Tuesday, September 25, 2012

The Ring Bearer is now the Sign Carrier

It's been busy over at my Etsy shop, Everyday Cookies Custom Hand Painted Signs.  One of the new signs I've added has been wonderfully received.  In wedding processions the little boy used to always be the "ring bearer".  But often, because of his young age, he couldn't be trusted with the Real Ring, so he had a fake little ring tied on a satin pillow, which he may or may not drag on the floor.  But guess what? Something new!

The "ring bearer" is now the "sign carrier"!  How wonderful is this new tradition for the little man in the wedding?


I've painted many varieties, from "Uncle Adam...", to "Hey Mike....", and even "This is my Mommy....".   I'll paint whatever fits your wedding!  If you purchase just let me know what you want.


I hope all the girls had fun at Handmade U.  There's nothing like packing up all your best crafting supplies in a little suitcase then joining like-minded crafters for a weekend of fun!  New friendships are always made, and the crafting almost becomes secondary to the visiting.  Maybe that's how it was in the old days when the women would get together to quilt.  I don't quilt, but if I did it would be for the visiting!

Blessings, Heidi

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Handmade U

Yay!  An art retreat you can attend this fall! 



Handmade U is an all inclusive art retreat where artists from all over the country gather to create, laugh, bong, shop and ....eat cupcakes! I won't be able to attend, but I will be a sponsor!

The instructors and projects for this event will be wonderfully creative. Just to drop a few names as far as instructors go, you'll get to take classes from Hope Karney Wallace (journal making and lettering class) and Liesel Lund (vintage children's book journal class, involving painting, collage and altering the books), and more!

This event will be held in Omaha, NE on September 20-22, 2012.  (Remember Omaha NE from "Silver Bella" of past years? I enjoyed the town a few years back when I was able to attend Silver Bella.)  There are a limited number of sign-ups, but still plenty of room for you!

Check out the blog for more information, such as costs, sign-ups, locations, and more.

Blessings, Heidi


Friday, July 6, 2012

CSI Challenge: Frozen Treats and Push-Up Pops

Want to have weekly challenges?  Start here, at Create Something Inspiring! Each week there is a challenge, sponsors, winners and more!  You can follow CSI on Facebook here.

The challenge given to me for this week’s CSI July Project Tutorial was “Frozen Treats and Push Up Pops”.  Great topic for summer, unless you live on the Oregon Coast, where some are still keeping their wood stoves going this month!  But I have confidence that the sun will shine and Oregon will warm up soon, so I will have my Frozen Treats ready!
(my photo)

I immediately thought of my box of empty TP rolls.  I save them, as you never know when you need 50 empty TP rolls!  I thought they’d be great for this homemade push-up pops challenge.  Challenge it is!  I experimented a little but didn’t quite get that project off the ground—or rather out of the freezer!  I just couldn't wrap my mind around eating something from a TP tube! LOL  I quickly moved on to my next idea.
I’ve seen those Frozen Dots treats once or twice and I thought it’s be great to make those.  However I found I would need an industrial freezer that get’s way colder than mine, as well as some high tech chemistry knowledge.

Then I moved on to making frozen yogurt , homemade.  You know, the kind that comes out of a big tank at the FroYo shop?  Hum, not really possible at home!  But the idea of freezing yogurt IS possilbe. I'd seen some "dots' around online and thought of trying that out. 
I’m pretty sure any yogurt will work, but I only experimented with my favorite, Yoplait.  Put the container of yogurt in the freezer for about a half hour, to firm it up so that you can make use the decorating tips. If you use it right out of the refrigerator it’s too running to do anything but make a glob.

You can use decorating bags or even a plastic Ziploc bag. I buy a the 100 Count box of Wilton’s 12 inch Disposable Decorating Bags and use this all the time, but primarily for my annual Children’s Gingerbread Decorating Party. 

Put your tip in the bag then screw on the holder on the outside of the bag. Cut off the end of the bag for an opening, (Cake Decorating 101 here!).  I set mine in a tall glass (notice the vintage Coke glass) and then fill the bag with yogurt.

Find a cookie sheet, pan or even a plate that will fit in your freezer, then just drop DOTS!  I use Silpat matts for just about all the baking in my kitchen, and now will use them for the freezer dots.  

Pop the dots in the freezer and leave for at least an hour or two.  Done!

Now for a few more variations on this easy project...I thought, “What other dots could I drop?”  It needs to start as something rather thick, not running or watering…
Pudding...Pureed Bananas..Applesauce...I'll let you know how these "pan" out! :)

Now, to futher inspire you on Popsicle making, this is a must save listing:
 30 Homemade Popsicle Recipes... You won't go away dissapointed!

---One other quick idea for children:  Cut a small hole in the bottom of a plastic disposible cup and put their popsicle stick through that to save drippings from getting all over their arm!  NOTE:  this method is also perfect to hold the sparklers on the 4th of July!  (Save that thought for next year!)

(online photo source)
----Or, just use a cupcake holder!
(online source)

----Also, if you are looking for popcicle molds, and you don't have very many store options nearby, just shop Amazon.  Type in "Popcicle Mold" and you'll be AMAZED at all the new molds they make now.  This is the one I'll be ordering, Tovola Groovy Ice Pop Molds.
(I just love the "grooves" and the color--not so bright!)



Thank you for visiting and stay cool!
Blessings!
~Heidi

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Repurposed Wood

Just so you know....Pinterest rocks!  Real quick...I wanted to share with you a wonderful repurposed Pinterest board that the pinner has loaded with repurposed wood projects.  I have made many of the headboard turned benches in the past, and there are links for a lot of those. 
(from Pinterest)

Here's a bench I made...(with Mark's aid when necessary)...and a barnwood sign I made for a wedding.  I photograph ALL my signs on a these homemade repurposed benches for my Etsy store!
(my photo)


My daughter (Melissa) just made her crib, used for all three of their children, into a fabulous black patio bench.  There are pins for crib projects on this Pinterest blog.
(from Melissa's photos)

Down the road we have a big pile where people have thrown stuff to be burned (not us, we burn here on our own property).  Someone must have been remodeling their home as one day I found a bunch of old doors.  So I loved all the door project on this "Repurposed Love" board. Can't wait to make something, anything!

Maybe this....
(from Pinterest)

Or this...
(from Pinterest)

I just love this project, I've wanted one of these for years and years:
(from Pinterest)

Last week at CSI (Create Something Inspiring) the "challenge" of the week was "wood projects".  Check out the winner and some other great projects here.

Just wanted to give you some Saturday morning wood projects inspiration! Go...build something!
         Blessings, Heidi

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Hello friends! Yes, I'm still around! It's just that between all that I'm trying to do something had to give, and it was my blog! My intention is to post occasionally, so here I am! So much going on, but one of my favorite activies is to.... BE GRANDMA HEIDI!

Summer in Oregon begins, oh, say....around August 1 and ends...oh...say about September 1. Just kidding! But summer on the southwestern coast of Oregon DOES get off to a slow start! I had the grandkids here for a few hours yesterday and though I wanted to have them slide down the slip-&-slide like this time last year...

(last year)

..it was chilly out so I built a little fire in our outdoor fire pit and had them roast marshmallows.

Mark made this heavy metal fire pit for me last year. He cut and welded all the pieces, making it the exact height I asked for, welding on "legs, then painting it black. I think he used 1/2" metal, because this fire pit is h*e*a*v*y--luckily my brother was here the day Mark moved it out of the shop!


(last year)


Ellie's marshmallows immediately caught fire...


But she ate them anyway! She had melted marshmallow all in her hair and on her clothes, but I knew I was sending them home soon...that's how Grandmas are, you know!

Claira just sat in a chair watching...and eating...it wasn't necessary to toast her's!

John Mark ever so patiently barely toasted his, he was so careful to NOT have any charred marshmallow.

We also played around with the sidewalk chalk:


 So what else?  I continue to spend moments on Pinterest (while on HOLD on the phone, as I'm working! I can PIN a LOT while on hold!!! LOL)...
        Here's just a sampling of a few Pins I actually did:

(filled strawberries...a sweeten creamcheese filling!)

(banana white chocolate chip biscotti -- these are SO GOOD!)


(homemade Ritz crackers... again SO good!)

Time to get some work done! 
Thanks for visiting and blessings to you!

   ~Heidi



Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Featured Artist of the Week on CAST Blog

What a delight to be the Featured Artist on the "Christian Artist Street Team" blog today!  (You can find this member's of this group of artist on Etsy by searching for CAST.)

They interview various artist from the group weekly, and these are then featured on Wednesdays. 

As a thank you to the readers and friends, I will be giving a way a FREE sign (your choice of any of my signs) from my Etsy store.  To enter this drawing you MUST do two things:
1) Go "LIKE" my Everyday Cookies FACEBOOK page
AND
2) Leave a comment on that page (so I can find you!).


Hope to see you there!
Blessings,
~Heidi

PS You can find my Etsy shop here; go ahead look for a sign now in case you win!

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Romantic Chic Wedding

Weddings are wonderful, aren't they? We recently attended one of my niece's wedding, which was held at a beautiful California golf course.  The setting was lovely, nothing like the setting sun for an outdoor wedding!  The reception, held inside the golf club, was romantic chic and you know how I love that combination!  To top it off, the bride let me paint a few signs to use; my pleasure.
presenting....Mr. and Mrs!

presenting....our daughter, Jessica on the right
and another of our nieces on the left (there were 8 attendants each)

presenting....our family

presenting....grab a treat, candy!

("Love is Sweet   So Grab a Treat" sign)
presenting....a lovely romantic cake!
I loved the pink swirls and roses.

presenting...each table had cupcakes as centerpieces

presenting...Happily Ever After Starts Here

presenting....Mr. and Mrs!
This one is my VERY FAVORITE photo! 

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Ray!  It was an honor to witness your marriage ceremony and then celebrate at your reception. May God bless you as you begin you journey down the road of life together.

Blessings & hugs, Heidi

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Just checking in!

Just wanted to pop in and say "hi"!



One of my sisters and I drove 10 hours south to visit family a couple weeks ago. I ended up at the piano playing "No Never Alone" and was quickly joined in by my father and mother!  That song was one of my favorite hymns when I was about 10 years old. I can still remember singing it at the Sunday night "Singspirations". I know that even in times when things feel dark I am NEVER alone as God is always with me!  It was fun playing it with my dad on the guitar.


In the few days I was out of state there was a huge SNOW storm here.  (Mark took the above photo of the front of our place.)  We were without power and phone lines for a few days.  And I missed it all!



The weekend I returned Mark and I went to the lighthouse at the ocean bar to see how it looked out there after all the flooding we had here.  There was so much drift wood, and the ocean was full of more logs and stuff coming out of the opening of the river.  There was even a dairy cow washed up on the beach.  I took some photos, as it had a tag/ID number on the ear, in case I could let the dairy owner know where the cow ended up.  This isn't the first time we've seen a cow washed ashore.


Then there's the three grandchildren....here's Ellie & Claira in the middle of a sweet tea party.  Ellie said, "I'm so glad Claira is old enough to have a tea party now!"


Claira absolutely loves having her photo taken!


This is John Mark, just after his first ever school program! (Kindergarten!) It was also his day day of being 5 years old.  Now he is 6!  He's one of the sweetest boys you'd ever meet!  We had a wonderful birthday party for him here this past weekend. Load of fun!


"Happily Ever After Starts Here"...a sign I painted for a wedding we're going to next month!
I've been busy painting signs for my Etsy store orders!

Blessings & hugs, Heidi


Saturday, February 11, 2012

Mark's Valentine Gift to Me


You must just know my Mark, he's the sweetest person on earth. When Valentine's Day comes around I can always count on him to bring me Haagen Dazs Rocky Road Ice Cream.  (He's precious---he picks it up on the way home from work, then I eat it right away!)  He's never sent flower to me.  Well, except the ONE time he did:  It just didn't work out---the florist was SO busy, they delivered the roses the DAY AFTER Valentine's Day!  It was supposed to be a surprise; it was!  But being the person I am, I refused the flowers, and made sure the florist credited Mark.  We both agreed after that experience, that the only way to be sure I was happy was to stop and buy the chocolate ("any chocolate", I told him) on the way home. 



But this year is different.  You see, today he bought this for me:


Because we love adventure, he bought one for himself as well!  We'll take them when we go camping.  Plus there are a number of great trails around here for us to explore. Now isn't this the Valentine's Day gift you always wanted?  I love my Mark!

I told him it needs some pink and he sent me the link to this eBay item:
"I am a grandma,", I said!  He said, "Age doesn't matter!"  He has so much confidence in me, I'm honored.  So, OF COURSE, I took it out for a few test rides on our road.  I did fine, luckily our old Lab Sarge MOVED out of the way at the last second, but that was a close call!

My question for you all:  What unusual gift has your loved one given you for Valentine's Day?

Hugs, Hearts, Love and Blessings,
                    ~Heidi