How to make Blueberry Jelly

A good friend taught me how to make jelly last year and I couldn't wait to make it again this year.  There is something very satisfying about making your own jelly and its fun:~)

Blueberry Jelly

4 cups of blueberry juice (see bottom for post for directions)

1 box fruit pectin

5 cups of sugar

Jars

1. Combine blueberry juice and fruit pectin.  Bring to boil.

2. Add sugar and bring to a roiling boil.

3. Boil for 1 min.

4. Remove from heat and pour into jars.

5. Place upside down and let cool.  The heat from the jelly creates a vacuum

while it cools and seals the jars. This is called the inverted method.

 

6. Enjoy your blueberry jelly!!!!

 

 

** Blueberry Juice**

1/2 Gallon Size Bag of Blueberries

4 Cups of Water

Cheese Cloth

1. In a large pot combine blueberries and water. 

2. Bring to boil. 

3. Reduce heat and simmer for about 30mins.

4. Strain through cheese cloth. (I like to squeeze as much out of them as I can.)

 This makes about 5 cups of juice:~)

Blueberries and 4-Wheelers

The blueberries are out and ready! Yesterday we took the 4-wheelers out for a ride and picked some while we were out there.  We came home with quite a few.  Not as many as some people do, but enough for my purposes.  It was a beautiful day and a fun trip, I love 4-wheeling! Time to make blueberry muffins, blueberry pancakes, and blueberry jelly, mmmmmm.........

 

Shutter Love Tuesday

Tuesday's are for Shutter Love over at Trendy Tree house.  Today's theme is sports. These days I don't really follow or play sports.  But there was a day way back when horses were my life and Yes, riding is a sport.  So I thought that today would be a good day to travel back through my pictures and see what I could dig up.  Here's what I found. The first few are of my sister and I.

I would love to pretend that these next one's are of me or my lovely sister, but they aren't.  I took these a few years back when my mother, sister, and I traveled to Kentucky for the Rolex. Many of these competitor's had participated in the Olympics.  One of them, David O'connor, won the first Equestrian Gold Medal for the US since 1984.  So it was a pretty exciting competition to watch. 

Went for a hike

Yesterday we finally hiked Angel (angle :~) Rocks in the Chena River State Recreation Area outside of Fairbanks.  It was a beautiful day in interior Alaska, sunny and 75 degrees. We got some great pictures and some really great blueberries.  We were exhausted by the end. Probably the longest 3.5 miles I've ever done, but it was fun.  Definitely worth it. Here are some pictures of the day.  For more visit my Gallery.

 

Family

I have been searching for a "family" sign or vinyl "family" wall decor to hang with my family tree.  Sadly Alaska is limited and I haven't been able to find anything I like.  However, while I was meandering through JoAnne's the other day I found a little wooden "family" that I actually liked.  So I decided to go with it and build on it. I found an 11x14 painters canvas and some acrylic paints on sale.  I also bought a crackle medium to add some texture to the wooden "family" sign.  I used the same fabric I used on parts of my Family Tree as the background. Here are a few during pictures.

I traced our name and date on to the fabric.  I wasn't even going to attempt to freehand.

And here are the after pictures. I like how it turned out, although I'm not very good at the whole straight line thing:~)

 

Something Old...Into Something New

A while back I took my old comforter apart and turned it into a duvet cover.  Since then I have made myself a new one, so the old one has just been taking up space in my closet.  Today I decided to turn it into beds for my dogs:~)

I cut the batting in half and folded it into two squares.

Then I cut out two squares from the duvet cover (which I forgot to take a picture of).  I stitched up three of the sides on each, like a pillowcase.  Not only was it a free project but it was super easy! Here is a picture of the finished pillows.  Shelby was kind enough to cooperate with me. Tucker....not so much. Sorry for the wrinkles.  I was not in an ironing mood:~)

Happy Together - Ruffle Tube Top

I have been wanting to do this tutorial for quite some time.  It came from one of my favorite craft blogs, Happy Together. So yesterday afternoon when I got a breather I sat down and turned this...

into this...

 

It was a really great tutorial and a fantastic idea. The only thing I did differently was finish the bottom of my top.

Making, cooking, drinking...

Making : a ruffled tube top

Cooking : white chili

Drinking : coffee

Reading: The Wheel of time (Shadow Rising) by Robert Jordan

Wanting: the weather to be beautiful when my family visits

Looking: my finally finished house:~)

Playing: nothing at the moment

Wasting: time meandering through the internet and looking at craft blogs

Sewing: see Making

Wishing: if I tell you then it won't come true:~)

Enjoying: coffee and my morning shows

Waiting: a visit

Liking: that tomorrow is Bunco night at my house!

Wondering: how the heck i'm going to wrap up my bunco prizes

Loving: my wonderful husband

Hoping: that my wish comes true

Marvelling: at how quickly time has flown by

Needing: to get moving for the day

Smelling: nothing...my nose is completely clogged.  darn allergies.

Wearing: pj's

Following: WAY too many craft blogs

Noticing: that it has stopped raining

Knowing: that God has a plan and my best interesting at heart.

Thinking: about my plans for the day

Bookmarking: too many websites that in time I will forget about.

Opening: email

Giggling: a picture of my friend on her travels

Feeling: at peace

I stole this from a wonderful friend who stole it from here.

Making it bigger and adding some detail

My mom sent me a few items of clothing that my sister no longer wanted.  Among those items was a top from Hollister. Sadly it was a little snug, then again I'm no longer a super skinny 20 year old either.  But I just loved the color and the neck line. So I figured I'll just make it fit:~) I went to Joanne's and picked up a fat quarter for $1.99 in a print that complimented the color of the shirt nicely.

Again my trusty scissors assisted me this project.  I cut off the sleeves, up the sides of the shirt, and straight up the middle about half way. I forgot to take a picture of the shirt in the beginning yet again, but here it is after I cut it up.

I cut two 2" strips for the sides and a triangle for the back from the fat quarter.  I hem stitched the bottoms of all of them to match the existing hem of the shirt and then sewed 'em on.  I left the edge of the sleeves raw and used a decorative stitch to give it a some what finished look. It was super simple for the most part.  The only place I had any issues was sewing on the top of the triangle on the back of the shirt.  The jersey knit fabric of the shirt just didn't want to cooperate. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. 

 

You can see the sides in this picture a bit better.

 

Family Tree

A while back one of the blogs I read, The Rubber Punkin, posted a family tree that she made out of ruffles. She whipped it together for a contest being held over at Ruffles and Stuff.

 

When I saw it I feel in love and I just had to have one for myself. I again ventured out to Joanne's and bought three different green fabrics, green felt, blue fabric for the background, and some brown flannel. I also found the perfect frame in their "oops" bin.  It was in perfect condition, the right size, and super cheap.  It took me most of the afternoon to put it together and it turned out pretty well:~)

Prudent Baby Project Round Up

This morning the check book cover I made was "rounded up" in Prudent Baby's Project Round Up. I'm pretty stinkin' excited.  Yes, yes I know..its not that big of deal, but I just can't help myself.  I used their tutorial which was very easy to follow.  It was a cinch to make and looks oh so cute peaking out of my purple purse.