BBQ kit for Father's Day!

The best gifts are from the heart, undoubtedly. This year, I made a BBQ kit for The Mister's Dad. It seems like he grills every time I go there to visit, and he's so kind in that he always makes me a veggie burger. Sometimes he even marinates it for me! So I thought a BBQ kit would be the perfect gift.

The kit contains: Home made Barbeque sauce, steak seasoning, seasoning salt for veggies, and Boston Baked Beans candy.

For the Yummies: I wanted to make everything from scratch, but when I went to the store to buy the ingredients, I realized it would have been outrageously expensive, since I would have to buy so many things. So I decided to make the sauce from scratch and buy the rest pre-made. I used Martha Stewart's recipe for "Father's Day BBQ Sauce," found here. 

For The Presentation: I found these light wood veneer nesting boxes a while back at a thrift store. At $1.99 for a set of six, it was a steal!! If you aren't lucky enough to find a deal like this, Hobby Lobby and Michael's sell similar boxes. I got the glass jars at Hobby Lobby on a week they were half off.
That made them $1 each. I got the red basket filler at The Dollar Tree (it's $1 there, compared to $2.99 at Hobby Lobby) and the polka dot basket wrap at Hobby Lobby for $1.99. The wrap was a little big for the box, so I had to fold it up and tape it before I put the box down inside.

For the Labels: I downloaded a free font from dafont.com (I used "Buy More"). I measured the jars to judge how big I wanted to make the labels. I used Adobe Illustrator to place the text, although Photoshop, or even Word will work just fine- it may just take a little more finessing. Any glue will work, but I used silicone glue. It works really well for things like glass and metal, and it doesn't have the harsh smell that some other glues have. *I'm lookin at you, E6000..*

 I'm gunna go ahead and admit that I'm really super proud of this project. I'm a girlie girl, all the way. I'm glad I can take a manly idea and put my own cutesy fun spin on it, but it's still totally father-appropriate. Awesome. <3

I'll show you what I did for my own dad tomorrow! Woo!

Cherry Limeade!

A perfect refreshment for a hot summer night - Cherry Limeade!
What you'll need:

• Juice of six limes
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup grenadine
• 20 oz club soda
• maraschino cherries for optional garnish

Pour it all in a pitcher and stir it up! Add a little vodka and made it a cocktail!

My pitcher was small, so double it for a larger pitcher.

Enjoy! <3

Fun little things: MoreCozy Cafe supplies

Currently I'm crushing on the adorable Kawaii cafe supplies / bakery packaging at MoreCozy.

 Like these pink cookie houses!

These lovely "handmade" labels.

This freakin cute little strawberry guy! Holy cow, I love it.

 These cupcake toppers are just so sweet!

If I had a store, I would totally give my shoppers these little yellow bear bags.

This kinda stuff is right up my alley. They also sell stationary and washi tape. So basically it's awesome. I'll just come out and say it. :-P

Make it VS Buy it: confetti glasses

I saw these gorgeous confetti glasses on the Anthropologie website a while back and was totally smitten. I immediately imagined myself clutching this glass, sipping cocktails at a rooftop get-together, wearing a little black dress and a statement necklace. It would be late evening in July and there would be a fire pit and string lights.. Okay, I daydream a lot. Is that really so wrong?

Although I know these glasses are artfully made and designed and I think they're beautiful and perfect and all that jazz, I thought, "I can do that." So I did! Here's how.

I went to the dollar store and found glasses with simple, straight sides. I bought four at $1 each. These ones had gold rims. *Ooo DollarTree's gettin' fancy* I had a set of craft enamels I had bought from Hobby Lobby, years ago. The set was $4. Then I just dabbed the paint on! Simple as that!

I paid attention to the colors of the original glasses, and the pattern of the dots. I noticed they didn't use any dark colors except for small amounts of dark green and purple. And they used mostly bigger specks, but lots of teeny tiny ones too.

Since these enamels were old and I didn't keep the packaging, I looked up curing instructions online. The website I found told me to let my glasses dry for 24 hours. Then bake them in a preheated over for 30 minutes. After that, leave them in the oven (don't open the door) for 5 hours so they can cool gradually. After that, they should be top rack dishwasher safe. It's very important that you use enamels and not just acrylic paint. Regular paint has a hard time sticking to glass because of the non-porous surface.

The brush strokes were very much apparent in my glasses, and that's the only thing I'm unsure about with this project. Since that wasn't a part of my plan, I"m hesitant to call this project a victory. But I still like them. Not exactly what I was going for, but still pretty darn cute. ;) Upscale rooftop party, anyone?

My First Dump Cake

 Ok I'll admit, I'm not much of a baker. At all. I've made a few things but when it comes to the kitchen, I feel like it can be so time consuming. Do I really want to spend an hour cooking something what will be eaten and gone in ten minutes? But I really want to change that. I think cooking is a really rewarding thing to do- just like crafting- after all that time and energy, you have something great to show for your work. I would really like to start spending more time in the kitchen making yummy, fresh, and healthy things to eat.

I was invited to a Sunday brunch at The Mister's Grandma's house. I like to keep old-fashioned traditions, so I didn't want to show up empty handed. I saw a wonderful recipe for a plum tart in the latest issue of Martha Stewart Living, and I got all excited to make it. But alas. Plums aren't in season yet. The Mister works at the grocery store and said they won't carry them for another whole week. Poo. So, plan B. I heard dump cakes were easy and quite tasty, so I thought I'd give it a shot! And you know what? It was phenomenal, if I do say so, myself. And I do.

What You'll Need:

• Two 20oz cans of cherry pie filling
• 1/3 cup sugar
• One box of white cake mix
• One stick of butter, softened

Preheat the over to 350 degrees. Open your cherry pie filling and fill the bottom of a 9in X 13in pan. Spread evenly. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the pie filling. In a mixing bowl, pour in the white cake mix and the add the stick of butter. Blend the butter in by hand with a pastry blender until well-incorporated. Pour that evenly over the cherries and bake for 50 minutes.

So simple. I love it.

Have you made a dump cake? Do you add anything else to your recipe?

Steals and Deals

 via weheartit

I love shopping. A lot. Too much. But I'm a bargain shopper for sure. So I wanted to share with you a few things I've found that can help you save some money or get good stuff free.

I've recently stumbled onto a website called Mommy Saves Big. Let me tell you, it's changed my life. I never knew there were so many great deals out these! Coupons, rebates, free samples! This website is totally awesome and totally handy. I totally recommend it! In honesty, their website looks a little messy and cold, but don't let that chase you away. They're totally legit and a I've super glad I found them! Here are a few of my favorite finds from the site:

Annie's Organic is one of my favorite brands. I don't always eat organic foods, but I try to as much as I can. I just like the idea of growing food naturally, without pesticides and chemicals. I love Annie's because they make such yummy maccaroni and cheese, snack crackers, fruit snacks, ravioli, soup, salad dressing, and little cookie snacks. My favorite part is... everything's bunny shaped! Their mascot is Burnie the Bunny. Eee cute! ^.^

For years, the Annie's website has been giving away bumper stickers to help promote a green and organic lifestyle. All you have to do is mail them a self-addressed, stamped envelope! Click here for details.

Also, Annie's has a promotion running through this month where you can get a free subscription to Organic Gardening magazine if you send in two proofs-of-purchase. Or enter to win a garden for your kids' school! Find that here.

Here, I ordered a free sample of a new Yogi Tea!

Did you know Target has coupons you can print off and bring into the store? I wish I would have known that a long time ago! Seriously. Knowing this will come in handy.

Barnes and Noble Books has a printable coupon for 15% off any one item. Not a bad deal!

I feel the need to tell you that is is not a sponsored post. None of these companies have have any contact with me, I just like sharing what I think is a good deal. I hope I can help you all save a buck too!

Handmade paintbrush or knitting needle holder DIY

Its been said that invention arises from necessity. That's certainly true in my case. I spent a good chunk of money on some fancy paintbrushes for acrylics. I've been wanting to take my easel and paints and go work outside, or "en plein air," if you want to get French with it. But I didn't know how to carry my brushes. If there's something in my life that's important to me, I baby it. Pets, people, paintbrushes. How would I carry these brushes around without the bristled getting all mashed up? How will I keep them together so I don't lose them? I saw a knitting needle holder at Hobby Lobby that would work perfectly. In fact, I have a very similar one that I keep my other set of brushes in for oil painting class. But even if I used a coupon and my *oh so coveted* Hobby Lobby employee discount, that needle case would have been close to $10. And along with being overprotective, I'm also very cheap. Very, very cheap. So I decided to save some money and make my own! Let me share my thrifty creativity with you!

This is a super easy sewing project you can make out of scraps you probably already have! The only skills you'll need is to measure, cut a straight line, and sew a straight line! 

First, what you'll need: a piece of heavy fabric (something like canvas, cotton duck, twill) cut to a 17in X 22in rectangle. You'll need two ties (any kind of ribbon will work) cut to 17in. You'll need a piece of fabric (any kind) for the pocket, cut to a 9in X 22in rectangle. Last, you'll need a piece of fabric for the flap, cut to a 12in X 22in rectangle. The flap keeps the brushes from falling out if you tip your case upside-down. These measurements are based off my long-handled brushes. Feel free to adjust these measurements to fit your paintbrushes or knitting needles.

The first step is to in and iron a half inch hem around all four sides of each piece of cloth. These will be sewed under to keep from fraying. I use glass head pins because they won't melt under the hot iron. This is the most tedious step, so pop in a good movie or have a little chat with a friend to pass the time!

Once that's done, sew across the hem of the top of the pocket. Then lay the pocket on your canvas fabric, wrong sides together, and line up the corners. Pin down the pocket. Tuck in your ribbons somewhere on the left side of the pocket. Try to get as close to centered as you can. Now sew all three sides of the canvas, sewing up the hems on the side and securing the pocket. Leave the top hem open. You'll be sewing the flap there later.

Now, with chalk or a vanishing pen, measure and mark one or two inch pockets for your brushes or needles. Make sure they're straight and sew along the marked lines.

 Now take fabric for your flap and sew all three sides, leaving the top open. Pin the open top piece to the canvas fabric and sew straight across. Cut loose threads, and you're done! Woo!

I really hope you enjoyed my little DIY. This will be the first of many. Please keep checking back, and follow me for updates!