A Not-So-Glamorous Cookie Exchange

For some reason in my head Christmas Cookie Exchanges are these high-falutin' ladies events. Mimosas and sweater sets. Super fancy cookies that super-moms make and still manage to look fabulous and have well behaved children. 

In reality (or at least my reality), cookie exchanges are just a good old female bonding time. Eating cookies and gabbing away while our children run around like hooligans destroying everything in their wake. 

This year I went to my sister-in-law's cookie exchange. I knew a few of the moms and didn't know a few more. The party was so laid back and chill. No one cared that my kid had mac and cheese sauce all over his face and clothes, or that he was drinking out of any sippy cup he could find. It was the perfect little holiday gathering of moms. 

We all ate mac and cheese and drank lemon aid, and then munched on cookies until it was nap time And let me tell you, the cookie selection was insane. Cookies I have never heard of, and some classics. Here is what I can remember:

• Unicorn Poop
• Gingerdoodles/Snickersnaps (see yesterdays post)
• Chocolate Chip (can't go wrong)
• Cake Mix Cookies 
• Hot Cocoa Cookies
• Chocolate Jam Thumbprints
• Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chip

I didn't get too many pictures because I totally forgot I even had my camera until everyone had already left. I do have some though, so here they are. I hope your mouth starts watering a little and you want to host your own Not-So-Glamorous Cookie Exchange.

me and jude eating a cookie (I think he was trying to smile.)

the cookie smorgasbord

unicorn poop

cake batter cookies and hot cocoa cookies

gingerdoodles/snickersnaps

chocolate and jam thumbprints

oatmeal cranberry white chocolate chip

 

chocolate face

dorthy and the princess (or is she a fairy?) enjoying their cookies

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Gingerdoodle/Snickersnaps - Christmas Cookie Bake

My sister-in-law is hosting a cookie swap tomorrow and I have decided to tackle the Gingerdoodle. It will be more work (due to the fact that I will have to make two separate doughs), but they just sound so fantastic! The idea is make a gingersnap and a snickerdoodle and smooch them together. They end up looking so lovely and marbled, and the taste is pure festive Christmas. Molasses and spices + cinnamon and sugar = awesome!

Here is the recipe (straight from Bakergirl):
The only thing I did differently is that I used butter rather than shortening. My version of the snickerdoodle dough was not crumbly at all. 

Gingerdoodles (or snickersnaps, if you will)

Snickerdoodle Dough

1/2 cup shortening

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 tablespoon cinnamon + 3 tablespoons granulated sugar for rolling cookies in

Cream together shortening and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and mix well, until creamy. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar and mix until combined. Dough will be a little of crumbly, but it'll come together when you roll it into balls.

Combine cinnamon and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a small bowl and set aside for rolling dough in. 

Gingersnap Dough

3/4 cup shortening

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup molasses

1 egg

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon cloves

1 teaspoon ginger

1/4 cup granulated sugar for rolling cookies in

Cream together shortening and sugar. Add molasses and egg and continue beating. Add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Put 1/4 cup sugar in a small bowl and set aside for rolling dough in.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease baking sheets with no-stick cooking spray and set aside.

Roll a small amount of gingersnap dough into a ball and toss in granulated sugar. Roll a small amount of snickerdoodle dough in a ball and toss in cinnamon-sugar.

Place both doughs together and gently roll or squeeze together (it worked best if I kneaded the snickerdoodle dough in my hand a few times before rolling both doughs together since it's a  thicker consistency).

Place on baking sheets and bake for 9-11 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes before moving to cooling racks.

Source: A Year of Cookies. 

I just love how pretty they turn out. 

Martha Washington - Colonial Costume

My grandmother is a very proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Remember Emily (the mother/grandmother) from Gilmore Girls? She was a high society DARer, they had high teas and judged everyone. Major gossiping and a lot of keeping up with the Joneses. My grandmother, Mimi, is just an endearingly eccentric member of a society committed to doing good in the community, spreading American pride, and restoring historic properties. From what I have experienced with her DAR chapter, its a really lovely group of (mostly) older ladies who just love this country and its exciting history.

While I was in college my Mimi asked me to make her a colonial costume for her to wear to her DAR events. They often have teas and social events where it is appropriate to dress up as your Revolutionary War ancestors. I didn't have time to work on it durring college and had totally forgotten about it until this summer when she asked me to tackel the project again. This time I was interested.

It took me a few weeks worth of nap time sewing blitzes, but it finally done. Just in time too! Mimi's DAR Christmas party is this week. I am so excited for her to see it and be able to wear it to her Christmas party.

Mimi said she didn't really care if it wasn't historically accurate (meaning I could use a zipper) so I used the Simplicity pattern # 2354. I had to make some adjustments and alterations. I added lace to the cuffs. The sleeves were ridiculously long, so I added some ruching to them. I didn't do the ribbom detail on the stomacher because I just didn't like it. I had to tea dye the bodice fabric because it was much to bright white. The pattern was pretty simple to put together and if I didn't have a little one tugging at me all the time it would have been done much more quickly. I think it turned out really nicely, check it out and let me know what you think!

Paintbrush Roll-Up (tutorial) - DIY Easy Sewing Project

My sister, Annie, is way cooler than me. She is four years younger and ever since she was able to be awesome she was as awesome as awesome is. I mean she had three Halloween costumes this year: Frida Kahlo, Max from Where the Wild Things Are, and Davis Bowie. I mean if thats not awesome, I don't know what is!

 

Annie is an amazing artist. She is an art major and one of her favorite mediums is painting. I have been meaning to make her some art supplies totes and cases. I want to make her a pencil case, a bag, a sketch book cover, a colored pencil roll-up, and so many other things! At the rate I'm going she will be graduated and on to living her awesome life before I get any of it made.

For Christmas I made her this awesome Paintbrush Roll-Up. Its really easy, a perfect beginning sewing project. It doesn't take a lot of fabric and can be put together in an afternoon.

Confession: Every once in a while (read: more often than I would like to admit), when I make up my own patterns, I have moments of sheer stupidity. With this project it was that I totally forgot to cut two pieces for the main body of the roll-up. It was a moment of "OMG! Corey, what were you thinking?" Thankfully, this was not a big oops, easy to fix, just cut one more piece of fabric. The only fabric I had that matched the other fabrics was a scrap from another project, so I stitched up the scrap and went with it. The only problem I had with this scrappy fabric was that it had a slight stretch. I would not suggest using anything with stretch.

Paintbrush Roll-Up
What You Will Need:

• two pieces of fabric cut to 22" x 19"
• one piece of fabric cut to 22" x 2.5"
• two pieces of fabric cut to 18" x 2.5"

Fold each 18" x 2.5" (the long skinny pieces) in half right sides together. Stitch up the long sides using a 1/4" seam allowance. Hook a safety pin in one end of one of the tubes, feed the safety pin back through the tube until it comes out the other end. Keep pulling the tube thought itself so that its all right-side-out.

Fold one end of the tubes inside and stitch it up. 

Pin the 22" x 2.5" piece along the right 22" side of the main piece, right sides together. It should be 1" from the edge. Stitch along the right side edge of the 22" x 2.5" piece. Fold and press the 22" x 2.5" over so that the right side of the fabric is on the right side.

Layer the two large pieces of fabric on top of each other with right sides together. Pin the tie strips, with the unfinished ends stitching sticking out and the strips on the inside of the sandwich. Make sure you leave a hole for turning, I make this with thee pins as I did in the picture. Using a 1/2" seal allowance stitch around the outside edge of the sandwich, leaving that hole for turning. Trim the corners. 

Pull the sandwich through itself so its right sides out. Press. Fold the raw edge that was left for turning to the inside and pin. Fold up the bottom (the 18") edge 5", pin in place. This is what will create the pocket for the paintbrushes. Top stitch around the edge of the whole roll-up, using the edge of the presser foot lined up with the edge of the fabric as a seam allowance.

Using chalk or a washable fabric marker marker the stitch lines for the pockets. These lines should run the full length of the roll-up. The lines can be the same width or various. I made the pockets varied from 3/4" to 2" wide. Stitch along these lines from top to bottom. Make sure you don't catch the ties in the process. Brush off the chalk or use a damp cloth to gently rub it off. 

Add paintbrushes (or pens, pencils and markers) and fold over the top edge (should be about 4").  Roll up the case and tie  it off. There you have it! Good to go to art class!

I just LOVE the way this turned out! I can't wait to give it to my sister. She will have many more paintbrushes than I do to fill it with. I am sure she will love this as much as I do. Yay for easy sewing projects that turn out so wonderfully!

Here are some more photos to show how great this project is.

 

P.S. This is perfect for pencils, colored pencils, markers, a highlighter collection, pens, crochet hooks, short knitting needles, etc...