One of the nice things about blogs are the amazing tutorials and recipes that people share. One of the crappy things about having a blog is listening to the tutorial writer in your head narrating all the steps while you make something. Of course this only happens when my two toddlers aren’t screaming or banging or just being as loud as they can be for no reason, but when there is quiet that little voice in my head starts writing an informative and witty tutorial for whatever it is I might be doing at the time. So that’s why, out of the blue, I’m going to tell you how to make popcorn balls.

First make popcorn. Normally I hate popcorn, but it is quite a spectacle for the smaller set and we were stuck inside because of the rain.  We had it with tomato soup for lunch and there was a bunch leftover (how do you make just a little popcorn?). The recipe–Betty Crocker–says you should have 7 cups of popcorn to make popcorn balls–I think I had more, it just a big bowl full really. Be sure to pick all the unpopped kernels out or you will break a tooth on one. This is a good thing for kids to do while you deal with the blistering hot candy syrup.

Now put

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup corn syrup
1 tsp salt
and
1/4 cup butter

in a sauce pan. If you have a candy thermometer put it in the pan, if not have a small bowl full of ice water next to the stove. Cook the delicious butter and sugar mixture until it hits 250 degrees. This is hard ball stage and the syrup will form a hard ball (duh) when you drop it into the ice water. I broke my candy thermometer, so I had to use the ice water method and I just kept checking throughout.  It will color a little when it’s done and the ball shouldn’t be rock hard, but should give a little under pressure.

When it’s done, take it off the heat right away and add

1 tsp vanilla and
a couple drops of food color if you feel like it

It’s better to have these ready before you start so you don’t forget. Now pour the syrup all over the popcorn stirring quickly. It’s nice to have another person help at this point, but you can manage by yourself just fine. Let it cool a minute or two and make balls. If it’s sticky you can butter your hands a bit and then shape them. Voila! popcorn balls. I always remember these to be a halloween treat. I also remember them being enormous, but I made little ones for little hands. Remember to brush the little teeth when your done!

If you don’t know about the two talented ladies from Sugar City Journal, now you do. They make ridiculously stylish and modern and cute and functional clothes for their kids. And I have been waiting patiently for their patterns to be published. Luckily, I was first in line when they came out and snatched up the pattern for the village frock dress. I’m hoping it will become my little girl’s chirstmas dress. And I was thinking about making it in velvet (or velvette) but the more I think about it the more expensive it sounds. And I’m guess velvet is hard. Any suggestions?

The picture is the packaging (duh). It’s made out of a paper bag and stitched at the sides. On the pattern itself it says, “you are a sewing genius.” Yeah! And here’s the back of the package because it’s as nice as the front.

Popping in to say there are a few city skirts now in my etsy shop. There is just one size, but it fits 2T-4T–just right for those cute preschoolers. There will be more little people bags in the next couple of days as well, for all those who asked. Hope you had a good holiday weekend!

Things will be quiet here for a week or so. My daughter is off at grandma’s house and my husband is at a conference (with the camera). It’s just me and my boy this week. I might get a lot of sewing done, but he might not let me. Either way I’ll be back next week.

I was lucky enough to score this Drew Beckmeyer print from Tiny Showcase. Tiny Showcase, if you don’t know, is (in their own words) “user-submitted, limited-run, amazingly high-quality and archival artwork.” Basically little, affordable art. I didn’t know I loved Drew Beckmeyer’s work until I found it there, but I do.  The scenes he paints are usually fantastical and the colors he uses are stunning and so perfectly modern. I know that graphic design type art is really popular (and affordable as well), but it’s never appealed to me. Not because I don’t love graphic designers, because I do, and not because it’s not beautiful, because it is. Painting just seems to have more warmth, more depth.  But there is no accounting for taste.  I’ve wanted to buy art for our home for a while now. We only have a little, but the art we do have was made by people we know personally and I liked that a lot.  Our friends have become so talented that now we can no longer afford their work (long ago I bought a painting with a 6-pack).  But good for them! and good for me now too, because I have this tiny piece on my wall.