Peacock-Inspired Ring Pillow

A good high school friend of mine is getting married, and I wanted to create a special gift for her. The theme is peacock-inspired. No actual birds were harmed in the making of this ring pillow :-)

The pattern I used was by Lesley Teare: 101 Weekend Cross Stitch Gifts (ISBN 0 7153 1945-0), but I changed the colors in the pattern to reflect the bride's theme.

After finishing the cross stitch pattern, I added a long length of purple ribbon by cross stitching over the ribbon and trimmed it with a button to neaten it up (It didn't look so polished with the cross stitch in the middle of the ribbon. It looked like it was missing something).

 I finished it into a pillow by cutting around the design (with enough left for the back) and whip stitched it on three sides. I stuffed the it with polyfill stuffing that I bought at a craft store.

The colors of threads I used were purple, bright blue, and lime green. I like that I was able to incorporate the blue thread into the pillow, so it can be her "something blue" if she so chooses.

This was a relatively easy project to make. If I could make one change though, it would have been to have used my sewing machine to sew up the edges instead of hand stitching it. This is because the aida cloth I used was rather stiff, and it was hard to sew the corners where the fabric overlapped. I also think it would have been neater and quicker to use the sewing machine.

How to get candle wax out of a glass candle holder

So, I was burning a candle from my wedding (we used scented candles as wedding favors) and I wanted to get the remaining candle wax out of the glass holder. I tried tapping it out gently, but no luck (sometimes that has been enough to get the remaining candle residue out), so I had to take things a step further. 

I simply popped the candle holder into the freezer for a few hours, took it out, gently tapped it on the bottom, and the remaining candle wax came out! There was still a tiny circle of wax remaining in the bottom of the candle holder:

I took a butter knife and scraped it out in seconds:

Now all that's left to do is wash it out in some hot soapy water, and it should look like new (hopefully)!!!:-)...

Happy (Belated) 2014!!!

I just realized it has been a LONG time since I last posted anything on this blog! Time for a change... I'll be attempting to make chicken noodle soup later today.

Here's the recipe I'll be using: About 3/4 of an organic rotisserie chicken 2 cartons low-sodium chicken broth Carrots (as many as you'd like) One small onion Egg noodles Salt and pepper to taste

 Recipe:
1. Cut up the rotisserie chicken ahead of time into small, bite-sized pieces.
2. Prepare the egg noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
3. Peel and slice the carrots into bite-sized pieces.
4. Peel and dice the onion.
5. Add the rotisserie chicken, cooked egg noodles, onion, carrots, and broth in a large pot, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20-25 minutes.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste. I'll let you know how it all turns out!!!:-)...