Mason Jar Soap Dispenser

Have you seen these beautiful mason jar soap dispensers?

 I saw them in catalogs and then in the bathroom one of my favorite restaurants, 101 Beer Kitchen. That sold me, if a glass jar soap dispenser can survive in a restaurant bathroom it will survive my boys...at least for a little while...



Update: I've made two so far, and it's quite easy to do.  They've survived for three months, numerous small friends and a couple of adult gatherings.  I plan on making another for the kitchen sink.  I've found they're heavy enough to be easy to pump without toppling over.

And, the color combinations you can make are only limited by the pump you purchase.  I have a blue jar with a sliver lid and silver metal pump in the full guest bath and a small clear jar with a clear pump in the half bath.  I've bought interesting plastic "throw away" soap dispensers

 

but you can also find pump kits online.

Meadow Lawn

Now, this is a great idea!
Right now our lawn is a sea of dandelions.  There are some really pretty violets popping up, but lawn dasies...that would be beautiful!!  Of course, the plan for today is to head out and mow in a bit anyway.

Give Your Lawn a Taste of the Wild

Kitchen Color from #HOUZZ

Today we have snow on the ground and it is thunderstorming -- odd weather...I was looking for a bright escape and came across this wonderful HOUZZ article on adding color to your kitchen.  Great ideas, bright splashes of color and character, and not that tricky to pull off!

12 Ideas for a Knockout Kitchen

Remodeling, decorating, and more ∨

From designer seating and office desks to message boards and credenza, create your dream home office.
As you get ready to host an event, be sure you have enough dining room chairs and dishes for dinner guests, as well as enough bakeware and chef knives for food preparation.

Vinyl repurposed

Have you seen the fun people are having with old vinyl? They're shaping them into bowls, trays and I've even seen clocks! The end product has a really cool, shiny, funky, metro vibe.

I looked online and saw some great, artistic options...but I needed it for a gift exchange, and it was already Christmas morning...so I was out of time!

Luckily I planned a little ahead, so I already had the vinyl. But, I soon learned it making these things was harder than it looked. The good thing is that vinyl can be reheated and reshaped.

So, with the oven set just below 200 degrees, I tried a couple different melting methods:

1. Set the record on a bowl. Place a can on the label of the record. As the vinyl heats, it will start sinking into the bowl. Wait until it is flexible, then shape it into something attractive.

Or:

2. Place the record in the oven on top of a tall can. Again, wait until it starts drooping. Then shape it.

The most interesting thing I found was that the record melted differently depending on their age. The 50's were a lot different than the 80's!

Here are a few pictures of the outcome:

Happy Thanksgiving

Things have been a little busy recently, and I haven't had a chance to post ....but, I hope to make up for it!

First, a little Thanksgiving cheer to pass on. I embellished a pumpkin pie with a little turkey! It was very tasty, festive. ..and used up some extra pie dough.

Patterns

Have you noticed the new trends of pattern layering? I love it -- the new Ethan Allen catalog came in the mail and it is showing "The New Eclecticism".  I apparently strive to fit into this category.  Look at this example, pattern rug with patterned table base, pattern wallpaper...and somehow none of it is overbearing.  I think I need a decorator to pull this together for me....

Here is a picture that reflects my true inspiration, the repeating arched supports reminiscent of a time passed.  Positioned on top of layers of concrete surrounded with the columned edging on a backdrop of waves and trees.

This is the pier to the South Haven, MI lighthouse.  It was really cold, rainy and windy there this past weekend!!  But we had a great time -- we normally aren't on the shores of Lake Michigan in November!!  It made us want to come back in February to see what the lake looks like covered in ice and snow!

Pumpkin cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese icing!!

I hosted an event here the other night and needed something fun and seasonal for dessert.  Maybe it's the pumpkin latte's everywhere, but I've had some serious pumpkin cravings.  And, since my hubby won't go near pumpkin, I had to make sure there were others around to eat them.  My kids will eat them (all of them) but I don't need that happening!!!

The other interesting thing to note is that I don't bake desserts.  My husband does. I've even devolved to using the bagged cookie mix.  (I know those of you who ate cookies I made in my teens are cheering right now.) So for me, this was a serious challenge.

So, I searched for recipes and found two awesome options.  The first was from My Baking Addiction and the second was from Skinnytaste.com. One of the sites said that it was adapted from a Martha Stewart Recipe -- always a good sign!!

After looking at the calorie content on both the recipes, I combined the two.  I was aiming for really tasty and not too bad for you.

From Skinnytaste.com, I used the pumpkin cupcake recipe (and it was stupidly easy...so that was a selling point for me) and I pulled the cinnamon cream cheese frosting recipe from the second site.  It is the really unhealthy part of the recipe.  But it is really, really tasty!!  Then I couldn't resist sticking the candy corn on top.

They were a HUGE hit!!  People even took extras home to their spouses (supposedly). I think they just hid them in their fridge for later....


Thanks to both My Baking Addiction and Skinnytaste.com for your publications!!