Turtle Parade and Holiday Treats

Playing with my new Fox and Friend set.  Here's something I whipped up.

Paper:  Durango, Olive, Chocolate, Vanilla

Ink:  Olive, Durango, Curry, Chocolate

Stamp:  Fox and Friends (Occasion Mini) and Trure Friends.  If you look close at the chocolate card stock you can see the text from that set.  The "Thank You" is from the Overall set.

Accessories:  The leaf is from the "Two-step bird" punch and the decorative edge for the label is the "Scallop Trim Border" from the upcoming SAB catty.

Here's some other things I"ve been working on. 

Making some imitation Thin Mints for holiday gifts.  So many friends enjoy hand-made goodies but rarely have the time to make them.

The recipe is easy.  You only need three things:

• Ritz Crackers
• 1 block Almond Bark (that large block of chocolate)
• Peppermint OIL

Chop your chocolate so it's easier to melt.

You want to use a double broiler.  I make my own.  Just fill a pot with 1/2 cup of water and let it simmer.  Place a smaller metal pot on top to melt the chocolate.  Here I'm using a mixing bowl.

Once the chocolate is melted, add 3 - 4 drops of oil.  Make sure it's OIL and not extract.  BIG difference.  Sometimes when pouring oil out it hugs the side of the bottle.  To eliminate that I simply rest the bottle on the side of my fork and let it drip down the side.

Dip Ritz in chocolate to coat, and remove it with a fork.

Lay them on wax paper, this will help to remove them easily.  I cut the Ritz box and lay the paper on top of that.  After the tray is filled I put them in the freezer to chill for a minute so I can move them without chocolate getting all over.  Then I can reuse the tray.

I placed a few of the cookes inside some saran wrap, tied them up and wrapped some holiday fabric around them. 

Use a plate to trace a circle and cut around them with pinking shears (because it makes the edges pretty).

I added some of my Advent MDS prints and a gold ribbon to tie it up.

Here's a couple of bags I've made. 

Now, back to stamping!

Melanie