Free Wax Paper Anyone?

My Mom taught me to save the wax paper bag in the empty cereal box.  So I do!  And it really makes a great bag to use for alot of kitchen work such as for crushing cracker crumbs, pounding chicken, or breading okra for frying.  But most of all I like to use it to cover food with in the microwave.  So here is how to make it quick and easy and ready to use.

The above photo just shows where I cut the bag so I'd have four squares of wax paper ready to use.

Wipe the cereal dust off with a damp dish cloth, let dry, and you have four free little sheets of wax paper that will save you money and will be good to the earth, too!

Thanks Mom for teaching me to recycle and reuse things before it was cool to do so!

Blessings!
Donna

The Vintage Mama

You all know and love The Pioneer Woman, well known blogger, author, cook, and now TV hostess.  Well I've about decided my name should be The Vintage Mama.  :)  I love vintage things from the 30s, 40s, and 50s.  I think I was supposed to be born in the 40s...but of course I'd need ac and internet.  Ha!
We've lived in our new home in Southern Indiana for over a year now, and suddenly this empty wall in the great room has started to bug me.  I haven't known what to do with it, until recently when I saw a cute vintage shelf on a blog, with vintage pretties on it. I knew that was what this wall needed.

Enter this little neglected vintage shelf that I recently purchased at a thrift store for $1.  Now that's my price, girls!

She was dirty and scratched, but otherwise in decent shape.

Just a few coats of Rustoleum Heirloom White spray paint, and she was ready to be 'dressed' and put to use!  Woohoo!  I love quick projects.

So I hung her, added some vintage photos, jello molds, salt and pepper shakers, etc.  I also got out my beloved Norman Rockwell plates from storage.  They are titled Young Man With a Dream and Young Woman With a Dream.  So sweet.

I knew it needed some kind of little bunting underneath.  This piece of raffia was just the perfect size!  And I had just recently  received some of these vintage family photos from our moms.  The tiny wooden clothespins have been in my craft closet for months...the perfect finishing touch!

Awww, that's my little brother on the left, born in 1964.  So cute.  He is spending today, his 47th b-day, in heaven with Jesus.

The other infant pictures are of me, then there is my mother in law with my husband and his sister in the 1960s.  The other one is of me with a new Christmas doll in about 1968.

This is a photo of me at about age 4 in Texas.  Did any of you ladies in your 40s ever have your photo made on a pony that a photographer brought around the neighborhood?  This was common in Dallas, where we lived!

Newly purchased little Jello molds, from an antique store in Ks. City.

My Grandaddy in his early 20s...back in about 1940.

Precious little find recently at my favorite flea market.

And my wall is complete!!  I find it warm and inviting.  I'm sure the shelf will grow and change in time as I find other perfect little vintage pretties to live here.  But I plan to keep it fairly simple, changing out things rather than adding more.  For $3 (paint and the shelf) I was able to decorate with things I found in my own home.  I love how God is so creative, and He made us to be creative too.  Thank you Lord!!

Would love to hear your thoughts!

Blessings!
Donna


Linky Parties:
Somewhat Simple
My Romantic Home
Sunday Showcase
Funky Junk Interiors
Tip Junkie
Sew Much Ado

Vintage Bunting Expanding!

Oh boy, oh boy!  I had such fun making the next Artist Trading Card for my Vintage Bunting.  If you would like to see the first post where I started my Vintage Bunting, please click HERE.  The one on the right is today's creation.  I will keep on creating cards now and again until I fill the bunting ribbon.

Today's card was inspired by a beautiful idea I saw on Pinterest.  Making a cupcake design out of buttons!

I used some vintage inspired printed cardstock for the base of it.  Then cut out the 'C' page from the glossary of a vintage children's book and used it for the mat.  Fun!  I cut out a cupcake liner from the other side of the watermelon paper (base) and sewed some lines into it.  (Note to self...next time, pull the threads through to the underside before knotting and cutting them off so they won't easily unravel.)

I adhered all of these paper parts together then played with the buttons until I got a combination of size and color that I liked.  So fun to 'top' it off with a little flower button, like a cherry on top!  Just used tacky glue to put these on the paper.  Lastly I decided that my 'title' for this page would be the letter 'C' which is just a sticker on a pink circle, adhered with a foam dot.

Thank you for stopping by and for your sweet comments!  Each one is like getting a letter in mail...exciting!

Blessings!

Donna
Linky Parties:
Little Lovelies
My Romantic Home  
Funky Junk Interiors

A Little Vintage Bunting

All Summer I have had the goal of making a little vintage bunting for some room of my house.  With just three weeks left before we start homeschooling, I am happy to have begun!

I am making individual Artist Trading Cards for the bunting, and will continue adding to it until it is full.  I have two completed so far!  An Artist Trading Card is like a miniature scrapbook page that can be traded with others, for a unique art collection.

A classic ATC is normally about 2.5 by 3.5 inches.  I am making mine a bit larger at 3"x 4" so that I can use the vintage illustrations I have for it.  This illustration came from a vintage children's book I purchased for $1 at a thrift store.

Yes, it hurts to cut up a book, but I will so enjoy seeing these illustrations on a daily basis on my wall!

This is the page I chose to use first.  This little girl reminds me of myself in the 60s when I had a little metal dollhouse and plastic people and furniture for it.  I absolutely loved setting up the house and dreaming of having my own home some day!

This shows the size of the piece I cut from the book.

Next I looked for cardstock in the right colors, so that I could make my ATC base and mat the pic.

I went through my craft stash and found some embellishments that would go nicely on the card.

And this is the finished product! 

Today I made another one, using some beautiful vintage paper that my dear friend brought me from the scrapbook store where she works.  And since the line of paper is called October Afternoon, a name I find charming and enchanting, I even added it to my card.  Baking a pie on an October afternoon would be bliss.  :) The little circle of the girl is attached with a foam square so it pops out from the page, and I made the October Afternoon 3D as well.

And so this is the beginning of my little vintage bunting!  It is temporarily hung on my kitchen wall, until I decide the perfect place for it to live.  :)

I am loving it. 

To be continued!  

Blessings,

Donna 
Late Breaking News:  I've made another card...an adorable button cupcake card.  Click here to see it!  
Linky Parties:
Under the Table and Dreaming 
Tip Junkie 
Nothing But Country 
Skip to My Lou 
Organize and Decorate Everything 
Gluesticks

Freezer Pickles

The cucumbers are starting to come in, in our little Square Foot Garden!  Exciting!  So today I decided to make Freezer Pickles, using the recipe found HERE.  I used 3 good sized cucumbers and 1/2 sweet onion, so I cut the recipe down to about 1/3 or 1/2.

You cut up the cukes and onions, salt them, and let them sit for 3 hours.  You also mix up the brine and let it sit for 3 hours.  The above is vinegar, sugar, spices, etc.

Then you drain and rinse the cucumbers well.

Then mix the cukes and the brine well.

It made enough to divide between these three little containers.

And now I have three little containers of pickles in the freezer!  Can't wait to give them a try.  Any one can do this.  So easy.  The June Cleaver in me was so happy to have gotten this accomplished...altho I was wearing shorts and was barefoot instead of pearls and heels.  :)

Blessings!

Donna 
 Linky Parties:
Homemaker in Heels 
Under the Table and Dreaming 
Tip Junkie 
Skip to my Lou 

A slice of frozen lime? Yes, please.

I am nuts about ice cold water and tea.  And it's the icing on my cake when I can have a slice of lime floating merrily atop, giving a hint of lime to my drink.  However, I was getting tired of daily dirtying up a knife for a lime slice.  So I tried to slice the whole lime and keep it in a baggie in the fridge.

This ended up not being very satisfactory either, as the lime lost its visual appeal after a couple of days hanging out together in a baggie.  Got alittle ugly.  So one day I realized the answer to my problem.  I sliced up 2 whole limes.  Then placed them on a plate to freeze.

Into the freezer they went, uncovered, for 1-2 hours...til frozen.

Oh wow...they looked so COLD and tasty!! 

I popped them into a ziplock bag, rolled out the air in it, and zipped it closed.  Now they reside in my freezer door, ready at my beck and call.  Thirsty?  Yes!  A slice of frozen lime in your water?  Oh, yes please!

And that's how it's done.  Quick, easy, and I have enough lime slices for about 2 weeks.  Yippee!  Doesn't take much to make a girl happy.

Blessings,

Donna

Linked To:
I Heart Nap Time  
Under The Table and Dreaming
Skip to my Lou 
Tip Junkie 

A Taste of Summer Sweetness

1.  A one single pie crust
2.  3 fresh peaches
3.  1/4 cup sugar
4.  sprinkle of cinnamon

Cut the pie crust into about 3 inch circles.  I greased my muffin tin lightly, then eased the pie crust circles in to each cup.  After mixing the peeled/sliced/pitted peaches with the sugar and cinnamon, I layered about 3 slices into each one.  Bake at 375 for about 15-20 minutes (til light brown and the peaches are tender.)

They easily slipped out of the muffin tin and were the perfect little warm peach tart dessert with ice cream.  And don't forget to make little pie crust shapes with a tiny cookie cutter for embellishing the tops!  You'll have enough dough leftovers to do that.

Bon Appetite!
The sweet taste of summer!  

Blessings!

Donna
 Linked to:
My Romantic Home
Tip Junkie