Monday, December 30, 2024

Rosemary wine cork tree favors


Happy monday!
These were so fun to make for our christmas eve dinner table.
I have bags of wine corks from when I was doing creative classes
at our local wineries that they had given me.



Start with some fresh rosemary, I have some growing in my yard.
Get a good sharp knife that will cut your cork in half and an aul
for piercing the cork with. 


Pierce the cork with the aul then gently slide the rosemary
into the hole you have created.
That is literally it! 


Makes the cutest lil' christmas tree for your table.
I set mine upright on top of the napkins. 


I wanted mine pretty basic and simple,
but you could easily add a small bow from 
jute or a small ribbon to complete the look.
Even cute little name tags hanging from it.
Get some creating going this week! 

Friday, December 27, 2024

Charcuterie cups


Happy friday!
These were so fun and easy to make.
I did these up for christmas eve for my family.
Instead of doing a full charcuterie board I thought 
that it would be fun to have grab and go cups.
I feel like when you do up a huge board, it rarely gets
eaten, so these make a nice alternative. 


Amazon had these cute little cups
All you need are some bamboo sticks and some food to fill the cups.
I stacked on the bamboo sticks two kalamata olives at the bottom then four pieces of salami, a square of colby cheese and a green olive on top.  I set it into the cup and built grapes and crackers around it. 
You can add whatever you like~


Everyone loved them~ and they are so cute! 


This is my sister's tree this year!
such a beautiful unique look! 

Wednesday, December 25, 2024

Merry Christmas!


Sunday, December 22, 2024

Christmas greenery diy


Good morning!
How are all your preparations going?
I am s l o w this year with the weeks being so condensed.
My sister Liz cut a bunch of greens at the beginning of the month
for me which I had intended of using right away for some holiday decor.
Well....... I just made something with the greens yesterday.
A bit late, but still done.
For me creating things bring me peace and relaxation, very therapeutic.


I ended up making two things, one a centerpiece and the other a round wreath to put on top of this outdoor plant at the entrance of my door.


I ended up setting the centerpiece outside to photograph as the inside of the house felt so dark.


I love finding things around the house to reuse and upcycle,
 I found this cream urn vase in the garage to use.


Just start by cutting your greens to fit your project.
Using a floral disk, make sure and soak it before
you add your greens. 


Add it to a bowl with water and wait about 5 minutes for it to absorb.
Set the disk in your vase and start to add your greens.
I used the disk for both projects and did the exact same thing for both.



The wreath below is how I started and just followed all the way around
til I felt it was full enough.


So festive and fun!
I think I might be closer to being ready now! 








Friday, December 20, 2024

Tea at the George


What a special day we had!
Off to the Fairmont in Seattle we went for holiday tea at the George.
It was their 100 year celebration which made it even extra special.
Quite a few of the gals that came had never been before so it was extra
special for them to take in all the holiday festivities.


This is the gorgeous tree they have in the lobby every year. 
The entire hotel is decorated to the nines.  Just beautiful. 



This is the George, the tea room.  
It has recently been remodeled and updated although the hotel is 100 years old.  The tea room used to be called the "Georgian" and was
rename a couple of years ago to the "George"


The tables settings are so festive yet simple. 





So delicious! 



The servers bring you your choice of tea and these towers
that are loaded with mini sandwiches, scones and desserts.


After tea we headed upstairs to the Teddy Bear room.
The hotel has taken a complete room and decorated it 
with tons of teddy bears.  


All of us heading into the teddy bear suite....
This was such a fun and memorial day that we decided
we will have to plan this again next year! 











Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Life group Christmas party


This is my life group from church, we have all been together
since 2008!  Our kids were little and we were much younger then!
We had a fun night playing games, making these large paper bag snowflakes.  It looks like we are holding parosols. 



The guys watched the Seahawk game.



The paper snowflakes were easy to make.  You glue together 9 white or brown paper bags.  Make sure you cut away the snowflake design.
We used templates that we found online. 



Elves at work.....



When we got home, I hung mine in my window.
So magical and fun and affordable!



How are your Christmas preparations going?







Monday, December 16, 2024

Starbuck's cranberry bliss bars



Happy monday?
How was your weekend?
Anyone else feeling like this whole holiday season is very condensed with Thanksgiving being so late?
I feel like we are all trying to catch up!
I did get to do some baking this weekend, and if you like Starbuck's cranberry bliss bars, then this cookie is for you! 


These boast a variety of flavor, cranberry, white chocolate
and a cream cheese frosting.  They are bars, so they last
long and cut nicely for packaging. 


Don't they look delish?
Here is the recipe...

Cranberry Bliss Bars {Starbucks Copycat}

PREP TIME10MINUTES 
COOK TIME25MINUTES 
TOTAL TIME35MINUTES 
Cranberry Bliss Bars {Starbucks Copycat} are white chocolate blondies with added dried cranberries and orange zest, topped with a cream cheese frostingIngredients

Blondies

  • 1 cup (2 sticks / 227 g) unsalted butter
  •  cup (113 g) white chocolate chips
  •  cups (350 g) light brown sugar, packed
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
  •  teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon orange zest
  •  cups (312.5 g) all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  •  teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 cup (160 g) dried cranberries

Frosting

  • 1 cup (160 g) white chocolate chips, melted and divided
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • ¾ cup (94 g) confectioners' sugar
  • teaspoon orange zest
  • ½ cup (65 g) dried cranberries, chopped

Instructions

Blondies

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13-inch baking dish with parchment paper, including up the sides. Set aside.
  • In a large microwave-safe bowl, add the butter and the white chocolate chips. Melt in 20-second intervals, stirring in between each time, until the mixture is creamy with no lumps (about 1-2 minutes total). Allow to slightly cool.
  • To the melted white chocolate mixture, add brown sugar. Stir to combine.
  • Add the eggs and the egg yolk, one at a time, stirring well after each addition.
  • Stir in the vanilla extract and the orange zest. Set aside.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, and ginger.
  • Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until completely combined. Fold in the dried cranberries.
  • Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges just begin to turn golden brown.
  • Allow to cool completely before topping with frosting.

Frosting

  • Add the white chocolate chips to a small microwave-safe bowl. Heat in 20-second intervals, stirring between each, until melted and smooth. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl using a hand mixer on medium speed, beat the cream cheese and confectioners' sugar together until smooth.
  • Gradually pour HALF of the melted white chocolate into the cream cheese mixture, reserving the other half for drizzling on top of the bars. Continue to mix until fully incorporated.
  • Add the orange zest and stir to combine.
  • Spread the frosting over the cooled blondies.
  • Sprinkle the dried cranberries over the frosting. Drizzle the remaining melted white chocolate over the bars. Enjoy!