Pretty Southern

  • Marco Suarez Southern Landscapes

    Marco Suarez Southern Landscapes

    Marco Suarez is a photographer, artist, designer, and musician living in Greenville, South Carolina.  His take on Southern landscapes is absolutely stunning.  He uses photo retouching services to give his circular photographs a moody and mysterious vibe that immediately draw you in to the stories of the south.  While he has worked all over the world, I am immediately drawn to his lovely scenes of Tennessee mountains.  One look at these photos will take you back to a hazy morning in the Blue Ridge Mountains, standing on your cabin’s porch, sipping coffee, and breathing in the scenery. 

    Marco’s work also includes bright, playful scenes of the beaches of Florida- reminiscient of 1960’s South Beach with crisp blues and mid-century architecture.  These will immediately transport you to a warm summers day, soaking in the sun on a sandy Southern beach.

    Marco’s other work includes amazing colorful collages, clean graphics, and intricate web designs.  Read about and check out more of his work here on his site.  You can buy prints of some of his beautiful work here. Bravo, Marco, for creating such a unique, enlightened vision on some of our favorite Southern scenery!

     

     

     

    [author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]https://prettysouthern.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/KatHeadShot.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]Kat Kraszeski-Jackson is an art teacher, artist, and diy crafter living in Greensboro, NC. She loves sharing her favorite artists, projects, and creative inspiration here on Pretty Southern.[/author_info] [/author]

  • Spiced Bourbon Honey Iced Tea

    Thanks to our friend Liz Krebs for shooting over this delicious recipe from Blisstree! Spiced Bourbon Honey Iced Tea by Elizabeth Nolan Brown!

    Ingredients:

    6 cups water
    3 (chai or India) spiced black tea bags
    1 cup bourbon
    ⅓ cup clover honey
    optional: 2 sprigs lavendar, if you’ve got it handy
    optional: 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

    Combine all ingredients in a jug or pitcher with lid. Put on lid and shake it up (alternately, I guess you could stir, if that’s more your style).

    Let it steep in the fridge. (I mean, obviously, you could drink it right away, but it’s better after it sits for an hour or few.)

    Serve on it’s own or over ice; you may want to pour through a strainer if you used lavender, to avoid getting it in your drink.

    Editor’s note: the feature photo is actually the delicious Seersucker cocktail from West Egg here in Atlanta!

     

  • West Egg How Gatsby Dreamed

    Take two former lawyers with great taste and a whole lot of gumption then y’all have got the foodie heaven of West Egg. Atlanta’s up-and-coming Westside is history in the making, thanks in part to businesses like this new restaurant.

    Owners Jennifer and Ben Johnson met while attending law school at Duke. Right before graduation, Ben popped the question and they’ve been together ever since. They both practiced law at large firms in Atlanta following law school before Jennifer got the itch to open a restaurant then left her practice in about 2002 to start working on what would become West Egg.

    “It was opened on a shoestring, with friends and family rallying round to help paint, build and otherwise turn a raw space into a slightly less raw restaurant,” the couple explained. Ben kept his day job for several more years before joining West Egg full time in 2007.

    The name West Egg comes from the fictional town in “The Great Gatsby”, which has always been a favorite book of the Johnsons. “We even had a passage from it read at our wedding long before there was any thought of a restaurant,” they said. “When we found the original space, the Westside was a far different place than it is today. Bacchanalia and Taqueria del Sol were pioneers just up the street, but back then there was nothing in the area to speak of south of the railroad track and 14th Street except Northside Tavern. It was the Westside; we were serving coffee and breakfast; West Egg just jumped out as the perfect name.”

    West Egg is now housed in Westside Provisions on Howell Mill. The space is ideal for dates, working lunches, coffee breaks or even just to come and hang out. “In moving from an old industrial building into a brand new space, we tried to carry over references to the industrial character of the surrounding neighborhood. From the mirrored reclaimed factory windows in the dining room to the old chicken-wire safety glass around our bakery area, almost all of the furnishings are vintage or reclaimed in some way.”

    Buttermilk Pie crafted from Ben's grandmother's recipe.

    “Our menu is based around Southern comfort foods. Many of our desserts, such as the Coca-Cola cupcake and buttermilk pie, are based on my grandmother’s recipes. We make our own pimiento cheese, pickle our own okra, and put bacon on just about anything. Our dinner menu includes Pig & Grits (slow roasted pork shoulder over grits) and Country Captain (a traditional low country dish of chicken stewed in tomato curry). Our boozy milkshakes are based on our homemade vanilla softserve and include sweet tea (made with our housemade liqueur) and bourbon chocolate. Our cocktails include the Maple Mint Julep (sweetened with maple syrup) and the Seersucker (gin, basil, and lemonade).”

    The Seersucker. Imagine a Mint Julep…but even better!

    “The South always has had a defining tradition of graciousness. Hospitality, to kin and stranger alike, simply is a part of life.  We have tried to capture that tradition of Southern comfort and hospitality with West Egg but also free it from triteness or too much nostalgia. We want a come-as-you-are casualness befitting a dynamic city like Atlanta, where tattooed twenty-somethings sit next to families with young kids who sit next to pinstriped lawyers who sit next to young entrepreneurs on laptops who sit next to students twenty minutes out of bed – and who all feel equally welcome and at home.”

    On one afternoon, this PrettySouthern writer found herself writing with an iced cafe au lait, which lead to a beer sampling and then a piece of buttermilk pie! For more information on West Egg, check out their website and tell Ben and Jennifer that you saw them on PrettySouthern!

    August 4, 2011

  • Love the South

    My Yankee best friend sent me a funny editorial called Screw New York. If y’all don’t want to read this Manhattan diatribe it’s all good; although even this Southern gal has to admit that it made did make me chuckle.

    Essentially the writer conveys his sadist resentment towards the masochistic city in this love-hate relationship. He hates New York for being overpriced on everything including food, cocktails, rent, and existence in general but endures the torture because he’s sucked into the lifestyle.

    That’s not so much the case in the South. So I started thinking, as a counterpoint to this writer’s work, about the Pretty Southern examination of our culture. Instead of “Screw New York” I present to y’all “Love the South”.

    Love the South for making it easy to live below the Mason Dixon line. Folks come for a visit and are enchanted by our lifestyle. They’re always talking about how people aren’t as nice in other parts of the world. When they leave the South, their heart will twinge from feeling the lack o’ lovin’. They’ll return to their big city, be it New York, Chicago, Los Angeles or wherever and think “Why did I come back?” Eventually they’ll get sucked back into the tunnel of expensive loneliness, drowning their sorrows at the bottom of overpriced martinis. Lo and behold, in a few months, they’ll have to come back South for another sweet fix.

    Love the South for its simple things. The gas is cheaper, accents are softer, and strangers are friendly. We’ve got value meals available on every corner where a 22 oz. sweet tea is only $1. You can rent an apartment for a few hundred bucks a month, and even less if you’ve got roommates. If you’re on a tight budget, you can also rent an affordable room at https://www.americanlisted.com/all_states_0/rooms_and_roommates_93/cuartos+para+la+renta/. Despite a down economy, y’all can buy a house or property for less money in the South than any other place in the U.S. Why? We’ve got land y’all! Drive out of Atlanta a few hours, north to the mountains or south to the coastal plains, and build yourself a five bedroom house for a monthly mortgage or via home loans that’s less than a 600-sq. ft. Manhattan apartment. Why not also check out this Beehive Federal Credit Union page here for some perfect home loans! But before purchasing any property, make sure to consult professionals first, such as home inspection broward county. You should also get radon testing just to be sure and not regret later.

    Love the South because of the seasons. Sure it’s hotter than Hades outside, but come September we’ll start to feel that fall crispness which will linger on through November. In the winter, though it’s bitter cold, we still get that blessed day or two of 70 degrees and sunshine. Y’all don’t get that up North.

    Love the South for giving us wonderful food with no expectations of being “skinny”. Most of the time, people will think something is wrong with you if you’re too thin instead of idolizing your frail frame. We’ve got to make sure no soul is going hungry.

    Love the South because it’s got the best cooks in the world. Be it the local Chick-Fil-A, the gentleman frying your bacon at Waffle House, in your grandma’s kitchen, or one of the many gourmet Southern gems, there’s lots of good eating to be done in our region. Homemade pie, bacon for dessert, homegrown tomatoes and wonderful restaurants are served up for either cheap or free.

    Love the South because there’s at least a dozen places in a square mile offering inexpensive libations. The last time I was in Boston I got charged $6.50 for a Bud Light. That’s more than the cost of a six-pack at my local liquor store. I love it when I take my friends out in Atlanta because they’re fun to get trashed. In their buzzed state they proceed to rave about the South’s greatness because drinks are so cheap!

    Love the South for attracting the nicest gay people in the world. There’s my neighbor Gail and her partner Sherrie who own the house up the street…and they’re some of the sweetest Southern ladies I’ve ever met. We’ve got Pride Week, Elton John has a condo here, and God love every gay man who has ever paid me a compliment. Truly it’s an ego boost to have such nice gay people down South. After all, Atlanta is the city too busy to hate.

    Love the South for not being pretentious. No one will judge you for going to the grocery store in pajama bottoms and flip flops. I found these wonderful flip flops with a country style, they are just perfect for the countryside so check them out.I once walked through a Harris Teeter in Charlotte, N.C., drunk after a wedding without any shoes on. No one said a thing, though in my haze I do remember one produce guy smiling at me. Try doing the same thing in New York or L.A. and see what happens.

    Love the South for being a shining example of life’s elegance. Gorgeous antebellum mansions, gentleman in bow-ties, pretty dresses on even finer ladies, all sans snobbery. We’ve got the most beautiful weddings marking the beginning of even greater love stories. Though, the greatest love story of all, is that of the South herself.

    Love the South for welcoming us all. Even if you’re a Damn Yankee we’ll only poke fun a tiny bit. Everyone who visits Virginia all the way down to New Orleans is a friend of the South. We love newcomers because we get to share our stories, food, and fun. PrettySouthern is dedicated to spreading that love.

    Love the South because of her grace. The unmerited thankfulness that runs throughout our region. No matter how troubled your soul, there’s a place in the South where you can seek solace. For me, it’s right here in my Atlanta home.

    What do y’all love most about the South? Please comment below and have a lovely day.

  • Smashburger Johns Creek

    Alpharetta residents: are y’all ready for some smashed goodness? Smashburger opens its second Georgia location next week on Aug. 10 up in Johns Creek! It’s at 9775 Medlock Bridge Road (right at the intersection of Medlock Bridge & State Bridge Roads).

    This place will be perfect for lunch meeting or dinner following a football game this fall. We love the Atlanta Burger with Wicked Pimena Cheese, grilled jalapenos, slaw and a tangy peach barbecue sauce. Each burger is freshly grilled to perfection and accompanied by any combination of sides and sweet shakes. Smashburger also serves beer and wine! The Colorado-based chain opened its first Georgia store in July at where Fat Burger used to reside between Piedmont and Sydney Marcus in Buckhead (across from the Home Depot in the Marshall’s shopping center). For more information, check out their website or read more about Smashburger here on PrettySouthern.

  • D.I.Y. Chalkboard Party Hat!

    D.I.Y. Chalkboard Party Hat!

    I accidentally created this fun party hat d.i.y. last weekend while making decorations for my friend Stacy’s birthday and I had to share it with you guys!  I was looking for paint to cover some cardboard balloon-printed party hats (from the dollar-store y’all) and saw my chalkboard spray paint that was left over from our wedding crafts.  This is the quickest, easiest party craft and wouldn’t it be so much fun for a kid’s party?  You could give them the hats and chalk and let them decorate away!  Just follow these 3 super easy steps to create your own:

    1.  Take basic cardboard party hats and paint with 2-3 coats of chalkboard paint, allowing each layer to dry fully.

    2. Use tinsel, ribbon, or paper to decorate around the bottom and top of hat.  I used wire tinsel with colorful stars (also from the dollar store) and attached with a hot glue gun (get one from Glue Guns Direct supplier).  Just start with a drop of glue, place the beginning of your decoration, continue wrapping around the base of hat and adding a dot of hot glue every so often.   Add as much or as little as you like and then add a little more to the top of your hat.

    3.  Use chalk, plain or colorful, to add an initial, name, or message to your hat.

    I think it would be great to pass these out at the beginning of a party and let each guest decorate their own.  We had so much fun with ours and even wore them to the bowling alley!

    Supplies:: party hats, tinsel or ribbon for decor, chalkboard paint, chalk, hot glue gun.

    [author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]https://prettysouthern.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/KatHeadShot.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]Kat Kraszeski-Jackson is an art teacher, artist, and diy crafter living in Greensboro, NC. She loves sharing her favorite artists, projects, and creative inspiration here on Pretty Southern.[/author_info] [/author]