Chocolate Peanut Butter Acorns

I saw these little chocolate peanut butter acorns in a magazine over the weekend and couldn't wait to try them! Aren't they adorable? Here's how to make some of your own...

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
• pretzels

Stir together the peanut butter and butter in a bowl. Add the sugar. Work into a smooth dough with your hands. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Using the palms of your hands, roll the dough into balls about 1" in diameter. Drop them onto wax paper or aluminum foil and then form little round-ish points on top with your fingers. Put them into the freezer for about 15 minutes.

In the meantime, melt the chocolate in a double boiler and break the pretzels into small pieces for the branches.

Working with one acorn at a time, insert a toothpick into the pointy part and dip the flat part into the chocolate. Stick a pretzel piece into the chocolate and remove the toothpick. Refrigerate for about 2 hours. Enjoy!

Sponsor Please Note!

It's officially the holiday season! Boost traffic to your blog or shop with a Please Note ad! There are three very affordable sizes to choose from. Check out the sponsor info page for more information. I'd love to spend December with you!

Weekend Finds

I found a great estate sale last weekend and got my hands on a couple of goodies. Not only have I been busy lately and haven't had time to look for sales, but the ones I've gone to recently haven't been that great. That's why I was so excited when I found this stuff!

This owl clock could use a little repairing but it's just so cute I couldn't pass it up for only $6. I can't decide if I should give this little guy a complete makeover or just do a few touch-ups on the eyes.

I also found this great piece of Pyrex to add to my collection. I wasn't sure about it until I flipped the lid over and saw the flower. I had to buy it then!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I had to! This is one of my favorite episodes!  Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Sponsor Spotlight: 2Messy

It's time for this month's Sponsor Spotlight! Today I'd like to introduce you to Messy. She's quite the busy lady! A fellow blogger, crafter, and Etsy shop owner, Messy's blog is filled with fun DIYs and bits and pieces of her life, but I'll let her tell you more about that...

Hi, I'm Messy. I have been blogging for nearly 2 years now when I moved across Canada to start fresh. My life has COMPLETELY changed since then and my blog cronicles my adventures. I have an online store that sells my DIY's, crafts and homemade clothes as well as participate in my small town market and a local store here in town. I have a dog named Chuck Norris, I teach dance classes for a living, and craft constantly. Come check out my blog and shop to see what you can find!

Learn more about Messy...

BLOG | SHOP | FACEBOOK

Letterpress Love

How awesome are these letterpress prints? I discovered Old School Stationers yesterday while doing a little Etsy perusing and immediately fell in love. Shop owners, Brian and Amy Reed, have quite the eye for beautiful organic designs. The prints pictured above are my personal favorites. They're part of their "Camping Circa 1960s" collection. Check out the Old School Stationers shop for even more adorable prints and cards!

DIY: Yarn Wrapped Christmas Tree

I'm officially in Christmas mode! Too early? No way! My friend, Jess, and I spent last Thursday working on handmade presents and I'm ready to set up my pink tree the day after Thanksgiving... which is NEXT WEEK by the way! Where did the time go?

Anyway, I recently made this simple little Christmas tree and thought I'd share it with you guys! Here's how to make your own...

What you'll need:

• wire (thick enough to stand by itself and hold the weight of the yarn)
• hot glue
• scissors
• yarn

Shape your tree with the wire (if it's already curled like mine, it shouldn't be hard). Hot glue a section of the yarn to the bottom and start wrapping! Once the wire is completely covered, use a little hot glue at the top to secure it.

I think I'll make a few more using different colors. Smaller versions would make great ornaments!

Dark Chocolate Brownies

I FINALLY found the Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa I've been looking for! I don't know why but I had the hardest time finding it at a local store. Anyway, I decided to make some dark chocolate brownies with it. I used this recipe and I'm so glad I did. Not only are these brownies easy... they're delicious!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine melted butter and cocoa. Stir until dissolved. Add sugar and mix well. Add eggs one at a time and stir until combined. Stir in vanilla, flour and salt. Do not overmix. Fold in chocolate chips.

Grease an 8" square pan (I decided to use my mini loaf pan instead). Spread the batter evenly. Bake for 20-25 minutes. 

Enjoy!

Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts

Upon reading this post by Kelly of Studio DIY, I was completely inspired to do something similar. I've been reading/watching the news about Hurricane Sandy and wanted to help in my own little way. I've made a donation to the Red Cross and now I'd like to offer a thank you to those of you who have also helped. If you've donated in any way to the Hurricane Sandy relief efforts, please leave a comment telling me how you've helped and I'll send you a set of 6 handmade recipe cards! Please remember to leave your email address so I can contact you.

Noche de Altares

This was my fourth year attending Noche de Altares in Santa Ana, California. If it wasn't for my good friends, Jack and Jess, I don't think I would have ever known about this beautiful event. Each year Jack and Jess participate and I can't believe how much everything has changed since 2009. Their altar grows larger each year, as does the event itself and the crowd. Although it's more difficult to take photos these days, I still tried my best to snap a few yesterday. I thought I would take this opportunity to not only share yesterday's photos but to share a few of my favorites from past years...

2012

2011

2010

2009