Re-Ment Bakery Chocolate Shop Open For Business!

bakery chocolate shop, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

Well I'm sure you're as surprised as me that I actually blogged today! It has been crazy busy in my little Etsy shop lately! I have however taken a little bit of time here and there to enjoy some "setting up" time with my Re-Ment. For those of you who are unfamiliar you have to check out their website! It's all in Japanese but just start clicking around to see all the wonderful pictures they have! Re-Ment is short for "Reform the Entertainment" - which I take to mean miniature heaven! My Blythe dolls love the fact that I take the time for them as well as set up places for them to enjoy! Like here in the Bakery Chocolate Shop!

Charlotte "Chuck" Charles is here!

I've been drooling over Gentle River for a long time and finally made the decision to adopt her! She arrived today and I have to say she's even more beautiful in person. She was more than ready to pop out of her dark cardboard box and into a colorful world of fun as soon she debuted on my doorstep all the way from Hong Kong. The first thing she did was leap over a bowl full of cherries! She's pretty sassy and seems to be adjusting just fine considering she's got a houseful of siblings. Welcome Home Chuck!

I Think I've Gone Bananas For Blythe!

Ok seriously if you'd have asked me a year ago if I wanted a Blythe doll I probably would've said....."Hmmmm....I think I'll take the money and buy myself a pair of Lucky jeans instead!" But now if you ask me today I absolutely will say "Yes in a heart beat"!!!!! I don't know what it is about these magical little dolls but they bring so much joy and happiness to me personally. It took me a long time to figure out which one to get because there are 1000's to choose from so I spent hours narrowing it down to my all time favorite Milky Way Sugar. She's so gorgeous and perfect! Her long brown hair has a tiny little flip at the ends and her eyes are beautiful no matter which setting I put them on. My favorite is the light blue that looks off to the side- so much personality! I've enjoyed sewing her different dresses and putting her in poses! She's the perfect model ; ) So here she is Tisley Sue! I'm hoping to get a few more very soon. The Rosie Red Encore & Cousin Olivia are next on the list!

Octopussy

This is an amazing print I just purchased! Had to share! Isn't she gorgeous? I love everything about this picture. Pinups and Octopie are two of my favorite things and to find them together wrapped into one was a real treat! I wish I could give you all the link but it's no longer available : (

A Retro Collecting I Will Go!

My obsession for years hasn't changed a bit! I think I was suppose to grow up in the 50's but alas I was 20 years too late : ) I cannot explain my love for the Vintage, the Old, the absolute Kitschy.... all I can say is Bring it On!
My parents live in Santa Barbara and I have to tell you ....I'm so glad they do! There's a little shop on State Street called Lewis and Clark ~ chock full of fun frivolities! Looky here I what I snatched up last week. I'm giving my mom the cherry napkin but the towel and the tiny wooden ornament will stay with me : )

Recycled Material Gift Tags ~ In Honor of Earth Hour

I love hand made gift tags and was invited into Orgasmic Swappers for a small tag swap! I ended up making these for 3 partners. They each received all 4 tags! Bottle caps are a great way to announce messages ~ dontcha think?
Recycling is so important to me...for so many reasons.
Did anyone else partake in Earth Hour last night? No lights on from 8pm-9pm. Interesting.....considering I was home alone. It was so dark!!!! Scary!...just kidding...but it did make me think twice about flicking the switch!

Etsy (Finally) Open for Biz!

Scattered About, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

Hi all! Well this chick has been very busy! I finally (after days, months and years of thinking about it) opened up my etsy store! It took a lot of time as I'm sure my fellow etsy-ers know! I've learned a lot in the short 5 days I've been open for business! Take good pics #1 rule in my book! Your pics are like the frosting on the cake! Please come visit my Etsy shop and look at all my creations!
Pinks & Needles

I'm in Love with Enid Collins Handbags

Enid Collins Handbags!, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

I've been dreaming of finding some good Enid Collins bags and low and behold look what I found today! I didn't purchase them but I had to take a picture. They were both in very good condition too. What I'm really hoping for is one of her wooden box bags! This antique mall was so big and packed to the gills with great stuff ~ a wee bit over priced of course but a fun place I definately want to go back soon when we have more time to ding around.

Getting ready for my Birthday!

I love to bake especially around my birthday! I used silicon baking cups in a rainbow of colors for these Coconut Buttercups! I know I use a lot of coconut in my baking but it's my husbands favorite!!

Gossip Girl's Ed Westwick

yum yum-westwick, originally uploaded by mimi mojito.

My husband refers to him as "my new boyfriend"...got to love that when a husband has a great sense of humor about a cute guy on tv!I just had to blog this great shot of Ed Westwick (Chuck Bass on Gossip Girl)! He's my favorite character out of all the guys on the show. He's like the bad boy who deep down inside wants to be good. Unfortunatley it's rerun time again....but it's fun to watch all the episodes again. What a fun show - very entertaining seeing what's hot on the East Coast...of course this is coming from a West Coastie gal!

I Love Ribbon ~

Valentinzy Ribbons & Trims, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

I decided to pick my most favorite Red, Pink and Valentine related ribbon and condense them in a basket for Valentine crafting! That way I don't have to shuffle through my stash to find what I'm looking for. Aren't they festive ~ super cute standing at attention : )

Why do I love to bake all the time?

These are an interesting texture for sure. They spread out really thin and were crisp around the edges but everywhere else they were nice and chewy!!! Yum yum! I love peanut butter!

Christmas lingered a week longer than usual....

Christmas Down ~ Valentines Up!, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

I usually can't stand having the tree up for more than a couple days after New Years eve because our cats perch under the little table were it's set up and the fur balls are huge by the time Christmas is over.
But it sure was fun to get all of my Valentines stuff out! Since my birthday is 3 days after I always like Valentines to last about a week! So this year I know I want to decorate for my Birthday but I'm not sure what theme or even if there will be a theme. Of course I love all my pinks and reds, but poor hubby....I know he's easy going about stuff and of course he doesn't say anything but I'm sure he'd rather a different color be up to bat!

Gossip Glamour-Bots ringing in the New Year

Gossip Glamour-Bots, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

So me and my twisted sense of humor today.....yep I decided to embellish some dolls. Meet Beckay and Carly - just a couple of BFF's from way back in the day. Still single, high maintenence and wired for fun!
Don't you just love their bright chrome finish?

Hansel & Gretel is the theme this year!

I never got around to painting my front window like I wanted so I opted for a nice centerpiece for the holiday table this year. My first attept at building with gingerbread! It was fun and pretty easy for the most part. The only trick is to prop the walls while the royal icing dries. The wooden mushrooms in the brown sugar are from Craftsty ~ she and I seem to do mini swaps that always involve these lil gems! So cute!

Happy Holidays!

Candy Stripes and Candied Apples, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

I finally got the ole tree up yesterday and neglected all of my computer duties. Nice change actually!
Decided to go with all traditional colors this year to coincide with our Hansel & Gretel theme. I've had this candy striped ribbon for a few years and never wanted to cut it up so now I can reuse it if i want to!!!

My New Blog!

My New Blog!, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

I'm on a roll today! I have been terrible about keeping up with my blogs so I today was the day to get back on the ball. I finally made the time to dedicate a blog to handmade fancies (especially things made from fabric and recycled items). So I hope you come visit me over there at Pinks and Needles. I promise to be better about blogging ~ it's just the holidays hit hard here at the Minor household and times slipping away from me : )

Happy Birthday Drewzel!!!

chickens, originally uploaded by distopiandreamgirl.

I just love this trio of Chicken cakes! And thought it only appropriate to help celebrate Stephs birthday today!!!
So Happy Birthday Drewzel!!! I hope all your birthday wishes come true!!!


Cakes made by distopiandreamgirl ~

Untraditional Thanksgiving Colors

Place Setting, originally uploaded by Gigi & Big Red.

Well I do pick some weird combos but I'm just not into the traditional colors of Thanksgiving plus it's 90 degrees here so it's hard to get into the mood! Here's just a sample of some of our dishes we got for our wedding. The white dishes are Crate and Barrel "Diner" and the Green are ...oh boy I can't spell it ~ it starts with a W and is German. Too lazy to walk to the kitchen to pull one out...isn't that terrible? I'll look tomorrow and change the post!
My favorite is how the napkins tie it all together!
All that's missing is the food!

Buh Bye Halloween ~ Welcome Holidays!

To me Halloween is just a teaser for more fun to come! Last night was our neighborhoods' busiest Halloween we've seen! Our first group of kids literally wiped out half of our candy supply! We're used to between 25 ~ 30 kids total! Ah....not this year! We easily doubled that! Our first group was at 6:30 pm and our last Trick or Treater was at 8:30pm on the nose! We had to scrounge up candy I was going to use for garlands at the last minute! We'll be better prepared next year! It was a fun night and it was warm out so maybe that's why more kids were out. The winner for best costume went to our next door neighbor Faith who just started Kindergarten this past Fall ~ she looked absolutly adorable as Mulan! Hands down the cutest we saw! I'm working on her Dad today for a picture to post!