Monday, January 29, 2018

Multi-Purpose Porch Decor Door

In December, I made this door to put on my front porch with interchangeable panels.  You can see it HERE dressed for Christmas.  I was excited to add the first of the new panels to this for Valentine's Day.
As I say in my other post, you could use any type of thin wood or plywood for this.  I used old peel-and-stick floor tiles (that I would NEVER want to see on a floor!) which make this really easy to do.  I started by cutting the tiles using a template I created so they will fit inside the panels of the old door.  Once the fabric is cut, I just peeled the paper backing off of the tiles and stuck the fabric to the tile. If you are using wood, you can use spray adhesive.  Next, I used a glue gun to fold the corners back and then the edges to create a finished, covered panel.
Since this could be exposed to the elements, I sealed the fabric panels with water-repellent/outdoor Mod Podge.  The panels are attached/detached using velcro (detailed in my other post).
The top panel is painted with chalk paint so I can change out the quotes or verses.
Now my porch is ready for Valentine's Day! (LOL the banner says Be Mine but you can only see "e mine")
I added a dollar store wreath to my milk can and filled a red, wire basket with silver dollar plants and a dollar store, red, plastic plate and some pink lights.
Many are not familiar with Silver Dollar plants but let me tell you, they are SO pretty and fun to grow!  I think a friend gave me some seeds years ago and since then, I always have an abundance of them each spring.
They bloom in the spring and have these gorgeous, tall stalks of purple flowers.  After the flowers fade, they leave behind tiny pods that continue to grow and turn brown as the spring wears on.  Eventually, you cut down the stalks and then the fun begins!
At the top you see the pods with the seeds (these were originally the purple flowers).  The middle picture is what you get as you sit and mindlessly, therapeutically rub the pods between your fingers, removing the two outer, brown 'skins' and seeds. Then, you're left with these iridescent, shiny 'silver dollars'.  In the bottom picture you can see the pile of seeds left behind!
They make lovely arrangements!
I've even stamped on them and used them on gifts, cards, etc. (Read my previous post on the Silver Dollar Plant) The pilgrims brought them on the Mayflower.  Thomas Jefferson grew them in the famous gardens of Monticello and he often mentioned them in his letters.  They are easy to grow as they re-seed themselves year after year.  
As you can see, there is never a shortage of seeds! If you'd like me to send some to you, I'd be happy to!  Just email me privately with your name and address and I'll get them to you in time to plant for spring.  All you have to do is turn over the dirt as soon as everything is thawed and scatter the seeds, covering over with dirt.  That's it.  Beware though that when they start to come up, they can be mistaken for weeds! See my Silver Dollar Post for pictures of what they look like at every stage.
Since Easter is so early this year, I'll probably skip St. Patrick's Day decor so my next panels will be for Spring!

On any given week (depending on how busy I am!) I love to participate in Link Parties.  These gals put a lot of time and effort into hosting these parties so I always want to show my appreciation by directing my readers to these blogs. 

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Friday, January 26, 2018

Folded Book Art - Double Heart

 
 These are becoming addicting.  It's such a great way to use books that you normally would donate or toss.  My first attempt was a single heart (you can see it HERE).  Once you get the idea, it's really very easy.
The first one I did was ALL 90 degree angle folds like this.  But when I went to try the double heart, after marking the pages and starting to fold I THOUGHT that the pages were not 'deep' enough because I couldn't make 90 degree folds all of the time.  I did a little bit of research and realized, not all folds ARE 90 degrees!
For the marking on the right, it's possible to do a 90 degree fold.  For the one of the left, there's no way SO you just fold at the greatest possible angle starting at your mark.
Here's the opposite.  The mark on the left CAN be folded at 90 degrees but the one on the right cannot.
 When you begin marking, this is how you want to open the book.
And this is where you want to start marking your pages.  To find the starting point to mark, I counted the number of pages in the book.  Divide that in half to find the CENTER of the book.  Then look at how many pages are going to be folded.  Divide that in half.  Start at your center and count that many pages back toward the front of the book and that's where you'll begin marking/folding.
As with the other book I did, I added some decorative paper on the inside front and back covers, 'sandwiching' ribbon in between to tie in front.
I added a vintage prism as well.  
Here is the finished product! There are a ton of FREE patterns HERE.  They have a lot of categories and holidays from very simple to very detailed patterns.  Give it a try - it's very therapeutic and if you mess up, nothing really lost!  Just grab another book and start over!
Visit my post on the simple heart fold for more pictures and details of how to do this.

On any given week (depending on how busy I am!) I love to participate in Link Parties.  These gals put a lot of time and effort into hosting these parties so I always want to show my appreciation by directing my readers to these blogs. 

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Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Breakfast Banana Split

  
For my hubby's birthday I fixed him a special breakfast that included these 'banana splits'.  The original recipe was found on Chellie's blog, Art From My Table.  I just loved how it looked and even though I am not a fan of bananas, I have to say it WAS delicious and refreshing.
Bananas, blackberries, raspberries, mini chocolate chips and strawberry yogurt create this fun creation.  BUT . . . the next day, I realized I had forgotten to add the granola!  Oh well, I have enough to make these again and THIS time I will add the granola because I think that will really kick it up another notch . . . and I didn't think the first ones needed a kick!
I couldn't find Greek strawberry yogurt so I just went with the regular.  I did get the 'full fat' version but I think the 'light' would work just as well.
I followed Chellie's instructions and froze the yogurt in the containers for an hour.  I decided to use a cookie dough scoop instead of an ice cream scoop to get the cute, little round balls of frozen yogurt.  Then I put them on a flat plate, covered and returned to the freezer until the morning.
I let the yogurt balls sit on the counter for a bit to soften.  Just slice the bananas and fill the dish with the yogurt balls, berries (any kind you like).  Add a sprinkle of chocolate chips and don't forget the granola like I did!  I think these would be great with a little bit of whipped cream and sprinkles too!
An omelet, the banana splits and Cinnamon Roll French Toast Muffins (see my post on those for another easy, fun recipe!) created this special birthday breakfast!  I'm sure I'll be making these banana splits often - trying different flavors of yogurt and that little bit of whipped cream haha!

On any given week (depending on how busy I am!) I love to participate in Link Parties.  These gals put a lot of time and effort into hosting these parties so I always want to show my appreciation by directing my readers to these blogs. 

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Thursday, January 18, 2018

Cinnamon Roll French Toast Muffins

Today is my sweet husband's birthday so to start off his day, I made him a festive, fun breakfast that included these muffins.  The original recipe can be found HERE at Deliciously Sprinkled. I made a few modifications so I'll give you the recipe below.
The recipe calls for two cans of "Grands" Cinnamon Rolls or three cans of regular.  I don't know what's up (maybe all of this cold weather??) but twice now my grocery store has been sold out of the large rolls so I got three cans of the regular size.  Remove the icing packets and set those aside. I cut each roll into four pieces (To save time I just stacked 3-4 on top of each other and cut them all at once).  They separate on their own when you put them in the 'egg bath' and toss them around.
Here they are ready to go into the oven.  I topped them with star and teddy bear sprinkles but wouldn't these be fun for holidays topped with Christmas or Valentine or Easter sprinkles??  Be sure to grease your muffin tin WELL.  I REALLY greased mine and they still stuck a little bit.
20 minutes in a 375 degree oven and they were big and puffy!  Let them cool a bit before icing.
YUM!!! These were so tasty!  
Once you heat the icing for a few seconds in the microwave, drizzle the muffins with it and add a few more sprinkles (I mean, can you EVER have too many sprinkles??)
Combined with a spinach and cheese omelet, a special 'banana split' (recipe for that coming next!) and a few candles and it's Happy Birthday Hubby!  

Cinnamon Roll French Toast Muffins

2 package of Grands Cinnamon Rolls OR 3 packages of regular cinnamon rolls
2 eggs
1/4 c milk/almond milk/cream (I used Almond Milk just because that's what I had)
1 t vanilla
Sprinkles

Combine milk, eggs and vanilla in a bowl.
Cut cinnamon rolls into 4 pieces if using regular size and 8 pieces of using the Grands. 
Toss cinnamon roll pieces in egg mixture and place in heavily greased muffin tin.  Fill tins over the top with the roll pieces.
Drizzle any extra egg mixture over top.
Bake 20 minutes at 375 degrees.
Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
Heat icing packets in microwave for 5-10 seconds and drizzle icing over top of muffins.  
Top with additional sprinkles

Enjoy!

On any given week (depending on how busy I am!) I love to participate in Link Parties.  These gals put a lot of time and effort into hosting these parties so I always want to show my appreciation by directing my readers to these blogs. 

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Sunday, January 14, 2018

Multi-Season Yard Decor Signs

 All you need to create an ever-changeable set of yard art is some scrap wood and paint. You all know I LOVE finding ways to decorate that can be used for multiple seasons and holidays so here's one more for you!
Reclaimed fence boards are the base for this project but you could use any scrap wood you may have on hand. Old garden stakes create the base for these. I used a jigsaw to cut the heart shapes but you can certainly purchased unfinished shapes as well. This was my first time using my new jigsaw I got for Christmas. It's a bit scary but fun and I'm sure I'll be using it A LOT!
Once I painted the hearts I decided that they needed to be a bit more 'weathered' so I sanded them and added some dark wax to age them a little. You could of course just leave them as it if that's what you like.
Here they are after sanding and waxing.
Since I was using old fence boards, they already had the squared off edges at the top but you could recreate this with any scrap wood or even completely round the tops off too. I gave them a wash of white paint and then sanded them a bit as well to age them.
These garden stakes were some mighty hard and thick wood so I decided to drill the holes completely through them for the screws to go in.
Then with my trusty awl (man, I need some hand lotion!!) I make a hole through the stakes into the back of the board for the screw to go into.
One wood screw was enough to hold these tightly to the boards.  Everything got a coat of clear acrylic since these will be outside in the weather and I want them to last a long time.
Remember the idea is that these are multi-seasonal so I didn't want to permanently attach the hearts.  I just used a long nail but I may get the hooks that screw in and swap those out for the nails. I used the nails because that's just what I had on hand and they work fine.
I put my signs in my house number buckets in front of my home but you could put these directly into the ground and they'd be just as cute.
I think I'll really have to practice with my jigsaw to cut out shamrocks! But there are so many possibilities:  Eggs/Flowers for Easter/Spring; Flags for 4th of July; Pumpkins for fall; Ornaments for Christmas . . . and like I said, you can also just buy the wood cut outs.  So easy to add a festive touch to your yard or garden!


On any given week (depending on how busy I am!) I love to participate in Link Parties.  These gals put a lot of time and effort into hosting these parties so I always want to show my appreciation by directing my readers to these blogs. 

Monday

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