Finally Got Around to Some Crafting

It has been an outstandingly crazy week. There really hasn't been any free time to work on any projects, and even today (Saturday) I doubted whether I would have a chance to get to this...but ALAS! I did it! Somehow I managed to workout, put together my grocery list (entailed with a monstrosity of coupons), stop in at Old Navy, Target, Bi-Lo, and Publix, drag myself home to put it all away, bathe the boys, eat a DELICIOUS meal my wonderful hubby made, put the youngest to bed, and....ahhhhhhhhhh...breathe. DONE. By 8:30 I was on my way to creating my first (metal) piece of jewelry, thanks to Miss Disney. I have mentioned Disney's fan-stinking-tastic blog before, and if you haven't checked it out, I urge you to do so. She is sooooooo me, in a perfect world where I know how to do all the stuff I want to do! To put it simply, I totally dig her style. But, I digress. Back to the topic at hand. My necklace. I shall call it Minny. Disney had a beginner jewelry making tutorial, which I followed meticulously. Having only created beaded jewelry before, this was something new and exciting for me to try. It was pretty easy, and straight forward also. Thanks Disney for the great instructions!

Here's how it went:
I used eyepins, seen here, 7 large pearl beads and 8 small pearl beads a simple 18" chain, and a clasp, if it doesn't already have one attached, and a 1/2" wide ribbon in your color choice.












1: Start by slipping one large pearl onto an eyepin, and clipping it about 1/2" from the top of the pearl with wire cutters.
2: Using your needle-nose pliers, grasp the very top of the clipped eyepin firmly, and turn the pliers over twice, to bend the eyepin into a circle. Then bend the bottom of the circle back a little, to form a hook shape. Repeat for 2 more large pearls.












3: Do the same thing, but threading 1 small pearl, then 1 large, then another small one, and repeat to make 4 sets of the three pearls.













4: Snip the link in the very center of your chain with your wire cutters. Then grab a single pearl, open the hook on one end slightly with your pliers, by twisting it to the side, and loop one of the ending links of the chain onto it. Then close, by bending your hook back into place (be sure that the hook is closed all the way!). Repeat for the hook on the other side of your pearl, so that your chain is intact again, with a pearl in the center.

5: Starting from your center pearl, measure 1.5" away, and snip another link. Add a 3-pearl accent using the same method as in step 4. Repeat, measuring 1.5" each time, to add another single, and 3-pearl accent.

6: Repeat on the other side of your center pearl.

7: Add a clasp, if necessary, by opening the loop on the end, and threading the ending chain link onto it, then close with your pliers. Add a jumpring to the other end of the chain.
jumprings

(right)








8: Then tie three small bows onto your chain; the first right above the first pearl accent on one side, the second, right next to the center pearl accent, and the third, between the first two pearl accents on the other side. I stitched mine a little with a needle and thread.

I guess I went with the red ribbon because it felt more summery. I really like how it turned out. What do you think? :)
lk

TGIF!!

I don't know about you, but I sure am glad it's Friday!! Hopefully, I will get to some crafts that have been put on the back burner due to time limitations. The weekend is going to be busy, however, so we'll see.

Pre-Patty's Day Thinking

First of all, let me say that it is really going to be no fun at all celebrating St. Patrick's Day without Andre. Ahh, boo. (Andre will be teaching tomorrow night.) The boys will be here, but they are kind of young to really have too much fun with it, or to appreciate the Irish dinner I am going to make. Then there's the whole thing where I don't even really want to cook just for myself, but I have to cause it's St. Patrick's Day, and what kind of Irish girl would I be if I didn't....yada yada yada. I have to make the most of this Day O' Green, don't I? After poking around the vast world of internet, I found a nice, easy, IRISH recipe that will be easily stored for Andre's return home. It's also considered "healthy." Perfect. Here we go...

Cheddar-Ale Soup

What could be more appropriate than cooking with beer on St. Patrick’s Day? This creamy cheese- and beer-lover's soup will have your taste buds dancing an Irish jig.

Serves: 6 (1-3/4 cups each)

Preparation time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 12-ounce bottle beer, preferably ale

2 18-ounce bags precooked diced peeled potatoes

1 14-ounce can vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 cup water

2-1/2 cups nonfat or low-fat milk

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1-1/2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided

1 small red bell pepper, thinly sliced or finely chopped

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven or saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add beer; bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes.

2. Add potatoes, broth and water; cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and mash the potatoes with a potato masher to the desired consistency.

3. Whisk milk and flour and add to the soup. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 3 minutes.

4. Remove from the heat; stir in 1-1/4 cups cheese; keep stirring until melted.

5. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese and bell pepper.

Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts

Per serving:

395 calories

12 g fat (6 g sat, 1 g mono)

29 mg cholesterol

52 g carbohydrate

14 g protein

5 g fiber

387 mg sodium

274 mg potassium

Here are some other "healthy" St. Patrick's Day recipes if you are interested. Either way, have fun, and dance with many many leprechauns!

Fabulous 30% off Coupon- Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic

It’s almost time for the spring Gap Give and Get sale. You get 30% off your entire purchase at Gap, Old Navy, and Bannana Republic and they will give 5% of your purchase to the charity of your choice. The sale starts Thursday 3/18 and runs through Sunday 3/21.

Take this printable coupon with you to the store (this one supports the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society).

Or support Teach for America.

Thanks to Southernsavers.com for passing on the printable coupon and to Mrs. Shelsky at CHES for giving me my own coupon!!

Another Photo Book Freebie!!

There are sooooooooo many freebies out there in the world, just waiting for you all to snag them up! Don't let them pass you by! This is a great one. Create a free 5x5.75" Pocket Photo Book (14 pages) at Target Kodak Gallery ($9.99 value) using the coupon code TGTFREEBOOK and just pay shipping of $1.99. This coupon code expires on Sunday, March 21. Thanks goes to Moms Fun Money for the heads up!
Please note you must go to the Target website above, it appears this coupon code is not valid at the Kodak Gallery website.

I thought this would be a great Mother's Day gift, so mine is "A Year in the Life of Brothers." It chronicles Cash and Luc's life together from Luc's birth to his 1st birthday. I am going to send it to Andre's grandmother in Texas. I think she would get a kick out of it. Every grandmother needs a brag book, right?

Feeling a Wee Bit Irish

I am starting to get psyched about St. Patrick's Day this week, so I made a few little things this afternoon. I wanted to make more, but had to get some treats made for my secret pal. (Things I long to share with you, but can't out myself!)
Apparently, I had a theme today...LETTER BEADS. It's true. They've just been sitting there staring at me, waiting patiently for their turn. I had to give in. There are two fun "Irish" pins to wear on green day, and a fun little card to send out to your favorite leprechaun. Really easy stuff here, folks, so go make some for yourself!

These crafts are pretty self explanatory, so I wont insult your intelligence by giving you a vast amount of detail.
"Irish" pin: I found a metal framed gift tag, changed the paper in it, and strung beads. (In case you can't tell, there is a green bead at the beginning and end of the word.) Attach a pin to the back, and done. See...easy.
"Irish Today" pin: pretty much the same as above, just different words.
"Erin Go Bragh" card: I put a smaller square of cream card stock on top of my green card for a little contrast. I free handed my clover, cut one out as a stencil to make two others. One on bottom, then placed some adhesive foam between layers of clover. This makes it 3d, and a bit more interesting. Last, I strung the words as above.

Hope everyone had a fantastic weekend, and anticipates the week ahead!

St. Patrick's Day Downloads

Need something to make you feel a bit more Irish? Here is some fun shamrock wallpaper for your computer desktop, compliments of Eleanor Grosch.







Or print some cupcake toppers from TomKat Studio. I am a big fan of the topper, and these look awesome.








Big shout out to How About Orange, for the download tip off.