thrift store finds and a day-planning trick!

I wanted to write today about a couple of very awesome thrift store finds I scored this past week, as well as an awesome day-planning visual tool that has helped me to become more productive!

First of all, the fun thrift store finds!

I was very happy to have scored two beautiful, barely-worn designer skirts at my local thrift store! Here are a couple of pictures of my finds:

This one is a Calvin Klein skirt, it's black and white (but looks grey if you squint or are standing far away). Knee-length, very versatile. Looks like it has never been worn. $3.00. What a great deal!!

This is a beautiful business-suit type skirt from The Limited. It is actually dark blue with vertical light blue pinstripes. I have the perfect pair of shoes to go with this one! Although, unsure of what to wear on top, since most of my tops are black. I'll have to locate a blue sweater or something. 

I also wanted to share a cool, creative visual idea on how to organize a successful day. I made this little handy wall-hanging visual aid for day-planning:

I have it hanging in my kitchen. Every evening before I go to bed, I spend about 5 minutes carefully considering and making a list of all the things I have to remember to do the next day. I look at my cleaning schedule, at my list of home projects that need to get done, things for my work, people to return calls and emails to, you know, the like. 

This is a simple 8x10 photo frame that I put scrapbook paper in with the words "Day Plan". The background is kind of hard to see, it's a yellow scrapbook page with white flowers. It matches my little cabin kitchen nicely but stands out enough that it catches my eye. I can use any color dry erase skinny marker to write on it, and all throughout the day I can watch tasks whisk off easily with a kleenex or paper towel as I do them. I have also found that planning for the next day before bed, putting it in writing, and putting it somewhere that is clearly visual from pretty much anywhere in the house, keeps me accountable to myself and helps me keep on-task. That way, I wake up, I know what the plan is, and then I do it. I also write in some fun activities I would like to enjoy, so when I am done with the tasks, I can do something fun! 

Happy thrifting, and happy planning!! If you have had any recent awesome thrift store finds, post a comment about them! :)

results and recipes from last friday's dinner

Last Thursday (I think?) I posted about a dinner I was making for my parents... well... it was a success!!

I wanted to share with you all pictures and the soup recipe I used. I apologize for the picture quality as I was only using my phone that evening. My phone has a painfully terrible picture quality.

 Dinner place setting!

 The whole table. Kind of ugly, but it was the best I could do with what I had. That is sparkling white grape juice... nothing alcoholic for the record.

 The lovely pie! Which turned out good.

The yummy wild rice soup, as it was cooking! I couldn't help but taste test it. And boy, was it tasty! Easy to make as well. :)

Here is the recipe for the soup:

I modified it a little, and so I am sharing with you my modified version. It is mostly dairy-free (if you don't want to use soy, just switch the soy for heavy cream). 

Minnesota Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients:

2 med. stalks celery, sliced

1 med. onion, chopped

1 small green bell pepper, chopped

1 small can of corn

1 small can of chopped green beans

2 russet potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 Tbsp. butter

1 1/2 c. cooked wild rice

3 Tbsp. All-purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 1/2 c. water

1 10 1/2 oz. can of chicken broth (I used a 14 oz. can instead, as the grocery store didn't carry 10 oz cans. It worked out better for me to use the 14 oz. anyway)

1 c. soy cream (I used Silk plain coffee creamer... just like cream!)

1/4 c. parsley

Boil the potatoes in a pot with the water and can of chicken broth. Cook and stir celery, onion, bell pepper and butter in a 3 qt sauce pan until celery is tender. Stir in flour, salt and pepper, corn, green beans. Add wild rice, potatoes, water and broth. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in remaining ingredients. Heat until hot (not boiling). Makes 5 servings.

fancy meal for the 'rents

So, I have decided to spontaneously invite my parents over for a fancy dinner (they don't know it's going to be fancy... but it is. They may have figured it out though since reading this post). Anyway, the fancy dinner is tomorrow night.

I have never planned a fancy dinner before, but that's the point of this whole trying-new-things thing. :)

So... here is what I have planned. Will post after the whole shindig to say what I found works well, and what doesn't.

I purchased two tapered candle holders from the thrift store, as well as two tapered candles (red, so they match the decor of the house). I fully plan to have a candle-lit dinner for them, ready for when they arrive.

First, I plan to set a salad. A fresh, spring salad (well, as fresh as a store-bought bag of salad can be... hey, I'm trying to save some money here!) with baby lettuce, some various greens and radichio (I have no idea what radichio is but that is what is in the package). No iceberg, folks! Going fancy! On top of that, I will have salted sunflower seeds and dried cranberries, finished off with a light raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Springy, sweet and fresh salad.

Accompanying the salad and meal will be a sparkling white grape juice... in stemware, if course!

The meal will be a delightful (I am hoping, never made it before!) Minnesota wild rice soup that I found in Betty Crocker's Casual Country Cooking book that was lent to me by a coworker.

I am omitting the dairy and adding potatoes to the recipe, which will be a little bit of a challenge as I will have to change how I am cooking it in order to make sure the potatoes are fully cooked. With the soup, I will have fresh bread purchased from the local bakery, and warmed gently in the oven.

For dessert, I am making the apple pie I made in the previous post.

And afterward... games! Hopefully. Yahtzee or Scrabble or something like that.

Will post how everything turns out! Pie is in the oven now... no epic failures yet. lol. :)

fabulous apple pie recipe!

Yes! I made my first ever homemade apple pie from scratch the other day! I was so nervous that it wouldn't turn out right, like it would be soupy, or not very flavorful, or the apples would get soggy, the crust would get soggy... etc. But it turned out perfect. :) I thought I'd post the site I got it off of so you can make a successful homemade apple pie, too!

Here is the site I got the recipe from: http://www.myhomecooking.net/apple-pie/ I loved this site because it had lots of pictures, and I found myself comparing what I had in my bowl to the picture to make sure it was going well. :) I will also post the recipe here so that it's available in case they take it down for whatever reason. I did a few variations while I was cooking, and I'll tell you what I did to make it special.

Flaky Pie Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour

I teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

6 tablespoons butter

6 tablespoons shortening

6 to 8 tablespoons ice water

hint: If this is your first time making this pie crust, make a double batch to be sure you have enough crust.  

1 Mixing Bowl

Rolling pin

Knife

Measuring spoons

Measuring Cups

Dough Blender (I don't have one, but I used the side of a spoon to cut in the ingredients and it seemed to work just fine but took a little longer)

Cutting Board

9 inch Pie Pan (smaller is ok, but no bigger) 

Warm the butter in the microwave until it is soft, but not melted.

Mix in a large bowl:

2 cups all-purpose flour

I teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

Then cut in using the dough blender:

6 tablespoons butter

6 tablespoons shortening

6 to 8 tablespoons ice water

Wrap your pie crust in plastic wrap. Then place in refrigerator for 20 or more minutes, while you make the pie filling. (I did not have plastic wrap, so I put it in a ziploc bag and made sure there was no air)

Yummy Pie Filling

5 Tart Peeled Apples

1 Cup Sugar

2 Tablespoons Flour

1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon

1/4 Teaspoon Salt

1 Tablespoon Cider Vinegar

1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice 

Peel and slice your apples. (I sliced mine super thin and I slice my apples in half the opposite way than you normally do, cause I didn't want gigantic apple slices in my pie)

Soak them in water with a tablespoon of lemon juice. This will prevent the first apples cut from turning a funky color. (While I was cutting up my apples, I left the half I wasn't working on in the lemon juice with the already sliced pieces. It kept that half from turning colors as well)

Mix in large mixing bowl:

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vinegar

Now, drain the water off of the apples and mix them with the spices.

Putting it All Together:

 Now that your pie crust has had plenty of time to cool, divide it into two, equal halves. Roll one of the balls of pie crust out until it is around 1/8th of an inch thick.

Once you have rolled out the dough, wrap it around the rolling pin and unroll it onto your pie pan.

Once you have shaped it to fit the inside of the pan, take a fork and poke holes in the bottom of the crust. This will let the steam out as the pie bakes. Dump all of the apples in the pie. Place about 4 chunks of butter on top of apple filling. This will give the filling rich flavor. Roll out the remaining pie dough and place it on top. (I made a pretty lattice top with mine, and it was tasty!)

Cut long strips of tinfoil and place them around the edge of the pie.

This will prevent the crust's edge from burning while it bakes. You will want to take the tinfoil off about ten minutes before the pie is done. This way, the apple pie will have a golden brown edge.

Bake your pie at 400 degrees for 50-60 minutes. 

 For a glossy effect, brush a small portion of egg white on top of the crust when you remove the tinfoil. (I used a mix of egg white, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and generously brushed it on top. It gave the crust a lovely flavor.)

 

 Here is a picture of my successful pie:

diy cash envelopes system... the pretty way!

All of my friends know that Dave Ramsey is one of my heroes. Well, if they didn't know, they know now. :) I am a huge promoter of his books and methods on finance management. Why? Because they work. I have friends who have used his methods and have gotten completely out of debt. And are now reaping the benefits of debt-free living. I also have friends who have used his methods to do crazy things like buy vehicles over $10,000 completely in cash, and thus receiving a crazy good deal. It works, it really does. You can learn more about Dave Ramsey and purchase some materials from his website: http://www.daveramsey.com

I'm still plugging away going back and forth between steps 1 and 2... but not giving up! I'll get there. It is what drives me to pick up shifts at work that I would otherwise not take, or take small jobs that I would rather sleep through.

Anyway, I love the cash-only system. I am a complete DIY-er, if I can do things myself the cheap and easy way, I will. I love saving money, and what better place to save money than to make one's own envelopes budgeting system??

I was tired of the system I was using, a file system I made out of recipe cards and stuck in my wallet. They were starting to fall apart, and it was difficult to look immediately and see which sections had money and which didn't... because when there was money in one, it looked like it could be in one of three different sections.

I was inspired to make my own pretty envelopes system by this website: http://kelleighratzlaff.com/featured/free-envelope-template-and-a-tutorial/

I loved the look of her envelopes, but I knew that in my own practical use, they would fall apart within weeks. I wanted something that looked similar but would hold up to my "workhorse" ways. I decided to use regular envelopes and cover them with pretty paper, held together with giftwrap tape (since I had a ton left over from Christmas!) that would be a bit more durable than just one layer of paper.

Here is how I did it!

First, I cut the tops off all of the envelopes and made them shorter so that they would fit in my wallet:

Next, I picked out 10 different papers that I had in my scrapbook paper collection. I picked out 10 because I had 10 different sections in my budget system. I found the 8x8 papers worked awesome, and found 10 that matched from a book set. I also found tabs from a different set that matched these, so I used those for labels. I cut the papers so they matched the width of my envelopes (I used number 6 3/4 security envelopes... the ones that aren't legal size long):

Next, I lined the paper up with the top of each envelope, then on the back of the paper I marked a fold line. I folded it so it would go around the bottom of the envelope and up the top:

The excess paper on top I folded down to make an envelope flap:

Next, I taped all the edges with giftwrap tape (giftwrap tape is pretty sturdy and "disappears" on printed papers). I even taped the inside edges to the envelope, so there were no openings except for the inside of the envelope, and money couldn't get stuck between the paper and the envelope. That was kinda hard... Then I finished it off with the label:

I did the same with all 10 of my envelopes, and now they are pretty and fit nicely in my wallet! Also, if I am just running into the gas station, I don't need to take my whole wallet, I can just take the "fuel" envelope. :)

Happy budgeting!!

quick and easy cookie recipe

I wanted to share with you all a very quick, easy and surprisingly tasty cookie recipe that I just discovered!

Ingredients:
1 18.25 oz (standard size) box cake mix, any flavor. I used dark chocolate :)
1 stick of butter
2 eggs
2 cups of chocolate chips (or whatever else you want, I am going to try different things next time like oats and raisins, etc.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine all ingredients, stir until fully mixed. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 11-15 mins. Cool and enjoy!

I made double chocolate chip cookies, and have passed them around to all my friends. They thought they were pretty good! Perfect for a quick recipe if you're short on time, and saves you money on all the different ingredients. Surprisingly tasty and chewy.

Here's a pathetic picture of the ones that I made (taken on my phone right after I baked a few). I used dark chocolate cake mix and mini chocolate chips. They look terrible, but taste mighty fine:

... maybe I should start using a real camera? Haha...

Thrift Store Kitchen Makeover

Yes, you read that correctly. I did a kitchen makeover using items found at my local thrift stores!

I love the thrift store. There are so many cool, antique-y things that are unique and fun there... for super cheap! I love super cheap. In fact, I love super cheap so much that I frequent my local thrift stores (there are three of them near me, and... WOOHOO!... I hear they are putting in a fourth!) about every 3-4 days. I only buy things that I need, for instance, I go in with a mission. Very rarely do I ever buy something that's not on my "I need this" list.

Let me show you how I have used the thrift store to make my kitchen adorable... at an affordable price. If you have patience, persistence, and a pinch of creativity, you too can enjoy similar success!

First of all, I would like to introduce you to my kitchen, so you can see what I have to work with. Kitchen, meet Reader. Reader, meet Kitchen:

It has seen many changes since this picture was taken (when I first moved in). I now have replaced my mismatched dishes with red stoneware, and there are many more pots and pans hanging above the sink. Also, you remember from my previous blog the soap dispenser made from a mason jar.


My kitchen was built for functionality at it's finest. However, it wasn't built for the finest looks. So, it has great functionality, and everything has a special place, but it's not a very pretty sight. It kind of reminds me of a man's toolshed or garage. My kitchen cabinets do not have doors, so they are shelves. Everything is rough around the edges, and is rather "manly".

Here are two problem areas that I found:

 This is that little shelf under the sink/dish cupboard. Ugliest shelf ever; holds cleaning supplies and general tools.

This is the food cupboard, just above the stove. Very ugly as well.

Here are my thrift store solutions!

 This curtain was put in the fabric section at my thrift store. I bought it, thinking it was fabric and dreading the fact that I would have to sew it into a curtain, seeing as I am no seamstress. But, to my surprise, when I unrolled it, it was already sewn into a curtain! It was doubled over on both the top and bottom, so I just cut it apart and turned it into two curtains, one for this nasty under-the-sink cupboard, and one for the cupboard over the stove. They match, too, so it adds a cuteness factor to the red kitchen. :)

Also, as you can see, I have added mason jars to the cabinet. I left the top and bottom shelves open, because I like the look of glass (as I mentioned before). It ties everything together with the soap dispenser and makes for a really cute rustic cabin kitchen.

Also, I couldn't help myself when I saw these guys at the thrift store. The first day I saw them, I passed them up because they were blue, and all my glass is clear. However, I just HAD to run back the day after to see if they were still there, because I fell in love with them. To my surprise, they were still on the shelf! I found a white lid that fit on the bigger one, cleaned it out and put my baking sugar in it. The smaller one holds my kitchen knives, since I do not have a knife block.

Also, the final thing I did was put a shelf underneath the microwave stand. That is where I keep my "beverage station". I'm big into coffee, tea, and cappuccinos, and I have a french press, a cappuccino machine and many boxes of tea. I used baskets and this perfect size shelf to hold everything in an organized fashion:

Now, I happily cook in my newly made-over kitchen!! The whole makeover (minus the shelf... I bought it from Target) cost under $25!! Now THAT is super cheap - and super awesome!