I’ve always been a fan of a great at-home bar. I strongly believe it’s a must-learn life skill to mix up classic cocktails, and as an avid host, it’s important to provide an array...
Looking back on Easter as a child, I remember how excited I was to dig through my Easter basket. Full of chocolate bunnies, malt ball Easter eggs, Peeps, golden coins, and my favorite Cadbury...
Lets be honest, salads can be boring. So I’m always trying to think outside of the box to come up with salad recipes that I’ll thoroughly enjoy, but are beyond easy to make. Enter...
Lets be honest, salads can be boring. So I’m always trying to think outside of the box to come up with salad recipes that I’ll thoroughly enjoy, but are beyond easy to make. Enter...
I’ve always been a fan of a great at-home bar. I strongly believe it’s a must-learn life skill to mix up classic cocktails, and as an avid host, it’s important to provide an array of libations for your guests at a moment’s notice.
Now more than ever, with the amount of time we’re spending at home, a great home bar has truly become a necessity. While I have a few bar carts and drink stations set up around my home, nothing has upgraded the experience quite like my recently acquired Field Bar, a collaboration betweenGarden & Gun and Blade and Bow.
This bar is unlike any you’ve ever seen. Handcrafted in York, South Carolina, by the father-son team at Leake Furniture Makers, this expandable bar is made from cherry wood and brass. When closed, you’d have no idea what treasures are held inside: four crystal rocks glasses, a bar set by Lost Cove Jewelry, a custom throw and a custom set of napkins, both in Blade and Bow plaid. It’s also equipped with plenty of drawers and compartments to stow your other cocktail accouterments.
A true showstopper, the Field Bar reminds me of antique curio cabinets—the kind you would fold out to sit down and pen a letter. This is a true piece of art, but one that can travel. (When we’re allowed to travel again, that is).
If you’re looking for a last-minute holiday gift that’s sure to wow, put the Field Bar on your list. And don’t forget to add a bottle of Blade and Bow Bourbon as spirits aren’t included! Truly, MKR
In partnership with Garden & Gun, photography Kathryn McCrary
There are a lot of food and entertaining trends I CAN’T get behind, boards for everything is not one of them.
Collecting your classic cheese and charcuterie boards in all different shapes and sizes has become as popular as collecting matchbooks or blue and white chinoiserie pieces. Not only do these boards look gorgeous placed around your kitchen, but they’re extremely practical. Practical yes for your classic cheese plate obviously, but if you’re not thinking outside of the cheese board it’s time to start. And what better way than loading one with all the Halloween treats your stomach can handle for a Halloween Candy Board.
Crafting a Halloween Candy Board is truly easier than it looks. Personally, I like to start from the center and work my way out. Mix up colors and types of treats like chocolate pumpkins, cupcakes (I just added eyeballs to store bought cupcakes), homemade mallows, and cookies. For those local, Pum’s Sweets made these gorgeous mini sugar cookies!
Always include a bowl, or rather three if you’re doing more than one as odds always work better in this case. My pumpkin bowl is filled with a classic Autumn Mixture of mine, recipe coming on Friday! And if you feel like making your own bark I highly suggest this easy bark of mine. I make it every year!
Aesthetically make sure you’re angling treats all different directions so it doesn’t look like your Halloween Candy Board is tilting or moving in one specific direction. And try to make everything flow together so you have very few spaces or gaps showing. Lastly, have fun and don’t take it too seriously.
One more thought. I love a good grazing board as much as the next person, but based on everything that’s going on grazing is a no-no. To help make your Halloween Candy Board more socially distanced friendly grab plenty of inexpensive tongs and make sure everyone has their own that way they can pile the treats on their plate and simply place the tongs in a “dirty” bucket once they’re done for the evening. And grab some Halloween themed goodie bags so guests can take a few goodies home with them.
Happy Halloween friends, and if you need any Halloween decor ideas make sure to check out my favorite Halloween-themed post HERE! Truly, MKR
In the 8 years that I’ve had my Blog I’ve written a lot of great posts, I’ve had a lot of amazing partnerships, and I’ve traveled to a lot of dreamy places. Truly, this blog has allowed me to do, see and experience things I never would have imagined in a millions years. But today my Friends, today is one for the books. Today, I’m thrilled to be sharing my first ever designed product; a Build-Your-Own Charcuterie Board. Yep, you heard me right I’ve created a map to the perfect meat and cheese board.
With my first EVER designed product I wanted to put the easy back into entertaining! And there’s nothing more entertaining than a great charcuterie board, but easy they are not. Especially lately when it seems boards are becoming larger and more intricate than ever. So I thought, why not create board that had it all laid out, a map if you will. So thats just what I did, with a little help of course.
First we started with my favorite board that we sell at Waiting On Martha Home, a beautiful 30 x 10 maple wood board from Maple Leaf Designs Texas. We then had the map hand stamped/engraved on to the board in our handwritten font that was made just for Waiting On Martha.
Finally, we had the board fired in the kiln until it reaches a deep walnut brown coloring and finished off with butcher block conditioner. While I originally wanted to keep the board its original light maple color I quickly realized it gets messy. By darkening this thermal ash board you can lay everything directly down on the board then simply wash it away at the end of the night keeping it as functional as it is beautiful.
And that’s it, simply follow the step by step instructions engraved on the board and you’ll have the perfect appetizer board every time! And trust me when I say it will be perfect as I tested it many, many times even measuring out cheese wedges to try to make everything the perfect size. And if you consider yourself an expert we’ve got you covered too. The engraving is easily covered up as so you can feel free to get creative. However, you will find plenty of suggestions and definitions on our map such as: olives, vehicles (with suggestions for different crackers & breads), stinky cheese (with a listing of some of our favorite stinky cheeses), honey, sliced fruits (with suggestions of different fruits), salami with definition of salami, seasonal (with some ideas for seasonal foods), hard cheese (with a listing of some of our favorite hard cheeses), jam, (with suggestions for different crackers & breads), soft cheese (with a listing of some of our favorite soft cheeses), nuts, and prosciutto with definition of prosciutto.
This really is the perfect gift to give to yourself or to the host you love the most this holiday season. And from the bottom of my heart thank you to all that have supported me on this journey. It’s been a ride! xo, MKR
