How to Make Monster Eyes

Get at least 5 pieces of black poster board for two average windows. Measure twice, cut once! Measure the size of your windows, we were just in luck and the poster board fit top to bottom in each pane, but not the width. We had to cut the 5th poster board to make up the difference for each of the 4 "panes."

Cut a large triangle out of two of the four poster boards.
Use a plate or something of the like for a template and cut black circles out of the piece that you've cut from the triangle as pictured.

Tape the eyeball to the poster board making sure that the bottom of the circle is even with the bottom of the poster board.

Use yellow and orange tissue paper to cover the cut out triangle (I put yellow down first, then orange behind it to make it a dark yellow).

Tape into windows and have a happy Halloween!

Look for crazy eyes coming soon!

You Can Begin With Nothing

"Dreams cost nothing, Do you have a dream? Are you facing money problems? Remember this: all great projects begin with a dream. Projects can be started without a single cent! The most valuable things in life are free. An idea, an hour in the early morning, a friend who encourages, the freedom to sell your idea, an article in the newspaper. All of these are free! So is talk. If you have a need-filling, God-glorifying, humanity-inspiring, imaginative idea, share it with trusting Possibility Thinkers and you will at least give the dream a chance to come alive. Truly, the most valuable product in the world is an idea. Good ideas magnetically attract support from unexpected sources."

This was my morning reading for July 12. Cool huh? Yeah, I think I'll keep reading this book. Thanks Mom and Dad for giving it to me.

My first flier and logo - yes I designed the logo using MS Paint.

How to ... a step by step guide to approaching a retail shop

This is a re-up of a previous blog post. I decided to do this not because I can't do it again with fresh pictures, but because the comments in this original post were also very informative.

OK this is for any handmade product e-commerce shop owners. I've been asked to do a blog post on how to approach a shop to have them carry your line. Having run a retail shop (my mom's) for over 5 years, and successfully gotten my items in several local stores is the ONLY expertise I have. I don't really know any other way to do this except step by step, so that's what I'm going to do.

1) SCOPE IT OUT - Visit said shop, see if they carry similar items, whats the price range, are they already full of the items you want to sell there?
2) PLANT A SEED - If the shop looks like something that would be a good place to sell your items, briefly mention to the person at the counter about your items, leave a business card.
3) BUY SOMETHING - Make a purchase in that shop, if you won't buy something why would they sell your items?

The First Three Can Be Done In One Visit!

4) STAY VISIBLE - Come back for a second visit within a week when the owner is there (call ahead). Usually in any small shop the owner is the ONLY decision maker, any one else just passes the info along with their opinions and recommendations.
5) SHOW YOUR PRODUCT - Bring something you make as a gift for the owner. If you deal with children's products OR if the owner has kids (many times they kids would be at the shop with them) be sure to bring a little something for the kids and don't forget to have one for each kid to prevent sibling arguments.
6) BE POLITE - Ask the owner if NOW is a good time to discuss the possibility of them carrying your line. If they say they are covered up -Southern term for really busy, they ask WHEN is a good time. Don't leave without a time scheduled to come back.
7) BE PROFESSIONAL - If scheduled, be sure to call one day ahead to confirm - its good business, they'll know you're serious AND you'll know they'll be there and not blow you off.
8) BE READY - Come back with items in hand ready to leave there for a trial basis.

-Most consignments in my area are on a 70/30 basis so be prepared for that and don't expect them to sell your items for you at 90/10. They have overhead, rent, advertising, etc. to pay and are doing all that for you if your items are in their shop.
-If they ask you to keep up with your inventory be sure to have all items recorded before you bring them in. Most shops have computerized inventory, but not all so be ready for that as well.
- Be prepared to rotate inventory, if items sit too long people will over look them. If the shop keep allows it, ask if you can come in at least once a month and move your items around. Some prefer to do it themselves, others will appreciate the help and outside perspective that you'll offer.
-Promote the shops you work with, you'll all make money if you work together and promote each other. Word of mouth is still the strongest advertising I know of. People go places that others recommend.
-NEVER offer to sell straight off your site or circumvent the shop to any of their customers. If someone wants a special order it should still go through the shop and they should still get their cut. WHY would they continue to carry your items if you're going to cut them out? I've seen this happen and I personally find it sad and very unprofessional. If I meet a customer as a result of a particular shop, then the sale goes to that shop REGARDLESS, its just good business.
-Take care of your brick and mortar stores and they'll promote your items more, direct customers to your product and in short take care of you.

Remember it might take a month to get your first sale in a brick and mortar shop just as online. Don't give up, work with them, be available and be flexible. GOOD LUCK!

*** Please be sure to read the comments section of this post. There is a bit of dialog in there that is important as well to the topic ***

Fried Green Tomatoes

Not a Southerner that is living in the South? Need to impress someone with your ability to cook Southern Food? Try this recipe, its easy, tasty and will impress the locals and transplants alike!


First thing is first, the tomatoes must be green! This means they will be small because green tomatoes are not yet ripe therefore not grown up to their fullest size. You'll need to figure no more than 3 - 4 slices out of each tomato, so gauge your purchase accordingly.

Notice the flaws in my tomatoes?

Yup, I like the ones that DON'T look perfect. The fruits and vegetables that look too perfect have little flavor in my opinion. I purchased these at the local Farmer's Market this morning. Don't get any that have any signs of ripening (yellow, orange or reddish skin), they just wont taste as good.

Heat oil in a skillet (I always use cast iron to fry in) about 1" deep. The egg wash I use is 2 eggs, about 1 Tbsp. of milk and salt (I always salt my egg out of superstition). The batter I use is White Lily White Flour, King Arthur Whole Wheat Flour (sometimes I'll use Jiffy Mix Cornbread mix instead of corn meal, but I skipped this all together tonight and it didn't seem to make a difference) and some seasonings - I used a basic chicken seasoning tonight. So set your assembly line up like this...

I'm working from Right to left as that's the space allowance in my kitchen. The skillet is on the far left just out of the picture. So Tomato, egg wash, flour, skillet. Repeat until the skillet is full, but do not let them touch if you can help it.

Last bit of info, if you'll put a cake cooling rack on your plate between the plate and paper towel (that you'll have to drain the oil off of the tomatoes) you will drain better and have less oil and grease in your meal. This works for bacon and anything else that you might drain on a paper towel and keeps things ever so slightly on the healthier side.


And here is the finished product. About 21 - 26
Fried Green Tomatoes

And I don't know if this is Southern or just the way we got the kiddo to eat these, but they aren't too bad with katsup either...! ENJOY

"Off-the-Wall Art Strip"

First let me say that this is NOT my idea. I found this on "FamilyFun.com" via face book. It's says it is for a Toddler, but I think my 1st grader would live it just as much although slightly higher on the wall. I wanted to share it with you all, my readers since most of you are moms or have kids in your life one way or another. Please check FamilyFun.com for more great recipes, printables, 4th of July and many more ideas on things to do to keep the kids busy this summer.

Picture borrowed from FamilyFun.com

"The family refrigerator is happy to moonlight as an art gallery, but your in-house studio may be churning out more work than a couple of magnets can hold. Our kid-level display uses Velcro to make the most of a sticky situation: a small piece stuck to the back of the artwork means that it can be hung on and taken down from the Velcro-covered strip by the artist himself -- perhaps with a little help from Mom.

Materials

• 5-foot length of wood molding
• Tools and mounting hardware (we used screws)

• 5-foot strip of self-adhesive Velcro tape
• Packing tape

Instructions

1. Mount the molding on the wall at your child's height. Adhere one side of the Velcro tape to the molding, positioning the Velcro so it covers the screws.

2. Next, apply a strip of packing tape to the back of each piece of artwork and top it with a 3-inch strip cut from the other side of the Velcro tape. (This allows you to remove the Velcro without tearing the paper.)

3. For added sturdiness and decoration, we affixed our artwork to larger pieces of card stock before hanging them. When your artist decides to take down his work, store it in a clean pizza box."

Scrumptious Saturday

30 Minutes or Less - Steak, Steamed Fresh Vegetables and French Bread.

This will make a great dinner for Dad for Father's Day and he DOESN'T have to grill it. I do all the grilling myself!

Marinade the Steak, I make my own marinade with my own fresh herbs, Balsamic Vinegar & Worcestershire Sauce.

Here I've used Rosemary, Thyme, Marjoram, Greek Oregano and Basil. I chopped it all very fine in the mezzaluna (pictured above and below).

I pour balsamic vinegar and a touch of Worcestershire Sauce over the steaks, just enough to cover and sprinkle the herbs over.

You can salt and pepper if you like, but I prefer to avoid such common seasonings if I can get away with it. The IMPORTANT trick with the balsamic vinegar is to not let it marinade too long or it will pre-cook the meat! Also a note on balsamic vinegar, if you are cooking game meat such as Venison this is good to take the "game-y-ness" out of it.

Steamed Fresh Vegetables, I picked these up today at the local Farmer's Market. It's a shame that as green as we try to be, the farmers still prepackaged the vegetables in plastic. Well, not the carrots - those aren't in season yet locally those are from the grocery store. Even with your local vegetables, be sure to wash them. Cut the florets off of the broccoli and cauliflower stems, put in a steamer basket (in a pot) and add about 2" of water to the bottom - just enough for the water to be barely visible through the steamer basket. Cover with a lid and bring the water to a boil. Boil for about 5 minutes until the vegetables are bright in color. Steaming is the best way to keep the most nutrients in the vegetables.

French Bread was pre made (by someone at the Bakery) and all I'm doing here is slicing it, buttering it adding a bit of seasoning and toasting it. OK, I skipped the seasonings on the bread because it smelled so good without. And I was right, adding seasoning would have spoiled the taste of it.

As a testimony to this meal, my daughter, who usually wont eat steak at all, chose this dinner over her PB&J! The medium to medium rare cooking of the steak made it easier for her to chew and swallow. She ate all the broccoli and carrots and of course the bread, but wasn't too keen on the cauliflower. I'll introduce that one a few more times to see if she'll take to it.

Light & Easy

Boiled Artichokes and Bruschetta (my way)

This meal is one that has no meat, but once in a while its nice to have a meal that doesn't revolve around meat and potatoes. Surprisingly the artichokes are very filling, however for the first time you might want to add one other appetizer with it to be on the safe side. This meal is enough to easily fill us. I have lots of pictures so I'm going to try to be as thorough as I can.
For the Artichokes You'll need:
Whole artichokes (1 per person) garlic, olive oil, fresh herbs of choice
First thing is first, get your water started boiling. You'll need a pot large enough to allow your artichokes freedom of movement while boiling, so get that water started before anything else.

Cut the thorns off the artichokes! This is an important step and one you'll only forget once! They aren't called "chokes" by accident. Use scissors to cut the tip of each leaf off and then use a sharp knife to slice off all of the top portion at once.

Next cut off the bottoms so that they sit even as pictured below.


Once the water gets boiling, add olive oil, about 2 turns = 2 Tbsp. should do it add minced garlic, I've shown in pictures the best way to get the skin off the garlic, chop, then mince it. So here ya go:

Put the clove under the knife blade facing away from you and SMASH it.

Take the skin off and discard it as I've never found a use for the skin... yet.

Now that its smashed its much easier to chop, then take your blade and rock back and forth the opposite direction in which you chopped. Scrape it back into a pile and do this a few more times until the garlic is minced to your liking.

Put the minced garlic clove, minced herbs of choice (I used what I have growing - Rosemary, Thyme, Greek Oregano, and Sweet Marjoram)

a pinch of salt and the artichokes into the boiling water (chokes should be bottom side down). Put the lid on and let them boil for 30 minutes - then flip them over to boil bottom side up for another 15 minutes. Once they're done (45 minutes total boiling time) take them out to a colander to strain the water out.

While they're boiling make the Bruschetta and dipping sauces for the chokes.

Bruschetta, you'll need
Italian or French loaf bread (sliced to about 1" thick), garlic clove, olive oil, diced tomatoes (I use canned sometimes when they're not in season locally since I didn't can any myself last year), fresh basil (since I didn't grow Basil this year I chose the same minced herbs I used in the boiling water with the artichokes), and Parmesan cheese.

Toast Bread then rub with 1/2 clove of garlic (toasting it first is important for this step to work). Brush with Olive Oil, put diced tomatoes fresh herbs and Parmesan cheese on and broil for about 2 minutes.


For the dipping sauces I don't have pictures, but the directions are simple.

1st one, get about 2 Tbsp. of Mayo (or that Miracle Salad Dressing it doesn't really matter) and add about 1/2 Tbsp Olive Oil and herbs as you prefer, mix it all together.
2nd one, melt butter and add garlic, Parmesan cheese to taste.
Both are used to dip the artichoke leaves in, to eat the leaves you scrape the meaty underside against your bottom teeth and discard the fibrous top part of the leaf. The "heart" is really the soft bottom that once you peel all the leaves off will be fabulous to eat but DO NOT eat the "choke" which you should be able to tell what it is as it would undoubtedly choke you!

Bon Appetite!