Hey everyone, I’m sorry I disappeared off the blogging world but I’m back! My hubby and I graduated with our Master’s and moved across country…hench the lack of crafting and blogging! Well today I unpacked my spray paint and modge podge, so the crafts should be rolling out soon.
I’ve been out of the loop of new crafts going on, so if any of you have some great new ideas, feel free to send me pictures and I would love to feature them.
See you soon! Happy Crafting!
Brown is such a beautiful color and can be found in some shade in almost any room. But why keep it to a minimum, why not take this luxurious color and expand it from the wood tone in your floor or furniture and take it to your walls!!
Typically having dark walls in a room give it an automatic sense of sophistication. If you go dark on the walls, be careful to add lighter neutral pieces around the room to give it some life and keep it from looking too heavy.
Oh I just love this brown glass back splash and the chocolate brown cabinets! Combine those with crisp white counter tops and you have a very modern, sophisticated kitchen.
Brown is a great color when it comes to the shape of the furniture. The more simple the piece is the better it looks in brown! Because of these simple lines, you can mix several pieces in a room without overpowering a room or making it look too dark.
How have you used brown in your home? Send me some pictures and I would love to post your designs.
Here is a quick and easy meal that if super delicious and filling!
Sausage Bread
one pound loaf Italian Bread, unsliced
1 pound Italian sausage or sausage of choice
1/2 vidalia onion, chopped fine
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
herbs of choice- I used fresh oregano and basil-1 T. each, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4-1/2 tsp Kosher salt, depending on meat choice
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 cups shredded mozzarella or cheese of choice
In a skillet brown onions and sausage. Set aside. Slice bread opened length-wise. Pull out then inner soft portions of each half leaving a thick shell.
Whisk together the eggs, milk, Parmesan, herbs, garlic, salt and pepper and toss in torn bread pieces stirring to coat bread well. Pour in meat mixture and mix well. In bottom half of bread sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella cheese then top with meat mixture. Cover meat with the remaining cheese and top with top portion of bread pressing down to seal. Wrap tightly in foil and bake in a 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes.
It comes out so warm and perfectly toasted! I paired it with a bowl of hot soup, what a perfect meal for a wintery Wisconsin night.
Thanks Big Red Kitchen for the original recipe!
Here is a fabulous way to hide all of those unsightly electronic cords around your TV, using some simple boxes from IKEA.
Check out how Chica transformed this…
into this!
So simple and so clean. I love it!
Thanks Chica and Jo.
They always say “don’t judge a book by its cover” but that is never said about the wrapping on a gift. When it comes to food they say “presentation is everything” or “if it looks good, then it will taste good”, well wouldn’t that apply to presents as well? Well, if you are in a holiday gift wrapping slump, take a look at these gift wrapping ideas to get the juices running again. Have fun with it and get creative!
Gift Wrapping by recycling magazines.
Gift Wrapping a Christmas Cookie Mix.
Gift Wrapping with photocopied photos.
Gift Wrapping with an old envelope box.
Gift Wrapping a cookbook with a dishtowel.
If these aren’t enough ideas for you Check out sites for some more ideas.
I have a confession to make… I love sweet deserts!! Cheesecake, monkey bread, apple pie…man I making myself hungry. Although these things are not too hard to make, I have a small problem, I get migraines from sugar. I know, I know, sad story but a girl can’t get rid of all sweets. So I have been on a quest to make those yummy desserts that I love, and make them sugar free (typically sweetened with Splenda). Now when I say sugar free it usually means ‘low sugar’, because of natural sugar, but its low enough not to give me a migraine and enough sweetness to put a lid on my sweet tooth. Here is a quick way to make sugar free cinnamon rolls. If you don’t have a problem with sugar, feel free to substitute the Splenda with regular sugar.
INGREDIENTS
| 1 | can (8 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls or 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury® Crescent Recipe Creations™ refrigerated flaky dough sheet |
| 1/4 | cup butter or margarine, softened |
| 4 | teaspoons Splenda |
| 2 | teaspoons ground cinnamon |
| 1/2 | cup powdered sugar (see below on how to make sugar free powdered sugar) |
| 1 | tablespoon apple juice or milk |
4oz Cream cheese, softened
*Instructions for making sugar-free powdered sugar:
Put 3/4 cup of Splenda Granular and 2 tablespoons cornstarch in a blender and blend until it is a very fine powder
DIRECTIONS
| 1. | Heat oven to 375°F. |
| 2. | If using crescent rolls: Unroll dough; separate dough into 4 rectangles. Firmly press perforations to seal. If using dough sheet: Unroll dough; cut into 4 rectangles. |
| Spread 1 tablespoon butter evenly over each dough rectangle. In small bowl, mix granulated sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over rectangles. Starting with short side of each rectangle, roll up; pinch edges to seal. With serrated knife, cut each roll into 5 slices. Place slices, cut side down, in ungreased 8- or 9-inch square pan.
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| 3. | Bake 17 to 23 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 5 minutes. |
| 4. | Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix cream cheese and powdered sugar then add apple juice until smooth. Drizzle over rolls. Serve warm.
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So I have recently learned that I love to make desserts in my new trifle bowl. The recipes are usually very simple and the end result looks like you have spent hours decorating a decadent dessert. I found this recipe and decided I was going to make it for our next church meal. I made all the separate items the night before and then assembled it that morning. The original recipe I found called to use Gingerbread cake mix, but the spice cake mix was on sale and the substitution work out just fine. I hope you enjoy this dessert, let me know how yours turned out!
Ingredients
Directions
I sprinkled the top with cinnamon!!
Being different is a part of our life. As a woman, the design of my thinking, my body, and my emotions are different from many of the other women around me. As an interior designer, my taste and style might be different from the next interior design. Someday, as a mom, I will be different in my responses and actions to a sick or disobedient child. Being different in our design is not bad, but it is something that should often be embraced and encouraged, because our differences will help others see situations, people, or objects in ways they never would have thought of before. The main purpose of this blog will be a way to express the differences found in objects around us. Pointing out that old chair in your attic has the potential of being a stylish addition to your living room, seeing how a recipe can be changed to make fast and easy meals for our families, or discovering the potential that lies underneath your late 70’s living room. I also would like to supply you with different ideas for crafts or gift ideas that will be fun and inexpensive for you or your family. Please feel free to leave comments or suggestions and email me with your own projects – I would love to post them and share your different creative ideas with others.
