Addicted to Jewelry

I love jewelry.  I love making jewelry, I love wearing jewelry.  I love the beads, the crystals, the gemstones, the glass beads, the copper chain, the silver charms, the creative process, the finished product.  I have almost 400 items in my Etsy shop. But then there's my personal collection.  The stuff I have made for me, or made to sell and couldn't give up.  This is that collection:

I have no idea how many there are! Both jewelry holders have drawers full of necklaces, bracelets, earrings. There are random pieces all over the house too.  And with all the beads in my stash, there is an endless amount of jewelry waiting to be made!

How Not to Make Sushi - or - The Great Rice Disaster

A girlfriend and I took a sushi rolling class last week.  After sampling some delicious sushi, and some saki, the chef did a fairly quick demonstration, then let the 47 of us roll our own.  It was a bit chaotic, but fun, and I was surprised at how nice my sushi looked (and tasted!).

So I went out and bought up all the necessary ingredients to make my own:  Sushi rice, sushi rolling mat, rice vinegar, wasabi, nori, cucumber, avocado, imitation crab, and some Sriracha mayo.

First step was of course making the sushi rice. Following a recipe I found online, I rinsed the rice, then put in a saucepan with the water, on high, to bring to a boil.  NOTE TO SELF:  When making sushi rice, do not walk away, no matter how briefly.  The water will boil faster than you think!  I went downstairs to get something, came back, the rice was boiling and some had already burned on the bottom.  Okay, I had only made a small amount, just start over.  NOTE TO SELF:  DO NOT POUR RICE DOWN THE DRAIN. Not even thinking, I poured the water and rice down the drain, started the garbage disposal, and guess what?  Clogged.  Super Clogged. GREAT.  I tried a plunger, blocking one side and running the disposal, nothing moved.  Then, I go get the little plastic snake, try to  jam it down the drain, IT BREAKS IN HALF. Fabulous.  I decide I will come back to this later.

Anyway, so I make another batch of rice, WATCH IT CAREFULLY, once it is done add the seasoning and let it cool.  I slice up an avocado, some cucumber, do my best to make the roll the way I had the previous week.  The rice wasn't cooperating a whole lot, wouldn't stick very well, but I managed to get it together and roll it up:

The rice was also a bit underdone, but I was so afraid of burning it again.  For a first homemade attempt, I was happy with the result, of the sushi anyway.  Note the sushi rice was already made when we made our rolls in class.  The rice is the trickiest part of the whole process, in my opinion.

Once I ate my creation, it was back to the sink disaster.  Let's just say I was able to half complete the job.  I got the pipe off, the rice is in the trap as I suspected, I got the broken piece of plastic out, but for the life of me I cannot get the other half of the pipe off to get the rest of the rice out.  My hubby is currently ice fishing, so until he gets home, we don't have a kitchen sink.  Lesson learned!!

Beader's Delight Box Giveaway!

Enter to win a Beader's Delight Box from Prima Bead! The deadline to enter is February 24th, 2015 at 11:59:59 p.m. Eastern time.  Enter here. 

Ears to You!!

Had fun making some earrings this week, here's a few new ones in my shop:

This last pair was made with another one of the goodies I won from Bead Lovelies.  :)

New Year, New Creations

So on a whim I entered a giveaway for some handmade artisan pieces from Bead Lovelies.  I enter giveaways all the time, but of course never win.  EXCEPT this time, I get a fun email saying that I won! There were so many beautiful goodies, including focals, beads, and even some Sari ribbon, shipped all the way from Malta.  How exotic!  Anyway, here are a few of the items I made with my winning goodies:

Hoping to get more made up soon!

Black Friday through Cyber Monday Sale

Black Friday through Cyber Monday coupon! Use code HOLIDAZE14 for 20 percent off your purchase of $10 or more, Starting Friday, November 28!

Chele's Potato Soup

I had several potatoes I needed to use up, so I decided to try to make potato soup. After a thorough Pinterest search, I found a recipe that had all the ingredients I had in my house.  As I started collecting ingredients, it sounded rather bland.  So I searched again and found another recipe with some more flavorful ingredients.  Then I threw caution to the wind and just did my own thing, taking things from both recipes and a few additions of my own.  I must say it turned out quite yummy, so I figured I'd better write it down! So here it is:

6 slices bacon (I used the precooked kind)

1 TB olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced 

8 baby carrots, sliced

4 russet potatoes, cubed (I did not peel them, like them better that way)

3 cups chicken broth

1 cup milk

1/4 cup flour

1 cup shredded cheddar jack cheese 

1 5.3 ounce container of plain Greek yogurt

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper, if you like a little kick

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat a large stockpot over medium heat, add bacon and cook until crisp. As I used precooked, this only took about a minute.  Transfer to plate, set aside.

Add olive oil to pot, then add garlic and carrots, stir to coat with the oil.  Add potatoes, add salt and pepper to taste.  Stir 1-2 minutes, then add chicken broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes or so, until potatoes are tender.  While it is simmering, in a separate container whisk flour and milk together until smooth.  Slowly add milk mixture, stirring constantly.  Add cheese and about half of the yogurt, cayenne pepper if using, and simmer another 5 minutes or so.  If it's too thick, add milk until desired consistency.

Just before serving, sprinkle bacon on top, serve with remainder of yogurt and more cheese to add to each bowl, if desired.  I did end up putting the bacon in the microwave about 15 seconds before adding to soup to crisp it up a bit more.  Nice and thick and fairly low fat, depending on what type of milk you use.