Sunday Southern Days

A little unseasonal, but seriously, what do you with a wedding invitation of your friend or family member after the wedding? This has become my new post-wedding "just because" gift. I found the clear, empty ornaments at Michael's and the project went a little like this: Slice up the Wedding Invitation horizontally and do not break lines of text. The idea is to be able to read word(s) here and there once it's in the ornament.  Cut even areas of the invitation with no words (we'll need a little filler) Cut 8" length of ribbon to coordinate with the wedding or invitation colors  Once you've cut all of the invitation, begin rolling each piece around a pencil to curl it. Be sure to curl it words side out so you'll be able to see the words Slide the strip off of the pencil and drop into the ornament. Once inside, it'll begin to loosen up.  I recommend layering in this manner: paper with no words first, followed by written on paper toward the

Saw this online and had to share! Wooden Bridesmaids Dress Hangers for the big day, created  with rub-on scrapbooking letters. You can seal with a coat of clear polyurethane if you want them to have a nice sheen and last longer. This is also a great idea for a Baby Shower when giving an outfit as a gift!

So until today, I'd never heard of blues artist Anna Popovic or the town of Watseka, Illinois. "Until today" being the operative part of that sentence. The Captain, some neighbors, and I loaded up in our ride and started the trek to the Watseka Theater in -- you guessed it -- Watseka, IL. Two neighbors are big blues fans and the rest of us were just along for the ride. If you know anything about Illinois geography, you basically leave Chicago, pass Kankakee, turn right at a corn field, drive down another 11 cornfields, make a left, and you are in Watseka. While blues isn't my first, or second, or 15th choice in music genres, the concert was quite good, and the venue was really nice. The smaller theater sat about 300-400 guests (and the 'house' was packed), and had an adjacent bar and lounge area (per some signs, they also had a pre-show buffet we missed). We stuck around and got some autographs (our neighbor-fans were IN HEAVEN). If you ever get a

No more tangled necklaces when traveling. Slip one end through a drinking straw (I bought a box of 50 at the Dollar Store for, you guessed it, $1).

Finding this tip on Pinterest was very much a "duh" moment. Next time you are cooking meat that requires skimming fat out of the pan (or downright pouring it out), pour it into a bowl lined with aluminum foil. Once the grease solidifies, lift up the foil right into the garbage. No more scraping grease out of a bowl!