Floral Headband

I hope you all had a great weekend! I've been super busy getting things together for our dinner on Sunday. I have finalized the menu, and now just have to finish the runners, cloth napkins, and chargers. I'll be sure to post pictures when I'm done! I have been super thrifty for this party! AND I'm making my first ruffles, they look cute so far! Good start to the week!

Anyway, I made another little hair accessory! Well, really, it's not that little. It's kind of big actually. I wanted to make something bold...but truthfully, I'm not really a "bold accessory" kind of girl...but it's black, so I guess that toned it down a bit. What do you think?

(I promise this is the same headband, but for some reason it looks like a different color in both pictures. Strange.)

I think it's pretty cute with a simple outfit. I love pearls and I used a few different kinds in the center of each flower. 

And the best part is, I didn't have to buy anything. :-) 

Hooray for keeping random things like old scarves that I might use "someday"

I have something yummy planned for tomorrow! 

Be sure to check it out! 

The Little Q Headband

I hope you are enjoying a restful weekend! SP and I have been very productive today, but have managed to spend some time reading and planning for our annual Thanksgiving Dinner with friends that's quickly approaching....next week! We also installed a new thermostat...so now our apartment will be nice and warm in the morning without one of us having to shiver over to turn on the heat and wait...wait...wait for it to warm up. Woohoo! It's the little things, I guess. 

In more exciting news, Brittany from Love Stiched had an awesome recipe contest back in October and I was one of the lucky ladies to be featured on her blog! As a prize, Brittany sent me two of her Mini Lou hair clips and I just recieved them in the mail!  

Aren't they just the sweetest things?! I love them and can't wait to wear them!!

Well, I was so inspired by her beautiful accessories, I decided to try something of my own. I didn't have much on hand in the way of hair-accessory-making-materials, but I made do.

 The "Little Q"

{That's what SP calls me and he says that this looks like something I would wear. So it's fitting}

I {l.o.v.e} it. 

Lightened-Up Pumpkin Pie Milkshake

If you haven't noticed, I love all things pumpkin. 

I think by mid-November SP gets pumpkined out, but I could eat it forever.

Sweet potatoes too. 

Mmmm

Well, when I heard that DQ makes mini Blizzards, I took that as a sign that I need to try their Pumpkin Pie Blizzard...since it's mini and all it won't totally destroy my weight loss attempts. 

It was love at first bite.

When I got home the first thing I did was search for a similar recipe, finally deciding to try this one the next time I got a craving for a tasty pumpkin treat. I wanted to make it so it wasn't too terrible, that way I can have it more often..hehe So my alterations are in bold blue. 

(But I'm sure the original is super yummy too! )

Doesn't it look delish?! 

Pumpkin Pie Milkshake

Original Recipe by Our Best Bites

1/3 C pumpkin puree

1/4 - 1/2 C {skim} milk

1/4 t vanilla

1/2 t cinnamon

1/16 t cloves

1/16 t nutmeg              {I used 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice instead}

2 T brown sugar           {I used 1 Tablespoon}

2 C vanilla ice cream    {I used low fat vanilla frozen yogurt}

1-2 graham crackers     {I used 1 sheet reduced fat graham crackers}

Pop everything but the graham crackers in a blender. Start with 1/4 C milk and then slowly add more if needed to make the blender process it all. Pour into two glasses and top with graham cracker crumbs. Enjoy! 

Thanks for visiting! 

Come again soon 

:-)

 I'm linking up to these awesome parties.

NY&C Inspired Jersey Cowl

This past weekend SP and I went down the mall for lunch and to get his hair cut. While I was waiting, I decided to look around New York & Company...one of my favorite stores.  I happened upon this scarf...and fell in love.

I know it's nothing special, but I think that's what I liked most about it. It has a cute little gemmy that can be taken off for casual wear and added on again when I want to dress up a bit. 

Well, I was all set to get this baby when I noticed that it was $24.99. Well now, I know that's not an outlandish price, but I was certainly not willing to pay that much for so little fabric! 

What's the solution? Make it, of course! 

Here's the problem. I'm not really very good at sewing. I'm trying to learn, but I've only done a few things and knew that working with Jersey fabric may be difficult because of the stretch. But hey, it would be a learning experience. Right? 

$2.50 and 20 minutes later...here's what I came up with..

Pretty close, huh? 

And there it is unfolded. 

Did you see my cute little broach? 

It belonged to my Great-Grandmother.

My mom let me wear it for a dressing-up occasion of some kind. 

(I guess you should let me know if you want it back, Mom! hehe)

I'm super happy with my creation. I think I'm getting better! Can't wait to try something more challenging! But for now, I'm working on some Thanksgiving napkins and such!

Thanks for stopping by!!

:-)

I'm linking up to THESE awesome parties!

Cinnamon Bun Popcorn and a Double-Feature!

One of my {new-ish} favorite Cool-Weather Treats is Cinnamon Bun Popcorn! I made it last year for a party and everyone went crazy over it! Since then I think I've probably made it a dozen times. I've already made it twice this year! So good! The most important thing for me, however, is to be sure that there is somewhere I can bring the bulk of it...and leave it there! If it's around, I can't help myself! :-)

I've adapted this recipe a bit each time I've made it, but I'm going to give you the original by Our Best Bites because it is just awesome. I usually substitute walnuts for the pecans, just because we like them better. I also use light butter, just because. I really like using pumpkin pie spice in place of the cinnamon during this time of the year...yum! 

Cinnamon Caramel Corn with Pecans & White Chocolate 

Recipe by Our Best Bites

12 C popped popcorn (about 1/2 C kernels)

1 C pecan halves, roughly chopped

1 C brown sugar

3/4 t cinnamon

1/4 C karo syrup (or honey makes a good substitution)

1 stick real butter (1/2 C)

1t vanilla

1/2 t baking soda

3 squares almond bark (about 4 oz)

Preheat oven to 250 degrees

Place popcorn and chopped pecans in a large bowl and set aside. 

Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a 2 liter capacity microwave safe bowl.  Mix well.  Chop butter into chunks and place on top of sugar mixture.  Pour corn syrup over the top of everything.  Microwave on high for 30 seconds and then stir to combine.  Return to microwave and heat for 2 minutes.  Remove and stir and then microwave for 2 minutes more. 

Remove from microwave and add in vanilla and baking soda.  Stir to combine.  Mixture will foam and rise.  Pour caramel mixture over popcorn and pecans and stir very well so everything is well coated.  

Spread popcorn mixture onto a foil-lined jelly roll pan.  Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.  

Remove from oven and spread out on a large piece of parchment, waxed paper, or foil. 

Melt almond bark according to package instructions.  Drizzle over popcorn mixture.  When almond bark is hardened and popcorn is cool, break into chunks and enjoy!

I also want to say a quick "thank you" to all my readers! 

You guys are awesome and I cannot believe how many of you have joined me in my crafting adventures over the past few weeks. Once I reach 100 followers, I'll have my first giveaway! Let's make it happen, friends! 

OH, and I was reading some posts over at Tatertots and Jello when I noticed that I was featured...twice! How cool is that?! I had no idea and was so excited I had to call SP at work to tell him! 

You can see it here and be sure to look around, Jen's blog is fantastic!! She's so creative!! 

Thanks for the feature, Jen! 

You made my week! 

:-)