Mason Jar Pin Cushions

 

 I have wanted to try a project like this for quite awhile but have always used my canning/ mason jars for making jams and preserves and never had any jars to spare.

I was gifted 2 boxes of old canning jars without lids. The jars were in great shape and I figured that they would be perfect to finally make this project. I found some lids with the centre seals for the jars at a local hardware store.

I also wanted to make a thank you gift for the ladies of the Rimbey International Historical Quilters Guild. They hand quilted a quilt for me and I wanted to give them a little something to let them know how much I appreciated it. I filled the jars with little chocolate bars from the local wholesale club. They looked great and made a wonderful gift. All the recipients were thrilled!

Click on the link for materials and instructions to make your own Mason Jar Pin Cushion

In Honour of my friend

Today, as I did last year on this day, I am thinking of my friend and her family.

It has now been five years since she passed away and since I can seem to write nothing without tears today, I will keep this post short.

Every year, since it's inception, I have made a personal donation to the Brandi Costar Memorial Endowment Award fund at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. It is one way of honouring my friend's memory and her mother's hard work in setting up the scholarship in her memory as Brandi's legacy.

I recently sent some wonderful things to The Hive in Medicine Hat for their Gallery Boutique. A percentage of the proceeds from the sale of these items, and all of Nana Brown's items sold at The Hive, will be donated to the Brandi Costar Memorial Endowment Award fund along with my regular contribution.

Here is a picture of all the goodies that I sent. Many of them are exclusive to The Hive.

Stop by and check out the shop if you are in the area.

Low Fat Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies

I needed a birthday cake for a health conscious friend. He is always counting calories and does not like loads of sugar and extra icing but I wanted to make him something decadent and delicious for a birthday treat.

I did need to buy cream cheese and sour cream to make these brownies, because those are ingredients that I do not usually keep on hand but everything else I already had on hand. This recipe is a combination of two other recipes that I found online. My daughter was happy to help me make a cake for our friend’s birthday. 

Click on the link to get the recipe to try on your own Low Fat Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies

Project of the Month - May 2012

I have a clunky old make up bag that I think has been around for 10 or more years now. It is really big and beat up and in need of an intervention I think.

Every time we go somewhere I think that I really should make myself a new one. Something pretty and not so darn heavy.

We are planning another trip and I finally made a new cosmetic bag for me a priority.

I used this very bright and cheerful Kaori Kokeshi Bright, geisha girl fabric that I bought from another shop on Etsy.

I used some heavy duty white PUL for the lining, to protect against any spills and added some fusible fleece interfacing to the back of the fabric to provide a little protection for my make up and accessories.

I LOVE how it turned out and am excited to take it with us on our next holiday!