Southern Decor Chick

Ombre Hair

2013-01-31T12:00:00.000-05:00

Love Love Love my new hair! I wanted to do something a little different so here is Ombre..

I have to give credit to my hair dresser Julie @ Ulta in Mayfaire Town Center at Wilmington, NC

I was just going to show her a photo of the haircut that I fuind on pinterest... then she said well what abou that colorI think that it would look really good. So me not know what color I wanted to do it was like ok. I was scared to go as light blonde as the photo so she agreed and said to wait until summer. Well they say the hair dressers know best because this is the best haircut and color I have had!

Cajun Chicken Pasta

2013-01-30T10:35:00.002-05:00

This pasts is AMAZING! If you love Chili's Cajus Chicken Pasta, then you must try this. It is a copy cat recipie that will have people wondering if you order Chili's To Go! P.S. get ready to be cooking this alot!

What you need:

2 Chicken Breast
4 tspns cajun seasoning (or more depending on if you like it spicy)
4 tbspns butter
3 cups heavy cream
1/2 tspn lemon pepper seasoning
1/4 tspn garlic powder
8 ounces penne pasta (cooked and drained)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

How to Cook:

Moistem Chicken with water. In a large skilletbag, shake the chicken cajun seasoning until chicken is coated. In a large skillet saute the chicken in 2 tbspns of butter. When chicken is about half-way done, grab a skiller and combine heavy cream, 2 tbspns of butter and remainder of seasonings ( I always add a littl ecajun to this) over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the cream mixture begins to bubble ass pasta and turn off heat. Sitr Well. When chicken is cooked throughly, cut chicken into small peices. Put pasta on dish... add chicken.. add parmesan ( I always add a dash of cajun on this as well, you know me and seasonings!).

Orignally seen at www.food.com

Teriyaki Chicken Bowl

2013-01-29T12:08:00.000-05:00

This is a great version of a Japanese Restaurant dish.... but in your kitchen!

What you need

Chicken (I use the a whole pack of chicken tenderlions)
Rice (Look the servings and determine how much you need)
1 bunch of Broccli
1/2 BottleTeriyaki Sauce
3 Eggs (Broiled)

How to Cook

Get the rice cooking on the stove (follow the instructions on the box). Cook chicken on stove... Since I LOVE sauce I normally star pouring the sauce over the chicken as soon a it is in the pan. Let the chicken cook pouring more sauce in as needed. When the chicken is almost ready, take a fork and chop the chicken into small peices. Then put in a small bowl. I then agaiadd more sauce (Yes I now, but I love it). In a small pot boil hot water and add broccli fo approximatly 5 minutes until softenend. In another pot boil your 3 large eggs. When the eggs are done chop them into smal peices and add to rice. Pour rice in a bowl add chicken on top and of course more sauce then broccli. And Wala you have yourslf your own little Japanese dinner that didn't cost $40 a plate!!

Christmas at the Thornton's

2012-12-23T11:45:00.000-05:00

Just a little look into Christmas at our house...

Ever yearwe always get a huge Christmas Tree that normally we can't even fit in the house... This year since we decided to get one that actually fits, which means smaller. I can tell you it was so hard trying to make this one look as tall as the others... so go ahead and spend the extra money and get the large Christmas Tree. It looked tall at the lot but when I got it home I wanted to return it. Needless to say it only took me abot an hour and a half to get it decorated.

A fun fact about my Christmas Tree Decor:

My grandmother loves to decorate Christmas Trees and she noramlly has a few around her house with different themes. So as a wedding gift, she and I went to shopping for my Christmas Tree Decor. So every year when I put up my decor I think about her! It's a fun venture to go on... and ever where we add a little more to the tree. So this tree has great memories everytime I put it up!

I have always wanted a fireplace to hang our stockings on, so this year we bought a electric fireplace (which completely looks real in this photo). I repainted it and this year my stockings were "hung by the fire"!

Hand Painted Monogrammed Bracelets

2012-10-09T13:24:00.000-04:00

These bracelets are definitly a must-have for the fall and well every season! They are perfect for Christmas presents for every age. You can pick out your color design and style.

Check them out here: Monogrammed Bracelets

Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Chicken

2012-10-09T10:11:00.002-04:00

I found this recipe and tweaked it a little... lets just say that it is husband approved!

What you will need:

4 Chicken Breasts (or I used 8 chicken strips)
3/4 cup of Cheddar cheese (if you do not like a lot of cheese only use 1/2 cup)
3 table spoons of diced jalapenos (if you like an extra kick add more, if you do not like it that hot then use less)
1 package (8 ounces) of cream cheese softened
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
4 strips of diced bacon

How to cook:

Pre-heat the oven to 400. Take the bacon and cook until crispy. Drain the grease with a paper towel. In a separate bowl combine cream cheese, bacon (diced), jalapenos and cheese. Mix until well combined. Take chicken and cut a slit down the center (but not all the way through) and stuff mixture into the slit. Once you have done this with all the chicken, take another bowl and pour the bread crumbs into it and roll the chicken pieces in it until they are well covered with bread crumbs.

This is the part that is up to you how you would like to cook it... The original recipe I found said to cook it on a skillet, but the cream cheese melted out of the chicken. So here is what I did...

I took a little bit of Olive Oil and put in a skillet. I cooked the chicken (cream cheese side up) for about 6 minutes on medium to high heat. Then I put the chicken into a dish and baked in the oven for another 10 minutes or until the chicken was thoroughly cooked. You can cook it on the skillet for the whole process, it is just tricky to not burn it. I do like how the skillet added a crunchy bottom to the chicken, so that is why i suggest to do it that way. You can bake the chicken from start to finish in the oven. Which ever way you would prefer. I also added extra cheese on the top of the chicken when it was in the oven about 5 minutes before it was done. My husband loves cheese, so I always add extra :-)

** If you have any extra cream cheese filling you can use it for pin rolls check out this link to another one of my recipes: Cream Cheese Jalapeno Rolls

Originally seen @ Cassie Craves

Cupcake Icing Experiment

2012-10-08T11:03:00.000-04:00

My family had a get together on Sunday, my mother and I decided to fix cupcakes. We fixed them with a simple yellow cake batter mix. Then I experimented with the icing...

The first icing (in the top photo it is on the top right, the bottom photo it is on the left) is Caramel Pecan Icing. The second icing (in the top photo it is the bottom center in the bottom photo it is the second from the left) is Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip. The final icing (in the top photo is is on the top left, the bottom photo it is on the right) is Chocolate with White Chocolate Shavings

I wanted to make the icings different than the normal chocolate (of which i still made), so I started to raid my mothers cabinets. Here is the ingredients I used for each icing:

Caramel Pecan:

Caramel Icing

Chopped Pecans

Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip:

Cream Cheese Icing

Chopped Chocolate Chips

Chocolate with White Chocolate Shavings:

Chocolate Icing

White Chocolate Shavings

(I mixed them with the icing and added them on top)

The icing recipes are simple enough, but everyone loved them! The favorite was the Caramel Pecan. Its a simple way to clean out the pantry and make cute cupcakes that look like they should have been bought from a bakery!

Cream Cheese Jalapeno Bites

2012-10-04T15:35:00.000-04:00

These are amazing... and so easy to fix! I borught these to a church dinner and they were gone in a matter of minutes!

What you will need:

1 Tube of Cresent Rolls
4 ounces of Diced Jalapenos
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 package of cream cheese

How to cook:

Ok so first of all these rolls will be gone very quickly so I would suggest that if there are more than 2 people eating off these to double the recipe!

Preheat oven to 375. Take out baking sheet and spray with PAM. In a seperate bowl mix 3/4 of cream cheese with jalapenos and sugar (you will have to mash and stir for a minute or two to get it all mixed up). Take the tube of cresent rolls and spli them into 3 sections each making a rectangle (look at picture below). Crease together the splits to make the sections whole. Take the mixture and put on each section and spread with the back of the spoon. When all the filling is used up then roll the sections up and cute into peices. I normally cut small peices to have more rolls. Bake for 10 minutes. Enjoy!!

By the way if you like things a little hotter then add more jalapenos!!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

2012-09-27T15:11:00.000-04:00

What you need for Graham Cracker Crust:

1 1/2 Cups of crushed graham crackers
6 tsp of melted butter

What you need for Cream Cheese Filling:

8oz package of Cream Cheese (room temp)
1 Egg
1 tsp of Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup sugar

What you need for topping:

1 frozen roll of Chocolate Chip Cookies

How to cook:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray 8 x 8 pan with PAM. Mix together the crushed graham crackers and the melted butter. Press in the bottom of 8 x 8 pan. Bake for 6 minutes. Set aside to cool. Mix cream cheese, egg and vanilla extraxt in small bowl, then pour over cooled graham cracker crust. Take cookie roll and cut as if you were baking them, then cover the top of the cream cheese. Bake for 30 minutes. Then cool in fridge. Enjoy :-)

Bacon & Sour Cream Crockpot Chicken

2012-09-25T09:58:00.000-04:00

This chicken is so good...It was one of those days where you just didn't know what to do a lazy day, so I decided to start cooking! Of course my husband was on board with me trying new recipes.

What you need:

12 Chicken Tenderloins
1 Package of bacon
2 Cans Cream of Mushroom Soup Roasted Garlic Cream
1 Cup Sour Cream
1/4 cup flour

Directions:

This is a step that I did not do, but I would definitely suggest doing it!

Cook the bacon in a skillet until the fat is rendered. Do not cook the bacon to a crisp. Then take the bacon and wrap around each piece of chicken tenderloin. (I love bacon and I didn't use the whole pack, so use as much as you would need). Then place the chicken in the crock pot...

In another bowl combine the cream of mushroom, sour cream, and flour and whisk to blend. Then pour over the chicken...

Cook on high for 6 - 8 hours. Mine took about 7 hours to cook, depending on how new your crock pot is, it could take less. I kept checking on mine by pulling out a piece of chicken and cutting it to make sure it was cooked thoroughly.

When the chicken is done take it out of the crock pot and pour remaining sauce over the chicken. Enjoy!

Originally found recipe on www.momswithcrockpots.com

Table Makeover

2012-09-20T14:00:00.001-04:00

It was time for me to do a little makeover on my outdoor table and birdouse!

I couldn't take it anymore.. it was a piece of furniture that I hadn't painted yet! So on the first chance I got I grabbed the paint brush. To get the white washed chevron effect (which was by accident, but I love it). I took painters tape and stuck it on the table to create the cevron effect. Then using a paint brush I lightly went over the entire table with paint. (if you do not get the brushed effect you can take a napkin or old rag and wipe it as soon as you paint it on). When I got done I took the painters tape off revealing the chevron stripes. For some reason I just didn't like the way it turned out, I felt the black showing through just didn't work, but if you had a colored table then it might work. Since that didn't work out as planned I painted over it again using the white wash technique. When I got done you could see the chevron striped coming through but it was just enough! I love it!! The birdhouse I just repainted and used the same technique. The original birdhouse came from Michelle's A Unique Boutique!

Must Have Fall Decor

2012-09-14T11:24:00.001-04:00

It's that time of year to start changing over the porch decorations to Fall! With the cool nip in the air in the morning you can't deny that Fall is coming, then when you start to think about it Christmas is right around the corner (YES.. I said it). For now check out my online store for personliazed fall decor that is sure to get your neighbors talking ;-)

Beautiful Home by Thornton Builders

2012-09-14T09:27:00.002-04:00

Just one of the homes my husband is building in NC. It's a beautiful cottage/country style home with 3 porches! Perfect for those summer nights with a big batch of lemonade! So excited for the family to move in, they are going to love it! To check out more photos and to get more informaiton on Thornton Builders, LLC visit www.thorntonbuildersllc.com

Future Home

2012-09-13T08:43:00.001-04:00

So I am working on a blog makeover! I know it's been a while since I posted but I have been swamped. We recently purchased a piece of property in a waterway community on the coast of NC. I am so excited to start on the building of our new home! Since my husband is a general contractor he will be building our house, which means that we can have fun with it :-) I absolutely love the community that we are moving into... yesterday was the first time my husband cut the grass and I went for a run while he did. The neighborhood is small and is only a mile one way. Our property is in the middle so we can see the waterway and is only .5 miles from the water. I normally run about 3 miles a day in our current neighborhood, but every time I got to the front of the neighborhood I wanted to run back to see the beautiful water... not knowing I ran 5.5 miles! I can definitely do that everyday!!

Spontaneous Shoe Find

2012-06-21T12:44:00.002-04:00

I found these Jennifer Lopez shoes from Kohls for $20!!

I didn't go to Kohls looking for these shoes but I couldn't pass them up. The original price was $79.99 and they were marked down to $19.99. They are about a half size too small, but "Beauty is Pain"!

Ha Ha

http://www.kohls.com/

Source for Photo @google.com

DIY Seahorse Painted Pillow

2012-06-20T22:33:00.002-04:00

This pillow took me a total of 20 minutes to make! It went from pillow thrown in the closet to front and center on the couch!

What you need:

~ 1 Pillow (I found an old one I had laying around)

~ 1 small craft paint brush

~ Paint (I used some extra I found in the garage)

How to make:

Take an old pillow and a pencil. Lightly outline a seahorse, I did mine freehand so when I drew it it was light enough that I could erase it if I needed to. You can also pull a stencil offline if you don't think you can freehand it. I have outlined mine in the center picture. Once it is outlined on the pillow I found some extra paint I had around the house and started filling in the lines. When you use the paint you will see that it requires a couple of dips in the paint can to get one spot completly covered with paint. Once I realized that I decided that I would let the pillow come through in a few spots to give it a chic antique look. Once finished I let dry a few minutes then it was on my couch. As you can see in the picture above, my dog didn't mind the new pillow!

Taco Wontons

2012-06-19T22:19:00.000-04:00

I seen this recipe on pinterest originaly posted @LifesALoftHouse but I wanted to put my own spin on it so I added and tweeked a few things. Here is the recipe for my taco wontons!!

What you need:

~1 Package Rice O Roni Mexican

~1 Pound Lean Ground Beef

~1 Package Taco Bell Hot & Spicy Seasoning

~1 1/2 cups of Taco Cheese

~1 Package of Wontons

~Cupcake Pan

~ Pam

~Sour Cream or Taco Sauce for toppings.

How to Cook:

Heat oven to 350. Using a cupcake pan spray with Pam. Take wonton wrappers and place them inside the cupcake slot (make them look like the are the wrappers for cupcakes and cover all the edges, make sure they do not cave in). Spray again with Pam. Put in oven for 4 minutes. Cook Ground Beef until browned and add Seasoning. Cook rice as directed on box, once rice is done you want to combine the beef and rice. Let cool for 10 minutes. Add cheese (you can add more or less depending on if your a cheese lover). When wontons wrappers are done remove them from the oven and using a spoon take filling and fill Wontons (normally one scoop with a spoon) Cook in oven for another 4 minutes. Depending on how many cupcake pans you are using, you might have to cook another set of wontons. When dont place on cooling racks. Can top with a dab of sourcream or taco sauce. Enjoy!!

DIY Starfish Decor

2012-06-18T09:12:00.000-04:00

Took me about 20 minutes to make!

What you need:

~ Glue Gun

~ 2 Starfish (or shells)

~ Wooden Board (Mine was about 8 inches tall)

~Paint (acrylic or any left over paint you have in your house)

~Small Paint Brush

How to make:

I took the board and painted it lightly with a yellow. I didn't put alot of paint on it because I wanted to see the wood a little through the paint. Once that was dry I outlined the "Chevron" print on the board and filled it in with white paint. Again, I didnt' put it on heavy because I wanted the yellow to show through a little. Once that was dry I hot glued the starfish to the board. Wala... you are all done! Really simple and such a beachy chic piece!

Monogrammed Lamp Shade

2012-06-14T09:14:00.003-04:00

Turn an old lamp or plain lamp shade into a Monogrammed Lamp Shade for under $15!

Another picture with the light on.

As you can tell, I love our monogram on everything! My theory is is that if you mongoram everything, then no one will ever take anything from you unless they want your monogram on it :-) Easy way to turn that old lamp shade into a chic shade that everyone will want to know where you got it! You can have the privilage of saying you did it yourself!!

How to make:

Simply take an old shade (I used one that I already had which made this project under $15). If you buy a new shade then it will cost a little more, so I suggest that if you do have to get a shade, go to a yard sale or thirft store and find an old one there. If you don't like the color of it no problem! Paint it!! I ordered my Vinyl Monogram (6 Inches tall) in white Interlocking Script. Once you recieve it in the mail (which only took a few days) simple apply it to the shade. Some shaded are a little harder to do than others, you have to work with it depending on the texture. Don't worry if you put it on there and it looks like it's not sticking all the way, wait a few hours go back and smoothe out the letters.

Cheetah Flats

2012-06-14T08:33:00.001-04:00

I just got my new shoes in the mail!! I ordered them online at www.sperrytopsider.com , who new Sperry's made such cute shoes. They even have heels! I think that I am offically obsessed with these :-)

Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats

2012-06-13T15:03:00.001-04:00

I made these for the kids at Surf City Baptist Church and they LOVED them...even the adults were going back for seconds!

What you need:

~ 6 cups of Rice Krispie Treats

~ 1 container of your favorite Sprinkles

~ 1/2 cup dry White Cake Mix (do not prepare)

*If you really like the cake batter taste then use more cake mix!!

~ 1 10oz bag of Mini-Marshmellows

~ 3 tbsp of Butter

How to cook:

Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat and add marshmallows. Stir until they begin to melt, adding in (dry) cake mix one spoonful at a time unitl it is combined. Stir in cereal so it is completely coated with marshmallow mixture. Sprinkle all the sprinkles into mixture. Press into a baking dish (any size will do) and top with remaining sprinkles. Let sit for about 30 minutes before cutting.

Originally found this recipe on Pinterest @chefintraining

Monogrammed Picture Frame

2012-06-13T09:40:00.000-04:00

This is a great gift, and so easy to make all for under $20!!!

What you need:

~ Picture Frame (I used an 8 x 10) - $3

~ Scrap Ribbon - Free

~ Vinyl Decal (I used the XXLarge size in Interlocking Script) - $15

~ Commercial Staple Gun

~Hot Glue Gun

Remove the back from the fram so when you look at it, you can see through th glass to the wall behind it. Remove glass. Add Vinyl monogram to glass, make sure that the glass is clean so there will not be any bumps in vinyl when applying. Flip the frame upside down and use the glue gun to trim the edges of the frame where the glass sits (this will hold the glass in place). As soon as you trim it with hot glue add the glass to the frame and hold until well attached. With the frame still flipped over take scrap ribbon peice and staple to the back of the frame, and your wala your done! You can play around with colorful frames, vinyl and ribbon to put your own style on this simple DIY Project!

Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers

2012-06-12T17:00:00.000-04:00

What you need:

~1 pound of Lean Ground Beef

~1 1/2 cups of Shredded Cheddar Cheese

~1 Package Old El Paso Mexican Rice (Cooks in 60 seconds)

~2 Bell Peppers

~1 Package of Old El Paso Hot & Spicy Taco Seasoning

~Olive Oil

How to Cook

Preheat oven to 400. Take two Bell Peppers (I used Red & Orange), slice them in half. Remove the stem and clean the inside of the bell pepper. Sprinkle Olive oil on outside of the bell pepper. Spray backing pan with cooking oil and place bell peppers in pan hollow side up. Let bake for 15 - 20 minutes. While that is cooking, cook the ground beef in skillet, once meat is browned add the Taco Seasoning. Since the rice I used was a cheat rice it only took 60 seconds to cook. Follow the instructions on the rice packet to cook rice. When meat is done, mix seasoned beef and rice in a bowl. Add about 3/4 cup of cheese. Mix together. Spoon mixture into the bell peppers and bake for another 10 - 15 minutes until bell peppers are cooked through. Once bell peppers are about done pull them out and sprinkle the rest of your cheese on them. Put back in oven for the remainder of the time. Let cool and your all done! Enjoy... I know my husband did :-)

Here goes...

2012-06-12T14:53:00.001-04:00

Well...here goes the first post! I love all things decor and making a piece of furniture or decor go from thrift store to shabby chic. Everyone always asks me how I did that or where did I get that from, so I figured I would start a blog showing what I love to do most... decorate! I also love good ole' home cooking, so you might see a few of my favorite recipes along with a few of my favorite things. Wish me luck :-)