Southern Scraps

Image: digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net   So how did I do on my non-resolutions for 2011? I dug into spiritual gifts, but not deep enough. That's going back on the list. Lots of things got organized and some of it is still in pretty good shape. A couple of areas never got fully completed- the craft room and the master closet. The pantry could use another going through now too, but overall I'm in pretty good shape. Some of those projects got completed, some didn't. That's okay. I did make lots of things this past year. You can check out my top ten here . Where am I now? Blessed beyond belief! Thanks to all of my visitors, followers, Facebook followers, and those of you who leave comments! You make this blogging thing so much more fun! I wish you all the best in the new year. Thanks also to my etsy customers. My blog and shop have grown a lot in the past year. Thanks to those of you who have featured my shop and my blog projects. You are all awe

Wow! This year is almost over! Where did it go? It's the last Friday of the year, but don't worry, I'll be featuring lots of great etsy shops in 2012. Today I'd like to introduce you to LillyPearll . This cute shop is run by two sisters, Kay and Beth, that love to make things from whatever they can find. "We reuse, recycle, upcycle, and repurpose things. We come from a line of Grandmothers who saved every Holsom bread bag and pie tin they ever bought!!!" Here are some of my favorite pieces from LillyPearll. Necklace Vintage piece Green Tea

According to Blogger statistics, eight of my top ten most viewed post/projects for 2011 are 8 of the 10 popular posts over in the sidebar, along with the wrapped cord bracelet  and fancy flip flops. Here are my own top ten favorites- the ones I had the most fun doing or was most pleased with the results. Bubble gum bracelet

Not much crafting got done last week with all of the Christmas going and doing, but we sure did cook a lot. I tried out two of Chef inTraining's recipes. Friday afternoon I made oreo truffles . I used the whole 8 oz of cream cheese, instead of 4 like she suggests. They were a hit with the family and coworkers. Christmas morning I made pumpkin pancakes . Mine don't look so fluffy in this photo, but trust me they are. This was the last batch and less batter went into the pan. These are delicious! Did you try out anything new for the holiday, or did you stick to tried and true traditions? Linking here: Think Pink Sundays * Keep It Simple Sunday * Under the Table and Dreaming * Sundae Scoop * Creative Bloggers Party and Hop * Craftomaniac Monday * Making the World Cuter * Just Something I Whipped Up at TGC * Masterpiece Monday * Motivate Me Monday * Inspire Me Monday * Market Yourself Mondays at Sumo’s Sweet Stuff * Pink Hippo Party * More The Merrier Monday

I have quite a collection of cardigans. I must say that sometimes they get a little boring. Here's five ways to refashion a cardigan- something that's on my "to do" list. One Pearl Button Pink lemonade Loft inspired by Sew Petite Gal Flamingo Toes Honor Roll 

Source Merry Christmas to all of you. I appreciate all of my readers and followers and hope you have a wonderful Christmas! I'll be spending time with the hubby, family, and worshiping my Saviour.

Happy Friday and Merry Christmas! Today I'd like to introduce you to a cute jewelry and hair accessory shop-  AliLilly. Here is a sample of what you will find. Beautiful Autumn Brown Beaded Earrings with PearlsFrom alililly     Sparkling Pink and Gold Bracelet Gray Autumn Rosette Headband with Cameo Charm I discovered Ami's shop through her blog, also called AliLilly.  You may remember I featured one of her wreaths here. She has lots of other fabulous projects on her blog, like this tissue paper tree. Go check her out. Maybe you'll get some Christmas cash to spend on one of these great items! And just for my sweet readers, take 40% off with code SouthernScrapsSale. 

Still need a quick and easy to do gift? Maybe one for a guy? This is perfect. I found this recipe and idea in the Dec/Jan issue of Country Woman magazine  and tried it out. Southwestern Dip Mix Start with the following: 1/2 cup dried parsley flakes 1/3 cup dried minced onion 1/3 cup chili powder 1/4 cup ground cumin 2 tablespoons dried minced chives 1 tablespoon salt 2 teaspoons paprika 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes Combine all ingredients. Store in air tight container in a cool dry place for up to 6 months. Yield: 12 batches. To make a batch: Add 2 tablespoons of mix to 1 cup mayonnaise and 1 cup sour cream; stir until blended. Serve with chips of vegetables. Yield: 2 cups I tried out the last part too. Yum! And the hubby approved. You can go to the magazine website to download printable gift tags that have the directions already on them. As you can see above, the tag is a little large for my jar, but it could be trimmed down. Sharing here:

Hello and thanks for stopping by to check out my holiday outfits. I'm linking up with WIWW.   Do you dress in  holiday specific attire or specific colors during the holiday season? I find myself trying to be a little festive for holiday parties and such. Poinsettia shirt- Walmart; Lee denim trousers; shoes- Rack Room; holiday charm bracelet- gift several years ago Worn: Dec. 11, 2011 church turtleneck- JCPenney; Vest- Coldwater Creek; pants- TJMaxx; scarf- Brassy Apple; nativity brooch- gift; shoes- Target Worn- Dec. 12, 2011- work, office Christmas luncheon

The holiday hustle is catching up with me. I'm late with this post. But I'm not really apologizing because we enjoyed a great Christmas song service at church last night and all the presents are wrapped except for the hubby's, I gotta sneak around to do that. Here are a couple of neat DIY projects I admire. Mason jar chandelier from A to Z Pottery Barn Knock off candle chandelier from In My Own Style Maybe we'll get some more house projects done next year and I can incorporate one of these on the back porch. Have a great week!

Happy Friday! Hope you are all getting that Christmas "to do" list check off with ease. Today's featured shop is Original Designs by AR , and she has some of the best scarves I've seen. It's no secret I like scarves.  Let's take a look at a few of my favorites. Purple Rose Ruffled Scarf

I promised on Monday when I shared some gift wrap ideas that I'd share the one I used this year, so here it is. I really fell for the idea featured in Matthew Meads Holiday book, as seen here.

Need a quick and easy (and inexpensive) gift idea for the last few days before Christmas? Ceramic tile coasters aren't a new idea, but still worthy of the reminder. And dictionary art is growing in poularity so I've combined the two. I made these a couple of weeks ago for my sister-in-law's birthday. I started with a vintage dragonfly image from The Graphics Fairy . I had some ceramic tiles from Lowe's in my stash. I only had three 4x4 tiles and one larger one so she got 3 coasters and 1 trivet as a set. I had picked up an old dictionary from the thrift store for 25 cents. (It wasn't priced and I am a regular face there, so I think she pretty much gave it to me!)

Hey! I'm back this week with a WIWW . I'm a little behind on photos, so this isn't what I wore this week but what I wore on Thanksgiving day. Blouse- ? (old) - This one's been hanging around in my closet for about ten years. Scarf- Old Navy; jeans- Levi's skinny; boots- Belks Speaking of holidays, are you ready for Christmas? Do you need some quick last minute gift ideas. I'll be sharing a few in the next few days and you can check out a couple of ideas HERE and HERE. Thanks for stopping by. You can see more of my outfits at Savvy Southern . I'd love it if you followed me over there too.

Welcome to my Christmas home. Come on in. To see more of my porch, click HERE . The first thing you'll see is my vignette on the sofa table facing the entryway.

I posted this three years ago, but thought some of you might enjoy in now. Most of you were not following or reading my blog and I certainly didn't know link parties existed.  I made cookie mix in a jar gifts for the neighbors and gave them a Publix gift card. They got a sampling of the baked cookies too and some other goodies. I designed my gift card holder to be one of the tags that embellishes the jar.  The card slides right into a pocket. The recipe is on the other tag. It's for cowboy cookies- chocolate chip and oatmeal..mmm...hubby's favorite. The recipe can be found here.  I also wrapped some scrapbook paper and cardstock around the jar Sharing at Tatertots and Jello in the Holly Bloggy Christmas handmade gift party.

This is the time of year when we are all wrapping gifts. Do you like to get creative with your wrapping? I love "decorating" packages. Not so much the actual wrapping- I let the hubby to that, but I love to put bows and embellishments on. Here's some ideas I'd like to try: from TDM fabric sash (becomes part of the gift) Use more than one store bought bow GH felt flower bow by A Spoonful of Sugar designs These are potato chip bags! Martha Stewart woven glitter ribbon- Matthew Mead via centsational girl P.S. I'm trying out this last one this year. Come back Thursday to see my packages.

This year I decided to do a green and blue theme, but I didn't really have any green and blue ornaments. I bought a few and mixed in some silver balls and the white crochet ornaments my mother-in-law made. In years past, our tree has been full of these crochet ormantments and clear glass and red balls. I never have a tree topper and always have to make one unless I stick to the all crochet and then I have a large crochet angel to sit on top. This year I used a white sparkly ribbon, ting ting, a few picks from DT, and some of the tinsel garland I have already mentioned several times before. I'm getting my money's worth out of that stuff! One of my favorite ornaments on the tree this year are these white glazed reindeer that belonged to my hubby long before we met. I don't remember using them in the past, but I love them this year. I also found some random ornaments in our collection in my color theme like this blue and green beaded ornament I

If you're looking for the Creating Christmas wrap up and link party, it's HERE , one post below. And if you weren't looking, you're still welcome to join. Tracy at Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures is having a pet photo Christmas party. One night when I was photographing some decorations, I decided to put Bella's Christmas collar on and let her get used to it. I decided to snap a few photos as well. I intend to take more because there are no presents under the tree in the photos I took and Bella was dog tired (no pun intended) and really wasn't smiling for me. I still think she's beautiful so I thought I'd share. I do like this last one with the PEACE blocks in the background. What do you think? Are any of them "card worthy"? Linking up to