angela j.ewell handmade

Seriously?

2011-06-06T09:42:00.002-06:00

So I know I haven't posted in a while, but I can't think of anything more post-worthy:

PARIS VACATION GIVEAWAY!

And if you win, you'd better bring me back some macaroons or something. ;)

Lovely

2010-12-15T13:27:00.001-07:00

Sweet little animation video. The result of a collaboration between two BYU professors - one dance, one animation.

Thought of You from Ryan J Woodward on Vimeo.

Victorious!

2010-12-08T13:41:00.003-07:00

Just won a gift card to Communal from Rachel over at Black Eiffel!
I can't wait to go try their breakfast. I love going out to breakfast. It feels so luxurious for some reason. And you'd better believe I'll be having a cup of this with whatever I order! I'll be sure to let you know just exactly how delicious it is. Promise. :)

Umami Yummi

2010-10-15T11:49:00.004-06:00

Last night for dinner we tried out a new recipe I found while tastespotting.

Marisa's Beef Chow Mein

picture via The Creative Pot

It was easy, TASTY, and didn't have any random, wierd ingredients that require a special trip to Many Lands. I think the only thing I'll do differently next time (because there will be a next time) is season the beef a bit before cooking it. Thanks, Marisa, for sharing!

p.s. Tomorrow I'm totally gonna go to this. And while there I will get the world's most delicious donut.

For Cute!

2010-09-29T16:36:00.001-06:00

They're totally out of my price range, but aren't these book ends sweet?

From Etsy Seller Graphic Spaces.

{Trying to} Welcome Fall!

2010-09-27T16:07:00.003-06:00

(apples from the Farmers Market)

I am a summer girl all the way. I love the sun, the heat, the long days, all of it. I'm from Arizona, what can I say? BUT, I'm trying to be better about embracing the here, and now. And here and now, I live in a place that has all four seasons, and cooler weather. I've been enjoying fresh apples from the farmers market and we took our customary drive up Payson Canyon to see the fall leaves, and I took NO pictures! I know, how could I? I'll refer you to this song for explanation:

O, love that song. (Sorry the video's a little shaky, but the audio quality is pretty good.)

Anyway, another fall activity I look forward to is making delicious butternut squash soup. And this year is extra special since I grew my own butternut squash! (remember how it took over my back yard? Suffice it to say, the takeover is even more complete these days!) I have a fantastic recipe my mom created that I love (and will definitely be making soon), but yesterday I decided to make up a recipe of my own. I'm not gonna lie, I'm really impressed with myself. It turned out amazing, and you're going to want to try it. So here it is:

Roasted Butternut Squash Bisque

1/2 a large butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 small shallot, minced
1 small clove garlic, minced
3-4 cups chicken broth
aprox. 2 tsp. rubbed sage
salt and pepper to taste
oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, toss squash cubes with sage, salt, pepper, and oil to coat. Spread out cubes on a cookie sheet. Roast squash until tender, about 25-30 minutes.

In a large dutch oven, saute shallot and garlic until soft. Add roasted squash and chicken broth. Puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Add more or less broth depending on your desired thickness. You'll notice from the picture that I like mine thick. My husband says it reminds him of baby food, but baby food is not nearly this delicious. If you prefer something thinner, you can add more broth or evaporated milk, regular milk, whatever you like.

That's it! So simple, and so delicious. The only thing this soup was missing was a nice crusty roll to enjoy with it. Let me know if you try it!

Vote for Austin!

2010-08-22T18:33:00.001-06:00

Okay folks, my twin brother Austin is competing for an amazing job in Los Angeles, and is very close to getting it. But he needs our help!

It takes literally 5 seconds to vote for him - Click Here to VOTE!

Etsy Wish List

2010-08-12T11:55:00.004-06:00

One of the blogs on my reader is CraftGossip, because they have about a bajillion posts daily linking to craft blog awesomeness. You can tell they like the good stuff, because they linked to Nancy's Post Here.
And in a continued display of awesome, they're doing the best giveaway ever! Here's how it works, I post my etsy wish list here (spending up to $100) then comment on their giveaway post, and I could win my wish list! Yeah, I'm down with that. Although, I gotta tell ya, it was HARD to pick a list that was under $100. There's so much on etsy to love! I decided to limit myself to things for Jane (which was still hard to pick). So, here's my list of baby cuteness:

Handmade crayons for little hands from kittybblove.

Cute wooden woodland toys from ImaginationKids

This sweet hand-knit jacket from Zarina2009

And finally this fun dress from Hopscotchavenue

Keep your fingers crossed that I win!!

The Fruits [And Leaves] of Our Labors

2010-08-02T14:26:00.007-06:00

At the beginning of the season we planted a vegetable garden in our back yard. We've done this in the past, but two years ago pretty much nothing produced anything, so we didn't do it last year. This year, things are different. Here's what the garden looked like when we first planted.
We planted 4 different heirloom tomato varieties, 2 cucumber plants, 1 crook-neck squash, 1 butternut squash, 3 different bell pepper varieties, 4 hot pepper varieties, sugar snap peas, cilantro, and basil. Notice all the empty space covered with bark? Here's what it's looking like lately.

It's filled in beautifully! Most of what you're seeing is the butternut squash vine that has taken over the back yard, but I don't care because I already have a few big squashes on the vine. I'm pretty excited about it. See what's coming along.

We've eaten some sugar snap peas, and I've already had two BLT's with my fresh tomatoes. Fa-Nominal! But I was too busy enjoying them to take a picture.
One of the things I'm most excited about is the basil. It's thriving, so I finally made some pesto. Oh man, it's beyond good! I picked about three cups worth of leaves off the bush, and you can't even tell I took anything off the plant (I'll have to make some more!). Here I am (in my new Anthro shirt, told you you'd see me in it soon!) cutting off some leaves.

I brought them in the house and put them in a big bowl of cold water to wash off any dirt and/or bugs. I put them through the salad spinner to get them dry, then I put those in the food processor with about 2/3 cup walnuts, 2.5 oz Parmesan cheese, 1 clove garlic, 1 cup canola oil, and salt and pepper to taste, and voila!

Put it on pasta, bread, a cracker, a fork, whatever! I've eaten three meals of whole-wheat pasta and pesto in as many days. And I might just have it again for dinner tonight. It's that good. Or you can come over and have some with me. The Rockstar doesn't like it (He's crazy, but we love him anyway) and I need someone to enjoy this with me!

Cup 'O Tea

2010-07-21T13:35:00.003-06:00

Saw these nifty bracelettes and thought of my mom.

I think she'd be into them.

And now, I'm off to the beach...

Tipping

2010-07-18T00:26:00.004-06:00

Wow, I didn't know the star feature in Reader was going to be a novel thing for you all! I'm so glad I could help out, although, I apologize if I've only further fed your addiction. To make up for it if I did, here are a few more awesome tips:

Baby Shampoo is a cheap, yet effective eye make-up remover. Just rub a little with warm water on your eyes and voila, clean eyes, and no tears!

A grapefruit spoon is not a grapefruit spoon when it's a peeler for fresh ginger, or a strawberry huller, or a great tool for getting kiwi out of it's fuzzy skin.

Newly shaved legs + Baby Lotion = Silky Skin Perfection

This makes for a great summer foot exfoliater. The next best thing to getting a pedicure, but way less expensive.

And coming soon, another shirt to cardigan tutorial, but with more pictures this time...

Gold Star!

2010-07-16T15:16:00.003-06:00

Do you use Google Reader? It's kind of, totally addicting. WAY worse than email. With email, I constantly check back and am disappointed, because no one ever emails me. With Reader, there's always something new, because it loves me more than email. I love it too, because it allows me to "Star" posts that I like, and keeps them all in one place for me. That Reader, so thoughtful. Here are some posts I've recently starred in Reader:

Recipe for Homemade S'more candy bars. Yum...
Ingenious new use for broken clock.

Cute [free] softie pattern with tutorial.

Delicious Melt Aways recipe.

How-To for cabinet knob wall hanger.

Gorgeous and inspiring table before and after.

Have a lovely weekend!

The Lamest Tutorial Ever

2010-07-13T15:00:00.007-06:00

I tried my hand at an upcycled garment! I had a plain white long-sleeved t-shirt sitting in my closet, just asking me to do something with it.

I decided to make a cardigan. I know, "It's the middle of summer!" you're saying. But my office is always a little bit chilly (as are these Utah evenings, if you ask me) so a light cardigan to warm my upper arms was just the ticket. Plus, is it just me, or does anyone else feel like their arms are a little bare in a cap sleeve? So I can just throw this on over and voila! No more bare cap-sleeved arms.

I thought I'd make a little tutorial for it, but, as it turns out, I'm not very good at making tutorials. I'm just not patient enough to stop at every step and take a picture, but I'll try to give good instructions in lieu of some of the pictures.

*As a little caveat, before you go doing this yourself, understand that if the shirt you start with is fitted, you're not going to be able to button it closed once you're done with the project. I knew this from the start, and was okay with it, since I never button my cardigans anyway, but if you wanted to be able to button your cardigan up, you'd want to have some extra (contrasting would be cute!) fabric on hand to add to the middle of your shirt once you cut it up the middle, and you'd put your buttons and button holes on that.

So, here's a picture of the shirt I started with (and still had picture-taking patience).

I wanted three-quarter length sleeves so I tried it on and figured out about how much I wanted to take off, then added about an inch to that so I could hem the edge and still have the sleeves the length I wanted. (How's that for a run-on sentence!) I measured that amount on both sleeves and chopped them off. Now my shirt looked like this:

Next I used that yard stick you can see on the right edge of the picture and measured the middle of the front of the shirt all the way up, then cut along that center mark. Here's a picture:

You can see where I marked up the center of the shirt with my washable marker. Next I folded under 1" on each side of the center cut and pinned it down.

Here's a close up shot:

And that's pretty much where I stopped taking pictures of my steps, but hopefully I can give good written instruction.
Next, using a ball point needle (because my shirt was knit) I sewed up the folds on either side of the center using a straight stitch. I did my stitch closer to the outer edge of the fold so that the buttons would be between the stitching and the edge of the fold. (Oh, geeze, does this make any sense? Why didn't I take more pictures?!)
Next, I laid out my buttons down one side to figure out basic spacing, and decided I wanted six buttons, about 2.5" apart. I marked on the shirt where each button would go using my washable marker. I made corresponding marks on the other side of the shirt where the button holes should go.
I know, these buttons are purely decorative, so I didn't really need to put button holes, but I thought it would look weird with out button holes. Plus, my machine has a button hole setting and I get strangely excited any time I get to use it (just in case you didn't already know I was a nerd!).
Still using my ball point needle, I stitched the button holes down one side of the center. I didn't even bother cutting the "hole" part of my button holes, just stitched them on for looks.
Now, my machine also has a stitch that will automatically sew on buttons, and I was all excited to use that, but...I broke my first button. Cracked right between the holes. Better than breaking a needle, I guess. Feeling a little defeated, I sewed them on by hand. Don't worry, I have since learned how to sew buttons on using the machine, and it worked beautifully. Hopefully I get around to posting about that project as well.
I don't know why I left this step until the last, but finally I hemmed both of the sleeves, so they didn't have raw edges. I just folded them under (like I did for the center seam) and did a straight stitch using the ball point needle. Sorry, no pictures of that!

But I did take a picture of the finished cardigan!

What do you think? I have an identical black shirt that I plan on doing the same thing with, but maybe this time I'll do a little more embellishing. If you wanted to, you could make some of those cute fabric flowers that have been floating around the blog world using the extra fabric cut off the end of the sleeves. Maybe I'll do that on the next one...and take pictures, too. :)

Weekend Loveliness

2010-07-12T19:54:00.006-06:00

I had a most enjoyable weekend. We were able to spend Saturday with family at my nephew's baptism, which was followed by a signature Fancy Nancy party. Love those! Then Nancy, hostess extraordinaire that she is, watched the kids while I went shopping at Anthro with my mom, Emily, and the Rock Star. Oh boy, did the sale rack yield up her treasures! Fortunately I had some birthday money to spend, which I did with reckless abandon.

I got this top, only I got it in a cerulean blue (which I can't find a picture of online)

I also got these pants (which I'll have to hem like 6 inches off of, but such is the life of a short woman).

And I got another top, but there are no pictures of it to be found online. I'm sure you'll see me in it one of these days. Thank you Anthropologie, for having a sale rack. I'll love you forever for it!

Been a While

2010-07-01T10:27:00.005-06:00

'Member how I used to blog? Yeah, then I just stopped for months! Lame, I know. I've been doing a lot of thinking about making, but just not getting around to the actual making part. Some things I've been thinking about making...

Bakerella's Pillow Cookies (brownie and chocolate chip cookie all in one? Yes, Please!)

Home made basil pesto, with my home grown basil, which hasn't died! I'm not the best at keeping plants alive, but the Rock Star pretty much tends the garden, so this stuff is thriving.

I am in LOVE with these overalls. The print, the bow, the ruffles on the bottom? C'mon! I want to try and copy them. Mom, you may be getting some sewing related phone calls soon.

I'm also feeling so inspired by all the upcycling people are doing in the blog world, turning old and boring clothes into new and fabulous clothes. I have a few pieces set aside that will hopefully get a make-over soon. In the mean time, here are links to some of my favorites

1. Katies Scandalous to Fabulous Skirt

2. Ashley's Stained Shirt turned Shrug

3. Katie's Liberty Shirt Turned Skirt

4. Jess's Floral Refashion

5. Nancy's T-shirt Skirt

Look What I Found!

2010-05-28T16:04:00.004-06:00

Remember those vintage Valentines I framed for my Valentine's Day decorations?

Well apparently somebody else has the same one, and made it into a free printable download.

How Fun is the Internet?

2010-05-27T09:07:00.003-06:00

Check out this great source for CUTE oil cloth!

Found Via this post on Prudent Baby.

Thank You Martha

2010-05-11T10:06:00.004-06:00

So I was reading this months Martha Stewart Sunday night and saw an ad for this:

I don't think I've ever seen lemon ice cream before. Lemon sorbet or sherbet, yes. Ice cream, no. I'm a bit of a lemon fiend, and really, who doesn't love anything Haagen-Dazs? So Monday night at the grocery store, I decided to pick some up and try it.

Oh, it's good.

Even my husband (who is not a lemon fiend, and thinks I have a some-what unnatural affinity for lemons) really liked it. I'm excited to have a little more after dinner tonight. You should probably try it. That's all. :)

Yup, She's My Sister!

2010-05-07T15:19:00.004-06:00

Witness the moment my sister's company becomes a household name! Katie Richardson and her husband own Puj Baby, and her baby bath tub was on Ellen today. I couldn't be more excited for her! Click here for a link to the video. (I was having a hard time trying to embed it). Now go buy an awesome baby tub, or booties, or sling for every pregnant lady you know!

I Could Make That...

2010-05-06T11:44:00.004-06:00

Oh man, I say that a lot when I'm shopping, or see something I like on a blog. The question is not whether I could, but whether I'd ever actually get around to it! But that was the first thing I thought when I saw these lovely, yet prohibitivly expensive letter blocks from the MOMA Store.

Cute, right? But they're $120.00! Don't get me wrong, I totally respect paying for a quality designed beautiful product. I just can't always afford it. So I might have to go the thrifty route and make some similar ones out of cute craft paper and modge podge. Nancy, you're my resident modge podge expert, what do you say?

Guess I Should Have Gone Shopping First

2010-03-18T11:21:00.004-06:00

My sister Becky is in town, and that means shopping with the girls! We went to Nordstroms on Tuesday and I saw the cutest purses. At first I thought they must be Orla Kiely bags, but no, they are Fossil! And way less expensive than Orla Kiely bags. Too bad I just made a new purse...

Maybe I'll just have to get a new wallet instead.

I just love coated canvas in a cute print!

Nursery Tour

2010-03-06T15:28:00.013-07:00

Well, I finally did it, I finished the nursery! I wanted to make as many things in here as possible, so that's why it took me so long. And you thought I was just being lazy!

We'll begin our virtual tour where you first enter the room. On our left are two wall mounted shelves (painted with the help of the lovely and talented Nancy). Here we find a few familiar faces, the elephant shrew, the dachshund lamp, and Karla's elephant, along with a few new faces that include some toys that belonged to my husband as a child.

Moving on to the second shelf, is a stuffed owl I made, a pink rubber duck (everyone needs one of those, right?) and soft letter blocks that my mom helped me finish.

Below the shelves is an white dresser that I made into a changing station. I made the pad using some vinyl coated fabric I purchased at Corn Wagon in Springville (they have the cutest vinyl coated fabric around, if you're in the market) and I got the pad inside at JoAnn's. I also made pockets to go on either side to hold all my diaper changing necessities.

As we continue our way around the room, on the next wall hang a couple of needle point pieces that my grandpa made a long time ago. (Yes, grandpa! He was one of my biggest crafting inspirations.) Next to those is a nice bright window with a patchwork curtain. This was actually the first decor item I made for the room, and was the fabric inspiration for most everything else, including something hanging from the ceiling to our right.

The mobile! I made the birds for the mobile using a pattern I found here, and I attached them to an embroidery hoop, trimmed with pom-poms, fabric, and ribbon. I got the idea to use pom-poms from Lovely by M's mobile. And my mom helped make the bias tape that covers the hoop.

Below the mobile is the crib, a gift from my husband's parents. Hanging on the side of the crib are a couple of afghans my husband's grandma made, and a quilt from Nancy is there to prevent soothie's from falling behind the crib. Yes, this happened once in the middle of the night. Not fun. Around the base of the crib is a crib skirt that is made using the same fabrics as in the curtain. (Okay, so part of the reason everything is made out of the same fabrics, is, well, I bought way too much. I'm really bad at trying to figure out how much fabric I need for a project, and tend to buy about twice as much as I need. Let's just say, I still have more. Maybe I'll make a quilt or something.) To the right of the crib is a painting I did in high school, that happens to co-ordinate with the room. Awesome.

And down inside the crib is the best part of the nursery. :)

Thanks to everyone who helped me finish all my projects!

New Purse

2010-03-02T10:02:00.006-07:00

Well, my last purse was starting to wear holes in the bottom, so that means it's really time to make a new one. I had a couple of fat quarters I bought a while ago at The Cotton Shop, which by the way, is an excellent place to get cute flannel for receiving blankets. My favorite place for that, actually.

So I just used two fat quarters for this project. It's pretty much the same basic design as all my other purses. If I didn't carry them over my shoulder like that, I'm pretty sure I'd loose my purse a lot. There's an interior pocket for my cell phone, and I decided to outline a few of the flowers on the flap with gold thread. What do you think?

Happy Valentines Day!

2010-02-24T11:44:00.013-07:00

What's that, you say? Valentines was over a week and a half ago? Well, the decorations are still up at my house! And I'm just now getting around to blogging about them. What can I say, I'm a little slow. I have a box full of vintage Valentines I found at my grandparent's house that I've kept, and this year I decided to frame some of them with some scrapbook paper for Valentine's Decorations. What do you think?

Also my sweet husband gave me some lovely flowers. He bought two bouquets so I could combine them into one arrangement since he knows I like to arrange flowers. So thoughtful, that one. I think I'll keep him!

And I got him this DVD, because, you know, he's a rock star.

Oopa!

2010-02-15T12:22:00.002-07:00

Since Nancy shared her recipe for her salad dressing after our Greek themed birthday party, I thought I'd share my recipe for tatziki sauce. The rock star isn't such a fan of gyro meat, as he relates it to meatloaf, mystery meat, etc. So when we make gyros, we just grill steak with gyro type seasonings on it and slice it thin. Mostly, I just need an excuse to eat that tatziki sauce. Oh man, I love this stuff!

Tatziki Sauce:
1 pint Greek Style Yogurt*
2 Cucumbers
2-3 cloves garlic
1 Lemon
salt

Peel cucumbers, then cut in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds with a spoon and discard. Dice cucumbers, and add to yogurt. Peel garlic cloves and grate with a fine grater over the bowl with yogurt and cucumbers. Juice lemon and add juice, salt to taste, but I usually do about 1 tsp. Now, enjoy, because it's delicious. Yeah, it's that easy!

*If you can't find Greek yogurt (I've been able to get it at Macey's), you can use regular plain yogurt, and strain it of the extra liquid through a tea towel or paper towels and a sieve. Keep in mind that you'll probably want to start out with more than a pint so you end up with about a pint after it's strained.

I also got my mom's recipe for making pita's. They don't end up with a pocket in the middle, but they're really tasty, and work good for making wrap style gyros.

Pita Bread
1/4 Cup warm water
1 tbsp yeast
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup buttermilk
3 cups flour*
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp baking powder

Combine water, yeast, and sugar in mixer and allow yeast to bloom. Add buttermilk, flour, salt, and baking soda, combine and run mixer for a few minutes to knead the dough. Allow dough to rise for about an hour, then pound it down and divide into eight equal pieces. Roll out each piece into a round, and cook on stove top over medium-high heat until browned, about 2-3 minutes per side. Now throw on some of that tatziki sauce, and gyro meat, because they're best fresh. We also decided that these would work well as individual pizza crusts, or as naan for the next time you make curry or tikka masala.

* I used all plain white flour but my mom made them with 1/2 white 1/2 wheat flour, and both ways were tasty.

1, 2, 3

2010-01-31T14:26:00.003-07:00

1. Last call for Haiti Donations through my shop. Thanks to everyone who supported the effort. It feels so nice to help, even if it's just a little.

2. So you know how Ina always says to get the "really good" ingredients, and that the mozzarella from the grocery store is just rubber? Well, in an effort to live up to Ina (not all of us live in the Hampton's where there are cheese stores), I made my own mozzarella cheese, you know, from milk and stuff. Okay, so really, Brian did a lot of it. But it was pretty exciting! I am a horrible food photographer, but suffice it to say, it turned out really well. And what did I make with this homemade cheese? Pizza. I know I was supposed to make, like, a caprese salad or something elegant, but we're just pizza people. I will say that everything on the pizza (crust, sauce, cheese) was homemade, except for the pepperonis. And really, who wants to know how that is made? Anyway, it was a fun activity, and if you want to try it, click here for the directions I used. And a special thanks to Mom, who informed me that rennet can be found at the grocery store in the Jello section.

3. Back by popular demand, here are some pictures of my exceptionally cute baby:

What I Can Do

2010-01-22T16:06:00.003-07:00

As a new mother, I spend a fair bit of time nursing my baby. And to keep myself entertained while doing so, I'll read, surf the Internet, or watch TV. I don't know if you've watched much TV lately, but if you've turned on CNN, it's pretty much constant coverage of the Haiti earthquake and ensuing spiral into chaos. Here I sit on my big comfy couch, in my nice, temperature-regulated, structurally-sound home, feeding my baby, while watching Soledad O'Brien report about orphaned babies in Haiti with no formula.

Que the tears and feelings of helplessness.

It was a familiar feeling. I remembered feeling that way when I read about NieNie's accident. But that familiarity reminded me that I am, in fact, not helpless. DesignMom empowered me to know that even if my talents cannot directly contribute to the cause, there is some way to help. I may not be able to, quite literally, rescue a child from imminent danger like Anderson Cooper, but I have the ability to help in my own small way. And if Larry King can auction off his suspenders for the cause, I can sell my jewelry, and donate all proceeds to the relief effort. So that's what I'm doing. For any jewelry sold in my etsy shop by January 31st, I will be donating 100% of the proceeds. I'll be posting a couple of new items in the shop this coming week as well, so check back regularly.

Make a purchase if you have the means, and please help spread the word through your own blogs, and we can all help those in such desperate need.

Thank you-

Angela

2009-12-29T18:49:00.005-07:00

Whoa.

Did you know that having a baby will totally consume your entire life? It's true. Don't get me wrong, it's not in a bad way. There's nothing else I'd rather have consume my days. And nights. Well, maybe it'd be nice if my nights were still consumed by sleep, but other than that, nothing. I even have an extremely helpful, hands-on husband, but somehow the baby seems to dominate our attentions. But, I mean, look at her. She's so dang cute, how could she not captivate your attention?

Also, did you know that a baby can totally make you feel like an idiot? It's true. Even though I have had previous experience with other people's babies, mine is sure keeping me humble and reminding me that I have a lot to learn when it comes to taking care of her. Fortunately, she won't remember anything from this part of her life. The seemingly simplest of tasks, it turns out, are not always so simple.
For instance, let's say I was changing the baby's diaper, because a good mom knows that you're supposed to change your babies diaper. I've even got these fancy diapers that change color when the diaper is wet, so you know the diaper needs to be changed. See, that sounds pretty easy. I can do that. But maybe I didn't know that sometimes babies will go ahead and relieve themselves right in the middle of you changing their diaper. And there's no way to stop it from getting all over my once sweet little baby, who is now not-so-sweet.

Okay, deep breath to gather yourself. You can handle this. Remind yourself of all your many accomplishments, you college grad, you. You'll just give your baby a bath, and she'll be sweet again. No problem.
So I get out the baby bath tub. It looks something like this:

It got the job done, but not so easily. I had to entirely devote one hand to holding her upright so she didn't go under water. It turns out there's no good way to hold a slippery-wet baby with one hand. Especially not one who's wiggling and kicking, because she's naked and wet, and can tell her mom has no idea how to hold her upright with one hand. But if I used both hands, I couldn't actually bathe her. We'd just be sitting there, awkwardly starring at each other, wishing one of us had telekinesis to move the wash cloth over her. So we muddled through and eventually got her clean.

And then one day, the UPS man brings this to my doorstep:

No, not another cute baby, a Puj tub! Let's all give three cheers for Internet giveaways. Now when I give the baby a bath, the tub holds the baby upright for me, and she doesn't feel insecure, so she's not wiggling and kicking. She's actually quite content to sit there while I bathe her without the aid of super-human powers. Awesome, because I don't have those.

Thanks Puj!

Giving Thanks

2009-11-27T20:20:00.004-07:00

A beautiful, healthy baby girl. This shot is from when she was two days old, but I think she gets a little cuter every day.

All the amazing doctors and nurses who helped get her here safely, and took such great care of us once she was here.

The worlds best husband and new dad, who has been staying up at night with the baby so I can rest and recover.

An incredibly loving and supportive extended family. Seriously, my fridge has never had so much food in it! We are so blessed to have so many people who love us.

Thank you everyone!

It's All About the Giveaways!

2009-11-05T09:13:00.004-07:00

It seems like all I've been doing lately is tell you about giveaways, but, really, who doesn't want to know about cool, free stuff?

So here's another one for you, and it's a really good one. Puj Baby is giving away 100 baby tubs! Yeah, that's a lot of tubs, so your odds of winning are actually quite phenomenal. They're looking for product testers, so you need to be a mom with a baby, and you need to have a blog or website where you can post a review. And the tub is yours to keep!

Are you in? If so, click here for more details and to enter. The deadline is November 11th, so hurry over!

Even More Little Joys!

2009-10-28T13:30:00.006-06:00

Remember my talented friend, Karla? She just opened an etsy shop of her very own! It's called Gracious Bloom, and it is graciously blooming with beautiful, imaculately-made purses, wallets, and gift tags.

I'm lucky enough to own a wallet and gift tags Karla made. Well, the gift tags are all gone, actually. They're so handy, they got used pretty quick!

My favorite thing in her shop right now is this adorable Petals Pink Errand Bag.

PLUS: In celebration of the shop opening Karla is doing another GIVEAWAY. Check out her blog for more details.

Dachshund Lamp

2009-10-21T10:53:00.007-06:00

Back in August, I made my first purchase for the nursery. It is a lamp shaped like a dachshund. I think it's adorable, and it gives off the perfect amount of light to be an ideal night light. I love it. When I tried to explain it to people, they gave me lots of interesting looks. I would try to reassure them, "I know it sounds weird, but I promise it's really cute!" I don't know if anyone believes me until they see it. I thought I'd post pictures for those of you that my have heard about it, but hadn't seen it in person yet. Apparently I'm not the only one that thinks it is the perfect accessory for a child's room. Look at all the pictures below of other peoples nurseries and children's rooms with this lamp. And these are just ones that I've happened upon while doing my blog surfing, not specifically looking for this lamp.

link

link

So there, I'm not crazy weird, I'm crazy like a fox (or dachshund).

Our nursery is still a work-in-progress, but I promise to post pictures once it's all done!

Little Joys for You!

2009-10-19T09:57:00.003-06:00

My uber talented friend, Karla, is doing a lovely give-away on her blog, Little Joys. This girl has serious skills in all things crafty. Just look at the baby present she made me!

Remember what my stuffed elephant looked like?

Yeah, she's good. So be sure to check out her blog and enter her giveaway!

Babies and Beads

2009-10-06T22:33:00.007-06:00

My SIL Emily just gave birth to her fifth, beautiful child last week, and blogged about it the same day. Amazing, that woman is! I made a couple of appliqued onsies as a welcome-to-earth present for the little man. Even though they are kind of outer space themed onsies...

Also last week, my sister Nancy and her daughter came over for dinner and hang out time while the boys went to the football game. She and I, along with our mother, went to a bead show in salt lake city about a week ago, and Nancy purchased some festive beads. She brought them down to girls night and had me turn them into a necklace charm with matching earrings. After I made them she said, "Oh, I guess I probably could have done that myself. But it's just a lot easier to have you do it!" Lucky for you, she decided to pay-it-forward and is now giving away the necklace and earrings as a set on her blog, so go sign up here!

I also made a necklace this weekend during general conference out of the beads I bought, but that post is forth-coming, as I have yet to take any pictures. You'll just have to wait patiently.

2009-09-17T15:46:00.005-06:00

I'm pretty sure my heart skipped a beat when I saw this picture on tastespotting.

Chocolate, peanut butter, cream cheese, peanut butter cups. It's like a combination of all the best things you could ever eat! If it tastes half as good as it looks/sounds, I would be one happy camper. I will be trying this recipe. Peabody, you are crazy like a fox!

Oooh...Ahhh...

2009-08-28T16:39:00.004-06:00

Check out this slide show with interesting public gardens around the world. These are some of my favorites. (from top to bottom, Costa Rica, France, England).

Haven't You Always Wanted A Stuffed Elephant Shrew?

2009-08-23T09:59:00.008-06:00

I've always admired the work of people who make soft sculptures, like Abby Glassenberg. Probably because I wish I was better at sewing. I can get by, but don't look too close, or you'll see a lot of tucks, and crooked seams, etc. I'm just a little too lazy to fix things when they go wrong. So over a year ago I found a pattern on Martha Stewart for making soft toys. It seemed relatively simple. I thought I'd try it out.
The thing was, I didn't want to make a lamb, or a chicken, or a pig. I wanted to make an elephant. I'm kind of an elephant fan. So I thought I'd just use the pig pattern, but alter it slightly to make it an elephant. No big, right?
I just used some scraps I had in my sewing room and got started. Everything seemed to be going well at first, but kind of went down hill. I got to the part where I needed to stuff it, but I didn't have any stuffing on hand, and I was feeling like it wasn't turning out well, so I just put it in one of my drawers, and there it sat. Sad and unfinished. Silently mocking me for my lack of sewing skills.
Fast forward to now, and I decided to finish it. Because I'm having a baby. Have I mentioned that? Yes, I'm having a baby. We're thrilled. And I wanted to make a toy for the baby. I bought some stuffing and some jingle bells to make it rattle, stuffed away, and hand stitched the opening closed. Now I could get a good look at the completed piece:

It kind of doesn't look like an elephant. This is what I was going for:

It kind of looks like a cross between a mouse and an elephant. Like this:

So if anyone asks, I totally made an elephant shrew on purpose, and the big ears are just use of my artistic license.

This Necklace Has Yet To Be Named

2009-08-23T09:43:00.006-06:00

Oh, I have been a lazy blogger! I apologize for that. I actually made this necklace like two weeks ago, but just never got around to taking some good pictures of it. I got the idea for this one laying awake in bed one night, and made it the next day. I usually just start making a necklace without laying it out first, but this one required a little more planning. And even after that I did a little editing on the fly to get it the way I wanted. The stones I used (in order, starting from the light yellow going to the deep red) were citrine, carnelian, pink peruvian opal, tourmaline, and garnet.

p.s. I made those peanut butter cookies from the previous post. Phenomenal, and quite easy. Two thumbs up!

A Bevy of Beauties

2009-08-06T11:17:00.003-06:00

I signed up to bring dessert to a work party at the end of this month, and I have about a googillian recipes I've been wanting do try. Maybe I'll bring a dessert platter with some of each of these. You know, so I have an excuse to try them all.

Four Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies

Lime Melt-Aways

Hazelnut Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

Oreo Truffles

Is it obvious that I've been spending entirely too much time on tastespotting?

Janice Necklace

2009-07-28T14:05:00.002-06:00

My good friend Janice is getting married in August, and I am so happy for her! Janice and I met while "working together at H-E-double-hockey-sticks". Her words, not mine. Mine probably wouldn't have been so forgiving. I'm pretty sure I only lasted as long as I did because of her and one other friend I made there.
She requested a custom necklace for her special day, and I was thrilled/honored to make it for her. She sent me pictures of her dress and pretty much gave me free reign to make whatever I thought would look best. Here are some pictures of what I came up with:

Jan, I hope you love it, and I can't wait to see you at your open house in Utah!

Edit: My mom pointed out that I didn't tell you what kinds of beads I used! Can't believe I forgot that one. This piece is on sterling silver wire and has pearl, rock crystal, moonstone, Czech glass beads in silver, clear and clear AB finish.

Now That Billy Mays is Gone...

2009-07-28T10:02:00.001-06:00

Who will fill his shoes?

Pure Genius

2009-07-27T13:57:00.001-06:00

You better believe I'll be trying this recipe:

New Coche

2009-07-27T13:38:00.004-06:00

Well, my old car had a good run, but it was starting to have problems regularly, so we decided to trade it in for this:
A 2006 Jeep Liberty. We bought it through my husbands work, so we were able to get a pretty good deal. It's got a lot of bonus features like a built in DVD player, heated seats, and, my favorite, a remote start, so you get get the heat going in those cold winter months. Lovely!

2009-07-17T11:29:00.004-06:00

Back in April I had a sister's weekend in Vancouver. Lots of talking, shopping, and eating delicious food. We had lunch one day at a place called Pizzacato, and Nancy and I split a pizza called the "Al Grecco" with red onions, lamb sausage, feta, garlic, marinated tomatoes, and Tzatziki sauce on the side. It was divine. I very much wished I had gotten a whole one all to myself. It gave Nancy the idea that we should make Gyro style burgers sometime. Well, that hasn't actually been tried yet, but I just came across this recipe on tastespotting. Now we really need to try it!

Red, White, and Blue Ice Cream

2009-07-07T13:43:00.006-06:00

So Nancy tried to pretend that she made the red, white, and blue ice cream for our family 4th of July festivities, but, actually, it was me. She made the cute cookies, I made the cute ice cream. So I'm stealing her picture of it to post here, and recipe's are below. It was delicious, if I do say so myself. Think of it like Neapolitan ice cream, but red, white, and blue instead of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. And I found the templates for the flags here. Enjoy!

To keep it separated in the pan, I made the red and the blue first, with a bread pan where the white went to hold the sides up, then put that all in the freezer so it could set up. Once it was hardened, I took the bread pan out, and put the white ice cream in it's place.

Fruit Ice Cream Base (make 2 batches, one for the strawberry rhubarb, and one for the blueberry)

Ingredients:

6 large egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups heavy cream

1 pinch salt

2-3 cups fruit puree

In a medium bowl lightly whisk the yolks together with a 1/4 cup of the sugar. Set aside.
In a non-reactive saucepan combine the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 1/2 cups of the cream, and the salt. Heat the cream mixture over medium-high heat until just boiling. Remove from the heat; whisk the eggs constantly while gradually pouring the hot liquid into the yolks. Return the egg mixture to the saucepan.
Cook the mixture while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon in a figure 8 motion, over medium-low heat, until thickened, about 5 minutes. When the ice cream mixture is properly cooked it coats the back of the spoon, is satiny thick, and free of any bubbles on the surface. (The ice cream base will taste slightly egg-y.) When the mixture is thickened pull it from the heat; add the reserved 1/2 cup cream, and strain it through a fine strainer into a medium bowl.
Set the bowl of ice cream base in a bowl of ice and whisk until cool. Add the fruit puree.

Freeze the mixture in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions. (Take care not to over churn the ice cream or it can have a grainy texture.) Place the ice cream in the freezer to set up for at least 1 hour. Serve.

Strawberry Rhubarb Puree Ingredients:
1/2 pint strawberries, washed and quartered
1 stalk of rhubarb, chopped
1 cup water
1 cup sugar

Combine water and sugar in pot over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Add strawberries and rhubarb to syrup and let simmer until softened (about 30 minutes). Process mixture through a food mill (if you don't have a food mill, use a blender and a fine sieve).

Blueberry Puree Ingredients:

2 cups blueberries

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

Combine water and sugar in pot over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Add blueberries to syrup and let simmer until softened (about 30 minutes). Process mixture through a food mill (if you don't have a food mill, use a blender and a fine sieve). I added blue food coloring at this point so the end result would be more blue than purple, but that's optional.

Cheesecake Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup sour cream

6 oz cream cheese, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a food processor, or with a hand mixer and a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and beat until smooth. Add sour cream and beat until smooth. Add heavy cream and vanilla extract and beat until smooth.

Online Fabric Sale

2009-07-01T10:41:00.002-06:00

Lot's of cute fabric and notions on sale here.

Found out about the sale here.

Crazy Eights!

2009-06-29T19:07:00.003-06:00

Aarean tagged me, um, a while ago. And I'm lazy, so just now getting to it. But at least I'm actually doing it, right?

8 things I am looking forward to:
1. Work off on Friday
2. Patio of Fire!
3. Celebrating the 4th with family
4. Monday, July 6th
5. My Family Reunion in July
6. Dinner (I just need to figure out what it is first)
7. Fresh peaches and blackberries from Grandma Bellow's tree
8. November 13th

8 things I did yesterday:
1. Woke up
2. Ate waffles that the rock star made me
3. Got ready
4. Went to church
5. Made shrimp po boys for dinner. Yum.
6. Made delicious cake mix cookies
7. Ate said cookies, and took some to friends
8. Went to bed

8 things I wish I could do:
1. Turn off the TV when there's nothing on (which is most of the time!)
2. Get myself to go to bed on time
3. Grow productive vegetable plants
4. Have a raspberry bush in my yard
5. Travel more often
6. Make gellato as yummy as the stuff in Florence
7. Paint, draw, sculpt, etc like a pro
8. Grow a money tree (stole that one, Aarean)

8 Shows I watch:
1. Hannah Montana (totally true, I love the Disney channel)
2. So You Think You Can Dance
3. Good Eats
4. Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations
6. House
7. Ace of Cakes
8. The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brian

8 favorite fruits:
1. Raspberries
2. Pineapple
3. Strawberries
4. Mango
5. Peaches
6. Crisp Apples
7. Blackberries
8. Kiwi

8 Places I'd Like to Travel
1. Anywhere
2. I
3. Have
4. Never
5. Been
6. Before
7. Sounds
8. Good

I tag...Anyone interested in being tagged. You're it!

Summer Treat

2009-06-26T09:34:00.003-06:00

I LOVE rhubarb. It reminds me of summer time in Canada. I see lots of recipes for rhubarb cake, rhubarb pie, rhubarb crumble, rhubarb cobbler. All delicious, for sure. But here's one I haven't seen before. Rhubarb Sorbet. I just might have to try this one when my mom starts harvesting her crop this year.

To: Austin

2009-06-18T00:01:00.001-06:00

Love: Angela

I'm In Love

2009-06-10T16:45:00.005-06:00

With a really expensive chair (the one on the left).

First I saw it on DesignSponge, but there wasn't any reference, so I googled "plywood elephant stool". Turns out it's famous. Nuts! I could always get the cheap(er) plastic version.

The pink one is pretty cute. But that's still a lot, especially for the cheaper plastic version. Or the miniature version. Yeah, it's so famous, you can buy it in miniature. But that's even more than I would likely spend on a normal sized chair. Probably, I'll just admire it for free in picture form.

So Pretty

2009-06-05T11:59:00.003-06:00

I came across Ruthi Auda's blog today via Jordan's blog. She makes amazing in store displays at Anthropologie. My favorite one she did is this wisteria tree. Lovely.

Free Downloads

2009-06-03T11:17:00.002-06:00

Just found this blog, Heirloom Paperie, via How About Orange. They have a free template download every Tuesday. Cute stuff! I might just have to plan a party so I can use the invitation template from yesterday.

Sold to Bidder Number 42!

2009-06-02T18:14:00.005-06:00

Tonight is our annual service auction. I'm not in charge this year, so I just get to go and enjoy. Lovely. I'll be donating these earrings:

(Pink Quartz accented with Garnet)

I'm also donating the same two cheesecakes I made last year. I might bid on the chocolate one myself, because now I really want to eat it! I'll have to let you know how it goes.

*Update: The auction went well, and I am the lucky winner of two loaves of homemade cinnamon swirl bread. Yum!

Sweetness*

2009-05-29T18:37:00.004-06:00

Two weekends ago I went to lush, gorgeous Vancouver, WA to spend time with some of my favorite women, my sisters. Unfortunately, on every trip I forget something, and for this one, it was my camera, so you'll have to check out their blogs to see what I mean by lush and gorgeous. But I must have felt inspired by the amazing scenery, because we decided to plant in our back yard this weekend. It's not quite as idyllic as my sister's in-law's yard, but I couldn't be happier with it. I just smile every time I look out my kitchen window.

The plant I'm most excited about is this lilac tree. Apparently they graft a dwarf lilac onto the trunk of something else to create the tree. I'm in love. It smells divine. Lilac's always make me think of my mom and my grandpa's house. Plus it's the perfect small scale for our small backyard. It's practically perfect in every way. To balance things out, we got a swirly topiary for the other side of the yard.

We also have two hummingbird feeders, at which we get frequent visitors. They keep things entertaining.

The only flowers we planted went in this big pot with several different vines. The vines are dichondra (silver) and two varieties of sweet potato vine called "margarita" (chartreuse) and "blackie" (dark purple). The flowers are zinnia (yellow), dahlia (purple), and poppy (orange).

The poppy hadn't bloomed when we bought it, but it turned out to be this neon orange. And the inside looks like this.

We put in this fountain last year. It's a nice way to drown out the noise from our very-close neighbors. The only perennials we had back there were the hosta's. We also planted a few varieties of coleus to add some pops color.

*Sweetness is both a reference to the lovely smelling lilac, and the song I was listening to when I started writing the post.

Kitchen Tip #273

2009-05-27T10:53:00.003-06:00

A grapefruit spoon is the best strawberry huller you'll ever use. Plus, it's really great for eating grapefruit.

Especially to Madre

2009-05-10T08:07:00.003-06:00

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful mothers in my life. I love you!

Image found here.

Dear Sir or Madam

2009-05-04T17:15:00.003-06:00

Please excuse Angela for her recent absence from blogging. She's been feeling a little uninspiring lately. As a make-up assignment, she has included below a knock-off recipe of Magleby's Spinach Salad. The original has mushrooms in it, but she's not really a mushroom person, but you could add them if you wanted to. She also adds sunflower seeds, which aren't in the original, but they're really good. It's seriously delicious. Thank you for your understanding.

Magleby's Spinach Salad

1 bag spinach or baby spinach
3 hard boiled eggs, peeled and diced
1 small shallot, finely diced
4-5 pieces bacon, cooked and chopped
1/3 cup cottage cheese rinsed and drained
1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Toss ingredients together with your favorite red wine vinaigrette (I like Brianna's Blush Wine Vinaigrette), and unabashedly scarf it down. Also, sometimes I add dried cranberries, but just if I happen to have them on hand. Enjoy!

Sweet Shoes, Sweet Deal

2009-04-14T22:05:00.004-06:00

Remember how I liked these?

Well, I was just at Target and saw these, for half as much. Nice!

Especially considering I fit in little girls shoes. And since they were so much less, I figured I might as well get these as well, and still spend less than if I had gotten the first pair at Gap.

Gotta Love two new pairs of shoes!

Enjoying Lately

2009-04-01T20:03:00.009-06:00

This picture

This Recipe

These Sandals This Dish

This Movie

This Utah Spring Weather

Okay, April Fools on that last one. Just making sure you were paying attention.

Ta-Da!

2009-03-17T17:34:00.000-06:00

Busy Bee

2009-03-01T22:43:00.004-07:00

Things I Did Yesterday:

1. Slept in. An ever-important Saturday activity.
2. Made some new jewelry, and posted it in the shop.
3. Smoked this guy off the line while driving in Provo.
4. Completely changed my hair. I like to do that some times.
5. Visited my Mom and Dad.
6. Welcomed my husband home from a St. George golfing trip.

Good Saturday, eh? Here's some pictures of the new stuff.

Another Day, Another Necklace

2009-02-24T17:52:00.003-07:00

I made this one on Saturday, and just haven't gotten around to posting pictures. It will also go up in the shop this week. It's crystal and aquamarine with gold wire. You like?

New Beads = New Jewelry

2009-02-20T12:45:00.002-07:00

Here's some pictures of the first piece I've made with some of the new beads I purchased in Tucson. It's three strands, with combination of labradorite, white and grey pearls, and moonstone. This will be going up in the shop soon, as it's running a little low on items!

And these are the sample earrings for the craft night I'm teaching tonight. Email me if you're interested in coming. angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com.

Sun Shine and Sparkle

2009-02-12T17:48:00.006-07:00

So it's been a while! I've been looking forward to going to the infamous bead show for sometime now, and in its shadow nothing else seemed very blog-worthy. But I'm back and have so much to share. I flew down to sunny Arizona last Thursday where I had the pleasure of staying with my lovely eldest sister, Becky, AND was able to meet the latest edition to her family. What a beautiful boy! While there, I was treated to Barrow's Pizza (not once, but twice!) and a delicious lunch at the tasty (and famous) Chino Bandido. Mmmm, Jade Red chicken. Did you know that's where I took my husband for lunch on our wedding day? It's true.

Of course all these fun activities were just pre-cursors to the main event. Saturday I drove down to Tucson with my Mom and sister, Nancy. We heard on the radio that there were something like 45 different show locations all over town, and we only went to two! We're talking tents the size of football fields filled to the brim with beads, gemstones, jewelry, etc. Here's a little sampling a what I bought this year:

(clockwise from top left: moonstone, citrine, aquamarine, labradorite, pearls in various colors and sizes, moonstone, pink quartz, labradorite)

Clockwise from top left: (crystal, Venetian blown glass, glass, lemon quartz, and....I don't remember)

I also purchased some glass beads, and I'll post pictures of those later. I'll be using them at a church craft night class I'm teaching on the 20th. I'll be showing how to make simple earrings. Anyone in the area is welcome to attend, so contact me if you're interested. I also got some non-sparkly things like wire, crimps, ear wires, you know, the boring stuff. Monday morning my mom and I drove back to UT in the rain and snow. The drive itself wasn't so bad, but I was a little sad to leave the sunshine. Fortunately, we loaded up on oranges, grapefruits and lemons from my sister's trees. And it's a good thing I have all that vitamin C, because I also brought home a cold. Bummer. But the rock star had a little something for me at home to make me smile. What a nice boy he is!

The Auction

2009-01-26T12:35:00.002-07:00

The auction has started! You can go bid on the necklace I donated, and many other AMAZING (ie. Mac gift basket worth $600! and more) here.

De. Lish. Ous

2009-01-23T12:23:00.004-07:00

I made this limeade last night for a little get-together, and man, it was tasty! It's supposed to be like Tucano's limeade if you've ever had that, and if you haven't, just make this, because it's pretty much spot on. My husband would tell you that I have an unusual affinity for limes, and try to put them on everything, but he likes this too, so I know it's not just me. Let me know what you think!

Tucano's Limeade

Brazilian Lemonade (Limeade)
2 Limes
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbs Sweetened Condensed Milk
3 cups cold water

Wash the limes and cut off both ends. then cut into 8 wedges. Place all of the limes and the rest of the ingredients in a blender (keep the rinds on). Blend thoroughly. Then strain through a fine-mesh sieve to remove rinds and pulp. Serve over crushed ice and add a lime wedge garnish.

The recipe only makes about 4 cups of liquid, so you might want to double it depending on how many servings you're looking for. Enjoy!

Also, a very happy birthday wish to two women who I know love limes as much as I do. My mom and sister!

New Necklace

2009-01-13T12:40:00.003-07:00

My lovely SIL contacted me about donating some jewelry to a Nie Nie Benefit Concert and Charity Auction. Of course, I was happy to. So far I've made a necklace. The pendant is a Capiz Shell dyed blue, and the chain is made with peridot chips, and accented with some very blue labradorite. What do you think?

New Years Day = Sewing Day

2009-01-03T11:24:00.006-07:00

The rockstar was gone all day Thursday. He drove all the way to St. George with friends just to go golfing and drive back. He's crazy, but that's why we love him! So I spent the day sleeping in and sewing. I know, it doesn't look like much when I say I spent the whole day, but I'm not the best seamstress. There's a lot of unpicking and re-doing involved when I sew. Plus, I was making up the patterns as I went, which means even more unpicking and re-doing. But I'm happy with the end product.
First, I made new Christmas stockings. Yeah, Christmas is over, but I knew if I left it until next year it wouldn't happen. We've previously just been using generic red and white stockings. I like these much better. I got the fabric and trim at JoAnn's.

I also made a new purse. My old one was getting pretty dingy. I got the fabric at the fabric store in Gardner Village, and made the pipping out of spare fabric. It's pretty small, but it fits everything I need, and has a special pocket inside that's the perfect size for my phone. The orange looks pretty bright in the pictures, but it's not quite so psychedelic in person.

Happy 2009!

2009-01-02T00:41:00.007-07:00

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! I spent mine sewing, but no pictures yet, so I'll post on that later. In the mean time, if you didn't get a calendar for Christmas, here are some great ones I found on Etsy. This is the one I got.

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

Mmm...

2008-12-29T15:09:00.005-07:00

As if you haven't had enough delicious food to eat lately, but this recipe looks delicious. I just might have to try it. As a general rule, I don't usually like coconut, but I usually like coconut shrimp. It sounds like excellent New Years Eve finger-food. Yum.

*Update, I made them tonight and they were so tasty! Especially the dipping sauce.

5 Years Ago Today

2008-12-27T09:48:00.001-07:00

Handmade Christmas...Again

2008-12-21T16:13:00.002-07:00

I've sent out this years Christmas cards.

I made a stamp using one of these and some carving tools I hijacked from my mom. My oldest sister always says she wishes I would send a picture, but she just saw me so I figured she didn't need one.

Twelfth Day Winner!

2008-12-15T00:44:00.002-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Twelfth Day of Christmas Winner!

Jami who said:"The gold, the green, the sparkles... so beautiful!"

Congratulations Jami! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your necklace.

Thanks again everyone who stopped by and commented. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas, and if you need any last minute jewelry gifts, let me know!

Eleventh Day Winner!

2008-12-14T17:32:00.002-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Tenth Day of Christmas Winner!

Jenjen who said:"love the colors".

Congratulations Jen! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.
And remember, sign up for the Twelfth Day of Christmas giveaway by Sunday at 8:00pm.

Tenth Day of Christmas Winner!

2008-12-12T23:34:00.000-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Tenth Day of Christmas Winner!

Jolin who said:"They are gorgeous! I am glad I found your blog and your fabulous giveaways!"

Congratulations Jolin! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.

And remember, sign up for the Eleventh Day of Christmas giveaway by Saturday at 8:00pm.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-12T08:00:00.001-07:00

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas...

Green stone, Aquamarine, and Gold Necklace

I had to save the best for last! This necklace consists of large mint-green stones (I wish I could tell you what kind, but I don't know), small aquamarine stones in blue, green, yellow, pink, and clear (yes, aquamarine comes in all those colors!), all linked together using gold wire, and a lobster claw closure. Fancy and fun at the same time!

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Sunday, December 14th to enter this giveaway.

Thanks everyone who participated in the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway! It was so fun for me to make so many pieces in a short amount of time, and fun to get feedback from so many people. I loved it! And if you fell in love with something, but didn't win, don't fret! Just email me and I can make them for you. Or better yet, have your husband email me and he can give them to you for Christmas!

P.S. Remember, the Ninth day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for that if you haven't already!

Ninth Day of Christmas Winner!

2008-12-11T21:49:00.000-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Ninth Day of Christmas Winner!

Tracy who said:"Love that color!"

Congratulations Tracy! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.

And remember, sign up for the Ninth Day of Christmas giveaway by Friday at 8:00pm.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-11T08:00:00.001-07:00

On the Eleventh Day of Christmas...

Rose Quartz and Pearl Earrings

Faceted rose quartz drops accented with white freshwater pearl, all wrapped with sterling silver. Very delicate and feminine.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Saturday, December 13th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remember, the Eight day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for that if you haven't already!

Eighth Day Winner!

2008-12-10T22:56:00.001-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have an Eighth Day of Christmas Winner!

Sheri who said "Amazing work!"

Congratulations Sheri! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings. And remember, sign up for the Ninth Day of Christmas giveaway by Thursday at 8:00pm.

Seventh Day Winner!

2008-12-10T08:29:00.003-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Seventh Day of Christmas Winner!

Becky who said "Beautiumous! (Is that a word?)"

(um...I know that's my sisters two days in a row, but I promise I really am using random.org!)
Congratulations Becky! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.

And remember, sign up for the Eighth Day of Christmas giveaway by tonight at 8:00pm.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-10T08:00:00.002-07:00

On the Tenth Day of Christmas...

Zircon and Moonstone Earrings

These are faceted red zircon drops accented with faceted moonstone, all wrapped with gold wire. Very Christmas-y!

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Friday, December 12th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remember, the Eighth day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for that if you haven't already!

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-09T08:00:00.003-07:00

On the Ninth Day of Christmas...

Blue Peruvian Opal and Pearl Earrings

These earrings are blue Peruvian opal "Chiclets" (that's what my sister calls them) accented with white freshwater pearl, wrapped with sterling silver wire.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Thursday, December 11th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remember, the Seventh day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for that if you haven't already!

Sixth Day Winner!

2008-12-08T22:19:00.001-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Fifth Day of Christmas Winner!

Nancy who said:"Ohhh, ahhh, now pick me this time. I won't tell anyone!"

Congratulations Nancy! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.

And remember, sign up for the Seventh Day of Christmas giveaway by Tuesday at 8:00pm.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-08T08:00:00.002-07:00

On the Eighth Day of Christmas...

Yellow and Sequin Earrings

These earrings were experimental, but I think they turned out really fun. They have a big reflective silver sequin with a yellow crystal hanging in front of that (there's only one on each side but it kind of looks like there's two in the picture because of the reflection). All wrapped with sterling silver wire, and a little citrine bead on top.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Wednesday, December 10th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remember, the Sixth day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for that if you haven't already!

2008-12-07T21:15:00.001-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Fifth Day of Christmas Winner!

Whit who said:"I am a fan of opal."

Congratulations Whit! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.

And remember, sign up for the Sixth Day of Christmas giveaway by Monday at 8:00pm.

Fourth Day Winner!

2008-12-07T10:44:00.001-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Fourth Day of Christmas Winner!

Suzette who said "I hope I win these!"

Congratulations Suzette! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.
And remember, sign up for the Fifth Day of Christmas giveaway by tonight at 8:00pm.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-07T08:00:00.001-07:00

On the Seventh Day of Christmas...

Pink Flower Bracelet

This is a bracelet made with pink and white freshwater pearls, faceted Czech glass beads. The center link is a pink flower with crystal accent. The beads are wrapped and linked using silver wire. The entire bracelet is about 7" long.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Tuesday, December 9th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remember, the Fifth day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for that if you haven't already!

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-06T08:00:00.001-07:00

On the Sixth Day of Christmas...

Citrine and Burgundy Pearl Earrings

These are faceted citrine nuggets accented with burgundy fresh water pearls, wrapped with gold wire.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Monday, December 8th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remember, the Fourth day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for that if you haven't already!

Third Day Winner!

2008-12-06T00:44:00.001-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Third Day of Christmas Winner!

Gwenandbaxter who said "very pretty!"

Congratulations Gwen! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings. And remember, sign up for the Fourth Day of Christmas giveaway by tonight at 8:00pm.

Second Day of Christmas Winner

2008-12-05T11:13:00.001-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a Second Day of Christmas Winner!

Jody who said:
"Opals are my daughters birthstone, good present for her!"

Congratulations Jody (or should I say, congratulations Jody's daughter)! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.

And remember, sign up for the Third Day of Christmas giveaway by tonight at 8:00pm.

First Day Winner!

2008-12-05T11:09:00.004-07:00

Thanks to our friends at random.org we have a First Day of Christmas Winner!

Sarah S who said:
"Those are beautiful earrings!"

Congratulations Sarah! Please email me your address at angelajewell(at)gmail(dot)com so I can send you your earrings.

And remember, sign up for the Third Day of Christmas giveaway by tonight at 8:00pm.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-05T08:00:00.002-07:00

On the Fifth Day of Christmas...

Opal and Carnelian Earrings

These are opal tear-drop shaped, faceted beads accented with orange carnelian, wrapped with silver wire.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Sunday, December 7th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remember the third day closes tonight at 8:00pm so be sure to sign up for it if you haven't already!

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-04T08:00:00.001-07:00

On the Fourth Day of Christmas...

Coral and Rock Crystal Earrings

These are diamond shaped rock crystal accented with bright red coral, wrapped with gold wire.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Saturday, December 6th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. Remeber, the First and Second day close tonight at 8:00pm, so be sure to sign up for those two if you haven't already. And for those of you who don't wear earrings, there are non-earring items to come!

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

On the Third Day of Christmas...

White and Burgundy Pearl Drop Earrings

These are white and burgundy (the burgundy didn't photograph very well, but it's not quite so dark in real life) fresh water pearls, wrapped with silver wire.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Friday, December 5th to enter this giveaway.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

2008-12-02T08:00:00.003-07:00

On the Second Day of Christmas...

Opal and Green Bead Earrings

These are opal tear-drop shaped, faceted beads accented with green glass beads, wrapped with silver wire.

For all the Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway rules, please click here. Comment on this post by 8:00pm on Thursday, December 4th to enter this giveaway.

P.S. If you love any of these items, but don't win them, feel free to contact me about purchases. I love custom orders! You can also look in my etsy shop for other items.

On the First Day of Christmas...

2008-12-01T08:00:00.002-07:00

In the spirit of holiday giving, I decided to do a giveaway! Well, actually, twelve giveaways. That's right, it's The Twelve Days of Christmas! Each day for the next twelve days I will post a new item to be given away. Here are the rules,
1. To enter a giveaway comment on the individual post by the time specified.
2. You can only win one of the twelve giveaways (we're trying to spread the Christmas miracles around here!).
Be sure to check back each day for the new item, and tell your friends, because there's plenty to go around!

On the First Day of Christmas...

Blue and Yellow Earrings

The mustard yellow stone is called mookite, and the blue stone...I have no idea what it is. Either way, they're a fun pop of color. To enter the giveaway, comment on this post by Thursday December 4th, at 8:00pm.

JOY

2008-11-29T17:18:00.004-07:00

I put up my Christmas decorations yesterday, and I made a new one:

It's a grapevine wreath with glass ornaments wired to it. I got the lettering and ornaments at Target. You like?

P.S. Stay tuned...I've got a good giveaway in the works!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-26T13:00:00.003-07:00

I hope you have a great Thanksgiving!

Three Things I am Thankful For:

picture found here.

Win Instantly!

2008-11-23T14:29:00.005-07:00

Do you have a baby? or know someone who does? or know someone who might in the near future? or just want to plan ahead for some point when you might have one? Well, if you answered yes to any of those questions, you're in luck! My sister, Nancy, is doing a giveaway of my other sister, Katie's, Puj sling!

Be sure to act now! The giveaway ends Monday, the 24th at 7:00pm.

Katie is also doing a giveaway for $600 worth of Puj merchandise (Just enter your email at the top of the page to sign up). What more could you ask for?

I know, you had no idea how well connected I was, to be related to such people. I won't go on about the rest of my family, as that would take days, but check them out for yourself! A veritable smorgasbord of lovely and talented people. Oh, the pressure of being the youngest child and having to live up to all that!

angela j.ewell handmade

Seriously?

Lovely

Victorious!

Umami Yummi

For Cute!

{Trying to} Welcome Fall!

Vote for Austin!

Etsy Wish List

The Fruits [And Leaves] of Our Labors

Cup 'O Tea

Tipping

Gold Star!

The Lamest Tutorial Ever

Weekend Loveliness

Been a While

Look What I Found!

Thank You Martha

Yup, She's My Sister!

I Could Make That...

Guess I Should Have Gone Shopping First

Nursery Tour

New Purse

Happy Valentines Day!

Oopa!

1, 2, 3

More Items Posted

What I Can Do

Giving Thanks

It's All About the Giveaways!

Even More Little Joys!

Dachshund Lamp

Little Joys for You!

Babies and Beads

Oooh...Ahhh...

Haven't You Always Wanted A Stuffed Elephant Shrew?

This Necklace Has Yet To Be Named

A Bevy of Beauties

Janice Necklace

Now That Billy Mays is Gone...

Pure Genius

New Coche

Red, White, and Blue Ice Cream

Online Fabric Sale

Crazy Eights!

Summer Treat

To: Austin

I'm In Love

So Pretty

Free Downloads

Sold to Bidder Number 42!

Sweetness*

Kitchen Tip #273

Especially to Madre

Dear Sir or Madam

Sweet Shoes, Sweet Deal

Enjoying Lately

Ta-Da!

Busy Bee

Another Day, Another Necklace

New Beads = New Jewelry

Sun Shine and Sparkle

The Auction

De. Lish. Ous

New Necklace

New Years Day = Sewing Day

Happy 2009!

Mmm...

5 Years Ago Today

Handmade Christmas...Again

Twelfth Day Winner!

Eleventh Day Winner!

Tenth Day of Christmas Winner!

*Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway*

Ninth Day of Christmas Winner!

*Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway*

Eighth Day Winner!

Seventh Day Winner!

*Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway*

*Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway*

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

JOY