Drawspace Trade - Snack Foods

On Drawspace forum we combined January and February for one trade. This is so everyone can catch up and get everything done. Snack foods is usually a safe bet for a subject as everyone snacks. Some a little more healthy than others but snacks nonetheless.

Since I don't cook many meals anymore, there are always healthy and unhealthy snacks around. I don't find it fun to cook for one and I don't really like things that are leftovers from the freezer. So I tend to just make a sandwich or do what my aunt used to call "Piece". Sort of like "grazing" but not exactly with healthy food or "greens". So I had plenty of subjects to choose from.

"Self Portrait" by Albrecht Durer

At least it is my version of Albrecht Durer's "Self Portrait". This is postcard size and is done in graphite. This is the fifth card for my Old Master's Trade Project and the first I have done in graphite. It felt really good to use graphite again.

Chocolate

An online friend posted a chocolate candy recipe on her Facebook site. It sounds so good that I couldn't help but pass it on. I am afraid to make it as I would have to eat it all. No one here to share the calories. but I could sure enjoy a piece of it right now. Yummy. If anyone makes it, let me know how it tastes. And go into details. lol

Crockpot Candy

Ingredients
1 16 oz. jar roasted, unsalted peanuts
1 16 oz. jar roasted, salted peanuts
1 12 oz. package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 bar (4 ozs.) german chocolate, broken into pieces
3 lbs. (two 24 oz. pkgs.) white almond bark, broken into pieces

Put ingredients into a 4 or 5-quart crockpot in EXACT order as listed. Cover and cook on low 3 hours. DO NOT remove lid! Turn off and allow to cool slightly. Mixture will not be melted but will be soft. Mix thoroughly and drop by teaspoon size cookie dropper or a teaspoon onto wax paper. Let cool thoroughly. Makes approximately 150 - 170 pieces.

See photo here.

My Greatniece Kylie

Kylie now has a playroom. She has a book shelf, toy box, table and chairs, her ride-in cars parked against one wall, and a kitchen play set. I decided to make her a little apron and some other things for her room. I will make some little patchwork placemats, napkins, and potholders. Maybe a couple of dish towels.

I found a cute little apron pattern with a bib and a ruffle at the bottom. It will look so cute on her. Her mom says she puts on her high heels and takes out her play vacuum and goes to work.

My Representation of 4 Old Masters

Here are the four cards I have finished so far. These are my representations of the artist's paintings. They are from top to bottom:

Portrait of a Woman By Rubens
Julius by Raphael
Emma Dubogny by Degas
Woman with Morning Glories in Her Hair by Jules Le Febvre

I am doing all portraits (at least that is the plan at the moment). I am doing crops of the heads or faces. I like "up close and personal" crops. I don't crop first, I start with one thing like the eyes, then work out till I run out of room. Easier than trying to fit a certain piece in such a small area. These are all graphite with colored pencil and are ATC size (2.5 x 3.5).

ATC Trade Project

I finally have two finished for my Old Master's Trade Project. I did crops of two portraits. One by Raphael and one by Degas. It was nice to just get started.

I missed Bible study tonight as I was having so much pain from my ankle being sore. I guess there are repercussions from hibernating in my house during the bad weather. I need to keep my ankle working some but not overdue it. Not using it at all made it very painful doing errands on Monday. Too much use causes me to have to use a crutch. It is just something I just have to live with. Most of the time it's bearable. Until I overdue it.

Well since it is 3 am, I guess I should go to bed. Will probably read a little and hopefully it will make me sleepy.

Start of a New Week

A new week and quite a few days of this month are already gone. They sure do pass fast. Before you know it, Christmas will be rolling around again.

My Moleskine is now on its way to the Art House Co-op to be entered into a permanent Art book library. Thousands of little sketchbooks available for checking out like a regular library.

I signed up to be notified every time my little book might be checked out. There is a bar code on each book and any activity of the book will be recorded and sent to me by email. Wouldn't it be wonderful to live close enough to go there and browse. Or maybe it's better I live too far away. I could probably spend a huge amount of time in there.

Now on to my ATC project of Old Masters. I am going to be doing portraits. I finally started one tonight.

Sketchbook Project - Trading Forever

I'm finally finished. I just finished scanning all the pages. Now that was a chore. My printer/scanner is on a shelf above the monitor so it was "stand up, sit down" and on and on. Not good for the knees.

I had to improvise some and I did tear a couple of pages out (Thanks to someone's suggestion). I expanded to include the stamps and some of the notes I received when I got mail from others for the trades. I also listed all the "trade names". Anything to stretch thru to get it finished. I'm satisfied with it. Not the best or the worse thing I have ever done.

Here are a couple of examples.

Sketchbook Project - Trading Forever

The final date for the Sketchbook Project books is coming up. I believe it has to be mailed by January 15. Well I still have about 30 pages blank. I finally put something on the front cover tonight but not really happy with it. It doesn't "zing" I figure for someone to want to check it out from the library, it would have to draw their attention with "zing"/

I wish I had chosen a different subject. I started it rather late. Wasn't going to join. But couldn't resist. So I didn't have as many months to finish it.

I chose to do a lot of Zentangle-type things in it as I can do those quite fast. But now I am on overload with them. I'm using the card trades as my subject. I have samples of different trades inside but mostly the tangles.

I did finally find something to do with the wonderful stamps I had collected from the envelopes I have received. I even had something from the United Arab Emirates. So I pasted those into the book to show where some of the trade cards were sent and received from. I also devoted a double page to list the subjects of all the different trades I have participated in.

Now I am bored with it but have to force myself to finish and finish fast. That means everything else goes on hold. I won't be wanting to do any more tangles for awhile after this. And just watch them change the due date after I rush thru. They did that for the last one.

And just in case there is someone out there who isn't dieting, here is a recipe for something my sister-in-law served for dessert on Christmas Day. She sent some home with me and after reading the recipe, no wonder if was so wonderful. And I probably gained 20 lbs from it.

If you try it, let me know how you like it. Soooooo yummy. Worth a few added pounds. Not sure where she found it or what it is called. She had it cut in squares.

It's crescent rolls top and bottom, cream cheese and apricot jam in middle and pecans. Here is the recipe:

2 8oz cans refrigerated crescent roll dough
2 8oz packages cream cheese
1 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup melted butter
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch pan
2. Press one can of the crescent rolls into the bottom of the prepared pan. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar, and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Spread over the crescent layer. Unroll the second can of crescent rolls and lay them on top of the cream cheese layer. Do not press down. Pour the melted butter over the entire pan. Combine the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over the top.
3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the top is crisp and golden.

I added some apricot preserves over the cream cheese to give some additional flavor and put chopped pecans in the center and on top. I already had some sugar and cinnamon that I bought so I didn't have to mix the 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. I just sprinkled from my container.

This is a great dessert to take to a pot luck as it seems everyone likes it.