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A Friday Night Fall Dinner Party

Last night our casual, Fall dinner party was an absolute blast!

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There were only four of us, and the evening was very relaxed including hanging out on the sofa while catching up over red wine and listening to music. It was the perfect Friday evening after a long week.

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Emily and I handled wine pouring, clean-up and helping with some prep work while Bo and Katie spent the evening in the kitchen truly crafting the dinner.  Luckily, Bo was able to sous vide the main course the night before which made the amount of work required last night far less and helped everyone relax a bit more.

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The menu included:

  • Polenta with caramelized onions & shaved pecorino and basil
  • Fall salad of Mesclun greens, toasted pecans, Stilton cheese & pear with white balsamic dressing
  • Sous vide pork shoulder with garlic, sage & mustard with a pork sage gravy and sweet apple reduction sauce
  • Smashed butternut squash
  • Homemade apple crumble with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of pistachio cream liqueur

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Everything was delicious, but my favorite was hands down the main course!

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Tell me – How was your Friday night? What are your favorite Fall recipes?

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Friday Favorites– Fall Has Arrived

Hey gang! How are you all doing today? Ready for the weekend? After a few non-stop weeks I’m looking forward to a relaxing weekend. Tonight two of our friends are coming over for dinner, including Katie, who unfortunately moves back home next weekend. Our plans for tomorrow include relaxing on the couch while Sunday I’m going to enjoy a small, local trail run along the Rhone River with Renaud.

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The leaves on the ground make it seem as if Fall has arrived but our temperatures say otherwise. We’re still facing weather in the 70s!

This week’s Friday Favorites revolve around almost all things Fall!

Fall Nail Polish –  I love swapping out my bright Summer nail polishes for darker colors such as gray, deep magentas and plum. I found a now discontinued CHANEL polish from 2012 in my nail polish bag which I have loved the past two weeks. But, next week I’m going with an Essie nail polish, Berry Naughty, which I brought back from the states.

Fall Candle: While the weather isn’t feeling very Fall like, our home definitely feels like Fall has arrived. This week we spruced up the house with a bouquet of fall colored mums from the Farmer’s Market, gourds that double as upcoming dinner ingredients, and lots of Fall candles. My favorite is Woodwick Pumpkin Butter which is a mix of pumpkin spice scents with sweet, baked good scents. HEAVEN! For those of you who haven’t used Woodwick Candles before, they are incredible! They also crackle when they burn, just like a fireplace!

Gucci Audacious Color Intense Lipstick Iconic Bronze - Perfect for Fall!

Fall Lip Color: While I loved rocking this Summer’s bright coral lip colors, I’ve been wearing this copper lipstick for the past two weeks and am officially in love! It grips and lasts on my lips longer than most and it’s easy to apply even on a moving train or on the tram to work! The copper is something I haven’t worn before but it pairs wonderfully with any outfit choice! While GUCCI may be one of our brands so I’m a bit partial, give it a try and I think you’ll agree. I LOVE the Gucci detail on the case and lipstick itself – a little piece of luxury!

Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Pecan

Fall flavored bars: I LOVE Kind bars, especially their low sugar options. When we were back in the states we bought a few different flavores but the Dark Chocolate Cinnamon Pecan are far and away my favorite. The hint of cinnamon reminds me of Thanksgiving pecan pies while the chocolate pieces provide me with just enough chocolate for an afternoon treat. With only 5 grams of sugar and 7 grams of fiber, it’s been the perfect 4pm snack.

What are you loving these days??

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#NoFilter Switzerland

Since moving to Geneva last year, I find myself constantly in awe of the incredible beauty of this country. While we have barely started to discover many cities across Switzerland, those areas that we have visited have left us in awe. Therefore, when I saw that the London City Airport is running a campaign called #NoFilterSwitzerland asking travelers and bloggers to share their favorite, unedited photos, I knew I had to participate!

Whether it’s the stunning, crystal clear lakes or the surrounding mountain peaks, everyday activities such as flying, running, or commuting home from work are more beautiful than anywhere I’ve lived previously.

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The aim of the project is to remind people that while the phones of today have many incredible editing features, some of the best pictures are those we capture in the purest form, without complex filters and editing. Over the next few weeks the judges, Becky and Gray from Global Grasshoppers will choose the winning images which will then be on display at London City Airport!

They requested that I limit my entries to five, which is difficult after capturing thousands of images over the past year on my iPhone.

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Tempted daily to capture new images so I can share memories with friends, family and blog readers I’ve realized that there are some simple ways to improve iPhone pictures.

  • Take time to ensure that your camera lens is clean. There is nothing worse than capturing a rainbow or other moment than to realize hours later that all of the images are blurry or smudged since your lens was dirty or covered in pocket lint.
  • Take advantage of using the screen focus.
  • Use shadows and reflections to make it more interesting. 
  • If you’re capturing a moving object or taking a picture while on a moving object, use burst mode to take multiple images.

These are my favorite #NOFILTER pictures from the past year in Geneva! I love this project as it’s made me more conscious of the dependency I’ve developed for filters when using my iPhone!

Which one of these pictures is your favorite??

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