Earth-Friendly Friday

You don't have to use up the natural resources of the world to have pretty things. Just look at this recycled cotton gift box...

So, the next time you're out looking for a gift or a trinket for your house, look for recycled goods because they can be just as pretty and also be sustainable at the same time.

Happy Shopping.

10 Tips to Enjoy a Writer's Conference

I know, attending conferences can be overwhelming. There's so much you hope to get out of it: information, networking opportunities and tools for your craft. But if you expect too much, you're bound to be disappointed. So don't set your expectations too high. If you do, you'll get your attitude all out of whack. Go hoping to learn a little, while making some new friends along the way, and you'll be bound to get your money's worth.

I'm not saying I know it all--that would be crazy--but I've gone to a few writer's conferences and I remember my first. I was nervous. So, I thought it couldn't hurt if I shared a couple ideas that might help you.

1) Wear comfortable shoes. You'll be walking from one session to another and wanting to check out the book sales so don't make it hard on yourself.

2) Just like number 1 above, wear comfortable clothing. Nothing too formal. Of course that doesn't mean sloppy either. The perfect thing would be business casual.

3) Join a table with others. You'll have more fun if you share the experience with others.

4) Speak up. Don't be afraid to comment or share ideas, if you're asked.

5) Bring a business card to hand out. It doesn't have to have more than basic information: your name, number, email address. That way, if you make a connection, you can provide your contact information easily.

6) Have a positive attitude. Even if the conference doesn't turn out to be everything you'd hoped, you can still get something out of the event. Sometimes the end result will come much later.

7) Bring a couple first pages of your manuscript. You might not need them but you never know and if an opportunity presents itself, you'll be prepared.

8) Don't forget to bring the tools of your trade: paper, pencils and a pen. You might want to take notes - even if you aren't a note-taker you might hear something that inspires you and, if you don't write it down, you might forget.

9) Introduce yourself. If you're standing in an elevator, in line at lunch or waiting to buy a cup of coffee, say 'hello' and you might make a new friend who has similar interests.

10) Relax. This is supposed to be fun.

If anyone else has an idea or two - please add them to the "comments" section.

Answer to Word for Wednesday

The word Scofflaw means a person who ignores the law, rules or procedures.

If you don't believe me, check it out here.

Answer to Word for Wednesday

The word Scofflaw means a person who ignores the law, rules or procedures.

If you don't believe me, check it out here.

Word for Wednesday - Game for Writers

Guess what the word scofflaw means. Come on and play, simply put your answer in the comments section then come back around 3:00 p.m. to see if you were write or wrong ;)

Tip for Tuesday - if you ever send an Email, here's a trick

If you send emails, you might want to know that you can prepare an email and then delay the "send" so that you can think it over, maybe edit the draft, or simply send it when you want.

You could use this option to prepare an email saying "Happy Birthday"! and then delay the send until the appropriate date. That way you will never "forget" a friend's birthday again--well, almost. At least it won't look like you forgot, even if you did.

Delay sending an e-mail message

• From within the e-mail, click on the Options ribbon / More Options section / Delay Deliveries.

• Select the Do not deliver before and select date and time.

WAH-LAH You're a genius on Outlook or at least you'll look like one :)

Barbie Cake

What little girl, or BIG girl, wouldn't love a Barbie cake? What a wonderful way to celebrate almost any occasion. At least that's what I think. How 'bout you? Wouldn't you love to have an icon of your childhood help you celebrate?

And, I thought Barbie was IT when I was a little girl. I loved her and Ken and played with my Barbie every day. But, Mom and Dad didn't have the money to even buy clothes for my doll (they had enough trouble buying them for the nine of us kids). I crocheted Barbie's clothes out of Grandma's left over yarn. So, I never had a Barbie cake growing up. To tell the truth, I don't even know if they were around back in those "olden" days. And, when Fatina invited us to her graduation and BBQ, I wanted to make one for her. So, I did. And it was super simple. Believe me, if I can do it, anyone can.

Here's how I did it.

First I started with a Barbie Cake Kit.
It came with a special "hill-shaped" pan I assembled by screwing in the stand and the core.
Then I sprayed the inside of the pan with "no-stick" spray.
I sprinkled flour all over the inside of the pan so that it would slide out easily after it was baked.
With the pan ready, I poured my cake mixture inside and baked it for about one hour (testing the cake with a wooden shishkabob skewer) to make sure it was done. I let it cool then it slid out easily.




Then I frosted the base of the cake with my first coat (or the crumb coating). You do this so that no crumbs will be mixed in with the final layer of frosting. I also cut out a shirt for her (making it out of blue fondant). I pinned the graduation cap to her head so it would stay on.
Now, it was time for the fun part. Decorating. I wanted to use the school colors. That made the choice of colors easy. So, I started decorating the dress with little yellow polka dots, that I cut out of fondant. I tied a little piece of rolled up paper (the diploma) in her hand with black thread.
The cake-kit came with a Barbie but I wanted one that actually looked like the graduate so I ran back to the store and bought one that I thought looked like Fatina.

It was so fun and I enjoyed giving it to the Graduate.

So, there are lots of ways you could use a Barbie Cake to celebrate a special occasion - can you think of a few? Please share any of your ideas in the comments section.