Cling Wrap Three Ways + Chicken Pot Pie + Last Day of Arteza Coupon Code

*Compensated affiliate links used where possible at zero cost to you. No posts are ever sponsored or paid.*

Hello from the end of the world's longest week - we made it! I'm a little bit behind still after my staycation, so hopefully next week will mean a return to somewhat normal. We will see.

We have a new challenge at Splitcoaststampers that is so fun. It's Watercolor Wednesday - and this past week I was the guest host, so I dragged out an old favorite and updated it - the cling wrap technique. I had done a video on this in 2016 (which you can see here) but I wanted to include additional mediums for different looks, so I have that video and my challenge card for you today!

I tried three different mediums in the video - Distress Oxides, Infusions and Hero Hues, and it's three VERY different looks, which is exactly why I wanted to try it. You'll see the other backgrounds on future cards - I spent a portion of my staycation organizing my UFO pile, which led to a reorg of the three bookcases that hold the supplies in my studio, which meant I didn't make one card the whole week. You know - if you give a mouse a cookie. But ANYWAY that means that the UFO pile is organized, all the chaff has been tossed, and it's going to be much easier to incorporate my backgrounds into cards now.

I used one of the green ones for today's card, because it coordinated so well with three cute mariachi images from this bundle that were pre-colored and in my UFO pile, discovered during the cleanout. 

I love this little bundle so much, but it does make me want a margarita and some chips and salsa at a real restaurant with humans and mariachi bands. Sigh. 

I kept the design simple, using my infinity dies to cut the background (giving me a negative frame for another card in the process) and glued the three little guys down. The sentiment is from the same bundle - and just FYI the German bundle and the Russian bundle are equally cute and also provide translations for each sentiment, which I love. And my brother in law's birthday is today, so this card will be for him! So here's the video - or watch here on YouTube if you are reading in email, and then stay tuned below for my chicken pot pie recipe - dairy free and divine! PS - my coupon code at Arteza is only good through today - so check the footer of my post for that link & coupon.

And here is the video!

Here are all the supplies I used today.

Hola Mexico Combo [ WFF ] Prost Germany Combo [ WFF ] From Russia with Love Combo [ WFF ] DI199 Nesting Circle Infinity Dies (H) [ HA ] Watercolor Paint for Crafting - Ink &... [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Ink Pad... [ SSS | HNB | LWN | JGG | HNB ] Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Ink Pad... [ SSS | HNB | HNB | LWN | RNG | ELH ] Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Ink Pad... [ SSS | ELH | JGG | ACH | HNB | RNG ] Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Ink Pad... [ SSS | RNG | ACH | HNB | ELH ] Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Ink Pad... [ SSS | ELH ] Reactive - Hero Arts [ HA ] Pre-Cut & Scored Cardstock [ CTC ] Sakura CLASSIC WHITE Fine Line 05... [ SSS ] Art Anthology BIG CRAFT MAT 24x36 311473 [ SSS ] Heavy Base Weight Card Stock- White [ GNK ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSP | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | UNT ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] LightView 2in1 LED Magnifier for... [ BRG ] Mudder 10 Pack White Buffer Sanding... [ AMZUS ] Xyron ADHESIVE ERASER 23675 [ SSS | ART | AMZUS ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Crafter's Companion GEMINI... [ SSS ] Scor-Pal MINI SCOR-BUDDY Scoring... [ SSS ] Essentials by Ellen Storage... [ ELH ] Die Storage - Clear Storage Pockets... [ CHC ] XL Stamp Storage Pockets [ ELH ] Mermaid tidy towel case and glue... [ ETS ] Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045 [ SSS | CST ] Airtable: Organize your stamps & dies [ ART ]

Now are you ready for the BEST CHICKEN POT PIE OF YOUR LIFE? I have had the opportunity during lockdown to perfect a few of my own recipes, and my pot pie is the latest I feel is the pinnacle! I made two of them last week and they disappear fast, so when I made the last one, I sauteed the celery, onions and carrots in four batches and froze them for future pot pies. Yay me! This recipe is the bomb. And it's just as good dairy-free! I developed this recipe when I could still eat dairy, and I created it with something I'm never going to eat again - turkey at Thanksgiving - many years ago, and it had been gathering dust. So here you go. Enjoy.

Leftover Turkey Pot Pie

2 oz. Miyoko's vegan butter

1/2 cup finely diced onion

1/2 cup finely diced carrot

1/2 cup finely diced celery

2 cups shredded perfect roast chicken (this is one chicken breast on a 4.75 lb. chicken)

1/4 cup flour

2 C. Better Than Bouillon chicken broth (1 tsp:1 C. Water)

1 TBS. lemon juice

3/4 cup almond milk (I use MALK) (You can use heavy cream if eating dairy)

Frozen peas

Fresh thyme, chopped - about 1 TBS. If dried, use 1 tsp.

1.5 tsp. salt and pepper to taste

Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust or pie crust of your choosing

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Press one pie crust into glass pie dish, add foil and pie weights (I use pinto beans). Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove foil and weights and bake at 375 for 10 more minutes or until you see browning. Cool while you make filling.

Melt butter in a skillet or dutch oven. Add onion, carrots, and celery, and cook until translucent (a couple of minutes.) Add chicken and stir. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir. Cook over medium heat for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in chicken broth and seasonings, stirring constantly. Pour in almond milk and stir. Add lemon juice. Bring to a slow boil and allow mixture to cook and thicken for a few minutes. Do one final taste at the end and add what it needs. Sometimes it needs a bit more lemon juice. Pour into baked crust and top with second raw crust, sealing at edges. Bake for about 45 minutes at 375 or until top crust is browned. Cool for an hour before serving.

Loveyameanitbye.

CURRENT COUPON CODES
15% off anything at Marker Universe or any of their other sites - Understandblue15.
10% off the whole store at A Colorful Life Designs - LydiaFan10
5% off at LBC here with code LYDIA5
10% off sitewide at Arteza here with code Understandblue6 through 7.31.2020
Phone stand for filming link below in the banner - 20% off sitewide with code UNDERSTANDBLUE

Out of This World

*Compensated affiliate links used where possible at zero cost to you. No posts are ever sponsored or paid.*

Wellllllll I thought I had the video for today's card, but apparently my phone ate it. Sorry about that!

I'm back from my #notvacation and ready to get crafty again! I'm starting with this adorable and sweet space image. You know how I feel about space images! 

I colored this on a live with my class group. First, I stamped the image on Wheat cardstock, and then quickly filled in the sky with a Copic Marker. One of the things about coloring with colored pencil is that it tends to be more time-consuming than other mediums, so I shortcut with Copic often!

I was going to blend it all to remove streaks, but while I was coloring - I thought the streaks there from the first layer of marker looked atmospheric, so I liked it and left it - remember - perfection is for Serial killers!

The smaller stars in the image I colored over so some were dark, some light. Then I colored the rest of the image with Luminance pencils, starting as I always do with a layer of white under all the colors for that glowy look. I threw colored shadows on the surface of the moon as well. So easy and quick to color with I think 5 pencils? What adorable images. 

Other Worldly Greetings - Unity Stamp... [ UNT ] Luminance Colored Pencil Set -... [ BLIC ] Wheat Cardstock - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] New Original MISTI Laser Etched Stamp... [ MSP ] Artist's Choice 110lb White Card Stock [ GNK ] Coloring Glove - Anti-Smudge [ AMZUS ] Derwent Battery-Operated Eraser [ BLIC | AMZUS ] Ipoint Orbit Pencil Sharpener, Turquoise [ AMZUS | BLIC ] Global Art Classic Leather Pencil Cases [ BLIC | AMZUS ] Staedtler Mars Plastic Erasers [ BLIC | JGG | AMZUS ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC | AMZUS ]

I hope you have a great week ahead! Loveyameanitbye.

CURRENT COUPON CODES
15% off anything at Marker Universe or any of their other sites - Understandblue15.
10% off the whole store at A Colorful Life Designs - LydiaFan10
5% off at LBC here with code LYDIA5
10% off sitewide at Arteza here with code Understandblue6 through 7.31.2020
Phone stand for filming link below in the banner - 20% off sitewide with code UNDERSTANDBLUE

Color Combos That Pop + Grapefruit Bars

*Compensated affiliate links used where possible at zero cost to you. No posts are ever sponsored or paid.*

I finally got to have a socially distanced visit with my mom yesterday! We visited from the sidewalk with her in the doorway - and in Texas, that will only cost you $800 worth of air conditioning! Sorry mom! :) It was really nice to see a real person again. I think the only person I've talked to outside my house for any period of time was my neighbor from the other side of the street when I was on a walk. So odd. But as my mom said, people need to stop whining about what they can't do, and start working on what they can do. 

Amen. 

One thing I can do is experiment with that perfect lemon bar recipe I shared, and so today, I'll bring you grapefruit bars. But first, we stamp.

Today's Feature Friday assignment was a color focus - to take two colors from the new Concord & 9th color line and make each color the focus of a project. I actually struggled to choose my two, because one of my favorite things about this ink line is actually the neutrals - Mushroom and Dove are beautiful, nuanced colors, but then my calling towards bright splashy colors was fighting with that urge. At the end of the day I LITERALLY did a coin toss and it landed on bright colors, so I chose Poppy & Sprout. Poppy is a super warm, orangey red - having grown up in a college town where every frigging thing including everyone's cars and clothing was maroon - I'm slightly averse to cool reds. I've just seen too much hahah. 

So I took a card front and did direct to paper to coat it with Poppy Ink. Then I sprayed the whole thing with water. I used these clean and simple floral dies for the rest, and the sentiment is from this bundle.  

For my next color, Sprout, I die cut the leaves from this same die set from watercolor paper and then watercolored them with Sprout and Poppy Reinkers. To show what a great match they are for the cardstock, I cut the matching cardstock with this bundle's dies for a sentiment.

If you're into red and green for Christmas, I think this would make an awesome, fresh, Christmas combo.

And remember - you can always shop by color bundles here. 

Concord & 9th Hey Bestie Bundle [ C&9 ] Concord & 9th Fresh Cut Florals Dies... [ C&9 ] SHOP BY COLOR [ C&9 ] Sprout Ink Pad - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Sprout Ink Refill - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Sprout Cardstock - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Poppy Ink Pad - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Poppy Ink Refill - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Poppy Cardstock - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Pre-Cut & Scored Cardstock [ CTC ] Fabriano WATERCOLOR PAPER 9x12 BLOCK... [ SSS ] Sakura CLASSIC WHITE Fine Line 05... [ SSS ] Art Anthology BIG CRAFT MAT 24x36 311473 [ SSS ] Heavy Base Weight Card Stock- White [ GNK ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSP | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | UNT ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] LightView 2in1 LED Magnifier for... [ BRG ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Crafter's Companion GEMINI... [ SSS ] Scor-Pal MINI SCOR-BUDDY Scoring... [ SSS ] Essentials by Ellen Storage... [ ELH ] Die Storage - Clear Storage Pockets... [ CHC ] XL Stamp Storage Pockets [ ELH ] Mermaid tidy towel case and glue... [ ETS ] Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045 [ SSS | CST ] Airtable: Organize your stamps & dies [ ART ]

Okay - on to the grapefruit bars!

So these are the perfect lemon bars (scroll to the bottom) - and I do mean perfect!

But if you are lucky enough to have Ruby Red grapefruits around, juice them and make the substitution of the juice and zest. Instead of the 4 extra tsp. of juice in the recipe, I used 2 tsp. cream of tartar, but you can do either. 

They have a lighter, more floral and delicate taste than the lemon bars. Not as grapefruit dominant as you'd think. Very delicious and refreshing little treat. 5 stars. :)

Hope you have a good weekend lined up. I have assorted drudgery only. But I'll do it with a good attitude. :) My coupon codes are below - some are only good until the end of July! 

Loveyameanitbye.

CURRENT COUPON CODES
15% off anything at Marker Universe or any of their other sites - Understandblue15.
10% off the whole store at A Colorful Life Designs - LydiaFan10
5% off at LBC here with code LYDIA5
10% off sitewide at Arteza here with code Understandblue6 through 7.31.2020
Phone stand for filming link below in the banner - 20% off sitewide with code UNDERSTANDBLUE