Mind Your Own Business Cards

Hello there Everyone! I hope the weekend was especially good to you.

This week, I've geared up for my very first blah to Tada! challenge. Marti e-mailed me a couple of weeks ago to ask for some help: "Hi! I was curious if you have any thoughts on creating a business card holder from recycled products. I am currently using an old loose leaf note paper box that is falling apart."

Marti even sent a photo:

I must agree, it's looking quite blah so I have some suggestions that I hope Marti will like. Thankfully this challenge came along, because I realized that my own collection of business cards needs a home, too!

Here's my first suggestion:

Blah: Plastic tubs that once contained strawberries,
walnuts and grape tomatoes.

Tada!: An instant business card holder!

I did not spend anything, absolutely nothing, for this.

The dividers are old cardboard boxes (ex. cereal), measured to the size of a business card plus a half-inch added to the height. After cutting the cards, I covered these with colorful pages from a magazine and then glued on the letters (printed out from my home printer; calligraphy will also work). I also decorated the cover of the plastic box with a fun print I got from a school catalogue and a label "Business Cards" that I printed myself.

Here's a version using the box that
once held grape tomatoes.

Just add your business cards in the corresponding slots!

If you have a growing collection, you can have several of these small boxes organized to your liking. For example, Box #1: letters A to M and Box #2: letters N to Z. You can also categorize by year or by "personal" and "business" contacts. You can easily stack these boxes on top of each other.

Or you can use a bigger box like this one
that once cradled strawberries.

Easy business card organization, right?
Please come back tomorrow for another idea!

Tea Time

Hip-hip-hooray, it's Friday! This week on my blog, I suggested some ideas on how to take drinking water to the next level. Just by adding some fresh summer fruit, we can easily turn an everyday beverage from blah to Tada!.

A cold drink will always be appreciated on a sweltering day but something hot ain't bad at all. I'm not talking about coffee. I'm talking about mint tea! Moroccan Mint Tea to be exact.

The whole Moroccan tea ceremony is a spectacle! Tea is served in a beautiful silver teapot and small tea glasses with intricate, colorful designs. The tea is poured high (this aerates the tea for better flavor) and sugar is added to the tea -- a sweet and soothing drink that warms the belly. This is Morocco's national drink and this will be served to you inside a home, a restaurant and at the souks.

Moroccan Mint Tea served with almond macaroons
as a snack or at the end of a meal.

Here's an easy way to prepare mint tea right in your kitchen (recipe from The Food of Morocco cookbook):

Ingredients:

1 bunch fresh spearmint
2 teaspoons Chinese gunpowder green tea
2 tablespoons white sugar, or to taste

Procedure:

Cut the ends of the mint stalks leaving leafy sprigs. Wash well, shake dry and roll in a clean dish towel to absorb excess moisture. Alternatively, dry mint in a salad spinner.

Rinse a 1 litre (36 fl oz/4 cup) teapot with boiling water, add the tea and a little boiling water, swirl briefly, let it settle, then carefully pour out the water to remove any tea dust. Half-fill pot with boiling water. Take a handful of the spearmint sprigs, crush lightly in the hand and add to the pot. Add more crushed mint sprigs until the pot is three-quarters full. Add the sugar and fill the pot with boiling water. Let the tea brew for three minutes.

Pour out a glass of tea and pour back into the pot. Repeat, twice more to mix the tea and to dissolve the sugar. Serve the tea in tea glasses, pouring it from a height to aerate the tea. Add a mint sprig (not crushed) to each glass.

Have a great weekend Everyone!

Berry Good!

When the summer season is at its peak and the weather is just too hot, an icy beverage is always a welcome treat.

But why settle for plain water when you can add
some of summer's sweetest fruits?

A berry nice blah to Tada! transformation!
Berry delicious, too.

Aguas Frescas

We're adding some boost to everyday drinking water
here at blah to Tada!.

After all, a little variety makes drinking more fun & less of a chore.

Today, we're making Aguas Frescas. The literal translation: "fresh or cool waters". Refreshing they are indeed! I learned about them from this website and first tried them at Mijita Cocina Mexicana at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market in San Francisco. "Wow!" is all I can say and made a mental note to try making these at home.

This drink of Mexican origin makes use of fresh fruits. My pick -- these mighty-cool cantaloupes:

I simply cube up some cantaloupe flesh (about 2 cups) and add them to a blender. I place the scooped-out seeds in a strainer, put this on top of the blender pitcher and with a spoon, "squeeze" out the juice (producing about 1 tablespoon...we don't want to waste anything, right?). I then add 2 cups of water and blend away! You may add some sugar (before blending) if the fruit isn't that sweet.

Tada! My version of aguas frescas (agua de melon).

You may strain the liquid as you pour it into a pitcher or tall glass barrel-shaped punch bowls (as they are traditionally served). That way, the liquid will be lighter and clearer. I happen to like the pulp so I skipped this step.

Get ready to be refreshed on a hot & humid day!

Pump Up Your Water

This week, we're giving some Tada! to blah, everyday drinking water.

Not that there's anything wrong with regular water.
But if you just add some citrus slices...

Tada! Instant color & flavor!

Ready to say Cheers?

Flavored Water

Happy New Week Everyone! I hope you all had a restful Saturday & Sunday. This week on blah to Tada, we're giving everyday drinking water a little pick-me-up.

Nothing wrong with water, especially a glass with lots of ice cubes!

Why not add some oomph to the ice cubes?
Just add some mint leaves & orange slivers to the water
before freezing.

You'll have lovely-looking ice cubes, I promise.

These frosty cubes will subtly flavor your water as it melts.
Tada! don't you think?

Fit for Evening

Hey, hey...it's Friday!

If you're going to a dressy event soon, today's blah to Tada! transformation will be right up your alley.

This week, it was all about empty tape rings and dispensers. We mustn't leave out that thick round of sealing tape, don't you agree?

It's still useful even after you've used up all the tape!

Okay, I'll reveal today's project -- we're making an evening bag!
We're using the empty tape ring as a handle.

I fashioned the bag using some thick cardboard.
No patterns, just free-form estimates with the help
of a ruler, pencil & eraser (I made many mistakes!).

Wrap the empty tape ring with your choice of fabric.

Secure with a glue gun.

Do the same for the entire bag.
Attach the handle & closures (button & ribbon)
with needle and thread.

Tada! Instant evening purse!
High style without the high price.

You can even slip the handle around your wrist
making it easy to hold a cocktail & plate of hors d' oeuvres.

Leave the bag plain (if using a shiny or printed fabric)
or decorate with bling & beads!

Happy partying & have a Tada! weekend!

Cool Cuff

We're recycling tape-related things this week, from dispensers to those plastic rings left after all the tape has been used up. Today, let's throw in packing tape to the mix. I think the cardboard ring is a fun thing to jazz up!

Doesn't this cry out B-A-N-G-L-E?

It might be too big for your wrist, though (we want people to say "How cute!" and not "Why are you wearing tape around your arm?"). An easy solution is to trim the cardboard with a knife until you've achieved the ideal bangle size.

Cover the board with a piece of fabric and secure with hot glue.

Overlap the ends for a snug fit on the wrist
and accessorize as you please!

I used a frog closure (also attached with hot glue) for a Victorian or Asian touch. You can add silver studs and a shiny skull for a rocker look. Use colorful printed fabric for a bohemian vibe or a strip of faux diamonds so you can wear this to your next formal event.

Tada! A special bangle that's not available at any store!

A Statement Accessory

This week's blah: plastic tape dispensers.

When the tape's all finished, don't throw away the plastic rings!

Wind a ribbon around the ring to instantly change the look!
The more, the merrier.

Then attach the rings to a chain...

Tada! You've got a necklace that makes quite a statement!

Here's another version using two rings, chains and a silk sash:

This will definitely add some Tada! to a simple outfit.

And for yet another version...

Glue the rings together to form a four-leaf clover or
five-petal flower, add sparkly buttons
and attach to a chain.

Wear the necklace off-center and
don't be surprised if this turns out to be
a conversation piece!

I Dream of Paris

Yesterday, we re-used empty tape dispensers to hold different kinds of tape.

Today, I'll show you how we can turn these empty tape rings
from blah to Tada!

Wrap a piece of ribbon (you'll need about 1 yard) around the ring
and secure the ends with a glue gun.

Tada! The plain ring is now a pretty pendant just by
adding a chain and/or a string of pearls.

Finish off with a favorite charm like this tiny Eiffel Tower...

...And you'll have a necklace that's totally unique!

Sitcky Situations

Happy Monday! I hope you had a nice weekend.

I've been rummaging through my pile of "stuff", and when I say "stuff", I mean things that badly need a blah to Tada! make-over. And if these things can talk, I'm sure they'd cry "Pick Me!". When I do choose them, a "Whoopee" would soon follow.

Here's what yelled "Whoopee" this week:

Sticky tape on their plastic dispensers.

When I've finished off the tape (usually during the holiday season after wrapping so many presents), this is all that's left.

Once a blah, now a Tada!: I removed the empty rings and replaced them with different kinds of tape that I regularly use, such as masking tape, floral tape and double-sided tape. I would also use these for electrical tape and tape with pretty prints (a whimsical way to seal a package). This makes cutting tape so much easier and doesn't leave any sticky stuff on a pair of scissors!