Creative Juices Decor: January 2015

Tried and True Practical Home Decor Solutions

Hi Friends!

How are those New Year Goals coming along :-)
Maybe this year will be my year of organization.....OR at least my attempt at organization!

This makes me smile :-)

I guess my Tried and True posts are becoming a series! Out of the million home decor solutions that have been pinned, there are always a few that are AWESOME and then there are "THE OTHERS" that leave us scratching our heads thinking - HUH??!!??

The latest one I tried (and LOVED) was the silverware organizer turned JUNK drawer organizer. VOILA - all organized - yea!

This is the one I saw off Pinterest......she used it for their bathroom. You can't really see, but each toothbrush spot is labeled with the child's name. I need to do this!

little penelope lane

Here are my favorite practical DECOR solutions I have TRIED OUT and written from reading other's tutorials.

FREE (or nearly free) plate hanger.

(This was such a money saving post for me! Worked perfect!)

All you need is:

Felt

Paperclips

Glue gun

How to use wax paper to put up a gallery wall full of pictures. (this makes it SO easy!!!!!)

All you need is:

Sharpie Pen

Wax paper

Tape

Believe me, I have a LOT of laughable pinterest FAILURES that did not work (um, at ALL) that I could write another full post on. I guess I'll have to save it for one of my Fess Up Friday posts - Pinterest Fails! ha!

For those that missed it, you can see my Tried and True Recipes and my Tried and True Beauty Products!

What idea have YOU used off Pinterest and loved?

Healthy Double Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Hey Friends!

I can't let this month pass us up without a new, super healthy YUMMY cookie recipe!

This one is REALLY good my friends :-) AND...... I do not feel in the least bit guilty having two (3, 4 maybe 5) of these for breakfast. Ha! You can easily make these gluten and sugar free if you want.

The SECRET to making these (and lots of other) healthy cookies is make sure and use REALLY ripe bananas. Regular yellow bananas just won't do the trick.....they have to be over ripe and soft! I always keep a zip lock bag of peeled, over ripe bananas in my freezer.

What I enjoy most about these cookies is they have this great dense texture - an almost hearty feel. The chocolate isn't so bad either - hee,hee. I will also tell you, these are even BETTER the next day (another fact with a LOT of healthy cooking recipes) I put them in a zip lock bag and refrigerate them.

Selina's Double Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

18 cookies

2 RIPE bananas

4 Tbsp NuNaturals Cocoa Syrup (or the mint syrup if you adventurous!)

(or 3 tbsp unsweetened Cocoa Powder sweetened with 3 tsp NuNaturals Stevia )

3 Tbsp egg whites

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 c almonds ground to an almond flour

2 cups oatmeal divided (1/2 c turned to oat flour)

6 scoops (or 90 grams total) protein powder (regular, vanilla or chocolate is fine)

1/2 tsp baking powder

Dash of salt

1/2 c chocolate chips

*you can use healthy sugar free chocolate chips and gluten free oatmeal for health issues if you want!

First mix wet ingredients together. In a separate bowl mix the dry ingredients together. Combine the wet with the dry and mix well. (It's best to add chocolate chips at the very end, lightly stirring them in) Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. (slightly undercooked is WAY better than overcooked for these cookies)

Nutritional Info for one cookie:
Calories - 106
Protein - 5.9
Carbs- 13.5
Fat - 3.8
Fiber - 1.4

Macros: 48% carb/ 21% protein/ 31% fat

I am sold on them, one of my favorites for sure. (And one of my FAMILIES favorite, yes, I even got the "yummy approval" from my kids!)

If you want a few other healthy recipes to use or pin, here are a few great ones from past posts:

Uber Healthy Gluten Free Almond Cookies

Healthy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie:

Slightly Healthier (but still a bit naughty) Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Here's to staying healthy - Enjoy my friends!

See full disclosure policy for links.

Home Decor Ideas - Decorating with Lanterns

Hi Friends!

Every once in a while, there is a home decor accessory that seems to be TIMELESS and always looks great no matter where you put it. Yes, decorating with clocks is definitely timeless (hee,hee) but lately I've noticed so many GREAT decor ideas using old iron/wood lanterns as that timeless, classic accessory.

Let's take a look and be INSPIRED!

I love how they filled the lantern cage with ambient candles. When I went to New Hampshire my friend had some electric candles that I inserted into a lantern she had hanging around her home.

The BEFORE and AFTER pictures!

And for us COLD weather folks (the snow is non stop here!) look how COZY the lanterns make this front porch dusted with snow. I am not sure there is a better accessory for creating a rustic and homey ambiance.

How about inserting a plant into a lantern base - it could look like a mini terrarium! Laura from The Given Life said she used a .99 cent fern from Michaels craft store.

I LOVE this fun outdoor picture below. How creative to use old wine barrels as side tables - it fits perfectly. And look how much the lanterns add to this setting!

Here is another BEFORE and AFTER of my NH friends console table fully accessorized.

Take a look - Up close you can see we used a cute decorative lantern with an automatically lit tealight. You can usually buy great accessory lanterns at Michaels Craft Store. Don't forget to grab a 40% off coupon by doing a Google search before you head out to that store!

Decorating with lanterns can warmly enhance ANY outdoor space.

And only because I mentioned CLOCKS to be another timeless accessory - I had to add this super fun, GIANT kitchen clock.

And this BEAUTIFUL country living back porch clock!

What is your favorite "timeless" home decor accessory?

Enjoy!

My Favorite Tried and True Pinterest Recipes Off Pinterest

Hey Friends!

Pinterest is awesome but it cracks me up! I'll see recipe boards with THOUSANDS of "delicious" recipes pinned and you just know those people (including me) after an hour of pinning, pull out the Mac and Cheese because all the time spend that they were supposed to cook just went to pinning the amazing recipes. ;-)

So, with this post I just wanted to write MY favorite Pinterest Recipes that I have actually tried and agree with the little sayings beneath it when people write "this was the absolute best, nothing beats this recipe!" (please tell me you have tried some of those "best" recipes and it tasted nasty, you know they just WROTE that, and it never was the best - hee,hee)

Here are my favorite's that I have tried and either put on my blog or just pinned them to my Recipe Pinterest board.

Blueberry Banana Oatmeal Muffins

I make these ALL the time! They are so stinkin easy and healthy. The perfect snack or breakfast and they taste GREAT.

Coconut Sticky Chicken

Please just tell me you will try this :-) It's SOOOOO yummy!!!!

Cheesy Spaghetti Squash Casserole

I LOVE this recipe - and it's a vegetable and REALLY healthy! I shouldn't love it as much as I do. (And just so you know, it's not just me that loves it - hahaha, my PICKY husband thinks it should be a holiday staple!)

BEST Whole Wheat Honey Oatmeal

Let's just say......the texture in this bread is to DIE FOR! You will not be able to stop at one piece - guaranteed :-)

BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies (unlike others!)

Alright - this one is AMAZING as the recipe does something no other recipe does. It uses BROWNED butter....yes, you actually cook your butter a little bit and it gets all carmelly. Honestly, you will NOT be disappointed in these.

I also did a post on my favorite tried and true beauty products that might just become your newest favorite products too. (some have changed my life - hee,hee)

Now go on and PIN this post for later when you actually have TIME to make one of these delicious recipes! hee,hee! No, all of these recipes are very easy and not very time consuming. (You're Welcome!)

OH, and tell me if you try any of these and what you think!!! I'd love to hear if you agree with me :-)

Follow Selina {CreativeJuicesDecor.com}'s board Recipes: Meal snacks and applitzer Recipes on Pinterest.

Enjoy!

Feel free to follow my Pinterest Boards. :-)

I thought I would compile what my Blogger Stats said was my top 10 posts of 2014. There were a few I was a bit surprised about and others that I had really hoped to BE one of the top 10 were lost in a sea of internet knowledge. (hee,hee)

#1 Pinterest From the View of a Teenager

This one took me by surprise! OH MY - I had the image below pinned over 5K times! My daughter did have a ton of fun making one like it for her friend's Golden Birthday. (That is when a person turns the AGE their birthday falls on - so her friend turned 13 on the 13th) :-)

#2 How to Make Your Home Have Character

I'm not surprised this one was popular. I wanted to help you guys figure out your own home decor style and aid in creating a spectacular entry way :-)

#3 Inspirational Home Decor Ideas Using Reclaimed Barn Wood

How could you not LOVE a post showcasing a gallery of reclaimed wood ideas - ha!

#4 Make a Large Canvas Wall Art Out of Old Maps

I've never had a post be more popular than this one. I almost feel like it must be my "signature project". Oh ya, Creative Juices Decor - the map project lady :-) The fact that the Sydney Herald Morning and Universal Studio's IVillage showcased it may have helped a bit - hee,hee.

#5 Health Food on a Budget - My Tips and Secrets

This one TOTALLY took me by surprise! It's an older post that just took on new life :-)

It's a great one though, lots of good advice for the frugal healthy shopper!

#6.) Ice Candle Holder - Free and Gorgeous

Ah, I love this post! You can so easily make these Ice Candles by filling up a cup or a bucket with water and let it sit outside till it is half frozen then you dump it out (the extra water that didn't freeze yet) and place a candle in the center. Decorate your front porch with them this winter and I know you'll get MANY compliments!

#7) How to Make Rock Candy

This one is a GREAT project to do with kids during winter break as it takes a bit of time for the crystals to form. My kids LOVE doing this project!

#8) Decorating the Top of Your Cabinets - Tips and Tricks

This post has also been pinned more times than I can count! I wrote it because a friend of mine was having difficulty attempting to decorate the top of her kitchen cabinets and asked me how to do it. I find my best posts come when I am trying to help someone about a particular subject (hey friends - you can get FREE design advice! Just write me your design problems and I might just write a post about it!)

#9.) How to Paint Wine Bottles and Use As Gift Ideas

This is a classic. I wasn't the first one to think of this :-) But it's a fun twist to section off the front and use CHALK spray paint on it. You can write a personalized message or use it to number tables as your next big event.

#10) Adding String Patio Lights to Your Patio

I'm so happy this one made it :-) I am in LOVE with the look it created on the pergola. I researched for HOURS on the best price for the romantic yet industrial look I wanted. I added the links to where I bought mine. So ya, #10 is my #1 - hee,hee!

Alright, LASTLY I'm going to add a post that deserved to be in the top 10 but isn't - ha!!

My Top 5 Interior Design Secrets

This post took me a LONG time to write and it answers the Holy Grail of design questions. ;-)

There you have it my friends!!!!!

Welcome to 2015 - this will be my FIFTH year of Creative Juices Decor! I do hope I've been able to stir some of your Creative Juices over the past few years :-) If you have a favorite that's not listed I'd love to hear about it in the comments! (or which one WAS your favorite out of the 10 listed?) :-)

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