The Apple Crate

Enchanting Birthday

2012-02-06T08:38:00.000-05:00

For this card I really just let the gorgeous pattern paper do the bulk of the work. The paper, Everyday Enchantments, is part of Stampin' Up's Sale-a-Bration offerings. I love every design in it, they are so bright and cheery! I cut the pattern paper to be just smaller than my card base and then stitched it in place. Then I die cut a ribbon tag, stamped the sentiment on it, and tied it on with some matching aqua ribbon I had in my stash. It's simple, but I really love how this one turned out. :)

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Warmest Regards
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI), Everyday Enchantments dp (SU!)
Ink: Ruby Red (SU!)
Embellishments: aqua satin ribbon, clear button, baker's twine
Tool: sewing machine, ribbon tag die (Spellbinders)

Bacon-Wrapped Potato Bites

2012-02-01T13:50:00.000-05:00

I needed to bring an appetizer to a party last weekend and was flipping through some recipes I had bookmarked looking for ideas when I came across these. They caught my eye because they only had two ingredients, both of which I had on hand. No trip to the grocery store needed! Score! And meat and potatoes, what's not to love?

These are embarrasingly easy to make, though they look impressive. They would also be great to take along to a Super Bowl party this weekend. Enjoy!

Bacon-Wrapped Potatoes by Martha Stewart

INGREDIENTS

8 bacon slices, cut in half crosswise
16 small potatoes

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wrap each bacon piece around a potato and secure with a toothpick. Place in a baking dish and bake until bacon is crisp and potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, 40 to 50 minutes. Serve warm.

A Cherry Hello

2012-01-30T07:25:00.000-05:00

I've had the idea for this card rumbling around in my head for a while but it has just now come to fruition. <insert bad pun groan> My sister gave me a bunch of paper doilies for Christmas so I was excited to be able to incorporate one into this card. I also love the pattern paper in conjunction with the cherry image because it reminds me of a picnic table cloth. They just seem to go together. The yellow circle layer behind the cherries was impressed with a wood grain texture to give it some added interest. And then there is the sweet little "hello" tag tied on with baker's twine. I just love this card, it makes me happy! I hope it will brighten someone else's day, too. :)

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Tart & Tangy, Tiny Tags (SU!)
Paper: Barely Banana, Whisper White, Bella Rose dp (SU!)
Ink: Old Olive, Ruby Red (SU!)
Embellishments: paper doily, yellow satin ribbon, buttons, baker's twine
Tools: scallop circle punch, jewelry tag punch (SU!), Cutter Bee circle cutting system, stamp-a-ma-jig, wood grain impression plate (PTI)

Baby Sweet Pea

2012-01-25T22:07:00.004-05:00

After a long hiatus it is good to be back! I spent quite a lot of time after the holidays going through my stamping space and trying to better organize and label things; I wanted to utilize every inch of my small space. It was good to get those chores done (even though I would rather have been stamping!) because now I don't feel so cramped or have precarious stacks of paper and tools about to topple over me. :)

After all of that I finally have a card to share. There is another baby boom happening amongst my friends and acquaintances so I started by making a stack of baby cards to have handy. This pea pod image is one of my favorite baby stamps, and the great thing about it is that it can be for either a boy or a girl!

The focal image was done by die cutting an oval twice, once in Whisper White and once in Crumb Cake. After stamping the pea pod image on the white oval, I trimmed the Crumb Cake oval down so that only the bottom portion remained, creating a "ground" for the image. I stamped the piece of Crumb Cake oval with an image from Tin Types in Always Artichoke. The same image was used to stamp the strip behind the scallop oval, but using Crumb Cake ink instead.

The last thing I wanted to share is that the Kiwi Kiss panel got the special treatment with my new PTI Book Print impression plate. Love! Some stitching around the edges finished things off.

Thanks for stopping by! :)

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Eventful, Noteworthy (SU!), Background Basics: Tin Types (PTI)
Paper: Always Artichoke, Kiwi Kiss, Crumb Cake, Whisper White (SU!)
Ink: Always Artichoke, Kiwi Kiss, Crumb Cake (SU!), Onyx Black (VersaFine)
Embellishments: buttons
Tools: Oval Nestabilities, sewing machine, aqua painter, Book Print Impression Plate (PTI)

Gifts for the Neighbors

2011-12-23T08:23:00.000-05:00

Hello! I hope all of your Christmas preparations are done and that you have been enjoying the season. There was a flurry of activity at our home for a few days: Christmas parties, Christmas concerts, caroling, baking, wrapping gifts, etc. but now we are done with the busyness and have been enjoying time with family. One of the last things we did before leaving town for the holidays was to take small loafs of chocolate chip banana bread to our neighbors for a holiday treat. I dressed them up a bit with ribbon, baker's twine and a stamped tag to make them extra special.

This will be my last post until the new year and so I would like to end with the words from my favorite Christmas carol, and wish you all a very merry Christmas!

O Holy Night! The stars are brightly shining,

It is the night of the dear Savior's birth.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining.

Till he appeared and the soul felt its worth.

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!

O night divine, the night when Christ was born;

O night, O Holy Night, O night divine!

November Publication

2011-12-03T17:30:00.001-05:00

Hello and happy December! I wanted to share a card of mine that was included in the November issue of CARDS Magazine. It is just a clean and simple little birthday card; I was so excited it was accepted! Hopefully I'll have some more cards and crafty projects to share soon. Until then! :)

Lovely as a Tree

2011-11-22T08:59:00.001-05:00

Hello! Today I have two variations of the same card to share with you. I received some new stamping toys for my birthday last week and have been having fun trying them out. These cards use my new Woodgrain Impression Plate by Papertrey Ink.

I started with a piece of Crumb Cake card stock cut just smaller than the card base and rounded the corners. Then, using both Versa Mark and white ink, I stamped the tree image and sentiment and embossed them in white. Very carefully, I then lined up the impression plate so that it would impress the top portion only, leaving the bottom portion with the sentiment plain, and ran it through my Cuttle Bug. I wasn't sure how the embossed trees would hold up being impressed over, but they came out just fine! Some crochet trim hides the impression seam and is a nice balance to the wood texture. I love how soft and pretty this looks!

The second card is basically the reverse of the first. I stamped the trees and sentiment in brown, no embossing this time, and again impressed the woodgrain only over the trees. I did add some small speckles around the edges from Itty Bitty Backgrounds to this one. The main panel on both cards is raised with foam tape. Both cards are now up in my Etsy shop.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

*hugs*

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Lovely as a Tree, Thank You Kindly, Itty Bitty Backgrounds (SU!)
Paper: Crumb Cake (SU!), Vintage Cream (PTI)
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake (SU!), Versa Mark, Frost White (Color Box), Vintage Tea Dye (PTI)
Embellishments: crochet trim (SU!), brown satin ribbon, white embossing powder
Tools: corner rounder punch, woodgrain impression plate (PTI), foam tape

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

2011-10-31T07:49:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween! No tricks just treats for you today. I found this recipe for Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins on allrecipes.com a few years ago and I've made them every fall since then. They smell heavenly while baking and taste just as good. The recipe is pretty much perfect as is. All I changed was to use fresh pumpkin puree I made the night before and subbed walnuts for the pecans because that is what I had on hand. Also, while the recipe says it makes 18 muffins, I easily got 24. They are wonderful with your morning cup of coffee or for an afternoon treat.

Enjoy and have fun tonight!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins from allrecipes.com
makes 18 muffins

INGREDIENTS

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 Tbsp. brown sugar

4 1/2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
5 Tbsp. white sugar
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. chopped pecans

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. white sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 c. pumpkin puree
1/3 c. olive oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease and flour 18 muffin cups, or use paper liners.

To make the filling: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until soft. Add egg, vanilla and brown sugar. Beat until smooth, then set aside.

For the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Add butter and cut it in with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.

For the muffin batter: In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture and add eggs, pumpkin, olive oil and vanilla. Beat together until smooth.

Place pumpkin mixture in muffin cups about 1/2 full. Then add one tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter. Sprinkle on streusel topping.

Bake at 375 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes.

Eat and enjoy!!

Halloween Trees

2011-10-29T09:21:00.001-04:00

I have one last Halloween card to share with you today. This one was inspired by a card I saw on Splitcoast Stamper's by Lionsmane. I changed up the pattern papers and simplified it a bit.

The focal image was created using the emboss resist technique. The tree image was first inked up with Versa Mark and Basic Black, then embossed with black embossing powder. I then sponged over top with Summer Sun ink at the center and Pumpkin Pie around the edges. I like the eerie sunset feel this created with the silhouetted trees.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your weekend!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Lovely as a Tree
Paper: Basic Black, Very Vanilla, dp by Graphic 45
Ink: Versa Mark, Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun
Embellishments: orange satin ribbon, black embossing powder
Tools: large oval and scalloped oval nestabilities dies, sponge, foam tape

Halloween Trio

2011-10-21T11:03:00.000-04:00

Halloween is almost here and I have a few more cards to make and send out. This one was inspired by a card Dawn McVey shared on her blog a while back. I used a new toy for the background, SU's spider web embossing folder. So fun! The cute little Halloween images are from Spooky Bingo Bits.

The sentiment was stamped onto a piece of Pumpkin Pie card stock that had been punched out with the Designer Label punch. I then trimmed off the bottom portion and sewed it onto the embossed layer.

Similarly, I punched out a scallop border from Eggplant Envy card stock and sewed it along the bottom with a zig zag stitch. The embossed panel, and each of the three circle pieces, were adhered with foam tape.

Enjoy your weekend!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Spooky Bingo Bits, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie, Eggplant Envy, Basic Black
Ink: Eggplant Envy, VersaFine Onyx Black, Pumpkin Pie
Tools: Spider Web embossing folder, scallop border punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, Designer Label punch, sewing machine, foam tape

Spooky Halloween

2011-10-10T09:42:00.000-04:00

Perusing some other people's card blogs recently I came across an old sketch challenge. I don't usually have much luck with card sketch challenges, maybe I'm trying to force things too much, but this particular one really inspired me. I had been wanting to create a Halloween card now that it is October so that is the direction I went with. I really like how this one turned out!

Here is what the original sketch looked like, you can read more about it here.

I used Carved and Candlelit for the focal image, along with a punched out bat. I don't own this particular SU! bat punch, but my mom does and she gave me a stack of punched out bats last time I visited. Thanks, Mom! :) The background paper is a page from an old book I picked up at a used book store. I used the spider and web images from Creepy Crawly to help it recede into the background. All of the edges were antiqued with my PTI Tea Dye cubes.

And here is the inside, stamped with the sentiment from Creepy Crawly. This card is now up in my shop so be sure to take a look!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Carved and Candlelit (SU!), Creepy Crawly (Inkadinkado)
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI), Basic Black (SU!), Bella Rose dp (SU!), Orange Small Dots dp (Recollections), vintage book print
Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive (SU!), Versa Fine Onyx Black, Tea Dye Duo (PTI)
Embellishments: black satin ribbon, black embroidery thread, button
Tools: stamp-a-ma-jig, corner rounder punch, bat punch (SU!)

Welcome to Your New Nest

2011-10-05T09:35:00.000-04:00

The house next to ours sold several months ago and we've watched as the new owners have gone through the process of gutting and remodeling their new home. But at long last our new neighbors have moved in so yesterday we walked over to meet them. I made them this house warming card along with a loaf of my favorite banana bread to welcome them to the neighborhood.

The sentiment was created on my computer and printed onto white card stock. I actually printed it ages ago for this card, but as I ended up using a different layout for that one, this little sentiment strip has been sitting patiently on my desk waiting to be used. It worked out perfectly!

I also made the happy discovery that the nestabilities oval dies fit this bird image from Cavallini's Birds and Nests set exactly. The bird image is popped up with foam tape and then I tucked some ribbon loops underneath on either side. I hope they like it!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: French Flair, Birds and Nests (Cavallini)
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, blue
Ink: Bliss Blue, Versa Fine Onyx Black
Embellishments: white satin ribbon
Tools: oval nestabilities

Fried Mozzarella Balls

2011-10-02T14:11:00.000-04:00

Football season is in full swing and that means tailgate food! My husband and I went to a Progressive Tailgate party (all day college football at three different houses) yesterday and we needed a culinary contribution to bring with us. I'm a big fan of small bite sized appetizer food so this seemed the perfect opportunity to try out a recipe for fried mozzarella balls. The recipe is courtesy of the Curvy Carrot and other than cutting the quantity in half, I followed it to the letter. The mozzarella balls themselves were delicious, but I think I'll use a more traditional marinara sauce to accompany them in the future. How about you guys, have any favorite party food recipes? Now today we'll be kicking back and watching some NFL and I'll be getting some more baking and crafting in as well. Enjoy the rest of your weekend! :)

Hello, Fall

2011-09-23T08:44:00.000-04:00

In honor of the first day of fall I thought I would share a pumpkin themed card. Isn't this cute? I stamped the tall pumpkin in the middle first, then masked it to stamp the shorter pumpkins on either side. The stems were stamped with the same technique I used on this card.

A little jute twine, a button, and some gingham scallops finished it off.

What are you doing to get ready for fall? I'm keeping an eye out for when apples go on sale to make me a big ol' batch of apple butter. Yum!

xoxo

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Carved and Candlelit, Cheesecloth
Paper: Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Parisan Summer dp
Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive
Embellishments: jute twine, button
Tools: stamp-a-ma-jig, corner rounder punch

The Apple Crate Turns 1!

2011-08-30T10:07:00.006-04:00

Hello! I have some exciting things to share today so get ready. I can hardly believe it but one year ago today I launched The Apple Crate with my very first blog post. So I thought we should have some fun and celebrate with a birthday party! And you can't have a birthday party without cake. In this case chocolate cheesecake. Doesn't this look delicious? I wish I could serve you up a slice but you'll have to settle for the recipe. :) You'll find it at the end of the post.

Since we're having a party we need party favors, right? So for you, dear readers, I am offering an exclusive 10% discount on everything in my Etsy shop! This is my first ever sale, and it is just for you. I wanted to thank all of you for coming to visit me here at The Apple Crate and for the sweet comments and support. Here's the deal:

Use coupon code TAC11 during checkout.
Discount applies to your entire purchase.
Sale valid through September 15th.

Visit my shop at theapplecrate.etsy.com. Let me know if you have any questions, otherwise I hope you enjoy!

Also, a funny thing about the day I started this blog is that it is also my Dad's birthday. Happy birthday, Dad!! August 30th is definitely a day worth celebrating. *wink* Here is the card I made for him.

I stamped the presents twice. Once on the main white panel, and again on a separate piece of white paper so that I could color it in, cut it out, and pop it up. I stamped an oval in Crumb Cake underneath to ground the presents.

I picked out three coordinating pattern papers and cut them to resemble pennants for a festive look. A bit scallop trim hides the seam. Hurray for birthdays!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Happy Moments (SU!), Small Oval (A Muse)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Only Orange, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Orange Small Dots dp by Recollections, Garden Grove dp by Scenic Route, Swimming Pool Daisy dp by Doodlebug Design
Ink: Versa Fine Onyx Black, Only Orange, Tempting Turquoise, Crumb Cake
Embellishments: orange satin ribbon
Tools: scallop border punch, Swiss Dots embossing folder, foam tape, aqua painter

Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake
makes 16 servings

INGREDIENTS

CRUST
9 oz. chocolate wafer cookies
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

FILLING
1/2 lb. unsweetened chocolate
1 1/2 lb. cream cheese
3 large eggs
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. Amaretto liqueur
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 c. whipping cream

PREPARATION

Whirl the chocolate cookies in a blender until they form crumbs. Mix with the melted butter. Press into the bottom and sides of a buttered 10-inch spring form pan and refrigerate until you're ready to fill and bake.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the top of a double boiler over boiling water, melt the chocolate. Set aside to cool. In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the eggs and sugar and beat until well incorporated. Stir a small amount of this mixture into the chocolate to loosen. Add the chocolate mixture to the cream cheese mixture and stir well. Stir in the Amaretto, vanilla and cream. Stir until all ingredients are well mixed. Pour the filling into the prepared crust and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until the cheesecake is slightly puffed and no longer jiggles in the center. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours. Take the cheesecake out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving for ease of slicing. Remove the sides of pan and cut with a sharp knife.

Baby, Baby!

2011-08-26T14:35:00.008-04:00

Today I have not one but two cards to share with you. A friend recently asked if I had any baby cards available when, to my dismay, I discovered I was rather short in that area. So I got right to work and made a baby boy card, and then next up is a girly version.

The sentiment and moon/star image is actually a single stamp but I used it three times with blue, green and brown ink then cut them out with various punches and paper snips. Then I paper pieced it all back together so that each element of the sentiment was a different color. There is a brown zig zag stitch at the borders between the different papers.

Inside I added a green scallop to mimic the scallop on the front and topped it with a strip of matching pattern paper.

And here is the girl version! Lots of pink and purple on this one. *grin*

I decided to only use two colors on the sentiment for this version, a light and dark purple. I was originally going to use pink as well, but it didn't show up because it was too light. Can you read what it says? "Sweet One. Dimples, giggles, cuddles divine, all come together, sweetness combined." Awww. :) The scallop circle is popped up with dimensionals both on this one and the boy card.

I did the inside a little differently on this one, opting for a simple frame and scallop.

I hope you enjoyed these cards! I certainly had fun making them. Both are now up in my shop so be sure to take a look. Also, there will be some fun things happening here on the blog next week, so be sure to stop on by!!

*hugs*

SUPPLIES

Baby Boy
Stamps: So Many Scallops
Paper: Chocolate Chip textured, Certainly Celery, Whisper White, Thrift Shop dp by October Afternoon, Scenic Route Paper Co. dp
Ink: Bliss Blue, Certainly Celery, Chocolate Chip
Embellishments: buttons
Tools: scallop circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, scallop border punch, sewing machine

Baby Girl
Stamps: So Many Scallops
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI), Mauve Mist, Parisian Summer dp, Paige dp by Melissa Frances
Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Lavender Lace
Embellishments: buttons
Tools: scallop circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, scallop border punch, sewing machine

Butterfly Whimsy

2011-08-22T08:15:00.001-04:00

Hello, friends! I wanted to share this butterfly card with you today. I love how light and happy it turned out. The butterflies were punched out with Martha Stewart punches. I then used an itty bitty dot of glue to attach the small butterflies to the larger ones. And another little dot to attach the layered butterflies to a panel of white card stock.

Then I got out my trusty sewing machine and stitched a line down each butterfly to secure them to the panel. This let me "fluff" up their wings a bit. I love that! I tied some red ribbon around the bottom then adhered the panel to a white card stock base, thus hiding the back side of the stitching and keeping the inside looking clean. Ta da! :)

Check it out in my Etsy shop. Have a wonderful week!

Airplane Birthday

2011-08-18T09:00:00.000-04:00

Here is another card I made while out visiting with my mom and sister a few weeks ago. I don't have a lot of "guy" sets so I took the opportunity to borrow Plane and Simple from my mom and make this card.

I was aiming for it to look like the plane was towing the birthday banner behind it. All of the Crumb Cake layers were sponged with Early Espresso ink.

To fill the empty space at the bottom I pierced two wavy lines to mimic the flight trails a plane may leave behind.

Here's the inside!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Plane & Simple
Paper: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake
Ink: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Versa Mark
Tools: rectangle and scallop rectangle nestabilities, paper piercer, sponge dauber

Painted Bottle Vases

2011-08-15T08:30:00.000-04:00

Crafting is near and dear to my heart and I realize that it is shamefully under represented here at The Apple Crate. So today I bring you a project that has long been in the making, recycled jars and bottles as vases! I have Martha Stewart to thank for the idea. She has a great tutorial on her website that I followed to make these.

Lots of people are out there doing something similar, with either spray paint or acrylic paint. But what I appreciated about the Martha Stewart version is that the paint is actually on the inside of the bottle, so it won't chip as easily, and it uses enamel paint so I can actually fill the vases with water.

I started out by collecting old bottles and jars; things I went through in the kitchen and saved rather than recycled. I even enlisted the help of some friends to speed the process up. These bottles once held everything under the sun: jam, olive oil, soy sauce, wine, spaghetti sauce, salsa, spices, etc.

The hardest part of this was actually cleaning all of the labels and sticky residue off! I know there are products out there to remove sticky residue, but I don't own any and I didn't want to go buy one. Surely, I thought, there must be something in the house that can be used. After a brief internet search I discovered there was. Vegetable oil. After peeling and washing as much of the label off with hot soapy water as possible, go back over the sticky remains with a vegetable oil soaked cloth and it will dissolve the rest. It's true! It's amazing! Try it. :)

The tutorial was a little vague on what kind of paint to use. It did specify enamel, and offered that it would be readily available at craft stores. Hmph. After searching the usual craft store suspects I found spray on enamel, model paint enamel (available in .25 oz. bottles, not so helpful), and a kind of enamel that seemed more for decorative painting on the outside of glass and had to be baked on. I tried hardware stores, too, but nothing seemed quite right. Then I found this paint at a local art supply store. It is actually for sign painting but it was enamel, didn't require a baking process, and was specifically for outdoor use so I knew it could hold water. It worked perfectly!

And here are my lovely jars and bottles! I used about half of the 8 oz. can of paint to cover all of these. The painting method I found to work for me was to spoon the paint into the jar with a plastic spoon, then swirl it around inside. For the first few I drained the excess paint back into the can, then laid them on paper towels to drain the rest of the way like the tutorial recommended. But that was super messy. Many of my bottles have narrow mouths and were too unstable to be left upside down to drain the rest of the way. So I just drained as much as I could back into the can and then set them upright to dry. The paint may be a little thicker on the bottom of mine, but it sure was a lot easier. One thing I would recommend is having some paint thinner on hand. Inevitably you are going to get smudges on the outside of the bottle or need to clean up around the mouth of the jar. And paint thinner makes cleaning those spots a breeze.

I was so excited to finally put some fresh flowers in and see how they looked. Aren't they gorgeous?!

My smallest bottle makes a sweet bud vase in the windowsill.

One of the great things about this project is how economical it is. The glass was free so all I bought was the paint. And just one bunch of mums filled all of my new vases! It really gives a lot of bang to your flower buying buck. I think these would look fantastic in a line down a dining room table as a centerpiece. Or just dispersed around the house to add fresh flowers in many little places. They would also be a great way to continue a color theme for a party or event.

I have more bottles that haven't been painted yet, and I am tempted to get another paint color and go to town on those as well. White, perhaps? Something that could be used for any holiday or color scheme. The only problem is where to put them all! I hope you give this a try. It really is easy and a bit addicting, too. It was so fun to see the bottles transformed after they were painted that it was hard to stop! :)

Cherish

2011-08-11T08:55:00.000-04:00

Here is the second card I made with the Have a Seat set. Aren't these little chairs cute? The more I played with them the more I liked them. As I was thinking about the sentiment for this card, suddenly "cherish" popped into my head. Cherish. Chair-ish. Get it? Ha! Ok, maybe no one else thinks that is as cute and funny as I do but I really liked it. :) I also liked that everything worked out perfectly for there to be room for three chairs and to stack the sentiment three times in matching colors.

The inside has pattern paper in the same colors as the front. It's a simple detail but I think it is fun to open a card and find things like that inside. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Have a Seat, Baroque Motifs
Paper: Riding Hood Red, Bordering Blue, Naturals Ivory, Print Pack Regals dp
Ink: Riding Hood Red, Bordering Blue, More Mustard
Tools: scallop border punch, stamp-a-ma-jig

Have a Seat

2011-08-08T22:20:00.000-04:00

Recently I was home visiting my family for a week and one of the many highlights of the trip was getting in some stamping time with my mom and sister. Hurray for girl crafting time! Also fun was getting to play with some different stamp sets, like the one with this cute vintagey bench image from SU!'s Have a Seat. Keep an eye out for this set again. *wink*

I used an oldie but a goodie technique to stamp the bench, the rock 'n roll technique. First I inked the stamp up with Daffodil Delight ink, then I rolled just the edges in Crumb Cake. I like the nice subtle dimension this gives it. I also sponged the edges of the oval and ivory panel with Crumb Cake to soften it and keep with the vintage look I was going for. The French Script stamped at the bottom was done with a stamp-a-ma-jig, as the background stamp wasn't quite wide enough to cover the entire panel in one pass.

Simple and sweet and now available in my Etsy shop! :)

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Have a Seat, French Script
Paper: Daffodil Delight, Naturals Ivory
Ink: Daffodil Delight, Crumb Cake
Embellishments: Chocolate Chip taffeta ribbon
Tools: oval nestabilities, stamp-a-ma-jig, dimensionals, sponge dauber

Jam Session

2011-08-01T09:00:00.001-04:00

Isn't summer wonderful? I love all of the fresh produce that is available this time of year, especially berries! I took advantage of strawberries being on sale not too long ago to stock up and make a big batch of jam.

I don't know about you, but we are constantly on the move during summer time. Often we're out of town visiting family or getting together for a casual night of dinner and games with friends. With all of the traveling and social activity, I thought it would be nice to have small thank you gifts on hand for the gracious hostess or the friends that cat sit for us while we're gone. So for this batch of jam I used 4 oz. canning jars, the perfect size for a small gift.

The small jars are cute enough on their own, but I couldn't resist dressing them up a bit more for an extra special touch. I stamped some simple tags with a "thank you" sentiment and layered them on a kraft card stock base then tied them on with jute twine. A little bit of pretty fabric finished them off!

How sweet are these? A small taste of summer to share and express your thanks. You could also dress up some store bought jam, but homemade always tastes better, don't you think?

Thanks for stopping by! :)

Star Studded Birthday

2011-07-25T10:50:00.004-04:00

Does this look familiar? It is a variation I did on a 4th of July card I posted a few weeks ago, but changed it up to be a festive birthday card! The firecracker image works quite nicely as a birthday candle, don't you think? I switched out the blue and red for an orange and pink color scheme. Quite bright and summery. :)

The star image was stamped with Versa Mark ink onto orange and pink card stock, then I cut them out by hand with paper snips. They are rearranged from the original version so that they look more like a hanging garland, and I also added some ribbon. Each candle has a tiny little rhinestone at its center. The orange star is popped up on with foam tape.

The inside sentiment is stamped in coordinating colors there are a few little stars to carry on the festive theme. I made two of these fun cards, one for my stash and one for you. Enjoy!

Have a wonderful week, friends!

xoxo

SUPPLIES
Stamps: July Fourth, Happy Everything
Paper: Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie, Rose Romance
Ink: Versa Mark, Only Orange, Rose Romance
Embellishments: orange satin ribbon, rhinestone stickers, foam tape, button

Stitched Birthday Card

2011-07-12T16:10:00.000-04:00

I got a little crazy with my sewing machine over the weekend and this is what came out! All of the papers are from the same collection so it was easy to coordinate colors. I love how soft and pretty it turned out.

The pattern paper strips were all lightly adhered to a panel of Vintage Cream card stock. Then I ran it through my sewing machine with a zig zag stitch at each seam. After wrapping a ribbon bow around it I attached the whole thing to the main card base with foam tape. You like? I like!

For the inside, I stamped the flourish-y image with PTI's tea dye so that it would be light enough to stamp the sentiment over top. I made two of them - one got sent off in the mail right away and the other one is available in my shop. :)

I hope your week is off to a great start!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Baroque Motifs, Warmest Regards
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI), Parisian Summer dp (SU!)
Ink: Vintage Tea Dye (PTI), Chocolate Chip (SU!)
Embellishments: white organza ribbon, button, white embroidery thread
Tools: sewing machine

1st Birthday Card

2011-07-09T21:09:00.006-04:00

Today my husband and I went to a 1st birthday party for the daughter of some friends of ours. Of course I needed to make a card for the occasion, and believe it or not this is my first ever kid's card. I've made baby cards, but never one for a child, so it was certainly a challenge!

I sewed ribbon loops on the left side of the main panel and also sewed clear buttons over a trio of punched flowers. The bottom half of the card was embossed with a polka dot motif. I was trying to keep it bright and fun.

The inside is fairly simple, just another pink flower to match the front. I hope little "M" liked her card, or that at least her parent's did! *grin*

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Happy Everything, Somerset Alphabet by Inkadinkado
Paper: Certainly Celery, Whisper White, Rose Romance
Ink: Certainly Celery, Rose Romance
Embellishments: clear buttons, white embroidery floss, green ribbon
Tools: 1" circle punch, Marvy Uchida jumbo daisy punch, sewing machine, foam tape, Swiss dots embossing folder

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-04T08:38:00.000-04:00

Just popping in with a red, white and blue photo and to wish you a Happy Independence Day! :)

*Hugs*

Star Spangled Fourth

2011-06-29T07:30:00.002-04:00

Hello! Are you ready for the 4th of July yet? Here's a card to get in the spirit. :) This is the first time this stamp set has seen ink as I got it after the 4th of July last year, so fun to finally use it! The stars were stamped in Real Red and Night of Navy and stamped onto coordinating card stock (though the blue star looks black in the picture). They were cut out by hand and adhered onto a panel of Whisper White. The blue star is popped up with foam tape and also has the number 4 embossed in white on it.

I stamped the center firecracker first in red, then the two red ones to either side. That made it easy to fill in with the blue firecrackers last. Each of the sparks has a tiny rhinestone sticker in its center. Simple and fun! :)

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: July Fourth, Somerset Alphabet by Inkadinkado (number "4")
Paper: Whisper White, Real Red, Night of Navy
Ink: Real Red, Night of Navy, Versa Mark
Embellishments: white embossing powder, rhinestone stickers, foam tape

Simple Grad Card

2011-06-21T08:27:00.001-04:00

My husband's cousin is graduating from high school so I needed to make a grad card. Hmm . . . 18 year old boys are not the audience I typically stamp for and I didn't want to make something he'd think was totally dorky. Fortunately, my sweet mom, who is an awesome stamper herself and the the person at fault for my stamping obsession, just shared a grad card on her own blog. So when in doubt, CASE Mom! *wink* Here is her card that I copied and tweaked. Check it out!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Eventful
Paper: Basic Black, White
Ink: Versa Mark
Embellishments: white embossing powder, dimensionals

Father's Day

2011-06-16T16:58:00.002-04:00

I'm somewhat of a procrastinator and I just now have made my Father's Day cards. If you are like me and still haven't done anything about the big day on Sunday, maybe these come in time to inspire your own cards. :)

I don't have much in the way of masculine stamps, so I pulled out my go to set for guy cards Lovely As A Tree. The color scheme was kept very simple in kraft and brown. Both kraft layers were sponged around the edges with Basic Brown ink.

I tried something new with the twine at the bottom. A bow wasn't going to cut it for a "Dad" card, and there wasn't really room for a knot. So instead I set an eyelet on either side of the sentiment and wrapped the twine through the eyelets. It is knotted together on the back side of the panel. I kinda like it. Lastly, since there is a knot on the back of the big kraft layer, that whole panel is popped up on dimensionals.

I hope you all have a great time with your Dad this weekend!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Lovely as a Tree, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Kraft
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Basic Brown
Embellishments: jute twine, silver eyelets
Tools: Crop-a-Dile

Summer Flowers

2011-06-08T11:35:00.005-04:00

Hello! I don't know about you but it certainly feels like summer where I am. It's been in the 90's all week! So I thought I'd go ahead and embrace it by making a summery card. :)

The stem and leaf image is actually all one stamp, but I wanted the flowers to go different directions and be at different heights. So I used a green marker to ink up just the stem then stamped it three times at various heights and orientations. Then with my stamp-a-ma-jig, I inked up just the leaves and stamped those to match up with the stems. The flowers were punched out twice for a double layered look and adhered with a silver brad. After stamping the sentiment I thought the top right corner looked a little lonely so I added a trio of rhinestones. I think it perked it up a bit. :)

And here is the inside finished to match!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Flower Filled, Trendy Trees
Paper: Barely Banana, Summer Sun, Whisper White, Material Girl dp by Cosmo Cricket
Embellishments: goldenrod twill tape by Bobbin Ribbon, green marker, rhinestone stickers, silver brads
Tools: corner round punch, scallop edge punch, flower punch by Marvy Uchida, stamp-a-ma-jig, paper piercing tool

The Great Macaroon Fiasco

2011-06-01T07:44:00.001-04:00

(Pretty picture of ugly macaroons.)

When I first started this blog I said that I would share the good, the bad and the ugly of my crafting and cooking endeavors. Thankfully, everything I have shared thus far falls under the good category (at least I hope you think so, too!). But now I have something that if not bad, I'd definitely say is ugly!

Recently a friend and I attempted to make macaroons for the first time. I'd heard they were hard to make but I kept seeing them everywhere (magazines, food blogs, more food blogs) and I was dying to try making them. And we had a whole day that could be devoted to a wild and crazy kitchen experiment. It was the perfect opportunity! Well, let's just say the experiment was fraught with dangers and crises and not go into too much detail, shall we? The end product actually tasted fine, but they certainly aren't going to win any beauty pageants. At the end of the day I said I was swearing off macaroons, they were out of my system. Done. Over. Finite. But today I came across some more pretty pictures of them online . . . uh oh, I may be in trouble. :)

Lemon Cream Cheese Cupcakes

2011-05-26T13:04:00.001-04:00

In recent years I've come to adore lemon desserts. I'm not sure when I started liking them but I've certainly got it bad for them now. I love the bright colors and the citrusy punch of flavor. Lemon makes me think of summer. It's a happy flavor, wouldn't you say? The fact that my husband does not like lemon flavored things creates a bit of a quandary for us. Usually I'll pass over my lemon recipes and instead make something that he'll eat, too. As a result I don't get lemon desserts very often, which I think heightens my love of them in their rarity.

Well, he flew off to attend a conference this week and I needed to bring something for an end of year potluck. So I got to make one of my favorite cupcakes, a lemon flavored cutie with equally lemony cream cheese frosting. Mmm mmm! I think these would also be a perfect addition to any Memorial Day picnics one might be having this weekend. *wink* Enjoy and have a great holiday weekend!

Lemon Cream Cheese Cupcakes from Kraft Food & Family Magazine, Spring 2008
makes 24

INGREDIENTS

1 pkg. (2-layer size) white cake mix
1 pkg. (4-serving size) lemon flavor instant pudding & pie filling
1 c. water
4 egg whites
2 Tbsp. oil
16 oz. powdered sugar
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. butter, softened
2 Tbsp. lemon juice

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat cake mix, dry pudding mix, water, egg whites and oil in large bowl with electric mixer on low speed until moistened. (Batter will be thick.) Beat on medium speed 2 min. Spoon batter evening into 24 paper-lined 2 1/2-inch muffin cups.

Bake 21-24 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes; remove to wire racks. Cool Completely.

Meanwhile, beat sugar, cream cheese, butter and juice with electric mixer on low speed until well blended. Frost cupcakes. Garnish with lemon peel if desired.

A Green & Yellow Birthday

2011-05-16T20:42:00.003-04:00

I'm trying to be back on the blogging bandwagon with at least one post a week. So here's to two weeks in a row! Hehe. :)

This week brings us another card with stitching on it. I admit to being a little obsessed with this technique now that I have my sewing machine figured out. I may need intervention!

The presents were stamped on watercolor paper with Versa Mark ink. I had originally stamped them on Whisper White card stock, but when I colored in the image the paper warped too much. Thicker paper was definitely in order. The whole focal image is also popped up with foam tape.

The stitching is a zig zag between the yellow scallops and green pattern paper. I thought it helped tie (pun intended!) the two papers together and added some interest. I also wanted to do something other than ribbon on this card so some jute twine did the job nicely of holding the "happy birthday" tag.

The inside was done to match. The white panel is the same shape as the green paper on the exterior and it is flanked with the same yellow scallops. And that is it! :)

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Happy Moments
Paper: Crumb Cake, Barely Banana, watercolor paper, Parisian Summer dp, Thift Shop dp by October Afternoon
Ink: Versa Mark Onyx Black, Barely Banana, Old Olive
Embellishments: jute twine
Tools: Nestabilities large oval and large scallop oval dies, corner rounder punch, scallop border punch, word window punch, 1/16" circle punch, aqua painter, sewing machine, foam tape

Boho Bird

2011-05-09T08:25:00.003-04:00

Hello, friends! I have certainly missed updating my little ol' blog, but the month of April was a crazy one for us! We were out of town ourselves, then we were blessed to have guests in town for several weeks. My craft room is also the guest room, so no crafting while guests were here! But now it's back to life as "usual", whatever that means. :)

This is the first card I've made in weeks, and I am quite pleased with how it turned out. The main stamp set is Friends 24-7. I feel like I always use this one but I do love it so!

I was going for a bit of a shabby chic feel for this card so there is lots of tea dye ink around all of the edges, along with the small splatter image from Itty Bitty Backgrounds. Even the large flourish image in the background was stamped with tea dye!

For the circle element, I stamped the bird in brown and then clear embossed over top. I then cut a mask for the bird from scratch paper so I could stamp the flourish over top. The edges of the circle were distressed with a bone folder.

I pulled out my sewing machine again to add some zig zag detail in the upper right corner. This is just my second time sewing on my cards so I am still learning. It took me a while to set up and get the correct tension on my machine. But I love the effect and that I was able to find matching thread!

Thanks for coming by to spend part of your day with me, have a wonderful week!

*Hugs*

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Friends 24-7, Baroque Motifs, Itty Bitty Backgrounds
Paper: Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Cool Caribbean, Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo (PTI)
Embellishments: clear embossing powder, seam binding, button, jute, thread
Tools: Cutter Bee Circle Cutter, embossing gun, stamp-a-ma-jig, sewing machine

Crocheted Baby Blanket

2011-03-28T07:41:00.000-04:00

I have been busy the last couple of weeks crocheting this baby blanket for a friend who's shower was this past weekend. If there has been a dearth of cards on the blog lately it is because I've been tangled up in yarn! This is my most ambitious crochet project to date and despite some difficulties it was very fun to make. It is such a pleasure to be able to make something special like this for a special baby.

The pattern is one from the Lion Brand Yarn website that was both rated Easy and had good reviews. I wanted an easy pattern as I am what you might call a self taught crocheter. I read books, watch online videos, etc. but I've rarely had other crocheters around me to compare notes with and see if I am doing things right. So when it came to following the pattern for this blanket, it all seemed straight forward enough as I read through it. But as I progressed to the scalloped edging, well, let's just say I winged it a bit because things weren't quite working for me. I'm sure the pattern was fine, most likely operator error was involved!

To make a long story of stitching, unraveling, stitching and unraveling short, I swapped the 5 dc, which the pattern required for each shell, to a sc 3dc sc combo instead. This made them slightly smaller and less prone to ruffling. Yes, yes. I know mine looks like a ruffly pom pom trim now, but you should have seen it the other way before I tore it out!

All in all, I am very pleased with how it turned out, and I do like the ruffled look I unintentionally ended up with. Here it is all dolled up ready to be wrapped!

Happy Spring!

2011-03-21T08:30:00.003-04:00

The first day of spring was yesterday (hurray!) and to celebrate I made a bright and cheery flower card. The layout was inspired by the ever talented Lisa Johnson; you can see her card here.

The flower bouquet image is from Happy Moments and has actually never seen ink. I've pulled it out many times to use on a card, but somehow I always ended up going in a different direction. So I'm super happy to finally have used it, it's so cute! Like my last card, I stamped it in Versa Fine so that I could water color it without having the outline bleed.

I adhered the small turquoise ribbon loop with red sticky tape, then sewed the button to overlap slightly.

Thanks for visiting and I hope you have a marvelous week!

*hugs*

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Happy Moments, Trendy Trees
Paper: Pink Pirouette, Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise, Bella Rose dp
Ink: Versa Fine Onyx Black, Basic Black, Pink Pirouette, Rose Red, Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive
Embellishments: paper doily, Tempting Turquoise grosgrain ribbon, button, white embroidery thread
Tools: scallop circle punch, cutter bee circle cutter, aqua painter

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T16:19:00.009-04:00

Though I don't have a leprechaun or shamrock themed card to share with you, I do have a green one. Close enough, right?

This is a simple little baby card that could be for either a boy or girl, or for the mother-to-be who opted to be surprised! The pea image was stamped using Versa Fine Onyx Black ink. I then water colored it with Old Olive and Certainly Celery using an aqua painter brush. The scalloped window was punched with a Marvy Giga Scallop Oval punch. The green frame is popped up with foam tape to give the card some depth.

The inside was done simply as well. It is lined with a white panel to make writing easier, then trimmed with matching scalloped green paper. Easy peasy as they say! *grin*

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Eventful
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Old Olive Textured
Ink: Versa Fine Onyx Black
Embellishments: white satin ribbon
Tools: Marvy Giga Scallop Oval punch, aqua painter, foam tape

1st Publication!

2011-03-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

I am so excited to finally be able to share with you this little tag, because it is my first ever design to be published! It was featured in the February issue of CARDS magazine and I couldn't be more excited. I was literally stalking the news stands last month waiting for it to come out. :) I hope you enjoy this belated Valentine treat!

Have a great week!

Butterfly Birthday Card

2011-03-02T14:51:00.007-05:00

This card has been sitting on my desk in pieces for a few weeks and I finally finished it yesterday. What took me so long? The sewing! Yes, I know, there is barely any stitching on the card at all. And once I began it did just take a few minutes. But I had never used my sewing machine before, you see. This was its inaugural project! For me at least. The sewing machine used to belong to my great grandmother and my sister and I inherited it from her. It has been a while since I had used any sewing machine at all, so it took me a while to read through the manual (with lovely 1950's illustrations!) and get it set up.

Not only had I never used this machine, but I had also never sewn on my cards before. There are so many other card makers I admire that have been doing this for years, so it is nothing new, but I am happy to finally be able to do this myself as I think it adds so much to a card. I love the texture and home made feel it adds. I'm sure you'll be seeing more of this! *wink*

So have you spotted the stitches yet? I ran a line down each of the butterflies to anchor them to the card, instead of using adhesive. Attaching them this way added some fun interest and allowed me to fluff their wings out from the card a bit.

Also, do you notice the "Happy Birthday" background behind the butterflies? I did that by stamping the one sentiment over and over again with Versa Mark ink, lining it up with my stamp-a-ma-jig.

Thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Warmest Regards, Happy Everything
Paper: Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Real Red, Tempting Turquoise, Print Pack dp
Ink: Basic Black, Versa mark
Tools: 3-in-1 Classic Butterfly punch, Classic Butterfly punch (both by Martha Stewart), Scallop Edge punch (SU!), stamp-a-ma-jig, sewing machine

Elegant Wedding Card

2011-02-18T20:28:00.000-05:00

Wow, has it ever been a long time since I last posted. Life has been busy! But things are on the up and up. It was a warm sunny day here and we have family coming to visit for the weekend (which prompted a much needed bout of spring cleaning, ha!).

But on to the card. This little beauty is one I actually made a while ago but hadn't posted yet. (See the above comment on busyness!) I love weddings and thought that with wedding season fast approaching it would behoove me to get a head start on making some lovely cards for those special occasions.

This card uses my current favorite set and a very simple cream and black color scheme. Chic, yes? The main cream panel is embossed with my Swiss Dots embossing folder for some added texture and there are two adhesive pearls accenting the flourish. The main panel is popped up on dimensionals.

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing weekend! *hugs*

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Friends 24-7
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI), Basic Black (SU!)
Ink: Basic Black
Embellishments: black satin ribbon, adhesive pearls
Tools: Nestabilities large oval and large scalloped oval dies, Swiss Dots embossing folder, foam tape

Rustic Valentine

2011-01-28T08:09:00.001-05:00

After a few days of not crafting it felt good to get back in my craft room. Today's card features something that I have seen popping up all over the paper crafting world lately, paper doilies. What with Valentine's Day not too far away it seemed a fine idea to incorporate a doily into a Valentine themed card.

One of the things I really like about this particular design is the combination of the more rustic and natural elements such as kraft card stock and jute twine, with the softer ones like the doily and red crocheted heart I made. I love all the different textures!

The main image panel is popped up with foam tape and also lightly stamped with French Script. The paper edges were antiqued with the darker ink cube in the PTI Tea Dye Duo.

I have made a few of these little crocheted hearts now. They are very simple to make and can be done in just a few minutes. I really like the pop of red against all of the neutral shades! The instructions to make your own crocheted heart can be found on the Little Birdie Secrets blog.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

SUPPLIES:
Stamps: French Script
Paper: Crumb Cake
Ink: Crumb Cake, Tea Dye Duo (PTI)
Accessories: paper doily, crocheted heart, button, jute twine

French Flair

2011-01-25T08:47:00.000-05:00

I hadn't quite gotten over my black and yellow color scheme from last week so here is another card sporting that combo. I even used the same yellow floral pattern paper. :)

The stamps are from a lovely set called Paris by Cavallini. The images have a delightfully vintagey vibe about them. The Eiffel Tower image was stamped in Basic Black and the word "Paris" in the background was stamped in Crumb Cake (the color formerly known as Kraft). hehe

I also tried out a new toy. I received the Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo by Papertrey Ink for Christmas and gave it a spin on this card. The Duo is basically two small ink cubes, one light and one a bit darker, that are used to antique the edges of the paper. Nicole Heady gives a good tutorial on her blog. I used the lighter of the two cubes to antique the edges of the pattern paper and also the edges of the focal image.

I stamped a French postmark on the bottom inside corner, just for fun. The bottom of the pattern paper was scalloped to mimic the black scallops that frame the oval and I added black brads to the top corners. A little black satin ribbon (and of course a button!) finish it off.

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Paris by Cavallini
Paper: Vintage Cream by PTI, Basic Black, Parisian Summer dp by SU!
Ink: Basic Black, Crumb Cake by SU!, Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo by PTI
Accessories: large oval and large scalloped oval Nestabilities, corner rounder punch (guide removed), black satin ribbon, button, thread, black brads

A Note of Thanks

2011-01-20T09:45:00.005-05:00

The color scheme for this card was inspired by a gift bag I spied when I was out and about recenty. It had a very fun floral motif in black and yellow. Hmm, I said to myself, that sounds like a great color combo for a card! So here it is. :)

The sentiment was stamped on a strip of Very Vanilla card stock. I also scored lines above and below the sentiment for some added detail and interest. Ditto the three little paper piercings to the right of the words.

The bird is embossed in black to make it a bolder image. I also used my aqua painter to put a light yellow wash behind the bird to tie in with the pattern paper and also help it show up better. Some yellow brads and a bit of black grosgrain ribbon finished it off!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Friends 24-7, Thank You Kindly
Paper: Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Parisian Summer dp
Ink: Basic Black, Versa Mark, Barely Banana, Summer Sun
Accessories: black embossing powder, Making Memory brads, black grosgrain ribbon, Cutter Bee Circle System, corner rounder punch, aqua painter

Sweet Pea

2011-01-17T11:37:00.005-05:00

Can I toot my own horn? I love how this card turned out! Believe me, this is not always the case. In fact, this little fella went through a few permutations to get where he is.

The sweet pea image was stamped with Versa Fine's Onyx Black ink. That way I could do my water coloring without worrying about the outline smudging all over. I used two shades of green with my aqua painter to color him in, Old Olive and Certainly Celery.

The "congratulations!" stamp is from Baby Bundle. I simply stamped it over and over in a row to make the sentiment strip at the bottom.

On the inside I added a bit of the same pattern paper that is on the front, trimmed with some scalloped green paper to echo the scalloped oval that is also on the front. :)

A ribbon bow and button finished it off. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

SUPPLIES:
Stamps: Event Full, Baby Bundle
Paper: Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Certainly Celery, pattern paper by Scenic Route Paper Co.
Ink: Versa Fine Onyx Black, Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Old Olive
Accessories: oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities, aqua painter, blue grosgrain ribbon, button, thread, corner rounder punch

Valentine Button Bouquet

2011-01-12T13:24:00.008-05:00

Valentine's Day will be here before we know it so I thought I'd start getting ready. I love using buttons as flowers, it's so cute and fun! This stem image is perfect for creating little button bouquets. And what I like about this card is that since there are no hearts and it doesn't say "love", it can be for your sweetie or a gal pal. It's just a sweet little card. :)

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Flower Filled, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI)
Ink: Real Red, Old Olive
Accessories: buttons, thread, red satin ribbon, corner rounder punch

A Warm Brew

2011-01-10T11:14:00.001-05:00

I'm snowed in today and enjoying a day of work from home. In honor of the wintry weather I thought I'd share a card featuring a warm cuppa. Isn't this little mug image cute? I love the foamy topping and the peppermint stick peeking out. :)

The peppermint stick really inspired the rest of the card. I tied in the candy cane theme with the red striped pattern paper and the red and white baker's twine on the button and tag.

Wouldn't this be a great card to send a friend inviting them for a coffee date? Or you could tuck in a gift card to your pal's favorite coffee shop. :)

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you're staying warm!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Like it a Latte, Happy Moments, small heart image from Somerset Alphabet (Inkadinkado)
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Pattern Prints dp, Bella Rose dp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Creamy Caramel
Accessories: button, baker's twine, red satin ribbon, word window punch, foam tape

Thanks with a Flourish

2011-01-05T13:25:00.000-05:00

I recently got the Stampin' Up! set Friends 24-7 for my birthday (thanks Mom!) and I can't put it down! I am in love with the flourish image and keep reaching for it no matter what type of card I am making. Sorry if you get tired of seeing it!

The design is based on this card that I have admired for a while. I changed up the colors and papers and simplified things a bit. The green paper is part of SU!'s Bella Rose collection that retired a few years ago, and I am almost out, so sad! I love this green pattern!

Everything is pretty straight forward on this card, just lots of layers and matting. I like how the black makes the pastels pop. And of course I had to add some bling to the flourish. *grin*

Hope you are having a great week so far!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Friends 27-7, Thank You Kindly
Paper: Pink Pirouette, Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Bella Rose dp
Ink: Pink Pirouette, Basic Black
Accessories: 1/2" black satin ribbon, rhinestone sticker

For the Newlyweds

2010-12-28T09:47:00.001-05:00

A friend recently asked me to make a wedding card for her. She basically gave me free rein with the design, and I immediately thought that this flourish image would make a lovely focal point. The layout is based on an atomic butterfly card. I love incorporating blue into wedding cards because of the old adage "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue". A white card base kept it light, while the black added some definition and class.

I also did something I hadn't tried before on the blue layer. Normally to get shading around the edge of the paper I will use a sponge and coordinating ink. In this instance, blue ink for the blue paper. But instead I swiped a Versa Mark pad directly onto the paper. I had used the Versa Mark pad to stamp the polka dot background so I had it handy and I was curious what it would look like. It gave the edges a nice shadow that softened them up a bit. I may have to use this little trick again!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Friends 24-7, Teeny Tiny Wishes, Polka Dot
Paper: Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Basic Black
Ink: Bashful Blue, Versa Mark, Basic Black
Accessories: Scallop Edge punch, Word Window punch, Modern Label punch, black satin ribbon, button, black thread, rhinestone stickers

French Pear Tart

2010-12-21T07:39:00.001-05:00

I used to work for a small company that celebrated each employee's birthday by purchasing a fruit tart from the little French bakery down the street. Birthdays were highly anticipated events as a result and we never failed to procure said tart in the recipient's favorite flavor. After all, how can you forget a co-worker's birthday when the whole crew gets dessert? I always used to ask for the pear and chocolate tart. Mmm mmm. Well, having since moved across the country it has been quite a while since I've had my delicious birthday tart and the cravings were setting in. The only thing to do was to try making my own! A bit of a daunting task being neither French nor particularly good at things involving crusts, but there was no help for it. I started perusing recipes online and finally settled on one by Dorie Greenspan. This was my first "Dorie" recipe and it didn't disappoint! I'm not gonna lie, it takes a long time to make, but none of the steps are difficult and it is well worth the effort. Dorie's version doesn't include chocolate, but the crust is so sweet and the pear and almond so delicious I didn't even miss it. *gasp!* So plan ahead and make sure you have enough time, then take it to your next holiday gathering or serve it up for a special occasion. Enjoy!

French Pear Tart by Dorie Greenspan

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE PEARS
3 medium pears, firm but ripe
1 lemon
4 c. water
1 1/4 c. sugar

FOR THE ALMOND CREAM
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 c. sugar
3/4 c. ground blanched almonds
2 tsp. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. cornstarch
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 partially baked 9" tart shell, made with Sweet Tart Dough, at room temperature (recipe below)

Confectioners' sugar for dusting

PREPARATION

Peel the pears and leave them whole. Bring the water, sugar, and juice of 1 lemon to a boil in a saucepan just large enough to hold the pears. Add the pears to the boiling syrup, reduce heat and simmer, gently poaching the pears until they are tender when pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Cool the pears to room temperature in the syrup.

To make the almond cream: In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with a rubber spatula until the mixture is smooth and satiny. Add the ground almonds and continue to mix until well blended. Add the flour and cornstarch, blend, then add the egg. Continue blending until the almond cream is homogeneous. Add the vanilla and blend just until incorporated. Use the almond cream immediately or refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Cut the pears in half from blossom to stem and core them. Pat them very dry so that their liquid doesn't keep the almond cream from baking.

Fill the baked crust with the almond cream, spreading it even with an offset metal spatula. Thinly slice each pear half crosswise, lift each half on the spatula, press down on the pear to fan it slightly and place it, wide-end toward the crust, over the almond cream. The halves will form spokes.

Put the crust on a lined baking sheet, slide the sheet into the oven and bake the tart 50-60 minutes, or until the almond cream puffs up around the pears and browns. Transfer the tart to a to a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature before unmolding.

Dust the tart with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

Sweet Tart Dough

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. confectioners' sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 stick plus 1 Tbsp. very cold (or frozen) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk

PREPARATION

To make the dough: Put the flour, confectioners' sugar and salt in the work bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Scatter the pieces of butter over the dry ingredients and pulse until the butter is cut in coarsely. Stir the egg, just to break it up, and add it a little at a time, pulsing after each addition. When the egg is in, process in long pulses - about 10 seconds each - until the dough, which will look granular soon after the egg is added, forms clumps and curds. Just before it reaches this clumpy stage, the sound of the machine working the dough will change - heads up. Turn the dough out onto a work surface.

Very lightly and sparingly knead the dough just to incorporate any dry ingredients that might have escaped mixing.

Butter a 9" tart pan and press the dough evenly along the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes, preferably longer, before baking.

To partially bake the crust: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and fit the foil tightly against the crust. Bake the crust 25 minutes, then carefully remove the foil. If the crust has puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon. Bake for another 3 to 5 minutes, then transfer the crust to a cooling rack; keep it in its pan.

Cream of Tomato and Basil Soup

2010-12-16T09:03:00.002-05:00

I came to an appreciation of tomato soup later in life. I don't really remember ever having it as a kid. Or if I was offered it I probably said no thanks, being the picky eater that I was back then. It wasn't until college that a roommate introduced me to the joys of grilled cheese with tomato soup. Being thrifty college students it was of course Campbell's in a can. But that didn't matter; it was wonderful on a cold day. After college, a friend in culinary school made me tomato soup from scratch and it was divine. Since having her version I've searched high and low for a really good recipe. (She did share her recipe with me, but I confess I've never been able to make it as good as she does.) Well, I have found my soup at last. It turns out the Olive Garden has recipes on their website. I know! And whatever you may think of chain restaurants, this is both really good and really easy. Win win in my book! So, since we're having freezing rain here in my little corner of the world, I thought we could all use a warm meal on a cold night. I served it with a loaf of garlic bread. :)

Cream of Tomato and Basil Soup from Olive Garden
serves 4

INGREDIENTS

4 Tbsp butter
1 small red onion, diced
2 cups dry white wine
3 cups canned diced tomatoes
2 cups heavy cream
3 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste

PREPARATION

Melt butter in a heavy sauce pan. Add red onions and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add white wine and reduce by 3/4. Add tomatoes and heavy cream, bring to a simmer and reduce by 1/2.

Puree soup in a food processor. Stir in 2 Tbsp chopped basil, salt and pepper.

Garnish with remaining fresh basil and serve.

Apple Butter

2010-12-13T13:15:00.004-05:00

Apple butter is something of a tradition in my family. When other kids were eating their pb & j, I remember my mom making me peanut butter and apple butter sandwiches to take for school lunches when I was little. Then when my sister and I were older I remember getting to help Mom make big delicious batches of it and canning them in jars to put up for the year. Now, I slather it on toast to have with my morning coffee for breakfast. The recipe was handed down from my grandmother so it is a very special tradition for us each fall, waiting for the apples to be ready so we can make more apple butter. I know Christmas is fast approaching and it seems like fall is past, but I just made my last batch of the year and I wanted to share it with you. Enjoy!

Apple Butter
makes 2 1/2 - 3 pints

INGREDIENTS

4 lbs. tart apples
4 c. apple cider
2 1/2 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. ginger
2 tbsp. grated lemon peel
2 tbsp. lemon juice

PREPARATION

Wash apples; remove stems and ends. Cut up but do not peel or core. In a large saucepan, combine apples and cider. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and cook until soft, approx. 15 minutes. Press apples and cider in a food mill.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine all ingredients and stir well. Divide mixture between two 9x13 baking dishes. Bake uncovered for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Sterilize jars and lids in hot water. Pour apple butter into jars, leaving 1" head space. Make sure there is no apple butter on jar rim before putting lids on. Lightly screw on lids and rings. Boil the jars in water bath canner for 5 minutes then remove. Lids should seal. Let cool to room temperature then screw bands on tightly.

Vintage Christmas Tree

2010-11-15T19:11:00.002-05:00

I'm just as pleased as Christmas punch with how this card turned out. I can almost smell the heavenly pine scent of a Christmas tree. (Or at least a pine scented candle as our tree is artificial!)

I was hoping for rather contradictory looks, I confess, when I was thinking about the design for this card. Both clean and simple but a bit on the vintage/shabby side as well. I think the preponderance of ivory card stock really helps lighten it up and keep that fresh, clean look I was after. But then I sponged the edges and used the speckled image from Itty Bitty Backgrounds to give it an aged look, too. I also love the Martha Stewart Doily Lace punch, it really kicks things up a notch.

The inside of the card is finished to match the front. The edges were sponged and stamped just like the front, and there is a row of little pine boughs stamped across the bottom.

As I look at this card I keeping thinking of the Victorian era. It makes me want to curl up and read "A Christmas Carol" with a cup of hot tea. :)

As always, thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Lovely as a Tree, Itty Bitty Backgrounds
Paper: Always Artichoke, Vanilla
Ink: Always Artichoke, Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip
Embellishments: 1/4" brown satin ribbon, button, twine, Martha Stewart Doily Lace Edge Punch, foam tape

Noel

2010-11-11T09:00:00.000-05:00

This is a variation on another card I recently made. I've been playing around with simple Christmas card designs that can be mass produced. Well, this one ended up being a little more time intensive than I would want to make for our entire Christmas card list, but I do like the way it turned out.

The snowflakes and sentiment were all stamped in Versa Mark then embossed in white. I thought that gave them more pop than just stamping in white. I also did a bit of layering to create a white border.

And finally I thought it needed a bit more pizzaz so, though it was super hard to photograph, the middle snowflake has a clear button at its center that is tied with a red and white baker's twine bow. It looks very festive and pretty in real life. *wink*

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Winter Post, $1 Michael's stamp (sentiment)
Paper: Real Red, Whisper White
Ink: Versa Mark
Embellishments: white embossing powder, clear button, baker's twine

Give Thanks

2010-11-08T20:10:00.005-05:00

With all of the pumpkin goodness that has been happening in my kitchen lately, it only seemed fitting to make a pumpkin themed card to go along!

Today's card uses one of my favorite SU! sets, Carved and Candlelit. It's meant to be a Halloween set as it includes lots of jack-o-lantern faces, but I love using it for fall themed cards. To get the overlap effect for the pumpkin trio, I first stamped the tall pumpkin in the center on my card stock. Then I stamped it again on a post-it note, cut it out and used that as a mask over my project. I could then stamp the two smaller pumpkins to either side of it, remove the post-it, and have it look as though they are behind the big guy.

I used the same masking technique for the stems. The set only includes one stem image but I wanted them each to look slightly different. By again masking the pumpkins with post-its I could rotate the stem stamp around, stamping a different part of it on each pumpkin, making all three stems look a little different. Does that make sense? It's a nice way to get more mileage from your stamps.

Thanks for sharing part of your day with me!

SUPPLIES:
Stamps: Carved and Candlelit, Holiday Best
Paper: Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White
Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip
Embellishments: 1/2" ivory satin ribbon, stamp-a-ma-jig, foam tape

Black Crocheted Flower Birthday Card

2010-11-01T20:42:00.001-04:00

After all of the baking I've been doing lately I'm happy to be back in my craft room working on new card designs. Here is one I made today using more of my crocheted flowers. For this card I really wanted the flower to be a big focal element, so I layered a small five-petal black flower on top of a larger seven-petal flower. The die-cut leaves add a pop of color and the pearl center adds a touch of class. I'm really happy with how this turned out, it's sort of the little black dress of birthday cards. :)

The main image panel is popped up with foam tape and the die cut leaves actually hang off slightly, which I like, because it ties the whole design together. Thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Warmest Regards
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Garden Green
Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: crocheted flowers, little leaves die, pearl sticker, foam tape

Spider Web Brownies

2010-10-31T20:20:00.003-04:00

Happy Halloween everyone! I just wanted to stop by and share a tradition from our house, Spider Web Brownies. My mom used to make these with my sister and me when we were little and now I make them for my house. The original recipe is from the Pillsbury website, but this time I only used that as a jumping off point. I made the brownies from scratch with Ghiradelli chocolate and, since I had some left over cream cheese in the fridge, I opted for a cream cheese frosting. Really, anything works for these - boxed brownies with a can of frosting, or making it all from scratch. It's just a fun, festive and easy dessert. Be safe and have fun tonight!
*Hugs*

Pumpkin Butter

2010-10-30T17:20:00.008-04:00

I first heard of pumpkin butter a few months ago. Being a big fan of other fruit butters, I've been biding my time until fall, itching to try making my own.

The recipe I used is from the Smitten Kitchen website, but I halved the recipe as I didn't have enough of my roasted pumpkin for the original. The quantities I list below are the amounts I used, which yielded just over 1 pint.

Not ever having had it before, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Maybe something akin to spreadable pumpkin pie? The resulting butter did have a silky smooth texture but was more spicy than sweet. Next time I may adjust the spices, perhaps reducing the ginger, but that is just personal preference. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Butter adapted from Smitten Kitchen

INGREDIENTS

15 oz. fresh pumpkin puree (from two sugar pumpkins)
1/4 c. plus 2 tbsp. apple cider
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
2/3 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice

PREPARATION

Combine pumpkin, apple cider, spices and sugar in a large saucepan; stir well. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes or until mixture thickens. Stir frequently. Adjust spices to taste. Stir in lemon juice, or more to taste.

Once cool, pumpkin butter can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge or stored in the freezer.

Important Note: While the Smitten Kitchen version suggests canning for a way to preserve the pumpkin butter, the National Center for Home Food Preservation does not recommend home canning as a safe method of preservation. All pumpkin purees should be used immediately or frozen until used.

Roasted Pumpkin

2010-10-29T17:59:00.001-04:00

While visiting my husband's parents recently we had the opportunity to go pick out our pumpkins from a local farm that was only a short drive away. They also had sugar pumpkins for sale, and I couldn't resist. Two came home with me. While it is easy and convenient to bake with canned pumpkin, I've never been one to do things the easy or convenient way. For example, I like film photography, making my own cards, and cooking from scratch, just to name a few. But luckily, baking with real pumpkin isn't actually hard. So today I am roasting one of the sugar pumpkins to be made into something delicious tomorrow. Here's how:

Roasted Pumpkin from allrecipes.com

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut the pumpkin in half, discarding the stem section and stringy pulp. Be sure to save the seeds for roasting. Yum yum!

Lay the two halves face down on a baking sheet. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until tender.

Once the pumpkin has cooled, scoop out the flesh and either mash it or puree in a blender. Makes approximately 1 1/2 cups, depending on the size of your pumpkin. This can be used in all of your recipes calling for canned pumpkin.

Check back tomorrow to see what my puree turned into!

Two Minute Halloween Cards

2010-10-27T15:16:00.010-04:00

Haven't made your Halloween cards yet? Don't worry, there's still time! Recently while browsing through a local paper store I spied some very simple letterpress Halloween cards nestled in their Halloween display. I decided to try recreating them at home using stamps from my collection. Each uses just one stamp! These are quick, no fuss last minute cards. Hopefully these will jump start your creativity and inspire you with their simple designs.

This first one is made from a single sheet of Old Olive card stock. The "Boo!" sentiment was a $1 Michael's stamp I picked up last year.

This second one is even simpler, as I used pre-made note cards. I stamped the bat image from Inkadinkado's Creepy Crawly onto a small blank note card with deckled edges from Papyrus.

Happy stamping!

Baby Boy Card

2010-10-26T17:39:00.007-04:00

I don't know about where you are, but among my friends and acquaintances there is a veritable baby boom in progress. I can't seem to keep enough baby cards on hand as I'm always at least two babies behind! This one is likely destined for a new mom in my Bible study who just had a little boy.

The cute little onesie stamp is from an old SU! set called A Little Love. The onesies are colored with colored pencils. Simple and mass producible if need be. :)

SUPPLIES
Stamps: A Little Love, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Whisper White, Certainly Celery, generic blue
Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: 1" circle punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, colored pencils, 1/2" white satin ribbon, paper piercer and mat pack, dimensionals

Embossing Tip & Snowflake Cards

2010-10-25T16:51:00.005-04:00

Recently I shared a card I made for a friend's wedding that was soft and pretty and featured lots of embossing. What I didn't tell you was there was a bit of weeping and gnashing of teeth during the embossing step. You know the dreaded little bits of embossing powder that cling to your paper, but not the part that was stamped, creating little dots of unhappiness when you've done your heat set? It looks bad. It looks messy. And it drives me crazy. Well, I had a lot of that happening on that wedding card. I thought perhaps it was due to the fact I was using vellum that more powder was sticking in unlikely places. But it even happens on regular card stock. Grrr!

I know that there are things I could buy, like Stampin' Ups! Embossing Buddy, or similar tools at craft stores, that help prevent the very problem I am describing. But quite frankly, I didn't want to have to shell out the money for one. And as I had another embossing project to do (see below) I wanted to find a more DIY fix. So I did a little research and think I've found a great solution: corn starch. I'm not kidding. What you do is fill an old nylon with a small amount of corn starch, tie it off, and then rub the nylon over the surface you are going to emboss on. A wee bit of the corn starch powder comes out through the fabric of the nylon and coats your paper. (Apparently it is oils from your hands that the stray embossing powder is sticking to. The corn starch absorbs the oils so the embossing powder only sticks where you want it to.) Then you stamp, emboss, and heat as usual and brush off any residual powder that is still on your project. I used this several times for the following project and it worked amazingly. I'm sold!

This is the set of Christmas note cards I was working on for my shop that prompted this whole embossing revelation. The words "Peace" are embossed in white on each card. I was very happy with the way these turned out, they have a simple but classic vibe about them. It makes me want to watch "White Christmas". *grin*

'Til next time, friends!

Sour Cream Spice Cake with Caramel Frosting

2010-10-20T14:23:00.001-04:00

For the wedding I went to last weekend I was asked to bake a cake for the reception. Not the cake, I am happy to say. The bride wanted a dessert reception, so about a dozen of us each selected a cake to bake from a list of flavors the wedding coordinator provided us. Many of the flavors sounded a bit daunting to me or even downright cryptic (no clue was given to what a One-Two-Three-Four Cake might be. Do you know?) so I opted for the most normal sounding flavor left, Spice Cake with Caramel Frosting.

I've eaten spice cakes of course, but I can't remember ever making one before. And I have never had, let alone made, caramel frosting. Not having been given any recipes to work from I decided to turn to Betty for help. Betty Crocker, that is. I like to think that Betty and I are on a first name basis; she has helped me through many a kitchen dilemma. When I get stumped, I often ask myself "I wonder what Betty has to say about this?". So I pulled out my trusty Betty Crocker Cookbook and she didn't let me down. Recipes for both spice cake and caramel frosting were recorded within her tome of wisdom. Bingo!

Not wanting to make something for the first time that would be for the actual reception, I baked a trial run cake a few days before the wedding to work out any kinks. Good thing I did, too. I discovered that merely greasing and flouring is insufficient to release the ornery little things from their pans (I highly recommend the addition of parchment paper) and that trying to take the cakes out of the pans before they are completely cool results in disaster. Also the frosting, as written, wasn't quite enough to cover a layer cake. All in all, I left out a few things and tweaked some others, so the recipe below is mostly Betty's.

On the day of the wedding my worst fear was that no one would eat my cake and that I would have to take it home, leaving me two whole cakes to somehow get through (the trial cake was still on my kitchen counter). Fortunately the reception goers did their part and I was able to take an empty cake stand home. Success! We have been enjoying my first run cake all this week, so I can heartily recommend the following for your fall dessert pleasure. Happy baking!

Sour Cream Spice Cake with Caramel Frosting
adapted from the Betty Crocker Cookbook
serves 16

INGREDIENTS
CAKE
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup water
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 large eggs

FROSTING
3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
3/8 cup milk
3 cups powdered sugar

PREPARATION
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of two 9-inch round pans and then line with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, beat all cake ingredients with an electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping the bowl constantly. Beat on high speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter evenly into pans.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely in pans on wire rack, about 1 hour. Remove cake from pans.

To make the frosting, melt butter over medium heat in a 2-quart saucepan. Stir in brown sugar. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly; reduce heat to low. Boil and stir 2 minutes. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling; remove from heat. Cool to lukewarm, about 30 minutes.

Gradually stir in powdered sugar. Beat with spoon until smooth and spreadable. If frosting becomes too stiff, stir in additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time.

Place one cake layer, rounded side down, on serving plate or cake stand. Place 4 strips of waxed paper underneath cake around the edge of plate. Spread about 1/2 cup frosting over the top of the first layer. Place second cake layer, rounded side up, on frosted first layer. Coat side of cake with a very thin layer of frosting to seal in crumbs. Continue frosting the sides and top of cake. Carefully remove waxed paper strips. Serve and enjoy!

Something Blue

2010-10-18T16:48:00.001-04:00

A lovely lady from my church was married this past Saturday and this is the card I made for her and her groom. I really like the way it turned out, with the very soft white on white and vellum layer.

The sentiment and flourish were done by stamping them in Versa Mark onto the vellum and then embossing them in white. By the way, I finally got myself a heat tool. Bliss! Don't laugh, but I've been embossing the old school way over the stove. A gas stove. Which works pretty well all things considered, if you don't mind living in terror of burning your project, your kitchen, and your house down every time. Ha!

Back to less dangerous things. . . I added rhinestone stickers to the centers of the flower images and tucked a layer of white that had been punched with my Martha Stewart doily lace edge punch underneath. I think it adds a nice little touch. Then a bow of bluish aqua seam binding finished it off. I hope they like it!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Baroque Motifs
Paper: Whisper White, Vellum
Ink: Versa Mark
Accessories: white embossing powder, rhinestone stickers, Martha Stewart doily lace edge punch, seam binding

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

2010-10-13T16:34:00.001-04:00

I know, I know. Banana bread? Everyone and their mother has a recipe for banana bread. But I came a across this version recently and it was so good I made it twice in one week. Seriously. And if my house likes it that much maybe yours will, too. :)

The recipe comes from Molly Wizenberg's memoir/recipe book called A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table. If you prowl the food blogs you may recognize Molly as the author of Orangette. She is a very entertaining writer and has a truckload of good recipes to boot. So check it out from your local library and make this bread. It's uber moist and hey, who doesn't like chocolate in their bread? Just be sure to double the recipe and make two loaves. You don't want to run out. *wink*

Accordion Flower Christmas Card

2010-10-04T20:13:00.001-04:00

Have you noticed all of the do-it-yourself flower embellishments that are popping up in the paper crafting world? Do a little searching and there are tutorials on how to make your own flowers from just about anything: punches, die cuts, twisted ribbon, felt, distressed paper, and the list goes on and on.

Today I tried a test run of the accordion flower. Atomic Butterfly is one of my paper crafting heroes and she has a great tutorial on how to make these little embellishments, something she frequently uses in her own work. So this is sort of my ode to her style. :)

As Glen Miller would say, I'm still "In the Christmas Mood" with my cards so that is the theme I ran with today. I wanted to use lots of patterned paper so I rummaged through my stash looking for green and red ones to use. The paper I used for the accordion is the same red that is in the bottom panel. The stamp set I used is a holiday favorite of mine, SU!'s Winter Post. I love the vintagey look of the images, especially the ice skating couple. In keeping with that old time feeling, all of the layers have been sponged for an aged look. On the bottom panel I stamped the postmark image from the set directly onto the patterned paper. I then stamped it again onto vanilla card stock and cut out just the round portion. The round image fit nicely on a 1" circle of Old Olive and then I popped it up with foam tape to mimic the dimension of the main accordion flower.

In Atomic Butterfly's tutorial she says that she originally would attach her flowers using glue dots, but has since changed to using a glue gun. I would highly recommend the glue gun approach as my flower burst apart after a day with only glue dots holding it together. No good!

Whew! Sorry I was a little on the verbose side today. If you made it all the way down here to the bottom you're a trooper. Thanks for sticking with me and thanks for reading!

Warning: If you try one of these yourself, follow directions! Don't do what I did and skim the instructions, think "no problem", then blithely go ahead and make your flower twice the diameter you wanted it, exactly the way she tells you not to if you were paying attention. It's that pesky math again. Ha!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Winter Post, Polka Dot (background)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Bella Rose dp, unknown striped SU! dp, Plastino dp by Bella Blvd.
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel, Old Olive
Accessories: Cutter Bee circle cutter, 1" circle punch, foam tape, mini glue dots

1,000 hits!

2010-10-02T12:17:00.003-04:00

Hello friends, yesterday my little one month old blog reached an important milestone: 1,000 hits! I'm just blown away by the support you've given me in this fun new project. Thanks to everyone for coming and sharing a part of your days with me! Stay tuned, I'll have another Christmas card for you in the next few days! *hugs*

Etsy Update: Christmas Cards!

2010-09-29T14:10:00.003-04:00

I love this time of year. Fall into winter is chock full of my favorite holidays one right after another. It's like one long festive season from now until New Year's. Love it!

Today I just have a quick post introducing a Christmas note card set that is now up in my Etsy shop. This set of four cards features cute little Christmas trees punched out of fun and festive holiday papers with an embossed border frame. Make your list, check it twice, and send some thoughtful handmade cards this year!

Hats for the Homeless

2010-09-28T21:01:00.003-04:00

A local yarn and knitting store in my neighborhood is sponsoring a hat drive right now. Their goal is to collect 100 hats in 100 days to donate to a homeless shelter in time for the cold winter months. They are inviting their customers to knit or crochet hat donations and have them displayed in their shop window.

I thought this was a pretty nifty idea so while watching football a few Sundays ago I whipped this warm little guy up. And when I say "whipped up", I mean crocheted, pulled apart, re-crocheted, pulled apart again, and re-re-crocheted. Ha! Maybe next time I should use a pattern? The whole thing is done using a half-double crochet stitch and some uber thick Wool Ease brand yarn that I have tons of because I once had aspirations of making a blanket. My blanket is now a hat.

If you are in the Atlanta area and are interested in participating, the yarn store sponsoring the drive is called Knitch. Their blog talks briefly about the drive. Happy crocheting!

Creepy Crawly Halloween

2010-09-26T14:00:00.000-04:00

I'm back in Halloween mode today with a card featuring something I avoid at all costs in real life but can handle as decoration this time of year: spiders. I really, really don't like the real ones so when I showed this card to my husband he asked if I was ok with the spiders. *insert eye roll* I know my arachnophobia is silly, but I think I can handle stamped spiders!

The words "trick or treat" were stamped in red then clear embossed over top. Is it too gross to say it sort of looks like blood? C'mon, this is a Halloween card, after all!

The edges were sponged to give the paper a little bit of an aged look and I used a fine tip sharpie and ruler to create the thread the single spider is dangling from.

I don't always finish the inside of my cards, beside maybe adding a white panel, but it is something I think really adds a lot and I want to do more often. So the inside of this card has the same look as the front, with a coordinating sentiment.

Thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Creepy Crawly by Inkadinkado
Paper: Basic Black, Crumb Cake
Ink: Basic Black, Real Red, Versa Mark, Creamy Caramel
Accessories: ticket corner punch, clear embossing powder, fine tip sharpie

A Housewarming Card

2010-09-24T17:55:00.007-04:00

With today's card I tried out a couple of new things. First off, this is my first time playing with the Mojo Monday blog challenges. They provide a cool layout, I fill in the rest. There are so many creative people out there sharing their inspiration, I was happy to be able to join in! And secondly, this is the first time I've used my computer to print out a sentiment.

This card is for a dear friend of mine who just bought her first house. I can't be at her housewarming party but I wanted to send her something so she'd know I was thinking about her. As I was flipping through stamp sets I came across Birds and Nests by Cavallini, one of my favs, and this sentiment just popped into my head and I thought it was perfect. I love the idea of her new home being her "nest". I toyed with the idea of handwriting it, but who am I kidding? I don't have near nice enough writing to pull that one off. So then I thought I'd try creating it on my computer. Bingo! I was able to choose some cool fonts, space it so it would work with the shape of the panel, then all I had to do was print it onto my card stock. This will probably be something I do more often as it opens up all kinds of possibilities. If I don't have the right words stamp, I could just print it!

SUPPLIES

Stamps: Birds and Nests by Cavallini
Paper: Old Olive, Whisper White, Crumb Cake
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Accessories: scalloped border punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, computer generated sentiment, foam tape, brown satin ribbon, button, twine

Trees, Two Ways

2010-09-20T09:00:00.000-04:00

Today I have not one but two cards to share. I was working on a completely black and white card using Lovely as a Tree, when it occurred to me that by simply changing up the colors it would be a wonderful winter card, too. Let me show you.

I'd had the idea for this first card rumbling around in my head for a while. Black and white is always classy, and by embossing the trees in black it dressed it up even more. Well, of course my white embossing powder sits next to my black embossing powder, and that got me to thinking. How about white? Bet that would make some nice snowy trees!

Instead of totally reversing the colors and putting the white trees on a black background, I opted for a Night of Navy backdrop, in keeping with my winter theme. But really, even though I first thought of them as trees covered in snow, I think this card could be given in any season because again, it's just a classy looking color combo!

In the black and white version, I distressed the edges of the black layer and stitched black x's in the corners with embroidery thread, but it didn't actually turn out quite as I had anticipated. So in the blue and white version I left the edges crisp. Which version do you prefer?

Thanks for popping by and I hope your week is off to a great start!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Lovely as a Tree
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Night of Navy
Ink: Versa Mark
Accessories: black embossing powder, white embossing powder, black 1/2" satin ribbon, white 1/2" satin ribbon, black embroidery thread

Autumn Trees

2010-09-18T21:18:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday! This card is more what I had in mind a few days ago when I got diverted on a Halloween tangent. I've been eyeing Trendy Trees for quite a while now itching to make an autumny card full of fall colors. So happy I got to play!

I started by pulling out my stamp pads that would work for fall foliage, settling on Old Olive, Ruby Red and Pumpkin Pie (mmm, pie. . .). Then I picked a matching card stock base and a patterned paper. I was happy to find this piece of dp from SU!'s Bella Rose collection because it anchors the bottom of my card and ties in with the brown of the tree trunks. The polka dots keep it from being boring without calling too much attention to itself. It also provides a nice background for my matching colored buttons. Speaking of buttons, they are fast becoming a staple accessory in my repertoire. Almost as necessary to me as ribbon. Note to self: find more buttons!

As always, I hope you enjoyed and thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Trendy Trees
Paper: Ruby Red, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Bella Rose dp
Ink: Old Olive, Ruby Red, Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: brown satin ribbon, buttons, twine, stamp-a-ma-jig, paper piercer, thread

Mini Pecan Tarts

2010-09-16T14:19:00.014-04:00

Aren't these adorable? What is it about things in miniature that ups the cute quotient? I took these to share at my women's Bible study at church last night, making sure to keep a few back so I would have some to photograph this morning. Because these are, after all, for you, too. *wink*

One of the things I both love and hate about baking is all of the different baking pans. There are so many fun shapes, like the mini muffin tins I used for these, which make baking fun. Who wouldn't want to nibble on one of these little cuties? It's not so daunting to eat a "mini" pecan pie. But a whole slice? No, no, I don't want that much. Hehe.

But on the flip side, you need SO many pans. For example: One recipe uses a 10" spring form pan. Well, I only have a 9". Is that ok? Do I need to reduce the recipe? Yikes, save me from the math! I'm not joking when I say I have 8 different loaf pans for this very reason. Eight. And don't get me started on the cake pans.

I wish I could tell you I had conversions available for every conceivable size and shape at the ready for you, but alas, I just have these. Happy baking!

Mini Pecan Tarts adapted from Allrecipes
makes 48

INGREDIENTS
PASTRY
1 cup butter, at room temperature
6 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour

FILLING
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 tbsp. melted butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped pecans

PREPARATION
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To make the pastry, cream together the butter and cream cheese until well blended. Add flour and mix well. Make into 48 1-inch balls. Place one ball in each cup of a mini muffin pan. Use your fingers to press the dough into the cup.

To make the filling, break the eggs into a large bowl but do not beat. Add sugar, melted butter, vanilla, and pecans. Mix well. Fill each tart shell 3/4 full. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Remove tarts from muffin tin and cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Crocheted Flower Card

2010-09-14T12:21:00.009-04:00

Besides paper crafting and cooking, I also enjoy crochet. In an effort to combine some of my hobbies I've been busy making a stash of crocheted embellishments for my card projects. I've found that for the small scale of these embellishments DMC embroidery thread works better than yarn, and has the added bonus of coming in so many colors!

It took a while to get the hang of working so small (I'm using a #1 crochet hook!) but now that I've got it down I can crank out these little flowers in just a few minutes. I like that kind of instant gratification! *wink*

This card, and one similar to it, are now up in my Etsy shop if you want to take a look.

Thanks for stopping by, friends!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Trendy Trees
Paper: Cool Caribbean, Basic Black, Whisper White, Certainly Celery
Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: hand crocheted flower, little leaves die, black button, black embroidery thread, paper piercer, mini glue dots

Exciting news!

2010-09-12T17:25:00.003-04:00

I'm going to be published!! That's right, friends. On a lark I submitted a design to Cards Magazine as they always have open submissions, and my design was accepted! I am bouncing off the walls with excitement. If my sister were here we'd be doing the happy dance together. :) Barring any unforeseen problems you'll see a little something of mine in the February 2011 issue! Thanks to my family and friends for all of their encouragement in my little hobby!

Trick or Treat!

2010-09-06T14:04:00.000-04:00

Happy Labor Day! I hope you have today off and are enjoying the last hurrah of summer. Maybe you're having a a bbq with friends or hanging out at the park. I know, I know. So why am I posting a Halloween card? Well, I sat down in my stamp room (a.k.a. guest room, back room, cat's room. . .) and this is what came out! I had a bunch of different tree sets lying out with the intention of making a fall themed card, but then I saw the dotted spiral of one of Trendy Tree's tops, and somehow Halloween came out of that! Lol!

Once the mojo informed me we were doing Halloween I flipped through the Splitcoast Stamper's sketch challenge gallery for some layout inspiration, settling on SC272. I cut the purple circle out with my Cutter Bee circle cutting system, setting it to 2 1/4", then stamped it with the spider web image from Inkadinkado's Creepy Crawly. I put a rhinestone sticker at the center of the web.

The green panel is stamped with the dotted spiral circle that started this whole mess, which is actually a treetop from Trendy Trees. I made a little embellishment with some circle punches and a button for the top right corner. The sentiment ties my color scheme together, though it was a bit of work. The markers I have unfortunately dry too quickly to color them all at once, so I did it one color at a time with the help of a stamp-a-ma-jig. I had a little scrap of green ribbon left over from my Rustic Apple Card that went perfectly so it got added to the edge of the sentiment panel.

Thanks so much for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your holiday weekend!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Holiday Best, Trendy Trees by SU!, Creepy Crawly by Inkadinkado
Paper: Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Eggplant Envy, Very Vanilla by SU!, Orange Small Dots dp by Recollections
Ink: Basic Black, Certainly Celery
Accessories: 1" circle punch, 3/4" circle punch, Cutter Bee circle cutter, black satin ribbon, green satin ribbon, black button, green embroidery thread, rhinestone sticker, markers, stamp-a-ma-jig

Sparkly Birthday

2010-09-03T15:43:00.003-04:00

I've been building up my stash of birthday cards to have on hand so that I'm not left scrambling when a friend's birthday sneaks up on me. The idea for this card has been rumbling around in my head for a while and it actually turned out how I had hoped. I love it when that happens!

The design is fairly straight forward. I stamped the dress from Blooming With Happiness onto a scrap of Whisper White card stock then colored it in with two different pink markers. After punching it out with my Marvy Giga Scallop Oval punch I added some rhinestone stickers to a few of the flower centers for a bit of sparkle and shine. This is for a birthday girl after all! The dress image is popped up with foam tape and adhered to a base of matching Whisper White for a clean look. All that was left was to stamp the sentiment in a matching pink and voila! Super cute and super fast. 'Til next time, friends!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Blooming with Happiness, Warmest Regards
Paper: Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Rose Romance
Accessories: Rhinestone stickers, pink markers, foam tape, Marvy Giga Scallop Oval Punch

Banana Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

2010-09-01T14:03:00.006-04:00

Browsing through an old copy of Bon Appetit magazine I came across an unusual recipe. Banana cupcakes? With peanut butter frosting? I must try this!

In fact, I bought bananas with the sole purpose of letting them go brown just so I could make this recipe. Usually when I make banana bread it is to salvage poor bananas that have been sitting on my counter too long. Don't get me wrong, I love a good banana bread. But these are something special. The cake is incredibly soft and moist. And the frosting! I've made a few peanut butter frostings and this takes the cake. ;) The recipe makes quite a bit of frosting, too. I piled it on as high as I in good conscience could and still had some left over. I'll have to think of a use for it before I start eating it out of the refrigerator with a spoon. Without further ado, I give you. . .

Banana Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting from Bon Appetit
makes 12

INGREDIENTS

CUPCAKES
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 very ripe large bananas, peeled
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk

FROSTING
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 8-oz. package cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (do not use old-fashioned or freshly ground)

PREPARATION

CUPCAKES
Position rack in center of over and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Mash bananas with fork in another medium bowl until smooth. Mix sour cream and vanilla into bananas.

Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg and egg yolk and beat until well blended. Add flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with banana-sour cream mixture in 2 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating just until blended after each addition. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups (generous 1/4 cup for each).

Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center of each comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to rack and let cool completely.

FROSTING
Sift powdered sugar into large bowl. Add cream cheese, butter, and peanut butter. Using electric mixer, beat mixture until smooth. Spread frosting over top of cupcakes, dividing equally.

Rustic Apple Card

2010-08-30T15:04:00.006-04:00

Welcome! If you are here you have found the inaugural posting of my fledgling blog, The Apple Crate. I'll be talking primarily about paper crafting and cooking, with other kinds crafts and randomness thrown in for good measure. I love making things and as a result spend quite a bit of my free time in either my craft room or kitchen. I'll be sharing the good, the bad, and the ugly of what comes out of those rooms. :)

On to the post! I've noticed that over the past few days there has been a definite shift in the air. Leaves are falling and the air is crisper. September is just a few days away and kids are going back to school. With that in mind it seemed appropriate to make a fall card featuring, what else? Apples!

I started out by stamping one of the images from the old SU! set, Wonderful Weaves, four times to make a backdrop. I inked up the apple image from Tart & Tangy with Real Red ink, then wiped off the stem and leaf and colored them with green and brown markers. They were then punched out with a 1 3/8" circle punch then popped up with foam tape. The sentiment at the bottom is from Trendy Trees, and is also popped up. I then picked out matching green buttons from my stash and sewed them directly onto the card base. A pretty green apple satin ribbon finished it off.

Thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES
Stamps: Tart & Tangy, Wonderful Weaves, Trendy Trees
Paper: Crumb Cake
Ink: Real Red, Close To Cocoa
Accessories: 1 3/8" circle punch, modern label punch, green ribbon, buttons, embroidery thread, brown and green markers, foam tape