Crafts

When I was growing up, my amazing mother cooked every meal at home. My darling little sister was the baker of the family, and would force me to choose a cookie recipe from Mrs. Field’s cookbook every day. Needless to say, I didn’t learn the art of cooking or baking at an early age. Truth be told, the first real meal I ever undertook was the first night of marriage at home… chicken-fried steak. Good thing I lived about six houses from my mother-in-law, and she grew her own aloe vera plants! I was nearly burned to death from sizzling oil up both arms!! Since then, I have perfected the art of easy, yet impressive cooking.

This family heirloom is a wonderful, fast and easy, “dry” recipe you can have in your cupboards for a throw-together dessert that is still going to knock the socks off your guests!

Upside-down Pineapple Cherry Cobbler

One box of yellow cake mix (dry)
One stick of butter
One can of crushed pineapple
One can of cherry pie filling

Grease a cake pan and dump the cherry and pineapple cans (juice and all) in the bottom. Mix well. I sincerely hate nuts in my desserts but the nut fanatic may add chopped walnuts at this point as well.

 

Sprinkle the dry cake mix evenly over the top. Roughly chop the butter over the entire surface.

 

And to quote one of my favorite movies (“Steel Magnolias”) Bake @ 350 for about 20-25 minutes until golden bubbly! Just add vanilla ice cream to cut the sweetness.

Enjoy this easy family treat anytime with under five minutes of prep! If you are as busy as I am, you can impress in no time 🙂

I found this recipe a while ago, and it has already become a favorite. What a wonderful treat for the chilly season!

White Hot Chocolate (from allrecipes.com)

2 cups whipping cream
6 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 (12 oz) package white chocolate chips – Note: this recipe tastes the best with a premium white chocolate chip, not vanilla flavored chips.

 
Stir together the whipping cream, milk, vanilla, and white chocolate chips in a slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally, until mixture is hot and chips are melted. Stir again before serving.

Garnish with whipped cream and candy canes, as desired. Makes ten servings.

I don’t think I’m alone when I say that I associate pumpkin with Fall. But I have been finding some amazing winter pumpkin recipes, and I am dying to give them a try. Here’s a few highlights:

The Farm Girl has this wonderful recipe for Gingerbread Pumpkin Waffles that includes a buttermilk syrup and whipped cream! Yum!!

Little Birdie Secrets made this Fluffy Pumpkin Dip, and she even gives the how-to on the cinnamon-sugar tortilla chips.

Finally, Craftaholics Anonymous shares this recipe for Pumpkin Fudge! It makes my mouth water just looking at it – but the best part? She says it only takes 15 minutes to make!

So maybe it’s time to re-think pumpkin, and let it out of its little Autumn box.

Wishing all of our wonderful blog friends a very {SWEET} and Magical Christmas!

Kisses from all of us at WhipperBerry!

Heather, Emily, Jamie, Whitney, Kristin, Katie, Erin & Christene

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to be a creative guest on Ucreate!!!!!  Yes, I know, big deal, right? Right!

I decided to stick with my M.O. and do a paper tutorial. I’m always trying to push the boundaries of paper and test its limits. I love fabric snowmen, but as you may know, I don’t sew! So the challenge became how to make a faux-fabric snowman out of paper. Ta da! I’m sharing these now because they will be cute to display all winter long.

Faux-Fabric Paper Snowman Tutorial

Supply list:

• Heavyweight white paper* in large sheets
• Water and spray bottle
• Rubber bands
• Hot glue gun
• Packing paper or white newsprint

Optional accessories—such as:

• Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist
• Burlap, ribbon, or fabric
• Buttons or brooches
• Wood pieces
• Embossing powder and heat gun

*I used 180 gsm handmade paper, in 22”x30” sheets, made out of cotton, silk, and agro waste (such as sugarcane waste, bark fibers, or jute waste), from Under the Sun—but any heavyweight, fibrous paper will do.

Instructions:

Cut a circle from the white paper approx. 20 in. diameter (for larger snowmen; 15 in. for smaller ones.)

Roll sheets of packing paper towards the center until you have a balled circle.  Secure with hot glue.

   

Add layers until you have formed a ball, approx.  5 – 6 in. diameter (3 – 4 in. for smaller snowmen).

     

Now comes the fun part! Take your white paper circle and run it under your tap. Yes, you read me correctly. Get that paper wet! Wet the top and bottom thoroughly.

This is when you need to work quickly, because as soon as your paper gets wet the clock is ticking to get it into position before it tears, pills, or just becomes unworkable. Set your packing-paper ball in the center of the wet paper and start gathering the paper up to the top. If the paper is too stiff, spray it with a spray bottle.  If you work it too much, it will look like crumpled paper, and we are going for more of a gathered fabric look, so be quick!

   

Once you have it gathered at the top, and it looks the way you want it to, secure the top tightly with a rubber band.

   

Now, cut another paper circle out of your heavy white paper approx. 12 in. diameter (for larger snowmen; 9 in. for smaller ones).  Cut a small circle (approx. 1 inch) out of the center of the paper.  Cut the hole to fit snuggly over the top of the gathered paper ball.  Cut it smaller at first, gradually increasing the size as needed, so as not to become too big.

Once the hole fits snuggly over the secure rubber band, push the paper down as far as it will go. Use a pair of sharp scissors to snip the rubber band without cutting the paper. Remove the rubber band carefully. This should cause the wet paper to expand and hold the new circle in place.

   

Roll and twist another piece of newsprint or packing paper, and wind it around the paper sticking out of the hole.  Secure it with hot glue. Try to shape an even form ball of about 2.5 – 3 in. diameter.

   

Using your spray bottle, wet the white paper circle that is now secured underneath the ball.  Wet both sides, and start gathering it at the top the way you did the bottom ball. Again, remember to work quickly. When completely gathered on the top, secure it with a rubber band.

   

This is the basic snowman—now use your imagination to make it your own! I sprayed mine at this point with marshmallow glimmer mist so it would have a shimmered frosty look.

 

I made a top hat for the dad, a wide-brim church hat for the mom, and a cute beret-like snow-hat for the daughter.

  

For the daughter’s beret, I made it much the same way I did the head. I cut a circle out of paper approx. 4.5 in., and cut a hole in the middle to fit over the gathered paper. after removing the rubber band, I wet the paper and gathered and twisted it in the center while laying it flat like a beret. I added a wool ball to the top that Heather made using Whitney’s tutorial.  For the top hat and wide brim hat, I cut a circle the size I wanted for the brim, and then cut the hole in the center. After making sure the fit was right, I sprayed the brim with silver sugar glimmer mist, and then coated it with embossing powder and set it with my heat tool. I then put it in place atop the head, and cut the rubber band. I then built the rest of the hat right on the head.

 

Embellish your snowmen with accessories of your choice. I used burlap, fibers, and buttons (as well as a cute little scarf crocheted out of yarn by Heather).

   

 

For the dad’s sign, I used Woodsies from Michael’s—and I sanded and inked the edges. I printed the words on my computer, and tore the edges before gluing it onto the sign.

I dabbed Snow-Tex on the top of the sign, and on the hats, to look like melting snow. I rolled paper for their noses, and used little black embellishments for their coal eyes. Have fun, and decorate them to match your style and décor!

Display these all winter long. I’m not taking my little family down until Valentine’s Day!