SUCCULENT PLANTERS

Ever wish that you could play with those little plastic animals that you grew up with? Well you still can! 

Last year I saw a post online for plastic dinosaur succulent planters and thought to myself "Hey, I can totally make those." And so I did.

I made some dinosaur planters for my sister's bridal shower as party favors (I know, best bridal shower gifts EVER!), but these farm animals happen to be my favorite...

{farm animal planters...they are still in need of their plants}

Here is what you will need to make your own plastic planters:

plastic toys (5"-6" ones work the best)

razor to cut a hole for the plants

gesso to prime the plastic 

acrylic paint to decorate the planter

Here is a picture of a finished one! (Don't forget to poke a hole in the bottom for the water to drain)

{german shepherd planter}

COWBOY COOKIES...WITH A TWIST

Growing up there were always cowboy cookies around, mainly in the freezer, but my mom was always making them. They have always been our go-to cookie for birthdays, holiday gifts, and just about any other occasion. So in honor of my mom (a week after mother's day), here is her famous recipe...with a twist because I didn't have chocolate chips.

Cowboy Cookies:

1 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 cups rolled oats

1 small package of semisweet chocolate chips (for the twist I substituted in shredded coconut!)

1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts)

Preheat the oven to 350. Cream sugars, butter, eggs, and vanilla until fluffy. Then stir in all of the dry ingredients. Add oatmeal, chocolate chips, and nuts. 

Drop dough on baking sheet, about a teaspoon size, and bake for 12-15 minutes (until lightly browned on the edges).

{YUM! Especially with coconut}

{me, age 6, making cowboy cookies with my mom}

ENJOY!

oh...CAKE BALLS!!!

I'm sure most of you have been wondering when I would do a post about cake balls since it's the title of this blog. Well...HERE IT IS!

I made cake balls a while back for my co-workers. This was a very new endeavor for me, I had never made a cake ball let alone eaten one. They just looked so tasty...I just had to try.
If you have ever made cake balls (without and actual cake ball maker) then you know it is NOT an easy task. They looked like...disaster balls. Luckily they still tasted fantastic.
Not willing to give up on this delicious ball of cake and chocolate coating I made another batch at the request of my very pregnant boss, who wanted cake balls before she left for maternity leave. So here they are...CAKE BALLS! (still looking a little rough, but tastier than ever). Here is the recipe that I used.

{icing and cake mixture}

{melting chocolate for the coating}

{that's right...NEON sprinkles}

{ta-dah! cake balls}

{everything is better with neon sprinkles}

{another hit at work!}

{YUM!}

A DIY WEDDING...BRIDESMAID NECKLACES

I have always been one of those girls that likes to have something that not everyone else may have, especially when it comes to dresses and accessories, which is why I have never been keen on the whole idea of matching bridesmaids. I'm pretty sure most women will agree with me on this. Don't get me wrong it adds a nice consistency to the look of the wedding, but sometimes it is a little hard to stomach. So, when it was time to help my sister decide what the bridesmaids would wear, I was a little scared. Sorry Em, but I was. 

Luckily, my sister and I have very similar style so we happily agreed (along with the other bridesmaids) on some really great dresses from J.Crew, in a soft graphite gray. Those of you that know me, know that I am extremely pale. I was a little nervous about getting completely washed out in a gray dress (as was my mother), so I thought it would be great to add in color with accessories. On my hunt for the perfect colorful statement piece, I stumbled across these AMAZING handmade necklaces by Elva Fields. 

{Elva Fields necklaces}

They are really incredible and were perfect for the bridesmaid dresses. It would add color and give us that little bit of difference that I wanted. Sadly these necklaces were a little out of our budget for bridesmaid gifts. So, being the super craft team that we are, we made our own versions with the help of my sister's talented friend Michelle. (Michelle, luckily, is an expert jewelry maker.) Here is the how to...

Materials:

vintage broaches/pins/earring

beads and/or stones (we had about two strands per necklace)

jewelry wire

pliers

wire cutters

clamps (so the beads don't slide off)

necklace clasp (we used S clasps so that the necklaces are easy to take off)

glue to seal the back of the earring and pin clasps in necessary

some felt or fabric to work on

Once we made the decision to make the necklaces, Emily and I went to the Brooklyn Flea to hunt down some treasures to use in the necklaces.

{various vintage earrings and pins that we found at the flea market}

Emily and Michelle then went bead shopping and picked out different beads/stones for each bridesmaid. We then all assembled at Michelle's apt in Brooklyn and made the necklaces. Here are some shots of the necklace making process...

{LOVE the rhinestone centers on mine!}

It was a lot of work, but the necklaces came out perfectly. I loved that we all had very different necklaces, perfect for each of us. Here are the finished pieces!

{Michelles' necklace}

{Lauren's necklace}

{Chelsae's necklace}

{Lyndsey's necklace}

{My necklace}

The pictures are not the greatest sadly, but I can't wait to see the ones that the photographer took! Thanks Em for our beautiful bridesmaid gifts, they really were perfect to give us our own look at the wedding! (And sorry I gave you a hard time about my stone colors...I LOVE THEM!)