a new family tradition

I found the perfect sugar cookie recipe last year. I knew how unhealthy it was, so I wanted to wait a whole year to make it. And the time finally came!

They are the softest cookies and they taste divine!

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup shortening

(You can use just one cup of margarine if you prefer, but the half butter cuts down on the hydrogenated oil and the shortening keeps them really soft. They taste just as good either way though.)

Blend above with 2 cups sugar

Add 2 eggs, mix well, then add 1 cup sour cream and 1 tsp vanilla and mix well.

In separate bowl combine dry ingredients

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

4 1/2 cup flour

Mix in dry ingredients by thirds to wet ingredients. mix till smooth. Chill dough in fridge at least one hour. Roll out on really well floured surface. (The dough is really sticky so you have to flour the top of the dough and the rolling pin too or else they just stick to everything. Don't worry about the flour weighing them down, I use tons)

Roll out, cut into shapes and place on ungreased cookie sheet. (I use parchment paper) Bake at 350 for 10 minutes

Frosting

1/4 cup butter

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla

3 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp almond flavoring

Mix well till smooth and frost cooled cookies.

I hope you had a Happy Valentine's Day!

Kid Valentines simplified....

I found a cute idea over at Latdahblogspot.com  She made these cute cotton candy ice cream cones.  They are oh so simple and inexpensive to make.

I also found some glow sticks and thought they would be a cute little Valentines gift, a bit different then just candy.  The catch phrase is "You light up my life, Valentine. Here is a picture of what I came up with. I know how kids LOVE anything that glows so hopefully bracelets will be a hit.

black apple doll

I attempted to make a doll. I never usually make girl things, since I have a boy. I've made blankets, burp cloths & tutus & that's about it. I saw this black apple doll here and found the pattern here. It wasn't very hard & it was quite fun. I was making it as a gift...but since it was my first, it had it's own little quirks...so I decided to keep it.

Maybe I'll try one again. 

Here she is.

As for making this little cutie, the only problems I stumbled across were these. My fabric was a cheap muslin (for the skin) and I was afraid the seams would tear easily, so I went back over them to stitch the seam (straight stitch, from the outsides). It doesn't look very cute though, so I recommend using a more durable fabric.

I also found that the fabric for the hair seemed to fray around her face (because I used cotton, the pattern recommends felt), so I just used Fray Check (love that stuff) to fix that little problem.

I also struggled with stitching up her head. That was tricky, but I think I could do a much better job next time. Tip: When you are sewing the front of the doll and the back together (using a skin-colored thread), change the thread when you do the hair, because when you turn it inside out you can see the skin-colored thread! Make sure you use coordinating thread in all the right places. That was probably my biggest mistake.

If you follow the pattern exactly, & don't make the same mistakes I did, it should turn out fine.

Felt Fun

 

The other day I found some felt that had designs pressed in it and of course I had to get some and see what I could create out of it....these clips are what I came up with. I just traced some flowers, layered them, hot glued them all together and added a little bling, because that's just how I roll.
I think the girls really like them, it's a change from all the silk flower clips we are kind of tired of.
Cute, cheap, easy to make....need I say more.
 

Valentine Wreath #2

I was inspired by Jenny's wreath so much I had to make my own. And because I don't have any Valentine decor. And because we just had a Hobby Lobby open down the street (Yeah!) 

So here's my version of the cheap beauty.

I preferred the look of the twig wreath rather than the straw and at 50% of it was like 1.70. In fact everything was on sale so this cost me about $10. It was fun to make for me and with my 5 year old. He loves to paint, so he helped paint the base coat on all the wood pieces. 

I took apart the LOVE sign and reused the wire to hang the E and make the sparkley hearts poke out a bit. I might redo the ribbon where it hooks to the wreath. I'm not sure it needs it. Anyhow, I just wanted to share my idea.Now - go do yours :)