Breaking Dawn Party

I do not apologize for what you are about to see.  Why?  Because this was the BEST.  NIGHT.  EVER.  I know there is some Twi-hate in the world but I will have none of it here.  So come visit our Breaking Dawn Pre-Party and enjoy the festivities.

This was our pre-party for the midnight showing of the latest Twilight movie.  A large group of us had been going to midnight showings all along but I really felt like this year we needed a little more.  So with the generosity of my friend Michelle who volunteered her house along with many other contributers we partied.

 

Edward here to welcome you to the festivities. 

I used my Halloween wreath, changed out the orange ribbon for some red and attached some chess pieces (to represent the book cover).  Behind the wreath I taped a picture of Edward.  Because the party was at night and the porch was dark, his creeptastic stare freaked eveyone out as they approached the door.  Bonus!

My friend, Amy from Indulge With Me executed my idea for Vampire Cupcakes perfectly.  White cake and white frosting with shimmery sprinkles.  They had to sparkle!  Amy found the cupcake wrappers at Hobby Lobby.  Aren't they perfect?
 

Oh yeah, and did I forget to mention that they were filled with blood!!?!?!!!  Who-wah-ha-ha!!

Okay so maybe not blood, maybe it was delicious raspberry filling.  You can get the recipes for the cupcakes HERE.

I know what you're thinking - How could we possibly forget Team Jacob?  Of course we didn't!

We had a whole plate of Werewolf Treats.

Way to save Bella once again!  Good  doggie!  Good boy! 

I used this ginger snap recipe (minus the pepper) and they turned out delicious.  People who weren't normally fans of ginger snaps loved them.  I'll definetly make this recipe again.  Amy found the cookie cutter at Hobby Lobby.  It wasn't as easy to cut out the ginger snaps with the cutter as I would have liked but we made it work.  I baked a whole flat sheet of the dough.  While it was still hot, I cut out the bones and then removed the excess cookie bits.  I then put the bones back in the oven for a few more minutes to firm them up a little more.

Now, now, calm down.  We didn't forget the humans either. 

Introducing Porta"Bella" Mushroom Ravioli.

I made the raviolis from scratch and by scratch I mean, I rolled them out and filled them, so for reals scratch.  I then topped them with a portabella, spinach and garlic alfredo sauce.  Recipes and tutorials to come.

Michelle wowed us with the coolest drinks ever!  She printed out these fun wrappers she found and placed them on water bottles and hawaiian punch.

I made sure to drink my blood type, O negative.  It is the tastiest afterall.

There was lots more food.  Tons actually but I failed to get pictures of it all.

I really should have taken more pictures of the decorations too.  Michelle did such a great job!  She represented all 4 books perfectly by using the items from their covers placed around her house.  Here is her sons chess set.  He's quite the entrepreneur and charged her $1 to spray paint the pieces red! Ha ha!  She also had red ribbon draped, flowers, and red apples along with framed quotes from the movie and the books.  She also made yarn balls {you can see them in the background of the first cupcake pic} and repurposed some tissue paper hanging decorations {also in first pic} by spray painting them black, to hang from the ceiling.


Being the over achiever that I am I also brought my wedding dress to display.  Afterall, Breaking Dawn does feature the wedding of the century!

What's that you say?  Is that for reals a picture of Bella?

 Uhhh.... yeah.... I totally went there.  Bella looks pleased though don't you think?  Well, I know her expression never changes so you'll just have to take my word for it.  Very happy.

And I can't forget to mention this.  Not only did I pull my wedding dress out for the first time in almost 7 years but I also used the leftover red ribbon from our wedding.  Look very carefully... notice the brand of the ribbon?  Cooincidence?  I think not.  I always knew that John and I's love was perfect and timeless. 

Here's all my favorite girls at 2:30 am {about 10 or so didn't make it to the movie part}.  We all had a blast and can't wait for Breaking Dawn Pre-Party Part 2 and... Titanic Pre-Party and... Hunger Games Pre-Party and...

What can I say?  We like to party!

Oh yeah, and if you missed it, here's my mini spoiler-free review and my favorite quote to print out.

The Secret to a Juicy Turkey

Anyone cooking a bird tomorrow?? I have a tip for you on making a delicious, juicy turkey - LEAVE IT IN THE PAN FOR 1/2 AN HOUR AFTER ROASTING. You may be wondering why? When you pull your turkey out of the pan right away and carve it you'll likely have a dry turkey. All the juices have cooked out. If you leave your turkey to sit in the pan for a bit the juices will start to work their way back into the bird giving you a juicer piece of meat. You can still use some of that juice to make gravy with while it sits. I do this with all types of birds I cook though smaller birds like chicken require less time. Try it. It works! Hope all of you Americans have a Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow!

Hair Bow Holder

Here is a fun little hair bow holder I made for Maggie a little while ago.  If anyone is interested in a full tutorial speak up - I'd be happy to create one for you.  This is such a simple project and who doesn't love a little organization in their life?

The holder can fold up to make a little carrying case.  Or it can hang on the wall open and store bows where you can see them.  Either way - Hair Bow WIN.  We keep ours next to the changing table so when we take the bows out when she gets ready for bed the holder is right there.

I basically just created a long double sided piece of fabric.  Enclosed in the seams were two pieces of ribbon one to attach the bows to and one for the handle.  I sewed down the middle to secure the ribbon a little better.  When all was said and done I added a button and button hole.  Viola!

This would be a great gift especially if you included a few bows with it too.  I also think that this would be great for those little girls that dance or cheer since they always seem to have a million bows.  Heck, what little girl doesn't!?!

Get those bows out of the drawer and make yourself a hair bow holder today!

Create - Ispirational Video

I recently was asked to speak at at Young Women leader training meeting. The main topic I was asked to speak on was how creative doesn't just mean crafty. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to think more about what creativity means.


In my preparation I came across an inspiring video with clips from one of my favorite talks of all time, "Happiness, Your Herritage" by Dieter F. Uchtdorf. This talk touches on so many points that are inspiring and encouraging to all women. It should be no surprise though that what touched me the most was the part of his talk about creativity.  This short youtube clip has been done in such a beautiful way.  I watch it over and over again and just feel a surge of empowerment everytime I do.  It makes me want to drop everything and create something of "substance or beauty".

 

I hope that this video and my blog can insipre you to create something that brings you joy.  There is no better feeling than creating "something that did not exist before".  So like he says, "start small" and "Don't let the voice of critics paralyze you", especially if that critic is you.

Create something today.  Because you're amazing and the world is waiting.

Two Words: Breaking Dawn {No spoilers, don't worry}

Yes, It's 3am.  Yes, I'm actually blogging.  Yes, I just had a huge Twilight party with my friends.  Yes, I stayed up late to watch Breaking Dawn.  Yes, I am fully aware that I am a complete nerd.

Y'all - I just had the best night.  I cannot wait to show you the pre-party we planned it was so great.

Breaking Dawn was just SO GOOD!  I loved it!  I felt like it stayed true enough to the book and in some ways was even better.  The CGI/make-up or whatever they did to Bella was unlike anything I have ever seen.  Incredible!

I won't spill everything I'll let you watch the movie for yourself but I will leave you with my new favorite quote.  This is getting embroidered onto something the first chance I get!  I know... I'm a dork but I'm a sucker for a good romance especially when Edward Cullen is involved!!!  And yes, I totally hopped on and made a little quote picture thing as soon as I possibly could.  What can I say??  I'm in love!

{Feel free to print this quote if you would like.  If you're having trouble clicking and saving it,

let me know and I can make an easier to print version for you.}

 

Sigh....

Oh yeah, and don't forget to stay through the credits!!  You won't want to miss anything!

Did you watch the movie yet?? 

What did you think????

Fall Fabric Hoops

Elizabeth finally called in a missing persons report on me.  I can NOT believe I haven't blogged in a month!  There was so much Halloween insanity on the Internet I'm sure y'all survived without me.  But I'm back!  Well, kind of.  You see my computer is broken.  Like, broken broken and I've had to share the lap top with my husband.  Between the Phd and Fantasy Football I don't get to use it much and when it's available I just want to nap.  I'm sure you'll forgive me.

I'll be doing lots of random catching up for a little while - just because the computer is broken doesn't mean I haven't been crafting away!



Today I want to show you my super simple fall decor.  The whole project took about 20 minutes to do.  It will take you 5 if you skip the applique.

Fall Fabric Hoops

I took a bunch of wooden embroidery hoops that my mom gave me and filled them with different fabrics from my scrap bins.  The whole project was free.  Yay.

The leaf is cut from a rust colored piece of wool felt.  I used the leaf pattern on the Disney character Cricut cartridge as a template.

The fall is an applique cut using the Plaintain School Book font cartridge.  I know that my machine can cut fabric but I am in the habbit of cutting out the letter/shape tracing it onto the Heat and Bond and then cutting it out by hand bedore I iron it on.

Here is a crummy picture of how I arranged them on my wall.  Nothing fancy, just simple hoops to remind me it's fall.

Here's how to make your own:

Step 1:  Pick out your fabrics and your hoops.  I used quilters cotton, burlap and wool felt.

Step 2:  Place the fabric in hoop.  For a permanent fix line the outside of the inner circle with a thin layer of glue.  I may have other plans for these hoops after fall is over so I did not add glue.

Step 3: Trim off excess.  And you're done.  Told you it was simple.

*If you plan of adding applique iron-ons, add the letter to the fabric first then place fabric in hoop.