DIY Succulent Terrariums

 It's so EASY to make your own table top Succenlent Terrariums and Parfaits!

 Look around your house for clear glass cookie jars,

apothecary jars, Ball jars, condement jars,

wine glasses....almost any clear glass container will work!

 Now you will need to "layer in" the following ingredients for your terrarium:

rocks or pebbles

sprinkle of activated charcoal (available in aquarium supplies)

Cactus Soil (in the garden section of store)

plant in your succulents of choice (largest first)

then decorate with sand, pebbles, rocks

and top off with whatever you like:

(marbles, small statuette or ceramic frog, etc...).

Why activated charcoal?

 Just a sprinkle (1-3 Tbsp, depending on size of container)

 will keep condensation away.

Succulents require very very little watering (like maybe a tiny bit once a month)

and indirect sunlight.

If you notice your succulents ever drooping (oh no!)...

use a small amount of plant fertilizer watered in

(but don't over do it)!

Succulents require almost no care at all!

Just using wine glasses and one succulent each,

you can make beautiful "Succulent Parfaits"!

If your jar has a lid, be sure to use it....

or not!

Hope you enjoy making your own succulent Terrariums and Parfaits!

Keep Calm and Kerri On!

Monster Cookie Recipe

MONSTER COOKIES

Nom, nom, nom, nom.....(in the voice of Cookie Monster)

This recipe makes about twenty, 5inch cookies

that are soft, chewy, peanut-buttery and chocolaty.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

 Gather your INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups Peanut Butter

1 cup Brown Sugar

1 cup White Sugar

1 stick of Butter (softened)

3 large Eggs

1 tablespoon of Vanilla Extract

1 cup Flour

2 teaspoons Baking Soda

1 teaspoon of Salt

3 1/2 cups Quick Cooking Oats

1 cup M&Ms

1 cup Chocolate Chips

 Combine sugars in a large mixing bowl, add butter, peanut butter
 and cream together.

 Stir in eggs....

 whisking together, until nice and smooth.

 In small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt...

 combine flour mixture into sugar mixture,

and stir in oats.

 Add HALF of the M&Ms and Chocolate Chips.

 Use a 1/3 cup measuring scoop for your mounds of cookie dough.

Space out on a cookie stone or sheet.

(if using a metal sheet, use cooking spray or parchment paper,

as the cookies will stick)

BAKE for 12 to 16 minutes,

until lightly brown on the top.

Let the cookies cool on the sheet for a full 10 minutes

before removing to a cooling rack.

Store in a cookie jar if needed up to a week,

you probably won't be able to,

as the little "monsters" will eat these up

quicker than you can say "Nom, nom, nom!"

I hope you enjoy these cookies!

Keep Calm and Kerri On!

UPCYCLE a Lunch Box into a Purse

 I found another lunch box at an estate sale....

 only $3!

 After sanding it,

 I wrapped the handle and other hardware in foil and tape,

to protect them from the paint,

and then I primed the lunch box with Rustolium.

 I chose my color: "Lipstick Red" by FolkArt craft paints.

 After brushing on three light coats (sanding in between)

I noticed how many "imperfections" there were in the lunch box,

instead of trying to work against them, I just went with it,

lightly sanding after the final coat, to bring out a "worn" look.

After all, it is probably 40+ years old.

 Taking it ourside, I sprayed three coats of a satin clear coat.

(Being sure to let it dry completely before each coat.)

 I took off the foil and tape on the hardware by using tweezers,

then cleaned up around them with Q-tips dipped in polish remover.

 All done, except for the embelishments!

There are several ways to decorate my new purse:

with jewelry (such as the necklace above), wrapped around the handle;

 magnets (like my vintage button ones I made a few years ago);

 silk flowers, or vintage pins;

 scarves or scraps of material.

 There's plenty of room for my necessities!

Now I have two LUNCH BOX purses!

What will you UPCYCLE?

Upcycled Christmas Card Bell Ornament

 

Do you keep your Christmas cards every year and don't know what to do with them?

Turn them into Christmas Bells
with these easy-to-follow instructions.

Supplies:
Christmas Cards
Glue Stick
Glue Dots or Hot Glue Gun
Fishing Wire or Ribbon of Choice
Scissors
and small jingle bells (if you want them to ring like a bell!)

Open the card and cut off the back,

along the fold.

Cut the cover into a square

by folding the bottom or top edge

over (diagonally) to line up with the side edge.

Cut off and discard excess.

Now you should have a perfect square!

You should already have the card folded into one triangle...

make sure that the "colored" side of the card is always on the outside.

Note:  with each fold you make,

crease it really well.

Now open the card,

and fold it the other way,

into a triangle...

Open the card,

it should look like this.

Now fold it in half  "hot dog" style...

(it's called hot dog - because it is folded like a hot dog bun,

in case you were wondering!)

Open it again,

now fold it the other way, "hotdog" style.

Upon opening the square card now....

it should look like this...

The next step requires 8 folds...

but to break it down simply, just focus on each of the four corners.

Fold a flat edge UP to reach the center diagonal line,

as shown.

Now do the other side,

forming a point at the CORNER.

The card will be folded into the shape of a kite...

Now open it up,

and do the same thing with the next corner...

Until all 4 corners are folded...

Unfold the card,

it should look like this.

Now for the magic....

Start forming your Bell

by pushing in the middle edges as shown above...

Squeeze and shape the bell together...

the middle of the card will be the bottom.

Now is the time to cut and tie your fishing wire

or ribbon into a loop for hanging your bell.

Attach the tied knot to a glue dot (or a dot of hot glue)

and attach it to a top fold of the inner bell

as shown.

Apply the glue stick to the edges of the folds

where they meet together...

be sure to get the glue ALL the way to the edges.

If you want to drop in a small JINGLE BELL,

now is the time!

Now, form together the bell

and hold it together until it sticks

it takes a little while...

(sing a Christmas song all the way through -

that should be long enough!)

This is what the bottom looks like...

Look what you did!  From a flat card,

to a bell!

Hang on your Christmas Tree,

or give to a friend!

Here's a bell I made several years ago...

Do you see THREE bells?

and THREE more here!

Just think of HOW MANY you can make!

Have fun!

 

Keep Calm and Kerri On!