Attention deficit?? You make the call

I started blending wines years ago. It's part of the fun and creativity of evening wine and appetizers with the guests at the Belle Isle Inn.

So now I'm blending coffee. Today was Hazelretto.

Hazelretto sounds like the lil Ole aunt who would come to visit the family at Christmas. You know, the one who always sat next to you at the dinner table smelling of cedar and mothballs, and some kind of ancient, moldy flower perfume. And if I remember correctly, (and I'm sure I do) she always spit teeny pieces of food while talking. I'm sure one of my brothers got smacked under the table (could have even been me) for bringing the shooting morsels of food to the attention of the entire table.

Well, Hazelretto brought a quirky smile to my face, a sensational blend of flavors to my palette and was truly wonderful this morning!

If you like the orange gel nails or the pinky with the dried flower art check out Tia'Spa!

Tia'Spa: My Tree

So I'm pretty much finished with my new Tia'Spa location. I can not tell you how much I LOVE IT!

There is something to say for us creative types and our need for a work location and home that make us feel all warm and fuzzy. It drives our creativity. Seriously! I have hair cuts, colors and tons of other new ideas shooting out of my head for lack of room. You know of any clients in either Green Bay or Algoma that I can work my magic on while alleviating the pressure of all this creativity?

Anyway, I decided that I needed something different in my suite at Salons on Huron. I have this huge wall and didn't want a traditional picture so I decided to plaster a tree on the wall.

I have this thing for trees now. They make me think of my brother Dave. Cancer took him from us two years ago and now trees make me think of him. Something about the way the sophisticated root system burrows deep into mother earth while the comparatively small, but ever so strong trunk holds the incredible expanse of branches and leaves as they wind and stretch toward the  heavens...

Anyway...I'm super pleased at how my tree turned out! I've even had an audience watching me work at times.

I used joint compound with a 2 inch plastic putty knife in long strokes for the trunk and branches and a 4 inch putty knife in 12x12 patches for the areas of leaves, then I squished a scrunched up plastic bag over the top of the wet plaster to create the "leafy" texture.

For paint, I randomly placed the pumpkiny color of the East wall with an old, frayed brush, then a metallic brown with a long strip of sponge. The leafy area was 3 different whites using three different sponge shapes, then the leathery sage green of the West wall  with a three inch sea sponge. I finished up with a dark army/pine green combination using a 1 inch wiry brush for some detailing work.

Here's to you David! Miss you!!

Hmmm...what next?

Thank you

Thank You,

It's another new year for me. Happy Birthday! And a full moon to boot...I got some new gel nails, a new hair color and a new pedicure to start me off right.

You see at the beginning of the year I said "this is going to be my year." Of course I have said that for, hmmmmmm, at least, one, two, three...OK, a lot of years now. Not just these past four with the 5 surgeries because there have been many struggling times in my life to go along with the good ones. But today, I've decided to change the day that I say it...

"THIS IS GOING TO BE MY YEAR!"

But you know...just being here and making it through the last 4 years, because they rank right up there at the top of difficult times. OK, be truthful here...these last four have been the toughest of my life. There, I said it. And making it to another birthday really says something to me.

You can use all the sayings, hang in there, keep your chin up, etc. but to continue on...to get past the moments where you just want to crawl under the covers and never come out...to have the guts to kick adversity, and yourself in the ass and say "GET GOING" is what it's all about for me.

So today, on my birthday, I thank you God and all your helpers above and on earth, who continue to nudge me along in life and give me the courage, strength and blind faith to live life to the best of my ability, with what I am and what I have, with no regrets!

Thank You!

Love, Tia

Red's Rockin' Shore's Red

Hey Everyone, I just had to include this fabulously fun color that I did today at Tia'Spa in the Belle Isle Inn.

The owner of this color, her name is Red, is fabulously fun herself so the color fits her to a t! We change the colors up with each color to keep things fresh.

5 generous sections were pre-lightened with bleach to a level 10, separated by papers.

The pre-lightened hair got a semi-permanent magenta color and were again separated by papers.

On the rest of the hair I use a combination of three bold, low-ammonia reds to give Cabernet depth, cranberry brightness and copper flash and believe me, the pictures don't do the color a bit of justice.

Not every color has to "jump out at you" but every color needs to work for the client's needs and remain healthy and shiny. Low ammonia color, like the one I use, allows the hair to remain healthy during deposit and is only productive for use when the color company's molecules are extremely tiny and able to fit within the cortex after the cuticle has been opened. Chemistry...

Anyway, visit Red and her husband at Red's Rockin' Shore Pub for great fun, food, friends and music. Red even plays her guitar on a regular basis.

I love Macaroons

So I got up this morning before my hubby. Sunday morning, the only morning to sleep in in a looooooong time, and I'm up at 6:00 am. Seriously... So I make some amaretto coffee, check my farm (one of my clients needed a neighbor, Cindy, and now she's way back in the dust)and realize that I'm pretty darned hungry. I celebrated my Green Bay's Tia'Spa expansion with hubby last night. Had some Caberaz, my own decanted blend of Cabernet and Shiraz, and my killer guacamole, but forgot to have dinner.

Getting back to hungry! Hmmm, what should I make? It's one of those mornings; nothing that I see looks good. So I want to just "make something up." Great ideas seem to come to me when I wake up in the middle of the night or when I'm hungry and can't find anything I want to eat!

I scrounged around the cupboards and the only thing I saw that tripped my trigger was coconut. It mad me think of macaroons. But what, at 6:30 am, can you make with coconut, to eat for breakfast?

But of course...Macaroon Bread Pudding!

I got to mixing up the ingredients as follows

Place into a small oven-safe bowl
4 slices of whole wheat bread torn into small chunks
1/2 cup of sweetened coconut

Place into a microwave-safe bowl
2 cups of milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter
Microwave the following until the butter is melted stirring often

Beat together
2 jumbo or 3 medium eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract

Pour the egg mixture into the milk mixture, stir well, then pour over the bread and coconut.

I popped the dish in the toaster oven on convection at 350 for 30 minutes (yes the toaster oven.) The smell of almonds and coconut filled the entire Inn, waking up my husband.

I decided to make a Rum glaze and put into my Pampered Chef sauce pan
1/4 Cup Sailor Jerry spiced rum
1 1/2 teaspoon corn starch
2 Tablespoons butter
Bring to a boil, stir until thickened and clear then pour over the bread pudding.

I figured this recipe would serve 4 but it was so good it only served two. We sure enjoyed it and I hope you do too!! I can hardly wait to serve it to the guests at the Belle Isle Inn!

Shanty Days

Once again...Shanty Days was a big hit in Algoma. The parade fell on a beautiful day, a pleasant mix of sunshine, clouds and a nice breeze and our front lawn was filled with onlookers. Our guests hung out on the patio with their Bloody Marys, soaking up the small town nostalgia and the warm rays of mid August. before heading to see what the street vendors had in store for them. Corn dogs, kettle corn, a blackberry phone cover, fresh wildflower honey, a Packers dog collar and some artwork were purchased and dropped off at the Inn before heading back to see the bands. All in all a very enjoyable weekend was had by all!! Make sure to plan early for next year's Shanty Days Celebration.

Hello Again

Hi Everyone,

Sorry, it sure has been awhile!

The Belle Isle Inn Micro Spa is up and running. You can find me on facebook for pics and updates. I'm also working on a new Green Bay location for my micro spa. I will be taking appointments starting Wednesday the 26th.

The Inn is doing great! We are working on the basement room and plan to open the area mid September. We hope to be able to sleep 4 in this room that we hope to theme as "rustic."

I got "un-screwed!" The last of the removeable hardware is now GONE from my ankle. I should be able to wear shoes pretty soon and I can not wait! It has been almost three years.

Latest recipe from the Inn...

Loaded Blueberry Bread Pudding was a big, no huge hit.

Here is the recipe:

8 C Day old bread cubed

5T butter

2T grapeseed oil

3/4 C dark brown sugar

3/4 C Splenda (one to one Splenda)

3 1/2 C Milk

8 farm fresh eggs

2t vanilla

1/4 C Pampered Chef Cinnamon Sprinkles

2-4 C fresh Blueberries

preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat eggs, br. sugar, splenda and vanilla. Warm milk, butter and grapeseed oil. Blend milk mixture into egg mixture. Using a Pampered chef 9x13 stoneware pan, layer bread, blueberries, bread and blueberries, then pour liquid over top; pushing bread down lightly until all mixture is soaked into bread. Bake for 1 hour, depending on your oven. Note: inside should not be liquidy (is that a word?) Pudding will rise in oven then fall as it cools. Enjoy!!