Crafty Projects and Amazing Rice

It's once again my favorite time of the year, the time that final exams are done and summer is just beginning. And once again, P has been busy crafting. Here's a nice 45 minute project for a kid's room.
We found inspiration for it on Pinterest, and then did it ourselves!

Art Hanger

Cost: zero dollars + 45 minutes of effort

 Supplies: 2 pieces of wood from drawer pulls from our freecycled Dresser.
                Bicycle Brake Cable
                Screws and Screw Wallmounts
                Screwdriver + Drill
                Masking Tape + Pencil
                Clothespins
1. Drill holes in center of drawer pulls for screws to mount in the wall.
2. Drill a second narrow hole through the diameter of the drawer pull to thread the wire through.
3. Decide where you'd like to mount the art hanger, and test-mount it with masking tape. Mark the ends for the drawer pulls.
4. Drill holes in the wall, add screw wallmounts.
5. Screw drawer pulls into wall.
6. Add wire, threading through the holes in the drawer pulls, tugging to the desired tightness. Trim off any remaining wire.
7. Add clothespins and art!

Here are a couple of other home decoration projects we've been up to as well. We found two giant very firm pillows for the guest room so we can have a cozier movie area. Here, H demonstrates that the pillows are great for a reading nook too!





 
I've been slowly redecorating our couch and living room, and we finally got all new throw pillow covers for the couch. Now we have two lovely green ones and the birdie pillow cover on our nice grey couch cover.

Finally, I promised amazing rice. Here it is! It doesn't photograph particularly well, so it's just the recipe.

Coconut, Raisin, and Orange Rice
2 T butter
1 onion, finely diced
1 cup white rice, or parboiled brown rice
1 1/4 cups water
 salt
1 tsp popped cumin seeds
1/3 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 tsp cardamom
3 T orange juice

1. Melt 1 T butter over medium heat. Add onion and saute until tender.
2. Stir in the rice and cook 1 minute, stirring continuously, then add water and salt. Raise the heat to high, cover the pan, and bring contents to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 14-20 minutes.
3. In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Pop cumin seeds by roasting a bit. Stir in almond and saute until almonds brown faintly. Add coconut, and cardamom, and cook until coconut faintly browns. Remove from heat.
4. When rice is cooked, gently stir in almond mixture and orange juice. Remove from heat, cover, and let steam for 10-14 minutes.