Congratulations!

Please email me your mailing address and I will send your fat quarters :)

Thank you everyone SO much for the lovely comments and for playing along. I will be doing another giveaway soon. So stay tuned. :)

Giveaway :: Fabric Fat Quarters :: Last Chance

Today is the last day to enter the fabric fat quarter giveaway. Go here to leave a comment and be entered to win :) Winner will be announced tomorrow.

Happy Earth Day: Going Green

Happy Earth Day! I posted this post last year for Earth Day and wanted to revisit the links, ideas and info for today :) Some of the info and links have been updated - Enjoy!

"...To me, being intentionally eco-friendly has more to do with celebrating God’s creativity, being wise with what He’s given us, and passing on those values to the next generation than it does with pressing some government agenda.

The thing I love most about practicing green alternatives in my home is that nine times out of ten, they are the more frugal option. And I love being frugal. Being environmentally-friendly is just good economics – in our home and budget, and with the earth God gave us." - Tsh Oxenreider of Simple Mom

Reusable Grocery (or anything) Bags

Some staggering statistics about plastic bags:

+ Introduced just over 25 years ago, the ugly truth about our plastic bag addiction is that society's consumption rate is now estimated at well over 500,000,000,000 (that's 500 billion) plastic bags annually, or almost 1 million per minute.

+ Single-use bags made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) are the main culprit. Once brought into existence to tote your purchases, they'll accumulate and persist on our planet for up to 1,000 years.

+ The average family accumulates 60 plastic bags in only four trips to the grocery store.

+ Each high quality reusable bag you use has the potential to eliminate an average of 1,000 plastic bags over its lifetime. The bag will pay for itself if your grocery store offers a $.05 or $.10 credit per bag for bringing your own bags. (Source)
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At our house, we have become very consistent with always taking reusable grocery bags. Most stores we grocery shop at (Target, Lowes Foods) offer a $.05 credit per bag used when you bring your own. Check with your local grocer and see if they do the same!

+ A fabulous idea/tutorial about making your own reusable produce bags. Check it out!

+ 50 Reusable Grocery Bags You Can Make: Free Patterns. Go here to check it out.

+ Another fabulous tutorial on youtube about how to make your own reusable bags! I have made a few of these. Click below to watch.



Household Cleaning
Brands such as Seventh Generation, Method, Biokleen, Mrs. Meyers, and more have developed tons of excellent cleaning products for a healthier environment. I use Method's Hardwood Floor cleaner and was thoroughly impressed with the results (and it smelled good too, like almonds :)). I also purchased Seventh Generation's Natural all-purpose cleaner with no toxic chemicals and it smelled not good, but did a fabulous job cleaning my counters and cutting through grease on my stovetop.

Now, if you would rather make your own cleaning materials, I often refer to these websites - they have great "recipes" as well as tips on how to get things around your home sparkling clean. You'd be surprised at just how much vinegar and baking soda can do. WOW!
Vinegar and Baking Soda Recipes
Tips for using Vinegar to clean
Natural Home Cleaning Recipes including all-purpose cleaner, dishwashing liquids, laundry cleaning, bathroom cleaning, kitchen cleaning and much more


Around the House

Amazon's Tips on Making Your Kitchen Green
Amazon's Tips for a Greener Bathroom
Amazon's Toys Bestsellers in Eco-Friendly and Green Toys

For You and Your Family:
40 Tips to Go Green at Home from SimpleMom. This is a FABULOUS list - check it out. :)

What about you? Any tips or ideas on being more "green"? What ways have you changed your day-to-day living to be more eco-friendly, or what would you like to start doing to be more eco-friendly?

Giveaway :: Fabric Fat Quarters

Happy Thursday! I haven't done a giveaway in awhile and decided it was time do one :) So I went to one of my fave fabric shops (conveniently located right across the street from my neighborhood ;)) and found these beautiful coordinating fat quarters -- including Amy Butler fabric, beautiful stripes, and fabulous "Make Life Creative" fabric. Love it. I might have to go get more and make a bag or notepad holder :)

So the giveaway: 3 fat quarters of coordinating fabric. Leave a comment to enter. International entries welcome. Additional ways to enter (leave a comment for each):

+ Become a follower of The Creative Place (you may enter an additional comment if you are already a follower or subscribe via email, rss, etc)

+ Blog, Tweet or Facebook about the giveaway with a link to the giveaway.

Giveaway will run through Tuesday, April 26. I will post a winner on Wednesday, April 27.

Spring and Summer Art Journal :: 2011 Goals

One of my 2011 Business and Blog Goals is to release 15 new items in my shop. Today I listed item #1 - an Art Journal.

A super cute mixed paper art journal ready for spring and summer. A great place to document the spring and summer season, a vacation or holiday, this little book is full of beautiful papers, new and found. Papers include decorative wax papers, found papers (including vintage sewing pattern paper!) and envelopes, a doily and tags, a Hambly overlay and gorgeous Martha Stewart paper- this little book is fabulous. Size is 4"x6" with a distressed cardboard cover including a ruffled moda fabric tag. The back is a super thick chipboard. 21 interior pages and 2 binder rings, so pages can be moved around or flipped.

Announcements :: Ashlee Proffitt Design

My sweet and very dear friend Ashlee offered to do baby Joshua's birth announcements as a gift- I was SO super excited to have her do them :) I received them the other day - they are gorgeous, from the fabulous design to the linen paper they are printed on, to the beautiful packaging. I am excited to send them out soon :)

A huge thank you to my sweet friend! She is a super talented designer - designing everything from announcements, invitations to personal notecards and party items - check out her etsy shop here and her beautiful and inspiring blog here. Thanks, Ashlee! Love you, friend :)

Food: Sweet Cherry Pie

My new fave blog to find amazing recipes (and photography) is Annie's Eats. I found this recipe the other day and just had to make it. Recipe originally from Cook's Illustrated.

Sweet Cherry Pie

Ingredients:
Two crusts pie dough (found in the refrigerated section of your grocery, or make your own)
2 red plums, halved and pitted
6 cups pitted, halved sweet cherries (or 6 cups pitted frozen cherries), divided
½ cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tbsp. instant tapioca, ground
Pinch of ground cinnamon
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into ¼-inch pieces

1 large egg lightly beaten with 1 tsp. water

Directions:
To make the filling, process the plums and 1 cup of the cherries in a food processor or blender until smooth, about 1 minute. Strain the the puree through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl, pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard the solids. Add the remaining cherries, sugar, salt, lemon juice, tapioca and cinnamon to the bowl. Mix well to combine; let stand for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400˚ F and place a baking sheet on an oven rack. Line a 9-inch pie plate with a round of pie dough. Transfer the cherry mixture to the dough-lined pie plate. Scatter the butter pieces evenly over the fruit. Top with the second round of pie dough. Pinch the edges of the dough together in a fluted pattern. Brush the top evenly with the egg wash. Using a sharp paring knife, cut 8 evenly spaced slits in the top crust to allow steam to escape. Place the pie in the freezer for 20 minutes.

Place the pie on the preheated baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 350˚ F and continue baking about 30-40 minutes more, until the crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbling. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature so the filling has time to set up and thicken, 2-3 hours. Slice and serve.

Idea Journal :: My Inspiration

Last week I shared my Idea Journal that I just started keeping. This journal, kind of like a sketchbook (I don't really sketch a whole lot, so not a sketchbook for me), is specifically set aside for, well, ideas and inspiration. For me, this can come in the form of magazine clippings, other clippings or found special things, notes, jots and lists, or parts of other projects that are inspiring me to make other things.

I wasn't quite sure how I would have the journal set up (and am still pondering some things). Whether I would have tabs for different sections, or just fill up a page at a time, etc. Not a huge deal, but worth some thought to me :) My inspiration for the layout of the journal finally (including a hand-drawn calendar!) came from "this chicken" blog. I love, love, love how she set up her journal! So I emailed her and asked if I could share her pictures- all pictures below are from her journal. Thanks Rebecca :) Visit her blog for some insightful tips on setting up your own journal, including how to add a page marker - like below.

I love the idea of the calendar - a fun way to divide up and keep track of what is inspiring me each month - also helpful for a quick glance of events and happenings.

The grid thing is so fabulous. As a graphic designer, I love grids. Nice and square grids. Sometimes I have trouble (when designing) getting past everything in a layout being nice and lined up on a grid, but that's a whole other story.

Do you have an Idea Journal? If so, I'd love to see pictures! Go here to upload them onto The Creative Place's flickr account. I might be pulling some of the images now and then to share here on the blog :)

If not, why not make one!? All you need is a blank journal, or you can take a pile of blank paper and have it bound at your local office supply store or print shop. It doesn't have to be fancy-schmancy. It's yours. There's no right or wrong way to make it. It's yours. It's for whatever you want to put in it. It's yours.

Friday Wrap Up: Idea Journal

Happy Friday! I finally purchased an "idea book" (a regular sketchbook) and am having a lot of fun filling it up. I will be sharing a super fun blog early next week about my inspiration for this layout.

I must admit that I love having my pinterest pinboards to catalog ideas and inspiration, but there is nothing like a journal that you can hold in your hand that you can cut and paste ideas and inspiration - magazine pictures, bits and pieces, etc.!

Do you have an idea journal? I'd love to see pictures! Go here to upload pictures onto The Creative Place flickr account.

+And on a side note, I started the Couch-to-5k on Wednesday (remember this post earlier this week?). Week 1 Day 1 finished. Week 1 Day 2 to happen today during naptime. :) It truly felt like an accomplishment. I wanted to lay down and take a nap when I got home, but I finished the workout. Looking forward to (and still kind of scared of) the workout today. I hear that getting started is the hardest part. It definitely is.

Guest Post :: How to Make a Desk Pad

Hello! My name is Doda and I am a published children's poet and craft designer living in the Highlands of Scotland.

I have been making things since I was little and so it is a natural way of life for me to always have a few projects on the go. I love to use what I already have lying around the house either by recycling or repurposing. I also love a good bargain and enjoy rummaging around thrift stores for treasures that are new to me.

I have made a few desk pads in the past and always found them to be very useful. It works out very cheap to make especially if you already have a scrap of fabric and some hardboard or thick card. They are perfect for sticking your sewing machine on as well as for catching up on some letter writing. (In this age of emails and texts, there is still nothing nicer than receiving a handwritten letter from a friend.) It would also make a thoughtful gift for a friend. To make the gift more substantial, why not include some coordinating stationery and a pencil pot upcycled from a tin can wrapped in the same fabric. Go here to see the tutorial.

Food: Baklava

Baklava. Mmmmm! This is a fave in our house. *Edited (It's a Turkish pastry, not Greek - thanks Gizem Mizem!:)) It's a Turkish pastry made with super thin "leaves" of dough (phyllo dough), sugar and cinnamon, chopped walnuts, and topped off with a honey syrup. My sis has this amazing recipe for it. Super easy to make, and with only a few ingredients - these are great to make for a get-together. Each recipe yields over two dozen bars (you can make them as small or as big as you like).

Baklava

3 cups walnuts, finely chopped

3/4 cup sugar

2-1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 lb. frozen phyllo dough, thawed

3 sticks butter, melted, or butter flavor non-stick cooking spray

Syrup:

1-1/2 cups water

3/4 cup sugar

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 2-inch strip lemon rind

3/4 cup honey

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine nuts, sugar and cinnamon. Keeping unused sheets covered with plastic wrap (they can dry out super quick and become crumbly), place 7 sheets of phyllo, one at a time in the bottom of an 8"x14" pan, brushing each sheet with melted butter (or spraying with non-stick cooking spray). Sprinkle top sheet with 1-1/2 cups of the nut mixture. Layer remaining phyllo leaves over nuts, brushing (or spraying) each leaf with butter. Cut pastry half deep into small diamond-shaped pieces with a sharp knife. Bake until golden brown, about 30-45 minutes.

While baklava is baking, prepare syrup. Combine water and all syrup ingredients except honey in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add honey and simmer 5 minutes more. Remove lemon peel and cool. Remove baklava from oven and pour cool syrup over hot pastry. Cool. Cut along scored lines and serve.

*Notes: I used half butter and half cooking spray to prepare mine. You still get the yummy goodness of butter, but not 3 sticks worth. I also only use about half of the syrup at the end, so I usually cut the syrup recipe in half.

On running.

I finally went and bought a new pair of running shoes (I bought my last pair maybe 6 or 7 years ago. Yikes!). I am planning to start the Couch-to-5k running plan- Thanks to a lot of inspiration from friends who have started it, are loving it and keeping with it. Excited to get started now that it is finally warm. Here's to (hopefully) being able to run a 5k in two months - so by June 8! :)