Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Pi Project

Hello folks! I am super excited to share this project that I just found through Mr. X Stitch! The Pi project is collecting 9.5 fabric squares with digits 0-9 on them to create on of the largest textile art versions of Pi! 2015 happens to be a big year for the number and they are looking for as many squares as possible.

Check out the website for more info on the project and how to participate. They have posted some cool contributions already and I am inspired to participate and I hope to create many squares to send!

I have been playing with the idea of starting my own craft night and was trying to decide on what project to start with and this is perfect! I am going to put the word out to see if anyone is interested and if even ONE OTHER PERSON is game I am going to host an epic craft night. YAY!

I will post any creations it get ready to send out. Please share if you are doing the same!

Happy Crafting!


Sunday, January 11, 2015

Vintage Lovelies

This Christmas I got some lovely little vintage items from my mother. My mom, sister, and I are all into thrifting, antique stores, and general collecting. I don't want to say hoarders,,, but,,,, kidding! At least for now. We all have a fairly good idea of each others tastes though so it is fun to get gifts for each other. My sister got a bunch of vintage superhero items and I got mostly vintage beauty and wedding items!

This little lovely came from my mom with a tube of pink lipstick. She tried to find one that was the color 'bashful' or 'blush' (heck yeah Steel Magnolias!) but no luck. Actually most of my lipsticks were too large for her skirt but I found a few plus some chapsticks.

I'll share some of the other items another day. Hope you had a lovely weekend!

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Pancakery: Pancake Reviews

Welcome to the first Pancakery post! I like pancakes. Like really like pancakes.  After getting a couple different mixes for Christmas, and pinning a plethora of pancake recipes on Pinterest I have decided to start a little Pancake review section. So any time I try a new pancake I'll share and let you know what I think. If you have any that you are particularly fond of send them my way!

First up:

I received this mix for Christmas. Always fun to try new pancakes. But here is my question: What is the point of a mix if I have to add more than one ingredient to it? Yeah I probably like from scratch the best, but if I am going for convenience I don't really want to have to add egg, buttermilk, and melted butter! Might as well make them myself at that point. The mix itself is a bit on the runny side but it did make nice large 'plate sized' pancakes just like the package said. We got 4 large pancakes and one smaller one out of a 'serving'. While they were cooking they smelled just like fresh waffle cones! The taste was on the sweeter side too and they paired nicely with just regular old pancake syrup.

Mmm. Pancakes. We also got a coconut flavored mix from the same brand. I'll let you know how those turn out. But for the amount of extra work these took with no special flavors I'd probably stick to homemade. Happy Breakfasting!

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Currently Obsessed With: Agent Carter

I had the good fortune of watching Agent Carter tonight! I don't think I am being too dramatic when I say that this is now my new favorite thing ever. Comic books, awesome heroine, and 40's amazingness? Yes Please! Seriously I just finished watching it on hulu about 20 minutes ago. The premier was last night and after a quick google search I found lots of reviews that were either positive, or saying something to the effect of the feminism was too heavy handed. To refrain from going on a rant/tangent on THAT topic lets focus on the important things here shall we? Like the fabulous vintageness of the ENTIRE show. Hair, makeup, shoes, stockings, cars, buildings, suits, ties, this show is a vintage lovers dream! One of the main reasons Captain America has been my favorite Avenger and Marvel movie so far is that it is set in the 40s. Can't gush enough. I would love to really delve in and talk costuming on this show. Are other vintage lovers thinking the same? I wonder if I will be able to find some like-minded bloggers out there on the case already.

Love love love!

What a bombshell! Did I mention that she had poison lipstick?! Where can I get me some of that?

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Wedding Extravaganza 2015

Every year RIGHT AFTER THE HOLIDAYS our town holds this huge "Wedding Extravaganza" at our civic center as a kick-off to the wedding planning season. So right after everyone gets their ring for Christmas they can come down and check out pretty much every wedding vendor in town. Its lots of djs and photographers, venues and rental depots. And of course cake. Cake and other food. People looove their samples!

Every vendor there spends big bucks to have a booth and brides also spend some cash to even get in. There is a lot of money being made somewhere here but I digress a bit. The grocery chain I work for has three locations in town and for this one event we band together to make a super kick-ass display of cakes, flowers, and catering. All the big display cakes are fake underneath but it is a cool way to show off a bit and show the people what we can do. Each of our stores is expected to bring 5 cakes, along with matching bouquets and other floral arrangements and samples. We meet months earlier to talk broad-strokes to make sure we are not doing anything too similar and to decide who will bring what flavor of cake for samples. Its a lot of work but it is a chance to showcase our best. Did I mention it is RIGHT AFTER THE HOLIDAYS!!!? Argh. I don't know why it couldn't be held any other weekend in January but its always right after busy bakery season plus personal holiday business and all sorts of busy!

I contributed 2 tier cakes and some cupcakes and overall I do think the show was a big hit.

 My cake is the square one on the corner and this shot gives you a bit of an idea of our booth!
I am pretty happy with my 1920's square cake. It was a challenge as I am still working on my fondant skills but I am glad I pushed myself. The wedding show is a great time to experiment and try something that probably wouldn't normally be ordered.
And this is my large petal cake. There are many lovely versions out there on pinterest and the like. Mine I dusted the edges of the petals with some purple luster dust to give it just a hint of color and sparkle. What I love about this cake is that it is so versatile. You can keep it solid white or really get crazy with color, whatever will match your wedding best!

Happy with the day overall but glad its done. Every year we say "It wont be like this next year, next year we will plan ahead!". Well as long as it continues to be right after the holidays I'm sure we will continue to scramble. Oh well. Yay cake!

Monday, January 5, 2015

New Years Resolutions

Can you believe its 2015? Last year was one of the longest of my life but as I look back it did finally pick up the pace a bit. Apologies to those who posted comments that I didnt see until almost a year later, apparently my mobile version I was trying to use was not conducive to seeing those.

But forward! Every year I make just a couple New Years Resolutions, mostly just for myself. I like to think of them more as ongoing goals. I know a lot of people don't go in for that kind of thing and I myself try to stay away from the more cliche choices, but I say whatever works for you is great! Here is my short list.

2015 New Year Resolutions

1. Wear more lipstick
2. Wear more cat-eye liner
3. Craft more

Numbers 1 and 2 directly came from New Years Eve. This year a small awesome group got dressed up to go out for dinner, then ice cream, and then back to our house for game night! It was so much fun and I rocked a pretty good cat eye and some lovely lipstick. I have tons of lipstick and I always feel just a little more put together, and a little more vintage when I put some on. So why not make it a goal to do that more? I also feel like I have figured out how to do a decent cat eye that turns out at least ok. Practice makes perfect so I shall continue to practice. Both of those resolutions also continue my less obvious resolution of embracing my inner vintage vixen ;) Number 3 might be my version of 'lose weight' for New Years resolutions. I always have more projects started than finished and the ideas going through my head continue to multiply!

2014 was actually a fairly good year for the crafting. I just want to continue to make and craft and be creative because I am happier when doing so. I have quite a few projects that I did complete in 2014 that I hope to still share on here and then to continue on making! 

I hope everyone had a safe and happy New Years and that your 2015 is everything you want it to be! 

New Years Eve shenanigans at the ice cream parlor. Coat was an amazing thrift store find a couple of years ago. I think it looks pretty fabulous and probably needs to be worn more :)