I Heart my French Press

This is what was going through my mind this morning while making coffee. Ever since I got home from my Europe trip in Sept. we have been using only the french press for our coffee and can no longer drink drip and enjoy it. I usually have my hands on this baby atleast twice a day. Although my second or third pots are decaf.

So the thing with the french press is I had no idea how to use it until my trip to Europe. It makes a much stronger coffee like what we drank while we were there. I can't even go to starbucks anymore unless I order a double cappachino or it tastes too weak. I thought I would do a little tutorial on it for those of you that are not in the know- like I was. First you need to coarse grind your coffee-the fresher the better. We grind it when it is time to make a pot. Then you need almost boiling water. If you have instant hot water at your sink-lucky you, this is going to be sooo quick! If you don't-like us- we bought an electric kettle like we used in Europe. It is much quicker than doing a kettle on the stove and it shuts off once it is ready. That way you don't have to hear that whistle blow when you are on the other side of the house and get scared to death that we are having an air raid even though it is not the 1940's. LOL So...now you add your grounds to the carafe, then the hot water, stir and let it sit for about 4-5 minutes depending on how strong you want it. The amount of grounds you use is basically the same as when doing drip coffee-one heaping tablespoon per cup of water. Got it? Then, as you see in the first pic, you put the lid on and push down on the knob and all the grounds get "pressed" to the bottom. Viola......French Pressed coffee! Mmmmmm................

My other happening today is I finished that heart collage that is mixed in up above with my french press coffee pictures. If it was not for my french pressed coffee that would not have happened. Last night I stayed up until midnight working on the collage and then did not sleep well {as per usual lately} because I am so full of ideas for my creations and my shop that my mind does not want to shut down. This staying up late thing will sound very strange if you know me. I am NOT a night person usually. I love to hit the bed and be asleep no later than 10pm. But since beginning this dream of mine I can't seem to tear myself away from my work table. Anyhoo...I had to get up by 8 this morning to get the girls to school and I was working on about 9 hours of sleep for the last 2 days. Well, my little french press saved the day and gave me enough energy to get the girls out the door and finish my collage in record time. I heart my french press coffee. That is why I needed to share the french press love here today. LOL

EDITED to add: I got a nap in today. It took awhile to fall asleep, but I did sleep for an hour!