Celebrating 500 Followers on Pinterest

Spring by mielbakes/madhu on Flickr

I'm excited to announce that this week I reached 500 followers on my Pinterest page http://pinterest.com/shannonimlay/  First I would like to say a big THANK YOU to those of you following my Pinterest page :)  I thought I  would celebrate by sharing a few of my favorite pins for St. Patrick's Day recipes.  If you're anything like me, you'd like to know that there is something to cook besides, or  with Corned Beef and Cabbage ;)

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/irish-potato-soup-10000000257493/

I've always been a fan of Irish Potato Soup and I must confess, my mom makes a really good one.  How about serving this for lunch, or as  a first course for dinner on St. Patrick's Day. What a great way to warm the body and the soul on a cold Spring day. 

http://damndelicious.tumblr.com/post/19282136836/irish-soda-bread-muffins

Here is the perfect thing to serve with soup (or stew).  Irish Soda Bread Muffins. Click on the links just below any of the photos and they will take you to the recipes.  I love the idea of making Irish Soda Bread muffins, they make the cutest single servings :)

http://www.marthastewart.com/316991/irish-beef-and-stout-stew

There is nothing that makes the Irish more happy than a dish with meat and potatoes. There is something about it that just satisfies, and comforts you.  You may want to try this Irish Beef and Stout Stew from Martha Stewart.

 

http://www.blog.birdsparty.com/2012/03/st-patricks-day-party.html#.UTAqGaK1cuc

I thought this was the cutest idea for garnishing green punch or cocktails (just make sure you rub the apples with lemon or lime juice to keep them from turning brown) but this link takes you to an entire, (beautiful) St. Patrick's Day party with lots of ideas and some free printable's :)  Another idea that would make cocktails or sweet drinks fun would be to rim glasses with gold sugar (the gold at the end of the rainbow :)

http://www.malacukierenka.pl/kawa-po-irlandzku.html

It wouldn't be St. Patrick's Day without Irish Coffee, lol  after all the reason God invented whiskey was to keep the Irish from ruling the world (sorry, I couldn't help myself). This is a beautiful Polish blog but don't panic there is a translation button in the upper right corner :)
Serve this with any dessert or cookies and your guests will feel like they found the gold at the end of the rainbow.

http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/952069/shamrock-shake-recipe

 Okay, so it's not Irish, but I have a soft spot for Shamrock Shakes, and they're so easy to make.  If you live in the sun-belt or have kids, this is the perfect St. Patrick's Day treat.

http://www.sprinklebakes.com/2010/03/guinness-chocolate-pudding-or-chocolate.html

If you thought you were going to read a post on recipes without chocolate, well then you don't know me that well, lol.   Make the man in your life happy with this Chocolate Guinness Pudding.

http://bellyfeathersparty.blogspot.com/2010/03/baileys-irish-cream-chocolate-best-st.html

Chocolate Baileys Irish Cream Cupcakes=Yum :) What an adorable and delicious way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  Take a batch of these to work, or send them to your child's classroom (substitute non-alcoholic  Irish cream flavor coffee creamer found in the dairy section in any of these recipes if you don't want alcohol )  and you will be one popular Bonnie Lass (or Lassie :)

http://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/150373981/irish-cream-chocolate-pots-de-creme/

  If you will indulge me one more Chocolate Irish recipe ;)  How does Irish Cream, Pots de Creme sound?  Well it sounds fantastic to me and I think this will be the way our family finishes  off St. Patrick's day.  I hope you enjoyed some of my favorite Irish Food pins and I invite you to follow my Pinterest page.  It has a wide variety of boards and a little something for everyone (okay, mostly romantic someones).   Let me know what your favorite Irish recipe is, I would love to hear about it. 

"Talk Pretty To Me" Give-Away

For Christmas, I received a new phone :)   When thinking about a phone case, I wanted to wrap my new phone not just in impeccable style, but in a style that said "Shannon".  In my search, I found the most beautiful shop on Etsy called Case Hive   http://www.etsy.com/shop/CaseHive

Click on each picture to get an enlarged version of each photo

Not only did I swoon over this beautiful Phone case, but I found out the owner, Kate, recently added compact mirrors to her shop- be still my heart.

The Ultimate "Ladies Combo" Matching phone cover and compact mirror, your purse will never be  the same ;)

About Kate- Kate  likes to think of each design as a small canvas, almost a miniature piece of art. She has eclectic taste and enjoys designing pieces with a twist, incorporating everything from classical renaissance to urban art. "I am British and have been a graphic designer for five years. My Etsy shop is my creative outlet and I love to do custom designs for my customers".

Chocolate, flowers, and  Monogrammed, oh my.  You had to know I'd love this one, the problem is that Kate makes so many beautiful cases, that you will have A LOT of trouble picking just one, this is harder than just one potato chip, or one piece of chocolate ;)

Each case comes with it's own gift box and believe it or not, everything I've showed you so far is under $20, so feel free to pick a different case for each season :), or give one as a much appreciated gift.

Go ahead, dive into the Sea of Love :)  Romance meets Retro (don't you love it)? Kate has quite a selection of really fun Retro cases, check them out

This case appealed to my Romantic sensibilities.  I mean come on, beautiful roses and the word love in script, this one left  me almost breathless.  Imagine the romantic conversations you'd have with this cover for an inspiration

 Kate has graciously offered a phone cover, or a compact mirror to one of my lucky readers. So here are the rules for this fun give-away
You get one entry for each rule you follow :)
1). Follow me on Pinterest ( I only need 5 more followers to make it to 500 :)  http://pinterest.com/shannonimlay/
2).  Visit Case Hive on Etsy and "Favorite" Kate's Shop  http://www.etsy.com/shop/CaseHive
3). Leave a comment (below) telling us what your favorite item in the shop is
4).  Like Case Hive on Facebook   https://www.facebook.com/CaseHive
5). Make sure you leave me comments telling me which of these you have done (so I know how many entries you have, and if your comment comes up as anonymous PLEASE let me know who you are and how to get a hold of you :)

You can earn extra entries by posting about this give-away on your Facebook page, or tweeting about it :)

I will conduct the drawing on Feb. 25th, so good luck everyone.  May your conversations be a pretty as these cases sweet friends.

Tartan & Roses Romantic Tablescape

I recently found the most beautiful dishes. Sadly they're a discontinued pattern by Ralph Lauren, but that didn't stop me from working very hard to collect 4 place setting (only two mugs so far).   I said to my daughter, "aren't these the most beautiful dishes you've ever seen?  She laughed and said " I think they're the most beautiful dishes YOU"VE ever seen"  I had to giggle.  They have two of my favorite things on them.  Roses and Tartan Plaid.  I think I actually squealed with delight (followed by a sigh) when I saw them, lol.  Please Click on each photo for an enlarged version of each picture.

 Even though both the tablecloth and the dishes are made by an American designer, I think this table setting just screams "English Country".  It also mixes some very contrasting patterns and colors.  There is the masculine and bold Tartan Plaid against the very feminine roses, and  the traditional Red and Green Christmas colors accented with pink.  I must confess, I love contrast, it reminds me of well....me, lol.   Some days I feel like a proper English lady, others, I'm full of Shanonigins ;)

I've actually made two different centerpieces for this tablescape. One, the traditional English Country flowers in an antique wooden box, and the other, a more contemporary woodland scene tucked under a cloche.  I purchased my Cloche at World Market for 24.00 and it's a really nice size.

 Here's a close up of the cloche vignette.   I used artificial snow on a white platter and tucked a white deer (from World Market) 2 tree candles, and a bottle brush wreath under the cloche.  This was going more with the tartan plaid in using the woodland or hunting theme.

This is the floral centerpiece.  I have a vintage monogrammed hankie that I used under the box for a touch of romance and to pull in more pink.  The base of the arrangement is evergreens, filled in with white and green mums, red carnations, and of course, pink roses.  I think this would have also worked well with fushia or red roses, or a combo of all three.

Here is a close up of each place setting  I found these fun English Crackers with a tartan plaid band.  Each one contains a tissue hat, a joke, and a charade title.  I love crackers because they put everyone in a fun and festive mood.  Let's face it, it's hard not to laugh when everyone puts on a silly hat.  Have everyone share their joke at dinner, and then play charades with your dessert.  It's built in fun, and I love it :)

 The Key-  You may notice that each place setting has a key?  This is the key to the Inn.  It's to remind us that in our hearts, we can give the Holy Family a warm and safe place to stay.  This symbolizes our love and generosity towards the baby Jesus.  These are Christmas ornaments that can be taken home by each guest to remind them of this gesture.

Is someone you love (and miss) spending Christmas with the Angels?  If you'd like  to remember them in a special way, make them a place setting and place Angel wings on their plate.  It's a nice way to remember that they are in good hands (or wings) even if you miss them.  These wings can then be hung on the tree after dinner (from World Market).

I want to take this time to wish you and yours a Joyful and Blessed Christmas season.  You bless me every day by allowing me to share this blog with you.  Thank you so much for the love and joy you bring to my life.  I wish us all a special 2013

God Bless us Everyone, Hugs and Hope, Shannon