Making Your Own Cards and Rubber Stamps

April 29, 2010 5 Comments

For a couple of months now I have been obsessed with the thought of making my own note cards, specifically thank you’s.  There are a few people I know who always send a handwritten card in the mail for random occasions – my aunt Kathy and my friend Sonia – to name two, and every time I get one, they make me smile.  I was thinking that if I made my own cards, maybe I could borrow a bit of that thoughtfulness and start sending more myself.

Needless to say, when I got an email from my favorite store in Jersey City – Kanibal Home – about a card making class, I was thrilled! The class would begin at 7 pm on a Friday night, and Kristen, Kanibal Home’s fabulous owner also promised adult beverages.  What better way to spend a Friday night? Crafting AND drinking? To top it off, the class was only $25 – a bargain.

By James French

The class was taught James French, a local artist who sells his work, such as these great birdhouses, in Kanibal Home. James and his fiance Shauna Finn also have a blog about their art work called http://finchartsandcrafts.blogspot.com/.

I loved the class.  We learned how to make your own rubber stamp – which is MUCH easier than I would have thought – and learned some tricks for personalized cards.  For the cards, James talked quite a bit about collage and combining different papers and ribbons on a card to give it a unique look.  I tried that technique here:

Origami paper, ribbon and stamping!

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Crafting, Under $20 Tagged With: , , , ,

Seafood Bouillabaisse

April 28, 2010 4 Comments

Spaghetti with Shrimp and Cockles. Worth the wait.

Erin wasn’t the only one with pasta on the brain this week. After a weekend of running errands, cleaning the house and even going into work on  a Sunday, all I wanted was something warm and yummy to prepare for the week ahead.

Walking home from the subway, I passed a fish market and on a whim, purchased a three-fourths pound of shrimp a three-fourths pound of cockles. I’ve never worked with cockles before – essentially they are just small clams – so I turned to the Internet for some inspiration on what the heck to do with them.
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Filed Under: Cooking Tagged With:

Chest of Drawer-ganization*

April 27, 2010 2 Comments

Martha Stewart, you've done it again!

Moving is the type of task that points out to you – in the meanest way possible – just how un-organized you are.  It’s much easier to move important papers and files when they are packed neatly in storage boxes and containers. I learned this lesson the hard way.

When I was moving from my former apartment to my current one, important documents like tax forms, receipts and health insurance updates were unceremoniously dumped from the faux-wicker tray in which they lived ( on my nightstand, which was also home to the occasional water cup and leftover ice cream bowl) into a plastic bag identical to the ones in which I was placing trash.  How it survived the journey intact is anyone’s guess, but I realized upon move-in, “I need help.”

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Filed Under: Home & Garden Tagged With: ,

What's for Supper? Caprese Pasta

April 26, 2010 Leave a Comment

As the seasons change, so does what I crave when it comes to dinner time.  When the days get longer and the sun gets stronger, I gravitate towards lighter, fresher flavors and more fruits and vegetables.  I was reading Jordan Reid’s great new site the other day – Ramshackleglam, when I saw this picture that literally took my breath away:

Oh yes, you saw that correctly.  It’s caprese pasta: Just like the salad, it relies on the delicious flavors of extra virgin olive oil, ripe tomatoes, basil and strong, freshly-made mozzarella to carry the dish.  I’m going to try the recipe out for myself; don’t worry, I’ll keep you posted on the results!  If you’d like to give it a go, you can see the whole recipe here.

Happy Cooking!

Filed Under: Cooking Tagged With: , , , ,

My New Favorite Quick & Easy Dinner

April 22, 2010 1 Comment

If left to my own devices, I would be the world’s most unhealthy eater.  I have an unnatural obsession with cheese and pasta, and pretty much have convinced myself that pizza is healthy.  But every once in an while I snap back to reality and realize that I need to eat a little bit healthier.

The main problem is that I hate both salad and chicken, for the most part.  Nor do I really enjoy cooked fish. But I know that my body needs more protein and veggies.  So any time I can find a way to include these things in my diet, I’m elated. Enter my new favorite way to eat chicken: homemade chicken tenders.  I stole this idea from my boyfriend’s sister, so I can’t take complete credit.  Its so easy and delicious.

Here’s what you do: cut up chicken breast into chicken tender-sized pieces.  Cover them in milk, then breadcrumbs. Bake in the oven at 375 until chicken is cooked through.  Probably 15 – 20 minutes, depending on the size of your pieces.

Best part? It’s an excellent vehicle for Frank’s Red Hot, my favorite condiment.  We were supposed to have these with a side of frozen vegetables, but someone snuck in some frozen french fries as well. Obviously, I didn’t complain.

Filed Under: Cooking Tagged With:

DIY Masterpieces

April 21, 2010 Leave a Comment

Apparently now drawable using just a pen!

Are you an insanely talented super-artist with access to a Bic pen and 90 free hours to spare?  If so, we’ve got just the DIY project for you.

Here’s a link of artist James Mylane recreating the famous Johannes Vermeer painting “Girl with a Pearl Earring” using only a Bic pen.  It’s worth watching if for no other reason than to be jealous of such crazy talent.  And if you actually possess the the talent do something like this, step away from the computer and get thee to the art store. You are wasting your time on the Internet and you know it.

This reminds me, too, of a funny meme I saw a few weeks ago – Pearl with a Girl Earring, in which the head and earring of this famous painting swap places. I laughed pretty hard about that for a good five minutes.  Sadly, my Photoshop skills are not up to snuff in this area either, so I’ll just stick with tracing things from the computer.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , ,

Make, Lather, Rinse and Repeat

April 20, 2010 Leave a Comment

This lather could be yours....

As mentioned previously, we’re kinda cheap over here and it’s come to our attention that making your own shampoo at home is not that hard. (The trouble is sometimes sourcing the ingredients).  When I first read this, I jumped for joy. How cool is that?

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Lemon Meringue Pie: The Disaster

April 19, 2010 15 Comments

I’ve always enjoyed cooking much more than baking.  Maybe this is because I don’t have a sweet tooth, or maybe this is because I’ve been known to guzzle a few beverages sip a glass of wine leisurely while I cook. A spaghetti sauce is somewhat forgiving: you add too much oregano, chances are, it’ll still turn out ok.  Too much salt? Throw in some more tomatoes.  It can pretty much all easily be fixed.  But baking is a science.  If you forget baking powder, well, forget it.  You just can’t.

When I offered to make my BF a pie for his birthday, I didn’t expect he’d take me up on it.  He’s had my baking before.  It’s never good.  Nor did I expect him to insist on a homemade crust. After bitching about it for two hours having a conversation about what type of pie and crust he’d like, I set off to make his favorite: Lemon Meringue.

I should make you all aware: not only have I never made a pie or a pie crust before but I’ve also never tasted lemon meringue pie. (That I can remember.)

Let’s just say this… it wasn’t my best piece of work ever.  While it tasted really good today, I can pretty much say that it was a just shy of a failure.  Here is my sad little pie with way too much crust and not enough meringue.

So here’s what I need your help with: [Read more...]

Filed Under: Miscellaneous

How to Make Place Mats from Shelf Liner

April 16, 2010 Leave a Comment

Turn all this extra shelf liner into cute place mats.

Yesterday, Erin and I were laughing over the fact that we are super cheap.  It’s rare that either of us buy anything pretty because we’re always convinced we can make it ourselves.  Place mats have always been one of those things for me.  Who has $40 or more to throw away on a piece of fabric that goes under your plate?  Not me!

But that was before I had my Oprah A-ha Moment (TM) at a bridal shower this weekend. What should be beneath each person’s table setting (at a very cute restaurant called Surf Taco by the by) but place mats made of the very same shelf-lining material I had picked up at Bed Bath and Beyond last week for the utensil drawers? Holla!

The restaurant manager let me take one home and then it was off to the races.

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Filed Under: Home & Garden, Under $20

Take a look to your right…

April 15, 2010 1 Comment

Just a little note that Erin and I have added a little something extra to the site – sponsors! Take a look to your right and you’ll see several great brands that we are excited to share.   There are lots o’ deals to be had, so click through and take a look around.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous
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