Oldies but Goodies

Okay, I'll confess, I have not bought the turquoise paint for my table, nor have I started on the second ugly chair, so I decided I would post some oldies but goodies.  These are some items that I have made in the past but not actually blogged about, so they'll be new to you, but old to me.  Anyway...  you've seen the wedding cake cookies I made for a friend and the apple cookies I made for my class, but here are a couple of other cookies I've done.

Ruler cookies for teacher appreciation week.  I placed this in a snack sized plastic bag with a label that read "Teachers Rule".

I made baby carriage cookies for several baby showers this year.

Along with making cookies, I've done a lot of sewing for my neice, but also for other friends babies.

A pink plisse' peasant dress and bloomers with white eyelet trim for my darling neice.  I think this is one of my favorite outfits.

A onsie decorated with fabric roses and bandana bloomers with eyelet ruffles I made for a friends new baby.

Another peasant dress for my neice.  I loved the fabric on this one.  I also made matching pants but forgot to take a picture of them.

A fully lined make-up bag made using bandanas. It was my first attempt at adding a zipper to something!

Besides sewing, I did a little crafting too.

 For a last day of school gift for my class I printed a tag that read "Stay Cool This Summer" from some site I found online (wish I could remember where) and tied it with curling ribbon around several unfrozen ice pops.

Fish bowls made using rice cakes, blue icing and goldfish crackers during "pets" week at preschool.

I actually started on a new craft today - a burlap wreath!  I ran out of burlap ribbon so I've got to run back to Michael's but I will post about it the minute I am finished.  I also bough the fabric for my second ugly chair, so I hope to have that started and finished soon too!  I've got lots of projects planned and I can't wait to get started!

Say Yes To The Cookie

This week I had a special request from my friend.  Her son had plans to propose to his sweet girlfriend this past weekend,  what better weekend than the Georgia/Florida game? (and Georgia beat Florida for the first time in years!  Go Dawgs!).  Anyway, she asked me to make some cookies for when they came home to announce their engagement.  We searched the town over for an engagement ring cookie cutter, but none was to be found.  We opted for the wedding cake one instead since we didn't have time to order the other one online.

I made my favorite sugar cookie dough recipe.  You can get it here.

The first step in decorating is to outline the cookie.  I add my icing into a piping bag or a bottle with a narrow tip and I trace around the cookie. This icing needs to be a little thicker so it holds it shape and doesn't run.  This acts as a dam for when you add the flooding icing. Save this thicker icing for your details.  Let the outline dry for a couple minutes and then add your icing to the middle of the cookie.  This is called flooding icing. You want your flooding icing to spread easily and level out on its own.  Ice the cookie and let it dry completely.  This takes about 30 minutes.  Then go back and pipe on the details and add sprinkles.  I tinted the icing for the details with a tiny bit of cocoa powder just to give it a little contrast.  I love the look of the little pearl dragees on this one.

On this one I just piped on the decorations and then sprinkled on the fine crystal sprinkles.

This one is a combination of sprinkles and candy pearls.

And here are the three designs I decided on.  I love how they turned out!  Maybe they'll ask me to make them for the wedding!

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Time to Make the Cookies

The teachers I work with came over the other day to decorate cookies and to have a pre-planning meeting.  We start school next week with open house on Tuesday.  I always like to have a little something for the kids to walk away with at open house, so I make my yummy sugar cookies.  The other teachers liked the idea of the cookies, so I invited them to my house to decorate cookies for their classes too. 

I got my sugar cookie recipe many years ago from a little old lady named Miss Jo.  She shared her recipe with me so I will share it with you!

1 cup margarine (2 sticks)                                     1 egg
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar                                   1 tsp vanilla

Cream the margarine, sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth.

2 1/2 cups All Purpose Flour

1tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Cream of Tartar

Add the rest of the ingredients (add the flour 1/2 cup at the time, unless you like having flour slung all over your kitchen!).  Mix until well blended.  Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours or overnight.  Roll dough to desired thickness and cut into shapes.  Bake on an ungreased baking sheet at 375 degrees for 7-10 min.

After the cookies have cooled completely I ice them with my easy breezy icing.

One box confectioners sugar

Water

I add the water a tablespoon at a time until I get it to the consistancy of pancake batter.   It's more trial and error with the icing.  If it's too thin it will run off the cookie.  Too thick and it won't spread and level out evenly.

I make a big apple shaped cookie for my class but other teachers that have themes for their classroom make cookies to go along with that, like fish, or puppies or monkeys.  I like the apples for back to school.  I make the cookies ahead of time so all we have to do is ice them.  When they are dry I put them in clear treat bags tied with ribbon.

Tomorrow is the big day!  I hope the kids like their cookies and their new teacher!

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