Valentine Conversation Blocks

I found these awesome conversation blocks while perusing several blogs a couple of weeks ago.  I thought they were SO cute, so I just had to make my own.  The project itself was pretty simple.  I had a really hard time finding then getting the blocks cut.  Thankfully, it was daddy to the rescue.  He cut a 4x4 post for me.  The blocks are each about 2 inches wide.  Due to the cold weather we've had, I wasn't able to spray paint them, so I painted them with acrylic paint then dry-brushed each block with the coordinating colors until they were the design I liked.  I'm so glad I spent so much time in the Schenk's ceramic shop as a kid.  I learned SO much!  I used my cricut (the Cuttin' Up cartridge) to cut out 1 1/4 inch letters on black paper then decoupaged them on with Matte Mod Podge.
The complete directions can be found at Brown Paper Packages blog.  She has a lot of fabulous ideas!

Recipe- A Twist on the Sandwich

I could get rid of cable if they would just give me Food Network & HGTV.  Seriously...  Several months ago, I saw Giada make this amazing steak sandwich.  It looked good, but there were items in it I didn't like.  So, here's my twist on Giada's steak sandwich.

Start out with rectangle of puff pastry. (Do not use Phyllo Dough.  It doesn't work- trust me- I tried.)  I recommend separating it into 3 triangles.  It comes apart easily in the folds.  Bake the puff pastry @ 400 degrees for about 15 minutes or until lightly browned.  It will be puffy so you might want to kind of tap the top of each.

While this was baking, I cooked two small pieces of steak (sprinkled with Season All) in a skillet slightly covered in Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  After this had cooked, I sliced it into small strips.  Then in the same skillet, I cooked up some carmelized onion.  Then I sliced up some lettuce & tomato.

I then took one layer of puff pastry and put a layer of mayo on it, then placed a layer of steak & all of the carmelized onion.  I took the next layer of puff pastry put another layer of mayo & the rest of the steak and added the lettuce and tomato.  I then topped it with the final layer of puff pastry and cut it in half.

It's messy, but so, so worth it!  I made it with chicken this weekend and it was good too! 

Enjoy!

VALENTINE'S DECOR!!!

I am a sucker for holidays.  I love them.  I really love decorating for them.  I didn't decorate as much as I wanted to for Christmas, but Valentine's Day is a pretty easy one to decorate for.  I've not always been the biggest fan of Valentine's Day, but things have changed and love is certainly in the air.  I normally would wait till February 1 to put it all out, but since I am pretty sure this will be the last year I will be permitted to have a VERY pink bathroom, I decided to enjoy it a little early. 

The love sign was a recent find at Hobby Lobby.  I thought it was cute (plus it was on sale).

My pink bathroom.  (It has bad lighting the walls aren't really that color)  I like it. 
That boy certainly will not be a big fan. hehe...

Dining room table.  Perfect for dinner for two... :)

Valentine's Crafts will be coming soon, so will a recent craft I did for a baby gift.  I just can't share it till I've mailed it!

Snow Days Project {Picture Clock}

Living in Huntsville, you don't see many snow "days".  Actually, we don't see much snow.  Occasionally, we'll get a 2 hour delay going in to work or get to leave a little early, but never in my over 4 years of employment have I gotten a full day.  This year we got 8 inches of snow dumped on us and are now in icy conditions.  We have had 2 days off of work.  How crazy is that???  It gave me the opportunity to work on this awesome picture clock that I have been dying to do. 

Here is what you need for this project:

16x16 photo (The pic was 16x16 then saved and printed as a 16x20- giving it white edges around it)

16x16 backing (I used plywood- 3/4 inch thick. It's heavy though so you may want to look for something lighter weight)
Drill

Mod Podge (I used the Matte kind)

Sponge Brush
Paint to match or accent the photo
Paint Brush
Clock pieces
Cutter Bee or X-Acto Knife

I chose one of our engagement pictures and asked Katie to put the clock numbers (you can add 3-D type numbers instead of having them put on it) and the name stamp on it for me.  Hopefully, when I get my new computer I can put Photoshop Elements on it, so then I can do that type of stuff myself.  Until then, I'm thankful for friends who can help.  : )  You could also use Picnik, which is a free internet site for the editing of the pictures.  I had it printed at Sam's Club since they had the best price for that size photo ($5.96+tax).

I used a piece of plywood 3/4 inch thick for this clock.  It's a bit heavy to hang though, so I recommend finding something lighter weight.  The clock pieces required it to be 3/4" thick though.  We went ahead and drilled the hole where the clock pieces would need to go. 

After you cut the edges off the photo, you will probably find that it is a little shorter than the board.  I recommend painting the edges either a color to match your photo or one to accent it.  I also would recommend using acrylic paint, but we were stuck in the house (at my parent's) and all my acrylic paint was at my house.  So, we used what we had Behr wall paint.  haha...

Once the edges are good and dry, "paint" a good layer of Mod Podge on the board.  Carefully lay your picture on top of this.  After you have completed this, put an even layer of Mod Podge on top of the picture.  Make sure it even gets on the wooden edges.  This will help seal it down.  Don't be alarmed by the fact that it has a white layer.  This will dry clear.  It takes an hour or so to get good and dry.

Once it was dry, I then took my Cutter Bee knife and carefully punched a hole through the center.  I would also recommend using the Stampin' Up Paper Piercer. (It might go through a little easier.)  Go very slowly as you cut through the picture so as not to tear it.  I purchased my clock pieces at Hobby Lobby (really inexpensive- $5.99 plus you can use a 40% off coupon).  Follow the directions on the back of the clock to put the clock pieces on.  Then just add your battery!  Now you have a functional clock!!!

I can't wait to hang this on the wall after we get married (and figure out where we are living)!!!

Wedding Project!!!!

I was sitting at Wholesale Florist the other day discussing wedding flowers with their designer and my mother.  She was mentioning all kinds of things that we hadn't thought of.  This of course gets my brain going and I then have to attempt to come up with SOME design in my head.  I'm not gonna lie- flowers are my weakness.  I don't know much about them or what looks good together so I'm totally at the mercy of the floral designer.  She mentioned having something to hang on the door.  I thought it was a great idea, but it certainly wasn't a necessity and was something I could do without, but the more I thought about it, the more I kind of wanted to have something pretty hanging on the door.  I hadn't discussed it with anyone, but Malea (she might just be able to read my mind now) had sent me this FABULOUS heart wreath tutorial that she really liked THAT day!  This of course prompted us to spend our lunch break at Hobby Lobby the next day to purchased everything to make these wreaths.  The tutorial says to use felt, but I opted to use the same turquoise satin I'm using for the wedding.

So, here are some step by step pictures (don't worry, I'll post the link to the tutorial at the bottom):

I purchased 1 yard of fabric then I cut it into 3 inch wide strips.

 Erin and Rachel were over for girl's night and assisted in the cutting of 3 in. squares and then cutting them into circles.

I wrapped the heart shaped styrofoam wreath with black ribbon (pinning it as I went).

 The circles are sort of folded together to make these neat little roses.  I then pin them into the wreath.

I painted a styrofoam "S" for the center of the wreath.

The final product!!!

I love it!!!!  I'll be making a 2nd one this weekend. 

This is a time consuming project taking approximately 4 hours with help.  I believe it is WELL worth it (afterall, it is for the wedding!).  The total cost is less than $10 if you can pick some of the items up on sale and use a 40% off coupon.

Here's how to do it yourself: http://www.designspongeonline.com/2009/12/diy-project-kristens-ruffly-felt-wreath.html

Gift Card holder

This little project is one I did before Christmas.  I had a gift card for a gift exchange while we were in Texas and really wanted to have a neat little gift card holder to put it in.  So, I thought, "Why not make one myself?"  I called my crafty sidekick- Malea- to see if she had any ideas.  I needed to make it out of paper since my sewing machine was at mom's house.  I fell in love with the one at diaryofacraftaholic's.  Here is my version of it:

Check out the tutorial here:
http://diaryofacraftaholic.blogspot.com/2009/12/rtw-christmas-gift-card-holders.html

First Craft Project of 2011

My first craft project of 2011 was a fun little thank you card.

Items needed:
1 white card (pack from Michael's or use white cardstock)
1 3/8" circle punch (from Stampin' Up)
1 3/4" scallop punch (from Stampin' Up)
Olive green textured cardstock (I picked colors out of my scraps bucket)
Pumpkin orange textured cardstock
So Many Thanks Stamp (from Stampin' Up)
Olive Green Ink Pad (from Stampin' Up)

I punched out my shapes first.  Then I ran the circles through my Xyron sticker maker.  I attached the circles to the scallops.  I laid the scallops on the left side of the card and attached them with foam stickies to give them a little heighth.  Then I stamped the Thanks stamp to the right of the scallops. 

A cute little Thank You card made in less than 5 min!