putting those gift tags to use

It's been a comedy of errors today at the homestead. All on my behalf...I have misplaced our Christmas stockings, my pretty giftwrap idea went awry when I couldn't find my pens, too much cake batter in a too little pan makes for a BIG mess, and an exploding can of ginger-ale knows no bounds.

 

Fill-in Christmas stockings have been made (diy coming soon), I added pom poms to craft paper and created a different kind of pretty wrap, the cake is still tasty even though there are a few burnt blobs on the bottom of the oven, and after two, three, and then four passes of a wet towel, mop, and scrap towel the floor is as good as new, even better than before. But boy howdy, am I pooped!

So while my initial plan of a silver and gold Christmas did not work out, the neon-happy of my washi tags and pom-poms make for a very festive gift wrap. I think they might be more me than the silver and gold anyway...perhaps the universe was telling me to stay true?

 

And since the wee packages were so darn happy, I had to take pictures of them. I just had to! They make me smile.

And serendipity hit when I stacked them up and saw they looked like a tree...add one snowflake star...perfection!

make: chocolate cashew ginger candies (guten-free!)

Just a few ingredients pack a powerful tasty punch! This is a roundabout recipe, something I make without measuring. There was a variation of the recipe once form a book I no longer have that used graham crackers and macadamia nuts but darn if macadamia nuts aren't so expensive, so I made up this recipe instead...

Here's what I used...
*1 pack (8oz) of gluten free ginger snaps from Trader Joe's
*2 10oz bags bittersweet chocolate chips (guitard)
*2 10-12oz  bags milk chocolate chips (guitard is a fave)
*1 1/2 cups or so of lightly salted cashew pieces
*1/2-1 cup candied ginger chips
*flake sea salt

 

These chocolates are not labor intensive but do take a while to make as the chocolate needs to set between dippings. Make sure to clear space in your fridge or freezer for a cookie sheet to rest without toppling over. Fill a medium to large soup pot with water and place a heat proof bowl on top making sure the water does not touch the bowl. Dump both bags of bittersweet chips into the bowl and let them melt. Stir every now and then to distribute that heat. While the chocolate is melting, place cookies into a plastic bag and roll over with a rolling pin to crunch them up a bit. They will crumble a lot so don't roll until you have only crumbs, leave a few chunky bits in there. When chocolate is melted, remove from heat and add your cookie pieces, ginger chips and cashews. Stir until combined. The chocolate will be glossy and the mixture will be loose.

 

 

Use two spoons to drop very small blobs of the mixture onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment or wax paper (they will not be pretty). You can go bigger but they are very difficult to bite through and enjoy when they are more than a mouthful (but cutting them half has its advantages). Think almond sized blobs. You can place the blobs fairly close together to use up as much space as possible on the cookie sheet. Place in your refrigerator or freezer for fifteen minutes or until set. I had to use three cookie sheets for this but only had room for one sheet at a time in the fridge. This part can be done a few days before the next round of dipping.

 

 

Once the chocolate is set it is time for round two of dipping. Pour one bag of milk chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl. I use a four cup measuring cup. You want the container to be taller than wide so that the chocolate, once melted, is deep enough for dipping. Melt in 30 second increments and stir in between. Make sure your container is absolutely dry and that you check on your chocolate. Both water and over heating can seize it making it unusable. Once your chocolate is melted, use a fork and your fingers to coat each piece of candy, placing it back onto your covered cookie sheet. To make this easier, remove all of the to-be-dipped pieces and put them on a plate or in a bowl before you begin. When your cookie sheet is full add a pinch of sea salt to the top of each candy. Return to fridge to set. To use up as much chocolate as possible, use a spatula to scrape sides of container. I usually abandon my fork by the third piece and end up with one hand completely covered in chocolate. To finish of the remaining chocolates, add your second bag of chips to the container and return to the microwave for melting. By the time you finish dipping the last round your cookie sheet in the fridge should be set.

 

These are crazy good candies! I made these gluten-free as I was bringing them to a potluck where I knew someone was gluten-sensitive. Not all chocolate chips are gluten-free so do your research before you get to melting the whole shebang. The ginger chips from The Ginger People are gluten-free and super tasty. If you do not need gluten-free chocolates, go wild! Chop up a fancy candy bar and use nutter butter cookies or pie crust or oreos! I did up one batch last week and ran out of milk chocolate for dipping (I only used one bag) so I popped the candies that needed to be double dipped into a container and did them a few days later when I had more chocolate. I also had only used two-thirds of the crumbs so used made up another whole batch. By the end of all the dipping I was left with three candies un-double-dipped. They were pretty tasty too, not so pretty to look at but yummy all the same.

Pop a bunch of sweets into a wax bag, add a pretty tag and gift away!  Throw a candy making party where people bring different nuts and cookies, customize the candies for friends with allergies, add dried cranberries or chop up candied orange peels...soooo many ways to make these! Happy Holidays!

super pretty giftwrap at craft

My final 2010 post for Craft is up and it's all about happy gift wrap. Check it out and Happy Holidays!

stuff a stocking for under $25

Christmas stockings are my most favorite part of the holidays. mr. a-go-go's family calls them socks which makes more sense but they will always be stockings for me. My most favorite thing is to put together stockings and while you may think little trinkets are so sweet and inexpensive, you forget how they add up, and boy-howdy can they add up! There are many things I traditionally put into stockings, things Santa brought me when I was of Santa age. These things generally are a toothbrush, lip balm, pens or markers, chocolate, tea, cocoa or coffee, a brain teaser puzzle, soap, socks, and an orange. Depending on how upscale you go, you can do this for a little or a lot.

This year, I'm sending off two holiday stockings to friends that I adore. December, for more than a few people I lurve, is a difficult month. Too many loved ones lost at this time which can sometimes overshadow the joyous part of the season. We a-go-gos have had our fair share of holiday loss and know how it goes and feels. We're still huntin' for work and so our budget is tight. I put together two stockings for under $50 and made the stockings with materials I had on hand. Stuffing a stocking shouldn't be about price but I really had to reign myself in as I tend to go gift giving overboard so putting a limit on it, I had to get creative, and I had to really think about the usability of the items. I love gifts but I want them to be useful and lovely and fun. A tall order, I know. Sticking with items that people generally use with a few fun things thrown in makes not only for a lovely stocking but one you can feel good knowing it delights. Here's what I did and found.

This stocking is stuffed with a little handmade, a little local goodness, a smidge of average goodness, and a whole lotta love. Clockwise from the top left:

*handmade bookmark
*fancy candy cane
*tea
*bubble bath
*violet candies
*lip balm
*fair trade chocolate
*japanese cookies
*hand sanitizer
*fun socks
*happy gloves

The bookmark at the top left there was handmade by me using up happy scraps of fabric and felt. The candy cane was scored at a fabulous price at our local family barn. The tea is from my favorite online tea source and I order from them every year. The bubble bath and violet candy are from Cost Plus, the chocolate bar was made locally, the Japanese cookies are a favorite and came from a Japanese dollar store, the gloves, lip balm and hand sanitizer are dollar store finds. I added some whimsy to the gloves with felt and buttons. The socks were the most expensive but lookie how fun they are!

To make it a little more fun, I wrapped up some of the goodies in materials I had floating around. I used pattern tissue, brown bags, stripy twine and yarn. I'm sending these goodies to crafty friends so I know that some of the wrapping will be reused which is a good thing. I do love a lovely package and worry about the waste. Sigh. You can totally make an even lovelier stocking by adding more handmade that plays into your friends' favorites and likes. I wanted to add a mix cd but didn't have time to do it and I wanted to make some cup cozies as well. Even so,  I think these happy stockings would be awesome to receive, don't you?

Happy Holidays!

make a fancy-pants stocking

I didn't manage to get pics of all the steps and I don't have a pattern for you but if you can run a sewing machine and have some purdy linen on linen like fabric floating about you can do this too! But then again, if you have all of the above, you probably already know how to make a stocking. Either way, I am prouder than proud that these turned out exactly as I pictured them.

Materials
*linen or linen-like fabric
*scissors
*lace
*pins
*sewing machine
*sheet of paper 11 1/2 X 17"
*pencil

Sit down and sketch out a stocking shape on your paper. This will be your pattern.

Next, gather linen and a few pieces of vintage lace. Set up the iron and get the creases out of your fabric. Or do like I do and try. I don't know what is wrong with me but I cannot seem to iron anything well.

Cut one long length of fabric that will become both the back and front of your stocking. My piece folded from the bottom up to the top. Some people cut first then sew. I sew then cut so this may all seem weirdly backwards to some of you.

Place fabric in front of you and pop pattern onto top portion. Pin around pattern to mark your sewing space. Do not pin pattern to fabric yet.

Add fun embellishments keeping within your pinned space. One stocking I made had a single long "ruffle", while the other had a series of squares stitched on in a line. To make the ruffle, gather and fold your scrap piece and pin with folds facing down so that it is easier to gather under your sewing machine foot. Use a neutral colored thread and stitch straight down making sure to backstitch at both the beginning and end of your stitch-fest.

Remove pins, turn fabric upside down and then flip over so that the side you just stitched on is facing up. You won't see your embellishment as that will be tucked inside. Pin pattern to both pieces of fabric keeping sure to have your embellisment within the boundary of your pattern.

Grab you length of lace and sandwich it between the two layers at the top of your stocking. This will become your cuff. Pin into place and bring the whole party to your sewing machine.

Use a smallish stitch to sew your pieces together. Make sure to NOT stitch across the top. I've done it before and it bites. Heehee. Begin at the top of one side and stitch all the way around ending at the top of the other side. Snip thread and unpin.

Cut out your stocking and sneak in a few extra vertical snips on the insides of any curves. Turn Stocking right side out making sure to bring the lace part out onto the front of the stocking. I forgot this part on one of the stockings and my cuff ended up on the back. Aack!

Fold top of stocking inside and press with a hot iron then stitch all around perimeter to seal the deal. Give your stocking a quick press with the iron to flatten out seams.

For the loops, grab a couple of long scraps and fold them in half lengthwise ironing them into place. With a sewing machine, stitch all the way down from top to bottom and trim excess wonk. The stitches will show as will the frayed edges but that is what makes the stocking so fun, ahem.

Stuff with treasures and have a happy holiday!

shop update

Fill your friend's and loved one's stockings! Many items are $10 or less. Great for a simple gift exchange. Combined shipping is available, just let me know! Check out the shop!