Monthly Archives: November 2014

Butterfinger topped brownies…

Posted in Tasty Treats by

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Once you try these brownies, you won’t want traditional brownies ever again!  These brownies are so tasty, they were mentioned on the local news by a TV reporter that had tried them.  If you don’t believe me, go to the store and start baking!  They will ignite your taste buds!!!

I came up with the idea to top brownies with Butterfingers because Butterfingers are my husbands favorite candy.  His birthday was approaching and I wanted to make him some thing extra special.  I had already played with adding pecans and topping brownies with caramel, so I was ripe for a new baking adventure.  I was so pleased with the results, I have been making these brownies ever since.

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Start by mixing a box of brownie mix as the instructions state.  Put the brownie mix in your pan.  Crush 2 large Butterfinger candy bars until they are powder.  I use my Pampered Chef chopper for this task and it works great!

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Once the Butterfingers are powder, spread them evenly over the brownie mix in the pan.

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Bake by following the instructions on the brownie mix box.  Do not over cook them.

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What you will get is a crispy top on the brownies.  They are so delightful and yummy!

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Happy eating…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…

How to use the skins of mashed potatoes for a potato skin appetizer

Posted in Tasty Treats by

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I don’t know about you, but, I am not a big fan of peeling potatoes.  I was given the assignment of making mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving dinner and thought, “Oh man!  I will have to peel ALL of those potatoes.  What a waste of time!  AND the skins hold all of the nutrients.”  I came up with a much better idea, AND created an appetizer in the process.  I boiled the potatoes with the skins on.  When they were done, I cut them in half and gently scooped out the centers for the mashed potatoes.  I placed the skin pieces on a cookie sheet, added toppings, and baked them to create a potato skin casserole.  They weren’t as pretty as traditional potato skins, but they sure were tasty!

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I made guacamole and had sour cream as sides with the potato skin casserole.  BOTH dishes, mashed potatoes and potato skin casserole were a hit!

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Happy eating…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…

Simple, fun Fall gift wrapping idea for a male…

Posted in Fall, Gift Wrapping by

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I always struggle with gifts for a man or boy.  I want to make the packages special and unique, but not fancy and frilly.  I found these leaf doilies at the Dollar Tree and thought they would be a perfect add on to these gifts for my husband.  I crinkled the leaves to give them more dimension.  I spelled out “Happy Birthday” on the leaves and taped them to the packages.

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It was the perfect added touch!  AND SO EASY!!!

Happy wrapping…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…

Fancy, yet simple, Fall gift wrapping with fake leaves…

Posted in Fall, Gift Wrapping by

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If you have been following my blog then you know how much I LOVE gift wrapping and making pretty packages that will make anyone feel extra special.  Here I used fake fall colored leaves and added them to the top of some gifts.  I tied the stems of the leaves with the ribbon.  So fancy, yet to simple!

Happy wrapping…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…

More Fancy Fabric Covered Pumpkins…

Posted in Fall, Gift ideas by

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZC2qqAano-A“>youtube “how to” video

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I had so much fun creating the other fabric covered fake pumpkin that I posted in October!  I decided to create a different version.  I used burlap ribbon on this one and it created a more rustic look.

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The leaves and fruits are glued on with E6000.

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It’s so much fun to create!  Happy Thanksgiving…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…

Rainbow Tulle bows…

Posted in Gift Wrapping by

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I created a rainbow tulle bow for a fundraising event.  I used all of the colors in the rainbow.  I held them all in my hand as I created the bow.  Then, as I separated and fluffed the tulle, I made sure to keep the colors in order.  See my previous post “Tulletally awesome bows” from February 2014 in “Gift Wrapping” on how to create tulle bows.

Happy rainbows…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…

Easy, personalized, aprons…

Posted in Gift ideas by

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I created some aprons as gifts.  I started with a pre-made apron purchased at Hobby Lobby.  I added an iron on initial and a fun bow with a buckle.  A very easy gift that ANYONE can create!

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This is a darling iron on initial that I purchased at Hobby Lobby.  Follow the iron on instructions on the package.

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To create the buckle bow, start by threading the ribbon through the bar, as shown above.

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Next, loop the ribbon back under the bar on both sides, as shown above.  At this point, you can either make stitches to keep the ribbon in place, or use a quick drying fabric glue.

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Turn the bow over, and add a rhinestone embellishment, as shown above.

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This will make a fun gift for all little girls that like to help their Mommy’s in the kitchen!

Happy creating…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…

Cheerleading Birthday Party…

Posted in Parties - birthdays and more by

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Every birthday party needs party favors.  I used triangle shaped clear plastic bags that I purchased at Hobby Lobby.  I made name tags on blue cardstock and stapled them to the top of the bag.  I punched a hole in the top left corner and tied ribbon.  I strung the party favor bags with ribbon & clothes pins to create a “banner” look.

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I made banners to hang using cardstock and stickers.  They hung on ribbon tied to skewers stuck into cone styrofoam under the megaphones.  I put pom pom handles down the top of the megaphones.  I used glass blocks as risers to create different levels on the table.

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Snacks including cheese balls (pom poms) and Bugles (megaphones), as well as chocolate dipped pretzel rods and cupcakes topped with chocolate dipped Bugles (see previous post on how to), and rubber spiked balls that I washed and used as pom poms.

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I created a festive photo booth (see previous post on how to) and purchased several silly glasses, masks, etc for the girls to wear for pictures in the photo booth.

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The girls learned a cheer dance routine, and made cheer pyramids.  It was a great time had by all!

Happy Cheering…

“Wonder what I will come up with next”…