The Wonderful World of Color

Our first encounter with a rainbow of colors probably all came from the same place...a Crayola crayon box. We all have our favorites; mine is, of course, purple. Even the smell is familiar and comforting. But have you ever really thought about the evolution of their color spectrum?

I came across an incredible chart that shows the progression from the original 8 crayon set (1903) to the massive set of 120 (present day)! The blog entry by Weather Sealed is cunningly written. I get the feeling we are about the same age because I know exactly what he's talking about when he heard a Styx song on an oldies station! The chart though is incredibly beautiful and graphic. I want to print it out really big and hang it on the wall.

I encourage you to take a step back in time, check out the chart, maybe even grab some of your kid's crayons and draw a little picture. Feel free to post your favorite Crayola color here. It'll be fun...just like the old days when we would play 4-square during recess.

Holiday Cookie Exchange

This year I was invited to a cookie exchange by Karen Lovely. If you've never participated, everyone bakes and brings a set amount of holiday cookies (we each brought 6 dozen).

Actually, I procrastinated about doing it because of lack of time but Karen, with a little gentle prodding, convinced me to come...cookies or not. The one cookie that always reminds me of baking with mom was thumbprint cookies. I'm sure everyone has their own favorite but the look, the taste and the preparation of these makes me think "holidays."

So after a quick run to the store, I made a mess of the kitchen and even got the kids to help. Okay, they only helped with the first batch then a movie beckoned them to abandon me. They turned out just like I remembered and everyone else's cookies looked fabulous as well.

It was a wonderful afternoon spent with friends, a few drinks and some yummy food. I can't wait until next year!

Thumbprint Cookies (Bird's Nest Cookies)
½ c Butter or Margarine 

¼ C dark brown sugar
1 egg yolk 

pinch of salt
1 egg white 

1 C sifted flour
½ C chopped nuts 

½ tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cream butter and sugar together. Add slightly beaten egg yolk, vanilla and salt. Mix. Add flour and blend. Roll dough into small balls. Dip in slightly beaten egg white and then coat in chopped nuts. Place on greased cookie sheet. Make an indentation in the dough’s middle.

Bake at 375 degrees about 12-15 minutes. Fill depression with preserves when cool.

Yields one dozen cookies.

Next on the Agenda

I'm going to learn and design my own blog background...probably use it on my Twitter page too (cailin3). Can't be that difficult, right?

In the meantime, I've got the meatloaf in the oven, one kid drinking milk in the kitchen, two kids at a neighbors house and a husband getting his hair cut. With my trip to Grand Rapids last week, I've fallen behind on the card making front. I also still need to send pricing for thank you cards for a potential new customer. How long is too long before you lose the opportunity? Need to contact the lady about the card displays too and I'm suppose to have coffee with a past client. Not sure about the last one since she hasn't confirmed the date and time. I'll just show up at Caribou Coffee in the morning anyway...never one to turn down the chance for a mocha! Y U M ! ! ! !

There are a number of new items I want to add to my ETSY store in the next few months. Custom designed invitations via the Mac for one. I also went in this cute store in G Rap that had painted metal boards and accessories. You mix and match items to create photo boards that hang on the wall. They even showed scrapbooking paper as the background! Now I just have to find someone who can cut the metal sheets for me. Know anyone, leave me a comment. Preferably local to the Cincinnati area.

My neighbor has also asked me about my sewing skills. Of course, I'm pretty good at it. She found these great little dresses for her daughter but doesn't want to pay $80! Can't blame her considering Joss will just grow out of them in a few months.

So keep checking my ETSY shop for some of these new things and if you have any suggestions don't hesitate to leave a comment here. Thanks for reading my blog!