Spring Thyme- a Book Review with a Free Printable!

Recently I was contacted by the lovely and sweet ladies at Bittersweet Walnut Grove! They have been awesome putting up with my scatter brained ways these last couple of months! See? I started to tell you why they contacted me and I have already gotten sidetracked….

Their wonderful e-book! That’s why they contacted me! I’m so lucky to get to review their wonderful e-book, Spring Thyme! It’s full of spring time recipes, craft projects and family memories!

The book is a family project between Mother and Daughters! It’s the family memories and  anecdotes from these beautiful ladies that make their series of books stand out from the rest of the craft books I’ve seen lately. The ladies intersperse tid-bits about growing up on the farm and I just wanted to run around with them in the fields and look out the window of the farmhouse next to them. They do a great job making you feel like you are a part of this creative and nurturing lifestyle that they are writing about!

The series of e-books that have written correspond with the changing seasons and are meant to connect you and the season thru the recipes and projects! A lot of the recipes are focused around strawberries and that’s perfect for this family who can go through a carton of strawberries like none other! All the recipes have gluten free options, as well.

I picked two recipes to try. Yes, both involve strawberries! With the first being the Strawberry Lemonade! Delicious! I don’t think I’ve ever made lemonade from scratch before! Not only is it really pretty, but it’s tasty too! And even better the day after you make it.

And then we made the DELICIOUS Strawberry Fruit Dip! You could dip anything in this and it would be delicious! It’s super simple and the whole family LOVED it! I’m so glad to have this one. I wonderful new recipe to take to spring and summer potlucks!

I just happened to try a couple of recipes, but the book is full of fun craft projects, like the Strawberry (yes, more strawberries) Sugar Scrub and the Garden Pots, printables, including the adorable pie boxes,  and sewing projects as well, like a really precious bunny doll and little baby chick applique pattern. Fun projects to keep or share! And they are all really easy and quick!

I really want to share all the projects with you, but I don’t want to give it all away either!

And for you…. A lovely printable for bag toppers! The mini bag toppers coordinate with the Gratitude Gift Project series in the book! Click here for your free printable!

You can get your copy, either the kindle edition or paperback, at Amazon, or a paperback version at Barnes and Noble. It’s great! I’m tellin’ ya! Get you own today to see all the other projects I don’t have time to write about!

And be sure to follow the ladies on Facebook!

 

I have been compensated with either payment or product for this post. All opinions are my own, honest opinions!

 

Monster Cake from Sowdering About in Seattle!

I’m in a FB group for Seattle blogger’s and have met (online anyway) some very talented people, including Randi from Sowdering About in Seattle. When I sew her monster party, I knew it would be a perfect fit for her to join us! I couldn’t decide if I wanted her to share how to she made the cake or the headbands… We decided on the cake! It looks so delicious and I wish I had some now!!!! Be sure to check out her blog and all her fun food ideas and crafts!

Welcome Randi!

My son turned one in January and in celebration, we threw him a “monster” themed birthday party. It was very fitting for him since he is, well,  a monster. 

We had various decor, that was mostly homemade, including but not limited to a pretty awesome cake. I really loved how it came out, it probably was my most favorite thing we had at his party. I thought it would make a great tutorial, so here I am.

Because I baked this cake while we were on vacation in Las Vegas, I didn’t actually take pictures while I made it, so instead, I did what any normal person would do. I made another one. I mean, there is never BAD time for cake right? Lucy decided that she wanted our new monster cake to be a purple cake with red frosting.  I used a basic white cake mix from the store and just added some Wilton’s frosting dye to it.

Once it was all mixed, I cooked the cake according to the directions on the box and when it was done, I froze it.   Freezing the cake turned out to be the best for me because where I had planned to have this cake done in just a couple of days, life got in the way, kids got sick, we got super busy.  Anyway, the cake was frozen so it lasted longer.   When I was ready, I brought the cake out and started frosting it before it was defrosted.  Also, this is where you would normally put on the “crumb layer” of frosting.  This is basically a thin layer of frosting all over the cake which “captures” all the crumbs so that they don’t get tangled up into your top layer of frosting.  I normally do this.  I did not do the crumb layer on this cake.  Not for any particular reason except that I just plain forgot. I mixed the frosting together with Wilton’s frosting dye like I did with the batter.

The recipe I used for the frosting was super easy:

• 1 cup butter (salted)
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 2-3 tsps vanilla extract (I didn’t measure, just put some in)
• a splash of whipping cream

Cream the butter and sugar together on low.  Slowly add vanilla and your splash of cream (I left mine a little thicker so I didn’t add a lot of cream).  Mix on med-low until it’s fluffy.  At the end, I added the color and mixed until it was the color I wanted, which ended up being pink, not red.

I noticed with the Wilton’s dye, that if you let it sit a little, it will darken.  So that’s what I did.  After it was all mixed, I let it sit for about 15 minutes.  When I was ready, I pulled out my frosting bag and I used the grass frosting tip that you can get from any craft store.

I always make a HUGE mess when I am frosting.  I will save you from those pictures.  Once my bag was full of pink frosting, I just started piping.  I made small downward strokes to get the “hair” look I was going for.

The best part about this particular style of cake, is that it doesn’t need to be perfect.  It’s actually the imperfections that make it the best.  I mean, what monster have you ever seen with perfectly combed hair?  None.

On Dexter’s cake, I just used large marshmallows on a skewer for the eyes and I used a food marker for the eyes balls.  However, Matt said that we should do something different with this one, so he grabbed some Fruit Loops and we shoved small marshmallows into the holes and then stuck a toothpick in them.  I like how it came out, a little more colorful and fun if you ask me!!

I struggled trying to figure out the best way to cut into this cake to show you the middle.  I didn’t want to just cut into it without a special reason, even though really, Tuesday is a good enough reason to cut into a cake.  But, as it turns out, we were having some friends over for a space craft to celebrate National Space day.  What’s better than a monster cake that you call an alien cake on Space Day right?

Dexter was totally impressed with his cake.  He said it even tasted good with the dirt he had just eaten too.

I thought it turned out pretty amazing.  The colors were great and all the kids loved it.  But what kid doesn’t love a purple cake right?

I hope you all enjoyed this and have fun making your own monster cakes!!!

Randi blogs from a blue recliner in the wet city of Seattle where she lives with her husband and two kids.  To read more about their shenanigans and crafts, please visit her blog Sowdering About in Seattle.  Also, be sure to like her facebook page!

La Petite Pouch Tutorial at Go To Sew

La Petite Pouch!

I needed a little special something to send to someone and I thought and thought about it. I almost just bought something. but then realized the error of my ways and decided to make something. And that’s where the La Petite Pouch was created!

Be sure to head over to Go To Sew to find out how easy it is to make your own!

 

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Beaded Bookmarks!

We seem to be having a hard time keeping up with bookmarks. And we seem to be reading at least one chapter book at a time. Which means, I’m constantly trying to remember where we left off….

So when I saw these adorable bunny bookmarks by Small for Big, I was so excited to make them! Have you seen this? The project has been featured all over the blog world! It’s just so adorable!

I wanted to try making them out of pom poms, since I knew for sure we had different sized pom poms around this house somewhere… The key word in that sentence is somewhere… I couldn’t find them anywhere… So we used the beads that we have at the house. I loved the wood colored originals, but we had colored beads and I think they turned out nicely.

I showed my son the picture of what we were making and proceeded to pick every shape we had, except the circles, for the bunnies! Then he decided that, no, no bunny for him. He was making a little square-headed kid! OK! Well, I stuck to the directions and made a bunny!

I had grand expectations of this project. We were going to make a BUNCH of these for Easter gifts. Then the kiddo left me. Alone. Beading my bookmark. I didn’t have the needle the directions described and our yarn kept separating, so I had to keep adding tape to the end of the yarn in order to bead the beads. So, it was a little slow going and the kiddo lost interest.

He’s so excited to have his bookmark in our book tonight!

Now I have to find something to read to use mine in!

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A Vertical Starfish Garland DIY

Don’t be too sad, but I hate to say it…. This is my last Christmas present post! Yes, February is halfway over and I’m still chatting about Christmas!

This was a gift for my mom who loves everything beach inspired. And who reads the blog, so I couldn’t write about it before Christmas!

I saw this picture of the vertical starfish garland in Coastal Living in the December issue and pulled the ‘ole, ‘I can make that!’ I immediately tore the page out so I wouldn’t forget. And yes, I do subscribe to Coastal Living. On accident! It was also a present for my mom last year, but I accidentally got my mom and myself an issue. Instead of canceling, I’ve really enjoyed it! Now to decide if I resubscribe??? I already have some more DIY ideas for the beach house (or my mom…).

So off to work I went in my little Christmas workshop! I had the rope left over from our pirate party and some starfish still left over from our wedding. I had given most of them to my mom to decorate her house, so I did have to ask her to bring some back for me to make her present! HA!

Originally I was planning on using just one piece of the rope, but then realized a little more simpler approach! I measured out the length I wanted between the stars and then hot glued the one long length of rope to the back of the starfish. Then I went back around each one and wrapped the rope around the top of it. So it looks like one continuous rope, but… It’s not!

I wonder if she’ll hang it at her house or the beach house??? hmmmm….

It would be fun for an Under the Sea party, too, Huh??? Just a little something different than the typical garland!

 

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A Valentine’s Printable for You

Amidst all the sewing this week, my son and I took some time out to be crafty! We are making Valentine’s!

Quilt inspired Valentine’s that is!

I was totally inspired by S.O.T.A.K. Handmade’s pixelated heart pillow. When I first saw it I thought I’d make a few for Valentine’s gifts, but then realized I might not make it in time…. So instead of sewing it, we decided to glue it!

Consider your self warned though…. If you use my printable you must cut a bunch of 1/4 inch squares. You may think, oh, these are small. Easy! Right? Easy yes, quick no! It took me much longer to cut out all the squares than I thought it would. But once you get them cut…. Fun times! My son decided to take a shower while I finished cutting the little squares and I was still cutting when he got back. I heard him (’cause he’s really loud! Are all 4 year olds this loud???) telling his Dad that he had to get back upstairs to make his Valentine. When he came back he was like, ‘WHAT???? you’re STILL cutting???’ Yes, dear….. I’m still cutting out little bitty, teeny, tiny squares!

But once the cutting was done, we were on our way to some super cool Valentine’s!

As we were starting, I was about to correct my son, yes, he’s 4, and get him to get all the little 1/4 inch squares of paper to align perfect in the grid. Then I breathed, because I can get a little OCD when it comes to details like this, and let him go! And I love how his turned out! Even if it doesn’t fit in the teeny tiny grid! HA!

hhhh

And of course, he loved his role of acting SUPER excited to get mail! I also added a little heart glued to the outside of the envelope. You know I’m a sucker for the wrap around address labels or something, at least, added to the envelope too. So this year, instead of the address label, I’m adding the ‘coordinating’ heart on the outside!

Ready for the printable? I have a few versions!

If I scared you about cutting all those little pieces, you can download the card with it already colored in. With the grid, here. I think the grid gives it a little more of a quilt-y feel.

Or you can download the already colored in version without the grid, here.

And if you are a little on the OCD side like me, and are super excited about cutting all the little pieces, you can download the grid with the ‘gluing guidelines’, here!

Enjoy and Have a great Valentine’s Day!

A Handmade Christmas- Pot Holders

And another thing marked off the to do list!

This Christmas there are a bit more handmade items than in years past. Which is fantastic! I’m actually doing them! But the one problem is my procrastination…. Staying up late the last few days! The good part is, I’m loving the pieces I’m making. I can’t show you too many of them since the gifts are going to people who see the blog… So most of January I’ll be showing what I made for my handmade Christmas!

These pot holders were a lot of fun to make. I don’t think I measured a single thing! Oh, that’s not true. I did measure to make sure that they are square. Otherwise, I just kinda cut until they fit.

Remember the Curtain Are So Easy Tutorial I did this summer? Those curtains were for my Stepmother’s kitchen and I had extra pieces left over. And I knew that they needed to be potholders to go in her kitchen!

The first one I made was the elephant one. The elephant is a recurring theme in their home… Roll Tide! TYpically he’s not yellow, but…I loved this Premier Prints elephant fabric.

Then I made this one with just a simple little quilting design.

And lastly, I made the ice cream bowl one! I was totally inspired by this one from Pink Penquin, which she sells here. I admit, I didn’t buy the pattern. But… I’d recommend buying the pattern so that your’s looks as perfect as hers do and so that you don’t end up with a lop sided bowl like I did. With all that ice cream in my bowl, if it was real, it wouldn’t stand up!

My Dad has a little addiction to ice cream. He has a bowl every night before bed. My Step Mom said that if the ice cream wasn’t in the kitchen, he probably wouldn’t even realize that they had a kitchen! So I thought the ice cream one would be fun!

So, like the magnets, I’m kinda addicted to the pot holders now!

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The Glitter is Out for an Ornament Tutorial

If you’ve been reading since last Christmas, you know that I rarely break out the glitter unless it’s Christmas. It’s out again! And I’ve been making glitter tree ornaments.

I’m doing another swap…. Yes, another one. This one is an ornament exchange! The 5th Annual Handmade Holiday Ornament Exchange hosted by Blu Penny. I’m excited! So originally I joined thinking I’d exchange the tree ornament I made from my son’s designs, but then this idea hit me… You might already know this, but I have a growing collection of brightly colored pointy, cone trees that I decorate with. So then this seemed perfect!

The Idea started with this tree as the final product, but the making of went through a few ideas… The idea came from a bag of wooden spools I picked up at Goodwill and have proceeded to lose. I’m 99% sure I have these spools, but I can’t find them anywhere. Then I found some ‘fake’ spools and this is how I finally decided to make the ornaments.

The materials you’ll need are:

Little Foam cones

Little Wooden Spools

Mod Podge or glue

White Paint

Paint Brush

Glitter, I prefer the super fine glitter

Barbeque Skewers

Ribbon

And not pictured (I forgot) is a Loop Turner

Step 1:  First, I painted the little spools.

Step 2: Push the skewer in through the cone. This is kinda tricky, because it wants to come out through the side. So you have to work it up and straight through the middle.

Step 3: Coat the cone in the Mod Podge.

Step 4: Coat in glitter!!!

Step 5: Glue the spools onto the bottom of the cone. I kept my skewer sticking out of the tree to help locate the right position for the spool. (You can also use a hot glue gun for this part!)

Then you have this great little forest of glittery trees!

Step 6: Pull the ribbon through the spool and the cone.

Step 7: And tie a knot at the bottom of the spool and another one at the top of tree. This covers up that flat top part of the cone.

And Voila! It’s ready to hang on the tree!

I’m totally in love with these trees, but now I have to decide which of my swap partners gets which tree….

Do you decorate with these bright colors? Or are you more or a red and green traditionalist??

Be sure to check out all the ornaments in the ornament exchange flickr group for more inspiration!!

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Dear Santa, I Have a Printable Letter for You!

Have you been to see Santa yet? Have you written your letter to Santa? We did both today!

This year I made a fill in the blank letter to Santa. My son was able to fill out some parts, but others, like the gift list, I filled out for him. He was quick to mark the Nice and not the Naughty box!

If you haven’t already written your letters, click Here to download the PDF of this one!

I’ve been on the fence about fill in the blank thank you letters lately. So I’m not sure why I decided to make one for his Christmas letter, but I did and it worked out perfectly! He’s loving learning to write his letters so it was not only a cute looking letter, but a learning experience as well!

And then he got to read it to Santa. they really had a good chat about everything on his list. One thing he’s obsessed about is Spider-man and most of his list is Spider-man related toys. Santa had a good question… If he gets the web thrower, is he ready to pick up the webs it throws? He told Santa yes, but he told me that Spider-man doesn’t pick up his own webs… hmmmm… I’ll have to talk a little further with Santa on this one!

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A Sweet Holiday Hostess Candle Gift

I hope you had a chance to make it out to the Greens and Gifts Galore this weekend! As guests to the sneak preview there was another craft that we got to make that I want to share with you…

Kristin Price from KristinPotPie had this great project set up for us all to make. It could be a great gift to take as a hostess gift to your next party or just to keep (like I’m doing). A bunch of them grouped together would be a beautiful centerpiece as well. (I just thought about that as I was writing this or I would have set it up and taken pictures…)

It’s super simple!

First let’s decorate the top. I cut a circle, but my first one was too small… So I cut again. This time I made the circle larger than I needed, then set it up on the jar and trimmed it down. Cut some greens, grab some floating candles and add water. (If you are giving this as a hostess gift, you might want to wait to add the water. Just in case… You don’t want it to spill on the way to the party!) Then add some ribbon embellishments to the top and Voila!

I don’t remember exactly what the clippings we used were, but I’ll let you know when I find out!

What would you do? Keep it or give it away? Or make more than one and do both???

 

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