Craft: Painting Glass Apothecary Jars

Painting Glass Apothecary Jars

 

What you will need: Glass apothecary jars, paint made for glass, I used Martha Stewart Glass Paint, stencils - of any type, paint brush, masking tape and newspaper.

 

 

Place the newspaper down on the surface area you will be working on to protect your table etc.

 

Tape off the area of the jar you want to paint. See example below.

 

 

Once you are finished painting you jar, let dry for an hour and pull off masking tape. Below is my finished produce. I chose a very simple design - the last name. I made this as a bridal shower gift for my friend's shower this weekend. I filled it with a bunch of goodies. :)

 

 

 

Here is the finished product filled with goodies:

 

 

Until we blog again Xoxo, Connie & Jenn

Food: Deviled Eggs

Deviled Eggs

Ingredients:

·         6  eggs

·         1 teaspoons Dijon mustard

·         1/4 cup mayonnaise

·         1 Tbsp minced onion or shallot

·         1/4 teaspoon Tabasco

·         Salt and pepper

·         Paprika

 

Directions

Hard boil the eggs. Fill up a large pan half-way with water and gently add the eggs until they are completely covered in water. Bring the water to a boil. Cover, and turn heat to medium. cook for 10 - 12 minutes. Drain hot water from pan and run cold water over the eggs for a few minutes. Let eggs sit in cold water a few minutes.

Peel the shell off eggs. With a sharp knife slice each egg in half, lengthwise. Remove the yolk and place in a small bowl. Arrange the egg white halves on a serving platter. It is best if you have a deviled egg platter.

 

Mix the egg yolks with a fork, add mustard, mayonnaise, onion, Tabasco, and a dash of salt and pepper. Fill each egg white half with the egg yolk mixture. Sprinkle with paprika and serve.

Recipe makes a dozen deviled eggs

 

 

Until we blog again, XOXO, Connie & Jenn

Holiday: Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you all get to share this day with the people you love the most. This post is about little things you can do at home on Valentine's Day to make someone feel special. ((Especially if you want to skip the Valentine's Day crowds)). Starting in the morning with breakfast. Make breakfast for your loved one. Heart pancakes, Heart egg in a hole or yogurt parfait in a heart shaped bowl. See examples here: For a special evening with your man/woman the 1st thing you need is the perfect outfit: Ladies chose a cute but comfy outfit if you are staying in and maybe a sexy lingerie piece for after dinner. You may pick this ahead of time so you are not rushing the day of to find something to wear. lingerie piece ((black and red is always sexy)):   2nd thing decorations: You may decorate as little or as much as you would like. Here are a few examples below. An element of surprise is always fun!       3rd thing is the meal and table setting: If you are cooking at home some good choices are steak, lobster, Sushi, oysters, crab, fish and/or fondue. There are plenty of choices. Here are examples of what Connie & Jenn have done: 4th thing are drink options: Champagne is often the first thing people think of when celebrating so this is a good and easy choice. Below are some options to dress up your champagne. A few more drink options are specialty cocktails, chocolate liqueurs, if your significant other has a favorite drink making that would be a good choice as well. For water glasses you may add heart shaped ice cubes. Below is a picture of ice cubes made from crystal light. The red adds a little something extra.   5th thing is dessert: It is always fun to create something yummy and festive. Below are some examples of what we have made for our men:    (if your not much of a cook buying a treat works well too)   6th thing is the lighting: see previous post for making candles. A dim light will create a romantic atmosphere 7th thing: gift ideas. Here are a few gifts ideas; a fish - see quote below, a candy/power bar bouquet filled with love notes, a homemade card, scrapbook, photo album, basically anything from the heart.       If you decide to hit the town in San Diego, Roseville or wherever you are a nice idea is to try something new, fun and romantic so you can share a memory with your partner.  Try something that you wouldn't normally do. A few ideas; a hot air balloon ride, wine tasting, have a picnic and watch the sunset together, or do something active together like a bike ride, go hiking, Paddle boarding, kayaking. The most important part is spending quality time together. We wish you all romance and love on this day. Until we blog again, XOXO, Connie & Jenn

Craft: Heart Wax Candles

Craft: Heart Wax Candles

 

We chose to make a great craft just in time for Valentine's Day. Scented candles make wonderful gifts. Here is your step by step guide to making candles of your own.

What you will need: candle wax ( I used left over wax from old candles that burnt out), Crock pot, Lavender (or any scent) aromatherapy oil, core wire wicks, heart shaped gel muffin tray, glitter (optional)

 

To begin, place all candle wax in a crock pot or scentisy jar - let melt for about 2 hours.

Once wax is melted stir in anywhere from 10 - 50 drops of a plant aromatherapy oil, such as lavender, sandalwood, or jasmine. The amount is completely up to you and how strong you want the scent to be. Next, lay out tray and place a wick with a metal wick tab to the bottom in the center. Pour wax into each section; add more wax as needed. Once finished let cool for 6 hours. You may add glitter after an hour so it will be starting to harden but still sticky so the glitter will stay put.

Beware: This pouring process will get very messy. Make sure you have newspaper or paper towels under the area you are pouring the wax on!! See my photo below.

 & the finished product...

 

 

I had some extra wax and wicks so I poured it into a shot glass. This is another option if you don't want to use muffin trays.

 

 Until we blog again, Xoxo, Connie & Jenn

 

Travel: Baltimore, Maryland

Travel: Baltimore, Maryland

On Tuesday January 8th, 2013 - Friday January 11th, 2013 I took a work trip to Baltimore, Maryland. We stayed at the Renaissance Baltimore Harbor Place Hotel in the Inner Harbor.

 

A picture from my hotel room. It was a wonderful view.

 

 

I even got a view of the sun rising in the mornings (I had to get up early for a convention).

 

 

When in Baltimore they have a water taxi that makes it easy to travel from the Inner Harbor to Fells Point. (below is Jenn on the Water Taxi)

 

 

We went out to eat a lot and all the restaurants were good. The Thames Oyster House in Fells Point, which I highly recommend. The scallops were great! My favorite bars in Fells point are the Cats Eye Pub & the Waterfront.

 

 

In Canton I would recommend going to dinner at Bo Brooks and getting the blackened scallops, oyster sample, flounder & crab cakes. Everything was good here!

 

 

I would also recommend visiting Fork & Wrench a bar in Canton. It is very eclectic with books along the walls. It's a little cramped but worth it if you get a spot.

 

I would also recommend M & S Grill for happy hour in the bar area. Great deals!

 

 

Until we blog again, xoxo, Connie & Jenn

 

Food: Greek Veggie Pizza under 30 minutes

Greek Veggie Pizza

To make the dough you will need:

* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 (.25 ounce) packageactive dry yeast
* 2 tablespoonsvegetable oil
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 tablespoonwhite sugar
* 1 cupwarm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

1. Combine flour, salt, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Mix in oil and warm water. Spread out on a large pizza pan. Set off to the side so you may add the toppings.
2. Bake at 375 degrees C (190 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes

Ingredients for topping the pizza:

* 1 cup mozzarella cheese
* 1/2 jar of pesto sauce - spread evenly around the pizza dough.
* 1/4 cup sliced jalapeno peppers
* 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes
* 1/4 cup artichoke hearts
* 1 small can chopped black olives
* 2 garlic cloves minced

Bake at 375 degrees C (190 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes or until top is slightly crispy.

 

Let cool & serve.

 

Until we blog again xoxo, Connie & Jenn

Party: New Year's Eve Party & Ideas

Wow, this holiday season just flew by and we neglected our blog due to the craziness. It has been months and we are very sorry! I want to do a re-cap. Starting with NYE.

My boyfriend Matt and I hosted a New Years Eve party this year. It was great.

 

 

Our friend Mike is a Photographer so we set up a Photo booth area. (the pictures above are from Michael's camera and lighting). He did a wonderful job and was very helpful.

 

When sending out an invitation you want it to be something unique, fun & catchy. You also want your invite to explain your party and what is expected. The invite we sent is:

 

The New Year’s rolling in;
We’re planning quite a bash.
Please arrive at 8pm.
So we can all get smashed!

The champagne will be flowing
On December 31st
At the house of the Coleman’s
Let’s party all night, right into January 1st

Be dressed up in your cocktail attire,
You may get wild, but don’t start a fire.

We’ll laugh and we’ll play, we’ll sing (karaoke) and dance,
By the time it hits midnight you’ll be in a trance

Bring your awesome self or "selves"
And what you want to drink.
And we’ll provide hors’ devours & stuff,
Including the kitchen sink!

When you let us know you’ll come,
We’ll smile & shout "Whoopee!"
So sit right down and respond
With your kind R.S.V.P!

Picking an outfit for New Years may be the most important thing. I chose a gold and black sparkle and sheer dress. For New Years it is a great idea to chose a statement piece that makes you feel great.

 

We had a snack table set up & guest brought more snacks as well. With all the champagne and drinking it is a good idea to have snacks on hand.

 

 

A fun thing I did was to make champagne, star and clock cookies. Sticking to the NYE theme. I was going to make a clock cake but I ran out of time.

We wanted to have some props and goodies for our guests so I made a little table of crowns, party hats, blow horns, beads and 2013 glow-in-the dark glasses for our guests.

We also had a band in the backyard near the fire pit. So Cal Vibes. Everything came together nicely and was a huge success! What did you do for NYE?

Until we blog again, xoxo,
Connie & Jenn