September Sketch Challenge

It's here! Our first monthly sketch challenge!!! The lovely and talented Helen Croft has provided us with our kick off sketch! Isn't it incredible?!?!?

Your mission is to create your very own layout or card based on this sketch. In order to be entered into our drawing your project must have something to do with cooking, eating, food, a kitchen...you get the idea! 

Now, I'm sure you are all wondering about the prize...well, Cookbookin' is offering up a fantastic Halloween Kit! 

The winner will be chosen by a random draw. Once your project is complete just leave a comment on this post with a link to your layout and I will put your name in for the drawing.

Now, here is a little inspiration from the design team to get you started.

From Joanne, we have an adorable card using the Chocolate Celebration's line:

On my layout I used some of the gorgeous Halloween Papers that YOU COULD WIN!

 I just love all the happy little ghosts and the muted shade of orange on the spots! I found some cardstock that matched just perfectly so I used that to make some flowers and to print my recipe on. 

Speaking of the recipe...

Boo Cake {otherwise known as Pumpkin Bread:)))}
Ingredients:
3-1/2 Cups all-purpose flour
1/4t baking powder
2t baking soda
1-1/2t salt
1t each nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon
1-1/2 Cups packed brown sugar
1 Cup vegetable oil
2 Cups canned pumpkin
4 eggs

Directions:
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Add the sugars and mix well.
Add oil and pumpkin to the dry ingredients and stir until combined. I like to use my electric mixer for this. Add eggs, one at a time and blend in thoroughly. Pour batter into WELL GREASED bundt pan. Bake at 350* for 50 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for five minutes and remove from pan to cool. Top with your choice of icing and enjoy!

I can't wait to see what you come up with for our challenge.
Happy Scrapping and GOOD LUCK!

Happy Half-Birthday!

In our house we have several birthdays clustered right around the Holidays and it makes for a VERY busy season. My birthday is so close to Christmas that many of my birthday presents have come wrapped in Christmas paper! {Many} years ago as I was trying to figure out what to get my son for his birthday, which is right AFTER Christmas when the stores are all EMPTY. I was really having trouble finding him something he wanted or needed...and I came up with the idea of celebrating his half-birthday which is in the middle of summer! That is how it all began. I started making him {half} a cake for each half birthday and getting him one present for his half-birthday. No party, just the family. I THOUGHT it was a GREAT idea and it WAS until I had four more children. Now we have a birthday, a holiday or a half-birthday every single month of the year!

The last half-birthday was my daughter's. She turned 9 and a half. We usually put in full candles and then squash the half candle down but in this layout I used a number 9 candle and simply stuck a regular candle way down. And yes, this is a whole cake...but we only ate half? ;) After all, there ARE seven of us now!

This layout is made with adorable Cookbookin' chocolate chip paper. I just got these papers in the mail and had to use some right away! I clipped the corners with an old Creative Memories corner punch and then I added one of Cookbookin's new recipe cards but instead of listing the recipe, I told the story of half-birthdays in our house.

Then I made the fan flower, added a bow and some Prima bling.

Do you have any special food related traditions in your house? Leave a comment, We'd love to hear them!

WELCOME and ~Sack Lunch Choices~

Welcome to the brand spankin' new COOKBOOKIN' blog! My name is Kristie Coleman and I am one of the designers for Cookbookin'. I am just over the moon that Patty asked me to write the blog for them. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it!

This is THE place for you to find lots of inspiration for your cooking related projects and pages!!! We will be featuring TONS of layouts, recipes and projects as well as running tutorials and SKETCH challenges. YES! We will be offering lots of wonderful prizes too!!! Be sure to sign up and follow us so you don't miss out on a thing. And, thanks for stopping by!

Today, I would like to share a back to school project with you. I have five children (ages 2 to 13) so school lunches...well, you can just IMAGINE! That 13 year old...well, his lunches were getting a little...ummm...UNhealthy. So I came up with a little lunchbox guide to hang on the pantry door:

I began this project with a plain corkboard and I used a variety of Cookbookin' goodies to decorate my project. I just LOVE Cookbookin's dimensional stickers!

I used some darling little paper sacks that I found at a craft store to mat my lists and then I added some bits of paper, ribbon and buttons to dress them up a bit.

Each morning all the kids need to look at the lists and make their lunchbox choices accordingly. 

So far, everyone is doing a great job except the 13 year old...had to take an extra salty out of his lunchbox this morning...but the girls are doing GREAT~

All ready for school!

Be sure to check back later this week, I'll have a fun tutorial for you!