Ugly Sweater Party

My office has an annual ugly sweater contest. I am really into dressing up... for anything. 

2014: "Happy Holla Days"

2013: "Human Christmas tree"

2012: "My mom used to actually wear this"

Thanksgiving Cheese Ball Turkey

Because how can you look at this little guy and not smile??? 

He's such a fun addition to have on your table.

What you'll need:

Package of Pepperonis

Mini Pretzels

Leafy Romaine for him to sit on

1 Carrot stick for nose

2 Pepper Corns for eyes

4 Shish Kabob spears

Favorite Cheese Ball recipe

Ritz crackers

Directions:

Make your favorite cheese ball recipe. You may have to double the recipe since this is actually two cheese balls stacked on top of one another. Make one of the balls slightly smaller, this will be his head. To make sure his head doesn't topple off, put a Shish Kabob spear straight through the two cheese balls and make sure the top of the spear isn't visible on the top of his head. Fold pepperonis into quarters and slide onto 3 Shish Kabob spears. Once they are full attach them to his backside. Now take the mini pretzels and stick them into the side of his body for "wings." I used 3 mini pretzels per side. Take two more pretzels and use them for his feet. Cut a pepperoni with scissors and make a curvy little head piece. ( I honestly have no idea what this is called on a turkey.. but it looked right). Add the peppercorn eyes and cut a mini carrot into a itty-bitty nose. I also added a little scarf around his neck made of pepperonis. Put him on a bed of romaine and surround him with Ritz crackers... and wait for the squeals of delight from guests saying how he is, "Too cute to eat!"

Spicy Honey Chicken

INGREDIENTS

– Skinless chicken breast
– 2 Tsp. coconut or olive oil
RUB
– 1 Tsp. garlic powder
– 2 Tsp. chili powder
– 1/2 Tsp. onion powder
– 1/2 Tsp. coriander
– 1 Tsp. Sea salt
– 1 Tsp. cumin
– 1/2 Tsp. chipotle chili powder
GLAZE
– 1/2 c. Honey
– 1 Tbsp. Cider vinegar
DIRECTIONS
– Combine the rub spices in a bowl, mix well. Drizzle oil over chicken breast and coat well. Toss chicken with spice rub to coat all sides. Grill chicken for 4-6 min. on each side. While chicken is grilling. Warm honey in microwave so it’s not thick. Add the vinegar and mix well. Brush glaze well on chicken on both sides. Grill until chicken is cooked fully, Enjoy !!

Make your own herb garden for $10

No, seriously... this was the most inexpensive project ever and I love it. They are so cute and aromatic. I can make tomato basil salads to my heart's content now. It's the end of November and it's so nice to have some fresh greens in the house. 

 I got my terracotta pots from Walmart for less than a $1 a piece and the matching saucers for $0.25. I used Rust-Oleum Chalkboard  spray paint which was around $4. (fyi: This is the best brand of spray paint to use... for about everything.) 

Tape off the top of the pots with painters tape. 

You can see step 2 in the background of the picture above lol!

The trick is to spray paint slowly. Lightly build up coat after coat with plenty of drying time in-between coats. It took me about a hour to get them completely covered. I let mine dry for around three hours. Longer is probably better... but I'm inpatient and wanted to get to  planting!!

To prevent the writing from being permanently etched on the sides first prime the pots by taking a piece of chalk lengthwise and rubbing down the entire chalkboard surface. 

Now you can label and plant whatever you like!

They were sold out of cilantro at the time so I have to wait. But you get the idea!

Christmas Veggie Tray

Yay, office holiday parties! Where everyone brings a cheesy dip and, after lunch, I just want to sleep the rest of the day away!

"What am I going to bring?!?"

This veggie tray is the perfect solution to this problem. A no stress, super easy solution. And it really zests up the table! It's a decoration in itself!

I also love the idea of using peppers as the dipping boats!

The possibilities are endless!

EASY DIY: Holiday Ornament Wreath

Holiday Ornament Wreath

I will admit... I am a very picky shopper. And when it comes to Christmas decorations... don't get me started. There are plenty of pre-made gorgeous wreaths out there to buy. But I had my heart set on a particular assortment of colors... and I just couldn't find one in the store that I thought was perfect. Or even that I thought was worthy of my $50. Why are they so expensive when they are so easy to make yourself?? So that is what led me to create my own.

I used the same basic materials for this, that I did for my

How To Make A Wine-Cork Holiday Wreath

Walmart $2.47 wreath

Walmart $5.47 burlap

Round PLASTIC ornaments in various colors & sizes.

(Target & Hobby Lobby)

I went a little overboard... but I really wanted orange to be a key color. (Isn't Zoe cute?)

I had a hard time finding small ornaments so ended up using these branches from Hobby Lobby and cutting off the balls. It is VERY important to get various sizes because you are going to inevitably have gaps in-between each ornament.

Leave the plastic wrapping on your Walmart wreath. There is really no reason to take it off & it prevents all those little straw pieces from falling off and destroying your living room. (Learned this the hard way from the 1st DIY: Wine Cork Wreath)

Using a hot glue gun, attached the burlap to the wreath by wrapping it around. I ran out of burlap about half way through and, in a pinch, had glittery ribbon laying around. So that is why mine looks half burlap on the left & half sparkly gold on the right side.

(If I did this again I would use only sparkly ribbon because when the balls didn't match up, it's better to see sparkles peaking through than dull burlap)

Now the fun part! Begin attaching your ornaments! Take off the hanger and begin hot gluing the ornaments with the hanger part facing inwards.

Continue all the way around and once the outside is all done being glued, start gluing them on the inside.

Start stacking them on top of each other. I got a little O.C.D. on this part and laid them out and planned before I started actually gluing. But I'm a perfectionist and... everything takes me longer. About half way done here.

And here is my finished product!

 absolutely love it and get compliments all the time, which is fun because when they ask where I got it... I MADE IT! Here is the picture that inspired me: