Bubble Wreath

From what I've heard, Bubble Wreaths are an old decor fad from the 80's. I'm not one to bring out the "oldies", but I thought some cream colored burlap may actually look somewhat up to date. There are several tutorials out there, but I liked "Today's Fabulous Finds" best.  bubble wreath tutorial I make horrible tutorials...so follow hers! Here's my finished project!

Gift Sets

Baby Girl Gift Set $36

Personalized Diaper Cover, Bib, and Burp Cloth

With your choice of applique
(bunny, bird, butterfly, dog, alligator, elephant)

Elvis brought us some love...

Ms. Claus sent Elvis back to the Mardis house with Elf Cookies in a jar!

The girls are so excited to make these tonight.

Need a recipe...I've got it.

Happy Holidays- Christine

Totally NOT a Tutorial - Macarons

My husband LOVES macarons. No, not the coconut thingys. These macarons are the pretty colored delicate little cookies popping up in all the posh bakeries.  So I've been searching for the perfect macaron recipe to surprise him with his favorite tasty treat.

I found a fabulous book "I love Macaroons" by Hisako Ogita.

So, Little Miss Trouble (Lily) and I set forth today totally inspired to make daddy proud. I had heard that they are difficult to make, so I settled for the vanilla bean with vanilla bean buttercream filling. It's basic, I figured as long as I followed the directions, they would be perfect! I thought, I'll do a tutorial for my friends...

Since nothing turned out the way it was supposed to, this is NOT a tutorial!

Red flags started popping up while I was shopping for the ingredients.

-Almond Flour and cornstarch free powdered sugar are impossible to find, especially with a cranky toddler. So I decided to make my own almond flour and cross my fingers that the regular old powdered sugar would do. 

-Egg Whites, no problem I've got a container of egg whites in the fridge...no need to waste the yolk.

Wrong. You must use fresh room temperature egg whites.

The cookies were over dried, over baked, cracked, with peaks. Apparently temperature and moisture are very important when making these little suckers.

The butter cream filling was a nightmare. I won't go into the details. I tried 2 times, gave up and made my own butter cream filling with mini chocolate chips.

The end result was super tasty, but not nearly as pretty as the ones behind the glass!



It's the most wonderful time of the year!

This truly is the most wonderful time of the year. Sitting around listening to some Harry Connick Jr, cookies baking, lights twinkling, little girls giggling,  and the smell of Christmas in the air (with a little help from Thymes Frasier Fir!).  A recent trip to my favorit fabric shop inspired a little Holiday crafting.

Little Pillow Holiday Doorhangers

$16

Personalized with your Family Name or Initial

in your choice of ornament shape (spindle, round, or bulb) and fabrics (pointsettia, green damask, script, Christmas greetings, snowflake, green/red)

TIME FOR TURKEY!

Lily and I had a great ime creating this little turkey bow.

She's our little turkey, so this was created in honor of her.

$5

Need one in time for turkey day? Contact me softasabunny@tampabay.rr.com

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!



Sweet Balsamic Roasted Pumpkins Seeds

Got Pumpkin Seeds?

My kids loved these!

If so, try out my Sweet Balsamic Roasted Pumpkin Seed recipe.

To prepare your pumpkin seeds - Rinse and strain your pumpkin seeds in a colander. Let  pumpkin seeds dry for 24 hours in a singer layer on a sheet of wax paper. If you're impatient like me...use a hair dryer to speed up the process!

2 cups of pumpkin seeds

mix the following....

2 Tablespoons of Brown Sugar

2 Tablespoons of Melted Butter

2 Tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar or Balsamic Glaze

1 Tsp  of Kosher Salt

1/8 tsp Cinnamon

1/8 tsp fresh grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Toss in the pumkins seeds and coat evenly. Lightly coat cookie sheet with cooking spray. Pour seeds onto a cookie sheet and spread into a single layer.

Bake for 35-45 minutes. Check on them about every 10 minutes to make sure they don't burn!

Let cool and enjoy!