Twistband

I have very long hair that I like to wear down...except when I don't. I like to pull it back when I'm cooking, when I'm hot, or simply when the mood strikes me. My girls also have long hair and they too like it pulled back when they're active. It's probably no surprise that I keep a lot of hair bands handy.

The hair bands I've fallen in love with in the past couple of months are from Twistband! Their hair ties are so cool, they're now a piece of funky jewelry as much as they are a necessity for me. I always have at least one around my wrist, on a bag strap, or in my or a daughter's hair...or all three!

My girls and I love the fun colors (I'm wearing a yellow one as I type this in honor of my beloved Green Bay Packers playing in the Super Bowl later today) and we've built up quite a collection. My favorite are the tie-dyed and Martha's pick is the pink set with the heart.

If you're not a fan of the ponytail or if your daughter has shorter hair, Twistband also makes some great headbands that offer the same cool factor as they can be twisted a few times around a wrist to keep on hand.

Twistband has now hit the big time with their products being offered at Anthropologie...but don't fret, you can still get a great deal. Enter coupon code LUCKY2 at checkout and you'll receive 40% off your order! Prices start at only $2.00 at thetwistband.com.

Worn Free

One of my favorite shops for tees is Worn Free. Their styles are true vintage and oh so hip! They reproduce rock shirts worn by legends like John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, Joey Ramone, Debbie Harry and Joan Jett. Talk about timeless cool!

I was excited to see that Worn Free tees are 1/2 off at Zulily right now! If you're thinking of purchasing some for your little guy or girl, you can use coupon code ZUSNAP228 to save 10% off your order of $30 or more. And if you shop through Ebates you'll save another 3.5%! Talk about a deal!

Homemade Soft Pretzels

The kids and I continued our baking from scratch theme this week with homemade soft pretzels today. We used a recipe from Alton Brown on the Food Network's site.

The recipe is below, but I recommend visiting the site to read the comments from others who have tried the recipe...there's some good input there. My only tip is to eat them while they're warm...or reheat them a bit if you save them for later...otherwise they get a bit hard. Oh, and we skipped the salt...and added mustard to dip them in!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
• 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
• Vegetable oil, for pan
• 10 cups water
• 2/3 cup baking soda
• 1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
• Pretzel salt
  

Directions

1. Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
2. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.
3. Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.
4. In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.
5. Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.