Not just chocolate...

Easter is quite a big deal in my family. Other than Christmas it is the only time of the year that all the family get together for a big meal and catch up. Most of my family are based five hours away from me with one of my cousins having to travel just as far to get to see her family too...

At Easter when I was a kid chocolate was always exchanged and everybody, young to old, got an Easter egg. However, as the years have passed, and our waistlines have expanded we have become more aware that chocolate from all members of the family seems far too much so we usually find a little gift instead.

This year I wanted to make a little something for everyone...

My husband bought me a cross stitch kit from Hobbycraft as I had expressed an interest in trying out the art of cross stitch that he had excelled in. However, the kit lay dormant for sometime as it seemed very daunting.

After completing the duck and chick cross stitches (as covered in previous posts) I had a bit more confidence to work at the design for each person.

I decided to give personalised keyrings - all with a letter corresponding to their name.

I had ten to do.

I bought the acrylic keyrings from amazon (link below)...

When you unfold a huge piece of aida it feels so daunting... So I folded it into quarters making it smaller and easier to work with.

Following the pattern in the kit I started doing the letters... Some were harder than others... 's' was particularly difficult for me...

My other problem was that I needed to do something to hide the back of the keyring which was thin to fit with the aida... So I had at look in my box of crafts (an aladdins cave of craft odds and ends) and found some scraps of decoupage paper and thought this would work wonderfully.

These were trimmed down and fitted nicely into the keyrings... The aida had to be trimmed carefully as it was quite difficult to get it flat in the keyrings...

And here they are....



I am pleased with the results... And a few less calories than chocolate!

Back dough-ing my thing... At last!

I cannot believe how long it has been since I last wrote on my blog... But a lot has changed since I last wrote...

The long and short of it is that I have changed job so work less hours for more money (work that out) and get to spend two whole days with my gorgeous daughter which I wasn't able to do beforehand.

I still seem to work in the evenings but that is more my thing rather than work making me...

However, the upshot of all of this means I now have more time for my hobbies: crafting, reading and cooking... And coming up with weird and wonderful ways of doing all three!

As a house move will be happening in the next three months (something I loathe!) I am trying to get myself prepared for events which might just coincide with boxes moving west of the country...

So, I also wanted to combine some of the crafts I do with things that my growing and ever more curious daughter could enjoy with me. And here is our first joint venture (which doesn't involve too much mess!)... Salt dough!

I found a recipe while surfing the net and was taken in by the fact you didn't need to bake it for over 3 hours ...  Instead you bake it in the microwave.

It comes from www.rainydaymum.com - a brilliant site that has all kinds of activities to keep kids busy.
So... Me and and little girl mixed the dough together and I let her play with it for a bit too as what 16 month old doesn't like to get their fingers covered in sticky goo?!

We then roughly rolled out the dough and cut the main shape using a large cookie cutter and then a smaller one to cut out the middle. (I did have to stop my daughter trying to eat the middle bit at this point!)

The shapes were then heated in the microwave in small batches (although the larger the batch the longer the initial drying takes) once the shapes were solid I then put them on the radiator to get rid of any extra moisture that the microwave couldn't do!

A couple of days later (after laying down an old shower curtain as floor protection) we got out an assortment of water based acrylic paints and brushes and I let my daughter do her stuff!

After the shapes were painted they were air dried on the radiator.

I then applied a couple of layers of sealant which was also air dried.

As a finishing touch I added some bakers twine for a hanging.

So here they are: a great present for relatives and so quick and easy to do!

Glitter and feathers...

Just a quick one this evening... I finally found my other creation with feathers for hair...

I particularly like this one because of the sparkle...

This is also on etsy...

Gartered!

In the run up to my wedding I realised that I didn't have a garter to wear.

By pure chance there was a simple pattern for one in the magazine 'Simply Homemade' that month and all you needed was a couple of lengths of ribbon, a length of elastic and some pretty embellishments.

The most tricky bit of this project for me was getting the elastic the right length sat needed to sit comfortably on my thigh but also not itch or be too tight - especially if I was planning to wear it on my wedding day!

Once the elastic was measured I set about sewing the thinner ribbon on the main ribbon and sewing the embellishments on.

The two lengths of ribbon were then sewn together and the elastic was then threaded through the ribbons and the elastic was attached together.

The lace was added as an extra.

The finished product was used on my wedding day - a little personal touch of mine - something that was a part of me that I had made myself!

Not just for Valentines...

One of the very first things I got given when I started crafting was 'Craft' by Kirstie Allsopp. I admire the way that she tackles every craft she tries with an eager enthusiasm.

This cute little project seemed quite a quick little one to do and didn't need more than some felt, a button, a short length of ribbon, some stuffing and some thread.

I tweaked Ms Allsopp's design a little by using polystyrene balls as stuffing (a huge bag of them still lives in my guest room!) I also didn't put a tassel on the bottom as I thought it might look better without it.

I have made a few of these since my first one. They make great gifts for someone you love - or just because you want to remind someone that even if it isn't Valentine's Day you still love them.

These can be found at my etsy shop too!

It's pumpkin night tonight!

Last year I was fortunate enough that my husband dug me out a vegetable patch of my very own. It had been one of my many dreams. I wanted to be able to grow and then make stuff with the vegetables that I grew.

However, last January I fell pregnant which kind of put the dampners on anything that involved a lot of bending down for long periods of time so I needed to plant stuff that would be easy to maintain.

I also had a major store of vegetable seeds that I had been hoarding for as long as me and my husband had been living together (at that time three years!) and couldn't wait to see what I could grow.

The most successful vegetable of the patch was also the one that managed to take over most of the surrounding lawn too - my pumpkins!


Out of the patch I managed to get two huge pumpkins.
The problem with pumpkins is that they take hours to carve up and it also takes time trying to find different recipes to try to use it!

I was given a book for Christmas from my dad which is 'Jams, Pickles and Chutneys' by Midge Thomas - from a series of books by the WI. (See link below!) The ingredients needed were:
1.5 kg pumpkin flesh (no pith or seeds)
1.3kg granulated sugar
675g prepared oranges
675g prepared lemons
1 litre of water
Ginger

I adjusted the recipe and swopped the ginger for cinnamon as I am not a big fan of ginger.

Also needed is a jam pan, jam funnel, wooden spoon and jars.

So the original recipe requires you to prepare your lemons and oranges. I have to admit that I don't want to faff too much so bought my oranges and lemons in tin form... Just as good!

The pumpkin, oranges, lemons and water go into the pan together and then are brought to the boil and then the heat is turned down to a simmer.

This simmer is to soften the pumpkin though in the original recipe it is to soften the peel of the citrus fruits.

Once the pumpkin softened I added the sugar and then turned the heat up to bring it to a boil again. Once boiling I brought the heat down to a medium heat and then waited.

I needed to wait for the mixture to thicken enough for the spoon to leave a clear path at the bottom of the pan ... I didn't wait that long to be honest as I wasn't sure if the fact that I had used tinned oranges and lemons might have affected its setting point so I experimented with how quickly it set on a back of a cold spoon and was satisfied that it would set once jarred up.

The jars had been sterilised earlier in the process in my daughters bottle steriliser (so little hassle!) and were ready to be filled.

I am pleased with the finished product - though it seemed to take a lot longer than the recipe specified. The marmalade tastes good on toast.

Thank you WI for this amazing recipe for using a monster of a pumpkin!
P.s. I love the Kilner range of preserving stuff so that is why I have put links for them here too!

Shark attack!

With valentines day looming and everything related to valentines being pink, full of hearts and cutesy stuff my husband dreads the day. He hates that kind of stuff. Every year I struggle to find him something which has the right sentiment but doesn't come across as too sickly sweet.

This year I decided to make my own present for him. A pair of shark slippers.

My husband is animal crazy... But also loves things that are unique and quirky ... And he bashes slippers to pieces so is in constant need of a new pair or two so shark slippers seemed a good thing to do!

My husband has size 12 feet so I bought the slipper bases on the Internet (link below). I also bought foam for the shark shapes.

I drew out a template and cut out the shapes and pinned them in place. I then sewed the two side pieces to the slippers by hand.

Before sewing on the head pieces I stuck on triangles for the teeth. After leaving it to dry I then sewed the head piece to the top.

I found some googley eyes in my craft boxes and stuck them on.

I now await what my husband thinks ... I hope he likes this alternative valentines gift!