Giveaway from Shabby Apple, $50 Gift Certificate

Do you love Vintage & Retro-Style Clothing?  Then you probably love Shabby Apple.  Shabby Apple creates "clothing that is artful in design and crafted with a vintage-style flare. Each piece is carefully constructed to both flatter a woman’s figure and maintain her mystery."

They have some gorgeous dresses right now that are perfect for spring.  Here are a couple of my top picks:

They are all just so pretty!

To enter for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate from Shabby Apple, just fill out the Rafflecopter form after the jump. Giveaway open to us residents only. If you are reading this via email or RSS feed reader, click here to see the rafflecopter form.

Double Chocolate Pudding Parfaits

I was organizing my pantry recently and stumbled across a can of evaporated milk that had a recipe for chocolate cream pie on the back label.  I was so in the mood for something sweet, creamy and chocolatey, I had to make this pie! 

I had everything I needed to make the pie except the chocolate cookies.  I made a quick call to my hubby, and as luck would have it, he was about to pass the grocery store on his way back to the house.  I asked him to pull in and pick me up some chocolate cookies.

In the time it took him to get home, I decided instead of pie, I would make a layered chocolate parfait. 

These pudding parfaits were unbelievably good!  So worth the extra effort to make the pudding from scatch and having to let the pudding cool before layering everything together.  They were even better the next day.  

The recipe I used is below, but if you don't have time to make the chocolate pudding from scratch, you could always use the instant pudding and cool whip.

Double Chocolate Pudding Parfaits

Ingredients:

Filling

• 1 can Evaporated Milk (370 ml- this is around 12 oz)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup chopped semi-sweet chocolate
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Topping

• 1 cup whipping cream
• 3 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Crust:

• 1 cup chocolate-cookie crumbs
• 3 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions:

1. Bring milk to a boil in a saucepan. Turn off heat. 
2. Combine sugar, cocoa and cornstarch in a small bowl. Beat eggs in a separate bowl. Whisk the sugar mixture into the egg and then whisk in the warm milk.  
3. Return mixture to saucepan. 
4. Cook on medium heat until mixture comes to a boil and thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in chopped chocolate and stir until melted. Stir in vanilla. 
5.  Chill for pudding for about an hour or until cool.
6. Combine cookie crumbs and melted butter until crumbs are coated and sticking together
7. Whip cream for about 45 seconds. Add powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until stiff and cream holds its peaks. 
8. Spoon over chocolate filling. Sprinkle with shaved chocolate. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
9. Serve Pudding parfaits in individual glasses: layer a couple of spoonfuls of the cookie crumb mixture at the bottom of the glass. Follow with a layer of the whipped cream mixture, and a generous amount of the pudding. Top with another spoonful or two of the cookie mixture and a final layer of the whip cream. Garnish with leftover cookie crumb mixture or chocolate shavings.

Enjoy!

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Sweet Summer Sundress Tutorial - You can make it in any size!

I've had this cute black and white chevron fabric sitting in my stash for awhile now.  I only had one yard, so I didn't think I could make anything for myself.  (Actually, I could have squeezed a top out of this since the fabric was around 60 inches wide, but I probably wouldn't wear a top with chevron stripes running side to side, it is much better suited for my daughter who would look cute no matter what...)

My little Missy has been requesting a strapless dress.  I've tried explaining to her that a strapless dress wouldn't stay up!  I thought this fabric would make a perfect little sundress or tunic top so I made her the next best thing to strapless and added skinny spaghetti straps.

When I first had her try it on, she resisted a bit because of the straps, but I showed her that I made the top extra tight and she could tuck the straps in when we were at home, but when out and about, she had to keep the straps on to avoid wardrobe malfunctions...

How cute is this outfit?  We already had these pink leggings, so I decided to to make a tunic top instead of a dress and use pink fabric for the straps and belt.

The best part of this dress (or top) is that you can make it in any size!  It's so easy and doesn't require a pattern!  I totally want one for myself.  My only recommendation is if you are busty, you may want to leave off the ruffle, especially if you are using a stiff cotton fabric.  I'm top-heavy.  So for me, I plan to use a slinky jersey or stretch knit.  By using fabric that lays close to the body, I could keep the ruffle, but add a few inches to its length so the bottom of the ruffle hits below my bust line, but above the belt/waistline.  (To get the perfect length on the ruffle, I would probably cut it a little long and hem it last, so I could ensure the perfect length. 

(I just love shooting into the sun!)