Hi Elsa / Blog

Recipe / Tacos de Carnitas

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 18:14:57 -0400

Do you love carnitas tacos? do you?
Then you should make this carnitas recipe from Serious Eats. They figured out the best way to make them (you can check their work here) and produced a simple but flawless recipe.

We made it this weekend and were very excited with the results. The only suggestion I would add would be to substitute their salsa verde with my mom’s own salsa (recipe here) which can be made after you put the pork to roast in the oven- it will be perfectly cooled in the fridge and ready to go by the time the carnitas are done.

Go forth and make delicious tacos.

Recipe / Summer Jugo

Tue, 29 Jun 2010 22:55:00 -0400

It’s summer, it’s hot, fruits are in season- no better time than now to make some fresh juice!

Growing up my Abuela would make fresh jugo (juice) everyday at lunch from whatever was in season at Abuelo’s farm, be it mangos, papayas, or my favorite- passion fruit. As an adult I discovered aguas frescas- a mexican version of juice that’s less concentrated and low in sugar-which was perfect for me since I would always have to cut store-bought juice with water because of how sweet it was.

This season I’ve been playing with my own mashup of Abuela’s jugo and Mexican aguas. It’s actually surprisingly simple to make your own juice (no fancy juicer needed!), and to customize it exactly the way you like it.

Strawberry-Mint Jugo

Tools:
Pitcher
Strainer
Spoon
Blender (or magic bullet in my case, whatever works)

Ingredients:
1 pint of strawberries, stems removed and chopped
2 cups water + additional water to taste
2-3 tablespoons sugar (more or less depending taste and sweetness of berries)
Fresh mint leaves
Ice

Combine strawberries, water and sugar in blender and blend until nice and liquified.
Pour through strainer into pitcher, using the back of the spoon to mash as much of the liquid out of the pulp as possible. Continue straining and mashing, discarding the pulp when it piles up in the strainer. Once strained, add more water and sugar to the juice to taste along with the mint leaves, muddling them a bit before to get flavor in the juice. Cucumbers also can be added as a substitute for the mint, they add a nice freshness to the juice.

Add a bit of alcohol (white rum or vodka) for a refreshing summer cocktail.

————

It’s fun to experiment with different fruit combos, pretty much anything you can chop up and put in the blender is game. If fresh fruit isn’t available, frozen fruits work well, just let them thaw out before blending. If you have a latin or asian market nearby, they usually carry more exotic frozen pulps. For a yummy alternative use milk instead of water- it works especially well for pulpier fruits like mango and papaya.

Some great recipes from my bookmarks:

Strawberry Rhubarb Lemonade
Stawberry Vanilla Agua

Work / The Awards Show

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 13:56:00 -0400

I was recently asked to participate in a group show titled The Awards Show here in Portland curated by the wonderful Jen Davison. I humbly accepted and took the opportunity to work off the computer and make some fun one-of-a-kind stitchings.

I’ve always been inspired by Native American prints and patterns, so I decided to draw from the Navajo weaving traditions as a base for my medals, adding adding a more contemporaty color palette. I was very happy with how these turned out, and excited that one of my little ones found a home after show (Chester, who can be seen here).

Now the remaining three are up and available in my shop, ready for any kind of awarding situation, or just to remind someone of how great they are.

Friday Fun

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 10:36:32 -0400

So many treasures to be discovered, there’s nothing better than a thrifting excursion.
iPhone wallpaper available here

Project / Natural Cleaning

Mon, 24 May 2010 14:28:00 -0400

This weekend I washed my first load of laundry with a homemade liquid detergent. What started as a bit of research into natural cleaning products for a possible project for my Mom’s cleaning business, turned into a push to make my own natural blends at home.

My research revealed that most detergents are now petroleum based, rather than plant based as soap once was. This means I’ve been making my own little oil spill every time I wash dishes or take a shower. Castile soaps- which are the base for the majority of the natural cleaning blends- are plant based, made from coconut or olive oil, are biodegradable and made of renewable resources.

It turns out that most of the ingredients to make cleaners are easily found at the grocery store if not already in your pantry (as shown above from left to right- borax, baking soda, castile soap, white vinegar, and various essential oils). You can make batches as large or small as you want in your own containers, and get to choose what scents to add to your mixes, rather than getting stuck with some weird concoction companies think smells like clean (thyme + lemongrass, really?).

I found a great little book that has blends for every cleaning need possible, from detergents to wood floors to serious tub cleaning formulas. It’s small and portable, well designed and super informative. If you have any inclination to clean naturally, I highly recommend grabbing The Naturally Clean Home, by Karyn Siegel-Maier.

I look forward to making more blends, as well as working on some fun label designs for the bottle. YAY for natural cleaning, I feel less toxic already!

Resources:

The Naturally Clean Home, by Karyn Siegel-Maier
If it’s not available at a local bookstore, you can always find it on Amazon.

Real Simple Room-by room cleaning naturally guide
A nice interactive slideshow with some good suggestions.

How to Make a non-toxic cleaning kit
A good starter with a shopping list and a few useful blends.

Hi Elsa Shop now open!

Thu, 06 May 2010 16:23:00 -0400

I’m excited to announce the launch of the shop- featuring some of my handmade projects. Everything in the shop will be either original one of a kind work, or part of a very limited run. I’m launching with a pair of my embroidered totes, and am working on another fun project that will be up soon. If anyone would like to be put on a mailing list for shop announcements, just send me a note at hello[at]hielsa[dot]com.

Featured Tutorial / Lanolyn / Fabric Painting

Wed, 14 Apr 2010 13:28:00 -0400

Today I’m excited to share an exclusive tutorial on fabric printing from my friend and master crafter Ayelen of Lanolyn, where she features her beautiful aprons and other sewed/embroidered goods.
Ayelen was kind enough to give us a peek at her latest fabric painting project- it looks like a super fun and simple process that yields great results.

01. SuppliesBefore you get started you will need the following supplies:
Freezer paper (found at most grocery stores)
Drawing utensils
Exacto knife
Iron
Acrylic or fabric paint
Paintbrush
Fabric piece to be printed

02. Draw / Draw or print design onto (non glossy side of) freezer paper

03. Cut / Cut out design with exacto knife

04. Iron / Iron (on medium heat) cut freezer paper (glossy side down) onto fabric

05. Paint / Paint your design onto the fabric

06. Peel / Peel the freezer paper from the fabric

07. Admire!

Larger images of the process are featured on Lanolyn’s flickr- be sure to keep an eye on her blog for future tutorials and inspiration. Thanks again for sharing Ayelen!

Project / Stitched Tote Bags

Wed, 07 Apr 2010 11:29:00 -0400

Recently I have been trying to find more practical applications of my cross-stitching, and since I’m a bit of a tote-hog, I decided to give tote-stitching a try. Using tear away mesh, which is basically a removable grid you can stitch on and then remove- I was able to stitch directly on my recycled cotton eco-bag.

The process was a bit frustrating because the grid by its nature is flexible and can lead to some wonky stitches- but overall they turned out well. This tote will soon be filled with camping gear for our first Oregon camping trip this spring. I might even be able to fit Zoe in there…

More photos here

Recipe / Flor's Salsa Verde

Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:57:00 -0400

Today I was making a batch of my favorite salsa, and thought it might be a nice recipe to share. It’s very simple to prepare, but yields delicious results. My mother loves cooking Mexican food, and this is a staple for any meal or as a snack with some chips or warm corn tortillas.

Flor’s Salsa Verde
Makes about 1½ cups of Salsa
(This version has about a ‘medium’ amount of spice, use more or less jalapeño to adjust)

Ingredients
5-6 fresh tomatillos, outer leaves removed and washed
1 fresh jalapeño
¼ medium sweet onion, diced
1 small clove of garlic, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
(Cilantro is also an option, if you’re into it, throw a bit in)

Prep
Set about 1½ cups of water to boil (enough to partially submerge the tomatillos)
Once boiling, place the tomatillos and jalapeño in the water for 2 mins.
Remove and reserve some of the water.
In a food processor or blender, throw in the tomatillos, jalapeño, garlic and a bit of the water. Blend to desired texture, adding more water if necessary (add cilantro if desired).
If you think you over blended the salsa or its too watery, no worries- the salsa will thicken up a bit.
After the salsa has cooled down a bit, add in the diced onions and salt and pepper to your liking.
Cover and place in the fridge for a few hours or preferably overnight- grab some chips and enjoy!

Inspiration / Handmade stamps

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 13:52:35 -0500

Our good friends Heidi & Jose (also known as Threefold Collective) have been doing some beautiful experimentation with stamps and fabric printing. I was very inspried by the wonderful patterns they were making with their handmade stamps, a process I’ve been curious about for a while. I bugged them and they were kind enough to share their stamping secrets with me- going as far a posting a process video as well as a shopping list.

They are making their custom initial stamps (seen above) available at their shop, which also features some of their great stationary design. Thanks again guys!

Product / Food Pins / Pancake Tuesday!

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 12:54:00 -0500

Today is pancake tuesday, and even though I forgot and ate a big bowl of cinnamon toast crunch instead- I have all day to catch up. Tyler reminded me last night of the pancakes in the food pin set we made recently, an though you wont get them in time for today’s pancake celebrations, you’ll be good to go for next year- and stocked up for burger, burrito, donut and pizza days.

So here they are: AWH Food Pin Set

Project / Found Terrariums

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 13:59:00 -0500

As my mom would say, you can never have too many plants in your house (or outside, judging from her backyard). Terrariums are a great solution for small apartments and those of us who haven’t inherited a green thumb. A walk around the neighborhood or your local park should provide everything you need for your (free!) customized ecosystem.

Resources

All you need for your own terrarium is:
Glass jar (I keep all jam, pickle and sauce jars for this purpose)
Soil (bought or scooped from somewhere, we won’t judge)
Moss, succulents, small ferns
Pebbles (for accents)
Care:
Once they are planted and watered they don’t need much attention, if you can recycle a mister and give them a spray once in a while that keeps them quite happy, or just a few sprinkles of water works fine.

For a nice walk through of the process, DesignSponge had a good post on the subject:
Found Terrariums

We like to take moss-hunting walks where we commandeer moss and other succulents from the neighborhood, as well as pebbles, rocks, small pine cones and anything that strikes us as looking good in a jar.

Beware- this could become an obsession, and you might find yourself hoarding glass jars and compulsively picking up moss bits- you’ve been warned. More pictures of our collection here.

Project / Bread Baking / Ciabatta

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:04:28 -0500

This week’s bread is one of my favorites, Ciabatta! The process was a bit more involved, but dare I say- worth it. So soft and delicious, and I have another loaf ready to bake in the fridge…

I did a bit of digging and found a recipe online for the french bread I made a few weeks ago, and I want to encourage anyone who has any inclination or curiosity for bread-baking to give it a try. Don’t worry about how nice their baguettes look- as you can see here mine came out a bit bloated, but were still delicious. I would love to hear from anyone who gives it a try and their results.

Peter Reinhart’s French Bread

Inspiration / Cutco Cookbook Illustrations

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 15:05:43 -0500

I found this gem of a book at a used book fair a few months ago, and have been itching to scan these illustrations ever since. It’s a cookbook put out by knife company Cutco in 1961, with illustrations by Frank Marcello. Not only was I drawn to the style and quality of the work, but the fact that they capture such complex dishes in two colors is just brilliant.

View the full set here.

Project / Bread Baking

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:49:00 -0500

I’ve been curious about homemade bread for a while- I love fresh bread but feel super guilty when I have to throw away a stale half of a baguette. I knew there had to be a better way.

Baking is a bit intimidating to me, as my mom didn’t bake much so I was never really exposed to it, but I’m trying my best to become a baker. I found this great book on baking artisan bread that is so well written, beautifully designed and seemingly fool-proof. It features delicious breads that can be made easily with instant yeast and cold fermentation (putting dough in your fridge overnight). It has lots of step by step photos which are super helpful.

I’ve made pizza dough and now french bread, and its been so fun and rewarding I can’t wait to make more. Like anything worth doing it does take a bit of a time commitment, but knowing you made the bread you’re biting into just makes it that much more delicious.

Resources
I enjoy having an actual book to obsess over while I’m cooking:
Peter Reinhart’s Artisan Breads Every Day: Fast and Easy Recipes for World-Class Breads
(note the videos by the author, those are a great help)

For most recipes you only need some baking flour, instant yeast, water and salt, maybe some olive oil. A baking stone is helpful, but not required, baking pans work just fine.
I don’t even have a mixer with a paddle, so I do all the mixing by hand.

Inspiration / Typefaces / Museo Slab

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:16:00 -0500

Look at this typeface, how great is it? It could be that I have a special place in my heart for slab serifs (My first born son might be named Archer), but this face is just beautiful. A good combination of structure and details (look at that uppercase K, a thing of beauty) gives it a good range of use. I can’t wait to buy the whole family one of these days…

Museo Slab
Designed by Jos Buivenga for his foundry exljbris
Available at My Fonts
(Above Image grabbbed from My Fonts)

Project / Cross Stitching

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:38:00 -0500

Cross stitching is a hobby I’ve been messing around with for a couple of years. It’s half relaxing half need-to-pay-attention-or-you-might-miss-a-stitch, so it keeps you on your toes. I started by using some patterns I found online, but soon moved on to making my own in illustrator. I’m working on a food series right now, and will update my flickr set as soon as its in good shape. It’s a great craft for those of us who spend a lot of time at the computer, since its creative but still structured (plus is perfect for making pixel art or 8bit video game characters).

Resources:
Learning is quick, apparently it only takes 5 minutes:
Stitching technique

All you need to start is some embroidery floss, needlework fabric, hoops and a needle.

An Introduction

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:26:05 -0500

As mentioned in my bio, I’m a graphic designer and illustrator living in Portland, OR. When not working/spending time with my boyfriend/playing with my dog I’m dreaming up things to make in my free time.

My goal for this blog is to have a place to index and share some personal projects, as well as the source of their inspiration. I’m interested in trying many things, from cooking and gardening to letterpress and woodworking, so this will be the place where I can archive some of those attempts. I will do my best to share the sources of my learning process, so that anyone who shares that curiosity can have what they need to give it a try themselves.

Looking forward to a busy and inspiring year-
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