DIY Grid It

I found this video on YouTube and I'm excited to try it! I think it would make a great, functional gift for anyone with lots of gadgets or items in their bags/suitcases.

Video tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ACFqzscuoSU

Megan's Jewelry

The tiara was fun, actually. It took me a little while to formulate a plan of how to construct it as I wasn't too keen on most "handmade" tiaras I'd seen--they're fine in their own right but it wasn't the look I wanted to create. I used 14ga aluminum wire, shaped and hammered, and wire wrapped on the rhinestone chain and added a few pearl and crystal embellishments. After using only sterling silver for over a year, aluminum feels like putty in my hands, even at 14ga. Thank goodness it does work harden or I'd have been in trouble. Anyway, I don't think I'd make these on a regular basis only because it's so easy to just buy a cheap one for the same amount of money it took to buy all of the supplies (for just one, buying in bulk would reduce the costs of course) but I think I'd do them on a commission basis. I hope Megan likes the set! I love making bridal jewelry, it's my favorite. :)

HELLO again!

Guys. It's been a crazy year.

I was pregnant when I lasted blogged on here and, I hope you will forgive me, decided I just needed to step away from the computer more often. Now I have two beautiful boys and less time :D but I wanted to come back and try and revive this thing. If nothing else, I have a lot of recipes to share (hey, I got really hungry a lot during my last trimester, if ya know what I mean).

These are REALLY tasty and I'm excited when I find a meatless recipe--not that I don't like meat, I do--because it seems like it's easy to find recipes with meat as the main player in a recipe and sometimes I just want something lighter, more healthy but still filling. This is one of those recipes!

http://www.artistscookbook.com/recipes/?i=212

Differences: I added about 1/2 cup chopped yellow onions. I used frozen spinach (fresh is probably way better) and I added some red kidney beans, about half a can left over from another recipe. I added like a third package of taco seasoning to make them more taco-y. I didn't use vegetable stock--instead I added some of the marinade that the artichokes came in. I then used taco shells and I baked them with the filling for about 5 minutes.

Ah, the Neglacted Blog

It's true.

I've been avoiding my blog.

I just simply run out of things to write about, not because my life is bereft of interesting and crazy and stressful and fun and GAHH! moments but I find it hard to pick one single strand to talk about while not pulling out one too many at the same time. That probably doesn't make sense but basically I just needed a week or two where I wasn't on the laptop so much. Basically.

So here I am, sort of back, trying to pick up where I left off.

In going through my old messages tonight, I remembered a kind Etsy seller was doing a feature on me on her blog, http://qbranchltd.blogspot.com Do take a looksy if you can!


One final thing, I planted a garden a few weeks ago and the plants are all alive! Pictures will follow soon. :P

Coming!

I can has?? PLEAZ???

My Little Guy is about 22 months old and has the memory of an elephant (e.g. he never forgets). After Big Guy came home from work one day, we decided to go out for dinner. So I ran upstairs to put on something other than my t-shirt and jeans and while I was changing I could hear my Hubs laughing and *laughing*. So then The Guys come upstairs and Hubs tells me that after I went upstairs, my son looked up the stairs and said, “Anna, coming! Anna, coming!” in a commanding tone and then he gestured for Hubs to look up the stairs with him and said “Coming! Coming!” Hahaha, Hubs always calls up to me when we’re about to go somewhere (he thinks I take too long to get ready. Psh.) and my automatic reply is, “I’m coming!”. Apparently now my son is in the campaign to make sure I can keep my primping down to five minutes or less when food is on the line.

Anyone else apparently take too long to get ready? :)

The Great Unveiling

I couldn't help myself. It's not in my shop yet but I took pictures earlier today and I'm just so glad it's done. :) It's a custom order for a bride-to-be. I call this necklace the Queen Elizabeth.

And now for something completely different:

I am sooooo close to completing a huge bridal necklace; it's been consuming much of my free time and my fledgling blog has been neglected. :( Not to worry, I thought of my lovely readership and wanted to entertain you in some way, even if it means borrowing from humor I could only dream in my dreams of touching with a twelve-foot pole.

Dead Parrot