Crafty Things

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MeAndMyTea #CollectiveBias

The days seem to be getting colder and colder around these parts. Jack Frost has visited a time or two and Santa will be here in just a couple weeks. With the weather getting cooler out that means for me I switch from drinking iced tea to hot cups of tea. For me there is something about drinking a hot cup of tea. There is nothing better than sitting down and getting all warm and cozy with a cup of tea. It is one of my favorite ways to take a break and relax.

With it being time for Christmas I have been trying to figure out what to get everyone on my list. There are just so many people on our families list. We have not only our immediate and extended family but people like my kid’s teachers. I have had to get creative over the years and one of my favorite and cost effective gifts to do is make our own gift baskets. This year my gift baskets will be focused on staying warm and cozy this winter. Really, who wouldn’t love a Warm and Cozy Gift Basket? I know I would.

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl Gourmet

My idea for the gift basket is centered on one of my favorite ways to warm up and relax, drinking a good cup of tea. Tea is at the heart of warming up, just holding a cup or mug of tea is all I need some days. So I headed down the road to Walmart to pick up some yummy, Bigelow Tea and to get the basket started.
DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl Gourmet

Bigelow has so many different great flavors it was hard to decide on a single flavor so I picked a combination of their classic, Constant Comment, fall favorite, Pumpkin Spice and their yummy, Salted Caramel.

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl Gourmet

Since I was doing multiple gift baskets I created my own tea bag holders. They are VERY easy to make and take simply minutes to put together. The tea bag holders can serve other functions such as photo and gift card holders as well.

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl Gourmet All that is needed is 12×12 Scrapbook Paper, Jute Twine (or ribbon), Scissors, a Ruler and tea of course.

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl GourmetTo start I placed my tea bags on the scrapbook paper so I could visualize their placement. You don’t have to do this but I can be OCD. Next I cut my scrapbook paper in half. I used my ruler to make sure it was exactly 6 inches and as a straight edge.

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl Gourmet

Next, I folded the paper 1.5 inches  to create the pocket where the tea bags would be placed.

If desired, glue the edges of the fold.  Next I added the tea bags and evenly folded creating a 3 pocket tea folder.

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl GourmetNext I tie up my folder with the jute twine like a package. Since I did not glue the edges this will keep everything in the folder.

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl GourmetIt also looks like a tiny Christmas gift! Perfect for adding to a gift basket!

Now all I need was to  put my gift basket together!
DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl GourmetEverything in my gift basket was purchased at Walmart except for the scones. I made those. I thought a yummy homemade baked treat would be a great addition to the basket. The Warm and Cozy Gift basket includes a Bigelow Tea Sampler folder, plush fleece throw blanket, some cozy socks, a mug , honey bear, homemade treats and strawberry candies. Total cost was approximately $25. There are items in the basket that will be used again for other baskets also.

All I had left to do was to put it all together so I crumpled up some tissue paper at the bottom of the basket and got to arranging.DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl GourmetI think everything in the basket is perfect to keep you warm and cozy this winter. Some cozy socks to keep your feet warm, a cuddly blanket to wrap up in and then the perfect cup of Bigelow Tea with a snack. I know that it would warm me up! I hope the receiver of this gift loves it as much as I would!

What type of Bigelow Tea do you drink when you want to relax? 

DIY Warm and Cozy Gift Basket | Country Girl Gourmet

DIY Collage Picture Frame

I have to say Pinterest is awesome and has become a go- to for me when I am searching for ideas for certain things. It is also a black hole sometimes where adhd takes over and I start pinning all the things instead of just what i’m looking for. You know how you start looking at one thing but somehow end up looking at something completely different. The thing about Pinterest though is you have to check to make sure the pins take you back to the correct link for the DIY or recipe because so many times they do not. Sometimes though I will keep a pin around thinking I can figure out how to do that myself. That is how I came up with these collage picture frame. The Pin’s I had took me to Etsy or to a slideshow of different picture frames but no directions on how to make the frames for myself. Well there should be directions so here are mine!

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

How to make a Collage Picture Frame 

Materials

  • Picture Frame (Thrift stores are awesome for these! I bought a huge one for $5)
  • Paint (I used spray paint)
  • Hemp Cord
  • Hot Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
  • Mini Clothes Pins
  • Pictures
  • Newspaper or Cardboard (to cover work area)

Directions

1. Prepare Your Frame.

After going to the thrift store or finding a frame around the house that you would like to use the first step is to prepare your frame. Remove any pictures and/or glass. Clean your frame and make sure it is dust and gunk free. If there are rough areas you may need to sand them a little bit. You will be painting the frame.

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

2. Paint

Once your frame is ready you will be painting it. It seems lately everybody is all about chalk paint but I went with spray paint. Yes, spray paint.  After helping at a remodel of Restaurant Impossible and using spray paint to make light fixtures look new again I became a huge fan of the method. Spray paint works wonderfully for this.

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

This is what I used. I liked the fact that it had a primer also.

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

With spray paint you just need to be careful to  use nice even strokes/sprays so the paint doesn’t drip. You may need to go over the frames a couple times.

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

Then all you have to do is allow it to dry. I let my frames sit for 24 hours before proceeding to the next step.

3. Add Hemp Cord

Once your frames are dry it is time to add the hemp cord rows that you will use to hang the pictures from. Use a picture if needed and plot out your rows. Remember to  allow space for the clips you will be using to hang the pictures up by. Once you have plotted your rows there are 2 methods  that you can use to attach the rows.

In the first method you can use the staples that are in the back of the frame and tie tightly.

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

For my picture frames I was unable to do this because my staples were not even.

The second method is how I made both of my frames. I used a hot glue gun and hot glue. Yes, I use my hot glue gun for everything. Recently my big hot glue gun went to glue gun heaven so I had to pull out my back up mini glue gun.

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

All I did was add a drop of hot glue to the back of the frame. Place hemp cord in glue and hold tightly against frame until set. I then pulled the cord across and repeated. I then cut off excess hemp cord.

4. Add clips and Pictures

The last and final step is to add your clips to the hemp cord rows and then your ready for pictures! My clips came from Target in their dollar spot but I have found the mini clothespin clips at Walmart in the office supply section.

DIY Collage Picture Frame |Country Girl Gourmet

And there you go a super easy to make collage picture frame. All I need to do is go through the thousands of pictures I have and start to fill it up.

10 Uses for Reynolds Foil

This month with Allrecipes we are working with Reynolds Foil a product that I use just about every day in my kitchen. It is also a product that goes way beyond just covering dishes and wrapping up leftovers. Reynolds Foil is perfect for using when you are having a BBQ. You can use it for every part of your meal from preparation,cooking and clean up! Today I want to share 10 of my favorite tips for using Reynolds Foil to make your next BBQ a knock out! As a added bonus I am throwing in a salmon recipe that my husband and second son really love.

10 Uses for Reynolds Foil | Country Girl Gourmet

 

1. Keep food from sticking

Are you making BBQ Chicken or Fish? Hate how it sticks to the grates on your grill? When grilling line your grill with Reynolds foil to help prevent sticking. Just poke a few holes in the foil to drain juices.

2. Keep food from falling into grill grates

Want to grill some shrimp or veggies but you don’t have any kabob skewers or a grill basket? Just use foil! It will keep your food from falling through your grill grates. I’ve even known people that use this method to make bacon on their grill for bacon cheeseburgers!

3. Individual Foil Packets

There are so many things you can make in foil packets. The possibilities are endless and delicious! Foil packets are simple and easy to make too. All you need to do is, place food on the center of two layers of foil Next top with your desired seasonings and oil. Finally bring the two long sides together, fold foil over the food. Fold over three or more times. Fold and crimp remaining sides and then grill as directed. Then clean up is easy peasy. Check out the recipe I have below for Salmon. I have issues making fish but with foil packets I can make it easily for my husband and son.

4. Keep Food Warm

If you need to keep food warm until serving time cover with some Reynolds Foil until serving time. The foil is also perfect for wrapping meats that need to rest before serving like brisket.

5. Easy Clean Up

Line baking pans and cookie sheets with aluminum foil to cut your cleanup later. This tip is perfect for times where you are making a bunch of burgers to grill. Just cover a tray with foil and discard once the burgers are on the grill. Your serving tray will still be clean for your cooked burgers.

6. Grill Scrubbers

Want to use your grill but it is a dirty mess? Use Aluminum Foil to clean your grill without chemicals. Just ball up a piece of foil and use tongs to clean the grill grates.

7. Make-shift Funnel

Want to transfer your favorite condiments into a different container for your BBQ but you don’t have a funnel? Make one with Reynolds foil! All you need to do is take a piece of foil and make it a cone shape with an opening at the pointy end. Secure it with a piece of tape and then you are ready to pour and transfer your favorite condiments.

8. Sharpen Scissors

Need to cut something and your kitchen scissors are dull? Fold a sheet of foil several times and cut through it with a pair of dull scissors to sharpen the blades

9. Pie Crust Protector

Making a classic apple pie for dessert for your BBQ? Another favorite  Reynolds Foil use of mine is the pie crust protector.  To prevent burnt pie crust edges, crimp foil around the edges prior to placing the pie in the oven.

10. Clean Baked on Food off Baking dishes

BBQ time is over and it’s time to clean up, Reynold

]s can help you there also! Use Reynolds Foil to scrub off baked on food instead of using steel wool. If you have food stuck to your baking dish or frying pan, wad a clean piece of foil into a ball, then use it with few drops of dishwashing liquid to scrub glass cookware clean.

Now here is the Salmon recipe I was talking about above. When I was a kid I had food poisoning from fish and since I have not been able to eat or really cook seafood but with foil packets I was able to easily make this for my husband and son. They loved the salmon this way!

Grilled Salmon Greek Pitas | Country Girl Gourmet

Grilled Salmon Greek Pitas

recipe from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

  • 1 (1 pound) fresh or frozen skinless salmon fillet
  •  1 small red onion, thinly sliced
  •  1 tablespoon olive oil
  •  1/4 teaspoon salt
  •  1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  •  1 lemon, thinly sliced6 Greek pita flatbreads
  • 2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
  • 1 cup fresh cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered
  • 1 (5.3 ounce) container plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon snipped fresh basil
  • 1 tablespoon snipped fresh dill weed

Directions

  1. Thaw fish if frozen. Rinse and pat dry with paper towels. Preheat grill to medium-high.
  2. Tear off an 18×18-inch sheet of Reynolds Wrap® Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil. Place onion in the center of the sheet. Top with salmon. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and black pepper. Top with lemon slices. Bring up foil sides. Double-fold top and ends to seal packet, leaving room for heat circulation inside.
  3. Stack flatbreads; wrap tightly in heavy duty aluminum foil.
  4. Grill salmon packet over medium-high heat in covered grill 12 to 14 minutes or until fish begins to flake when tested with a fork and vegetables are tender.
  5. Add the flatbread packet to the grill for the last 5 minutes of cooking to warm through, turning once. Remove all from grill.
  6. Open packets carefully by cutting along top folds with a sharp knife, allowing steam to escape. Then open top of foil. Discard lemon slices. Use two forks to pull the salmon apart into chunks.
  7. Assemble pita sandwiches by topping with the salmon, onions, lettuce, and tomatoes. Fold in half to serve. In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, basil, and dill. Serve over pita sandwiches.

Grilled Salmon Greek Pitas | Country Girl Gourmet

 

 

Looking for more great Reynolds recipes? Check out their webpage.

10 Uses for Reynolds Foil | Country Girl Gourmet

 

 

 

Homemade Carpet Cleaner

 Last week in the early hours of the morning my husband was getting ready for work and accidentally spilled his coffee. He did put a towel on it and soak it up some but he didn’t have time to clean it properly. When I came down later that morning I saw the towel and spill and planned to clean it up as soon as I got the kids all on the bus to school. It became one of those days where things just were not going as planned and when the kids got home the spot was still there and remained there until today. With 4 kids and 3 dogs messes are not uncommon and I have a little green machine to spot treat as well as a full size steam cleaner. We have light colored carpet that I have grown to hate because it is a dirt magnet so cleaning carpets happens on a semi regular basis around here. The only problem is I have yet to find a cleaning solution that works well. I have used different store-bought solutions hoping each one was better than the next but I never found one that got my carpets really clean. I then started trying different DIY solutions that I found by Googling or by Pinterest.  Want to know what happened when I put solutions with dawn dish soap in my carpet cleaner? Bubble-geddon, that is what. It was a combo of bubbles coming out of the machine and dumping the dirty water container because it wasn’t full of dirty water but soap bubbles. While it took longer my carpet was cleaner than when using the different store- bought solutions but I wasn’t thrilled with the results. Back to the internet I went searching for a solution. While searching for a solution I repeatedly read that soap leaves behind residue that attracts dirt! My journey then became how to clean my carpet without detergent. What I found were different combinations of borax, oxyclean, hydrogen peroxide, white vinegar, fabric softener, baking soda and hot water. So I experimented and found a combination that worked well and is now my go-to                              Homemade Carpet Cleaner.

After cleaning up an almost week old black coffee stain with ease I knew this was the homemade carpet cleaner for me!

Homemade Carpet Cleaner | Country Girl Gourmet

Homemade Carpet Cleaner

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup Baking Soda
  • 1/2 cup Hydrogen Peroxide (3%, This is what you find at the drugstore/Walmart/Target,etc.)
  • 1 cup White Vinegar
  • Hot Water

Directions

  1. In the clean water tank of your carpet cleaner add baking soda, peroxide and vinegar. Add hot tap water to the fill line. After closing tank gently shake to make sure your your solution is thoroughly mixed.
  2. Pretreat stains as needed and follow your carpet cleaner’s instructions for cleaning.

Happy Cleaning!

Reindeer Food

One of my favorite Christmas traditions is Reindeer Food. On Christmas Eve my kids sprinkle throw Reindeer Food all over our front yard to help guide Santa’s reindeer to our house. Santa’s reindeer are attracted by the glitter that sparkles in the moonlight and the smell of the oats. Hey, Santa get’s cookies and milk, I think the reindeer deserve a treat as well. After all pulling Santa’s sled all night long has to make them hungry.

Making Reindeer Food is simple. You only need Oatmeal, Glitter and a Jar or other container.

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

First add your oats

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

and then your glitter

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

and then shake

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

and maybe shake a little more

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

until the glitter is evenly distributed

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

If desired make up a tag for your reindeer food. I made this in Word and cut with scrapbooking scissors.Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

Magic ReindeerFood

On Christmas Eve, Sprinkle this magic reindeer food on your lawn. The shiny glitter will spark in the moonlight and the smell of oats will guide Rudolph to your home.

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

Reindeer Food is perfect to package up and share with your child’s friends and classmates. If you do not want to make your own printable you can find several on Pinterest.

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

Reindeer Food

Ingredients

1 cup oatmeal

1 TB glitter

Directions

1. Add oats and glitter to a bag or jar

2. Shake well

3. Spread all over your yard on Christmas Eve to guide Santa.

Reindeer Food / 12 Days of Homemade Christmas, Day 8

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

For the first day of homemade Christmas we have Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments! These ornaments smell great and are super easy to make. Plus they are cheap! You can find everything you need for them at the dollar store. From the applesauce and cinnamon to decorations. Kids love helping make these ornaments too!

Step one: mix 1 1/2 cups of applesauce (this is 3 individual cups) with 2, 3 oz bottles of cinnamon

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

be careful pouring the cinnamon to avoid cinnamon dust going everywhere.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Mix well and form a doughCinnamon Applesauce OrnamentsCinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Use a rolling pin to roll out dough thin.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Cut using your favorite cookie cutters. This was one of my grandmas.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

poke a hole in tops of ornament large enough to put twine/yard or ribbon through. Next allow to air dry for a couple days or bake at 250 for 2.5 hours.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Once dry add twine through the hole so ornament can be hung.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Decorate to your hearts content. The possibilities are endless!

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

We kept ours simple.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups applesauce

2 3oz bottles of cinnamon

Directions

Mix applesauce and cinnamon together until it is thick and forms a dough.  Roll out mixture on a flat surface and cut into  shapes with cookie cutters. Place ornaments on a parchment line cookie sheet.  Make hole with a toothpick to hang ornaments. Dry 2-3 days or place in a 250* oven and bake for 2.5 hours

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments