A 2011 Handmade Christmas....

 

Girls love to communicate, whether it's chatting your ear off in person, texting, on the phone, or writing, they love to keep the conversation going.  My granddaughters are no different, so I  thought I would capitalize on that fact and give them a Christmas present that I can replenish on occasion using my own art, and give them a way to keep in touch that exercises their writing and penmanship skills.  I took some photos I already had on my computer and used them to make cover sheets for their letters, and then added plain lined sheets using the colors I already used for their cover sheets. So they have one sheet with a nice graphic, and two plain lined sheets for each letter they might like to send. I also found pretty half size envelopes in colors to match each theme at the UPS store.

 

I found packs of colored pens for each, and marked each set with their first name initial on each pen so there wouldn't be confusion. Luckily these have a soft grip where you can permanently mark the pens. I then took pretty stickers and labeled each box, which are shoe box size Sterilite tubs with locking handles. They are a perfect size for the stationery sheets, which are half size of regular copy paper.  I threw in a role of giant Smarties and whaalaa! An inexpensive gift with a touch of home made and grandma's art to boot. All total each gift cost about $7 to put together, including paper, envelopes and candy. Not bad for a gift that keeps on giving, and one I can build on in the future by replenishing their supplies.

Gingerbread House 2011 done! Now the waiting begins....

 Can you see the stash of candy in the background? I had to really be creative this year as the candies I used 12 years ago, the last time I created a house, are not available anymore. Luckily, Red Vines are still easy to be found, which I used for the bricks, as well as sugar wafer cookies, although these were doubledecker, which I didn't notice until I got them home. Eeek! They kept trying to separate in layers and were a bit bulky. I tell you this in case you want to create a gingerbread house using some of the elements I have.

 Lifesavers were used to make the stained glass windows, although I would really try to find some yellow candies to crush with the lifesavers as I couldn't find the rolls and in the bagged ones don't have the yellow lifesavers anymore. I put a tealight through the back door to illuminate the windows so you could see them better. Note to self, if wanting to use tealights, make the door big enough for them to go through all the way. :-)

 Spearmint gum drop leaves were harder to find this year, it took me trying at 3 stores before I found them, but I also found some very cool Kukaburra licorice that is similar to millifiore flowers, and were easy to slice. Yay! I wanted to get some pastel mint parielles, but the only store that carried them wanted $8 for them, no way was I going to pay that! Note to friends, they would make a nice Christmas present....I'm just saying.....the Smooth and Melty mints are the best!

 This was the first year I used Necco wafers for the roof, and I like the way they worked out. I used chocolate non-parielles and silver draggies as embellishments which my mother-in-law says looks like diamonds.

 

All parts of the house and grounds are edible, which to me is the best part of a true gingerbread house. Now the waiting begins, we shall see who the winner is. I did have one woman pass me as she and her son were leaving the store and she gasped as she saw the house and said, " Oh, your house is so beautiful! It's the prettiest one here that I've seen!" So, if nothing else, I know that at least two people were delighted at what they saw, and that's the reason to created these. To delight the adults and evoke memories of childhood past, and to delight children and conjure dreams of sugar plums....

Gingerbread House 2011

 It's been sooooo long since I created a gingerbread house, something I love to do if given an opportunity. A local business is offering a $500 dollar 1st prize so that was incentive enough to try my hand at creating one again. It will be an interesting process and project as my FIL is at home from the hospital after a second bout of pneumonia. Although hospice is tending to his needs as far as prepping for the day or getting him ready for bed, I'm the primary caretaker now. He's so sweet, and so appreciative of all that's done for him that he makes it easy to care for him.

While he naps, I will try adding a bit here and there to my little house, in hopes of having it done by Saturday night. Things look a bit rough so far, but as with all creations, you start out with a rough up and then add detail until you have a finished product, with all flaws or oops! parts fixed or covered up. Lucky for me that frosting is a magic eraser or the perfect cover up, as this has been a challenge so far, working in a tiny kitchen without all my tools of the trade at hand. Wish me luck, this will be fun, but we shall see if it gets done. :-)

Coconut Cream Pie - To Die For!

I've never made one before, but coconut cream pie just sounded so good! I have a great pie recipe book, THE PERFECT PIE by Susan G. Purdy. So here is her version of

COCONUT CREAM PIE
PASTRY
1 1/2 c. unsifted all-purpose flour
1 to 1 1/2 T. granulated sugar
1/2 t. salt
6 T. cold or frozen butter, cut up
3 T. cold shortnening, or canola oil ( I used oil)
1 large egg yolk
2 t. lemon juice, or white vinegar
3 to 4 T. ice water, or as needed  (because of the oil, I only used 2)


FILLING
2/3 granulated sugar
1/4 c. cornstarch
1/4 t. salt
2 1/2 c. milk
1/4 c. heavy cream
2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
2 t. vanilla extract
2 T. butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 c. shredded coconut

WHIPPED CREAM TOPPING
1 c. heavy cream, chilled
2 T. powdered sugar
1/2 c. toasted coconut

Okay, let's get started by putting together the crust. Combine the dry ingredients (flour, salt, sugar) in a large bowl and whisk to blend. Add the cut-up chilled fats/oils. Working quickly and lightly, pinch and slide lumps of dough between your fingertips until the mixture resembles dry rice. This process layers the shortening and flour together, creating "leaves" that will form flakes when baked. If you use the oil like I did you may find it will be a bit lumpy but that's okay, don't overwork things, just get rid of big butter lumps. Add the yolk, lemon juice or vinegar, and the minimum amount of iced water. I only needed 2 tablespoons. Toss lightly, just until it clumps together. The dough should not be sticky, but clumps easily. The oil helped with that. Now form a flat 6 inch disk, wrap with plastic wrap or waxed paper and chill for at least 30 minutes. When ready to roll out and bake, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface, I used the wrap to roll it out on. Be sure to flour the wrap though as the dough will stick to the plastic or paper if you use the oil. Fold in half and place in pan, opening and tucking into pie pan without stretching it. Crimp edges. Chill again then blind bake by lining the crust with foil and filling it 2/3 with dry rice or beans. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes then remove liner and rice or beans and turn oven down to 350 and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Cool before filling.
To make the filling combine the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. In a bowl, whisk the milk and cream into the egg yolks. Whisk the egg-milk mixture into the cornstarch-sugar in the pan. Whisk well to be sure all the cornstarch is picked up off the bottom of the pan and dissolved.
Set pan over medium heat and cook the mixture for about 12 minutes, until thickened and brought to a boil. Stir on and off with a wooden spoon for the first 5 minutes, then stir constantly for abot 7 minutes longer, until the mixture really thickens and reaches a boil and you see fat heavy bubbles work up to the surface and burst. Use the whisk instead of the spoon occasionally to remove lumps. Boil for 1 full minutes while stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and add the butter and vanilla. Stir in the coconut and spoon into the cooled pastry shell. Cover with plastic wrap to keep from forming a skin and refrigerate until just before ready to serve. In a cool bowl whip the one cup of cream, the powdered sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form. Spoon over chilled pie and sprinkle toasted coconut over the top. This is the BEST coconut cream pie I've ever tried, bar none. I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Monday Message of Hope

We thank thee O God for a prophet
to guide us in these latter days.
We thank thee for sending the gospel
to lighten our minds with it's rays!
We thank thee for every blessing
bestowed by thy bounteous hand.
We feel it a pleasure to serve thee,
and love to obey thy command.

I woke up this morning with this hymn running through my head, a wonderful way to start off the week. We celebrated our Autumn General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and were blessed to be spiritually fed by men and women of courage and fortitude, faith and love. So I share in part, the message of hope, that He lives and is real and loves us. May we all have a song in our hearts today!

Upcycled Treat or Cake Plate

 Treasure hunting is pure pleasure, especially when you can find something beautiful to upcycle. I found this plate at a second hand store here in Oregon, and immediately fell in love with it. The handles and colors reminded me of Autumn, and more especially Halloween.

 So I found a candle stick and adhered it to the bottom of the plate with epoxy, and whaalaa! A treat, or cake or cupcake plate! I know it looks crooked in the photo, but that's the doily and not the plate. :-) I took this before I dashed out of our apartment this morning. I drove up from Utah to Oregon to ready the house for winter so I was in a hurry. Anyhew......

Think of the possibilities! A little taller brass candlestick, paired with a vintage china plate, or a short milk glass vase, paired with a royal ruby or forest green plate, there's so much that you can do with this idea!

The Colors of Autumn....Jewelry

 It's that time of year, when I put away summer clothes and bring out my Autumn wardrobe. For me, some items of clothing are like old and dear friends, colorful and vibrant, always there for you. This particular shirt I've had for around 20 years now, a sturdy but nice enough to wear anywhere top that has seen me through thick and thin, literally. Now that I've lost some weight and am getting down to my old sizes I can wear this again with joy!

I find that each season brings with it a palette of colors that often fit the mood I'm in. I find clothing, home decor, make-up and even jewelry that seems to be just perfect for that particular year. I went shopping yesterday and found some beads that caught my eye, not really for any reason but that they're pretty and I wanted them. When I sat down to play around with my new treasures, I realized that some of the beads would match my old and favorite shirt! This necklace and the matching earrings are simple, but perfect for a semi-casual top that is suitable for a walk in the woods, or going out for fish and chips with hubby. What I would love to do, and perhaps you may be interested, is to help create jewelry that goes with a new or old favorite outfit you have. We can go fancy, or simply, whatever you desire. I will be posting pieces at my etsy shop for fall, so if you see something you would like in colors that would match a particular ensemble, or you find a photo of a design you like, let's work together to create a one of a kind piece or set for you. Just drop me a line and we can talk.!