365 Days of Pinterest Day 29 - Valentines Day Gingerbread Men :)

365 Days of Pinterest Day 29 - Valentines Day Gingerbreadmen :)

I started trying to make these guys in December.  I wanted to send them as a gift to a friend.  Alas I couldn't find a recipe I  liked the taste of, then I just kept messing up the recipe .... So finally after many batches of not so perfect gingerbread men .. I have perfected the art!  ... but its February, so the candy canes are out and Iv added some fun hearts .. hence .. the Valentines Day gingerbread man :)

Yes I did find this recipe on Pinterest .. a Martha Stewart recipe, but the original called for coarse salt which stayed in chunks and didn't taste to great, so I replace it with table salt .. and perfection.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 cup  molasses

Edible Ingredients for decorating;

       I bought fun toppings from the bulk barn

       I also bought Wiltons Valentines Day mix from Micheals

       ~Conversations hear candies

       ~Heart candies

Frosting;

I tried three methods and found the Wiltons icing in a piping bag with a tip the easiest method.  The pumps in the cans came out too fast to control.  The Cake Mate brand does not dry hard, it stays in a soft frosting consistency, so if you stack them on a plate or mail them to a friend the frosting will smear.

Wilton Icing in the jar or pump.

If you are going to use the jar you will need a icing bag and tip.  I bought mine from Micheals.  

Making the cookie;

Sift flour, baking soda, and baking powder into a medium bowl; set aside.                   

        Mix butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes; mix in spices and salt. Mix in egg and molasses, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Add flour mixture; mix on low speed until combined. Divide dough in half; pat into two disks. Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate 1 hour.

        Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick.

Now Decorate;

Pipe on your frosting.  In the photo I'm using the Wiltons icing from the jar in a bag.

If you are using the Cake Mate icing from the can you can sprinkle the toppings directly on the cookie. 

 If its the Wiltons iceing you will have to put the toppings in a plate.  

Press your man into the toppings.

next use the iceing like glue to attach the eyes and buttons

Finito!!

Super Cute

365 Days Of Pinterest - Day 25 - Witches Brewwwwww!!

365 Days of Pinterest Day 25 Witched Brew!!!!!

Did I mention Halloween was my favorite???  I am about to share a family recipe with you that has been passed down ... hmmmm .. it hasn't been passed down yet, but Iv been making it for 16 years and its a huge crowd pleaser so that makes it awesome  :)

WITCHES BREWWWWW!!!  ohh haaa haaa haaa

Oct 31 is my daughters birthday and we've had Halloween bashes with the fam every year.. this is a child friendly brew that foams and grows .. and is sooo soo easy!

What You'll Need

~ A cauldron!  dont skimp out on the cauldron it what puts the witch in the brew

~ plastic fingers, eyeballs .. whatever small appendages you can fund .. but not too small if you have young youngins who may try to eat them or choke on them ... I get my appendages from the $$ store.

~ Cream Soda .. here in Canada cream soda is pink ..  where my family lives in New York its white .. so if you cant find a pink pop get an orange pop .. or add some green food dye to sprite .. 

~ Rainbow Sherbet

~ I like to use spooky glass to .. I got mine from Spirit Halloween and my $$ store

I like to put on a show .. I mix the brew infront of the kids like a witch concocting a potion .. "First I add the eye of newt" .. throw in your eyeballs ... :then a dash of flesh "in go the fingers" .. 

add your pop first and let the kid watch a you add the sherbet because that is what causes the reaction .. the brew will begin to foam and grow!!!  You can say something clever like "bubbly and broil" .. thats not too clever actually.

Stir your mixture a bit and it will really start to bubble up!  take your ladle and spoon into your SPOOOOKY cups!  serve immediately because when the pop gets flat and the sherbet melts completely its pretty much just a sloppy sugary mess ..  enjoy!!!!!

.....  she looks frightened 

cool decor :)

365 Days of Pinterest Day 23 - DIY Galaxy Sneakers!

COOOOOOOLLLL :)

I did it, I did it, I really really did it!!

well way back when my daughter asked for these "galaxy sneakers"  as I soon discovered they were't something a large company was making, they were all hand painted, selling on sites like Etsy.  So I had a "I can do that moment" ..  I loaded up on images from Pinterest and away I went.  Day 23 of my 365 days of Pinterest (testing Pinterest pins)  - DIY Galaxy Sneakers!

What You Will Need

~ sneakerzzzz ... most people prefer converse or Vans, the hipsters, but Iv seen everything from ballet flats to wedges .. this DIY is stricktly for canvase / sneaker material as the paint would react differnt to leather or pleather.

~ Tulip Fabric Spray .. this is uber important for two reason's .. it sprays little 'stars' and it is thin, allowing you to blend and layer without getting CHUNKY

~ Tulip Soft Fabric Paint in White Matte ... very specific again as you don't want a shiny finish 

~ Nail polish remover

~ Q Tips .. lots of em

~ tootpicks (for stars)

~ Time ... lots of it  :)

These are the colors I used .. originally I had orange in their but alas my 15 year old daughter was all ... "EWWWWW orange!"  and I was all "you dont appreciate me!!" :)

inspiration ..... my daughters pillow I used to guide me ... 

lets begin  ....

Start by spraying on some little white 'stars" (as you can see I was half way done with the sneaker when I decided to take blog photos)

next take your matte soft white fabric paint and your tooth pick

 make more distinct small round stars (dots)

 and the larger stars 

for these I made a place a thick dot of paint in the center then 'scratched' it out to the side with the toothpick.

*****   this is important **** 

The tulip fabric spray paint will fade, be absorbed by the shoe as it dries.. this will allow you to layer.

The tulip soft matte fabric paint will not fade or change .. it is thicker and more permanent

Now take your Q tip and your Matte Fabric paint and make little "clouds"  this will be a base for your colored spray paint .. if you put the spray paint directly on the fabric it will disappear as it dries.

dont let it dry .... it may dry a little in the process, but go ahead and start adding your colors with a Q tip (the spray paint)

If at any point you feel you've added too much paint and its getting CHUNKY .. you can do damage. load a Q tip up with nail polish remover and blot blot blot 

The nail polish remover should also be used to remove the paint from the rubber sole.

let them sit for a bit, dry a bit .. then repeat  ...

Base ...

color...

spray little stars with the spray fabric paint .. dot little stars with the matte white ...

blend

 This is a wabi sabi thing .. keep workin at it till you get the desired effect ... I originally did this .. a subtle version ..this was achieved by using less Matte White base ..

but my daughter requeted the colors to be more bold so I re touched them ...

and wa la

Verdict .. time consuming but its worth it if you don't want to spend $100 to get them on Etsy :)