In The Kitchen: Spinach, Mozzarella, Sun-Dried Tomato {Panini}

Picture by Flicker

I'm a sucker for anything with this combo: fresh mozzarella, basil, and tomato.  If anything on any menu has those ingredients, I'm ordering it.  Usually I'm not disappointed.

I was planning a menu for a dinner party the other night and wanted something light, refreshing, and VERY tasty.  My husband and I are huge sandwich fans and use our George Foreman Grill to toast our sandwiches almost weekly.  So between my love for sandwiches and the ease of using the Foreman Grill, I decided to makes paninis.  Now, what to put on the sandwiches?  Here is what I came up with.  You won't be surprised by some of the ingredients:

• Thick, soft bread (I used Italian)
• Organic spinach
• Fresh mozzarella (surprised?)
• Deli turkey (fat-free)
• Sun-dried tomatoes (surprised again!)
• Dried basil (surprise #3)
• I usually prefer fresh basil, but I wanted to use what I already had at home.

Layer everything between your bread and toast on the Foreman grill (or any other way you prefer). 

Viola!!  I served them with grapes, strawberries, pineapple, and tea.  So tasty, so refreshing, and very light.  No steak and potatoes here : )

Knock Off: Pottery Barn Pillows

I love to knock off.  Why pay top dollar when you can get the same look for a fraction of the price?  I've been hunting...literally hunting for pillows for our living room sofa.  I had a picture in my mind of exactly what I wanted and when that happens, I won't settle for anything else.  I was doing some hunting at  Ross just outside of town and found these square Tommy Bahama napkins.  I immediately fell in love with the pattern.  THOSE were my pillows!!!  Snatched all four of them up for just $10.

Two of these HIDEOUS pillows have have been sitting in our closets since we've been married, waiting for the day they would be transformed into something a bit more attractive.

I took advantage of the beautifully finished edges of the napkins

 and sewed the napkins right around the pillow. It was a perfect fit.

 Compare:

Pottery Barn

Minus the professional camera snapshots, the pillows are pretty darn close!!

Linking to these fabulous link parties:

Homebody

The Shabby Nest

The Shabby Chic Cottage

Sumo's Sweet Stuff

The DIY Showoff

Craft O Maniac

Embellishing Life

Skip to My Lou

Making the World Cuter

Keeping It Simple

Mad In Craft

Chocolate Drool and Kisses

Polly Want a Crafter?

Sew Can Do

Boogieboard Cottage

Wardrobe Wonderings: My Pop of Yellow

While checking out some garage sales on Saturday, I stumbled upon a purse that was THE yellow I have been looking to implement into my wardrobe for...well...some few months now.  I don't have one of the fancy-dancy cameras, so these pictures don't show the true color.  But I just had to take a few snapshots to show you all.  I'm just so excited about this purse : )

Best part: Cost was only $.50 

Double Yippie!!

Shopping Trip: {Recycled} Glass

You KNOW how I love recycled glass.  And I'm seeing it everywhere!! I recently hit an antique/consignment shop and found these great corked bottles:

The vase in the background is the one I bought at Pier 1 a few weeks ago.

Today, I stopped by Pier 1 again and found these amazing bowls!

I'm in love...

Wardrobe Wanderings: Loving Mustard Yellow

I love everything about this outfit, but I'm just not sure I can pull off that yellow. I wore yellow once and got asked several times if I was feeling sick.  But it was a different hugh than this.  I've been really loving mustard lately (I'm throwing it in all over the place in my house), so I'm wondering how I can squeeze it into my wardrobe. Hmmm....

Jesus Had Unanswered Prayer?

Our Lord Jesus was 100% God and 100% man.  Although that isn't easy for our minds to wrap around, it is truth.  Being 100% man made Jesus a perfect candidate for every type of trial and temptation that we face today.  They may not have come in the same package, but they were just as difficult and real as trials and temptations are to us.

Hebrews 4:15
"For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin."

While reading through the Gospels over the last few months, there has been something that keeps jumping out at me that I had never noticed before.  Jesus actually had a prayer that was UNANSWERED!! He was 100% God, yet as a man, he experienced a definite NO from His heavenly Father.

Matthew 26:39
"And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."

Jesus begged the Lord that the cup of death and sin would pass from Him.  He did not want to face and become sin.  What was God's answer to this prayer? It was, "No." Our Savior, the all-powerful, all-knowing Son of the Most High received a NO from His Father.

If Jesus' prayer had been answered by a "yes," we would have no hope for Heaven today.  Because of that "no," we can now experience salvation and saving grace.

Have you ever been through an experience that only made sense to those who had also been through the same thing? But think about this...when you pray, the Lord hears your prayers and knows just how you feel whether the answer is "yes" or "no."

Hebrews 4:16
"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."

Childhood Faves: {Jelly} Shoes

We all had them, loved them, wore them everywhere come rain or shine. Jellies! The quintessential slipper that was princess and Punky Brewster in one. But jelly shoes have come a long way in the last twenty years.  Here are some styles that might give you the care-free feeling of being six again without actually LOOKING like you are six.

Chinese Laundry: Sleeping Princess

Madden Girl Gummie Green

Juicy Couture Hermosa Smoke

Rella Lace Jelly

Betsy Gemstone Jelly

Mel Vanilla Jelly

FAVORITES!!!

Melissa by Vivienne Westwood 'Lady Dragon' Jelly Pump

Knock Off: Restoration Hardware {Bedding}

Plans for my hotel-style bedroom are finally coming to fruition.  I've made one giant leap in my quest to creating the perfect penthouse suite.  

Restoration Hardware's bed linens are divine. Exactly what I wanted in our bedroom.  But $300 really wasn't in our budget.  So I searched all over Craigslist almost daily looking for a white duvet cover and shams. Then I found them... a white Ikea duvet cover with two matching shams. The price? Get ready for it...$15!!! Perfect!

Final Product

I'm still working on the overall look: REAL sham pillows for the shams (the pillows we have right now don't quite fit), some interesting throw pillows, a blanket for the foot of the bed.  But I LOOOOOVE what I've got so far.

To create this look, you'll need:

* a white duvet cover and 2 shams

* 8 yds of 1 1/2 in wide ribbon for duvet (satin is the most luxurious) 

* 5 yds of 5/8 in wide ribbon for shams

* fusible ribbon (you will need two different sizes to match the different size ribbon)

* iron/ironing board

*scissors

First, lay out the duvet cover on your bed and place the ribbon where you want it. You don't need to pin it down.  You are just placing the ribbon to measure how far from the sides you want the ribbon.  For the right look, the ribbon at the foot and head of the duvet cover will be closer to the edge than at the sides. Write down your measurements and head on over to the ironing board.

Grab your fusible ribbon (I like Stitch Witchery)

Line up your ribbon on top of the tape, using a tape measure to keep it the right distance from the edge. 

This picture is of a sham, so the ribbon is very close to the edge. 

Place an ironing cloth over the ribbon and iron according 

to instructions on the fusible tape package.

Make sure you begin and end your ribbon EXACTLY where it should be.  If you go past where you want it, it's very difficult to fix.  That fusible tape STICKS!

Fold the ribbon edge and iron a crease into it to end the ribbon.

 Overlap the last strip of ribbon using a tiny piece of fusible tape to tack it down.

Total cost: less than $30 with supplies to spare

Linking to:
Funky Junk Interiors
MAD SKILLS
Homebody
Embellishing Life
Craft O Maniac

Party: of {Butterflies} and {Owls}

I had the greatest time helping out with the decorations for my friend Jessica's baby shower.  The brains behind the event was my friend Susannah who is amazingly creative {I call her Martha}.  She allowed me the privilege of helping, and together I thought we did a pretty good job.  At least we had a fun time doing it!

Jessica is decorating her nursery with owls and butterflies. I just happen to adore, so I was ecstatic when I found out her theme and that we were using it as the theme for the shower, too. There is no shortage of owls in my house, and we used almost every one of them.

Susannah's gorgeous centerpiece idea: sticks from her back yard with flowers and cut-out paper butterflies hot glued onto the branches.

Susannah made these adorable little nests. So cute! The owls were my creations.

The shower was held in a school classroom at our church and we had to cover up the white board.  Not an easy task.  We ended up with a sort of butterfly net look.  We were satisfied.

Stamped napkins