Shadows & Sammy

Karrie's Sammy Lou found the perfect shadow for us this week!

We've gone back and realized that we are always taking night shadows.....could it be that is the only time we have time for a shadow shot these days??? Ahhhh......the days are getting longer, so we will have some lighter shadows soon!

Enjoy your week ahead - and "Welcome" March & the promise of spring!!

Enjoy more shadow shots over on Hey Harriet - there will be sunshine and green grass.....yea!!

Patching It Together

Here's another Reuse, Recycle, Re-purpose Post for you......
What a great idea for all of those bits & pieces of left over fabrics setting in that pile......because "someday you will need it" or better yet... "do something creative with it!"

We loved this idea we saw last week on Country Living Magazine's website. We are collectors....of lots of things, but fabric is something we end up with a lot of. Getting samples in for clients - you know, to see if the fabric would work....or just left over fabric from a sewing project. Another great source of fabrics are all of those worn out shirts and dresses that you just don't want to throw away.....Gather all those fabrics up and make a darling patchwork pillow.

We are thinking of summer....and just how adorable some patchwork pillows would be on those wicker chairs! How about your guest room? We're sure you can find some place for a quick project like this!

Cut squares out of your assorted fabrics {a 3 - 5" square would work great!} and sew some squares together - depending on the size of pillow you'd like! Before sewing the two sides of the pillow together you can add a rick rack trim, or your favorite fringe to give your pillow a finished look.
Go on.....get a good start on that fabric pile....summer will be here before we know it!

Wednesday Words

Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea.
~Robert A. Heinlein


Wednesday Words are brought to you by our Wall Enhancer Line. Pick a fun quote and put it up on your wall!

A Winner!

95
The number of lovely guests who entered our giveaway





2
The number of hands it takes to cover your eyes....no peeking!
Well.....you have to use one hand to pick the name out.....!



1
Only one person will win!





And.....that Winner is.....

Rachel!
Rachel - congratulations! Please send us your address so that we can send your bag full of Spring goodies out to you!





Thank you to everyone for playing along!

Cheery Cherry Goodness

Yesterday we had our Winter Tea Benefit for Heartbeat. The ladies all requested we share several of the recipes involved...this was on the top of the list. It is super easy and versatile - try it out today!

Cherry Ice Cream Cake

Chocolate Syrup

2/3 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons butter

6 ounces milk chocolate chips

6 ounces white chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ice Cream Cake

2 pinks cherry cordial ice cream, softened

3 cups crushed chocolate graham crackers

1 pink vanilla ice cream, softened

In a small saucepan, heat the cream and the butter over low heat until butter is melted; remove from the heat. Add the chocolate chips; let stand for 1 minute. Whisk until the sauce is smooth. Stir in vanilla. Cool for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, line the bottom and sides of a 9" x 5" x 3" loaf pan with plastic wrap. Spread 1 pint of the cherry ice cream into the prepared pan; sprinkle with 1 cup cookie crumbs. Top with the vanilla ice cream. Freeze for 20 minutes or until firm.

Spread with 3/4 cup chocolate sauce {or more!!} and freeze for 20 more minutes.

Top with the remaining cherry ice cream and sprinkle with 1 cup of cookie crumbs. cover and freeze for 4 hours.

Transfer remaining sauce to a microwave-safe dish; cover and refrigerate.

Remove the dessert from freezer ten minutes before serving. Using plastic wrap, remove dessert from the pan. Discard the plastic wrap.

Press remaining cookie crumbs into the sides. Using a serrated knife, cut into 12 slices.

Warm the reserved sauce in the microwave and serve with ice cream cake.

One last chance to enter our 250th post giveaway.....tomorrow we will announce the winner!

Sliding in the Shadows

Wow! It seems like forever ago when we went tobogganing at Pokagan State Park last weekend!

It was a great time - the slide wasn't very busy on Saturday night {all those romantic people must have went out to dinner and a movie!}

Caught this shadow of the steps going up to the top of the slide while waiting for the kids to come back up for one more run.

We give it two thumbs up for a really fun time {for big kids as well as little ones!}

If you'd like to, you can take a virtual ride on the toboggan by clicking on the Pokagan link above....if you dare!

For more fun, go over and visit Hey Harriet for more shadow shots!

Monday is the last day to enter our 250th post drawing.....be sure to get your name in for a super fun tote and lots of goodies inside!

Wednesday Words

If you travel a path without obstacles,
it probably doesn’t lead anywhere

~Catherine DeVrye


Wednesday Words are brought to you by our Wall Enhancer Line.
Make your walls more personable with your own quotes!







::::Don't forget to comment on our 250th post give away this week::::

250th Post Give-Away!

250 Posts! Hurray!

Being that it is Customer Appreciation Month in the store, we thought we'd better "share the love" with our blogging buddies.....and what better time than a blogger milestone?!!

So....here's you chance! Comment below, and win this new "Can't Help But Feel Like Spring" Tote with some additional surprises in it!

What surprises? You might ask.....well, let's just say that it will be filled up with some fun things from the store....stuff that will make your heart sing ~ so that it will begin to feel like "spring"!

We will be randomly choosing a name on February 23rd.....so what are you waiting for?

Sweet! Chocolate Shadows!

Ohhhhh.....who knew chocolate could be so shadowy!

Welcome to Shadow Shot Sunday...Saturday here in the States ~ as well as Valentine's Day.....so what better to focus on than Chocolate!

While in Vegas last December, we saw the World's Tallest & Largest Volume Chocolate Fountain. This is the bottom of the fountain ~ where all of the lovely shadows are.

Click on the picture to read all about it if you'd like!



















Here is the top of the fountain...it was pretty cool {and I do not need to mention just how yummy it smelled in that store!}




We also went to the Ethel M Chocolate factory while we were in town.

Here they had some great quotes on the walls....I couldn't resist snapping this picture!

Then they had beautiful creations made from ~ you guessed it...Chocolate!

Visit Hey Harriet while you eat that box of chocolates for Valentine's Day and see the other

Shadow Shots today.

Maybe this quote should be...

"A piece of chocolate contains just as much energy as you need to take another piece....and view another Shadow Shot!"

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!

:::::::::Don't forget to join us Monday for our 250th post give~away!:::::::::

Picture Perfect

You could say that we are hooked on great wall groupings!

Hanging pictures.....and even the question of "what" to put up on your walls can be an obstacle for some. Two weeks ago we went over to our friend Carol's house. She had her walls painted and we needed to put some pictures up on her now, blank wall. Many of you may remember Carol's home tour here.

Carol just had her walls painted a lovely color from Benjamin Moore called Peanut Butter. It is such a warm and inviting color....and provides a beautiful backdrop for Carol's collections.

{We're hooked on the color....and the collections!}




One of the easiest ways for us to configure a wall grouping, is to grab things we are thinking of using on a wall, or walls in our home. We then begin laying out our designs on the floor to see how they will look. Once we decide on a design we begin hanging the things in the middle and then go to one side and then the other.

Sometimes you can get stumped when you are working on a wall display. Usually, we find that we need another piece of something {sometimes we know what that "something is", sometimes not...but it usually means that it is something we don't have....and we have to go junkin'!}

This happened at Carol's on the second wall.....

We tried several things that just didn't seem to jive....we wanted to use the floral painting that her father had done. We really wanted to use the adorable vintage dog print....but to balance that white, we really needed something else. Instead of putting it on a list to get when she went junkin'.....Carol went and found this plate in another room, and things started coming together!


We had one more empty spot....our last obstacle was

what to put in that lower right corner......"What about a frame.....an empty one....do you think that would work?" Carol asked.

We went and got it and put it there ~ it was still missing something....then "Do you have something oval to put in the frame?" I asked. Carol thought a moment and said...I have a horse in the other room. We went and grabbed it. What do you think?

We were ecstatic ~ it was perfect...we were in love and immediately hooked!

What are you hooked on today? Join us over a Julia's Hooked on Houses and see what everyone else is hooked on!



Don't forget to join us on Monday for our 250th post giveaway....fun fun fun!

Wednesday Words

"A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost."
~ Marion C. Garretty

Wednesday Words are brought to you by our Wall Enhancer Line.
Have you ever thought of putting a quote, family name, or word above a photo collection in your home?



Check out all of the great ideas at our Wall Enhancer website!

Shadow Shot Sunday

This week's shadow comes from our basement....something that is lovely to have....but full of dread. Can you guess??
I've seen a lot of it today....and will see more of it tomorrow {and I guarantee there will be a load of work ahead!}

It's our laundry chute!

The other day we heard this joke....so we thought we'd pass it along today ~ it seems to fit well!

One day my housework-challenged husband decided to wash his sweatshirt. Seconds after he stepped into the laundry room, he shouted to me, "What setting do I use on the washing machine?" "It depends," I replied. "What does it say on your shirt?"
He yelled back, "University of Oklahoma."

{Come on....you saw it coming didn't ya?!!}

Visit more great shadows on Hey Harriet this weekend....you'll have Loads of Fun!!

Is it Time to Think Spring Yet??

Yes.....just what we need right now ~ a little promise of spring!


We just love these ribbon watches {there's one in our banner} You get 11 ribbons to interchange with the watch face....tie one on for a quick change with any outfit.....yes.....spring will show up sooner or later {no matter what the groundhog says!!}


What is making you think of spring today?

Wednesday Words

Isn't this quote great? Perfect for the mud room! It is from the new 2009 additions from our Wall Enhancer line.

Wednesday Words are brought to you by our Wall Enhancers. If you like this quote....or have a favorite one of your own...put it on your wall!

Feeling Fortune-ate

Happy February Everyone!
February is Customer Appreciation Month at The Summer Kitchen, and while searching for fun ideas for our tea parties, we found this adorable idea online at Martha Stewart Magazine.

How fun would this be for any occasion? To find out how to make these cute fortunes, just click on the link above!

Happy Monday!