DIY Wooden Tree

A $10 Makeover

As an early wedding present, we were given a few pieces of furniture my dad built over twenty years ago. The pieces are gorgeous, one of a kind, and amazingly well built, however, they still need a bit of updating. Eventually, I may stain the pieces a bit darker, but for now, new knobs will do the trick! I picked up a bag of knobs at a local antique shop for $10. I have enough to replace all of the knobs on all of the pieces we have and then a few more if we ever decide to build! 

Valentine's Day Cake Batter Cookies

Click here for the full recipe, just swap out the yellow cake mix with strawberry cake mix! 

Pumpkin Cake, Take Two

Remember my pumpkin cake? It got a little upgrade this week! With a little extra frosting and pecans I am pretty sure this is now a dessert Martha would be proud of...

The Easiest Pumpkin Cake Recipe Ever

Cream Cheese Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients: 

1 29oz can of pumpkin pure

2 boxes of Pillsbury moist supreme yellow cake mix

4 eggs

1 tub of cream cheese frosting

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350. Using an electric mixer, combine canned pumpkin, cake mix, and eggs. Pour the mixture into two greased pans. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Cool, ice, and enjoy!

Christmas & Crochet

I am just going to admit it, my tree is up. Before you go on and judge me, let me just say that for one, my tree makes me happy. And right now I am extremely stressed out, so shouldn't that be enough of a reason to put it up? And if I do need any more reason than that, my house currently looks like Santa's workshop with orders EVERYWHERE. I have crocheted more in the past two weeks than I have all year! It has been a ton of work, but I love the fact that one of my favorite pass times can make us a little extra money, which is always nice, especially around this time of the year. Here is a peek into what my life currently looks like. P.S. It is our second Christmas together, which is perfectly symbolized by our two red cups on the tree!

Banana Bread

What do you do when your bananas all brown overnight and Halloween chocolate chips are on sale? Chocolate chip banana bread of course! 

Banana Bread:

Ingredients: 

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 medium bananas
2 eggs

1/2 cup butter

1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350. Mash bananas and cream with sugar, butter, and eggs. Once smooth, combine with flour and baking soda. If desired, fold in chocolate chips. Fill 2 greased bread pans about half way full. Bake for 40-45 minutes. If you don't plan on serving the banana bread right away, I'd bake it closer to 40 minutes to keep the inside moist. Enjoy! 

Owl Sugar Cookies

What do you do when you find pumpkin candy corn at the grocery store and an owl cookie cutter? Obviously make cookies! I feel like the pictures pretty much explain how to make them, but if you have any questions comment below! I cheated a bit and bought sugar cookie mix, but if you want to make them homemade, click here for my sugar cookie recipe. 

Owl Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients: 

1 batch of sugar cookie dough (boxed or homemade)

1 owl cookie cutter 

1 bag of candy corn

1 bag of M&Ms 

1 can of frosting (I used cream cheese frosting)

a bit of cinnamon and sugar for dusting

No Sew Wreath

For some reason, because I can crochet, people think I can sew. But the truth is, I almost failed home economics in high school because I couldn't even sew a straight line. I think part of it has to do with the fact that I got in a fight with a sewing machine when I was twelve and the sewing machine won, resulting in 3 stitches. And because people think I can sew, their left over fabric always ends up in my crafting closet. Fabric that is much too beautiful to be thrown away. So with the help of Pinterest for inspiration, I created this lovely wreath for my mom's birthday gift...and it was made with the leftover fabric from her wedding!

Directions:

Step 1: Untwist a wire hanger into a circle. It doesn't have to be perfect because the fabric covers it all!

Step 2: Cut or tear strips of fabric. I tore mine to make the edges frayed. My strips were about an inch wide and seven inches long.

Step 3: Begin to tie the strips around the hanger with a basic knot. Be sure to keep it tight and to push the fabric close together.

Step 4: Once all of the fabric is on, don't forget to "fluff" it up by turning the ribbons. Feel free to decorate it however you want! I just added a simple flower, but I will be going all out for my wreath at Christmas!

Step 5: Hang and enjoy!

Before the fabric was recycled, it made gorgeous table coverings!

Blackberry Muffins

FINALLY! Blackberry season is here! Maisy (our shih tzu) and I spent the morning picking blackberries, unfortunately it has been so hot that selection wasn't too great...most had dried and shriveled up before they were even ready. But I was able to pick just enough to make a batch of muffins! Enjoy! 

Blackberry Muffins

makes 12 muffins

250 calories each

Ingredients:

              

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 cups fresh blackberries

Directions: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. Add eggs, mix well. Combine the flour, baking powder salt, and almond milk. Fold in blackberries. Fill greased muffins cups two-thirds full. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Serve warm. 

Christmas in June

The beginning of summer is here and of course that means bikinis, late nights, and beaches...but for me, it also means beginning my Christmas stock pile. Yup, that's right, I said it...Christmas. Last year, I only did personal projects and I barely finished on time. This year, I have decided to take on smaller projects because I have custom orders, personal gifts, and I want to have stock on hand to sell. Crazy? Yes. But I've been told I am crazy plenty of times before. I am all about handmade gifts, and I thought these ornaments would be the perfect little gift for anyone. More styles are coming, but I am loving the way the desserts are turning out! If you would like to purchase your own, feel free to email me at emilydilldenton@gmail.com! The large doughnut is $7.49 and the small pastry is $4.99 or get both for just $11.99! All ornaments come wrapped with a bow!

Fudge Brownie Cookies

Fudge Brownie Cookies:

makes 30 cookies

150 calories per cookie

Ingredients: 

1 package of Duncan Hines chewy fudge brownies (mix only)

1 12oz package Nestle Toll House semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 large egg

1/3 c. vegetable oil

2 tbsp. water

Directions: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine brownie mix, egg, vegetable oil, and water. Once combined, the mixture should have a cookie dough consistency. Fold in chocolate chips. Place slightly flattened tablespoons of dough onto a lined cookie sheet, they do not spread much so there isn't a need for much space in between cookies. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely before removing from the cookie sheet. Enjoy!

These are not only delicious, they are great when you are on a budget. I made this batch for under $5! 

Gifting on a Budget

I love giving gifts. If I could, I would go all out on every occasion. But just like almost everyone else, money is tight and I can't spend a whole lot of money. But that doesn't mean I can't make gifts special! This adorable mother's day gift was made for under $3! The adorable pot was just $1.99 at Goodwill and the plant (it will bloom gorgeous purple flowers) was only 99 cents! You can't get much cheaper than that! Plus, it is unique and one of a kind, and the stores that I checked out had similar versions for over $20!

Basket Weave

I am only a little obsessed with the basket weave stitch right now. No pattern, but it is super easy...just basket weave the size of the pillow you want and stitch it up!

Granny Square Pillow

Does anyone else ever have a problem finishing a project? I was going to make this into a blanket but got bored so I quickly stitched it up into a pillow! No pattern, but it is a pretty basic granny!

Basket Weave Crochet Basket Pattern

I am just going to be honest and say that I am a horrible pattern writer. I created this pattern today on my day off and I totally wanted to share it. I apologize for how horribly it is written, so if you have any questions, feel free to email me and I will gladly help you out! I also included some awesome videos to make it a little easier. Hope it doesn’t get too tricky!

Basket Weave Crochet Basket Pattern

I used two strands of Red Heart Super Saver yarn to create a thicker basket that would stay up on it's own and a 5.5 mm hook. 

Create a magic ring

Reminder, do not join!

Round 1: sc 6 into ring. (6)

Round 2: 2 sc in ea sc around. (12 sc) 

Round 3: sc in next sc, inc in next sc, continue around. (18 sc) 

Round 4-16: continue to increase, you should end up with a circle 96 stitches around.

Now this is where it gets a little tricky. The basket weave stitch is already pretty tough, so doing it in the round gets pretty complicated…which is why I don’t do it completely in the round!

Round 17: ch 2 (this  does not count as your first dc stitch) dc into each sc around, when you reach the last sc complete your dc and add a hdc in the same sc, ch 2, turn. (You are not working in the round, the seam will be stitched up at the end!)

HERE is a greatvideo on how to complete the basket weave stitch.

Round 18-20: In the first 4 dc, dc on the front post. Next, dc 4 on the back post. Continue this to the end of the row. When you reach the end, don’t forget you hdc, ch 2, and turn.

Round 21-24: Continue the pattern of rows 18-24 but reversed. (Switch the front post to the back post/back post to the front post…it may be easier to just watch the video!)

Round 25-29: Change your dc direction again.

Round 30: sc in each dc, fasten off, leave a long end for sewing.

Stitch up seam.

Bonus: If you would like to create the trim at the top, sc a few extra rows and fold over! 

Game Day Prep

To say I am obsessed with everything blue and orange would be an understatement! I have my game day outfit, my broncos bow, and delicious heart shaped cookies. These cookies were fantastic, super soft and the perfect amount of sweetness so obviously I have to share the recipe! 

Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup softened butter 

3/4 cups sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 can cream cheese icing 

sprinkles (optional)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until smooth. Add the egg and beat until fluffy, about two to three minutes. Add vanilla. Gradually add in dry mix. Shape into a ball and refrigerate for an hour. Once chilled, roll dough to a 1/4 inch thickness on a floured surface. Using a cookie cutter, create your desired shapes. Bake until cookies are just slightly golden brown around the edges, about 10-13 minutes. Remove from heat, cool completely, and decorate.