My Origami Owl Order Arrived!

My necklace came in a Chinese takeout box!

    I saw a picture of a gorgeous Origami Owl necklace on Pinterest; it was pinned from the Finding Normal blog, where the blogger explained how she had selected the locket, the charms and backplate, and showed photos of the finished product.  I was immediately hooked!

   Origami Owl's necklaces are called "Living Lockets:" you can select charms to put inside your locket, which has glass in the front and back to show them off.  You can also choose the size of your locket, whether it will be gold, rose gold, or silver; and whether or not it will be surrounded by crystals.  A hand-stamped metal backplate that can rest behind the charms is also available.  There are other customizable options, and since you can open up the locket to change or rearrange the contents at will, these really are "living" pieces of jewelry! 

My locket: what a great "fortune!"

    Although I almost never purchase special things like this for myself, I loved this idea so much, I immediately created my locket and ordered it before I could have second thoughts.  It arrived today and I'm so thrilled to see that it's all I'd hoped and more!  

    As the blogger at Finding Normal noted, the packaging is gorgeous.  The locket came in a darling little takeout container.  Inside were my charms and backplate along with a little fabric fortune cookie that contained my locket and chain.

The locket with chain and extra charms.

     I often have trouble with chains for necklaces: they seem to choke me more often than not.  So I was prepared to have to use another chain for my necklace, but was pleasantly surprised that the one that came with my locket was not only more than long enough, but beautiful and extremely adjustable for length, so I can wear it with a variety of necklines.

 

     I picked out six charms for my locket, but I can't use all of them at once without obscuring the backplate.  However, the metal plate is easy to remove, so when I want to, I can wear them all inside the locket. I also can switch out the charms depending on my mood.  Since I am easily tired of the same old thing, this is great news!

 

    Here are a few more photos of the locket.  I'm wearing it already, even though no one is here to appreciate it save me and the dogs.  I just love how it looks and feels! 

I chose a large silver locket with crystals around the edge, a gold backplate with the word "blessed," and six charms.

My six charms: butterfly (change and growth), an "amethyst" heart (husband's birthstone), an angel wing (protection and faith), a sand dollar (my love of the beach), a cross (faith), and a suitcase that says "NY" and "LA" (my two hometowns/states, and my love for travel).

Wearing my beautiful new locket!

Beet Burgers to Die For...

I cannot take credit for this recipe!  I got it from the fabulous farmers that run Muddy Fingers Farm and our CSA (not sure what a CSA is? follow the link...): Matthew and Liz.  They shared the recipe on the blog they write for our CSA.  Then Liz encouraged me to try them, saying they were amazing. Not only were they as good as she said, but my husband, who usually runs with the "it's not a meal if it doesn't include meat" crowd, loved them! Best of all, they're really healthy, even if they don't taste that way, and they're a great excuse to visit your local farmer's market, even at this time of year.  Carrots and beets may be available!

So that you can get your beet burger on, too, I'm sharing the recipe here and on Pinterest. My comments are in square brackets, while Liz and Matthew's are in parenthesis.

Enjoy, and let me know what you think...and what you decide to top your beet burger with!

Beet Burgers
Notes, in parenthesis, are from Muddy Fingers Farm

• 2 cups grated beets
• 2 cups grated carrots
• ½ cup grated onions
• 1 cup cooked rice (I make a little extra in advance, if I know I am going to be making beet burgers)
• 1 cup toasted sunflower seeds
• ½ cup toasted sesame seeds
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 T soy sauce
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 3 T flour
• ¼ cup oil

Minced fresh or dried garlic, cayenne, and parsley or other herbs to taste.

Toast seeds in a dry pan for several minutes, stir often. Mix all ingredients, form into patties and bake at 350*F. [they didn’t say how long to cook these. . .could take anywhere from 15-30 mins, or maybe more, depending on your oven. They get browned on edges and a much darker color overall when done. Flip them over after 10 or so minutes; they're yummier if you cook them on each side.] They can also can be make in a skillet (easier for just a few). Frozen ones can be reheated in a toaster oven.

(Since this is one of our all time favorite recipes, we will make a double or triple recipe at once and freeze the extras, then they make a quick meal when we are in a hurry. A food processor is your best friend for these!)

More Fun With Pinterest...

   Per my last post about my current obsession with Pinterest and how much it's energized me, here's a quick peek at today's project: a paper heart garland in honor of Valentine's Day!  

    I was inspired by this pin to try making one of these to decorate my workplace, a writing center at the local community college.  Our room is a glaring cube of brilliant whiteness, and covering it in color has been an obsession of almost anyone who enters it.  I fought that for a couple years, but have recently become much more interested in decorating (Pinterest, again?), especially for holidays.  Crafting seems to reduce the stress level for us and for the students, too.  Near the holiday break in December, we were all making snowflakes, which we used to decorate the windows.  (Go figure, right after we took them down, we got a weekend-long snowstorm after months of unseasonably warm weather...)

   In order to do this project, I grabbed a bunch of valentine-themed scrapbooking paper and my trusty paper cutter (I have an older version of this one. It's so worth the cost...especially if you have a 40% off coupon...), then cut the 12" sheets into 1" strips. I also cut up a sheet of pink construction paper.  I shuffled the strips up, and got started.

Close-up of the heart garland...

   My coworker, S, joined me, and we made two long chains, using a glue stick and stapler as shown in the photos above. It was easy and fun!  Below you can see the finished product, hanging from our check-in desk.  It really added some festive flair to our area...and some color to balance out all those white walls.

Maybe I should have turned some of the hearts inside out so they weren't all white on the inside?

 Happy Valentine's Day!