Too Cute Tuesday: Ribbon Belts

Every Tuesday, it’s a craft, a cocktail, and friends. See all the posts at www.toocutetuesday.com or join the fun on Facebook at www.facebook.com/toocutetuesday.

Jen, the crafting convert. She says she may actually wear this.Let me start off by saying that my real-life friend Jen is supportive about most things in my life. Two things she doesn’t usually do are 1) read this blog and 2) attend Too Cute Tuesday. “I just don’t like it,” she says. Of Too Cute Tuesday, not the blog.

When I told her we were making ribbon belts and it would be easy, she decided to come. She made not one but two crafts. “Hey, this is kind of fun.” Yeah, Jen, that’s why we do it! “You should put this on the blog.” she said, as she added a ribbon to my dog Gidget’s neck. Yup, that’s the idea…

So if you want a craft that 1) takes 15 minutes. and 2) will convert a skeptic, this is your week. Remember it doesn’t have to be a belt. I can be a bracelet or one of those luggage straps.

Materials
Ribbon (Enough to go around your waist plus a few inches for sewing error and/or future fluctuations
Needle and thread (we used white)
Scissors
Loop things (if the hardware store doesn’t have D-rings… it’s near the bungee cords, ropes, and other items in the ‘holding stuff down on a car’ section)

Too Cute Tuesday: Paper Beads

Every Tuesday, it’s friends, a craft, and a cocktail. Want to get involved? Start your own TCT chapter, read old Too Cute Tuesday posts, or join the fun on Facebook.

Christie: Official DJ, bartender, and beadmaker... all at once.Dorrie found this paper bead craft awhile back but we were waiting for our wallpaper connection to come through. Tonight, Dorrie had to work late and other people were gone, so it was just Christie and I.

No doubt we have all made these paper beads a million years ago when we were in elementary school but with more grown up materials, they are still fun now.

Linked here is the original post. (You have to click through and see how these beads could come out. Inspiring!) That said, we did ok.

Materials
Wallpaper book
Scissors
Glue (Elmer’s is fine- squirt glue preferable)
Takeout chopsticks (or some other disposable round wooden object)
Twine/string

Cocktail of the Night: Christie’s Mix: Some mixture of grenadine, lemonade, rum, orange juice and/or triple sec

1. Have the longest week ever. Get to the point where you are almost dellerious with stress. But wait, it’s time for Too Cute Tuesday!

2. Have friend (Christie) show up at Craft Central and make you a cocktail and remind you that it’s time to craft! Stick nachos in the oven and take out the wallpaper book Dorrie got from an interior decorating friend. Note: Primitive patterns would be something my sister would enjoy.

Too Cute Tuesday: Chocolate Whiskey and Beer Cupcakes From Smitten Kitchen

Every Tuesday night, it’s friends, a craft, and a cocktail. Nothing like accomplishing something small while hanging out with friends. (Let’s face it—everyone is busy on the weekend but Tuesday…people could stand for a bit of weeknight fun!) Feel free to suggest crafts to us, start your own Too Cute Tuesday chapter, or otherwise participate either on this blog (all the archived entries are at www.toocutetuesday.com) or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/toocutetuesday.

Awhile back, my friend Kate/enthusiastic supporter of Too Cute Tuesday sent me the cutest little cupcake recipe involving chocolate, beer, whiskey, and Baileys. For two weeks now, we’ve been meaning to make these cupcakes.

Christie and Sarah get ready to follow directions. Isn't it good to be back, Sarah?

It worked out perfectly that we decided to make them when Sarah was visiting. (You may remember Sarah, who moved to St. Louis about a year ago and started a Too Cute Tuesday chapter there.) Sarah arrived in Maine just in time to get unpacked and craft with the group.

Too Cute Tuesday: Wine Tasting

Every Tuesday, it’s a craft, a cocktail, and friends. To get in on the fun, check us out on Facebook or read all the posts at www.toocutetuesday.com. Comment, suggest crafts, or start your own TCT chapter. It’s fun!

When my friend Sue said her wine expert friend John would be in town and asked if I’d want to hold a wine tasting/lesson instead of our usual craft format, I knew I’d be crazy to say no. I also knew I’d be doing this writeup on Wednesday.

On my way to Craft Central, my car broke down on the side of the road. I called up and John and Sue’s husband Andrew came and rescued me. They popped open my hood and started talking about belts and fluids. Andrew kept going in his car and getting liquids to pour in and John told me that before becoming a wine person, he was a mechanic. That’s versatility!

After making my car safe enough to drive to my favorite garage, we left it and off we went to Too Cute Tuesday.

At the beginning of the wine tasting, look how excited Sue looks. As the person taking the picture, you can't see that I am also pretty darn excited.

After this incident, John didn’t skip a beat and we all had a great experience. Here’s how you can approximate it without your own car mechanic/wine expert on hand:

Andrew: smelling the bouquet or checking if something is in his drink? When wine and dog ownership intersect...Materials

6 bottles of wine, shoot for the same kind of grape and same year but different regions. We did Cabernet Sauvignon in 2008-2009 vintages from four regions of the world.

Baguette, fancy crackers, and fancy cheeses: both palate cleansers and dinner substitutes.

Ideally one wine glass per wine type per person. Ideally, the same glass size and shape. We only had three per person so we worked with it.

Container for dumping the wine (there is probably a better technical name for this and, while it is sad to throw it out, six people drinking six whole bottles of wine would not have made for a nice Wednesday morning)

Cocktail of the Night: Um… wine!

1. Line up the bottles (don’t tell people prices or specifics).

2. Pour small glass of each wine to excited TCT participants. First smell, then swirl the glass and smell again. Discuss how the smells change.

Too Cute Tuesday: Gnocchi

Every Tuesday, it’s a craft, a cocktail, and friends (eat something, drink something and be social). To read more, check out www.toocutetuesday.com (all the posts) or check out the Facebook page. (We usually put photo galleries and some extra stuff on the Facebook page.)

Inspired by this post at Readymade, we decided to carb it up this week with gnocchi. In May, we’re doing food as crafts. It’s technically making something and, quite honestly, spring is making us hungry.

Sam grating the potatoes. I told her to do something clever. To be fair, this is a hard situation to be clever.

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