#Fair,Food,Fun

Nothing signals those end-of-summer/intro-to-fall feelings for me quite like a trip to the LA county fair!
Every year the fair opens up some country realness to a bunch of city folk with petting zoos, rodeos, and let us not forget THE FOOD!

While fair food may not be the healthiest choice
-trust me, I felt like I need to do a seven day prayer fast after-
there are a few things I'd recommend if you're ready to get your grub on!

And if you know anything about me, it's that I do, in fact, like to get my grub on!

Having people there to share the foodie adventures totally heightens my experience and luckily I had my sister and our friend Monique of Curves and Chaos there to enjoy it with! :D

So my sister Pearmama was a big fan of these bad boys, know as the chipotle "dirty" chips from Tasti Chips. They were pretty good, even though I'm not a big fan of bleu cheese. They were loaded with diced tomatoes, green onions, sweet shredded beef and bleu cheese then topped with a chipotle sauce. 

The chips themselves were really crispy and fresh tasting.

Tasti Chips also offered jalapeño cheddar cheese chips which looked delicious!  

I'm DEF gonna have to give those a try on my next trip.  

Charlie's Chicken is an interesting plethora of fried sins. 

From a deep fried oreo, deep fried twinkie, deep fried frog legs and deep fried bacon-wrapped pickles (which were DE-FREAKING-LICIOUS by the way) . 

Didst I neglect to mention that they are also serving up a hamburger and sloppy joe between two Krispy-Kreme donuts????!!!!!!!! 

"Oh LAWD!"  shouted my arteries.

After all of that fried-ness, I was definitely happy to see a chicken and veggie kabob on the menu!!!

Ok, now onto my favorite things.....

*rubs hands together and chuckles villainously* 

The bloomin' onion is like a golden-crunchy-sweet-savory drop of godly nectar! 

Like for reals tho!

It comes with a really good dipping sauce that just totally made the 13 year old fat kid inside of me extremely happy!

Even tastier and scrumptious-er (?) was the BBQ braised brisket sundae. 

I know what you're thinking. "ewwwww that's just gone too far!!"

Halt all ye naysayers!!!!......

This beauty has two scoops of mashed potatoes in place of ice cream, and delicious toppings of braised beef brisket, bbq sauce and a cherry tomato to top it off!

Omg. I'm not much of a meat eater but this was yummmmmmmmmmm!

The fair has tons of food options to offer, such as pizza made from a TEN pound loaf of bread and in case you are suddenly worried out you calorie count, Skinnygirl Cocktails are there to take a little guilt out of the gluttony!

One thing that I was a little too nervous to actually eat was this lil' guy..... It reminded me of Sebastien from The Little Mermaid.. and it smelled super fishy. So I just snapped some Instagram pics, made a Vine then sent my little friend on his way....

 I think my sister pearmama and I agree...we weren't the biggest fans of the crawfish craze.

The L.A County fair is open now and runs until September 30, 2013. It's a perfect place for the family and a fun place to hang with friends! 

ttyl,
Jeshua

Get social with the L.A County Fair on Twitter and Facebook

Summa-time Shenanigans Music Playlist

Well it is here...Officially.

 Summertime yay!

 Now,  Lord knows I would be lying if I said I was happy about all this heat and stuff

- because to be honest... unless I am at the beach, in a pool or in the air conditioning... I am not the most positive, happy person to be around-

bitch mode activate

However, I must admit that there is something about the summertime that always gives me a giddy feeling.

The warm sand under my feet, the palm trees blowing in the breeze, the family barbecues, the outdoor parties that go long into the night.  The beach bonfires, the surf sessions, the possibilities of a summer love.....

 (the booty shorts and bikini's amIright?)

Yes, there's something quite infectious about sommer here in California. It's resonance is palpable.... if resonance can be..uh...palpable.  

Whether you're chilling at the beach, river, pool or wherever you prefer (or imagine you are), there is nothing like some slick grooves to get you in the summer mood. 

Here's a little playlist of some of my favorite summer grooves.  I will most defiitely playing this playlist today at the beach! 

Hope you enjoy it!

OH yeah,

And PLEASE try to stay out of trouble ;P

get into ALL the summa-time shenanigans you possibly can!!!!! Do it!!!!!!!

Happy Saturday!

 Ttyl,

 Jeshua

DIY No Sew Mexi-fabric Pocket Tank

 Lately I have been all about the "Accent Pocket."  From the runways to the streets of the hood (outside my window -_-) everyone is hot on the AP trend. 

Here's an easy NO SEW tutorial to give your summer clothes new life and some extra kick.  

Step 1: 

I started with and old white cotton t-shirt that I had ombré dyed with Tulip's One-step tie dye.  You can see my ombré dying video here to learn how I achieved the look. 

Then, I cut the t-shirt into a tanktop.  

Step 2: 

Next measure out a 5"x5" square onto some card stock paper.. I would explain more but um... just look at the pic yo! lol

Trace the pattern onto the fabric with some fabric chalk then cut it out with about a 1" seam allowance.  

To give the pocket a little more weight, I cut a strip of fabric. About 2 1/2" in height and 7" in across.

Step 3: 

Use Aleene's peel & stick Fabric Fusion tape to seal the seams of your pocket by folding excess fabric in on itself.  

Create seams for the fabric strip and use the fabric fusion tape to adhere strip to the top-front of your pocket  

Back of finished pocket

Front of finished pocket

Step 4:

Trace pattern with chalk onto tank to get a general idea of where you want your pocket placed.

Add Fabric Fusion to back of your pocket.  Be sure to only add the tape to the sides and bottom of the pocket, otherwise the pocket will be sealed and...uh...won't be a pocket...

so yeah...

Now you're gonna place the pocket onto the tank.  The tape is like, SUPER permanent so you are gonna have one shot to get the pocket in the right place so..uuh..GOOD LUCK brah!

Press down firmly to make sure that your pocket is completely adhered to the tank.

Step 5:

Finally I added this Crafty Chica iron on applique to the pocket using a high heat iron, on the "wool" setting.  Then just follow instructions on the packaging.    

...BOOM...

That's it! Pocket finished!

I even made a few different pockets with different design patterns!

Enjoy making your own rad, no-sew pockets ya'll!

Smothered and Covered

So now that it's summer time, the nights are warm, inviting and just begging to be spent out on adventures. This cover happened after one such adventure

...at four in the morning...

when I was just getting home.

(sigh)

 Why I decided to sing at that unholy hour of the morning is beyond my comprehension...

alas...

My cover of John Legen'd Ordinary People :D

BoifromIpanema's Summer-time Shenanigans

 So with summer quickly approaching, everyone is getting ready to hit the beaches.

 There's nothing like some good music to get the beach party and those summer-time shenanigans started.

 Here is a playlist of some of my favorite Latin artists and songs both past and present.
 Gonna definitely put this playlist on this weekend :D

What are some of your favorite beach/summer songs?

Happy summer y'all!

 

All opinions are my own.  Content and/or other value provided by our partner, Target.

DIY Stenciled Frida Kahlo Tank

So lately, I have been on a big tank top kick.

 Being that I live in "sunny SoCal" the temperature is still in the 80's and 90's well into the beginning of October. 

Meaning??

Summer is still in full throttle mode.  

...le sigh....when will it be scarf, boot, hot cider weather yo?!!

I figured that the opportunity was still ripe and ready for just one more Summa-time Shenanigan post. Just to really seal up the deal. Although you can use this method on any fabric surface of your choice,  I decided to create a stencil of the beloved Frida Kahlo on a tank using DecoArt's SoSoft acrylic fabric paint.

Um, bewbs.

Frida was so butch.

Step 1: I started by printing out a few images of La Friducha that I liked from the interwebz. I was partial to these two, for obvious reasons. I found a really cool tutorial by Kathy, The Crafty Chica on how to cut graffiti-styled stencils which you can peep below.

Step 2: Make the stencil. I didn't have that cool little knife that Kathy had in her video, so I used a #11 X-acto blade. Try not to cut, stab, or dismember yourself like I always seem to do.

My stencil in progress.

All cut out and ready for some paint.

Kathy used spray paint, but I decided to apply the SoSoft fabric paint with stippling brushes.

Making sure the paint goes on nice and smooth.

SoSoft fabric Paints by DecoArt.

I can't rave enough about DecoArt's SoSoft fabric paint. The stuff is hashtag totes amaze. Since it comes in so many colors as well as glitter colors, I decided to make a few tanks for the ladies. Yeh, that's right, I said it...for the ladies. ;)

Step 3: Final step...bask in your the glory of your handiwork. My tanks came out bad ass, just like Frida herself.

Even the stencils turned out pretty dope at the end. I think I may frame these bad boys.

And there you have it, your own stenciled Frida Kahlo tank. Go forth and embrace your inner bad ass.

DIY Graphic Tee with SoSoft Fabric Acrylics from DecoArt

Have you ever been out shopping, when you see an article of clothing that makes you say, "I could totally do that myself"?

Well, that's me....most of the time.

One thing I've seen everywhere are hand-painted graphic shirts. The simple designs and sleek lines really make for an interesting piece.
So instead of just thinking hey I can do that--I actually decided to do it!

___________________

Let me show you how you can create your own cool, modern graphic tee so you can rock it out for the last days of summer and into the fall!

Step 1: Stretch the shirt over the cardboard so that you have a smooth, taut surface to work with. 100% cotton is always the best choice. And remember, if you choose a dark colored tee, the colors you choose may not show up as brightly as you'd like. I decided to stick with white.

That black stuff was a previous design I did with black that stuck to the cardboard backing.

Step 2: Choose a quality fabric paint in varying colors.  I have a set of RAD fabric paints from the cool people at DecoArt. Their SoSoft Fabric Acrylics paint line is the bomb dizzle. A lot of paints claim to be made for fabric, but end up feeling hard and thick once they dry. Nobody wants crunchy paint on their clothes. The SoSoft paints really do feel so...soft.....yeah. Just like the name implies.

look at all the pretty colorssssssssss

I even got a few bottle of the fine glitter finish.

Step 3: This next step is when you can really flex your creative muscle. Choose your color palette. You can then paint a design you may already have, you can incorporate a stencil, you can use a brush to give it a painterly effect or you can use your fingers. I decided to use a silkscreen technique of "squeegeeing" the paint onto the tee.

I choose these four colors.

I placed four very generous blobs of the fabric paint on my tee. It's okay if they touch. You decide where you want them on  your tee. I chose right under my v-neck tee so it could be positioned on my chest.

Here is where the squeegee comes in. I used a thick piece of watercolor paper folded in half as my squeegee, but you could also use a plastic one from a hardware store. Press down on the paint and with a fluid motion, spread the paint in the direction of your choosing, once, using even pressure.

I like how the paint faded toward the bottom of the design. And the tee is super soft and so is the painted design. Simple and modern and most of all, SUPER COMFORTABLE!!!

I really dig the abstract vibe of the design. I'll definitely be making more of these! 

água de melancia (sandia)

I may be a born and bred Californian and stem from a long line of tropical blood,

but LAWD HAVE MERCY!!! It is hot as satan's wrath up in in here!

In my effort to stay cool and hydrated...no actually I wasn't thinking about being hydrated at all.  I just wanted something good to drink

           lez be honest...

I looked around my kitchen and saw that I had a nice big watermelon which TOTES gave me a craving for something cool and refreshing. I pulled out my juicer that my mom and dad bought me and whipped up a favorite of mine, an água de melancia (watermelon water). 

Here's what you'll need;

• A blender or juicer ( if you're using a blender you may need to strain the juice at the end)
• 1Watermelon cut into large chunks
• 3 Limes peeled (or the juice of three limes)
• A handful of mint leaves
• Agave nectar to taste (optional)

soooo......basically just combine all of the ingredients in the blender or juicer, add the agave nectar and chill. Serve cold. Super simple and MAJORLY delicious! 

Some people make it more savory and add rock salt or chili powder, however I prefer mine a bit sweeter so depending on the watermelon I will add a bit of the agave nectar to taste.

     but that's pretty much it! 

Simple and refreshing, a perfect companion to all your summa-time shenanigans 

Hope you enjoy!!! ttyl
BoifromIpanema