In.gredients: America's First Zero-Waste Grocery Store


Updated 06/27/11 8:34 AM · Posted by · 7 comments

Zero-Waste Supermarket in Austin, TX

For the most environmentally conscious of foodies, compostable silverware just isn't enough. Case in point? In.gredients, soon to be the country's first-ever zero-waste, no-packaging supermarket. In.gredients, which is slated to open this Fall in Austin, TX, plans to specialize in fresh produce, dairy, beverages, dry bulk goods, and household toiletries and cleaners. Shoppers will not only be Read more

Yummy Links: From Irish Breakfasts to Austin's Restaurants


Posted by YumSugar · 0 comments

An Irish Breakfast Menu and Other Food Fun From the Web

Serve an Irish breakfast this weekend. — Chow Giant whoopie pie pan: love it or hate it? — Baking Bites A table at Top Chef's restaurant wars is up for bid in a charity auction. — Eater Make pasta e broccoli for dinner tonight. — Serious Eats Michael Voltaggio and Ludo Lefebvre prove they've paid their dues as chefs. — Daily Dish Where to eat bone marrow in San Francisco. — Grub Read more

House Tour: Austin's Bouldin Castle


Updated 06/22/10 9:59 PM · Posted by CasaSugar · 1 comment

Austin's Bouldin Castle Has Royal Texas Flair

Do you fancy yourself a princess? Do you have a hankering for clover-shaped designs? If you are affirmative on either of those, you may very well like this little piece of heaven deep in the heart of Texas. Originally constructed in 1925 as the San José Catholic Church in Austin, the mission style home was renovated in 2008 by Urban Nature and put on the market to many shoppers' delight. While Read more

Home Away From Home: Austin's Hotel San José


Updated 04/14/10 5:10 PM · Posted by CasaSugar · 1 comment

Hotel San José in Austin, Texas

It's no secret I'm a wannabe Austinite. The eclectic town that surges with live music, funky artists, and gorgeous landscape always tugs at me when I've got a few days off on my calendar. What makes the pull to Austin even stronger? Hotel San José. Situated right in the heart of the folksy part of town with delicious eateries, music venues, fab vintage shops, sweet boutiques, and cupcake vans, Read more

Would You Like to Live in a Gingerbread House?


Updated 02/28/10 11:38 AM · Posted by CasaSugar · 10 comments

Would You Like to Live in a Gingerbread House?

This Victorian home in Bouldin Creek, TX, one of Austin's oldest neighborhoods, is what you might call a gingerbread house: dripping with candylike ornate moldings and a very decorative picket fence, its style is straight out of a fairytale book. I love it, and I'd kill to live in it. That gorgeous front porch alone had me sold! But architecture this elaborate certainly doesn't please everyone's Read more

Cool Idea: A Bed of Beams


Updated 02/26/10 12:25 AM · Posted by CasaSugar · 6 comments

Cool Idea: A Bed of Beams

Touring Austin's Bouldin Castle, a former Mission-style- turned-fairytale home, I noticed a set of platform beds made from stacked wooden beams and felt a serious pang of envy. The beds have an awesome organic modern quality to them that's just downright cool. I wouldn't be surprised if the beams were salvaged, too; they do look a bit worn. The good thing is that if you have the initiative to Read more

Coveted Crib: Modern in Austin


Updated 01/28/10 9:05 AM · Posted by CasaSugar · 0 comments

Coveted Crib: Modern in Austin

There's so much to crush out on when it comes to Austin, TX — from its music venues to its vintage shops and swimming holes, it's a city I truly adore. And now I have to add this cool modern home to my list of crush-worthy features in Austin. Built a little over 20 years ago, the home's open living space makes entertaining a snap. Features such as a vaulted-beam ceiling, Brazilian slate, Read more

Great Decorating Ideas From the Hotel Saint Cecilia


Updated 09/08/09 9:05 AM · Posted by CasaSugar · 0 comments

Great Decorating Ideas From the Hotel Saint Cecilia

Austin's South Congress Hotel Saint Cecilia expertly mixes styles, eras, and patterns in the design of its rooms and public spaces. The uniting factor throughout the space is the hotel's inspiration. The hotel was named in honor of the patron saint of music and poetry, and the Rolling Stones circa early '70s, writer William S. Burroughs, and artist Andy Warhol all serve as muses for the hotel. Read more

On Sundays, La Zona Rosa Turns Into a Dog-Friendly Church


Updated 07/07/09 1:33 PM · Posted by PetSugar · 1 comment

On Sundays, La Zona Rosa Turns Into a Dog-Friendly Church

Most nights La Zona Rosa is a bar-slash-music venue featuring loud tunes and Bud drafts, but sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning, the Austin club undergoes a transformation into a community church. Parishioners clean up evidence from the night before and welcome in people and their pets! Since many visitors walked with dogs, and Texas is no place to leave a pooch roaming the Read more

Open House: Flags as Drapery


Updated 06/07/09 6:30 AM · Posted by CasaSugar · 8 comments

Open House: Flags as Drapery

According to Title 4, Chapter 1, Section 8, (d) of the US Flag Code, the American flag, "should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. It should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free." But Austin's Hotel St. Cecilia has used Old Glory as drapery on hospital tracking here in a bedroom suite, and I applaud the look. To me, a flag displayed Read more