Brenda Novak's For the Cure Auction

is

 LIVE! 

Though I'm sad that I won't be placing my candy up for auction, I do have three beautiful afghans this year!
Let's see how much money my three afghans can raise this year! 

This year I'm donating under For Everyone tab:

ANGELS ALL AROUND AFGHAN
Finished size 46" X 61"

Shades of Blue Flower Afghan

WOW! This afghan is already at $28 on the very first day! 

Finished size 50" X 62"

Flower Patch Afghan

finished size 46" X 53"

close up of square

border color is dark green

Brenda Novak's For the Cure Auction

Brenda Novak's 2014 For the Cure Auction opens May 1! 

My donations made $621 out of the $358,315 raised in 2013!!! 

Let's see how much money my three afghans can raise this year! 

This year I'm donating under For Everyone tab:

ANGELS ALL AROUND AFGHAN
Finished size 46" X 61"

Angels All Around afghan

Close up of angels

If you want a color other than ivory, you will have to choose it from a list of possible colors and give me 4-6 weeks to make it. 

Shades of Blue Flower Afghan

Finished size 50" X 62"

close up of flower

Flower Patch Afghan

finished size 46" X 53"

close up of square

border color is dark green

I am not donating candy this year (2014). :-( 

Monkey OFF my Back

Wow, I never realized how much the Brenda Novak For the Cure Auction candy donations would be like the monkey on my back.

I knew it was there, as it periodically yanked my hair, or tickled my neck, or simply threw poo around.

But there wasn't anything I could do about it . . . until now.

The candy boxes are packed, labeled, and ready for mailing.

And I DO want to thank all the ladies who donated and won my candy. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did making it. Yes, I know I complained, lamented, and gritched, but that's my process . . . actually, making candy is very similar to writing a book.

Here's what the box of Truffles looked like:

Here's the note I put inside:

 

 

I opted for the milk and dark chocolate mixture, and I picked the chocolates that came out a slightly bigger mold.

 

Cup 'o Joe (Kahlua) the only one molded in white chocolate didn't make the cut because the mold was a little too small for this box insert.

 

Amaretto--one of my favorites--didn't make the cut either because of the specialized shape, a slightly elongated heart. I would have had to destroy one of the candy wells to make it fit in the box insert.

 

As I've mentioned before I make my own fillings so I know which ones work better with the milk chocolate or the dark chocolate. Some of the fillings can stand up to both the coatings, but I went for the checkerboard 'look' of the finished product.

 

A couple of the fillings turned out so much better than I expected--Pilgrim's Progress (maple with minced walnut--while some of the other new flavors will need a little tweaking.

 

This doesn't mean the flavors are bad, just that they aren't as strong as I would like them to be.

 

When I was making my fillings, I gushed over a couple of them: Bronx Cheer (raspberry) and Midnight Magic (blackberry).

 

Bronx Cheer was EVERYTHING I could possibly wish for (it's in the dark raspberry shell). It turned out perfect, right up there with my best flavors: Limoncello, Key Lime, Strawberry Margarita, Grand Marnier, and Black Forest.

 

While Midnight Magic was good, it wasn't up there with the right flavor tone as it had a slightly sweeter taste rather than the tart one I was trying to make. 

 

I'll be tweaking the fillings today or tomorrow. Along with some that I didn't pack in the box: Mango Madness, Cranberry Delight, and Pom Pucker.

 

But there's no hurry now since I have this monkey off my back . . . now, we have to finish making Halloween costumes, get ready for my daughter's birthday and Thanksgiving before I have to even think about making chocolate again.

 

Later, Peeps! 

Candy, Candy, Candy!

I've been a little busy this week molding candy.

No, this isn't the candy that I make for Christmas, but rather the candy for the Brenda Novak Auction winners from last May.

I waited until cooler weather, simply because I didn't want the winners to get a pile of chocolate goo in the mail.

The Sea Salt Caramels were made about two weeks ago. Remember that fiasco? First, I cut the caramel pieces too small, then too large. I then made two 'perfect' batches back-to-back. When I dipped them they got all gross and melty--but I have to say, they tasted REALLY AWESOME! . . .no wonder I didn't lose any weight this week--many of them were too large for the form in the chocolate box. The next day I had an epiphany about checking the calibration of my candy thermometers (insert thermometers in boiling water--212 F or 100 C. Easy-peasy), and discovered that the thermometer I used on the last two batches was low by 10-12 degrees! YIKES!

Two new batches were made, using my good candy thermometer. I actually 'measured' the caramel pieces pre-dipped, so they would fit in the forms, so the five Sea Salt Caramel boxes are ready to go.

Of course, there will be some variation in size due to the candy maker's (ME) inability to cut and dip 'Perfect' pieces of caramel.

Onward to the truffles! Yes, I make all the fillings. It took me a few years of experimenting, but for the most part I'm happy with the results. Some of the newer flavors need a touch of tweaking.

Here is a picture of how I stored these babies. Normally, I have a separate box for each truffle flavor, but since I only made one batch, which gives me eight pieces, of each flavor. I mixed the candies in the storage containers to save on space.

23 flavors of candy

 

One of the winners wanted all her pieces to be dark chocolate, but that isn't happening.

 

Look, I know my flavors. I know which ones can stand up to the dark chocolate and which ones that will be overwhelmed by the dark chocolate . . . though there are a few experimental ones in the dark chocolate, namely Whiskey Toffee Crunch, Rum Raisin, and Pomegranate Pucker. Those might not make the cut into the auction boxes. . . . I'll have to sample them later

 

Sucks to be me, right?

 

And now you know why I will ALWAYS be on Weight Watchers and fighting to keep my weight under control!

 

Left side, starting from the bottom left corner, candies from left to right, lovingly coated in milk chocolate . . .

 

Box One: Frangelico, Barenjager (honey), Gingerbread, and Cherries Jubilee (cherries in a white truffle base)

 

Box Two: Black Forest (cherries in dark chocolate truffle), Midnight Magic (blackberry), Mango Madness, and Pilgrim's Progress (maple with walnuts)

 

Box Three: Strawberry Margarita, Grand Marnier, Amaretto, and ButterShots

 

Right side, top to bottom, starting at the top right corner, smothered in dark chocolate . . . with the one white chocolate exception , , ,

 

Box Four: Rum Raisin, Cranberry, Pomegranate Pucker, and Chocomel (caramel)

 

Box Five: Bronx Cheer (raspberry), Key Lime, and Peppermint Schnapps

 

Box six: the only one coated in white chocolate is . . . Cup 'o Joe!, Whiskey Toffee Crunch, Limoncello, and last, but certainly not least, Ride the Wave (salted caramel)

 

Some candies have fun names, other candies I simply used the base liquor as the name. Yep, all of the candies are made with booze, although I cook the alcohol out of the filling. So they are child friendly.

 

Gotta go pack some candy after I test drive a couple of flavors. FYI: I do test the fillings prior to molding them, but the flavor profiles change when they are molded in chocolate.  Then I have to see how I can put them in the boxes to make them look the prettiest.

 

Later, Peeps!

 

 

Brenda Novak's For the Cure Auction Update

Brenda Novak's For the Cure of Juvenile Diabetes is now closed for 2013.

Brenda's efforts have raised $358,315!! with a total amount raised in all the years she's been doing this of over 2 MILLION dollars to help find a cure of Juvenile Diabetes.

My efforts were small compared to some authors, but every little bit helped.

My candy and afghan raised over $621!

My Angels All Around afghan raised $130.

 

Five boxes of Sea Salt caramels raised $255.

 

 Five boxes of Chocolate Truffles raised $236



The smallest bid that won a box of chocolate truffles and Sea Salt Caramels went for was $43.

The highest bid that won a box of chocolate truffles and Sea Salt Caramels went for $60.

Two people bid and won BOTH a box of Seas Salt Caramels AND a box of Chocolate Truffles.

The afghan will by USPSing it's way to the northern reaches of Alberta Canada today, but alas the chocolates will have to wait until Oct-Nov. to be made, boxed and mailed.

I want to thank everyone who supported this wonderful cause. It is close to my heart since juvenile diabetes runs in my family, along with adult-onset diabetes.

Later, Peeps!

Brenda Novak's For the Cure of Juvenile Diabetes Auction

Started at the beginning of May and will run to May 31. I've been remiss about posting this, but it was in the tabs of my blog header.

There are tons of items/vacations/writerly/non-writerly/crafty/non-crafty/books stuff to bid on.

Of course, I've donated to the cause again this year.

Today is a one day auction for my truffle candies. At 6:30 AM, they already are going for $23.

Check the links for the other items to pull you to the page and then see what other stuff is available for the bidding!

Brenda Novak's 2013 For the Cure Auction is open to donations! Click the embedded link to find all sorts of goodies that will be up for auction. Plan ahead. The auction starts May 1 and closes May 31, 2013. Many of my chocolates will be up for one day auctions. I'm supposed to be notified so I can tweet/FB/Google+ my peeps!

This year I'm donating under the Art, Jewelry, Handcrafted items:
 
Currently going for a STEAL at $70. Last year this afghan raised $160!

ANGELS ALL AROUND AFGHAN

Angels All Around afghan

Close up of angels

If you want a color other than ivory, you will have to choose it from a list of possible colors and give me 4-6 weeks to make it. 

Under For Everyone tab are my chocolates, scroll down to find them.
FIVE boxes of artisan chocolates

Molded candies:

Truffle filling flavors offered--yes, I make all my own fillings using prodigious amounts of butter, heavy cream, high quality Ghirardelli chocolate (white and dark), liquor, along with appropriate fruits and nuts.

 As of this posting, they are going for $35-38/box

 

-Amaretto—Amaretto di Saronno (almond) liquor

-Bäranjäger—a honey liquor

-Black Forest—minced cherries soaked in Kirshwasser prior to blending into a dark truffle filling.

-ButterShots—Butterscotch schnapps made into a dark truffle filling

-Chambord—Puree of blackberries and raspberries (seeds are strained out) and Chambord liquor

-Cranberry Cosmo--cranberries, vodka, with a twist of orange zest

-Frangelico—Frangelico (hazelnut) liquor

-Gingerbread--ginger root in vodka, with cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and molasses

-Grand Marnier—juice and zest from oranges and Grand Marnier

-Key Lime—Juice and zest from Key Limes, and Tanqueray Gin

-Limoncello—#1 favorite flavor “perfect combination of sweet, lemony tartness”—lemon juice and zest, and Limoncello liquor

-Peppermint Schnapps—Rumple Minze schnapps and peppermint oil

-Rum Raisin—Raisins macerated in Bacardi Select rum

-Strawberry Margarita—frozen strawberries, lime juice and Cuervo Gold tequila

-Whiskey Toffee—Jack Daniels black label whiskey and toffee pieces

AND

Five Boxes of Sea Salt Caramels

As of this posting, they are going for $43-50/box!

Sea Salt Caramels—seriously to DIE for—buttery, creamy caramel with a crunch of sea salt for the sweet and salty treat we all seem to crave-milk or dark chocolate dipped

Please take some time and look over all the wonderful items that have been donated to the cause. Many of them have reserves that have yet to be met. Please help Brenda raise donations for Juvenile Diabetes research.

 

Later, Peeps!

Yarn

So I wonder which one I'll chit-chat about today:

A) Spinning a good yarn, i.e. telling a good tale.

B) Yarn the material used in knitting or crocheting. Originally spun from wool, but now made from synthetic fibers.

Hm, A or B? A or B?

Actually, I thought about B, but if I have time I might touch on A.

Today, the topic is yarn, the material. And as any good blog reader wonders, "What's up with that?"

Here's the dealio. I finished making the Angels All Around afghan and mailed it to my brother--hopefully this bro will think to send me an email to let me know it arrived safely--*hint, hint*--and yes, this is a sore subject on many levels.

Anyhoo, the yarn brand I usually buy from Hobby Lobby--I Love this Yarn--was cleaned out. Though I did find six skeins (I had an extra one already) of the same lot number of Ivory to make another Angels All Around for Brenda Novak's For the Cure auction in May. But they didn't have enough skeins of a light and dark color to make a different afghan called, Comfy Cozy.

1 of 12 strips, dark sage green

Red Heart had two colors that would work, plus it was a dollar less per skein. I chose dark sage for the centers of the strips and light sage for the borders. The strips are narrower than the other patterns, but I have to make more of them.

While crocheting the first strip, I wasn't paying attention to the texture since hubs and I were catching up on Arrow, and I was learning a new pattern. I started crocheting the second strip while watching the kidlet at swim practice. That was when I started to pay attention to the texture. Maybe it was just the heat and humidity in the natatorium, but I really don't care for the texture of this brand--it's coarse to work with and doesn't slide through my fingers as easily. *blech*

Oh, I'll finish this afghan, and the colors will look very pretty, especially if my other bro has brown leather furniture, but I hope the yarn becomes easier to work with.

We shall see. I'll discuss spinning a good tale vs. diagramming sentence structure at a later date.
Won't that be special?

Later, Peeps!

For The Cure Auction

is now over. This year, she raise over $300,000 dollars!

And my donated items raised a total of $429!

Brenda Novak started this auction to raise monies to aid research to find a cure for Juvenile Diabetes. Her son has juvenile diabetes, and so do my sister and niece. It runs in my family, along with Adult onset diabetes. And yes, I'm keeping a sharp eye out for symptoms in my daughter since she is at one of the pivotal ages for it to strike.


If you never clicked the FOR THE CURE tab, then here is a picture of ANGELS ALL AROUND afghan that fetched $210!

A five one-pound boxes of my artisan candy raised $219, from $40-$50 a box! WOW!! 

Here is the descriptions I sent to the winners of the candy.

I probably need to work on the mouth-watering descriptions, but I tried!

The molded chocolates can be made with milk, dark or white chocolate (though the only one I like coated with the white chocolate is Kahlua) shells.

The truffle fillings are made with pure cane sugar, heavy cream, Ghirardelli white or dark chocolate along with the various fruits and/or liquor.

 -Limoncello—#1 favorite flavor “perfect combination of sweet, lemony tartness”—lemon juice and zest, and Limoncello liquor

-Key Lime—Juice and zest from Key Limes, and Tanqueray Gin

-Peppermint Schnapps—Rumple Minze schnapps and peppermint oil

-Grand Marnier—juice and zest from oranges and Grand Marnier

-Amaretto—Amaretto di Saronno (almond) liquor

-Frangelico—Frangelico (hazelnut) liquor

-Whiskey Toffee—Jack Daniels black label whiskey and toffee pieces

-Rum Raison—Raisons macerated in Bacardi Select rum

-Strawberry Margarita—frozen strawberries, lime juice and Cuervo Gold tequila

-ButterShots—Butterscotch schnapps made into a dark truffle filling

-Chambord—Puree of blackberries and raspberries (seeds are strained out) and Chambord liquor

-Black Forest—minced cherries soaked in Kirshwasser prior to blending into a white truffle filling. Excellent with the dark chocolate coating.

The hand dipped candies are coated with milk chocolate, with the exception of the Grand Marnier Caramels:

-Sea Salt Caramels—seriously to DIE for—buttery, creamy caramel with a crunch of sea salt for the sweet and salty treat we all seem to crave

-Grand Marnier Caramels—a Grand Marnier and orange infused caramel dipped in dark chocolate

-Devil’s Cut Whiskey Caramels—“the angels might enjoy the whiskey evaporated out of the barrel, but give the devil his due with the intensely flavored bottom of the barrel whiskey”

-Bananas Foster Caramels—bananas cooked in brown sugar and rum equals heaven in a caramel

-Chambord Caramels—Chambord, blackberries and raspberries (seeds are strained out!)

-Aftershock Cinnamon Caramels—Aftershock schnapps

-Cherries Jubilee Caramels—pureed cherries macerated in brandy

Or

Buttery Pecan Toffee—Pecan toffee is hand dipped in milk chocolate and tossed with ground pecans

So if you didn't bid on any items this year, then stick around you'll get a chance to bid during May 2013!

Or you can email me and place an order for Christmas!

Later, Peeps! 

For the Cure of Diabetes 2012

Today is the first day of Brenda Novak's For the Cure of Diabetes auction!

Diabetes runs in my family, juvenile and adult onset, so this auction is close to my heart.

There is a TON of items you can bid on, just search down the left hand column for the category of your choice. Personally, I'd look through all the categories because you never know what gems will be hiding. There is everything from Once in a Lifetime Experience to having your name put in a Best Selling author's book--heck, I'd do this for free!

Brenda is even giving away an IMac for the highest number of bids.

There are items for writers, aspiring writers, readers or simply because.

I had to search for a little bit to find out where my items have been placed. They are under: Art and Handcrafted Items.

My candy offerings are there . . . holy-moly! One is already up to $25?? On the first day of auction? Are you kidding me?? Wowzers! My afghan has received zero bids so far. I hope that changes as the month continues.

Take your time, look through all the offerings and bid on the one(s) of your choice. The proceeds go to a good cause.

Later, Peeps!