Saturday, June 29, 2013

Baby Shower invitations!

My friend Lisa's sister Samantha is having a baby and she asked me to make the invitations.  Lisa brought me the plate for the shower theme to inspire me to make matching invitations.
Here's the plate:
I decided to focus on the monkey.
Here is my version of a punch art monkey. 
I first scored the 8-1/2" X 11" paper along the 4-1/4" and then cut it in half just like I would create a regular card, and folded it in half.  Then, I placed the fold on the Circle Scallops die leaving about 5 scallops peeking out.  That's what makes it a card that folds. 
Here is the invitation opened with the party information inside.

 Here is what 30 invitations looks like.  I used a variety of circles for the ears and eyes, a large oval for the mouth and hand cut a 1/2" circle for the nose.  I drew the mouth freehand and used a sponge dauber to accent the cheeks.
 I wanted to present the invitations in a box, so I cut some sturdy cardstock to 11" X 11" and scored using the Simply Scored Diagonal plate at 3-1/2" and 5-1/2" on opposite sides and 4-1/2" and 6-1/2" on the other sides.
 Then, I cut all the way to the center rectangle on all four sides.
 Then, I cut out the small corners it formed and taped it together.
 And I used the Modern Label punch and two silver brads to hold the flap down.
I had to make 2 boxes to hold all 30 invitations and envelopes.  So, then, I tied them all up with some pretty ribbon for a great presentation.
 Let me know what you think!
Thanks for checking in!
Sharon
EMAIL: lim5harona@gmail.com

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Making Rice Krispy Treats in less than 5 minutes!!! A Bonus tutorial!

I am a fan not wasting things.
I don't snack on marshmallows, or eat Rice Krispy cereal, so when I make Rice Krispy Treats, I am a "dump it all in" kind of recipe follower.  The original recipe has you count marshmallows and measuring out the cereal by the cupfuls...PISHAW!!!
My way is all done in less than 5 minutes if you have all of your ingredients and supplies ready.

This is all you need:

  • clean hands (a must!)
  • a large glass (I use my largest Pyrex) bowl
  • wooden spoon
  • 1 lb. of marshmallows, (not 10 oz., make sure it's 1 lb.!)
  • 1 box of Rice Krispy cereal (I like the generic brand, but you can use the real thing if you want)
  • 1 Stick of butter
  • 9" X 13" pan (glass or metal, it doesn't matter)
  • butter knife
Use the butter knife and cut the stick of butter in half (4 Tbsp.), and place it into the bowl.
Pour in all of the marshmallows.
Microwave it for 2 minutes, (okay, so I am so lazy, I actually hit the time for 2:22 minutes!)
While that is melting, you take your 9" X 13" pan and butter it.  I just unwrap the butter and rub it all over the sides and bottom.
This is what microwaved marshmallows look like, all puffy.
Using a wooden spoon, start mixing up the butter and marshmallows, some of them will still be lumpy and you may find a little chunk of butter on the bottom.  With the warmth of the marshmallows and the bowl, you will eventually get a smooth looking mixture like this.
Pour in the cereal and mix well.
When all the cereal is coated, scoop into your prepared pan.
Using the butter knife, slice a super-thin slice of butter and rub it between your clean hands.  Use your buttered hands to smash down the mixture into the pan, spreading it out to the corners. Sorry, no picture of that, my hands were too buttery.

Tah Dah!!! Krispies are DONE!!!
How can you beat homemade Krispy Treats? 
Thanks for checking in!
Sharon
EMAIL: lim5harona@gmail.com