Taylor, Author at TaylorMade

Winged Peasant Dress

January 9, 2015 By Taylor 13 Comments

A few weeks ago, Bonnie Christine (from Going Home to Roost) sent me some fabric from her gorgeous new line, WINGED!I immediately knew it had to be a dress for my girl. Her line is with Art Gallery Fabric and they have the softest cotton ever. I got a yard of “Wingspan Melon” and the colors are even better in real life. The background color reminds me of melted ice cream :)

I used one of my favorite go-to patterns. The Pocket Peasant Dress from Whimsy Couture. It’s so easy, there is one pattern piece and I can whip one up in less than 30 minutes! And I have… 4 times now :)

This picture doesn’t give justice to the buttery feel of this fabric. I usually don’t wash my fabric first because my fabric usually turns into a quilt but since having a girl, I now make a lot more clothing and it’s a must!

The colors are a little springy for this particular fabric in the line so I made the dress a few sizes bigger in hopes that it will fit perfectly this spring.

I can’t wait for my sweet girl to wear it. Thanks Bonnie for including me in your blog hop! Make sure to check out all of the other fabulous projects HERE!

Cider Beetles: A Teacher Gift

December 17, 2014 By Taylor 16 Comments

Before staying home with my kiddos I used to be a teacher. I was always very spoiled every holiday by my student’s parents and received so many gifts, too many to remember. But I will always remember one year when a student made me a Cider Beetle attached to Apple Cider. It was so stinking cute that I told everyone about it. I decided this year I would re-create this adorable little gift.

I was so happy to find the recipe on the Imperial Sugar website. Imperial has a great Christmas page full of recipes and craft ideas you can do with your kids! They are also running a Kids Cookbook Giveaway that runs through Dec. 19th.

The boys did almost all the work here and LOVED it! I love boys who love to cook :)

How to made your own Cider Beetles:

Supplies:

12 oranges
5 cups Imperial Sugar Light Brown Sugar, firmly packed
24 (1 1/2-inch) stick cinnamon
24 small whole nutmegs
48 large whole allspices
192 whole cloves (8 legs on each beetle)

Directions:

Slice oranges in half crosswise; scoop out the pulp, and reserve for other uses.
Place orange half shells, cut side up, on a wire rack on a baking sheet. Bake at 250°F for about 2 hours or until dry and hard. Let these cool completely before assembling the beetles.
Pack brown sugar firmly into each orange shell, mounding it slightly. Arrange spices in brown sugar to resemble a beetle, pressing slightly into the sugar. Use cinnamon sticks for bodies, nutmegs for heads, allspices for eyes, and cloves for legs. If not using immediately, cover tightly with plastic wrap secured with a ribbon. Store in the refrigerator.
To use, unwrap beetle and drop into 1 1/2 quarts apple cider or straight apple juice, simmer 30 minutes. Remove rind and spices to serve. Store the unused cider in the refrigerator.

We started with our oranges.

Remove all the “insides” of the orange.

Then place them on a baking sheet and bake at 250 degrees for about 2 hours.

Then for the fun part… making the beetles! Pack the orange full of Imperial Brown Sugar.

Then you arrange all of the beetle parts.

I wrapped them in plastic wrap as soon as we finished and tied them up with a rubber band.

Then I just attached some ribbon around the apple cider and attached the beetle to the top for a perfect little teacher gift! I also attached some directions on how to brew it but I forgot to attach that before I took this picture. Brewing them is the best part because of the smell :) I hope you guys love making these as much as we did!

Salt Dough Napkin Holders

November 18, 2014 By Taylor 3 Comments

It’s almost Thanksgiving here in the States so that means it’s time to fill your calendars with family, food and crafts :) These adorable Salt Dough Napkin Holders are not only a pretty way to set the table but also super fun to make! My boys are only 3 and 5 and they did almost everything here. I found the salt dough “recipe” at Imperial Sugar. They have a whole section of their site dedicated to holiday crafting and baking with your kids, not to mention a million great recipes. They also have free coloring and activity sheets for your kids to do over the break!

Ingredients:

2 cups salt
1 cup water, divided
1 cup cornstarch
Tin foil covered baking sheet
Red, yellow and orange food coloring
Leaf shaped cookie cutter

Directions:

Stir salt into 1/2 cup of water in a medium saucepan. The boys LOVE measuring so this craft is right up their alley! Cook over medium-low heat until hot then remove from heat.

In a bowl, mix the remaining 1/2 cup of water with the cornstarch until smooth.

Add the cornstarch mixture to the salt mixture. Return the saucepan to the stove and cook, stirring constantly over medium-low heat until the mixture thickens into the consistency of stiff mashed potatoes.

Turn mixture out onto a glass plate and cover with a damp towel.

Allow to cool, then divide dough into 3 equal parts. Add red food coloring to one, yellow to the second and orange (often a combination of red and yellow) to the third batch.

Flatten the dough with a rolling pin or with your hands. Use the leaf cookie cutter to cut out multiple shapes.

Bake the leaves on a tin foil lined baking sheet at 250 degrees for 2-3 hours until completely hard.

Let cool, then attach to cloth napkins with ribbon, twine, or tulle.

The boys and I had so much fun making these!! They even helped me set the table for our Friendsgiving that we are having this week. It will be a cute little favor to take home too! Hope you all have a fun and safe Thanksgiving!

This post was sponsored by Imperial Sugar, all thought and opinion are my own.

Macho Nachos

November 17, 2014 By Taylor 5 Comments

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the Wolf® Brand Chili. All opinions are my own.

I don’t know what it’s like at your house during the week but we have a serious case of “what’s for dinner” over here. With the boys in school (and the addition of a third child) I love dinners that are easy to whip up. Wolf® Brand Chili is a delicious go-to for us because it’s quick and easy for busy week nights. I’m always a fan of one-dish meals so we usually make Corn Chip Pie with our chili but last week my mom reminded me of a meal she used to make us :) Macho Nachos!! They are so easy and a huge crowd pleaser. They are also super customizable if you have picky little eaters.

Ingredients:

Wolf® Brand Chili (which is definitely our favorite authentic Texas flavored chili)
shredded cheese
chopped tomatoes
green onions
tortilla chips
cilantro
any other favorite toppings like avocado, Greek yogurt or sour cream, jalapenos etc.

Start with a chip mountain. The best thing about this meal is you can load down a huge pan or make one small plate for an afternoon snack for hungry boys :) Is it just us or do your kids come home from school starving everyday?? What is that about?

Then add your bold Wolf® Brand Chili. I just heat mine in the microwave for about 2 minutes but my mom always heats hers up on the stove top.

Right after that add the cheese so it will melt then add all of your other toppings. This would also be fun for a “build your own” type dinner. I can’t live without cilantro. I also love them with shredded iceberg lettuce but my grocery store was out this week.

Bam! There you have a delicious and easy dinner that is ready in minutes but bursting with flavor!! Woo Hoo! What would be your go to toppings?

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the Wolf® Brand Chili. All opinions are my own.