spice up your kitchen

guest post with Penny of sewtakeahike

Have you been to Penny’s blog sewtakeahike?  It’s got some seriously inspiring quilting and crafting going on. 

I love Penny’s photographs and her tutorials are just as beautiful.  This knit rose is just beautiful, a great addition to any project.  She also recently had an amazing quilt-a-long where she went through all the steps of making a beautiful quilt from scraps, and not just any quilt, but a queen size one!  If you ever want to put a serious dent in your scrap bin, I suggest you take a look and give it a try (it’s definitely on my list).  Penny also finds time to put together an amazing etsy shop, go check it out!

Please welcome Penny!

Howdy, howdy noodlehead readers! I’m Penny.

Although I’m no genious when it comes to cooking, I can do a mean throw down when it comes to baking of any kind. I have a world famous (ok, I might be exaggerating just a bit) carrot cake recipe and if you mention you have a loaf of jalepeno cheese bread on your counter, I’d be right over!

My favorite cake is white with white frosting (none of the whipped topping frosting for me please, that’s just mean to use on a cake of any kind!) and the only flour you’ll find in my house is King Arthur’s. It gives me perfect results every time and even though I live in an area that’s considered “high altitude”, I never have to make adjustments to my recipes.

I love using my pampered chef stoneware loaf pans and pizza stone when baking bread or pizza, gotta love a good crust!

We started using cloth napkins exclusively in our home 3 or so years ago. My motto is, even if the foods’ bad, the cloth napkins make up for any discord from the food. And, when we have guests over for my mediocre cooking, they ALWAYS comment on my cloth napkins, even as their sneaking their dinner in them!
 
They do look amazing Penny!  Thanks for sharing these.

Go check out the complete Cloth Napkin Tutorial HERE on sewtakeahike.

spice up your kitchen

guest post with Vanessa of Little Big Girl Studio

Here’s another fabulous friend to add to your reader.  Vanessa from Little Big Girl Studio is here with us today with a great project. 

I became friends with Vanessa when she commented on one of my first tutorials way back when (or maybe not that long ago).  We hit it off and I really enjoy swapping tips and tricks with her, this girl knows her stuff!  Plus she runs an amazing etsy shop, Little Big Girl Studio, that has some awesome goodies you just can’t resist.  You can tell she has an eye for detail, each one of her pieces is sewn with such precision.

Without further ado, please help me welcome Vanessa!

Hey, everyone! My name is Vanessa and I’m beyond excited to be part of Anna’s awesome Spice Up Your Kitchen week. Still not sure how she has the time to do what she does! I’m amazed at all the cool tutorials so far and look forward to the rest of Spice Up Your Kitchen week. I’m a mama to a 2 year old little girl named Sydney and sew in my spare time in hopes of staying sane. A cup of coffee along with a daily dose of my favorite craft blogs is how I get going each and every morning.

When Anna asked me to come up with some kitchen craftiness, I pretty much knew I wanted to do something to help organize my coupons, grocery lists, and maybe even start planning ahead when it comes to what’s for dinner. I came up with a Menu Planning Organizer.
 

 
It’s got a pocket to hold a note pad, a pen holder, 7 smaller pockets for recipe cards and coupons, and has magnets so it can hang on the fridge. Now I’ve got a place to put recipes I want to cook, coupons for ingredients I’ll need to get, and a place to write it all down. When I’m ready to go to the store, I’m actually ready. Best part is, there’s less junk on the kitchen table! If you find yourself staring into the freezer at 7 pm most nights wondering what in the heck to cook, this tutorial is for you!
 
Thanks Vanessa!  Totally awesome.  Now if that doesn’t make you want to get your coupons and recipes organized I don’t know what will.
Go check out the complete Menu Planning Organizer Tutorial HERE on Little Big Girl Studio.
spice up your kitchen

guest post with Cally of Calico

Today’s guest is Cally.  I think Cally does amazingly cool projects and shows off some beautiful pictures in her blog Calico.  I’m always stunned by how beautiful her sewing is. 

Each piece she makes is so unique and pretty and fun and very stylish!  I also love her commentary on Lost episodes, if you’re a Lost fan, you’ll definitely enjoy reading posts like these.  And to top it off she does all this with 5 children, crazy stuff I tell ya.

Let’s hear it from Cally!

Hi noodleheads! My name’s Cally and my favorite things happen in the kitchen. With 5 kids, I wipe a lot. My go-to recipe is Taco Soup and I put flax in everything. I choose butter over margarine and just recently learned to appreciate tomatoes.

My favorite parenting strategy is doughnuts. I’ve never liked watermelon. No ice in my water, thanks. I buy myself a box of Reese’s Puffs cereal for Mothers Day every year, and dream about eating Italy. I love old pyrex and tupperware. I decide what to make for dinner at 5:00 every day, and pretend I have a show on Food Network called “Make a Great Dinner with Cream of Chicken Soup in 5 minutes or Less.” My favorite secret ingredients are wheat, quinoa, and spinach. I cover my kitchen in my kids drawings, because it’s my favorite place to be.

I came up with the recipe crock because I needed a place to put my cookie recipe where it will be in plain view and ready for the next batch. We make cookies a lot. Thanks for inviting me to participate this week, Anna!
 
oh, Cally, you’ve certainly outdone yourself!  I can’t wait to make one, such an awesome idea.

Go check out the complete Recipe Crock Tutorial HERE on Calico.

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