happy spring! hope you are all enjoying the changing of the seasons as much as i am.  i adore this time where the cycles of the earth, animals, air, sky, and our daily life routines change before our very eyes.  fertility is in the air and thought i'd show you a baby shower i did recently. i kinda loved how it turned out.

had a bit of fun with the salal leaves that grow all over my property.  laurel leaves work perfectly too and you can get those at ANY flower shop.  first, i made a "BABY' garland for this lovely gold frame i have by using a black sharpie to write the letters and a gold paint pen to trace them.  i hung this over the mantle.  then i used a heart shaped hole punch and made these super sweet leaves that i tied with jute twine on the drink glasses.  easy peasy.  i sprinkled the little hearts all over the table.

i used these beautiful ti leaves, also found at the flower shop, to wrap around mason jars for the flower arrangements i made.  i love ti leaves.  just tie twine around them to secure them.

below is the picture i was sent to use as the inspiration for the decor . sooooooo adorable!  right? it is from www.fancylifecorner.com 

i made a batch of tissue tassels and strung them up everywhere.  love these.   they are so easy to make.  i'll do a DIY on them later. i also used tissue paper to make the poufs for the big hanging centerpiece that i hung from her chandelier. added a few store bought paper lanterns, some vintage crocheted lace strands and it was good to go.  

just thought i'd give you guys some ideas for little ways to make your own gatherings a bit sweeter. just add mimosas and you are on your way to fun times. 

ever go to a potluck that is full of families...little kids running around, foaming at the mouth like rabid beasts, hangry, lord of the flies style, because every one has brought dishes that are dressed to impress but not so kid friendly? i have.

i was making such a dish.  my little guy running around my house, already a bit rabid, because i was so busy preparing this dish that i hadn't prolly so much as looked at him in half an hour.  i stopped and had an "aha moment".  grabbed a bag of grapes(washed), some kitchen twine (you could use embroidery thread, dental floss or double up some bakers twine) and a very large embroidery needle.  i sat Loji down and started beading grapes on necklaces to give the kids at the potluck we were going to.  he was so stoked!  

just knot one end, string a few on and they will be begging to take over.  it's a win win.  he sat down, had a pre-game snack (i dared him not to eat one...he ate half of the entire bag), got a bit artsy, stopped bugging me to please, oh please sword fight him, i got to continue with my pintrest fail in the kitchen, and the kids at the soiree whom he gave them to....wowzers.  i believe Loji was engaged to at least 4 of the little girls there by the end of the evening.  just make sure they are long enough to fit over their heads easily.

the only downfall, is that they will love them so very much that they will not leave you alone once they are through with theirs, because they will want another.  and another.  warn them that everyone gets one or make more.  

okay, so i lied...i couldn't just shelf every little fun thing i did this month and save it for next year.  but, this one kinda doesn't count because you can make this anytime of  year and use it for so many things!  plus, it gets extra points because you can make it with almost anything you have lying around the house. 

what you'll need:

• some sort of twine, string, strip of fabric, or ribbon.
• some sort of paper. such as: paint swatches, book pages, your kids drawings, photos, phone books, chinese take out menus...you get my drift? i double dawg dare you to make one out of a menu all stained up by kung pow!!!
• paper punch....this is one thing you do kinda need. i am obsessed with them. good ol' martha stewart has an epic line of them...but there are sooo many to choose from at michaels and other craft stores. get some. you will use them for nine thousand projects.
• glue gun, glue stick or just about any glue you have. i've tried many. i like the glue gun cause it dries so fast. second runner up, a glue stick.

so, here's a picture tutorial...a lil snap shot DIY. but, basically, punch out stars (or what ever shape you have) and start gluing them to your ribbon (or twine or whatever fabulousness you have decided to go with).  make sure you put the shapes sandwiched together, whithe your twine in the middle, somewhat in line for a clean look.  you can make them as long as you'd like.  i used them on our xmas tree and also wound them up on cute cards and gave them as winter solstice presents to my ladies.  oh, they also look great wound around a beautifully wrapped gift as a super bonus.

do it up my homies! lemme know how it goes!

these are so sweet and will be the perfect touch on easter/ostara morning.  i think i will leave little nests all over the yard and in the house tucked here and there and not say anything about them until everyone catches on.  love the eggs and bunnies and symbology of this fertile time of year.  love the hunt...the excitement and thrill of tiny treasures.  and as you also may know, i LOVE crafting out of recycled materials.  love this project.

(i recently fell in love with the artbarblog.com and that is where i got the idea.  she's got some cute ones.)

materials:

• chopped paper – construction paper, newspaper, catalogs, magazines
  

• paper cutter or scissors (or a shredder would be best!)
• elmer’s glue + thick paint brush
• one bowl of the size that you want your bird’s nest to be
• plastic wrap
  
  

how to:

first, cut our paper into strips about 1/4″ in thickness and vary the strips in length from 6″ to 12″. next, put plastic wrap on the inside of the bowl you want to shape the nests with.  mix glue with water (half and half), and brush it all on the inside of the bowl on top of the plastic wrap.  then take individual strips and arrange them criss-crossing around the bowl.  after a while, paint on more glue which helps keep the layers down.  add more paper strips, until about four layers are formed.  put some of the strips around, like a real nest and others just across so the pieces stick out. when your fingers got too sticky, wipe them on a wet towel.

let the bowls dry overnight. then….get someone to drumroll with their hands on the table…another with their feet on the floor.  lift the nests out of the bowl and peal off the plastic. voila!  the most beautiful and delicate nests!

this was such an epic day!  we invited a bunch of our friends with little ones and had people bring all kind of bits and bobs and dyes and such to have an egg art party.  obviously, mimosas were had and shared for us "big kids" and sweet and brunchy potlucked yum yums too.  i was so surprised at the creativity that happened. it was pretty magical.  i experimented with natural dyes which i made prior and brought in jars.  check this website out (radmegan.com) for amazing recipes to do so...(click the picture below to do so).

on the table, we laid art paper to line it and protect the table from spills and splatters.  next time, i will mos'def put high quality water color paper because it was a serious masterpiece when we were through.

everyone brought so many awesome things to experiment with.  i brought stamps and gold stars (which were my fave), crayons, glitter, mesh netting, string, rubber bands, stickers, oil to add to some of the dyes to create a marbled tecture and my collection of egg cups to display them when they were finished...to name a few.  my friend jen even brought a real batik wax and candle situation to get crazy with. wow.  this is my idea of a good time.  mimosas, sunshine and wunderlust.  the kidlets and adults were equally enthralled in their creative masterpieces.  try this at home!

the low down...soon, i will get better at posting these tid bits as i am doing them, leading up to the holidays and parties i throw them on, so you too can share in the culinary crafting adventure i set sail upon.  hop aboard matey!  squack...hop aboard matey (totally done in a parrot accent, much like the one from Aladin).  for now, here this is for next year's reference for you to go ahead and take magic back along side us! 

little recap on St. Patrick's Day....we decided to take magic back!!!  the actual story of st. patrick and his day is totally lame and sad... but, like many "holidays" it has come to the americas through hemispheres and time, passed like a silly secret through ears and culture until it has become completely unrecognizable to it's origin. YAY! so good, in this case. this is the day my family celebrates magic! rainbows, leprechauns, and pots of gold. adventure seeking, charms, spells, and going green. crafting, food and friends.   long live the druids, the shamrockers and magic homies like yourselves!

rainbow ice cubes....umm, yeah. took me days to finish these icy gems...freezing each layer separately and such.  found natural food colouring that was extremely spendy and not as poppin as i'd hoped, at whole foods.  but deeeam! i had fun drinking my irish whiskey with one of these babies floating in it.  the kids were suuuper excited about them.  i found enormous silicon ice cube moulds somewhere... forget where, but am in love with them. i have seen them on amazon if you wanna go that route. 

menu:  

• cheese plate:  all kinds of cheeses that had green touches, bartlet pears, green apple chips, pistachio this, basil that, sage something or other...you get my drift. yu-um.
• caprese stacks:  beefsteak tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, mint leaves, and homemade basil pistachio pesto on a bed of arugula.
• mini cabbage:  okay, so obvz these are brussel sprouts with applewood smoked bacon from our friends farm in Powel River, but...you know...irish theme...cabbage. nuf said.
• potatoes:  obvz had to have a potato dish.  these are fennel chicken broth baked mandolin potatoes.  3 ingredients (besides salt and pepper) and are sooo good. i will post the recipe ...calm down.
• venison rack:  marinated in a lemon parsley caper chimichurri and lightly seared on the bbq and baked off to perfection.  salivating just thinking about it.  served with chimi on the side.  
• dessert: mini pavlovas with kiwi and blueberries tossed in a mint, lime simple syrup and topped with matcha whip cream and lime zest.  holy f*$k it was good.  plus, i totally cheated on the sugar in the simple syrup and used half sugar and half Zero, a natural sweetener with a super low glycemic index. yup, getting nerdy over here.  it was magnificent and fresh with now sugar crash afterwards.  recipe to follow.

i really wish i had amazing pictures of the table pre-aftermath...but...nope.  was totally in the zone. the magic zone.  fueled by magic, guiness and irish whiskey and solid gold friends and family. loved this evening.  only 3 couples and a houseful of kids.  that's how we do.  

this is a pretty unbelievable crown pleaser.  it is my "go to"  party food/pot luck/ladies night/craft night dish that i whip up when i am short on time.  for reals, it takes about 10 minutes and the delish factor is through the roof. 

prep and cook time: 10 minutes

ingredients:

• package of Medjool dates  (amount will simply depend on how much you are wanting to make. you cut them in half, so if you get 10 dates, there will be 20 yummy stuffed dates)
  
• organic cream cheese (i get it made from raw milk on a local farm-umm. sigh. best ever.)
• a handful or two of almonds, chopped 
• honey
  
• an apple
  
• a lemon wedge
  

in a skillet, cast iron is my fave, toast up the almonds until they look and smell...well...toasty. careful not to burn them. obviously.  i almost always have to go round two'sies on nut toasting (umm, i am sure there is a "that's what she said" joke in there somewhere).  put them in a bowl and set aside.


now cut the dates in half longways and remove the pits.  spoon cream cheese into the middle and fill the hole where the pit used to live.  then, roll the cream cheese top in the almonds to coat each date, placing them on the plate you will be using in a circle, with space in the middle for your apple rose.

wash the apple and using a peeler, start peeling strips of apple as long as you can get them by going around and around it. squeeze some lemon juice on them and toss them to coat.  the lemon prevents them from oxidizing and browning.  try to arrange them curled around each other until it looks like a rose and place in the middle of the plate.

now drizzle, drizzle, drizzle the whole masterpiece with honey, dates and the rose, until well coated.  enjoy.

my friend Kelly threw a SPARKLE party and these were pins she made up to promote it.  i helped her with decor one afternoon and my hands were glittered for a week...i shit you not.  spray adhesive, glitter, paper orbs, fumes, and sticky sparkled extremities.   oh my.