Heart Shaped Food

I made some heart shaped food for Valentine's Day. I made these vegans sugar cookies:





I also made potato pancakes shaped like hearts:



Do you like to cook?

New Photos

Here are some photos I retook for my shop.

Circus Dots Photo Album



Chinese Lady Yang Journal



Black and Gold Marbled Journal



You can see all updated photos here.

Inspiring Concert Posters

I love looking at the artwork of concert posters and album artwork. These are some of my favorite concert posters that inspire me.




Do you like to look at concert posters? What inspire you?

20 Ingredients I Can’t Live Without

I saw this blog post on Alicia Silverstones vegan blog about 20 Ingredients I Can’t Live Without. I thought I'd do my own version. Here are my favorite ingredients (all vegan):

Pasta -  My favorite shape of pasta is penne. I love pasta with homemade marinara sauce. 

Potatoes - Potatoes are one of favorite vegetables and you can use them to make lots of different meals - mashed, fried, baked, hash browns, potato pancakes, soups, etc.

Avocado - Avocados have a nice texture. I use them in tacos, guacamole and pasta. I've even made avocado pudding before.

Daiya cheese - Daiya is my favorite cheese subsitute. I use it on pizza and or in my tacos.

Black beans - Black beans are proably my favorite type of bean. I use them in soup or for tacos.

Earth Balance - Earth Balance is a version of vegan butter. It's the best imitation butter I've found and is great to use in cooking or on toast.

Soymilk - Soymilk is another substitute that I use in lots of recipes when cooking or baking.

Olive Oil - Olive oil is my favorite oil to cook with.

Onions - Onions make lots of recipes have more flavor. I also love french onion soup.

Garlic - I also love garlic. One meal I really love is garlic pasta with lots of fresh garlic.

Tomato paste - I use tomato paste in sauces for pasta or pizza. I prefer it over store bought tomato sauces. I add water and my own spices and herbs.

Bananas - I love bananas as a fruit. They can also be used as substiute for eggs in desserts and to make vegan ice cream.

Flour -  Flour is great for making your own dough for things like pizza and tortillas. You can also use flour to make desserts like cupcakes.

Sugar - You need sugar to make desserts. I try to buy organic sugar since regular sugar isn't vegan. My favorite desserts to make are cupcakes and homemade fudge.

Chocolate Squares - I am a chocoholic so I love plain baking chocolate squares. I buy the unsweetened kind and add sugar.

Vanilla - Vanilla is always used in baking. I also love the smell of it to use in homemade beauty products and bath stuff.



Tumeric - Tumeric is one of my favorite spices. I use it for Indian dishes like aloo gobi and to put in other meals like soups or pizza.

Basil - Basil is another herb I like. Fresh basil is great for pasta or pizza.

Cinnamon - Cinnamon is another spice I love. It's not really sweet, but can be used in desserts. I love cinnamon sugar on toast.

Tea - My favorite kind of tea is peppermint. It makes me so relaxed.

What are your cooking essentials? Post yours in the comments.

Google + Blog Page

I created a Google + page for my blog. I got inspired by a Twitter chat I did with Crafter Minds about how to use Google+.

Google + is a lot like Facebook sofar. Blogger has a feature where you can automatically connect blog posts to Google + pages so I decided to start a Google+ page just for this blog. I added a bunch of photos albums with photos I have posted on this blog such as giveaway prizes and art journaling entries. I am trying to have exclsive stuff on Google + to get people to join.



Add me to your circles if you're on Google +. Do you use Google +?

Updated Journal Photos

These are some journals I updated the photos for.

Spring Garden Journal


 
Zebra Lover's Coptic Stitch Journal



Hope Floats Movie Upcycled Journal



Which is your favorite?

Valentine's Day Photos

Here are some love themed photos that inspire me.






Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day Desserts

Here are some Valentine's Day themed desserts to inspire you or  try out.



I love the idea of heart shaped cupcakes. Learn how to make heart shaped cupcakes with marbles here.

Why not make heart shaped cookies?

For a different kind of cookie, make fortune cookies with a custom romantic message on the inside.

What desserts do you like to make for Valentine's Day?

Valentine's Day Beauty

Here are some fashion and beauty ideas to try for Valentine's Day.


Cute shirts with hearts and love themed messages are perfect for Valentine's Day like this sweater or
graphic tee from Diane Von Furstenberg. Find more heart shaped sweaters here. 

Shoes with heart details, like the ones on the left from Vivienne Westwood, are a great way to add a romantic touch to your outfit.

Pink eye shadow is great for Valentines Day. Use a soft pink shadow on your lids with black eye liner and mascara. This goes great with pink lip gloss and a nautral blush.

What do you like to wear on Valentines Day?

Valentine's Day Crafts

Here are some craft ideas for Valentines Day.

Why not make a Valentines Day wreath? I love the heart shape of this one.

On the left - These paper hands are great for kids to make. Just cut from construction paper decorate how you want. You can hand over sweets or a toy ring, or let someone know he's your hands-down favorite.

On the right, use poetry to give gifts a romantic feel. Write a romantic script onto 1/4 inch wide quilling paper or satin ribbon. You can also use an old typewriter.

Decorate small heart shaped boxes with acrylic paint, ribbon and lace. For a cute gift idea, make a felt tissue pouch with just felt, scissors and sewing supplies.

What crafts do you like to do Valentine's Day?

Valentine's Day Items in My Shop

I made a Valentine's Day section here to include all my love themed items in my shop. Here are some of them:

Red and Gold Heart Greeting Card



Tan Heart Ribbon Journal



Multicolored Hearts Valentine's Day Card



Get free shipping in February if you enter the code LOVE2013 at checkout.

Valentine's Day Special 2013

Valentine's Day is coming up. Here is the schedule for the Valentine's Day special this year.

2/10 - Valentine's Day Items in My Shop
2/11 - Valentine's Day Crafts
2/12 - Valentine's Day Beauty
2/13 - Valentine's Day Desserts
2/14 - Valentine's Day Photos

What do you like to do to celebrate Valentine's Day?

Updated Greeting Card Prices

I changed the prices for my greeting cards. The prices are now $3 for small cards, $4 for most other cards and $5-6 for cards that are handpainted or use more expensive materials.



I was inspired by an article I read on Etsy's blog. I felt my cards were underpriced compared to other items in my shop. I used this formula:

Materials + Labor + Expenses + Profit = Wholesale x2
I think it's hard to price greeting cards because I think most cards are underpriced in general. I tweeked the formula a little to make the cards more affordable, but that's the basic formula I used. If you want, I could do a tutorial/blog entry about pricing items on Etsy.

How much would you pay for a greeting card?

Bicycle Inspiration

These are some photos of bikes that inspire me.



I haven't really ridden a bike in a while, but I was organizing my photos and noticed I had a lot of bicycle themed photos. Do you like to ride bikes?

Facebook Coupon Code

I added a feature on Facebook so fans get exclusive content. When you like Move the Needle's Facebook fanpage, you can get a coupon code that gives you 20% off your next purchase. Click here to like my Facebook see the coupon. What other exclusive content would you like to see on my Facebook (or blog/newsletter)?