Acrylic Adventures

I realize it has been nearly half a year since my last post, this absence has not been for lack of creativity, but more lack of my computer. My laptop doesn't particularly like to turn on anymore, and it takes some coaxing to boot it into action. BUT, I've got lots of photos, and I'll try to do better on making words to go with them more often.

Earlier this year, I got in the mood to do a little work on canvas, starting with a birthday gift for my oldest sister. A while back, probably during my last painting phase, my sister had suggested that I paint something large for the house where she worked. Well...I didn't. I had good intentions of doing something for her, but I was intimidated by a larger canvas, so the project just kinda left my mind. So now that a few years had gone by, and I felt like tackling a new painting, I decided to finally paint something for her.

This sister loves the ocean, so naturally, an ocean inspired color scheme is what I set out to get.

 After a Hobby Lobby run, I ended up with these colors, and a 24x24 inch canvas.

  For step one, I worked from coral to teal blending colors as I made my way up the canvas. My goal was for the colors to meet in the middle at a neutral beige, the same color that I planned to use for the next layer, so that the chevron pattern would almost vanish as it hit the middle of the canvas.

 After I was happy with the background, I applied painters tape in a chevron pattern.

Here is the final product after I painted over the tape with a light beige and removed tape to reveal the above result. Can you smell the salt water yet?

Granola Goodness

Hiya. I decided it was time to share my home-made granola bar goodness with the world. If you enjoy granola bars, and have never tried making your own, I highly recommend it! Trust me, with these babies, you will never go back to the box.

 

My only warning: You will probably end up wanting to eat more at one time than you would if they came out of the box. But don't worry, by the third of fourth time you make them, it will become easier to resist eating three or four at one time. Except when they are warm, that doesn't get easier with time, because warm granola bars are just so DANG GOOD.

Here is the original recipe that I tried, but it didn't work out the best for me, so I've made some adaptations.  http://weelicious.com/2011/09/06/chocolate-chip-granola-bars/

Ingredients: 

 4 cups old fashioned oats

 1/4 cup flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

 1 cup mini chocolate chips*

 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

 1/2 cup canola oil

 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 1/2 cup honey 

1/8-1/4  cup peanut butter  

(depending on your peanut-buttery preference)

*The chocolate chips can be substituted or supplemented with your choice of add-ins. I've tried dried cranberries, but the flavor was a little overpowering for me.

Prep:

1. Preheat oven to 325 F.
2. Combine the first 5 ingredients in a bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients.
4. Pour the wet ingredients over the oat mixture and stir to combine.
5. Place granola mixture on a parchment lined baking sheet and shape into a rectangle
6. Bake for 23-25 minutes.
7. Allow to cool for 10 minutes then cut into 3 bars.
8. Eat to your heart's content!

  Alright, here we go. I'm not going to lie to you and say that these are a quick and simple solution to your granola bar needs. It takes a little effort, but it is so worth it! And it gets easier after the first time you make them, I promise!

 Dry ingredients. I chose to use mini M&M's in place of the chocolate chips this time. They worked great, and tend to be a little less messy if you are like me, and eat your granola bar(s) in the car on the way to work. They won't melt in your fingers as much as chocolate chips do!

Mix wet ingredients on their own and then add to the dry mixture. At first it will seem like you don't have nearly enough liquid to mix into all the oats, but just keep mixing! It will get there!

 

Yummy granola goodness, all mixed up. 

 Carefully plop your granola mixture onto a sheet of parchment paper.  I learned the hard way that parchment paper is probably the most important ingredient to this recipe, next to the oats. The first time I made them, I substituted wax paper for parchment paper and spent a good 20 minutes trying to salvage whatever granola I could that wasn't burnt and melded to the wax paper.

 

I have found that the better compressed the granola is prior to baking, the better you bars will hold together when you cut them after baking.Use a spatula or something with a flat surface to press the granola into a rectangle. I get a little obsessive and see how perfect of a rectangle I can shape it.

Here's what they look like straight out of the oven. A little crispy  and brown around the edges doesn't bother me, but if you want a softer bar all the way through, keep an eye on them while baking.

I am an impatient baker and my impulse is to cut things and eat them the minute they come out of the oven, but with these, it really is worth it to wait at least 10 minutes before cutting, if you want any chance of actually cutting them into bar-like shapes. If that's not a priority, then by all means, dig in fist first and ENJOY!

Nesting

As I mentioned in my last post, I recently moved into a new apartment all on my own. It's a pretty basic, one bedroom, one bath, so it only took me a couple days to get everything situated where I wanted it and a few things hung up on the walls. This was a bit disappointing because I really REALLY enjoy nesting in a new space and deciding where everything goes.

Unfortunately, I failed to take photos of it after I got everything in place, which led to me, ya know, living in the place. This means leaving my shoes in each room of the house, discarding receipts and shopping bags on the on the kitchen table, and possibly using my spare mattress for guests as a couch in the living room... Classy, I know. 

Anyway, it's taken me until today to get everything back in place and cleaned up so I can take proper pictures of my little home. Because what I've described above, is not exactly the picture I want ending up on the internet. 

Now, I'm not going to give you a tour of my apartment. It has a bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen, a living/dining space, five closets, and really kick-butt pantry. But that's all pretty boring if you've ever seen a standard middle/lower income renovated apartment. They tend to look a lot alike. Instead, I'd like to show you a few details of how I've made it my own. If you'd like the full tour, please come visit! As previously mentioned, I have a guest bed and lots of spare bedding. (Thanks Mom)

 1. These little cuties are hanging above my sink in the kitchen. In the embroidery hoops (which I snagged at Michael's and Hobby Lobby for less than $5 total) are old hand embroidered dish towels from my grandmother. My mom brought them to me when she and Dad helped me move, and while I thought they were neat, I didn't know what to do with them. I wasn't going to actually USE the towels. They are super old and stained, but I liked the design, so I decided to frame them somehow. I got the idea to use the hoops from a friend who used them at her wedding and now in her home. So, itching to get this project done, I headed out to get the hoops. Easier said than done. Apparently 6"-8" are a hot commodity in my town. I'm a little embarrassed to say that I easily spent more money on gas trying to find the dang things than I spent on the hoops. But, look how great they are now. When all was said and done (over a week after I started the hunt) I am really happy with how they turned out.

 2. I'm a bit of a sucker for mason jars, and tiny objects, so when I saw these little salt and pepper shakers at Wal Mart of all places, I couldn't pass them up. And I don't even use pepper! Another reason for people to come visit me, I need you to use my pepper. They were somewhere between one and two dollars each. Thanks Wal Mart!

 3. Here's my dining nook. My mom brought me the table, which is a little rough. But she got if for a dollar at an auction, so how could I say no. And it's actually kinda growing on me. The folding chairs were a great find at target. On sale for $7 each. I decided to display some of my artwork in this area. The frame is one of my photos from color film photography class, and the other two are charcoal/pencil drawings. To hang the drawings without going to any expense of framing or mounting, I attached 3M strips to paperclips and attached the paper clips to the wall, and then clipped up the drawings. I think this would be a great idea for displaying kids' artwork, easy to change out all the time.

 4. These nesting tables might be the purchase/project I'm most proud of. I found these babies for $5 at FFO Home. They needed a little love and creativity, and now look at em! They will get their own post later, don't you worry.

 
 5. Have I mentioned I work in a home furnishings store? Well, I do. (http://www.obeliskhome.com/) Check back with that website soon, because we will be launching an e-commerce site soon, and you can buy pretty things from us, no matter where you live! Anyway, I've been working there for a little over a year now, and have inevitably started building my collection of beautiful accessories. I purchased the purple pot last week because it was very affordable with my discount and just so gosh dang cute. The white mason jars were actually and accidental shipment that the company said we could keep, so I got to take those home for free!

 6. Here's a shot of my living room. The details are really more impressive than the whole, in my opinion. But I wanted to give you a glimpse of how it all fit together. Above my TV is a patchwork quilt that my mom made. She sewed it to hang the other direction, but I decided to pin it up horizontal instead, as a piece of artwork.

7. These frames I also picked up from my work. As well as the matching gourd lamps (the other one sits across the room on my nesting table) The cabinet here is an old record cabinet from my grandpa's house. I have plans to paint it, but for now, the banged up wood look is working for me. I've placed this opposite my dining table on the other side of the kitchen entry. It provided me another great surface to accessorize! The key bowl is a vintage rose glass dish from my sister's wedding, and the Better Homes and Gardens scent melting pot is also a gift from her. (Thanks Sis!)

Well, that's all I've got for now. Please share your thoughts! Or hire me to come re-arrange and accessorize your home. Seriously. I'm cheap, as long as you cover travel expenses, and let me take photos when I'm done.

My imaginary blog, taking flight.

Well, this is my first official blog (since the days of Xanga, of course). But I've been writing an imaginary blog in my head for a while. Ya know, taking pictures of meals I'm proud of, projects I've completed, and other things I could imagine bringing me Pinterest fame. I assume I'm not the only person in the world who does this, but if that is the case, you can judge all you want.

Since this is the first post, I guess I should tell you a little about myself.

The name is Jessica.

What you should know for the purposes of this blog: I like to make things. I like surprises. And I love giving to others. If I can combine the previous three things into one activity, it's golden. If too much time passes without partaking in some sort of creative activity, I can feel it. Like, physical discomfort. I get antsy for a new project and once there's an idea in my head, I HAVE to finish it, if at all possible. 

A little over a week ago, I moved into my first apartment that is totally and completely mine. It's been quite liberating to decorate the place all on my own. I hope to post pictures soon, but I am currently relying on public internet, until Wednesday (Thanks McDonalds and Panera), so that post will have to wait.

  This is me, on the right, and my boyfriend Logan. I introduce him because 1) he's pretty cool and 2) he will probably make appearances in my posts because he selflessly and patiently helps me with with my projects (as much as I will let him). He puts up with me and my perfectionist tendencies and my distrust for him to do anything right when he's helping. I'm working on it.

Another necessary introduction: These are my parents. I can attribute nearly every personal success to the  traits I picked up from being birthed of these two. To describe my mom as crafty, would be an understatement. And I've learned over the years that my dad is to blame for my over achieving, perfectionist tendencies. When you start a project with this man, it doesn't usually turn out as planned. It is better. Because, why not create many hours of more work for yourself, and end up with a result that is way better than you originally planned. More on this when I post about my coffee table. Anyway, they're great people, and I am so thankful for their influence in my life.

I think that's all for now. Again, using the public internet, and my large Coke from McD's has just about finished it's journey.  Come back soon for a more exciting post that doesn't end with me needing to use the restroom!