making kimchi with perilla leaves

have you ever had perilla leaves?

it's mostly found in asian dishes {you can see how different countries use it in their cooking here}. i always liked eating them with korean bbq. you would wrap the meat with a perilla leaf, add a little rice and a paste of your choice {my favorite is this}.

but, perilla leaves can also be made into a kimchi side dish. you can buy them premade at the grocery store, but after tasting them fresh while they were still green {the leaves change color as the days go on}, i couldn't go back. 

i used maangchi's recipe again. you can find ingredients and her easy to follow instructions {and video!} there.

happy eating everyone!

ps - don't forget to enter our giveaway with harlex for a chance to win a handcrafted and personalized leather luggage tag! closes wednesday, october 9! 

have a great weekend + links

hooray for the weekend {but so scary that my writing these weekend and link posts are coming so quickly!}

what are your plans? we're trying out some doggie treats at home {can't wait to share on the blog}, possibly giving our carpet a good cleaning {rug doctor anyone?} and hopefully squeezing in a trip to an apple orchard. but, we'll be in the 90's and 80's over the weekend. so not autumn weather but i'm not complaining much although i'm eager to bring down my sweaters. 

have a great weekend and here are some links to enjoy if you are interested. 

 // hail to kale. love this infographic. 

 // words to remember. 

 // eat chocolate. save cocker spaniels. {great fundraiser for a group we support}

 // our favorite, tiny prints, collaborates with rebecca minkoff. 

 // happy 3rd birthday, instagram! 

 // crushing on this toy camera. 

 // 10 iconic film slr cameras. 

 // i am loving this look.

 // head bopping to this tune lately. 

 // my kind of chunky knit pom pom hat. 

xoxo, 

jane 

ps - enter our giveaway with etsy shop, harlex, for a chance to win a beautiful handmade leather luggage tag. closes wednesday, october 9. 

"our life" giveaway with harlex! (CLOSED)

today we're excited to be partnering with a pretty awesome etsy shop, harlex, to give away a this beautiful personalized double sided luggage tag (valued $45)! 

harlex is a husband and wife team from hong kong that makes high quality handcrafted, personalized leather bags and gadgets. i've known the brand for some time now - i met harmony, the creative lady behind harlex, through instagram back when it was still pretty new. she was one of the first followers i had developed a close relationship with, and i've seen their adorable family of three, which includes sasha their english cocker spaniel, grow to a beautiful family of four with the birth of her son not too long ago. i really love and respect the detail, time and hard work they put into hand making all of their products. 

to enter this giveaway, please visit the harlex etsy shop and come back here and leave us a blog comment telling us where you would love to travel to. {please leave an email address where i can reach you should you be the winner either as part of your blog profile or as part of the comment you post.}

this giveaway is open to all international readers and will close on wednesday, october 9. a winner will be chosen at random and announced shortly after. 

we all catch the travel bug from time to time. this would be a perfect addition to your luggage bag as you fly to the destination of your dreams. 

thank you and good luck! 

**some of my other favorite items from their shop {which can all be personalized} -- 
envelop clutch // camera strap // wedding ring bearer bowl {so cute!} // passport case

did you also see sasha and her doggy backpack? 

photos courtesy harlex.

*** the winner of this giveaway is lindley over at the grinning labrador! congratulations! ***

a random number using random.org was generated to choose the winner 

a little film: from our day at the golden sunflower field

we captured this day on video as well and made a little film. 

finding the right pieces for our home + giveway winner announced!

i grew up spending my weekends at flea markets and antique shops. after my studies at the manhattan school of music every saturdays, my parents picked me up and together we went all over new york city to look for vintage and antique items.

throughout the years my parents had accumulated many beautiful items. they had an incredible vintage radio collection, amazing pieces of furniture and little decorations and trinkets that added just the right touches throughout our home. i must admit though, i didn't enjoy this back then, but about a year ago i began to really miss it. 

unfortunately my parents' vintage and antique pieces have all disappeared. i won't get into the details of how in this post, but it breaks my heart that i couldn't help salvage them. they really had an incredible collection. but i thought that perhaps me and yangkyu can do the same. you know, spend time together looking for perfect pieces for our home, and adding thrifting and diy to the mix as well. so far it's been really fun. 

this past weekend, while thrifting, i didn't really know what i was looking for, but once i saw these mixing bowls i knew they would be a great addition to the 'echalote casserole dishes i inherited from my mama a few months back.

i also picked up a few jars to make jam. i actually have never tried to make jam, but there is a first time for everything, right? 

and i would also love to start a vintage radio collection, but in the meantime i thought a vintage camera collection would also be neat. the kodac instamatic 44 is our first piece.

ps - we have a winner of the olive green dog giveaway! thank you everyone for participating and making this first giveaway that we hosted incredibly fun!