Thirsty Thursday…Homemade Frappe

Wow! This week has really flown by. I can’t believe it’s already Thursday. Where has my week gone?

This week’s “Thursday Thursday” post is a non-alcoholic edition and my new obsession – the easy peasy Homemade Frappe. While being crafty this week, I downed quite a few of these babies. And it didn’t hurt that they were also quite refreshing given that it was 107 degrees outside. Gotta love the end of September in southern California.

Here’s what you need:

• 2 teaspoons Instant Coffee
• 2 teaspoons Granulated Sugar
• 4 tablespoons water
• A shaker
• Ice Cubes
• Milk

ADD 2 teaspoons Instant Coffee, 2 teaspoons Granulated Sugar, and 4 tablespoons water to a shaker (I used a reusable water bottle with a lid that has a tight seal).

CLOSE your shaker tightly and SHAKE, SHAKE, SHAKE!

SHAKE vigorously until the contents are nice and frothy.

POUR this frothy goodness into a glass filled half-way with ice cubes. The amount of liquid will not look like a lot, but it is more than enough.

TOP with milk to FILL. I also add a little tiny pour of some flavored creamer to give it a little extra sweetness and flavor (optional of course).

STIR and DRINK with a straw.

Credit: Recipe adapted from Zoom Yummy and all photos taken by me.

{Roundup}: Dog Costumes

Only two days left in September, and then October will be here. Time to get shopping on that perfect pet costume for you beloved pooch.

I’ve never actually dressed my pup in a costume before…except for the exception of a sweater she occasionally wears in winter (and hates by the way). But maybe this year I should. That cute little sailor costume below is pretty darn adorable.

Here’s a roundup of some sweet Halloween costumes for your favorite pooch. Check ‘em out.

Credit: Bumble Bee, Ram, Sailor, Hot Doggy, Raggedy Ann, Pig, Shark Attack, Jockey, Pirate, 50s Bouffant, Wonder Woman, Cave Dog

What We Did This Weekend.

I helped my love’s brother pick up a pup (well, not exactly a puppy, since he’s 4 years old) from a local animal shelter. The pup is a mix of a beagle and a pug…and is a massive 45 lbs. That’s huge compared to my little Madison who is a whopping 10 lbs.

I had the urge to bake and made some chocolate espresso cupcakes. I got to try out my new Ikea cupcake liners which was pretty exciting. I also wanted to try out my new piping bags and decorating tips with the frosting…but let’s just say, making frosting is not my strong suit. I’ll get into more about that in a later post.

Since it is the end of September, temperatures here are rising. It made for a really nice trip to the beach even though the it was a little more crowded than usual and there seems to be a bit of a seaweed issue on the northern end of the beach. Still, the weather was lovely and our walk was a nice one.

I spent some quality time playing with my Madison and her favorite toy elephant (a Christmas present from her grandma). I felt a bit bad for her having to share her home and toys with her new cousin (the newly adopted pup) while he visited, and wanted to pay her some extra special attention to make up for it.

Besides that, my weekend was consumed with a lot of paper cutting and pasting. I’ve been commissioned to make some party invites. It’s about time I started up my Etsy shop.

These will be a custom reserved listing, but soon I will be starting to add more and more items to my shop on a regular basis. As I do so, I’ll be sure to post about it.

Hope everyone else had a great weekend too! I can’t believe September is already nearly over.

Credit: All photos taken by me.

Crushin’ On Color: Green

Chartreuse and forest green.

Credit: Oli + Me via The Ritzy Bee Blog

Miss Jillian

{Roundup}: Chevron

Chevrons are all over the place right now. Here’s a roundup of some gorgeous chevron goodies, from clutches to dog tags, found around the web.

Happy Sunday!

Credit: (1) {AO3} Designs, (2) hello frosting, (3) Dots And Dahlias, (4) this little home, (5) noble town vintage, (6) tilly maison, (7) letter c design, (8) o My Goodness, (9) Caduceus Neckwear, (10) missy industry, (11) Pixelimpress, (12) City Chic Country Mouse, (13) Sparrow’s Nest 1, (14) woody liana, (15) every jot and tittle, (16) 6th street design school, (17) speckless, (18) dani notes, (19) tuft love fabric, (20) Sofa City Sweethearts, (21) j’cass design, (22) humade, (23) Hirondelle Rustique, (24) Star Key Folk Art, (25) growing snowflowers, (26) mahoohoo, (27) made by anna, (28) design*sponge, (29) MadeByGirl, (30) shop mixie, (31) Boston Handmade, (32) south moon under, (33) Renegade Handmade, (34) Poppytalk Handmade, (35) Design*Sponge, (36) Cottage Industrialist

What I’m Working On…

A few projects that I have in the works…

Is the suspense killing you?  Of course I’ve started more projects before the old ones have been finished.  More information and photos to come soon.

Credit: All photos taken by me.

Banana Song (I'm A Banana) by Onision

Um, I *love* this video so much.

And the last time I was visiting Wisconsin I got my 3 year old niece hooked on it too. We would watch it over and over again and dance along with the banana.

This song/video just makes me smile. Try NOT to get the song stuck in your head. I dare you. And have a great weekend!




Banana Song (I'm A Banana) by Onision.

Ode to Inspiration

Happy Friday! Here’s a little dose of inspiration to start the weekend…

Credit: Party by one charming party via A Little Sussy

Credit: Gala Darling photographed by Bianca Alexis via Rock N’ Roll Bride

Credit: Interior by Samantha Pynn via decor8

Credit: Sample of the photographers Cake & Pictures represents, via green Wedding shoes

Credit: The Blah, Blah, Blahg

Laundry day!

Doesn’t my love have the cutest socks?

Credit: All photos taken by me.

Thirsty Thursday…Gingered Apple Sparkler

Here’s a drink that I think has a bit of a Fall feel to it. It’s called a Gingered Apple Sparkler. This cocktail is spicy and sweet and an nice alternative to the typical apple martini.

Gingered Apple Sparkler

• Ice
• 1 1/2 ounces citrus vodka
• 1 1/2 ounces sour apple liqueur
• Splash of Angostura bitters
• 4 ounces chilled ginger beer
• 1 maraschino cherry

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the vodka, liqueur, and bitters. Shake well. Strain into an ice-filled highball glass. Top with the ginger beer. Garnish with a maraschino cherry.

Enjoy!

Credit: Recipe adapted from Food & Wine (Bar Lurçat - Minneapolis). Photo from Food & Wine as well.

Miss Jillian Designs cards circa 2008 and 2009.

Here, for your viewing pleasure, are a few cards I made back in late 2008 and early 2009.

“Bee Well” get well card from December 2008.

“It Must Be in the Jeans” graduation card from December 2008 as well.

“Smile Crocodile” birthday card from January 2009.

Credit: All cards handmade by me and all photos taken by me as well.

{Roundup}: Halloween

In honor of the upcoming holiday of Halloween, here’s a little roundup of lovely Halloween goodies found around the web.

Happy Halloween!

Credit: (from left to right) she sews lovely, Poppytalk Handmade, Em & Sprout, Murphy and Gert, We Are Something Else, One Clay Bead, Canis Lupus Proper, Timeless Twine, ana AND me, vinylicious, Cutie Bootie Boutique, BowSheep, Elle Marie Designs, Bunnie Brand, Sweet Deja vu

Can I be in love with a pancake?

I’m not a huge fan of pancakes and I am not huge fan of fall.  But I do happen to be a HUGE fan of pumpkin pancakes.  So good!

If you haven’t tried them and have a Trader Joe’s near you, I highly recommend you try out their pumpkin pancake and waffle mix.  Oh, and while you’re there, pick up a few extra boxes to stock up because this is only a seasonal item.

It’s a perfect fall breakfast.

I’m a summer-girl through and through, but the one thing I like about autumn is all the pumpkin recipes that start popping up everywhere.

Here are some pumpkin recipes you may want to try out:

• Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Libby’s Famous Pumpkin Pie
• Luscious Four-Layer Pumpkin Cake
• Pumpkin Mousse
• Layered Pumpkin Loaf
• Creamy Pumpkin Bars
• Pumpkin-Spiced Whoopie Pies with Ginger Cream
• Pumpkin Praline Pie
• Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Brown Sugar Buttercream

And here are two recipes from my very own recipe box.

PUMPKIN CAKE

(Serves 12)

• 1 can (29oz) ready mix pumpkin
• 1 box yellow cake
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cubes butter, melted
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 cup walnuts
• 3 eggs beaten
• Cool Whip

COMBINE pumpkin, salt, milk and eggs.

BEAT well with a whisk and SPREAD into a 13x9” greased pan.

SPRINKLE the dry cake mix on top of the pumpkin.  RUN a knife through the mixture.

SCATTER walnuts over the top.  Then DRIZZLE melted butter over the top.

BAKE at 350 degree Fahrenheit for 50 minutes.

TOP with cool whip.

 

PUMPKIN SEEDS

Note: Do NOT wash seeds.

For every 2 cups of seeds, you will need:

• 1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

BAKE at 250 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 hours.

STIR occasionally.

Credit: All photos taken by me.  Trader Joe’s.  Pumpkin recipes - Our Best Bites, Libby’s, Kraft Foods, Love & Olive Oil, and my kitchen addiction.  Pumpkin Cake recipe from my friend Shannon.  Pumpkin Seeds recipe from the cookbook Fernwood’s Fabulous Favorites.

What We Did This Weekend.

Another lovely Saturday, another long walk on the beach.

I heart you southern California in September.

Credit: All photos taken by me.