Black Friday tips

I've learned a thing or two in my 20 years of Black Friday shopping. Before all the hoopla, I was out there waiting in the wee hours for my stores to open to get my deals for the holidays. And I've learned a thing or two in my years of Black Friday shopping. Seems like everyone is all about Black Friday now, so here are some of my best tips to help you make it through the shopping-est day of the year.

1. Check out the deals online before Black Friday. Before Black Friday is even here, you can check out the ads on websites like BFAds.net. This will give you a great chance to see what stores have what you want to get and help you start laying out your plan.

2. Get the newspaper on Thanksgiving Day. You can sit down and read it, but you really want all those sales flyers tucked in the middle. While the turkey is cooking this is the time to look at all of the flyers and start devising a plan of attack. And take your flyers with you to the stores. There is no guarantee that there will be sales flyers by the time you get there. I always have at least 3 or 4 people ask to see my flyers as I wait in line for the stores to open. Take my advice, bring your own.

3. Plan your route and your shopping list. It's best to plan where and when you will hit each store. With a solid plan when and what to get at each store, it should be a simple in and out procedure. And remember the stores will be set up differently than on a normal day. Target always hands out maps telling you where the biggest doorbusters will be located. Don't roam aimlessly, the employees will be able to tell you where the big deal items are.

4. For the craziest deals plan on getting there EARLY! If you plan on getting that "$100 laptop" or some other crazy deal like that, plan to get there earlier than early. These are the deals that may require sleeping over (look at the fine print on your flyer for these). There are usually only 5 per store, and they will be handing out tickets in line for these items. The tickets are usually handed out before the store opens (Best Buy does this a lot), and they will have 1 ticket for each of the items, so if you're not one of the first 5 people in line that wants this, you won't be going home with it. I've never gotten there in time for any of these deals.

5. Leave the kids at home. Black Friday is all about stores packed full of people and large crowds. Leave the kids at home. It's gonna be a pain to keep an eye on them, plus it will make it harder for the rest of the shoppers too.

6. Dress for comfort. You're gonna be on your feet for a long time, so wear comfy clothes and comfy shoes. I'm talking t-shirts, sneakers and comfy jeans, you'll be thankful for it later after you've spent a few hours on your feet. Also, a crossbody bag or fanny pack is perfect to keep your wallet close to you and away from prying hands.

7. Check for online deals. Sometimes you can get the better deal by shopping on the internet from the comfort of home. Do some research and check out the prices before automatically heading out to the stores. It could save you the time, gas and hassle of going out on Black Friday.

8. Empty your trunk. You want to have plenty of room in your trunk and backseat to fill with all of your goodies. Before you head out, make sure you have cleaned out your car to make sure you can get all of your haul home.

my shopping partner, Mom

9. Tag team with a friend. Having a shopping buddy can really help to get the deals you want while saving time. Once you get to the store, you can head one way and your friend can head the other way, you can both grab the items that each of you wants without both having to walk the whole store. This way you can save time so you can get to the next store even sooner.

10. Be patient. There are a lot of people out there, and I'm sure you've seen the insanity on the news the next day. (Luckily, I've never seen this in person.) I do always hear the newbies complaining about waiting in line, but in all seriousness it doesn't take that long for the amount of people that are there. The stores that I always go to (Target and Best Buy) tend to make one large line for the checkouts, this may seem like you're in a never-ending amusement park line, but it will get you out of the store quickly.

These are some of my tips for making it through Black Friday. I'm already starting my shopping list and you'll be sure to see Mom and I out there getting our deals. Remember the early bird gets the worm!

Do you shop on Black Friday? Any Black Friday tips to share?

Noche Buena 2011

Noche Buena (Christmas Eve) is when the big dinner is for my family. And it's the typical Cuban/Puerto Rican feast: lechon, congris, yuca, pasteles, pan y ensalada (that's roast pork, black beans and rice--cooked together, yucca, Puerto Rican tamales, bread and salad).

My godfather, Patiti, was doing the pig this year. It was still cooking up in the caja china when we got there. The caja china is a roaster, were you put the pig on a tray and then cover the box and top it with charcoal. This makes a kind of oven and you can roast a whole pork with no problem. Plus it comes out so delicious. While Mr. Piggie kept on cooking, we sat and chatted with the family enjoying some cocktails... some even included my Cranberry-Orange Infused Vokda.

Mom & Pop

Abuela & Me

Tia Erenia & Abuela

waiting for pig time

Finally the pig was ready and it was time to get him out of the box. My brother, Angel, and cousin, Marc, helped Patiti get the pig out and then carve it up. It looked so delicious.

Here's a hint if you're ever at a pig roast. Just go take pics of the pig being taken out and you can sneak a taste when the cooks sneak a taste too. It was super hot, but really yummy.

Inside the house in the kitchen, Mom was peeling up some pasteles she had made. Then the rest of the food made it out to the food table and it was time to eat.

Such a great spread! It also included my Mom's famous mojito (not the drink, but the condiment), to pour all over the yuca and the pork. 

After dinner we had some shots of coquito. Coquito is kind of like Puerto Rican egg nog but coconut-y and with lots of rum. You take it in small shot form, not a big cup like egg nog. (Sorry I don't have pics of it!)

It was another great Noche Buena with family and delicious food.

How was everyone else's Christmas? I hope you all ate well, enjoyed your family and had fun with your presents from Santa!

Holiday gift guide

Yeah this may be kinda late, but after seeing all of the gift guides out there, I had to share my own!

So here are some holiday gift ideas (that are reasonably priced):

For your Mom:
This is what my mom asked Santa for this year. And from what I've heard its awesome. Why not get your mom the book and the movie?

The Help (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

$24.99 on Amazon

For your Dad (or Pop, like I call my dad):
Ok, so all these gift guides tell you to get your dad golf accessories or ties or tools. This stuff doesn't work with my dad. He doesn't golf, has no use for more ties and has every tool known to man. But Pop loves history stuff, especially anything about "the War" (that's WWII). He has this book and really loves it.

The Pacific by Hugh Ambrose

$15.35 on Amazon

For your brother:
I have two brothers. Two people that I always have a helluva time shopping for. They are musicians, but they have every musical instrument and gadget known to man. But how about this awesome gadget wallet? It even has a pick pocket. They can keep all their stuff together with this.

Nerd Herder gadget wallet

$29.00 on rockitbot on Etsy

For your grandma:
My grandma loves puzzles, she does about one a week. And they can't be too easy or she just won't like it. This one is pretty and at 1000 pieces, it should keep her busy for a while... well, at least a week.

La Grande Jatte 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle

$15.98 on Amazon

For the little boys in your life:
Who doesn't love Legos? This starter kit is pefect for any little guy to start building.

LEGO Bricks & More My First LEGO Set

$15.99 at Toys R Us

For the baby girls in your life:
Every girl needs a pair of Mary Janes and just cause you're a baby shouldn't mean you shouldn't look fashionable too. Aren't these too adorable for words?

Mary Janes Crochet Baby Shoes

$12.50 on Naptime Stitches on Etsy

For your BFF:
My BFF can't get enough notebooks, pens and pencils. Why not get her a pretty notebook she wouldn't get herself?

Crewel Embroidery Fabric Covered Journal

$19.95 on Barnes & Noble

NOTE: To my family and friends that may be reading this. These may or may not be the gifts I have gotten for you. Any similarity to gifts past or present is purely coincidental.

I hope you have all at least started your shopping for this holiday season. And if you haven't I hope my gift guide gave you some ideas to get started.

Thanksgiving dessert making

I decided this year to change up my normal desserts for Thanksgiving. I decided to make a pumpkin bundt cake with maple glaze--which covers the pumpkin dessert and apple and cherry cup pies (does anyone but me get the Pushing Daisies reference?)--for the pie part.

First the cup pies. I made them in a disposable muffin tins. I figured this would make it easier to get them out of the muffin tin once they were baked. I also used the ready made refrigerated pie crusts. I was experimenting, so easier was better. I rolled out the pie crusts and used the cupcake liners to measure out the crusts and then gently pushed them into the muffin tins.

I made one pan of apple cup pies and one pan of cherry cup pies, so I had 6 of each. I started with the apple pies. For the apple ones I made a variation of the Martha Stewart Mile-High Apple Pie filling that I love so much. This filling is the perfect amount of sweet and tart. So I started prepping the apples.

sugar, apples, flour, cinnamon, lemon, pie crust

Here's a tip in case you don't have an apple corer. Just use a 1/4 teaspoon measure to scoop the apple seeds out (kinda like a melon baller). Then once you've quartered the apples, you can make a little diagonal cut to get the rest of the core out. This way of cutting out the core also gives the apple a flat surface to sit on, making cutting the apple slices so easy.

After all the apples were prepped (they were tossed in lemon juice to prevent them from getting brown). I added the sugar, some flour and cinnamon.

Once you mix all of this up the apples start to let off their own juice, so there's no need to cook the filling. I also think the cooked fillings tend to be too sweet, but this one is just the right amount of tart and sweet.

I used 6 apples to make the filling, but that was total overkill. I should have only used 4. But I filled them all up and made cute little pie tops and fluted the edges.

Then I made the cherry cup pies. And yes, I totally cheated and used Comstock cherry filling. It's easy and I like the flavor. But when I topped the pies, I made lattice tops. I figured this gave them a little special-ness and I could tell the pies apart too.

pie crust and cherry pie filling

After both pies were filled and topped with their pretty crusts, I put them in the oven. First at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, then I lowered the temp to 350 degrees and let them cook for about 30 minutes longer.

Yeah they bubbled over and some of the crusts aren't too attached, but they look good, and more importantly, they tasted good.

Next came the pumpkin bundt cake. I scoured the internet for ideas on this one. I knew I just wanted a pumpkin cake with a maple glaze. I was looking for something that wasn't too complicated, since I've never made a cake from scratch before and I needed something reliable. I also didn't want to use a pumpkin bread mix, so I figured something with a cake mix base would be easiest. I bought some yellow cake mix and a can of pureed pumpkin. I looked at tons of recipes, but finally took this one, and made a couple of little adjustments.

pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, yellow cake mix, eggs, oil, sugar and water (not pictured)

I mixed everything together poured it in the bundt and put it in the 350 degree oven. It ended up taking about 45 minutes to cook completely.

It made the house smell delicious! When I took it out of the oven it had a very uneven and crag-like top. Since this is a bundt, I knew this would be the bottom, so I didn't mind it. But it also seemed like it weighed a lot when it came out. I thought it might be too dense. So, since no one was gonna see the bottom of the cake, I took a little sample. It was good and wasn't dense at all.

I let everything cool and came back to it in the morning. I released the cup pies from the pans (they came out pretty easy once I got all the over flowing pie filling unstuck). Then I went to unmold my bundt. Thankfully the bundt pan is silicone, cause it wasn't wanting to drop out. So I rolled back the bundt and the cake looked good. I couldn't wait to dig in.

Before dinner I made the maple glaze for the cake. I basically threw some maple syrup in a pot and reduced it. I also added some powdered sugar and a splash of milk. Before it cooled completely I poured it over the cake.

Finally I got to taste everything and boy was it good. The pies were adorable and good as always, but the cake really took the cake (pun intended).

Grandma enjoying her cherry cup pie

I just want to say on this Thanksgiving Day that I'm so thankful for all I have. For my family who is there for me no matter what and my friends who help me through everything. I'm grateful for a job that I like and for a crafty business that I love working at. I'm grateful to be able to share my love of crafting and spread the love of handmade through my community, and gain some really great friends in the process. I'm grateful for my health and my strength. I'm so grateful for another great year!

So to all of you, a very happy Thanksgiving! What are you grateful for this year?

A little thanks

This past Thursday we had a Thanksgiving lunch at my office, and I planned it this year. This wasn't too complicated, it just involved ordering some catering from Boston Market and putting up our Thanksgiving decorations.

We put up the decorations and tablecloths and set up our buffet. Everyone was good and hungry by the time lunch rolled around. And we all helped ourselves to turkey and all the fixins.

We did have one homemade dish, Elena brought her famous corn casserole. It just wouldn't be the holidays without it!

We were thankful for getting away, at least for a bit, and spending some time together. Happy early Thanksgiving! 

Halloween costume 2: Red Riding Hood

So I was invited to a Halloween party this week, which meant I had to come up with a costume for me. Someone suggested I go to the store, but I couldn't imagine getting a store bought costume.

So since it was the week before Halloween, and I didn't want to go to the party store or the fabric store, I checked to see what I had at home. I had a ton of red fabric and found some gingham too, so I decided on Red Riding Hood.

I made myself a cute cape with a hood. It was pretty easy, especially since I had a costume pattern for a cape. That helped me get the general idea of how to make the cape, and then I modified it to work with the amount of fabric that I had. I also made a simple skirt in gingham to give me that "I'm walking throught the forest" feel. I added a red sash, cause I needed to break up the black a bit. (And I'm totally wearing a black tank top, cause it was rainy and HOT!... this is Miami after all) Not bad for a two hour costume. I added a pair of red heels, and I was ready to go!

The next day I had a crafty Halloween get-together, and my friends and I decided to go in costume. So, I switched out my red heels for my red glitter flats that I made at a Crafter-noon. I also took my potluck goodies in that basket I'm holding. I think it was the perfect touch.

I did get asked where my big bad wolf was a time or two, so next time I may need a sucker to dress up alongside me. I really loved this costume, it was cute and comfy!

I received a special request for another costume accessory for yet another costume, so you'll see that in tomorrow's post.

Costume time: Jake and the Neverland Pirates

It's that time of year, and even with the Craft Carnival the week after Halloween I've actually managed to make some costumes this year. Well, I've made one so far, and plan on making another this week.

My first costume was Jake from "Jake and the Neverland Pirates." My newphew Xander asked for this costume, so I had to make it for him! This costume wasn't too complicated, it was just about the details.

I just made some basic elastic pants, and then a black belt. Since I didn't have Xander to measure here with me, I made the belt adjustable with velcro. And he'll be able to use it for dress up for a long time. The head sash was also super easy. Just a strap with some topstitching.

The vest and the boots were really where I got to so the details. I adjusted a vest pattern to make the lapels bigger and then trimmed it in handmade bias binding. The buttons were just that same fabric wonder-undered to the vest and then zig-zagged around the edges.

I wanted to make boot covers for him to wear over his sneakers. I couldn't find a pattern for this in the stores, but I finally found one online. I made them out of felt, so they would stand up and I added a cuff, since Jake has cuffs on his boots. Then i made the buckles out of the same fabric as the buttons and wonder-undered and zig-zagged the edges too. Some velcro in the back and elastic on the bottom and they were ready to go.

I just shipped up his costume, so I hope his Mom gets some really good pics of him wearing it for me. I can't wait to make his costume next year and one for his new little sister too!

I also plan on making myself a costume before Friday. I was invited to a Halloween party by one of my co-workers, so I need a costume STAT! I'm thinking of doing Little Red Riding Hood. I have tons of red fabric, so it should be pretty easy to whip up tonight. Just a cape (a short one) and I can wear a little dress underneath. Now there might be a hurricane coming this way for Friday or Saturday, so the costume might not even end up being used, but at least I'll have it all done. I hope to show off my costume in a couple of days.

Have you made your costume yet? What will you be this year?

A DIY Easter

Happy Easter everyone! It was a nice lazy day at home for me (finally!). But I was able to get a project done.

After helping with some yard work, I was able to make the top I had been planning to make forever. I bought the fabric months. I got inspired by a top I saw on ModCloth, which, of course, is now no longer available, so I can't show you my inspiration. I wanted a top that wasn't knit (since most of the tops I have now are). So I bought this pretty sheer fabric at JoAnn's. I also bought some pongee lining, which is pretty much the same weight. I made Simplicity 2892 view E. It was labeled 6 made easy, and it was for the most part.

This top is only a few pieces: front, back, front yoke, back yoke, and two pieces of lining for the front and back of the yoke. I cut it out and putting it together was going pretty smooth, until I had to gather the yoke. I stitched around the edge with my largest machine stitch and started gathering. It was a huge mess of gathers and I almost gave up on it. After showing my aunt and grandmother, they said it looked great, so I left the gathers in. The part that took me the longest was hand-stitching the yoke lining, but in the end it was worth it. This is a super cute and comfy tunic tank that I hope to wear to work soon.

In the middle of my top making, I stopped my work to make the macaroni and cheese I was making for dinner. I use this super simple recipe. I've tried a few baked mac & cheese's that use a bechamel sauce as they base and they never seem to be cheesey enough for me. But this one is perfect, cheesey and so simple. I add some crumbled crackers to the top after I uncover it to give it a crispy topping. I used saltines this time (cause it's what was in the pantry), but I've used Ritz crackers before and that is super yummy.

I hope you all had a great Easter and got to work on some crafty projects this weekend too. I'm so happy with my top, that I have to stary planning my next clothing project.

p.s. I'll post a pic of the top in another post ;)

Churchy Crafting

It's a week before Easter and when I got to my Mom's house this Sunday morning, she had her palms from church (since this Sunday was Palm Sunday).

I asked her if she was going to do anything with them, and she told me she would of course be making them into crosses before they got too dry. So I asked her to make them while I was there so I could take some pics.

These are made with a single palm frond. You just whip them around and do some palm origami and voila in no time you can have a cross or anything else you can make. Some people get more complicated or have to use two fronds to make a cross, but you can do it with one.

Now after 13 years of Catholic school, I've made my fair share of palm crosses. You always struggle to remember how to start at first, but then it all comes back to you, every Palm Sunday. Now it's a little known fact that this craft is always done better while in church. The palms are always freshest and most pliable when you first get them, so if you want to make anything from them the earlier the better.

Now I'm off to see if I can hijack my Mom's DVD of Jesus Christ Superstar, so I can watch it before Easter. Cause nothing says Easter like a rock opera. :)