Sinterest

That's what I'm calling it from now on.

"Pinning" Pin by bibliobags on Etsy

I'm referring, of course, to Pinterest.  Pinterest is a website where people "pin" random bits of information from all over the internet.  Recipes, craft tutorials, interior decorating ideas and art are just a few of the things that flood this virtual pinboard daily.  You can see how I got addicted.  I have spent hours upon hours on this site pinning things I most likely will never use.

HOWEVER!

This past week I used several of my "pins" and I had to show off.  See, hundreds of hours in front of my computer screen weren't totally useless!

Here's a compendeum of my "pins" and how successfully I pulled them off:

Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

Source: the-girl-who-ate-everything.com via Autumn on Pinterest

Awesome.  This recipe came out so well.  I have a lot of diet restrictions due to a medical condition so I'm always looking for new recipes.  I liked this one because it didn't require any "cream of" whatever soup or anything else processed.  I also appreciated the fact that there was no heavy cream or half-and-half in the sauce.  Just good ol' fashioned milk and buttah.  I had to skip the onion but the rest of my family didn't miss it.  Definitely follow her tip to bake the bottom crust for a few minutes . . . it made such a difference!  This is the best homemade chicken pot pie I've ever had.

What I would change: A lot of this has to do with self control.  I did get an upset stomach from all the pastry.  I've heard that coconut oil is a great alternative to vegetable oil and shortening.  I wonder if I could substitute coconut oil for shortening in my pie crust recipe?  Hmmm . . .  Also, I personally think that chicken pot pie is meant to be an individual thing.  A family sized one never works out since all the good stuff oozes out when you first cut into it and the leftovers are all dry.  I'd like to buy some ramekins and make individual pot pies next time.  That would also help with portion control since some of us (ahem) can't seem to know when to stop.

Dreamsicle Fudge Recipe

Source: food.com via Katy on Pinterest

Mixed results.  I've never been great at making fudge so I don't know why I was determined to make some this year.  I wanted to make something "different" and I thought this recipe sounded fun.  That is, until I started stirring.  And stirrring and stirring.  I stirred that dadgum candy for 20 minutes and the sugar would not dissolve!  I finally just skipped to the next step, hoping that when it boiled, the sugar would melt.  The fudge came out pretty and it smelled nice.  It tasted good but the texture was grainy.  Not horribly grainy but it's wasn't smooth.  Dangit.  I told my hubby I should just rename it "Beach Fudge" to make the texture seem deliberate.

What I would change: This was my fault but I would definitely add more red food coloring.  At first glance, this fudge looked like colby jack cheese squares.  Also, I would not make this again simply because I'm just not destined to make fudge.  I would say to accomplished candy makers that this recipe was a hit with my family.  Even though the texture wasn't quite right, they ate it up fast.  My mom couldn't get over the fact that it really did taste like a dreamsicle.  So, if you're good at fudge, go for it!

Scrap Fabric Flower Necklace

Source: organizedchaos-lisa.blogspot.com via Autumn on Pinterest

My friend Kimberly and I got together to try to make these.  She wanted to make one for a family member.  I wanted to throw one together to wear for Christmas.  Kimberly's came out very cute (I should've taken a picture!).  Mine took longer for some reason . . . I don't know why it took me forever!

What I would change: Kimberly and I change a lot, actually.  We didn't like the look of the necklaces in the tutorial.  We cut circles of all the same size instead of doing two sizes.  In fact, we learned a lot more by looking at necklaces I had purchased from Creative Customology than from this tutorial.  Here's how mine turned out:

Mine is a statement necklace and I think the statement it's making is "SANTAAA!"  It's a little over the top but it looked cute with a simple black dress.  Plus, I didn't have to buy anything to put it together.  I used really thin ribbon for the chain and an old plastic green pearl necklace I had for the beads.  

Overall, I don't think I'll be making another one.  It's a lot of cutting!  Not to mention, I'm obsessed with Creative Customology's designs.  They are way better than anything I could come up with.  I'll just stick with her stuff.

Stocking Hanging Tip

Source: Uploaded by user via Autumn on Pinterest

This one is genius.  My mom just recently renovated her house and now has a mantle.  She also has four kids, three kids-in-law and five grandchildren, each of which have a stocking.  She asked me what to do.  I told her we should vote certain people out of the family to make more room.  Mom didn't go for that one.  Finally, I found this idea on Pinterest: slide stockings onto a curtain rod and place it on two stocking hooks.  Genius!  Clean, simple and cheap.  Happy Mom (though I still like my Survivor-style family elimination . . . )  Here's how Mom's turned out:

This will probably be my last post before Christmas.  I've got LOTS of stuff to do and so I'll have lots of projects, etc. to post.  I hope you all have Happy Holidays!