Chocolate Dipped Tofee Sugar Cookies

Mmmm, and just in time for Valentine's Day! I found this idea on Our Best Bites last year and thought they looked so yummy. I used my own sugar cookie recipe and crushed Skor candy bars instead of using Heath bits. I definitely recommend using semi-sweet chocolate or dark chocolate. Milk chocolate just doesn't do it for me. I thought they turned out great.

1 recipe for sugar cookies, you want the cookies a little firm so they don't break when dipping

dipping chocolate, I used Baker's semi-sweet

white chocolate chips or almond bark

Heath bits or crushed Skor/Heath candy bars

1. Make sure your cookies have cooled completely. I baked mine the day before and placed them in a sealed container. If you want to dip them same-day, I recommend putting them in the freezer for a little while.

2. Melt your chocolate according to packaging. Place melted chocolate in a shallow bowl. Dip one-half of the cookie in the chocolate. Smooth out chocolate and remove excess with a small rubber spatula. Place dipped cookie on a lined (parchment or wax paper) cookie sheet. Top immediately with toffee bits. Place sheet of cookies in refrigerator until chocolate sets up.

3. Melt white chocolate according to package. Pour into a ziploc bag and snip corner of bag. Drizzle chocolate over dipped cookies and return to refrigerator to set up.

4. Remove from wax paper and remove any excess chocolate.

*keep refrigerator till ready to serve.

Trimming the tree....

We put up our tree a few weeks ago but I forgot to post it. We ended up buying a real tree this year and I'm hoping to find a good deal on a 9 foot, pre-lit after Christmas. This tree is super fat compared to our old tree so my ornaments didn't fill it as well. Oh well! I finished my glittered monogram and added it to the wreath on my door. I'm happy with the way it turned out.

Deck the Halls....

So I have STARTED decorating for Christmas, but it's been really hard as my house itself isn't really decorated yet. We haven't gotten our tree up yet either, that's on the to do list this weekend. So I thought I'd show you what I've done so far.....
I am working on a big glittery monogram for the center of this wreath-


Anyone who knows me will understand why we have this sign in our house-
Yes, even the pantry door got a wreath this year-
My favorite after Christmas find last year-
Thank you Karyn for the bells in the apothecary jars idea!

I made this believe sign and cloche last year-
Hope you are enjoying your holiday season! I'll be back with more...

Caramel Corn

This is a very deserving "re-post". I discovered this caramel corn recipe last year and it is soooo good! It makes a great neighbor gift and makes a ton. It is fairly easy to make and inexpensive. Trust me on this one- try it and you won't be disappointed!

Ingredients:
5 tablespoons butter

2 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup light corn syrup

1 can Eagle brand sweet and condensed milk

8 quarts (5 bags of microwaved) popcorn

Directions:

1. Prepare popcorn. Remove kernels. (see tip at bottom)

2. In a medium saucepan, combine syrup , butter, and brown sugar. Bring to a boil while stirring constantly. Simmer for 10 minutes and continue stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add milk and vanilla.

3. Pour over prepared popcorn.

This is so yummy and gooey!

*Tip: I got an awesome tip that I wanted to add. An easy way to remove the kernels from the popcorn is to pour it out over a cooling rack. The kernels will fall through the slats and the popcorn stays on the rack...genious! No more sifting through popcorn for me!

Happy October!

I had originally told myself I wasn't going to decorate for fall this year since we are going to be moving and I should be packing my house not decorating it. Then I went blog hopping and saw everyone's cute decor and and I couldn't help myself, I had to decorate.

Easter Decor

Now that St. Patrick's Day is over it'[s time to change the decor once again! I decided I wanted to fill this apothecary jar with some cute eggs for Easter. One problem, I'm cheap and cute eggs are not, especially when you need 34 of them! So I really liked the look of the splattered quail eggs. Here's how I made them:

What you need:

plastic Easter eggs, yes the cheap ones you put candy in (We all have too many of these things around our house)

sand paper

white spray paint

acrylic paint, colors of choice for eggs

brown acrylic paint, for quail look

sponge brush

old toothbrush

What you do:

1. Sand each egg just enough to scuff the shine off. This will help the paint to stick better.

2. Open each egg and place them on a paint drop cloth (outside). Spray paint each egg white. You may need a few coats. Do not spray the insides.

3. Once eggs have dried, paint each egg with acrylic paint. I gave each egg 2 coats.

4. Once they have dried, return the eggs to the drop cloth, still opened. Dip your toothbrush into the brown paint, turn it so that the bristles face the eggs, and run your finger down the bristles. (I used dark brown paint and then added a little white to it and went over the eggs with the lighter brown as well.) This may splatter up at you so make sure you are wearing old clothes or an apron.

5. Let dry. Close eggs and your done!

Once again here is my holiday cloche. I found this huge egg at Ross for $2.99! It fits perfectly. The pink beading is from Designer Blvd. To view my post on how to make your own cloche click here.

St. Patrick's Day Decor

Time to switch it up again! I'm actually really happy with the way this one turned out. I bought my little Leprechaun at Hobby Lobby, then sprinkled confetti (pots of gold and gold and green stars) around him. I then wrapped shamrock wire garland (dollar store) around the outside. I was worried about the wire garland being to "cheapie" looking, but I think it turned out cute.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hugs & Kisses

Happy Valentine's Day! I thought I'd just share the banner I made. I purchased these letters at JoAnn's, (I'm sure you've all seen these there), they were actually in the Clearance isle, my favorite, and they were X's and Q's that I converted into O's! After all who wants X's and Q's right? I do! Just something simple and fun. I just threaded them on some pink ribbon I already had.

Valentine's Wreath

*I've had a lot of questions about this wreath. Just to clarify, I used only one fabric above. The other color you are seeing is the reverse side. You can use as many fabrics as you'd like.

What you need:
styrofoam heart

pencil

tacky glue

scrap fabric (about 1/3 of a yard), cut into 2" squares

scissors

ribbon

What you do:

1. Fill a small bowl with glue.

2. Place the tip of the pencil in the center of the fabric square (print side facing the pencil), then dip the end of it in the glue.

3. Press the pencil tip into the styrofoam.

4. Remove the pencil and the fabric should stay in place.
5. Repeat steps 2-4 until entire heart is covered. (make sure it looks nice and full)

6. Tie a small loop around the finished wreath with ribbon, then thread enough ribbon through that to hang your wreath.

*I'm pretty sure I got this idea from Little Birdie's Secrets

Valentine's Day Decor....Already

Remember this guy? He used to be filled with Christmas balls. This is his new look for Valentine's Day.

I bought these wired, glittered hearts at JoAnn's and stuck them into a styrofoam square. I placed red tulle in the bottom to cover the styrofoam. I re-used my same red beads from before and there you have it!

Christmas Centerpiece

I love how simple and cute this turned out! I have to thank Amy Foote's sisters for this great idea. This is nothing more then a hurricane vase turned upside down and a decorative finial ($4-hobby lobby) glued on top with liquid nails. You can place it on top of a cake stand, candle stand (pictured above), or a charger. I bought the beads from Designer Blvd. and wrapped them around the outside just for something extra. You can fill it with anything! I love that I can use this year round. I filled it with christmas balls because I am in charge of a table centerpiece for our ward Christmas party. Love it!

Another Pumpkin

I just had to share! We made these pumpkins at our Fall Craft Night Enrichment. They are made out of air conditioning duct, a little spray paint, glitter, ribbons, and leaves. I thought it was so cute!

Witch Hat with a little Shimmer

I found this cute sign at the dollar store but knew it needed something more. I was hoping to use purple glitter but I've just been to busy to make the extra trip to the craft store.

What you need:
Witches Inn sign- dollar store!
glitter
glue/mod podge
brush
What you do:
I think this one is pretty self explanitory!