Personalized Magnetic Note Holders

My crafty buddies got together recently to celebrate 4 of our group members birthdays. August is a popular month to be born, apparently. Now, when crafty buddies have birthdays, you have to create something super cute to give them. if you have time anyway. Well, I almost didn't. But I was able to locate some creativity somewhere deep down inside of me and came up with something pretty cute! I found the wood circles at Michael's and the clips at Target in the $1 section. I already had the papers and the ribbons and I used my Cricut to cut the vinyl lettering. I used my trusty Mod Podge to seal the project and attached the clip and the magnets (on the back) with my E6000 adhesive. One of my buddies asked me where I got the idea and honestly, I got the inspiration from a bunch of different Pinterest projects that I have seen in my perusing. I guess I could go ahead and count this as my 10th weekly Pinterest project, even though I don't have a specific project to link to. You'll forgive me, I am sure... ;-) I hope you are able to make some of these. Would be excellent for a cute teacher gift or something like that. Thanks for stopping by!

Bottle Cap Embellished Flip Flops

My youngest daughter is going to a Birthday party tomorrow. Kind of a last minute invitation but it is one of her good friends so she is very excited to go! I have gotten in the habit of making my kid's friends gifts and so I just HAD to keep up the tradition! My daughter said that her friends say they have to invite her so they can see what I make next. SO... I had to come up with something quickly. My grandfather died this past week and lots has been going on family wise, so I haven't been in the craftiest of moods. Today, however, my husband and I took a quick trip to Michael's and I found a pair of flip flops that were on clearance. Suddenly it seemed that my gift dilemma was solved! I had seen some cute embellished flip flops on Pinterest and thought that would be a perfect gift that I could put together without even thinking much about it. I am happy with the results!
I just cut a bunch of ribbons about 6 inches long and double tied them on the plastic straps and then made a monogram bottle cap embellishment similar to the ones I had made for other gifts. Since I had all the supplies, it was a cinch to complete and cost me next to nothing. SUPER happy!! Hope my daughter's friend thinks they are as cute as I do. I am off to make a personalized composition notebook to match and then tie up some Jolly Ranchers in a cellophane bag with a cute little tag and call it good. (Blog posts and photos to follow...) :)

Quick Coffee Cake in a Cup

My daughter is a Tumblr freak. She is as into that as I am into Pinterest! Or almost that much at least. Anyway... the other day she asked me if she could make something that she saw on there. I blindly said, "yeah, sure. Just clean up after yourself." A few minutes later I smell this delicious aroma wafting through my house. It smelled like freshly baked cinnamon rolls- all gooey and sweet and cinnamony. I was intrigued!
"What the heck IS that FABULOUS smell?!" "Coffee cake in a cup," is what she said. "Gimme some!!," is what I said back. Oh. My. Goodness! I was instantly a fan. You guys have got to try this when you need something sweet and you need it NOW.

Coffee Cake in a Cup for Two

2 Tbsp softened butter
4 Tbsp sugar
1 egg

4 Tbsp sour cream
1/8 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp baking powder

Crumb Topping:
2 Tbsp softened butter
4 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

In a small bowl, cream butter and sugar with a spoon or fork (mixer is not required.) Add egg, sour cream and vanilla and mix until smooth.
Add flour and baking powder, stir until smooth. Split the batter between two coffee mugs. Set aside.
In a separate small bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon until evenly blended. Split in half and place on top of the batter in each mug.
Cook one mug at a time in the microwave. I would start out with one minute and continue by 10 to 15 second increments. (Ours took about 2 minutes total, but we put it in one giant mug instead of two regular ones.)
Be careful because the mug and the cake will be really hot. Enjoy!

Spicy Fire Crackers

A couple of years ago my husband brought me a treat that someone had given him at work. He warned me that they were spicy but that didn't seem to be too big of a deal since they were only saltine crackers after all. WOW was I surprised when I tasted one. They were, in fact spicy and wonderfully savory, all at the same time. Who would have thought??! I had to have the recipe. He brought it to me the next day and we have been making these super easy gems ever since. I will say that they are not for the faint of heart (or the dieters...) because they contain a whole lot of oil. In fact, I am almost embarrassed to tell you how much. ;-) Just save them for a big game or a party or some other occasion and you will be just fine. I just made a batch for my family to munch on during the 2012 Olympic opening ceremonies which air tonight. Good a time as any!! Hope you like them too!

Fire Crackers

1 box (4 sleeves) plain saltine crackers
1 pkg. ranch dressing mix
1 1/4 cup vegetable oil
1-2 tbsp red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you like them)

Put the crackers in a large bowl (I use my 26 cup Tupperware bowl which works perfectly.) In a glass bowl or measuring cup, combine last three ingredients and whisk well to combine. Pour over the crackers and gently stir to coat each piece. Continue to carefully stir for 15 minutes to ensure even coverage. Store in airtight container or serve immediately.

Pinwheel Wreath

I needed a gift to give a friend who is going through some difficult adjustments in her life. Looked to my trusty Pinterest, yet again. That fabulous site did not disappoint. Here is the pinwheel wreath that came out of my search. It is kind of a persnickety craft (I always loved using that word...) and takes a little patience, but it is easy enough once you get the hang of it. I would try to explain how it is done but the original poster did such a better job. Here is the inspiration project.

I ended up finding one of those floral foam type, green wreath forms at the Dollar Tree. I covered it in strips of natural colored muslin so the green didn't show through. I chose a complimentary light yellow ribbon for the hanging strap.

I found the double sided scrapbook paper at Hobby Lobby. The brand is Authentique. I am kind of in love with it. ;-) You can't see, but I used some additional long dress pins to keep the pinwheels in place. They definitely needed the extra support. Glad I did that. I need to make a card to go with this wreath. Tomorrow it gets a new home at a friend's house. I am kind of excited. Hope she likes it!