A good pair of church shoes is a necessity in my life. I wouldn’t consider myself obsessed with shoes but I spend a fair amount of time searching for styles and looking at trends.
My research is aided by having Pinterest to host a collection of some of the hottest kicks that I stunble upon.
One of these days, I will own them all!
If you’re into shoes like I am, check out and follow my “Shoegasm” board on Pinterest.
Like a food nerd, I got excited when I went to the market & found blood oranges in the produce section.
Blood oranges happen to be one of my favorite citrus fruits. Not too sweet, super juicy, and fun to look at.
When you slice one open, you never know what you will see. The flesh of the fruit can range from dark orange to dark red.
I was having company for dinner the other night and was going to keep it simple with wine but since I scored the blood oranges, I decided to have some fun and do martinis instead.
Ingredients
- 3 oz fresh blood orange juice
- 3 oz Tanqueray Gin
- 1 oz St Germain (elder flower liqueur)
Add your liquids to a shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously.
Strain and pour the refreshing concoction into a chilled garnished martini glass and enjoy. This mix is enough for two drinks.
If you’re in the market for a great citrus juicer, I HIGHLY recommend the Breville Citrus Press. I found one on eBay as a refurb a few years ago via Breville and it is one of my favorite kitchen tools.
“Martin had a dream! Martin had a dream! Kendrick have a dream!”
I’m back after a wonderful whirlwind visit to Washington D.C.
I copped tickets to the inauguration but guess what… I didn’t make it. We decided to stay in & stay warm after flashbacks of the frigid temps from 4 years ago. We were able to catch the Inaugural parade however and that was fun!
Otherwise, the trip was relaxing & I enjoyed the time with my friends. After several games of dominos, exotic libations, a boxed wine scandal, & partaking in a large fruit basket, it feels great being back home!
Here are a few snapshots from my lovers stroll around the capital. Basic but sexy of course! You know how I do.
2012 was a bitch & my boo at the same damn time! Here are my top 10 highlights:
Hit up my favorite portraits from the year…..
Found these carrots on Pinterest earlier this year & they are one of my favorite things to snack on. Very easy to make & super savory.
Ingredients:
The Jump Off:
Preheat your oven to 350º.
Add all of your wet ingredients and cumin to a bowl and mix until fully combined.
Toss in the carrots and coat them. Season with a little fresh pepper and coarse sea salt to taste. Add crushed red pepper to taste. This bit of heat adds a nice counter punch to the sweetness from the carrots/honey & acidity of the lime.
Add the coated carrots to a baking dish or oven proof pan being sure to add all of the remaining juice.
Bake for 25 minutes or until tender.
Toss carrots, garnish with cilantro, and scallions.
Allow to cool and serve.
Side note: The 1st few times that I made this, I had a lot of juice left over, I drained it and reduced it in a saute pan then poured the reduction back over the carrots. This added a very nice concentrated flavor punch!
I’ll be on the West Coast for the long Memorial Day weekend, which is packed with activities, food and outings with many of my boos and bros. And just to let you know, I will mos def be dining at Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles in addition to hitting up several taco trucks!!!!!
Without a doubt, when I step off the plane at LAX today, I’m going to do a body roll so slow, mofos gonna think I stepped out of the Matrix in my church shoes.
If you’re in LA, holla at me, let’s meet up!
“He’s on his way, he’s goin to Hollywood. He’s bussin it to Hollywood. Show him the way, he’s movin’ to Hollywood.He’s hoppin it to Hollywood.” Chaka Khan – Hollywood…
My homie Fave sent this to me yesterday & I just about died! Everybody knows that I love scarves. And I love BIG scarves. Art has imitated my life and this is so damn awesome!
“Whether it’s to protect their voice or make a fashion statement, it hard to find a soul singer these days that’s NOT wearing a decorative scarf around their neck. APNF and crew are faithful soul music lovers and follow the trends faithfully…this time to a fault. heh.
Step yo’ scarf game up, people.”
Art Credit: Trel “Fave” Robinson ~ 2012
Check out Fave’s A Pug Named Fender here.
This afternoon, I was out shopping for a few items for a dinner party that I’m hosting this weekend when I get a text from my Los Angeles boo, Asia Willis.
I wipe my iPhone on my pants before I read the message (because it was super greasy but that’s another story). She said “You made the street style blog in the NY Times!!!” I then screamed out WHAT??? People started looking at me in the store. Then I screamed out “I’m in the NY Times, BITCHES….” I just came out.
I then called & was like what??? Asked if I looked good. What was I wearing? Blah Blah Blah. All the while, I’m like, me? In a style blog? In NY? The NY times???
I’m not even stylish. I’m just a husky Black man of leisure, who knows how to mix & match the right pieces to look half way decent.
Anyway, when I saw the photo, I laughed. It was taken my final day in NY for Fashion Week. You remember the look…
Shit, I never thought that I would make the NY Times but I did, just in a different way than I expected.
I may be going through a nasty divorce but the rest of my life is fucking AWESOME. I’m in the NY Times BITCHES!!!!
This little bit of news is helping me to kick off my weekend in a good way.
The Scarf (hand knit vanilla) was a 59th St Bloomingdale’s exclusive and only 3 were available. I got the last one.
Holla!
I made it back home safely from New York & survived another Mercedes Benz Fashion Week!!!!
I arrived in the city with a twisted ankle (again) & suffered for a few days then everything was all good. This damned ankle of mine.
There was no drama in the pits, had no fights & met some new friends.
I switched it up a bit this season & had an assistant who was a total life saver. Thank you so much Cousin Dee.
I am very proud of the photos that Cousin Dee & I were able to capture at the 28 fashion shows & presentations that we covered. We really put that work in & snapped somewhere around 8,100+ photos.
I did some GREAT dining, met up with many of my NYC/DMV/Detroit friends & just had a damn good time.
I’m a little exhausted now but still riding on high with how my trip ended. I bumped into Eva Pigford (America’s Next Top Model), Korto Momolu (Project Runway), Kwame Jackson (The Apprentice), Angela Laws (Concrete Loop), Dwight (Housewives of Atlanta), Diane von Furstenburg, Celia aKa Blue Nefertiti (Les Nubians), Harriette Cole (The Today Show) & many more.
Hopefully, you were following me on Facebook & Twitter and were able to keep up my adventure.
Stay tuned for show reviews, street styles & the wrap up of my New York Analog series. Lots of hot shit on the way.
And sadly, this was my last Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. I’ve worked it 4 seasons, got the t-shirt & ready to move on. Everyone that I told this to swears that I’ll be back for more. They just don’t know. My bum ankle needs a rest!!!
Photo Credit: Verlisa Allen
Everybody knows… that no trip to New York City is complete without having a Sip & See!
I’ve been in countdown mode since yesterday! Counting down the days, hours and minutes left before I board that plane for New York to do my Mercedes Benz Fashion Week work. Oh and fun and museums and hopefully at least 3 good meals. Oh and hopefully some mental downtime. The Black spirits know that I need some mental downtime!
Lastly, about this time next week, I will be arriving back at my hotel to get some rest & HOPING that I don’t twist my ankle again like I did last September just before heading to my first show of the season. Just in case, I will be carrying an Ace Bandage!!!
If you’re in NYC, consider this an invite & hope to sip with & see you at the Thom Bar!
Been running around all evening getting some last minute framing done. Got off work later than I wanted to, had to deal with rush hour and make it to two frame shops before 7pm.
I was able to make it all happen but I was wiped out of energy big time.
Since I’ve been home, I realized two mistakes with my framing that I made, which have to corrected by tomorrow evening when I go to Detroit to hang the art.
I really wish, I could just have someone do this stuff for me. Being an artist, semi-perfectionist & having little time to fit everything in is way too much right here, right now. And you know how sensitive about my shit I am…
Hoping that all of the pieces are back in place tomorrow. I really am…
Getting ready for a show, in my experience is never fun. So much to do, so little time…. And of course, I do EVERYTHING at the last minute.
A good friend asked me if I was ready for the show. I told him no, not hardly but I know what I’m wearing…. Gonna pull out some Versace, just to be fancy. You know how I do…
BTW, my show theme is Black Women & Food…. 2 of my favorite things.
On some unrelated notes:
- Yesterday, the new hygienist at my dentist office told me that she liked my Jamaican accent. Then she told me that my hair was interesting. I’m from B’ham, AL & grew up in Detroit. I don’t have an accent until I go back home to AL… They all think I sound fancy & proper.
- An older woman told me that I reminded her of Stevie Wonder. Not sure if it’s the hair or if she things that I make random body movements like Stevie. I’m just lost on the comparison.
- I registered for my LAST CLASS at Eastern Michigan University. Graduation is just a few short months away!!!
- My kids put up a Christmas tree and it is short of looking like Charlie Brown’s Christmas tree. Since I stopped celebrating Christmas, the tree has been looking like a mess but it makes them happy & that’s the important piece.
BTW: Bet there, bitches!
Date: 12.10.11
Time: 7pm
Location: Woodbridge Pub | 5169 Trumbull, Detroit, MI
DMV area friends! Join me this this Thursday or the Sip and See. There are no door prizes but I do have all new stories and shit to talk. Hope to see you….