Monthly Archives: July 2012

Pin it? (Not about pincushions!)

6 Replies

Not so long ago, I started to get into Pinterest.  What better way to keep track of awesomeness I thought?  Then I started to read about some issues with it from lots of different sources.  I am not going to go into it all now, but suffice to say, it was enough to stop me using it for a while.  There have been some policy changes and while I am not sure if the issues are resolved fully, I am warily pinning again.

(Although, preparing this blog post has made me think again. I think it is so important to make sure you are pinning the actual person who created the thing’s work.  Not re-pinning a pic someone put on their blog and did not link to the creator.  There were some other wonderful things I was going to share, but folks have not pinned in the honest way I believe they should.  I will not perpetuate it by linking to someone who has done the wrong thing and I will be removing those things I have inadvertently pinned.)

So, what can I show you that I have been pinning?  Here’s a small glimpse. Clicking the images will take you to the source of the pic, not Pinterest.  Credit due to the creators don’t you think?

I pinned this because of the border stitch. There is no pattern, the maker made it up as she went. Clever lady!

Hot Chocolate Cupcakes! If I show this to my girls, they will WANT to make them. Very clever – from Diary of a Ladybird blog

From Martha Stewart – amazingly tiny crochet

Lovely embroidery and a lovely story of how it came to be made – very sweet blog post from The Smallest Forest

Textured crochet method – loads of possibilities for this – from a Russian blog

Great idea – wonderful tutorial too. I might just have to make some for xmas pressies :) From Dog Under My Desk blog

The hot chocolate cupcakes is a case in point.  I first saw them in my Facebook feed, posted by a recipe website.  Ooh Yum I thought & went to look for the recipe to Pin it.  Hmm.  No link with the pic.  Not on their website.  Curious.  So I searched “Hot Chocolate Cupcakes” in good old google and found the true source of the pic - Diary of a Ladybird blog. So I pinned from there.

So there you have it.  I love how Pinterest can organise the wonderful things you can find on the internet, but I am still not 100% comfortable with it.  I will be more wary when re-pinning from now on.  I will make sure the pin is a direct link to the creator before re-pinning or just pin the from creators site myself.  How about you? Are you trustworthy with other people’s work?

A Shoe in

2 Replies

It’s been a week of back to work and school and normal routines with the addition of family coming to stay for a while.  Not a lot of time for crafting or pincishions, so today I thought I’d show you some lovely shoes I have found on etsy.

Now let me start by saying, I’m no shoe fanatic.  I don’t get the whole fascination with shoes or handbags to be honest.    I have 4 pairs.  Yup – 4.  Boots, runners, slip on flats & thongs.   I only get new ones when they wear out.  But things may be changing…

How awesome are these?  Some of these are meant for children, but I’d wear them in adult size – maybe.

Custom leather handmade fairytale shoes by Fairysteps

Eco Friendly Children Slipper Socks by Wooly baby

MACHADO SHOES/ unique Oxford shoes by Machado Shoes

House Shoes with Leather Sole in dark red and rust orange by leninka

Custom Handmade Ankle Boots by zerkahloostrah

There you have it.  Maybe I do have a bit of that shoe fetish so common in a lot of women I know after all.

See you next week.

Whoops!

4 Replies

The second week of school holidays has flown by.  We have been a bit more out and about this week, with a little less emphasis on baking sweet things.  We are all a bit over them to be honest.  Need a few days of fruit & veg & salads I think to de-tox LOL.

I was very happy on Monday when my wonderful wool from Bendigo Wollen Mills arrived. I chose Luxury pure wool and it is just so soft and drapey – exactly what I was after for this throw.

I couldn’t wait to start my throw that will be just for me.  So I didn’t – I started!

I kept going every spare minute a nd soon discovered I had a problem.  This is the first time I am making a large scale project where I have to work out the wool requirements myself.  The pattern calls for an America yarn and I was confident the wool I had chosen was pretty much the same.  I looked at the length each ball of the recommended yarn and simply ordered the equivalent length in the Bendigo wool.  Bah bah – wrong!  I completed the first round of the pattern that repeats 6 more times and I’ve already used a whole ball of wool!  At this rate I will need at least another 5 balls  - that’s an extra 1500 metres of wool!  Hmm I’ve obviously got to learn about more about converting wools.   Oh well!  Hopefully, if I order quick enough the dye lot will be the same.

On a more successful note, I also crocheted up a beanie for a couple of my kidlets.

Since last week’s blog post, I’ve had a request for the recipe for one of the baking wonders, so here it is :

Lime and White Chocolate Fingers

250g (9oz/2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

145g (5oz/2/3 cup) caster (superfine) sugar

75g (2 1/2 oz) unsalted butter, melted

2 tablespoons lime juice

grated zest from 2 limes

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 egg yolk

150 g (5 1/2 oz) white chocolate chopped

Preheat oven to 170 deg C (325 deg F/ gas 3).  Lightly grease and flour 2 baking trays

Sift the flour & baking powder into a large bowl and stir in the sugar.  Whisk together the butter, lime juice, zest,vanilla, egg yolk until combined.  Add butter mixture to floour mixture and stir until a firm dough forms.

Take tablespoons of the dough and , on a lightly floured board, roll into thin logs 12 cm (4 1/2 inched) long.  Place on prepared trays and bake for 10 minutes or ntil firm, swapping position of the trays halfway.  Cool on the trays for 5 minutes, then on a wire rack til cooled completely.

Melt your chocolate and drizzle over cooled biscuits.  Leave to set (if you can).  Enjoy :)

The recipe comes from a cookbook called “Bake it” by Murdoch Books.  The librarian in me must quote the ISBN : 9781741966404 Dewey number 641.815.

See you next week.

The plan is working…

2 Replies

Last week I shared with you my plan for the school holidays.  Well, one week in and its working well. :)

We have been crossing things off our lists left right & centre.  Here’s just some of what we’ve been up to

Ripple crochet cushion cover progress

Lemon tart by oldest

Netbook bag sewing by middlest – who has also created the pattern herself

Beanie made for the 100 Beanie Drive (click the pic  just over on the right for more info)

Taught smallest how to sew buttons

Block 20 of my block a week crochet throw

Prepped ladybirds for pincushions

Listed some stuff

Lime & white chocolate fingers by middlest

Quiche for lunch by youngest

Ladybirds pincushion made

Looked for whales – didn’t see any

Got some exercise

Pondered where to go

Finished my ripple cushion

Made a new ladybird pincushion for my shop (available soon)

Played Cluedo

I haven’t been able to start my ambitious crochet throw because I ordered the wool online and it hasn’t arrived yet.  I’ve been a bit like an excited  puppy, racing to the collect the mail each day and been disappointed.  Maybe today?  Hope so :)

Plus we went to the movies,  sorted a lot of cupboards and drawers about the house & did a bit of a spring clean in winter .  I am one happy camper :)  Next week will be a lot different as we’ll be having a social week – lots of friends, lunches, sleep overs and fun.  Hopefully, I’ll still be crossing off things from my lists.

Before I leave you this week, if you have  a spare minute, pop on over to the  100 beanie drive.  Its being organised by my online friend Jess of epheriell designs.  Jess is asking for beanies, scarves and gloves to be donated to patients battling cancer.  I am sure we all know someone who has been through this.  The beanie drive is a small way to help someone feel a moment of being warm in their heart as well as bodily, and know that someone out there is thinking of them.

How have your holidays been?