Thursday, April 29, 2010

Shabby Lane Shops Welcomes Savon Marie!



Visit her on Village Plaza
You will find her lovely soaps in the French Shoppe & Bath Boutique.  What great Mother's Day Gifts!





Shabby
 Cottage Princess Wall Hooks-metal,hooks,princess


Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Another great recipe from Sweet Kathleen

SWEET KAT'S FAVORITE POUND CAKE


The other day I was asked what are some of my favorite recipes from my baking cookbook? Without a doubt, this pound cake is high on the list. I just love all the flavors blending together. Many of you may be familar with this as a 5-flavor pound cake. I have made some changes and really like the texture of this cake. If you can wait for the cake to sit overnight, a rare occurence with me, it will taste its absolute best. Can't wait either, it will still be delicious. There are many recipes for 5-flavor pound cake using different flavoring amounts which I have experimented with. But for me, the quantities of each flavoring I used are just what I was looking for. I would love a piece right now with a nice cup of coffee. How about you?

Cake2 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. cake flour, sift before measuring
¼ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking powder
1 c. (2 sticks butter), softened
½ c. vegetable shortening
1 tsp. lemon extract
1 tsp. butter flavoring
1 tsp. coconut extract
1 tsp. rum flavoring
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 2/3 c. granulated sugar
6 lg. eggs, room temperature
1 c. milk
2 T. heavy cream

Glaze1 c. granulated sugar
½ c. water
1 tsp. lemon extract
1 tsp. butter flavoring
1 tsp. coconut extract
1 tsp. rum flavoring
1 tsp. vanilla extract


Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease and flour a 12-cup Bundt or 10-inch tube baking pan or spray with nonstick baking spray containing flour.
Sift together the flours, salt and baking powder. Sift again. Set aside.
In large mixing bowl, cream the butter, vegetable shortening, lemon extract, butter flavoring, coconut extract, rum flavoring, vanilla extract and the sugar at medium speed for 10 minutes or until very light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture by thirds, alternating with the milk and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix just enough to blend the batter after each addition. Stir in the heavy cream.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for 65-75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Remove the pan and place the cake on a wire rack with a piece of wax paper under the rack. Spoon the glaze over the warm cake slowly to allow the glaze to soak into the cake. Cool completely, preferably overnight, before serving. Serves 16.
Glaze: Bring all glaze ingredients to boil over medium heat and stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Use immediately.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

The Polka Dot Closet's New DIY blog

Free Porcelain Flowers for art projects

Free, well almost! I will show you how to chisel porcelain flowers off from nick nacks from the thrift store or tag sale.  Here is a couple examples.
This was a plain mirror dresser tray that I painted white and added a porcelain rose




Here is a spoon or hanky holder (Spoon holders are great for displaying vintage hankies) note this flower is glued onto a brooch. This is available at The Polka Dot Closet


One last example.  This is available at The Polka Dot Closet

Soooo, are you intrigued, heres how.  The first thing you do is gather all of your nick nacks, now I pick these up for $1-$2 at the thrift store, look for the ones marked down because there is a chipped flower or cracked base, no one wants these, but us!


Now grab your goggles or glasses because the porcelain is about to fly! You will need a chisel (I have never tried it, but maybe a standard screw driver would work?) and a hammer.  Then really pad your work surface with a towel or bubble wrap.  The first thing I like to do is wrap the adjacent flower with a little bubble wrap so you don't damage it when you chisel the one next to it off.


 Now, lets get this party started!!


Look at all of those luscious roses, do you have a project in mind yet?


Were on a roll now!

Sometimes they practically fall out, if the stems are to long for your project you can just use tile nippers and clip the stems off.



Here's just a little tip, you need nick nacks that are the real deal, not the ones from the dollar store, they just won't chip off.  Don't use something like this:



Because it will end up like this:



Trust me on this, they just don't break off.

You need something like this:


 Look $1.91 but it gets better, it was 1/2 price day .95 Yippee



Then you get this:



Now take all of your flower treasures and put them in a drawer lined with bubble wrap
 
To attach your flowers to your project you will need either Weldbond or E-6000.  Weldbond, I ordered on the internet, but E-6000 is available at all craft stores.  You also might need painters tape to hold your flower in place while the glue dries



Now don't limit your self to flowers, chip off those angels or birds, I can tell your creative brains are already in action.

Happy Creating!

Carol

Tuesday's Treasures every Tuesday! Cottage Roses

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Shabby Lane Shops Mother's Day Tribute

Shabby Lane Shops Mother's Day Sale & Giveaway!

Congratulations Angie of TN,  our Mother's Day winner!

We are celebrating Mother's Day with a great Sale & a Fabulous Giveaway!


Please visit all of our participating Shops by clicking their banners!  They have lovely gifts for Mom and great prices!




We will be giving away a Lovely Tote for Mom filled with an wonderful assortment of goodies!  This is a hand decorated Marie Antoinette Tote, filled with a cosmetic bag with Avon products,  wonderful Tea and Coffee, 2 beautiful paks of Note Cards,  our very own Shabby Lane Shops Magazine - Mother's Day issue, coupons , Recipe cards, a $25 Gift Certificate & more!














     











This Giveaway begins today & ends Monday May 4th,   to enter simply leave a comment on this very post with your name & email address & how you heard of Shabby Lane Shops.   The winner will be notified via email Tuesday May 5th & will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Important Rules of Mother's Day Giveaway:
1. Participants must reside within the continental USA or Canada
2. Simply leave a comment on this post.
3. Participation is free and doesn't require a purchase
4. Shabby Lane Shops and it's member's are not responsible for damages or loss of the box while shipped by the USPS. The box will be sent with confirmation of delivery

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Shabby Lane Shops is a wonderful online shopping mall and source to find romantic cottage, victorian, feminine, paris and french style, upscale boutique decor and accessories. Whether you are looking for uniquely beautiful and romantic furniture, handpainted decor, exquisite chandeliers, lamps and lighting, custom cottage pillows, linens, bags and totes, or boutique clothing using vintage chenille and treasured fabrics, Shabby Lane Shops can direct you to the right website. You'll also find one-of-a-kind artist made jewelry, inspirational gifts, incredible art pieces and exquisite rose painted furnishings, antiques, and vintage collectibles here offered by the most talented artists and boutique owners. Shabby Lane Shops will save you from having to spend countless hours searching the web for all your favorite shops and boutiques so be sure to save this site as one of your favorites and join our mailing list to receive the latest news on the best shops, special announcements and latest events.

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