[Clay] "Inspired By" Magnets

Welcome back!  This is my last post for September 2012 - time flies by so fast!

Do you have one of those refrigerators with a lot of magnets on its door?  Photo magnets that remind of family and loved ones or those with 'save-the-date' wedding reminders.  Some people have magnets from the places they've visited.  We have quite a few magnets on our ref now - mainly used to clip our bills or new recipes... LOL.

I made a few magnets (for the ref and/or magnetic message board) that have inspiring messages.  

It's nice to read something "positive" to brighten up our hectic day.

You are My Sunshine!

You are Precious!

Love Will Be Our Home

May you have a wonderful week!  Let us all welcome October!  

See you soon!

♥  Michelle  ♥

Travertine Tile Coasters

Welcome back!  It was a fun and hectic weekend for Mr. C and me.  We joined neighborhood street sale for the first time!  It was nice to meet our neighbors and sell some items as well.  More on that on a future post.

I would like to share with you a DIY project:  Travertine Tile Coasters.  You can see a lot of these in blogs or pinterest and though it's quite simple to make, it looks beautiful.

Materials:  1.  Travertine Tile 4x4 inches - It is best to use travertine tile (tumbled tile) for this project versus shiny ceramic tiles.  The tiles come in 9 pieces but some of them had more and bigger 'craters' in them, which also adds character.

2.  Solvent ink pad and rubber stamp cleaner.  StazOn solvent inks work best for this project as they are nicely absorbed by the material.

3.  Rubber stamps 

4.  Cork - to be used as backing.

5.  Cyanoacrylate glue

Procedures (kindly refer to the photo collage):

1.  Figure out your design and choose a nice stamp.  I used a sentiment and a vine stamp.

2.  Apply StazOn ink liberally and carefully stamp the tile.  Avoid "rocking" the rubber stamp instead press firmly.
Allow to completely dry.

3.  While waiting for the ink to dry, cut a cork sheet a little smaller than the tile.

4.  Use cyanoacrylate glue to attach it to the base of the tile.  Allow to dry for several hours to make sure it is secure.

5.  Your tile is ready to use!

I didn't apply a sealer anymore.  Gina K of StampTV said that it is permanent and water proof.  Well, I had to prove it to myself.  I ran tap water over it and true enough. the ink stayed crisp!

Try making these.  Have fun and share your project with me.

Have a blessed week ahead!

♥  Michelle  ♥

[Baking] Crema de Fruta

What's your fondest memory of your Grandparent?  

Mine was enjoying a bowl of ice cream with my Lola who was my roommate for a long time before she passed away.

We honored our grandparents in Church last Sunday that was followed by a luncheon.  While others cued for the different viands, there were several who flocked to the dessert table... including me!  I love desserts especially those with creamy fillings.

I baked a cake for the first time in our not so new apartment and found out that the oven worked pretty well.

I baked "Crema de Fruta."  It's a sponge cake filled with fruits, cream and topped with gelatin.  When I was growing up in Manila, my mom would take home crema de fruta from Goldilock's bakery.  Yup, there's such a bakery in the Philippines.  

It was my first time to make it and oh my gosh... it was so tedious!  I started baking at 1030 am and finished at 2pm!  

There were several steps: 

1.  Bake the cake which was a sponge cake,

2.  Make the cream and custard,

3.  Assemble the layers of cake,

4.  Prepare the gelatin topping,

5.  Slice the fruits and arrange on top and finally, pour the gelatin mixture on the cake and refrigerate to harden, and the most difficult of all...

6.  Wash the kitchen utensils, beater, whisk, bowls, pans, measuring cups and spoons, etc.

(not to mention washing my hands several times in between to make sure everything is clean).

Crema de Fruita

All the hard work was replaced with happiness when peeps at church stood in line just to have a piece.  It was gone in a few seconds!  They told me it was good - not too sweet but delicious!

Not too bad for my first try.  I learned a lot in the process.

Next time, I won't use kiwi because it softens quickly and is "too wet."

Have you ever baked crema de fruta before?  How did it go?

♥  Michelle  ♥

[HPCG Aug 2012] Faux Dichroic Pendants

Welcome back!

We recently had a demo at the guild (Houston Polymer Clay Guild) on faux dichroic effects by one the members, Laura.  I tried using Lisa Pavelka's foils and UV resin before but never got hooked on it.

The demo was very informative and interesting.  It opened ideas on how to make better use of the products.

These were the projects that I made a few days after the demo.  I still have to apply resin though it looks pretty good without it.  Oh, I just hope my resin application would be perfect and bubble free.

Stay tuned for that.

Happy crafting!

♥  Michelle  ♥

[Food] Screaming for Ice Cream

I scream for ice cream all the time.  It's a staple in our home growing up and everyone in the family loved it!  Sundays are extra special when we drive by the store to buy half a gallon of this deliciousness!

Now that I'm older and with slowwwwwwer metabolism, I have to watch what I eat.

Take a look at this:  Blue Bell Moolenium Crunch topped with a fresh Cherry.

My Dear Husband (DH) and I are trying to do portion control, as advised by my trainer.  Of course, we can't let go of our dairy (though I know it's not too good for our body) so we decided to go another way.

This is our version of portion control... LOL!

A taster's cup and spoon with barely a scoop of ice cream.  

I guess it worked because it took several teaspoons to finish one serving and somehow, it satisfied my craving.

How do you portion your food?

Christmas is (almost) Here!

WELCOME SEPTEMBER!

I can't hardly stand the wait... please Christmas don't be late.

But then again... I'm not really ready for it yet.

Have a good weekend, friends!

♥  Michelle  ♥