My Lips are Turning Blue

This past summer my Mom and I picked buckets of fresh blueberries from a local farm. I love making blueberry muffins, so I wanted to make sure I had some on hand all winter. Plus, the berries from the farm are twice as big and juicy compared to the ones in the store. Last month my Aunt told me about these chocolate covered blueberries she had received for Christmas, and since then I haven't been able to get the idea out of my head. I MUST make these!

I looked up several different types of recipes, and I think it's just up to your individual preference. Some used semi-sweet, milk chocolate, white chocolate and some even used butterscotch. I decided that I would try the white chocolate, and maybe add a bit of blue food coloring.

Wash and pat dry your blueberries. Simply melt the chocolate of your choice. Drop the blueberries in the chocolate, and lay on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper. Refrigerate until the chocolate sets up.

So there you have it, a little fruity sweetness from my kitchen to yours!

Creatively Chic...and a little crazy

The Importance of Family

This past week we drove out to New Mexico for a funeral. While it was a sad occassion, we made the best out of it by visiting with family we had not seen in a long time. One of those visits was to a wonderful lady, whose name is Toni. She is my great aunt. My father's mother died when he was five, and he has not seen my aunt Toni since he was 15, or spent time with that whole side of the family. We decided that it was time to break that cycle, and go meet her.

We pulled up to the house and I could feel my heart pounding, wondering who this woman was, what she was like. I was instantly greeted with a smiling face and pulled into a warm embrace. This was my great aunt. She welcomed us into the house and showed us into her study. Covering up two entire walls was pictures chronicling our family history. My great grandparents, cousins, and second cousins, and  pictures of my grandma. I had only ever seen one. Standing before this monument of family love I couldn't help but become emotional thinking, this is my family, all these people I never knew existed, all this time wasted.

I took a picture of the picture on the wall. My grandma is on the left, Aunt Toni on the right.

My Aunt Toni began telling us stories of her and my grandma from when they were younger, and suddenly I got chills. You know the saying, "you can't escape your genes?" Well I am definitley a believer. Come to find out my grandma was artistic, creative, straight A student with perfectionist tendancies. It sounded as though she was describing me to a T. I've always wondered where I got my artstic streak from, as I seem to be the most passionate about it in my family.

A mosaic my grandma made when she was 10. Toni gave it to my Dad. The only thing we have of my grandma's.

I can't help but wonder what it would have been like if my grandma had lived. I know she made some poor choices in her life, and nobody is perfect. But what would it have felt like if I was standing her in living room, looking at pictures of us on her walls? Would she have been involved in our lives? What could she have taught me? These are things I will never know. But I am so grateful to have met my Aunt Toni, and to have learned some things about my heritage.

Me & Aunt Toni

Creatively Chic...and a little crazy

Holidaze

I haven't been keeping up with my blog as much as I would like here lately. I've been in a "holidaze" trying to get everything finished. I have several neat ideas to share, but will have to wait until after Christmas since some of my followers will be receiving them as gifts this year!
So instead I decided to share a few simple snack recipes that are easy to make and take to any family gathering this year.

Reindeer Feed:

6 cups Rick Chex or Chocolate Chex cereal
1 bag (12 oz) white vanilla baking chips (2 cups)
1/3 cup coarsely crushed peppermint candy canes (14 miniature)

1. Line cookie sheet with foil or waxed paper. Place cereal in a large bowl.

2. In microwaveable bowl, microwave white vanilla baking chips uncovered on High for about 1 minute 30 seconds, stirring every 30 second, until chips can be stirred smooth. Stir in half the crushed peppermint candy.

3. Pour over cereal; toss evenly to coat. Spread mixture in single layer on cookie sheet. Immediatley sprinkle with remaining candy. Let stand until set, about 20 minutes. Gently break up coated cereal. Store in airtight container.

Snow Covered Crunch Bars:

If you love Muddy Buddies you'll love these!

1 pouch Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie Mix 

1 cup butter softened

1 egg

1 pckg semi sweet chocolate chips

2 1/2 cups peanut butter

6 cups Rice Chex Cereal

1/2 to 1 cup powdered sugar

1. Heat oven to 375. Spray 13x9" baking pan with cooking spray. In large bowl, stir cookie mix, 1/2 cup butter and egg until soft dough forms. Press dough in bottom of pan. Bake 10 - 12 min. or until edges are light golden brown. Cool 15 minutes.

2. In large microwaveable bowl, microwave chocolate chips and remaining 1/2 cup butter on High about 1 1/2 min. stiring after 1 minute, until melted and smooth. Add peanut butter, mix until well blended.

3. Place cereal in 1 gallon reseable food storage plastic bag. Using your hands, gently break cereal into small pieces. Gently stir cereal in chcolate mixture until cereal is coated. Spread cereal mixture evenly over cookie crust; gently press. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until bars are set.

So bake away and enjoy the holidays!

Creativly Chic....and a little crazy

Love Grows On Trees

Last year for Christmas my family gave my grandparents a Memory Jar filled with all our favorite memories involving them. They loved it, and I've been wondering ever since then how we would top it this Christmas. I was looking through a magazine and saw a picture of a painting someone had done of their family tree. The more I thought about it, the more I thought, "I'm going to give it a try and see how this turns out."

Now, I'm not very good at painting - but Grandparents are supposed to love whatever their grandkids make, right? I figured if I could do this, anyone could! I decided to document the process and give you step by step instructions in case you wanted to create one for yourself or a gift!

I bought a 20 x 24 canvas. I went with a cheap canvas since most people don't know the difference. Then I put a base layer down, but didn't cover the whole canvas. I also stuck with acrylic paints. They are cheap, easy to use, and dry quickly.

I added a darker color and repeated the same process.

Next I took a pencil and outlined my tree on the canvas.

I put down my first layer of brown for my tree.

I added a second layer and expanded some branches.

I then added my leaves.

I went back in with a small brush and added a darker color of green to the leaves, and some highlights around the tree branches.

I went back with black paint and added dimension to the tree, wrote everyone's names around the leaves, and added "Our Family" at the bottom! This is an inexpensive, but priceless gift!

Creatively Chic.....and a little crazy

Spa-tacular!

This weekend I hosted a "Homemade Spa Day" at my house. I wanted to give my girls a chance to relax and pamper themselves in the midst of holiday madness. The recipes I found online were surprisingly easy and had great results. By the time we were finished we had smooth faces, open pores, and bright nails!

Below are some of my favorites from the day.

So if you're feeling the need to be pampered spread some goop on your face and relax! :)

Creatively Chic....and a little crazy

Oatmeal Honey Mask

¼ cup plain yogurt or buttermilk

½ cup oatmeal

2 tablespoons honey

Directions

Finely grind or process the oatmeal in a blender or food processor. Set aside. In a small bowl, stir together honey and yogurt, and then add ground oatmeal. Mix thoroughly until a smooth paste consistency has been reached. Smooth over your face and neck, leave on for fifteen minutes, and rinse off with warm water. Can be used daily.

Pour Cleaning Strips

This recipe makes a pore cleaning "strip" which works just like those sold in popular drugstores.

1 T Knox unflavored gelatin
1-1/2 T milk

Directions

Mix the two ingredients and microwave for 10 seconds to slightly warm. Using a clean cosmetic brush, apply to nose and chin area. Avoid delicate eye area. Rinse brush immediately.
Allow mixture on nose and chin to dry for 10-15 minutes.
Mixture will dry quite stiff and form a "stiff film."
Peel off the film and stare at all the little porcupine quills that used to be in your nose pores (one of the chief entertainment factors!).

Nail Brightener

1 denture tablet

1 cup warm water

1-2 drops essential oil

Directions

Saturate one denture tablet with a few drops of essential oil of your choice. Drop the tablet into a small bowl of warm water. Soak fingertips 10 minutes. Do no keep mixture. Discard after use.

Strawberry Hand and Foot Exfoliant

8-10 Strawberries

2 tablespoons Apricot Oil (you may substitute olive oil)

1 teaspoon of coarse salt, such as Kosher salt, or Sea salt.

Directions

Mix together all ingredients into a paste, massage into hands and feet. Rinse and pat dry.

Note: In order to get a "paste like consistency" I added ground oatmeal.

Cooking Up Glamour

While browsing across Etsy this past week I stumbled upon a whole new world of Kitchen Fashion! I have always gravitated towards things that are different, unique and a little funky. So when these pieces appeared on my screen, my jaw dropped!

Now my love of baking and jewelry is no secret to those who know me - but I never imagined I could blend the two together. Talk about statement pieces!

Creatively Chic....and a little crazy

You've Been Stamped

Today as I checked my email, waiting for me in my inbox was an message about custom stamps. One click, and I was hooked. I was off browsing the web looking at all my stamping options! Who knew I could order such a variety of stamps. I can think of a million things to stamp my name on! Come close and I"ll stamp your hand "Friend of Jessica's!"

Now for all practical purposes I don't need 37 different types of stamps. But it's nice to know a girl has options. The one stamp I was particuarlly drawn to was an address stamp. I send lots of card and letters each month and I like the idea of a unique touch on my outgoing mail.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/61522489/custom-personalized-wood-handle-address

I found this stamp on Etsy - which is just the coolest website ever. Hopefully someday I'll have some extra cash and order it. Until then....you'll be in my thoughts dear stamp.

Creatively Chic...and a little crazy