Hello Readers,
My website (www.LittleMissRedhead.com) appears to be having some issues right now…I’m so sorry.
In the meantime, please check out my Pinterest page & “follow” me. I pin almost daily!
http://pinterest.com/LittleMsRedhead/
Thank you,
Little Miss Redhead
Filed under Fun Finds
Well, it is that time of year again… The love birds have started chirping to remind us to tell those we love just how much we love them. If you are still stumped on what to get your Valentine, here are some ideas:
Art, crafts & jewelry from Etsy:
Night Lessons, a sculptural painting by The Dancing Brush
The Happy Elephant, print by RococcoLA $19
Elephants Fly with Love print by VintageDictionaryArt $10
Copper Heart Necklace by Patinaware $85
Multi-length beaded earrings by LittleMissRedhead $12
Sun Stone Fiber Earrings by BodaBoda $20
DIY Valentine ideas:
Make your own truffles! Idea from: Good Housekeeping
Dinner…check out some of my recipes!
Places you “heart” map art… Idea from Curbly
More DIY and gift ideas to purchase on my Pinterest Board:
Other Valentine’s Day gift ideas:
Get Lucky Dice from Red Envelope $39.95
Love Bandit Teddy Bear by Vermont Teddy Bear $69.99
May be cliche, but chocolates are usually a hit…especially Lake Champlain Chocolates!
If you’re searching for a gift for your man…Don’t ask me why, but chances are that your guy would like a remote control helicopter. Seems as though this toy has made a comeback with guys in their late-20′s/early 30′s (at least the ones that I know). If you want to see him leap with joy & let him feel like a kid again, go get him a remote control helicopter. I won’t take the blame for how much it might annoy you to have him flying it around your house/apartment, though…Hopefully the big smile on his face makes up for it (a little bit).
I’m honestly not into football. I only go to Super Bowl parties to eat tasty food, hang out with my friends, ooo and ahh at the commercials, and watch the halftime show. Even though I grew up in the Boston area & think Tom Brady is a hunk, I still probably won’t be watching much of the game this year. For those of you who are planning your Super Bowl foods, here are some fun ideas I’ve come across…
Mini Football Cupcakes…um, how adorable are these?!
From: Project Domestication
Patriots Cake
From: Coolest Birthday Cakes
Chili & Grilled Cheese Footballs
From: FamilyFun
Football Deviled Eggs
From: Southern Living
Football Shaped Proscuitto & Asiago Rice Cakes
From: Hungry Happenings
Ultimate Snack Food Stadium…Wow, this thing has just about everything!
From: Holytaco
Filed under Recipes: Appetizers, Recipes: Desserts
I’m always curious to learn about the many powers that something, especially regular household items, have the ability to do. When you don’t have time (or $) to run to the store to get fancy products, try one of these out & you might just be surprised! Some of these tips I’ve learned from various websites & others I’ve heard from friends/family.
VINEGAR
Windshield de-icer: For those of you (like me) who have to deal with scraping ice off your car in the morning, this is a great tip I’m very excited to try! Put 3 parts vinegar & 1 part water in a spray bottle & spray your car windshield the night before a snow storm. (Tip from HuffingtonPost)
Sunburns: Dab some vinegar on the burned areas & it will apparently help prevent peeling..interesting! (Tip from HuffingtonPost)
Shower curtain mildew: This is great to know, as sometimes washing it in the washing machine doesn’t always get it off! (Tip from HuffingtonPost)
Salt stains off boots: For someone like me, who lives in Vermont, this is a GREAT tip! Mix a little water + vinegar. (Tip from HuffingtonPost)
Gets rid of weeds in patio & driveway cracks: Wonderful tip & safe alternative to pesticides! (Tip from HuffingtonPost)
Removes wallpaper: I have to say, I used this tip when I was removing wallpaper from an old farmhouse wall & it does work. Mix 1/3 vinegar & 2/3 water in a spray bottle, spray on wallpaper – FULLY moisten, let sit for a few minutes (to allow time to soak in), then slowly peel the wallpaper off.
Learn more about the powers of vinegar here: VinegarTips.com
TOOTHPASTE
Clean silver: Helps to remove tarnish from silver. I use this tip often if I’m traveling & my jewelry could use a little sprucing up! The toothpaste needs to contain baking soda for this tip to work.
Pimples: I’m not a dermatologist, but this did help me with my achne as a teenager. At night, after I washed my face, I would dab a little toothpaste on pimples that I saw creeping up. The toothpaste helps dry out the forming pimple.
Removes scuff marks: Have pesky scuff marks on your floor from sneakers? Apply some toothpaste to the area, rib with a soft cloth, then wipe away with a damp cloth! (Tip from Everyday-Wisdom)
PEPPER
Rid bugs from your garden: If you aren’t a fan of pesticides, this is a tip for you! Mix together: 2 tbsp cayenne pepper, 2 large cloves garlic, 2 medium onions & 4 cups water in a food processor until sooth. Add mixture to a gallon of water & spray your plants. I’m very curious to try this tip from ezinearticles!
Prevents dogs from nabbing things from off the counter: Have a problem with Fido jumping up & checking out what’s on the counters? Sprinkle some chili pepper on the edges of the counters, so when your dog sniffs he will get a surprise & learn his lesson pretty quickly!
Prevent dog from chewing house plant: Sprinkle a little chili pepper or chili powder on the leaves & will help to keep the dog away. (Tip from eHow)
Some medical uses for black & white pepper: WedMD
OLIVE OIL
Shave your legs: All out of shaving cream? Try using olive oil for smooth legs & less chance for razor burn. (Tip from WomensDay)
Wood furniture polish: Mix 1 tsp olive oil + 1/4 cup vinegar. I’ve heard this mixture works better than others. (Tip from Care2)
Removing chewing gum: I’ve heard peanut butter works well, too, but the oil in the peanut butter is really what removes the gum. Wash thoroughly after application. (Tip from HouseholdRemedies)
Filed under Fun Finds
With all the rich foods served around the holidays, I decided I’d make a dessert that wouldn’t totally consist of butter. After a little research, I couldn’t find what I was looking for, so I made a recipe up: Puff Pastries filled with yogurt and a mixed berry compote.
Ingredients & materials:
1/2 32 oz container vanilla yogurt
12 oz bag assorted frozen berries
1 box puff pastry shells
ground cinnamon
4 tbl honey or sugar
whipped cream or whipped topping
cookie sheet
medium sauce pan
large spoon
Serving Size: 8-12 puff pastry shells
Puff Pastry Shells:
I used Pepperidge Farm & followed the instructions on the box: remove the tops of the shells, put on cookie sheet & heat in oven per box directions. Set aside to cool at least 15-20 minutes.
Berry Compote:
To prepare compote: put the berries in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add honey & cinnamon; bring to a light boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated & remove from heat w/lid. Keep warm, but not hot.
Once the pastry shells have cooled, add a scoop of vanilla yogurt into the bottom of each shell, filling about 1/4
Fill the rest of the shell with the berry compote.
Put the pastry shell tops on top of the berry compote & add whipped cream or whipped topping to the shell…Can also be served with ice cream!
Enjoy!
Filed under Fun with Fruit Friday, Recipes: Desserts
I wouldn’t call myself a “Twi-Hard” by any means… I’ve seen all the Twilight movies, but that was because of a friend of mine, who I would probably classify as a Twi-Hard. For a going-away party for this friend, I decided to make a Twilight themed cake for her. I did some surfing & came across this Twilight cake, which I did my best to imitate. I only vaguely remembered this saying in the movie, but she seemed to like it! Here’s how it turned out:
Ingredients/Tools:
Apple Cake:
Red frosting dye
Green frosting dye
3/4 tub White frosting (you may need 1 tub, depending on how much frosting you like on the cake…)
1 box cake mix
Lion & Lamb:
1/4-1/2 tub white frosting
2 green Mini M&M’s
2 red Mini M&M’s
2 blue Mini M&M’s
Tube black decorator’s gel
1/4 cup coconut
3-4 candy hearts
Yellow frosting dye
White frosting
Misc tools:
Frosting tips (Wiltons #3 & #352)
Frosting bag (reusable)
9×13 cake pan
Mixing bowls
Here’s how I made it:
Baked a chocolate cake in a large pan
Allowed to cool for 20-30 minutes
Cut out the cake in an apple shape (see above)
With some of the scraps, I cut out two small circles, about the size of a regular cupcake.
Another option would have been to pour a little batter into 2 cupcake tins when baking the cake.
My scraps
I then added some red dye to white frosting & frosted the cake. I unfortunately did not have enough red dye, so my frosting ended up looking a little pink…again…I really need to work on getting some good red frosting dye!!
After I finished frosting the cake, I took a damp paper towel and wiped down the sides of the plate.
For the apple’s leaves, I added some green dye to about 1/3 a cup of white frosting & put it into a frosting bag w/a 352 Wilton tip.
While I was mixing, I also mixed 1/4 a cup of white frosting with yellow dye for one of the cupcakes.
Since it was my first time making leaves with this tip, I did a couple practice leaves on a piece of paper, then on the apple.
With the remainder of my white frosting, I used a #3 Wilton tip to do the writing “So the lion fell in love with the lamb” on the cake & added some red candy hearts for added decoration.
I then frosted the 2 cupcakes – one white and the other yellow.
For the lion’s mane, I added some yellow dye to a small handful of coconut.
To decorate the lion: I sprinkled the coconut around the edge, added 2 green mini M&M’s for his eyes, 2 red mini M&M’s for the nose, an upside down candy heart for the mouth & black decorator’s gel for the whiskers.
For the lamb: I sprinkled coconut over the top, then added two pink candy hearts for the ears, 2 blue mini M&M’s for the eyes, a pink candy for the nose & black decorator’s gel for the mouth.
The finished cake…sorry for the poor photo quality!
I think my lamb & lion came out amazing…I just wish I could say the same for the apple cake…Oh well, better luck next time!
Filed under Fun with Fashion Friday, Recipes: Desserts
New year, new promises? I read an article that I decided would be my first post of 2012: 30 Things To Stop Doing To Yourself. These are some great ideas for new years resolutions & some will (hopefully) just get you to think about some bad habits that should be curbed.
Here are a few that I want to highlight…
Stop being scared to make a mistake. This one is hard. I don’t like making mistakes, but sometimes you really do never know until you try!
Stop putting your own needs on the back burner. It is actually okay to be a little selfish sometimes.
Stop worrying so much. No one likes a worry wort and no one likes to hear a broken record. More action in 2012!
Stop focusing on what you don’t want to happen. Sometimes we focus too much on the negative and not enough on the positive. It’s good to know what you don’t want, but it’s important to keep positive goals in mind. Your brian is actually more likely to focus on the negative words, so think walk carefully versus don’t trip! 
What are some of the things you’d like to stop doing to yourself in 2012?
Filed under Happy & Healthy
