30 Days of Creativity

I have a list of project ideas piling up around the house for this summer. My to-do's span every room and nook and cranny from closet to kitchen. There are so many things I want to make, to try out, to redo, refinish, and craft.


As I was recently scanning the ReadyMade blog, I came across 30 Days of Creativity, an initiative created by ad agency Carmichael Lynch and a way to inspire people to make something every day from June 1st to June 30th. As ReadyMade said, "Forget bikini bod plans. Here's a month-long challenge we can actually stand behind..."

image from 30 Days of Creativity

So, I'm in!

I hope this commitment will help me to get some of my creative ideas accomplished but will also stretch me to try out new techniques and crafts that I haven't thought about before. 

Check back for photos of my creative undertakings, and if you decide to partake too, leave a comment with some of your own ideas or a link to your projects. 

Happy creating!

Strawberry Cream Cheese Muffins

This is my absolute favorite muffin recipe, and I make it every year as soon as the strawberries come in. We pick our strawberries from Lineberger's Maple Springs Farm in Dallas, NC, about a 30-minute drive from Charlotte. You can also make these muffins with any other berries you have on hand. We've substituted blackberries that we picked in the summertime and then froze for later, and those were just as delicious.

lovely photos above courtesy of Kimi Pace

STRAWBERRY CREAM CHEESE MUFFINS

recipe from The Muffin Lady by Linda Fisher, with my own adaptations

2 c. flour

1 c. sugar
1 T. baking powder
1 t. salt
4 T. butter, melted
1/4 c. vegetable oil
3/4 c. milk
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla extract
1/2 pint strawberries
8 oz. cream cheese


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together all the dry ingredients. Make a well in the center. Blend in the remaining ingredients except the strawberries and cream cheese. Spoon the batter into a paper-lined 12-unit muffin pan. Cut a chunk off the block of cream cheese and stick it in the middle of each muffin. Top with 1-3 strawberries, depending on their size. Bake about 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean (minus the cream cheese).

What I Made This Weekend...

I didn't make one single thing with needle and thread this weekend, but my time was still filled with lots of making, nonetheless! After setting up my Verabelle table at the Charlotte Free Store's Outdoor Yart Sale, the creating commenced! 

When I'm not crafting, one of my favorite hobbies is cooking, and that involves everything from baking desserts and bread to canning and home preserving to making the night's dinner. Here's a list of what Paul and I whipped up this weekend, including one thing for the garden.

• Mushroom and Garlic Souffles
• Homemade Lattes
• Focaccia
• Strawberry-Lemon Preserves
• Strawberry-Cream Cheese Muffins
• White-Wine-Sage Mustard
• Mozzarella Cheese
• Pizza Dough & Grilled Pizza
• Organic Fertilizer with Grass Clippings 

I'll post more recipes throughout the week, but here's one to get you started...

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MUSHROOM & GARLIC SOUFFLES

Taken from Savory Baking: Warm & Inspiring Recipes for Crisp, Crumbly, Flaky Pastries by Mary Cech

Filling

3 T. extra-virgin olive oil

6 oz. shiitake mushrooms, chopped (I used cremini.)

2 large garlic cloves, minced

salt & freshly ground black pepper

Souffle Base

3 T. unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 c. whole milk

2 T. unsalted butter

3 large egg yolks

5 large egg whites at room temperature

For Mother...

New from Verabelle, pillows made with vintage handkerchiefs and fabrics, hand embroidery, and pompom trims. And one just happens to be perfect for Mother... 

I stitched a 4"x6" vinyl pocket onto this one for a photo of 

your mother of hers. Just slip it in the top!

I embellished each handkerchief design with hand embroidery, bringing out the colors and adding a few complimentary ones.

New housewares from Verabelle's Attic (including one giant, new surprise!) will debut this Friday, 5/6, at Greensboro's First Friday Indie Market. Stop by 4-9 pm, or browse later on Etsy.

Verabelle & Ornamentea

This weekend Melissa (of Mason & Virginia) and I traveled to Raleigh to share a space at the Designers Downtown Market. The market is held in the parking lot of Ornamentea several times a year, and is hosted by the beading/craft supply store, known for their "fine craft ingredients."

(L) beads by NC designer Elaine Ray. (R) bead bins.

It was a great day of selling and meeting other crafters,  but I was also lucky enough to make the acquaintance of Cynthia Deis. Cynthia is the owner of Ornamentea, a project that originally began out of her home 16 years ago. Cynthia first began making and selling her own jewelry designs using vintage and handmade materials and soon expanded to a studio space that also offered beading supplies and other cool collectibles. Now Ornamentea is housed in a giant apple-green metal building with space for multiple classrooms and shelf upon bin of beads and other crafting supplies.

a workroom for painting

(L) jars of jewelry supplies. (R) repose.

I am happy to say that Ornamentea also now carries Verabelle Sew-It-Yourself animal appliques! As Cynthia was browsing the market booths, she saw them and asked if I sold wholesale and said she'd love to have them in her shop. And I course, I loved that too!


If you're not in the Raleigh area, you can still shop online at Ornamentea, as well as take advantage of their long list of tutorials, which include everything from jewelry-making to decoupage. In fact, I picked up some decoupage materials from the shop to work on a Mother's Day project!

love: walls covered in vintage dress patterns.

My Morning Cup

Last week I painted a Crown Town Handmade mug at our Make Out craft session. I recreated the group pennant banner on my mug with colorful porcelain paints and markers. Sipping coffee out of my new mug will be a great way to start my crafty day at Verabelle! 

For information on future Make Outs, refer to the calendar on the Crown Town Handmade blog.