PrincessPicklejuice Productions

Quinoa and Feta Salad

2011-01-29T14:51:00.000-08:00

I LOVE this salad! It makes a tasty lunch or a nice cold side dish. Quinoa is sometimes hard to find but the taste is worth it!

Ingredients:
3/4 cup quinoa I cook mine in a rice cooker 1 cup quinoa/2 cups water for 45 min)
1/2 cup raw cashews
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 stalks celery, finely sliced
1 cup seedless grapes, halved
1/2 cup crumbled feta
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 handful of dried cranberries
1 lime, juiced (I use 3)
Salt and pepper
I generally use more of everything because I like the crunch of the veggies.

Directions:

Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to a boil. Add quinoa and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes or until the grains are tender. Drain, rinse and drain again thoroughly. Spread quinoa on a baking tray to dry. (This is labor intensive so again, use a rice cooker!)

In a dry, heavy frying pan, toast the cashews over moderate to low heat, stirring frequently, until they are golden brown. Cool, then chop roughly.

In a large bowl, combine dried quinoa, nuts, herbs, celery, grapes and feta. Squeeze lime juice over all, add olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Adjust seasonings to taste and leave the salad to stand for at least 1 hour before serving.

Chicken Salad

2011-01-24T19:29:00.000-08:00

Not sure if I posted this before but I am too lazy to look for it. :)
This is a super yummy chicken salad recipe I made up myself. We usually have it with pita bread or flat bread. The kids prefer it that way.

1 package of fresh cooked chicken breasts (Trader Joes deli section)
2 cucumbers
1 or more colorful bell peppers
1 bunch of green onion. I use only the green parts
1 package of spicy pecans (Trader Joes)
1 or 2 handfuls of dried cranberries or craisins
light mayo ( I have never measured, just put a little and stir..you can always add more)
Stir Together!
I sometimes put the cucumbers on the side because if you are planning this for the following day or leftovers they cucumbers get soggy.

Rosary

2011-01-20T17:06:00.000-08:00

I made these to remind myself to pray. They are beautiful and colorful and really look lovely just laying on a table. I am not sure what I am going to do with all of these, but one is mine for sure.....

Citrus Glazed Chicken

2011-01-19T10:53:00.000-08:00

Another winner from Trader Joes!! The Citrus Glazed Chicken comes frozen along with a separate pack of cashews, rice and sauce. I cooked up two bags of the chicken and added a whole stalk of broccoli, a red bell pepper,a package of brown mushrooms and a cup of frozen pineapple. Without all the additions it would not have fed a family of four. This way it goes further and with all those fresh veggies, much healthier!

Lentil Salad

2011-01-12T17:55:00.000-08:00

This recipe is super easy, healthy and delicious. It uses ingredients from Trader Joes...It was actually a demo they were having at the store. Enjoy!

1 container of cooked Lentils (found in the salad section)
1 container of fresh bruschetta sauce (found with the fresh salsa)
1 container of feta..they have different varieties. I prefer the one with herbs.
1 cucumber
2 bell peppers assorted colors

Combine ingredients! That is it!!
I like to eat this over a couple of days and HATE soggy veggies so I just stir the lentils and bruschetta together. I add feta and veggies on top.

Super yummy, fiber filled meal!!

Today I will EMBRACE.....

2011-01-06T20:00:00.000-08:00

The fact that I am not perfect. I really really really want to be but the fact of the matter is I am not.

WOTY

2011-01-05T21:34:00.000-08:00

As January begins the New Year I find myself thinking about my New Years resolutions. This year I am more goal oriented. I don't want to change things as much as I want to perfect and evolve. My friend was telling me that people actually choose a word of the year or WOTY. I thought this was a nifty idea and something I wanted to try. After much thought I picked the word EMBRACE. The dictionary defines embrace as follows: to take or receive gladly or eagerly; accept willingly. This year I am going to try and take things as they come and embrace them, willingly.
Since no one really reads this blog I think I may use it as kind of an online diary, checking in with my word of the year and sharing how I have tried to apply it.
I opened my Etsy shop this year and will try and post projects as well.
Happy New Year!!

Rainbow Cupcakes!

2010-06-15T19:43:00.000-07:00

We made rainbow cupcakes today! I have seen these A LOT all over the internet lately so I HAD to try them. I knew the kids would love them. We used Wilton's icing colors.

Headbands!

2010-05-23T17:00:00.000-07:00

Keely and I have been making headbands. I have tons of felts, fabrics and buttons so this has been a good project to use up some of my many,many supplies!
I am thinking about actually opening my Etsy shop!!

Note Birds

2010-01-26T10:21:00.000-08:00

I made these little guys after I saw a similar thing in a couple different catalogs. The kids and I have been having some fun with them sending little notes back and forth to each other!

Warm Glow...

2010-01-19T08:21:00.001-08:00

I made this during the Christmas holiday but somehow the picture got lost in my library until now. I thought it would still be ok to post since it is not really a Christmas decoration.
I love the warm glow it casts. There are tiny battery operated lights inside along with tinsel ribbon and a few snowflakes. I am sure it could be made to suit any holiday.

Tiny mustache fun!

2010-01-09T16:24:00.000-08:00

I made some tiny mustache's on a stick. I just love little mustache's all of a sudden. Not gross hairy ones, paper and plastic and sticker type ones!

Halloween Cards!

2009-11-19T09:59:00.000-08:00

I made a few of these little cards for Halloween. They were made with stamps and little treat cups from Stampin Up!
Some of the cards never made it out with the cups on them. They were self sticking but when the design underneath was embossed they were not very sticky anymore. I glued some and tossed some. The over all look was fun, but kind of complicated!
Click on the image for a detailed view.

Tie Dye!

2009-11-19T09:50:00.000-08:00

The kids were both Hippies for Halloween so I made tie dye shirts for them. I had leftovers so I made a fancy girly version for my niece. I was thinking this is a pretty inexpensive gift if you are making a few at a time!

Keely's Crafts!

2009-11-19T09:42:00.000-08:00

Ok, I realize it has been way to long. Luckily no one really reads this anyway!
This was a little craft Keely found in American Girl magazine. I had to relinquish all of my colored socks but it was worth it!

Fun Pictures

2009-06-26T19:36:00.000-07:00

I thought I would take some pics of the girls in their new dresses. I wanted to play with my new camera too..

Cupcakes!

2009-06-09T15:58:00.000-07:00

These are a batch of cupcake cards I cooked up last night. Just some simple paper piecing using this fabu pattern! I traced the pattern onto card stock to make it easier to work with.

TuTu Cute!

2009-05-28T16:49:00.000-07:00

I made this TuTu for my friends baby..she will be one. I hope Miss Sophia likes it!
This has monkey ribbons because her party is monkey themed.
The rhinestones are attached by heat..but probably should not be chewed on.

Happiness

2009-05-28T10:08:00.000-07:00

Wednesday's new do...

2009-03-30T14:09:00.001-07:00

I got a new wig for Wednesday. Her bright orange hair was looking a little boring next to her candy colored sisters.
This is Wednesday's goth punk look. This wig shop has amazing stuff and the quality is fantastic!

Meet Aster!

2009-03-19T17:03:00.000-07:00

This is Aster named after the beautiful Aster flower that is just the same shade as her hair.
She came with the two outfits pictured and the groovy glasses!
Her eyes close and stay closed, an improvement from the other Pullip doll I have.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2009-03-17T08:12:00.000-07:00

Keely's teacher told the kids that if they set a trap for a Leprechaun, he or she would leave their clothes!
The shoes are made of clay. The Leprechauns make their own clothes and tend to use lots of glue. They are not so handy with a needle and thread.

More Spool Friends..

2009-03-16T11:18:00.000-07:00

This is my most recent spool girl.
Soon I will try some different types of spools and/or clothespins but I like how this one turned out.
I used the same face as the "Small Object" spool people. I did not want to shell out the money for the kit so I tried my own version. I will probably try clothespins next.

Zellah Voted for Obama

2009-03-13T23:08:00.000-07:00

Zellah is wearing her awesome new Obama shirt. Holla!

Yummy Do-nuts!!

2009-02-20T15:57:00.000-08:00

I made this little felt donut from a kit I bought on Etsy. She does not list this kit anymore..its been awhile since I purchased it.
It was very easy to do and required just a little sewing. I am not very good with a needle and thread so I was glad that I could handle this project! His name is Isaac..kind of reminds me of icing which is the best part of the donut!
The sprinkles are just little stitches, I tried beads but it looked wonky.

A Friendly Monster

2009-01-18T18:09:00.000-08:00

This little Monster was originally going to be a bear..but decided that with her perfectly rectangle body, a little round head on top would be weird...soooooo a monster was born!!
She is completely needle felted. Her eye is a bead.
Her arms and legs move and she can sit and stand. She loves art and can often be seen swimming with the crayons. She is also a fan of glue..but glue and felt is a pretty dangerous situation!
I told Keely since this Monster was just practice she could have her. So Keely named her Princess Buttercup. Henry is going to draw me a monster to needle felt so that will be my next project!!

Puffer Fish!!!

2009-01-02T10:57:00.000-08:00

I made this puffer fish with a kit I got from here: The Licorice Tree!
It was a gift from my sister. I was surprised at how easy it was to put together. He actually is a pretty awesome pin cushion I must say. I named him Paco.
Needle felting is fun and easy. You may get poked by a needle a few times but the final product is worth it!!

Snow Globes!!!

2008-12-31T11:02:00.000-08:00

The kids and I decided that making snow globes would be fun!
I got a few little plastic treats on Etsy...They are really cupcake toppers but I just cut off the sticks if they had them. We used Martha Stewart Glitter and a bit of glycerin to make the sparkles float a little. The little jar is a spice jar from costplus and the large is a canning jar..I got those from my neighbor. In the future I will out something under the scene so that you can see it better.

Keely's Birthday Card

2008-12-03T21:03:00.000-08:00

I made this collage card for Keely's Birthday. She is very into art now so I figured she would appreciate it if I actually made her a card. She loved it!

Button Boo-quets..

2008-10-28T18:11:00.000-07:00

I made these little bouquets for Halloween to give to the kids teachers. I love a quick project that uses stuff I already have. The kids picked the buttons and stacked them, I twisted them together.

Spooky Photos!

2008-10-22T10:52:00.001-07:00

I got Wednesday and Zellah new Halloween dresses so I thought it would be fun to do some spooookkkyyy photos!

Cherry Pie...Oh My!!

2008-10-07T21:14:00.000-07:00

I saw these awesome little pies on this super cute blog...WhiMSy Love . She had an amazing easy to follow tutorial and I just had to try to make my own right away. I immediately thought they would make great food for Zellah and Wednesday but also thought cute magnets or even ornaments!!

Zellah is holding the cherry version. I also have orange beads to make pumpkin pie!!
The supplies were simple..just glue, felt, beads and a bottle cap!!
I made this in less then 10 minutes. Yippee a quick crafty project!!

Enjoy!

Snails Are Taking Over!!

2008-09-22T21:27:00.000-07:00

Here is another snail..this one is for my fab cousin Meghan. She requested one, so of course I had to do it. I just realized..... none of these little suckers look the same!
This is Gwen the Space Snail. She is done is shiny, glittery, silver sculpy clay.
If you click on the picture...you get the giant size and can see the beautiful shimmer.
I added some rhinestones to her shell and bejeweled her cupcake as well.

Different Colors...

2008-09-13T17:57:00.000-07:00

I read in FamilyFun magazine that by simply putting a colored post- it- note over the flash you can get some pretty cool effects. My camera is not all that stellar but it worked pretty well. Henry thought it was cool anyway. I tried tissue paper in yellow, red, and green, and that looked much better. Here are the results!
Not sure when or why you would use this effect but it was fun to try.

Fast Friends...

2008-09-09T20:42:00.000-07:00

I took a bunch of pictures today of Zellah and Wednesday. I think this one turned out pretty cute. It is always much harder to take their photos then I plan! I never really put them together, but they are two totally different sizes.
They hit it off right away...luckily Zellah brought cupcakes..smart girl!
Cupcakes are re-ment.They are my new love..teeny, tiny plastic items...pure bliss

Bangles and Brew!!

2008-09-07T20:53:00.000-07:00

I made this fantabulous bracelet this weekend at my friend Tandra's house. A friend of hers, Patricia, makes her own beautiful beads and decided to try out a bracelet making party. We were her first group and I think we all made awesome stuff. It was fairly easy... you just string the beads on! Of course the perfectionist in me re-strung it 8 times..and I still want to try new combos,but I like this one pretty well. Tandra made an awesome one with bright funky colors, I would love to try that one next! I think the brights are more my "thing".
Check out Patricia's Bangles and Brew website...and links to her other beautiful work.

Sweet Sisters

2008-09-05T20:08:00.001-07:00

Meet Elise and Eva. They are secret keeping sisters made from wood game pieces.
Eva, the light blue sister, is the shy one but she has many fantastic stories to tell.
These beauties are a gift to a friend.

Owls...

2008-08-29T15:06:00.000-07:00

Here are two owl cards..I guess they are more like postcards, just one sided.
The one with the blue background, I painted first with blue watercolors. I added felt, paper leaves and buttons as well.
The brown background is the back of a cereal box. I am all about recycling!
For both cards I used a new owl stamp set from Stampin Up!
The wings on the cards are paper pieces.
Enjoy!

Spool People!

2008-08-22T17:20:00.000-07:00

These are wooden game pieces I got at Michaels. I just painted them!!
I added the thread around their necks to make them unique and kind of bring back the spool-ishness of them.
These guys will be going to my mom and dad for their birthdays!
I saw these first on ETSY.
I also bought the clay version, also at ETSY.
I figured I could probably make them myself..granted they are not as fan-tabulous but a heck of a lot cheaper!!
I have also seen these using actual spools of thread with wooden balls on top for the head. I might try that version as well.

Gumdrops!

2008-08-21T11:12:00.001-07:00

These are the latest clay creation. I think these are my new favorite because they are super easy and quick to make!
A little Martha Stewart glitter makes them look sugary:)

Not Your Average Girl...

2008-08-19T21:14:00.000-07:00

Oh dear...Keely was playing with her plastic bugs the other day and came across and old discarded item of clothing from a polly pocket. Notice first that she was playing with plastic bugs in the first place and that we have no polly pockets in the house any more. I call her my anti-girl;)
She came out of her room with the plastic worm dressed in the old polly outfit...maybe there is a little girly girl in her:)

Trial Run....

2008-08-06T09:11:00.000-07:00

I made this little hanging thing..ornament maybe?....Yesterday. I found some bright colored cloth napkins in the $1 section at Target. I picked up a few hoping to be able to embroider on them.
It worked ok, but the material was pretty thin. It frayed A LOT when I cut it so I sewed it inside out. I was thinking this sort of thing could be an ornament, pin cushion, or as Henry suggested, a pillow for a stuffed animal.
I got the pattern from a cool site called Urban Threads. I just transfered it on with a disappearing pen and stitched around. The black eyeballs are french knots. I was proud of myself for figuring out how to do that!! The top is a blanket stitch..I could not figure out how to close it so I had to do that stitch on the outside.

Bookmarks From Everyday Things......

2008-08-05T15:52:00.000-07:00

I made these book marks from tags from clothes that I have recently purchased.
The first is from Johnny Cupcakes!!! I waited 5 and 1/2 hours for a T-shirt.....There was no way I was throwing anything out!

The second is from a Super Cute monster T-shirt my friend Jenn found at Target. The tag was a fantastic sticker so I laminated it and added some cute paper to the back.

I love making bookmarks because they are like little tiny pieces of art!

Meet Zellah!!

2008-08-04T20:17:00.000-07:00

Meet the newest member of my doll family! Zellah!! Keely named her that after I told her I needed a name that started with a letter that does not get used as much. She picked "Z" and Zellah..and it stuck!
I got her at the Valley of the Dolls in L.A. this weekend.
I did not plan on buying a doll but this little beauty had to be mine. She has awesome mohair that feels soft and fuzzy and she is really poseable. Her wrists, elbows. knees and waist move.
I was so excited about that because Wednesday, my Blythe, is really hard to pose!
Her out fit came with soooo many layers I will able to change her look pretty quickly.
She also has fantastic violet eyes and one long earring which she shows off in the first picture...Holla!!

I plan on taking more pics soon, but here are a few for now!!!

IF.....

2008-07-24T21:36:00.000-07:00

Here is another challenge word from OLW. This time the word is "IF".
I love the song "That I Would Be Good" from Alanis Morissette. The words on my art piece are from that song.
I had some paper that had holes already punched out to create the stitched flowers. I used fabric, buttons, paint and a host of other tidbits.
As usual my page is WAY to busy. No matter how hard I try to be simple, I just can't do it. My mind is pretty much like this all the time too, much to many things going on at the same time.

Afternoon Clay Project

2008-07-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

I decided NOT to go anywhere today so the kids wanted to do a project.
I have a ton of glass yogurt jars, so I figured we could do something with them.
We each covered the jar in clay that was pressed out with a pasta machine.
Keely's purple jar and Henry's brown jar were decorated with beads. We got them to stick well using Sculpy liquid clay. The clay was baked as usual, however I left the oven open a crack so that there was not so much direct heat. I was worried that the beads would melt!
I made the circles on my orange jar by making a roll of three different colors and slicing the roll.
I found all these techniques in THIS book, that we checked out at the library.

Florence the Snail

2008-07-20T21:37:00.000-07:00

This little gal is for my Aunt. Her name, the snail that is, is Florence!
She has little flowers all around her and a big open mouth. I am not sure if she wants to eat the cupcake or if she is terrified by it!
The cupcake is very vanilla with orange sprinkles and a cherry of course!
I used Premo! Sculpty clay..it is a lot brighter and smoother then the regular but the same price oddly enough.
I hope she like's this, otherwise it's back to the drawing board!

Birthday Fun...

2008-07-18T23:36:00.000-07:00

I made this card for my niece.
It goes along with the ladybug theme birthday party she will be having!
I used a vintage Bingo card for the base, a page from a vintage book and some yummy buttons.
The book page is really fantastic. I came across 4 books in the Library's "free" section. They happened to be books from my childhood, they even smelled the same. I considered hoarding them but had a change of heart:)!
The doodle letters, were made with the help of a stencil. After all the work on the paper, I did not want to chance messing up the letters!

TAGGED...Oh My!!

2008-07-07T09:54:00.000-07:00

So I have been tagged by my neighbor, Ms. Tandra. She is a great friend and and seemingly only reader of my blog.. so for her, I will do this!!
I am supposed to post 7 RANDOM things about me...oye. There are more then 7, I am sure...
I am also supposed to tag other bloggers, I know none, so feel free to volunteer!

1. I love plastic
2. I love having 20 million projects going at one time
3. I love glitter
4. I fear sickness
5. I love the smell of lemon
6. I love my kids feet, just theirs, but they are cute trust me.
7. I LOVE to cook

Embroidery 101

2008-07-07T09:42:00.000-07:00

I made this cute little pouch for this Travel Kitty that I purchased. The idea is you take him around and take pictures of him. He of course needed a fly pouch to ride in.
I have just started trying to learn embroidery. The stitches used on this pouch are embroidery stitches that I learned here.
All the stitches are shown to you through a video..so you can replay it over and over until you get it!
This is not by any means a perfectly sewed piece but it holds together! YEAH!!

LAdyBug!

2008-07-06T19:55:00.000-07:00

This is the newest member of the clay family. Sara is a fancy ladybug complete with a flower on her head! I made her with sparkle red sculpty.
I made a cupcake for her as well but not thrilled with how it turned out. I added liquid sculpty to try and get the real cupcake sprinkles to stick but it did not dry entirely clear. She may need a new one.
I made this for my niece, who is having a ladybug birthday party!

Felty Heart

2008-07-02T17:42:00.000-07:00

I attached this little heart to a Thank you note!
It is made by needle felting...I added the stitches after I was done felting.

Kid Friendly Cuisine...

2008-06-30T21:35:00.000-07:00

To bad the kids didn't like it:)
I made Pizza on a stick tonight!! It was very tasty, Matt and I loved it, the kids did not. Henry tried to act like he did, he hates to hurt my feelings:)
You can find the recipe HERE.
The recipe suggests tomatoes, and I forgot to stick them in! I cubed the cheese for Hnry instead of sprinkling it on top so he could poke it with the skewer instaed of having it melted.

Snail Friend

2008-06-29T20:15:00.000-07:00

This is Pearl, she is a friend of the purple snail,Percevil.
My mom requested a snail for her desk at work so I made this little lady!
She is made with blue pearl sculpty and I added a coat of glaze to keep her shiny, as well as to keep the eyeballs on!
The cupcake is made with real cupcake sprinkles! I got tired of trying to roll tiny little balls.
I am trying to perfect the cupcake, this one looks a little more realistic then the one pictured with Percevil.

Enjoy Mom!!

SNAILS!!!

2008-06-25T23:11:00.000-07:00

The obsession with clay continues!!!
I can't seem to resist the 3-D items lately, paper and I are just not getting along, that is unless its stacked with a bunch of 3-D stuff. I have been enjoying all the the cool personality clay can take on. This little guy,Percevil, is little snail that is happily munching on a chocolate sprinkle cupcake. He seems to sing "I don't care"!
He is gonna eat that whole darn cupcake!

MONSTERS!!

2008-06-11T17:06:00.000-07:00

Another bunch of clay creatures, these guys are little monsters.
I think I am officially obsessed with clay:)
I also love monsters. The brighter the color the better. These are the friendly sort, I think.
I tried to make most of these pretty flat so I can make pins or something from them.
The first picture gives you an idea of size, The hand is Keely's.
Enjoy!

Owls...

2008-06-10T08:40:00.000-07:00

Meet Jerome and Heidi! They are owls I made, again with Sculpty!
This is such fun stuff to work with. I am working on perfecting flatter pieces that can be used as pins or glued on art. Its much easier for some reason to make thicker items.

JellyFish!!

2008-06-05T17:52:00.000-07:00

Meet Jane and Earl!
I can't decide if these are jellyfish or squid..but either way I love them!
These are my latest clay creations.
I am addicted to sculpty lately!
There are more photos coming. Stay Tuned.....

Oh Keely...!

2008-05-30T23:46:00.000-07:00

I was in the car with Keely yesterday and we were talking about her
favorite topic "Wicked the Musical".
She is extremely interested in the whole story and why the different witches were treated the way they were. Both Henry and Keely are like me, they totally take in the actual words to songs and try to figure them out. With this musical its a little painful because obviously it is a whole story, not just a line or two to dissect.
She was going on and on about all the different traits kids in her class have when she finally commences with this statement:

"Mama, It does not really matter what you look like, it's all about your character!"
Pretty profound for a 5 year old!!

Crazy Delicious!!

2008-05-24T16:55:00.000-07:00

I went to WONDERLAND bakery today for a birthday cupcake!!!
The store was so stinkin cute, very pink, and cupcakes were made to order!!
Above are my skull cupcake and Matt's boring boy cupcake.
The little stand my cute cake sits on is from my friend Jenn. I was happy I remembered to bring it with me:)

Wednesday Sized Toast

2008-05-23T16:57:00.000-07:00

I messed up on some jelly, it turned out too small, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity to make Wednesday some toast!!

Toast and Jelly

2008-05-23T15:19:00.001-07:00

I love toast. I don't eat it near as often as I would like to, darn carbs.
The grape jelly toast is a card I made for a friend. The other two, will be cards later:)
The background for the grape card is from a pack of coasters I found in the $ 1 bin at Target. I made the jelly shiny by squeezing "crystal effects" on it. You could probably use any sort of glaze but I like the super shiny quality of the crystal one.

Collage Fun...

2008-05-21T12:39:00.000-07:00

I loved these pictures of the kids close up. They really look like each other so close up. Henry said if you could not see Keely's hair, they would look the same.
I used a ton of things in this art, the more mess the better in my opinion!
I made the pinwheel in the corner..it looks better in person. It was fun to make!
I got the inspiration of the doodle, "Dearest" from this blog.
Her stuff is super fantastic..I would love to do stuff that cool... Someday!

Bookmarks

2008-05-20T09:12:00.001-07:00

Yeah! I completed a project!
I used a few of the bookmarks using the heart beads I made the other day.
I tried just to kind of throw them together with as little thought as possible so I did not get caught up with matching everything exactly.
I like the way they turned out. I glazed the beads with sculpty glaze before I strung them to make them look a little fancier:)
Now, I just have to figure out who to give them to!

bEaDs!!

2008-05-16T21:38:00.000-07:00

I made these beads today with sculpty clay. I think I will glaze them and use them for bookmarks.
Stay tuned for the completed project!!

Buttons Buttons Buttons!!

2008-05-15T10:01:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying...I LOVE BUTTONS!!
Just another random crafty thing I can't live without!
I made these button flowers for Keely's teachers. I even painted the vases!
They were yogurt jars...but I saved them and painted them with glass paint and glaze.
Easy, fun and not terribly expensive, gift.

More Needle Felt Fun!

2008-05-14T20:18:00.000-07:00

I still have not decided what the heck I am actually going to do with these felted creations but I loooove making them. So far I have made them into pins, but am definitely wondering if anyone would dare to actually pin them on something.
This latest creation is a flower, although it kind of looks like a monster eyeball.

Needle Felting

2008-04-29T16:32:00.000-07:00

I just tried needle felting for the first time today!
It is so fun and really easy!! I thought this turned out pretty well for a beginner.
I found a wonderful how-to at this site. This site shows how to create using cookie cutters.
It worked really well. I thought it was the perfect way to form a decent shape.
I made a pin out of this one, but will add these little do-dads to cards and such in the future.

Owl's are Nice

2008-04-22T20:04:00.000-07:00

I made this card for a friend. I LOVE the owl rub-on..It was very hard to use, I wanted to just hoard it forever.
I painted the background and hammered the little circle things into the corner. I topped it all off with a bit of shimmer using water-color medium.
Of course I had to use my doodle stamps and white craft ink..I just can't get enough of that look!

Blessed

2008-04-17T08:07:00.000-07:00

I made this card for my best friend, Kim who is expecting a baby next month.
The heart is made with sculpty clay and then I used the sculpty glaze to make it shiny.
The letters are stickers and the branch type things are rub-on's. Its pretty darn simple but I was happy with the result!

Birthday Cards are fun to make!

2008-04-02T20:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, another birthday card!
I am not a fan of the typical "Happy Birthday", random art is much more fun.
I made this for my friend/neighbor Tandra....Happy Birthday girl!
I used a bunch of stuff on this, a vintage bingo card, glass glitter, page from a french book, a photo I took, felt flowers and fabric paper!

A Tiny Card...

2008-03-29T21:19:00.001-07:00

I made this little card for a friend of mine at church.
It is not a traditional Birthday type card but I loved the sentiment so I had to use it!
The little dough-nut was made with sculpty clay and topped off with glass glitter.

Another Birthday Card!

2008-03-26T08:16:00.001-07:00

I made this card for the student leader that helps in my Sunday school class. I used a picture of Wednesday that I took in our backyard.
For the all over blue-hue I used a wash of pearl-ex and glazing medium. The white just looked to.....well..white!

Happy Easter

2008-03-24T08:17:00.001-07:00

Here is another Easter card I made. The glitter is glass...I love the way it looks like sugar.
Keely found these little chicks with the hats on and just had to have them. I must say they do make great subjects:)!
Happy Easter!

Happy Spring Y'all!

2008-03-22T12:27:00.000-07:00

Here is a card I made...I was having fun taking pictures of some little chicks I bought. I am a sucker for cute little things. Keely is too. We named the chick in this photo Bernard. What a sweet little guy, he posed for his pictures without complaining.

Another Tasty Dish!

2008-03-21T09:03:00.000-07:00

Another Poblano recipe! I love a casserole type dish that can be eaten more then once.
This is a little different then previous dishes because the cornmeal adds a whole new flavor!
Enjoy!

Stuffed Poblanos

1 28oz can whole tomatoes in puree
1 jalapeno chile minced (optional)
2 small onions chopped
3 garlic cloves (I used the minced ones in a jar)
salt and pepper
1 19oz can black beans rinsed and drained (I used 2)
½ cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
1 tsp ground cumin
4 large poblano chiles, halved lengthwise, stems intact, ribs and seeds removed

Preheat oven to 425. In a blender combine tomatoes, jalapeno, half the onions, and 2 whole garlic cloves/ Puree. Season with salt. Pour sauce in 9x13 baking dish. Set aside.
***You could probably use enchilada sauce and that would be just fine.

In a medium bowl, combine beans, cornmeal, ½ cup cheese, remaining onion, minced garlic, cumin, and ¾ cup of water. Season with salt and pepper.

Dividing evenly, stuff poblano halves with bean mixture; place in top of sauce in baking dish. Sprinkle poblanos with remaining ½ cup of cheese:
Cover baking dish tightly with foil.

Bake until poblanos are tender, about 45 min. uncover and cook 10-15 minutes more until sauce has thickened and cheese has melted.
Let cool a few minutes before you scoop it out.

Head-Band!!!

2008-03-17T19:54:00.000-07:00

This was a little project...A headband for Wednesday! thought this would be easy, but I think my tools suck. By the time I hacked away at the wire it was a bit small..Oh well, pretty good for a first try!
I got this idea from this tutorial.
Thanks willynillywaterlily!

Dress Making....

2008-03-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

I made this dress for Wednesday, so I thought I would post it! I wish I could say I sewed this but I used fabric tac and velcro!!! I am happy with how it turned out. I had just enough scrap fabric to complete it. The straps are ribbon, but you can't see it that well.

In the second photo, you can see she is wearing a sweater...We borrowed this from Gabriella, Keely's Highschool Musical Barbie!!

Enjoy!!

Birthday Card...

2008-03-13T15:18:00.000-07:00

This is a Birthday card for my Grandma.
The cupcake in the picture was a 7up cupcake from Henry's market...YUMMY!!!
The felt flower I bought on ETSY and added the button. The scallops at the bottom are done with a punch and a glitter note card!

Backgrounds...

2008-03-13T10:06:00.000-07:00

I painted a bunch of backgrounds for some cards and plain ol' art that I plan on doing really soon.
I have taken some fun pictures so I used colors with those photos in mind.
I love the way these turned out, I almost hate to add anything to them...almost.

Materials used:
Acrylic paint, Pearl Ex, Lumiere, stamp pads, watercolor and chipboard.

What's For Dinner....?

2008-03-06T16:45:00.000-08:00

This is another modified recipe from Cooking Light. The original recipe can be found here.

Penne with Spinach, and Buttery Crumb Topping

8 ounces French bread or bread crumbs which is MUCH easier....
Cooking spray
3/4 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
3 cups non-fat milk, divided
1 cup half-and-half
6 cups chopped fresh spinach
1 cup grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
I have no idea where to get this so I used jack, mozzarella and Asiago I probably used more then one cup too....
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
8 cups hot cooked penne (about 1 pound uncooked tube-shaped pasta)
1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 425°.

Place bread in a food processor; pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs measure 4 cups; set aside.
I used Panko bread crumbs..and it was not more then 2 cups, 4 is overkill!!

Heat a large nonstick saucepan over medium-high heat. Coat with cooking spray. Add onion, and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Place flour in a small bowl; gradually add 3/4 cup milk, stirring until smooth. Add flour mixture, remaining milk, and half-and-half to pan; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat, and simmer 2 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. Add spinach; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese, salt, and pepper, stirring until cheese melts.

Place pasta in a large bowl. Add sauce mixture to pasta; toss well. Spoon mixture into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Combine breadcrumbs and butter; toss well. Sprinkle over pasta mixture.

Bake at 425° for 6 minutes or until crumbs are lightly browned.

TIME...

2008-03-06T14:07:00.000-08:00

So it's that time again.....
OWL's word for this week is TIME!!
As I was flipping through Shape magazine all I saw was flat abs...Ok, right, its shape magazine but I was laughing to myself at how many pictures of toned abs there was..geez. It got me to thinking too, my daughter is on an eating strike lately and when she is not eating she is pretty much unbearable. So maybe the world would be a happier place if we just ate a fricken doughnut every once in awhile. Go ahead, It's your first step in a happier tomorrow....

Materials:
Paint and gloss medium..with a little Lumiere to add sparkle, a felt doughnut, transparents tape, stamps and alphabet cutters dipped in paint..

I hate to admit this...

2008-03-05T21:31:00.000-08:00

I tried the McDonalds Iced Vanilla Coffee today. I really hate McDonalds, but Keely and I go once a week for our lunch out. We have cheeseburgers without meat...! I am a little worried about where the milk comes from, but I put that aside to try the drink...bad idea..
IT"S CRAZY DELICIOUS!!!!! Oddly it is not horrifyingly bad for you AND its cheap-o-rama!!!
I took this pic in my car.. Yes, mom, I was at a stop light.
I thought it was great lighting!!

Fun with Blythe...

2008-03-05T21:21:00.001-08:00

Ok, this random 15 minute parking sign was sitting across the street from my house..totally ghetto, I know...BUT...an awesome photo op!
Poor Wednesday got dragged across the street to take photos. I could not get the angles right so my neighbor and I carried the giant sign into my yard and put it on top of my wall. Her idea all the way! Thanks Tandra!!
I had to lay on the ground to take the picture but I like how it turned out.
I think Wednesday is saying "Have I been her 15 minutes yet?"

Thanks....

2008-02-27T10:15:00.000-08:00

I made this little card for my neighbor...I used the Prima Paintable Paper again. This time I water colored first and then added pearl-ex to the flowers to give them a bit of a shimmer. The letters are baked clay..another favorite! The sentiment is from a magazine. Fun stuff!!
I am taking the same approach to cards, as I am to my art...this is just one-sided like a normal layout, not a card you can open.

Wednesday....

2008-02-26T22:02:00.000-08:00

got some new shooz!! Ebay has a great selection of random Blythe Doll items, lots of stuff you never knew you needed!
Wednesday's shoes are black sparkle high tops!!
They came with laces that you could not tie, so I added the ribbon.

Trust

2008-02-21T08:55:00.000-08:00

This weeks word from OWL is Trust. I was listening to this Jeremy Camp song when I went to create this page. I always need to remember that God is ultimately in control and I need to have faith and TRUST!!!
My favorite part of the song, included in the journaling is
" I will walk by faith , even when I cannot see."
I experimented with LOTS of different random things this time. The background paper that looks like buildings,is a new paper, that you can watercolor in. The word " TRUST" is made of baked sculpty clay!
The music notes are from a cut of vintage sheet music. I had to include this because the whole piece of art was inspired by a song.

Cupcakes Cure Anything!!

2008-02-19T12:17:00.000-08:00

I made this the other day when I was feeling sorry for myself. I hate being sick.
I wanted to sand the picture to give it texture, but I could not get it to look right. I settled for "faux sanding" and used a vanilla paint to scruff up the entire page. I have no idea if that is a real technique..:)

Materials:
Paint, magazine clippings, rubber stamp.

Spanish Rice

2008-02-19T12:06:00.000-08:00

What would enchiladas be without a kick-ass rice recipe?
This recipe was in Cooking Light, but not listed on their website.
I copied it just how it was in the magazine, they did not list all the ingredients first, they just jumbled it together...

Heat 2 Tablespoons canola oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add ½ cup finely chopped onion and 2 minced garlic gloves; sauté 3 minutes. Add 2 cups uncooked long grain rice; cook 2 minutes stirring constantly. Add 1 ¾ cup chicken broth ( I used veg. broth) and 10oz can of diced tomatoes and green chiles, undrained; bring to a boil. Cover,reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.
Stir in 1 cup of thawed frozen corn. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro.

Spinach Enchiladas

2008-02-19T12:01:00.001-08:00

The following is a recipe from Martha Stewart's Food Magazine. She had a recipe for home-made sauce as well, but that is too much work!
I also halved the spinach.
Enjoy!!

SPINACH ENCHILADAS

* 1 teaspoon ground cumin
* Coarse salt and ground pepper
* 3 cups grated pepper Jack cheese (12 ounces)
* 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
* 1 box (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
* 1 box (10 ounces) frozen corn kernels, thawed
* 6 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
* 16 corn tortillas (6-inch)
* 2 cans of enchilada sauce...I use Herdez green sauce
I use a lot of sauce..I mix in a little with the filling and put some on the bottom of the pan.

Directions

1. Make filling: In a large bowl, combine 2 cups cheese, beans, spinach, corn, scallion whites, and cumin; season with salt and pepper.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil two 8-inch square baking dishes; set aside. Stack tortillas, and wrap in damp paper towels; microwave on high for 1 minute. Top each tortilla with a heaping 1/3 cup of filling; roll up tightly and arrange, seam side down, in prepared baking dishes.
4. Dividing evenly, sprinkle enchiladas with remaining 1 cup cheese, and top with sauce. Bake, uncovered, until hot and bubbly, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool 5 minutes; serve garnished with scallion greens.

A Little Love...

2008-02-18T20:48:00.000-08:00

I actually made this on Valentine's day but it has taken me a little while to put it up here. Keely and I were making hearts with our hands. I thought her little hands made the sweetest little shape.
I wanted to play around with some junk I got with my "Jar of Whimsies".
The little scrabble tile as well as the charm on the bottom are finds from that.

Materials:
Paint, glaze, scrapbook papers (The border is one sheet of double sided paper cut up)

Wandering Aimlessly ....

2008-02-14T21:37:00.000-08:00

..is a good thing sometimes!!
I went shopping with my friend Jenni the other day. We don't see each other often so when we do get together we end up kind of lost...a lot. I swear her and I can walk aimlessly around in circles for hours and it's still fun.
I made the below painting to highlight our journey...round and round in circles. We are represented by the paper clips.
I got the "personal object" idea from the Journal Revolution girls..maybe someday I will come up with an idea of my own but for now I will um... borrow theirs:)
I love the idea of an object representing me on a page..I just do not want my actual face plastered on all my art!

Quinoa-Stuffed Poblano Chiles

2008-02-11T19:52:00.000-08:00

This was a great recipe from Cooking Light!! It was fabulous, although, I think I could have done without the tomato juice. I think it was too tangy. Enjoy!!

Quinoa-Stuffed Poblano Chiles

Ingredients

4 (5-inch) poblano chiles
1 1/2 cups water

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
Cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons minced seeded jalapeño pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted pumpkin seed kernels
1/2 cup minced green onions
1 tablespoon minced fresh or 1 teaspoon dried cilantro
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 cups tomato juice
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese ( I used regular cheese)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cut chiles in half lengthwise; remove stems and seeds. Set aside. Combine water and quinoa in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 13 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Set aside.

Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat until hot. Add bell peppers, onion, jalapeño pepper, and garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Add pumpkin seed kernels; saute 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in quinoa, green onions, cilantro, soy sauce, and lime juice. Spoon 1/3 cup quinoa mixture into each chile half.

Pour tomato juice into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish; place stuffed chiles in dish. Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Sprinkle cheese over chiles; bake, uncovered, an additional 10 minutes or until cheese melts and chiles are thoroughly heated. Spoon tomato juice over chiles.

Valentine Goodies!!

2008-02-11T19:44:00.001-08:00

These are mailboxes that I made Keely's preschool teacher's for Valentines Day!
I think they turned out pretty good considering I suck at following directions!!
I found a tutorial here.

Materials:
Paper, modge podge, super sticky tape, ribbon and $1 plastic mailbox!!

OLW.....

2008-02-05T13:35:00.001-08:00

This is a challenge from OLW. The word this week was "CREATE".
This was a fun word to use!
I am always so easily distracted....and this layout shows that!! These are all photos of things that create happy distractions in my everyday life.

Materials used:
Acrylic Paint, sparkle water color medium, tape, puff paint, stickles glitter paint and beads.

Roasted Garlic Twice Baked Potatoes

2008-02-04T20:42:00.000-08:00

I made this recipe tonight and sheesh it was GOOD!!!
Note the substitution at the bottom. I did not use Velveeta...
I did use bacon for this recipe. The vast majority of my recipes lately are the meatless variety but we do use meat products from Niman Ranch. I feel like we may not get mad pig disease from these guys... Any-who, on with the recipe...

1 head garlic

1 tsp. oil

4 large baking potatoes (2-1/2 lb.)

1 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream

1/2 lb. (8 oz.) VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut up, divided

1/4 cup KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese

4 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, crisply cooked, drained and crumbled

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Cut thin slice off top of garlic head to expose cloves; discard top. Place garlic head on square sheet of foil; drizzle with oil. Wrap garlic loosely with foil. Prick potatoes in several places with fork. Bake potatoes and garlic 1 hour.

REDUCE oven temperature to 350ºF. Cut small slice off both ends of each potato. Cut potatoes crosswise in half. Scoop out centers, leaving 1/8-inch-thick shells. Place potato flesh in medium bowl; mash. Squeeze garlic out of papery shell into bowl with potatoes. Add sour cream, three-fourths of the VELVEETA and the Parmesan cheese; beat until fluffy. Spoon evenly into shells, mounding filling as necessary to use all the filling; place in shallow baking dish.

BAKE 30 min.; top with remaining VELVEETA. Bake an additional 5 min. or until VELVEETA is melted. Sprinkle with bacon.

**Substitute***

Substitute 1-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese for the VELVEETA, stirring 1-1/4 cups of the cheese into the mashed potatoes along with the sour cream and Parmesan cheese and topping with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese before the final 5-min. bake time.

Mmmm....Brownies

2008-01-29T21:41:00.001-08:00

I made these fan-fricken-tastic brownies today. They are from Trader Joe's land of fabulous snacks. I love Trader Joe's and these brownies are honestly the best I have ever tasted, no lie. I gave them to Wednesday but apparently she hates brownies. Look at her face, she can't even look at them, she is holding it like it's poison! You can almost hear her say blech!!!
That's ok darlin' more for me!!!
I suggest you buy a box of these brownies, and while your at it grab a box of vanilla cake and pumpkin bread too...DEE-lish!!!

Wednesdays outfit is from Blythe Station!!

A bit of inspiration...

2008-01-28T20:36:00.000-08:00

While reading my favorite blog,Visual Chronicles, I stumbled upon another blog they were talking about called One Little Word. In a nutshell, they pick a word and you use that word to create something. I could not wait to get started so I used one of their old words..... "GO".
Below is what came to me, upon hearing the word.

Materials used:Lots of green paint.Green Watercolor mixed with a sparkle water color medium. Masking tape, vellum , stamps..again with the doodle stamp set from stampin' up,yellow puff paint and a correction pen for all the white doodles. The handwriting "alone" is actually just my handwriting..impressive huh?
The quote listed is from a Keane song I was listening too while creating this. The photo is of my daughter..changed the color to sepia in iphoto.

Cloudy...

2008-01-25T16:41:00.001-08:00

Whenever it is cloudy out, I have an attitude and mood to match. Cloudy weather makes me feel gray, literally. I took a picture of this page looking out of my bedroom window, with a view of the grim weather....

Materials used: sky blue paper, gesso mixed with Lumiere for sparkle, blue water color and black watercolor to make gray. Words and clouds stamped using gesso.

What's For Dinner....?

2008-01-24T21:48:00.000-08:00

I am going to try and add a recipe or two each week to my blog. Amongst other things I also LOVE to cook. We have been eating meals more where vegetables take center stage. It's good for you and it's good for the environment. I don't go as far as calling myself vegetarian but for the last month or so I have been trying it out....
Here is a yummy recipe we had just the other night!

RECIPE:
One Red Bell Pepper
One Green Bell Pepper
One container of shiitake mushrooms
One container of regular mushrooms
2 green zucchini
4 cloves of garlic
One medium yellow onion.
One bag of baby yellow gold potatoes

Cut all veggies up. Place potatoes in boiling water for 5 minutes, this helps the cooking process go faster!
Take the rest of the veggies in a large bowl with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and stir gently so all veggies are covered. And any spices that you like. I chose sea salt, garlic salt, and red pepper flakes.
Once spices and oil are combined with veggies place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.
Drain the potatoes, add some spices and put them on a separate baking sheet. Bake them also for about 20 minutes. If you like your veggies a little crunchy you can broil them on high for a few minutes at the end, that is what I did.
We served this with Quinoa and chopped walnuts.