Wednesday, December 30, 2009

More Holiday Cooking with RemixStudio!

Today's snack would make a great New Years Eve party snack! Remixstudio wanted to share this simple but yummy pretzel recipe, so what are you waiting for? Get to it!

Chocolate Pretzel Sticks

Okay, so I don't have an official name for these, but they are super simple, and if you have kids around, easy for them to help with.

Ingredients:

Long pretzel sticks

Chocolate Almond Bark and or White Almond Bark

Nutella (Optional)

A variety of toppings if you so choose (I used almonds, pecans, chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, ground up health bar, and coconut for mine.)

Melt your Almond bark in the microwave, or a double boiler. It's a pot with water and I just stuck another bowl over the top. There are fancy pots for that out there. I don't own one. If you so choose, spoon in a tablespoon or so of nutella. Yum!



Break your long pretzel sticks in half.




Separate into bowls the toppings you want, and grind or chop up the things like pecans, or chocolate chips.



Dip the broken side into your now really warm chocolate.




And sprinkle with whatever toppings you so choose! This is the part that is great for the kiddos. I did a bit of everything, and a few plain.



Let the chocolate get hard again, and then enjoy.
 

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Holiday Cooking with the Owls--Kiflis with BeanLennon

Some of our Owls decided to share some holiday recipes! Hope everyone's having a happy holiday season with your loved ones! Check back for another recipe tomorrow, and look for us to be back and rolling in 2010!

Kiflis with BeanLennon

(Editor's Note:  I had to use the Wiki to find out what kiflis are...)

As far as ingredients go, this is a simple recipe. The hard part comes in rolling out and filling the dough. It takes patience, and preferably two people. This recipe will make 4-5 dozen, if done right.


Ingredients:

Dough--

4 cups flour

1 lb. butter, room temp.

6 egg yolks, beaten (see photo below)

1 cup sour cream




Filling--

1.5 lb. chopped walnuts

3 3/4 cup powdered sugar

6 egg whites

1/2-1 teaspoon lemon juice



To make dough: Mix flour and butter as for pastry. I throw mine in my Kitchenaid, and it makes it so much easier!




Add yolks and sour cream. Mix well. Chill the dough overnight.  The dough has to be cold so it can be rolled out easily!






When you're ready to roll the next day, heat the oven to 350. Make the filling by beating the egg whites until frothy. Again, my Kitchenaid is a boon when it comes to this step, but you can use a whisk or handheld mixer too.




Slowly add the powdered sugar to the whites and beat each time. Add the lemon juice, and then fold in the walnuts.




Set up the "rolling station." This is when it's best to have two people...one to roll the dough and one to fill the dough, roll it up, and put in the oven. You need plenty of flour available for rolling, and we used a marble rolling pin/board so that the dough stays colder.



Roll the dough into quarter-sized balls, and roll them into flat circle. The flatter the dough, the flakier the pastry! Hint: Use plenty of flour because the dough will stick. (If the dough gets too sticky, throw it in the freezer for awhile). Fill each pastry circle with a spoonful of filling.




Roll the filling up into the dough, pinching the ends, and curving into a crescent shape.  Ours turned out a little wacky because I have zero patience.






Bake 15-20 minutes. The kiefels might burst open when baking, but that's okay! Remove them immediately from the pan, and sprinkle with more powdered sugar if you like. Kiefels freeze well too!
 

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Hootables launches!

Yep, yep! We've finally got our first post over at Hootables!! Come check it out to see a variety of gifts from us Owls! And stay tuned for some holiday features here as well! Happy Holidays!!

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Etsy Owls Team Scavenger Hunt!

Several of our members have joined together to host a team scavenger hunt, we think it's a fun addition to our Black Friday Bonanza and a great way to get yourself an extra 10%off our bonanza sale specials.

All you have to do is start here:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/OffTheWall
In one of the stores items where the 5 item pics are listed you will find an image of this:


In that items description you will find a link to the next participating Owls member shop. Follow the links and images to the last store, making a list of which shop and shop item you found the image, and once you are done email the list to prayingforfall@gmail.com.
If you have it right a promo code will be emailed back to you that you can use for an additional 10%off at the shops that were part of the scavenger hunt during our Black Friday Bonanza sale.

So keep your eyes peeled and good luck! Gobble Gobble Gobble!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Black Friday Bonanza!!

The Etsy Owls Black Friday Bonanza is running from Thanksgiving Day through December 6th. Each shop has a specific sale, and some shops might be running different dates, so check out shop announcements for the full scoop! Here's a preview of some of the specials in advance. You can't get the specials yet, but you can start favoriting and planning in advance! Odds are, if you're looking for that certain gift, someone here has just the thing!


Prices reduced 30%
Free Priority Shipping on orders over $50
11/26 through 12/6



              


15% off Storewide, 11/26 through 12/1




                Bright Eyes Owl Painting
                   by lalala08

        Buy One Get One Free, 11/27 through 11/30
                                Free Gift with Purchase            



Free Worldwide Shipping
11/27 through 11/30



Buy One, Get One Half Off--11/26 through 12/6




Bumblebirch is celebrating the Black Friday Bonanza with discounts from 5-25% off! Check out the sale section for daily specials on yarn, stitch markers, and stationary! Sale dates 11/26 through 12/6




10% off your total order 11/26 through 12/6




20% off storewide 11/26 through 12/6



  by  GubFactory

20% off Storewide, 11/26 through 12/6




                    Mocha Latte Wool Cable Knit Gloves
                by Squarejane
           Buy One Get One Free
             (pay shipping on free item!)
               11/26 through 12/6

                                          


 PICK YOUR SALE!
Special sale sections include 50% off, Buy One Get One Free, and Free Shipping
See Shop Announcement for details before purchase!


Free Shipping 11/27 - 11/30
Free Ring with Purchase 11/27 through 12/6



40% off Storewide
11/26 through 12/6



                                                    

20% off storewide, free worldwide shipping
11/26 through 12/6


35% off total order
Free Shipping plus Free Gift
11/26 through 12/6
  


    
50% off storewide 11/27 through 11/29

            
30% off Storewide, 11/26 through 12/6
  
 



15% off Storewide, 11/27 through 12/6
                             
 


20% off Storewide and Free Shipping
11/26 through 12/6



                             
Free WORLDWIDE shipping 11/26 through 12/6





Saturday, November 7, 2009

Owl Spotlight: Suenosdejmi

I've wanted to recycle my own yarn forever, but I haven't had the courage to try it before now. I found this really excellent tutorial on the process the other night and summoned up the courage to try it. I went out thrifting yesterday and found this glorious sweater at Goodwill. The yarn's a 60/40 Cotton/Acrylic mix, and the colors are dreamy. Plus, it only cost me $2! (sorry, the picture's icky!)



When shopping, I checked for 1)types of seams 2)weight of yarn (I really wanted heavy worsted yarn, lots of sweaters are made with smaller yarns and I didn't want to go that way on the first try) 3)price (because why pay a lot for it when I don't have to!)

If you want to try this yourself, it's important to know what to look for before you get started. There are only certain sweaters that can be unraveled, some can't be due to the way they were constructed. Look at the tutorial above which shows really good detail example of the types of seams to look for. Once you get that down pat, the rest should be easy.

So, I've got my sweater with the right seams, and I started unraveling. The tutorial says to cut it, but I'm kind of a chicken, so before I started cutting, I spent some time with a small crochet hook unlacing it a bit. You can see the fine thread that the sweater's sewn together with, and once you know how to look for it, it's easy to cut. The sweater pulls right apart.



When I got to the sleeve section, I found that the sleeve would come straight out, just like frogging stitches. This is the hole where the sleeve would be attached.




After the sleeve is seperated, I went across the shoulder and around the collar. The collar was horrid! At this point I've figured out that the stitches used to connect all the pieces are slip stitches, and that if you can find them on the side and cut every few stitches, it comes apart easier and you run much less risk of cutting the sweater yarn. Once I finished the neck, I went across the other shoulder, back around the second sleeve, and back down the other seam.

Here are the 4 pieces, two sleeves and the front and back panels.





After this, I looked around for a corner, found a tied off spot, and started unraveling. :) This is the yarn from the front and back panels, I'm guessing it's about sport weight.




I haven't unraveled the sleeves yet. I'm excited about giving this sweater new life. I'm thinking the yarn shown here will be a nice scarf, double stranded, and the sleeves could definitely make some gloves. It's sooo soft, so some nice stuff will come from this.

I love the process and will definitely do this again! :)

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Dia de Los Muertos Challenge

The Owls are here with another challenge! We've crafted up some items in honor of Dia de los Muertos (also known as Day of the Dead or All Souls Day). The holiday is celebrated on November 2nd (after the Catholic holiday of All Saints Day) and honors those who have passed on before us.

Vote for your favorite in the poll on the left. You can click through to see each of the items on Etsy. Voting will end Monday the 9th at noon eastern time.


Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Owls find fall (or leaves)

With Halloween practically upon us, many (okay, so maybe just me) are already focusing on that next Holiday, Turkey Day! Personally, I don't really get into the spirit of fall until after Halloween, and I love the chaotic weather, breezes and falling leaves that November usually brings. (though this year it seems the weather's started early!)

Prayingforfall put together this Owlsfinds list celebrating fall. Enjoy!


Monday, October 26, 2009

Hootables!

We're launching Hootables, an Etsy Owls gift collection. Need a holiday gift? Check out Hootables for a series of beautiful gifts and items. We've just set up today, so stay tuned for the pretties!

Friday, October 16, 2009

Hooters Promotion Club (HPC)

The HPC (Hooters Promotion Club) was an idea crafted by AndreaTedford that would focus on promoting one person at a time in a spotlight fashion. We ran a round of this back in the summer where each member who signed up had a week worth of promoting!

This time, we decided to do it a bit quicker, so each person who signed up gets two days. This weekend, the HPC'er is Bumblebirch. Love yarn?  (I'm drooling...)  Check out her Yarn and Tea club! Also available in smaller portions sans tea.



Other HPC'ers that have been featured so far this round are:

Zemphira makes gorgeous fabric creations, everything from coffee cup cozies to craft aprons to adorable plush owlies like this little guy here:



Weiopensecret feature a wide variety of accessories, including these ChooChoo the Owl luggage tags.



Chester the Jerboa from Inkypaws is just dying to go home with you. Isn't he adorable?



Squarejane was our first HPC'er this round, and she's made of awesome. And so is Maggie.



Stay tuned for weekly updates on the Owls being featured in the HPC, and you can always see the current Owl being highlighted by looking at the Etsy Mini on the top-right of the blog. We'll be featuring different Owls every few days throughout October and November.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Owls Find Masks!

It's the masquerade season, everyone needs a good disguise! Here are some owlfinds picks from prayingforfall. Get incognito and get out there!

Everyone needs a fake beard. Everyone. Herflyinghorses is here to help with these cute felt beards.



Flapperdashery brings unique into the masquerade scene with this smoking flapper girl mask. Yes indeed, she's smoking!



Don't get cheeky, get even! Myredboots has the answer with this vintage mask.




Looking for that piece to complete your grasshopper costume? TomBanwell has this gorgeous and artistic grasshopper mask just for you!




Go Evil with this OOAK Obsidian mask from che4u


LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails