DIY Elmer's Glue Dye Shirts

For our trip to the Wizarding World, my sister and I made our own dorky Harry Potter shirts! Ours didn't turn out perfect so I'll include some tips to avoid mistakes that we made ;)

What You'll Need:
a plain tee or tank
Elmer's Glue Gel- the blue one!
tub/bucket/sink for dying
a flat surface such as a storage bin lid for drying/designing
fabric dye 

What To Do:
First, soak your tee in water and completely wring it out. Place it over the lid or other flat surface.

Use the glue to draw your design on your tee. This part of the tee will remain the same color as the fabric. Make your designs clear and spaced-out in case the glue spreads a little bit. Leave the shirts flat to dry completely. If you want to add something to the back, be sure the front is completely dry before adding the design to the back. 

Obviously my design would have benefited from a pencil sketch to begin with- the pencil will wash out later if you want to draw out a design in pencil first. 

Allow the shirt to completely dry. Once dry, prepare your dye bath. We used Rit dye to achieve the colors we wanted. I used teal and Lindsey used a combination of tangerine and scarlet. Soak the shirts for 10-30 minutes, depending on how rich you want the color to be. 

Wring your shirts out and lay flat to dry. Once dry, rinse for about fifteen minutes in a bath of cool, soapy water. Then wash and dry in the washing machine like normal.

Ta-da!

My glue dripped a little bit during the drying process because I did not dry it flat #epicfail but you can learn from my mistake! It's such a simple process and we will totally do this again! 

Tutorial from Sweet Verbena 

Mac and Cheese Bites

These little macaroni and cheese cups are everything you could want- decadently creamy, super cheesy, and perfectly bite-size. They completely exceeded my expectations- nothing about these was dry or flavorless. Every bite is packed with herb-y, cheese-y deliciousness. They would be perfect for sport watching parties (aren't the NBA finals underway?), bridal or baby showers, or as a fun appetizer! And, of course, your mac and cheese bites can look much neater and more presentable than mine. I was in a hurry ;)

I made these for our youth group and they were a huge hit!

A couple of tips: 

• Always shred the cheese yourself. It will melt easier without the preservatives that keeps pre-shredded cheese from sticking. If, like me, you realize you're without a cheese shredder, chopping it into very small pieces can work!
• Boursin cheese can be found in the specialty cheese section or the deli at your supermarket- it adds tons of flavor and creaminess to the dish!

What You'll Need:
12 oz. elbow macaroni noodles
2 cups butter cracker crumbs (such as Ritz)
3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided6 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
salt and pepper to taste
1 (5.2 oz.) package Boursin garlic herb cheese
2 tbsp. cold unsalted butter
2 large eggs
¾ cup milk
¼ cup sour cream
¼ tsp. salt
Pinch red pepper flakes

What To Do:

• Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Cook the pasta according to the package directions until just shy of al dente.  Drain well.  Meanwhile, lightly grease standard size muffin pans with cooking spray or add cupcake liners.  In a medium bowl, combine the cracker crumbs, ½ cup of the shredded cheese, melted butter, and salt and pepper, and mix with a fork until combined.  Spoon a bit of the mixture into the bottom of each muffin well and press down with the flat bottom of a glass to flatten. 
• Once the pasta is cooked and drained, immediately add it to a large mixing bowl with the remaining shredded cheese, the boursin and cold butter.  In a liquid measuring cup, combine the eggs, milk, and sour cream and whisk to combine.  Add the liquid mixture to the bowl with the pasta.  Stir in the salt and red pepper flakes and mix until evenly combined.
• Divide the macaroni mixture between the prepared muffin wells.  Bake until light golden, about 20-25 minutes. Sprinkle with additional shredded cheese or cracker crumbs if desired.  Let cool in the muffin pans at least 10-15 minutes, then carefully remove from the pan and serve warm.
  
  Recipe from The Deen Bros. on Epicurious via Annie's Eats

#chelindseyvaca: Cocoa Beach

Catch up with #chelindseyvaca here! taking off, the wizarding world, Honeyduke's

After a couple of days exploring Orlando, Lindsey and I picked up a super cute rental car and drove out to Cocoa Beach! We don't get to spend a lot of time at the ocean so we soaked up the sun and waves and the perfect sand while we could! 

In my awesome modest swimsuit from Target!

Sending messages home

Our beach was never crowded, just peaceful. We even came back for a moonlight stroll!

Joy

Nature's Pedicure

We stayed at the La Quinta right across from the beach. Who knew it had such a cool history? 

We got to grab tacos with Megan and ohmyword, she is awesome. 

On our last night, we had a fancy dinner on the water (fancy for us, anyway) and caught a stunning sunset. Even the photos from my iPhone are pretty phenomenal. 

I had fish, shrimp and scallops and Lindsey had a beautiful steak. Mmmm.

A freelance photographer targeted us as tourists and got our photo in front of the gorgeous sunset. I totally bought it. I thought it turned out so pretty! (except he made me take my glasses off... like, what?) Notice my big, Florida-humid hair haha! And Lindsey is just a bronzed goddess as usual.

I loved our time at Cocoa Beach- it was beautiful, refreshing and fun. 

The best kind of vacation.

#chelindseyvaca: Honeyduke's

catch up with #chelindseyvaca here!

taking off

the Wizarding World

Honeyduke's was by far my favorite little shop in the Wizarding World

All of the products were highly detailed and creatively brought to life fictititious treats

I'll let the photos do the talking

Mango Agua Fresca

Summer in Texas is hot. Especially when your car AC is out! This sweet, healthy treat is so refreshing and delicious, perfect for warm weather anywhere. 

It's full of fresh fruit juice and the simple syrup can be substituted with agave or honey if you're steering clear of processed sugars! The flavor can be adjusted with more or less water, syrup, or fruit. I made a huge batch with lots of flavor.  It actually might have bordered on mango limeade. Which is totally okay in my book. 

I can't wait to try this with different fruit flavor combinations!

What You'll Need:
(serves 2)

• 1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted and cut into chunks
• 2 cups cold water
• 1 freshly squeezed lime
• 1/4 cup simple syrup*
• Lime wedge for garnish

What To Do:
Blend mango and water until completely smooth. Strain into a pitcher through a fine mesh strainer. Add lime juice and simple syrup and stir well. Add ice to glasses, pour  juice over and garnish with lime slices and a fancy straw!

*To prepare simple syrup, combine equal parts water and sugar. Stir over medium heat until sugar is completely dissolved and allow to cool.

Recipe adapted from Whole Foods

#chelindseyvaca: the Wizarding World

catch up with #chelindseyvaca here! 

taking off

The entire reason for our Orlando vacation was to visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios. Harry Potter holds a very special place in our hearts. I grew up the same age as Harry as each book was released. Lindsey was the same age as the movie characters. We eagerly anticipated every book release and every movie release- reading under the covers by flashlight late into the night and waiting in line for midnight premieres hoping the film would be true to the novel. And I'll admit I was such a fan that I created this little website while in middle school. 

When we were in middle school, Lindsey and I were both in the gifted and talented program. One of our objectives for the year as part of GT was to score a cumulative amount of reading points as a group. If we lost, there were embarrassing consequences (our teacher had us dress as ducks and waddle through the classrooms quacking. yep.) If we met our goal, we got to choose a consequence for the teacher! 

Lindsey was not much of a reader at the time so I began reading Harry Potter to her. The books had high point values because they were so much longer than normal middle school reading material. Before long she was as much a fan as I was.

So with our inner 11 year olds alive and excited, we raced through Islands of Adventures to the Wizarding World. 

First, you enter Hogsmeade...

Snowcapped shops and restaurants line the walkways with street vendors throughout 

There is incredible detail in every storefront, pulling from both the books and movies. Here a mandrake plant screams from the botany store window! 

Zonko's featured both wizard and muggle joke items. Lindsey and I could not stop laughing at U No Poo. If you've read the books, it's seriously one of the brightest silly spots in the very dark plots of the final books. Although, technically it was a Weasley Wizard Wheezes product, not a Zonko's product! ;) 

Inside Dervish and Bangs, the Monster Book of Monsters growled, snarled and charged at customers from within its cage. (Pretty sure this guy was sold at Flourish and Blotts in the books though)

Some store front windows

Gilderoy Lockhart's books for sale at Tomes and Scrolls

sporting gear, including bludgeons scrambling to be let loose, sold at Spintwiches

self stirring cauldrons

Hermione's dress from the Yule Ball in the window at Gladrags

The Owl Post was quite busy- got my postcards stamped here!

the botany store

Next we moved on to Hogwarts! It was big and beautiful and had tons of cool stuff along the way to the ride inside. 

Me and Lindsey were super excited about the castle.

Once you get inside, there are tons of details from the books/movies. However, it is really dark inside so my photo documentation is limited. There was a cool  tapestry of a unicorn.

the entrance to Dumbledore's office

Dumbledore's hologram speaks to you as you go through his office!

Next we ventured over to Hagrid's cabin!

...and said hi to Buckbeak on our way up the coaster!

After cheering on the representatives from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang at the Triwizard Pep Rally, we went on the Dragon Challenge- a ride simulating the Triwizard Tournament's dragon challenge. 

Cedric, sniff. ;(

We kept our eyes open for Sirius Black

sipped frozen butterbeer

(kinda tasted like a cream soda icee)

checked out the full menu at the Three Broomsticks and the Hog's Head

decided we couldn't spend $7 on pumpkin juice

And posed in front of the Hogwarts Express

We had a full, lovely day at the Wizarding World and left with some budget-conscious goodies- postcards stamped at the Owl Post, Bertie Bott's Beans, a Chocolate Frog, and a time turner key chain. 

What We Loved:
- the awesome details
- fictional treats come to life (butterbeer, pumpkin juice, the whole store at Honeyduke's, the Three Broomsticks)
- really helpful employees
- holograms of characters throughout the Hogwarts ride
- a holding service for Honeyduke's purchases
- the Owl Post stamp

Things to Prepare For:
-the Wizarding World is just a section of Islands of Adventures so even though there is plenty to explore, it won't take you all day. We completed absolutely everything in three hours
- Most of the details are from the early books/movies
- Everything is pretty pricey (for poor students anyway ;). A chocolate frog was $10, a wand was $30+, and a house scarf was $35. 
- most of the stores are just decorative storefronts 

Our Tips:

1. Get there early- the park fills up quickly and makes for crowded streets, stores and long lines. It's also much cooler in the morning!

2. Dress comfortably- make sure you have on supportive shoes!

3. If you are prone to motion sickness, even a little bit, take Dramamine before riding the Harry Potter rides. We wish we had. Even though the rides were super cool, we felt queasy the whole time. 

4. Watch every show and explore every shop.

5. Even if you aren't going to buy the souvenir photo they take on the roller coasters, go look at your face and get a good laugh. 

6. Take your time going through Hogwarts- they've included tons of awesome details along the way to the front of the line. 

7. It's totally okay to bring a bag/purse. There are free lockers at every ride with fingerprint access. 

8. Don't spend money on souvenirs that won't be used or enjoyed after your trip. The wands are cool... but you're not a wizard. The $100+ robes would make an awesome costume but goodness gracious just borrow someone's graduation robes for that. Basically, just be wise about how you spend your money. 

9. The time turner necklace was $50 and looked almost identical to the $12 keychain. 

10. Wait until the Diagon Alley section is completed to come visit!