Along "The Garden Path"

Join us tomorrow for Make Mine Pink's - Pink Friday shopping event. The theme is "The Garden Path". Here is a little preview of my offerings. I will have special discount pricing for everything on the "Pink Friday" page for tomorrow only. Remember, everything will go back to regular prices on Saturday! So come early and have fun browsing all of the beautiful boutiques. Click here for all participating links.

Romantically Roses

Here is a little peak of the items I will be selling at special prices for "Pink Friday", a Make Mine Pink themed shopping event. Don't forget and come early - these special products will be offered at these prices on Friday only. For a full list of participating boutiques Click Here.

Busy Times

I have not been blogging or working on product as much as I would like. The above pics explain why. As we wind down spring sports and activities I hope to work on some new products over the next couple of weeks so my customers know I am still in business! But then there will be a quiet period over the summer while I recover from shoulder surgery. So I just wanted to let you know that I am still here and trying my best to juggle it all. I love that my kids are busy, ambitious and social but this fall I will come up with a new schedule and that will include more work time for me! I am not asking for time to pamper myself - I just need to create! I know there are many of you out there that can relate. Any suggestions? I would love to hear them!

A Perfect Combination!

The other day I received a delicious sample of tea from Lori. She writes for The Ivy Leaf Tea blog. They do lots of giveaways. The same day the tea arrived, my new Romantic Home magazine was also in the mail. Then I received my new Victoria magazine and waited for that special time to enjoy some of my favorite things. I had the Creme Brulee from The Ivy Leaf Tea and it was amazing! I highly recommend it!

Look at what I won!

I recently won this beautiful assortment of candles from a very sweet blogger Diana Lyn at Candles from the Heart. Here is a pic (borrowed from Diana's blog) of her great products. The French Market Candle, which I have not even lit yet is filling up my powder room with a sweet floral scent. The lotion which also smells great is sitting on my kitchen counter for when I am done with kitchen duty. It was so much fun opening up her beautifully wrapped package and uncovering all of my new candles to make my home smell heavanly! Can't wait to use the tarts too!

Also, Diana Lyn has awarded me with the "Arte Y Pico Award". Thanks so much for everything Diana Lyn - You made my month!

Happy May Day!

Here are my May Day jars filled and waiting for delivery. I delivered them to a few friends and even though I was caught in the act I think they really liked my little flower surprise. Can't wait to do it again next year!

Spring is Here!

I love the first sign of Spring color in the garden. I don't know what happened to all of the bulbs I planted but not many have come up. My purple phlox has though and I love the way the look! But with the spring season comes lots of activities in my house. My boys are pretty active in sports which means lots of practices to go to and games all weekend. My girls are dancers which means lots of dance classes and preparation for recital time which goes on for three days over Memorial Day weekend. And as if that were not enough for the month of May, my son is making his Communion this weekend and next week I will have shoulder surgery. What does this mean for me? Little time to work and update my website. I apologize for this. I promise new inventory will be added in June and Tent Sale Tuesday will also continue in June. All orders placed will be shipped as usual. I love my business and will never give it up as hard as it gets to tend to it sometimes, but family comes first and this is just one busy time for our family!

Brunch Recipe - Chicken and Asparagus Wraps

Brunches are so much fun- a little breakfast, a little lunch and easy to put one together. I love these simple wraps that are so full of flavor.

1/2 C mayonnaise
1/2 C sour cream or plain yogurt
1/4 C thinly sliced green onions
1 T chopped fresh basil leaves or 1/2 tsp dried basil leaves, crushed
1 T lemon juice
1/2 t salt
1/4 t grated lemon peel
1/2 C water
12 oz asparagus spears, trimmed
4 8-in. flour tortillas
2 C cut-up cooked chicken (in a hurry - use a precooked rotisserie chicken from the store)
1/2 C cherry tomatoes, halved

1- In a small bowl, combine mayo, sour cream, green onions, basil, lemon juice, salt and lemon peel. Chill until ready to serve.
2- In 10-inch skillet, bring water to a boil. Add asparagus and cook covered 4 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and rinse with cold water until cool.
3- On each tortilla, evenly arrange chicken, asparagus, and tomatoes, then top with mayo mixture. Roll up, garnish, if desired with mixed greens and enjoy!
This recipe makes 4 wraps.

Check out some of my previously posted brunch recipes here. And check out some of my Make Mine pink friends' blogs too - (pink blogs on my sidebar) - some of them will be posting some recipes too!

Mother's Day Events!

Make Mine Pink will be offering a Mother's Day Shop Hop starting on April 21st, 2008 and ending on May 10th, 2008.

Click Here to see what the Mother's Day Shop Hop is all about!

Join the Make Mine Pink Bloggers as we each post our plans for a Mother's Day Event~ we will share stories and recipes, a garden hat or two, and stop and smell the roses along the way.

Ooh Fudge!

I have to tell you about this delicious fudge my friend Carol from Clutterbug Studio makes. I ordered a jar of this amazing fudge as a little surprise for my husband. I ordered the Double Decadence - fudge in a jar that you eat with a spoon! And this one comes with two demitasse spoons. I had a sample in Chicago so I already knew what a treat we were in for. Can you believe the jar is sitting on my husband's dresser? We have to sneak little spoonfuls in the bedroom so the kids don't see. If you decide to treat yourself too - I promise you won't be disappointed!

Tent Sale Tuesday!

Check out these shabby white cast iron candleholders with crackled glass. I just put them on sale under the tent! Only 2 left!

Show and Tell Monday!

I love this idea my friend Kathleen from Set to a Tea has come up with. She thought we could all post about what we have been working on over the last week.

Here is a custom floral piece I have made up for a customer last week. This one is going in her bathroom.

These are some sweet little floral pieces I made and added to my shop last week.

Also, here is a pic of a delicious dessert my 12 yr old made last night. While in the supermarket yesterday, she spotted these ready to use crepes in the produce aisle.

Here is the recipe:

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 pint of fresh strawberries, sliced

Nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread in a jar)

In an electric mixer, whip the cream to medium peaks. Add the sugar and the vanilla and whip to stiff peaks. Gently fold in the strawberries. Spread a little Nutella on the crepe. Top with some whipped cream and strawberries. Roll up crepe, sprinkle with powdered sugar and add a little more whipped cream on top. So good!

Enjoy!

May Flower Jars - Part 2

So now that you have all of your supplies ready, let's start creating! If you are using paper to decorate your jar, cut them into the appropriate size now, use a pretty edge scissor too if you'd like. Take your clean jars and just brush some watered down white glue or decoupage medium onto the jar or the paper, whatever is easier for you. Just try to rub out the air bubles if you can, if you can't no big deal! Who is really going to care when you are surprising them with some beautiful flowers! I also suggest another coat of decoupage glue or some clear varnish to protect the paper from water. You do have to be careful filling the jars with water and not spilling over on your paper. Then it just becomes a sticky mess!

Here are some jars with the paper glued and dried. The one on the left is a pretty Rachel Ashwell tissue paper (from Target), so it comes out kind of shear. The second from the left is a shear decorative paper with a yellow rose cutout that I glued on top of the paper and then I coated the rose in glass glitter. The third and fourth are scrapbook papers.

The next step is making the wire hanger. I don't really measure anything when I work, so I apologize for that, but 10-12" of wire should be a good size depending on your jar. I used jars that were about 4-7" high and 3-4" diameter. A pair of needle nose pliers works well to curl the ends of your wire like photo above. The rings you make will go on either side of the jar top and you will wrap a piece of wire through these holes and around the top of the jar.

The second piece of wire wraps around the top of the jar and through the holes. You pull the two ends tight at the back of the jar and twist them together. You then bend the ends back towards the glass so the pointed ends are not sticking out.

After the handle is secure the fun part begins, embellishing! Look through your stash of supplies for buttons, lace, ribbons, tags, fabric scraps, etc.

This one has a vintage look. I took a piece of white lace trim and dipped it in some watered down burnt sienna paint and it gave it that tea-stained look. Of course you can just dip it in some tea also. I used a big old button and some mettalic thread. I have also added a tag to each of my jars to personalize them for the recipient.

This is my shabby jar. I used some textured wallpaper to wrap the jar and a piece of Shabby Chic fabric cut with pinking shears. I made a coordinating tag and tied the jar with some funky yarn.

This purple jar is such a pretty spring color. I made this one with scrapbook paper tied with white lace trim and embellished the gift tag with some glass glitter for a little sparkle.

On this pink blossom jar, I used a printed tissue paper, pink midori ribbon, a hanging pink diamond drop and the tag is embellished with stick on rhinestones. Any charms will do to add on your jar, think of something your recipient loves. I already know I am going to attach a little butterfly charm on for one of my friends.

This is another really simple idea. Just take a lace doily, or a fabric circle would work too, secure with a rubber band at the top of the jar and tie with a ribbon. I love the ribbon colors on this one.

This last one is covered in a sheer decorative paper as mentioned at the beginning of this post. But I have also added a pearl trim to the bottom, just hot glued on and a springy green Midori ribbon with gift tag embellished with an old button.

I love the way this collection of jars looks. I can't wait to fill them with fresh flowers and deliver to my special friends. I will post a pic of them filled with blossoms on May 1st.

Have fun creating your May Flower Jars and please post a pic on your blog if you have made some and leave us a comment so we can check yours out too!

Or if you don't have a blog, send me a pic by email!

Tent Sale Tuesday!

This shabby white cast iron candleholder is now under the tent! Check it out! I only have 4 left.

P.S.

May Flower Jars Part 2 coming later today!

May Flower Jars - Part One - Supplies

I have wanted to share these ideas for making May Flower Jars to deliver to friends/family on May 1st. Who wouldn't love to surprise someone or be surprised with a pretty little floral piece. These jars are so much fun and easy to make too. I wanted to start this project early enough so

you have time to save up some jars to decorate.

Supplies will include: Jars, decorative papers - including gift wrap, embossed wallpaper or scrapbook papers, decoupage glue, hot glue, ribbons and trims, paper cutouts, tags to write a message, wire for handle, and of course fresh flowers to fill your jars.

Click HERE for Part Two!

Tent Sale Tuesday!

I have one lonely bunny left and I put her under the tent!

Happy Easter!

Hope you all had a great Easter! We had brunch with the family at my brother's house. Just a few pics of the day - mostly food!

Italian Easter Pie - my favorite! My mom makes this every Easter - just one of those things I look forward to. It's made with various italian cheeses and prosciutto and dry sausage. So good!

Orzo salad with tomatoes, red onions and chick peas. Another favorite!

This is the Chicken Salad I made. I used two precooked rotisserie chickens (they have so much flavor), celery and granny smith apples. The dressing is made up of mayo, sour cream, honey and lime. I get bored of traditional chicken salad, so this one is a nice change.

Don't these brownies look so yummy?! I wish I had enough room to try one! We had so much more food than I have taken pics of. There were bagels, baked french toast, egg and sausage strata, shrimp salad, tuna fish, kielbasa, muffins, etc. The kids had so much fun with there cousins and luckily we had nice weather so they were outside most of the day playing football.

Easy Healthy Dinner

So many nights I need to make a quick but healthy dinner so I thought I would share this easy to put together meal. It's grilled turkey sausage, asparagus that I drizzled with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper and roasted in the oven @ 450 degrees till brown then sprinkle with parmesan cheese. And orzo pasta tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper, lemon zest of 2 lemons, fresh parsley and sprinkled with parmesan cheese. This was so quick and easy, tastes great and healthy too! My kids like their sausage on a hot dog potato roll with mustard. I am always looking for quick dinners for weeknights on the run! Enjoy!

Tent Sale Tuesday!

This antique white candleholder is now under the tent! Drape with crystals or beads to dress it up!

Country Living Event

Wow! I am home from an amazing weekend in Chicago. I met many of my pink friends from Make Mine Pink, was there to see Joyce Lucas (owner of MakeMinePink.com) receive her honor as one of Country Living's Entrepreneurs of the year, and listened to an amazing panel of women speak about owning your own business. There were 600 women in attendance. The room was full of so much information and inspiration, my head is still spinning. This is an annual event for Country Living and all I can say is if you have never been, it is definitely well worth the trip! There were a few moments that I had tears in my eyes listening to some of the beautiful and emotional stories of the ladies being honored. And I was so happy to be there and be a part of this wonderful experience. Can't wait for next year's event!

Queen for a Day!

Attention all Make Mine Pink Forum Members!

As you may know~ all the members of Make Mine Pink attending the Country Livings WE event are also planning to have an "Outrageous Tiara Event". MMP wishes to leave no one out of the fun~ so we are hosting the "Queen for a Day" event on the forum~

Here are the rules of play: Design and create your outrageous PINK Tiara yourself.

Submit 1-2 pictures of you wearing your Tiara by Tuesday March 18th!

(it must be YOU in the picture wearing the tiara)

All pics will be posted and a vote will take place!

Only current and participating forum members will be allowed to vote! The winner will receive the beautiful tiara ring and the gorgeous book-Crowns & Tiaras.

All forum members NOT attending the Chicago event are eligible to win this fabulous prize.

Not a forum member yet? JOIN HERE!

New in the Boutique!

Just a little peak at some new things I will be listing over the next couple of days.

Some inspirational books, glittery eggs, metal trays and planters.

Tent Sale Tuesday!

I have just added these cute little Berry Balls to the Tent Sale!

Tent Sale Tuesday!

I love these cast iron scrolls. These are a nice large size, put them in the corner of a doorway, use as shelf supports or add some wood and turn them into bookends! They have just been placed under the Tent!

A Special Lady!

I would like you to meet Joyce Lucas, owner of Make Mine Pink and Cottage Collections. This year she has been chosen as one of Country Living's 2008 Women Entrepreneur Honorees. She certainly deserves this honor. She has created an amazing place on the web for women to advertise their business, network, come for advice or just make friends. I joined MMP in 2006 and I know my website's success is because of that decision. Joyce is a very busy lady yet makes time to chat with her members daily. I am most excited about seeing Joyce accept this honor in Chicago in just a few weeks. I will also be meeting many of the friends I have made in the last two years at Make Mine Pink. Please visit MakeMinePink.com to learn more about this wonderful lady and the pinkest place on earth! Oh and if you are attending Country Living's Event - let me know so we can say hello. I would love to meet some of you!

What Kind of Flower are You?

I just took the flower test I saw on Andie's blog. Try it!

Here is what mine said:

You Are a Canna
"You stand up for what you believe in, even if it gets in the way of what other people think. You are proud of yourself and your accomplishments and you enjoy letting people know that."

Love that!

Tent Sale Tuesday!

I almost forgot today is Tuesday! Kids are off for Mid-winter break this week so I'm a little thrown off! This cast iron pedestal has just been reduced. Check it out!

I've Been Tagged!

By sweet Stephanie at Shabby in Pink Boutique and Erica at Meadow Street
Here are THE RULES:
1. Once you are tagged, link back to the person that tagged you.
2. Post THE RULES on your blog.
3.Post 7 weird or random facts about yourself on your blog.
4. Tag 7 people and link to them.
5. Comment on their blog to let them know they have been tagged.

1~I almost always fall asleep during movies, at home or in the theatre. Something about sitting down in a dark room.

2~I won't buy any products with MSG or Nitrates, or if there is a long list of ingredients on the package.

3~I'm a little claustrophobic and have to do yoga breathing when I drive through the Midtown tunnel (underground tunnel to NYC).

4~First time I went to Disney (also my first time in Florida), was in 2006.

5~I'm allergic to kiwi.

6~I am such a procrastinator. I do most things at the last minute! But work pretty well under pressure.

7~I gave birth to all four of my children without any drugs. I like to suffer?

Since many of my blogging friends have been tagged, if you are reading this message and have not been tagged yet, consider yourself tagged so we can learn more about you!

Tent Sale Tuesday!

This set of three cast iron candle pedestals have just been placed under the tent!

Legally Blonde!

I just have to recommend this Broadway show, especially if you have a teen girl. We had the chance to see the show this past weekend in NYC. My daughter and I loved it! Adorable and funny. I can't get the songs out of my head! You can click on this link to see video clips and hear some of the music.