Pattye Duffner's Blog

Rock Solid

Having accessories around the house is an effective way to personalize your space.  One way to get extremely personal with accessories and getting your loved ones involved is to make a signature rock collection.  When I was younger I remember every beach trip ended up with a pail full of shells that went home with me and was immediately decorated with markers.  I took this idea today and had Quinn and Ella hand write their names on two somewhat smooth rocks from our backyard.  Cleaned them up and I dated the back.  I just love seeing their handwriting and now I have it permanently on 2 accessories right in my entry bookcase.  This would even be a fun project to do for Dad on father’s day…. He could easily put this on his desk at work as a paper weight. 

Paper Flowers

Here are the step by step directions to the paper flower I made on ScrapbookLifestyle this season...

Center of Flower

Cut 2 2"x 2" squares out of white paper

Cut 1 2" x 12" strip out of solid color paper (both sides are same solid color) fringed

Petals of Flower

Cut 9 2" hearts out of 9 different patterned papers

Leaves

Cut 2 8" ovals  out of a green patterned paper

You will also need floral tape and floral wire

Take one 2" white square and wad it into a ball taking the other 2" white square and wrapping it over top.  attaching it to a 8" piece of floral wire with floral tape.

using your glue gun wrap the solid fringed paper around the white center gluing it very often.

Take the heart petals and hot gluing them around the center of the flower into a liking pattern. 

Take the ovals and attach floral wire to them on the back side with hot glue, bend them to give a more realistic look.

Attach the leaves with floral tape one at a time. 

Finishing up by wrapping the stem with floral tape. 

The Perfect Snack

   As you know the man that keeps this house and my dreams afloat is a Kettle Korn Man.  He works his heart out making Kettle Korn and I thought it would be fun to share some popcorn recipes today for your next party…  In celebration of us now offering home delivery we are going to ship 3 small bags of fresh kettle korn directly to your door, just leave a comment here and I will do the drawing Wednesday night.  If you are picked I will e-mail you for your address.  Thanks for playing along!

• Each order is popped fresh and shipped promptly
• Ship anywhere in the Continental 48 States
• Makes a great gift
• Hand-made gift cards included

Not long ago, this delicious treat was found only at local festivals. Due to overwhelming popularity we now offer our highly addictive Kettle Masters Kettle Korn brand popcorn through the Internet.

We still make each batch by hand over an open fired kettle using the finest ingredients available. The slightly sweet, slightly salty combination of our Kettle Korn is outright addicting!

White Chocolate Popcorn Crunch

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5 cups popped popcorn
1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries
1/2 cup sliced almonds
12 ounces white chocolate baking chips, chopped white chocolate or white candy coating
1-2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

• Cover a baking pan with foil or wax paper; set aside. Place popcorn, cranberries and almonds in a large bowl; set aside.
• Melt chocolate in a double boiler over barely simmering water, stirring until smooth OR melt according to package directions. (If chocolate is not smooth after melting, , stir in 1-2 tablespoons shortening until mixture is smooth and loose enough to coat popcorn.)
• Pour chocolate mixture over popcorn mixture and stir to coat. Spread onto prepared pan; allow to cool completely. When chocolate is cooled and set, break into chunks for serving. Store in an air-tight container at room temperature.

Variation: White Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn Crunch:
Omit cranberries and almonds. Stir in 1 cup crushed hard candy peppermints after chocolate is melted.

Edible Popcorn Party Bowl

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10 cups popped popcorn
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 cup water
1/3 cup light corn syrup
½ teaspoon vinegar
¼ teaspoon salt
10 drops food color, optional

• Spray the inside of a large, stainless steel bowl with cooking spray and the outside of a 2nd large, stainless steel bowl; set aside. These 2 bowls will be used to form popcorn bowl at end of cooking time. (Note: if one bowl is smaller than the other, spray the outside of the smaller bowl.)
• Spray a 3rd large bowl with cooking spray and place popped popcorn inside; set aside.
• Stir sugar, water, corn syrup, vinegar and salt together in a medium saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil, cover, and boil for 3 minutes to allow steam to wash down sides of pan. Remove lid and attach candy thermometer to pan. Allow mixture to boil, without stirring, until mixture reaches 290º F. Stir in food color, if desired.
• Working quickly, pour syrup over popcorn and toss with a large spoon until popcorn is thoroughly coated. Pour popcorn mixture into first prepared bowl and use a spoon to push mixture evenly up onto sides of bowl. Firmly press second prepared bowl onto popcorn to form popcorn bowl. Allow popcorn bowl to cool completely between stainless steel bowls. To serve, tip popcorn bowl out and place on platter. Fill with popcorn to serve.

All Fabulous

Introducing the first completely personalized, totally fabulous line of personalized note cards. Get a set with your name on each one. Or be creative. Choose the design, color scheme and text you want - the options are limitless. Make a beautiful little invite that sets the tone for the birthday party or house warming in your future.

The baby announcements almost make you want to have a baby just so that you can send one!!!

The reason I Scrapbook...

Here is a video I did for Scrapbook Lifestyle on why I scrapbook.  I hope you find it inspiring...

DottiLicious

I may just have to get these for the top half of Ella’s room… These wall stickers are printed with art book quality UV color printing. Separately curing after each color ensures color accuracy, durability and fastness. This process also makes the product easy to clean (a simple swipe with a damp sponge). The stickers are coated with a low tack adhesive so that they may be moved numerous times without ever causing damage to walls. There are 80 dots of varying sizes. Colors in each kit include: Bright Pink, Baby Pink, Sea Blue, Robins Egg Blue, Fresh Lime Green, Sunshine Yellow and Chocolate Brown. Dots range in size from 20" to 1". Four 19”x19” inch printed sheets and can be found at

Brocade Home

I found this and knew I had to share.  I have gotten a question about this wallpaper... But after more research this furniture is breath taking.  A perfect combination of traditional meets modern.  I hope this helps...

Brocade Home is offering a collection of foil wallpapers this Fall. I am reminded a bit of foil papers from the 70s, which is a tad scary. But, I do like how they show the papers applied in non-traditional ways - more as wall accents than an overall - and probably overwhelming - pattern.

Cupcake Craze

In Celebration of Brittney's 13th Birthday...

Mix large with small cupcakes to mimic the variation in a garden. Decorate a cake stand with green crepe paper leaves and top with a watering can full of sweets.

Unfrosted cupcakes can be made ahead of time and stored in an airtight container at room temperature a day ahead, or frozen up to three weeks.

Pack the cupcakes in a shallow plastic container, and stuff crumpled waxed paper in between. Then dole them out and watch kids marvel for a second before opening wide!

Set up an assembly line, and put kids in charge of affixing candy eyes, gumdrop cheeks, and other trimmings.

Happy Birthday you special little lady... I love you Love Aunt Pattye

An Apple A Day

Now my apples are ripe… gotta love southern California summer fruit.  Here is one of our apple trees…

And a recipe for Baked Stuffed Apples

·      1 lemon, halved

·      6 small firm baking apples (about 1 1/2 pounds), such as Empire or Cortland

·      1/3 cup (1 ounce) chopped walnuts

·      1/4 cup dried cranberries, roughly chopped

·      2 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger

·      1/2 cup dried apricots, roughly chopped

·      2 tablespoons sugar

·      1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

·      1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

·      1 pound coarse salt

Directions

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Squeeze lemon juice into a medium bowl filled with cold water. Using a sharp knife, remove stem from each apple. Using a melon baller, remove cores and hollow out apples until walls are about 3/4 inch thick. Place apples in water.

2. Place walnuts on a baking pan; toast until fragrant and golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Let the walnuts cool, and roughly chop.

3. Place walnuts, cranberries, ginger, apricots, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl.

4. Drain apples; spoon walnut filling into each cavity, packing fairly tightly. Place apples in a baking dish just large enough to hold them all. Add salt, being careful not to get any salt in the filling; fill until the salt covers the apples up to where the filling begins. Cover with a sheet of aluminum foil.

5. Bake until apples are tender and start to pull away from salt, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool slightly. Remove apples from salt; serve.

If the kitchen is not the place you want to spend your time try this out with all those apples…

These apple votives are a prize for everyone’s eyes, their flames a promise of warmth. Every apple will float differently, so see how they balance in water before marking their topsides with a dot. Place the tea light over the dot, and trace around its circumference with a utility knife, inserting the knife vertically as deep as the tea light is tall. Set aside the light, cut the circle into sections, and scoop them out with a spoon. Squeeze lemon juice onto the cut surface to keep the apple from turning brown, and insert a tea light.

A bright idea

When positing light in a bathroom, give every fixture a purpose.  After all, what’s the purpose in lighting the air?  Recessed fixtures with adjustable lenses will let you angle and direct the beam of light to a vertical piece of cabinetry or artwork.  For makeup or shaving, you need proper lighting at the vanity.  Ideally, I like sconces mounted on each side of the mirror, roughly at eye level for even illumination.  Add a frosted shade so there is no harsh glare.  I am not a fan of a row of small makeup lights across the top of the mirror that the builders so generously give you with most homes.

Other lighting concerns to keep in mind include having a light inside the shower so you’re not showering in the shadows.  Likewise, position recessed fixtures (or even a chandelier) above the bathtub. 

Have your bathroom lighting installed on dimmers.  You will want medium to height levels when getting ready in the mornings or cleaning.  But when it is time to wind down in the evening and take a long, relaxing soak you will want low-levels.  Don’t forget the candles!

Earthy fabric

Green products are everywhere, from small boutiques to big chain stores.   It's all about knowing what to look for and knowing WHY something is green.

Here's one of my latest favorite picks: water hyacinth.

Water hyacinth looks like wicker, but it's a very green choice to buy.    You see, water hyacinth is a very pretty aquatic plant species that was introduced to Asia a very long ago.   Being a non-native species, it quickly choked the waterways, while removing native species.  While spraying them with a herbicide would definitely kill them off, it would also kill all aquatic plants and wildlife.   In other words: not a good idea.

Companies like West Elm (pictured above) collect the water hyacinth plant, dry it, and weave it into hard-working accessories like these pillows.    I've seen water hyacinth in discount to upscale stores; you just have to look at the labels to find it.    These bolster pillows are great; they're durable, cushy and--frankly---not very expensive.

Natural Collecting

  I've never liked the word "collector."    To me, it always meant Beanie Babies or something tacky that simply designed to, well, collect and buy.  More stuff to put in the house: clutter!

How many times have you seen a large feather sitting on the ground?   Why not pick it up and start a feather bowl?    Stamp the date on each feather (another great use for those alphabet ink stamp kits) and just keep adding.  Ask family members, friends and kids to collect and add.  Eventually, the bowl is just overflowing like this one on top.

What other natural items could we collect?

Blueprint Wrapping

I love finding new uses for old things, and old blueprint paper is AMAZING gift wrap paper. While working in the building industry for so many years I have ended up with rolls and rolls of blue prints.  Well, it was A LOT of blueprint paper and I've been wrapping gifts with it ever since.   So you might ask: where do you find blueprint paper?    Become friends with an architect or student learning architecture.  They've got tons.   Then stock up and wrap away!

Office Essential

Red and white bakery twine has become an office essential on my desk.

I can't remember where i got this, but it wasn't some fancy gift wrapping store for sure.    A restaurant supply store where I think you can find this entire spool of bakery twine for about $10.  You can have this for years, use a lot of twine, and it still looks completely like the first day you bought it.

Red and white twine is a simple way to dress up a simply wrapped gift.  It's festive, it's cherry and it's unexpected.   You can bundle pencils together and keep them organized.   If you're giving someone a stack of old magazines, tie then together with the twine.    There is a whole multitude of uses for it.

I also like the fact it's cotton twine; that makes it biodegradable.   But I think the best thing is that it looks so nice sitting on your desk.   

Got Grapes?

My grapes are ready again this season…  Here is an easy and quick recipe that I wanted to share...

Red and green grapes are nestled inside individual puff-pastry shells to create sweet, flaky tarts. Puff pastry can be found in the freezer section in 17.3-ounce packages. Some brands come in one-pound pieces; weigh out 8 1/2 ounces, and roll the piece into a 9 1/2-inch square.

Ingredients

Serves 4

·      All-purpose flour, for work surface

·      1/2 standard package frozen puff pastry (about 8 1/2 ounces), thawed

·      1 large egg yolk

·      1 tablespoon heavy cream

·      2 cups red and green seedless grapes (about 3/4 pound)

·      2 tablespoons granulated sugar

·      Pinch of salt

·      Sanding sugar, for sprinkling

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured work surface, unfold pastry. Cut into 4 squares (4 3/4 inches each). Transfer to a rimless baking sheet. Using the tip of a paring knife, score a 1/2-inch border around edges of squares, being careful not to cut all the way through pastry. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

2.  Whisk together egg yolk and cream; set egg wash aside. Toss together grapes, granulated sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Divide grape mixture among tart shells, keeping it inside the borders. Brush edges of tarts with egg wash, and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Bake until pastry is crisp and golden and grapes are just beginning to collapse, 23 to 27 minutes. Let cool on sheet on a wire rack.

Love is in the details...

I made these hats for little Ella's 5^th birthday tea party.  These party hats can be as sophisticated or as silly as you like, depending on the colors and patterns of paper you use. Whatever occasion your hats are destined for, sturdy ribbon chin ties will keep them in place until the fun is over.

Tools and Materials
Decorative paper
Sheets of double-sided adhesive and liquid glue
Pencil

Party Hat pattern
Scissors
Hole Punch

Boa feathers

How to make it:

Note: Finished cut-out size is roughly 12" tip to tip and 7" tall.

1. Print out the Party Hat pattern.
2. Trace the pattern on decorative paper, flip the hat over on the fold line and trace the rest of the hat. (The full pattern will fit on one 12x12 piece of paper.)
3. Cut out the hat.
4. Curve your hat into a cone shape. Tape closed.
5. Punch 2 holes to the side of the hat. Adhear hole punch protectors on inside.
6. attach ribbon to each side.
7. Glued boa feathers to top of each hat.