Holiday Wreath

Hi everyone!

Wow! It has been a really long time since i've made a post. Life has been a bit hectic, but I am hoping to get back into blogging now that I have some free time =).

How to make your own holiday wreath for under $20. What you'll need:

1. A plain wreath. I got mine for $8 at target. You can also recycle an old one by carefully removing the decorations, but I think the one at Target was the best choice.
2. Hot glue gun. You can find some small inexpensive ones at places like JoAnn's Fabrics or Michael's.
3. Pine cones, flowers, berries, ribbon, bells, anything you want to decorate your wreath with. I found some glitter pine cones with berries for decorating Christmas trees at Target. They were only $3 each, and I bought 2 of those. I also bought a box of red berries and a pair of glittery doves for $2. I got the bell at Pier 1 for $1.
4. Scissors and twine.

Directions:

• Take a look at the materials you bought and think about how you want to place them on your wreath. Scissors come in handy for cutting pieces to fit your wreath and for changing the functionality of those pieces too. The pine cones and berries I bought were attached to this plastic branch originally intended to be placed on a tree, but I cut the pieces I wanted to use off and discarded the rest. 
• Once I had the lay out of the pieces picked out, I started hot gluing each piece onto the wreath. Make sure you have a popsicle stick or something you can use to press some of the pieces to the wreath since the glue will be hot. 
• I cut off the string that was attached to the dove (it was originally a tree ornament) and hot glued it to the wreath. I left this for last, because I wanted the dove to stand out and not be obstructed by some of the berries or pine cones.
• Lastly, tied the bell to the wreath with some twine. I also used cut off a big piece of twine to attach the wreath to my door since I don't have a special wreath hanger. I just wrapped the twine around a top section of the wreath a couple of times and then tied that to my door and double knotted it. The wreath isn't very heavy, so the twine has been working just fine! And once the Holidays are over, I can simply cut the twine to remove the wreath.

Here is a before and after look:

Before

After

I was totally excited by and in love with my wreath! It makes the entrance to my little apartment look so cheery =)

I Left My Heart in San Francisco

As you've noticed, I have been MIA the last couple of weeks.. and it is because i was just in San Francisco for my boyfriend's sister's wedding. It was absolutely beautiful and i had an incredible time there! We were there for a week helping out with last minute wedding details, attending the bridal shower, rehearsal dinner and then the big event! Here are a couple of pictures from my trip. Once I am done unpacking and settling in to my routine, i'll update the blog with some new recipes =)

The bride's bouquet! Isn't it beautiful!? It had a few succulents mixed in with some roses and other beautiful flowers.

Weenie puppy themed bridal shower! The Maid of Honor (and younger sister) made these delicious chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter cup centers for the bridal shower. 

It was absolutely beautiful! the weather was great all week, i felt really lucky!

I was very excited to see this! especially since we got to drive down the street! 

Sherbet Me Crazy

It's been a busy last couple of days for me, so i haven't had a chance to write any posts =(. I have been working on a lot (bringing home the bacon!) but i wanted to share a quick and easy recipe with you!

The record breaking heat has been unbearable! So here is a little something to help you cool off! I don't think i can share enough tips and recipes on cooling off this summer. Is it just me, or is this the hottest summer we've had in years!?

I tried this recipe from Barbara Bakes. It was quick, easy and very refreshing for the 106 degree weather we've been having! (the recipe and pictures are from the Barbara Bakes website)

Ingredients:

• 4 cups sliced strawberries
• 3/4 cup (6 oz.) strawberry yogurt
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons agave (more or less depending on the sweetness of your berries)

For the yogurt, i used Wallaby's low fat organic strawberry flavored yogurt. It is so creamy and flavorful. You can find it for $.99 at whole foods, a bit pricier than most, but it's totally worth it. They also have a greek yogurt for $1.99. I don't usually like greek yogurt, but Wallaby's greek yogurt I am a huge fan of. It comes with a little side pocket with toppings like cherries, honey or strawberry that you pour into the yogurt and mix. It is delicious! I knew Wallaby wouldn't let me down!

Directions:

1. Place all of the ingredients (except the agave) into the blender and blend until smooth.
2. Taste the mixture to determine the amount of sweetener needed and sweeten to taste.
3. Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturers directions.
4. Once the ice cream maker has finished its cycle pour the sorbet into a container and freeze. You may want to take it out of the freezer and mix it quickly every 30 minutes for 2 hours to keep the consistency even.
5. If you do not have an ice cream maker, pour the sorbet mixture from the blender into a freezer safe container (preferrably a shallow container to expedite freezing) and take it out of the freezer to mix it every half hour until the desired consistency is achieved.
6. Remove from the freezer 20 minutes prior to serving to soften slightly.