Simple Scrapbook Pages Contiued..

Who doesn't LOVE scrapbook paper right? I do have quite a lot of it..I especially will buy it if it's masculine or boy themed. I find that kind of stuff is few and far between. Most of the time I like to buy my paper based on the photos or the story I want to tell. I went on an extended scrapping weekend and found, that it forced me to use the paper I had on hand, and not over think a layout. For me it's about the story I want to relay rather than the photos or the stuff I put on my layout. Sometimes I do have just one great photo I want to scrap or  really cool supplies I want to use. But the majority of the time I want to tell the story of what was going on. For this layout I ended up cutting up two pieces of patterned paper and using letter stickers for the title. One of the patterned papers had large alphabet letters and the other had coordinating designs. Kind of a vintage circus feel. I think it was perfect for our favorite vintage candy store we love to visit!  

Simple Scrapbook Pages Using Your Stash

 

 

I'm coming to realise that I am a pretty simple scrapbooker and crafter.

I love simple clean lines most of the time. It's what appeals to me and what I am drawn to. I also think that in my quest for the inexpensive I try and make good use of my supplies and the stuff that I already have. I'm always trying to re purpose and see if something can be used in a different way. For this layout I wanted to capture the quietness of my son playing. I couldn't find the right red patterned paper so I ended up using a sewn calender page I had in my stash. I covered up the days of the week with strips of paper at the top. The star (with the button on top of it) was from a Heidi Swap sequenced pack I had gotten, I just turned it over and used the non-sequence side. I also roughed up the photos by using a sanding block and "scratching" along the photos edges. I always love the feel of old vintage :) So, here's to using your stash and old stuff made new again!  

 

 



Chocolate Bird Nests



This is such a fun and easy treat to make with the kids. Although there will be lots of licking of chocolate fingers in the process! Start off by covering a cookie sheet or counter top with wax paper. Put one 12 oz bag of chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 1 min, then 10 seconds thereafter until chips are melted. Be sure to stir in between the 10 second intervals and not over cook. The chips will get clumpy if you over cook them. Stir in the Chinese chow mien noodles and mix until coated with the chocolate. Depending on how chocolaty you want your noodles will determine the amount of noodles you add in. Start off with fewer noodles than you think, because you can always add in more if you don't want the nests too chocolaty. Once you have the noodles all coated scoop out some from your bowl and mold into a mount on the wax paper. I use a big kitchen silver tablespoon, but the kids love using their fingers of course! Once you have the mound, take the tip of the spoon and tap it in the middle to make the nest center. Then take candy robins eggs and place in center while the chocolate is still wet. Let stand overnight or for several hours until the chocolate is "dry".  I place one nest in a clear plastic bag, tie with ribbon and give to my kids teachers for a Easter treat. This year I'm going to include a tag that says "Happy Easter~From Our Nest to Yours"..enjoy!

Homemade Coffee Syrup Pumpkin & Caramel

I love, love, love coffee. I am a fu-fu type of girl..i love it sweet, flavorful and milky.
I REALLY miss the Pumpkin Spice Latte and the Creme Brule at Starbucks. So sad that I will have to wait until next fall/winter to enjoy them again. I searched the net for recipes and then came up with a mixture of several to fit my cravings. Here is what i like best..
Add to a saucepan:
3 C Water
2C Turbano Sugar (sugar in the raw)
Bring to a boil until sugar is completely dissolved.
Add in:
4 Cinnamon Sticks
1-2 T Whole Cloves
1 Small Piece of Peeled Ginger Root or 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
1 T Ground Nutmeg
Simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat pour mixture over a metal screen strainer (or strainer with extra small holes)  Let cool. Store in airtight container in the refrigerator.
Hints..if you boil it for too long it will become a little bitter.
If you want Pumpkin flavor add in 2-4T Canned Pumpkin
(or for extra sweetness Pumpkin Pie Filling)
The Pumpkin will make the mixture slightly thicker with a tiny bit of texture. If you want a totally smooth mixture blend the mixture in the blender for a few seconds.
I also LOVE caramel. I make this recipe and store it in the fridge. I scoop a big helping when I want some in my coffee or put a bit in the microwave to melt it and drizzle on top of my whip cream.
Add to microwave safe bowl:
1/2 C Butter
1 C Sugar
1C Brown Sugar
1 C Karo Syrup
1 C Sweetened Condensed Milk
Microwave for 3 minutes. Stir. Microwave for 3 more minutes.
Pour into an airtight container. Let cool, store in refrigerator.
Enjoy!

Childrens Art Display Idea

 

My boys are always doing "art" projects that I love to display. I loved the idea of putting them in frames and displaying them on the wall, but found it was sort of a hassle to change out the projects since they do new ones so often (practically every week). I LOVE vintage anything, and i am always on the look out for vintage games. I especially love children's games like scrabble. (If you weren't into vintage, you could use any game like newer Life, or Scrabble) I started out by making sure the board didn't fold on itself. I did this by hot gluing a piece of sturdy cardboard (or you could use anything thin and sturdy) to the back fold.  I let that dry and turned it over to the front and hot glued the clips. I used wooden clothes pins, but you could use any clips you want. Make sure you place the clips the right space a part in order to hold your child's work. Mine do as small as 81/2 X 11, so I put them close together. I used the game pieces to spell out each child's name at the top. You could add holes to each top corner for a hanging string/ribbon. I didn't do that because I use the 3M wall Velcro for my plaster walls.

 

 



Homemade Valentine Treat Holders



An old co-worker of mine used to eat a lot of Tic Tacs, and for some reason (good for me) he saved all the empty containers.  He gave them all to me, so I thought they were perfect for little Valentine treat boxes. I put mini M&M's in them..they were really a hit with my child's teachers. Of course you could use any small candy. I also took large dollies that I got from the Dollar Store and folded them into envelopes (fold like a burrito-- bottom up to middle, then sides to middle and finally the top towards middle). For the first envelpoe I misted a coffee filter pink and scrunched it up in the middle to make a smaller circle, then added a felt heart in the middle.  I stuck candy inside and tied with bakers twine. I love valentines day..I think because it's a chance to use pink frilly craft stuff!

 

                                            

 

    

Vintage Baby Book



I took a class that was called "Junk Journal" back when I went to spark..but it really should have been called "amazing ways to transform an old book". Basically you brought an old book with you to the class and transformed the pages into pockets, outlines of butterfly's and picture frames. I have never looked at old books the same since..This particular book I purchased in an Ephemera lot off of EBay. Little did I know it was from 1910! I shouldn't have used such an old book, as now it is a little more fragile than I would like. But, I finally finished it and it makes an adorable baby book (mine). I also did a spin off of sorts with a vintage kids jungle book. Instead of cutting out shapes, and doing frames I put the pages right over the words of the book. I left most of the color pictures alone because they were so vibrant and beautiful. They sure don't print books the way they used to. My favorite though is a golden book (smaller children's book) alphabet story I did in vintage school theme. It turned out sooo cute! My first craft show ever was last Sat and I actually sold it there! I made it the night before, and only shot a couple pics with my phone as I was setting up my table at the craft show! I plan to do a few more, they are just sooo fun to work with, and of course vintage school (or anything) is my favorite!!