Rex & Regina’s Blog

I’ve been up in Massachusetts on location at wedding and had the opportunity to visit my Aunt and Uncle. They are master gardeners and have amazing vegetable and flower gardens. They also have rows and rows of blackberry bushes — one of my favorite berries. So I chucked when I saw these porcelain berry containers from Jayson Home and Garden.  Adorable!

Farmers Market Baskets from Jayson Home & Garden

Cookbooks, entertaining, and etiquette books read like enthralling novels for me, and I pour over every photo and blurb. I could spend hours soaking up all of the practical advice and being inspired by the recipes and ideas.

The newest entertaining book in my library, thanks to a dear friend, is Entertaining Simple, by Matthew Mead, who hits the nail on the head when it comes to simple, easy ways to dress an impactful table. Mead reviews the elements of the basic table “wardrobe;” offers clever ways to reuse the same serving piece in multiple, stylish ways; provides clever decor ideas; and caps it all off with delicious recipes.

I particularly appreciated his focus on how to use the ordinary elements in one’s home — egg cups, glass votive holders, cake stands — and turn them into extraordinary focal points on table.

Looking for a gift for your favorite entertainer? Look no further!

Entertaining Simple, available from Amazon

Traveling overseas for your honeymoon? Keep your passport safe and stylish in this lovely passport cover from Smythson — one of my favorite leather goods stores. The cover comes in a variety of colors; I am partial to cerulian.

Bon Voyage!

Smythson passport cover, available at net-a-porter

Cerulian passport cover from Smythson

I am on the hunt for a small (roughly 7×5) leather three-ring binder to use as an agenda. I’ve checked out most of my usual shopping haunts but am coming up a little empty (except, of course, for the lovely one I saw at Louis Vuitton).

In my pursuit for the perfect agenda, however, I visited Bally’s website and spotted this fabulous pink grained calfskin manicure kit. The lacey quilted lining oozes femininity. And the kit includes all the grooming essentials a properly primped girl needs. Wouldn’t this be a perfect gift for a favorite girlfriend or a bridesmaid?!

Powder pink Bally manicure kit

frilly lace-lined manicure kit

Are you a chocoholic? Do you have friends that are chocoholics? Then you should not read further at the risk of completely falling off the wagon.

I mean, what could be more sinful and delicious than hot chocolate — on a stick!! Simply stir the chocolate into a cup of hot milk and enjoy. I love it! What a great gift these would make for the chocolate lover on your list this holiday season.

hot chocolate on a stick

I opened the latest issue of House Beautiful only to find the most wonderful tool for a wedding send off.

Restrictions at venues against rose petals or other tossing items lead many brides to invite their guests to blow bubbles for the send off at the end of the wedding. These fabulous wands from Clay Company would make not only a great tool for a bubble-filled send off, but would also be a nice gift for guests. The wands come in four different styles, but here at Rex & Regina we are biased toward the “crown” style!

While perfect for a wedding, the wands would also be great at a birthday celebration or a New Year’s Party.

Bubble wands from Clay Company

Crown Bubble wand

Should the wands not do it for you, check out these adorable champagne bubble bottles from Beau-coup. They’d be great for a vineyard wedding.

champagne bubbles from Beau-coup

Many of the brides I work with work very hard leading up to their wedding to get as fit and healthy as they can. Motivated by wanting to fit into their dress or look great in photos, some brides go to great lengths to shed pounds and tone up. Many work with personal trainers or spend thousands on exercise programs, and some try extreme diets as part of their pre-wedding regimen.

I am all for being healthy — exercising, eating right, and taking care of one’s body — but I do get worried about some brides taking it too far.  Extreme measures can be dangerous to one’s body and often times the short-term benefits are quickly lost after the wedding when brides (and grooms!) return to their original habits. I am not a fitness or health expert, but I do firmly believe that creating a healthy lifestyle and establishing good habits with respect to eating and exercising will yield the most significant benefits in the long run.

I’ll admit, exercise and I have a love/hate relationship. I have struggled over the years to be consistent in working out. Add to that the fact that I am head over heels for food and I run a real risk of ending up looking like a big blob! Recently, however, a friend gave me this little exercise and food diary from Green Chair Press as gift; it has rocked my world!

WIth its simple format, this food and fitness journal from Green Chair Press is so easy to maintain!

I love the colorful flatware theme.

I take the journal with me everywhere. It is so small that it fits easily into my purse, and it is cute to boot! I track what I eat and what I did for exercise that day. There is even a space for general notes which I use to jot down things like “I felt tired today” or “Am I starting to get a cold?” I thought having to write down everything I eat would be a burden, but not only has it become a habit, it’s also been oddly fun. I enjoy tracking what I’ve done and the progress I’ve made, and the discipline of having to write down everything I eat has prevented me from having that extra dish of ice cream or reaching for that piece of chocolate. It’s been about three months now and I am half-way through the journal. I just ordered three more so that when this one fills up I have no excuse for not continuing with my food and fitness tracking!

The journal has been very helpful in tracking my progress in exercise. It works really well with the data from my Nike+ workouts. I am able to jot down exactly how many calories I burned and for how long I exercised. Similarly, my Wii Fit workouts have been easy to track as well.

Healthy habits are hard to start but once they are in place, they can become second nature. Chart a course tailored to your own personal goals with respect to diet and exercise and then track your progress. You don’t have to go to extreme lengths or spend lots of money.  Get ideas for workouts online from SELF or healthy recipes from Cooking Light. Before you know it, you’ll be doing your very own, customized Bridal Boot Camp!

Here’s to our health!

I love traditions — creating new ones and following time honored ones. And while not every longstanding family or cultural tradition always make sense to follow, many are still very sweet and relevant.

Take for instance, the practice of giving a particular item according to each anniversary year: paper for the first year, cotton for the second, leather for the third, and so on. I love the idea of playing off of the particular year’s theme in a creative way that honors the tradition itself, but reflects the style of the recipient and the thoughtfulness of the giver, as well.

I came across this beautifully bound book of love poems from Smythson recently, which I think would be an absolutely stunning gift for a first anniversary (paper). It could be paired with another gift or just as easily be given just on its own.

Smythson Love Letters book

August is Panini Month. That’s right. Panini Month. When I learned about this from @Foodimentary on Twitter, I nearly fainted from excitement.

I love panini. But not just any ‘ol panini. I particularly love the panini I build from scratch in my very own kitchen.

The absolute best wedding gift we received when we got married was our Krups Panini Maker (thanks, Dianne and Jay!). I think we used it every week for at least the first year of our marriage. We made savory panini with prosciutto or with brie and apples, and sweet panini with nutella and bananas.

Brides, if you have not already added a panini grill to your registry, do so immediately. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Just add it!

One of the things I love about a panini grill is that it begs for creativity, inviting you to find the absolute best combination of bread, ingredients, and condiments for that perfect sandwich creation. And, it’s interactive. My husband even brings our panini grill into work for occasional “Panini Fridays” with his team at the office.

So, knowing it was Panini Month, I thought it only right to celebrate with a nice panini and soup lunch this past weekend. For my panini creation, I chose to pile on a few of my favorite ingredients:  Cowgirl Creamery Mt Tam Triple Cream cheese, thinly sliced Granny Smith apples, and baby spinach — all set between two slices of fresh French bread from Cenan’s Bakery in Vienna.

Triple Cream, Apples, and Spinach Panini

To accompany the panini, we made Onion Soup from Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking and served them both on a panini plate.

French Onion Soup and Panini

Happy Panini Month, everyone!

Julia Child would have turned 97 years old today. With or without the recent release of the movie Julie & Julia, Child’s birthday is certainly a significant day in the culinary world.

There are so many wonderful ways to celebrate the day and honor her talents, ranging from cooking one of her recipes, watching one of her PBS shows, or hosting a party in her honor.  And, of course, there are smaller ways to tip your cap to the culinary legend.

For example, how adorable is this apron from Sara Smedley on Etsy?! She’s taken the motif from the cover of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 1 and replicated it on a linen apron. Matching tea towels are also available.

Julia Vol. 1 Butcher's Apron by Sara Smedley on Etsy

For more of Rex & Regina’s thoughts on ways to celebrate Julie Child, check out Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, and Day Five of our recent series counting down to Julie & Julia and remembering the great Julia Child.