RECIPE CARDS

With all the baking/cooking I've been doing, I found myself running out of recipe cards.  So, rather than buy some.  I decided to make my own.  Why not?  I really enjoy working in Microsoft Publisher, plus I have my silhouette machine and a printer.....everything you could possibly need to make some recipe cards.  So far, I've made three different templates, but I can see myself making more.  They're pretty simple actually.

I stumbled across a website with some really cute free kitchen clip art Country Clipart by Lisa that I used for a couple of the cards.  But, I also used some clip art and made my own designs as well.  One of the features I really like is creating a column to list the ingredients separate from the directions.

I used my silhouette for a couple of the designs, but I also like the templates in publisher.  In publisher,  I created a second page that allows me to continue with the directions on the flip side of the card.....as you know, most recipes call for the backside of the card.

So, regardless of whether I created the design in my silhouette or in publisher,  I just re-load the card into the printer and send it through a second time to print the "directions, (cont'd.)" on the back.

I think I might use this idea for Christmas gifting too.  I can print out a variety of blank cards, and actually include a couple of my favorite recipes on the top of the stack....wrap them in a pretty raffia bow and bammmmm!!!

CUSTOMIZED WEDDING SHOES

This project was a first for me....AND, it was fun!   This poor little bride has such a hard time finding shoes; it's been an ongoing saga her entire adult life.   She wears either a size 5 or 5 ½ shoe and had been all over town looking for just the right shoe to compliment her wedding gown.  She had tried department stores, big box shoe stores, you name it.  When she could find something she liked, it didn't come in her size and vice versa.  So, she opted to purchase a pair she found online.   As we all know, that can be a real "crap shoot"...but she was desperate.   When she received the shoes the embellishments on the side were a bit over the top and unfortunately, were also a pale blue versus what appeared to be white online.

So, we decided to rip the trim off the shoe and add something that would match the color palette of the wedding.  I had hemmed her sister's bridesmaid's dress, so I saved the fabric and used that to make the bow for the back of the shoe.  Then, I took a trip to Hobby Lobby to find the pearl filigree designs (I had used this for another project and thought it would look pretty) and ¼ inch plum ribbon that I could use to make rolled roses.

BEFORE

I used the trusty glue gun for the pearls, rhinestones and roses and then sewed the bow (I used this ginormous upholstery needle) to the heel of the shoe and topped it off with a couple dabs of glue....I didn't want that little sucker falling off!

AFTER

The silver looks awesome with the gown and while she was originally hoping to find plum color shoes, the bow and roses were the next best thing.  This "shoe makeover" is the perfect solution for this bride!

APPLE CRISP

This delish dessert recipe is about as easy as they come....and about as good as it gets.  Warm out of the oven as is, or with a scoop of ice cream.  Are you kidding me?  Heaven!!

I assembled this the other night while I was also making a chicken stir fry....I was able to put it together in about 15 minutes tops....Then popped it in the oven while we were eating.  Oh man!  You could smell it cooking during dinner.  Then, by the time it was done and had cooled about 10 minutes we were ready for dessert.  Soooooo good!!!

assembled and ready to pop in the oven

Ingredients:

2 cans apple pie filling*

1 ½ tsp. cinnamon

1 cup quick oats

1 cup flour

¼ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. baking soda

½ cup melted butter

honey

Combine the pie filling and 1 tsp. of cinnamon - spread in a baking dish.  If you look at the picture above, I found a *caramel apple pie filling....now, maybe you all new this existed, but I didn't.  Crazy good!!  I'm so glad I chose to use this.

In a separate bowl, combine all the remaining ingredients but the honey.  Mix well and spread over the top.  Drizzle with honey.  

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes.  Cool 10 minutes before serving.

 fresh from the oven (I think I should have used a little bigger dish)

Enjoy!

adapted from: makeit-loveit

BRIDAL HAIR COMBS

This was an extra fun project.  Considering this was my first attempt at this type of craft, I was pleased with the final product.  One of my September Brides that I created a cathedral veil for wanted something for her hair after the ceremony.  She planned to take off the veil after the ceremony, but wanted a little something for the rest of the evening.  We talked about some type of flower.  I've made a number of fabric flowers in the past, but those I had made before just didn't trip my trigger for a bridal comb.  This new one on the other hand, was super cool and is very delicate and unique; it's supposed to resemble a peony.

You can find a number of tutorials on this online, so I won't take you through the steps.  I will tell you though you will need:

• 100% polyester fabric
• tea light or other flame source 
• needle/thread
• small pre-made flower (bridal section of Hobby Lobby)
• glue gun
• creativity

The size of the peony will dictate how large to cut your squares.  I used approximately 3" squares for this one and then rounded the edges (I did find another tutorial that started with more "petal" shape edges to begin with....I'm going to try that one next).  Don't sweat the circles being perfect....remember, you are going to melt the edges, so imperfection is A-okay. 

Again, the number of circles is totally subjective as well.    I used a combination of three different fabrics; an ivory satin, a diamond white crinkle satin and an ivory organza.  I chose the two different fabric colors since the bride's dress is a diamond white lace overlay with an ivory silk cumberbund/sash.  This beautiful bride has a lot of hair and plans to wear it part up/part down...so it can definitely support a larger flower. 

After I had made the petals, I used a pre-made fabric flower that I found at Hobby Lobby for the center. To me, it added just the right focal point to finish off the look.  I sewed through all of the layers, (with the exception of the center flower) with the sewing machine.

I chose to embellish it with several different goodies; Russian netting, ostrich feathers, a couple of pieces of the lace from her gown (I hemmed the gown and had to cut off a significant amount), pearls and rhinestones.

I covered a plastic comb with tulle and then added a few pearls to the outer edges, then I glued everything to the comb with the glue gun.  

Because, I so liked the way it turned out, I made two others........

I started incorporating some beading, crystals and pearls.....ooooh, I have all sorts of design concepts rolling around in my brain for more!!

In this one in addition to the peony, I added some rolled roses.

I can see these for flower girls as well! Incorporating the color palette from the wedding into their headpiece. would be soooo pretty!!

CHEESY BACON BREAD

When I went rifling through my recipes, I found this one.  The paper had yellowed with time and it didn't even have a title on it!  So, I've made up my own.....I call it Cheesy Bacon Bread.....and man-o-man was it worth hanging on to all these years.  I'm guesstimating this as circa 1980's...why?  Well, remember when printer paper had the holes on each side of the paper?  Long before ink jet and laser printers...they were called dot matrix printers.  I know...I know...I'm showing my age!  The recipe was printed on dot matrix paper.

Anyway, this bread was heavenly.  It's made in a bundt pan and you can just tear off pieces and eat it until you fall into a bread coma.  I can see this being a fun food for a football party...add  in some chili, or other finger foods.  It can definitely feed a crowd that's for sure! 

The recipe is fairly simple....the most time consuming part was cooking the bacon.  But, while that's cooking you can also chop up your pepper and onion.  

RECIPE:

2 cans biscuits (I used Pillsbury "Grands")

1 stick butter

10 strips cooked bacon

1 red or green pepper chopped

1 medium onion chopped (I used a red onion)

3/4 cup grated cheddar

3/4 cup grated parmesan 

Cut each biscuit into quarters.  In a large bowl, mix together the biscuits, melted butter, pepper, onions, bacon and cheeses.

Pour everything into a bundt pan and cook at 325 degrees for 45-60 minutes.  Let cool.  Remove from pan.

Pull off pieces and enjoy!

In my pics, you'll notice orange bits....I happened to have an orange bell pepper on hand so I substituted that for the red/green pepper.  I was also thinking, as old as this recipe is, I'm sure Pillsbury hadn't even developed the "Grands".  They added a bit of extra butter flavor which was great.  The original recipe called for 45 minutes.  I found I needed to bake mine 60 minutes....again, I'm thinking that's because my biscuits were so huge, the pan was just filled to the brim with ingredients.  Next time, I plan to increase the amount of cheddar to 3/4 cup....it originally called for 1/2 cup (and that's how I made this loaf). 

I tell you, the house smelled great all day long!  I ended up freezing a couple large freezer bags full of extras...it was way too much for just the two of us!  Enjoy!

MIRROR FRAME

When I first chose to use the mirror from our old bedroom set in my design area downstairs, my husband asked if I wanted it framed.   I told him I was fine without a frame....that was May of 2012.  I have recently exercised my prerogative as a woman to change my mind and told my husband that I had been looking for a frame for my mirror.   Hey...it's been over two years; I think I did good!

Do you know how expensive large frames are?  It's absolutely crazy. Fortunately, my husband is very skilled when it comes to woodworking so he kindly offered to help build a 33 x 37 frame for me.   After a quick trip to Lowe's (I had done a pre-scouting trip) for the materials, he went to work.

He cut a base frame from wood and then glued the decorative moulding that I chose onto the base.  You'll see these cute little grooves/doughnuts he took the time to place into each of the four corners to help keep them secure and square....a new tool purchase he recently made.

As with any of his projects, there was minor cussing; this one was a result of the mirror not being square. Very disconcerting when the carpenter cuts his boards square.  None-the-less, he was able to put this baby together for me in just two days time!  That includes the painting.  I've found he's a much better spray painter than I am, so I gladly deferred to him on that as well.  I've asked him to coach me, since my full blast at close range technique has resulted in streaks and drips on just about every one of my projects.  Go figure!

I added (yes., I did this step after watching the pro) a light coat of silver glitter spray over the blue which looks really sweet....then finally, a clear top coat was added.  As you've seen through my posts, my room is filled with color so I thought the unique shade of blue would work just fine.

To hang the mirror, my husband consulted with his brother on options.  Shout out to Tom who came up with a truly creative solution to use carpet trim ( you know...the edging that covers the carpet when it transitions to another flooring).  One strip was screwed into the wall and the other into the back of the frame; the frame just slides into the groove on the wall.  Very clever!

Well....I'm thrilled!  I was looking for a substantial frame with character and that's just what I got! The frame truly adds so much to the overall look of the mirror....and what a great focal point for the room too!

KIWI MANGO SALSA

I hope I'm not overdoing it with recipes, but along with pattern-making, sewing and crafting, I also love to cook.....as I mentioned on my FB page, I'm on a mission to cook my way through the 100's of recipes I've clipped out of magazines, newspapers and/or printed from websites over the years.

I plan to try them all and then make a determination as to whether it's a "keeper" or a "goner".    Those I'm keeping, I'm writing them down on a recipe card and putting them in the book I purchased years ago.  With any luck, I may need to purchase another book and have a Volume I  and Volume II instead of unsightly clippings held together with a chip clip. sheeeeeshh....so unlike me!

Anyway....onward to this particular recipe, which by the way is a definite KEEPER.  Oh my goodness, what a tasty recipe.  Now I served this salsa with a blackened mahi-mahi which was absolutely delicious.......but, I could also see using the salsa with chicken, fish tacos, or served with just chips for an appetizer.

INGREDIENTS:

2 kiwis, chopped

1/2 mango, chopped

1/2 orange bell pepper, chopped

1/4 red onion, chopped

1/2 avocado, chopped

1/8 cup chopped cilantro

*1/4 cup pineapple tidbits

 (or slice pineapple chunks in half)

a few squirts of lime juice

salt and pepper to taste

* my addition to the recipe

recipe adapted from: howsweeteats.com

To blacken the mahi-mahi, I simply coated the fish with a blackening seasoning (I used Emeril's) and then cooked them in a pan with approximately 2 Tbsp. olive oil.  It takes about 4 minutes on each side.   I served it with rice pilaf, steamed broccoli and fresh baked bread.  So good!!

Look at all those luscious chunks of fresh fruit and vegetables...it's making my mouth water just looking at it.

I have to tell you I had enough for leftovers....so, I chose to make a chicken tostada later in the week.  I added a few black beans along with the chicken and salsa and oh my!  Very tasty......

Enjoy!