Rachel Robin's Nest

Crafts, Projects and Recipes to Help Feather Your "Nest"

Grown-Up Gummi Bears October 31, 2011

Filed under: Recipes — raediantphoenix @ 1:07 pm
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Halloween is upon us, and I wanted to share a delightfully easy and delicious “cocktail” to serve up at your party this year.  I know this recipe is all over the internet already, but I’m whipping some up myself for opening night of “Hair,” so I thought I’d share it with you anyway.

Grown-Up Gummi Bears

All you need is a big bag of gummi bears (Haribo are my favorite), and a 750 ml bottle of vodka.  I decided to use a citrus flavored vodka to go with the fruitiness of the gummi bears.  You could also try using gummi worms, frogs, eyeballs, or any other Halloween themed gummi to make these even more seasonally appropriate.

What you do is combine the vodka and the gummis in a big glass container (plastic will absorb the alcohol and will never smell the same again).  Make sure that the gummis are completely submerged in alcohol.  Now, just let them sit for a few hours, or even overnight.  The longer you let them sit, the more vodka they will soak up, and the bigger they will get.  However, the longer you let them sit, the gooier they will get too, so you don’t want to let them go too long.

What’s great is, once the gummis are done soaking, you can strain the remaining vodka back into a receptacle and use it for mixed drinks (or shots), because it’s now gummi bear flavored.  So really, you’re getting a twofer here, people!  Place some toothpicks beside the container of gummis for easy serving.

Please enjoy these treats responsibly-no drinking and driving!!

 

Oreo Balls of Glory October 24, 2011

Filed under: Baking — raediantphoenix @ 9:27 pm
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+

=

AWESOME

There is only one way to describe the product of this recipe.  And the word is obscene.  These are obscenely good, and you will be unable to resist their siren song.  Seriously, don’t make them unless you are planning to have at least 10 people over to help you eat them, because otherwise, you will eat them all, and you will be overcome with guilt while simultaneously  not giving one fig,  because they’re just so tasty.

I first had them at my good friends Nick and Nikki’s house.  We regularly do dinners or movie nights together, and on this night, after an already large and delicious meal, Ben and I were presented with a tray of the little delights.  One bite and I was smitten.  Two and I was addicted.  Three minutes later, they were all gone, and I was feverishly plotting when I could make them for myself.

This recipe could not possibly be any simpler.  All you need is one package of Oreo cookies (I prefer to use Double Stuf, just to make them even more obscene) and one 8 oz package of cream cheese.  If you really wanna get fancy, you could also dip them in chocolate or candy melts, and decorate them with sprinkles etc, but I have to state for the record that any additional steps are completely unnecessary, because they are awesome just the way they are.

All you do is mash the Oreos together with the cream cheese until you get a creamy smooth, slightly tacky “dough,” and roll them into little balls.  Chill and serve.  That’s it.  I can see how mashing everything might be somewhat tricky-I used my pastry blender, which did the trick perfectly, but you could probably also just use a potato masher or wooden spoon.

I could probably just eat it like this too...

I made these on Sunday, because I had an 11 hour technical rehearsal for Hair, and it was also the youngest cast member’s 18th birthday.  They were gone before break.  If you ever need a quick and delicious dessert, this will ensure that people love you.

I started out trying to dip them in chocolate to be fancy, but it truly was a pain.  The balls kept disintegrating in the hot chocolate, so I think if you want to dip them, it would be best to freeze them first, so they don’t melt.  Also, I stuck the bottoms in a bowl of sprinkles so that they would have flat bottoms and wouldn’t roll all over the place.

Lumpy, sad chocolate dipped balls

Creamy, smooth, non chocolate balls

I can’t wait for Christmas to come around, because I really want to try this with Mint Oreos.  Drool.

I hope you enjoy my balls! ;)

 

Homemade Hair De-Tangler

Filed under: DIY — raediantphoenix @ 8:33 pm
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For most of my life, I’ve had relatively short, straight hair, so knots and snarls has never been a huge problem for me.  However, I’ve been growing my hair out for the last couple of years, and it’s now the longest it’s ever been.  Considering that my hair is pretty much pin straight, that’s not usually a problem.

Lately however, I’ve been dealing with a lot of difficult hair brushing sessions because I’m rehearsing for the musical “Hair,” which involves a lot of whipping my hair back and forth and generally letting my hair run wild, while I dance around and get all sweaty and gross, making me the temporary mayor of Tangletown.

I was looking at hair detanglers at Target, and all I could find was stuff made for kids that smelled like bubble gum or sour apple Jolly Ranchers, or stuff that cost WAY too much.  So, I hit the internet and started searching DIY hair de-tangler.  It turns out that it’s actually incredibly easy and cheap to make.  All you need is a spray bottle, a leave-in conditioner, and some warm water.

I’m going to be honest:  I did not use any measurements when doing this.  All the tutorials/recipes I found had different measurements.  It seems the general rule is:  the more tangled and/or dry your hair is, the higher the conditioner to water ratio is, and the less tangled and or/oilier your hair is, the lower the conditioner to water ratio should be.  If you a a recipe sort of person and would like more explicit instructions, you can check out this tutorial from Racks and Mooby or this one from Tip Nut.  I promise I won’t be offended!

Since my hair is generally pretty smooth and somewhat oily, I only filled my spray bottle about 1/8 of the way with conditioner.  Then, I filled the bottle the rest of the way with warm tap water, put the lid on, and shook it to combine.  It really is that simple!  I just give the bottle a gentle shake before each use to make sure everything is well mixed.  I’ve been using this stuff for a week already and I’m very pleased with how it came out, but you may need to experiment a bit to get the ratios right for your hair.

Also, I’m sure you could use a regular old conditioner too (that’s what most DIYers recommended, as it’s cheaper), but I’m just a little weirded out by the idea of leaving conditioner in my hair that’s meant to be rinsed out.  However, I’m probably just being paranoid.  Some folks also recommended adding a bit of gel or hairspray to the mix if your hair is curly, to help tame the frizzies.

Let me know how it works out for you!

 

You Can Make This!

Filed under: Sewing — raediantphoenix @ 7:55 pm
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I have a thing for headbands.  They are a great way to keep little flyaways out of my face, and also a nice way to accessorize.  Unfortunately, good headbands seem really hard to come by.  The plastic ones always pinch behind my ears and give me a headache, and most of the elastic ones end up sliding right off my head.  Not terribly helpful.  So I decided to make my own.

A few years back, my buddy Emily’s mom had made me a fabric one that I liked quite a bit, aside from 2 problems:  1) It didn’t stay put (see above), and 2) the fabric part was really wide, so it didn’t lie flat against my head-it sort of poofed up in the back, which wasn’t terribly flattering.  So I decided to sort of go with her basic idea, and create a better fitting headband.  Sadly, I no longer have said headband as a guide, but I remember it pretty well nonetheless.

Reversible Fabric Headbands

Materials:

  • Cardstock (to make a template)
  • 2 coordinating fabrics (or you can choose to use just one)
  • 1/2 inch elastic

The first thing I did was create a template to help make sure that my headband would be symmetrical.  To do this, I folded a piece of cardstock in half length-wise.  I knew I wanted my finished headband to be a bit less than 2 inches wide at the wides point, so at the top of the piece of cardstock, I measured 1 inch out from the fold.

I wanted the fabric of the headband to be long enough that it would extend behind my ears on both sides, so I measured the top of my head from ear to ear, which was about 16 inches.  So I then measured 8 inches down from the top of the cardstock (we’re going to cut on the fold of the fabric, so we only need to do half the length!).

Finally, down at my 8 inch length mark, I measured out about 1/2 inch out from the fold, because I knew I wanted my headband to taper to about 1 inch where it meets the elastic.  Using a flexible ruler as a guide, I traced a slightly curved line from the 1 inch mark at the top of the cardstock to the 1/2 inch mark 8 inches down.  Then, with the cardstock still folded, I cut along the line, so that when I opened up the cardstock, I had a finished, symmetrical and even template.

Now it was time to cut out my fabric.  Because this was an experiment, I decided to use a fabric I’m not particularly fond of, so that I wouldn’t be upset if it didn’t work out.  (Funnily enough, Ben absolutely loves this fabric.  I was wearing my new headband when he got home from work and one of the first things out of his mouth was “I really like that headband!”)

I folded my fabric in half, and placed the template along the fold.  I used a water soluble marker to trace around the template-I cut two pieces.  I also cut a 6 inch length of elastic.

Next, I placed the fabric pieces on top of one another, right sides facing, and stitched down the long ends with a 1/8 inch seam allowance, as I didn’t want to lose too much width.   Afterwards, I turned the fabric right side out and pressed it flat.

One either end, the raw edges were sticking out, so I folded them inside and pressed to make nice, neat openings.

Now, it was time to attach the elastic to the fabric.  I did this by sliding one end of the elastic into the opening at one end of the fabric sandwich.  I only put about 1/4 inch in, and stitched it down very close to the edge.  I did the same thing on the other side.

Lastly, to give the headband a nice, finished look, I topstitched all the way around about 1/8 of an inch from the edge.

I’m pleased to report that this headband is a definite success.  It stays in place, does not pinch, and lies flat against my head, the way it should.  I can’t wait to make lots more to match all my outfits!

 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies October 16, 2011

Filed under: Uncategorized — raediantphoenix @ 10:08 pm
Tags: , , ,

So clearly, I have a problem.  This is my second pumpkin related post in the last two weeks.  But I can’t help it!  Pumpkin is so tasty, and so seasonal, that it’s all I want to work with right now!

What’s great is, this recipe is tried and true.  It was given to me by my dear friend, Jaska, and it was developed by her grandmother.  The joke in her family was: “You  know it’s a Grammy recipe when it’s got 4 cups of flour in it!”  And yes, this recipe has 4 cups of flour in it.  But the resulting cookies are so flavorful, and so fluffy, you won’t even care that they are actually quite bad for you.  I steadfastly ignored this fact and had three cookies and a glass of milk for lunch today.. Oops!

I did however, make a tweak to this already amazing recipe.  Remember the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins from a few weeks ago?  How I mentioned that one might substitute apple sauce for the oil?  Well it just so happens that my lovely friend Deanna went apple picking last week, and transformed some of her 20 lbs of apples into homemade apple sauce.  And she gave me some.  Nomalicious!  So, I decided to swap the oil for applesauce, and boy am I glad I did.  It really gave the cookies additional depth and moisture, and there are actually tiny pieces of cinnamon-y apple in them.  SO. GOOD.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

from Jaska

Ingredients:

  • 2 c pumpkin
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 c oil ( or applesauce!)
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tsp baking soda dissolved in 2 tsp milk
  • 2 c sugar
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 4 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 4 c flour
  • 2 c chocolate chips
  • 1 c chopped walnuts (optional)
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, mix pumpkin, eggs, oil (or applesauce), sugar, soda, milk, and vanilla until well combined.
  3. Mix in the flour a bit at a time, stirring until just combined.
  4. Fold in the chocolate chips and nuts, if using.
  5. Scoop onto parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 375 for about 15 minutes.  The edges will be just turning a golden brown.

I have to say, I’m really proud of myself, because this recipe is supposed to yield 4 dozen cookies.  Usually, I end up with less than three dozen, because I am physically incapable of making small scoops of cookie dough.  My cookies always turn out to be ridiculously large.  Jaska and her mom, Sabrina, always used to tease me about my XXL cookies.  HOWEVER, this time, I used a measured cookie scoop.  And I ended up with 4 1/2 dozen cookies.  Hooray!

See how nice and small and even they are?

I love making these cookies because Jaska, Sabrina and I used to get together each winter and bake them together.  It was always after Christmas, because we were always so busy during the holidays, but without fail, after New Year’s I’d get a phone call, and we’d set aside a date. I’d arrive first thing in the morning and we’d bake as many cookies as we possibly could-pumpkin, Grammy’s molasses cookies…whatever we had time for.  And when we were all done baking, we’d feast on cookies with organic milk, or strong coffee sweetened with molasses.

Making these cookies always brings me back to Sabrina’s warm, bright kitchen, and gives me the warm fuzzies all over.  I hope you love them as much as I do!

 

Boxy Makeup Bags October 13, 2011

Filed under: Sewing — raediantphoenix @ 3:12 am
Tags: , ,

I have a new obsession…

It’s called oilcloth.  And it’s delightful.

It’s shiny, waterproof, and comes in all sorts of fun colors and patterns.  The best part?  It doesn’t fray, so finishing your seams is a breeze!

A few months ago I ordered a couple of yards just to see what I could do with it, and this is the first time I’ve really used it.  I decided to make some boxy little makeup bags following this tutorial from Three Bears.  I love the fabric she used, and I think this shape of bag is just right for so many things-makeup, first aid kit, tampons… the list goes on and on!  So check out the ones I made using my shiny, happy oilcloth!

Oilcloth Makeup Bag

Materials

  • 8 in zipper
  • 2 pieces of oilcloth measuring 9″ x 6″
  • 2 pieces of oilcloth measuring 3″ x 3″ (optional)
  • Sewing machine
  • Rotary cutter and mat (recommended)

Instructions:

First, cut out your rectangles of oilcloth.  (As we continue, please disregard how sloppily mine are cut.  I really need to get a right angle measure to make sure all my pieces are square!)  The long edge will be the top/bottom of the bag, so keep that in mind when using a directional print!

For the smaller pieces, fold two opposite edges in 1/4 inch, then fold in half and topstitch down the long edges to form a strap.  Repeat with the other piece.  These will become pull tabs on either side of your makeup bag.  Put them aside for now.

Next, it’s time to attach the large rectangles to the zipper.  Apparently, zippers are really scary, intimidating things.  I’m always seeing blogs or comments like “Oh, how cute, but I’m too scared to try a zipper!”  However, nobody told me this before I got started sewing, so I just found a zipper tutorial online and went to town.  It wasn’t until later I realized I was in the minority for tackling the dreaded zipper.  Hopefully my instructions will be clear.  If not, check out this great tute from twelve22, which is what I used when I learned.

Anyway, grab your first piece of oilcloth and put it so the right side is facing down.  Now fold one long edge over about 1/4 of an inch and press with your fingers, a credit card, or any other hard thing you having lying around to form a crease.  DO NOT iron your oilcloth, or both your project and your iron will be ruined!

(Please excuse the photos for this step-they aren’t that great, and the fabric is different. That’s because I figured out after making a couple that the way I was doing it was not optimal for an unlined bag.  The way I’m showing you is DEFINITELY the easiest and best way to do it!)

Now, lay your zipper down right side up, and place your oilcloth, right side up, on top of it, aligning the edge of the fold with the teeth of the zipper.  It’s not recommended to pin oilcloth, because the holes will show after, so I used some paperclips to hold everything together, and used my zipper foot to topstitch along the fold, securing everything.

A note on sewing with oilcloth-you may find that your presser foot sticks to the shiny side of the oilcloth.  Luckily I did not have this problem, but if you do, just stick a bit of masking or painter’s tape along the bottom of your presser foot, and it will glide flawlessly!

Now repeat the last few steps with your other piece of oilcloth, attaching it to the opposite side of your zipper.

This is what your project should look like at this point:

Now, fold your pieces of oilcloth along the zipper so that the right sides are together, pin or paperclip into place, and sew along the bottom, long edge.

This next step is very important:  MAKE SURE YOUR ZIPPER IS PARTIALLY UNZIPPED.  If you do not do this, you will be very sad and have to undo all your stitches later.

Place your project so that the zipper is facing down, and line up the bottom seam that you just sewed with the zipper.   Line up all the edges and pin or paperclip in place.

Grab those little tab pieces that you put aside earlier.  Fold each one in half, and insert between your oilcloth layers, right above the zipper, lining up the raw edges with the raw edges of your bag.  Now sew along the two open edges, getting as close to the ends of the zipper as possible to avoid gaps.

This is what you’ll end up with:

Now it’s time to box it up.  Reach inside and pouch out a corner, and press the seam into the opposite side, creating a triangle, like so:

I like to measure my corners to make sure that they are all even.  On this size bag, I did a one inch corner, marked it with plain old pencil, and paper clipped it.  Repeat for all four corners.

Sew along the lines you just drew, and cut off the excess fabric at the corners.

Now, simply turn your bag inside out, making sure to gently push out all the corners, and…

This is the "bad" one-I forgot to put the tabs in, so I'll keep this one for myself!

Gorgeous!  All done.  A water-resistant, wipeable makeup bag that is just so darn cute!

What do you think?

 

Envelope Pillow Cover October 10, 2011

Filed under: Sewing — raediantphoenix @ 4:12 pm
Tags: , ,

A few months ago, there was a craft fair at work.  As usual, there was a raffle of products made by different vendors, ranging from the super cute to the somewhat perplexing.  And wouldn’t you know it, I won a prize!  This…spirited…Boston College pillow:

Now, I didn’t go to Boston College.  And as far as I’m concerned, red and gold only go together at Christmas.  And the goofy cartoon eagle was just a liiiitle much for me.  So, it was time for a pillow makeover.

Now to give credit where credit is due, this Boston College pillow cover was actually quite well made.  It had lovely piping all around the edges, and was not a lazy envelope cover like I’m about to make, but a real, honest to goodness cover, so kudos to you, anonymous Pillow-Maker! (Even though I don’t like the fabric)

Since the piping was in fact so nice, I wanted to take it out in tact and possibly save it for another project.  So I got out my handy-dandy seam ripper and went to town.

It was very time consuming, but finally, I was able to pull the pillow form out of the crazy red and gold fabric.

Yes, the BC fabric went in the trash.

I decided to use this lovely elephant fabric that I’ve had hanging around for a bit.  I have a tendency to buy fabrics without actually knowing what I’m going to do with them instead of buying specifically for projects that sometimes gets me into trouble…

Please excuse the mess in the background...

SO.  Now to actually make the envelope back pillow cover.  This seriously couldn’t be any easier.  I followed this tutorial from About.com, which gives you instructions on how to make covers for several different sizes of pillows.

I cut a piece of fabric measuring the length of my pillow (12″) by the width of my pillow (12″) times two, plus 4 inches, or 12″ X 28″.  By not leaving a seam allowance, I ensured a nice, tight fit for a fluffier pillow.  Then, to help form the envelope back, I used a water soluble marker to make markings 8″ in from each short edge.

Next, I folded over the raw edges on the short ends 1/4″ and pressed, then folded them over again to hide the raw edges and pressed again.  Then I stitched the hem down.

Next, I folded each of the short ends in towards the center, right sides facing each other, with the fold along the markings that I made earlier.  I pinned it all down, making sure the edges were nicely lined up.

You can see how the ends overlap to form the "envelope"

 Finally, and I know, this is REAAALY tricky, I sewed all around the edges using a 1/2″ seam allowance.  Yup.  That’s it.  You may want to reinforce the areas around the opening, as they will be taking a lot of strain as you push the pillow in or yank it out, but that’s essentially it.  Now, just turn and press…

 …and insert your pillow form!

Ahh, that’s much better, isn’t it?  I’ve got at least one more pillow that needs a facelift, but the possibilities are endless-patchwork, applique, buttons…I’m getting all excited just thinking about it!  This is honestly the fastest, easiest, cheapest way to make all of your lovely little throw pillows over.  The best part?  You can pull the pillow out and wash the cover when it starts getting a little dingy!

Make sure you share your own pillow projects!

 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins October 6, 2011

Filed under: Baking — raediantphoenix @ 12:21 am
Tags: , , ,

Fall is my absolute favorite season.  As it begins to cool off and the leaves start to change, I can barely wait to don a cozy sweater, a colorful scarf and my favorite leather riding boots and bake my little heart out!

 Fall is a WONDERFUL time to get baking, because it’s not 90 degrees with 90 percent humidity, so the idea of turning the oven on doesn’t make me want to die.  Also, pumpkin is one of my favorite flavors, and happens to be a staple of fall and winter baking.  Hooray!

I woke up on Sunday morning, and my apartment was just cool enough that I needed to grab a sweater as I got out of bed-a sure sign that fall is upon us.  I was hungry, but I didn’t want cereal.  Or eggs.  Or toast.  I wanted muffins.  Pumpkin muffins to be precise.  Unfortunately, however, I didn’t have a pumpkin muffin recipe.  Boo.

Thankfully, there’s this handy thing called the internet that lets me search and find hundreds upon hundreds of pumpkin muffin recipes.  So I just picked one on a whim from AllRecipes.com, and I have to say, it came out quite nicely.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

 By Donna on AllRecipes.com

 Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup white sugar
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cup canned pumpkin
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
 Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease and flour muffin pan or use paper liners.
  2. Mix sugar, oil, eggs. Add pumpkin and water. In separate bowl mix together the baking flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt.. Add wet mixture and stir in chocolate chips.
  3. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.
These came out SUPER tasty, and were gone in very short order!  I ended up with about 15 muffins with a single batch, but I think next time I’ll double it!
I also saw some awesome variations substituting apple sauce for the cooking oil, which I bet would make the muffins even more moist and delicious!  AllRecipes.com is an excellent resource, because all of the recipes are rated by users who’ve actually made them.  Check it out, and please share any recipes you love too!
 

 
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