That Time I Danced At A Wedding

Oh hello again! You may have noticed that I went missing for a few days there, and the reason is that I was suffering from a little burn out. If you read my post and feature on Fashion Flash, then you may know that in addition to my day job, I also have a few other side hustles that I am pursuing. And after over a year of pushing really hard, it happened. I burned out. And so, I took a break from all my gigs, and did very little, end result being that I'm reinvigorated and energized for the summer!!

So while I was on break, I attended my cousin Sonya's wedding to her now-husband Steve. Now, most Indian weddings are five day affairs, but since Steve is not Indian, and this isn't India, Sonya and Steve had an abbreviated adaptation of an Indian wedding, but preserved my most favorite of Indian wedding events - the Sangeet. The Sangeet traditionally occurs the night before the wedding and is a time for song, dance and celebration, and a way for the two families to get to know each other. In an arranged marriage, the sangeet is also a time for the bride and groom to get to know each other before the big day. Sonya and Steve have been together for six years, so their sangeet was all for fun, and frankly, a way for Sonya's bridal party to get all pretty and dressed up and do some dancing.

I wore J. Crew leggings, a kurti (basically a tunic) from am:pm, and Bombay Taxi earrings (obviously).

Sonya, my aunt (her mom), my mom, and me

A closer look at my outfit

Sonya and her bridal party. Photo credit: BrookeTysonPhotography.com

Sonya and Steve at their Sangeet. Photo by BrookeTysonPhotography.com

It was such a great evening, made even better because not only did the bridal party dance, but Sonya's mom (my aunt) and her friends did a dance too! The DJ was great, mixing pop, 90s hip hop and Bollywood songs together, and the food (Indian of course) was so delicious. 

And in the event that you want more, here are my snaps from the night. PS, if you're not following me on snapchat, you definitely should - my username is shibanifaehnle

Overall, a lovely evening to celebrate a lovely couple! Congratulations to Sonya & Steve!

CLE Living: Gatherings Kitchen

There comes a point in your life where the line between friends and family starts to blur. And what better way to demonstrate your love for your family of friends than a home-cooked meal? You know what's even better? A home-cooked meal where neither you nor your friends have to clean up! Recently, my good friend and fellow blogger Charity organized a super fun evening where a group of friends gathered to take a private cooking event at Gatherings Kitchen. 

I've never done a group cooking class-- in fact, for me, cooking is a solo sport. So this was definitely a new adventure. Gatherings does not serve alcohol, but guests are welcome to bring their own, so armed with a bottle of prosecco (duh!) and a bottle of wine, Nick and I made our way over to Lakewood to cook. We had a group of about 12 people (the private cooking events have a max capacity of 16), and together we set out to cook an Indian menu of samosas and pakoras, lentil soup, Indian bread called khulcha, a lamb dish, a entree of chicken and vegetables, and Indian rice pudding for dessert. Gatherings advertises the event as four courses, but as you can see, we made a LOT of food!

Everyone paired off to work on different portions of our meal, but no one seemed particularly interested in making the chicken korma, so being Indian, and as previously mentioned, a solo cook, I decided to tackle this head on. Now if all of this sounds intimidating, it really isn't. Everything is perfectly portioned out, most of it is prepped, and there are 3 chefs on hand to help out. So at no point do you feel like you're on a sinking ship with no lifeboat. And you know what? It was SO MUCH FUN! We were all drinking wine and prepping food and having conversations, and along the way, I even learned a new way to chop onions! 

We cooked until we had our appetizers ready, and then it was time to leave it up to the professionals to finish off our dishes, and plate them, while we sat down for more alcohol, conversation, and table service. 

I have to say, everything was DELICIOUS!! The quantity of food was ridiculous, so most of us went home with leftovers (which were equally delicious heated up!), AND a cookbook to recreate the recipes at home!!!

One quick tip on cooking Indian food: I highly recommend finding a neighborhood Indian store (just google Indian grocery or Indian store) where you can buy spices for a really low price. They store for up to 2 years in airtight containers or you can freeze them. If you don't have one close, and/or you have Amazon Prime, you can also order kits like this one or this one. 

Overall, a fun, educational, and delicious way to spend an evening with friends or family or friends who have become family! Find Gatherings Kitchen here or on Facebook. The Supper Clubs (where you participate in a pre-scheduled class) as well as the private cooking events are $75/person!