Happy Valentine's Day & Gentle Bath Company Giveaway Winner!

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Happy Valentines Day to one and all! I am a sucker for any excuse to celebrate anything (seriously, I threw a Speakeasy Party just because I wanted to liven up this year's Chicago winter), so Valentine's Day is, as usual, an exciting day for Carly.

First, it's exciting because I have amazing plans for the night. A few months ago, my fiance made a prime time reservation at Moto. Let's just say that I can't wait to add my Yelp review to that list, because I'm convinced it's going to be a night to remember. I'm even planning to bring my camera. Yep, I'll be that dork with a DLSR at dinner. But really, dinner at Moto practically begs to be photographed.

Image Credit

An edible menu?! Image Credit

Food that looks like a cigar?! Image Credit

There are a bunch of more interesting images here, but you get the idea. It's pretty much a food blogger's dream, so... consider yourself warned that I will be hyped and posting all about it.


Second, today is exciting because we have our Save The Dates and Engagement Party invites back from the printer! I'm extremely picky when it comes to design and announcements, etc, so I designed both the Save The Date we'll be sending out as well as the invite for the Engagement Party my parents are throwing next month for the bridal party, family, and some local guests. I used some of the engagement shots taken by Daniel Peter and then went from there. Some pictures of those announcements/invites coming soon! Can't wait to share my custom monogram. Don't roll your eyes.


Third, today is exciting because it's a big sale day. Companies always go out of their way to roll out the Valentine's carpet and offer good deals. Perhaps it's because people are either in a wonderful mood (buy stuff) or a horrible mood (buy even more stuff). Here are a few sales I'm keeping my eye on:

• GNC is offering 25% off their entire online shop if you use the code IHEARTGNC
• Juicy Couture is offering 30% off track and handbags (View the items on sale here)
• World Market is offering 25% off bubbly and vino for members (if you're not a member, it's easy to join, you can do it in the store)
• J Crew is offering 30% off all final sale items with the coupon code STYLE30 (I don't think this discount is exclusive to today's holiday by the way)

Fourth, today is exciting because I'm announcing the winner of the Gentle Bath Company Giveaway! I'm very thrilled to announce that the winner is...

TIFFANY A.

I used random number generator to choose a winner based on the comments that were left. Tiffany, because you did not use a google or blogger account to leave your comment, I do not have an email address for you to shoot you a note letting you know you've won -- so I'll give you until Monday to email me at carly@createliveblog.com and claim your prize! On Monday, if I've not heard from you, I'll have to re-draw! Don't make me...

Whiskey Marinated Steak with Chocolate Red Wine Reduction Sauce

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Since I posted a recap of my weekend, I've had numerous readers and friends ask me for this recipe. For those of you who are wondering, yes, it really was that good.

Basically, one day, I was feeling particularly cranky at work. I'm generally a very positive person, but occasionally things get too complicated. On this particular day, I was feeling very irritated, and then a thought entered my mind: This would all be better if I could have whiskey marinated steak with chocolate wine sauce.

All it took was one moment, that seed of a totally random recipe to be planted in my head, and from that point forward, I was hooked on the idea of this dish. My coworkers have heard me repeatedly bringing it up, asking them if they thought it would work or professing my excitement over this imaginary dish.

Finally, when my fiance and I made plans to visit my parents over the weekend, it seemed like the perfect experiment. My parents are (almost) always willing to try my edible concoctions, and my fiance is a WONDERFUL griller (it's not as easy as it looks - I'm pretty sure I'd suck at it).

Thus, with a random thought during the workday, this recipe was conceived... and, over a weekend in the Northern Chicago Suburbs, it was born. Happy Birthday, Recipe!

This recipe would be perfect for a homemade Valentines Day dinner, or a romantic gourmet meal.

Whiskey Marinated Steak with Chocolate Wine Reduction Sauce

Serving Size: This recipe is for 4-6 filets. If you're making it for two, cut it in half.

Marinade Ingredients:

• 1/4 Cup Whiskey
• 1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
• 1 Dash Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
• 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
• 2 Shakes, Minced White Onion Flakes (or Onion Powder)

Sauce Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Red Wine
• 2 Tablespoons Sifted Cacao Powder (or Cocoa powder)
• 1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar

Other Ingredients:

• 4-6 filets (or cut recipe in half for 2-3) 

Directions:

1. Mix marinade ingredients and whisk well. Place steak with marinade in a plastic bag. Poke filets/steaks with fork, if desired. Let sit for at least two hours, but overnight is best.
2. Heat your grill! We like to cook our steaks "Rare Plus," so we start the heat out as high as possible so that we sear the outside quickly, without cooking the meat too much.
3. Before cooking the meat, begin making the chocolate and wine reduction sauce. Reduce wine (boil for a while, then slowly reduce to a simmer) until it is reduced in volume and slightly thicker. Then, add gradually add Cacao Powder and Brown Sugar, stirring well to break up any chunks.
4. Grill your steaks. Ours took only a few minutes on each side.
5. Place steaks on individual plates and drizzle with chocolate wine reduction sauce.
6. Enjoy!

DIY Decor | Leather Coasters

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After overhauling my bedroom headboard using a thick leather-esque fabric, we had a whoolleeeelotta leftovers. It ended up in bow bracelets and cuff bracelets (and leather coasters, oh my!)...

Then, one fateful night, I stayed up for far too long making a camera bag for my mom. Somehow, that small exposure to a sewing machine gave me confidence in my sewing abilities, leading me to stay up even longer to make Justin these leather coasters for his apartment.

These are pretty easy. Of all things craft-and-food related, I am especially unskilled when it comes to sewing (something about fine motor skills and patience... not a good combination for this gal). And so, my friends, as they say in Kindergarten... If I can do it, you can do it! (They do say that... right?)

I started by deciding how large to make the coasters. I decided to go with 3.5in by 3.5in. Larger coasters would work but I wouldn't go much smaller than that.

The lines in this fabric made cutting fairly simple, but make sure that all your pieces are the same size. Don't get too overwhelmed by this detail, though -- you can always trim them after sewing.

I was worried that the two pieces would slip-and-slide while I sewed them together so I decided to start with a bit of super glue. I gave them a healthy dose of glue in the middle and then dotted a bit on the outside. Be careful not to go too overboard with superglue on the outside edges or you may end up trying to sew through super-dried-and-hard-glue.

Once the glue dried, I went around all 4 corners with white thread.

And the finished product was quite pretty..

Am I totally crazy or are these actually fairly manly? I'm sensing a fabulous man-gift movement right here. Valentine's Day? Birthday? Christmas?

Psst! If you're digging these coasters, you might also dig these Scrabble Coasters. Check them out! :)

Recipe | Valentines Cookies (Turn Any Cookie Into Valentines Day)

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In true Valentines Day spirit, I'm covering things in pink, red, and glitter dust. Half of you are smiling (and oo-ing and awww-ing). The other half are cringing.

Maybe that means you think I'm tacky. But tacky is as tacky does and tacky does make cookies.

This is truly less of a 'recipe' and more of a trick to turn-any-cookie-into-a-Valentines-Day-Cookie (or, truly, to turn any dessert into a Valentines Day Dessert). Some ideas?

• Try it with Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies 
• Use the glitter-fied candy coating on the ever-popular (and quickly disappearing) Oreo Truffles
• Drizzle the pink glitter mixture (see below) on the outside frosting of Chocolate Cream Cheese Whoopie Pies
• Sprinkle on top of chocolate mousse-filled yellow cupcakes

For this recipe, I used a pre-packaged box of Snickerdoodle mix found in my mother's pantry... and some awesomely pink and shiny edible glitter dust made by Wilton, purchased from Hobby Lobby via a gift card from Heidi. I also grabbed a can of sparkly white larger-grain edible glitter.

Snicker doodle cookies are pretty much your regular old cookie, coated in a cinnamon sugar dusting. For these, I went ahead and mixed half of the cinnamon sugar bag in with the dough. Then, instead of coating them in the brown cinnamon sugar mix, I combined the glitter ingredients, along with organic white sugar, and rolled the cookie dough balls in there.

But surrsly. Aren't they cute?

P.S. Check out my Pink Hands. What can I say? You caught me pink-handed...

Ingredients:

• 1 bag Snickerdoodle mix
• Accompanying box ingredients (though I did cut the butter in half)
• 1/2 Cup Organic (or regular) granulated sugar
• 1/4 Cup Glitter Crystals (find glitter crystals via Hobby Lobby here)
  
  
• 1 Teaspoon Wilton Pearl Dust in Pink (not available via Hobby Lobby's website, but was available in-store)
  

Directions:

1. Combine Snickerdoodle ingredients as instructed on your chosen box mix. 
2. Instead of rolling the dough in cinnamon and sugar, add half of the instructed cinnamon sugar mixture into the dough and combine until well mixed (that means that, if your box provided a packet, use only half... but if you were instructed to make it yourself, cut the ingredients in that recipe in half).
3. In a shallow bowl, combine granulated sugar, glitter crystals, and Wilton pearl dust. Mix well with fingers or a fork.
4. Roll balls of cookie dough, then roll them in the sugar/glitter/pearl dust mixture until covered and place on a greased cookie sheet. Continue with the rest of the dough.
5. Bake for the prescribed time on the box (I baked mine for 10 minutes) and remove.