Friday, September 19, 2014

5 Sisters Crafternoon



A friend posted a fun Mom's Night In event recently on Facebook; the project was Mason jar pumpkins. Being unable to make it to this event, but still jonesing to make them, I asked all four of my sisters if they would like to come over and have a Sunday Crafternoon. Wrangling four 20-somethings with packed schedules was iffy, but thankfully they could all make it. Heather requested Butterbeer and I also whipped up a quick snack.


Thinly sliced baguette, brushed with olive oil and toasted. Top with proscuitto, thin sliced Granny Smith apple and a generous chunk of bleu cheese. If I have fresh chives on hand I usually add a tiny stalk on top.


Butterbeer! I use this recipe:
1 cup light or dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
6 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
3/4 cup heavy cream, divided
1/2 teaspoon rum extract
Four 12-ounce bottles cream soda

  In a small saucepan over medium, combine the brown sugar and water. Bring to a gentle boil and cook, stirring often, until the mixture reads 240 F on a candy thermometer.
Stir in the butter, salt, vinegar and 1/4 heavy cream. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Once the mixture has cooled, stir in the rum extract.
In a medium bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar mixture and the remaining 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Use an electric mixer to beat until just thickened, but not completely whipped, about 2 to 3 minutes.
To serve, divide the brown sugar mixture between 4 tall glasses (about 1/4 cup for each glass). Add 1/4 cup of cream soda to each glass, then stir to combine. Fill each glass nearly to the top with additional cream soda, then spoon the whipped topping over each.


My beautiful sisters: Dawn, Lindsey, Heather, and Darby. Heather brought some snacks too and Darby brought a box full of CanDo Candle tarts for us to smell and share. Since I have never ordered from them I was eager to sniff and excited to have my sister school me on a vendor. For the record I grabbed Autumn Spice, Leaves and Cider Web (I think?). We laughed and cut up, only to be chastised by the littlest because we were being "too loud" and she could not hear her movie. They gracefully put up with my crotchety inability to hear people crunching on pita chips, and I discovered how each one is artistically gifted. We all started out with the same materials: Mason jars with lids, wooden knobs for stems, wire for vines, wooden leaves, and paint. We chose to spray paint the lids. Then we painted the inside of the jars. Even the kiddos joined in.


Here lies our beautiful pumpkin patch o' Mason jars. I love how they all turned out so differently! Dawn had the great idea of using battery powered tea lights to illuminate them.


Heather made these for her future mother-in-law and snapped this photo for Instagram (using with her permission) ;-) I love how they turned out, all glowing and mottled like mercury glass Jack O' Lanterns. This was my fun Fall Pinterest Project, made even sweeter by my sisters' presence. Have you been eyeing any fall recipes or crafts?



8 comments:

  1. This is so adorable!!! And I am definitely going to be trying this butterbeer recipe.Hubby and I still have our butterbeer mugs from Harry Potter @ Universal. They need to be put to good use! This post has inspired me to schedule a crafting party with my sisters-in-law! Have a great weekend Julie <3

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    1. This Butterbeer is not the quickest but it is the tastiest! Having a crafty party with family is a great way to bond <3 I hope you have a fabulous weekend too Jacqui! Let me know what you think of the Butterbeer if you decide to make it. I bet a bit of spiced rum in there would not be remiss ;-)

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  2. Sadly, mine is still sitting in its half finished state. Looks like you were all very productive that day! Well done!

    ~Deb

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    1. Maybe on your next day off you will get her done. Mine ended up not glowing as cool as my sisters' but they will still work!

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    2. I like the painted on the inside look. Mine is painted on the outside. I'll have to try another jar the other way. Did you actually brush it? Or swirl it around the sides till it was coated? I need to find some fake tea lights.

      ~Deb

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    3. We brushed and sometimes dabbed and sponged. Swirling would have been cool though!! I picked up two packs of tea lights at Target in the Dollar Bin. One won't turn off now though... Fore warned, they are CHEAP! :-)

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  3. How awesome & fun! Jealous -- I haven't had a mom's craft night in forever! The jars turned out very pretty! My girls & I made some similar a few years ago -- tried to make pumpkins, black cats, & ghosts. They turned out ok, not nearly as pretty as yours! We just painted the outside though, but I like look of paint on the inside. And the snacks & drinks look yummy! :-)

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    1. We should do a MNI craft! I think the original craft called for painting the outside but I like it painted on the inside better too. We are about to have some yummy snacks and drinks today!

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