A Secret Obsession

I'll be honest with you, I don't even really call it an obsession....it's just sort of happened over they years and now I realize it's kind of out of control.  Sooooo, here it is:  I'm addicted to nail polish.  No, No, I don't eat it or sniff it or do anything out of the ordinary with it.  (There's no need for any sort of intervention here.)  I just like to collect nail polish.  I don't normally wear nail polish on my finger nails.  Every now and again, I'll be known to put a coat of black on my nails, but for the most part, I keep my nails clean and clear.  My toes on the other hand....well, that's another story.  I love giving myself a pedicure!  And, I'm pretty good at it, even if I do say so myself.  I love to change colors and sport new toes for an outing.  It's one of the things strange things that I will admit to being girly about.  So, it seems that my "collection" has gotten rather large lately.

Crazy amounts of Nail Polish.
(And, this was after I had cleaned out my stash!)

I've even been reading blogs on manicures and pedicures.  What is wrong with me?????  Over the past few days, I've bought 5 new bottles of nail polish....okay it was really 7, but 3 of them are mini bottles, so I can't count them as a whole bottle.  I spent half of the day Sunday, watching football and giving myself a pedicure AND manicure.  YIKES!!!  I've got so many other things going on in my house, the last thing I need to be doing is wasting a half of day sitting in one place, waiting for my nails to dry.  I'm starting to think I've inhaled too much nail polish remover and maybe I should see a doctor.  But hey, I can tell you this.....My mani/pedi ROCKS!!!

DIY - Silver Cleaning

A few years ago, I was in some desperate need of cleaning some of my Sterling Silver jewelry.  I had run out of silver cleaning polish and really didn't feel like buying more, as it was kind of pricey.  So I went out looking for a way to do it myself, with stuff from home.  I cam across this great trick to clean my silver, with things I already have in my house  Here ya go, Deanne.  Put away the smelly Rhubarb!!  :-)

Silver Cleaning

What You'll Need:

Bowl/Baking Dish
Aluminum Foil
Salt
Liquid Dish Soap
Warm Water

This is all about magnetizing the tarnish away.  Just line the bottom of a bowl baking dish with a sheet of aluminum foil and fill the bowl with warm water.  Add a generous amount of salt (if using a bowl, add about 3-4 Tablespoons) and a little squirt of liquid dish soap.  Place the tarnished flatware/*jewelry or other silver in bowl/dish and watch the tarnish begin to disappear.  The natural chemical reaction actually magnetizes the tarnish right off, and you won't have to do any buffing!  Remove your silver items and wipe clean with a soft rag and there you go!
* This is only for Flatware, Sterling Silver and Silver Plated items.

Recipe - Greek Frappe

Ora Gia Kafe!!  (Time for Coffee!!)

Greek Nescafe Frappe

When visiting Greece, there were no Starbucks on the Island of Santorini, to my dismay.  I was a little unsure if I was even going to survive the trip, without my daily Non-Fat White Mocha, but I discovered something amazing.  Nescafe' Frappes or Greek Frappes.  Turns out, these little iced wonders are so popular in Greece, that many homes have their own soda fountain type of drink mixers in order to make their lives easier.  I fell in love immediately with this frothy version of an iced coffee.  It wasn't until a while ago, did I figure out the secret of making the perfect Frappe.  Here's how it's done:

Greek Frappe

Nescafe' Instant Coffee (Classico in the US)
Ice Water
Evaporated Milk (or your regular milk, but may be omitted entirely)
Sugar (Optional)
Ice
Cocktail Shaker or some sort of drink shaker/mixer
Drinking Straw

Take your cocktail shaker and put in 2 Tablespoons of Nescafe Instant Coffee (the best is Nescafe Frappe, but it's not readily available here in the U.S, except thru Amazon or parthenonfoods.com).  Next add 4 tablespoons of ice cold water, and 2 teaspoons of sugar (depending on how you like your coffee, more for sweet or you can omit this entirely).  Now, put the lid on the shaker (don't forget this step or you're going to have a BIG mess!!) and shake the shaker for 30 seconds.  This will create a thick foam inside.  Now, take your glass and put 4 or 5 ice cubes in it.  Pour contents of shaker over ice, slowly add small amount of milk (if desired) and fill the rest with ice water.  (It's important to add a straw, because this drink requires stirring, as you drink.)  You should now have a tall, frothy glass of Greek Frappe.  Play around with the recipe, until you find your correct Frappe goodness.  It takes time and practice to make the perfect Frappe.  OPA!!

My Favorite Place on Earth - Part 1

Oia (Island of Santorini, Greece)

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about the Holiday we took to Greece, in May of 2009.  It was a once-in-a-lifetime trip and the memories are never far from my mind.  Words cannot describe the serene and  majestic beauty that enveloped us, the moment we stepped off the plane in Thira, located the southern Aegean Sea.  The Island of Santorini is about a 50 minute plane ride from Athens and is one of the most picturesque places in the world.  The island itself, sits atop a volcano, which last erupted in 1950.  It is approx. 80 square kilometers around and has a population of approx 11,000.  Unique Villages fill the island with tourists from May thru October.  During the winter months, most locals relocate back to Athens, leaving the island virtually closed.
We were so lucky to have had the opportunity to visit this incredible place for 2 weeks.  We stayed in the Village of Oia, in a traditional cave house.  I wish I had the words to describe the feeling of tranquility that washed over me, when we arrived at our little apartment, that we would call home.  I think the first thing out of my mouth was "Wow!  It's so peaceful here!"  These were our views from our patio:

Looking out over Oia Village, Greece

A view of the Capitol City of Thira (Fira)

Chris and I enjoying pure bliss!

Our traditional cave house - The Aegeas Houses

We had the only red house in the Village of Oia, so it was easy to pick out in the distance, when we were out sight seeing.
While I would love to share every minute of our journey thru Santorini, it would be a very long post and people would probably leave my blog in droves.  I'll share a few more pictures and maybe you'll be able to capture a little bit of the beauty that is Oia and the Island of Santorini.

Dusk in Oia and the famous blue domed Churches

Iconic image of the Greek Islands

Stairs are everywhere here.  You cannot use a car on the streets
of Oia.  Walking up and down is your only choice here.

It's almost 300 steps down to the water's edge.  It's not about
going down....it's all about coming back up.

Windows that were so inviting

Doors that lead to beautiful sanctuaries

Grape Vines grow close to the ground here, allowing the grapes
to get much needed water.

Stray Cats and Dogs were everywhere

One of the biggest draws to Oia, was the nightly
sunsets.  Tourists from all over the island would arrive
around 4pm and wait for the sun to set.

Shopping on the main streets of Oia

Baklava and cakes, oh my!!!  

Fresh Fish in Thira (Fira)

Capitol City of Thira (Fira)

For some reason, this planter intrigues me.

Inside of the dome of a Greek Orthodox Church

Just one of the many places to stay in Oia

So many hidden gems to photography.  Such beauty to behold.

That's it for now.....I'll post more photos another day/time.  For now....Kalinihta (Good Night)

Recipe - Strawberry Daiquiri Whipped Buttercream

I had a request for a Strawberry Daiquiri cake, for a 15 year old.  Since I won't put alcohol in a child's cake, I wanted to do something that taste like a Strawberry Daiquiri, only on the virgin side.  The cake part was easy enough, but coming up with a filling was another thing.  I decided to try doing a Strawberry Daiquiri Buttercream, with a twist.  It came out really light and fluffy, but with that distinctive Strawberry-Lime flavor.  I hope I get all the ingredients right, as I was just sort of madly pouring and mixing, like I was some sort of chemist.

Strawberry Daiquiri Whipped Buttercream

1 1/2 Cups Shortening
1 Cup Butter
8 Cups Powdered Sugar, Sifted
Pinch of Popcorn Salt
2 Tablespoons Lime Curd
2-3 oz Non-Alcoholic Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri Mix (Thawed out)
2-3 oz Heavy Cream
1/4 Teaspoon Rum Extract
Zest of 1 Lime
* Lime Oil (Optional, but for additional Lime flavoring)

Mix Shortening and Butter together until fluffy.  Mix in half of the powdered sugar and a pinch of popcorn salt, along with half of the Strawberry Daiquiri Mix and half of the Heavy Cream.  Blend on medium until well blended.  Add the remaining ingredients and blend completely until smooth.  Buttercream should be light and fluffy, but not stiff.  Too stiff, add more daiquiri mix.  Too soft, add more powdered sugar.  Happy Baking!

Fun New Finds!

Today I hit the Merchant Square Market Place in Chandler.  This place is comprised of tons of stuff, ranging from Antiques to old doors and shutters.  While I'm not much into antiques, there are a lot of projects that require stuff like old shutters and seems like they've been impossible to locate.  Well, I found a great old wood shutter today, along with a little red stool, that had me all excited.

Latest find.  The "Before" picture.

The shutter was fantastic, because it is just long enough that I could cut it in half and use it as two pieces.  I've already started striping the old paint off of it (luckily, the paint was pealing off pretty good when I bought it.) and preparing it for white paint.

The stool is so cute!  I've got a fresh coat of white paint on it and tomorrow I'll sand it down just enough to let some of the red show thru.  The bench cushion will be re-done and covered with burlap.  I might just get really creative and do some stenciling on the burlap before I staple it on.  Who knows?

I can't wait to sell some more of my things, just so I can go back to the Merchants Square.  I am especially fond of the outdoor merchants.  You need some rustic picket fences?  They have it.  What about a giant plastic Coke bottle display?  They have that too.  I've even found the long sought after oars I had been wanting.  Wouldn't ya know it?  Of course, now that I've already bought and painted two, I don't really need any more, so I'll have to find something else to buy.  

I've got a cake to work on for this weekend, so I'll have to put off the interior decorating projects for a couple of days.  I hope I don't have some sort of withdraw, while I'm working on cakes.  

Boat Oars

Every single day, I have checked Craigslist, in hopes that I would come across someone selling old wooden boat oars.  There hasn't been a sighting since I started checking.  With no prospects in my grasp, I broke down and purchased 2 brand new wooden oars at The Bass Pro Shop.  It was such a shame to bring them home and have to immediately sand them down and scruff them up.  I had big plans to paint these puppies and varnish was just going to get in my way.  I sanded, for what seemed like hours, making sure to get every inch of gloss off of these oars.  They were finally ready for fresh coats of paint.  Painting was tedious, due to the stripes and paint colors.  After a couple days of painting, the oars were ready for their new home on the wall.

Painted Wood Boat Oars

I'll be honest, after I got them up, I started having second thoughts.  Not about the oars, just about the placement of the oars.  I'm still trying to figure this part out and maybe after I find bedside lamps, I'll have a better idea if I want to leave them there or move them over the closet (which was option #2).  If I do decide to move them, Chris might not be happy with me again.  He had to paint half of the bedroom with a fresh coat of blue, due to all the holes from previous decor.  More holes = more paint.  Oops!

I also got around to hanging up my W-I-N-E cork project.  I photographed the letters a while back.  Here they are up on the wall:

Next week, I need to get the word, B-A-R done, to go on the opposite side of the picture (which you can't see) and then I can cross another project off the endless list.

Speaking of endless lists, I've already started thinking about Guest Bedroom #2.  So many ideas are whirling around in my head.  This room has never really been decorated completely, so it's nice to start from scratch.  The room is painted a wonderful darker olive green, black furniture, white wood shutters and white moldings. It's a beautiful color pallet and I think I'll stick with those initial 3 colors.  I've got ruffle curtains already planned out (Yes, Anna....once again, we're doing a lot of the same decorating).
Here's really thinking ahead............

Master Bedroom Dreams

I LOVE everything about this bedroom.This is the color scheme I want in our Master Suite.  For now, I'll be happy with what we have and every so often, I'll stare longingly at this picture and dream of days to come.