Horror in the Attic! Our Attic Renovation Journey Part 1

We're finally taking the plunge and renovating our attic, so that it can be year-round livable space. We have no idea how much we can afford, but we're going to do as much as we can. Here is part one of our journey. We have a designer and contractor coming soon to see the space and we should have a much better idea how to proceed from there. Wish us luck!

Glendora Plays Wine Pong

Join your favorite cousin as she jumps on the solo wine pong trend!



BTW, our Mocktail Monday videos have become live broadcasts! Follow us on YouTube or Facebook to be notified when we go live!

Your Favorite Cousin is NOT Old!

Cousin Glendora is back and wants you to know she is NOT old!

Barrelin' Down the Highway with the Velvetones

Who else is feeling cooped up at home and needing a road trip? You may not want this one, but here it is, anyway! :D

Good For What Ails You

There are so many reasons you might have a headache. Traffic, deadlines, encounters with low-quality individuals, non-stop politics - it all seems tailor-made for cranial pain. Never fear, though! My studies show that this lovely libation washes away the tension on a gentle tide of rum.

All better...

The Spotless Mind

2 oz light rum (I like El Dorado 3 year old)

1/2 oz ginger liqueur

3/4 oz pineapple juice

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

A dash of cherry bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Good luck!

Always Shooting Food

We're deep in the thick of preparing for our Tiki Oasis symposium and basically our dining room has been turned into a soundstage for the duration. Here's a behind-the-scenes look at one of many tablescapes that are being shot for the occasion:

Always shooting food...

On a related note, if you live anywhere near us, or just happen to be passing through New York on I-84, please drop by and eat! We have a refrigerator bursting with food from all of these shoots. Lovely libations will be included!

Vintage Recipes & My Daily Hustle

I just posted a new batch of vintage recipes on our website! Here's a little teaser of what you'll find - click here to visit the page!

July means BBQs and picnics!

Now that we've passed 5000 Facebook followers (and, if you're one of those followers, thank you!) we're trying to push our YouTube channel past the 1000 mark. We are so close. It is truly driving me bonkers! If you're not subscribed to our channel, please subscribe! It only takes a moment and you'll see our videos at a much higher quality definition than on Facebook, plus we post extras there that don't always make it onto Facebook. Click here to visit our channel and subscribe! You have no idea how much we appreciate your support! And sharing is caring - please tell your friends!

A Visit To My Beloved California

I grew up in Southern California and anyone who talks to me for more than 30 seconds knows that I plan to move back there as soon as it's feasible with job situations and all of that kind of stuff. So any chance to visit makes me very happy. We just returned from VidCon, a three-day convention at the Anaheim Convention Center for anyone who loves online video, from studio heads to content creators to fans who are there to see their favorite stars. We were on the "Creator" track, so we saw lots of panel discussions, met many fabulous folks and learned tons.

I wonder how many of us posted pix in this exact spot on Instagram?

Of course, one can only sit through so many panel discussions before fatigue sets in...

Panel discussion fatigue

So we managed to squeeze in fun trips to the recently reopened Clifton's Cafeteria in downtown LA, many drinks at Trader Sam's at the Disneyland Hotel, and of course a Disneyland day. Disneyland is in my top three of favorite places on earth, so I'm always in heaven there. And we shot video for two episodes of the show, including one at the fabulous, Elvis-themed Azteca Restaurant and Lounge in Garden Grove, AND for the short horror film we're making! We also managed to see wonderful friends for breakfasts, lunches and Dole Whips. So we were very busy, but we loved every minute of it! Well, not every minute. I lost my phone, which was a bit disturbing. But that was a mere blip on an otherwise fabulous trip!

Clifton's Cafeteria

The first of many drinks at Trader Sam's

The fabulous Azteca Restaurant & Lounge

Posters from Elvis films at Azteca

Next up: San Diego in August!

What Would Roger Corman Do?

A different kind of shooting day, but no less boozy!

We're making a short horror film that is a tribute to the mid-century horror films we love for a special project (online late summer) and did some shooting (and some boozy live videos) Saturday night! Pretty much nothing makes me happier than shooting video and when two of my very favorite people are involved, it's heaven! Our dear friend, who also happens to be a wildly talented actor, Zach Zito played the bartender and Paul and I were also in front of the camera. Fortunately the camera has a remote control and a monitor. And we got to employ the green screen!

We'll be getting more video for this masterpiece when we're in California next week, which is very exciting. I'm sure you can tell from the setup that we have nothing resembling an actual budget, but, when we have grand plans and zero cash we just ask ourselves What Would Roger Corman Do?

Stay tuned for more soon!

Shooting Day At The Kitsch-en

Here's what the aftermath of a shooting day at the Velveteen Lounge Kitsch-en tends to look like:

Those are drinks for three Friday happy hour episodes and one Tuesday "time machine" episode. That's a lot of booze. If you're in our neck of the woods, please drop by and help us drink it! In the meantime, can I just say that I love what I do? 

Pieathalon 2016: Heathen Cake!

Pieathalon 2016 is here, where bloggers submit a vintage pie recipe, then are assigned another participant's recipe by organizer Yinzerella, of the fabulous food blog Dinner is Served 1972! This is my second year and my second savory pie - the oddly named (since it's absolutely a pie) Heathen Cake (or Heidenische kuchen). I guess my heathen reputation precedes me. 😏 It's a medieval recipe, which means the vintage aspect is fully covered. You can find the recipe here. I even made the crust (the Paest Royall), which is something I avoid like the plague, having neither a working rolling pin at the moment, nor a large space for rolling such things out. But I love a challenge!

It isn't beautiful, but it tasted good and got the job done.

The rest of the recipe was really easy. All you do is chop veggies and beef, cook in water with spices until the meat is fork tender, combine with crumbed bacon and sautéed apple, add six beaten eggs and pour into your crust. 

It's already disappeared, which is a testament to the fact that it was pretty good! I, of course, added red pepper flakes and served it with a selection of hot sauces, since we drown everything in hot sauce. It's particularly good with sriracha. If you're looking for an easy meat pie, this one will fill the bill nicely. Use a rolled refrigerator pie crust and it will be a breeze! Pair with a nice dry red or Pilsner or, if you're looking for a cocktail pairing, a dry Manhattan would be lovely!

Thank you to Yinzerella for once again inviting me to participate in Pieathalon and for putting together such a fun event and thanks to The Hedonist (www.foodandwinehedonist.com) for submitting this recipe! I can't wait to see everyone else's pies! 

Here Are MORE Cocktails For Our AIDS Walk Sponsors!

Here are three more cocktails for three more of our fabulous AIDS Walk New York sponsors, all created by Paul this time!

Jungle Primate (created for Amy)

1 1/2  oz dark Jamaican rum

1/2 oz Aperitivo Cappelletti

1 oz guava nectar

1/2 oz pineapple juice

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

A dash of grenadine

Shake all ingredients with ice and pour into a double old-fashioned glass.

The Savage (created for Patty)

1 1/2 oz aged rum

1/2 oz sherry

1/2 oz Ancho Reyes liqueur

1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

1/2 oz guava nectar

1/4 oz cranberry juice

1/4 oz honey mix (half honey, half water)

2 dashes of Jerry Thomas (find them here)

1 drop of Pernod

Shake all ingredients with ice and pour into a tiki mug.

Groovy Hibiscus (created for Kiki)

1 oz dark Jamaican rum

2 oz cranberry-hibiscus tea

1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

A dash of simple syrup

Club soda

A dash of Angostura bitters

Build in a chimney glass with crushed ice in the order given. Stir gently.

And speaking of groovy, we'll have even more cocktails for our groovy sponsors soon! 

I was pleased to receive this shot from the day of the walk from the talented Eddie Velasquez, one of the event's photographers. Thank you for the fabulous photo, Eddie! It was a great day!

The Golden Glow

Saturday morning I posted a truly fascinating recipe for a Jell-O mold from The Chiquita Banana Cookbook (1974) on Facebook and offered a prize to anyone who actually made it and posted evidence. Well, Bethany, of the fabulous Making It Modern web series, took me up on it and not only made it, but posted a live video of her sampling it. Her reaction was priceless and if you're on Facebook be sure to watch. We were so inspired that we did a live Periscope broadcast where we made our cocktail answer to this monstrosity in Jell-O! Here is the cocktail we made, incorporating as many of the flavors suggested in the original mold recipe as we could. Believe it or not, it's actually pretty good! There is little enough of the pickle juice that it just adds a tangy note and not an actual pickle flavor. Here's the original recipe for the mold:

And here's the cocktail version:

Golden Glow

2 oz vodka

1 oz Banane du Brésil liqueur

1 oz orange-carrot juice

1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

1/4 oz pickle juice

3 dashes of celery bitters

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass!

I like to use vodka as a base spirit when I really want the other flavors in the drink to stand out. That was definitely the case here. Banane du Bresil is the only commercially available banana liqueur I've found that actually tastes like bananas and not banana candy. If you can't find it in your neck of the woods, there are recipes online for making your own banana liqueur that result in a great product! Ingredients like pickle juice sound awful, but a little dash can give your cocktail zing. Don't overdo it! We have an episode coming soon that utilizes balsamic vinegar in a drink with the same effect. 

If you have a "fascinating" recipe you'd like us to reimagine in cocktail form, let us know! We love a challenge!

And look for us live on Facebook video soon! Periscope is great, but we think most of our people are on Facebook, so we'll see you there!

More Cocktails For Fabulous AIDS Walk Sponsors!

Here are a couple more cocktails for two of our fabulous AIDS Walk New York sponsors! We still have quite a list of folks who've earned a drink, so we'll have more soon. We're drinking as fast as we can!

Ladies Night (created for Jenny)

2 oz applejack

1/2 oz elderflower liqueur

1/2 oz dry curaçao

1/2 oz pineapple juice

1/4 oz fresh lime juice

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass!

Wandering Wahine (created for Barbara & Baz)

1 oz dark Jamaican rum

1 oz Malibu coconut rum

3/4 oz creme de cassis

1/2 oz Banane du Bresil

1 pineapple juice

1/4 oz fresh lime juice

4 dashes of orange bitters

Shake all ingredients with ice and pour into a tiki mug!

Cheers!

Make Sure Your Next Party Has Punch!

There are things in this world I enjoy more than a mid-century cookbook or bar guide, in particular the pamphlets put out by companies to offer even more ways to use their products, but not many.  They're so shameless. If you believe their prose, your recipe will, at best, fall flat and, at worst, turn out horribly and embarrass you in front of everyone you know if you don't use their vodka or flour or powdered milk. Sunday was a good day for scoring such pamphlets, found in a little used bookstore we stumbled across in Montgomery, NY. They weren't even really for sale - the owner was using them for decoration - but fortunately he sold them to me! Here's one that's very timely with the summer party season upon us. A bowl of punch means that you can shirk bartending duty and enjoy yourself! That Sparkling Red Punch is perfect for a Memorial Day cookout - substitute a dry sparkling wine to make it even lovelier (and if the kids aren't present)!

That hair!

It's not just a punch bowl - it's an investment in elegance!

Hawaii Five-O Happy Hour

Friday night was the end of an era, as we watched the series finale of the original Hawaii Five-O. We started in 2008 and it became a Friday night happy hour tradition. Any time we were home on a Friday night we watched, in order, from the very beginning through season 12. I'm a little sad to see it end, but Columbo awaits! I've been thinking about it and I don't have a particular favorite episode. My favorite thing to do during Hawaii Five-O is to still frame on an extra's fabulous frock or a tiki in a bar or an especially fancy cocktail. I'm geeky that way. I will also confess to loving the entire series, even after Danno left for greener pastures, and including the paranormal episodes (though I was incensed when Chin Ho Kelly got killed in the line of duty). The good episodes are great, but the bad ones are pretty entertaining, too!

Here's to Hawaii Five-O! Steve McGarrett may not have touched alcohol (a point he made repeatedly), but that doesn't stop us from drinking copious amounts of rum out of his mug!

The McGarrett 2

(Serves 2)

2 oz dark Jamaican rum

2 oz amber rum

1 oz guanabana liqueur

1 oz pineapple juice

1 oz black cherry juice

1/2 fresh lemon juice

Four dashes lemon bitters

Combine all ingredients in a McGarrett mug with ice and stir.

So long, Steve!

Midwestern Folks: This One's For You

We had a request from Susan, who's in Oklahoma and has been facing some brutal weather, for a tornado cocktail. It's the least we could do! If you're in that part of the world, we sincerely hope you're safe and sound. I wish we could deliver one of these to each of you personally!

The Eye

1 oz dark Jamaican rum

1 oz gold tequila

1/2 oz blue curaçao

1/2 oz fresh lemon juice

Ginger beer

Combine first four ingredients with ice in a chimney glass and fill with ginger beer. Stir gently.

Susan, we're thinking of you. Be safe!

Ready To Hit The Road!

If there's one thing I love as much as having a few lovely libations, it's traveling! In my ideal world at least half of our episodes would be done on the road and we're working to make that a reality. In fact, we're hitting the road next week, for our first road trip episode of the season! We'll be visiting Washington, DC and environs, starting with Tiki Thirstday, a weekly event at the House of Foong Lin in Chevy Chase, Maryland! If you're in the area we'd love to see you for tropical libations and fabulous food! Here's a link to the Facebook event page with all the particulars. We can't wait!

More Cinco de Mayo Cocktails With Sangre de Vida!

If you saw this week's episode (click here to watch if you haven't), you know we're ready for Cinco de Mayo, thanks to the fabulous folks at Sangre de Vida! Their amazing tequilas and mezcal are guaranteed to get you into the spirit! We featured several recipes, including two cocktails, on the episode, but here are two more, just because we can't get enough! Cheers!

Tlaloc

2 oz Sangre de Vida blanco tequila

1/2 oz creme de Violette

3/4 oz grapefruit juice

3 dashes of plum bitters

3 dashes of lemon bitters

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a sprig of lavender.

La Pistola

2 oz Sangre de Vida mezcal

1/2 oz orange liqueur

1 oz pineapple juice

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper 

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a roasted Serrano pepper.

Cocktails For More Of Our Fabulous AIDS Walk Sponsors!

Just in time for the weekend, here are some more cocktails created in honor of a few of our fabulous AIDS Walk New York sponsors!

Mystic Bazaar (created for Jax)

2 oz amber rum

1/2 oz tamarind syrup (Click here to learn how to make your own!)

1/4 oz Ancho Reyes Liqueur

1/4 oz pimento dram

3/4 oz fresh lime juice

A dash of Angostura bitters

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass or serve on the rocks.

Island Sundown (created for Donna)

2 oz dark Jamaican rum

1/2 oz Pavan Liqueur 

1/2 oz blood orange amaro

3/4 oz fresh lime juice

Shake all ingredients with ice and pour into a small tiki mug or strain into a cocktail glass.

Holiday In Oaxaca (created for Mike)

2 oz mezcal

1/2 oz guanabana liqueur

1/2 oz peach nectar

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

2 shakes of ground chipotle-cayenne pepper

2 dashes of orange bitters

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

We'll have more cocktails created for our sponsors soon and we'll be shooting some Friday happy hour videos with even more this weekend! We'll get to everyone, we promise! Thank you so much to our sponsors for your support!