Marty's Hostin' a Party!

This is my first time to join Marty @ http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/ for her wonderful cloche parties! I don't have a real cloche! I don't know where you ladies are getting yours but I've only seen a couple around here and they're expensive! But I'm gonna get in on the fun anyway! Marty is such a sweet lady and has the best blog! Be sure and go over to see everyone elses fantabulous cloches! (After you've looked over mine! of course!)

Now this is actually a covered serving dish I got at Marshall's. But I had such fun making

little Christmas vignettes under it!

This one's sort of hard to see. A golden rocking reindeer sitting on a bed of Christmas greenery!





A vintage snowman, trees and a couple of old Japan bunny figurines!

I also used the tip I got from Mary at Mary's Meanderings about using Epsom salt instead of the fake snow!

I changed the snowman out for a couple of miniature wooden santas!

This is an adorable little elf ornament I got last year at Hobby Lobby!

A silver glittered tree and one of the miniature santas. Can you see he's holding a bunny!

The one on the left is actually a music box! (I got my DH's nose in the picture!)

And the one on the right is actually a tree ornament!

Well, Thanks for stopping by and checking out my pretend cloche's! Don't forget to go over to Marty's to see many more!

Sunday Favorites

Well, I'm finally going to join my bestest, sweetest blogging friend Chari @ http://happytodesign.blogspot.com/ for Sunday Favorites! Chari has such a beautiful blog! She is one talented lady, and have I mentioned how sweet she is? Well she is! So be sure and go by and say hi and check out other blog favorites you might have missed the first time around! But before you go I wanted to revisit my very first tablescape! This was March 2009! So long ago! (LOL)

I was just mindin' my own business! I had the day off and was in the kitchen baking a birthday cake for my son, nephew and brother-n-law (they're birthdays are the 11th, 9th and the 6th of March) and I was thinking about all the beautiful tablescapes I had been privy too that morning via Susan at http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/ and one thought led to another and before I knew it I was imitating Laurie at bargainhuntingwithlaurie running all over the house looking for just the right thing to complete my tablescape! I hope you enjoy it! I really did have fun!

It's a garden theme! I didn't use placemats because there wasn't room and I really love my handpainted table! Can you see the tree branches? There's a wren and nest under my plates! I did it myself! Painted right over the top of an antique oak pedastal table and my husband hasn't forgiven me yet! Recognize the green glassware from Old Time Pottery?! I told you they would go with my everyday china!

This pattern is George Briard and you had to buy it in sets of four because each plate has a different flower! Wasn't I a horrible bride?! It's discontinued now but I have seen it on China Replacements, Inc. And this is gonna hurt ya...years ago I had alot more of it including some serving pieces I had displayed on a wall mounted shelf in our kitchen in our first house and one day I was mopping the floor and I had moved the table and chairs out from under the light fixture... when I raised up from bending over mopping my back hit the bottom of the shelf which pulled it away from the wall and CRASH! Not much survived. Luckily I only had 2 plates and 2 salads up there or I probably wouldn't have what I have now!

Lupinus, texensis or better known as Texas Bluebonnet! Do you see my little butterfly and bunny Sabino glass?

Persicum Giganteum or Cyclamen. See the little Sabino squirrel chewing on a nut!

Viola Pedata or Bird's-Foot Violet. Over in the left hand corner you can see my Sabino garden statue. It's a little cherub holding a bouquet of flowers!

Chrysanthemum Segetum or Corn Marigold

The flatware was my grandmothers. The white chargers are actually plates from Southern Living! I'm trying to collect the whole set! So far I've got 4 plates and 4 bowls. The butterfly napkins were a gift from my dad who was always perusing a good garage sell. I have the tablecloth to match! He found so many great things at garage sales! Alot of junk, but alot of good things too!

Don't know if you can really see. I used a bird's nest and faux violets in my Southern Living toile pots and of course my Sabino glass pieces and a Goebel bird and I had the little garden urn...it was a candle that had burned down and this Christmas I was putting up things and there was this silver ball and the urn and I thought hmmm if I turn it upside down in this urn it looks like a miniature garden reflectory ball! Aren't I just so clever?! LOL

Thanks for taking a look at my first tablescape! God Bless! Now be sure and go over to Susan's to see all the other great tablescapes! I'm going too!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's that time of year to remember and to be thankful for all of our blessings!

It's late and I've made the Southern Living Magazine pumpkin pie recipe and my family's favorite rum pie. I've polished the silver and set the table. The turkey I'm hoping is completely thawed! Schedules for oven time are swirling in my brain but I'm just too tired and I'll figure that out tommorrow! (you can call me Scarlett!) I've created a tablescape I'm rather proud of and it's all been inspired by every one of you! I am counting my blessings for my blogging friends! Some of the sweetest ladies I've never met! (LOL!) It is such a blessing to get to share one another's creativities and thusly each other's lives. The ladies I've met are all about beauty, creativity, love of family and home and of God. I am constantly inspired, touched, awed and humbled by each one of you! Thank you! and Thank God for bringing us together!

I know that you all have probably already got your Christmas decorations up and I'm just now getting around to showing you some of my fall decor with my Thanksgiving table! I am having my in-laws over for Thanksgiving. First my sons and I are going over to my mother's assisted living and eating turkey and dressing with her! I'm going to have 2 Thanksgiving dinners! Boy, am I going to have alot of dieting to do after the New Year!

I did the arrangement myself! They're real too!

My china is Marjolaine by Havilland Limoges. I love it! I love the colors, the flowers, the scalloped edges....I picked it out 25 years ago and I still love it! The gold chargers are the one's my mother-n-law gave me. I wanted something different for the Thanksgiving table so I combined 2 wired ribbons and just laid them over the top of the charger and then just folded down the edges!

Look at my napkins! I've had these for awhile! I think I got them at Target years ago! They're ivory with a little gold thread going thru them and gold autumn leaves. There are actually 2 different sprigs that make up the napkin rings. I took some of the ribbon I used on the chargers and just stapled the ends together on the back then just tucked in the leaf sprig and put the acorns on top. They're actually Christmas sprigs I got at Michaels half off!

Here's my close-up Mr. DeMille! My crystal is Wedgewood Majesty. I got the little candleholders at Michael's too. They're Christmas too! And on sale 40% off! There's alot of copper and brown and purple this year for Christmas! Not my style though. I am still a traditional red and green person myself.

I hope you all have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving!

Pineapple Cake Extraordinaire!

Hello Everybody! Last night I promised the recipe to this oh so fabulous cake! My mother-n-law gave it to me years ago! Before my husband and I were even married! It's his favorite cake! For years I didn't make it for him because the kids always wanted chocolate cake with chocolate icing which my husband loves too! I made it one year for my boss on her 49th birthday; my dear friend who was my manager at Curves. She's the one working at the jewelry shoppe now! You know, the one who got my hubby to get me that amethyst ring for our anniversary! Come to think of it...I ought to make her one now just to thank her!

Of course I'm linking to Michael's wonderful blog http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com. Be sure and check out all the wonderful recipes everyone else is sharing today!

My menu for my husbands 51st birthday was a wonderful pork tenderloin out of Southern Living's cookbook, the DH's favorite potatoes out of the Silver Palate Cookbook from way back, and a great salad I got out of Better Homes and Gardens magazine! I served a wonderful Zinfadel from the wineries at the Biltmore Estate! I am usually a Merlot lady myself but this was perfect! And it had such a beautiful pink color too it! Okay, for the moment you've been waiting for! (sorry I didn't take pics of the food!)

Favorite Pineapple Cake:

1 yellow cake mix

1 15 oz. can crushed pineapple

1 pint sour cream

4 tbsp. corn starch

1/2 to 1 cup sugar ( I used 3/4 cup)

Make the cake as directed on the box. It helps to oil and flour the pans for easy release. Let cool thouroughly. I made the cake 2 days in advance and wrapped well in saran wrap and you can either freeze or store layers in refridgerator. Cut each layer in half with serrated knife before adding filling.

To make filling: In med. saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch. Add pineapple (juice too) and cook carefully until thickened. Try not to burn! Cool completely and then add sour cream stirring slowly to blend well. Fill between halved layers of cake. FYI: I actually forgot to add sour cream this time but it was still delicious!

Cooked White Fluffy Icing:

In top of double boiler combine:

2 egg whites

1 1/2 cups of sugar

1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

1/3 cup water

Beat with hand mixer until icing forms stiff peaks. Yes, this may take a while! But it is worth it! Let cool slightly and fold in 1 tsp. of vanilla extract. When cooled, ice your cake as normal.

This is a cake made best atleast 1 night before serving! Enjoy!

Hello Everybody! Boy! I am just squeaking in at the end of Tablescape Thursday! But I thought if I don't go ahead and put this in I won't be around til after Thanksgiving! I don't know how you all keep up with all of your wonderful posts! I really miss visiting with everyone! So I'm back to show you the fancy table I set for my hubby's 51st birthday! I had his parent's over and made his favorite cake, pineapple! Boy, do I have a recipe for you! But I think my mother-n-law would disown me if I shared it. But guess what?! They don't have a computer! So, I'll post my recipes tommorrow on Foodie Friday! I'm so bad!! Of course you've probably already been over to Susan's at http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/. She has the most beautiful blog, especially with everyone sharing their tablescapes today! Anyway...here's my tablescape:

Gold chargers were gifts from my mother-n-law. What do you think of my fall china?! Did you guess it's paper?! Yes, I used paper plates! I thought they were so pretty and I wanted a Fall table! Hey! Have you priced some of those fancy paper products lately?! Some of ya'll have bought real china for much less! (LOL!)

My crystal wine glasses are "Majesty" from Wedgewood. I don't think Wedgewood is making crystal anymore. The green etched glasses I used for water or tea. They're from Old Time Pottery. I bought them last year for about $1.50 per stem. The Wedgewood is about $50 a stem!

Notice the flowers? I used a glass vase I bought at a thrift store. I didn't have any floral foam so I carefully cut all the flowers down to size and then placed them in so full they couldn't fall over! I also used a closeup of them on my Fall blog header! The candle votives came from Walgreen's last year! The tablecloth is actually yellow gold but it doesn't show up very well in these pics. I bought it two years ago at Tuesday Morning. It's reversible!

Paper plates and matching napkins and my mother's sterling! I really mixed it up for this tablescape! (LOL) This pattern I think is Stradivarius. That's all I know. It got stolen once and mom and dad had to replace it. Did you notice how the etching on my green glasses is reflected on the knife?
I'm so glad to be back! Hopefully with Thanksgiving and Christmas I'll have stuff to blog about!

A friend emailed me this and I thought about all of you!

25 Years of Wedded Bliss!

I haven't been around much this month! I'm sorry! I haven't done any wonderful projects to share with you all! I've been working alot at Curves, started selling Avon!, my sister from Fresno, Ca has been visiting and the DH and I celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary! And I can say with great pride that "DH" stands for "Dear Husband!" and not "dumb husband"! LOL! I took the week off from work because he had wanted us to go back to Florida where we went for our honeymoon. From previous experience last spring for my birthday we were not inclined to leave the house in the hands of our 21 and 17 year old boys! So we planned to go out to dinner as we do every anniversary. I've been worked up about this anniversary! I wanted it to be special! Special dress, manicure, pedicure, jewelry...I worked myself up into a tizzy! Did I expect a gift? No, I really didn't. He's never done that for an anniversary before...but then again?!? It is our 25th! Yes, I admit here, to you all, that this lady was feeling quite sorry for herself the morning of the 22nd on our anniversary. A friend of mine works at a very nice local jewelry shop and she had picked out some pieces she knew I would love. I even went by there and tried on the ring. It was a sterling band with 18k gold filagree overlay and a beautiful faceted amethyst and 2 little pink sapphires! Very vintage looking! It fit perfectly. "you can try, but he's never given me an anniversary gift like this," I told her. As I was indulging in a pity party that morning I told myself this was ridiculous! Laura, you have a blessed life! I needed to turn to the Lord that morning to get myself back into perspective! I have to share the scripture message: "My life makes its boast in the Lord. ~Psalm 34:2 "Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Understand who you are in Jesus Christ. You are more than capable in Him." In other words, He has given me everything I need to do and to live as I should...flowers, rings, these things are not what I should be seeking to make me happy! You'd think I was 10 years old and not 49! I immediately felt strength and peace and happiness with what I have! That night I came downstairs decked out and ready to go out to dinner with my wonderful DH (dear husband) and of course asked him the proverbial "How do I look?" Wonderful he says, "but something's missing" WHAT! ...then he hands me a small wrapped package! Good things do come in small packages! He got me the ring! I ate humble pie for dinner that night! I cried! I told him how special he made me feel! Did I need the ring to make me happy? No, by that time I had learned my lesson. But, as I've tried to explain to my husband...it is the thought that counts! What I truly needed was the thought and not the ring. Here's to the next 25! (But don't get the idea I'm returning the ring! After all, it does fit perfectly! LOL!)

Late Mosaic Post!

I've been trying so hard to make some mosaics out of the pictures I took of the jewelry I've been making! Some of the pictures just did not turn out good. I don't know what I did? Then when I put a mosaic together it was cutting off the pictures and not showing the whole piece of jewelry. After fiddling and fiddling I finally just made this one mosaic with the bracelets I made that the pictures turned out the best. Mosaic Monday is sponsored by Mary @http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com and she has the most beautiful mosaics! And much more experienced mosaic makers have posted their gorgeous mosaics too! So go by and take a look!

About 3 years ago I started making jewelry and decided I would call my "creations" "Butterfly Creations" . Every bracelet and necklace I make has a butterfly on it somewhere. I named it this because I was taking old, vintage pieces of jewelry and making new pieces with them. Not all of my jewelry is made this way but that's how I started.

All of these bracelets are made from vintage brooches except the one on the bottom left hand side. It is made with Swarvoski crystal components. The top left bracelet is made with Swarvoski pearls and Swarvoski crystal rondelles. It is a pull-on stretch bracelet with a beautiful little butterfly charm added. The top right bracelet is one of my favorites. I love the color combination of turquoise, white, cobalt, crystals and gold. It too is a stretch bracelet. The bottom right bracelet is also one of my favorites made with a gorgeous emerald green and aurora borealis brooch, Swarvoski pearls, aurora borealis glass beads and a sterling clasp.

I do sell my jewelry, so if you're interested let me know. I made many more pieces, including several necklace and earring sets. Hopefully I can figure out how to make them work in another mosaic.