Mini Apple Pies

My Girls Team partner made her annual adventure up to Apple Hill and returned with more apples than we knew what to do with! This week, we made mini apple pies, because apple pie is awesome, and mini versions of things are MORE awesome :)

Freshly picked apples.

 

We found this recipe for Mini Apple Pies from a blog. The only part we changed was that the Girls Team used pre-made pie crust, saving us a lot of time on a work night!

 

After peeling and cubing the apples, my mom prepared the apple pie filling on the stove.

 

I cut out the dough for our mini pies. We ended up not using the cupcake molds because we didn't have enough of the apple filling. I also cut out strips of dough to create a lattice top. The Girls Team got clever with a cookie cutter and cut out apple shaped dough which were a cute addition to our mini pies.

 

 

Once the filling was ready, we scooped it into the mini pie pan. Then we added the lattice top, and a few apple dough cut outs for fun :)

 



 



Before we even pulled the pies from the oven, they smelled delicious. After letting them cool a bit, they were ready to eat. Apologies for the blurry picture - I was REALLY excited to try the pie and was rushing :)

 

 

We topped the warm mini pies with vanilla ice cream and dove right in. These were delicious! They are about 5 inches across, so they were the perfect size for one person. Or for those on a diet, they can easily be shared between two people.

 

The Girls Team bought the mini pie pan just for this MIHM project, and now we want to try making mini berry pies. We may even make these apple pies for Thanksgiving because they are the perfect fall treat in the perfect size.

 

Happy Halloween from the Girls Team!!

 



Festive Funkins

Halloween is here! As one of our favorite holidays, the Girls Team used MIHM to make festive Funkins. What’s a Funkin? It’s a fun pumpkin! We saw the idea in a magazine and after a search around town for fake pumpkins and Halloween and fall themed scrapbook paper, we were ready to go.

Fake plastic pumpkins in all shapes and sizes.

Halloween and fall themed paper.

 

To make a Funkin, you decoupage (our favorite!) paper onto a fake pumpkin. At first we were having some trouble smoothing the paper onto the pumpkins since they had unusual contours. By cutting the paper into strips, and even making a few side cuts into each piece of paper, we were better able to manipulate the scrapbook paper onto the pumpkin. If you're trying this at home, do not put the Mod Podge onto the pumpkin - it's too slippery! Add Mod Podge onto the back of the paper, then stick the paper onto the pumpkin, holding for a few seconds to secure. To prevent the pumpkin from rolling around and messing up the wet decoupaged strips, we placed our pumpkins in a bowl and completed one side at a time, allowing the strips to dry for about 10 minutes before rotating.

Adding paper strips.

After allowing the paper to dry for about 15 minutes, we then added a thick layer of decoupage as a sealant which helped smooth the paper to the pumpkin.
 

Generously applying Mod Podge as a top coat.

Our Funkins dried overnight and the next day we added raffia to two of them for some rustic flare. We may need to hot glue the raffia down for longevity, but as of now we think it looks great as is.

Spiderweb pumpkin and raffia detail.

 

After getting the hang of applying the strips in a non-lumpy manner, the Girls Team enjoyed this project. We are very happy with how our Funkins turned out, and hope that our work was quality so we can keep these DIY décor items for years to come.

All four finished Funkins.

 

Since some of the scrapbook paper we used wasn’t specifically for Halloween, we can keep these Funkins out through Thanksgiving! Meaning we’ll get to laugh each time we say Funkin for the next month :)

Happy Halloween from the Girls Team!

Happy 1st Birthday MIHM!

 

 

 

Guys! Today marks one full year of the Girls Team making it happen on Mondays. Well mostly Mondays. Some weeks we've made it happen on Tuesdays or Wednesdays or Sundays - but we have ALWAYS made it happen, every week for 52 weeks! Over the past year, with the help of my mom, I've learned to cook meat, sew in a straight line and decoupage every type of surface possible :) But more importantly, the Girls Team has spent many fun nights trying new projects together - not only making crafts, but memories too. We've come so far in just one year and I can't wait to see what we create in the coming year. To celebrate, we are forgoing a project this week and treating ourselves to a yummy dinner at a restaurant we've been wanting to try for a while. Happy 1st birthday MIHM!

Image via Southern Cinderella (so we don't get sued!)

Out in the Field

Sometimes you have to get off of Pinterest and Martha Stewart's website, and explore crafting ideas in the real world. This week, the Girls Team took a field trip to Joann's and Ikea in search of clever ideas and supplies for holiday projects. It was fun to check out what both stores had in stock, while thinking of gifts we could make for our friends and families.

Without giving too much away (since you might be one of the lucky homemade gift recipients!) we did find a few gift ideas that we are excited to get working on. I also purchased this craft box to store all of my supplies in, since they had been living in an unorganized cabinet in my apartment and it was driving me crazy!

One really exciting discovery that the Girls Team stumbled upon this week is the Joann Fabric and Craft Store app for the iPhone. While in line at Joann's, I realized I forgot a few coupons I had been emailed earlier in the week. I remembered hearing about an app for Joann's, so I quickly downloaded it (for free!) since the line was moving pretty slowly. The app homepage features ads, store locations, and best of all, a coupon page.

 

I was so excited to find out that all of the coupons I was eligible for are not only saved in the app, but the Joann's employee is able to scan the coupon code straight from my phone. How cool is technology?!

 

 



 

The Girls Team has been making it happen on Monday's for almost a year now, and our field trip for ideas was just what we needed to keep our creative juices flowing! What's your favorite craft store, dear readers? Any secret spots we need to know about? :)