11 in one Convertible Statement Necklace

I was playing with statement necklaces last night.  I had made this necklace, but thought with a little tweaking, I could make it even cooler as a convertible necklace.  How many looks could I get with the same 4 pieces worked different ways?  I took a large metal chain, a beaded necklace, a brooch, a lone clip on earring and a piece of coordinating ribbon and constructed this piece.  This one was very simple, with not too much construction for a beginner. Make sure the components all go well together.  I chose fire polished crystal that matched the stone in the center of the brooch, I used all silver metals and a gray ribbon.  You could use any combination that works for you and your personal color palate


1. Using my mannequin, I pinned the chain on where I wanted it with straight pins.
2. Next I draped the 24 inch bead chain so that one row hung lower than the other, and pinned it to the mannequin as well. (When I chain up beads for these necklaces, I connect the beads together with jump rings.  The jump rings allow for more conversion options.)
3. I attached chain links to the two ends of the chain necklace, with a lobster claw on one end.
4. I attached a lobster claw to the bead chain and then clipped the two pieces together with the lobster claws at opposite ends.   .
4.  I clipped on the earring over the join of the chain and the bead chain, and it holds really securely without wire wrapping. 
5. Last, I pinned the brooch on to the join on the other side of the chain.

Now you have a bold statement necklace.  Here is where the magic begins. Unclip and unpin everything until you have 4 components again. Use just the heavy metal chain with Jeans and a t-shirt, or add the brooch for a more formal look.

The bead chain looks great alone, or with the brooch clipped on the end.

Clip the bead chain to the heavy chain and tie it in back with a ribbon and you get a triple strand bib necklace.  Add the brooch and earring and you get a dressed up version of the bib.

Take off the heavy chain and tie it back to make a double strand beaded necklace, or add the brooch for a focal point on the beads.

The bead strand is the perfect length to wrap 3 times around your wrist for a bracelet.

The last one is the brooch alone.  Most people don't wear them anymore, but I always look for brooch and earring sets at the flea market to make things just like this.  I think this is a really versatile way to take some heirloom pieces, or that box of jewelry Grandma left you and make some cool fashion forward pieces to spice up your wardrobe.  Take those triple strand bead sets apart and chain them up with some complimentary colored beads and make one for yourself.  They are fun, and you will find that the more you play with them, the more you will start to look for these kinds of pieces at yard sales.  You will be thinking, "How could I use these all together and make it a convertible piece"

Jewelry Displays

 

I have been working on some displays for shows I have coming up.  I am looking at using things I have around the studio that I can repurpose for hanging long necklaces.  The easel boards work fine for shorter things, but the long ones present more of a challenge.  My friend Nancy found a cool lamp at the Long Beach flea that had all these crystals hanging on it.  She removed the crystals, and the wires on it made perfect places to hang earrings and necklaces. 

Finding new ways to display things for photographing and listing on Etsy is another project I am working on now.  Using vases, candle sticks, bowls, frames and fabrics to stage makes a big difference in the way your products sell on line.

I have been booking home parties or Trunk Shows, and selling jewelry and components.  I will be offering classes soon as well.  I find many people would like to learn how to rework their own jewelry and make new pieces from Grandmas jewelry.

Starting next week, I will be doing some tutorials on reworking pieces you have in your jewelry box and no longer wear. I will take several pieces and create one stunning piece by combining, restringing, wiring and riveting new pieces together.

Check back on Thursdays for upcoming posts and tutorials,

Summer Tales

I took the summer off to host 5 exchange students from Spain and France.  Here is all of us camping at the Russian River in July.  We had an incredible time with these kids.  We learned about their cultures, improved our Spanish, learned all the curse words and hip phrases in all 3 languages, and stayed up late at night playing cards and laughing.  It was the best summer my kids have ever had, they told me after the students left.  We shed many tears when parting because they had become such a big part of our family.  There was a big empty space in our home when they were gone.  Things were quiet, and we all felt a little sad for a while after they left. 

I recommend  hosting students for the summer.  We have hosted several times, and every time, it is a fun and really fulfilling experience.  My kids now have 5 new friends in Europe that they can visit anytime they want.  Some of the girls will be coming back with us again next summer, and we are planning a trip to visit all of them soon.  The families of all of the kids have contacted us and told us they would love to host us in their homes and show us their towns when we visit...  How great to have local guides to take us around and show us all the sites.

My kids all learned this summer, that people are really the same, all over the world.  They love the same things, like the same music, have concerns about the same issues, wear the same clothes, and think about the same stuff.  They all forget sunscreen, got too little sleep, and love to joke and laugh and hang out with their friends.  I am looking forward to seeing them in their homes, meeting their parents, and spending time in their countries learning more about their cultures.  It was a memorable summer...

Now, I am back to work.  I have several shows coming up, and have been cranking out the jewelry.  I will be posting photos soon, and listing more on my Etsy site...

It's almost here!

You can see a preview of the article I did for Jewelry Affair's Summer edition on Pinterest.  It is coming out July 1st.  I was really happy with how it turned out.  The photography is beautiful, and they used so many pieces.  I will be listing everything from the article in my ETSY shop as soon as I get them back from Stampington.  Stay tuned...

Gypsy Jewels

People often ask me where and who I buy my stuff from.   love to scrounge old jewelry at the flea markets.  I have a favorite antique shop I go to where a dealer makes up custom jelly jars full of beads for me and charges me a flat price for the whole jar of pieces.  I find the more I shop at a place, the better the deals get.  I have my favorite dealers that I buy from all the time, and they know what I like, and save pieces for me.  They always give me a good deal, and I just buy it from them, no haggling.  That way they know I am a serious buyer, and I constantly get good prices from them.  The dealers always ask me what I do with it all.  Here is how I start. 

If the beads have a greasy feel to them, I wash them first with diluted dish detergent.  Let them soak in a container of it for a bit and then gently rub one of the beads with a finger, to insure the paint is not coming off.  Then I rinse them and lay them on paper towels to dry.  I take them apart and arrange them in little metal tins on a dollar store plastic tray lined with felt or a piece of a vellux blanket.  If the paint is flaking and I want to preserve it, I coat them with clear nail polish.  Often this will bring out the colors in the beads and make them more vibrant.

  I choose a focal piece, or make one like the two pictured below.  The first one is a silver flower earring stacked on a Maltese cross, stacked on a filigree oval.  I like the layered look of a stacked focal.  The second one is am antiqued filigree piece with a cool vintage earring with a fleur de lys motif.  I love how the focal compliments the beads. 

Sometimes, I just chain up the beads, pin to pin and hang long strand of bead chain on a hook in my studio to come back to and use later in something.  Like these aqua ones I got from French General.  They are plastic, but I fell in love with the color.  They look so pretty chained up with the crystal AB beads and make a lovely statement necklace.

I like to use my tabletop mannequin to hang pieces off of when I design.  I want to see the placement on the neckline and collarbone area.  I like to see the drape and swag of the piece. 

This is a piece I have been working on for a bit.  Smashing bead caps and turning them into a necklace base that I drape small 3 and 4 mm beads off of.  I am not quite finished with this one.  I ran out of beads and need to get more in San Diego next time I am down south.  I may have to redrape them in a different way so I can hang a focal from the middle of it.  I think it would give it more visual interest. 

I would love to hear what your favorite jewelry making tips are...  Please post here, or add a link to your blog if you feel inclined to share.

Thanks for popping in!

More shoe Madness

More darling shoes.  I am telling you...  these things are addictive to make.  I like to make the fancy ones, probably because that is what I fantasize about wearing the most.  I filmed some tutorials about how to make them, giving tips and tricks I learned in the process.  I tried all day to upload it, and it didn't work.  So that will be posted another day, when I can figure out how to edit is and condense it so you tube will let me upload it.  In the meantime, you can print the pattern I posted here with modified vamps, and using the soles and heels of the die cut, can make yourself some darling shoes!

These are all the backless and flat style shoes.  Modifying the fronts is fairly simple.  Making them backless is easy.  Just leave the backs off.  The same goes for peep toes.  Just cut the toe off.  Some I made as flats, some as high heeled backless.  These are more contemporary, and I find I like the more vintage looking ones better, but my daughter and her friends like these best.

This little pink sandal was a bit more complicated because of the papers, (too flimsy) and the straps.  I still love the way it came out anyway.  I didn't embellish it, because I thought they were cute the way they were.

The Ballet flats were more difficult because of the rounded toe.  The points are difficult to round out and I need to perfect this a bit more, so I didn't add that pattern in yet.  That will be on another day.

 I wanted to make some wedding themed ones as well, I think they make cute shower gifts for a bride, or on top of a package inside a big tulle bow.

Here are the patterns I have modified so far.  This is an exact scan of the patterns for the vamps.  Stretch it to fit 8 1/2 x 11 paper.  Try playing with them a bit and see if there is one you prefer.  I like the one with more material to work with, (the higher one) it gives you more possibilities for decorating afterward.  On the ballet flat, you need to make sure you score them well first around the toe box with an embossing stylus before you try to round them off.

Please be sure to come back and post links to your own paper shoes.  I have a paper shoe board on Pinterest and I am always looking for more examples to pin.  So check me out there too!

Paper Shoe Addiction

 When I was young and wore 5 inch heels, I had a shoe addiction.  I had a pair in every color and wore them all the time.  After having my 2nd child, I put them away and never really went back.  I have a few pair of heels, for various dress up purposes, ( that don't happen too often anyway...) all in black... A pair for business, a pair for formal occasions, a sexy strappy sandal, and leather flats.  That is it on the shoe front these days... I am usually in tennies or flip flops...  BUT... I have not outgrown my shoe addiction... Now I just make them out of paper.

I went to meet up with my art pals in San Francisco last Sunday and my friend Michele brought a die cut machine that had the Brenda Walton shoe die in it...  We cut a bunch, and decorated some.  I came home and immediately dug into my paper stash to find all those gorgeous papers I bought at Stampers Warehouse a bazillion years ago in my scrapbooking days.  I managed to unearth a few ribbon and tulle trims from my black hole of a garage,  and made these little shoes...  Let me warn you it is addictive...  You can get the die here, or at you local scrapbook store.  I made all of these shoes with the one die. I thought of keeping one of the punched sheets to use at home as a template (since I don't have the die) but  forgot and threw them away.  So I traced the pieces onto cardboard and made a pattern.  Then I set down and cut them all out.

You need 2 sided paper if you want a print on the inside of the shoe.  I made my own 2 sided paper.  I took cardstock and put spray adhesive on the back and smoothed gift wrap and tissue on the glue.  Sometimes, I used a patterned paper and adhered it to plain cardstock and then used a thin paper on the back.  the dimensions of the die are 6x8 inches if you want to cut it down.  You can get 2 pairs of shoes out of a 12x12 cardstock when cut by hand.  When you use the diecut machine and cut the paper down, you get one pair per sheet. I am finding that giftwrap peels away with spray adhesive.  So I have been gluing it down with matte mod podge and it is working perfectly.  Just place it under something heavy to keep it from curling.  I have also glued brocade fabrics on to the cardstock.  You may need to pass it through the die cut machine twice to get a clean cut, I did have parts where the fabric wasn't cut by the die.  These turn out beautifully.  The fabric gives it a richness and depth that you can't always get with paper.  I did use some flocked and textured papers as well.  The textured papers don't adhere with the spray glue I used, so I did the Mod Podge thing again.  A Xyron machine would be perfect for this as well.

I Modified the top of the shoe by changing the vamp and toe box a little.  I wanted very old fashioned looking shoes, so I used the high vamp, a cutaway style, a square and rounded toe.  I will post the modified patterns next week so you can download them.  I won't be posting the actual die pattern for copyright reasons.

So next I will be making strappy sandals, ballet shoes, and peep toes...  I will try different heel ideas too.  The possibilities are endless.

Check back next week when I break down how to construct the shoes, and how I made the modifications to get different looks.  I will attempt to make a video tutorial and post it in the next couple of weeks. I've never done it before, but I am going to give it a shot...

These shoes will be going up for sale in my ETSY shop soon.  They will come packaged in a custom made box, and make a great gift for any female with a shoe fettish.  I will be using my favorites as Christmas Ornaments this year.

Wildlife in the garden

have a huge backyard.  Our house sits on a 3/4 acre lot that borders a creek and open space.  We have all kinds of wildlife in the yard that wander up from the creek.  This makes gardening difficult, as a lot of the critters tear up the plants.  Appreciating the nature and the animals wars with us wanting to have a garden of our own that we can enjoy in the summer months.

I found a chicken coop on Craigslist for free.  We will be putting that together and getting some laying hens for organic eggs.  Paskie says we will eat the chickens too once they stop laying, but I want no part of that...  I can't eat a pet.  That is also why I am thankful we are in the city limits and not allowed to have other livestock like pigs, goats and such...  I would like to have them, I just don't want to eat them... I'd rather go to whole foods and get them already packaged.

This is a flock of turkeys that hang out in the neighborhood.  They fly on the roof and then forage in our yard for food.  They are huge.  4 males and 5 females.  It is mating season so I am hoping to see babies soon...  It is a little weird to go out in your backyard and see a giant turkey on the patio chair.  Kind of feels surreal.  I love our house...  I love being her in the hills of Martinez.  I look forward to planting the garden and will share our efforts as they come about.  Here is the garden bed area... all ready to begin planting.  we will need to build the beds, and a frame for the compost bin in the next few weeks as well...  to get our little farm started.

I'm Baaaaack!

Well, that was more than a 2 week sabbatical!  With so many things going on, I really felt it was important to scale back on the computer time for a while to give my arms a break.  I have been absent from Facebook and Pinterest as well for the most part.  Restricting myself to checking email on my phone once a day, and Facebook and Pinterest about once a week.

This time of reflection has helped me to get more focus on the things I want to be doing in the future, primarily Jewelry and teaching.  I am learning to let things go that don't really serve a purpose in my life, and focus more on the things that matter.  This is a difficult process, shedding the old self and transforming into someone new can be very painful.  There have been a lot of tears through the process, but it is all leading me toward the life I want to be living.  I am grateful for the love and support of my family during this time.  Especially my husband and daughter, who are here with me every day in the thick of it, seeing the raw parts, the ugly mess, and the newer happier person emerging as a result.

It all started with a deep depression that occured after the holidays and lingered until recently.  I took some time to read Louis Hay's Heal Your Body book, and looked up every physical ailment I had.   Wouldn't you know that almost everything I had wrong with me translated to not feeling safe.  In not creating safety for myself, my body was manifesting illness to tell me that I wasn't safe.  I wrote down all the affirmations, and have been saying them every day, and guess what?  The illnesses are going away.  Little by little the symptoms are leaving, and some of the issues have gone completely.  I do still have some actual issues I need to address with a doctor, but I find it really amazing that by changing the attitude you have, you can heal many symptoms.  I am focusing on healing and putting a lot of time and energy into healing my life... All the parts I have neglected are getting better.  Day by day I am stronger, happier, more focused and passionate about where I am headed.

To recap the first trimester of the year:  We settled in to the new house, made a few trips to the OC for work, doctors appointments and visiting friends.  Paskie has been traveling a lot for work, and I have been restricted to what I can do with my arms, due to a continuing and prolonged work injury from 3 years ago.  I am able to make jewelry, and have been very busy with that.  This year I made a resolution, no, more like a promise to myself that I would send in some of my work to magazines.  I was so happy when I was contacted by Jewelry Affaire and Bead Style magazines to publish some of my jewelry pieces.  Watch for the summer issue of Jewelry Affair and the September issue of Bead Style to see what I have been up to.  Once the article is published, I can post pictures of the pieces I sent in.

I will be adding a lot of things to my ETSY shop in the upcoming weeks, and pinning them to Pinterest, so look for me there as well.

The highlight of the first trimester by far was a visit with my soul sister Danita Raulerson, who came to stay for 3 weeks in March.  We did a quick tour of California starting with So Cal, OC, Hollywood, Los Angeles, San Diego and moving north to Santa Barbara, Solvang, Hearst Castle, Big Sur, Monterey, Carmel, Santa Cruz, and then San Francisco, the Sierra Nevadas, and the Bay Area.  One particularly great day was when we drove up to Big Trees state park to see the giant Sequoias.  We found this one huge tree that had a little space in it that you could lean back against and it felt like the tree was hugging you.  We both spent some time there, letting the tree hug us.  It is amazing... tree hugging.  If you pay attention, you can feel the energy of the tree.,  It resonates with a deep earth energy that is present in all of us.  If you allow yourself, you can actually feel your body get more grounded and you can feel your energy start to match that of the tree.  Whenever I feel unbalanced or sad, I go hug a tree.  Lean into it...  really let the emotions out... and I ALWAYS feel better afterward.  Danita was having back pain and experienced none after hugging the tree.  I felt a sense of calm and euphoria that lasted for days after.

Three weeks was still not enough time, although I am sure she was happy to go home and see her family, she was deeply missed here by her California kin.  I am looking forward to getting together with her again in the next year for an art week at the beach in Florida.

My plan is to post once a week for the next few months as I get back into blogging mode.  I will be posting more DIY craft ideas, as well as jewelry, and flea market finds.  So stay tuned for some fun ideas in the coming weeks.

Gift Tags

Go to the home depot or your favorite paint store and grab a bunch of paint color cards.  Cut them into christmas tree shapes and tie onto brown paper wrapped packages. So cute and you can color coordinate them with your gift wrap.

Get the large paint sample cards an punch them out with a tag punch.  Stamp with a christmas stamp.

Punch out graphics from old Christmas cards and tie them to packages with curly ribbon.

Cut images from gift wrap and glue them to cardstock for a coordinating look.

Recycle price tags.  Cover them with paint, and stamp them with christmas images.

Use a template and cut out cereal boxes and cover with scrap paper

Punch out tags from store shopping bags that have an interesting print.

Merry Christmas

 What a month this has been.  Last night we went to my aunt and uncles for dinner... I did not take one photo.  I was so busy visiting with cousins I haven't seen in a while, that I totally forgot.  Great news, my cousin Tim just got engaged, so we have another wedding to look forward to next year.  We got home last night, and Zack entertained us with jokes for an hour.  We sat around and laughed and remembered funny Christmases of the past.  I was saying last night for them to remember these moments, because in a few years they will be married and having kids of their own and starting their own traditions.  Zack says no way, I plan on being here on Christmas eve with my wife and kids, waking grandma and grandpa up at the crack of dawn to open presents.  I was saying we will need to build a bunkhouse...  I wonder what the holidays will be like 10 years from now.  One thing I know... they will be filled with love and thoughtful gestures and traditions old and new.

My kids surprised me by waking up early for the first time and cooking breakfast for everyone.  Usually I am up at 6am cooking, but today I was told to stay in bed and watch a movie.  I could hear them all laughing in the kitchen, and I wanted to go join in the fun... But Pascual made me stay in the room.  Then I smelled the food cooking and knew they were trying to surprise me.  There are those moments in life where you are overwhelmed with love for your kids... where you feel so full in your heart, there is no place for it go so it bubbles out.  Kayleigh's kindergarten teacher taught her that.  That my kids were so thoughtful to wake up early, something they HATE to do, and cook the family breakfast so I could relax... it is truly one of the greatest gifts I have ever been given by my family.

The best news of all....  Santa brought me a CAMERA!  Now I can post videos and high quality photos on my blog...  I can't wait for the rain to stop so I can go outside and use it to photograph the yard and show you all the great space we have to work with in our new garden...

Speaking of gifts. I have one last gift suggestion, you can use it for next year.  I don't have photos, so I will just tell you about it.  I Love to give gift baskets for the holidays.  A basket with Pasta Sauce made from the garden, homemade pasta, olive oil and balsamic dipping oil, a baguette and a chocolate cake.  Everything you need to make a day after christmas dinner.  When you are wiped out and don't feel like cooking.  This meal in a basket is a much loved favorite gift.  Of course you can cheat and buy all the ingredients, it will still be just as appreciated.  Makes a great hostess gift for a holiday party too.

Wishing all of you a lovely, warm holiday season.  Thanks for stopping by this month and checking out my little Christmas ideas.  I will be taking the rest of the year off, and will begin posting after Kings day, January 6th...  with new photos, and video tutorials of DIY projects and recipes.

Hugs to all
Karan

Favorite Holiday Cookies & Candies

This is a lengthy post.  I have compiled a list of the top cookie and breakfast recipes that my family loves.  Some of them are tried and true holiday favorites, some of them are modifications on traditional recipes that my family loves.  All of them are fairly easy and the results consistently good.

Chocolate Crinkles
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 squares unsweetened chocolate (4 oz) melted
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup powdered sugar

Mix oil, chocolate and sugar until well mixed.  add vanilla. Mix dry ingredients and then add to chocolate mixture.  Chill dough overnight.  Heat oven to 350. With cookie scoop (mini Ice Cream scooper) dip out balls of dough and place in a bowl full of powdered sugar.  Swirl dough in sugar until covered.  Place on well greased cookie sheet.  Dough is very sticky and easier to work with cold.  It will stick to your hands if you roll it by hand.  Place 2 inches apart.  Bake 10-12 minutes until almost no imprint shows when lightly touched in center.  Let cookies cool for a few minutes on sheet before placing on cooling rack.  These are delicious and taste like chocolate cake.  I usually double this recipe

Peppermint Snowballs

·         1  cup  butter, softened

·         3/4  cup  confectioners' sugar

·         1  teaspoon  vanilla

·         1/4  teaspoon  salt

·         1/4  cups  all-purpose flour

·         1/2  cup  quick-cooking oats

·         , 8 candy canes crushed (heaping 1/4 cup)

·           Red food coloring

·           Confectioners' sugar for rolling

Directions

1.Heat oven to 400°F. In large bowl, with mixer on high, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in vanilla and salt. Reduce mixer speed to low, and beat in flour (dough will be very dry). Beat in oats, mints, and 12 drops of red food coloring. Shape heaping teaspoons of dough into balls, place on ungreased baking sheets 1/2 inch apart, and bake 15 to 18 minutes per batch.

2. Place confectioners' sugar in large bowl. Roll hot cookies in confectioners' sugar, let cool completely, and repeat.

Snickerdoodles
1 cup shortening (part butter or margarine)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
cinnamon and sugar for coating

Hear oven to 400 degrees.  Mix shortening, sugar and eggs thoroughly.  Measure flour by dipping method.  Mix all dry ingredients in another bowl and then add to creamed mixture.  Refrigerate 1 hour.  Roll into 1 inch balls,  then roll into cinnamon sugar.  Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet.  Bake 8-10 minutes.  These cookies puff up at first, then flatten out when cooled.

Peanut Butter Blossoms

1/ 2 cup shortning (1/2 butter or margarine)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Heat oven to 375.   Mix shortening, sugars, eggs and peanut butter together until well blended.  Measure flour by dipping method.  Mix all dry ingredients together.  Add to creamed mixture.  Chill dough 1 hour.  Roll dough into 1 1/4 inch balls, then roll in granulated sugar.  Place 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 10-12 minutes.  Allow to cool 2 minutes on cookie sheet, press unwrapped Hershey Kiss or Hug into center of cookie.  Transfer to cooling rack and allow them to set for a few hours.  Kiss will melt, and then resolidify in cookie.  Do not disturb cookies until chocolate had hardened again.  I usually double this recipe.

Chocolate Croissants
Take a can of croissant dough and roll it out.  Press pre cut seams together and then cut rectangles into squares.  Fill each croissant with a teaspoon of chocolate chips.  Fold four corners of croissant into the middle and form a little pouch.  Bake as instructed on can.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.  Makes 8 croissants.

Creme Brulee French Toast  

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons corn syrup
• 6 French bread slices
• 5 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups half-and-half cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon brandy-based orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier or Triple Sec)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

1.     Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and corn syrup, stirring until         sugar is dissolved. Pour into a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2.     Remove crusts from bread, and arrange in the baking dish in a single layer. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, half and half, vanilla extract, orange brandy, and salt. Pour over the bread. Cover, and chill at least 8 hours, or overnight.

3.     Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Remove the dish from the refrigerator, and bring to room temperature.

4.     Bake uncovered 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until puffed and lightly browned. 

Holiday Traditions

Christmas photos of years past

In my family,  Christmas starts on Christmas eve at my Aunt Marcia and Uncle Bobs house.  When I was a kid, it was grandmas... when she got older, Bob and Marcia volunteered to host it, and it has been at their house ever since.  My grandma was German and they celebrated Christmas Eve.  I remember Grandma telling of her parents lighting the candles on the tree while Uncle Hans stood by with a big bucket of water in case of fire.  The candles only burned long enough for all the family to appreciate the beauty of the tree.  She said they decorated it with a lot of home made paper ornaments.  They would spend the time making paper chains and fans and painting acorns and stringing popcorn and cranberries to adorn a festive tree.   She taught me how to sing Oh Tannenbaum, and I remember many christmases where I walked down to the craft store and bought ornament kits.  My brothers and cousins and I would decorate them with pins and sequins.   My mom tells a story of my grandma dragging home some tumble weeds and spray painting them white so she and Uncle Bob could have a snowman in the yard,   Here where we live, we have to drive 3 hours to see snow.  I love my grandmas ingenuity and way of thinking outside the box.  I think that's where I got my love of making ornaments, along with a frugal holiday decorating style.

When I was little, it was the one time a year I got to see all my cousins.  Now the family has grown so much, many have their own christmas eve celebrations, but many of us still gather, now six generations from the original German Immigrants who started the holiday tradition.  Christmas doesn't feel the same without Spaghetti dinner and potluck sides.  Visiting with cousins I only see once a year, some every other year.  watching the excitement on the little kids faces when they all open up one gift.  It was the one thing that made the holiday gift anxiety easier as a kid, being able to open one gift on christmas eve.

I remember fondly the year I got canned mushrooms and my brothers got buckets of reindeer poop.  Or the year my cousin Tim told Grandma she should ask Santa for a microwave.  Or the fist year we celebrated without Grandpa, and then Grandma... how sad, and nostalgic everyone was...  and how now we tell our favorite stories.  Missing cousin Kathy and Aunt Pat... the excitement of new babies being born and keeping all of the Santa Magic alive...

My children, and husbands of christmas Past, (and husband of Christmas present) have always celebrated Christmas morning,   Opening gifts and a big breakfast before the kids go off to their dads house at 11 am.  It is a frantic free for all of gift opening, getting showered and dressed, eating breakfast and everyone going out the door.  Pascual and I enjoy having a quiet house from Noon on... sometimes we join other family members for dinner, sometimes we join friends for a dinner, but many times we just go to the movies and hang out... reflecting on the fun and often the hectic times that happen during the holiday season.  As I grow older, I am realizing that I will probably not keep doing the hectic shopping of years past.  I will probably just give money now that the kids are older, and let them all get what they want.  We are hoping to go to Spain next Christmas, where let me tell you, they KNOW how to celebrate a holiday season.  Starting with Christmas Eve, and carrying on for the 12 days of Christmas to Epiphany on January 6th, it is a fun Festivus season....

The other tradition we celebrate is cookie baking.  My kids love it, but with schedules the way they are, we don't all get together for it any more like we did when they were little.  I may have one here one day, and another the next.  It is rare for me to have all 4 of them home at once.. But it is a part of our holiday traditions that we can never miss.  Tomorrow I will be posting photos and recipes of all of our family favorites, cookies and breakfast.

Apologies and explanations

My apologies for not posting today's post on the right day.  I has composed it early in the morning and selected draft instead.  I type many of my posts ahead of time, and add the photos later.  I find when I schedule them to post, sometimes I forget to come add the photos and it gets posted incomplete.  Thanks for bearing with me as I get into the groove of posting daily.  It is a much bigger endeavor than I had anticipated.  We moved the 6th of December, then flew to Wisconsin for a week to attend my hubbys company Christmas party and him to attend training at the home office, then back home to unpack and find all the Christmas and baking things among all the boxes.  Needless to say, It has been challenging trying to do a post a day, even with them pre typed, many of the things I post are made the day before posting and I didn't have all the photographs ready because everything is packed.  I won't even start on the camera difficulties I face on a daily basis... I will just apologize for the crummy photos... again... and hope Santa brings me a camera for Christmas.

But even with the hectic move added to the holiday season, we are so happy to be in a home again.  I will be doing many room makeover and garden posts in the coming months as we slowly make this place our own.

Thanks so much for visiting.

Beautiful Packaging

I love to make beautiful packages when I wrap.  Many times over the years, we wrapped with paper and wrote the kids name on the package with a sharpie, or an even bigger shortcut, the kids initial on each package.  When they are little, they don't truly appreciate the packaging.  But as my kids are growing older, they love the ceremony of unwrapping a gift.  Appreciating the packaging, and admiring my craftiness.  No bags or tissue in our house.  It must be wrapped in a box with paper and a stick on bow at least.  Where is the fun in pulling something out of a bag.  I think if you are going to go through the effort to give a gift to someone special, take the time to make the packaging pretty.  Bows cost a lot, even at the dollar store.  I have learned how to make many lovely bows and package adornments over the years for pennies.  Crepe paper and tulle are two of my go to favorites.  Along with cheap ornaments I pick up at thrift stores and glitter up over the year and set aside for packaging.  In my dream house, I would have 2 gift wrap rooms... One for Christmas, and another for everything else...

Photo number one is a keepsake box.  Decopage a cigar box with old sheet music.  Fan fold strips of music paper, cut a point on the fan fold, glue ends together to form a circle shape.  Glitter tips of circle.  Hand cut flowers, layer and then scrunch them up for a dimensional look.  Add a pearl button to the center of the flower and tie the whole thing on with glitter tulle and sheer ribbon.

White paper packages look so elegant tied with glitter tulle , and embellished with a tulle and glittered star ornament featured earlier this month.   Cut strips of tulle and wrap around package.  Save ends and run thru the string of the ornament, allowing ornament to dangle.  Pick up any star, snowflake or instrument ornament and glitter it up.  It makes a nice package ornament, and a keepsake for the recipient.

Wired tinsel garland bow.  Form 3 loops.  Make rose or gathered flower out of crepe paper streamer.  Glue to center of garland loops with hot glue gun.  Wrap crepe paper around package and then garland on top of crepe paper.  Wire bow to garland wrap for secure placement of bow.

This is a great package to do when you don't have any gift wrap.  Most people have waxed paper or aluminum foil in their kitchen.  Wrap box in foil or wax paper.  Make sure the box is white or a solid color if your are using wax paper.  Gather crepe paper with sewing machine or needle and thread.  Form flat circular cocorde with patterened crepe paper as pictured.  Make rosette by rolling pink gathered crepe paper into a circle, securing occasionally with hot glue.  Fluff the rosette and glue it to the cocorde. Wrap package a few times with another gathered streamer piece then glue rosette bow to package.