DIY Earring Holder

I have been trying to get this done for months now. My earrings are in a clump in a drawer in our linen closet. I hate searching for matching earrings so I end up wearing the same ones over and over. Thanks to Hurricane Sandy I am stuck inside on a schools closed day so, why not get her done?!? So easy, if you have the materials.

All I did was use an old frame and some chicken wire or whatever that stuff is called. Here's a close up...

I cut the wire to size and then used my stapler in order to attach it to the back of the frame. A staple gun would work MUCH better. ;) 

DONE!

I spray painted my wire a turquoise color, although you can't tell in the picture, in order to match our theme in the room.

Pumpkin Spice Cake with Cinnamon Icing

Hurricane Sandy is on her way and I decided to channel my inner Martha. I spent the day baking and preparing for dinner this evening. I made this WONDERFUL dessert and also got some sweet potato casserole all ready for dinner. Unfortunately, I just guesstimated on the casserole so I can't post it because I have NO IDEA of the measurements. (If you're interested anyway, however, I'll put ingredients, at least, at the bottom.)

This dessert was AMAZING!!!! I found a bunch of different websites with suggestions on how to make this. I decided to go with this one from The Country Cook, however, because it seemed to look the most appealing...AND EASY!! And let me tell you easy it was!

Pumpkin Spice Cake with Cinnamon Icing
INGREDIENTS:
     1 box of spice cake mix
     1 15oz. can of pumpkin puree
     3 eggs
     1 tub icing
     cinnamon (optional for the icing)
  THAT'S IT!!!

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and coat your pan with non-stick cooking spray.

     2. Mix together all ingredients until smooth.

3. Spread mixture into pan. I used a bundt pan but you can use any kind of pan you have.

4. Bake for about 30 minutes. Cake should spring back to the touch and toothpick should come out clean.

5. Let cool completely.

6. While your cake is cooling, go ahead and start on your icing. 

a. Scoop icing out into a small bowl in order to mix easier.

b. Add cinnamon in small amounts and mix until desired taste.

7. Frost your cake and voila!!

You can also make this look like a pumpkin by coloring the icing orange and adding a flat bottom ice cream cone covered in brown or green icing in the middle. 

I decorated mine with orange sprinkles. :)

You must refrigerate this cake!!

ENJOY!!

OK, sweet potato casserole....cut the sweet potatoes into small cubes and boil until fork tender. Using a mixer blend these together with milk, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar. Do it just like you would mashed potatoes but keep tasting to be sure they are sweet enough. You can add in some marshmallows too if you would like. Then spread into a deep pan and top with marshmallows to create a sweet crust. Cook at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. I make mine ahead of time and keep it in the fridge which is awesome! Just increase the cook time a little if you do that, but watch to make sure the marshmallows don't burn. Browning is completely fine though.

   
   

Mason Jar Tiki Torch

I have been wanting to post this for a while but haven't for some reason. This was one of the easiest things I have ever done. It actually came about because a friend was coming over and I really wanted a porch night. The mosquitos were awful and I was going to try to set up the tiki torches outside of the porch screen but chickened out because I didn't want the screen to catch fire. I figured if I put them far enough away that it wouldn't it would be too far to keep the mosquitos away anyway so...

I just happen to be cleaning the porch of all the left over wedding stuff and came across some purple mason jars. I really wanted to do something with them so I put a few on the table. Just so happens that next to the mason jar sat the tiki torch insert. Hmmmm....so...I put one of the inserts into the mason jar and it fit perfectly!! Wonderful!!

A little suggestion....make sure you keep the wicks trimmed VERY low!! Otherwise you will get little black ashes all over everything including you!! 

Oh! And the mason jars I used were the bigger ones, just in case you're wondering why your tiki insert doesn't fit.