My Little Orange Kitchen

Love Italian Style

I was at the news depot a few weeks ago when I discovered Gazetta Dello Sport. It's an Italian newspaper dedicated entirely to sports and marketed to men which I suppose is no shocker, though there is a surprise ... It's hot pink!

The picture above does not do the color justice...It's a very hard to capture in a photograph shade of pink.  As soon as I saw it, I knew it would make a great wallet. When I got home and began looking through the paper for images I was sadly disappointed.  All of the pictures were of sporting events and while it might be exciting to be at a sporting event, I didn't think a picture of the experience would transfer over to a good wallet image.   Well, that is until I saw a certain car advertisement.    

Yep.  That's amoré.  The picture of the lovers you see above is a car ad folks. Can you believe it? I suppose it would make sense if it was for a sports car, but it's actually for a mini-van! Who knew? I guess the soccer moms were onto something after all.

Though, I did see a 60 Minutes episode many years ago that showed street after street in Italy lined with cars that had newspaper taped to the windows...apparently this was the only way young men and women who were not encouraged to leave home before marriage could establish their um...intimate connection. I'm not kidding...it was on 60 minutes really and here's a BBC news report.      

The images/photos in the paper aren't as pink and are more of a grayish orange...but this one in particular will look amazing as a front cover flap on one of my wallets...I'll post it when I've made it.

Tomorrow is my last day on the job...just in time for December 1st.  The official season opener for holiday blogging!!!!!

A Rant (And it's not about the bad photos in this post, but it could be!)

I never go anywhere without mascara and lipstick, but I don't normally wear "facial" make-up like foundation, cover-up and powder (or even eyeshadow for that matter).  However, when I do decide to use a little something, it has to be light and practically not there.  I love Origins Nearly Nude (in light linen) because it's the only make-up that doesn't irritate my sensitive skin. 

Origins is recognized as a company that's trying in a big way to have less of an impact (wind and solar power, recycled paper, soy ink etc). The products are paraben-free and none have synthetic scents.  We don't have a location near us, so occasionally (once a year) I order a tube through the mail.

When my package arrived I was shocked at the size of the box and amount of packing material used to send one tiny tube! I can't believe a company with a tree as its logo could get on board with such a waste of paper (even if it is recycled). I'm recycling the materials of course, but it sure was an eye-opener.   

Don't get me wrong...I love pretty paper and packaging as much as the next person, but this is excessive...I'm not going to call for a boycott folks, but I won't be ordering on-line any more. I'm also emailing them to request that they skip the display packaging. Why on earth (no pun intended) do they need to put the tube in a box to sit on a store shelf?           

Speaking of paper and recycling...Here are some images I'm going to be turning into wallets. I have an order to fill this week, then I can work on Kelly's large order (thanks Kelly!) and then my attention will go to the shop. I must admit that I'm fairly in love with the red dress and black apron girl and wonder how she'll turn out.  The black and white village from the French newspaper Le Monde intrigues me as well.

Glad you liked scissorspaperglue and her felted mushrooms...she has color assortments now too!

What The Weissella?

This is my kind of bedtime snack.  If you like a baby soft gingerbread cookie with just the right about amount of sweetness and give then head on over to Trader Joe's and pick yourself up some Weissella. Of course for me, a little jaunt to Trader Joe's is three hours round trip, but for a couple of cookies...it's worth it.   

Weissela is straight out of Germany and must be their good faith effort at a global apology for sauerkraut.  It has the most fantastic texture...The sugar glaze on top gives the first bite a satisfying resistance before you settle into what can only be described as the reason for living.

It seems like such an uncomplicated cookie at first taste and glance, but as soon as you start chewing you're hit with a myriad of flavors all blended into a consistently smooth texture. Made with sugar, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, orange peel, figs, apricots and a whole bunch of normal cookie ingredients (flour, baking soda, egg etc...). From the smooth cake-ey texture, you'd never know that jotting down the ingredient list requires learning shorthand...not one crunch of a nut in any bite.  Odd. It also has persipan in it, which I'd  only had once before when I briefly worked at The European Pastry Cafe (now closed, but formerly on Lincoln Ave in Chicago). Persipan is the apricot kernel version of marzipan.   

Under each cookie is this weird white wafer made from white flour, potato starch and salt. Kind of like a  communion wafer. It gives the cake-like cookie a little bit of chewiness and it melts in your mouth just in time for you to be sure you didn't just eat paper.  Apparently, some people think you're supposed to peel off the bottom...please don't. It's so good.   

Look at the sweet little bird on the box!

Do you see where it says we get to enjoy it as an anytime sweet snack?  Wow, I just discovered that I actually like following directions. Aghahaha!!

Since I've got German cuteness and Hansel & Gretel on my mind now...let me share with you this Etsy seller and her felted mushrooms. They seem like an essential to have around if you happen to like sweet things.  At seven dollars for six I think they'd make the cutest little ornaments for swaps or would be perfect to embellish your gifts. You've got to love her colors!   

Sweet Dreams! I'm off to bed!

Thanksgiving Part Three

This is a fine way to end the day.  Almond milk bittersweet hot chocolate with real organic whipped cream, a piece of pie and a meeting with the fairies.  Good night all.

Oops...an addendum just under the midnight hour...My fifth sale on Etsy came in a few minutes ago. Thank you.

Sweet Dreams. 

Giving Thanks Part Two

Whipped cream by hand:

Another favorite bowl:

My fourth Etsy sale yesterday!

There may be another post later...we're home from my mother's house. My mom deserves a big round of applause for the food! Adam and Jenny deserve bows for the pies and my mother in-deserves high praise for the cranberry-pineapple salad.

Just so we keep this all in perspective, I hope you can visit FreeRice.com soon. I'm still high from my run at level 46. Funny since when I reread these posts it seems like I use the same phrases all the time, but at least I donated a ton of rice reminding myself that I actually have a good vocabulary. It's funny how I'm a person who loves words, but all I usually come up with is "Jeez, you know what I mean right?" 

Thanks-Giving Part One

First, let me say Happy Thanksgiving to all you Kitchenettes who stop by to visit or comment so often! I plan on a few posts between today and tomorrow.

Thanksgiving is my all-time favorite holiday. I love everything about it from my traditional early morning reflective walk, the food, the scents and believe it or not, I really do take time to give thanks. I'm sometimes stricken with guilt because even though Mark and I have our struggles, we do have so much. No one is stressed over here because the meal has tapped us out or because we couldn't afford to celebrate with food, which I realize is a tradition and does not have to be part of the act of giving thanks, but having the choice to overindulge or not is a blessing.

When I was about eleven I spent a Thanksgiving in Indiana with some family friends and while there I met a girl in the neighborhood named Anna. Anna (who was about fourteen) seemed to be and have everything I wanted. She was very pretty, had an older boyfriend with a car who bought us cigarettes and she wasn't self-conscious about anything. I walked over to her house on Thanksgiving afternoon and we sat in the bedroom she shared with a sister on a twin bed smoking Malboro Lights and suddenly it occurred to me through my whirly nauseated haze (from proving that of course I inhale all the time) that there were no signs of Thanksgiving Day festivities.

I asked Anna if they'd eaten already or if they were going over to another house later. Anna just shrugged her shoulders as she put on her purple eyeliner and ran one of those powder foundation pads across her cheeks and said that her mom might make some pudding or something, but that it was no big deal since they "never have any money anyway."  I kind of played it off like it was no big deal for our family either and then we heard a honk and it was her boyfriend coming to take her to a park where everyone was going to be partying.

I walked back to the house we were visiting by myself and I felt off kilter. It wasn't that I felt sorry for Anna as much as I felt disturbed...she was fourteen, her boyfriend was old enough to drive and her mom knew about it, she was matter of fact about not having money for food, but also matter of fact that no one really seemed that interested in cooking anyway. I didn't get a sense that anyone thought something was missing and it disturbed me because while I didn't want Anna to feel bad, I somehow wanted her to at least want more.  It troubled me and yet I didn't know if it was appropriate for me to be troubled since maybe it was better to not want more.  I was only eleven and when I look back it sure seems like I put a lot of pressure on myself to "understand" everything.    

Time went by and I had my own age inappropriate boyfriends and my own family holidays that were less than stellar (sometimes it seems the family holidays in blog-land are remarkably sanitized. Doesn't anyone out there have dysfunction?)...but, I think through it all, I knew there was an ideal and I wanted it. I know Anna had many real reasons for developing her nonchalance, but I never forgot it and think of her tenderly quite a bit, especially now that I'm an adult and  know how young fourteen really is.

I guess what I'm trying to say, in a real take the wind out of your sails downer way, is that I love this day not only because of what I do have, see and feel, but also because of what I want to have, see and feel. That in spite of any hardship in my life, that I made it through without the wall or limit signs going up. I am truly grateful for what I have around me.

We're headed over to my mother's later...We're all bringing dishes and I started a few things earlier...Here's a glimpse.   Oh, and because we do have some dysfunction, I'm hoping everyone stays on good behavior! :)

Cranberry, raspberry and pomegranate jelly in the early stages:

Waldorf Salad before the apples:

A favorite bowl:

A favorite bowl filled:

Mark's favorite (and yes, that's a lot of bacon):

More later folks!

                                                   

How Hard Can It Be?

My friend Janet is the least "foodie" of all my friends.  She's an excellent cook when she gets inspired, but most of the time she'd rather be tending to her animals, landscaping or painting.  I love it when she does cook, but it's not that often, so I jumped to attention right away when she said she'd made some bread.   

I've read all over the internet about how hard it is to make a wheat-less bread that has a great texture and a nice crunchy crust.  I've been on blogs where experienced people have reported back on all kinds of wheat-less baking disasters and spent hours and hours in the kitchen perfecting their bread.  Little did they know, all it takes is a cook who like Texas gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman, simply asks herself "How Hard Can It Be?" 

Apparently, not hard at all.  According to Janet, you just follow your intuition.  She wanted bread, tossed the ingredients into her bread machine, went into her studio to paint and came out to a loaf of the most delicious bread in the world (I believe in making powerful statements). 

Janet and I started out early this morning to make the hour and a half drive to Trader Joe's (It was her first visit-more about that in another post).  After shopping and making the trip home, I helped her unload her haul and she offered me some bread and butter.  I already know from past conversations (and experience) that when Janet cooks she asks the Universe to infuse her food with light and love. What kind of fool would I be to turn it away!

The first bite of her bread made my knees weak and the second bite transported me to another realm...She casually chatted as she put away her groceries and pretended not to notice while I stood at her counter moaning in ecstasy. 

I feel compelled to share her recipe with the world and figure my blog is a good place to start!

A few notes...First, she uses rice flour as well as spelt.  Spelt has trace amounts of gluten since it technically a type of wheat, but it is usually OK for people with wheat allergies. However, since it does have trace amounts of gluten, it is not appropriate for people with Celiac Disease. And this is a bread machine recipe...we'll have to ask her to try a knead-it yourself version soon.   

Little Orange Kitchen Recipe:

Janet's Granola Bread

• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons warm water (105 degrees if you're counting)
• 1/4 cup grapeseed oil/olive oil combo (use  your own preference on the mix of each oil, but it's 1/4 cup total)
• 2 1/2 tablespoons light agave nectar (this is a sweet syrup that helps the yeast grow...substitute honey if you prefer)
• 2 1/2 tablespoons dry milk
• 1 1/2 cups spelt flour
• 1 cup rice flour
• 1 cup granola (any variety)
• I (5/16 oz) package fast rise for whole grains yeast

Combine yeast, agave nectar and water in bread machine...Add remaining ingredients, set on program 5 (most machines have universal programming), crust setting should be at medium if you have one.  Follow your machine's directions to start baking. Soon you'll have a perfect loaf of bread.       

I just want to give everyone notice that I might not be posting that much anymore, since I'll be too busy hanging around Janet's house waiting for the bread to be done. She gave me the rest of the loaf to take home, so that last line is exceedingly pushy, but I can't help it...the bread is that good.  Mark just ate two slices and I'm going downstairs right now to make sure that he leaves the rest a piece for me.         

What's On Your Fridge?

I was inspired by Emicat's post to do a little show and tell of what's on my fridge these days. I go back and forth on the whole things on the fridge thing. Sometimes, I like a clear, paperless and magnet-less fridge entirely, but these days, I've got the front freezer door pretty well covered. Nothing on the sides though. I apologize in advance for the quality of these photos...I'm way way way off my game.   

First, we have a print...I'm terribly embarrassed to say I've forgotten the name of the artist.  I got it on a trip to Mount Shasta with my mother a few years ago. I remember the artist had a card included and the theme was about choosing foods wisely...foods to nurture you and help you heal.

Notice the baskets at her feet....

Then this little lady I doodled awhile ago:

These magnets I made that I consider rejects for one reason or another, so I kept them for myself:

My grandpa Arnold was a fantastic cook and someone gave him this magnet...It's funny because he was not an Arnie or an "Arnie Magnet" kind of guy, but he put it on his fridge anyway.  When he died, my grandmother gave it to me.  I look at it, think of his Swedish egg pancakes and berliner kranser and feed sad and happy at the same time.

    

A card from my nephew.  Tita and Tito mean aunt and uncle in Tagalog (his first language).

A magnet my friend Sherry brought me back from Sedona:

I like this "lucky cat" and while I love to dream and I dream super big, when I got this fortune I knew it was about balance...I want to be a dreamer and a doer...not just one or the other.

So....what's on your fridge Kitchenettes?

Tiny Bubbles

I've often thought if I ever had another bath and body shop or a blog solely dedicated to bath and body posts, I'd call it Tiny Bubbles. This time of year, I feel a little nostalgic for my shop. I always loved walking in and seeing the young women who worked for me excitedly arranging soaps and making gift baskets. We made much of what we sold right on the premises and while it always smelled good, during the holidays it was even better.  I'm not a fan of heavy scents in retail, but I love the scents from soaps and salts made with all-natural ingredients...a more gentle experience than walking into a Bath & Body Works, let me tell you.

Emicat over at Java Jibber got me thinking and I can't wait until I can post mini-tutorials on how to make handmade toiletries, but in the meantime, let me give you the scoop on someone else's!

Meet Perusha.  I discovered her on Etsy and thought I'd give her a try.  She uses only essential oils in her soaps. No fragrance oils whatsoever.  She also uses natural colorants like rose clay and red palm oil. Her soaps smell divine and have a wonderful lather.  My skin is highly sensitive and I have to be very careful what soaps I use, so the decision to try a new one isn't easy.  I'm glad I did. My order arrived and I'm in awe. 

Say hello to Almond Macadamia made with macademia oil and bitter almond essential oil. Doesn't it look positively edible?  Notice the stamp! Soap stamping, like butter and ice cream stamping, is an old tradition, but she makes it look cutting edge.

She even dresses the top with little soap chunks that look like nuts.

Now say hello to Rosehip Magnolia with rosehip seed oil and magnolia essential oil ( a rare treat).

What would the season be without a little Cranberry Orange?  With avocado and rice bran oil as well as bits of cranberry and orange.  Ungodly.

Perusha is an excellent soap-maker and it's clear she puts a lot of good energy into her work. If you're not encouraged to make your own, then please let her do it for you.

Little Orange Kitchen Tip: 
Natural soaps aren't milled the way most soaps are. Milling is what makes soap hard and smooth, but it also removes the moisturizing fats. So much in fact, that commercial soap-makers have to replace  moisturizers when the milling is complete. Triple milled soaps from France are not always the best (some are wonderful, but many are drying).  Because natural soaps retain all the good oils that nurture your skin they tend to be soft and can melt quickly in water. Because of this, I like to make mine last by slicing up my bars with a wire cheese slicer. I find that it lasts longer overall because there is less loss from melting.  I just pull out a new slice when I need it.

Patchwork

Hello Kitchenettes! Today has been super busy. I decided to try to get into Arti-Gras one of our area's biggest art shows. It takes place in February and while the odds of getting in are not that great, I still felt it was worth a shot with the wallets. 

I had to get slides made to submit with my application and this turned out to be a major headache, but thanks to Melanie over at Photodynamix, the day was saved. I'll have slides tomorrow and then zip over to the Post Office to get my application in on time!

Speaking of the Post Office, I forgot that it was closed on Monday for Veteran's Day and I couldn't get there yesterday, so I mailed all the consolation prizes today.  They truly are tiny little things, but I hope you enjoy yours! I put a note in each one about why I'm making them and you can see the picture above for a preview!

OK. Big news on the Little Orange Kitchen front:

I quit my job. My last day is November 30th.

WAIT!!!

Before anyone thinks I'm suffering from delusions of grandeur with my wallets and am planning a multi-million dollar empire...let me explain. 

A few weeks ago I learned about some changes happening at work that I feel are a huge step in the wrong direction. Huge.  Working for a short-term lender has had its challenges, but overall they've been good to me and I've been willing to put up with the gasps of horror from some friends and family about how I work for crooks...Until recently.  I'm not in with the new policies and so that's that. I had planned to look for a job right away, but have decided to work through November and then be off in December.   

As you regulars know, I am losing my hearing at an alarming rate and December is the month that I get hearing aids for both ears. There's quite a process involved with the "set up" to make sure they're digitally set to best accommodate me.  Working without them has been terrible and very embarrassing as I struggle more and more to hear people.  It's embarrassing to have people assume that I'm not listening and become annoyed.  I think the timing works well and December will be my get used to the "little helpers" month.  I'll be back in action doing something else in January and hopefully I'll be hearing everyone too! This is still something I'm getting used to even saying or writing about.   

Things will be tight as this was unplanned, so it's a good thing I like making handmade gifts! Have any of you taken the "Handmade Pledge" yet?  Over 5600 people so far! I can't take it, because in all honesty Mark isn't into my body scrubs, wallets, potholders or ornaments, but as soon as I learn how to make my own Playstation games, I'll be on board!!!

OK all...I hope you have a great night!

Strings Attached: And They're Worth It!

I'm on a bit of a Yogi Tea jag. Mostly because I love the messages. It's like a fortune cookie in a cup! I didn't even notice them until a few years ago my friend Patti saw me drinking some and asked me what my message was.  I was confused until she showed me that each teabag has a message on the string!  I love this and now it's my tradition to include a Yogi Tea packet in her "Winter Holiday" card. 

I sometimes go to Hansen's to get milk in a glass bottle (don't be envious...it's nice, but it hardly has and old grocery store feel) and tonight I saw this.

Yep. Ice cream pellets like you see at the movies only smaller.  The theory is that they melt differently and each bite is more flavorful than regular ice cream.  I can't say we didn't like it...it was fine, but the novelty factor was the draw and now we'll go back to our normal scoops. It's a little too space-age for us. Though, it did look nice...

Funny story (to me anyway).  In the box Christine sent me there was this little pottery decanter in a small zip-lock bag with some liquid in it. (forgive the awful picture of such a pretty thing!)

I saw it and my heart stopped because after all, if my "guru" sent it, the liquid must be important and I was devastated that it had spilled and that most of it had vaporated leaving me with just the droplets on the inside of the bag. Plus, the whole box smelled like incense and I could swear the liquid drops had a rose scent. What was it???? Rosewater from India, holy water from the Dalai Lama's locket, some youth dew?  With Christine you never know.

I felt like I had to take advantage of the few precious drops left and I turned the bag inside out and pressed it to my face and then rubbed the water in with my hands...I refrained from trying to drink the drops only because they were so tiny...Hey, I read Tuck Everlasting didn't you? 

I emailed her and wrote that unfortunately most of the elixir did not make it in the mail, but that I had rubbed it all over my face and wondered what it was? Not dishwater I hope! Aghahaaha!

Well folks, it was. She had washed it before sending it and there must have been a little water left inside. Oh brother!!!  This is like when I was 21 and she and I talked about meditating with a crystal on your forehead to open up your third eye and your intuition.  Well, in an effort to speed up the third eye awakening I taped a crystal to my forehead 24/7.  When I told her about it a few days later, she gently suggested that I just might be overdoing it! Hey, if it's worth doing ...it's worth overdoing. :)

I'm still waiting for a few more addresses from the giveaway, so the consolation envelopes will go out on Tuesday.

Good night all!! 

And It's Not Even My Birthday!!!

I got a great package from Christine today! I loved everything, but the green wooden box with the wee 70's  fairies was the hit of the day! Christine and I have been friends for almost....gulp....19 years!!!!! She was my first and only meditation teacher, introduced me to herbs, kitschy kitchens, bisconni (her cookies), and took me to Indiana for my very first spiritual retreat. 

I had recently learned how to pump gas and offered to fill the car up wearing her stretchy black and white sweater and I guess my gas pumping skills needed some work because I sprayed myself (and her sweater) with gasoline and was extremely agitated until we arrived here (picture on the right hand side). We got out of the car with our friend Sunny and I was immediately relaxed.  We looked in the woods for fairy houses, walked a labyrinth and stayed up late with about forty men and women watching amazing belly dancers by the huge bonfire. I was changed ever after. 

When she decided to clear out some of her things recently, she saw this box and thought of me. Perfect!!!!! She filled it with chenille yarn and vintage children's books and dishes and sent it my way. JACKPOT! Look at this panel and my little owl friend. 

Thank you! if you visit her blog you can see a picture that she took of the Dalai Lama. Does anyone remember Bill Murray in Caddy Shack?  It wasn't a favorite movie, but this makes me laugh.  Oh give it a chance---the last line kills me.

Speaking of owls. This guy just makes me fall over. 

He's quite the demanding fellow and he really gets around. After he posed for this picture, he swooped over to the chair and waited for me to put Nigella on.

Then, when I turned away, he zipped into the library and sat in front of the books waiting for me to read him a story.

We had a great meal at Cy's Asian Bistro in Neenah tonight. I even embarrassed myself by taking pictures of every dish, but I did a terrible terrible job and decided not to post them for fear of doing Cy a disservice.  I wish he had a website. It's the best Thai food ever!  The fresh spring rolls are better than any I've ever had.   

Cy’s Asian Bistro
208 W Wisconsin Ave Neenah, WI 54956
920-969-9549 

OK...now I'm making some more wallets for the shop! Off to work I go! I got my first feedback as a seller today and now I think I'm the bee's knees! Which if you follow this link, you'll learn is much better sounding than the eel's ankle, so hey..."I've got that going for me...which is nice."  Aghahaahaahaha!!! Note: It's not funny unless you watched clip. 

A Winey Post

OK.  It's after midnight and I'm still up. Why?  Because I had to try another weird cheese. I know. My name is Laura and I have a problem. 

I was intrigued by this Cabernet infused cheddar and unlike the fudge cheese fiasco, this is actually natural and even made with raw milk at that.  I'll admit when I saw the block of deep purple cheese called "Purple Moon" , I assumed it would be purple all the way through.  Well, you know what happens when you assume don't you? (I always hate it when people say that!!!!).

It turns out it isn't infused with wine, but soaked in wine (the label states this clearly, but I didn't pay attention) so the inside was normal white cheddar. I'm like a little tantrum prone kid when it comes to things like that, "Hey! I thought it was all purple...the whole thing...how come it isn't purple!!!!"

Though, I settled down and enjoyed it with some rosemary crackers. At first I wasn't sure because it is rather winey and this makes the cheese taste extra sharp, but it grew on me and I can say it was a win.

Speaking of wine. I have to share something with people who are nearby...My friend Nancy is knowledgeable about wine and happens to be an excellent aromatherapist as well.  WineStyles invited her to host an event on November 14th that combines both! She'll be pairing up wines with essential oils to help people identify the various fragrance notes in both. She'll also use scents to help you recognize the hints of similar flavors in wine. See the website for details. Also, I just heard that my friend Ann has a wine blog...but, I can't find it and didn't want to call her at 1:14 am! I'll post when I learn more.

I'm not really a drinker (I used to be about as out of control as you can go without being alcoholic), but once in a blue moon (one a year) I imbibe.  I can't handle more than that anymore. Just eating the cheese practically put me into a drunken stupor...One more slice and I would have come up here to post and been all like "I love you guys man, you guys are the best hiccup blog readers in the whole, hiccup, world man..." Aghahaha!

Ok...on to the drawing. I assigned everyone who commented a number and used the random number generator and prayed that my mother wouldn't win again. Sorry mom, but if you'd won again I might have been carried out of blog-land on a rail!   

The winner is number 1!  Vanilla Icing! Maybe it's the Universe's way of rewarding her for putting up with all my tags when I first started blogging, for giving my wallets a rave review on her blog and because if you've visited lately you know that her dog has basically chewed up almost everything she owns and she has the pictures to prove it!  In addition to the wallet, she'll be receiving a bunch of magnets I made with my vintage children's books!

Folks, here at Little Orange Kitchen I firmly believe in consolation prizes. If you posted a comment, please email me your address and I will send you a tiny tiny tiny prize. Really...as small as a postage stamp, but much cuter.  I'll send everyone's envelope out by Monday. I'll hand deliver to the locals!   

Sweet dreams!!!               

Good Fortune!

Wow! I'm thrilled to have had two sales over at the shop. You'd think I never sold a wallet before from all my whooping and hollering around here today.  After I emailed Janet the second time with email screams, she messaged back confused and basically said, "Sales are a good thing right?"  Aghahahaaha! It turns out that one person's all caps email scream of joy could be another person's cry for help! I guess it's just because it took me so long to even get a few things listed on Etsy, that it was extra rewarding to have people looking at and then buying the items.     

I love looking at those two little packages ready to be sent out!!! Notice how well that bamboo is doing since this post.  Thanks!

I had a bowl of won-ton soup for lunch before heading to work and this was my fortune.

I've never had a fortune that prompted me to reflect so much. I thought of it all evening. Too bad it's everyone's battle, not everyone's adventure, but some days it does feel like a fight and admitting it is probably the best solution.

This reminds me...There's a fairly nice restaurant nearby that always has little messages and anecdotes on its outside sign. The messages change every few weeks and are usually fairly lame. The odd things is that this is a nice semi-pricey restaurant, not some quirky little diner. 

One day I drove by a bulletin board that said, "Learn to love yourself".  I like paying attention, so I was like, "can do" and felt pretty good until I drove past the restaurant a few minutes later and the sign said "Trust your instincts, nobody likes you!" 

I was outraged!!! How dare those F#$#$@&*'s ruin my high from the self-love message!!!!!!!  I got so mad! It was nuts! Well, every day I drove past both signs and had the exact same reactions. First the nice feeling and then the rage. I composed all kinds of nasty letters in my head to the owners of the restaurant telling them how awful their sign was. One day I told my friend and she just laughed. She thought the sign was hee-larious!!! What? HOW DARE SHE THINK THIS WAS FUNNY!!! I was outraged!!! Aghaha! Good grief.

I remembered a card I'd read about how people with a healthy sense of self-esteem are slow to take offense. I reviewed my behavior and decided to try to be more relaxed. Guess, what the next sign was?

"You think I'm getting smart with you? How would you know?"

F#%@#%#%&! HOW DARE THEY?  Oops. Better work on my self esteem...This has continued on for months.   

Today's message on the sign: "I don't have an attitude problem, you have a perception problem."  True enough I suppose. 

I told my boss about it and about how the signs and the fortune cookie made me think about things. Her response? "Laura, your head is nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there."

I laughed and was slow to take offense (meaning it happened later rather than immediately), so perhaps I really am evolving.  :)

Thanks for the supportive comments and it's not to late to get into Wednesday's drawing!!!

Sweet dreams Kitchenettes!!!!                                  

A Soft Opening & Giveaway!

Good morning!  Some of you may remember when I posted about making and keeping commitments several weeks ago. Well, the time for an update has arrived.

I finally added items to the Etsy shop I set up in June. I'd created the shop, but had never listed anything or spruced up its appearance. Well, I still haven't spruced up my banner, but at long last I have finally opened for business! I've been torn about it because I'm behind on my "orders in hand" and felt uncomfortable listing product when others are waiting for theirs. However, most of my pre-ordered guys are of the recycled newsprint variety and not made from the contemporary papers I listed in my shop.

I also took into consideration from everything I have read that the road to your first Etsy sale can be a long one, so I figure it's best to take the first step as I can. I wish I had more stock listed, but I'll be adding more as soon as I get the pictures taken.  I feel good about it and have to say that I screamed at the top of my lungs when I saw my wallets start coming up in the recently listed section on the main page!!!!!! Woo-Hoo!!

My second commitment was to my body. I wanted to finally get below 200 pounds before my shop opening.  Well folks:

   

 

I just missed it!!!! One pound away from 199. However, I'm still glad the trend is downward considering  all the fall treats around here lately. Plus, I weigh 44 pounds less my all-time high. Note, I had to cheat on the scale and hold it with my hand since I couldn't stand on it and take a picture at the same time without creating some kind of gi-normous shadow!!!!!!!!  I can't wait to move that 200 bar to 150...1 pound to go.   

So, the next goal is 195. I have some gluten-free brownies and butter cookies to contend with in the meantime...wish me luck. 

I want to do a giveaway!!! I'm doing two items, but the second item is a teeny surprise for the person who wins this:

It's paper and vinyl with a velcro closure and a vinyl sleeve so you can have easy access to your I.D. (or Office Depot card in my example !) It came out a little larger than my normal size and I wasn't happy with one of the folds, but it is by no means a reject!!! If you want to win it and the little non-wallety extra item it comes with, just post a comment. I'll pull do the drawing on Wednesday. This is the perfect excuse for lurkers to come out of hiding!

The million dollar bill you see in the pocket means a lot to me. I put one as seed money in most of the wallets I make.  I put it under the paper and seal it.  People will never see it or know it's there (unless I tell them), but I like the symbolism.  Hey, spread the wealth I say! Sometimes a fortune cookie or prosperity symbol will find its way in before sealing too.

Hey, thanks to all you cheerleaders out there who have been so supportive of my blog! I'm still having a blast with it and the scary part for all of you is that I'm afraid I might never run out of things to say!!!!!

Happy Day Kitchenettes!!!!!

Into Orbit

I love Orbit gum.  Last year I was looking at the box it comes in and got inspired to open it up and really look at the design.  I used it as a template to make these little fellows and they're perfect for small presents, mini candy squares and notes! It's a great way to use scraps of paper leftover from this and that. Plus, if you got crafty and made the template slightly larger, you could make little gift card holders! Children's book pages work well too.

More pictures of packaging fun!

My Etsy store opening tomorrow is going to be fairly modest, but open is open!!! Plus, I'll be doing both a shop themed and a miscellaneous giveaway! I love fall Sundays!!! Off to the news depot to get my Sunday papers! 

And Visions of Sugar Plums Danced in Her Head

Happy Halloween Kitchenettes! I know the title of this scarily long post isn't right for this particular holiday, but if the greenhouse next to us can begin selling live Christmas trees on Halloween and Osco can put the Halloween candy on clearance to make room for red and gold foil Santas, then I guess I feel justified. 

Besides, this blogger needed a wake-up call and to get out of sugar plum dreamland when she expected that her husband would be thrilled to carve pumpkins with her. This included roasting the seeds and sharing cider, apples, sharp cheddar cheese and popcorn all by candlelight. Turns out I didn't marry a "Honey, let's carve pumpkins!" kind of guy."  Oh well. He has other good qualities and will redeem himself at some point I'm sure.

I carved a pumpkin myself while we watched Day Watch (The sequel to Nightwatch Nochnoy Dozor-the first blockbuster hit made after the fall of the Soviet Union).  My poor little pumpkin was the last one in the bin.  His face was dented, he can't stand up on his own and his skin was all marred and scarred. It was love at first site. Doesn't he look pleased as punch to have been chosen?  Note to Mark: People who don't carve pumpkins don't need to fall over in hysterics when they're shown pumpkin-carving-contest worthy masterpieces.

I made a fantastic salad with butter lettuce, pumpkin seeds, pomegranates, oranges, feta and crispy panchetta.

On the wallet note:  I made these two yesterday.  The first is an odd paper from Bertini in Florence, Italy. I thought it was a little weird and yet I was drawn to it. A friend saw it and ordered a wallet right away. I pointed out that the scrolls are actually birds. Odd. I appreciate this paper, but it just isn't me. I do like the color brad I chose for the closure though. 

Then I made this one with this silk-screened cotton rag paper which is a little harder to work with because of its thickness.  I do like it though...and that's a good thing because I have more!

I was over at this store on Etsy, was looking through her favorites and discovered Cate Rangel.  Wow! I love these prints. I've always loved Klimt and Modigliani ... the colors, shapes and long faces remind me of both. I like her mod-ish, but still almost ethereal looking women. I wish she did note cards. Her print prices are very reasonable and I hope you visit her just to take a peek around. 

Lastly! I was tagged by Jenna Lee at Artrageous Afternoon!

Here are seven random things about me. I tried to keep with a Halloween-ey theme.

Seven Random Things:

1. I went trick-or treating until I was 19.  I was short and my friend Sherri was tall, so she played the adult who was taking me out and carried a second bag for the "sick little brother at home"! I went as a Cabbage Patch Doll to play up the "I'm only 10" factor! We weren't fooling anyone, because we did got disgusted looks along with our candy.
2. Most embarrassing Halloween Story...Sherri and I didn't realize it, but we trick or treated at a former classmate's house. He was home from college. He opened the door and we almost died. He looked at me and said, "Looks like someone has a lot of growing up to do." I stood there in my ponytails and diaper feeling deeply ashamed of myself, but I still held my bag out for the Junior Mints. Hey, Junior Mints is Junior Mints. 
3. Second most embarrassing Halloween Story...One year (we were eighteen) Sherri and I went as overstuffed hobos with enormous guts (TWO PILLOWS EACH). We were belittled by a forty-something year old dad who thought trick or treating at our age was really obnoxious. We said nothing and held out our bags. He dropped a Snickers into each one and called his whole family over to scold us. As we were leaving I tripped on my extra floppy bum pants and men's shoes and fell down all the stairs. I couldn't get up because of the pillows and my hysterics. Sherri ran away peeing her pants!  The whole family had their horrible little evil faces pressed against the living room window laughing at me. I couldn't get up so I had to roll half a block down the sidewalk and behind a bush where Sherri was hiding.
4. Favorite Halloween candy: Milky Ways
5. Least favorite candy: Cinnamon discs and those orange and black paper wrapped peanut butter things.
   
6. The night Adam (my little brother) and I decided to disown our parents:  The Halloween my mother decided nobody needed sugar and passed out single sticks of Care-Free sugarless gum to our friends.
7. The night Adam and I should have disowned our parents: The Halloween my mother threw together last minute costumes (we were 4 and 5) and Adam wore a white sheet with holes cut in it over his head as a ghost.  My family is racially mixed and Adam was the only black kid in the whole small Maine town and most certainly the only one to show up with a white sheet over his head.

Ok. You know the drill...I'm tagging these individuals...If you want to participate please post seven random things about yourself...no theme necessary. If  you do not want to participate...no hard feelings...this is supposed to be fun! I love being tagged, but I know some people don't. I'm showing Michelle and Emicat some mercy by not tagging them again. :)    

Judi: She's a new blogger in England...stop ever and say hi.

Rachael: She lives in a farmhouse in France...who's not going to want to take a look at that?

Mary Ellen: A recently discovered and visit worthy find!!! 

Monica...She blogged about her year of simplicity and got rid of all her debt, bought a new house and is the queen of reflection when it comes to spending and noticing money patterns.

Thanks all!!!!!!

p.s....Glad to read you guys like pomegranates too and to those of who commented or emailed about the apples...I always use whatever is on hand. I think I used Macintosh and Pink Ladies yesterday.