Pillowcase Trick-or-Treat Bags

Okay, so there is only a few days left before Halloween.  No problem, you can still do this.  If you are wondering what kind of bag your little princess or Spiderman will carry to hold their candy in this Halloween, try this craft.  It is simple, cheap and easy.  We are talking 15 minutes.  Pillowcase Trick-or-Treat bags - a white pillowcase with a ghostly black iron-on face, makes for a great bag to carry all their candy in. 

I saw this a month ago on a Martha Stewart re-run from Comcast on Demand and knew I had to try it.  She demonstrated this easy craft in only a few minutes.  You can go to marthastewart.com and type into the search box pillowcase trick or treat bags.  The article will pop up and you can print out her ghostly templates for free.

The materials needed for this craft are: a white pillowcase, 2 black 5 by 5 inch iron-on patches, 1 1/2 yards of heavy string or rope, a safety pen and scissors.

After the templates are printed out, cut out the templates (or you can design your own).  Place the cut-out mouth on one patch and the set of eyes on the other patch.  The 2 eyes will be cut out from one iron-on patch by folding it.  Martha says to use a white pencil to trace the template on the fusible side of the patch.  I simply used a pen and was able to see the outline to cut it out. 

This is what the cut out template will look like.  The 2 black circles are to be ironed on for the extra reinforcement for the drawstring.

After the template is cut out, iron on the eyes and mouth.  Place them in the center of the pillowcase however you would like.  Play around with the eyes and mouth, till you get the face you want.

Take the 2 circles and iron them on the inside of the pillowcase hem for extra support for your drawstring. 

Use scissors to cut small vertical openings (1/2 inch long) at the center of each black oval.   After the openings are cut, attach a safety pin to one side of the rope (I burned the ends of the rope to keep it from fraying).  Place the safety pin inside one opening and pass it through the pillowcase to the other opening. 

Now, tie both ends of your rope to complete the drawstring.

My kids love their bags with the ghost-like faces.  They are pretty big too!  Martha says to make a smaller bag, all you have to do is cut the bottom of the bag and sew it closed.

And the WINNER is.....

Thank you so much....to all of you for visiting and entering our giveaway!!  We are so excited to have new visitors and we hope that you come back again!! 

And the Winner of the $20 Bath and Body Works Gift Card is......#51 1LuvnMaha 

Please contact us to receive your gift card!

brookebusby@comcast.net

Another Freebie and a GIVEAWAY!!

I thought I would share with you guys some digital frame/labels that I made.  :)  You can use these for digital scrapbooking or anything else your heart desires!  Print them out to use them as labels or even cards!  

You can download the frames by themselves by clicking on the 'download' link below the images.  I also added the 12 sheets of paper that I used in making these if you'd like to use them as well.  There is a download for the pink paper and one for the green.  If you want 'em all...take them all!!  The more the merrier!  Enjoy!

DOWNLOAD 

DOWNLOAD

DOWNLOAD

To see some of our other freebies click here!

Well....it's been too long since our last giveaway!  So we decided NOW is the time!  If you're like us, during the holidays everyone's buying new candles, spray scents, and other yummy smelling goodies to freshen up your house and get it smelling good for this time of the year.  So, our giveaway this time is a $20 Bath and Body Works Gift Card!

All you have to do is tell us your favorite holiday scent.  Not necessarily from Bath and Body Works, but anywhere.  :)

You CAN enter your comment once daily until Saturday night at 10:00pm central. 

The winner will be chosen randomly by using random.org. 

Check back Sunday to find out if you're the winner! 

Best of luck to you all and thanks so much for visiting!!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Mini Muffins

This recipe is for Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins!!

I got this recipe from my friend Mandy but I did edit it a little and turned it into muffins! The original recipe makes squares by baking everything in a 9x13 dish. Either way, they taste the same and they are so so yummy!! I'm not really a big pumpkin fan but these are just fabolicious and it's perfect for the holidays!!

Ingredients:

2 c. flour
1 T. pumpkin pie spice OR (2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ginger, and 1/2 tsp of nutmeg)
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 c. butter softened (2 sticks)
1 1/4 c. sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. canned pumpkin puree
2 cups chocolate chips (12 oz)

Preheat oven to 350 and spray your mini muffin pan.

In a medium bowl, add your flour,

Pumpkin Pie Spice,

baking soda,

and salt.

Whisk together.

Set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium high speed until smooth;

Beat in egg

and vanilla

until combined.

Beat in Pumpkin Puree.

Mixture may appear curdled.

Reduce speed to low and slowly add in the dry ingredients until combined.

Yummo!

Fold in chocolate chips.

Scoop spoonfuls into your mini muffin pan. I used my mini ice cream scoop.

I almost made 2 full batches of muffins with this recipe. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until done.

Eat 'em up fast!!

and Enjoy!

My First Digital Scapbooking Kit

I've been 'getting my feet wet" in the digital scrapbooking world lately and I decided to try and make my own little kit. I used rich colors in this design so I decided to name it my "brighten it up" kit. I thought it might be good for the fall even though it's full of bright colors because it has a corduroy texture to it.

It's free!!! If you download and use this kit in any way I would love to hear back from you and let us all know what you did with it! :) I'm certainly an amateur at this but I hope someone can put it to good use. :)

To get this file you will need to download all 3 zip files below by clicking the links.

Thanks so much for your encouragement and I hope you enjoy!!

Make sure you download ALL THREE files!!

http://www.mediafire.com/?mymiez5myn1

http://www.mediafire.com/?zz5yymyled4

http://www.mediafire.com/?jgnw1ogzy5f

Crunchy Romaine Strawberry Salad

Crunchy Romaine Strawberry Salad

I think that this may be the best salad that I have EVER eaten. I fell in love with it when a friend served this salad at bonco a couple of months ago. It is so so yummy and definitely spices things a bit from the traditional iceberg lettuce and cheese salad with Thousand Island dressing that I grew up with. It takes a little more effort but is well worth it!!

Ingredients:

1 pkg. Ramen Noodles (discard the seasoning packet)
1 c. walnuts
1/4 c. butter
8 c. romaine lettuce
1/2 c. chopped green onions
2 c. fresh strawberries

Dressing:

1/4 c. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 c. sugar
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp soy sauce

Let's make the dressing first. Pour 1/2 c. EVOO in a small bowl.

Add 1/4 c. sugar.
Add 1/2 tsp of soy sauce.


Add 2 T. red wine vinegar

Whisk together and set aside.

Break up your Ramen noodles then put them in a saucepan to saute with 1/4 c. butter.

Add 1 c. walnuts and saute for 8-10 minutes.

.....or until golden.

Put your lettuce in a large bowl.

Pour your sauteed noodles and walnuts over your lettuce.

Add the 1/2 c. green onions. I bought mine in a little package that were already chopped up. :)

Add 2 c. fresh strawberries.

Drizzle the dressing over the top and toss gently.

Oh so good Crunchy Romaine Strawberry Salad!!!

Let us know if you make it!!! This is a recipe keeper!! Enjoy!