Hand Bag Shop Is Live!

I've officially opened my hand made hand bag shop on Etsy.... xoxoWhimsicalRoad

Right now, I am featuring faux leather/ vinyl fold over zipper clutches and pouches. I'll be adding new items all week.

The Vintage shop is still open, I'll be adding new items there this week also.

xoxo, Whimsical Road

Baked Eggs Recipe

 So, this morning I was hungry. It was seriously early, and I had no business cooking or taking pictures for the blog.. but I decided to share this anyway because oh em gee, they turned out nice. The whites were so creamy and delicious. The best part? No greasy pans to clean or stove to wipe down, which makes this my new favorite breakfast.

 Ingredients:

 *Eggs (any size will do, the number depends on the size baking dish you decide to use.)
 *Half and Half (You could also use whole milk or cream.)
 *Salt and Pepper
 *Optional: Fresh Herbs or Garlic

 Directions:

  Choose a baking dish to accommodate the number of servings you require. Small ramekins would work nicely for a single egg. I used a small rectangular Pyrex.. but you could do a meatloaf pan, gratin dish, etc.

  *Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  *Grease your pan (I suggest using real butter, but oil or spray will do as well).
  *Pour just enough half and half to cover the bottom of your baking dish.
  *Carefully crack your eggs into the dish. (see pic)
  *Add salt and pepper to taste.
  *Carefully place dish into the oven.
  *Bake for about 10 minutes, or until whites are completely set and the yolk is at your own desired doneness. (ya, I said doneness). I like my yolks on the brink of hard boiled, so I left them in close to 13 minutes.

When they are done, cut between each egg and serve with some yummy crusty bread or english muffins. I sprinkled some Romano cheese on mine, because cheese is my personal drug of choice. You could also make a sammich to go, with a slice of tomato or onion... so much cheaper and better for you than a drive-thru.

 

Unlike fried eggs, these are light and smooth and not greasy. The half and half adds richness and a bit of fat without heaviness.

Yummmmy.

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xoxo, Whimsical Road

Vintage Reds

A few new items listed in the shop.

The top item is a 1960's Counselor bathroom scale, so mod!

By the way, for anyone who stumbles on my blog.. I have a special discount code for my Etsy shop just for you! Just enter BLOGREADER10PERCENT at check out to receive 10% off your purchase.

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xoxo, Whimsical Road

Just A Bag

Broke out my sewing machine for the first time in a looooong time. This is just a simple reversible bag pattern that I sketched out years ago and just never got around to making. Needs some tweaking, the straps are way too short to sling on your shoulder... I really hate when your purse is lodged up under your armpit. (I probably shouldn't mention armpits in my blog, but you know.. it's true!)

Seriously, though...

I enjoyed the process of cutting out the pieces, threading the machine, and watching the whole thing come together. Sewing can be relaxing and rewarding, and fill that need to CREATE something. Like blowing on a dandelion, and having a little piece of yourself floating around out there. <3

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xoxo, Whimsical Road

Temporama and The Princess Bride

Tired of the Temporama  yet? This is the last piece, I promise. This is the 4 Cup Coffee Pot that I put on Etsy today. I'm so torn over keeping it or selling it, because I'm sure I'll never come across another one for the price I paid. But I can't keep everything, and it deserves a nice home!

 For some crafty goodness, I upcycled this a few weeks ago from some ugly .10 prints I found at a yard sale. I got the idea from Elsie and Emma @ A Beautiful Mess.. my favorrrriitttteeee blog of all time. You can find the tutorial there... I followed the directions, except I used pink spray paint rather than acrylic paint. I applied 3 coats, drying completely between each, and drying over-night before I lifted the letters off. In the mean time, I sprayed the frame with aqua... and who doesn't love The Princess Bride, seriously.

I have another frame and print, but I can't for the life of me think of a phrase that's short and sweet to go along with the other. Craft rage >.<

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xoxo, Whimsical Road

Temporama and Vintage Paper Dolls

More Temporama shots. In a previous post, I mentioned that I found a box at a church sale. These pieces are cereal bowls, saucers, and salad plates. Some say it was produced in the mid to late 50's, some say early '60s... either way, it's highly collectible right now due to the mid-mod/atomic age craze. The colors are fantastic.

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I also wanted to share this fantastic blog I came across... Kathleen Taylor's Dakota Dreams. She has an amazing collection of vintage paper dolls.. the colors are lovely and fun. Stop by and check it out!

Thanks for stopping by!

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xoxo, Whimsical Road

Happy 4th of July!

  The flag cake turned out so cute. It was a big hit, and I got a lot of compliments. Slightly lopsided, but really fun and it tasted yummy!
 
  I used this guide, from 17 and Baking, but I made a double batch of buttercream frosting instead, used plain white cake mixes (as directed, with no coconut milk), colored one round blue and one red. (And incidentally, a typical cake mix makes 4 cups of batter.. so that's 2 cups of blue, 2 cups of red). The other mix, leave white and divide between two 8 or 9 inch rounds. Either will work. Cool completely.

  You then cut all layers in half horizontally, EXCEPT the blue layer. Cut a 4" round circle out of the blue layer. Cut another 4" circle out of one of the red half's, and one of the white half's.
 
  Lay one white layer on your cake plate, and frost with a thin layer on top... the sides will be frosted later.
  From there, follow the photo... it will be white, red, white.. then you lay the blue outer ring on. Put a thin layer of frosting around the inside of the blue ring (this helps to hold your cake together).
  Lay one of the small 4" red circles inside the blue, and frost the top... then lay the last white layer on top of that.
  Frost the entire cake. *whew*. Done. I left it plainly frosted, with a sprinkle of white sugar. You can decorate it any way you like.

  This cake frazzled my brain a bit, but if I can do it, you can do it!
 

Buttercream Frosting:


1 stick room temperature butter
  (REAL butter is best)

4 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar

Heavy Cream

2 tsp Vanilla


Place butter in a mixing bowl, and let it come to room temp. You want it very soft, but not melty.

Add the powdered sugar, and vanilla.

Add a tablespoon of cream.. then mix together briefly with a fork. (this helps to avoid powdered sugar from flying all over your kitchen, and YES. I totally got frosting all over my kitchen. Do as I say, not as I do. )

Using an electric mixer, slowllllyyyy start to beat the frosting. Add more cream, as needed, a little at a time. You want your frosting to be sort of thick, but spreadable. If it's too thick and not coming together, add a tiny bit more cream. If it's too thin, add a little more powdered sugar. It's not an exact science.. not in this house anyway.

Turn your mixer up to a medium speed. My mom always says, it's not buttercream unless you beat it for 10 minutes. Trust me, I've beat it for 6-7 minutes and she never knew the difference :D

*note: for this flag cake, I needed 2 seperate batches of frosting to put it all together and have enough to cover the whole cake.. with about half of the second batch left over. If you want, you can easily make a batch and a half. Just be sure you have a large enough mixing bowl, or make 1/2 a batch separately. Or, you can use the leftover frosting on the leftover cake pieces, if you like. I've never frozen a frosted cake before.. if you have, let me know how it turns out!

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Just as a bonus, I snapped a pic of this cute kitty tea pot my mom had in her china cabinet. It's an Erphila, made in Germany, some time after WW2.. as it's marked "made in US zone, Germany." There are a couple of dings on the ears, the nose, and the tip of the spout.. but overall it's a very cute and still functional.

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xoxo, Whimsical Road

 

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Temporama and Amber Glass

 I was lucky to come across a box of Temporama by Cannonsburg a few days ago at a church sale. The box contained this gravy boat and underplate, a coffeepot, bread and butter plates, berry bowls, and saucers. I will be keeping a few pieces, and listing the rest on Etsy. I loooove the Atomic Age looking pattern and aqua color, but alas.. it doesn't match my 1970's kitchen color scheme.

I've also been collecting vintage ashtrays and amber glass. I found this Anchor Hocking Fairfield ashtray at the same church sale. I already have a set, so this one is going up on Etsy.

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I am practicing with a new digi cam, and plan to photograph many things I've collected lately. I'm not very impressed with the results so far, but I'm sure its operator failure :D

xoxo, Whimsical Road

My goodness. It's been a long time. 3 years...

During my break from blogging, I've moved twice, broke up once, adopted two cats, and collected a TON of vintage and retro housewares and other goodies. That will be the main focus of my blog from now on, with a little craft and food goodness thrown in here and there. So stay tuned for some pics and etsy listings real soon.

xoxo, Whimsical Road

Mad Tea Party Giveaway Winner

I hope everyone had a lovely time tea party hopping.. I know I did!

A HUGE thank you to V. at A Fanciful Twist for making the magic happen. If you've never visited her blog, you really should. Her photos are fantastical.

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And according to random.org, the winner is: Megan V. from Running Stitch!!

I am always so grateful for all the comments and visitors during these blog events... I wish I could have a giveaway every single day.

Thank you to everyone who stops by, feel free to say hello whenever you like!

XOXO, Whimsical Road

Mad Tea Party!

Ahhh.... we're having a MAD tea party today on Whimsical Road. We were cordially invited by A Fanciful Twist... and we're SO excited.

We'll be updating throughout the afternoon with photos and commentary about the affair...

Here's a little preview:

Oh dear, how did THAT get in there?

Curiouser and Curiouser...

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Stay tuned for a GIVEAWAY, it's just a little farther down

the rabbit hole...

Oh, my. That looks delicious, but I can't eat that!

Maybe just a nibble of this while I wait for tea:

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Imagine this! Someone dropped these things. Would you like to have them? Just leave a comment for me, and I'll choose someone when the party is over (and I plan to party until Sunday at midnight!).

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Another one! In the Lovelace China, no less. What do we do?

The cakes are done, and we have no tea!

Lemon glaze with a sprinkle of pink.. to put the rose in your cheeks and a twinkle in your eye....

"Why is a raven like a writing desk" you ask? I think that would be easier to puzzle out than finding a tea cup in this place...

A Winner + Another Chance To Win Something

The giveaway is now over, and thanks to Random.org, the winner is #7

Congrats, Paige!

And a big thank you to everyone who entered.

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For those of you who didn't win, never fear! I am participating in A Fanciful Twists 2nd Annual Mad Tea Party on June 27th (this coming Saturday) and I will be doing yet ANOTHER giveaway.. only this time it will be a bit different. So make a note, and come on over!

Giveaway Time!

I am giving away another shirred dress to one lucky winner, just in time for the 4th of July!

This one is a bit longer than the last, it's 16 inches long (not including adjustable straps),

and will fit a wide range of sizes from 18m - 4T (or any child with a chest measurement 18"-23".

(My husband tried on my very first top... he's kinda skinny, but it fit, LMAO... just to give you an idea of the wide range of sizing... and he said "hey, it's kind of comfortable" Wish I had a pic of that, but I digress.)

Although this IS decidedly a U.S. themed item, I will post internationally to anyone who is interested.

All you have to do is leave a comment below. Just make sure your e-mail is available on your blogger profile so I can contact you.

One winner will be chosen at random on Tuesday, June 23rd.

xoxo, Whimsical Road

Upcoming Giveaway and Something to Drool Over.

Just a quick note... I'll be hosting another giveaway

Friday, June 19th- Tues, June 23rd.

Stop by then to see what I'm giving away, and enter to win.

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p.s. Stop on over to I Love Baby Quilts to see the winner of my last dress in action!

While you are there, check out the *AMAZING* hand-sewn quilts she makes

(Yes, I said HAND-sewn. As in, no machine. By hand.)

You have got to see the Heather Ross blocks she is working on right now....go, go, go.

New Dresses and the Bashakill

A new shirred dress in Amy Butler. I was worried about how this would come out, but I think it's actually lovely.

Also, a sweet little 4th of July dress (in a not-so-sweet picture, ack):

This weekend, we went on a drive through the Bashakill freshwater wetlands. These photos don't do the place justice.. there are waterfalls, birds, turtles, and great fishing. The Catskill Mountains are in the background. So peaceful and special.

Afterwards, we went to the Drive-In theater :) Must be summer!

I'm the Winner!

I wanted to share with you the goodies I got in the mail recently, my prize from Jenny at thecreekhouse as part of the SMS giveaway:

I LOVE the little pouch and key wristlet. I've already filled the bag up with all my stuffs. Thanks, Jenny!

Go check out her blog, and the super sweet Heather Ross baby dress she made!

Quilty Goodness

So.. I finished sewing all the rows for my very first quilt. I still need to press them all and sew them together, so please excuse the uneven and wrinkly looking photo. I promise to take a better pic when it is all finished.

One problem... it's WAY more pink that I pictured in my head. I mean... REALLY pink. For some reason I thought the yellow and purple/blue would play a larger role, lol.

I'm not a pink kind of girl to begin with. I chose these fabrics because:

1.) They are 30's repro Aunt Grace prints, and I LOVE that entire line... and these were the last available.

2.) They were on sale (and I didn't want to go all out for my FIRST quilt.)

The binding will be in the purple/blue.. as well as most of the backing. I love the bunny's on the yellow.. and I love the process so far. Next time, I will select my fabrics a little more carefully.. (Amy Butler, here I come!)

xoxo,

Whimsical Road

Shirred and Unshirred.

Just a quick post today. I finished two new dresses.

The first one gave me a heck of a time, sewing the bodice was a challenge for me and this dress hung unfinished for several weeks before I went back and tried again. I also could NOT get a decent picture of the dress, no matter what I tried. :( In the end, I think it turned out quite nice, and would be perfect for a summer birthday party. The dress is a girls size 3.

Close up of the bodice detail:

And the second, a new shirred top... already in the shop. (I really need to work on my photography)

June is Sewing Machine Month at Sew, Mama, Sew and they have asked their blog readers to answer some questions about the sewing machines they use. They plan to make the info available as a resource for those looking to buy a new machine.

First.. here's a look at my pimped out with temporary tatoos machine!!:

Yeah, baby! 14 whole stitches!

What brand and model do you have?

I have a Brother LX-3125.

How long have you had it?

Three months.

How much does that machine cost (approximately)?

I paid around $79.00

What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)?

I sew handbags, children's clothing, and quilting.

How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get?

I sew every day. I wear the heck out of it. Haven't broken a single needle yet!

Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name?

I like my machine. I am taking quilting classes, and the machines they use are fancy computerized models. They are nice, but very pricey... and I feel more hands-on with my basic model.

What features does your machine have that work well for you?

I like that this machine is light and a cinch to thread.

Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine?

Well, I drove MYSELF nuts in the beginning before I learned to start everything with the needle in the down position (inserted into the fabric), otherwise the fabric bunches up and gets stuck... but that was my fault, not the machine.

Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it!

I don't know if this is a great story or not, but my main crafting focus used to be crochet (amigurumi, Japanese style). One day I was looking around blogland and Flickr and noticed all the great Japanese fabrics everyone was using. I had sewn a few times when I was younger, and so I convinced myself that I NEEDED a machine. I didn't want to overspend, just in case it ended up collecting dust in a corner. Now I have spent 4 times as much on fabric than I initially spent on the machine!

Would you recommend the machine to others? Why?

I would recommend this machine to others who might not want to spend too much, and still get something that works well.

What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine?

For me, I don't really need all the fancy stitches (they are fun, I know, I just don't NEED them). This machine only has 14 stitches. I just want something that works consistently, smoothly, and won't break down.

Do you have a dream machine?

I would love to have a really, really old vintage Singer... just to play with. :)

xoxo, Whimsical Road