DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

   Every year on January 17th, the people of San Bartolome de Pinares, Spain , celebrate St. Anthony's by riding their horese, donkeys and mules through piles of burning tree branches.     The unique tradition of leaping over and through flames dates back 500 years, but the men and women of San Bartolome de Pinares still celebrate it religiously. They gather all the branches they can find in the days leading up to the festivities, and when dusk falls on the eve of Saint Anthony's, they light the branches into a bonfire. Riders jump and run their mounts through the burning piles of the branches in the middle of the village, accompanied by sound of drums and Spanish bagpipes. Drinking wine during the purification festival     Jumping through the flames is said to bring the animals the protection of St. Anthony Abad, acknowledged as the patron saint of domestic animals, ever since the Middle Ages. Locals believe th...

   This recipe comes from www.sweetapolita.com .  They even look too good to eat.  Enjoy! My Heart Belongs To U: Neapolitan Milk &  Chocolate Sugar Cookies I hope you are having a great Saturday! So far, I’ve had a great day. I was able to drive into the city (Toronto) this morning (all alone!) for a much-needed trip to the hair salon, a leisurely shop at the most fabulous gourmet grocer, Pusateri’s, and, naturally, a quick stop to Starbucks for my drive home. I hope you’re also having a fabulous weekend, and that you’re able to fill it full of love-y treats and projects. If you read my last post, you’ll remember that I just can’t get enough of the Valentine’s Day treats this year (and just love-inspired sweets all-around). I really wanted to get one more love-themed treat in before the weekend was over, so although this will be a short & sweet post, I’m so happy I was able to share these cookies with you. You know what else I can’t get en...

   This diy comes from www.shanty-2-chic.com .  An inventive idea to have around for the holidays and every day to put pinecones, nuts, faux fruit or any other decorative item you can think of.  Have fun! Hey Guys!! I spent my weekend with the fam in Lubbock and made it home just in time to share my next project with you. A few weeks ago I saw a picture of an antique cake stand in a magazine and was instantly inspired to copy… although this shanty is far from antique:) Here’s what I did… I started by purchasing my supplies. I found three great hat boxes at Hobby Lobby at 50% off. I paid less than $12 for all three… woohoo!! I also bought 2 unfinished wood candlesticks and a bag of 6 little candlesticks. This picture shows 3… you only need 2. I also had my Gorilla Glue Epoxy handy… Hot glue will not cut it on this project! I had to pull out my big guns… For this project I only used the tops of the hat boxes. My first step was to g...

   This comes from www.tradewindtiaras.blogspot.com . These look really cool and very yummy. Great for any party! How to Make Sugar Cookies That Look Like Ice Cream One of my favorite elements from our recent Neapolitan ice cream April Fool's Day party was the recipe for cookies that looked like scoops of ice cream. Sugar cookies that look like ice cream cones! Several years ago, there was an Etsy seller who sold cookies that looked like these (she was shut down for running an unlicensed kitchen, unfortunately, so you can't buy them from her any more). I fell in love with the pictures way back then, and it's been my goal to figure out how to make these adorable little things ever since. I tried a number of different recipes, but it turns out that my favorite recipe for making cutout sugar cookies is the best one for this job, too. Here's the basic recipe. No Fail Sugar Cookies (NFSC) 6 cups flour 3t baking powder 2 cups butt...

<br /> <div style="display:none;"><img src="//pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-667kKyWiI-Jvw.gif" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt="Quantcast"/><br /> </div> Origins of the Straw Bear     In Whittlesea, from when no one quite knows, it was the custom on the Tuesday following Plough Monday (the 1st Monday after Twelfth Night) to dress one of the confraternity of the plough in straw and call him a "Straw Bear". A newspaper of 1882 reports that ..."he was then taken around the town to entertain by his frantic and clumsy gestures, the good folk who had on the previous day subscribed to the rustics, a spread of beer, tobacco and beef".     The bear was described as having great lengths of tightly twisted straw bands prepared and wound up the arms, legs and body of the man or boy who was unfortunate enough to have been chosen. Two sticks fastened to his shoulders met a...

   This diy comes from www.makethebestofthings.blogspot.com .  Another really cool decoracting Idea.  Enjoy! 3 D effect with hot glue I've been kicking this idea around in my head for awhile and I just decided to do it. How can I get a dimensional, 3 D image on a vase, jar, box or even a canvas? I considered cutting shapes out of foam and gluing them on, or gluing on store bought appliques or even jewelry charms. But all of those require a bit more effort or money and I knew there was a simpler way. So here's what I came up with..... The standard thrift store cheap glass vase. The sticker on the bottom says fifty cents, so it was a bargain. Now for my design.... Aha! It's my "leaving the house and my hair is a mess" hat. I got the pretty applique for $1 and it makes it look less like my "bad hair day" hat and more like a stylish statement. That's what I tell myself, anyway. Lol! So, I love the look of the fleur de...