Friday Fun

Well, we're bracing for the huge snow and ice storm that is quickly approaching. The temperature has dropped about 30 (yes 30) degrees since yesterday. Brrrr!! Trying to tie up loose ends before the storm hits- shipping some orders at the post office, getting a few things (I forgot) at Target, and trying to find my hubby's snow boots (we haven't needed boots in so long, hoping they didn't somehow leave the house. read: gotten rid of).

My hubby had an early meeting this morning, so I was able to get a few things done while waiting for my son to wake up this morning (it's 8:55am and he's still asleep.. wishing he would sleep in like this on the weekend :)). I had my breakfast and my cereal made me smile as I was finishing: A for Ashley. I promise I didn't tell it to do that! (And yes, I eat Captain Crunch Peanut Butter Crunch... it was on sale :))
Excited to do more of this this weekend: Came across a few fabulous posts from other amazing bloggers:
+ Check out this to drool over some great office and work spaces.
+ Check out this if you absolutely LOVE vintage advertisements.
+ Check out this post about a fabulous paper suite she discovered on another blog.
+ Just found this blog and I'm loving it. Full of great links and inspiration.

Have a great weekend! Enjoy it! :)

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Not much going on on the craft table right now. In fact, there's a stack of vintage books, a few buttons, a spool of thread, a half drunk (drank? drinken? drunken?) bottle of water, some cafe curtains I'm getting ready to "adjust" to fit our back patio door window and my sewing machine.

Gearing up for a few custom orders that are in the works, but pretty much taking a break for right now. My hubby is out of town until later today and my son is in the middle of potty training, and we supposedly have a pretty nasty ice storm coming this weekend, so he and I have been out catching all the sales at the grocery stores trying to get ready for that. I spent last night (after my son went to bed) organizing the pantry - it felt good to actually have some order in that thing, I've been bad about throwing stuff in there and not keeping it managed.

So about those cafe curtains - they are about 3 inches too short to cover our back patio door window. I found them on super-clearance at Target (along with some nice 84" white sailcloth panels - 2 for $8.31) and figured I could somehow add some fabric to the bottom to make them work. Trying to decide if one solid color would be best, but I have an itch to make some sort of patchwork type something. Here are some different fabrics I was looking at.... can't decide which ones to use, although since the curtains are a cream color (under all the fabrics, with the tab tops) - I'm thinking the green, the brown corduroy and cream floral and maybe the yellow. We don't really have a "theme" in the kitchen- our kitchen/dining area is all pretty much open to Jimmy's play area and our living area...And since our entire house is browns, greens, tans, and camel colors, I figured those colors would fit right in nicely :) We'll see.
Still working on this project, hoping to have it done relatively soon!

What about you? Any projects you're working on right now?

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This is a great crockpot meal- you can let it cook all day (7-8 hours) on low or on high for 3-4 hours. I put this in the crockpot one Sunday morning before church at about 8:45am and we had a yummy hot meal by 12:30pm. It also freezes and reheats really well.

Cheesy Italian Tortellini
Ingredients
1/2 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. Italian sausage, casings removed
1-16 oz. jar marinara sauce
1-14.5 oz. can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1-9oz. pkg. refrigerated or fresh cheese tortellini (not frozen)
1 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Crumble ground beef and Italian sausage into a large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until browned. Drain.

Combine the meats, marinara sauce and tomatoes in the slow cooker. Stir together. Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours or on high heat for 3-4 hours.

Stir in the tortellini, and sprinkle the Mozzarella and cheddar cheese over the top. Cover and cook for 15 more minutes on low heat or until tortellini is tender.

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Tuesday Tutorial: Valentine Ornament

Here's a fun little ornament you can make in less than an hour to decorate your space for Valentine's Day or to give to a special someone. :)

First, gather your supplies:
- 1 sheet 9"x12" felt in pink, red or white (you can find this at your local craft store like Michael's, ACMoore, or even at WalMart, if they have a craft section) - I chose pink.
- Batting (or maybe you could even use leftover fabric scraps or old clothes you are getting rid of? So you wouldn't have to buy a whole thing of batting)
- Embroidery floss (you can also find this at your local craft store or WalMart) - about 30 inches
- An assortment of buttons in Valentine-themed colors (red, pink, white, clear) - you can probably find these on etsy or at your local craft store - I had a huge container of buttons that I picked through to find the Valentine-themed ones
- Thread and needle
- About 7" of red (or white or pink) skinny ribbon (not pictured below, oops ;))
- Pencil or disappearing ink pen (available where ever you buy sewing supplies)
- Scissors
- Heart template (see below), or draw your own- freehand

Below is a heart template: Click to enlarge, then right click, save and print at 100%.Cut out the heart and trace around it onto your felt with the pencil or disappearing ink pen.
Fold the felt in half and cut two hearts at the same time. I went ahead and spritzed some water on the ink to make it disappear after this step. If you used a pencil, make sure that the side with pencil marks will be on the inside of the ornament and not visible.
Begin sewing buttons onto one of the hearts. Use as many or as few as you prefer.
Once you have sewn all the buttons on, thread your needle with the embroidery floss.
Place the two hearts together and begin stitching around the heart.
When you are about 3/4 of the way through sewing it together, stop and stuff the heart with the batting. Hold the two edges of the hearts back together and finish sewing around the heart.
Next, attach the ribbon to the back so you have a way to hang your heart up.
Voila! A cute Valentine Ornament!

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Monday Faves

Happy Monday! I hope you had a fabulous weekend :)

1. PomPoms by orangekisses

2. Patchwork Purse by MarciGirl Designs

3. Pair of Miniature Lovelorn Lantern Book Sculptures by paperfaerie

4. Bird and Lantern Stationery Set by emilyanndesigns
5. Mid-Century Inspired Dog Softie Winston by wonderfulrubbish

� I'm working on tomorrow's tutorial - it will be a fun Valentine-themed project, so be on the lookout for that.
� One of my Found Paper Packs is now available at crafthope- all proceeds go directly to Doctors without Borders to help Haiti.
� *Edited* Two more Found Paper Packs are available in the shop here and here.

Have a great day!

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Working on a few things right now - like this Valentine project below which will soon be finished - I'll post the finished project next week - but for now it's a secret as to what it is. Any guesses? :)
I had a couple inquiries about paper packs - there are now a few more paper packs in the shop. There is a "mini" (25 pieces) and a "mega" (75 pieces) pack - I'm working on getting a few "regulars" (50 pieces) into the shop also. Each pack is chocked full of new papers like scrapbooking papers, calendar and notes pages, graph paper, as well as vintage papers including maps, advertisements, sheet music, flash cards, playing cards, papers from ledgers, school books, books and children's books. Great to use for scrapbooking, making decorated journals, altered art, mini albums or something else creative.There will also be one of my scrap packs also available at crafthope in the next day or two as they get caught up listing donations. Please continue to visit that shop for a ton of beautiful items. And remember, 100% of proceeds go directly to Doctors Without Borders.

Have a great Thursday! :)

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I made this for dinner last night - found the recipe in one of my recipe books, tweaked it a little and it was absolutely delicious! It is a little spicy, so if you don't like as much spice, cut down on the crushed red pepper.

Thai Peanut Noodles
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 cup Italian salad dressing, divided
3 Tbsp. peanut butter
2 Tbsp. chopped peanuts
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. honey
1 tsp. ground fresh ginger
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 carrot, shredded
1 cup green onions, chopped
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
8-oz. pkg angel hair pasta, cooked
2/3 cup peanuts, chopped

Coat chicken pieces with 1/2 cup Italian dressing; refrigerate for 30 minutes. Whisk remaining Italian dressing with peanut butter, soy sauce, honey, ginger and red pepper until smooth; add the 2 Tbsp. chopped peanuts, stir and set aside. Saut� carrot, green onions and chicken in sesame oil until chicken is done, about 5-8 minutes (depending on the size of your chicken pieces). Toss pasta, peanut sauce and chicken mixture together in a large serving bowl; sprinkle with the 2/3 cup peanuts. Serves 4.

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Tuesday.

So today is normally Tuesday Tutorial, but I wanted to share about ways to get involved with helping Haiti. My heart breaks for the tremendous devastation they are going through and facing for a long time to come and I want to somehow help. CNN.com has a huge list of ways to donate to different organizations- from online donating to donating through sending text messages. I also came across Craft Hope - they have opened a new shop on etsy. The shop is full of donated items from etsy sellers - all proceeds are going to Doctors Without Borders. I am going to be donating a Found Paper Scrap Pack - check out their shop and all the beautiful things etsy sellers are donating! Continuing to pray for the people in Haiti...

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Monday Faves: Bags, Pouches and Clutches

1. The Clutch - Dotted Paisley by lynndavid
2. Frayed Flowers by houseoftnt
3. Grey Mod Makeup Bag by JuJuBaju
4. Shoulder Bag PDF Pattern by sewingwithme3
5. Janbag Wristlet - Watercolor Flowers by bagonebagshop
6. Pink Seersucker Pouch by bvann
7. Business Card Wallet PDF Pattern by keykalou

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Shop Notes

I will be restocking and updating the shop today by 4pm EST.
Have a great day!

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This is my older sister's recipe. It is so yummy! :)

Stuffed French Toast
8oz. cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp. Vanilla
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/3 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1 loaf French bread
3 eggs
1 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 cup milk
1/2 cup flour

Blend cream cheese, vanilla, sugar and nuts together in a bowl. Spread slices of bread with cream cheese mixture; top with additional slices to make "sandwiches." Using a wire whisk, whip eggs, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder and milk together. Add flour a little at a time; continue whipping with whisk as you do so. Dip sandwiches quickly on both sides, allowing excess batter to drip off. Place dipped sandwiches into a medium-hot skillet. Cook until golden brown on both sides, turning as needed. Serve topped with fresh blueberry or strawberry sauce (see below), fresh fruit and powdered sugar or maple syrup.

Strawberry or Blueberry Sauce
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 cup water
1 Tbsp. butter
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
or
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries

Combine sugar, cornstarch, and water in a saucepan. Cook over moderately high heat, stirring until mixture thickens. Stir in fruit and simmer about 10 minutes or until berries burst. Add butter and stir until melted.

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Tuesday Tutorial: Decorative Fabric Ornaments

I came across this link to this fab tutorial over at my dear friend's blog (she's a super talented designer - check out her amazing story and testimony as well as her talent) this Christmas season. I didn't have time to make any before Christmas, but it's been in the back of my mind ever since- I finally made one the other day and love, love, LOVE it! You could totally make these for any time of the year as a fun, decorative accent (or as a handmade gift)- and they are super easy to make. I made the one pictured above out of Valentine fabric (Once again, I know it's WAY early for Valentine's Day... ;)) All you need are some fabric scraps, a styrofoam ball, exacto knife, permanent marker, some ribbon and a paper clip. It only took me about 15-20 minutes. Thanks, Ashlee for the link! :)

Image from whipup.net

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Monday Faves

Five faves today! A fun assortment of goodies.
1.Lovely Floral Zipper Pouch by darlingsavage
2.Vintage Ribbon Mix from labonnefemme
3.California Dreaming Fat Quarter Bundle from BittyBlossoms
4.Embellishment Flower Set - Pink and Green by milkysupplies
5.Road Trip Project Album Kit by sweettweelab

I hope you had a fabulous weekend :) We took a somewhat impromptu trip up to see my hubby's parents this weekend - it was so much fun seeing them, and great to get out of town for a little while :) But I didn't get much done for the shop update.... will have the shop updated by the end of this week, though :)

Tomorrow's tutorial: Fabric Ornaments - these are SO cute and don't have to be just for a Christmas tree - you can hang them anywhere, and make them with any type/pattern of fabric-- I have some hanging in my studio/craft/work area and was thinking about hanging some in the guest bathroom.

Have a great day!

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Friday Fun: Journaling Card Freebies

Happy Friday! :) Here are some fun freebies I made- journaling cards. Just click on the image to enlarge it, right click, save, print and cut. They are each 2.25"x3". Have fun and have a great weekend! :)

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Lots going on in the studio this coming weekend. I will be updating the shop with Valentine themed gifts and supplies as well as some everyday items and supplies. I will be taking down all the leftover Christmas items, so if you've had your eye on any of those items, be sure to snatch those up. I know it's way early for Valentine's Day (I am NOT one of those people that jumps right on to the next holiday, I feel like we're still coming out of Christmas and the New Year), but I need to get Valentine's gifts into The Lemon Tree downtown, so I figured I'd go ahead and put a few things in my etsy shop as well.

A few things you'll be seeing in the shop:
-Valentine Art Journals
-Valentine Paper Rounds
-Red/Pink/White paper, embellishments and fabric supplies
-Everyday-to-day Journals/Mini Notebooks
-Everyday-to-day Art Journals
-Paper embellishments: tags, paper rounds, etc.

And in the next couple weeks, I'll be sharing tutorials for fun Valentine crafts, so be sure to check out Tuesday Tutorials each week.

Be on the lookout this Tuesday for a tutorial link on how to make these fun ornaments!

Have a great Thursday! :)

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Oh.My.Word. can we just talk about these fabulous little cupcakes. They are a-m-a-z-i-n-g. I might just have to make some today. Don't be scared by the long list of ingredients- most are staple ingredients you probably already have on hand :)

Black Bottom Cupcakes
Ingredients
1-8oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/3 cup white sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
1� cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Set oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-muffin-pan muffin tins with paper cups or lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, egg, 1/3 cup sugar and 1/8 teaspoon salt until light and fluffy. Stir in the chocolate chips and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, 1 cup sugar, cocoa, baking soda and 1/2 tsp. salt. Make a well in the center and add the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Stir together until well blended. Fill muffin tins 1/3 full with the batter and top with a dollop of the cream cheese mixture.

Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Cool for 10-15 minutes and serve warm. Store leftovers in an airtight container. Makes 12 cupcakes. Enjoy!

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Tuesday Tutorial: Christmas Card Saver

Every year we receive so many wonderful Christmas cards from friends and family. And every year I don't want to throw them away, so I put them in a box and put them away with the Christmas decorations. And then they just sit in a box year after year. So sad!

My older sis had put together a book of Christmas cards many, many, years ago - I think it was a craft at Church that her class did. I vaguely remember it, but was fascinated with the idea of "putting Christmas cards into a book". So this year, I was thinking about that book she made and decided to put all of our cards from this year into a book. This way, we can keep track of cards and update letters and pictures and such from each year. Like the December Daily Art Journal, you can pull these out each year and leave them on a coffee table or in a basket to look through. What fun! So, here's a quick tutorial I came up with on how to put a Christmas Card Book together :)

First, gather all your Christmas cards, update letters, pictures and a few envelopes.
Next, gather your supplies:
- Glue or adhesive (I use Tombow rolling permanent adhesive)
- Scissors or a rotary cutter, ruler and cutting mat
- Hole punch
- 2 pieces of Christmas-themed ribbon (several inches each, depending on how many cards you have) or two 1.5" jump rings (you can get these at WalMart or Staples - if you have a ton of cards that need to go into the book, you can make two or more books or purchase 2" jump rings at Staples)
- Optional: one piece of 5"x7" chipboard to serve as a sturdy back cover, and materials to make a front cover such as chipboard and embellishments
Next, separate your cards into three piles:
- Pile 1: Cards that are one sided and do not open (like photo cards or postcards)
- Pile 2: Cards that open and do NOT have writing or a picture on the inside left panel - we will be cutting these and covering up the inside left panel.

- Pile 3: Cards that open and DO have writing or a picture on the inside left panel-- these are ones that you do NOT want to cut or cover up any part of the card. These will go into the book as they are.

Now, take the cards in the second pile (that you do want to cut) and cut off the spine of each card, so as to separate them into two different pieces.

Next, put glue (or rolling adhesive) on the back of each of the fronts of the cards. Glue this to the back of the back of the card (once it is glued, you can see the writing and message on one side and the front of the card on the other side).

So, you will have one single card piece now - below is the front and the back.

Next, punch two holes in the left side of one of the cards - one hole about 2" from the top of the card, and one about 2" from the bottom of the card - both about 3/8" from the left side of the card (see picture below).

Use the card you just punched holes in as a guide to punching the holes in the rest of your cards. Since your cards are probably all different sizes, center the cards so that the holes are punched in the middle of each card (see picture below).

If you have a lot of update letters and/or pictures, punch holes in envelopes as well. You can then put the letters and pictures in there without having to punch holes in them.

All cards punched

Now, begin putting the cards on the binder rings, or threading the ribbon through each hole. I did one of each in the picture as an example, but ended up using the ribbon because I liked how it looked so festive :)

Finished binding (Example of one of each, ribbon and ring)

I made a cover for mine using a 5"x5" piece of chipboard, a picture I had taken of our Christmas card display this Christmas and a tag where I wrote "Christmas Cards 2009". A cover is completely up to you, but it might be helpful to somewhere document what year the cards are from.

Voila! A great way to keep all your cards together so you can look at them each Christmas.

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