Ashley English's Blog, page 2

What I'm Digging

Happy Friday, friends! This weekend promises to be a scorcher. Here in the mountains of western North Carolina we might even hit 100 degrees. Yikes! We plan to hit up the Blue Ridge Parkway in search of a frigid creek or swimming hole to cool our jets in. Or, if we're feeling lazy, just fill up Huxley's baby/toddler pool, and get in it with watermelon slices, cold beer, and a happy,

Candlemaking the Natural Way (+ Giveaway!!!)

When I first met Hubs, he already owned the house we now live in. It was definitely a bachelor's pad at that point, which was actually kind of great, since it enabled us to set up the space together. As he was giving me a tour of the place, and he showed me the bathroom, I immediately noticed two things: he'd had a large, soaking, "garden" tub installed, and he had lots and lots of candles in

When Life Hands You Eggs

 We are flush with eggs these days, chez English. More eggs than we can eat each day, which is saying something since we're all crazy about the things. There are so many eggs coming in lately that visions of custards and curds and ice cream move to the forefront of my culinary mind's eye (to reach that last goal, Hubs & Huxley just headed to the West Asheville Tailgate Market to pick up

Weekend Eats: Tortilla Espanola

We munched on this olive, tomato and potato bit of deliciousness just a bit ago. Hubs sliced the potatoes on a mandoline first, then lightly pan fried them in olive oil. Next went a bit of whisked eggs over the potatoes. We let those eggs set up a bit over medium-high heat, then added the remaining bit in the mixing bowl, along with the olives. The whole concoction then spent a wee bit of

What I'm Digging

Happy Friday, friends! And happy summer, too. The season of sun, and sandals, and sweat, and soil is officially upon us. Oh. Yes.

I just got off the phone with my younger sister, Theo. She, along with my other sister, Devan, will be coming to visit usfor a week in early July. I shared with her my intentions for engaging in three definitively "summer" activities during their visit: a trip to

Green & Black's (+ Giveaway!!!)

I have long maintained a love affair with chocolate. The darker, the better. If it's caramel-filled, I'm in heaven. If there are dried fruits involved, I'm swooning. I'll take it hot in a mug, snuggled into a s'more, or even just straight up. When it comes to chocolate, I'm often equal opportunity consumer.

Which is why I was so excited when one of my most beloved chocolate purveyors,

Recent Acquisitions

This past winter, Hubs and I set out to get our crafty on. While mine never quite materialized as I'd hoped (turns out I'm not a learn-in-a-group-setting type of knitter; I really just need someone to sit beside me, regularly, and tell me what I'm doing wrong), Hubs' certainly did.

Shown above are several of his creations. Oh, the shapes! The colors! The glazes! I just love these

What I'm Digging

Happy Friday, friends! Huxley's follow-up visit yesterday revealed that his wound is healing up swimmingly. The doctor said that, in time, it should heal over completely, permitted we keep it out of sunlight for the next 6 months. So, it'll be a summer of hats, sunscreen and bandages for the tiny Englishman!

Here's a smattering of this's and that's that caught my attention this week:
*I love

Garden Tour

It's seriously go time in the garden, friends. I recently mentioned that Hubs was whipping up a deck and pergola for us to enjoy out there. And, boy, did he ever! Never one to make something just so-so, or expected, or conventional, he fashioned a pergola to beat them all, full of whimsy and nuance and, well, "him."

We held our first photo shoot for the new book

Pies & Life & Babies

Thank you so much for all of your kind words and assurances over our Wild child. Were it not for the bandages placed front and center on his wee forehead, you'd think nothing had even happened. He's a trooper, that one. We follow up with a facial surgeon on Thursday. Fingers and toes crossed that those bandages, once removed, reveal nothing except a nice, healing wound.

I've got a few posts