I took these at about 8 a.m. on my way to work the other day, so please excuse the bleary sleepy eyes.

I tried on this dress way back in September and came really close to buying it, but I held out (it was full price) and managed to find it on sale for 40 or 50 percent off on the Kate Spade website two days after Christmas.  I’d almost resigned myself to living without it, so I was pretty psyched to find it in my size so heavily on sale.  It’s conservative enough for work, but still incredibly fun — it’s pretty rare to actually find a great work-to-play dress, but I think this one actually manages it.

I’m thinking of getting the hem shortened a little bit, what do you guys think?  I’ve found a great tailor here (Nick Lopez, if any of you live in Houston) and it’s amazing how much a little nip and snip can turn a good dress to great.

And if you’re wondering about the title of the post, this Rachel Roy clutch is part of her Kindness is Always Fashionable (I agree!) line, and 100% of the proceeds go towards relief efforts for victims of natural disasters.  I love pieces that, in addition to being really beautiful, actually make me feel good about carrying them.

Kate Spade dress (still on sale!), gifted Rachel Roy Ghana clutch, Forever 21 bracelet, gifted Payless shoes.

I know I’m a broken record on this, but I really don’t think you can say it enough.

I am so, so lucky and so grateful for all the amazing opportunities that Sugarlaws has brought me — I can never quite get it out of my mind that if I hadn’t started this blog back in 2007, I probably would never have had so many incredible experiences that I’ve gotten to have just because of Sugarlaws.

And one of those really incredible experiences was this video I shot last week, along with Noritake, Macy’s, and the Knot!

We had so much fun shooting this segment on china and wedding registries, adapting a few of my recipes to complement the dishes, and generally dishing (no pun intended… no, seriously, I actually wrote “dishing” in a post about china and did not intend a pun) about what couples today want and need in their kitchens.  As you guys know well, there’s nothing nearer and dearer to my heart than that.

The full video will be out next month, but I couldn’t resist sharing some quick snaps we shot that day!  Since most of my videos on this site consist of me talking into a Flipcam on a tripod, it was pretty exciting to work with a real, professional film crew.  As I’m sure you guys can tell from the photos, I had a total blast.

Getting Mic-ed Up!

With Jamie from Noritake

Demonstrating a homemade raspberry sauce with Anja from the Knot!

Chatting About China!

If you guys learn one thing from this blog, I want it to be this: Soufflés are not hard!

Really!

I mean, I wouldn’t want to make them for a stadium full of people, and in a restaurant there are obviously kitchen-to-table service issues that are out of the cook’s control, but for just your family or a couple of friends, they’re actually a pretty simple dish. 

And holy cow, just wait until you see your guests’ faces when you whip up one of these babies!  Or one of these, or these, or these!  A perfect soufflé doesn’t have to rise six inches in the air, or even rise perfectly evenly — it can just be its slightly-imperfect self, and still absolutely delicious.

After this cinnamon-white-chocolate creation, I feel pretty satisfied with the sweet soufflé recipes on this site.  Now it’s time for some savory ones, huh?  YUM.

Cinnamon and White Chocolate Soufflé

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup sugar
6 ounces white chocolate, chopped
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
3 large eggs, separated

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Butter and sugar four ramekins, as desired.  Beat egg whites with the sugar at medium speed, until they just hold stiff peaks.

Mix the white chocolate, cinnamon, vanilla and heavy cream and microwave for 30 seconds.  Let sit for another 30 seconds and stir until combined (if chocolate is not fully melted, microwave for an additional 15 seconds).  Allow to cool for another minute and then stir in the egg yolks.

Fold the chocolate mixture into the egg whites.  Fill 4 ramekins almost to the top.  Bake approximately 10-12 minutes, or until the soufflés are puffed and just set.  Serve immediately.