Jewelry by Jeanine Payer

My sister introduced me to these gorgeous, inspirational bracelets.  Jeanine Payer is an artist turned jewelry designer who moved to San Francisco to expand her vision.  Her work is so complex and beautiful…

DIY stuffed fox

These little fox animals are adorable!  I found the tutorial on one of my favorite blogs abeautifulmess.typepad.com.  I whipped up two of them for my gals and have to admit they are not as cute as the one’s she did-uuug.

Plush Fox Doll D.I.Y.

A few years back I made and sold these cute plush fox pillows through Red Velvet. Since it’s a retired product now, we decided to teach you how to make them! These foxes are a fun one-evening sewing project that you can do with even the most basic sewing skills! Enjoy! 

1: Supplies Needed- Simple solid, print, and white cotton fabric, scissors, card stock, plush stuffing, sewing machine/needle and thread and child safe snap on button eyes and noses. (You can find them in the doll section at your local craft store.) 2. Cut out the back and front of the fox. We made ours an estimate 1×2 ft. 3. Cut out and trace a circle from card stock on the back of your patterned fabric. This will be for the fox’s belly! 4. Next, sew on a triangle shape for the snout with the white fabric. For the eyes and nose, make a tiny hole with scissors, poke the eyes and nose through and secure it with the back snap. 5. After you’ve sewn on the snout, sew on the belly! You’ll always want to sew on the snout first, guaranteeing that the belly won’t be too high or too low. 6. Once you’ve decorated the front, place both sides together with the outsides facing in and sew them together, leaving a small gap at the bottom. After you’ve sewn your fox together, flip him inside out and fill with stuffing! Last, hand stitch the opening. All done!

Try adding different details and embellishments to give your foxes cute

Dave Sedaris quote

“I look at these people and can’t quite believe that they exist. Are they professional actors? I wonder. Or are they simply laymen who want a lot of attention? To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. “Can I interest you in the chicken?” she asks. “Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it? To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.”
― David Sedaris

Dave Sedaris quote

“There seemed to be some correlation between devotion to God and a misguided zeal for marshmallows.”
― David Sedaris

Dave Sedaris quote

“For the first twenty years of my life, I rocked myself to sleep. It was a harmless enough hobby, but eventually, I had to give it up. Throughout the next twenty-two years I lay still and discovered that after a few minutes I could drop off with no problem. Follow seven beers with a couple of scotches and a thimble of good marijuana, and it’s funny how sleep just sort of comes on its own. Often I never even made it to the bed. I’d squat down to pet the cat and wake up on the floor eight hours later, having lost a perfectly good excuse to change my clothes. I’m now told that this is not called “going to sleep” but rather “passing out,” a phrase that carries a distinct hint of judgment.”
― David Sedaris

Dave Sedaris quote

“Every day we’re told that we live in the greatest country on earth. And it’s always stated as an undeniable fact: Leos are born between July 23 and August 22, fitted queen-size sheets measure sixty by eighty inches, and America is the greatest country on earth. Having grown up with this in our ears, it’s startling to realize that other countries have nationalistic slogans of their own, none of which are ‘We’re number two!”
― David Sedaris

Dave Sedaris quote

He took a sip of my father’s weak coffee and spit it back into the mug. “This shit’s like making love in a canoe.”
“Excuse me?”
“It’s fucking near water.”

-Dave Sedaris

Dave Sedaris quote

“If you’re looking for sympathy you’ll find it between shit and syphilis in the dictionary.”
― David Sedaris

DIY funky braided bracelet

I saw this bracelet tutorial on betweenthelines.blogspot.com.  The possibilities are endless, I would love to try one with fabric and weave in some beads and copper wire!

This is what you’ll need for an adult size leather bracelet. (You might have to adjust depending on the material you use, so make sure to do a try-out before cutting ends.):

– a 52cm long strip of fabric or leather shoe lace
– a second strip of fabric or leather shoe lace of approximately 95 cm
– a big-eyed  needle
– a cylindrical object to hold the loop so your project stays put while braiding (the neck of an Elmer’s glue bottle works just fine; when out on the beach, the finger of a helper’s hand might do the trick as well)

Steps:

1. Fold both strands in half and place the shorter one on top of the longer one as shown in picture 2.
2. Start braiding as shown in pictures 3 through 8, making sure to pull the strings evenly – I made my bracelet really tight but you could make a looser version by pulling less on the strings you braid with.
3. Continue like this until you reach the end of the strands you’re braiding with.
4. Hide the loose ends in the braid as shown in pictures 10-11, using a big-eyed needle.
5. Tie a overhand knot in both remaining loose ends as shown in pictures 12-14 and here.
6. Put it around your wrist, pull one of the ends through the loop and  (have someone help you to) make a double knot and your bracelet is ready to wear!

Lemon garlic shrimp recipe

The other night I made this recipe from fitnessmagazine.com for friends.  It was so amazing and I cannot believe it was low in fat content and healthy!

Lemon-Garlic Shrimp & Vegetables

 

Ingredients

4 teaspoons  extra-virgin olive oil, divided

2   large red bell peppers, diced

2 pounds  asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths

2 teaspoons  freshly grated lemon zest

1/2 teaspoon  salt, divided

5 cloves  garlic, minced

1 pound  raw shrimp, (26-30 per pound), peeled and deveined

1 cup  reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 teaspoon  cornstarch

2 tablespoons  lemon juice

2 tablespoons  chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, asparagus, lemon zest and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to soften, about 6 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl; cover to keep warm.

2. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add shrimp and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk broth and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth and add to the pan along with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring, until the sauce has thickened slightly and the shrimp are pink and just cooked through, about 2 minutes more. Remove from the heat. Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Serve the shrimp and sauce over the vegetables.