Our Happy New Year's Cake and Cookies!

Before heading to the mountains for New Year' Eve, here're some pictures of our NYE Cake decoration and cookies for our friends. We don't have time to post the recipes but we'll hopefully make it up to you when we come back:)

We wish you all a happy New Year!

Love,
Emina and Nerma

PS. Please don't make to many resolutions for 2014:)



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DIY/Recipe: Christmas Cookies Card

Dear readers,

Merry Christmas and happy New Year!

For this special holiday season I thought of something festive: the ultimate Christmas & New Year's card with cookies!

Although we don't celebrate Christmas we love to make Christmas cookies ("Plätzchen" in German) and share them with friends and family. As this is the perfect time of year to give away small and special gifts, I have been inspired to make these cute little cards with handmade cookies for my colleagues at work and thereby bring a holiday flare to the office.

The recipe for the cookies is the easiest you will find and the whole thing will not take a lot of your time. 

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DIY: Marmalade Jars Upgraded with Embroidery Floss in 15 min

Here is a perfect stylish storage idea done in less than 15 minutes. We all have empty jars somewhere and and if you already have embroidery floss or any rope at home, it will probably cost you 0 cents.

I made three different pieces, one for the bathroom, one for the writing desk and the one with the green lid is placed in our living room. You saw it in the corner of our customized world map.

I captured the process of making the pink jar. The technique was the same for the other two jars but isn't it cool how they all still look different? 

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DIY: Frame Your Souvenirs

We all use  to come back from our travels with all sorts of souvenirs and most of the time we have no idea what to do with all those sea shells, coins, fridge magnets, tickets etc.

I was thinking of a way to prevent all these little reminders of great trips to be forgotten or even tossed in the trash. After I used all the tickets, boarding passes etc. from our last trip to make a cool photo album cover, I came up with a very simple idea of framing other souvenirs that were lying around for ages.

Like this cute fridge magnet in the form of a traditional Thai tuk-tuk bought in Bangkok at the famous Chatuchak market. This picture will always remind us of funny scenes at the market and getting all wet by the sudden rain.

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Recipe: Emina's Chocolate Truffle Birthday Cake

Nerma and I made two birthday cakes for my birthday, one for my office and this one for my girlfriends. We found the recipe on YouTube and the decoration idea is originally from Pinterest. As always, we added our own signature.

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Recipe: Simple Maki Sushi

We have finally read enough recipes, watched enough sushi videos on YouTube and bought all the exotic ingredients to make our very own maki sushi. Here is our experience.

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DIY: Customized Photo Album

When was the last time you developed pictures? Sounds pretty old-fashioned nowadays, doesn't it? Well, I'm very old-fashioned and serious when it comes to preserving memories and I get all my most important pictures developed at least once a year. 

For the pictures of our amazing trip to China, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand I put in even more effort. I made a customized photo album/scrap book with pictures, tickets, boarding passes etc. and added comments, descriptions, small anecdotes. 

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DIY: Finally a full tutorial for a necklace with chain, beads and sequins!

After more than three necklaces already posted on this blog, now I finally managed to make pictures of the whole process of making a statement necklace with chain, beads and sequins.

This is again a unique piece with completely different beads and colors but the technique remains basically the same as here, here, or here.

Now enough talking. The pictures below will say more than words could describe:) Hope you'll find it useful and inspiring:)

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DIY: Prada Marfa Wall Art

The Prada Marfa pop art poster that alludes to the Prada store in Texas, a permanently installed sculpture by artists Elmgreen and Dagset, got popular all around the world thanks to Gossip Girl. You may have noticed it in the house of Lily.

You can actually order it online if you have some $150 to $ 430 (depending on the size) to spend. Well, a friend of mine who is a Gossip Girl addict and who wanted to have it hanging in her room thought of asking me if I could find a way to make a copy.

As I have succeeded, I will share with you how it is done. 

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Recipe: Heart-Shaped Mini Berliner

You have no idea how much I love Berlin. Oh, actually, you have already had a chance to see why this city is so special to me.

But that is not why I am posting this recipe today. I have been using this recipe for Berliner (Though no one calls them like that in Berlin. There they are, strangely, called Pfannkuchen) for years and they are a success every time.

Now I added a special twist using a cute small heart-shaped biscuit cutter to make them extra sweet:)

Enjoy the recipe:)

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DIY: The Coolest Rope Necklace

I was planing to make a necklace using rope for a long time and a few days ago I found the perfect rope in a hardware store (A short digression: I can spend hours in a hardware store wandering around and buying stuff "I will need sometime for something. Maybe").

If you're in love with my latest necklace as much as I am and would like to have the same, I captured every step of the process for you.

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DIY: Personalized World Map For All Travel Lovers!

We are back from holidays and already planning which country and continent to visit next year. 

If you are crazy about traveling as much as we are, you will like the center piece in our living room: a huge (1.10m x 1.50m) handmade world map. The catch: we have pinned all the cities we have already visited with big pins and all the places we are planning to visit in the future with smaller pins.

 It is the most demanding piece of art I have made so far but I am so happy that I didn't give up until it was just as I imagined it.

If you want to make something similar, here is every step of the process (spread over a few weeks!):

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We'll be back in a month!

Dear readers,

It's time to take some vacation and for this year we planned something special: a one-month trip to Asia! After we return we will post a DIY tutorial for all of you who are crazy about traveling as much as we are.

Until then, enjoy the summer:)

Love,
Emina and Nerma Pin It Now!

FINAL RESULTS of Emina's Workshop on Statement necklaces!

Remember that I held a workshop on statement necklaces last month? I met the girls again afterwards for a second session and while not all of them had the time (and it takes a loooot of time!) to finish their pieces, I can finally present to you some of the finished beautiful and unique necklaces.
 
First of all, here is a group picture in which I am wearing my first handmade necklace.

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DIY: How I Met Your Mother T-Shirt Adjusted

By now you should all know that I am a big fan of How I Met Your Mother and in particularly Barney Stinson (at least the Barney that he used to be in the first seasons). This is why I just had to order this funny statement t-shirt when I saw it on Amazon. 

But when it finally arrived I felt as if there is something missing. I didn't like the sleeves and it just needed my very own personal touch. I think that my little adjustments really made a huge difference.

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Recipe: Banana dipped in chocolate. Yummy!

The easiest way to refresh your guests on a hot summer day and it takes you less than half an hour.

Dip banana in melted chocolate and top with whatever you love and/or have around in your kitchen. I prefer toasted almond:) Don't forget to serve it with ice cream and flowers, for an extra pop of color and summer feeling! 

Now you only need a cozy spot in your garden, on the balcony, anywhere outdoors:)

Yes, I love summer:) 

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Emina's Very First Workshop on Statement Necklaces

I am so excited: Yesterday I held a workshop on how to make a statement necklace for fellow (female) trainees in the European Commission!

The girls and me really had fun and, as it is very time-consuming, we didn't finish the necklaces in our first session. Therefore, here is an overview of the first (very productive) day. We will meet next week again and then I will present you the final result of our creative and hard work:)

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Recipe: Apple Strudel With The Most Awesome Crust Ever

I watched Jamie Oliver doing his magic in the kitchen the other day. He had this awesome idea to boost up a  puff pastry from the supermarket. It's genius! I decided to try out the same with a simple apple strudel.

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DIY Fashion: From Old Necklace To Fabulous Blouse

 I had this broken necklace for some time and didn't know what to do with it. Then I found a cute green blouse that I haven't worn for ages. I still liked it but it was somehow boring and definitely needed a makeover.

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Ethnic Fashion Inspired Statement Necklace

It is amazing how using the same technique and material can give so many different results. This was the most delicate necklace so far. I actually did the same as I did with this and this necklace. The major difference, though, is that I used a chain with much smaller links and smaller beads and sequins.

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Recipe: Delicious Sunshine Strawberry Tart

It is strawberry season, finally!

Yesterday we spent a perfect sunny day in the garden in our family house. While Nerma and our brother were planting flowers and mowing the grass, I surprised them with a strawberry tart (not only to escape the "hard" work in the garden:))

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"Keep Calm And Wear Heels" Totally Girly Wall Art

After I made the string art piece, another overly girly friend had birthday and I decided to make this painting for her. I knew she had planed to do some renovations in her apartment and that she wanted to add more purple details. In fact, she thought about  painting an accent wall behind the couch in dark purple. That is why I thought this painting would fit perfectly above the couch:)

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DIY: The Most Popular Statement Necklace So Far

The necklace that I posted earlier was a real break-through for all my future designs:) Next, I made this one using the same technique:

 felt + chain + beads + sequins + embroidery floss

I just love the color combination. It is so versatile and it is among my favorite pieces so far.  Once again, just like with the previous necklaces, I can't believe that I actually made this. You must trust me, this is really not difficult at all and all of you would be able to make something similar!

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DIY: Stylish String Art

Perhaps I have mentioned it before, I am a big Pinterest addict. This is where I have seen string art for the first time and since then I was looking for an occasion to try out this technique. I also wanted to add something unique to my first piece.

And then it hit me: I'll make an awesome birthday present for a girly friend (who's name starts with an "N"). What's unique about my string art piece is the zebra background. All the string art pieces on Pinterest usually have a sterile white background. I wanted it to be more funky.

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DIY: Statement Necklace With Office Supply

I have already shown you my first statement necklace. I made this one using the same technique but I added a new element- envelope pins or Musterbeutel-Klammern- in German, a standard office supply item. I don't know the word in Bosnian. Maybe someone could help?:)

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Empty Deodorant Bottle to Super Cute BRACELET HOLDER

 I love to recycle things that I already have at home. This time a pin on Pinterest (I'm totally addicted) inspired me to reuse an empty deodorant bottle and make a bracelet holder out of it.

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DIY: Boring Door To "YOU ARE AWESOME" Mirror With Cardboard Frame!

We wanted to have a huge mirror in the hallway so we can check our outfit before heading out without having to walk in shoes in our bedroom (where we already have two huuuge mirrors but what can I say, we're girls:))

I just LOVE this "You are awesome" headline and the crown. Doesn't it make you feel just like a queen?:)

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DIY: (Berlin) Metro Map to Wall Art

Recently I returned back from Berlin where I have studied and lived for a year. As I fell in love with the city, I wanted to make something that will always remind me of the awesome time that I had and the awesome people I met.
There is one thing you most certainly always need in such a big city- a metro map. If you look closer (and hundreds of times a day) you might find that it is very arty. Plus, the colors fit perfectly with my furniture:)

Oh, and see all these (eight) pins and the tagged names? These are all the places where I lived and the names of all my roommates. Yap, I had to move eight times in a year! Long story. The good part about this circumstance is that I have learned: to live with people from all over the world; that I don't need that much material stuff to survive; to appreciate the small things in life such as having your own wash machine; and how to correctly pack my luggage:)

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DIY: Football Pin Wall

After the Barney Stinson's Motivation Poster Display , I made something new for our brother's room. As you already know, he is a huge Man United fan and we have decorated his room accordingly- with white and red details. This time he asked for a stylish pin wall. It took me half an hour to make one:)

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Recipe: The Inevitable Cake Pops

I love good-looking food. After I read about cake pops on a blog for the first time, I was amazed. Then I read another post about cake pops and another one and another one. When I finally decided to make them myself, I checked YouTube for video tutorials. I was overwhelmed by the quantity of cake pops tutorials! I found out that they are a big hit in the U.S.- and that I have obviously overslept this trend:)

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DIY: Statement Necklace With Everything I Found Lying Around

After finishing my first necklace, I wanted to try out something more difficult. I gathered all the sequins, beads, chain, felt, ribbon etc. that I had lying around and waiting to be used for something creative.

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DIY: Gossip Girl Final Episode Cake Decoration

I used to watch Gossip Girl. Somewhere between the second season, me growing up and every new season becoming less interesting (or was it just me growing up?), they lost me. But Nerma remained a true fan till the end. 

She invited the rest of the fan community to watch the final episode at our place. We wanted to make it a memorable evening. Nerma made the best triple-chocolate mousse cake ever. Unfortunately, we forgot to make pictures of the process. But next time (there will most certainly be a next time!) she makes it, we'll make a special post.

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DIY: Barney Stinson's Motivation Posters Display

We've been watching How I Met Your Mother for years and our little brother is a huge Barney Stinson fan. Therefore he asked me for a HIMYM room decoration. I decided to put some of the motivation posters that Barney has in his office (whatever he really does in that company :D) as well as some of his famous quotes, on my brother's wall.

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DIY: My First Statement Necklace

Before I was able to make the collar that I posted earlier, I first practiced with some easier solutions. This was the first piece of jewelry I ever made. I had no idea how it would turn out but that was the best part- I started playing around with different ideas and I loved the outcome.

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Recipe: Birthday Fortune Cookies for Nerma

Last week was Nerma's birthday and she will most certainly never forget it! We made a big surprise for her that almost gave her a heart attack!:) She was having exams the whole month and didn't even think about celebrating (plus, I haven't been home for a few days and she didn't expect me at all).

Her friends, boyfriend and me (10 people) knocked at her door at midnight. When she opened, we started singing "Happy Birthday" while holding balloons, a birthday cake and presents!

Here is one of the handmade gifts that I made for her: Birthday Fortune Cookies! 

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DIY: The Big Bang Theory Wall Art

We are huge fans of The Big Bang Theory. When I saw this T-Shirt online, I immediately came up with a new project- I wanted the characters (Sheldon, Leonard, Howard and Rajesh) on my wall! 

 This is what I did: 


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DIY: Paper Snowflakes Hanging From The Ceiling

These paper snowflakes are done in no time and they add such a cozy winter wonderland feeling (not that I like winter).

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DIY: The Cutest Sequins & Beads Collar

I have never worked with sequins before but when I found a huge package of it in these lovely colors, I decided to give it a try. But what to use it for? Since I love statement jewelry (as you will notice in my next posts) and since I saw so many beautiful collars on the web, I thought I could make my own. 
You would not believe how easy it is to make it. BUT it is VERY time-consuming (No problem for me because I enjoyed every second:))

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