DIY Confetti Glasses

I love Anthropologie. I really do. But I can't afford it. Like save up for a year can't afford it. That's okay though because Pinterest has come to the rescue!!! With a plethora of knock-offs to search through you can get the look of Anthro without breaking the bank. 

In trying to be a grown up (got married, graduated, moved, got a job, etc etc...) I decided my hot pink cups from my freshman year weren't going to cut it anymore. I don't want anything fancy or expensive that I'm afraid I'm going to break. Here comes the knock-off part. I got my inspiration from the Anthropology glasses and from this gal's blog.

These are Dollar Tree glasses folks. No need to go to a fancy-dancey store to buy these. (Unless you just want to).

I chose four different color groupings to paint my glasses with. I enjoy variety and with spring coming/occasionally here I chose brighter colors. I used heavy body acrylic paint as well as just the regular acrylic paint you can buy in smaller containers at the craft store.

 

Voila! Cute glasses!

However cute these are, the paint isn't going to last forever. If you seal it with an acrylic sealer from Hobby Lobby it should last a while longer. Just don't put it in the dishwasher!!!! 

Cocoa Cookies

You know when you just get the craving for some warm cookies or some savory chocolates and you have absolutely no edible anything in the house and it's too cold outside/too late at night to go get some? Story. of. my. life. Not that I'm a chocoholic or anything...

I didn't have chocolate chips or chocolate bark or anything other than hot cocoa mix and cocoa powder. It was time to get creative. Scouring Pinterest I found The Busty Baker's blog and discovered her Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies. These are actually hot as in spicy. That wasn't exactly what I was craving so I left out the spice and got a delightfully chocolate-y cookie that I can - I mean COULD - eat a dozen of. This recipe makes three dozen medium sized cookies. Between my husband and I, these were gone in a week.

Cocoa Cookies

adapted from The Busty Baker

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon coarse salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ¾ cups sugar, divided
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Line two standard baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and 1 ½ cups sugar on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla and beat to combine. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture, beat to combine. 
3. In a small bowl, combine remaining ¼ cup sugar, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Form heaping tablespoons of dough into balls and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture. Place on prepared baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart. Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until cookies are set in center and begin to crack, about 10 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes before transferring cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

The bottoms of mine burnt easily so regularly check your cookies after the five minute rotating mark. 

Chocolate Sheet Cake

Isn't it cute that my grandparents' birthdays are within a week of each other?? It's like they had it planned all along... But anyways. My grandmother is the one who taught me how to bake and she always let me climb through her shelves and shelves of cook books. That's her addiction. Collecting cook books. Granted they are a liiiiiittle old (like the 70s old) but they work. They also aren't concerned with how much butter, Crisco, oleo, lard, grease, and what ever else would spike your cholesterol.

Years ago when my brother and I would be sent to Grandma's house for my parents to have a little piece and quiet my Grandma would let us pick out a dessert for her to make for after dinner that night. Grandma Cookies (recipe coming soon!!) were always our top choice but one day I decided to dig through those 30 year old cookbooks. And look at what I found!! A recipe for chocolate sheet cake! I made it for my grandparents' birthday this past weekend and they LOVED it. There is also a more chocoholic version of this recipe but I need to save it for a special occasion. :)

My apologies for the picture quality. This was the only picture I could get of it with my phone before it was all eaten up! 

Chocolate Sheet Cake

Ingredients:

For the cake

• 2 C flour
• 2 C sugar
• 1 Stick butter
• 1/2 C shortening (or vegetable oil)
• 4 T cocoa 
• 1 C water
• 1/2 C sour milk*
• 2 beaten eggs
• 1 t baking soda
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 1 t cinnamon 

For the frosting

• 1 stick butter
• 4 T cocoa
• 6 T milk
• 1 one pound box confectioner's sugar
• 1 t vanilla

Directions:

Cake

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2.  Mix flour and sugar in a bowl and set aside.
3. In a saucepan, mix butter, shortening (oil), cocoa, and water and bring to a rapid boil. 
4. Pour over flour and sugar.
5. In a separate bowl, mix together sour milk, eggs, baking soda, vanilla, cinnamon. Add to the first mixture.
6. Bake in a greased 9x13 pan for 20 minutes.

Frosting

1. Melt butter in a sauce pan 
2. Add cocoa, milk, vanilla, and confectioner's sugar
3. When well blended pour over cake and let cool before covering.

This cake does not need to be refrigerated BUT it is easier to serve when the cake has been chilled.

*Sour milk - add 1t vinegar to the regular amount of milk before adding in the other ingredients

DIY Chevron Painting

We have lived in our new apartment for almost three months now and I'm STILL trying to find cute yet "gender neutral" pieces of art to decorate with. My husband doesn't like anything too floral, pink, or girly. Which I completely understand. So I browsed through my Pins and came across Refinery 29's version of another pinner's DIY project. I was obsessed and put it on my to-do list.

The project is super easy and I think that if you wanted to include your kids you could. It was fun to break out my craft box and do something on my day off! It now hangs proudly in my living room and everyone who has come to visit thinks it's awesome!

Supplies:

Canvas

Paint - multiple colors

Paint brushes - one big one small

Paper plate to use as your palette

Painter's Tape or masking tape

Trash bag or news paper to put your canvas(es) on while you paint

Gather your supplies! You will need several small canvases of the same size OR you can use one large canvas. Just whatever you prefer. Same with your paint choices. I chose bright colors for spring! The big white bottle is matte medium. Take it from an art major. If you are running low on paint and want to extend its coverage mix this in on your palette.

Paint streaks of colors, some large and some small until you get a pattern you are pleased with. I did a layer of big streaks and a layer of small ones with my smaller brush. Let it dry COMPLETELY. 

Grab your painter's tape and start in the lower left corner and cut equal size (or close to it) pieces of tape and place them in a chevron pattern leaving space in between each strip.

Make sure that your tape is stuck down. Paint over you tape and color in white paint (or you could do black paint... that could look nifty.) This part doesn't have to dry all the way but I found it easiest to take off the tape while it was still a little wet.

Let it dry all the way after you touch up the edges and any imperfections you may see.

And voila! You have some awesome original piece of art for all of your house guests to "oooo" and "ahhh" at. Have fun!