Make Your Own Sanding Sugar!

Warm wishes from our family to yours this St. Patrick's Day.

We're having some luck of the Irish cake to start of our morning...

{not too shabby for gluten free vanilla}

but to spice it up and make it a bit more festive,

I added a sugar shamrock to each piece.

If you are ever in need of a bit of sanding sugar 

but don't have the color you'd like on hand,

save yourself a trip to the grocery store 

{and the $2.59 for a small container of single color}.

It's SO easy!

All you need is some turbinado sugar

(always on hand in our pantry in the individual packets)

and some food coloring.

Open a few packets of sugar and place them into a bowl. 

Add a drop of the food coloring and mix well with a fork. 

When all your liquid is absorbed, add another drop at a time until 

you have the amount of sugar you need and the exact color you're looking for. 

It's Easy Peasy. 

 Enjoy this little tip for year round sugar,

just the way you like it.

Heather

=D

Shamrocks Adorn Us

These clips were so much fun to make, 

thanks to a fantastic tutorial by Christina Williams.

I purchased the smallest set of covered buttons for this project, using

some Judie Rothermel 30's prints {shamrocky, of course!!} 

so we can be festive tomorrow. 

The first set of small covered buttons
I purchased had teeth on the top's underside,
hoping the newer set looks a little smoother around the edges.

Oh, the possibilities!

Happy Crafting

& a Very Happy St. Patrick's Day,

Heather

The {Usually} Windy City

Michigan Avenue will never be the same, Marilyn.

They don't call it the Windy City for nothing
-usually-

We've never experienced the city on a more beautiful day.

The weather was sunny and clear with just the softest breeze.

Warm, mild weather continues
and I think it's safe to say it's here to stay.
{knocking on wood & crossing my fingers}

With temperatures in the 70s, 

our first daffodils of 2012 arrived last night...

more to open later today, I'm sure.

For now, we're living it up in flip flops, 

outside every day basking in the sunshine.

Thanks for taking the virtual tour of Chicago 

with us this week.

Have a wonderful day,

Heather

Sweet Home Chicago---Fave Spots

The florist at the train station

makes the whole area smell like roses & lilies.

Plus, fabulous displays & major eye candy 24/7.

MMM. Garrett's popcorn. Nothing like it anywhere else. 

DELISH!

Any fan of older SNL episodes knows the cheezborgor & pepsi

John Belushi skits....all based on the experience

at the Billy Goat. It's a must see, whether you think it's the 

best cheeseburger around or not. 

We love it!

Gino's East. Best pizza around....I'm a thin crust girl, so if you love your deep dish, I haven't tried it here. They now offer gf pizzas with limited toppings. If you're up for anything, must try the extra cheese & bacon.

mmmmmmmm.

 The street performers are fantastic on the weekends. We saw a disco puppet show (pic above), a group of talented drummers, the silver dancer on a boom box and an amazing singer, too. Awesome!

Just one more photo to finish off our grand tour, coming soon.

Heather

Sweet Home Chicago (part deux)

Sweet Home Chicago

We spent the day downtown yesterday 

and while there, snapped a few photos to share.

Add a little Blues Brothers music {Mr. Fabulous has YET to see it, BTW}

and voila, a virtual visit.