Wow. These past three weeks have been SO intense. I am so proud to finally debut the new and improved Bell & Basket!
Some of you are probably thinking, “what was wrong with the old site? I only looked at the Instagram posts anyway…” That’s exactly what we wanted to do differently.
We’re not only doing video. Recipe testing, prepping, cooking, styling, shooting and (finally) editing takes a LONG time. And we just couldn’t post as much as I wanted. So we’re going to be incorporating a mix of photo posts, the occasional video, our brand new newsletter (sign up here) and a lot more recipes.
Although the process of a site relaunch has been tiresome and grating, the best part was collaborating with my amazingly talented friend and artist Abbie Zuidema. She says, “Much of my work is about tapping into the nostalgia of childhood that we can’t describe with language. Food, smell, taste… they’re intangible, but it’s what I’m after.” And boy, has she captured our vision.
When I initially reached out she asked me to send inspiration shots to get the process going. So I filled my bike basket with all of the things that matter–a baguette, tulips, an antique frame, scallions and a few acorn squashes for good measure. Then we walked to the park and got shooting.
It was fun, the sun was shining, Colin was taking awkward photos of me and I really began to think about what I wanted this new iteration of the site to be. It’s a complicated world out there today and I find myself clinging to creative projects as a release–from frustration, anger and a lack of control of the outside world.
But I want Bell & Basket to reflect the joy that cooking, baking and coming together can bring us. So here it is. I hope you love it as much as I do.
