I said I was done, but...

I used to sell reborn baby dolls, not regularly, but I sold them. I have 5 dolls living with new mommies and most of them were enjoyable experiences. I have three kits left in a box in my closet that I have finally decided to try and finish and sell. I will try to post progress pictures here, but it will be slow progress as I don't have much time to work on these dolls. And let's not forget to mention to $$$$$ involved!! These dolls are expensive to make! I may just price them low to make a quick sale (therefore, the prices on my website will change) and get rid of them, but I would be eating all of the expenses involved. 

I have the following kits on hand:

Kiri by Denise Pratt - I just found out a few days ago that she was discontinued...sad...

Brooke by Aleina Peterson - I always thought this kit was ugly. I am trying to make her cute. This is not an easy task. 

A Random eBay Berenguer Doll - This one is the same face as the first doll I ever completed. It definitely shows already how much I have improved in five years. 

You can see my adopted dolls here:

http://natashaskeepsakebabies.webs.com/apps/photos/

Weddings and Whatnot

I love weddings. They're so beautiful! I have never been to one, but I am obsessed with shows like Say Yes to the Dress: Atlanta and Bridezillas. I spend hours reading stories on Etiquette Hell in the different wedding categories, and I follow Intimate Weddings on Pinterest. My wedding board has over 500 pins and counting! You could say that whenever I meet the right guy and he eventually pops the question, I'll be very prepared. 

And since Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 Extended Edition recently came out on DVD, I thought I would share which elements of Bella's wedding I would incorporate into my own:

• A statement hair accessory - I used to make hair bows and fascinators, so this won't be a challenge...
• An elegant updo - I hate wearing my hair down for special occasions unless it's curled so it will stay in place. But then it also has curling wax in it, because my hair doesn't take too well to curling.
• A unique gown that you don't see everywhere - the typical gown I see these days is strapless and lacy, with or without 'bling'. Bella had a simple, long-sleeved beauty with lace detailing. I may just go after a statement dress that I haven't seen anybody wear yet; something crazy. It just may be the most expensive part of my wedding. Who knows, really?
• Having an outdoor wedding - the idea scared me at first, but it can really be beautiful! Especially with botanical gardens pretty much EVERYWHERE, you can still get a floral backdrop without dropping thousands to get a cascading ceiling of wisteria. 
• A beautiful song to walk down the aisle to - there are a few songs I wouldn't mind walking to the instrumental of, if it were available, that is. 

 

 

{Foodie Friday}: Italian Chicken Dinner (Slow Cooker)

I made this recently, totally made up, but it turned out DELICIOUS. Measurements are approximations.

This meal cooked for about 8 hours total on Low. It was impulse with me being up that early, but it was nice to have a clean kitchen and not have to worry about cooking later. and, of course, my mom is always happy to get a break :-)

Italian Chicken Dinner

Ingredients:

• 3 Chicken Thighs
• Seasoned Salt (Lawry's) and Black Pepper
• 2-3 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• Baby carrots, sliced lengthwise in fourths
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 c. white wine vinegar
• Italian dressing packet
• 1 tbsp. Honey Butter  - store bought or homemade
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 sliced Roma tomatoes

Directions:

Season chicken thighs with seasoned salt and pepper. Heat 2-3 tbsp olive oil over med-high heat and sear thighs, getting them as brown as possible.

Flip thighs over. Aren't they beautiful, besides the sickening raw pink? :-)

Remove the chicken to a plate and add 1 medium onion, sliced. Saute until lightly browned and translucent.

Add several sliced baby carrots and saute'. Then add 2 chopped cloves of garlic; season with salt and pepper. Add 1/4 c. white wine vinegar and use a wooden spoon to scrape up the browned bits. Let the 'sauce' boil until it reduces by about half. Remove from heat.

I made a "butter concoction" for the chicken. It is a homemade honey butter  plus soy sauce, and  an Italian dressing packet (the actual dressing, not the mix). I whisked this all together and set it aside.

Place the chicken thighs in the slow cooker. Be sure to pour in any juices on the plate.

Add the butter mixture, spooning or pouring, whichever. I make sure to get the whole top of the chicken thigh coated and spread it around with my fingers just a little.

Add two sliced Roma (plum) tomatoes.

Add the veggie-sauce mixture over top.

After about 6 hours, I took a peek.

Remove the chicken to a plate so you can thicken the sauce.

 

Thicken the sauce however you like. I did a cornstarch slurry with some of the juices. Once it's stirred in, replace the chicken and any juices. I let it go another hour and a half or so and served it with white rice and some pumpernickel bread with more honey butter. I apologize for not getting a good picture of the finished dish, it totally slipped my mind! Enjoy!

Note Taking App Reviews!!

I finally wrote out my rubric and scored the apps, so now without further fanfare...

*Note: These are all iPad apps I have tested on a 16GB iPad mini. My opinions are my own, unsolicited views.

Well first, an overview:

Name of App

My Rating (out of 4 o's)

Price

Page/Book Limitations

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection

Writing Accuracy

Notes/Comments

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bamboo Paper



My Rating: o o o o

Price: Free, Full Version Costs $1.99

Page/Book Limitations: I don't remember how many books I got with the free version, maybe 3 or 4, but I had about 15 pages of notes for Biology. The full version is, of course, with unlimited books and pages.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: 9 colors to choose from, can choose pen or highlighter and only 3 sizes, but I only use one size most of the time and it's perfect for me.

Writing Accuracy:Pretty accurate, especially with my magnificent new Boxwave stylus! (Thank You, PaperDesk!) (That thing is SWEET.)

Notes/Comments: I love that I can lock one of my notebooks, as it is specifically for dream captures. Can change paper type. Also skips occasionally, but only around edges. Bought full version. Can you tell this one is my favorite yet?

----

the note, Moka!



My Rating: o o o c

Price: Free, Full for $4.99

Page/Book Limitations: Not totally sure...it updated and I've been able to add a ton more books and pages than I initially could...and I know I didn't get the full version of this one.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: a whopping 14 colors to choose from!!, can use pen highlighter, or crayon. - 6 size choices as well as different eraser sizes.

Writing Accuracy: pretty accurate, almost same as Penultimate, though.

Notes/Comments: I feel bad I underestimated this app, and only rate it the way I do from my initial testing. I can tell it has way more to it now, but I haven't explored that, so I cannot rate based on that. Also, you can't delete books in the Lite Version.

-----

Evernote Penultimate



My Rating: o c

Price: Free

Page/Book Limitations: Not sure...The interface was a tad confusing for me.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: 10 colors, 1 type of pen with a slider to change size.

Writing Accuracy: slight lag but writes OK

Notes/Comments: can change paper type, smooths letters as you write. overall, an OK app, but I agree with the other reviews in the App Store.

------

PaperDesk - I had to bring it back for the multi-app review. It's only fair. 



My Rating: o o o o

Price: Free; Full Version is $3.99

Page/Book Limitations: In Free Version, only 1 folder, 3 notebooks with 3 pages each. In full, unlimited.

Pen Sizes/Types; Color Selection: Pencil or highlighter - colors pretty much infinite and size changes with a slider. you can preselect a color or slide the slider around to pick the perfect shade and adjust it with the other sliders.

Writing Accuracy: sometimes skips when drawing, but very accurate representation.

Notes/Comments: Type, record, and draw! My only wish is that you could type from any spot, instead of keying 'Enter' after I draw a diagram to make notes beneath it. My touchscreen writing isn't so great, and I like to have the legible print of typing. I also discovered I can type into my professor's PDF formatted powerpoints!

Overall, these apps are all pretty good and the free versions are basic and do what needs to be done, which is draw and take notes the way I like. My favorites are PaperDesk and Bamboo Paper, of course. Now back to Amazon.com to peruse more cases so I can better enjoy my note taking! (My current one does not rotate...I was waiting to get one that did. Can't beat Amazon's prices, for sure!!)

More App Reviews Coming Soon...

I will be posting another App Review post soon, this time with some more attention to handwriting apps in particular. I've been testing them for about two weeks and have even bought the full version of one of them, I loved it so much! I'll need to come up with a rubric for rating, though and go through them again so they can be scored equally. 

Craft Show Prep #2

I thought I would do a second post detailing my sources of certain products I use at shows. I am doing a women's symposium at a college next month and want everything done before hand. My inventory is no where near done but I have a lot of things cut out to sew.

For now, though:
Fabric Labels: Spoonflower (I got a fat quarter printed with my logo and pressed the edges under, stitched around each one, and added it to my products. I used this tutorial.

Business cards: moo.com - LOVE their mini cards! They shipped them so fast and the little QR code on the back links to my Etsy shop.



Banner: Wal-Mart - I bought a paper pack for five dollars along with double sided tape. I made a paper banner like the ones seen on Pinterest. Way easier than fabric/felt and way cheaper than vinyl (I ended up sewing the second two together after I took this picture).



Photo Price Signs: anywhere.....I have 20 free prints from Snapfish for purchasing HP ink, so I will getting my next set through them. My last ones were from Walgreens for about two dollars. How ironic that I don't have a picture of these yet. But I have designed them!

Bags: my mom and Etsy. I got some big clear plastic merchandise bags from my mom, who is a Scentsy consultant. I got some zebra print t shirt bags and purple merchandise bags from two different Etsy sellers. Talk about pops of color!



Stair-step Display: Dollar General/Wal-Mart - I used the same paper pack and bought foam core from DG. Found the tutorial on Pinterest!



And since I'm sharing, here are my other two DIY Display pieces - no tutorials, just sitting there playing with materials.

This is my therapy

This blog is my therapy. Typing a new post helps me some days. I had a thought about being able to finish my novel that way. I even had an idea for another one surface while going through some old pages where I had penned a random chapter or two. I keep ignoring my diet and coming back to it. I keep starting to exercise and then stopping again. I started eating things I had stopped eating.

I have got to stop relapsing. It's not fair to me or my body. I have to ignore my cravings and replace them with something healthy or just drink a bottle of water. I keep the same bottle around as long as I can and then replace it. I love those sparkling waters, and they only cost 1 dollar and I can walk to the store to get it - 20-30 minutes of exercise right there! I hope you will continue to follow my blog and I hope I can get better with posting more. I promise, I have a notebook full of ideas, I just to have to get it typed!