Felted Cat Afternoon

I've been sick all week.  Nothing flashy like the flu or Norovirus, just an old fashioned, miserable cold.  Which means I have had some time on my hands.  I finally read Gone Girl.  And I decided I need to needle felt some cats. 

Jumping on the Smoothie Bandwagon

Everybody is making smoothies these days.  Maybe it's a new year resolution thing or just the newest fad.  While it seems like a great way to get a lot of nutrients, smoothies can have a downside too.  Many recipes recommend using an excessive amount of fruit juice (lots of sugar without the fiber, etc.) and one "serving" can end up totaling two to three times the calories you would have had with just a bowl of oatmeal.  So, I approach the whole thing slowly, cautiously, and with a lot of skepticism.

I don't really want too sweet of a smoothie so

Feeling Fantastic!

 OK, there is something I have realized about myself that I would have been shocked to have discovered just a few short years ago: I like rules. 

It turns out my husband and I both like rules.  As in, 'Let's not drink alcohol for the entire month of January!'  'Let's eat only vegan food for at least 3 weeks in January!'  'Let's cut out white sugar!'  Still working on the white sugar part, more on that later.  But doing great on the not drinking and eating vegan.  And, not a big surprise here, feeling really fantastic.

Playing with Corgi Video

My husband bought me a video camera, a Sony HDR-CX220 for Christmas because he knew I was interested in making video tutorials.  Here is my first, very rough, attempt at video editing.  The Windows movie maker that came on my computer is pretty useless.  I am going to need a much better editor to synch up music and make more interesting edits.

But you have to start somewhere, right?

Craft Project: New Year's Table Setting

This table runner is so simple, but so festive, I may use it year round!

Find yourself some nice heavy cotton zig zag fabric. 

Making a Holiday Tree: Part 2

Yay! I finally completed my handmade Seussical Holiday tree!  I started out by trying to make an all cardboard tree which I quickly realized was going to look bulky and maybe a bit amateurish so I took it apart and started over with more of a mixed-media approach.

Delicious Bread Crumb Topping Makes a Simple Meal Special

 I have recently become addicted to bread crumbs.  Not boring bread crumbs added into things to thicken them, but reveling in the deliciousness of the crumb itself.  You can start with any base: ready made bread crumbs (Panko style is good), rye bread, white, day old pita or whole wheat bread.  I really like to use dark rye bread or Dave's Killer 21 Grain Bread.  If you want a gluten free option, you can use crumbled up potato chips instead for a decadent topping.  (Be sure to use a thicker chip, like Tim's Cascade.)

Play Date with Metal

I had a zillion things I was supposed to do last weekend but I was reckless and blew them all off to go play with metal all day Saturday at the Tacoma Metal Arts Center.

It's my friend Kimberly's fault.  She had a gift certificate for a class and asked if I was interested. I studied making jewelry at North Seattle Community College way back in my early twenties and after getting my degree in sculpture, I haven't played around much with jewelry except tinkering around with reclaimed tin and wire work.

Hosting a Blind Wine Tasting

 Hosting a regular old wine tasting is fun and all but once a year, we like to hold a blind wine tasting party.  This is when nobody knows what they are drinking and they try to guess.

It's best if you pick a theme.  You could try different varietals, say Merlot, Cabernet, Malbec, and Grenache and try to have everyone pick out which one is which.  This is harder than you think.  When we went to a tasting like this with 6 reds, only one person of 12 of us had even 3 correct!  You could pick regions to compare: a French Merlot versus a Washington Merlot, for example.

I decided on a Malbecs around the world tasting.  Now all I needed was the wine and the supplies.