2011 Cookie Exchange

For the annual Cookie Swap: I made Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies. I first saw this recipe on was found on Lilybean Paperie's blog site........link is here. The actual recipe is on Simply Living's Blog here . Instead of just a plain recipe card, I decided to make a card-like recipe card with a mitten and wooden spoon on the outside. Gingerbread Chalet Village SVG Collection cut file was used from SVGcuts.com. The mitten and wooden spoon was re-sized to fit the 4-1/4" x 5-1/2" recipe card. To attach the mitten to the recipe card, I used small 1/2" x 1" acetate to make a hinge. These hinges can be cut off later for an embellishment if desired. Mitten is textured and wooden spoon is stamped (see my blog post here for the card). Use SU Close to Cocoa to sponge everywhere and even made some smudgy marks on the mitten. My Silhouette to cut and stamp on tag is from Hampton Art: Kiss the Cook. Add a little red/white gingham bow along with a Red Stickles heart makes this recipe card different.

Yummy cookies: they are about 1-1/2" size. Crunchy and chewy (because of the caramel)
And, here is the recipe: (some notes after I baked them)
I reduced the Alpine Cider packs to 7 (instead of 10), and also cut the Caramels into quarter pieces since my cookies were smaller in size. I used the smallest cookie scoop instead of the medium one and placed them 1-1/2" apart on the parchment lined cookie sheet. I didn't seem to have to cool them upside down nor had any problems taking them off the parchment when they were slightly cool so best, if you bake these try what works for you. For this size cookie, I got about 77 pieces (instead of 48).

Hope you enjoy this recipe............I forgot to put the Baking Powder in the first batch. They were still OK. The difference is that they were not "puffy" but still tasted really good - I thought I would pass that info on to those who don't have Baking Powder handy. Another foot note: date of Lilybean Paperie post is on 11/7/2011 and NOT on 11/13/2011 as noted on the recipe card.

Snowflake Twisted Box

This may be one of my favorite projects for the holidays this year - if you like snowflakes, you'll like this one. This Snowflake box cut file is from Carol - her blog is Extreme Cards (and she has a whole bunch of extreme cards!).............and you can find her blog here. This SVG cut file is posted on her blog on February 17, 2010. I used my Silhouette Cutter to cut this detailed snowflake. Box size is 1-3/4" x 3-1/4" and is a hexagon shape. They are really cute little boxes!!!

The top:

Snowflake embossed sides (Cuttlebug Snowflake embossing folder):

In the assembly stage: wet adhesive is added to the sides, the bottom adhered and then the tops are twisted to create the closure.

Chocolates fill each container:

This project was really easy and quick to make...............and I love how it turned out, too.

Spirits of Christmas Past - Candy Tree Box

I had this Candy Tree Box on my craft table and got side tracked once my Silhouette arrived. I am so happy to now complete it......at first, I wasn't sure if I would like it but it certainly turned out better than I thought. This is one of the many projects from the Spirits of Christmas Past Collection from SVGcuts.com. So this project was cut using my Cricut and SCAL2.........I have since updated my cutting program to SCAL3 so I can cut more accurately with my Silhouette. I added a punched star to the top. This tree took two and a half sheets of 12x12 Core-dinations Evergreen paper. It didn't take much pattern paper at all. I decided to make this tree monochromatic. Sponge the tree with SU Close to Cocoa ink everywhere. Tree size is 7" x 4-3/4".

Hot glue was used to adhere the punched star in pace. Then Yellow Stickles added.

I dug around my craft room and found some miniature string of bulbs to embellish this tree.....a tree has gotta have bulbs, right?.......perfect!!!! These bulbs were hot glued randomly on each level. Also wanted to point out: each section on the tree has part Designer Paper (from a retired 6x6 SU SAB pack with Old Olive assorted papers) and stamped/clear embossed - that's why it is shiny.

So to open the tree for the treats: flip the 2nd and 3rd layer up!!! I love how this is engineered so it can be easily assembled - it is quite sturdy.

I added a 1-1/4" x 1-1/2" trunk was added to the bottom. See how clean the tree bottom is?

Supplies:

• Stamps: SU Elements of Style


• CS: Core-dinations Evergreen, SU Chocolate Chip, SU SAB DSP Pack


• Ink: Versamark, SU Close to Cocoa


• Accys: Ink Essentials Sponger, Hot Glue Gun, Wet Adhesive, Star Punch, Yellow Stickles, Clear Embossing Powder.

Thank you and have a great weekend......................

Snowflake Box

My very first Silhouette Project. I love the details in snowflakes so this box was the perfect project to test. This snowflake box can be purchased from the Silhouette Store. It didn't cost much at all.............this box was re-sized to 3-3/8" x 2". Pretty cute, huh? After re-sizing, Four lids can fit on their 12" x 12" mat and the bottom can be cut using 8-1/2" x 11" paper. Assembling this project is so fast - I couldn't believe it. A bunch of these can definitely be made in a hurry
Side view of the snowflake raised

Inside contents:

The bottom of the box is quite clean looking:
After cutting the top and bottom pieces using the Silhouette, wet adhesive is applied to the tabs and to create this hexagon box.

Hope everyone enjoyed this great project.Stay tuned for more to come

My Cameo is HERE

Update in the PM: if you haven't heard, the Cameo is on sale (again) on OMC (Oh my Crafts........) for 25% off, free shipping which brings it down to about $203...........if you are thinking about it and want to get your own holiday present.....go for it............I've seen a few people who have provided nice reviews on this machine (thankg oodness).

Look what the UPS Man brought me today.............whoaaa...................it finally arrived!!!!
It's my Silhouette Cameo..............Yippee...........Yippee.....Yipee......even the box is gorgeous! Hey, what's that cool green 3D box? I'm going to have to find that cut file in the Silhouette Store.
Look at my Cameo next to my Expression........Cameo is much more sleek and cool. Ooops, I forgot to put a big RED BOW on it - it's my Christmas present to me!!!! Everyone should have one!!!

Here's a side view - they are both the same length but there is a height difference...........

Hmmm...............I am itching to get my red spray can out to glam it up......well, maybe I will wait a bit before I do a red color make-over...........am not brave enough yet to do it.

I can't wait to start cutting my SVG cut files using the Silhouette Cameo. I've updated my SCAL 2 (Sure Cuts a Lot program) to SCAL3 to use the Cameo and it is now ready to go................testing to start!!! Have you gotten your Silhouette Cameo yet? So far, I am not disappointed. It is very exciting that I can put away my chunky Expression................