"I've Got a Fever and the only Prescription is More Cookies"

Ok.  The title to this post is a little corny and when I say a little I mean a lot but hey, that's how I roll.  I was looking for a title that incorporated the word prescription and Will Ferrell's SNL Cowbell skit was the first and only thing that came to mind.  Everytime I think of that skit or any of Will Farrell's SNL skits for that matter, I think of one of my besties, Alyssa.  Alyssa and I roomed together all throughout college and purchased The Best of Will Ferrell SNL our freshman year.  I can't tell you how many times we watched that DVD over our four years of living together and how many times we've quoted it in unison.  Somehow it just never gets old!  So, even though this has absolutely nothing to do with the subject of my post, this is for you Lyss:

So, the reason I wanted prescription in my title is because I have spent the past two days working on a large cookie order for Healthspring, the company my husband works for.  Next week is pharmacy week in their office and the committee asked if I could make 200 pill bottle shaped cookies for their department.  While it was fun, I quickly discovered how to cure my oh SO sweet tooth: with more sweet stuff and I don't even mean eating it.  Just popping tray after tray of cookies into the oven and the overwhelming sweet smell of icing did me in.  I told Daniel that I never wanted to see or smell another cookie.  Uh. . .yeah, that probably won't last too terribly long! :) 

Anyways, back to the cookies.  A few weeks ago I ordered a pill bottle shaped cookie cutter from Copper Gifts.  They have all sorts of cookie cutters there.  It was a little pricy, but I received the cookie cutter in a cute little box and wrapped in pink tissue paper.  They also included recipes and a free bag of sprinkles. . . gotta love that customer service! 

I then began a search for a great sugar cookie recipe, one where the dough would keep its shape through baking and not end up looking like a glob.  Thanks to my new addiction, Pinterest, I found a great one!  It is really easy and tastes great too!  You can find it at Sugarbelle's Blog!  Her blog is a great resource for decorating cookies. 

For icing the cookies, I used the Royal Icing recipe that was included with my cookie cutter from Copper Gifts and it turned out great!  I will do a seperate post of Royal Icing at a different time. 

Here are some pics of my cookie extravaganza:

The house we are renting has a pretty small kitchen, so I had cookies on every spare surface I could find!  They were literally taking over our house!

Pill Bottle Cookies

The finished product with each individually wrapped. 

Gotta get my advertising taken care of!  These were address labels I stuck on the back of the bags thanks to a friend's recommendation. 

Order: Complete!

If you've got a fever, get more cowbell.  If you suffer from a sweet tooth, bake and ice 200 cookies and you'll be cured (at least from cookies that is).

Ashley 

Tutorial: Boutique Glass Push Pins or Magnets

This tutorial is rated E for Easy!  All you crafters out there have probably already made these, but I made my first batch last week and loved how they turned out.  For all you non-crafters, wait until you see how easy these are and you may be crafting up a storm!

Today I want to show you how to make some cute push pins or magnets.  I'm sure you have seen some similar ones in boutiques for top dollar but the truth is they are super easy to make and come out looking great!  These would be super cute packaged in a small tin box for gifts.

Here are the materials you will need:
-Push Pins- the cheap metal ones with flat heads
-Round Glass Beads that are used for fillers in vases, etc.  I found mine in the floral department at Michael's but they have them at Wally Word, Michael's, Dollar Stores, etc.
-Pretty fabric scraps, paper, or magazine cut-outs (cut in small round circles about the size of glass beads)
-Glue (I used the E6000 that comes in a tube. You can use a glue gun too.)

 Here is a pic of the supplies you need.

 First, you need to cut out small round pieces of fabric, paper, magazine clippings, etc.  They should be about the same size as the back of the glass beads but they don't have to be exact.  The glass beads vary slightly in shape and size.

 Next, put a drop of glue on the back center of the glass bead.  (A little smaller than a pea size will be plenty.)

 Then, push the bead glue side down onto the small piece of fabric and squash it down.  The glue will spread to the edges to provide a tight hold.

 This is my first batch before I put the push pins on the back.  After the initial glue dries, glue the push pins or magnets to the back of the bead (the push pin will be glued to the fabric that is glued to the bead).

 Here is a photo of some of the push pins on one of my memo cork boards.  You can find this memo board and others like it on my Etsy shop.

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial and get to make lots of push pins/magnets. 

Craft Away Friends!

Ashley :)

Webb School Arts and Crafts Festival: Bell Buckle, TN

This weekend was my first craft show of the Fall and one of my first craft shows ever.  It was in Bell Buckle, TN, a quaint, charming little town about an hour southeast of Nashville. 

God truly blessed us with some amazing weather all weekend!  It couldn't have been more beautiful.  The weekend went really well and I was happy with the sales and contacts I was able to make.  I have to take a minute to brag on my hubby too!  He was absolutely amazing all weekend and insisted on being there to support me.  And I have to tell you that growing up, he never in a million years thought he would be going to or much less working a craft fair, but not once did he complain.  He also made his popular marshmallow shooters and sold about 50 of them! :)

Some of our friends came down from Nashville on Saturday and Sunday to hang out and it meant so much that they came! 

I took some pics of my booth to share with you.  Keep in mind I am new at all this and trying to figure out how to display everything and be efficient with my space and keep my costs low.  Hope you enjoy!  If you have any suggestions please let me know!  I plan to post a new tutorial later today so stay tuned!

Thanks!

Ashley

Show Season is Here!

Unfortunately, I have neglected my blog lately because I have been crafting like crazy for 3 upcoming craft shows this fall!  The first one I am doing is this weekend and I am really excited about it!  It is the Webb School Arts and Crafts Festival in Bell Buckle, TN.  Yes, Bell Buckle is the place I did a show in June and yes it was the one that got rained out after we were already there and all set up, but with a clear forecast we are hoping for the best!  I was kind of discouraged about the last one getting rained out, but Daniel and my family and friends have been such an encouragement to me!

If you are in the Nashville area and want something to do this weekend, come check out the festival!  It is from 9-5 Saturday and 9-4 Sunday.

I have some pics and tutorials ready and hope to post them soon along with an update about the show this weekend! 

Happy Weekend!
Ashley