#ACraftersDream: Christmas Giveaway Oct.21st-Nov.4th!

   A Crafter's Dream Christmas Giveaway is here!!!!

 This giveaway is hosted by My Merry Messy Life, Tutus & Tea Parties, and Me, and has a Christmas, crafting, and supporting small business theme! Each blogger is offering her/his own giveaway worth $25 or more going on now through Sunday, November 4, 2012. 

  Christmas is coming soon, and the time to start crafting our gifts for friends and family is now! You will have the chance to win some awesome crafting supplies from some of the blogs in the giveaway group! 

Are you super busy (who isn't), or maybe you haven't gotten around to learning to crochet, sew, make jewelry, etc. yet, but you would still like to give someone a beautiful handmade gift? You are in luck!  Some of the blogs in our giveaway group will be highlighting such small businesses and offering giveaway items for them, as well. This is a great opportunity to support small businesses and shops who offer handmade items!  

For my part of the giveaway, I have chosen to go the small business route. I am all for supporting small businesses! Many small handmade businesses are owned and operated by moms. These moms work hard to raise their children and take such special care in crafting their handmade items. Let's show them some love this holiday season and keep them in mind when shopping for that perfect gift for your special someone!

If you haven't already, I'd love for you to meet my sponsors! You can meet Lori from Piper Pixies Tutus here, and Marie from Madwestdesigns, here. Each are giving away a gift certificate to their shop. One winner will receive both gift certificates!

Make Your Own Seasoning Blends

***This is an old post moved here from my old blog.***  

  We've all seen the little packets of grilling seasonings and the expensive bottles of spice blends. They are great to use when cooking, but why spend so much money on them when you can make your own for less?
It is easy to do if you already have some basic herbs, spices, and seasonings in your pantry. And if you don't, stores like Costco and Sam's Club often sell large bottles of frequently used seasonings like garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and cinnamon. You can also look for store brands, check out dollar stores,  or look in the bulk foods for seasonings.

    Here are a few of my favorite seasoning blends:

I made this chicken in my rotisserie oven,
 using this chicken rub.

Chicken Rub
(This is my adaptation of the rub from this recipe.)
4 tsp. Salt
2 tsp. Paprika
1 tsp. Onion Powder
1 tsp. dried Thyme
1 tsp. Pepper
1/2 tsp. Cayenne or Chili Powder
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

Blend together and rub on chicken before cooking.
I like to do this the night before I cook the chicken. It allows the flavors to permeate through.


Tri Tip Rub
(This is great on other cuts of beef, as well)
3 TB Garlic Powder
2 TB Salt
2 TB Pepper
1 TB Sugar
2 TB dried Parsley (optional)

Rub on meat before grilling or cooking.


Spaghetti Seasoning Mix
1 TB Cornstarch
1 TB dried Minced Onion
1 TB dried Parsley Flakes
1 1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning (For a great Italian Seasoning mix recipe click here)
1 tsp. dried Sweet Pepper Flakes (these can be hard to find- I will sometimes just sub fresh bell peppers when cooking my sauce)
1 tsp. sugar (I use brown sugar)
1/2 tsp. salt (or to taste)
1/2 tsp. dried Minced Garlic
1/4 tsp. dried Sage

 Mix together and use in recipes that call for a packet of spaghetti seasoning mix.


   Look around online. There are a ton of seasoning mixes that you can make yourself.

Toddler Strappy Booties

A few weeks back, I won four patterns from an awesome shop! Bowtykes has some of the cutest designs, so I was super excited when I won. One of the patterns I chose was for these cute Toddler Strappy Booties. The pattern was easy to follow, and it offered different size options.

I had some 100% cotton black and orange yarn left over from Elmo' s face, so I decided I'd use that. Besides... it is perfect for this time of year! Aren't they cute?

Click here to see which super parties I link up to!

A Crafter's Dream: Meet My Sponsor! (part 2)

 I'd like to introduce you to my second A Crafter's Dream sponsor:

Marie at Madwestsesigns blog has an etsy store by the same name, where she knits and crochets some of the most beautiful items! You can tell just by browsing her shop, all of the care and hard work that goes into crafting her items.

Here is a small example of the super cute things she makes:

Knitted Cup Cozies

Cowls and Scarves

Maryjane Shoes

Newborn Hats

Cute Hats (in many sizes)

Knit Baby Sweater

Crochet Snuggle Buddy

Aren't they beautiful?

Please keep Madwestdesigns in mind when you are shopping for something special for your loved ones!

Be sure to come back between October 21st and November 4th for A Crafter's Dream to enter to win a $25 gift certificate for Madwestdesigns!


Click here to see which super parties I link up to!

Super Link Party #23

It's that time again! I had so much fun checking out last week's links!  I had a super busy week, and I wasn't able to comment on all of them, or pin all of them this time around. So sorry! Couple that with my computer problems (I am stuck using the kids' very slow computer)... it's been rough!
Thank you everyone who participated!
If you would like to be a guest host, please click the "contact me" tab on the left, to email me!

Reminder about
A Crafter's Dream Christmas Giveaway!
It starts on October 21st, so be sure to come back and enter to win... then hop around to the other blogs in the group and enter to win as many as you want!
Be sure to check out my wonderful sponsors! I shared one with you yesterday, here. Come back tomorrow to meet my second sponsor!
You aren't going to want to miss out!

Now, who's ready to party???
Are you ready for this week's features? Remember, if you are featured, your button gets a "Featured Guests" spot in my right sidebar!

"Most Clicked On" Feature:

Nicole at Wonky Wonderful shared this super cute
Trick or Treat Bag (free crochet pattern).
Isn't it completely AWESOME!!!

More Features:

Pam's Party & Practical Tips shared this adorable little Owl Pumpkin! How creative is this!!!???

Crafty Biggers shared these darling Candy Corn Pillowcase Dresses (tutorial).

Thanks for sharing and Don't forget to grab your featured button!

<a border="0" href="http://earning-my-cape.blogspot.com/search/label/Super%20Link%20Party" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1251.photobucket.com/albums/hh547/EarningMyCape/EarningMyCapeSuperLinkParty150x150.png"/></a>

<a border="0" href="http://earning-my-cape.blogspot.com/search/label/Super%20Link%20Party" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1251.photobucket.com/albums/hh547/EarningMyCape/EarningMyCapeSuperLinkPartyFeatured150x150.png"/></a>

Now on to this week's party!