This is one of those kitchen sink recipes that changes depending upon mood and fridge contents. Nearly any combination of veggie will make this taste delicious. It's kind of a fusion between Japanese Udon and Vietnamese Pho. It's great comfort food for the colder temperatures, but still has a lightness to it that's not like your typical winter soup. The key ingredients here are hoisin sauce, sriracha and udon noodles. I personally can't make it without mint, either. I'll opt out of the mint if I'm using chicken or have just egg in there. But if I'm cooking up pork or beef, it's a must! The thick udon noodles have a chewy consistency, much like a rustic chicken noodle soup. I like to cook everything separately until adding it all together at the very end. It keeps anything from going mushy and flavorless. To keep yourself from going crazy, this is a great recipe for putting leftover vegetables and meat to use. I'll do meat and veggies with rice for one meal, cook an abundant amount of veggies and meat and warm those up for the udon. It helps to cut down on clean-up afterward. Here's how I do it:

Udon Fusion

makes enough for 2-4 people

• 1 package udon noodles any flavor (looks like this, you can find it in the international aisle in just about every grocery store)
• petite ball tip steak or boneless country style rib meat
• carrots
• broccoli
• green onions
• mint
• 2 eggs
• hoisin sauce
• sriracha
• lemon slice or bit of lemon juice

Start by steaming or pan frying veggies. I'll do a bit of a steam in a frying pan with water and a small pat of butter. Cook until browned and soft, or at least soft. You can use raw carrots here if you peel or grate the carrots. Cook your meat separately. I like to get the pan super hot with grapeseed oil, pepper and salt; then quickly fry up small slices of the meat. Alternatively, use pre-cooked meat for a speedier meal. Cook up the eggs. I may have some soft boiled eggs on hand that I'll add at the end (one to each dish) or I'll fry up an over-medium egg in a separate pan. Poached eggs are great here, too. Prepare the udon according to package instructions. If you're doing an unflavored package of udon, a bullion cube or chicken or beef stock is great to add into the cooking process. Chiffonade your mint and chop up green onions. Mix up the veggies and meat in the soup. Dish up the soup and place the egg, garnishes and sauces on top.   The kids love this recipe, but I'll nix the sauces for them. I may sneak a little sriracha when they're not looking, though.

This post is sponsored by Sven Clogs. Original hand-crafted clogs since 1974. Clogs made-to-order with premium styles and materials for man, woman and child. Connect with Svens Clogs on Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram! After I made Penelope's sweet summer romper, I knew I needed to make a matching look. I mean, seriously. Gold clogs and red striped fabric? YES. So much yes.

All images by Pierson Photo Company

I've got a few of these dresses in my closet now, I can't stop making them. Can we talk about how awesome shift dresses are?! I can have a giant food baby in there and no one would ever know. And yes. There was a food baby in there. No real baby. To switch up the style just a touch, I added a tunic-style hem with a slit on the sides and a high-low hem. The blunt high-low hem changes the look from any other shift dresses out there. I feel like it adds a bit of edginess in there. Maybe a slight '90s vibe? I've been crushing on the '90s hard core lately. Creepy skull!! Hahah! I love that. This is one of the few stores I've been to lately that didn't have Christmas Decor up already. Sheesh. It's still September. I'm not sure I want to think about Halloween quite yet! This dress is perfect for Summer, but I've been layering it with blazers and jackets to transition to fall. I think the black leather warms it up for the cooler season that's approaching. Let's talk a little about the sewing process! Here's what I did:

• Used Megan Nielsen's Briar Tee as a base
• Raised the neckline
• Lengthened the hem to a dress
• Shortened sleeves
• created a high-low hem

Creating a split hem isn't as hard as one might think. It's a little trickier when serging the side seams, but not impossible at all. Here's how to do it with a serger:

• Serge the side seams before putting the layers together (if it's woven, if it's a non-fraying knit, no need for this step).
• Sew the seams about 5" shy of the desired slit spot.
• Switch to a regular sewing machine, with a straight stitch sew all the way to the slit line (make markings on both sides for consistency).
• Fold the seam allowance back in on itself and sew a top stitch around the slit. I do up over and down on one slit in one go.
• Hem front and back as desired.

If you've been nervous about split hems like this, don't be! They're super easy! Let me know if you need illustrations for the above instructions. :) Outfit details:

• necklace: c/o Cents of Style
• bracelets: c/o Tai Pan Trading
• jacket: Ted Baker
• dress: me-made
• bag: Coach (from my awesome Mom!!!!)
• shoes: c/o Sven Clogs

Let me just say, I absolutely love these clogs. They fit perfectly. I'm wearing them constantly. They're the perfect momiform shoes: they're easy to chase kids in, they're comfortable all day and they look so cute! I'm a huge, huge fan. Seriously, I can't seem to get enough.

I did some calligraphy work for a neighbor. For Father's day she asked me to write out the priesthood line of authority for her husband and her dad. It's taken me MONTHS to sit down and write about it. I don't really talk about my religion here specifically (I try to keep things more or less non-denominationally Christian around here), but sharing this project kind of opens that can of worms. If you'd like to read more about the Priesthood means in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, click here. If you don't, I won't be offended. In a nutshell: a priesthood holder has a line of authority. It's a line (like genealogy) going back to Jesus Christ. For the long list of names, I kept it pretty much to a monoline Spencerian/Ornamental Penmanship style. I wanted the recipients' names to be highlighted along with Jesus Christ to emphasize that connection between the work that men are called to do as priesthood holders and the ministry of Jesus Christ. I used Recovery Plate 100lb.  super white paper with McCaffrey's ink. It's simple without much ornamentation or color, but the flourishes help elevate it. I thoroughly enjoyed this project. I think I need to write one out for Chris.

It's unreal how long I've had this DIY in the queue. I made these necklaces back in 2013, just before I went to L.A. for a girls' weekend. Back when I made this, I had an idea for a giant rope necklace, but didn't have any giant rope. Turns out you can find this type of stuff in the upholstery section, but making your own rope is hyper fun. And insanely easy. It adds a little bit of quirkiness, but it doesn't look nearly as home made as it is. I love that. For the simplest of necklaces, here's what we'll need:

• Cotton twine: any kind (I found mine at Home Depot)
• scissors
• tape
• jump rings
• chain (16+ inches)
• pliers

Click the link to see the full tutorial. Cut your string into 16-24 strips at about 2 feet long. You'll want to make sure they're longer than your planned length because the twisting and knotting makes the rope shorter. Tie a knot in one end, leaving about a 2-3 inch tail at the end. Tape the tail down securely. Divide the strings into equal groups and twist them both one direction. In the image above, the two groups are being twisted counter-clockwise. Once the two groups are tightly wound, twist the two groups together the opposite direction. In this case, the ropes are being twisted clockwise now. Tape your end closed. Add any beads or embellishments to your rope. In this case, I found decorative floral wire at my local craft store and wound it around a fat crayola marker 10 times. Cut off excess with pliers.   Thread the rope through the coil and knot the taped end. To keep the raw ends of the coil from snagging on your clothes, tuck both ends inside the barrel. Do this by grabbing the ends with pliers and just pushing the coil inward and down just a bit. Add jump rings to the back sides of the knotted string. I loop the jump rings around 1-2 strings. Add your chain. A quick note about jump rings, make sure you twist them apart sideways instead of pulling them apart. You can twist them back closed, but you can't push the rings closed (hope that makes sense). Before closing up the chain, make sure the chain and rope can slip over your head easily. Otherwise, add closures. I'm too lazy for closures. Boom, Done! There you have it. Simple. Easy. Fun. Play around with polymer beads, leather and more for a completely different look.