Yarn in the Oven

I’m due in less than two weeks…

I was determined to match my mum’s incredible output on her knitting needles, and complete a knitting pattern before D-Day.

This pattern lived up to its name of Quick & Easy…

I completed the project in about 8 hours I’d say… As it only takes 75g of wool I’ll definitely be repeating the exercise for other bumps with nicer wool than this… £1.20 from the charity shop isn’t exactly splashing out, now is it??

Really pleased with the result and looking forward to matching it with a hot pink cord skirt on the little lovely when she’s out and about!

Stir Up Sunday

 

Nigella’s recipe, stirred up two weeks ago… Only alteration was substituting orange juice for the sherry she requests for both the recipe and the ‘feeding’ of the cake…

Decorating to follow…

Sing a song of PASTRY!

After years of fear (of lumpiness) and horror (or overly sticky/dry/crumbly/unrollable etc etc) I finally overcame my worries and MADE PASTRY…

For the less domestically challenged out there this may not be that much of a triumph (how hard can half fat to flour be??) but I was defiant!

 

It was also a winsome excuse to christen the Blackbird Pie Funnel, given to me by a gorgeous friend far too long ago.

Smug is not the word.

And I will now be rolling out the pastry (no pun intended) on a regular basis.

Hoorah.

Tying up (woolly) loose ends

With only three (but maybe five) weeks to go until D-Day I am now sporting a not inconsiderable extra load…

Therefore, I have begun a version of nesting, Helen-style. This has involved going through all my Unfinished Objects (UFOs) and trying to get some closure before my life is turned into one of nappies and muslins rather than pritt sticks and concealed zips.

Baking has inevitably increased ten-fold now that I’m off work on maternity leave. The extra 500 calories a day that my greedy little baby is packing in justifies a large chunk of that be digested in cake. And Ben & Jerrys. I’m a good mother. Saintly, almost…

Stitching-wise, I’ve finished two garlands (one for the front room and one for the dining room fireplaces) of crocheted snowflakes that I’m really pleased with. I was looking for a simple commuting project and my, these work up quickly. Managed to get my speed down to about 8 minutes each without setting the yarn on fire.

 

As I was on such a roll with the garlands, I followed this up with 25 individual ones and looped them up on sisal string for Christmas ornaments and gifts.

 

I’ve also been getting quite excited about retro teatowels recently and went a little bit mad on ebay. Purchased a batch of 10 cotton towels and a fabric stamp pad. Lo and behold, one session with my gorgeous alphabet stamps later and I’ve got a series of Christmas pressies lined up and some ornaments from the rescued bits of cotton from inevitable disastrous first attempt …

Other projects include embroidered linen mounted in hoops, embroidered cushion for friends and hanging clay decorations, none of which can be shared until after Christmas…

Watch this space, but this has been an almightily fun start to maternity leave…

Bake to Simplicity

After a few weeks of experimental baking including Apple Charlotte (tasted yummy but failed to brown at all)…

 

fruit flapjacks (again, tasted yummy but had to be gouged out of the pan with a flame thrower and strong husband)… 

and a drowned lemon syrup sponge (skipped the lining the baking tin stage – crumbled into a bowl in a yummy crumby mess)

I have decided to go back to basics…

Nowt wrong with a huge plate of dolly mix fairy cakes. Utterly scrumptious and so effective, blobby icing and wonky cakes included.

Completely satisfying with knitting and a cup of decaf tea to hand.

Visions of Homemade Sugar Plums...

Continued extract from NCT Christmas Shopping and Crafting article…

Recipes for lemon curd, plum jam, mango chutney, apple sauce and mint jelly can all be found online and are all-round winners in my books as the ingredients are not mind bogglingly expensive (particularly in the quantities required to dose out to relatives), nor do they need thermometers, soft ball testing and other fiddly stages.

Another idea for giving away are shortbread or biscotti. James Martin does the most wonderful recipe for Fruit & Nut Biscotti that keep really well. If you're feeling really clever you can package them in a vintage tin or cellophane and add them to a hamper with all your other treats. Self-applause and flourishes upon presentation optional.

A lovely present popular in the States (but more unusual and hence more deserving of praise and love by your friends in this country) is the Gift in a Jar. You layer in the jar dry ingredients for hot chocolate, say, or a basic cookie dough and then seal the jar with a pretty fabric lid and a label detailing what to add to the ingredients before cooking. Kids can get involved with the layering (like one of the coloured sand sculptures you made as a child) and even get excited with a pritt stick or glass paints to decorate the jars. Recipes can be found here and most even include a printable label for easy peasy wrapping!

You learn a new thing every day – the answer

Is NOT what my sister helpfully wrote on FB when this Note went up:

Picture the scene, you and the Boy are having a nice day - he's playing on the computer and you're baking (OK when i said nice maybe i meant standard) and suddenly you're standing in a puddle of liquidy goo and the Boy shouts:
'OFGHC!!!!!'.......
ie...
Oh (my) Freaking God Helen (it's) Coming!!!!!!

I think the concept of ‘liquidy goo’ is freaking me out more than anything else in that…

I had actually thought I’d worked it out myself and it was something along the lines of Old Fashioned Georgia House Charm but even that wasn’t right!…

Good ol’ Google and FB – old friend from school found the right answer and put me in the know…

Old Farmhouse Gathering Holiday Celebration

I have to say that some of the ideas are lovely but the whole concept of ‘primitive’ crafts can run a bit thin after a while…Just dunking a piece of mediocre stitching in coffee is not my idea of Holidays…

To demonstrate: buttons plus tree = quite cute

Scary proportioned gingerbread men with nooses around their neck = not good.

Anyone else seeing a resemblance…?

You learn a new thing every day…

I will leave you with a challenge and will come back to you with the answer tomorrow…

What does the acronym OFGHC stand for?

It’s taken me some time but I have finally (I *think*) found the answer…

Hint: the acronym was found on Etsy whilst looking at ticking and muslin Christmas tree ornaments…

Christmas Shopping – Online sites

An extract from a recently written article for the NCT St Albans Magazine… Hence the focus on shopping for kids’ pressies…

The ghastly spectre of Christmas is looming in the diary. A mere flick of the calendar pages and singing, sequins, champers and shopping are rearing their heads once more to entice us to spend money on more useless 'stuff' for ungrateful friends and family who want for nothing.

But does it really have to be like this? Do we really have to dread the arrival of the season of goodwill with a groan and a shuffle of credit cards? Each year I try to spend as little as possible for as much impact as possible. True, this plan has enjoyed varying degrees of success (I'm not sure my mother has yet forgiven me for the year of the 'luxury ostrich feather duster') but I like to think that an eye for a bargain and a thought for William Blake* combine to lessen the horror of the bristling pavements.

Not a creature was stirring, except a clicking mouse...

• Compare and compare again on prices and ideas but try to draw the line at things that are so cheap as to cause you to question their origin... Much better to find a gorgeous old basket in a charity shop and fill it with homemade goodies or offerings from St Alban's fabulous market stalls, than buy a plastic hamper from the supermarket for less than £10 and wonder about the provenance...
• Websites that are high on my clickometer would include
• Not on the High Street: this site is choc-full of independent designers' works, usually with a great range available to personalise, and their Christmas gift guide really helps you sort the diamonds from the huge range of gems.
• Mirrormirrorontheweb: a buyer with discretion selects the fine range of goodies here. I particularly love the candles (the depth of scent means they last for much longer than you'd expect) and the reasonably priced but high-impact jewellery means that you can send partners there without fear.
• Though both the above have great kids' sections, other go-tos for kids are the ever dependable Great Little Trading Company and for traditional toys, MulberryBush is great value.
• Other havens for good design are HiddenArtShop and Etsy.com, both of which are worth the rummage if you're at a loose end but the range of products can feel rather like walking into a department store and not having a clue what you want or where to find it!
• If you're buying smellies for the Mother in Law or teenage girl, can I suggest Strawberry Net which undercuts the malls but is reliable enough to avoid eau-de-knock-off.

* Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful…

Christmas shopping…

Don’t hate me…

Don’t stop reading my blog…

Just eye up the candy below and tell me you don’t want SOMEONE to buy it for you…This just helps you give them enough notice!

Avoca Button Ceramic 6 Cup Teapot £39.95

Bliss Ceramics Vintage Underground Poster Mugs £9.95 (also available at the London Transport Museum)

Sewing the World Wooden Box £169.95 (do click through to zoom on the box detail – simply STUNNING)

Lavender Doll £8.95

All to be found at the delectable Bloomsbury Store Online shop…

One Year On… The Informal Pics…

Some of my favourite pictures are the ones taken by friends and family over the course of the crazy day…