Gift Reveal!

It's hard to believe that Christmas has already come and gone! I started making gifts back in October and was still frantically hooking up a storm until Christmas Eve. Since [almost] everyone has received his or her gifts, I wanted to share them with you! I tend to be overly ambitious when I dream of things I'm going to make people and it usually takes twice as long as I imagine it will take me. Because of this, I wasn't able to get one of my gifts done in time to be given, but it is done now. I'll share that one in the future. Until then, here's a look at all of my gifts handmade with love.

Above you'll see a picture of some fake cupcake ornaments BJ and I made for advent one night. Speaking of Advent, after the first couple of weeks, everything seemed to have gone downhill and the event planned for the day got put off or just disregarded altogether. This was one such project, but it was something that I had planned on doing since Thanksgiving, so it had to get done. I used this tutorial to make them. I made the little silver candies out of beads spray painted with metallic silver, which I had on hand. The cherries and candy canes are made of polymer clay. I used Martha Stewart cupcake liners. If you plan on doing this, I suggest trying to find liners that have foil on the inside because they keep their shape much better than plain paper ones. BJ didn't believe that the expansion foam would expand so he filled them much more than halfway full. Well, they did expand, just like the instructions said... I wasn't surprised. We had to cut the tops off of most of them, but the "frosting" covered it anyway. I gave one each to my sister, mom, and dear friend, Miira. Since Valentine's Day and my birthday fall in February, I'm going to use them as decorations then as well because I used colors that work for both holidays. Talk about a bang for your buck!

This is off the topic of gifts, but this year was the last Holidazzle parade in Minneapolis. I had never gone in the 21 years it has been put on and decided it needed to be added to our Advent calendar. The I Love Lucy Christmas special was airing on CBS the night that we had planned on going. We went the next night instead, the final ever. Boy was it crowded. It was warmer than I had expected, but I went super bundled up. Everyone's body heat actually seemed to warm the outdoor space. I had a guy and his small child behind me. He was either talking on his phone- giving a play by play to his wife watching from somewhere else, complaining about how cold he was, complaining about is it over yet, how he couldn't see anything, or yelling at his kid to lean back on his shoulders because he was making his neck hurt (most frequent complaint.) He got there a few minutes after the parade was supposed to have started so, complaining about your spot is hardly valid and if you have been in this state for any amount of time this winter, then you should know the weather conditions. At one point he began elbowing me every time his son moved. After it was over, BJ thought it would be faster to take the street instead of the skyway that we came in on. We got lost and walked several miles in the cold before we could finally find an entrance to the skyway and got lost some more... I will always remember my first and only Holidazzle. By the way, I have no idea how my collage became twinkly. Strange.

Back on track, the first gifts I made this year were for my mom and sister. When I went down to visit during our Thriftcation, my sister had mentioned to me that she would like fingerless gloves. Since she also likes coffee, I made her a travel mug cozy. I made a mug cozy and boot cuffs for my mom. She happens to collect Coke things and especially likes the Santa stuff. When I saw an original 1956 ad at Urban Cottage, I was really excited to pick it up! There was a little shmutz on it, but was in great shape other than that. 

Urban Cottage had their final sale of the year last weekend and you know I had to go see what holiday goodies I could find on sale! I scored pretty big on ornaments. The striped and swirly ornaments are Shiny Brite, the tear drop one is marked Germany, and the quadruple reflector is marked Made in US of A. I also found vintage candle holder clips that I had actually been telling BJ I wanted to find for a project I have in mind. I guess you'll have to wait until next year to find out what they will become! The little snow capped ornament below is also Shiny Brite. BJ spotted pins in the checkout counter when we were being rung up and wanted to get me one. I picked this adorable Mr. + Mrs. Frosty one. If you also love pins/brooches, you should read Read My Pins: Stories from a Diplomat's Jewel Box by Madeleine Albright.

The next gifts I made were for my youngest nephew. I've been told he likes Buzz Lightyear so I thought hooking up a Lil' Buzz and a Toy Story alien would be fun. How lucky that I happened to have a rocket ship cup for a photo shoot!

Next up were scarves. I made BJ a sushi scarf from Son of a Stitch 'n Bitch and my oldest nephew a pizza scarf from Twinkie Chan's Crochet Goodies for Fashion Foodies. When I was cleaning out my craft closet, I found a huge take out box and thought it would be perfect packaging. We keep our Galactic Pizza boxes to use for coupons, so I used one to wrap up the pizza!

BJ has been drinking a lot of tea lately, and he loves TMNT. When I saw this pattern, it was a done deal.

BJ got a hat also from Son of a Stitch 'n Bitch. I made Annabelle a doe rat toy from a downloadable pattern on Ravelry. It is one continuous piece of yarn, nothing to sew on- so cool!

This is a terrible picture, I'm sorry about this. The wallet is now in use, so I don't want to hassle BJ to take everything out so I can photograph it better. :/ This one I did without a pattern. I made him one for our anniversary a couple of years ago and thought it was time for a new one. This time I didn't put in the ID window and just did more card pockets instead. I cut out a silhouette of the Minneapolis skyline that I made for my "Get Lifted" Society6 project and stenciled it onto the exterior of the wallet.

For my dear friend, Agent I, I made an amigurumi Totoro. This pattern can also be found on Ravelry as a free download. He introduced me to Studio Ghibli films. When I found this pattern, he was the first person I thought of!

I made a last minute scarf for one of BJ's aunts. That's the project I was still working on Christmas Eve day. It was a race to the finish, but everything got done on time.

In between, when I thought I had time to crochet at my leisure, I made a panda ornament. On the way down to Redwood, I started a polar bear and finished it off yesterday afternoon to unwind from the hectic holiday.

As for the gifts that I received this year, I got many of the things I had hoped for. Most of my wishlist included kitchen items- I think almost all of them were addressed to both of us, but let's be realistic about who's going to be using them the most. We got a cast iron skillet, an immersion blender, a silicon baking mat, a teapot, and a vintage glass pitcher with diagonal teal stripes. BJ's mom surprised me with a vintage white cat butter dish!

BJ got me a few toys I've had my eye on and some other little things like a melting snowman from Lush. Our Christmas was sort of low-key since Annabelle's bladder infection was higher priority in the budget. I got the Tia Mowry yoga DVDs from my sister. I think I'll crochet some special socks to use with the video! My oldest nephew, who is 14, surprised me with a Monster High Frankie Stein ragdoll/blanket combo. I'm not sure how he knew I would like it, but it was very thoughful! :)

Next up is New Year's and making resolutions. Last January, Leslie Sansone issued a 365 walk challenge. There's only five days left and I still have skipped one! I'm hoping that I can commit myself to new goals just as well as I did the walk goal. For 2014, my resolution is to be awesome everyday. By that I mean to stick to my guns, be productive, and push myself to be successful in my craft- because who's going to believe in you if you don't even believe in yourself?

Vegan Spanish Pinwheels

I've been meaning to post this since Saturday, but one thing led to another and I just never got around to it. The ugly sweater party didn't go as planned. BJ and I got to eat a lot more of the food than we had expected. Good thing for our taste buds, not so good for our waistlines. These pinwheels are addicting. You could try making your own cream cheese and sour cream. The recipe I have for your today uses the store bought kind to make it an easy-peasy recipe to throw together for a party. I baked a lot of cookies, so a quick and easy appetizer was so necessary!

This recipe originally came from one of my Spanish classes in high school. We had a project where we had to find a recipe using Spanish ingredients, type it up in Spanish and English, and make it for the class to taste. This was a standout recipe that I don't believe to be authentic at all, but who cares, it's delicious! (If you use Target Cartwheel, a few of the ingredients are currently on there. Yay saving!)

When I went vegan, this was one of the first recipes that I veganized for a small crafternoon that  I held. It is pretty straightforward- just replacing dairy ingredients with non-dairy ones. The only thing that stumped me was the ranch dressing mix because I couldn't find a packet one that didn't contain some form of animal. Cue Internet. I've tried a few different recipes from the Internet. Some of them are too garlicky and some too salty. The last one that I used worked for me. It's great because you make up a good sized batch of it and store it in a jar so it's ready to use the next time you need it.

Vegan Spanish Pinwheels

Ingredients:

10 Flour Tortillas
8 oz vegan cream cheese, softened
1 (4 oz) can of green chiles
1 (4 oz) can of chopped black olives
1 (2 oz) jar of pimientos
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 teaspoons ranch dressing mix

• ¼ cup dried parsley
• 4 teaspoons dried dill weed
• 4 teaspoons onion powder
• 4 teaspoons dried onion flakes
• 4 teaspoons salt
• 4 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper

Directions:

1. Make up your ranch dressing mix by mixing all ingredients together and store in an airtight glass container.

2. Mix cream cheese, sour cream, olives, pimientos, chiles, cheddar cheese, and 2 teaspoons of ranch dressing mix together in a large bowl.

3. Spread thinly onto tortilla, covering completely.

4. Roll up tightly. Repeat until you have used all of the spread.

5. Chill at least one hour.

6. Slice into thin pinwheels- about 8 slices per roll.

Makes about 80 portions.

I must confess, I hate olives. They make me gag- so I omit this from my recipe, but I thought I'd include it because there are people who don't hate olives. Also, it tastes fine with or without the cheese as well. This time that I made it, I didn't have a whole cup of cheese on hand. I used up the rest of a block of Daiya jack.

So there you have it, a quick and easy crowd pleaser. Happy Holidays!

Countdown to Christmas

As we approach the home stretch of the Christmas season, I'm feeling pretty good about being able to finish all my presents. I only have a couple left! I haven't been good about posting the daily advent on Instagram. BJ has been working a lot of overtime and my phone has no ability to take pictures at night, not to mention that it has been gloomy (and extremely cold.) I've made up a few collages of what we've been up to this past week. 

Above you will see this year's "Christmas card." All the babies got in on the ugly sweater party action! Hamm is wearing a dog hat with the top cut off from Target. He's such a sweet little buffalo, I just want to squeeze his fluffy cheeks every time I see him. He is sniffing Annabelle because he loves to eat her fur (he did the same thing to Babie, they must have marshmallow flavored fur.) Annabelle only tried to bite him once during the photo session, so I'd say it was successful. Basil just wanted to get out of there and wasn't thrilled with costume changes. I believe she'll think all this business is worth it when she gets her cat cozy on Christmas!

I'm quite positive that my babies don't look at the Internet, so I think it's safe to show you what I've made up for them so far. Hammy and Basil are both getting cuddle caves. They were super easy to make and I had everything on hand. I found a bag of queen sized batting at the thrift store this summer for only $2 and the fabric I used for Hamm's was fabric I've had since one of my high school projects and a too-small cast off from his cage fleece that I picked up at the thrift store. Basil's was made of fleece I got from my mom's friend and a half yard that I bought at Jo-Ann's with no particular idea of how to use it. I'm going to make another one for Hammy that has some PLU between the outside fleece and the batting just so it doesn't absorb anything from the main fleece in his cage.

Also in the collage are close-ups of the fabrics I used to make the pillow cases from last post and pictures of the rest of the decorations around the apartment.

On day four of advent, BJ and I cut out some paper snowflakes. Day five, we watched the Sound of Music live. Did you watch it? I loved seeing Bill Compton as a different character, but I just kept expecting him to don a southern accent and say, "Sook-ay!" Don't get me started on True Blood. Anyway, on day six we drove around looking at Christmas lights. We decided to go to Summit Ave because last year the lights were pretty good. The governor's mansion last year was really pretty, this year was lame-o. Just blue multi-colored lights. The two houses across the street didn't disappoint though, as usual! 

Day seven, Saturday, we went to Holiday No Coast Craft-O-Rama at Midtown Global Market. I forgot to take any pictures of that. It's hard being broke at craft fairs. :( There were actually a bunch of fun things going on last weekend. We didn't get to the free Burlesque show like we had wanted, but we did go out to Roseville and visit the Kidrobot-esque store at the mall. Again, the brokeness... After that we went to a house in Shoreview that had a light show coordinated to their own radio station. It had a parking lot right across the street which was convenient. Someone else came to watch and didn't bother turning their car lights off. I recommend this house over the one in Chanhassen/Excelsior because of the parking and the fact that they aren't trying to sell you a religion. 

Day eight, we listened to the record I got on my tiny Winnie the Pooh record player. It wasn't made to play that sized record, so we could either listen to the chipmunk version, or a slower version. It was fun to take a step back in time and think about that being how people used to consume music. 

Day nine we made pomanders. BJ never made these in elementary school. Is this just a small town thing or did he miss out?

On day ten, we went to see Frozen with a free movie ticket from Disney Movie Rewards. The cashier was a nice young guy who hadn't seen the coupon before. He gave us free Olaf pins for the wait! YAY!!! I love pins and the movie was everything I was hoping it would be. Next on my must see list is Savings Mr. Banks, Walking with Dinosaurs, The Lego Movie (Feb 7), and I can't wait for the Boxtrolls in September!

We took the family photos on day eleven. BJ and I didn't get in on the action, although we have ugly sweaters. Day twelve, we watched Prep & Landing: Naughty vs Nice. That brings us to today, day thirteen. Friday the thirteenth! Today I am starting a mad baking spree including several types of cookies and a gingerbread house. Together, we are going to be making some fake cupcakes and watching the Santa Claws episode of Grimm! Thank Grimm it's Friday, but I am so sad that it is the fall season finale. 

Tomorrow I plan on making up some of the pinwheels I mentioned in an earlier post so that you can have the recipe! 

#VeryMerry

December is here already! My Thanksgiving was..."different" as we Minnesotans might call it. Black Friday didn't seem so busy this year. Since Annabelle's bladder infection spent any monies allotted for a shopping spree, we decided not to do much, but walked around the Mall of America after dinner since it was open. It was fairly busy, much like any normal Thursday night during the holiday rush. After that, we went to Target for a loaf of bread. It was around 10:30 so the store had already been open two and a half hours. We thought it would still be a madhouse, but the parking lot was pretty empty, much like any other Thursday night in Richfield. We made another trip the next afternoon because that's just what you do if you love Target. They had most all of their TVs, nooks, etc left. I just don't think the deals were really deals this year- or maybe I've just come to terms with the difference between wanting and needing and am able to let it go. That may be true with new things, but boy am I still needy for all things vintage.

Besides my midnight trip to Michaels (it was on the way home from Target and I had a coupon- why not?), I went to Flamingos for their Pink Friday sale. I found a terrifyingly cute tiny santa doll and a paper cut out of Santa in his sleigh. I also got another Shiny Brite reflector to try to replace the one that bit the dust. I decided to hang the broken one on my tree anyway... you can hardly tell! >_<

That brings us to December. Advent! Heidi Kenney and Amanda Krueger have a digital book called A Very Merry Advent on how to plan a fun advent. If you are familiar with Heidi Kenney, then you know she is the queen of holidays and probably want to be like her as much as I do. I got this and planned out BJ and my advent calendar. I still have the advent calendar I had as a child and hang it every year. It is actually one of my most treasured holiday items. I printed out a few pages of the vintage Pyrex gift tags and wrote out or planned activity for the day and stuck it in the little pockets.

For day one, we hung our solar lights outside- I'm not positive that one of them even works anymore. Normally, we are quite too lazy to even take them down, but this year, the balconies were painted and the crew took down my lights. Bleh, so we had to re-hang them and it has been way too cloudy and snowy for the little panels to absorb enough light to make them shine. They look nice during the day though...

Day two, we decided to play dreidel. I made it out of clay. Really, I did. I had the winning spin and won all the chocolate chips! 

Day three, we strung popcorn for the little birds outside. I haven't noticed anyone partaking in the festivities, though. 

Tonight is day four and the plan is to make paper snowflakes. Follow me on Instagram for continued coverage!

Amazingly, I got all my Christmas decorations up in one day, minus the night after Thanksgiving when I put up the big tree. The close-up ornament is my favorite that I talked about in an earlier post. The little tree is in the bedroom and it is actually the same tree I've used in my bedroom since high school! I have all of my favorite childhood ornaments on there which consist mostly of Disney and other unbreakables. I have two cats who think ornaments are toys, so the whole tree being that low to the ground, they have to be!

Yesterday, I finally made up envelope pillow cases for the season. I found the cutest vintage inspired snowmen patterned fabric. They're riding candy cane bicycles! Vintage Golden Book Frosty is probably one of my favorite winter images, this fabric is to die for. I also picked up a yard of a holiday shopping scene by Alexander Henry, but it was just a tad too small in every direction to make an envelope for the regular sized bed pillow, so I had to put in a zipper. Slightly frustrating, not entirely awesome looking at the top of the zipper, but nothing that I can't fix, or simply forget about! The other two fabrics are Jo-Ann's: one is vintage inspired string lights and the other an ugly sweater looking pattern. This place is shaping up to be ready for my ugly sweater party! Now I just need to find an ugly sweater for my gigantor Annabelle! I see a Target trip in my future.

Here's a little peak at some of my favorite things. The lighted snow globe and reindeer are from my childhood. One of the reindeer's antlers met the garbage disposal many moons ago. Hopefully the sun starts shining soon so I can take pictures of the rest of the place. I'm off to eat an Olive Garden inspired dinner while dreaming of my neighbors leaving before their eviction date.

Vegan Everlasting Fruit Salad

I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving! I have a recipe for you today that is perfect for holiday gatherings because it can feed a small army and it's delicious. When you hear fruit salad you may think of a menagerie of cut fruits, but growing up, this is what I knew it as. Of course the original recipe calls for heavy whipping cream, for which I have two different substitutes that both have the same end result. The first time I veganized this recipe of my mom's, I used silken tofu. The only drawback is that there is a slight tofu aftertaste that may not be appealing to you or your omni friends/family. 

I tried out an alfredo recipe last month that called for full fat canned coconut milk. I was a little leery that I would end up eating a tropical pasta dish rather than the salty-savory-creamy-dreamy one that I had been fantasizing about for weeks. I tried it straight out of the can and was so surprised that it tasted and felt exactly like heavy whipping cream! The special thing about whipping cream is that it coats your mouth with a delectable softness and the coconut milk did just that. It's obviously the winner in my book. [I have coconut haters that really like this.] If you decide to go that route, do make sure that you get the canned full fat stuff. Boxed coconut milk is not the same. You can generally find this in the Asian aisle of the market and there is a reduced fat version- so be careful of what you pick up. Also, this is a recipe that you'll want to make a day in advance to let all the flavors settle and mix together.


Ever Lasting Fruit Salad

Ingredients

• 1-16 oz box of large ring noodles
• Grapes [I like a lot!]
• 1-2 large apples depending on preference, cut into chunks
• 1 can of crushed pineapple, drained
• 2 cans full fat coconut milk or 1 pint heavy cream substitute [recipe to follow]

Dressing

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoons all purpose flour
• Juice of 2 lemons (5 Tablespoons)
• Egg Replacer  equivalent to 4 eggs [I used Ener-G Egg Replacer: 8 T of warm water + 2 T of replacer]

Heavy Cream Subsitute

• 1/2 block silken tofu (extra firm)
• 1/2 cup soy milk

Blend all ingredients in a blender (do not use a hand mixer) until thick and creamy and there are no more lumps.

Directions:

Cook noodles according to package directions

Add all dressing ingredients to a medium sized pot and cook over medium heat until thick, stirring constantly (about 10 minutes.) Make sure not to let it burn.

Drain noodles when done. Put in extra large bowl. Add fruit. Toss with dressing once cooled. Add coconut milk or heavy cream substitute to salad, mix, and refrigerate overnight to meld flavors. It may seem runny, but it will all thicken up once settled in fridge.

Enjoy!

Occasional Scores

I'm finally almost done with all my crochet Christmas presents. I'm quite pleased with how they all turned out so far and can't wait to post pictures of everything! Since I mentioned it last time, I decided to do a post on my recent scores from the occasional sales. If you've looked at my Instagram, then you've seen the picture of the lovely dishes I got at Flamingos. It was an awesome deal at only $28 for 20 assorted sizes of plates. I saw them, passed up on them, thought about it, and went back. I didn't see them at first, but BJ caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye and they were mine for the taking! I have a couple of TV trays that I found at Arc's about a year ago that match nicely. I'm sort of obsessed with sputnik/atomic bursts right now. 

On my first go around there, I found the two ornaments in the middle of that picture. I'd never seen one of those plastic case ornaments and decided it was so-ugly-it's-cute enough to be welcome on my tree. There aren't any markings on the green ball, but it's sparkly and I had to have it!

Urban Cottage opened a week later and I found a cute little postcard with gnome santas in a forest with mushrooms. Perfect? My most favorite ornament of all time is one that belonged to my sister's grandma. It has a little scene set inside it with an ugly little humanoid. It's so precious. I'm always on the lookout for something similar and I finally found one by Shiny Brite, and it has a mushroom in it! The top where the cap and hook connect is a little broken off, but it doesn't change how it hangs. I also found something special for my mom that I can't reveal, but it's neat-o!

Speaking of my mom, she came up for an appointment last Tuesday and wanted to go to some antique stores. I took her down to 50th & Xerxes. It's a lucky thing I did, too. They were having their annual sale a week earlier than I expected! I found a cool old Singer Sewing Center yard stick and a beautiful Shiny Brite reflector in my fave colors at Hunt & Gather. The sparkly ornament beside it says made in Italy and comes from Arc's- .69! I didn't even have the reflector a week before BJ accidently smashed it to pieces... I'm having a hard time letting it go- the half of it that still exists is setting on the desk beside me. Any idea on how I can reuse this gorgeous piece of Christmas ornament history? 

Normally we've always gone to 50th & Xerxes for Small Business Saturday. It turned out to be this past weekend, so after we went to the Green Gifts Fair at Midtown Global Market, we hit up the shops. We got a steal of a deal at Vinaigrette on rosemary, truffle, and cinnamon(!) olive oils. Then we headed to Loft Antiques where I found a Sammy Kaye Christmas record from 1951 with art I couldn't pass up, another mushroom themed ornament, and another Shiny Brite reflector- not in my fave colors. >_< Arc's was crazy busy on Saturday as usual, but I scored a box of red Shiny Brite ornaments with an old Target sticker [I always love that!] for only .69. Unfortunately, it also took a hit in the great weighted ball accident. Only one broke though. In addition, I found a really heavy blown glass ornament with a cool design. The Shiny Brite tree topper came from eBay because I decided that my tree needs a topper this year, and I didn't want to leave finding the perfect one to chance. It came in a super awesome box. I think I'm either going to need a bigger tree or I'm going to have to purge part of my Christmas collection- maybe both!

I forgot to share this one when I got it a few months ago. I actually saw this exact  non-pierced earring tree used as a display piece at an occasional sale and I thought, "Oh man, I wish it was for sale!" Wouldn't you know, I found it at Flamingos right after! [The ring is from the Walker gift shop. The flower hair clip is from Ethique Nouveau. The bracelet is by Glitter Workshop. Earrings are thrifted from Arc's.]

One project that I can share is my Annabelle scoodie! It took a ton of yarn, but worked up quickly. I used this pattern by Dearest Debi and just changed the ears to cat ears. It is so incredibly soft and warm and it's vegan!

I finished it just in time, too, because the weather decided to become super cold. My baby Annabelle somehow got a bladder infection [which only about 4% of cats actually get] and it cost an arm and a leg at the vet. Because of that, I don't think I'll probably be doing much Black Friday shopping, but Goose's health is more important than deals that probably aren't that great anyway.

I do have other fur babies who don't seem to get as much attention. First and middle born syndrome? Don't worry, you two, the family holiday picture is coming! :)

A quick side note: Society6 has free shipping worldwide through Cyber Monday. I uploaded a couple of new designs and reworked the designs for mugs. They also now have available kids shirts and onsies! Order now for Christmas!

Fall Leaves Design + Artist Promotion

Voting is open for the leaf design contest on Spoonflower and I have a design entered called Quatrefoil Leaves. I hope you'll vote for me and pass it along! 

There is also an artist promotion going on at Society6 for free shipping on all orders from my shop. Promotion expires November 17, 2013 at Midnight Pacific Time. *Offer excludes Framed Art Prints, Stretched Canvases and Throw Pillows with insert. Just click the link for the deal!

Besides all that, can you believe that there are only 5 weeks until Christmas?! I have had goals for homemade gifts that have not been met on a weekly basis yet, which means I'm going to be preoccupied with that for the time being. I'd like to post pictures of all the fun things I'm making for people, but that will have to wait until after the holidays! In addition to gifts, I'm making a hooded scarf and matching face warmer that will hopefully look like my little Annabelle. I'd like to have it finished in time for Black Friday. Target opens at 8pm on Thanksgiving Day- this is getting ridiculous! I don't have any major purchases planned, as usual, but it's just fun to get out of the house and do something unusual. Flamingos is having a "Pink Friday" sale as well, so that is on my to-go list for some fab vintage scores. [I have to show you the incredible dishes I found there! Soon.] I think small business Saturday is even more fun- I can't wait to hit up Vinaigrette for some oh-so-tasty truffle and rosemary olive oils. 50th and Xerxes is probably one of the best places in Minneapolis. I will have to have my scoodie ready for walking to all those wonderful businesses. More soon! 

Happy Halloween 2013!

I can't believe that it's already Halloween! Babie would be 13 years old today. Time flies. Since it's about that time to start packing up all the seasonal stuff to make way for the next, I thought I'd give a last update on my last minute Halloween scores. I rearranged the apartment for my Halloween party, I might keep it like this for a while. Hammy got a new table to live on that fits Annabelle's giant tote litter box. I made this sticker for it just to send the message home...

The last occasional sale (the next one is next weekend already!) I found some pretty awesome cardboard things. 

The owl is embossed! I also picked up some repro Beistle and this guy below. He's got two faces. There were other blow lamps that I saw that were older and I liked more, but BJ liked this guy and I like when he finds things while thrifting because that means he's more likely to keep taking me!

I found a pirate jack pail sans handle. I don't think the twine is original to the piece, but who knows. I also snagged this big, deep orange lantern which worked! Both are from Arc's. Did anyone else notice that Halloween selections kind of sucked this year at all the stores? I'm glad I found these!

Since we found the table for Hammy to sit on, it opened up a spot in the living room where Annabelle's tote was setting. I hate decorating with litter boxes. Besides my ultra noisy neighbors whom I wouldn't mind falling off the face of the planet, that's on my list of reasons to move. And the silverfish infestation, and the lack of consistent water pressure and/or temperature, and the lack of heat regardless of being on the third floor, but mostly I hate my neighbors. That's another story for another day, though. Anyway, on the same shopping trip, we found this ugly little table that I planned to make cute. I see them at the occasional sales for big bucks, so when I found one for $4, I knew it was meant to be!

My dear friend, Miira, came to our Monster Mash bearing gifts from Finland. 

I framed the Little My post card and am still deciding if the plate will be used or hung. I need to do some serious cleaning of the studio before I decide where they will hang though. >_<

I didn't actually take pictures during the party, except for BJ's costume. I made him a top hat which you can see if you look at my Instagram. I should really become better about capturing the moments as they actually happen. So imagine the above picture with delicious vegan food. I made Gee Whiz from the Ultimate Un Cheese Book which was pretty good and put it on pumpernickel as well as a queso dip for the chips. I should post my most delicious recipe for pinwheels that I adapted from a recipe I got from one of my high school Spanish classes. (Does anyone else still have stuff like that saved? haha!) It is UH-MAZE-ING! I also made pickles wrapped in vegan ham and cream cheese. It was not a day to be on a diet. We did burn a few of the calories by playing Cards Against Humanity. It's an hilarious game and totally worth the hours I slaved cutting out the cards with my non-level Martha Stewart straight cutter.

Have a happy and safe Halloween, everyone!