Good morning and happy Monday! Today I have the privilege of sharing something truly special with you. Something that I am very, very excited about.
But first, a brief backstory...
I discovered the beautiful and elegantly simple Instagram feeds of Cory and Jade quite awhile ago and I have been following them for sometime now, in an admiring, non-stalker sort of way.
Not only is their Instagram game on point, but they are also the loveliest of couples, and they write the delightfully charming blog, Endlessly Enraptured. If you have not visited before, you need to, and if you do not already follow these two, I highly recommend that you do so, immediately.
Honestly, these two are the cutest.
I contacted Cory and Jade a bit ago about answering some of my nosey questions and, to my excitement, they acquiesced.
I wanted to give you, my readers, the opportunity to get to know Cory and Jade a bit better and to share their work with you because, it is truly splendid. I believe that their site is everything a blog is meant to be -- a respite from the mundane everyday. One that reminds us to appreciate the beauty found in the simplest of days. It's refreshing and heartening, and I just know that you'll love it.
Enough of my words though!
1. Jade, your paintings and sketches are so lovely. Do you have a favorite subject?
Jade: Oh my, thank you so much! Right now I’m on a big food kick when it comes to painting. It’s just such a fun (and delicious) subject. I also love creating portraits and am working on a series of animals for a book idea I’ve had in mind for ages.
2. On a similar note, I especially love your paintings of cookies, cakes, and doughnuts, and they always make me hungry. They have made me wonder, what are your guilty pleasure foods?
Jade: When I’m craving guilty pleasure foods, the first things that come to mind are the prosciutto pizza from Ken’s Artisan, a double scoop (one scoop almond brittle with salted ganache and one scoop honey lavender) waffle cone from Salt & Straw and piles and piles of sushi from Mirakutei.
3. I love following your Instagram feed throughout the week, but you always seem to visit the loveliest places on the weekends? What’s your ideal weekend?
Cory: My ideal weekend would be a stay in a luxury hotel, getting massages in the spa, then enjoying the city life around the hotel. This has increasingly become my ideal weekend of choice since the usual ideal weekends consist of our drinking good coffee, reading great books, and enjoying each other’s company, something we do almost every weekend.
Jade: That’s probably because the weekends are when Cory and I actually have time to go out and explore together. The best weekends are those spent exploring, stuffing our faces and shooting instant film.
4. Who inspires you? Do you have a few favorite bloggers?
Cory: Jade definitely is my constant source of inspiration. Though there are a few bloggers I follow, I am more inspired by online personalities rather than bloggers themselves. Those people are George Takei, Marc Maron, Aisha Tyler, and Reggie Watts.
Jade: My favorite blogs are usually those that weave together words and pictures in a very heartfelt, unique way. A few of my favorite bloggers include Beth Kerby, Alice Gao, Nicole Warne and Jamie Beck.
5. Your pictures of London were gorgeous, what is your favorite city?
Cory: London is definitely number one on my list. We are planning a trip back there in September 2015, which I am super excited about. I had always wanted to go to/live in London as a kid, and after our trip there in 2013 I only confirmed my longing to be there indefinitely.
Jade: I would have to agree, London keeps calling to me. We both felt at home there. There is an unmistakable energy.
6. Where do you hope to travel to next?
Cory: Outside of London, I would love to go back to Paris. I’d also love to visit Quebec. I’ve been in the airport in San Francisco a few times but have never actually explored the city, so that is high on my list as well. A fully paid vacay to Hawaii wouldn’t hurt either ;)
Jade: After our trip to London, I’d really love to start planning a trip to the Amalfi Coast.
7. I’ve been on a breakfast kick lately, do you two have a favorite breakfast?
Cory: I’m a huge proponent for a traditional English breakfast. Baked beans, eggs over easy, tomatoes and greens, some thick cut bacon or blood sausage, a couple of English muffins with jam or gravy… mmmm yeeesssssss.
Jade: A plate of fresh berries, scones with clotted cream all washed down with a green juice and a perfectly poured macchiato.
8. Cory, you definitely have a talent when it comes to photography, how long has it been a passion of yours? What inspires you?
I have always been creative in one way or another all of my life. I love to draw and doodle, was really big into improv and acting in high school as well as choir. I’ve been in several bands and played solo. I have been writing short stories, poetry and songs since I can remember, and love writing on our journal. After I met Jade in my early 20’s, she started experimenting with photography and I was right there with her the whole way.
I wouldn’t call myself a traditional photographer by any means, but really enjoy and find much satisfaction in shooting instant film. I end up doing the majority of shooting of Jade for fashion and lifestyle shoots with her as the subject, and she is definitely a constant source of inspiration as well as my very patient teacher. Outside of the lifestyle and portraiture we do together I really enjoy interiors and finding the right angles and guiding lines which elevate a shot.
9. Okay, it’s random, but I am always curious to know, what is your favorite season?
Cory: Fall. Always has always will be. When the leaves turn colors, begin to fall onto the ground in big crispy, crunchy potato chip-like piles I can clomp through. The sky is gloomy in the best possible way. Life takes on a grey tone which seeps into every crevice of the city. It sounds depressing, haha, but I love it. It fuels me. Revitalizes me. Make me feel whole.
Jade: Definitely Fall. When the air is fresh and chilly. It’s completely revitalizing.
(Two more votes for Fall. I love these people. Heehee ;) )
10. Lastly, what is your favorite thing to cook/bake together?
Cory: I have recently really enjoyed making Chocolate Mousse together. There was an incident however where I had an egg be completely watery when I cracked it, but I thought it was just a really fresh egg. I made a whole merengue which was whipped into the mouse, but after smelling the merengue realized that the egg I had cracked earlier was in fact rotten, making my merengue a big stiff peaked bowl of grossness. Had to scrap all the rest of my ingredients since I had already started mixing up the final product. It was disappointing, but it was great practice because the next mousse we made was spectacular.
Jade: I’d also say that we make a good team when it comes to making macarons. We made them for the first time as favors for our wedding. Looking back, I have no idea what we were thinking since macarons are known to be super finicky. But it must have been a wedding day miracle because they turned out perfectly.
You can follow Cory and Jade on Instagram @jade_melissa @cory_burnsed or on their site, Endlessly Enraptured!
A huge thanks to Cory and Jade for kindly allowing me to badger them with questions!
Wishing you all a wonderful week!
Sincerely,
Pedantic Foodie
(All photography credit goes to Cory and Jade.)
