I Pinned It, I Did It: Ruffled Burlap Tree Skirt

 

Let the Christmas crafting begin!

You've probably seen DIY ruffled tree skirts all over Pinterest. I've been attracted to the burlap ones since -- like everyone else -- I'm obsessed with burlap.  I wanted to replace my current tree skirt anyway (it looks like a santa suit), so I decided to give it a shot.

I used the tutorial from this blog: My Crazy Life

I would post the tutorial on here, but her directions are very detailed and come with photos. I followed them almost exactly.

Here are the only points I'll add:

• Consider the size of your tree before you start. My tree skirt is actually a little too big for my tree... I still love it, and we'll "grow into it" someday when we have a bigger tree. But if you have one of those tall, skinny trees, you may want to cut a smaller square for your base, or you'll end up with a tree DRESS.
• Burlap DOES NOT ruffle. It is too stiff of a fabric. If you use burlap, you have to make PLEATS with the fabric strips, which basically means a lot of folding and gluing. See this blog for examples and photos.
• I used 3-inch strips of fabric with the exception of the top row, which I made bigger (4 1/2 inches) to keep from having two short rows. I thought the strips were perfect, but I do wish the top row matched the rest. All in all, it took 3 1/2 yards of fabric with a few strips leftover.
• I used a painter's canvas drop cloth for the base of the skirt (like the blogger), but I couldn't find one even close to 4x4, so I bought a 6x9 (I think) and cut it down to a 4x4 square. It worked great as a base fabric, though -- it's sturdy enough, and the neutral color doesn't show through.
• Cut holes on the sides of the skirt before you start gluing fabric so you don't forget. This way you can tie the two sides together behind your tree.
• Keep your extra fabric strips. I used two of mine to tie the skirt sides. They make pretty matching burlap bows. :)
• DON'T bother with Goop. It's messy, smelly and ineffective. Hot glue only. But if you're working with burlap, be careful not to burn yourself! (I did, many times....)
• This project took me about 8-10 hours when it was all said and done. I split it up over a period of almost 2 weeks. I wouldn't recommend doing it all in one sitting unless you don't mind being sore EVERYWHERE. Seriously, I felt like an old woman doing this. I had to take breaks every 15 minutes or so...

What Christmas crafts are you making this year? Have you made a tree skirt?

<3 Mrs. G

P.S. I'm accepting suggestions and recipes for Christmas baking...

New Christmas Favorites: DIY Decor & Cake Balls

If you read my previous post, then you're aware that I spent the little free time I had last week making DIY Christmas decorations for our Christmas party on Saturday. See my last post for my inspiration (via Pinterest, of course). Here are my final products:

Styrofoam cone + floral pins + LOTS of ribbon!

Tall vase + fresh cranberries and dill + floating candle

Mason jar + Epsom salt + small candle + twine

Free Christmas printable from this blog that I found on Pinterest

I also made my spinach dip (my favorite go-to party dip), Pillsbury Christmas cookies (so easy...) and, for the first time, cake balls! I've been wanting to make them ever since they started popping up all over the internet. I ate them on Thanksgiving for the first time and they looked easy to make. Since I didn't have enough time to whip up a batch of homemade cupcakes for the party - plus I had yellow cake mix leftover from apple crisp - I thought I would give these a try. They turned out to be pretty simple, but having the sticks to go in them (a la cake pops) would have been better, since toothpicks are too small and flimsy for dipping, and barbecue skewers are too fat and just look ridiculous (yes, I tried them). I know there are a lot of ways to make these, but here's how I did it:

Chocolate Cake Balls

Ingredients:

• Betty Crocker SuperMoist yellow cake mix (I used half a box, which was enough for a 9x9 pan and 18 large cake balls) - see back of box for remaining cake ingredients
• Vanilla buttercream frosting (from my 200 Cupcakes book - I made half):
• 10 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp hot water
• 2 bags semi-sweet chocolate chips
• Sprinkles to decorate

Directions:

• Bake cake according to box directions - in a 9x13 pan for a full box and a 9x9 pan for half a box.
• Make frosting while allowing cake to cool. I made vanilla buttercream, but I've heard cream cheese is really good, too. If you're short on time, just use a half-tub of store-bought frosting.
• When cake is cooled, crumble all of it into a large mixing bowl. Add frosting and mix together so that it's mushy.
• Roll little balls from cake-frosting mixture and place on wax paper or foil.
• Heat chocolate chips in microwave, mixing every 30 seconds until smooth and creamy. If necessary, add some hot water to make the consistency thinner (I did this).
• Dip cake balls into chocolate, coat evenly, and place back on paper/foil. Use sticks if you have them. If not, just drop the cake balls in and use a spoon to cover them with chocolate. Toothpicks didn't work for me because of the thickness of the chocolate, but they may work for other toppings.
• If you want, add sprinkles as you finish coating each cake ball with chocolate.
• When finished, place them (covered) in the fridge to sit. Serve and enjoy!

If you're a visual learner, here's a helpful video I found on YouTube for making cake balls.

If you have any delicious cake ball/pop recipes, please feel free to comment and share! These might be my newest obsession... :)

Now, time to watch Love Actually and drink some egg nog (another favorite) after a day of Christmas shopping at the Mall of America - yes, we braved it. Good luck with all of your shopping/crafting/baking/traveling this holiday season! Lots of love from snowy Minnesota. ;)

<3 Mrs. G

P.S. Our Christmas cards came in this week! If I can figure out how to upload them on here, I'll show you what they look like. I actually ended up buying them through Walgreens because I could fit a lot of our cute Christmas photos into one card. :)

Have Yourself a Crafty Little Christmas...

As I mentioned in my last post, my focus this week is on DIY Christmas decor. I'm on a bit of a tight schedule, because Mr. G and I are having friends over to our house this Saturday for a Christmas party, so I want my halls to be decked and ready by then. We've already got our tree up - as you may have seen in my last post - as well as our stockings, Christmas lights on the deck, a berry wreath on the door, some holiday-scented candles, and a couple nutcrackers from my vast collection. But that's about it. It was enough to fill up our tiny apartment in Connecticut last year (let's be honest, the tree pretty much filled the apartment), but our townhome requires a little more TLC to look merry and bright. Instead of paying $200 for Christmas decorations from Target, I decided to try making some myself for cheaper (surprised?). Even less surprising, I drew all my inspiration from my favorite website - Pinterest.

Here are my thrifty muses:
  


Snow Candles using Epsom salt! I added twine around the top. 



Ribbon Tree

 

Berry Garland Centerpiece



Cranberries in a Mason jar

 As for my progress, I finished the snow candles, I'm halfway done with one of my two ribbon trees (until I ran out of ribbon), and I put together the vase with the berry garland, but the berries were fake and apparently not waterproof... They started melting! The water wasn't even hot! So bizarre. I threw them away and cursed myself for paying $7 for fake, crappy berries. I think I'll get some real berries next and try for the last project pictured.

I'll show you pics of all my projects when I finish them. In the meantime, I'm taking suggestions for snack items for my Christmas party... I was planning on making spinach dip, but I'm open to other ideas. Thankfully I don't have to make a ton of food, because all our guests will bring something to share - wine, snacks, etc. I'm also open to cocktail suggestions. :)

How are you decking your halls this year?



<3 Mrs. G

P.S. If you want to see more DIY projects I have up my sleeve, check out my {next projects} board on Pinterest. :)

For those who love cake...

Hello all,

Hope you've had a nice weekend. I went to another bridal shower today, which was a nice end to my relaxing but productive weekend. An example of my productivity: I finally made my cake stand! I actually bought the materials a few months ago but kept forgetting to make it. One of the things holding me back was that I knew I wanted to paint something on the plate I bought (which is plain white), so that requires more thought and work... But a couple weeks ago I went craft shopping and bought a black paint pen (best invention ever), so that got things going.

Cake Stand Tutorial

As it turns out, cake stands are really easy to make - all you need is a plate, a candlestick and some hot glue! Even better - it's cheap. I bought my plate and candlestick from a thrift store for a total of about $5, and I got my glue gun from the Dollar Store. I decided to paint a monogram on my plate (surprised much?), mostly because it's easier than trying to replicate some intricate design. I recommend it for those who aren't painters or those who want to add something but don't have a ton of time. :) And I highly recommend paint pens!

Here are some photos:

To attach the candlestick to the plate, just run a line of hot glue around the top rim of the candlestick and then flip it over and press it into the middle of your overturned plate. Hold firmly in place until attached and then, after a minute or so, flip the stand over (carefully!) so that the plate can weigh it down. I tried using super glue, but all it did was make the candlestick slide around; it never stuck. I'm no glue expert, but if it doesn't stick, it doesn't work, so I moved on. Hot glue wins yet again.

If you paint your plate, I highly recommend buying a glaze to protect the paint since cake stands are meant to be used. :) I bought Delta air-dry PermEnamel satin glaze (from Michael's). Time will tell if it's a good one or not, but if you buy it I do recommend buying a large brush to use with it because it tends to show brush strokes. It supposedly takes 10 days to dry as well, so definitely paint the glaze after attaching the candlestick to avoid messing it up. Side Note: it also smells really bad.

And now for the next cake topic - Mr. G's birthday banana cake recipe!

Banana Cake Recipe

old man ;)

For those of you who followed my previous blog, you'll remember this recipe from when I made it for Mr. G's birthday last year. However, I have added a couple ingredients, so maybe it's worth posting again. Regardless, it's a delicious cake, so that alone makes it worth the repost. So here goes:

Ingredients:

• 3 ripe, mashed bananas
• 3 eggs
• 2/3 cup shortening or softened, melted butter
• 2/3 cup buttermilk (3 tbsp lemon juice + milk)
• 2 1/3 cups flour
• 1 2/3 cups sugar
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp (ish) vanilla extract - I added this and didn't measure... 

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• Grease 9x13 pan.
• Mash bananas while oven preheats. 
• Mix liquid ingredients. 
• Mix dry ingredients then add to liquid mixture and pour in pan.
• Bake for 45-50 minutes.

Frosting:

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 4 tbsp milk
• Pinches of cinnamon - my other addition, and it was a good one!
• Mix together and frost onto cake when cooled.
• Enjoy! This is a really good cake. :)

That's all for now. Inspired to eat some cake yet? ;) I just had some cake batter ice cream, so apparently I was... I never said this blog was for dieters.

Have a good week!

<3 Mrs. G

Mossy Monogram Tutorial + Fall Festivities

Hi everyone!

Hope you enjoyed your weekend! I had a good one - Mr. G and I went to a corn maze with his sister and her fiance and we all carved pumpkins afterward. :) Unfortunately, much like the glue gun incident, pumpkin carving proved to be more dangerous than expected... I ended up carving my finger more than the pumpkin, so I needed help finishing. Whoops. At least the pumpkin turned out well! Here are our masterpieces (guess who made the monogram):

Mine is the G (of course), and Mr. G's is MN Gopher hockey themed. :)

In other news, as an update on our bedroom furniture, we've pretty much decided on a set, but it's actually none of the ones I previously posted haha. As it turns out, Ashley furniture got REALLY bad reviews on quality and customer service, so we eliminated those two options. I wanted to look around some more, so we went to the furniture capitol of the world (Edina, MN) and ended up finding our perfect bedroom set at Crate & Barrel. I fell in love with the canopy bed and the modern design of the pieces. Plus, I like that there are no handles... It means I can add some later if I want without having to take anything off. :) Here's the collection (click the link below to see the rest):

Pavillion Canopy Bed

We also decided to wait a little longer to start buying the furniture since they're more expensive and we have other purchases that take precedence (such as an iPad...). Speaking of which, I upgraded my iPhone to the 4S! We decided to go for it because Mr. G was due an upgrade anyway and we were able to sell my iPhone 4 on Craig's List for more than we paid for it lol. So, we made money and I got a new phone! Not a bad deal... And yes, Siri is awesome. And yes, I got it the day after it came out and I felt pretty cool.

Another purchase we made this weekend was an IKEA picture I've had my eye on since we moved here 6 months ago. It's a HUGE canvas picture that fills a lot of our expansive wall space (thank you, vaulted ceilings), and it was well worth the wait. :) I had a bit of a scare, though, because IKEA took it down from their website this week! I literally saw it on there last weekend, so naturally I freaked out, but thankfully our store still had plenty in stock. Otherwise, I probably would have thrown a fit... Seriously. Here it is (sorry no link):

Please ignore the ugly, off-center light fixture. 

And last but not least, here is my (finally!) finished mossy monogram:

Here's how I did it (get ready for all these steps):

1. Supplies needed: cardboard letter (I got my big one from Michael's), hot glue gun + LOTS of extra glue sticks, moss sheets (mine took 2-3), craft scissors, and ribbon for hanging (I used burlap ribbon from JoAnn and LOVE it)
2. Cut out strips of moss and hot glue them to the letter. I recommend cutting strips for the top and then each of the sides. Don't bother with the back unless it will show. Use spare moss chunks to fill in bald spots.
3. Hang with the ribbon (if using nails, go just below the bow). That's it. You're done! It's not hard, but if you're not skilled with a glue gun (like me) you'll probably burn yourself a lot since moss isn't very thick. So be careful! But all the burns were worth it, because it's definitely my favorite part of my living room now. :) Well, that and my IKEA picture.

Coming soon: lots of recipes! Banana cake, apple pie, apple crisp... Good stuff. :)

I also have more upcoming craft projects... Namely, another pumpkin project (no knives) and a homemade cake stand. So stay tuned!

<3 Mrs. G

Southwestern Corn Chowder & Mossy Monogram Project

Hi everyone!

I finally have a recipe to share! As promised, I cooked a warm fall soup this weekend: southwestern corn chowder. I got the recipe from my Betty Crocker app, and be forewarned - it's pretty spicy. Here's the recipe... FYI: I tripled mine and it was enough for about 4-6.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (1 medium)
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups chicken broth (I used chicken bouillon cubes, but you can do either)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground red pepper (I didn't have cayenne so I just used flakes)
• 1/2 cup half-and-half cream
• 1 can (11 oz) Green Giant southwestern style corn (I only found Mexican, which seemed close enough)
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
• Additional chives for garnish, if desired

Directions:

• In 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.
• Add onion and cook 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.
• Stir in flour until well blended. Gradually stir in broth.
• Stir in salt, black pepper and red pepper - heat to boiling.
• Reduce heat and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened.
• Stir in half-and-half, corn and chives. Cook until thoroughly heated.
• Serve hot and enjoy!

This was the perfect fall meal, and Mr. G made a delicious broccoli side to go with it (fresh broccoli + butter + water + chicken bouillon + garlic salt + red pepper flakes). I want to make chili soon, too, as well as some pies and fall-inspired cupcakes. I was also hoping to make hot cider this weekend. I even bought apple cider at the store, but I ran out of time. :( Hopefully I'll get a chance to make it sometime this week or next weekend. Nothing makes me think of fall more than hot apple cider. :) Good news is, I have leftover corn chowder to bring to work tomorrow! Much better than a Lean Cuisine.

In other news, I also finally got started on one of my craft projects! Remember the mossy monogram I mentioned way back in April? (if not, here's the link to my post on it). Well, I bought the supplies for it forever ago, but tonight I finally got to work on it. Maybe the fall weather inspired me? Anyway, I'm actually almost done with it. I would have finished it, but I ran out of hot glue.. Didn't expect to use the whole bag! It's not terribly hard to make, but it is pretty frustrating because the moss keeps falling off and the hot glue gun and I are NOT friends. I burned my pointer finger countless times and then actually gave myself a second degree burn on my knee, of all places... I had my pants rolled up and some glue oozed out of the gun onto my knee as I was replacing the stick. I screamed bloody murder and scared poor Mr. G and Molly. I'll have a nice scab there now, and I might walk a little funny for a couple days because it's on an awkward part of my knee... My coworkers will get a kick out of this injury. Not to mention this was my second burn of the day - my first was this morning with the curling iron. Who knew hair styling and crafting would be so dangerous?! But hey, after icing my knee, I kept on crafting like a champ. ;)

I'll post pics and a tutorial for the moss letter after I finish it. I have two other letters to go after this one, and I'm still deciding whether or not to go through with them... They're smaller at least, and I have a great place to put them. So I probably will. But I may wait a few more months...

Do you have any funny crafting horror stories? If so, please share! I hope I'm not the only one with a glue gun handicap...

<3 Mrs. G

Cupcakes & Custard

Hi everyone!

As promised, I'm posting the recipes for my recent dessert ventures: chocolate dulce de leche cupcakes and berry custard pie. As you know from my last post, my parents came to visit over the weekend, and on Friday, we all went down to Mr. G's parents' house for dinner. I was assigned dessert, so I was excited to try a new cupcake recipe, of course. However, I also wanted to make something low-fat for my health-conscious dad, so that's how I found the berry custard pie recipe.

Chocolate Dulce de Leche Cupcakes

I randomly got the idea to add dulce de leche to my cupcakes - it's one of my favorite flavors, and it seemed fitting around Cinco de Mayo. :) At first I was going to add it as a filling to a chocolate cake, but then I found this amazing recipe for chocolate dulce de leche cupcakes! Here are the recipes I used:

Chocolate Dulce de Leche Cupcakes

Dulce de Leche (for filling and/or topping)

Unfortunately, I had a few problems with these cupcakes... They turned out pretty good still, but they were a struggle to make. FYI - dulce de leche is very challenging and very time-consuming to make. If you have the time and the patience, go for it, because it tastes delicious home-made. But if not, you can always buy it in a can. That wasn't the only problem, though... This is really embarrassing to admit, but I forgot to put in the chocolate chips!! Kind-of important for CHOCOLATE cupcakes! :( Thankfully, I had already put cocoa powder in the mix, so they still tasted like chocolate. But I'm sure they would have been much better with the chocolate chips... Oh well. Lesson learned: pay close attention to your ingredients!! Especially when there is a lot, like in this recipe. Double-check everything!

Also, my cupcakes fell in the middle instead of rising... Maybe it was due to the missing chocolate chips? Or maybe it was the temperature change. Who knows. Either way, I opted out of using dulce de leche filling since there wasn't really room for it... Instead, I just put a lot on top of the cupcakes and swirled in chocolate fudge. They ended up looking pretty cute, and they still tasted good in spite of all the problems.

Here they are, flaws and all:

Berry Custard Pie

The berry custard pie recipe went much more smoothly than the cupcakes, and it came out delicious!

As it turns out, there is actually a pie crust recipe included, but I used a different one that is actually easier and worked great.

Here are my recipes:

Graham Cracker Pie Crust

Berry Custard Pie

I didn't take a picture of the pie. :( Completely forgot. But it was a hit, and it is surprisingly healthy! I used peaches and raspberries - only because my dad doesn't like blackberries - but I think any berry combination would work. I loved the peach/raspberry mixture, though! And I think the custard actually tasted better than the cupcakes, but if they had been made right, maybe that wouldn't have been the case...

In other news, I'm hoping to get another DIY project done this week - either the book page wreath or the moss letters (see "Crafting My Nest" for more info). I'll report back!

Feel free to comment if you've had a similar ditzy baking moment, or if you have any fun cupcake recipes or low-fat dessert recipes to share!

<3 Mrs. G

DIY: Talavera Tiles

As promised, here are photos of the Mexican-inspired tiles I painted for my kitchen:

I think they turned out pretty well! The red/orange one is my favorite - I love all the fun details. All of these were inspired by tiles I've seen somewhere - one was based on my mini-tile I got in Mexico, two were based on Mexican jewelry I saw on Etsy, and one was actually based on one of my ceramic sugar canisters, which also turned out to have talavera designs. Funny thing is, they were Mr. G's before we got married! I love when things work out like that. :)

The only direction I can give on making these is to measure your perimeter designs and your center to make sure everything is symmetrical. From there, I just free-handed it. My advice is to be creative, have fun with it, and don't be afraid to make mistakes! Paint is actually very forgiving, so it's not as bad as it seems. Plus, perfection is boring. ;) As for supplies, I bought the tiles from Home Depot (they are real floor tiles!), and the paint/brushes from Michael's. I used acrylic paint, and I was happy with how it turned out, but you can also buy ceramic paint, which may have been a better idea in retrospect.

In other news, we are getting the house ready for this weekend, because my parents are coming to visit! Thankfully, we are pretty much unpacked now - I just have to make sure everything is good to go and try to get some more crafts done! I still don't know how I'm going to hang up these tiles (or if they'll even hang), and I have set a goal of finishing one more DIY project before this weekend. I think I can manage that, since I'm only working two days this week.

Also, speaking of DIY, Mr. G and I made the mistake of attempting to cut our dog's hair ourselves yesterday... We have an adult lab/collie with long, bushy hair. Bathing her is a task in itself (and requires extensive clean-up), but cutting her hair was one big struggle. We took her out to the garage, used Mr. G's cutting shears (yep, I cut his hair!), and went to town. The shears didn't work well, though, so we eventually we just started hacking off her hair with scissors, and while she definitely has shorter hair now, she looks like she just survived some form of medieval torture. Ok, so maybe it's not that bad, but it is pretty funny; I keep finding random long hairs sticking out of nowhere. So, I get the honor of taking her into Petco in the morning to get it fixed, and I can't wait to see the faces of the grooming staff when we walk in. This is one DIY project I don't think I'll repeat.

How are you guys celebrating Mother's Day?? Got any good dessert recipes for me to borrow? :)

<3 Mrs. G

The Art of the Fancy Sandwich: Croque Madame

Hi everyone!

It's recipe time! This was one of the last meals I made in Connecticut, and it turned out to be one of the most challenging I have ever attempted. Surprisingly enough, it was a sandwich - but don't let that fool you. The croque madame is a beast, though it is definitely worth the patience required to make it. Mr. G had to help me with this one, and thank goodness he did... I don't see how it's possible to make it with less than 4 arms. Timing is everything for this dish. After nearly burning the bread AND the sauce (which also seemed too thick), it was still the most delicious sandwich I have ever tasted.

I got inspired to make it after a wonderful date night in NYC with the husband. You see, once we made the decision to move to Minnesota, I told Mr. G we had to do 2 more things before leaving the East Coast - see a Broadway show in New York, and go to Boston for the day. Mr. G came through, of course, and New York was first up - my Valentines Day present this year was tickets to any show of my choice. :) I decided on Wicked, and it ended up being an all-around incredible night that started off with a surprise carriage ride through Central Park! For those of you who don't know, Central Park was where Mr. G proposed last January, and it was supposed to be after a romantic carriage ride; however, it was too cold for the carriages to run that night (1 degree too cold, in fact - they are unmerciful), so he promised me he would eventually take me on the carriage ride I was supposed to have. Thankfully, he remembered even though I had almost forgotten... I have a very romantic husband. :)

Anyway, after our chilly but sweet carriage ride through the park, we went to a cute little French restaurant called Maison. I had mushroom ravioli, and Mr. G had croque madame. My pasta was good, but his sandwich was out of this world! It looked easy to make, too, so I was determined to do it. Little did I know that sometimes the simplest meals can have the most complicated recipes...

Here is the recipe I used - I got it from the Epicurious app on my iPhone:

Ingredients:

• 5 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole milk (we used 1%)
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 1/8 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 1/3 cups coarsely grated Gruyere cheese (we just used slices of swiss cheese - no Gruyere at Stop n Shop)
• 8 slices firm white sandwich bread (wheat and flimsy is also fine, but firm bread adds more texture)
• 4 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1/2 lb. thinly sliced cooked ham
• 4 large eggs

Directions:

• Make sauce first:
• Melt 3 tbsp. butter in a 1 to 1 1/2 quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, then whisk in flour and cook roux, whisking, for 3 minutes.
• Whisk in milk and bring to a boil, whisking constantly.
• Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, for 5 minutes.
• Whisk in salt, pepper, nutmeg, and 1/3 cup cheese until cheese is melted (this was challenging with sliced cheese... definitely get grated).
• Remove from heat and set out wax paper to make sandwiches.
• Make sandwiches:
• Spread 1 1/2 tbsp. sauce evenly over 4 slices of bread, then sprinkle evenly with remaining cheese (1/4 cup per slice, or just slap on a piece of swiss like yours truly).
• Spread mustard evenly on remaining 4 bread slices and top with ham, then invert them onto cheese-topped bread to form sandwiches.
• Cook sandwiches on skillet:
• Melt 1 tbsp. butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately low heat
• Cook sandwiches on skillet (we could fit 2 at a time), turning over once until golden - 3-4 minutes total.
• Remove sandwiches from heat and transfer to baking pan.
• Cook sandwiches in the oven:
• Preheat broiler.
• Top each sandwich with 1/3 cup sauce, spreading evenly.
• Broil sandwiches 4-5 inches from heat until sauce is bubbling and golden in spots for 2-3 minutes (ours took longer - depends on your oven).
• Turn off broiler and transfer pan to lower third of oven to keep warm.
• Fry eggs:
• Heat remaining tablespoon of butter in nonstick skillet over moderate heat.
• Crack eggs into skillet and season with salt and pepper.
• Fry eggs, covered (?), until whites are just set and yolks are still runny - should take 3 minutes.
• Take out sandwiches and top them all with fried eggs. Serve immediately, and enjoy!

See what I mean? Not as easy as it looks. But so worth the wait, trust me. Also, fun fact - if you leave off the egg, the sandwich is called a Croque Monsieur!

In other news, my DIY projects are coming right along. I've bought all my supplies (see below), and I've even painted 2 tiles already for the kitchen! And would you believe it - they look awesome! Hope everything else turns out as well. I'll post pics of the tiles once I finish them all.

I also went thrift shopping for the first time ever, and it was so much fun! I had a great day all by myself haha. Check out these cool things I found at Unique Thrift:

 

Unique is actually a pretty popular thrift store in the Twin Cities area. I was there yesterday, and it was PACKED - in the middle of the day on a Tuesday! People sure love their bargains here. I will definitely be going back, though. As for what I bought, the mirrors I plan on hanging in my kitchen (in place of the window/mirror I saw at T.J. Maxx - I actually like these better!). They have the look of cathedral windows, which I feel goes along with the Mexican-esque theme I'm going for in the kitchen. The blue candlestick is what I'll use as the base of a cake plate I'm going to make - yet another DIY project haha. I guess I can now go on the record to say that I am crafty... and thrifty! Everything in that photo cost a total of $7. Can't beat that!

I hope I'm not turning into one of those budget-crazy women who obsess over finding the best deals. There is no harm in being budget savvy, but extreme couponing? Really?? Come on, now. (I do kinda want to watch that show, though.)

That's all for now. Can't wait to finally get our couch tomorrow! Yay!

Goodnight!

<3 Mrs. G

P.S. I start work next week at the Mall of America, so (sadly) I probably won't be posting quite as often as I am now. But I'll try! Wish me luck at the new job! Still interviewing for others. I'll keep you posted!

Crafting my Nest

Hello all!

So as you probably know by now, I just moved into a new home in the fabulous state of Minnesota. If you read my last post, you also know that it's my first house (yay!) and... it needs some work. I can't do anything about the big stuff right now, but I can use what's left of my birthday money to decorate the place. However, after buying bar stools and an area rug, my decorating budget has diminished significantly, so I'm left with no other option - I must craft.

Let me be the first to say that I am not a crafty girl. I can follow instructions as well as the next person, but that by no means makes me a natural talent. You don't even want to know how long it took me to make the escort cards for my wedding, and while they were cute, they definitely weren't professional quality. So, crafting isn't exactly my thing, but I'll do it when it saves me money, satisfies my creative urges, and fills up my expansive wall space (thank you, vaulted ceilings).

First of all, here is the wonderfully inexpensive area rug I bought from IKEA that serves as my "inspiration" for the living room:



Have I mentioned that I love IKEA? Because I do. I also plan on getting my window treatments and light fixtures from there, as well as eventually our new bedroom furniture. Basically, I want my house to look like an IKEA catalog. But who doesn't?

At our old place, the color scheme for the living room was black and brown with accents of red. Not a fan,  but you work with what you've got. Now that we have a new couch and a new rug, though, I'm going for a more sophisticated look with a touch of whimsy - that is, if my DIY projects work out; otherwise it may be whimsy with a side of trashy. The color scheme I'm planning is neutrals with splashes of blue and green. I want it to feel romantic and relaxed while still being clean and modern. If that makes no sense, just bear with me.



Here are my (anticipated) DIY projects for the living room, as well as the websites that inspired them:



Book Page Wreath





Mossy Monogram



Pillow Covers - found this one on Etsy, but Martha Stewart will help me make mine

I plan on hanging the wreath above our fireplace (yes, we have a fireplace!) with a pretty ribbon, the moss-covered letters above our couch - also with pretty ribbon - and the pillows will obviously go on the couch. Martha will be proud.

The other room that I am focusing on is the kitchen. I was inspired by these little Mexican tiles I brought back from our honeymoon, and I've decided to make them the focal point of my kitchen. My project is to find four large, white tiles and paint them in different colors and patterns evocative of Mexican talavera tiles. I'll hang them or put them on display shelves next to my table. I would also like to find a pretty mirror to go with them and eventually install a fun light fixture. I saw a beautiful rustic window-turned-mirror today at T.J. Maxx that would be perfect, so I'm hoping it will still be there when I have enough money to buy it... It's a little unusual, so nobody was really fighting over it.

Here are some other random decor items I love:




Borrby lantern from IKEA

 


Ikat chair from Urban Outfitters



 


Maskros lamp from IKEA




Vintage tile-inspired wall art from Etsy

  

If you have any ideas to add, or suggestions as to where to find some of the craft materials for cheap, please comment! I would love some input. In the meantime, I hope I've inspired you to make some fabulous decor of your own. ;) I'll report back on how everything turned out, and I'll post pics - good or bad.

Happy decorating!

<3 Mrs. G