Silhouette Download Card Giveaway

NOTE: GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.

Did ya'll get that email from Silhouette this week that said the Quickutz issued download cards will expire on Dec. 31st of this year? Well, when I received it, it made me remember that I had a $25 Silhouette download card tucked way away in a box at the top of my closet!

I have dug it out, and am offering it to one lucky reader as a prize for being so lovely and reading my little blog. :)

So here's the deal:
-To enter, become a "follower" of my blog and then comment on this post. Pretty easy.
(And if you already follow the blog, just go ahead and commend and let me know).
-Include your name and email address ("loni AT email DOT com" or "loniatemaildotcom")

An additional entry in the drawing will be given if you blog, tweet, or facebook the giveaway. Just comment again and let me know that you did so!

This give away will close Wednesday night. I will use a random number generator and announce the winner on Thursday.

Good luck!

Hey/Hay

I am loving this "Hey" themed treasury. Just in case you don't know, a treasury is a member curated list of items for sale on etsy, in this case curated by OhMyAmersand (you won't be disappointed if you click the link to her awesome shop). I never cease to be amazed by the creativity of sellers--and treasury curators, in this case--on etsy.

(free) Snowflake Download

Sorry I have been MIA for quite a while! I went to visit my family for a week, and I have been playing catch up on all my work since I got back. To make up for it, I have a free download today. Enjoy!



Click here to download a zipped file with a .gsd and .svg cut file inside.

3D snowflakes

I designed these today for the Silhouette online store, and am way excited about them. I want to make tons of them to hang in my front room all through the holidays. Wouldn't that be lovely?

Bag Tutorial Roundup

I have been bookmarking tons of different bag tutorials as I run across them on the web for weeks now. I thought I would share some of my favorites!



1. The One Hour Bag from Skip To My Lou
2. Little Boxy Pouch Tutorial by three bears
3. Free Diaper Bag Tutorial by makebabystuff.com
4. the basic messenger bag by mmmcrafts
5. For Pleat's Sake tote by U-hangblog
6. Pleated Pouch by Skip To My Lou

This is me embracing AZ

I set aside a Saturday a few weeks ago and put up two dozen jars of prickly pear jelly. Why do they call it "putting it up," by the way?

I used this recipe from homegrown evolution.

I do have a few different pointers about how to harvest your prickly pear fruit. I called up a friend of mine who has been canning prickly pear jelly for over 30 years. Here are a few of her pointers: don't bother burning off the spines. just harvest your fruit (with big metal tongs, like the bbq grilling tool ones), rinse it off, and then stick it in the freezer overnight. Pull it out, let it thaw, and then mash it with a potato masher. Strain the pulp twice, once with an old (but clean of course) pillow case, and the second time with a strainer and cheese cloth. Then your juice is ready! Also, it can be used for more than jelly. You can also make syrup, use it with lemonade as a drink, or marinate meat with it.

I'm so glad I called her! Not only did her pointers help out a ton, but she also had a great anecdote about not washing the pillowcase with your underwear after you are done using the case to strain out the pulp and pricklies... I will let you imagine the rest... :)

Hey Interweb Friends!

If you hop on over to Freckled Nest right now, Leigh-Ann is doing a big giveaway that includes one of my airplane mobiles and a lot of other awesome handmade items.



Just thought I would give you a heads up ;)