Joy!

31 Tuesday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in Christmas, crafts, Gilded Girls, projects, sparkling

Tags

banner, Christmas decoration, german glass glitter, Gilded Girls, glitter, gold and silver, little steps, Stash Society

Day of Joy! I woke naturally this morning, without a migraine slamming me awake, for the first time in 23 days. Joy, Joy! :) Oh my, the day is bright. And I finally finished making a gorgeous gold and silver banner that I started back in December. Yay! Even though I missed Christmas, today is still worthy of hanging up this glittery gold and silver banner.

The supplies and tutorial were from the November box from Gilded Girls Stash Society. [click on the photo to see a larger image]
I loved working on this banner! Because the days were so busy, I could only complete little steps here and there. I didn’t mind it taking a while though because that just meant I could handle the pretty materials a little bit longer. The letters are glittered with German Glass glitter, which sparkles a lot more than plastic craft glitter.

After taking this photo, I noticed that a gold button had fallen off the “O” while hanging the banner. It must be behind the sofa. That will be an activity for my granddaughter – finding the gold button for the O. I thank God that even home-bound days can be full of JOY.

Diamonds in the storm

27 Friday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in Inspirational

≈ 1 Comment

The rain came suddenly from stormy skies. It was unexpected and just made a bad day worse. I squinted out into the weather, holding my throbbing head. Then just as suddenly, the clouds parted and sun broke through. There! Do you see them? Diamonds hung from the trees. Even with my blurred vision, I did not miss the sparkling beauty. Even in storms, there are diamonds. You just have to look for them.

Diamonds in the storm

Orange & Date Scones Recipe

21 Saturday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in baking, food, recipe

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

baking, breakfast, brunch, date, food, orange, orange marmalade, scone, scones, whole wheat, whole wheat flour

These are without a doubt my most favorite scones ever! I don’t remember where the recipe came from. I have it hand-written in a 20 year old notebook. If anyone knows the source, I would be glad to give credit.

I managed to convince myself these scones are healthy because there are only two tablespoons of brown sugar in the recipe, plenty of whole wheat and good fruit. This way I justify the 1 cup of butter and 2/3 cup buttermilk completely.

These are best served warm. However they taste just as delicious warmed in the microwave the next day.

Orange Date Scones

Combine in a large bowl:

1 cup flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

Cut in:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

In a small bowl, combine:

2/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped dates
1 tsp grated orange rind

Add the buttermilk/date mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a fork just until evenly moistened. Turn out on a floured surface; dough will be soft. Pat to an 8″ circle. Cut into 8 wedges.

Orange Date Scones - This photo shows a double recipe here with half the dough being cut into 8 wedges.

Heat oven to 450.

Melt 1/4 cup butter in heavy 9 x 13″ baking dish in oven. This takes just a couple minutes so watch the dish. Remove from oven.

Place wedges in the melted butter and return to oven. Bake 15 minutes.

While scones are baking, in a pan on medium heat, melt 2 tbsp butter with 3 tbsp orange marmalade. Brush over hot scones when they are done baking.

Serve immediately. Makes 8

Orange Date Scones

Orange & Date Scones

21 Saturday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in baking

≈ 1 Comment

How rainy and dreary it is today! The chill went right to my bones. Since I was feeling under the weather, both from a cold and from the cold, I decided to make my favorite scones.

I got out the dates and the orange. Then I nibbled a date – Organic Medjool Dates from Whole Foods, and it was so smooth and sweet. Yum. And instead of grating the rind from the orange, I had to take a bite. So I peeled the orange to get a bite of date with orange. Oh how sublime! I ended up making a cup of herb tea (Traditional Medicinals Breathe Easy) and ate a bunch of dates and the orange instead of baking. I am thankful that God thought to create such exquisite flavors that we can pluck straight from a tree with no fuss and no cooking. Extraordinary.

Orange and Dates

Under Construction

20 Friday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in Uncategorized

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Please bear with me as I learn more about blogging. There is so much I want to do here but haven’t figured it all out yet. There are a lot of wonderful blogs out there and I have a list of blogs and links I check regularly and want to share but I haven’t figured out how to add them to the side of this page yet. Links, tutorials, thumbnail galleries… Hopefully I’ll grasp it all soon. Thank you so much for your patience!

Gold Embroidered Sequin Lace

19 Thursday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in beading, crafts, Gilded Girls, sewing, sparkling

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A gorgeous piece of lace arrived from Gilded Life. It is stunning!

Aqua Sequin Lace

When I really love something, I wonder “Why do I like this so much?”
After doing a little thinking, it occurred to me that the aqua and gold are colors in a mug my grandmother made for me in 1968. I was 10 years old.

The "Julie" mug my grandmother made for me in 1968.

The shell pink of her prim handwriting, the pale aqua wash of the man’s shirt, the blue, pink and green are my favorite colors. No wonder I love that sparkling gold and aqua fabric.

Sunshine Flecks!

17 Tuesday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in sparkling, sunlight

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The sun was lovely and full today. So my walls were sprinkled with dancing flecks of light.

Mirror Ball in the Sun

Flickering Light

16 Monday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in sparkling, sunlight

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Tags

disco ball, mirror ball, reflecting the sky, sunlight, window

Usually around this time of year I start missing moving light. During spring, summer and fall the sunlight splashes off leaves outside and they are constantly moving light around. Even if I’m not looking outside, my eye catches those dancing specks, like sparks of a warm fire. In winter the light outside is so still that it makes the house seem cold and dark. I miss the flickering!

So that’s when I get out the mirror ball. It is five inches in diameter, covered with mirrors like a mini disco ball. I hang it with a thin cord from the curtain rod in the sunny window. The ball is always gently moving and sometimes I give it a good spin. The squares of light dash all the way across the dining room to the living room walls, filling my space with movement and light.

Even when there isn’t much light, such as the overcast sky today, the ball still spins merrily in the window, reflecting the sky. The room is all sparkled up now.

Mirror Ball in the Window

The last of the Christmas Cookies

14 Saturday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in baking, Christmas

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The tree is coming down this weekend. I will be sorry to see it go because it was a wonderful light source in a normally dark corner of the living room. We’re even more sorry that this is the last of the Christmas cookies! After taking a photo of this tray, I made a firm commitment to make new Valentine cookies this year. I didn’t get a chance to take cookie trays to our neighbors for Christmas so they will all get Valentine cookies this year.

The last cookies of Christmas 2011. On the tray: Top tier - Peppermint Sticks and Almond Spritz Trees. Bottom tier clockwise from Gingerbread Boys: Gingerbread Boys, Sugarplum Pies, Springerli, Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cookies, Peppermint Pattie Brownies.

Miniature Birthday Fiesta

07 Saturday Jan 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in crafts, miniature, party, tutorial

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

American Girl dolls, crafts, doll-size, fiesta, miniature, miniature pinata, tutorial

Host a doll-size Birthday Fiesta! This is one of the chapters that didn’t make the cut in Tiny Treats, a book I wrote in 2004. The centerpiece is a sweet little palm-sized pinata filled with real candy and plenty of delicious treats. Try the Three Teeny Quesadillas if you please or the Spicy Sombreros for a tiny treat. Use mini pinatas as place card holders or decorations on the table.

Miniature Birthday Fiesta!

For simple directions, see below.

For the Quesadillas, simply cut flour tortillas with a small round cookie cutter. Top with Beanie – refried beans and grated cheese, Cheesy – cream cheese with little slices of string cheese, sprinkled with paprika, or Sweetsie topping – apple pie filling with mini chocolate chips.

For the Spicy Sombreros, mix a little chili powder into cream cheese. Spread the cream cheese mixture in a little mound in the center of a round tortilla chip to make a hat. Sprinkle crushed corn chip crumbs over the cream cheese. Decorate with Pimientos.

Here are steps to make a Miniature Pinata.
You will need:
Toilet paper tube
Scissors
Masking tape
Paper punch
4 pieces plastic drinking straw, cut 1 1/2” long
Mini candies
Crayola Model Magic modeling compound
White acrylic paint
Tacky glue
1/2” wide strips of colored tissue paper
2 small black beads

Supplies to make a miniature pinata

Step 1: Cut a toilet paper tube in half lengthwise. Cut a 2” section from one of those pieces. Roll it into a tube to make the body and tape it.

Prepare candy-filled tube. Add straw “legs”.

Punch 4 holes on one side of the tube for the legs. Insert the pieces of straw for legs. Before inserting the back legs, add small candies to the tube. Cover the ends of the tube with masking tape.
Step 2: Use Crayola Model Magic to form the neck and head of a donkey or horse. Add more Model Magic to make the legs thicker. Let dry overnight.

Add Crayola Model Magic clay to make a head and legs

Step 3: Paint the piñata white. Let dry.
Step 4: Cut fringe from the tissue paper strips. Spread the legs with glue and wrap them with the tissue fringe, starting from the bottom and working your way up. Glue on more pieces of tissue paper fringe and crumpled tissue paper as desired to cover the whole pinata. Glue on a tissue paper tale. Add two black beads for eyes.