~Cute Mani DIY~

Happy Sunday everyone!!!

Today I want to share with you a little DIY on how to be creative with your nails. Valentine's day is very close... just a couple of days away.. if you are like me who likes to have pretty nails {Mom's life doesn't allow me to have them pretty for very long....} and cannot afford to pay for a manicure, I have a little secret on how I make my own cute decorations. Yes, most of the time I simply paint my nails, but when I find the time to be more creative this is what I do:

WHAT YOU NEED:

• at least 2 shades of colored NAIL POLISH
• clear Nail Polish (for a shiny final look)
• small SCISSORS
• WASHI TAPE

Cut a piece of washi tape

Fold it and cut half heart

Gently open the tape and you'll have a full heart

       

  

Place the tape on one of your painted and dried nails, paint a coat of a different color polish, blow on 

it and carefully remove it. The last thing to do is a final coat of clear polish. Et voila'!!!

I chose a heart because of Valentine's Day and because I love hearts... but you can cut out anything! A circle, a diamond, a star...depending on how good you are with scissors!! You can even do simple lines like I did for my daughter:

   

I hope you like this idea. Be creative!! That's all it matters and you'll have cute mani and save lots of money! :)))

xoxo,

Products I used:

                                          

~National Teach Embroidery Month~

Good Morning to all of you!!

yes, it's early morning here in California and with a little peace and quiet I finally decided to start writing this post. As you can see from the title, February is the "National Teach Embroidery Month"!!! Who knew? I would have had no idea if I wasn't following Sublime Stitching on instagram {if you are somewhat interested in embroidering, you should check out this website! It's full of tutorials, patterns...everything you need to know to start this beautiful art}. Jenny Hart is the artist behind all this. Check her amazing work HERE . I read her post about teaching embroidery and I knew right away that it was something I had to do... teaching my daughters how to embroider. I signed-up and I received some patterns in the mail. I gathered all we needed and I started teaching them. They loved it! Here is some pictures of their work:

The patterns they chose were easily transferred on fabric

Maddalena, 14 years old

Francesca, 10 years old



Their final work

Not bad for first time stitchers!! Right? All I know is that we will keep working, they are ready to start with their next project and I'm ready to start teaching them different stitches. I just want to thank Jenny Hart for the encouragement and ideas. 

Much love to you all.

xoxo,

~Hoop Love~

Ciao Everyone!

in this post I just want to say thank you to all the people that are supporting my little shop. You have no idea how happy my heart is when I see a "like", even just a "view"...and every time someone buys one of my creations I'm just amazed. The thought of something that I make is displayed in your house or used by you makes me incredibly happy!!!

I have recently sold a few of my embroidered hoops, especially during Christmas time. I am right now finishing up an order of one of my favorite hoops... "HOME SWEET HOME". I created it originally for my sister, when she finally found a beautiful home for her little family. I don't follow patterns, I've always like to draw, so I make my own designs and then stitch them. I feel like embroidering is like coloring with thread! I really love what I do.

Here's a few pictures of my favorite hoops, and their links:

HOME SWEET HOME

BLESSED

DO SMALL THINGS WITH GREAT LOVE

BE STILL MY SOUL

xoxo,

~Banana chocolate-chip muffins~

Hello everyone!!!

today is Sunday and that's when we usually have a little extra time to make something special for our kids, or just for ourselves.. ;) One of the things of everyday life I really enjoy is cooking. I recently found a delicious recipe that is perfect for an afternoon snack or even breakfast. I'm talking about Banana Chocolate-chip muffins! They are perfect especially when you have a couple of bananas getting darker and darker on your kitchen counter... how many times that happens in my house....... well, if that's the case, look for a couple extra ingredients and make these!! You won't be disappointed.

BANANA CHOCOLATE-CHIP MUFFINS 

(ingredients for 12 medium muffins)

• 3 ripe BANANAS, mashed
• 3/4 cup SUGAR
• 1 EGG
• 1/3 cup BUTTER, melted
• 1 1/2 cups self-rising FLOUR
• 1 cup of CHOCOLATE-CHIPS

Mix sugar and egg to the mashed bananas. Add melted butter (you can use margarine if you prefer). Add the flour (if you don't have the self-rising kind, just use the regular flour + 1 tsp of baking powder) and mix well. Add chocolate-chips at last folding them in the batter.

Pour the batter into muffin molds and bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes. I check if they are cooked inserting a tooth-pick in one of the muffins, if it comes out clean it means they are ready!!

I hope you like them!! Enjoy them with a cup of coffee or tea! Let me know what you think.

xoxo,