Gooseberry Patch's Brand New Series

The first and most important reason for this post is my review for Gooseberry Patch. They have the cutest "little" books called Tiny Tips.  I will get to those in a moment. 

But first I want to thank each of you for your kind and heartwarming words throughout the past month.  This has been a very difficult time for our family…especially for my sweet daughter Holly and her love, Richard.  But we must now move on…carry on with things at hand.  We cannot pretend the pain is not there and it just does not go away but with each day we slowly learn to cope and heal.  Friends and family showing their love and support along with our Savior in Heaven has helped make this possible….and for that I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Now for some of those matters at hand….Gooseberry Patch has once again entrusted me to do another review for them about some of their fabulous books!  Their newest books are called Tiny Tips…there are 4 in the collection:

Tiny tips for a Cozy Home, Tiny Tips to Make and Give, Tiny Tips for Get Togethers, and Tiny Tips for the Kitchen.  Trust me; you will want the complete set!! I will be reviewing Tiny Tips for a Cozy Home and Tiny Tips for the Kitchen!  These are adorable little books; great for sharing, adding to a special gift, stocking stuffers, or just a thoughtful gesture for someone special.  Collect them all! 

First up is Tiny Tips for the Kitchen…

A homemaker’s and Mom’s favorite place to be… well maybe for some of us anyway.  Cooking and working in the kitchen can be very demanding, but it should be a pleasure and any thing that makes it easier and simple is a big help.  In this little book full of BIG ideas, you will come across quotes like “Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.” ~Ernestine Ulmer must be a wise woman!  She’s my kind of fun woman!  And “The kitchen is the heart of the home, and the mother is queen of the kitchen.” ~Owen Meredith is a wise man don’t ya think? J

There are many helpful tips in the book; like using a skewer or even an uncooked strand of spaghetti for testing the doneness of deep cakes!  Now who would have thought!!??

This is one of my favorites and well worth using: Parchment paper is a baker’s best friend!  Oh yes it is!  This one is tried and true! 

Line your baking sheet to keep cookies from spreading and sticking and over browning on the bottom! Clean-up is a breeze.  Where to find it? …right next to the aluminum foil and wax paper in your favorite place to shop.

How many of you keep your tomatoes in the refrigerator?  DON’T…they will quickly lose their “just picked” taste.  Keep them on the counter or on your pantry shelf!  Now for your favorite hard grating cheeses like Parmesan:  Keep them fresh longer by wrapping them in a paper towel that has been moistened with cider vinegar.  Place it inside a plastic zip lock bag in the refrigerator.  The vinegar kills the bacterium that grows into mold.

Here’s another DON’T:  don’t add salt when boiling corn on the cob…it will make it tough!  Instead add sugar which will sweeten the corn to a taste you cannot resist!   Now I bet you did not know this either:  Baking soda can be used for removing soil, wax, and residue from fresh fruits and veggies.  When we purchase these at the stores, we never know what can be taking a ride on them…so we need to wash well.  A little baking soda sprinkled on the dampened produce with a gentle scrubbing will remove those little hitchhikers after you rinse with running water.  No need to buy those fancy expensive produce washes! YaY!

Here’s another money saver: Blend equal parts olive oil and lemon juice to create a polish that will make wood furniture shine. Just apply with a soft cloth and buff!  These are just a few of the many fabulous tips and quotes in this little book.  It’s so fun to learn these simple little tricks that it just makes ya want to go “Duh…why didn’t I think of that!”

Next up is Tiny Tips of a Cozy Home...

I love this little tipster! Lots of good little ideas that I love.  These books are filled with the cutest hand drawn illustrations.  I love Gooseberry Patch graphics!!  The various photos I have chosen here from the web, depict the tiny tips from their books.  For starters: Save discarded windows or purchase them at yard sales and make eye catching displays like this:

and this...

Are you a vintage Pyrex lover like me? 

Well show them off honey and use them too. 

Their colors and pattern make great displays as well as putting them to everyday use which brings back memories of Mama and Grandma!

 “If you were to ask me what is most important in a home, I would say memories”

~Lillian Gish

The simplest table decorations are often the prettiest. 

Use what ya got!

Decorate with teacups…the ways are limitless.

and even with vintage plates...

~~~~~~

Speaking of limitless….mason jars and old bottles…oh how I love them…especially the blue ones. 

 Fill them with flowers, threads, buttons, marbles, oh my!

You can even create country charm on your windowsill. 

Decorate with inexpensive trinkets and give your home that cozy vintage feel.

 Colorful glass bottles, kitchen gadgets, spools of thread

and even skeleton keys.

And who wouldn’t love to have one of these…

You can create your own cupcake stand from tag sale

teacups and saucers and plates. 

A little epoxy glue and your imagination and voilà!  You are so talented!

Pitchers filled with fresh flowers add charm to any room.

And who says eggs aren’t beautiful…fill a basket for

that perfect farm-style breakfast centerpiece.

Remember this…  “A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.”

~ George Moore

Now that I’ve spurred your curiosity and gave you an appetite for decorating along with some helpful tips…here's how you can get your set of these Tiny Tip books.  Straight from Gooseberry patch here and here.  You know you want them!

And here’s one of Gooseberry Patch’s recipes I want to share with you…I have not made it yet….but it sure looks good!!!  It can be found in 101 Easy Everyday Recipes.  Enjoy!

Easy Skillet Lasagna

This recipe was shared with us by Terri McClure...she's from right around the corner, in Hilliard, Ohio! She writes, "My husband often asks me to make this recipe. And sometimes, he even helps prepare it! Tastes great with ground turkey too."

 1-1/2 T. olive oil

 1/2 green pepper, finely chopped

 1 onion, finely chopped

 1 clove garlic, minced

 16-oz. jar spaghetti sauce

 1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained

 6 lasagna noodles, cooked and cut in half

 12-oz. container small-curd cottage cheese

 4 slices mozzarella cheese

 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté green pepper, onion and garlic until tender; drain. Transfer to a bowl; stir in spaghetti sauce and browned beef. In skillet, layer 1/3 of sauce mixture, half the lasagna noodles, half the cottage cheese, 2 slices of mozzarella and half the Parmesan. Repeat layers. Top with remaining sauce, making sure to cover all noodles. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes before uncovering and serving. Serves 4.

Until we meet again….Happy tipping, quoting, and cooking!

Credits : Photos are mostly from Pinterest, which I am addicted too, Google, and Gooseberry Patch!  A few of them are my own!

Playing With Light

got milk?

   Light of the world, come and shine,

 fill this dark world with your light.

 ~Elizabeth Padillo Olesen

~~~

What I’m likin’ today~

A wren’s chirping melody

Old milk bottles and jars

A fresh juicy nectarine

The smell of Gain

Playing with light

Vintage buttons

Fried chicken

Stars on jars

Books

When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.

-Jimi Hendrix

Grand Opening

I DID IT! I finally opened an Etsy shop.

Now you can shop with me on line when you cannot make it to my craft shows.

So...without further ado I am pleased to announce my

Heartfelt and Homemade Etsy Shop. TaDa!

 You will also find a mini widget on my sidebar which will take you to my shop.

Click on the shop name and take a sneak peek!

Here you will find creations with my personal touch; anything from junky trash to treasures, altered art, vintage, shabby chic and my photography. I love to recycle junk and make it once again functional and oh so shabby and chic for you to enjoy. There will be seasonal items for fall and the holidays like Christmas and lots of shabby pink stuff. And don’t worry you lovers of prim…I will have a few things you might like too…given time to get them done! I promise to not make it all pink and shabby!! Also some of my photography will be featured so you can buy my prints once I get them in the store.

I’m really excited about this new venture and also a little apprehensive at the same time. Will I sell anything? Will anyone find something they like and make an effort to purchase it? Is Etsy the right place to do this? Am I wasting my time and the cost of listing items for sale? Will people find my shop? All these and many more questions cross my mind and this is why I have not bothered to venture out and do this before now. Fear of the unknown, fear of messing up, fear of no sales, fear of wasting a little money, and the fear of my insecurities and lack of confidence. But for now the excitement is greater than the fears, so I jumped into the raging waters and I’m swimming. Please say a little prayer that I do not sink. Take a look at my treasures and let me know what you like. I will try to keep new things coming as I get them photographed and displayed. If you have any Etsy experience you would like to share with me, please do so; if you are looking for something particular just ask…I’ll see what I can do. You as well as your ideas and advice are always welcome.

As they say…"You never know until you try". So I’m going t try this!

These quotes are an inspiration too:

"Move out of your comfort zone.
You can only grow if you are willing to feel
awkward and uncomfortable
when you try something new."
~Brian Tracy

"The big shots are only the little shots who keep shooting."

~Christopher Morley

"In the long run, men hit only what they aim at.

Therefore, they had better aim at something high."

~Henry David Thoreau

And My favorite:

"Take a chance! All life is a chance.

The man who goes the furthest is generally

the one who is willing to do and dare."

~Dale Carnegie

So we’ll see how this goes…wish me luck!

 

My word for 2010-Experience

I experienced a new venture~Etsy

Pet-Sitting 101

Pet Sitting .....It’s hard work…I’m telling you. I run around after these 5 animals all day long ….

They are a hand full...

They are always into something, making a mess, not listening to anything I say! Purring too loud…no discipline at all!

And they never ever want to take a nap!!!

Seriously….if you ever find yourself pet-sitting at the pet’s house…bring something to do! A project you are working on, knitting, sewing; bring a good book and some movies….it’s quite boring if you don’t have something to do!

I just finished watching Mad Money!  *because its raining outside…again!*

 Now if you haven’t seen this hilarious movie…go rent it! And who would have thought up such a crime…its full of funny! "Money can’t buy you happiness but it sure can buy everything else!"  Diane Keaton, Queen Latifah and Katie Holmes…all goofy and clever in their quest to become criminals LOL.
A movie only lasts approximately 2 hours…so on to the next project. Sewing again. After completing the camera strap cover, I had extra material so I made a rice bag…What’s a rice bag good for? An achy back, crick-in-the-neck-pain, and cramps, just naming a few. Oh, and cold feet come to mind right now! These bags are heated up in the microwave for 3 minutes and man oh man…they are wonderful.

They really hold the heat for a long time and certainly more economical than an electric heating pad.
They are easy to make. Go see Darby at Fly Through Our Window for her easy tutorial and instructions.

Still having some fabric left….I made this:

A pot holder! Doing some more of my swirly work!

Plus I hate paying $5.00 for a pretty pot holder! Cute huh?

What next? Who knows……I can’t wait until Holly and Richard return from Miami….3 more days…..

and we are going out for some good seafood! YaY!

I forgot to tell them I get paid by the hour….

Let’s see that’s 10 days…24/7+3=a whole heck of a lot of Mad Money for me!

Cha-ching!

Take care and Happy Sunday tomorrow…until we visit again my friends

"A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ

that a man should have to seek Him first to find her."

~unknown~

~Sweet~

Dress your strap

I mentioned in a previous post that I would be making a camera strap cover for my camera….
well it’s all done and I love it! See:

You can make you one too, it’s so easy. Go visit Allison at Cluck Cluck Sew for the step by step tutorial with photos.
Thanks Allison for these wonderful instructions.

 I got my material at Hobby Lobby, my favorite place right now!
And you know it had to be pink, brown and green!
It does not take much at all, so you can pull some left over fabric from

the scrap box or you can even piece small pieces for fabric together and get really crafty.

I chose two different fabrics so that mine is two-sided.

I added a little something different to mine after adding the padding.
As you can see here in this photo,
I did some fancy *for me* swirl quilting with the sewing machine.
Now Holly’s machine is nothing fancy at all,
a gift from her husband’s Grannie, and does not do any fancy stitching, so anyone can do this.
Just start sewing swirls, etc. It adds a nice and personal touch.
It doesn’t have to be all perfect or anything, just let it be you!

It hardest part was turning it right-side out after you are finished sewing.
The next hard part is slipping it over the camera strap…well mine was tricky
because it fit rather tight just like I wanted it to. No slipping here!

Don’t you just love it? Now go make you one or two or three..

and please share them with me so I can see too!  Then enjoy your new dressed up baby!

I’m going to be making some rice bags out of the remaining fabric. You’ll see!!

A word for you today…..
Are you seeking the gifts or the Giver?

Sometimes we get so caught up in seeking God's presents that we forget all about His presence!
God wants every believer to remain in His presence and have a
personal relationship with Him just like you would with any other friend.

The rewards of seeking God are awesome; not only will you develop a closer relationship with God, but you will also find true joy and contentment. ~Psalm 16:11 says, "You will fill me with joy in your presence."
In other words, joy is found in God's presence--not His presents!
Evaluate your life to make sure that you're seeking God, not just His gifts.

 These inspirational words and more can be found at Christ’s Notes.

Have a blessed weekend filled with joy!