Playing with Silhouettes

Did you guys know that I Heart Faces now has their own web-based show hosted by My Craft Channel? Well they do! I was checking out the latest I Heart Faces episode and they talked about how to use Picnik or Photoshop to turn a photo into a silhouette that you could use for all kinds of crafts. I'd seen silhouettes in magazines and in craft blogs but have never actually made one myself.

So, inspired by the show I spent part of my afternoon playing around with photoshop and a great side profile picture of my son and my cousin's daughter and got this:

from this: 

(okay, this one is cropped a bit for modesty since it was a super hot day and Lillian is just wearing a diaper)

If you crop a bit to focus on just my kiddo, I've got this one now, too:

Love it!

I feel all kinds of crafty and accomplished and I haven't even done anything but make the graphics yet.  Amy and Angie (the I Heart Faces ladies) had some fun ideas for framing the silhouettes against fun patterned paper. I think they might look fun on a pillow or as a Christmas ornament of some kind, too. Or since halloween is coming up....maybe a pumpkin carving stencil?

So many ideas...so little time!  I'll keep you guys posted on what I decide to do with my fun new graphics. But won't you join me? Follow their easy instructions and get your own tutorial and let me know what you decide to make with yours!

As usual, I'm linking up with some fabulous parties:

* Made By You Mondays at Skip to My Lou * Creative Creations Tuesday at Nothing but Country * Get Your Craft On! at Today's Creative Blog *

Fall Wreath Round Up

I love me some fall decor! And while I love seasonal decor, I'm also lazy. I want to decorate for fall but I don't want to have to swap out my fall decor until I'm ready to put up my Christmas stuff. Which means I like fall decor that is generic enough to last from September through the end of November - not anything too Halloween or Thanksgiving specific.

I showed you my current fall wreath a couple weeks ago but wanted to share a few of my other favorite fall wreaths from around the internet for your crafting (and in one case, purchasing) enjoyment...

Autumn Wreath from In His Grip

Judy from In His Grip crafted this fabulous fall wreath using burlap strips, jute twine and other scrappy embellishments. She shows you step-by-step what she did so you can make your own fabulously rustic looking monogram wreath for your door, too.

Ombre Effect Wreath on Every Creative Endeavor

Bev from Flamingo Toes shares a guest post over at Every Creative Endeavor for how to make this beautiful ombre rosette wreath. It's a complete tutorial including how to make the fabric rosettes and how to print on fabric (it's surprisingly easy) to make the cute little bunting.

$10 Fall Wreath from Shanty 2 Chic

Whitney from Shanty 2 Chic is due to have a baby any day now but it hasn't stopped her from crafting up a storm. This cute wreath is made from Hobby Lobby finds and looks super high end but cost less than $10! Love that! Go check out her tutorial and wish her luck with her new little bundle of baby.

Mossy Pumpkin Wreath from Etsy Seller TwoInspireYou

Want a super cute wreath but you're out of time with the Halloween frenzy coming up next week? Pop over to Etsy seller TwoInspireYou's shop and pick up this cute mossy wreath with little pumpkin accents and burlap ribbon hanger. Adorable!

I hope you guys enjoyed my fall wreath round up! If you love wreaths like I do, I'm always adding more to my wreath board over on Pinterest. Also.....if you were featured, please feel free to grab a button!

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Vanilla Chai Tea Latte Cupcakes

I love me some tasty chai. That warm, spicy, vanilla flavor is like a big hug on a cool fall day. I love translating great flavors into cupcakes. These would be great for a fall potluck or to pair with a cup of coffee.

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/3 cups vanilla soy milk
• 1 Tbsp loose OR 3 tea bags of Chai Spice tea
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 sticks (12 Tbsp) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 1 Tbsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• Cream cheese frosting (purchased or I like this recipe)
• Cinnamon for garnish

 Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line muffin tin with cupcake papers.
   
   
2. Heat soy milk in a small sauce pan over medium heat until it begins to bubble (keep an eye on the soy milk while you're warming it up as it's easy to scald it if it boils up too much). Remove from heat, add tea and cover. Allow to stand for approximately 10 minutes.
   
   
3. While the tea is steeping, sift the three kinds of flour together in a medium bowl and set aside.
   
   
4. When tea is done steeping, pour through a strainer (if using loose tea) or squeeze tea bags gently to retain as much liquid as possible. Measure out 1 1/4 cups of the tea milk. If you come up short, add more soy milk to equal 1 1/4 cup. Set aside.
5. Cream butter and sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer. With mixer still going, add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla, salt and baking powder.
6. With mixer still running, add 1/3 of the tea milk, once incorporated, add 1/3 of the flour mixture. Alternate back and forth adding a portion of tea milk and then flour until all ingredients have been incorporated. Continue beating on low speed until batter is smooth and shiny.
7. Divide batter evenly between 24 baking cups. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.
8. Allow cupcakes to cool completely before frosting. Add a generous dollop of frosting to the top of each cupcake to simulate foam on top of a hot latte. Garnish with a dash of cinnamon.

This is an original recipe designed for non-commercial use (bake sales are ok....if you own a cupcake shop or bakery and want to use my recipe, let's talk). This recipe is also available through my BakeSpace account.

I'm sharing this recipe with these great parties:

*Made by You Mondays on Skip to My Lou * DebbieDoo's Blogging and Blabbing * Get Your Craft On * Cast Party at The Lady Behind the Curtain * Permanent Posies * Cupcake Tuesday at Hoosier Homemade * Blue Cricket Designs Show and Tell Party * What's Cooking Wednesday at The King's Court IV * Linkin' with Lil' Luna every Wednesday * Nothing But Country *

My recipe has since been featured on...

Carissa's Creativity Space on Facebook + Button Love!

We've done a little but of a tune up over here at Carissa's Creativity Space and have some news to share (no Mom, I'm not pregnant).

News #1: Carissa's Creativity Space is now on Facebook
You spend tons of time each week there anyway, so why not spend it with me? You'll be able to keep up with the newest stuff happening over here plus see links to projects from other really fabulous bloggers.

News #2: We've got our own button
Want to tell the world how much you love me? You can now add a Carissa's Creativity Space button to your blog.

<a href="http://creativecarissa.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAUNDcB-4KFplg2XNXFNEBFPUIBBPMlY01TxF8CaDEugrjJ67sBHm7HqqJSA22RgVEk6kbS7Pj6Rd5ZCerSDDmeRE08nvysw-IBMcj5Aipzzq_nZzDttK5u3MAOOgh0QrVbrM-HZ4iMe4/s150/button%252520150%252520px.jpg" alt="Carissa's Creativity Space" width="125" height="125" /></a>

Thanks for letting me share some of the newest bloggy stuff happening over here.  But don't worry! It's not just self promotion day. I've got a tasty fall recipe I'm sharing in my next post.

Easy Fall Wreath

I love Autumn. The gardener in me is a little sad that it's time to put my garden to bed for the winter (minus the   limited fall gardening I do). The crafter in me gets excited because now I can spend my gardening time doing fun fall and winter crafts.  Of course Fall has not officially begun until I hang a seasonal fall wreath on my door. So today I'm happy to announce...

Fall is Officially Here!

Does this count as a Craft Fail?

A couple months ago a blogged about how I made a book box for my son. To decorate it a bit, I wrapped some leftover black yarn around the top of the box.  Apparently what I saw as decoration, my son saw as "leash." I was working the kitchen the other day and turned around and saw this:

Lesson learned: Firmly secure all decorative items before putting them anywhere near a toddler.

Apple Cinnamon French Toast (Visually)

I've been on a warm fall foods kick in our house. Last weekend it was baby cinnamon rolls. This week it's Apple Cinnamon French Toast.  The apple flavor is subtle but a great way to gussy up the french toast if you aren't normally a fan of the whole grain flavor.

If you prefer your recipes in standard layouts that are easier to read (or print), this recipe has also been posted on BakeSpace here. If you are a newbie or just like watching the process, read on!

How to Make Baby Cinnamon Rolls

Yesterday I told you about getting to meet Heather from Dollar Store Crafts at the premiere party for her new show, Get a Little Creative. And as you all know....a party isn't a party without great food!  The night before the party, I was stressing a little about what to bring because I needed to bring something either awesomely creative or super tasty....but I had no time to invest in making something awe-inspiring. I didn't have time to run to the store, either, which meant I needed to come up with something great using items I already had on hand. A tall order!

I remembered I had a roll of low fat crescent roll dough in the fridge and with some pantry staples figured I could gussy them up a bit to make something. A little of this and a little of that and these babies were born. And boy were they awesome!  They turned out even better than I had hoped. Plus they were easy and quick to make. I'm sure they will be making appearances at future potlucks and fall food events this year!

Get a Little Creative Premiere Party

Have you heard about My Craft Channel's line up of new shows this fall? They have about a dozen shows that have a brand new webisode each week. This is is the same place that The DIY Dish girls have their show (love them!).

So in addition to getting more of Kris and Kim (that would be the DIY Dish girls), I'm excited about a brand new show called Get a Little Creative. Jennifer Hadfield (of Tatertots and Jello), Heather Mann (of Dollar Store Crafts) and Becky Farrant (of Infarrantly Creative) highlight projects from different bloggers as well as share tutorials, food, holiday inspiration and more. In a word: this show is going to be full of Awesomeness.

So to celebrate the kick off of Get a Little Creative, I was invited to the Portland premiere party hosted by Heather and her mom, Kathy. My little guy had fun playing with her three little guys while the grown ups got to play with fun craft supplies that Heather brought back from her adventure in New York filming for the Martha Stewart show. We made cards and bookmarks and buntings and I made a little coin purse out of fun patterned duct tape, too. Crafty times were had by all. PLUS I got to meet celebrity craft blogger, Heather Mann in real life (I may be having a bit of a fan girl moment here).