What's the opposite of Uber-Productive?

Okay, so much for being on a roll...I haven't done anything crafty this week! :( Well...we did make a yummy dinner the other night, does that count? See yummy:

It was a rotisserie chicken from the store all shredded up and mixed with rice, cheese sauce and cream of mushroom & chicken soup and some milk. Then we baked some biscuits upside down on a muffin pan to make the "bowl", dump the food in, sprinkle cheese on top, melt and tada! Tasty chicken bowl! :)

We are now fascinated with biscuit bowls and plan on making several variations: breakfast bowls with sausage/bacon and egg, italian bowls with spaghetti or lasagna, winter bowls with roast, upside down chicken pot pie, bologna (heh, I almost spelled it baloney) bowls...okay maybe not that last one.

And we also found a big bag o' ponies at the thrift store:

There were 23 total, here they are all hanging on Ally's desk (which looks extremely busy and crowded at the moment!!)

They have since had a bath and a comb out and look very loverly now. The Cakes

are going to have a big stampede ride later this weekend! lol...

Happy Birthday Ally!!!

Today is Ally's birthday!! She's as old as movies!! haha...okay just Cinemark. =)

When she was born, I wanted to name her Football... alas, it did not stick.

Happy Birthday Ally!!

HP Review--SPOILERS!!

Okay, be warned right now...there are spoilers in this post!! So if you haven't read the books or want to form your own opinion about the movie: STOP RIGHT HERE!! Okay? Good.




My overall opinion was that it was great. I don't know if I could ever say that a Harry Potter movie was bad, I just love them so much. I wouldn't say this was my favorite, but I really need to see it more than once to catch everything I missed and decide on that. I had been rereading the books like I always do each summer (does anyone else do that? It just feels right) and was hoping I'd make it thru book 6 before the movie, but I didn't...I'm only on the end of book 5. That might be a good thing though, because I don't remember every thing that they skipped or messed up at the moment.

From the very beginning I felt it was odd...I liked the little train station scene but didn't feel it was really right. It's supposed to open with a scene at the Dursleys each book and we never even got to see Dudley!! I love the Burrow, so any extra scenes there are great in my opinion. However, the whole Deatheater/fire thing was completely dumb and a waste of time. What was the point?? All it did was show Helena Bonham Carter's pregnant belly! ;)

I thought Draco's character was very well done...you could feel the panic and hysteria building up in him throughout. And I loved his suits...even though in the books they are almost never out of their wizard robes. It really made you feel sorry for him (and his mom) that he had such a gawd-awful dad.

Ron's love triangle with Lavender, Hermione and Rimelda (sp?) was great...he does some wonderful facial expressions esp. when he takes the love potion. When he was sitting staring at the moon and asked Harry if he could introduce Ron to Rimelda that was so funny/cute.

The part where Harry takes the Felix Felices (is that right? the Good Luck charm) was probably my favorite part of the movie. He was just so funny when he was copying Slughorn and sitting in Hagrid's cabin (did anyone else notice that Hagrid seemed to have grown in this movie?? And his furniture too? Harry's feet were dangling in the chair!)

I did not like the younger Tom Riddles at all...they weren't creepy enough and the older one, while he did look like the younger boy in this movie, looked nothing like the Tom Riddle we saw in the previous movie(s). I had read somewhere that that boy was too old now, but surely they could have found someone closer to him??

The ending...ugh. I did not like it at all. Even my sister, who hasn't read any of the books, felt like it wasn't right. They were just like "oh, Dumbledore's dead? Okay, guess I'll have to kill Old Voldy by myself then". It was supposed to be a horrible shock and so sad for everyone that this great wizard was suddenly dead. And they really should have shown his funeral. It didn't feel sad to me at all. Hermione was the only one who actually shed some tears...haven't these actors ever heard of eye drops?

Anyway, that's what I think. So there you have it. =) So...when does the next one come out? lol.

Harry Potter!!

Tonight at 7:00 I get to see the new Harry Potter!! Yay yay yay!! I'm excited. :) Our stepmom works for Cinemark and we get to see the early showing for free. So...I thought I'd feature some very cool HP items I found over on Etsy.

First up are two Snitch items...one for kitty cats by GEEkitty that I *know* our cats would go crazy over and a lovely necklace by Trophies

And how about this awesome Snape keychain by MoonInACup??? I love Snape...especially the "Turn to page 394" charm. haha!!

Also by MoonInACup is this Luna Lovegood charm bracelet...who doesn't love Luna?! She's so kooky. And has awesome hair in the movies

Okay, I think these are just ingenious...Harry Potter Lego Earrings by CosmicFunPalace

And if you can't make up your mind who's side you're on or which Weasley brother you love more, you can get a mixture of buttons by GetYourButtons My favorite is the "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good" and the book covers.

Hopefully this will tide you over till you get to go see the movie...I'll be back tomorrow and share my thoughts on it!! Woo!

I know what boys like...

I was extremely productive this weekend. =) I haven't been this crafty in a long time and it's been really nice...I hope it continues! Maybe it's cause it's so stinking hot outside I don't want to leave all weekend!

Anyway, first I finished the rest of the "Boy" Cards...I like them a lot. I think I've decided to do each 2 by themselves as a listing.

Aaaarrr....ahoy matey, you be a scurvy pirate...etc...

Cowboy up and all that stuff...yes I am from Texas and no I do not ride a horse to work nor do I own a cowboy hat or boots. Sorry to disappoint you.

Superguy!! Hah!! He's my favorite...so strong, so powerful, so generic. CLANG!!!

Here's the whole set all together. Bueno si? Si bueno. ;0)

And then, I decided to finally make this necklace that I've been gathering stuff for for like a year. I found this one pendant at Joann's over a year ago and it immediately screamed "Delirium" at me. Neil Gaiman's Delirium to be more exact. She has always been my favorite, I even dressed my Blythe doll, Ramona as her for Halloween! :)

I had these lovely butterfly sequins and then just started gathering beads and such as I found them. I had planned on doing it on one solid chain, but then yesterday we went to Michael's and I was inspired by one of the sample necklaces they had and decided to do some beads in between the chain...then I took it one step further and got out all the bits of chain we had left and pieced them together! I think it brings the whole Delirium "I'm crazy" thing together don't you?

I'm wearing it today with a really simple pink dress and I am so happy with it! I don't know that I've ever actually made a necklace specifically for me and not to sell. That being said, I do have one more pendant (was going to buy more, but they discontinued them! boo!!) and I might make another one to sell. I haven't decided yet though.

So, after I finished that, I was on a roll and made these 6 necklaces. Yep, 6! They are really simple, but I am loving the swirly circles! The key in the first picture is made by the amazingly talented PorkChopShow over on Etsy. And darn it, I should not have gone over there, because now I want those Vintage Gears & Pulleys!! And I adore the Onyx baubles and heart on the bottom two...they are on gunmetal chains as opposed to the bright silver of the rest. (Speaking of chain...do you know how freaking hard it is to find gunmetal chain and closures??? Or anything not bright silver or bright gold?? So annoying!)

Okay, I am about tired of typing now and you can see I have been uber-productive. ;) Maybe I should go be productive at my day job for a while!!

Allllll byyyyy mysellllfff....

So...my mom and sister don't seem as interested in doing the blog thing as they were in the beginning, which is okay. I am going to try to keep going on my own at least 1-2 times a week. (Or twice in one day like today! woo!) It may not happen, but we will see. And hopefully they will get more into it and start posting again. Until then, you're stuck with me!!

"All About Boys"?

Hi my name is Jennifer and I am a paper-aholic. There, all better! So, we were at Joann's last weekend...darn 4th of July specials...and I had my allowance burning a hole in my pocket (we are trying the allowance thing to chill on our spending habits, seems to be working!) and I found this cute little paper pack called "All About Boys".

Well, first of all, I flipped thru it and didn't feel that it had to be specifically FOR BOYS. But that's probably a whole 'nother post right? ;) Anyway, second, I really liked it...so I showed it to Ally and she was like, "Oooh robots! Oooh spaceships. Oooooh...circus!! Pirates!" Yeah, so I had to get it. And I have been looking for some paper that could be more for boys, instead of all fairies and candies and flowers.

So I decided to make some new cards and here they are...

Spaceships...now here's the debate: Do lasers make a Pew Pew sound or Bew Bew? Or if you're a Star Wars freak (not that there's anything wrong with that =0) woosh?

Robots...and lightbulbs? Sure!! I love the words on the paper: "Sounds, Memory, Wheels, Metal, Fix" lol...what's wrong with just Beep Bop Boop? Eh, I like it still.

Efalants and woozles!! Oh no wait, just efalants. Parts of the paper are shiny and feely, as you can see in this one. I really like that, even if it does make an awful squeaky noise on my papercutter.

I plan on making 2 of the pirates, superguy and maybe undersea creatures too to make a whole set. I think. Or maybe just sell them separately, I don't know! And I shouldn't have kickstarted the whole paper habit thing again, cause now I want this Nana's Kitchen stack! Isn't that the cutest??

Happy 4th of July!

We had a Blythe and Cake parade!! :) Ally made all the stars&stripes dresses and also the little solid ones the Cakes are wearing. And it was about 167 degrees outside (okay it's really 102, but it felt that hot!) and I think my feet got sunburned...but it was fun.

Chillin' with my Gnomeys...cupcakes

Probably my favorite food craft that we've done...not that we've done that many! :) We made these for Penny's 50th birthday and took them up to her work at lunchtime. They were a huge hit!! We had gotten her some little gnomes for her patio and decided to put those in the middle of the plate. We had to use our huge pizza pan because nothing else was big enough!

We just made regular chocolate cupcakes and then iced them to look like mushrooms (I hope!) and used white chocolate kisses for the dots. We made 3 different sizes: huge, normal and teeny-tiny. I liked the teeny-tiny the best...just pop 'em in your mouth! :)

We had extra room, so just threw the rest of the kisses around the edges.

Closeup of the center...gnomey goodness...

And when it was all ready, we put a plastic lid over that we had to go search for specially, and decorated with ivy around the edges...and there you have it, a gnomey garden!! Everyone went crazy over them and of course, Penny loved them!

I <3 Cakes!

We live in an apartment, so we don't have much space to take cute outdoorsy photos, like this one by Picklepud or the super talented Jillybug. (seriously, if she ever put a book out of her photos, I would buy like 3!!) And we're too lazy to do a full patio-garden, like our mom.

So...we decided to do a mini-version that could stay inside! We started with a large banker's box that Ally cut the front down on and then spray-painted a brick red color. And then we hit up Hobby Lobby and found some cute flowers/stems (all on sale...never buy regular price there!!), and some stones for the little path, some mossy stuff (which is messy and a PITA but so cute when you get it done) and a little wooden wheelbarrow (barrell?) and ladder (we already had the bench). Oh, and some more little flower pots and teeny-tiny birds to stick in the trees.

Then I got to paint everything, while Ally laid the stone path and grass. I think I got the better deal! :) Once we were done and totally covered in paint and glue gun strings, we started putting it together. Sticking those flower stems in the little bitty pots was hard!! I should have glued them in or something cause if you're not careful moving them they go *poof* and explode all over the place! Several times...

Anyway, here's the finished result...what do you think? I think it turned out really well...and the Cakes like it =) Lily, Sophie, Soda and Nellie got to try it out first.

My favorite part is the wheelbarrow exploding with flowers. And the stone path.

A closeup of the path and part of the tree. Ally laid the stones for the path first, then the moss and then went back and lined the edges with bigger stones to kind of stamp the grass down. It really helped.

The "gazing ball" lawn ornament. (A pretty marble I got in a swap!)

(Pixie outfits and Nellie are custom Polly-Jane creations!! Also, lots more pictures in Jenn&Ally's Flickr on the side!)

Just sittin' on the front porch...

I had the best time last week. On Wednesday I went to visit Ricky and Vickie... my brother and sister-in-law...and it was so relaxing and I enjoyed our visit so much...they live about 2 hours from me and seems I never go see them often enough. They live about five miles outside of town and at night ohhh it's so quiet you only hear the crickets and maybe a way off barking dog...hope it was a dog!

I was sitting out on the porch that evening just rocking away and of course you don't turn on the ceiling fan light cause then you'd be swarmed with bugs ...so I'm sitting there and I looked out across the acre of yard and I'm looking through the trees and I can see the glow of eyes, several pairs of eyes...and all three dogs of theirs were close to the house...Eeeeeeeeee....went in the house really quick...that's really creepy for a city girl...

I'm a paper girl...

Hi, it's Jenn!! I wanted to post a few of my favorite things and projects...I am more of a paper girl; I don't sew, nor do I really wish to learn how. I do like fabric, but am not nearly as obsessed by it as my mom and sister. You should see the hordes of fabric they have!! It's ca-razy. But, I guess the same could be said for my paper supplies. :) I make a lot of cards and bookmarks, I've done ATC swaps before and made journals, tried doing scrapbooking and didn't quite finish it (although I got pretty close!). Pretty much whatever you can think to do with paper, I've done.

This is probably my favorite set I've done, the fairytale cards. The paper just makes me so happy, especially the fairy one. It's got bits of glitter in the paper so it shimmers when you turn it and I decorated them with ribbon and fancy-schmancy buttons. Love!

This is the first set of ATC's I ever did...my Mod Squad. lol...and they are probably my favorite too. I should have saved one for myself. I used paper and stickers and raised epoxy stickers...and bath bubble things. Yep, the blue and green dots are bath bubbles. I got them in a supply swap once and for some weird reason decided to glue them on some paper and see what happened. They didn't disentegrate and stayed put, so I started using them! And they smell pretty too. :)

After paper crafts, I'd say jewelry making is my passion. I mostly make necklaces and tend to lean towards long, dangly, "charm" necklaces. I *love*love*love* keys, skeleton mostly but any will do, and use them on nearly every piece. If you have spare keys just hanging around, send them my way!!

This necklace was started with the flowery ring I found in an antique store...I cut the back off and turned it into a necklace brooch. All the keys are vintage too and I then added some updated embellishments. My aunt actually bought this one and if she hadn't, I probably would have kept it!! (Even though I don't wear gold!)

This is one of the more modern pieces, again using keys, and my second favorite material, those dangly baubles. So shiny, so pretty, so already put together!! lol...

So there you have it...some of my favorite things. :)

Worked on several things...finished none...

Hey I'm Penny, the mom. This is harder than I thought... I worked on several things today and finished none...how's that? Some days are just like that, I suppose and not necessarily a bad thing. There are days that if I only do a few things or part of some things eventually they will come together.

I did sort through my embroidery threads and color coded them, they look so pretty.

I started crocheting a new wash cloth, I bought two new colors of Peaches and Cream cotton thread, I just fell in love with. One's called Orange sherbet, reminds me of a dreamsicle...my favorite...the other is a bright orange called Sunburst..such beautiful colors...I enjoy crocheting it's very relaxing to me.

Everywhere I go I have this zip-lock baggie with a ball of my favorite yarn and my crochet hook in it...whether I'm waiting at doctor's office or riding while my sweetie's driving in traffic...just makes me calm and happy...