Craft Fair Display-spiration

My first craft fair is approaching, and I'm starting to realize I have a lot to figure out and get together to create a beautiful display and sell all my jewelry! :P
Here are some pictures of jewelry displays that are inspiring me right now (click the photo for a link to its source)

 Love this! I made my own personal earring display out of an old frame and window screen I had out my house. Its similar to this, I think I'll use it, and maybe make another larger one like this with felt in the back for necklaces! Oh, and have an easel in the back!

This is genius. I want to make something like this!

These ideas are mostly for me; I am just excited to plan it out!
Brooke

New Necklaces

-Brooke

101 in 1001

I keep seeing blogs where people are working on a 101 things in 1001 days list.
My friends and I each made a list at New Years in 2009. I was calculating and realized it should have ended this month!
I found the list, which I had much forgot about but it kind of makes it exciting to see what was actually accomplished!
Bold equals success and gray is comments

From Annie Hall, one of the movies on the top 100 list I enjoyed

1. Go to 5 concerts (4/5)
* Jason Mraz....(I WENT! even if it got rained out)
* Family Force 5
* Brand New

* Ben Folds
2. Fall in love with 10 bands that I’ve never heard of previously (0/10)
3. Perform on stage
4. Stop drinking soda for a month (Started Mon Nov 30)

This one was actually really successful! I used to be SO addicted to soda, now I never drink them (except on rare occasions) but for the first year I literally had NONE!
5. Really complete a game of monopoly
6. Go to New York
7. Visit 10 new states (1/10)

*Vermont
8. Take friends tubing down a river

Did this for my birthday this year! It was wonderful, with all my favorite people
9. Complete sudoku book
10. Go on a date
11. Color an entire coloring book
12. Ask Dad to teach me to do something he thinks I should know

*Changing oil
13. Ask Mom to teach me to do something she thinks I should know
14. Learn to Juggle
15. Go on a road trip with friends, and take only one bag
16. Go to 5 plays (1/5)
*CCG Drama Club- Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
17. Give 5 “just because” presents (0/5)
18. Write and illustrate a book of 101 things that make me happy (0/101)
19. Do something I’m not supposed to do
20. Read ten peoples favorite books (0/10)
21. Make ten knitted items (10/10)
* Dark green beanie
* Blue cabled beanie
* Fingerless gloves
* Alana fingerless gloves
* Braydan fingerless gloves

* My socks

*Ryan socks

* Baby booties

* Bandit scarf

* Miette (the first time, even though I took it apart)
22. Make a list of 101 inspiring quotes (0/101)
23. Make a journal using keri smiths 100 ideas (1/100)
24. Go Horseback riding
25. Tale a long walk in the rain
26. Spend a day in Downtown Charlotte with friends, without plans
27. Make a list of 50 things I like about myself (0/50)
28. Try 3 new cuisines (0/3)
29. Read 101 books (including the favorites and HP) (13/101)
30. See a Broadway play
31. Have a tea party
32. Write in a journal everyday for a year
33. Take an apparel class
34. Get good at ten songs on the ukulele
35. Purchase 5 new jewelry items
36.- Get a Job that isn’t ice cream related
37. Keep a sketchbook consistently for a month (0/30)
38. Write 10 handwritten letters (3/10)
39. Make a quilt
40. Learn to use Photoshop
41. Refurnish a piece of furniture
42. Use up all of my yarn, except for the super crappy kind, give that to Goodwill
43. Learn a yummy recipe by heart

*Roasted asparagus- easiest, most delicious recipe ever :P
44. Acquire 10 new albums (2/10)
*Brand New-Daisy
*Kings Of Leon

*There are more, but I can’t remember!
45. Go to a school basketball game
46. Use/get rid of all the goodwill clothes remnants I own
47. Get a passport
48. Finally do the murder mystery party game
49. Whiten my teeth
50. Go out dancing with fun people
51. Go to Canada

This was the crazy, no way it will happen thing on my list. AND I DID IT!
52. Go a week without sweets (0/7)
53. Wear earrings everyday for a week (0/7)
54. Floss everyday for a month (0/30)
55. Write letters to exceptional servers telling them what an awesome job they did, ten times (1/10)
56. Organize all of my craft supplies
57. Attend a Pride event
58. Answer 50 Questions that will Free Your Mind
http://www.marcandangel.com/2009/07/13/50-questions-that-will-free-your-mind/
59. Make a from scratch dinner for family
60. Buy something on Etsy
61. See the nutcracker
62. Knit a sweater
63. Knit/crochet 10 teddy bears for the Mother Bear Project (0/10)
64. Knit/crochet a blanket
65. Complete the 26 things photo project (one for each letter of the alphabet) on a disposable camera. (0/26)
66. Dye/ spin all of the roving I have
67. Sell something on Etsy

Cool! Another I didn’t even think would happen
68. Grow out hair
69.Cut it short
70. Exercise three times a week for a month (0/12)
71. Send in a post secret
72. Leave the country
73. Get all A’s at least one semester
74. Watch AFI’s top 100 movies (15/100) (includes ones I've seen previously)
*Annie Hall
*China Town
*Lord of the Rings
*Citizen Kane
*Rear Window
*Wizard of Oz
*E.T.
*West Side Story
*Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
*Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
*The Sound of Music
*Fantasia
*Raiders of the Lost Ark
*Silence of the Lambs
*Toy Story

75. Reread HP 4-7 (4/4)
76. Paint 5 pictures I’m proud of (1/5)
77. Design something and get Baucom Press to print it
78. Get a new camera
79. Build a birdhouse
80. Ride a Ferris Wheel
81. Buy/make 5 new dresses (0/5)
82. Buy/make 5 new skirts (0/5)
83. See a comedy show
84. Get a passport
85. Go camping
86. Buy the rest of Arrested Development on DVD
87. Pierce something
88. Absorb myself in school and my major
89. Have a picnic
90. Cross-stitch an inappropriate quote
91.-Find a successful way to organize my scarves
92. Ride on a train
93. Take a drive with no destination; spend the day in the newly discovered town
94. Make 20 mixed CDs for different friends (1/20)
95. Take siblings out for movie/fun ten times (3/10)
96. Write my own knitting/crochet pattern
97. Play putt-putt
98. Go bowling
99. Tag the tunnels in Boone
100. Flickr 365
101. Post 10 things on Craftster (1/10)

-Brooke

Blog Award!

If you get the award, these are the easy and fun steps you should follow:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award.

I am so excited to have gotten an award! I'm so new to this, so its pretty cool. Both Ashley of Everyday Ashley and Amanda of Amanda's World Nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award; so thanks ladies!

2. Share 7 things about yourself.

1. I really love t.v. I have watched so many seasons of different series...some of my favorites include The Office, True Blood, Freaks and Geeks, United States of Tara, and Game of Thrones.

2. I fantasize about yarn

3. In the 8th grade I was babysitting two little boys in my neighborhood. The pizza man came to deliver dinner and his car was stolen in the driveway! 

4. My first plane trip was two summers ago. I flew to Canada by myself to spend 10 amazing days in Quebec with my best friend. We traveled around the city, cooked, danced, saw a concert, and visited the family farm a few hours out of the city. I got to meet some of her extended family and they were all lovely. It was such a special trip. I worked all summer to save up for it, and it was seriously one of the best experiences of my life. It makes me want to travel again, so muchhh.

5. Today, I had left over macaroni and cheese for breakfast, coffee for lunch, just got home and ate like 4 rice cakes....real healthy

6. I am getting a degree in elementary education, but I hope to one day teach middle or high school English as well!

7. I've never been into cooking, but my boyfriend is an awesome chef. After we started dating we began to make a lot of food together. I've improved a lot in the past year. Its a good way for us to spend time together, and it helps when your product is delicious

3. Pass this award on to up to 15 bloggers you have recently discovered and (love to follow).

1. Rachel @ Just Peachy

2. Chelsea @ Roots and Rings

3. Jennifer @ The Thrifty Military Wife

4. Elizabeth @ Cardamom

5. Katie and Reuben @ House of Humble

4. Contact those bloggers and let them know the good news!

Yay!

Brooke

Pinteresting...

I just realized it's Wednesday again! I'll be linking up at The Vintage Apple again for:

 Knitted lace legwarmer pattern

 Barcelona, Spain

 I love coats. It might be one of my favorite clothing items.

 Cookie dough truffles

Pretty rings. I always wore rings in high school, but I don't anymore. I want to start again.

-Brookie

Homemade Bagels

I love bagels, sooooo much. I eat one almost everyday, which really isn't healthy but they are my favorite breakfast food! Yesterday Ryan and I made some from scratch. We used this recipe by Christy Chu.

Ingredients

• 1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 3 cups bread flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 3 quarts boiling water
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornmeal
• 1 egg white
• 3 tablespoons poppy seeds

Directions

1. Place water, salt, sugar, flour and yeast in the bread machine pan in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select Dough setting.
2. When cycle is complete, let dough rest on a lightly floured surface. Meanwhile, in a large pot bring 3 quarts of water to a boil. Stir in 3 tablespoons of sugar.
3. Cut dough into 9 equal pieces, and roll each piece into a small ball. Flatten balls. Poke a hole in the middle of each with your thumb. Twirl the dough on your finger or thumb to enlarge the hole, and to even out the dough around the hole. Cover bagels with a clean cloth, and let rest for 10 minutes.
4. Sprinkle an ungreased baking sheet with cornmeal. Carefully transfer bagels to boiling water. Boil for 1 minute, turning half way through. Drain briefly on clean towel. Arrange boiled bagels on baking sheet. Glaze tops with egg white, and sprinkle with your choice of toppings.
5. Bake in a preheated 375 degree F (190 degrees C) oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until well browned.

It is important to note that neither of us has a bread machine, so we just kneaded it by hand. We made 6 bagels, half of them were blueberry and half were cinnamon sugar, for me! 

For the cinnamon sugar bagels, I put in about 1 tablespoon of brown sugar and about 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. I also sprinkled some regular sugar and cinnamon on top after the egg wash. They turned out to be yummy, but next time I am adding way more brown sugar and cinnamon. I didn't want to over do it, but I think they would be more flavorful and delicious with more!

The blueberry bagels proved to be a bit more difficult. We used frozen blueberries, and really should have drained some of the juices out, because when we started to mix them into the dough, it added so much liquid it wouldn't stick together, so we had to add a bunch of bread flour to keep it all together. It was a bit of a mess getting them formed, but they also turned out to be delicious!

It was a fun experience, it took a while to make them. And the boiling part was difficult, I broke one of the cinnamon sugar bagels taking them out and I got pretty frustrated, but over all it was a success.

Oh! And we also made blueberry cream cheese by mixing sugar and blueberries and blueberry juice into some cream cheese!

I can't wait to make these again, and try some different flavors :)

Craft Show and New Earrings

My mom told me the other day that my small hometown is having a craft fair on October 15. I'm happy to say I'll be participating! I'm nervous but excited to hopefully sell some of my work and meet new people. My town is super small, so I am curious to see how many people and vendors will be there!

In other news, I posted some more stamp earrings :)

One of my classes was cancelled today so I'm already done, but I am so exhausted for some reason. I think I need a nap...goodnight :)
Brooke

A Pinteresting Wednesday!

My friend Ashley from Everyday Ashley has an awesome blog, and she has inspired me to work on mine! She participates in Oh How Pinteresting Wednesdays, and as a Pinterest addict it only makes sense that I try it out. I'll link up over at The Vintage Apple!

I am so ready for cold weather. I need to start knitting again. No AC this summer made knitting completely unappetizing, but its finally getting cooler out! These are the coziest looking socks ever

 In two of my education classes we've been talking about owls. They are amazing animals, and also adorable.

So cute

I desperately want a house to decorate. 

Glow sticks in the bathtub...awesome. I would have loved this as a kid...who am I kidding, I would love this now.

This is a gorgeous print from the Etsy shop oh, kirby!

I spent a good portion of my math class today not paying attention and brainstorming ideas for this blog. I am excited to write about some new stuff!

Brooke

Pictures from the week

I've been trying to take more pictures lately. In high school my friends and I took pictures and video of everything we did, but since college, I haven't been documenting in photographs like I should. I love looking back at the memories, and when you have the technology, why not?

Here are a few from the past week...

 Little tomatoes on my back porch

 Yep, I live here. Isn't it beautiful?

 My walk to the bus every morning, something like 5 stories. It's ultra fun.

Delicious homemade potato and bacon soup

Looking at pictures from my week is making me feel a little better about this rough start to my weekend.

Trying to be optimistic

This weekend I had plans to go see my friend for her birthday out of town. I got 30 minutes out and my car battery dies. I made it back home, but I'm sad to be spending the weekend alone, instead of surrounded by friends.

I'm trying not to be too upset, so I'm going to make it a productive weekend!

Just took pictures and posted some new stuff! Two flowery necklaces and another stamp necklace!

 Creamy Yellow Resin Flower Necklace

 Yellow Bloom Resin Necklace

Traveling Girl Stamp Resin Necklace

Here's to hoping this weekend isn't a total bust!

Labor Day Weekend Part 2

During the Spring semester a bunch of my good friends were studying abroad all over the world. One of my wonderful friends studying in London knew I was embarking into the world of resin jewelry and she brought me back a huge bag of beautiful British stamps.

So here's what I've been working on! Today I finally finished them up and posted them:

 Orange Queen Elizabeth Stamp Resin Earrings

Blue Queen Elizabeth Stamp Resin Earrings

Muted Orange Queen Elizabeth Stamp Resin Earrings

What do you guys think? A little different than the flowers, but I like it!

Labor Day Weekend Part 1

I'm so happy to have some time off this weekend. It has been a crazy week of school, and I think its only going to get crazier...

I haven't had as much time as I wanted to craft, but I am going to do what I can over the next few months and squeeze in some crafty time!

Today is going to be a lazy day, and we will see what all I get done.

I'm still pretty tired from yesterday. My boy and I attended the High Country Beer Fest!  It was quite the experience. I think we both agreed that our favorite was the Thomas Creek Vanilla Cream Ale.  Just like a cream soda, but beer! We also got to go to a beer and cheese pairing class. Its kind of ridiculous how much I love cheese...we got to sample a bunch of super delicious and expensive cheeses. It was awesome.

I'm so happy to have some down time today. I'm trying out some new stuff in my shop. I make a lot of basic large pendants, so I tried to use some smaller ones.  I worked on this earlier in the week. I think it came out pretty cute and elegant!

Five Piece Resin Flower Necklace

And I've got some other new and different stuff coming....