A Few of my Favorite Things

My friend Christiana Roussel and I are members of the Birmingham chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier International. This is a philanthropic organization of women leaders in food, wine and hospitality. We are a varied group of food writers and bloggers, chefs, restauranteurs, sommeliers, farmers, cookbook authors, cheese makers, educators, food photographers and stylists, nutritionists and more.

We are dedicated to growing, creating, promoting and sharing our local food culture, and on an even more basic level, sharing food itself. We also focus on education and mentoring the young women who will follow us, and we fund scholarships to help them along.

But sometimes we just want to have fun.

So Christiana, our programs chair (who also is a food and lifestyle blogger–check out her Christiana’s Kitchen here), decided to throw a “Favorite Things” party.

Here’s how she described it: “Each dame is to bring three items, each valued at less than $10, unwrapped, in a bag. When the party starts, each dame will get up and tell about her favorite things. After each presentation, we will pull three dame names from a bowl, and they will take home some new favorite things. At the end of the night, each dame will have shared three things and collected three things. It’s a fun way to learn more about each other.”

We gathered at the John Hand Club in downtown Birmingham (check out the incredible view), added a little wine and some delicious hors d’oeuvres to the mix, and we had ourselves a party. With really cool favors.

Here’s what I brought:

I love, love, love the Diva scent of Glamorous Wash by Tyler Candle Company (Funny story: I ran around my neighborhood for weeks thinking it was the best-smelling place on earth and wondering why. Then I realized it was because people were doing their laundry with Diva Wash. The dryers were getting the scent out into the neighborhood.) A little of this laundry detergent goes a long way; I mix it in with my regular detergent when I wash my running and yoga clothes. The little 8-oz bottle came in just under $10.

The Party Cracker Seasoning from Savory Fine Foods, LLC in Texas makes an instant awesome snack in quantity. I included the extra-large plastic bag needed to mix it up with an entire box of saltines. This seasoning comes in other varieties: chipotle, dill, cinnamon sweet, but I love the original mix best. This cost about $6.

Who doesn’t appreciate some cheeky cocktail napkins? These MikWright napkins with vintage photos and clever phrases are some of my favorites. I always have a few different versions on my home bar, and they are instant conversation starters. These are around $6.

And here’s what I brought home:

A three-pack of microfiber face-cleansing mitts. No more ruined washcloths! I’ll use one with Sephora’s Supreme Cleansing Oil, which is my go-to at the end of each day, and I’ll share the other two mitts with my daughters.

A great coffeecup with abstract birds on it. Perfect for sipping my morning coffee while I watch the bird feeders outside my kitchen window to see who shows up. Hummingbirds are coming soon. So are the lovely goldfinches.

A bottle of Kirkland Prosecco because who doesn’t love Prosecco or Costco, for that matter?

Some of the Dames brought items from their own businesses like a cellphone credit card holder with a gift card from Ashley McMakin, owner of Ashley Mac’s; (have you had Ashley Mac’s hot spinach and artichoke dip?). Specialty coffee from Erin Isibell, owner of The Red Cat Coffeehouse and salted chocolate granola from Jennifer Yarbrough, owner of Crestline Bagel Co. (check out my post about Crestline Bagel’s new Cahaba Heights location). Becky Satterfield, of Satterfield’s Restaurant in Cahaba Heights, brought cardamon-scented sugar; Katherine Cobbs brought honey from her own hives and a “mother” vinegar starter (with instructions) from her own kitchen. Sonthe Bokas Burge shared Shoreline Extra Virgin Olive Oil (available at Shoreline Foods International Market & Deli in Pensacola, FL) as well as a personal story of love and friendship in Crete.