Locket Love

I bought this bag of scrap at a flea market:

It contains the ingredients for a number of Tada! accessories!

All you need is a little imagination.

From the many choices, I picked out the lovely gold
locket (lower right) with a tiny cameo.
Isn't it pretty?

Then I added this to the other lockets I collected

over the years and attached them on a chain.

It's a wonderful way to keep photos of people (or pets) that you hold dear and you can take it with you wherever you go, like a little brag book on a chain.

It also makes for a nice milestone gift for a daughter
or best friend, with LOVE written all over it!

See you again tomorrow so I can show you what else
I made from my bag of scrap.

The Bold & the Beautiful

This week on my blog, I'll be showing you the Tadas! I made
from the blahs found in this bag of scrap.

Here's a peek at what's inside.

Today I'll be working with the gold brooch & faux pearls
and I added a chain to the mix (purchased at a craft store).

Glue the pearls on the brooch &
attach the brooch to the chain...

Tada! a beautiful necklace delivering a bold statement!

The Bag of Scrap

Happy Monday Everyone!

Let me tell you about what I found at a one of my favorite New York City flea markets. I found a vendor selling bags upon bags of scrap! Yes, that's excitement in my voice alright! Only you fellow crafters can truly understand what the value of a bag of scrap means to me.

Here it is, my two dollar flea market find!
I quickly opened it and segregated my treasures.

A brooch, pendants, buckles, faux pearls,
beads, buttons, loose chandelier parts,
a bunch of findings & earrings without a pair...

...and even more beads in fun colors & sizes.

I picked this little mouse for my first blah to Tada! project
from this bag of scrap. Some rubbing with a soft cloth
made him shiny & new.

A hook below its mouth tells me that this is a buckle.

And a belt buckle it will be!
I bought myself some stretchy
velvet ribbon and a gold connector.

I cut the ribbon to the ideal size,
attached the mouse buckle on one end &
the connector on the opposite end by hand stitching.

Tada! I have a quirky, cute belt
to liven up a simple outfit!

Little Decorator

We're keeping these honey bear containers from the trash bin and using them for creative pursuits. How can you throw away such cuteness anyway?

Once a blah, now a Tada!

Re-purpose your honey bear as an icing dispenser.
Use your favorite frosting recipe and
tint it with your favorite colors.

Oh what fun the kids will have decorating cupcakes,
cookies & birthday cakes!

Parental supervision & creative inspiration
provided by the honey bear!

Decorate your cake & eat it, too!

Have a spectacular Tada! weekend!

Sweetie Buddy Bear

Happy Thursday Everyone!

Have you ever tried condensed milk before? By itself it tastes like very sweet, thickened milk. It's used in many recipes like flan, tres leches cake, banoffee pie and can be cooked to make dulce de leche.

Condensed milk has a pretty long shelf life so if you can't use up the contents of an entire can in a recipe, transfer the remaining milk in a small bottle or plastic container (storing it in the can isn't safe).

May I suggest using an empty honey bear bottle?

Tada! Milk in a bottle!
Label the bottle, store in the refrigerator and
take him out once in while.

I would use it to make Vietnamese coffee.

I'd also use it to sweeten a tall glass of iced coffee.

And even drizzle it over a fresh fruit salad.

I wish you a sweet, sweet day!

Berry Syrup

If you like honey, then you've met these bears already:

I think they're too cute to throw away.
Let me show you how they can go from blah to Tada!

Grab some of your favorite berries...

...then cook them down to a syrup.

Cool and pour into a clean honey bear bottle.

Tada! Homemade berry syrup!

Perfect for a stack of pancakes, crepes or even ice cream.

Enjoy your day & see you tomorrow!

Bear-y Sweet!

Happy Tuesday! We're on a mission to save the bears this week...

Honey bear bottles to be exact!
When the honey has be consumed,
clean the bottle and save it for another use.

Use it to serve sugar syrup for coffee and cocktails.
This assures you that there are no sugar crystals
at the bottom of the mug or glass!

To make sugar syrup, you will need: 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar. In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil. Add the sugar and stir until it has dissolved. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Cool and transfer to honey bear bottle. Store in fridge.

Ain't it great that you can have Mr. Honey Bear with you day or night?
Wishing you a sweet day...see you tomorrow!

Honey Bears

Hello everyone! I hope the weekend has left you rejuvenated and excited for the new week. It's all about cute and cuddly on blah to Tada!. But you may be asking, "How can something cute and cuddly be a blah?"

Does this answer your question?
When a honey bear bottle has no honey anymore,
that qualifies as a blah!

Blah is now Tada! when we re-use the bottle.
Fill it with juice (cranberry, orange or grape are my picks)...

Make some shaved ice in your blender or food processor...

Drizzle juice on the shaved ice using Mr. Honey Bear and
Tada! -- instant snow cone!

This is great for parties or play dates where the kiddies can pick their favorite flavor and color. So remember, when the honey has run out, SAVE THE BEARS!

See you tomorrow for another Tada! idea.

Going Bananas

It's Friday and I'm going bananas!
I mean that both figuratively and literally:

I've got some ready for a blah to Tada! transformation.

I turned them into banana bread, baked in muffin tins.

Very easy to grab as a quick breakfast!

And yet another transformation -- my version of a banana trifle! I cubed up some banana bread, sliced some bananas and put these in a glass, topped it with ice cream and some dulce de leche (you can use caramel or chocolate syrup, too).

Tada! Instant dessert!

Have a fabulous long weekend everyone!

Ice Pops

It's all about cool & sweet this week when we turned plain old ice cream from blah to Tada!

Here's another idea using a recipe adapted from Gourmet magazine:

We'll turn vanilla ice cream into Strawberry-Vanilla Swirled Frozen Pops!

Here's what we'll need:
1 lb strawberries, hulled & halved
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 pints vanilla ice cream, room temperature
12 (1/3 cup) ice pop molds or 12 paper cups and 12 wooden sticks

Here's what we need to do: Mash strawberries in a large bowl with a potato masher or fork. Add the sugar and the lemon juice. Add in the vanilla ice cream and mix just enough to combine.

Spoon the mixture into molds or cups -- I used an ice cube tray.

Add the wooden sticks & return to the freezer until firm.

Tada! Pink popsicles with bits of juicy strawberries.
Go ahead and indulge!

Have an awesome weekend everyone!