Image: Tish Boyle

Makes one table centerpiece

Special equipment:

• 1 floral foam or green styrofoam cone (measuring 4-5 inches in diameter at the base and 12 inches high)
• 1 box of toothpicks

Supplies:

• 4 one pound containers of fresh Driscoll strawberries
• 1 bunch fresh mint
• 1 slice from a carambola fruit (also known as star fruit)*

*Note: If you can’t find a carambola, you can use a 1-inch star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out a star shape from a mango slice instead.

Directions:

1. Wash the strawberries and blot them dry with paper towels. Pull off the green stem from each strawberry. Reserve a perfect strawberry for the top of the ‘tree’.

2. Push a toothpick halfway into the side of the cone, about 1/2 inch from the bottom edge. Secure a strawberry to the toothpick, piercing it through the stem end. Secure another strawberry right next to the first one. Continue securing strawberries to the cone in circular rows up to its top, covering the cone completely. Secure the reserved strawberry to the top of the tree.

3. Remove some mint leaves from the bunch of mint and tuck them between the berries, placing them at about 3-inch intervals.

4. Secure the star-shaped carambola or mango slice to the top of the cone using a toothpick.

About Tish Boyle
Tish Boyle is editor in chief of Chocolatier and Pastry Art & Design magazines. A graduate of Smith College and La Varenne Ecole de Cuisine in Paris, she has been a caterer, pastry chef, and food stylist. She is the author of The Good Cookie and Diner Desserts, and coauthor of Simply Sensational Desserts (IACP Award Winner), Chocolate Passion, and the Grand Finales series of books.

Post from: Blisstree

Very Berry Holiday Tree

Looking for an interesting and new way to spend time with your friends during the holiday season? Try something new this year and invite your friends over for a Holiday Craft Party. Not only is this a way to spend a relaxing evening, but you can complete presents for those on your holiday gift list.

First, you will need to decide on what project you and your guests will be making. You might want to consider something that is simple enough to finish in one evening, or if you are feeling adventurous you can teach your guests a new skill, like knitting or rubber stamping. It is a good idea to make the project ahead of time, or at least to have a photo of what you’ll be making so guests can see an example. If you need ideas for your activity, many holiday magazines have numerous ideas for holiday crafts as well as online sites like JoAnn’s Crafts or Martha Stewart.

Image: istockphoto

Project Ideas

Cookies - Ask guests to bring their cookie cutters, decorations or recipes, and let the baking begin. Sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies are traditional holiday favorites, but be creative and try something new or use your year-round specialty.

Ornaments - A big assortment of supplies, available at any craft store, can be used to make a variety of ornaments, from clear glass balls to undecorated wooden shapes or even flexible foam. Creating recycled ornaments from old Christmas cards, tin cans, even cardboard boxes is a good way to save money and decorate for the holidays.

Greeting Cards – If you schedule your party early enough in the season, you can make holiday cards to send out for that year. Create cards around a theme, like snowmen, stars, snowflakes or trees.

Shrink Plastic - Shrink Plastic, commonly known as Shrinky Dinks, starts off as thin pieces of plastic that when baked shrinks down to 35% of the original size. Wine charms, earrings, or pendant projects are good choices for this material. They can be colored with colored pencils or stamped on with rubber stamps. Just be sure to follow the manufacturer’s directions on the package.

Mystery Craft – Give your guests a bag filled with supplies like papers, ribbons, buttons, beads, yarn, bottle caps, and anything else that looks intriguing and have access to glue, scissors, and hole punches. Tell them just to make whatever they want with the supplies in their bag. When they are done, have everyone show off their new creation.

The Finishing Touches

Enhance your festive atmosphere with holiday music and decorations. Be sure to include some treats to snack on before or after craft time or ask guests to bring their favorite potluck dish. For tempting recipe ideas for foods to serve for your crafty celebration, check out the Food Network or Martha Stewart website. Set your table with colorful dishes like Noritake Colorwave, which comes in a variety of colors that easily mix and match with any holiday palette. Most importantly, relax, have fun and engage in the creative spirit of the holidays while enjoying the company of your friends.

Post from: Blisstree

Hosting a Holiday Crafting Party

Image: sxc.hu

If you’re making crafts for your own gift giving or for sale in stores and over the Internet, you’ve probably begun already.  Now’s the time, too, to develop your promotions, check out craft fairs, make your gift list to prepare for the holiday season.  Also, you won’t be so rushed, if you prepare ahead.

What are you doing to prepare crafts for the holiday season?

Related Post at Home Biz Notes:

Have You Started Holiday Sales Plans?

Post from: Blisstree

Preparing Your Crafts for Christmas

 The Arts Bloggers have come up with an interesting array of ideas this week.  Some of them Christmas in July. However, others can be made throughout the year, yet serve as gifts, too.

Christmas in July? Chloe has issued a challenge to start your Christmas or holiday crafting now!

Favourite Art Supplies  Sharing some of my favourite art supplies to use in my journal. So, what are your favourites?
Frugal or “Green” Quilting Tips
In these days of saving money and being environmentally friendly, quilters have some tips to contribute.

How to Make Mint Matchbook Party Favors
Have you seen these cute little matchbooks as wedding or party favors? Each matchbook contains an after dinner mint and is inscribed with the occasion, date and/or some significant saying.
Layers Upon Layers
Cyndi’s readers are sending in pictures of the best thing they’ve made so far this summer! Wanna join in?
Making and breaking and making again- A tatting shuttle becomes a necklace.
Noreen Crone-Findlay carved 2 tatting shuttles from some recycled wood. She broke one of the tatting shuttles and recycled it into a very spiffy necklace. And now, she’s debating about the cord for the necklace. Opinions are welcome!

Win Scanalog: A Great Way to Organize Magazine Articles  Store directions, recipes and more for later use, then recycle your magazines.

Enjoy!  And share with us your ideas.

(Amazon image)
 

Post from: Blisstree

Christmas in July & Much More from the Arts Bloggers