PB Inspired Easter Display

I just loved these eggs when I saw them in the new Pottery Barn catalog, but $19 seems steep for 11 eggs.

I already had some wooden eggs and the 2 Easter bunnies. I painted the eggs a parchment color, and then spray painted the bunnies in silver.





I got alphabet stickers that were glittered with blown glitter. The walls in my dining room are a dark brown.



I just love the cakestands. I got those for a birdal showers for my cousin's wedding and thought I would never use them again, but they are great display pieces.

Shamrock Wreath

I really don't have any decorations for St. Patricks Day. So I decided to at least create a wreath.

I picked up all these shamrocks(about 30) at AC Moore. And spray painted them 3 different shades of green.



I then glittered some of them.



Then glued them all to a flat wooden wreath form.




I don't think it turned out too bad and now it's hanging on the back door.

Pottery Barn Knock Off: The Mirror

I saw posts about making this mirror and I just had to try. A $699 mirror. I went out and got the supplies and have about $60 in the project plus a good bit of time. This is not a quick project. What takes the most time is cutting all the little pieces. I woul dhave used my husband's chop saw, but I'm a big fan of all my 10 fingers.

So here's what you need:
36 mirrors from Dollar Tree. You may have to go to more that one store and you will get asked if you are getting married. Told them I was havinga raging party.
2' x 4' mdf plyboard
Molding of your choice
Glue Paint
Clamps

Lay out all your mirrors on the plyboard, along with pieces of your molding, and calculate how much you will need to cut on either edge of your plyboard. As my grandfather always said, measure twice and cut once. I only measured once.

So when I got to the bottom row of my mirrors, I was a little short. I had some iradescent stained glass so I cut that to fit which gives it a different look from the original.

I used this molding saw and jig to cut all my molding.


And I tried lots of different glues. Gorilla Glue worked the best.

So here is the project in process.



And here is the project finished a week later.




This is headed to our summer house which is closed up at the moment. So it will hang out in the dining room until the weather gets a little warmer.

Valentine's Cookies - Glittering Lime Sandwich Cookies

I altered the recipe from The Gourmet Cookie Book for their Glittering Lemon Sandwich Cookies. I love Key Lime. So I alternated key lime zest and juice for the lemon

yield: Makes about 50 sandwich cookies

active time: 1 1/2 hr

total time: 2 1/2 hr

Ingredients For cookies:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon grated lime zest
1 teaspoon vanilla
White or colored sanding sugars

For filling:
1 cup confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon grated lime zest
1 tablespoon fresh key lime juice
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened


Equipment: a heavy-duty sealable bag
print a shopping list for this recipe
PreparationPreheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt.

Beat together butter and confectioners sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, then beat in zest and vanilla. At low speed, mix in flour mixture just until a soft dough forms.

Put sanding sugars in different bowls. Roll a scant teaspoon of dough into a ball and drop into sugar, turning to coat. Reshape if necessary and transfer to a baking sheet. Repeat, spacing balls 3/4 inch apart, until baking sheet is filled.

Bake until tops are slightly cracked but still pale (bottoms will be pale golden), 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer cookies on parchment to a rack to cool completely.

Form and bake more cookies on second baking sheet.

Make filling and sandwich cookies:
Beat together all filling ingredients in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until combined well. Transfer to sealable bag and snip off a corner.

Turn over half of cookies and pipe about 1/2 teaspoon filling on flat side of each. Sandwich with remaining cookies, pressing gently.

Treat Bags & Teacher Gifts are Ready to Go

I know I will miss the day when Kirsten no longer takes Valentines to school or when I know there is some boy that she is giving one to but.................

24 treat bags and a teacher gift are really a stretch.

Got the super cute bag toppers from Glorious Treats.

Happy Valentines Day everyone!!

Check Out the New Glass Tile Around the Fireplace

When my husband put the fireplace in, it was a mess. The wall looked awful. So I decided to fix it. I love glass tiles, but not the price usually. My husband called me a couple weeks ago and said Home Depot had glass tiles for $5/square foot. I headed iver and liked what I saw but the cost would still be about $100 for the tile only. I headed back to the regular tile section and found these beauties on clearance for $1.78/square foot. Happy Day!!! No tile saw needed. These are mounted on a mesh that you just cut with scissors.

Can We All Say Vintage?

My current holiday obsession is the Twelve Days of Christmas. We started with a Patridge in a Pear Tree in 2009, last year was Two Turtle Doves. I have been collecting craft kits and cross stitch patterns. The one I got today is vintage, circa 1973. Shall we guess the paint is all dreid up? But this thing is still in the original shrink wrap. I hate to take it off.

Felt Heart Wreath

Felt Heart Wreath
Materials:
Styrofoam Heart Wreath
Felt
Scissors
Lots of Pins

I actually used my Sizzix Big Shot and the circel cutter to cut my circles.

Cut our lots of circles. I think I used 1 1/2 yards of felt. Fold the circles in half and then half again and pin them on until the wreath is full.

Burlap Valentines Wreath

Burlap Valentines Wreath
Materials:
18 inch straw wreath
burlap - 2 1/2 yards
scissors
lots of pins

Cut burlap in 4 inch squares. Fold in half anf then half again. Round off the top. Then pin hte circles to the wreath.

I used brown and red burlap becasue my Joann's olny had 2 yards of red burlap. I love the look of the two colors though.