Cape Orders

These lovely capes have been keeping me very busy :) They will all be shipping out tomorrow. I get so excited when I think of the kids' faces when they receive their very own cape!This is what they look like before assembly. I just love having before pictures to reference when they are all nice and neetly packed for shipment.

Practical Presents

     In my family I am known as the giver of practical gifts. Using inspiration from my copy of One Yard Wonders I whipped up these two presents for my lovely sister.
     I made some modifications to the original designs. The Car Trash Bag needed some pencil pockets and organizational capacities. Oh, it also needed tons of bias tape trim, mostly because I haven't figured out the tension on my serger AND because it looks oh so pretty!
     The Fabric Covered Cork Board was really easy, but adds a ton of interest to any desk space. I just took a found frame and cut the cork board to fit. Then I trimmed the fabric, leaving an inch and a half of overage. Then I hot glued it nicely into place and added a solid fabric to the back to cover the edges. Abracadabra... practical and pretty.

Add a few decorative push pins to the cork board and a couple pens and personalized notebook to the trash/organizer and it will be a hit :) I'll definitely be adding some of these to my shop.

Closet Organization... Hallelujah!

Our Master Closet has gone from being in disarray to a somewhat organized state. Thank you Rubbermaid for making a decent looking shoe wall system. This isn't a hundred percent, considering we still have a microwave and television on the floor, but it feels so much better!!!

Before

Before

Before

After

After

After

After

Crusty Clipboard No More

Crusty Clipboard

Pretty Paper and Mod Podge to the rescue

Cut around Clip

Like so...

Trim with exacto knife

Slather with Mod Podge

Trim all edges and Repeat on Backside

Finished Front

Finished Back

"Mr. Demille, I'm ready for my close up."

Create Your Own Custom Silhouette

 

I found this cool old painting a few years back while thrifting and it hung in my red powder bath. The powder bath is now goldenrod and this frame has been occupying space on the floor of my guest room/storage haven/Benjamin the cat's room. I decided it would serve much better as a frame for a silhouette of Benjamin.

 The first step was to pop out the existing painting. Because, the back was plain, I decided to paint the back and preserve the existing painting on the other side for posterity's sake.

 The next step was to paint the "canvas" white.

 I then took a profile picture of Ben on his favorite window sill. Cropped it and printed.

 Cut out the print and trace.

 

Traced :)

 Ben is a Russian Blue, so I decided to customize the color to capture the beauty of his coat. It's a nightfall blue with silver tones. Of course, Black or any color would work. Be creative and integrate it into your family and color scheme.

 My fine line painting was a little feathered for my love, so here he is doing the detail work. Notice how his tongue sticks out when he's concentrating. LOVE IT.

 

Here is the finished product ready to hang.

Pepper-Crusted Grilled Flank Steak

I opened up my inbox a few days ago to find this gem of a recipe. My honey hardly gets red meat, so, I figured this would be a special treat. He deserves it :) I tweaked my portion to be veggie friendly.

Fitness Magazine Pepper-Crusted Grilled Flank Steak

Ingredients

Nonstick cooking spray
2 large sweet potatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
Salt
Coarsely ground black pepper
1 flank steak (about 1 1/4 pounds) ***I used Morning Star Chik-n-Strips for veggie friendly option***
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil 

1/2 cup light mayonnaise ***Cheated and used what I had on hand Best Foods***
1 cup packed fresh baby spinach leaves ***Added a bit more, <3 spinach***
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
Mist the chopped sweet potatoes with cooking spray, season to taste with salt and black pepper and bake 25 to 30 minutes or until potatoes are golden brown and tender. 
Set a grill pan over medium-high heat. Brush both sides of the steak with the oil and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Add steak to pan; cook 5 minutes per side for medium. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

In a food processor or blender, combine the mayonnaise, spinach, mustard and garlic powder. Process until smooth.
Serve steak slices with spinach mayonnaise and roasted sweet potatoes.

Spray

Out of the oven... YUM

Doesn't look very good to start out

Omnivore's version

Veggie Version

Sunny Feelings Reign Supreme on Etsy

Check out today's favorite finds...

Sunny Feelings Reign Supreme

Sometimes, Messy is a Good Thing

My very favorite vegetarian sandwich is a perfect example of messy as GOOD!!!

Prior to becoming a vegetarian, BLTs were my favorite. This is my answer to missing BLTs.

The FGTC

4 microwaved slices of Morning Star Farms Bacon Strips (affectionately called Facon in my house)
1- 100 calorie package of Wholly Guacamole
2 sliced Campari tomatoes (or your favorite)
Sliced Tillamook Sharp Cheddar
Pile it all on top of your favorite toast

Enjoy!