I'm Bananas Over You!

I think it's already spring here - 68 today and 75 tomorrow!  I just hope it's not summer next week!  You know I love cold weather and we didn't have much this year.  LOVE sweaters and jackets...look kind of funny in those when it's 107 outside...

This little packet is the prototype for a friend's nephew's party - with a monkey theme, of course!  The monkey and banana are part of the Create a Critter cartridge from Cricut.   The invitation is on the cloud paper and it slips inside the tiny kraft bag. 

Well, I need to go cut out some more monkeys!  Hope your week has been good so far...

Fancy Card

I've been catching up on some housecleaning  straightening (I don't know how my craft stuff ends up everywhere when it has its own room) and creating some goodies for a new gig that I'll tell you about later this month.  The weather is beautiful today - lots of sun, for a change!

I want to share that Chocolate Mint Brownie recipe I mentioned awhile back.  It's from 100 Best Holiday Cookies.  I don't think we've baked  much from this cookbook, but based on the brownies, I think we need to be using it a lot more!  I have to say, hands-down, these are the BEST brownies ever and I've been looking a long time for a homemade brownie to love.

1 C butter

4 squares unsweetened chocolate

1 1/2 C granulated sugar

3 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp mint extract

1/2 tsp vanilla

3/4 C flour

Preheat to 325 degrees.  Grease and flour 9" square baking pan.

Melt butter and choc in double boiler.  Remove from heat and beat in sugar, eggs, salt, mint, and vanilla until well blended.  Stir in  flour.  Spread batter in pan.  Bake 35 mins. until top is firm and edges begin to pull away.  Cool completely.

Frosting:

Beat 6 tblsp butter, 1/2 tsp mint extract, and 2 drops green food coloring at medium speed until fluffy.  Add 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 C at a time, beating well after each addition.  Beat in 2 to 3 tblsp milk, one tblsp at a time, until spreading consistancy is reached.  Spread over cooled brownies.

Drizzle with chocolate glaze (1/3 C semisweet choc chips and 2 tblsp butter melted in microwave).

Yummy, yummy, yummy! 

This fancy card is made with some wonderful digital images from Made by Janet.  I love silhouettes and find it very hard to resist them when I find them!

Paper Issues new challenge is Tape It Up!  I've just got some washi tape from Impressions, so I'll have to get right on my contribution for the challenge.   Also, we've got a great deal - if you want to shop at Paper Issues and get a discount of 20%, just use the code chouxchoux at checkout!   Have a wonderful week!


Monday Linky:  Make It Monday

Favorite Color/Embellishment at Craft Us Crazy

It's new challenge time at Craft Us Crazy - how about favorite color and/or embellishment?  That's almost as easy as Anything Goes!  I say that, but I have to confess I sat there for awhile thinking:  "Do I have a favorite color or embellishment?"  How can I not?  I've always had problems with the favorite color question.  But, I can say I do love a really pretty blue/green combination - maybe teal or aqua.  LOVE the color of this butterfly - so that's what I'm going with.  Not sure I can even deal with the favorite embellishment thing! 

For this challenge, the sponsor is Digital Delights.

The prize is a $5.00 gift voucher. 

One of my longtime customers asked for a gift box and a couple of things to go inside along with some butterfly earrings she bought for a friend.

  I used the Wonderfully Wrapped template from My Time Made Easy. 

I also made a set of simple butterfly tags using the same butterfly from the front of the box.

And a soldered butterfly charm.   

How about you?  Do you have a favorite color or do you have trouble with that question, too?  Be sure to go by Craft Us Crazy to check out the other DT inspiration and join in the challenge, too! 

Happy Valentines Day!

Valentine's Day is almost here.  Dennis and I hardly ever go out on the actual day.  We don't like to fight the crowds at nice restaurants.  And besides, Dennis can make a steak that rivals just about anywhere we'd like to go anyway! 

Dennis loves chocolates - so I always get him two of the biggest hearts full of chocolates that I can find.  Easy and he's thrilled! 

I found this darling vintage nutcup on Etsy.  I scanned it in and enlarged it a little to create a Valentine gift. 

It turned out really sturdy and holds quite a few Kisses.  It's really cool how it sits on folded legs.  

And that little boy and girl are so very sweet.

I'm going to link my Love Banner over at Really Reasonable Ribbon.  Their challenge is pink, red, and ribbon.  I think it fits!  And I hope you have a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Card and Candy

I can remember as a kid going into people's houses that would have candy dishes in the living room.   I don't remember specifics just snatches of being with my mom and being offered a piece of candy from a pretty little dish.  Was it the candy or the dish that made such an impression?  I found several fluted heart tins at one of our local antique stores and thought one might make a sweet valentine candy dish.   So maybe it was the dish, as I really didn't think about the actual candy until later!

I painted the tin and used silver and red chenille stems for the handle.  Glittered it up, too!  At this point,  my daughter is thinking, "Oh, no!"  She likes vintage things in their original condition.  And for a lot of things, that probably is best.  But...this heart tin is getting a new life and will be loved!  I'm thinking I should have put some of those cute circles on my kisses to cover their bare bottoms! 

Oh, aren't valentine cards fun to create?  Such sweet images - love all the angels and cherubs.  The glitter's a little easier to see on the card.  Must have had better lighting!

The bottom part is a flashcard from Iralamija.    Hope you're having a great week!  Off to work on some other things....

Thank You, Beatriz

WOW!  Okay, so excited here... I won 12 collage sets from Beatriz Jennings!  I was like a kid in a candy store going through her Iralamija shop making a list of her beautiful collections.   Now my mind is going crazy with all the creative possiblities!   By the way, it was my heart pincushion that won the day.  Thank you, Bety, for you generosity!

Yes, this card also includes an image from Iralamija.  Isn't she a cutie?  I actually used this sweet little girl several years ago to make a Valentine decorative hanging.  So she and I go way back... The papers behind her are also images from collages in the Iralamija store. 

I've been oh, so busy this weekend getting all my Valentine orders finished (there were twelve to finish of this card alone).  I think I'm done and now need to make deliveries over the next couple of days.  Hope you've had a lovely weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Anything Goes at Craft Us Crazy!

Anything Goes - well, that's pretty easy!  The sponsor for the Anything Goes challenge at Craft us Crazy is Bugaboo Stamps. 

The prize is 7 digi images! 

This oh, so sweet strawberry girl is from Bugaboo Stamps and they have a lot of wonderful digi stamps to offer.   I made a strawberry basket using a template that was designed by Lauren Meador when she was designing for Papertrey Ink.  I believe it's still available there.  It's super easy to put together. 

And of course, I thought the basket needed a strawberry as big as the one in her wheelbarrow!   Be sure to check out all the projects at Craft us Crazy and link up one of your own "Anything Goes" projects!