And the winner is...

Congrats to Emily R!
And a big thank you to everyone who entered!

Emily ~ You have 72 hours to respond to my email. If I don't hear from you, another winner will be chosen at random!

Sweatshirt Turned Anthro Jacket!

If you like this jacket and ensemble, you will love how it was made. The Anthro knock-off jacket was made using a man's sweatshirt from the thrift store!!!! (The other parts of the outfit including the purse were made from dollar store and thrift store materials too.) Made It On Monday, my brilliant partner on Crafting With The Stars, created it. Stay tuned to her blog for the other tutorials in this outfit!

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See how to make a classy sweatshirt jacket!

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Also, don't forget to vote for your favorite 3 projects over at Crafting With The Stars hosted by Sew Dang Cute. My partner's project ROCKS (as do the other)! Round 2 projects involve Decoupage!

Headband Earmuffs

Make adorable earmuffs from a store bought headband. A great idea from A Girl and Her Glue Gun. One great thing about this is there is no sewing involved - just glue!

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See the headband earmuff tutorial.

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This post sponsored by Here We Are Together.

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Spinach Salad w/Honey Mustard Dressing

I love salad. I love that you can eat it all year, and that you can have it a million different ways. I would think that using spinach as a base for salad has to be the most nutritious choice. Since it's January and decent tomatoes, cucumbers, avocados, and basil are hard to come by I have to be more resourceful. Yes, all of those ingredients are available, they're just not very tasty compared to buying them in the summer, also they're very expensive right now. So, I'm expected to pay more for something that isn't that great to begin with. I think not! Enter bell peppers.

When I was a child I never ate bell peppers. See, my mother hated them. In fact, her mother hated them, and she had six children. That means every aunt and uncle I ever imposed on never fed me a bell pepper either. Most of them hate bell peppers too. With the exception of my aunt with the green thumb who is the goddess of all things growing. But I digress, I love bell peppers! Green, red, orange, yellow, they're just a rainbow of nutritional crunchy goodness.

Here is my current favorite salad, it's great as it is in this photo and with this dressing, but it's also great with the peppers cut in strips, some shredded rotisserie chicken, and Trader Joe's Tuscan Italian Dressing.

Salad:

1/2-3/4 bag of baby spinach
1/4 of each, red, yellow, and orange bell pepper, sliced and chopped in 1 inch chunks
1/4 cup of sliced almonds, toasted
2 tbls.-1/4 reduced fat feta cheese
(the reduced fat is a little softer and not as dry as the full fat version)
Salt to taste

Dressing:
2 Tbls. olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 Tbls. Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
2 tsp. honey
1 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce

1. Add spinach to a large bowl. Wash, remove tops and seeds and chop or slice your peppers. Place them on top of your bed of spinach. Sprinkle with feta cheese.

2. Heat a small  saute pan over medium low heat. Add your almonds and stir occasionally while toasting. They will release their oils and then you will start to see them brown. You want them to be a golden brow. They will quickly go from perfect to burnt so keep an eye on them. It should take about 5 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, make your dressing. Simply combine all the ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup and whisk until thick, well combined and emulsified.

4. Sprinkle salad with toasted almonds and dressing.

This post is linked to:

Mouthwatering Mondays @ A Southern Fairytale

Tasty Tuesdays @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam

Tasty Tuesdays @ 33 Shades of Green

Valentine Gumball Necklaces

I Love, Love, Love this idea! What a fun project to do with your little gal or surprise her with a necklace on Valentine's Day!

These are so stinkin' cute, I'm might just have to make one for myself too! Get the details to make your own from One Charming Party HERE

Thanks to My Sponsors!

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I just wanted to say thanks to all my sponsors for keeping me going via their support! If you like this blog and want to keep it around, visit my sponsors sites and see what you are interested in! There is something for everyone to be seen!

Thanks for taking a look!

Not-So-Spicy Spicy Dice!!!!

As certain holidays are approaching, I often ask my friends what gift they are giving their husbands (Valentine's, Christmas, birthdays, etc.) Recently, one of my friends responded by saying she got her husband some "spicy dice" for Valentine's Day!

"What is that?" was my reply.

She proceeded to show me these three little dice with eight sides. As she explained what they were and as I read the words on the dice, I turned a bright color of red. Yes, I blushed!!! I learned about these types of "games" after the age of 25. A little naive? Absolutely!

"Michelle, you have been married over 5 years. This shouldn't embarrass you anymore," she responded to my change of color and uncomfortable laugh.

"Yes! I have been married that long and I do have 2 kids, but still....that is just too "spicy" and 'kinky' for me!"

I thought about this disturbing little present that evening. Most men would LOVE a present like that, but women like me are terrified by the thought of "spicy dice." (I was the one who would tear up at MY bridal showers if anyone made comments about 'you know what.') I came up with a compromise to give to my husband - inspired by "spicy dice."

Introduce "NOT-SO-SPICY SPICY DICE." The toned-down version that I can tolerate (thought it is still quite a stretch for me.) My husband will die laughing when I give them to him because this will not be expected. I'm not a romantic person! Poor guy. He probably will think it is a joke! Those out there who know me will probably be shocked that I am going to do this, but I am (working up the courage.) I can't believe I am actually blogging about this too!

On one dice is a body part (none of which I would blush to say out loud to my children). Body parts I used: legs, arms, back, neck, belly, your choice. One dice has an action (which makes me squirm just a little). I used: nibble, tickle, kiss, massage, lick, your choice. One has a room in the house. I chose: bedroom, kitchen, laundry room, living room, bathroom, your choice. I left a "your choice" side on all three so he could make up his own idea. (Breathe deep. I can do this.)

I was told by my friend, you shake the three (or two if you don't want to "play" the different room aspect) and do what the dice says. Sounds like.....fun... to me (I'm talking myself into believing this.) So I might have to give him a back massage in the bathroom. OR kiss his legs in the laundry room. Or nibble his arms in the kitchen. Does this sound romantic to you? (not to me!)

My husband deserves to have a Valentine's present he might like. I'm not great at giving him "romantic" gifts. Isn't this what Valentine's is supposed to be about? So this year will be a first! It will be fun to hear his laugh!

Here is how I made my "Not-so-spicy spicy dice." Sorry about the blurry, dark pictures. My camera is mediocre at best!

First, buy little wood blocks from your craft store. Mine are about 3/4"x 3/4". They should be already sanded and smooth. Paint all the edges the color you want them.

Next, print the words you want for your 3 die on "romantic" scrapbook paper leaving enough room to cute out squares to basically cover the wood die. I used different fonts for the different die so I made sure to glue all the body parts on the body parts, etc. dice.

Using a decoupage medium (Mod Podge), glue the papers on all six sides of each dice.

Let it dry overnight. Using a sanding block or file, sand off the edges of the paper that over hang. (How do you take pictures with one hand while doing something that requires two hands?)

Then dab the paint over the very edge of the paper to give it a distressed look.

Mod Podge the blocks one more time to seal the paper and paint and let it dry! You have your toned down version of "NOT-SO-SPICY SPICY DICE." Discreet enough to hold in your hand or hide in a drawer.

There! I have blogged about it and survived. Let's hope I can survive giving this present to him. ARE ANY OF YOU LIKE ME? I need reassurance, please!

What are you giving your husband for Valentine's Day?

Linking to BNOTPMet Monday, , It's So Very Cheri, DIY Show and Tell, Skip To My Lou - Made by You Monday , Making The World Cuter ,

Sumo'sMarket Yourself Monday, Keeping It Simple - Motivate Me Monday,

Today's Creative Blog-Get Your Craft On, Hope Studios - Tutorial Tuesday. All Thingz Related - Anything Related Tuesday

I'm Topsy Turvy

Conversation Heart Banner

There is still time to make a cute conversation heart banner for Valentine's Day! What funny phrases would you write on yours? Or would you keep them all about love? Punkin Patterns shows us her banner.

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See the Conversation Heart Banner.

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