{essential} wallpaper stripping tools

After moving into a house with a living room, a dining room, a kitchen, two bathrooms, and three bedrooms covered in wallpaper, I've learned a thing or two about getting it down.

The first step to stripping wallpaper is having the right tools.

After trying various methods and tools, I've narrowed it down to four tools.

MY FAVORITE WALLPAPER STRIPPING TOOLS:

• steamer
• scraper
• rag
• platform

STEAMER
My Shark mop has a lift away steam unit. This is a life (and a time!) saver when it comes to wallpaper stripping. I would even consider purchasing it just for this feature. If you don't have a steamer, ask around. One of your friends or relatives probably do.

SCRAPER
You will need a metal scraper. Chances are good you already have one around the house. If not, they are readily available at the hardware store. As you can see, mine is well used. Remember to scrape at a 45 degree angle.

RAG
I find it handy to have an old rag nearby to wipe up excess water drops or stubborn glue. I just throw mine in the laundry with all my other dirty work/cleaning rags.

PLATFORM
I'm petite, so a platform is absolutely necessary to just to reach my short ceilings. You could use a step stool, but a work platform gives you about four feet before you need to hop down and scoot your self over. We bought ours on sale at the home improvement store, and it makes all DIY projects much easier.

Do you have experience stripping wallpaper? What have you found that works best?

Stay tuned for next week, when we'll go into detail on how to use these tools to get that pesky, ugly, outdated, or stubborn paper off.

clock {birthday} cake

My daughter's birthday is coming up at the end of this month. When I asked her what she wanted for her cake, she replied, "a clock cake!" Admittedly, its a bit of an odd choice, but hey, it's her birthday right?

I made one for her 4th birthday a few years back. It came about after I let her browse my cake decorating book. It's suggested event is New Year Eve, setting the hands on midnight, but since she was turning four, we adapted it to four o'clock.

With some frosting, peppermint patties, and mini chips, you've got an easy birthday cake!

 

 

You Will Need:

• a baked and frosted birthday cake (any flavor)
• 12 peppermint patties
• frosting stiffened with meringue powder (any color)
• small decorating tip and pastry bag
• mini chocolate chips or mini M&Ms

 

1. Prepare and frost you cake according to the recipe. I choose to do a two layer circle cake, making the peppermint patty placement super easy.
2. Add a small amount of meringue powder to your frosting, according to the amount on the package. Meringue powder can easily be purchased at most craft stores in the baking section.
3. Pipe the numbers 1-12 individually on a peppermint patty, using the pastry bag and tip. Let stiffen. (This should only take a few minutes)
4. Place the patties on a circle on your cake. Kids love to help with this step.
5. Arrange the mini chocolate chips at the desired time. Use a toothpick to gently pre-mark the frosting if you like.

 

Server's Tip:

This could be fun for a child's first birthday. Just arrange the time at the moment the baby was born.

 

Other Ideas:

Substitute colorful mini candies for the chocolate chips.

Substitute grasshopper cookies for the peppermint patties.

snickerdoodles

Can you believe I never ate a snickerdoodle until just a few years ago? We had just moved cross-country, and my pared down pantry was vacant of all liquids. I wanted to make to make cookies, but with three little kids at home, I didn't want to run to the grocery store just to purchase vanilla. So after scouring my family cook book, I came across this recipe from my sweet sister-in-law. No vanilla needed! It was perfect. After years of baking them, I've adapted it to the recipe below.

These make perfect little gifts or a post-lunch sweet. Give 'em a try.

 

 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 3/4 cups flour
• 2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

 

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and the salt. Set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs. Scrap down the sides of the bowl, and add the whisked dry ingredients. Beat to combine.
4. In a small bowl, combine the reserved 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Shape the dough into balls and roll in sugar mixture.
5. Place balls about two inches apart on the baking sheet.
6. Bake 8-10 minutes or until set.
7. Let cookies sit five minutes on the baking sheet on a wire cooling rack before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Makes approximately 41/2 to 6 dozen cookies.

Bakers Tip: I like to use a cookie scoop to get uniform size cookies.