From Pin To Life: 2013 edition

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——–Welcome to 2013———

It’s a new year, and since I’ve last posted From Pin to Life, I’ve pinned many new items.  I’m already up to 3,500+ pins and counting.  I’ve got a lot of great ideas and I’m starting to plan out a new system to blogging all of the great creations.

I plan to feature DIY, crafts, lifestyle, food & fun, beauty, and much more!  Looking forward to a great new year of getting my “Pinterest” on!

Lets review a little of what I’ve seen over the last 12 months on From Pin To Life.. drum roll please.  In 2012 everyone loved the following posts:  Christmas Wreath Mini-Dog Appetizer (made by my Aunt), Make Your Own Mousepad – Part 1 and Part 2, Hershey Kiss Pies, DIY Cord Covers, and Decorating Plastic Drawers.  You can see more below with the WordPress stats for 2012!

Check back next week for more to come – posts, social media, and more!!  Until then, check out my personal blog where I’m blogging everyday in 2013!  The Daily Flex

Keep pinning :)
Julie
Pinterest @jujudivine
Twitter @frompintolife

——–Year in Review 2012———

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

4,329 films were submitted to the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. This blog had 19,000 views in 2012. If each view were a film, this blog would power 4 Film Festivals

Click here to see the complete report.

Etsy Shop Adventures – Cursive Feathers

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Well, bringing pins to life has changed up a little for me.  I still have many ideas, but a few of my projects are long term.  I am still going to post blogs, but not as often as I have been in the past.  I am still getting many cool ideas from Pinterest and love bringing them to life, but I’ve started a little bit of a new adventure on Etsy.

For anyone who loves handmade, crafty items or vintage finds, Etsy is the place for you.  It’s basically an eBay for crafty people.  There are so many items on there that you can find, the ideas are endless!

I decided one day that I needed an overhaul of my scrapbook supplies and had so much extra paper and embellishments, that I wanted to try and actually use the products that had been sitting on the shelf.  So, I started to “play” with the paper and the creativity started.  I started to get ideas of things that I could make for people to use on their layouts or cards or for any other paper project or use.  And so I was inspired to open an Etsy shop.

I named my shop Cursive Feathers, which has items for sale (or soon to be items for sale) including scrapbooking embellishments, tags, paper, layouts, mini-albums, and all else with a vintage twist.  So to all you scrapbookers, cardmakers and other paper project crafters, I would love your input!  I want to create items that people would enjoy to use!  Your ideas and suggestions will be greatly appreciated!  I have many different ways that you can connect to the products below (including photos of items).

Jump directly to my Etsy shop here:  http://cursivefeathers.etsy.com

Of course, I also have the items connected to a Pinterest board, which you can see here:  http://pinterest.com/jujudivine/cursive-feathers/

Also, I have a Twitter feed @CursiveFeathers as well as a Facebook Fan Page – Cursive Feathers.  Feel free to follow on both to get updates on new items posted and other updates!

Please leave a comment below or directly on my Twitter or Facebook pages above.  You can also email me at cursivefeathers@gmail.com.

–Julie

Here are some samples of the items I currently have for sale in my shop:

Utensil Tag Set (3 small tags shown, other items also included)
Music Themed Journal Pockets
Wine & Cork Screw Tag Set
Clock and Ledger Tickets & Ticket Pockets
Red Newspaper Classifieds Tickets & Ticket Pockets
Yellow Accordion Mini Album Box and Coordinating Die-Cuts

Deep Dish Pizza

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Something that I have been looking forward to making for my husband is Chicago style deep dish pizza.  Unfortunately since he has become highly allergic to cheese in the last few years, we’ve been on a constant search for a good cheese replacement and had found a great brand that melts, tastes, and stretches (yes, stretches) like real cheese.

But, this recipe can be done with real cheese or fake cheese, any type of pizza dough (gluten free, vegan, original), toppings, and sauces.  So here is the recipe to make deep dish pizza.

Ingredients Needed:
  • Pizza dough (pre-made mix, frozen, or homeade)
  • Pizza sauce (pre-made or homeade)
  • Mozzarella cheese
  • Veggies and/or meat
  • Round baking pan (9-inch for two people plus leftovers)

Step One:  Preheat your oven to 425 degrees (also check your pizza dough packaging for thick crust baking temperature).  Start first by making your pizza dough, since it will most likely need time to rise.  You can buy a pre-packaged mix, a frozen dough, make your own recipe, just don’t buy a store bought pre-made quick heat dough since you’ll need to shape it in the pan.  I used a pre-packaged mix by Pillsbury (Hot Roll Mix in the baking aisle) and needed to let it rise for at least 5 minutes.

Step Two:  While the dough is rising, heat the pizza sauce on low to warm it up.  We made homeade pizza sauce consisting of 1 can crushed tomatoes, 1 can tomato paste, and added spices (garlic, oregano, basil, black pepper, chianti wine).

Step Three:  While the sauce is heating, chop any veggies or meat you will want to add to your pizza.  We sauteed a mix of onion and broccoli.  We also cut up pineapple slices to add to the veggies.

Step Four:  Prep your pan by greasing the bottom and sides, but go easy!  I used a 9-inch round cake pan.  You might also need some flour to add to the sides to help the dough stick to the edges or it won’t stay up.  Take your pizza dough and smash it in the bottom of the pan.  (I only used half of the dough I prepared and froze the other half for another day).  Don’t be afraid to make it a thin layer on the bottom since deep dish pizza usually doesn’t have a thick bottom crust.  Make sure to push the sides up, moving your pan in a circle as you go around the edges.  Do this a couple times until the edges stay at least halfway up.

Step Five:  Begin the layering process.  A deep dish pizza is like an upside down pizza.  First you will add a layer of cheese.  Then add your veggies & meat.  Then you’ll add the sauce and smooth the sauce on top.  Make sure the sauce is not higher than the pizza dough edge.

Note:  The edges will fall slightly, so between each layer make sure to pinch the edges up again to the top of the pan.

  Add Cheese

  Add veggies/meat

  Add sauce

  Smooth sauce

Step Six:  Bake the pizza in the oven at 425 degrees for 15-25 minutes.  Check it first at 15 minutes.  The sides will begin to brown, but you want to make sure that your cheese melts and the bottom also cooks thoroughly.  Deep dish pizza crust should not be “flimsy,” but instead have a harder crust to hold it in place.  Let the pizza cool for about 5 minutes before serving.  Also, when you cut into the pizza it the crust on the sides and bottom  should have a “crunch” to it.

Also, if you don’t have a round baking pan, you could also use a small glass pan or a small cake pan.

I hope you enjoy making your deep dish pizzas!  Make them any size you want and with any ingredients, just remember the inside is an upside pizza when layering!  Leave a comment below and let me know how your deep dish pizzas turned out.

Enjoy!

Decorating Plastic Drawers

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I had seen this idea on Pinterest a long time ago about covering the ugly plastic drawers with scrapbook paper.  There is a tutorial from the blog Simply Living, which is where the photo was originally pinned from.

Over the last few months, I have been slowly but surely reorganizing and redecorating my scrapbook/craft room and thought that this would be a great was to make my set of plastic drawers look a little less ugly.  I also needed to make good use for them with all of these craft supplies I have strewn about the room.

This was a very quick and easy project.  Not to mention it makes the drawers look less messy when you don’t see all of the supplies floating around inside.
Here is what you’ll need:
  • Scrapbook paper (3 sheets of 12 x 12)
  • Mod Podge (glossy finish)
  • Scissors or Paper Cutter
  • Sponge brush
Step One:  The first thing you’ll want to do is wipe out the drawers, especially the front inside face.  This is where you’ll be adhering the scrapbook paper to the plastic.

Step Two:  Measure and cut the scrapbook paper to size to cover your drawer.  Since the drawers I am using are longer than 12 x 12, I also cut out a piece of white paper to attach to the end of the drawer.

Step Three:  Apply mod podge using the sponge brush to the front inside face of the drawer.  Lay down the long strip of scrapbook paper and apply another layer of mod podge.

Make sure to push out all air bubbles.  Also, on the plastic drawer, try to clean up excess mod podge from the edges.  Leave the drawers cracked open to air dry.

   

Finished Product:  Simple as that!  Decorate as you like.  I added numbers to my drawers with a white back in the open space.  Here is the before and after shots.

BEFORE:
AFTER:
This will work with any plastic drawers, big or small.  Just be sure to measure out the scrapbook paper first and don’t be afraid to be creative and add other embellishments or shapes.

Let me know how you updated your ugly plastic drawers.  Leave a comment below!

Julie

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Welcome to 2012

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Welcome to 2012!!!  I know this week has been delayed, as well as posts since before Christmas.  It has been a whirlwind of traveling, visiting family, and relaxing.  I had an good holiday season and I hope every one of you also had a great “break.”

But now, with gift cards in hand, I am finding many great ideas to bring Pins to Life.  I went shopping last night at Michaels and need to make a few more trips this week to get supplies, but I am hoping that I will be able to find everything I need.  There are so many different ideas I have floating in my head for posts.

I also have a few other ideas of things I’ve been wanting to do for awhile–some of which that are closely related to this blog, that many of you might enjoy.  I will post more about that as the time comes.  Also, I am hoping to dust off my coding skills and make this blog shine with new cool features–a longer project in the works, but do-able.

So, here’s to a great New Year, much creativity, and more Pins to bring into Life in 2012!  Look forward for you all to see new great things!

Julie

P.S.  While you are waiting, you can check out my Pinterest boards for inspiration!  http://pinterest.com/jujudivine/

New Year’s Eve Party in a Pinch

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Food for Thought
  • Think small and easy.  Start with your basics – fruit and dip, veggies and dip, cheese and crackers.  There is not much prep work and usually you can find produce precut and ready to buy or the pre-made trays if in a real pinch.
  • Add some quick baking items, like the Mini-Dog Christmas Wreath, except form your mini dogs into another shape, or spell out 2012 like the pizza above.  Probably a lot faster and easier than making the pizza above.
Drinks on Me
  • Jello Shots are quick and easy to make.  The staple recipe I usually use is 1 box of jello, 1 cup of hot water, 1 cup of liquor.  One of my favorite Jello Shot recipes is Black Cherry jello shots using DeKuyper’s Washington Apple Burst liquor.  Refrigerate for at least 3 hours to set.
    • You can also get the Jello Shot holders from GFS (Gordon Food Service), Walmart, Meijer, or other grocery stores.  If you are in a quick pinch, add a little more water and a little less liquor and make the Jello Shots in ice cube trays or mini-muffin baking tins.
    • My Science Project – http://www.myscienceproject.org/j-shot-3.html
  • Sangria with fruit is always a crowd pleaser.  Just get some strawberries, raspberries, oranges, or whatever other fruit you enjoy and add it to red wine.  There are also many brands of wine that carry a Sangria flavor, such as Oliver Winery Sangria wine (usually found in the US Midwest).
Party Fun
  • Get creative and decorate quick.  Dress up your wine & champagne glasses.  Make some fun party favors.  Use ribbon, leftover wrapping paper, and tissue paper.  Ask for help or get your kids involved to get crafty.  Or, ask everyone who comes to decorate their own glasses.  It keeps the dishes low and everyone will know which glass is theirs, just provide the crafty supplies.
  • Create a time capsule for next year.  Get a mason jar, cookie tin, box, or other container and have everyone write down what they think they will do next year.  How about New Years’ Resolutions.  Or have prewritten papers with questions and have everyone fill them out.  Here is an example of one for you to print (PDF) or you can create your own:
  • Open a bag every hour with fun questions or tasks for everyone to complete.  Start at 8:00pm and work your way up to Midnight doing one per hour.  Or make a game out of it and do one every 10-15 minutes for an hour.  You can use paper bags to hold the questions or challenges.

Here’s to everyone having a safe and fun New Year’s Eve!  Enjoy the holiday and I will see you all in 2012 with more ways to bring Pins to Life!!

Julie

DIY Cord Covers

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Something I saw on Pinterest and Etsy was a way to make your cords look more colorful and fun.  It is the same idea as making the knot bracelets as I’m sure many of you did when we were little.  The “rollercoaster” bracelet knot is the method I used.  Here is how I made my cord covers:

Items Needed:
  • Headphones, Cell phone charger, or any other cord you want to cover
  • Sewing Floss (cross-stitch yarn)
  • Scissors
  • Tape

Step One:  First you will want to cut the sewing floss at least four times the length of the cord of the cord.  It’s always better to have extra, then to not have enough.  For mine, I used three different colors.  One thing you want to check first is your pattern.  If you will be repeating a color more than once in a pattern, you will need to have more of that color floss cut (see photo below).

For mine, I repeated the light pink twice in the pattern; therefore, I added more of the light pink.  So I had one strand of white and one strand of dark pink, both of which were 4 times the length of my cord.  And I also had one strand of light pink, which was 6 times the length of my cord.  All of which were under the 8 yards in each packet per color.

Step Two:  Start making your bracelet.  First you will want to tape down the end of your cord to something sturdy.  Also, using a hair clamp helps to hold it in place.  You will then tie your strands to the beginning of the cord.  Then you’ll begin to make the bracelet pattern with the sewing floss.  It is hard describe, so I have made a video to teach you the technique I used in case you don’t already know it.

Finished Product:  Here is my finished iPhone cord plug, as well as another cord that I wrapped on my old iPod headphones.

You can make whatever pattern you like, with any colors you like and add it to any cord.  It’s also really cheap to make, since each sewing thread pack is less than a $1.00 and has at least 8 yards.  Most likely you won’t use the entire thing on one cord.  Have fun making all your cords colorful and fun!!

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