell her story.

Note – Lisa realized this is her first interview and found it to be a great exercise to articulate her story and journey so far. We are honored to be sharing her first interview with you. We have no doubt, there will be many more in Lisa’s future.

I am not sure which is more captivating, your recipes or your photography. Which came first, your love for food or photos?
food blogs

Mushroom & Walnut Quinoa + Fried Egg (recipe and photo by Lisa Thiele)

When I quit my job, I decided to start cooking since it was the one thing I knew and loved to do. I then needed a way to share my recipes on my blog, With Style and Grace so my mom loaned me her camera and well, the rest is history. That was in August 2010.

How did you learn to cook so well? What about your food photography, how did you get started?

I can’t help but laugh. I grew up watching my parents cook and reading food magazines & cookbooks and then watching the Food Channel while I worked or studied. See, I’m a perfectionist and since I didn’t have experience (i.e. confidence) in the kitchen, I had just assumed I would fail. Note: don’t be like me. It wasn’t until the end of college that I really got into cooking and now I go to bed dreaming of what I’m going to make next.

Food photography is all self taught and started so I could share my recipes and inspire others in some form or another.

What has been most exciting so far in your blogging, foodie, and photography journey?

For the blog – Every day is exciting for me. I truly love my blog. Receiving comments from followers who tried and loved my recipes, emails from people wanting to work with me and then seeing my work on other blogs or sites. It’s allowed me to connect with the most incredible people and to really inspire grace and beauty in other people’s lives.

For the foodie – I recently joined the Gluten-free Ratio Rally, started by Gluten-free Girl, which is a group of us set out to test gluten-free baked goods based off a ratio. For the first time, I created my very own gluten-free recipe, for baking. It felt amazing and now I have the confidence (& desire) to continue creating my own recipes.

With Style Grace - food blogs

Lisa juggling cameras while attending a styling and food photography camp

For the Photographer – It’s honestly exciting any time someone says they’re inspired by my photography or that they want to hire me. However, the most exciting was when my local (yet, famous) bakery hired me as a photographer – I mean shooting beautiful cupcakes and cakes, talk about a dream!

What has been most challenging?

Trusting myself and not being fearful of the unknown. If someone were to ask me what I would be doing a year ago from now, I would have starred at them, wondering the same thing. Not knowing what’s ahead and whether we’ll be able to pay our bills has been very challenging, but rather than reacting from fear, I have to just trust my heart that it’s leading me in the right direction.

What’s in the future? Any exciting plans or dreams?

I dream of becoming a food photographer and having my blog be a place where people come for inspiration. I’m currently working on a cookbook with my mom, who’s an incredible cook! Overall, I aim to inspire grace and beauty whether that’s working as a photographer, creating/sharing recipes, planning/hosting events, or bringing people together.

What three blogs do you read daily?

Just three?? I think this might be the hardest question, yet!

1. Joy the Baker

2. Creature Comforts

3. Cannelle et Vanille

Thank you Lisa for sharing your story with us! We look forward to drooling over reading more of With Style and Grace!

For those of you new to Lisa’s work — check out the delicious creations she made after we sent her a Babycakes Whoopie Pie Maker to test. These gluten-free strawberry cakes and these vanilla whoopie pies almost look to good to eat.

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