New Slide On Dog Collar Bandanas for Monica

Yesterday we went on a hike and our sweet puppy rolled in dirt, dirt, and more dirt.  When we got home we had to give her a bath, and when I was picking out a fresh bandana for her collar I noticed how raggy and worn most of her bandanas have gotten.  So I used my slide on dog collar bandana pattern and tutorial to create six new, springy ones.

I love this project because you don't have to run out and buy anything new, and it gives you a chance to use up your scrap fabrics.  I had some favorite fabrics that I had barely enough of to do anything with, and this project was perfect for using up the very last of them.

You'll notice that two of the bandanas are smaller than the others.  I experimented with the pattern a little bit to try and make a bigger collar.  I took my clear acrylic ruler that goes with my rotary cutting set and lined it up with the edges of the pattern to add 1 inch to the diagonal sides and 3/4 an inch to he straight/paralell sides.  The result was a bigger bandana--probably the correct size for a corgi or similar sized dog.

If you have a bigger dog, you could probably use the same method but add more inches to the sides to make a bigger pattern.  (Maybe one day I"ll get less lazy and make different patterns for different dog sizes...)

You can see the difference in sizes on the collar below.

Today Monica is sporting a cheery lemon print bandana and she looks super adorable as she sleeps beside me on the couch while I write this post. :)

Have a great end to your weekend and enjoy some fun projects! :)

--CC

Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Green Bean Bundles

We had these tasty bacon wrapped green bean bundles with our Easter lunch.  I was following a different recipe, but found out I didn't have about half of the ingredients.  Since it was Easter, I improvised and made up my own recipe.  They. Were. Delicious!  So now here I am sharing the recipe with you.  Enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Teriyaki Green Bean Bundles

Ingredients

10 Fresh Green Beans per Person
1 Slice Bacon per Person
3 Tablespoons teriyaki Sauce
1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Onion Powder
Two Tablespoons Butter
Salt to Taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2.  Wash and snap off ends of green bean.  Steam in small sauce pan on medium heat until tender when pierced with a fork (about 5 minutes).  Drain water. Set aside.

3.  While green beans steam, combine teriyaki sauce, black pepper, and onion powder in small saucepan.  Heat on medium 2-3 minutes.  When hot, stir in butter until melted.

4.  Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray.  Lay a slice of bacon on cookie sheet, place 10 green beans in center of bacon slice, and roll up.  Leave seam face down.  Repeat with remaining bacon and green beans.

5.  Place cookie sheet of green beans in oven at 400 degrees for 5 minutes.

6.  Remove green beans from oven and use half of the teriyaki mixture to drizzle over the green bean bundles.  Also sprinkle salt over green beans at this time if desired.  Return to oven for 3 minutes, or until bacon is cooked.

7.  Remove from oven.  Drizzle remainder of teriyaki mixture over green beans.  Serve and enjoy! :)

Happy Easter!

Just popping in to wish everyone a super duper Easter!  We exchanged Easter baskets, shared a nice lunch with our furry animal babies and a close friend, and headed over to the park today.

Have a marvelous rest of your holiday!

Brined chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, bacon wrapped green bean bundles, and Crescent rolls. Green bean recipe to come.

59 Ideas for Simple Adult Easter Baskets

Ever notice that most holidays seem to be geared around kids?  Since I'm in my early twenties and don't have a family of my own yet, I find myself putting a grown-up spin on most holiday traditions.  My fiance and I usually exchange Easter baskets, but this year I also decided to put together an Easter basket for a few co-workers and friends.

My formula for Easter baskets is simple, and I like to keep it around $10.  You need a Chocolate bunny, an Easter candy favorite (like Cadbury Eggs, Peeps, or jelly beans), and a trinket (think classic toys like Pinwheels, Slinky, bubbles, Yo-Yos, etc.).  

For an adult, I like to grab one of the cute spring pails out of the dollar aisle at Target.  Then I stuff the bottom with shredded green paper and nestle in a dark chocolate bunny in place of a milk chocolate one, a traditional Easter candy, some dark chocolates (Dove makes great little purple foil wrapped chocolate eggs).  Trinkets are easy for adults, too, if you just think about what your friend enjoys doing.

I have one friend who posts a lot of pictures of nails on Pinterest, so I gave her a nail polish in a plastic egg (which I got on sale at CVS)...

And a co-worker who loves to garden, so I got a packet of Lavender and a Lavender garden stake for $2.99 at Target.

And sometimes a wind-up chick is just fun. :)

Before you know it you'll have a whole bunch of beautiful Easter baskets! :)

If you need a few more grown up Easter basket ideas, here are a few:

For the Foodie

1. Egg timer
2. Whisk
3. Tea Infuser or Tea Bag Rest
4. Wooden Spoons
5. Loose-leaf tea
6. Novelty kitchen items (shop online here)
7. Mini bottles of wine
8. Package of nuts, pasta, or coffee
9. Spoon rest
10. Use a colander instead of a basket

For the Crafter

1. Knitting Needles
2. Crochet Needle
3. Embroidery thread in plastic eggs
4. Ball of yarn
5. Scrapbooking stickers or stamps
6. Pretty beads in plastic eggs
7. Bundle of charms or fat quarters
8. Spools of thread
9. Colorful buttons in an egg
10. Spools of ribbon/ric-rac

For the Gardener

1. Gardening gloves
2. Pretty spade, trimmers, or hand rake (like this one)
3. Garden Stakes
4. Seed packets
5. Bulbs
6. Mini garden gnomes
7. Mini gazing balls
8. Seed bombs
9. Crystal sun catchers
10. Use a pretty pot or watering can instead of a basket 

For the Fashionista

1. Nail polish in a plastic egg
2. Manicure kits
3. Sleep masks
4. Face mask mix
5. Make-up (eye shadow, lipstick, mascara, eye liner, etc.)
6. Costume Jewelry
7. Make-up brushes
8. Mini soaps/lotions
9. Perfume or body spray

For the Professional

1. Chord organizers
2. iPhone Cables (try to find colorful ones for Easter)
3. USB sticks (they make lots of fun ones these days!)
4. Cute notepads
5. Nice pens or pencils
6. Business card holder
7. Pretty phone case
8. Cuff links
9. Car charger for phones/tablets
10. $5 Sarbucks Gift Card

For the Builder

1. Nails or screws
2. Wood glue
3. Hammer, screw drivers, or wrench
4. Staples for staple gun
5. Measuring tape
6. Level
7. L-Ruler or T-Ruler
8. Stud finder
9. Carpetner Pencils
10. Use a Mason's Bag instead of a basket

French Board 2.0

Back in February, we did a Secret Admirer Valentine exchange at work.  I took pictures of all the valentines I made so that I could share with you here, but apparently forgot.  So here I am now.

The idea of the exchange was to leave little trinkets on your Valentine's desk all week long.  I left cookies and pinwheels and really weird cards to try and throw her off all week long...

...but on the last day I gave her this homemade french board.

Of course, this totally gave away that it was me, since you may remember I made this french board for my own cubicle at work awhile back:

Oh well!  I had a blast making it, and she enjoyed receiving it.  I love the way the colors look together.

This is one of those easy DIY projects that is so satisfying.  You should try it! :)

Thanks for reading!

--CC

Raised Bed Garden

Hello, and Happy St. Patrick's Day! :)  Here in Florida we're well into the spring season.  The Azaleas and Dogwoods are blooming, the trees are budding, and we're experiencing warm weather with lots of rain!

Yesterday it was sunny and warm, so my fiance and I got to work building a raised bed garden.  (We also had this little helper.)

I was surprised at what a quick and easy project it was.  After just three hours of work, we were completely finished.  We used a bunch of different tutorials online as a guide for building our raised bed, but didn't really follow any instructions in particular.  We ended up buying one 2x10x16, cutting it into four 4 foot sections, and drilling it together.  We used a 4x4 that was 12 inches tall in each corner for extra stability and to bury into the ground so the bed would stay put.  (If this makes no sense, you might want to check out this tutorial--it's the best raised garden bed instructions we found and it even includes a shopping list.)

The whole project (lumber, dirt, and all) cost us just $75--well worth it for the tasty vegetables and the enjoyment we'll get out of it.  Plus, once you have the raised bed set up you can plant in it again and again.

I can't wait to see my little vegetables grow! :)  Thanks for stopping by!

-CC

Clever Valentines

I don't know about you, but I'm loving all the clever little Valentine's plastered all over Pinterest right now!  Lucky for me, last year my fiance and I opted to exchange little Valentines throughout the week instead of giving each other gifts.  It's way more fun and helps you to savor the holiday all week long!  Plus, you get to feel like a kid again. :)

So we bought some of those tiny mailboxes from the Target dollar aisle and had a blast last year.  And this year we're doing it again, so I thought I'd share the Valentines I made him here. I'm sure you've seen many of them on Pinterest, but here's my rendition!  (Fair warning:  I'm no scrapbooker!)

I Love You S'more and S'more Each Day with S'mores Cookies

 Recipe for S'mores Cookies is here.

Blowing You a Kiss Valentine with Gum Balls & Hershey Kisses

We Make a Grate Pair Valentine with Mini Graters

You Rock My World Valentine with Pop Rocks

You Hold a Piece of My Heart Valentine with Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Heart & Reese's Pieces

I put the first Valentine in his mailbox tonight.

The fun starts tomorrow!  I hope you have a terrific Valentine's week.  Thanks for reading!

--CC