Fancy Wrappin'

It seems most people don't put a ton of effort into wrapping presents. "It's going to get ripped open anyway…what's the point?" Although this is a true statement, fancy wrappin' can make a present so much more desirable! Also, it doesn't have to cost as much as the present itself. Using a few common household items and left over scraps from previous crafts, you can make your gifts this season look beautiful. Instead of giving directions for this post, I will be giving hints and ideas.

What you'll need:

- Brown paper shopping bags (I like Trader Joes or Whole Food)

- Scissors

- Packing Tape

- Scraps of fabric

- Twine or Hemp

- String

- Letter Stamps and Ink Pad

- White paint pen

- Left over birch circles from the "Button Birch Garland" project

- Left over pillows from the "Pillow Garland" project

Ideas and Hints

1. Brown paper bags are GREAT for wrapping presents. They don't rip if you pull a corner too tight and the paper is a great foundation for other decorations. Also…they're free!
2. I like Whole Foods and Trader Joes bags because they often have cool designs on their bags that I can cut out and glue or tape to add color and interest.
3. I like to use packing tape with the brown paper because it holds better than regular scotch tape.
4. Use old scraps of fabric cut into strips to tie a bow. If your strips are too short, simply tie them together in a small knot to make them longer.
5. Use multiple strings, twines, or fabrics to tie a bow. It makes it more interesting and adds more volume to the bow.
6. Letter stamps are a great way to signify who the package belongs too.
7. Use a paint pen to draw designs or borders along the edges of your packages or the ribbons.
8. Left over pieces from either of my previous posts, "Button Birch Garland" or "Pillow Garland", are great additions to gift wrap. Glue the pillows at the base of the bow to add volume or thread the ribbons through the holes of the birch and tie a bow to add a rustic feel.

I hope these ideas have gotten your creative juices flowing. Happy Wrapping and Merry Christmas!

Paper Maché Ornaments

One of my favorite childhood activities is now one of the hottest trends in holiday décor. I have seen paper maché ornaments every where this season from West Elm to Anthropologie. It's no wonder paper maché is so popular - it adds a crafty and whimsical look to any tree and, when done right, it can even add playful sophistication.

What You'll Need:

- One old book, preferably with yellowish pages

- Garbage mail, magazines work great

- Masking tape

- 1 cup warm water

- ½ cup Elmers glue

- Clear, high gloss, finish

- Foam brush

- Screw-in eye hooks

- String

1. Form round spheres using the garbage mail. You can make these as perfectly round as you like. If you are going for a sophisticated look, you will want to make them as symmetrical as possible. Use the masking tape to secure the spheres so they keep their shape.
2. Rip out pages of the old book (We got the largest book we could find at the GoodWill for only 99 cents). Tear the pages into strips. If you want a more sophisticated look, you will want to cut your strips instead of tearing them. Tearing them will give your ornaments a more rustic look.
3. Time to make the glue. In a large bowl, stir together the glue and water. I have chosen to go with a glue recipe here because although the traditional flour recipe is stronger, it leaves behind a strange white residue, whereas the glue will dry clear.
4. Here comes the messy part. Do just like you did when you were a kid and coat a strip in the goo and place it onto one of the spheres. Repeat this until the whole sphere is covered. Set aside to dry. It will take about 6 to 8 hours to dry depending on how large your spheres are. Repeat this for all of the spheres.
5. Once the ornaments are dry, take a screw-in eye hook and screw it into the top of each ornament. Don't push too hard as you screw them in otherwise the eye hook will eventually fall out. Feel free to secure the eye hook with a tad of hot glue.
6. The eye hooks should now be attached the ornaments. Holding the ornament by the eye hook and using the foam brush, coat each ornament with the high gloss finish. I like to use a foam brush because it covers very evenly and it doesn't leave behind stray hairs like a brush can. Once each sphere is coated, set aside to dry. Some finishes only take 30 minutes to set while others can take up to 24 hours. Follow the directions on the side panel of your particular finish.
7. Once the ornaments are dry, use the string to tie a loop to hang the ornaments by stringing it through the eye hook. Then hang them on your tree!

Flakey Goat's Milk and Thyme Biscuits

I believe that every person who loves to bake or cook needs to have a good biscuit recipe. Biscuits are so simple, yet the slightest misstep in adding the proper amount of a particular ingredient or using a less than effective technique can result in crummy biscuits. I've spent hours in the kitchen perfecting my biscuit recipe. They are flakey and soft. They are perfect for sandwiches or served simply with homemade raspberry balsamic preserves (keep your eyes open for that recipe come mid summer!)

What You'll Need:

2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 tablespoons dried thyme

1/3 cup shortening (or lard), cold cut into cubes

2/3 cup goat milk

½ cup butter, melted

- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

- In a large mixing bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, soda, and thyme.

- Using two knives, cut in the shortening until well blended (this can also be done in a food processor which will speed up the process).

- Add the goat milk and form the dough into a ball. Feel free to add a little extra flour if you need.

- Form the dough into a ball and roll out into a rectangle about ½" thick.

- Arrange the rectangle so one of the short sides is facing you. Starting from the edge closest to you and working up the rectangle, using a pastry brush or spoon, lightly cover two thirds of your dough with the melted butter. Starting with the farthest edge, fold the dough into thirds.

- Roll out the dough again and repeat the previous step about 3 more times. This process is what will make your biscuits flakey. Be careful not to roll to hard or be too harsh with your dough, otherwise your biscuits will be tough (and nobody likes tough biscuits!)

- Once you have coated and folded your dough for the last time, roll out the dough until it is about 1" thick. Using a sharp knife, cut the biscuits into equal squares. If you prefer circular biscuits like me, you can also use a round cookie cutter or even a biscuit cutter to cut out your biscuits.

- Place your cut biscuits on a greased cookie sheet and bake for about 10 to 12 minutes until golden brown.

- Remove from oven and let cool slightly. These babies are best served warm.

Yield: About 12 

Roasted Tri-Colored Potatoes and Leeks

This is one of my favorite dishes because it is easy to make and it looks beautiful. I always serve this whenever company comes over because it looks impressive and tastes delicious. I have also included a recipe to make a balsamic reduction to serve with this dish. I usually paint the reduction on the plate then pile the potatoes on top. Served with a tender, grilled steak you can't go wrong! Delicious!

What You'll Need:

1.5 lbs of Tri-Colored Potatoes

2 Leeks

2 Tablespoons of dried Thyme

2 Tablespoons of dried, powdered Rosemary

4 Tablespoons of Olive Oil

Sea Salt and Pepper to Taste

½ cup Balsamic Vinegar

- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

- Slice your potatoes into disks about ¼" thick. Be sure to cut them all roughly the same size to ensure even cooking. Place these in a large mixing bowl.

- Slice your leeks on the bias about ¼" thick. Be sure you wash your leeks very well as they have many layers and dirt can get logged between them. Once you have sliced them, place them in the bowl with the potatoes.

- Drizzle the oil over the potatoes and leeks.

- Using clean hands, toss the mixture until the oil has coated the veggies. You could use a spoon, but I find it's easier just to dig in.

- Toss in the thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper. Again, toss with your hands until the spices are evenly incorporated.

- Empty the bowl into a roasting dish and roast for 30 to 40 minutes, checking every so often so they do not burn.

For the Reduction:

- Heat the balsamic over medium high heat until boiling. Once it begins to boil, reduce heat to a simmer.

- Simmer for about 5 minutes or until vinegar becomes syrupy.

- Remove from heat and serve immediately. FYI: This process does release some strong (delicious) smells, so be prepared.

Serves 4 to 6

Sweater Stocking

These stockings are a great way to decorate your home for Christmas. I got the idea while shopping for Christmas decorations last year. I was in one of my favorite stores (for those of you who know me, I’m sure you know which store I am talking about) and I saw these adorable sweater stockings for sale. I fell in love with them and was all set to buy them, but on my way to the register I noticed they were priced at $68 a piece! No thank you! I knew I could make these at home for a fraction of the cost…and that’s just what I did.

I’ve attached a pattern to make this even easier!

What You’ll Need:

2 Old Sweaters (a thrift store is a perfect place to find these)

Scissors

Measuring Tape

Marker

Either a Sewing Machine or a Needle and Thread

4” Piece of Yarn

1.     Decide which sweater will be Sweater A and which will be Sweater B. Sweater A will be the bulk of the stocking, while Sweater B will be the toe and cuff around the top. Copy and paste each of the pictures below into a document and scale them up until they are sized to liking. Be sure to scale them all up according to the same ratio so they still fit together properly. Print them and cut them out.

2.     Let’s start with Sweater A. Arrange Piece A over your sweater and trace with a marker. Cut out this piece. Next, turn Piece A over so that the “A” is on the opposite side. Arrange the piece over another part of your sweater and trace. Cut this piece out. You should now have two Piece A’s, both facing opposite directions.

3.     Onto Sweater B!  Arrange Piece B onto the sweater and trace. Cut out your piece. Do this twice.

4.     Repeat Step 2 using Sweater B and Piece C.  

5.     Onto the sewing! You can do this by hand or with a machine, whichever you prefer.

6.     Arrange both Piece A’s right side to right side. This is a fancy way of saying inside-out. Sew up along the two long sides. Turn your piece right side out. Set aside.

7.     Arrange both Piece B’s right side to right side and sew up along the angled sides. Your piece should now resemble a cuff. Then based on the line in the pattern, turn the piece right side out only half way so it resembles a folded cuff.

8.     Arrange Piece A within the fold of Piece B.  Sew around the cuff to secure Piece A to Piece B. Set aside

9.     Arrange both Piece C’s right side to right side. Sew along the curved edge. Turn right side out.

10. Arrange Piece A to fit inside Piece C. Sew along the edge of piece C to secure Piece A to Piece C.

11. Fold your piece of yarn in half. Sew the piece of yarn to one side of the stocking so it can hang from your mantel.

And that’s all there is to it!

Birch Button Garland

The Christmas season is here! My husband and I started the tradition last year of making all of the decorations for our tree. This year, we decided to make a new garland. I love this garland. It's rustic and quaint and it is pretty inexpensive to make. You can purchase the birch online or do what we did and put on a pair of boots and forage for it. Birch wood is easy to find. Just scan your eyes across a tree line, and it will stick out like a sore thumb.

What You'll Need:

6' long Birch branch, about 2" - 3" in diameter

A saw of some sort (we used skill saw, but you could do it by hand)

Drill

Clear finish (The finish is up to you, we like the satin finish)

2 spools of ribbon, ¼" wide

Needle and thread

- Using the skill saw, cut your birch branch into disks, about 1" wide. You can mark these if you like, but we just eye-balled it. Besides, the inconsistent widths will add to the overall rustic look.

- Using the drill, drill two holes all the way through each disk. Again, you can mark these if you like, but it is not necessary.

- Clean each disk of any residual sawdust.

- If you cut your birch from a live tree, you will need to let the disks dry out for a day or too. If not, then go on right ahead to the next step.

- Finish each side of the disks. This may seem unnecessary, but birch wood eventually turns black when it is exposed to oxygen for long amounts of time. The finish will prevent this from happening so you can reuse your garlands next year.

- Once your disks have dried, it is time to start stringing them. Cut a piece of thread about 4" long. Thread the needle. Poke the needle through the top ¼" of one of the ends of the ribbon. Pull the needle through so that the thread is strung through the ribbon. Tie the thread in a knot around the ribbon to secure the ribbon to the needle. This will make it easier for you to string your disks.

- One by one, string your disks, just like buttons - go up through one hole and down through the other. Space the disks about 2" apart from each other.

And there you have it! A beautiful garland that was easy to make and under $10.

Pillow Garland

My husband and I came up with the idea for this garland last year. It is definitely time consuming, but so worth it. As we decorated our tree last night, we couldn't help but smile as we put draped this little garland. It adds so much to your tree and looks beautiful with the Birch Button Garland posted above.

What You'll Need:

6 Quarter Flats (These are usually used for quilting. If you cannot find quarter flats, then ¼ yard each of 6 different kinds of fabric will do)

Scissors

Hot glue

Mini cotton balls

Needle and Thread (Upholstery thread works best)

- Cut each fabric into 3" by 3" squares.

- Starting with one little square, facedown on the table in front of you, place 1 cotton ball in the middle of your square.

- Fold up each corner onto the cotton ball and glue with hot glue to secure. The finished product should look like a little pillow.

-Repeat with all of your fabric squares (I told you, it's definitely time consuming).

- Once you are finished making all of your little pillows, it is time to string them. Cut about a 3' string of thread and thread your needle. It is best to string the pillows in short strands then tie them together. This way, your thread does not get tangled as you string your pillows.

- Starting at one corner of a pillow and pushing through to the other corner, string each pillow. Your pillows should be strung on the diagonal.

-Once you have strung all your pillows, secure each end with a knot.

I hope these garlands gave you some good ideas and helped to get you in the holiday spirit!

Bourbon Soaked Apple and Hazelnut Biscotti

My husband and I love to have after-dinner coffee and a biscotti every evening. Since we do this every night, it is a challenge to come up with creative variations on this humble little cookie. This is my newest recipe, and I think it is my favorite thus far...

What You'll need

½ cup of apple cider

¼ cup Bourbon (I like Four Roses)

1 baking apple (such as Cortland, Mac, or Braeburn)

2 eggs

¾ cup white sugar

½ cup butter, melted and cooled

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract (optional but it makes a BIG difference)

1 tablespoon cinnamon

2 cups all purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup of hazelnuts (feel free to add more if you'd like)

·      Preheat oven to 350.

·      Lightly butter a cookie sheet. Dust with flour so it is covered and set aside.

·      Peel the apple and cut into tiny cubes, about ¼" on each side.

·      Place the cider, bourbon, and apple cubes in a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator overnight.

·      When the apples are ready, begin making the dough. With an electric beater or stand mixer, beat the eggs and sugar until light in color and fluffy.

·      Add the cooled butter (it is important it is cool so it does not cook the eggs…ew) and extracts. Mix until blended.

·      In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon. You can sift these together if you like, but I always just take a whisk do a real good once over - who has time to sift?

·      Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture very slowly and mix until blended.

·      Remove the apples from the fridge and strain them. We don't want any of that extra liquid in the dough. Feel free to take the extra liquid and make yourself a cocktail!

·      Using a spatula or spoon, mix the apples and hazelnuts into the dough.

·      Halve the dough using your spoon and scoop the half onto one side of the prepared cookie sheet. Take the other half of dough and do the same on the other side of the sheet. Try to get the two piles as equal as possible.

·      Using damp hands (this prevents the dough from sticking to you), form the piles into logs about 10" long and 4" wide. Smooth the edges and try to make the corners as square as possible.

·      Place the sheet in the oven and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown and fragrant.

·      Once they are done, remove them from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes.

·      Reduce the oven temperature to 300.

·      Once your logs are done cooling, transfer them to a cutting board. Using a serrated knife, cut each log crosswise into slices about 1" thick. Place each slice, cut side down, back on the cookie sheet.

·      Return to the oven and bake for another 18 - 22 minutes until golden brown and crisp.

·      Let these cool completely before you handle them as they are fragile when they first come out of the oven. They will harden as they cool.

·      Place in your cookie jar and enjoy!

Yield: about 24 cookies

Holiday Apron

I can't even remember how long I have had my apron. I tend to be a messy cook and this apron has saved so many of clothes from oil stains, sauce splatters, and caked flour. This apron will be a great help in the kitchen as you're rampin' up for all that holiday cooking you're about to do. These are super easy (I can make one in about an hour) and they make excellent holiday gifts.

What you’ll need:

½ Yard each of two different kinds of fabric, I like to use a thick cotton

Scissors

Sewing machine (you could stitch this by hand but it might take awhile)

Iron

2 big buttons

Pen

Measuring tape

This apron is made for a size XS/S. For a S/M, add 2 inches to the width of each piece. For a M/L, add 4”. Diagrams below are not to scale. 

1. Wash and dry your fabric. I always do this before I sew any piece of clothing. You never know if your fabric will shrink once it is washed, so it is best to do it before you start sewing. It’s also best to iron it before you start to work. This will ensure your lines are straight.

2. Decide which fabric you want to be Fabric A and which one you want to be Fabric B. Fabric A will be the bulk of the apron while Fabric B will be the waist band, neck, and bottom ruffle.

3. Set Fabric B aside. Fold fabric A in half lengthwise, right side to right side so that the wrong side of the fabric is facing out. With the fold to the right side, starting at the bottom right side of your fabric, measure up 1” make a mark. Let’s call is Point A. Starting from the Point A, measure out 12” from right to left and make a mark. Let’s call this point B. Using your measuring tape as a guide, draw a straight line between Points A and B.

4. Starting from point A, measure up along the fold 15” and make a mark. Lets call this Point C. Starting from point C, measure out from right to left 9” and make a mark. This will be Point D. Draw a straight line from Point C to Point D.  Using your measuring tape as a guide, draw a diagonal, but straight, line between Points D and B. So far, your fabric should look like this:

5. On to the next piece! Starting from Point C, measure up 2” and make a mark. We will call this Point E. Starting from Point E, measure out 5 ½” from right to left in a straight line (try to get it as square as you can) and make a mark. We will call this point F. Draw a straight line between E and F.
Along the right side of the fabric, starting at point E, measure up 8” and make a mark. Let’s call this point G. 

6. Starting from Point G, measure out 4” from right to left. Again, try to make it as square as you can. Place a mark here and let’s call this (you guessed it) Point H. Draw a straight line between Points G and H. Draw another straight line between points H and F. Your fabric should now look like this:

7. In the upper left corner of your fabric, draw a rectangle using the same method we used above that measures 2” by 5” Do not draw this piece on the fold. You will be cutting out two of these little pups. When you’re all done, your fabric should look like this:

8. Time to cut your pieces! Cut out all of your pieces, leaving about a 1” edge between the line you’ve drawn and your actual cut. These lines we drew will be your sewing lines, not your cutting lines. Leave your fabric folded while you cut. This way your pieces are perfectly symmetrical and you don’t have as much cutting to do. When you are finished you should have the following pieces:

9. Set these pieces aside and now it’s on to Fabric B! Fold Fabric B in half cross-wise (opposite the way we did with Fabric A). Situate your fabric the same way we did before with the fold on the right side.

10. Starting at the bottom right hand corner, measure up 1” and make a mark. We will call this Point A (we’re on a new piece of fabric so we can do this). Starting at the bottom left hand corner, measure up 1” and make a mark. We will call this Point B. Using your measuring tape, draw a straight line between Points A and B.  

11. Starting from Point A, measure up 2” and make a mark. We will call this Point C. Starting from Point B, measure up 2” and make a mark. We will call this Point D. Draw a straight line between points C and D.

12. Starting from Point C, measure up 2” and make a mark. We will call this Point E. Starting from Point D, measure up 2” and make a mark. We will call this Point F. Draw a straight line between points E and F.

13. Starting from point E, measure up 2”, and make a mark. We will call this Point G. Starting from point F, measure up 2”, and make a mark. We will call this Point H. Draw a straight line between Points G and H. Your Fabric should look like this:

15. Starting from Point I, measure up 4” and make a mark. This will be Point K. Starting from point I, measure up 4” and make a mark. This will be Point L. Draw a straight line between K and L.

16. We’re almost done, you just have one more piece to draw. Starting from Point K, measure up 2” and make a mark. We will call this Point M. Starting from Point M, from right to left measure 10” and make a mark. This will be Point N. Draw a straight line between M and N

17. Starting from point M, measure up 2 ½” and make a mark. This will be Point O. From point J, measure up 2 ½” and make a mark. This will be point P. Draw a straight line between Points O and P. Draw another straight line between Points N and P. Your fabric should now look like this:

18. Cut out your pieces. Again, leave your fabric folded while you cut. When you are finished cutting all your pieces from both fabrics you will have the following pieces (I have labeled them for easy reference for the next steps. Feel free to use masking tape marked with the proper number to mark each piece):

19. Let’s start with Piece 1. The thing about sewing is, it involves just as much ironing as it does sewing. This is to ensure you get nice crisp edges to your projects. Starting with the short edge of piece one (this will be the top of your apron) fold each corner down and iron as shown below:

20. Now fold the edge and iron as show below. Do this with the two diagonal edges as well. Try to get all of your folds as close to the line you drew previously.

21.  Sew each edge that you ironed as shown:

22. On to Piece 2. Starting with the long edge (this will be the bottom of your apron) fold each corner and iron. Now fold the edge and iron. Fold and iron each diagonal edges. This is all just like we did with Piece 1.

23. Sew each edge that you ironed (again, just like we did with Piece 1).

24. Onto the waist strap! Take Piece 4A. Fold up each long edge to the line you and iron as shown. Repeat this with Piece 4B:

25.  Arrange Pieces 4A and 4B wrong side to wrong side and pin them together. We will call these Piece 4 since they are pinned together. Using your measuring tape, find the mid point of the strip and mark lightly as shown:

26.  Take Piece 1. Measure along the unsewn edge and mark the mid point of that edge. Line up your marks on Piece 4 and Piece 1. Insert Piece 1 between Pieces 4A and 4B and pin as shown. Pin to secure.

27.  Starting all the way at the edge of your strap, sew along the long edge. Piece 1 will now be sewn between Pieces 4A and 4B as shown:

28. Take Piece 2 and find the mid point on the unsewn edge as we did before with Piece 1. Lightly mark. Do the same on the bottom edge of Piece 3. Line up your marks and insert the unsewn edge of Piece 2 between Pieces 4A and 4B just like we did with Piece 1. Pin to secure.

29. Sew as we did before with Piece 1. Your apron should look like this so far:

30.  Let’s finish the strap. Take Piece 3A. Fold and iron each corner as shown below. Fold each edge and iron as we have done so before with other pieces:

31. Fold the whole piece in half lengthwise and iron as shown:

32. Repeat steps 30 and 31 with Piece 3B.

33. Arrange Piece 3A over one edge of Piece 4 like so and sew each edge of piece 3A as shown below. Repeat on the other side with Piece 3B.

34. Let’s make the neck strap! Take Piece 5 and fold and iron each corner and edge like we did with pieces 3A and 3B.  Fold in half length wise and iron (again like we did with pieces 3A and 3B).

35. Sew around the perimeter of your folded Piece 5. Sew one end of Piece 5 to the upper left hand corner of Piece 1 and the other end of Piece 5 to the upper right hand corner of Piece 1. Make sure the strap is not twisted when you sew it. Your apron should look like this: 

You pretty much have an apron now! Good Job!  You can wear it like this, but if you want to add a few more details then complete the following steps:

36. Let’s make the ruffle to attach to the bottom. Take Piece 6 and pleat along one of the long edges, using pins to hold the pleats in place. Like so:

37. Sew along the pleated edge to hold the pleats in place.

38. Next we have to finish the edges. We only need to finish the un-pleated edges. Do as we have done before: fold and iron the corners. Then fold and iron the edges. Then sew. Make sure to use the bottom edge of your apron as a guide for how long the pleated strip needs to be.

39. Next, arrange the unfinished edge of Piece 6 behind the finished edge of piece 2 and pin. Sew the edges together.

40. Once that is done, all we have to do is add those buttons. Glue or sew one button in the upper left corner of Piece 1 on top of the neck strap edge. Do the same on the other side:

And there you have it! You have a cute new apron to wear while you bake either my previous or next post: Apple Barnstars or Bourbon Soaked Apple and Hazelnut Biscotti.