Easy milk and white chocolate dipped pretzel sticks and marshmallow cones

For the white chocolate I chose to use the microwave. Make sure your microwave is at 50% power. Start with 30 seconds and then go down to 15 second intervals stirring in between until it is melted.

For the pretzels just tip the bowl on its side so the chocolate pools and then dip. Add sprinkles or sugar crystals immediately (they won't stick once the chocolate starts drying).

For the marshmallow cones I chose to break the cone a little bit first so it would be shorter. My marshmallows weren't big enough to fill the cones opening so they kept falling out. The chocolate will cover and chips or unevenness in the cone.

If not serving immediately allow your pieces to cool and then saran wrap.

Cute Mostly Dollar Store Birthday Party

Dollar Store shopping list :

Pink Napkins
Plastic utensils in contrasting color (I chose green)
Gift wrap ribbon
Matching plates and cups
Swirl and ball lollipops
Party platters (they have lots of colors)
Tablecover
Drink pitchers

Target list:
Gumballs (You can get bags of special individual colors in the party aisle)
Straws (sure the Dollar Store has these but Target has tons of cute colors with stripes and polka dots)

Wrap your silverware with your ribbon and napkins for some added charm. :)
I used all mismatching glasses to hold, straws, candy, and extra silverware. I turned out really cute.

I set up my Keurig with coffee and hot chocolate K-cups, marshmallows, sugar, milk, and a bottle of Baileys at the end of my table. I also put a pitcher of water, cute mismatched coffee and teacups from local thrift stores, and a little Dollar Store wastebasket the same color as my serving trays.

I set a veggie tray with ranch and a fruit tray with cheesecake dip on opposite sides of the table. In case you haven't heard of cheesecake dip let me be the first to tell you it's amazing! All you do is take a small tub of cream cheese spread and mix in powdered sugar until it tastes delicious! That's it! A few spoonfuls of sugar and you have the best party dip ever!

I also had chocolate covered pretzel sticks and marshmallow cones but we'll cover that in another post. :)

For my main dishes I decided to go the crockpot route which turned out to be such a great idea. We did chili and a breakfast casserole since our party was early in the day.

Cute Birthday Cake w/ candy rainbow topper

This is the birthday cake we made for my youngest daughter's first birthday.  I wanted something simple that I felt capable of doing myself. I work at a bakery so I figured I had seen enough to do something on my own. I wasn't exactly right. ;)

I used 8 inch cake pans but you could really do any size. I think it would look cuter if it were three layer rather than two.

The icing is a buttercream frosting that I made myself. Follow this link to view the recipe http://savorysweetlife.com/2010/03/buttercream-frosting/ .

It was delicious!

I added a couple of drops of blue food coloring to make it a light sky blue. Remember the more food coloring you add the more bitter it tastes. When you ice the cake try to get it as smooth as you can on top.
Add tons of sprinkles just on the sides (if you put icing on the plate under the cake it will cause the cake to stick to the plate so then you can tilt it sideways to add the sprinkles much easier).

For the rainbow you'll need a candy fruit strip. I took a piece of wire and threaded it through the middle color line of the rainbow and then bent it to get the rainbow shape. Leave enough extra wire to insert in the cake.

Pipe the clouds with a bag and round tip or just use a whip cream can!

Super Easy DIY Rainbow Bath Salts - Smell delicious!

These are great not only for yourself but for gifts!

What you'll need:

Course Salt ( I used Epsom for it's inflammatory relief but sea salt is fine)

Food Coloring

Glass Jars (I used left over baby food jars. Empty glass jars are surprisingly expensive. It's way cheaper to reuse or to just buy cheap baby food and dump it than to buy jars at a hobby store.)

Essential Oil of your choice (I used lavender and it smelled amazing)

Ziploc bags

First you will put 2 cups of your salt into a bag. You will use one bag for each color so do this with as many as you'll need. Then drop in your food coloring into each bag. The tutorial I read said to use four drops but I found this to be wildly insufficient. I used at least eight and then added more if necessary. It really depends on how deep you want your colors. After your coloring is added then seal your bags and shake rigorously until color is evenly distributed. Last you will add one drop of your essential oil into each bag and repeat the shaking process.  You can then funnel your salts into the jars (make sure jar is dry!). I did not use a funnel because I did not have one. I made a huge mess but I found that it made the layers very uneven (in the jars with more than one color) which I actually really liked so its up to you.  

When I was done I cut out a little paper circle which I used to label my jar. I attached it with washi tape for a decorative touch but you could just paint the lids as well. I also placed each of my jars inside an origami box (tutorial is coming!).

Easy DIY Bow Paper Clips

These are a great way to dress up boring papers at home or the office!

What you'll need:

Ribbon ( I used mini ribbon - $0.99 at Joann's or Micheal's)

Teeny tiny rubber bands (dollar store hair section)

Paper clips ( I used small, large would be equally pretty and allow you to use larger ribbon)

Scissors

Glue

 First you cut your ribbon into small pieces (for small ones use about 2.5 inches). It took me some trial and error to get the length right. 

Wrap the ribbon around as shown.

Pinch the middle as shown so it begins to resemble a real bow.

Cinch the middle with your rubber band.  

Loop your paper clip through the rubber band on the backside of the bow. 

Take a smaller piece of ribbon and wrap around the middle. Secure with glue ( I used hot glue but crazy glue would work as well).

Very cute addition to gift envelopes or as an actual gift! I gave mine to coworkers and friends (hopefully they liked them!)  

  

Simple DIY Paper and Button Letter for Girl's Room

This is one of the things I made while redoing my daughter's room. I was/am on a script budget so I've had to come up with new innovative ways to fill her space with cute things. 

What you'll need:

Something to make the letter with - You can buy wooden letters and redo them or you can go the super cheap route like I did and use cardboard. Yes, cardboard! 

Modge Podge or Homemade Decoupage Glue ((which is what I used)3 parts Elmer's Glue All + 1 part water)

Foam Brush (I used Dollar Store brand for this one)

Buttons

Patterned Paper (which you can also print yourself for free)

Washi Tape (optional)

Super Glue or Hot Glue

First, I measured out two longer pieces for the sides and two short pieces for the middle then I simply duct taped them together (on the back). For rounder letters  (like B or C) it may get a little bit trickier but there are plenty of free templates online you can print out then you just cut them and trace it onto cardboard. I recommend an exacto knife for cutting the cardboard. 

Coat each area with your glue and then coat the back of the paper and apply. Repeat until board is covered. While doing mine I had some unlevel areas where the cardboard pieces meet, in these spots I strategically placed buttons to hide it. 

After all of your paper is applied add a coat of glue on top. 

At this point I used washi tape along the edges. Line it up even and then fold over the sides and around to the back (this way you have no evidence that it is actually cardboard). If you do not have washi tape you can simply do this with your paper strips following the earlier steps. 

Then attached your buttons with super glue or a hot glue gun on the low setting. 

At the end I attached a bow that I had recently found a thrift store as a little extra flare. 

Super easy and it can be done with items you likely already have. My daughter LOVES it!

Adorable DIY magnets

This one is so easy a five year old could do it (though they might glue their fingers together in the process!)

What you'll need:

Magnets (any craft store or general store)

Crazy Glue

Buttons, jewelry pieces, or just odd little trinkets that are flat. (I used buttons and scrapbooking appliques)

The rest is pretty self explanatory, just glue and enjoy! Oh, and try not to get crazy glue all over your fingers like I did. :)