Showing posts with label oodlekadoodle primitives. Show all posts
Showing posts with label oodlekadoodle primitives. Show all posts

Thursday, April 14, 2011

VIOLET OR DANDELION JELLY & LAVENDER SUGAR!

SPRING! SPRING! SPRING!

Hopefully is finally here. Our Farmer’s Seed & Nursery bare root room is open and Donahue’s Garden Center is opening today! That means the Dandelions & Wild Violets will be sprouting soon. So hop on over to Parkers General Blog and grab the recipes for



VIOLET JELLY



DANDELION JELLY


And this one looked interesting


RED PEPPER JAM

Just click here to go there


LAVENDER SUGAR WITH VANILLA

This is wonderful just to open and sniff! Make four jars one with lavender and sugar put into a vita mix to make into lavender powdered sugar(Which is nice if you don't want lavender buds in your baking. Or to add to a cup of comforting tea), then jar two with lavender and the fourth put in a vanilla bean. Can be used in cake or cookie mixes, a cup of tea, in a frosting or glaze, salad dressing or just take a sniff every now and again! A great way to make the summer stay a little longer! You can also make the lavender jelly with it! Makes a great gift.

INGREDIENTS:

4 cups sugar
4 tablespoons fresh lavender flowers
1 vanilla bean (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Place a cup of sugar in each (1 cup) jar along with 1 tablespoon lavender and divide the vanilla bean among some or all the jars. Let sit overnight.


PRAIRIE COVERED WAGON SAWDUST PILLOW STACK.

This is one of my new items listed in The Prim Nest


I just found a darling pattern for a Pin Keep. It is listed in an Etsy shop. Click here to go there if you are interested in buying a pattern.




Friday, October 1, 2010

GHOSTING~MASON JAR LANTERNS~EERIE LUMINARIAS


On Fridays I am going to recycle past posting. This will give new followers a chance to see them and the older followers to find them once again.

Sara over at Graphic Pretties came up with this idea and I thought you might like to start this as a Halloween tradition in your neighborhood…Sounds like fun to me and then maybe at Christmas time you could do a Secret Santa in the same fashion…

Have you heard of ghosting? We started ghosting in our neighborhood a few years ago and it has been started by someone every year since. If you have several children in your neighborhood they will really enjoy the fun!

Pick two neighbors to ghost...buy some treats and put them in a decorative bag or plastic pumpkin... at night sneak up and place the treats on the porch.. knock or ring the doorbell and RUN. place the ghosting letter and ghost picture along with the treats...this will provide them with the info they need to play along.
Get the ghosting letter and ghost picture *HERE*

Want to make some of these adorable
MASON JAR LANTERNS
Then go to Our Best Bites for the instructions...Click *HERE* to get the INSTRUCTIONS

EERIE LUMINARIAS


Light the path to your haunted mansion with these clever milk jug luminarias
Click *HERE* for the instructions & patterns!!


Wednesday, September 29, 2010

PUMPKIN! PUMPKIN! PUMPKIN! PIE, BREAD & SOUP!


DOUBLE-LAYER PUMPKIN PIE

Serve with mugs of spicy cider.

INGREDIENTS:

1 refrigerated pie crust
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3/4 c. granulated sugar, divided
3 large eggs, divided
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp rum or 1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/4 c. pumpkin or homemade pumpkin puree
1 c. evaporated milk
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 tbsp butter
1/2 c. pecan pieces
Rum Whipped Cream, for serving (see recipe)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pie crust in a deep-dish pie plate; set aside.
Beat cream cheese, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 egg, nutmeg and rum with electric mixer until smooth. Spread evenly in prepared pie crust.
In a large bowl, stir together pumpkin, evaporated milk, remaining 2 eggs, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt until thoroughly combined. Starting around edge of pie, slowly pour pumpkin mixture over cream cheese layer. Bake for 50 minutes.
Meanwhile, make streusel topping. Combine brown sugar and flour in a small bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles wet sand. Stir in pecans. Set aside.
Sprinkle streusel topping evenly over pie. Bake 10 minutes more or until center is nearly set and topping is golden. Cool to room temperature. Cover loosely and chill. If desired, serve with Rum Whipped Cream.

RUM WHIPPED CREAM

INGREDIENTS;

1 c. whipping cream
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp rum or vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

In a medium bowl beat together whipping cream, sugar and rum or vanilla extract on medium-high speed of electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Cover and chill until serving time.

PUMPKIN BANANA BREAD WITH DARK CHOCOLATE BUTTER

INDREDIENTS:

2 c. all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp grated orange zest
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1 c. canned pumpkin or homemade pumpkin puree
2 large eggs
1 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. mashed ripe banana
1/2 c. vegetable oil
Dark Chocolate Butter (see recipe)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, stir flour, baking powder, cinnamon, orange zest, baking soda, salt, ginger and cloves.
In a large bowl, stir together pumpkin, eggs, sugar, banana and oil. Stir flour mixture into pumpkin mixture just until combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 55 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool pan on wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pan and cool completely.
Slice and serve with Dark Chocolate Butter.

DARK CHOCOLATE BUTTER

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. baking cocoa
3 tbsp water
1/4 c. unsalted butter
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

In a heavy small saucepan stir together sugar, cocoa powder and water until smooth.
Add butter; cook and stir over medium-low heat until bubbly.
Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Pour into a small bowl.
Cool 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate until serving time.

HOLIDAY PUMPKIN SOUP

INGREDIENTS:

2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 c. chopped celery
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/2 tsp dried sage leaves
1 tsp salt
6 c. chicken broth or vegetable broth, divided
1 (29 ounce) can pumpkin
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
8 tbsp sour cream, for garnish
Caramelized Pumpkin Seeds, for garnish (see recipe)

DIRECTIONS:

In a large saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, celery and garlic; cook and stir until onion is translucent and celery is soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in thyme, sage and salt.
Stir in 4 cups broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Stir in pumpkin; cover and simmer 10 minutes more.
Carefully puree in several batches in food processor. Return to saucepan; stir in 1 cup broth. If soup is too thick, gradually stir in more broth until desired consistency is reached. Heat through. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper.
Ladle into serving bowls. Garnish with sour cream and Caramelized Pumpkin Seeds, if desired

CARAMELIZED PUMPKIN SEEDS

INGREDIENTS:

1 medium pumpkin
2 1/2 tsp vegetable oil, divided
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp brown sugar

DIRECTIONS:

To roast seeds, preheat oven to 300 degrees. Scoop seeds from pumpkin; pull seeds from fibers, discarding fibers. (Rinsing seeds is not necessary but if you do, pat dry with paper towel.) Place 1 cup seeds in a bowl. Add 1-1/2 teaspoons oil and salt; toss to coat evenly. Place seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast for 30 to 45 minutes or until seeds make a popping sound and become golden, stirring occasionally.
To caramelize seeds, in a medium skillet heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium-high heat. Stir in roasted pumpkin seeds. When seeds just begin to sizzle, stir in brown sugar, stirring constantly for 20 to 30 seconds or until seeds are coated with melted sugar and turn deep brown. Be careful not to scorch. Remove from heat and transfer to a sheet of foil to cool, breaking up any clumps.
Recipes from Hy-Vee


Friday, September 24, 2010

GRUBBY DIPPIN’


GRUBBY DIPPIN’

Dipping is a technique used with wax. Also called grubbing. There are several methods to grubby your items. Here are a few: Whisk method, rolling method, and the spicy grubby method. Using an old pan or a double broiler, or crock pot, melt the wax (paraffin) on low heat. Add stearine (this helps the wax stay hard and not melt in warm weather). When wax is melted, remove from heat, and choose your way of dipping. If you want to add color and scent, this is the time to do so. You can buy color wax chips or just use crayons you snatched from the kids, or even food coloring. I like to use lots of spices (cinnamon, ginger, cloves etc.). Spices mixed together make a dark brown color. Do not mix spices in with your color chips because you just end up with brown anyway. You will know when your wax in ready for dippin’ because it gets a film on top. TIP: If you dip a spoon in, the wax should stick to it. If this happens, you are ready to dip. If the wax runs off, it is too hot and if it is too clumpy, the wax is too cold.

Whisk Whip Method: Using a old whisk or fork, quickly stir and whip the wax to make bubbles. The more bubbles, the more grubby looking it will be. Dip your items and lay on waxed paper to dry.

Rollin’ Method: Dip your item into the wax and quickly roll in dry spices or mixture (shreaded wax, crushed bay leaves, coffee beans, etc.) Then re-dip to make the spices stick.

Spicy Grubby Method: Add spices to the melted wax. Keep stirring as you dip your items so that the spices stick to your item. Spices have a tendency to go to the bottom so you have to keep stirring.

If you are dippin’ wood items, you may have to dip it a few times for the wax to stick. If you are gluing bows, etc. to dipped items remember to use E6000 or tacky glue … HOT glue does not work as it just melts the wax.

NOTE: If you are dippin’ wood items, you may have to dip it a few times for the wax to stick. If you are gluing bows, etc. to dipped items remember to use E6000 or tacky glue … HOT glue does not work as it just melts the wax.

Try making some wooden gingerbread men and snowmen to add to potpourri. Tie them up with your candles to sell in a bag. Make bay leaf garlands out of them. Have your dolls hold them in baskets.

Take heavy cardboard and use cookie cutters (stars, hearts, gingerbread men, etc.) Trace them onto the cardboard and cut out. Punch a hole in top and string in some twine. Now you have to melt wax in your OLD crock pot. When melted, turn off your crock pot and let wax start to harden. It’s ready when there is a film on top. Stir wax and start to dip your ornies. The wax should be cool enough to be chunky. Dip them about four or five times and they get the real grubby look. Add a piece of homespun to your gingerbread men and Wala!!!!!! You should add a scent to your wax.

Use your imagination. You can dip hang tags, stuffed stars and hearts, cinnamon sticks, dried apples and oranges to add to potpourri, the list is endless.
Please have fun with this craft but do remember that if you are not careful you can burn yourself.

Monday, September 13, 2010

PRINTING ON FABRIC & IRON ON TRANSFER!


PRINTING ON FABRIC

Forget about printing on some transfer paper and then ironing it onto some fabric. With some freezer paper you can print right on the fabric itself. No need to reverse the image and it's faster, cheaper, and more effective.

Use pinking shears to cut the top edge of your muslin. Cut your material exactly the size you are printing - 8 1/2 x 11, 11x14, 11x17, or 13x19 -- whichever your printer takes. Iron fabric to the shiny side of freezer paper. Leave just about 1/8 inch at top where pinked edge is so the printer catches the freezer paper first. MAKE SURE there are no threads ANYWHERE to catch in the printer or you will hear loud whining, groaning, dying sounds. Set printer to cardstock or heavy paper and to the size you are printing. Put in printer so material side gets the printing. Then --- hit the print button.

IRON-ON-TRANSFER

To make an iron-on transfer take a sheet of regular computer paper, run a glue stick around the outside edges and lay this over a piece of freezer paper--to the non-shiny side. Trim your freezer paper to fit the computer paper. Start your iron warming on a cotton setting--no steam. If your pattern has any text on it you will need to scan it into your computer as a mirror image--because otherwise it will print backwards! After you scan and save your new image print it out--this is the copy you will print from. Place the piece of freezer paper you created into the printer so that the printer will PRINT ON THE SHINY SIDE of the paper and print. Now take this directly to your iron (I don't know if you can let it sit for a long period of time and have it still work or not) and iron it face down onto your fabric--making sure to press the entire area. When finished pressing peel back the paper and voila'! You have your image all ready to stitch! Sure beats holding it up to the window.

Friday, September 3, 2010

FAUX CINNAMON BUNS & LINEN SPRAY!


FAUX CINNAMON BUNS

SUPPLIES:

1 yd. Muslin
Ground Cinnamon or All Spice
Matte Mod Podge
Wax Paper or Freezer Paper
3-4 plastic cups & spoons
Beige colored thread
Fiberfill
Large Needle
Paint Brush
Antique White craft paint
1/4 cup of Faux Nuts (Optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Cut Muslin into strips approximately 5" wide by 24" long. This will be for the smallest size. You can increase them into 7" and 9" widths for varying height.

Fold material in half long ways and stitch a straight line to sew together, forming a long tube. Take tube and turn inside out. Now, stuff your tube with fiberfill. Don't pack it too tightly because you will be coiling it together in the shape of a cinnamon bun. Sew both ends shut now.

Starting with one end, begin to coil your tube together and form your Cinnamon Bun. When your Cinnamon Bun is rolled together, stitch the end to the bun to hold this shape in place. A few good stitches should hold this in place. Now, push your Cinnamon Bun up in the center slightly, from the bottom, to look like the middle has risen slightly. Just as a real Cinnamon Bun looks like.

Now, take about a 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon and mix into about a 1/3 cup of Mod Podge, into a plastic cup; mix well. Apply this mix all over your Cinnamon Bun with your paint brush. Now sprinkle your cinnamon also over your Bun. You don't need to cover your Bun completely, it looks more real when you don't. Tap off excess. Place your Bun on wax paper and let dry for about 20 minutes.

Coat your Bun again with the Mod Podge mix (don't worry about clumping, this just looks more realistic). Sprinkle again with Cinnamon and tap off excess. Set aside again to dry.

FROSTING MIX:

Take about 1/4 cup of Mod Podge and place in a plastic cup. Mix in a few drops of your Antique White Paint and stir very well until it becomes very opaque.

Now, take your plastic spoon and drizzle your Buns with your frosting mix while they are sitting on the wax paper. You can now sprinkle your Cinnamon Bun with some Faux Nuts (I have them in my ebay store). Let dry for approximately 2 hours or overnite. (You can also spray the underside of your Buns with a Cinnamon Bun linen spray to give them that "fresh baked" scent!)

LINEN SPRAY

SUPPLIES:
4 oz clean spray bottle with a fine mist setting (do not use a bottle that previously contained cleaning products or hair products)
1.5 ounces disitilled water
1.5 ounces vanilla extract
up to 10 drops of your favorite scented oils

Go to candlechem on ebay for a large selection of scented oils and you can get the spray bottle at walmart.

DIRECTIONS:

Fill the bottle with 1.5 ounces of the vanilla and disitilled water. Even though a 4 ounce bottle is suggested, leave about 1 ounce unfilled so you can shake the bottle well between uses.
Then add up to 10 drops of your scented oils.
Shake the bottle prior to each use and be sure to let it sit for a day before making a conclusion that the aroma is weak; the aroma can change after the spray has had time to sit.
Mist your finished primitive lightly and dry.
If you need more scent, just mist again.
Have fun with this easy to do project...It will make your kitchen smell so good!




Monday, August 30, 2010

FAUX GINGERBREAD MEN RECIPE!


FAUX GINGERBREAD MEN

Run, run, as fast as you can.

You can't catch me,

I'm the Gingerbread Man!


INGREDIENTS:

3 Tablespoons Shortening
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Molasses
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
3/4 Cup water
3 1/2 Cups Flour
1 Teaspoon of cloves, ginger and cinnamon
raisins
acrylic spray sealer
acrylic white paint
Elmers glue

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 DEGREES.
Beat shortening and sugar until light and fluffy, Stir in molasses.
Sift the dry ingredients together.
Stir into the shortening mixture in 3 parts, alternating with a 3/4 cup of water each time
Dough will be stiff.
Refrigerate over night. Cut dough into 3 pieces.
Knead to warm dough slightly, and then roll each piece out to 1/4 thick.
Cut out gingerbread pattern of your choice. Use your cookie cutters to create gingerbread men. You can create shirts and pants and dresses for the characters by cutting two gingerbread men from the same cookie cutter, then recutting one of the men into clothing. You can make eyes and buttons using a straw.

Once you are through with the design, poke a hole in the head with a toothpick or straw if you desire to use the cookies as ornaments. The cookies also look (and smell!) nice, after completed, if left out on a plate as a centerpiece. Just make sure everyone knows they are inedible!

Make the eyes, mouth, & buttons with the raisins now or wait till they have been sprayed with the clear acrylic and then combine Elmers glue and white paint in approximately a 50/50 ratio to create a "frosting." This "frosting" can be used to paint on eyes, buttons,mouths or squiggly clothing lines.
I prefer the old fashion raisins.

Place cookies on a cookie sheet and bake 20 mins, turn oven off and let cook in oven.
Remove from cookie sheet and place on a rack to dry for about 3 days to totally harden.

When harden seal cookies with a couple coats of matte clear acrylic sealer or if you want the gingerbread men to be shinny use gloss clear acrylic sealer.
They can also be dipped into scented wax.
Let the paint/glue dry, and they're ready for hanging or putting on a plate as a decoration

You can easily and quickly turn a mostly-empty glue bottle into a frosting tube for the gingerbread men. Remove the top off the bottle, add the paint, and stir the glue and paint together to form the frosting. The tip of the glue bottle is just the right size for decorating your gingerbread men.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

HOW TO MAKE PAPER LOOK OLD!


HOW TO MAKE PAPER LOOK OLD

Creating paper that looks old is not as hard as you may have thought. All it takes is some common household items and a little time and practice. If you need an authentic-looking treasure map or an old parchment to write a poem on, you don’t need a time machine – just an oven and some basic household supplies.

Tea Bag Staining
Drag a wet (not dripping) tea bag over your paper. Weight your paper down while it dries to avoid warping. The paper will be stained a brownish color. Keep your cup of tea handy, in case the teabag dries out, so that you can dip it again. Keeping the tea bag in the tea will produce a stronger yellow color. A lingering tea-smell might remain. Tea-bag staining is not acid free, if this matters to you.

Coffee Grounds Staining
Like tea, you can use coffee grounds to make paper look old. Apply wet coffee grounds to your paper. Remove grounds. The paper will be stained brown. Dry paper under a weight to avoid warping. As above, there is likely to be a coffee odor afterwards. Coffee grounds are also not acid free.

Soaking with Coffee
Make a really strong cup of black coffee. Use about eight times as much instant coffee powder as you would to drink.
Get a container (plastic will melt) that is a little bigger than the piece of paper you are using, like a 9x13" baking pan. It can be shallow. Make sure that that the paper is not so thin,so you don't need a very deep bath but just enough.
Pour about 1/4 inch of coffee into the bottom of the container.
Put your piece of paper into the liquid. Let it float on top, so that the coffee seeps through the back.
Using a spoon, spoon the coffee over the paper until it has a thin covering. Leave it for about a minute so that it absorbs the tannins.
Carefully, so as not to rip the damp paper, transfer it to another tray that has no coffee in it. You may want to hold it up for a second to let any excess coffee drain away.
Using your finger-nail or a spoon, tear little holes in the paper. Wad up the paper you removed and drop it in little lumps across the surface of the paper. When baked, these will merge back into the surface, creating lumps. These lumps make it look and feel more like parchment, the writing material used in the medieval ages.
Make sure there are no pools of liquid on the paper. Bake in an oven for 5-7 minutes at 200 degrees Fahrenheit until the paper has dried.
Take it out and let it cool. You now have a sheet of paper straight from the 1400s!

Balsamic Vinegar Spattering
Same as above. Expect odor. Vinegar is not acid free.

Lemon Juice
Paint your paper with lemon juice, then heat with a heat gun. The paper will take on a brownish, aged look. It will continue to darken as you continue to apply heat. Lemon juice is not acid free.

Decorating Chalks
These chalks are my favorite way to make paper look old. Apply the chalk (one of the brownish colors) to the paper using a cotton ball, makeup sponge, Q-tip or swab. This is especially effective on the ripped edges of paper or vellum. Allow the chalks to set, or spray with a fixative if speed in important. Decorating chalks have many uses when making altered books. Acid free decorating chalks are available at joann.com.

Walnut Ink
Walnut ink is made from black walnuts. It is usually sold in crystallized form, and must be hydrated before using. Apply the wet walnut ink to the paper, lace, fabric or other material. You can create various effects as you strive to make paper look old. For more information about walnut ink, refer to the Definitions page of this web site.

Paper Tearing
Instead of cutting your paper neatly, tear it. Holding the paper towards you while you tear will produce one look; holding it away from you will produce another. Color the torn edges with decorative chalk, walnut ink, tea bags, or similar to give an aged appearance.

Sanding with Sand Paper
Lightly sand shiny paper or other paper to produce "tooth" or a worn look. Sand the same way you sand wood -- in a directional move, rather than circular.

Paper Crumpling
Crumple up your paper. Flatten it out, crumple again. Repeat as often as you wish before using the paper in your layout. Iron the finished paper if desired, for a special look, or try placing the (thickest) paper in water before crumpling for yet a different look.

Paper Burning
Another way to make paper look old is to burn the edges of the paper. For safety's sake, do this over a sink, using a candle or stick of incense. Pinch the fiery edges out with your finger. If desired, wet an inner border on your paper before applying the flame. You can do the wetting with a damp Q-tip, paint brush, or your finger. This prevents the paper from burning more than you want, since the wet inner border will prevent the flame from going further.

Candle Waxing
Write over your paper with a white candle, covering as much area as you can. Crush the paper so the wax cracks. Apply paint over the surface, forming random cracks. Remove the wax by ironing your paper. Place it between two sheets of paper towels padded with newspaper on both sides and use a hot iron.

Matte Gel or Matte Medium
These products will take the shine off paper or pictures, etc.

Tips
Experiment with different quantities of tea in water. More tea leaves will make its color darker. Adding milk makes a different shade.
Add turmeric to the tea to get some grainy texture on the paper.
If you want to fold the parts of the paper do it, and then dip it, the folded parts will be darker. Don't use straight folds.
This is also a good method to use if your goal is to make Egyptian papyrus
Crush a paper with your hands and then straighten it again. Then applying tea solution will give interesting results.
If you use coffee to make the paper look old, add a few glasses of red wine to the coffee. Because the substance is different, the coffee will be on the "large" spaces while the wine will be in the "little wrinkles". This gives a very old effect.
Spray with transparent lacquer upon complete drying for extra finish.
You can use a piece of soft cloth instead of brush to apply the tea to the paper.
If you want a faster drying process, iron the paper on a low setting. Be careful not to do it immediately.
While in the pan, if you press down on the paper with a fork or another object, it will leave a cool imprint.
Plan what to write on your aged paper on a separate sheet of paper first. Write on the aged paper in pencil first, as to avoid permanent mistakes in pen. Begin writing in pencil lightly, then outline your writing in pen. Black ink is best.
Try a fountain pen or even a dip pen for authentic-looking writing. Look at old-style handwriting, too, and try to emulate it.
Not sure what you're going to get? Try whatever technique you think you will use on a sample before doing the real thing. Use the same materials as you'll use in your final project.
If you want, also you may soak the paper in vinegar, then put in oven at 200F for 5-10 min.
If using the coffee method, leave in oven (at 200F) for around 8 minutes.
If you want to make a piece of writing look old then simply type what you want up the trace it onto plain paper. Remember to do this before you crease or wet the paper.
If your paper smells too much like coffee and not the authentic “old paper” scent you want, stick the sheets in a box with some mothballs for a day or two.
Experiment with different colors to achieve the look you want; coffee will turn the paper a darker brown, tea will be lighter.
You can also wear holes in the middle of the sheet by rubbing it with your finger.
You can let the paper air dry, but weight the edges or the paper will curl

WARNINGS:
Don't put your paper too close to your candle flame or it will be set on fire.
Avoid using watercolor painting strokes (with less amount of liquid on brush) or else the brush strokes will be visible on paper and it won't give a smooth impression.
Don't set the paper on fire unless you dip the paper in water.
If using the Soaking Method, do not attempt to soak several pieces of paper at one time! The pages will stick together. Instead, soak your pages individually, using the same tea.
Don't let the paper soak for too long, or it will begin to degrade.
Practice the flame method on a different sheet of paper before you try it with your good sheet.
Putting the paper in the microwave may permanently damage your microwave and it will never work again and that would not be good!
To give writing the look of age, write using lemon juice. When the juice dries, hold the paper over a toaster and it will show up as a faded brown instead of fresh black.
The longer you soak a piece of paper in coffee or tea, the darker it will be.
Be careful when using any of these methods. They can be dangerous if not done properly.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

PRIMITIVE PANTRY CAKES RECIPIE!


PRIMITIVE PANTRY CAKES

I have been asked how I make my pantry cake so I decided to provide you all with the recipe.

You will need some molds for the cakes.

INGREDIENTS:

4-tbs used coffee grounds - try to use dried grounds
1-cup salt
2-cups flour
3-4 tbs cinnamon
2-3 tbs ground cloves
2-3 tbs ground nutmeg
1 cup water or brewed coffee - you may have to play with this amount - whether it‘s too runny or too thick

DIRECTIONS:

Mix dough just until combined
Spray your molds using a cooking spray, coat molds with cinnamon, clove & nutmeg mixture
Press the dough into the molds to make them even and smooth on the tops
I’m not sure just how many this will make because of the different size molds used for them, so the amount varies anywhere
between 4-6 depending on the molds.
Bake at 180 degrees for approx. 6-7 hours depending.
Keep checking on them and make sure they are not sticking tightly in the molds - pop cake from mold and lightly spray again and you might want to rub a bit more spices on at this time as well.
When baking time is done turn off oven and let them cure about an hour or more in cooling down oven.
Let cool completely after removing pan from oven. Remove the cake from the pan and rub ground cinnamon,cloves& nutmeg(or any spice you desire)all over the cake. By rubbing on the spices you eliminate the risk of mold developing and it makes them smell yummy.

If you want to ice them, then make an icing by mixing equal amounts of white craft paint and white glue together with a few drops of water to thin to the desired consistency and drizzled it over the top allowing it to run down the sides of the cake.

DISPLAY IDEAS:

Use them under a shoo-fly screen



Store in a fabric covered Pantry Box.


Store in Pantry Jars.


There are many ideas you can come up with yourself!
Wrap your cakes in grungy cheesecloth and put them on your breadboard.

they give off a wonderful scent and make GREAT GIFTS!