Is Happiness a Choice? {Tyler}

Every now and then at The 20 Somethings we get requests from other websites, companies, and blogs to be a part of new projects or plug new products in exchange for all kinds of things. Recently, we were contacted by a website called Happify, a new project that is all about increasing brain fitness and helping individuals be an active part of the science of happiness. I took to Google to learn more about the website and see what folks were saying and stumble upon an interesting post from an individual who had been invited to Happify, but went on to rant and rave about how unrealistic it was because happiness isn’t a choice and it isn’t something you can change or manipulate.

To which I say, bullshit. Continue reading

Warm Weather Cocktails {Tyler}

As soon as the sun comes out and temperature goes above 60 degrees, you can find me outside. No, not hiking or riding a bike or any of that crap. I’ll be on the patio (and in the garden…but for the purpose of this blog, let’s pretend I don’t do that). There’s little I love more than drinking a nice cocktail on a nice shady patio in warm weather. Be it a liquored up beverage, a light beer, or a nice glass of sweet wine – I love it all!

Well, since the weather has decided to actually give us spring around here – with the exception of today – I figured it’s the perfect time to do a rundown of some of my favorite warm weather cocktails. These are perfect for you to enjoy out or make for yourself at home. And they’ll last you from now until the leaves start to turn this fall.

Lavender and Thyme Martini

I’m bringing back this oldie but goodie from last summer. I love the fresh and refreshing flavor of the lavender mixed with lemon and thyme. And it’s a gin martini – my favorite.

Now, here’s where you make the magic happen with the martini -

  1. Fill your favorite cocktail shaker with one cup crushed ice.
  2. Add three ounces gin (or two shots) – chilled.
  3. Add two ounces lavender simple syrup (or four tablespoons).
  4. Add the juice of one lemon.
  5. Add one sprig of fresh thyme.
  6. Shake until chilled and incorporated.
  7. Strain and serve with a sprig of thyme and a lemon twist.

Continue reading

25 Things I’ve Learned at the Age of 25 {Tyler}

Tomorrow, I turn 25. A quarter of a century. Can you believe it?! I know I can’t. I thought it would be fun to come up with a list of 25 things I’ve learned over the past 25 years. Not all of these are original thoughts, some come from the Internet while others are from friends and family…but they all are a part of my life and how I try to live.

  1. You’re the only person who cares completely, totally, 100% about you.
  2. But that doesn’t mean it’s okay to be selfish and self-centered. Selfishness isn’t a good look for anyone.
  3. Your only purpose on this earth is to leave it a little better than you found it - a little bit cleaner, a little bit happier, a little bit healthier, a little bit more beautiful.
  4. It doesn’t matter how fit you are, how much money you have, how many friends you have, or how good you think you look, “if you can’t love yourself, how the hell you gonna love somebody else?“ 
  5. The world is full of beautiful people – and you’re one of them. Continue reading

Recipe: Hibachi Chicken with Fried Rice {Tyler}

It’s time for a recipe, y’all! I posted a picture last night of the hibachi chicken I made for Eric and I and everyone was asking for the recipe, so I figured I might as well share it with everyone! This recipe is pretty simple and to the point. I’ve put it together over the past few years of cooking on my own and have mixed different recipes I’ve found online. Here we go!

Hibachi Chicken with Fried Rice

for 2

Screen Shot 2013-03-18 at 10.37.32 AM

Continue reading

Crafternoon: Gallery Glass

Houston, we have a privacy problem.

Ever since Eric and I moved into our new bedroom here in the house (the room that used to be the office) there have been a few issues that needed addressing.

Being the world’s best procrastinator, I waited around before taking care of two windows that gave our neighbors – or friends and roommates – some high dollar views of Eric and I (you’ve got to be smart in this economy and charge for stuff like that). One was the window above our bed and the other was the window in the bathroom attached to our room. For the window above our bed I chose a quick and easy fix. I measured the window, cut some fabric I had lying around from another project, used iron on hem tape to put in a loop at the top, cut it in half, and put the new curtains up with a tension rod. Simple! I wanted to only cover the lower half of the window – the part that gave the neighbors a view of something more than they bargained for – and still wanted light to flow in through the top half.

Before

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After

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Now, on to the main project. The bathroom window needed a different treatment. We really needed something to help with privacy in the bathroom, but I didn’t want to do a curtain for two reasons: 1) the bathroom is super small and needs all the help it can get in terms of lighting and helping the space feel larger and 2) I’m just scared of a fabric curtain in the bathroom – what if it grows mold or mildew?!  Continue reading

My YouTube Favorites {Tyler}

Every now and then you just need a good laugh, cry, or chance to think about your life and everything that is wrong with it. Well, videos online are the perfect chance to do all three! I thought I’d share some of my top picks for YouTube channels and go to videos on the web. You’ve probably seen some of these before, but if not, you’ve got to check them out!

Willam’s Beatdown

Willam is a drag queen and former contestant of RuPaul’s Drag Race (we’re still not quite sure why he got kicked off) who is rude, raunchy, and freakin’ hilarious. His videos on Youtube through The Stylish are all about making fun of other YouTube sensations. I love it. Continue reading

Upcoming Asheville Restaurants {Tyler}

Asheville is on track to open a ton of new restaurants this year – a number of them in the ever-growing South Slope area, just south of Downtown. I’m pretty frickin’ excited, to say the least, so I thought it’d be good to put together a list of upcoming Asheville restaurants – all in one place! Check out what is in store for the #AVLFood scene over the coming months.

DOWNTOWN

Farm Burger - Downtown | Patton Ave. - This Spring

With three locations in and around Atlanta, Farm Burger already knows how to make a mean burger with delicious toppings. The Asheville location will continue the tradition with local, grass-fed meats, local beers, and INDOOR BOCCI BALL!

Local Taco - Downtown | Lexington Ave. - Coming Soon

With already establish locations in Nashville, Lexington, Kentucky, and Greenville, South Carolina, Local Taco knows how to make delicious Tex-Mex food with a Southern twist. No news yet on an open date – but the local location is on Facebook.

BoBo Pho - Downtown | Lexington Ave. - ???

The owner of Suwana’s Thai Orchid is opening this pho restaurant in the spot next to BoBo, recently vacated by Green Light Cafe.

The Green Room - Downtown | Church St. - ???

It’s a takeover from The Altamont Theatre! Treasure Keepers and the Heavenly Spirits Wine Bar is out and a new light bites restaurant and bar is in.

Continue reading

Roasted Sweet Potato & Brown Butter Risotto (and Contest Winner) {Tyler}

Anddddd, we’re back!

Sometimes, we forget to blog for a week, okay? But we still love you all and we’re sure you love us! Right…right?!

Anyway, last week was great – each of us celebrated Valentine’s with the person we love and we had our friends Rachael and Amy over with their hubbies for a super fun Valentine’s Dinner Party (pictures and details to follow next week)!

Now, to announce the winners of our contest with Erra Creations! Congrats to Casey and Lindsay! Thanks to everyone for entering.

Screen Shot 2013-02-18 at 10.21.58 AM

 

And on to this week’s recipe! For Eric’s birthday AND for our dinner party this past weekend I made a roasted sweet potato and brown butter risotto that is DELICIOUS! Folks have asked for the recipe several times, so I thought I’d finally share it with you all. It’s adapted from a recipe I found over on the How Sweet It Is blog. I hope you enjoy!

Roasted Sweet Potato and Brown Butter Risotto

Screen Shot 2013-02-18 at 10.37.51 AM Continue reading

Valentine’s Dinner Party {Tyler}

The 20 Somethings are having a Valentine’s Dinner Party next Saturday! (PS: Sorry you’re not all invited).

Anyway, I’m super excited about it because I love parties and I love planning things and I love having people over and I just love lots of things.

All of that to say that our super cute and fun Valentine’s Dinner needed an invitation to go along with it. I decided a real paper invitation sent via mail would be the best way to invite our friends – I think it means a lot more than some Facebook event. So I scoured Pinterest for invitation ideas and got to work on coming up with the perfect party invite! I came up with a chalkboard theme for the invitation and accompanying envelopes. I had the main invitation printed at a local shop and made all of the envelopes myself (which is super simple to do, by the way).

Check out how it turned out and make sure you scroll to the bottom - you can download the invite template in Word format to edit and print yourself!

Photo 2013-02-04 12.33.21 PM

Continue reading

Creating a Gallery Wall {Tyler}

A couple of weeks ago I posted about covering your walls with great art on a budget and talked a little bit about using Modge Podge and found objects to decorate in the form of a gallery wall. Well, dear readers, today I’m going to take you through some of the steps Eric and I have taken in creating that gallery wall of our own, and show you some photos of our new room.

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Continue reading

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