Pokey Lafarge

Last night I was at Headliners Music Hall in Louisville,KY and saw a great ragtime blues band. The venue was AWESOME, the crowd was great. Everyone was dancing, clapping, singing along. It felt like a different time period. Heres the video so you can see what I mean. Enjoy!!!



Vespa Scooter

Heres the newest illustration in my shop



Yummy Vegan Iced Coffee

I was feeling like something cold and coffee-ish, so I took my leftover coffee from my morning breakfast and added some almond milk, splash of vanilla extract and a teaspoon of agave nectar. Shook it with ice and YUMMMMMYY!!!!

I like to put it in a mason jar, so if I have to run or save some for later, just sqrew the top on and go! psst...and its recycling :)

SUMMER SALE

(custom print for MeGiant)

I am having a HUGE SUMMER SALE!!! Discount prices and buy 1 get 1 on ALL of my prints!!! (of equal or lesser value and not on custom prints, of course)

Also, drawing is at a bit of a stand still. Does anyone have any ideas for a new illustration I should do?

My 'Green Giant'

So, Ive been trying to add Spirulina to different things. It made a YUMMY green smoothie.

In this picture is my beautiful green giant and Walter wishing she could chase all those birdies ;)

This is what was in it: Almond milk, about 5 strawberries, 2 handfuls spinach, 1 Tbsp spirulina (gave my smoothie a very dark green color) and 1 Tbsp sucanut for a little touch of sweetness. That with a Banana was the perfect breakkie!

Newest Custom Portrait

This is the last custom order I had to get done. Its been busy these past two weeks! Im all caught up and ready for some more! natsmithillustration.etsy.com

Spirulina- my new superfood

Spirulina is an amazing superfood! It has DHA, its a complete protein and depending what brand you get can have 4-6 g of protein in 1Tablespoon. Its is also high in Iron, B1, B2, beta carotene and contains all essential amino acids. Its a great superfood for vegetarians and non veggies :)

So, what is it? It is a blue/green algea found in the sea and usually comes in flake, powder or capsule form. I have it in powder form and add it to smoothies, cereal, basically anything. It turns everything nice and green!!!



New Illustration

This was a lot of fun to draw!! I seriously love everything vintage!!! You can find this in my shop

Delicious Vegan Cereal, or and its RAW too!

I call this cereal "Buckies" I soaked 1/2 cup Buckwheat groats in water overnight. Then I drained and rinsed them, them dehydrated them for about 4 hours until crunchy. If you dont have a dehydrator, you can put them in the oven at your lowest setting, keep the door open a bit with a fan aiming inside, a pain i know! I ate them with sliced banana, blueberries and almond milk.

Why Buckwheat? Its soooooooooo good for you. In 1/2 cup theres 10 g protien, 8 g fiber, 12% of your daily iron and tons of vitamins. So does it taste good? YES!! It has a nutty, wheatie taste and crunchy texture. You should try it.



What Ive been doing...

Its been a busy week for custom orders! But Im not complaining, its so fun! Heres whats been done so far



Raw Food

Yes, today is Vegan Wednesday but I thought I would talk a bit about eating RAW. I just got this book in the mail



its a hard read, but very interesting. Talking about what happens when you heat your food abouve 115 degrees. Basically were killing our food. Food heated below 115 is still alive and nutritious and has valuable enzymes. I also got this book which is full of great recipies

Im going to try incorporating raw food into my vegetarian diet. So its time to dust off my dehydrator and borrow my mums champion juicer and start my raw UN COOKING!!!

Vegan Wednesday

We had a sucessful vegan wednesday!! Its surprisingly easy and delicious :)

This was breakfast. A mushed up banana topped with wheat germ, oats, chia seeds and I added some sucanut for a touch of sweetness (not pictured) It was so good and kept me full until lunch!!!! I juts had a BIG salad for lunch. Supper was.....AMAZING... I made a Pho Vietnamese Noodle Bowl. oh. my. goodness.... it was so good. Heres the recipe:

Pho Vietnamese Noodle Bowl

2 tsp olive oil

1 onion thin slice

2 tsp chineese 5 spice

6 cups vegetable broth

3 heads baby bok choy chopped

1 cup cubed tof

7 oz rice vermeccelli noodles

4 green onions, for garnish

Sautee onion in oil, add spices. Cook 1 minute.Add broth, bok choy, noodles, tofu. Simmer 5 minutes. Top with green onion and sesame oil.

1 tsp sesame oil, for garnish



New Illustration

50's Vintage Mic



I LOVE KEFIR!!!

 yes, i do love kefir! I got some fresh kefir grains from thekefirlady.com and they work GREAT!! I definatly recommend her if you're needing some fresh, plump kefir grains. I have 2 mason jars going, one with milk kefir (the yogurt-y stuff you can buy at the store) and some water kefir (a delicious probiotic, fizzy drink) They both turned out great and my kefir is growing each day.

this is a picture of water kefir grains



and here is a picture of  milk kefir grains

You can use both types of kefir to make whatever kefir you want. I ordered water kefir grains, and Im able to make water kefir and milk kefir. If you're interested in learning how to make water kefir and learning the benefits visit bonzaiaphrodite.com! Her blog is awesome!

Vegan Wednesday....not too vegan...

Well, today was the grand opening of The Fresh Market. Evansville has a Fresh Market!! YESSSSSS!!

Along with the grand opening were amazing RAW UNPASTERIZED cheese samples, and I gave in.....I also had some other samples, which Im sure were NOT vegan... oh well...its an awesome store! My favourite thing I found there was a french pasrty that I didnt think I could find here, its called Mille Feuille.

Of course I bought one, and since vegan day has not happened according to plan, I WILL eat it and I WILL enjoy it! Come back next wedesday for Vegan Wednesday, unless another great food store opens. heeheehee

3 days away from home

So Im at a 3 day bible convention this weekend, which means very good planning for bringing food! Heres what im bringing for lunch friday, saturday and sunday. On friday we had a sandwich with Edamame Pate, sliced cucumbers, sliced provolone and a handful on spinach on Ezekiel bread,

 today is going to be a lentil salad with dried cranberries, sliced almonds, feta, couscous and lots of garlic! Tomorrow is a mexican quinoa with blakc beans, tomatoes and spices. Yum! Yum! let me know if you want any of these recipies

Raw/Vegan Wednesday

So, vegan wednesday was great!! I started the morning with cut up apple and almond butter

I found out that when you eat raw and vegan you get hungry ALOT through the day, im ok with that;) So I munched on some celery and carrots. I also grabbed a chunck of Raw Vegan chocolate that I made. YUM

Heres a picture of my lunch, a HUGE salad with Edamame, avocado, walnuts, tomato and spinach. That was delicious!

At about 2ish I snuck another piece of the chocolate ;) and drank lots of water throughout the day. For supper me and Jer had Vegetarian Pad Thai, that was so good we ate it before I had a chance to take a picture, sorry!!! That was a sucessful vegan wednesday, you never know I may add more vegan days in the future!



Raw, Vegan chocolate chips!

mmmm.....these are GOOD! AND they're raw (havnt been heated or cooked) and vegan (no dairy) heres how I made them: mix 1 cup cocoa powder (or carob) 2 tsp vanilla, 4 T agave, 2 T coconut oil. roll on a piece of parchment (thanks hannah!) and freeze 30 min. chop up and add to your cookie recipe. i ate the ones in my hands or course ;)

Vegan Wednesday

I havnt worked on any new illustrations this week...hope to get inspired soon. I think ive just been focusing on making delicious, new, healthy foods for Ezra (and us) Jer and I are going to have Vegan Wednesdays!!!!! Eventually Id like to have completely RAW food wednedays. Im finding so many great raw food recipes! Come back and read on wednesday to see how our first Vegan Wednesday went

Ezras Breakfast

We had so much fun this morning. Ezras breakfast consisted of some oatmeal with wheat germ, nutritional yeast (a complete protien!) cinnamon and coconut milk, then he had a bit of molasses (for the iron) then we shared a 'green' smoothie made with banana, spinach and water. He really like that!!!!

Lovely Almonds

Im going to be making my own almond milk soon. It seem so easy! Heres how to make it. Soak 1 cup almonds in water in a jar. Place in the fridge for 8-24 hours. Place the almonds in a processor, process until finely ground. Add 4 cups water and blend. Strain through a sieve and you have almond milk!!!

Black Bean Pupusas

Heres a delicious Vegan recipe. Black Bean pupusas are delicious, and if you arent vegan you can add cheese to the filling. I am attempting to make them right now. If they work, I will post the recipe.

Strawberry season!

Its strawberry picking time!!! I found a great place that doesnt spray their plants. So I got as close to organic as I could. Strawberries are one of the important fruits to buy organic since you are eating the skin. So, after a couple hours of washing, hulling and freezing, my strawberries are ready. Ready for delicious breakfast shakes made with Kefir!!!

keep calm and sew on

Greeting Cards

I really want to experiment with greeting cards. Ill keep you posted when I get some done. Here is the kind of cardstock I will be using. I love brown kraft paper!!!

Vegetarian Recipe!

These litte quinoa patties are absolutely amazing. Heres the recipe!

Makes 12 patties

• 2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa, room temperature
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
• 1/3 cup finely chopped fresh chives
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan or Gruyere cheese
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup whole-grain bread crumbs, plus more if needed
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

1. Combine the quinoa, eggs, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir in the chives, onion, cheese, and garlic. Add the bread crumbs, stir, and let stand for a few minutes. Form mixture into twelve 1-inch thick patties. (Add more breadcrumbs if the mixture is too wet; add water if too dry.) Mixture can be kept covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
2. Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-low heat. Working in batches, add patties, cover, and cook until bottoms are deeply browned, about 7 to 10 minutes. Increase heat to medium if there is no browning after 10 minutes and continue to cook until patties are browned. Flip patties with a spatula and cook the second sides until golden, about 7 minutes. Remove from skillet and cool on a wire rack. Repeat with remaining patties

New Illustration

FOOD BLOGGING!

So, I think its time to start blogging about food! One of my favourtie foods, and one you should be eating everyday is Avocado! But its so full of fat, you may say. Then I would roll my eyes at you and tell you that its GOOD FAT, fat that your body recognizes and can digest very well. It can regulate blood pressure. Its also packed in omega 3 and 6 which is great for your skin and hair. Its also delicious!!!! So, the way I have it everyday is on a sandwich which consists of Ezekiel Bread, tomato, spinach, cheese and avocado. Happy eating!!!!

Next Concerts

So, our next concert isnt untill July. Were going to be seeing Fleet Foxes again, this time in St.Louis. It will be fun going to St.Louis again, but sadly Crepes In The City has closed their doors.  How will we survive without a banana nutella crepe?!? Guess we'll have to make them ourselves! We just found out that The Decemberists have added dates and I think were going to see them in August in Indy. Havnt bought the tix yet, so we better cause they're going fast!!!!

I'd Rather Be Drumming

Now if only I knew how to drum...

For VW lovers only!!

Fleet Foxes

The show was amazing! The harmonies were perfect, the music was perfect.....everthing was great. But of course were were sitting behind 2 giant idiots!!! They were dancing like they were in a club and SUPER drunk. They werent even enjoing the show!!!! errrrrrrr!!!! I hate people like that. Then he turns around and want me to give him a high five! Really?!? People still high five?

Getting ready to leave for the show!!!

Heres a song from the new album you can listen to. Its great! The show will be great!!

SO EXCITED

Wish I was here....

Im really wishing I was at the beach right now. This is a picture of Reo De Janiero, Brazil. Ive been there twice, and its amazing. But I would be content going to any beach!!!

California Sushi Roll

I love sushi! Being a vegetarian, of course I go for the california roll. mmmmm....now im hungry!!

Popular old follk saying

today im 26...where did 25 go?

I fixed my custom portrait a bit....

at the decemberists concert in louisville,KY

blue eyes, my babys got blue eyes...

April 2011 Art Festival!!

This was SUPER fun. Here are a few pictures.

Vote for me on Heartsyme.com!!! http://heartsy.me/deals/2329/like

Im so tired from the Decemberists concert last night. It was absolutely INCREDIBLE!!! If you've never heard of them, check them out!! so tired now though, and my body is aching and voice was almost gone. im getting old!!

Fridge Magnets!

Im working on some fridge magnets with my illustrations on them! I will be posting them in my Etsy shop soon!

New Decemberists Video!!!!

New illustrations!