Friday, August 20, 2010

Fashionista Heaven In Brisbane, Valentino, Paul Hunt, Maiocchi and the Valley Arts Precinct, Sale, Sale, Sale!...did we mention we are having a Sale?...Latest Andrew Martin Offerings, Rhubarb and Pear Crumble...the Lola Cocktail and more!...Happy Friday to one and all!

This week:  Fashionista Heaven!
Brisbane has been all 'abuzz' over the past couple of week with the opening of the Valentino Collection at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art.....

 .........plus the Mercedes Benz Fashion Festival.

We wanted to take the time to acknowledge our neighbours here in the Valley precinct, who made the cut at the Fashion Festival.
Congrats to Paul Hunt on a successful show...we now hear you are being touted as Brisbanes Alex Perry!

As mentioned last week, we hosted the photo shoot for the National Label 'Maiocchi'.  Maiocchi featured heavily at the Mercedes Fashion Festival also.  We simply dont know how creator, Dee has managed to juggle all of this whilst in the final stages of pregnancy.  Its all about passion for what you do.

We wanted to share with you, a couple of the completed photos, all ready for the new range promotion.
We are loving this one of Maiocchi model in our deliciously sumptuous Wing Back chair in rich velvet fabric.

Loving this jacket...and the backdrop...our Antique Asian Screen

You can discover more of our beautiful 'finds'on our website



There really is just so much talent here in the Valley...pop in to the showroom on the weekend for some inspiration and bargains, as our SALE is still going strong.  Grab a coffee at Campos on Wandoo and roam the precinct.  


We have amazing designers, galleries, fashion houses, restaurants and cafes, all at your disposal.  We are very proud to work amongst such a buzzy, creative atmosphere!

We just cant get enough of the new Andrew Martin Collections.  Their releases never fail to have a quirky, eclectic edge but at the same time always manage to be very useable in an interior scheme. 



Their new collection 'Spectator' hits the mark again. It features strong graphic design inspired by pop culture. From Steven Sprouse to posters for The Beatles and movie fan-zines; this is a fun, striking collection, which will definitely add some interest and energy to a room.



We are lucky enough to live in a country where we have access to a multitude of fresh produce.  Winter brings some great choices in seasonal fruit and vegetables.  We have been enjoying some delicious soups over the cold months thanks to Colette with her divine recipes (see recipes in our index, or send me a message and I can forward them on to you).  This week, we stumbled on a delectable recipe using seasonal Rhubarb and Pears...you can also add Strawberries to this dish.  As is our way...we only feature recipes that we would cook ourselves, so you will find this dessert quick, easy and packed with flavour. 10 minutes to prepare..you cant go wrong.  Its a nourishing, warming way to end the week.....enjoy!

RHUBARB AND PEAR CRUMBLE....OH YEAH!

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • Melted butter to grease
  • 3 (Buerre Bosc) pears peeled, cored and coarsley chopped
  • 1 bunch rhubarb washed, trimmed, coarsely chopped
  • 1 orange, juiced
  • 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 160g butter
  • 150g Arnott's Granita biscuits, coarsely crushed
  • 25g (1/3) cup shredded coconut
  • Vanilla ice-cream or double cream to serve

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Brush four 250ml (1-cup) ovenproof ramekins with melted butter to grease. Place pear, rhubarb, orange juice, cinnamon and half the butter in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat for 6-8 minutes or until pear and rhubarb are just tender. Divide among the ramekins.
  2. Meanwhile, place the biscuit and coconut in a medium bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the remaining butter into the biscuit mixture until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Sprinkle the biscuit mixture over the pear mixture and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden. Serve with cream or vanilla ice-cream.
    Tip: A delicious addition to this recipe is seasonal strawberries..which are just so fresh right now.  Just halve the amount of pear and add strawberries in its place.
We really do have to stop meeting like this!
Welcome to another exciting edition of Cocktail Friday.
Well, the Kinks sang about her, and they have named a sofa after her....next thing you know, they will be naming drink after her...and Voila!..they have. 
We are rather fond of our beautiful 'Lola' sofa that we have in the showroom...and its on Sale.

The 'Lola'.  Must Go To Good Home!


I was deeeeelighted to find that there is a cocktail recipe called The Lola!  What a great coincidence and another excuse to try something different.
And...so off we toddled to the Cru Bar to celebrate our 
1000th Blog View!
Thank you to everyone for your support of the blog.  We love to hear from you, and the feedback has been amazing.  We have heard from readers far and wide, and even had customers comment on our recipes and how much they enjoy the Cocktail Friday Phenomena!
It's all very encouraging and makes us feel good!
And, so here are a couple of happy snaps taken of the Lola Cocktail and other various concoctions downed last week.  We actually do work very hard and so  this is our little treat on a Friday....and the least we can do is encourage you to do the same.

...COCKTAIL FRIDAY...

The Recipe
1. Orange Juice - 3/4 oz.
2. Cream - 1/2 oz.
3. Rum - 1.75 oz.
4. Mandarine Napoleon - 3/4 oz.
5. Cream de Cacao - 3/4 oz.
Method
Place all ingredients in a cocktail shaker....now, heres the hard part..shake, shake, shake...and pour into a cocktail glass...........mmmmmmm....yummmm....

Another great week.  Wishing everyone a terrific Friday, and a happy and fun weekend.
Next week sneak peek:  Anatoly gives us a tour of the rugs in stock and some exciting news for one of our designers......its all on the blog and its all next Friday.

Cheers...from  the Charcoal Girls