Alderberry Hill

Does anyone have a time machine?

2012-02-24T12:34:00.000-03:30

Arggh!

I'm running out of time.

My daughter's 11th birthday party is tomorrow evening.....

and this is how the playroom looks right now.

There are still balloons in the corner from my son's birthday back in November...I'm really not that lazy, he just didn't want me to take them down...but this mess, you can clean it up and it magically reappears within a day or two. But it's their room, right...it's the reason we have it, so that the mess can be contained in one room.

Most of us in the house have been fighting a cold this week, hence the last minute clean up and crazy decorating marathon that's about to begin.

Wish me luck.

I'll post some pics of how the room turns out!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Rainbow Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

2012-02-22T20:23:00.001-03:30

A couple of years ago I made a rainbow cake for my daughters birthday. This was before I was blogging so the pictures are pretty sparse & basic.

I combined 2 white cake mixes and then divided the cake batter into 6 bowls and added food coloring.

I didn't have 6 round cake pans so I just bought extra foil pans at the grocery store.

I spread a layer of cream cheese frosting between each cake layer and then all over,

it was a pretty tall cake.

I used smarties & marshmallows for the rainbow!

It was super yummy and a big hit!

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese

and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then

gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar. Store in the

refrigerator after use.

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

St. Patrick's Day Fonts

2012-02-20T20:03:00.000-03:30

Here is a collection of St. Paddy's Day fonts for you!

Click each title below to download.

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

2012-02-19T19:36:00.002-03:30

Part of the "Grow Your Blog Series" hosted by "Live Laugh Rowe"

RULES:

Link up the homepage of your blog.

Network with other blogs.

Please be sure to become a follower

of Alderberry Hill, as well

as the Blog Hosts!

Happy Networking!

Make the Scene Monday #13

2012-02-19T17:57:00.002-03:30

It`s Make the Scene Monday time again!
How was everyone's weekend?
We had a great weekend, but the long drive to and from our parents houses sure is tiring. We are glad to be home.

Here are the top viewed links from last week
Chronic Christian Crafter

Cereal Box Organization

The Hell on Heels Housewife

Master Bathroom - Complete

G Inspires

Jalapeno Cream Cheese Poppers

Grab a feature button ladies!

If you haven't already, be sure to "linky" follow - let me know and I'll follow you back!

Lets get this party started!

I would love for you to follow me via GFC, FB, Twitter or Pinterest but it's not a rule :) But if you decide to follow me, leave a comment and I'll follow you right back!

I just have a couple of incey weencey rules and they are that you keep it family-friendly, and that you not link directly to your shop. I would love to host a giveaway if you want to promote your business!

Happy Monday everyone!

Birthday Invitation Template

2012-02-15T20:24:00.000-03:30

The weekend is fast approaching and so is my daughters 11th Birthday!

Well, it's next weekend...still close when your working full time and have a load on your plate.

Thank goodness I at least have her invitations done!

She is super pleased with them, she requested zebra print & lime green this year.

Here is the psd file that you can open in Photoshop and add your own info.

Download

Have a great weekend everyone...we are starting ours early...visiting both sets of Grandparents!

See you for Make the Scene Monday on Sunday night!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Yorkshire Pudding

2012-02-13T20:16:00.001-03:30

I have been making yorkshire pudding whenever I cook a beef roast for years. This is my Mom's recipe and it's so simple, yet to die for!

Yorkshire Pudding

Ingredients

1 cup flour

2 eggs

1 cup milk

drippings from beef roast

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit.

Have milk & eggs at room temperature before mixing.

Use wire whisk to mix all ingredients except beef drippings until smooth.

Grease muffin pan with Pam, pour teaspoon of beef drippings into each muffin tin.

Place muffin tin in oven for 2 mins to heat up beef drippings. Remove muffin tin, pour in mixture. Bake at 400 Fahrenheit for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 375 for 20 minutes.

Divine!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Make the Scene Monday #12

2012-02-12T19:58:00.003-03:30

It`s Make the Scene Monday time again!
VALENTINES DAY is tomorrow!!!
Lets share some love!!
So what will everyone tackle next, St. Patricks day, Easter??
Hopefully Spring will be right around the corner, nice bright colors & soft pastels should brighten everyone's days.

There was a tie for the most viewed link from last week.
Silo Hill Farm

Photo Jars

AND

Space 46

Refinished Vintage Desk

Grab a feature button ladies!

If you haven't already, be sure to "linky" follow - let me know and I'll follow you back!

Lets get this party started!

I would love for you to follow me via GFC, FB, Twitter or Pinterest but it's not a rule :) But if you decide to follow me, leave a comment and I'll follow you right back!

Happy Monday everyone!

Valentine Photo Template Roundup

2012-02-11T19:42:00.000-03:30

Here's my son's Valentine, of course the Mustache!

And although my daughter did not want to do a photo Valentine to give out to her friends (she's too cool for that, being in Grade 5 and all, ya know) I made a Valentine anyways for me to have!

I always do a Valentine photo of my kids every year.

It's nice to find free photo templates, saves me alot of work! (Although the above were not templates!)

Here are a few that I think are great!

If you download any of these, be sure to give some love to the designer!

from Willette

From Willett

From The Sanders Family

From Jen Sherrick Photography

From iheartfaces

From Living Locurto

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Orange Fluff

2012-02-09T21:22:00.005-03:30

Orange Fluff

Ingredients

2 (11 ounce) cans mandarin oranges, drained

1 (15 ounce) can crushed pineapple

1 pound cottage cheese

2 (3 ounce) packages orange flavored gelatin mix

1 (16 ounce) package frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions

Combine the well-drained oranges and pineapple in a large bowl and mix together with the cottage cheese. Add the dry orange flavored gelatin powder and stir until well blended. Fold in the thawed frozen whipped topping and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Allrecipes

Can it get an easier?

And it tastes heavenly!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Ideas to Make Life Easier 2...from Pinterest!

2012-02-06T19:59:00.001-03:30

Ready for some more tips & tricks?

Check out what I found while browsing

1. Use hair conditioner to shave your legs.

From Thrifty Fun

2. Tub Shower Magic - white vinegar & blue dawn detergent.

From Food.com

3. Clean paint brushes with hot vinegar.

From This Old House

4. Use chalking to make a non slip rug.

From Martha Stewart

5. Before pouring sticky ingredients into a measuring cup, fill with hot water then empty but do not dry - your sticky ingredient should slip right out.

From Guilty Pleasures

6. Keep pot lids in place by using a tension rod.

From Imperfect Homemaking

7. Homemade OxiClean

From One Good Thing

8. 40 Uses for baking soda. From toothpaste to scrubbing fruits and vegetables.

From Green Yahoo

Check out the first posting of Ideas to Make Life Easier here.

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Sarah

Make the Scene Monday #11

2012-02-05T20:03:00.000-03:30

It`s Make the Scene Monday time again!
Valentines is only a little over a week away!
What a crazy week it's been here, we've had 3 snowstorms this past week!
It's super cold outside, but it's nice & toasty warm in the den next to the wood stove.

The Most viewed link from last week was from

21 Rosemary Lane

Sweetheart Paper Garland with Easy Tutorial

Lets get this party started!

I would love for you to follow me but it's not a rule :) But if you decide to follow me, leave a comment and I'll follow you right back!

Happy Monday everyone!

Ramsign Giveaway...Winner!!!

2012-02-04T12:19:00.001-03:30

We have a winner!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Congrats to Sally Puckett!

Thanks to everyone who entered the giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cupcake Wreath...Valentine Edition!!

2012-02-04T12:02:00.000-03:30

I'm back at it again...another cupcake liner wreath!

This time a Valentine one of course!

I started with a piece of pipe insulating foam from the hardware store. I bent it into a circle and secured it with a little frog tape.

These awesome houndstooth cupcake liners are from Michaels...they have a bunch of different colors there too!

Don't forget to turn your cupcake liners inside out.

I used the handle of a foam paint brush to create a point in the center of the cupcake liners, then dabbed with hot glue and randomly stuck them to the foam, be careful it's super hot! I used approximately 115 cupcake liners.

I purchased a wooden "X & O" from the Dollar Store and painted them a dark pink - partially red.

It was tricky getting the "X & O" to stay on the wreath. First I glued them together and then I glued them to the wreath. To balance out the weight so that the wreath hung evenly I glued a heavy magnet to the opposite underside of the wreath.

I added a cute Valentine ribbon for hanging.

Super sweet!

Check out my Halloween Cupcake Liner Wreath here.

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Mom & Daughter Sweater Pillows

2012-01-30T22:41:00.001-03:30

I know, I know, sweater pillows have been done and done again a million times. I have been wanting to try them for ages and I just kept putting it off. I have so many pillows as it is and I know what my husband was going to say as soon as he sees them, "What, more pillows?".

But I must say, I love the pillows.

Thanks to Steph at Crafting in the Rain, I finally got this project off my to do list.

Steph asked me to be a part of her series "Make a Splash", the project I submitted was the above pillows.

I had these two sweaters in the giveaway pile for a little while (*rhyme!). The white sweater was my daughters and the red sweater was mine.

I already had 2 pillows on hand that I made a couple of years ago and I've gotten tired of them so I cut the sweaters to fit those pillows.

I made 3 flowers out of the trim on the sleeves & neck of the red sweater.

The white sweater has sequins and I thought it looked great as is.

The pillows look kinda valentiney too!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Sarah

Make the Scene Monday #10

2012-01-29T21:33:00.001-03:30

It`s Make the Scene Monday time again!
It's almost February! Already!
I cannot believe how quickly the weeks are going by.
Would you like an awesome porcelain number sign for your house?
Enter my Ramsign giveaway here.

The Most viewed link from last week was from
Yankee Doodle Designs

Valentines Day Art

Lets get this party started!

I would love for you to follow me but it's not a rule :) But if you decide to follow me, leave a comment and I'll follow you right back!

Happy Monday everyone!

Valentines at Alderberry Hill

2012-01-29T17:02:00.001-03:30

The Valentine decorations are coming together. I'm adding in things here and there as I make them.

Here are a few pics from around the house.

I don't have a mantle, and oh how I long for one.

But, I do have a shelf!!

Here is the link to the first printable & the middle printable. The Home Sweet Home is not one of my printables, I forget where I got this last year.

Closeups of the banner made with scrapbooking paper & rubber stamps.

Don't forget to enter my Ramsign Giveaway here!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Sarah

Ramsign Giveaway - Classic Enamel Signs

2012-01-28T11:50:00.002-03:30

Ready for another giveaway?

Have you guys ever visited Ramsign.com?

They have the most beautiful porcelain enamel house number signs. I would love to have one for my house for sure.

How about you, would you like one as well?

Take a look at how awesome they are!

This will definitely add curb appeal to your property!

Visit Ramsign's Facebook page for more beautiful pictures and give them some love by liking their page!

The winner can choose any house number sign (not name signs or address plaques) with 1-5 digits of any size and design. (Free delivery too!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Goodluck!
Imagine, Improvise & Invent
Sarah

Cutting Edge Stencil WINNER!!!

2012-01-28T10:53:00.001-03:30

Happy Saturday Everyone!

We are in the middle of a snow storm here...brrrr!

Inside we will stay today.

Thanks so much to everyone who entered my Cutting Edge Stencil Giveaway, I really appreciate all the love!

I think I may try my hand at stenciling another project today.

Without further ado, the WINNER of the $50 towards a Cutting Edge Stencil is:

Rona Gregory said "Have also 'liked' Cutting Edge Stencils on Facebook ".

Congratulations Rona, email me with your contact info!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Sarah

Wire & Yarn...Valentine Words

2012-01-25T19:55:00.000-03:30

I`ve seen a few wire & yarn words floating around lately. Isn`t it such a great idea?

I was happy to find some wire that my husband had lying around and of course I had turquoise wool, so I sat down and went to work.

The "Love" was super easy to do. The "Feb 14" was a little trickier because the wire was fairly thick and I was not able to bend it to cross the "F" or to make the "1", I cut those pieces separately and hot glued them together.

The problem with that is I was left with a glob of glue to cover over as well. Next time I'm gonna stick with words that flow with a single piece of wire.

In any event they still look good on my window!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent,

Sarah

Cutting Edge Stencil Tutorial & Giveaway!

2012-01-23T22:10:00.000-03:30

Another weekend has come and gone...too quick. Every weekend should be a 3 day weekend, there are never enough hours in the day to get everything done.

I guess I have too many projects on my list, I did manage to get a couple crossed off though.

Remember this dresser I refinished?

Well I thought it needed a little something extra.

Thanks to Cutting Edge Stencil's I had the perfect update it needed.

Isn't it great? I am in love.

This was such an easy task, I was completed in about an hour. I definitely give this a thumbs up. I want to stencil everything in the house now.

I was leary about stenciling before, but the Cutting Edge Stencils are a breeze to use.

I chose the Casablanca Craft Stencil.

Here are some pictures of the process.

I used frog tape to attach the stencil, I held it down with my hand as well as I stenciled each section.

I was enjoying stenciling so much that I added a few birds in the corners of my daughters bedroom.

They are fantastic and she loves them.

Cutting Edge Stencils has awesome video tutorials to show you just how easy this really is.

Check this one out!

Would you like to try your hand at stenciling?

One Lucky Alderberry Hill reader will get a chance to win a stencil of their choosing!

Cutting Edge Stencils is offering up to $50 to any stencil of your choice!

Here are a few ideas.

It's easy to enter:

"Like" Cutting Edge Stencils on Facebook.

Want Extra Entries?

Follow Alderberry Hill.

"Like" Alderberry Hill on Facebook.

Follow Alderberry Hill on Twitter.
Follow Alderberry Hill on Pinterest.
Blog and/or tweet about this giveaway.
Leave a seperate comment for each!

Contest closes Friday Jan 27th!

I am so excited for this giveaway. Good Luck everyone!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent.

Sarah

Make the Scene Monday #9

2012-01-22T19:10:00.001-03:30

It`s Make the Scene Monday time again!
I cannot wait to see what all of you have been up to this past week!
I have been making a few things for some up coming posts. Be sure to check back tomorrow for an awesome GIVEAWAY!!!

The Most viewed link from last week was from
The KtKronicles

Guest Post: Loving My Small Home

Lets get this party started!

I would love for you to follow me but it's not a rule :) But if you decide to follow me, leave a comment and I'll follow you right back!

Happy Monday everyone!

Valentine Fonts 2

2012-01-22T18:31:00.001-03:30

I have compiled some more Valentine fonts to share with you!

There are so many pretty fonts on the web, I can get distracted with downloading so many...before I know it an hour has flown by.

Click below to download

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Sarah

Valentine Tree

2012-01-18T23:04:00.002-03:30

I have this twig tree that I decorate for just about every occasion. The twig branch is one that I cut from the woods behind my house. I use it year after year, it's held up good.

For Valentine's I decorate it with a few stamped images on cardstock hung with twine and some little metal hearts I purchased at the dollar store.

It's a cute little addition to my dining area and I love the pale turquoise vase it's in - It was a metallic copper color but I painted it a pale turquoise...much better!

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Sarah

Edgar Allan Poe Quote...Free Printable

2012-01-17T18:46:00.001-03:30

Here`s another free printable for you guy`s!

I really like this quote, it's from Edgar Allan Poe. And it's perfect for Valentines Day!

I have made this printable in a few colors so hopefully one of them will go with your decor.

The size is 8" x 10".

Edgar Allan Poe Quote Blue

Edgar Allan Poe Quote Pink Edgar Allan Poe Quote Turquoise Edgar Allan Poe Quote Purple Edgar Allan Poe Quote Burgundy

Imagine, Improvise & Invent

Sarah