Vanilla Spritz Cookies

I made Vanilla Spritz Cookies from Sinfully Vegan, and then added a dark chocolate orange ganache for the frosting. I already had a "taster" cookie or two and they are delicious! No one will ever suspect they are vegan. Hope you enjoy the rest of 2009, and kick off the New Year with style (and delicious deserts).

Sinfully Vegan

I won this desert cookbook at a vegan thanksgiving potluck. The book looks great but I haven't gotten around to using any of the recipes until today. I needed a yummy way to kick off the new year so I decided to make vanilla spritz cookies (page 22) for New Year's Eve.

Artichoke Bowl

This is one of the largest things I have made and it is definitely the largest bowl I own. It measures about 13 inches across. I couldn't decide how to glaze it but I like the contrast of the bright interior and the dark exterior.

Bento Box

I am extremely interested in bento boxes lately. They are so cute! Bento boxes come from Japan, they are single tier or stackable boxes you put a portable meal in. Here is a bento box that can make lunch adorable without too much extra work. I did not make the box above, I just thought it was cute. But I am making purple rice with dinner tonight ;)

Check out some amazing bento boxes:

http://veganbento.blogspot.com/

http://rawveganbento.wordpress.com/category/bento/

http://veganlunchbox.blogspot.com/

Walden Pond

I made these collages a while ago, but I decided to post them today because they fit how I feel after the holidays. I often find myself caught between the freedom and honesty of simplicity, and the pleasures and creativity of excess. I made them after reading Walden Pond. I put an easily recognizable simple shelter image on top of a lavish out of date 70's interior design collage.

Green Bowl

This is an oblong high fire bowl. The outside is a matte teal green, and the inside has splashes of different green glazes that came out very crisp but organic. It holds my tangerines quite well :P

Merry Christmas

Wishing you all a happy holiday!

Gingerbread House

I love gingerbread houses! They smell and look great. However, I am not a fan of eating gingerbread. The thought of all the baking for something I will let sit for weeks until my friends dare each other to eat it just does not sit well. This got me thinking, is there a vegan gingerbread house kit for sale? And yes, yes there is! The Etsy store The Cupcake Mint makes wonderful vegan cupcakes, cookies, and other goodies including you guessed it a gingerbread house kit. So next winter pick up a kit, and until then check out the other goodies The Cupcake Mint has to offer.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/thecupcakemint

VegNews Magazine

For all those last minute gift givers out there VegNews Magazine is offering $5 off their normal subscription rate. For $15 you can buy a year of VegNews, plus a super-cute gift note delivered to your gift recipient.

$15 Deal:

https://subscribe.pcspublink.com/giftFormGeneric.asp?track=JHOL08&pub=VGNW&term=6

VegNews Home:

http://www.vegnews.com/web/home.do

Bread Basket

This is a photo of a defenseless trashcan I decoupaged with photos of bread from outdated cookbooks. I made it for an arts and crafts night where everyone had to show off something they made that week. It was a fun party idea, and everyone made incredible projects.

Rainy Day

I finished my ninja marionette weeks ago but the weather has not permitted an outside photo shoot. However, it is the perfect weather to start crocheting a blanket. So far I have only finished 4 squares. It may turn into a bunny blanket which is smaller and will distract him from rooting around my grandmother's blanket.

Granny Squares

This is the first scarf I ever made! My grandmother showed me how to crochet granny squares a few months ago before she died. I think she would have liked it <3

Candy Bars

There is a lot of gourmet vegan chocolate on the market which is delicious. However even with a 70% coco fair trade candy in my stocking I sometimes miss the simple joy of a frozen Snickers. Go Max Go Foods is a small company dedicated to recreating brand name candy bars into vegan treats. They offer the Jokerz (Snickers), Twilight (Milky Way), Mahalo (Almond Joy), and Buccaneer (three Musketeers). Yum!

Go Max Go Foods web page

http://gomaxgofoods.com/index.htm

Vegan Essentials online store

http://store.nexternal.com/shared/StoreFront/default.asp?CS=vegane&StoreType=BtoC&Count1=197521388&Count2=114661812&CategoryID=1&Target=products.asp

Zebra Shoe

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so I decided to built a ceramic version of my favorite pair of shoes.

Happy Cow

For anyone who loves food there is a great website called the HappyCow compassionate eating guide. You type in an address and it will give you a list of all the vegetarian options in that area. It is great for a vegan on the go, a foodie who is sick of the same old restaurants, or anyone with a vegetarian house guest for the holidays. I have found some great restaurants on there when traveling, so give it a try.

http://www.happycow.net/

Finished Owl

Hear is the finished tea set. The teapot after all the reductions holds up to 2 cups of liquid. How could anyone not want to drink tea out of an owl? It is a low fire piece which allows for a wider range of colors. All the colors are from several layers of under glaze and then it is coated in a clear glaze. It is a little shinier then I intended, but it is still cute.

Science Rules

Today I am preforming in a puppet variety show for a preschool/kindergarten. My scientist is a moving mouth and hand puppet that I spent many hours perfecting, so if feels good to show her off.

Tofurky Soda

Jones soda is representing some vegan pride this year! For all of those adventurous people out there, Jones soda teamed up with Tofurky® to bring the world this meatless limited edition soda. Jones is donating $1 to People Helping Animals (PAWS) with each case sold. Live on the wild side and help a charity, win win.

http://www.myjones.com/store/limited-edition/limited-edition-tofurkey-and-gravy-jonoes-soda.html

http://www.paws.org/

Finals

This is the last day before finals so I am off to hit the books some more. In fact the bunny got up on the couch and is beating one up for me right now. Despite his small size he always has my back, and to think I wasn't going to post a picture today.

Hand Built Shoe

I spent a good chunk of this Saturday in the ceramics studio. This was one of the pieces that finished firing. This shoe is my fist experience working with a low fire clay that did not involve molds. I did not like the clay at first because it was to dry; it would start to set up and crack within minutes of being handled. Since this shoe was built however, I have used the clay on a wheel and enjoyed it. The picture does not show the 3d texture on the strap, or the red label that has my signature.

Lord of a Visible World

I started to read Lord of a Visible World an autobiography in letters of H. P. Lovecraft today. So far I have only read the intro which recaps Lovecraft's life and puts the letters in to context. The introduction did not have any new interpretations of Lovecraft but I enjoyed refreshing my memory. I am really excited to get into the letters!

Boomer Time

I took the written portion of my guitar final today, and went to several classical guitar recitals. It was a guitar heavy day. I also spent several hours in the ceramics studio today and will soon have some finished pieces to post. Until then here is a picture of Boomer, my newest and loudest roommate :P

Chubby Bunny

It is beginning to look a lot like x-mas. My car windows were frozen over this morning and the bunny is getting his winter chub on. Brrrrr!

Steven the Vegan

Here is a video that always makes me chuckle. It reminds me of the creative questions people can come up with, and yes people really do ask these questions. Hope you enjoy.

New Plates

I finished two small plates today. I usually do not like making plates but I had a lot of fun making these textured hand built pieces. The glaze and three foot stand came out just how I wanted. I can't wait to serve something on them, something delicious!

Marionette Ninja

Progress is slow, but I finished her legs and feet. Next is the hands, and then stringing. I've tried a couple of times already to make hands, but they haven't been coming out well, and I have never strung a marionette before. I am excited to finish, but am not crazy about all the problem solving that is in front of me :P

Eating DVD

Eating 2nd Edition-PLUS is a documentary that illustrates the consequences eating animals can have on human health, the environment, and animals. This DVD helped me go from not eating animals to not eating animals, their milk, or eggs. The production value is a bit cheesy, but there are some great ideas if you can stick to it.

A Fish Called Wanda

Since I will have the sewing machine out this weekend, I thought I would fix the mouth on my hand puppet. I never liked the color and it is smaller then I wanted. I have an orange fabric that I think will be less distracting when the puppet's mouth moves, and a larger mouth will allow for more expressions :0

Marionette

I am working on finishing this marionette. I put the legs and head tie on last night. I would like to finish her this weekend. I still have the hands, feet, knees, detailing, and stringing to go.

Owl Teapot

Here is a sneak peak of my owl tea set. It is still greenware, meaning it has not been bisque fired yet. The dark color around the beak is wax (which helps the clay dry slower), it will burn off when it is fired. I really like how it is turning out. I think it is the best teapot I have ever made :)

Test glazing

I love ceramics! I have been playing with some new glazes with my pottery lately. Some I like, and some were just a learning experience. Right now I'm working on an owl tea pot and a super secret project that I am excited about.