Category Archives: belle of the ball

extra, extra…here all about this event, belles

19 Monday Mar 2018

Posted by in belle of the ball, fashion forward, Uncategorized, what's ringin' our belle

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Here’s a not-to-be-missed event, belles…at our fave antique emporium in Greenville…The Rock House Antiques. House of Landor out of Raleigh is bringing their vintage wares for a trunk show this weekend!! We encourage you to stop and shop for that special “find”!

Here are some examples of what you might find…

The Rock House Antiques . 415 Mauldin Road . Greenville

And while we are at it…here are some vintage shopping tips…

1.  For clothing, shop your size…and a size up…and a size down.

Sizes have changed over the years.  Those of us who might have worn a 4 in the 80’s now find ourselves a very slim size zero (while having lost not a single ounce!).  Don’t take the label at its word…use it as a suggestion.  Also, we have found that many ladies who pass on their clothing to these shops are very much like us…addicted to alterations.  Many…even most…of these items have been tailored to fit the original proud owner.  This often means that an 8 has become a 6 through the bust, or a 4 at the waist.  The only way to be sure is to…

2.  Be prepared to try on.

Wear something that’s easy-on, easy-off.  What you purchase is yours (no returns), so let’s make sure it’s do-able.

3.  Don’t ignore the shoes.

We have scored scarcely-worn Manolos, Louboutins, you name it, at vintage shops. Often the shoes find their way to these shops because they were a poor fit for the original owner…so she really didn’t wear them much at all! Don’t be afraid to give them a try.

4.  Don’t forget the fellas.

Hermes ties, Burberry wool scarves, belts, shoes, maybe even a classic old tuxedo…the options for the men can be just as numerous as those for women. Give the men’s section a quick run-through.

5.  Check out the stores in different cities and different neighborhoods

You will, of course, want to visit House of Landor in person, and go ahead and haunt the vintage clothiers in other cities you frequent. While stores on the Upper East Side might be filled with Chanel, those in Soho might be filled with Pucci, Gucci, or who knows what. Give them all a chance…the treasures are worth it!

a&a

Celebrating a belle’s birthday…. the big 21!

04 Monday Dec 2017

Posted by in belle of the ball, what's ringin' our belle

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Our rebel- belle just turned 21! How quickly the time flies! Feels like yesterday that she was just a wee belle…

Oh how we miss those bows!!

But she kept on growing …

And now she’s all grown up!!

And the belles couldn’t be prouder!!

So we honored her 21 years in a couple of ways …we thought it’d be fun to share !

We got her 21 gifts …

And oneof those gifts was a Piñata from Nipyata in the shape of a 21.

It came filled with mini liquor bottles. She is 21 after all!

And then we found this Piñata from Rubyandbencreations via Etsy

We just couldn’t resist!!! We also knew the rebel belle wouldn’t want to bash this beauty in so we filled it with…21 gift cards! And we tied a string to each one so she could pull them out without damaging the piñata!

And of course we had to make sure all members of the family were excited and dressed for the occasion!

Just a few tid bits for a fun birthday !

Belles love to celebrate!!

a&a

memora-belle entertaining…kickin’ off the holidays

10 Friday Nov 2017

Posted by in belle maison, belle of the ball

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We were blown away at a recent dinner party given by an extremely sweet, creative, fun belle-friend!  This party was so well-thought-out and executed, we just had to share some of the details!

As guests arrived, we were greeted with a tray of champagne cocktails with floating cranberries…setting the scene for the pre-holiday event.


Fun fact…in order to test the ripeness of a cranberry, it is bounced.  If it bounces about 4 inches, it’s good to go!

But the libations didn’t stop there.  Guests were free to pick their poison…


This is cocktailin’ heaven!

The focus of the event was Thanksgiving…our most favorite holiday!  Prior to attending, we were given links to Thanksgiving trivia sites so that we could “study up”.  Test your own knowledge here and here and here.  At trivia time…it was game-on!  Our hostess with the mostest had a belle-ringin “prize table”…

…with lottery tickets, candles, tequila (one of us came home with this!), sausages, a puzzle, and much, much more!!

While our hostess shifted gears from game referee to chef, guests had the chance to relax by the fire…


…which, by the way, was perfect as we FINALLY had an evening that felt like fall!!  (80 degrees the day before made this all the more exciting!)

And now for the table and other belle-ringin’ decor…


Perfection!


And our hostess loves to downplay her talents…but this creation speaks for itself!

We are now duly inspired and ready for the weeks to come.  Bring on the eggnog!!

a&a

belles get a little x-rated…

05 Friday May 2017

Posted by in belle of the ball, belle-icious

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Let us introduce you (if we haven’t already) to one of our favorite libations.  Delicious over ice or added to a glass of champagne or mixed with a little club soda…this stuff is delish!! 


And it makes a great hostess gift, too!
X-Rated…available at your local liquor store or here

Cheers!

a&a

toast your team, belles…another giftin’ idea

09 Friday Dec 2016

Posted by in bar belles, belle of the ball, belle perks, what's ringin' our belle

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These whiskey glasses are a great gift idea for any college fan…young or old…male or female. The drinks will just taste better!

We picked our children’s colleges to take pics of…best to keep the peace between the belles…just sayin’. 


Tuscaloosa


Oxford


Clemson

Via Bourbon and Boots

And…a belle bonus!  Our friends get 15% off with this link.  You’re welcome!

Hotty Toddy, Roll Tide & Go Tigers, y’all!

a&a

time for some sangria sippin’…

04 Friday Nov 2016

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We found this sangria recipe, did some tweaking, and served to rave reviews for a recent shindig.  Thought we would share (as all good belles do)…

The key elements to a good, traditional sangria…fruit (apples & oranges), a liquor (we went with Grand Marnier), orange juice, and a fruity, dry Spanish red wine (a Tempranillo or Rioja)

The process is quick and easy.  Cut your fruit…

take a moment to muddle the oranges with your liqueur… 

 do the rest of your mixin’ and you’ll be sippin’ before you know it!!

Belle-ringin’ Sangria

1/2 apple, cored and chopped

1 orange, sliced into small pieces 

2 T sugar

1/4 c Grand Marnier

3/4 c orange juice

1 bottle dry Spanish red wine (Tempranillo or Rioja)

Ice

1 orange, sliced, for garnish 

Place apple and orange pieces in pitcher and add sugar.  Muddle well.  Add Grand Marnier and orange juice and muddle again.  Add red wine and stir well.  Add ice and stir to chill.  Serve in wine glasses garnished with orange segments.  

Aclamaciones!

a&a


what’s ringin’ our belle…round 54

17 Tuesday May 2016

Posted by in belle of the ball, belle-icious, what's ringin' our belle

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Ringin’ belles this week…

  

Via Theminimalistbaker

Refreshing, and thirst quenching.. A new twist on the Margarita…
  
Via Thekitchn

As y’all may have noticed from our belle-ringin’ cheeseboard post we have embraced the honeycomb. It’s time y’all did too.  Here are some delectable ways to have fun and add flavor . 

  
Via Pinterest 

Mind over matter. Meditate belles.

  
Via Pinterest 

  
Via Pinterest 

Maybe we will meditate about this Thai noodle bowl

  
Via Pinterest 

When coffee isn’t enough.. Try these Six things that will give you energy…

  
Via Amazon

A Fun read

Ring-a-ling!!
a&a

“thai one on” meatballs…belle-icious! 

11 Friday Dec 2015

Posted by in belle of the ball, belle-icious

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We are pretty good in the kitchen, and we often get requests for recipes, but, never have we ever, (we mean never ever) gotten so many accolades and pleadings as we have for these meatballs.

We served these very spicy Asian-style delights at a recent cocktail party in a chafing dish. But they could easily be put over jasmine rice or served in a lettuce wrap to be more of a main course.

But be forewarned belles!! Double, triple, quadruple this recipe as people will be on you like white on rice for these meatballs. They are that tantalizing…unless you are very mild-mouthed, whereupon they might just cause you to have a stroke…just throwing that out there.

They are very easy to make and actually quite cathartic during the rolling process.

The recipe comes from Food 52…a great resource for awesome recipes and a wonderful site to troll when you need an inspiration or two.

  
Korean Style Gochujang Meatballs

Makes 20 meatballs

3 green onions thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves minced
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup panko crumbs
2 T Korean chili paste
1T minced fresh ginger
1 t kosher salt
1/2 t ground white pepper ( we used black with no issue)
2 T canola oil

glaze:

1/3 cup apricot preserves
2 T Korean chili paste
1 1/2 T rice vinegar
1 T soy sauce
Garnishes : sliced green onions

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1. Preheat oven to 350. In large bowl, combine all meatball ingredients except oil. The key to good meatballs is not to over mix them. Gently combine the ingredients until everything is well mixed . Form the mixture into golf ball sized meatballs. ( we made ours much smaller for cocktail party so they’d be easy to eat. )
2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat . In batches ( please don’t crowd the pan) , brown the meatballs on all sides. Transfer meatballs to rimmed baking sheet and place in oven. Bake 10 minutes .

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3. Meanwhile, in small saucepan, combine all glaze ingredients. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or until mixture is slightly thickened.

4. To serve, brush meatballs with glaze and sprinkle with green onion. (we put the meatballs and the sauce all together in the chafing dish for the cocktail party)

If you don’t make these , you’re plum crazy….just sayin’

a&a